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Wearing Power Armor to a Magic School (117/?) WiP 1
🕑 Added 2025-02-15 22:57:41 +0000 UTCHey everyone! Here is the Work in Progress for Chapter 117 I hope you guys enjoy! :D
Grand Concourse of Learning. Betreyan’s Hall. Local Time: 1155 Hours.
Professor Vanavan
Music blared behind the hall’s heavy-set doors, marking the end to a class that felt as if it had barely even begun.
So sudden was this passage in time, that I could even attribute its anomalous pace to the involvement of chronomancy.
The involvement of which… wouldn’t have been so out of place, given the weeks’ preceding events.
My eyes turned to the source of the past week’s blights.
The purveyor of crisis upon crisis.
The very reason why this morning’s class had felt so… brisk.
The Blue Knight.
It was her lack of involvement in today’s class that had restored a sense of equilibrium and balance, a state of normalcy to the morning’s lecture.
And it was likewise her incessant involvement that had brought about a week of veritable chaos, and the scrutiny of both forces and interests outside of our control.
A silent war waged in the crossroads of academia and noble intrigue was well underway.
A war, which while ostensibly started by the earthrealmer, was one which she was not privy to.
As the battles were fought not with steel nor fists, but with words and ink.
A battle which I would continue to fight. If only to fulfil my oaths and promises, to a being I had both successfully managed to analyze yet woefully failed to predict.
My eyes quickly glanced down at the unfinished letter sitting beneath the pile of homework, a nearly-finished rebuttal to the Inner Guard Captain Anoyaruous Frital, as she continued to push forth for an investigation which was soon to proceed into its next phase.
A phase which would necessitate the involvement of an indisposed party.
A party which was now in the process of—
TOO-TOO-TOOOOT!
CLINK-CLINK-CLINK!
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Grand Concourse of Learning. Betreyan’s Hall. Local Time: 1200 Hours.
Qiv
“Class is dismissed! You may all be excused for lunch in the grand dining hall.” The professor spoke softly, or at least, that’s what it always felt like when the man was up against anything marginally louder than a stray whisper.
I silenced those thoughts as quickly as they arose however.
As in spite of my… personal reservations on the man’s character, this did not detract from his place within the de-facto hierarchy, and his natural position as a Crownlands-born elf.
Authority and rank. Title and birthright. Both inalienable aspects of the greater game which one simply could not ignore, not even for a character as weak as his own.
As character alone hardly spoke much for an individual’s capacity if Ping and Booker were of any indication.
The former of which now stood up promptly, corralling his own cohort, as I did my own, as we slowly filed out of the hall.
Though irrelevant to the growing games of Academy intrigue, I couldn’t help but to focus on the newrealmer’s… strangeness on this day.
A strangeness which began the moment I laid my eyes upon her homework, and one which continued on throughout the course of the morning’s lecture.
I could however attribute the latter to the newrealmer’s gradual attunement to the social decorum of Nexian academia. As even beings with the thickest of skulls had the capacity to learn and adapt, if only to survive within hostile new environments.
Though it was the former that had truly lodged itself within the back of my mind.
And not for any real concern over the content nor quality of her homework.
No.
Instead… my concerns lay with the medium through which they were delivered.
Her words.
Or more specifically, her handwriting.
And her apparent mastery over Nexian calligraphy.
Utilizing high script, sans abbreviations, sans simplistic reduction, with not one apparent use of shorthand even when it was socially appropriate.
When combined with her newrealmer status, and the purposeful lack of meaningful time to prepare what would otherwise take the most gifted of scribes decades to master — her few pages of homework just became all the more remarkable.
The simplest solution to this debacle — that she merely used a bespoke enchanted pen — was preposterous.
As even ignoring her apparent shielding of her manafield — thus relinquishing any and all ability to interact with enchanted items — there was still the matter of intent behind her script.
Yes, each and every letter was perfect.
But the fact that each and every letter, of each and every word was written in highscript? With all of the flourishes and serifs that came with it?
This… was near obsessive degrees of penmanship.
Which could only mean she’d either trained, or had honed a sort of… iron-willed discipline, the likes of which could only be comparable to the zealousness of Ping’s kind.
Perhaps I was merely overthinking things.
Perhaps this was well and truly just a practiced skill.
Perhaps there really wasn’t anything more to ponder.
But when one factors in the newrealmer’s proclivities for the eccentric… it became merely another aspect of her being to be wary of.
As… whatever it was that lay beneath that armor, was a dormant threat lying in waiting.
A sleeping dragon whose capacity for the impossible was only rivalled by their discipline.
Even if that discipline seemed lacking in much of their social interactions.
“Lord Ratom?” A voice suddenly brought me out of my reverie, a soft, high-pitched, purposefully inoffensive voice.
“Yes, Lord Rostarion?” I replied politely.
“Are you feeling well?”
“Why yes, I was merely…” I paused, my eyes locking onto the newrealmer’s sudden jolt in the midst of her stride, as if she was suddenly taken over by a ghost or a spirit. “... pondering a few matters.”
The small furry mage shot a look towards the ragtag group in question, his eyes leveling if only for a moment, relaying the true thoughts behind that inoffensive facade.
“They are no threat to us, Lord Ratom. I can guarantee you this.” He stated in no uncertain terms beneath a veil of secrecy.
“Practically? Yes. They seem to be learning their place. Refusing to compete in the accumulation of points even when they very well could. However, it is not the matter of practical competition which concerns me.”
This answer brought about the raised brow of Airit and Uven, the latter of which seemed to have woken through their perpetual daze if only for this subject matter.
“It is the… unpredictable and enigmatic nature of their newrealmer compatriot that I am most concerned with.” I stated in no uncertain terms.
“A weakfielder who works primarily with parlor tricks.” Airit responded with a dismissive chuff. “Believe me, Lord Qiv, even the enigmatic have their limits. We have already witnessed her limits during the House Choosing Ceremony. She barely participated even when she had the chance to! This newrealmer is a fire that burns bright, but just as with any bright flame, it will soon burn itself out soon enough.”
“I suppose so.” I acknowledged with a nod, not willingly dismissing the fiery response of the Shatorealmer just yet.
“I know so.” She followed up with a sly grin, her eyes locking not on the newrealmer, but on her tainted partner.
Comments
Conviviacr
I don't think lack of damage impacts the severity of response at all. You touch the bird lady and Emma will figure out a way to cast throw rock on an astroid (aka small trajectory adjustment to a big rock) in your adjacent realm.
Conviviacr
... If it is an ancient office printer I am shocked the damn thing worked. I work in IT and fuck printers. They are esoteric devices that mix mechanical, fluids, heat and the digital.... When they work they are great. When you need to troubleshoot those fuckers it requires profane sacrifices to the IT gods...
Willow Arkan
That would be really funny, everyone is unnerved from her change of behavior and here she is napping.
Willow Arkan
Or for a sillier solution she sticks out her four nonthumb fingers and starts printing with four color streams.
Willow Arkan
I suspect if she tries she will find thacea are harder nut to crack than she expects
Willow Arkan
She uses the ancient magic of a printer. It'd be funny if in one of her boxes there's just this ancient office printer, those big box shaped ones, just barely wifi capable.
Hughes Andrew
Emma did read it. She did it the chapter after she asked EVI to generate it. Granted she was tired when she did so, but there were no glaring errors in the text.
ElAyVee
She can just ask EVI to show her a virtual copy and highlight the relevant part, and everyone else would be none the wiser.
Michael Halpern
Medics arrive; Emma casts "Malicious compliance" "I'm sorry but our Dean has forbidden me from discussing what just happened to this person's knee after they assaulted my peer, if he removes his censor I will gladly provide all relevant information to ensure a swift recovery"
Michael Halpern
they know she's "strong"
ANTIcarrot
Still think Emma will get in trouble for not reading that homework. Modern AI text generators can produce some impecable nonsense. And While this AI is much more sophisticated, it might also be sophisticated enough to engage in malicious compliance. There's also the issue of Emma being asked about it. Given it's perfection, and the apparent complexity of high nexian, there may be genuine suspicion as to whether she herself actually wrote it. Especially since she didn't. Vanavan might be tempted to test her. And it appears that Emma just got a ping from one of her little spies... Methinks that shortly Emma is is not quite as ignorant of that little war as Vanavan thinks she is.
Marshel Helsper
A "sleeping dragon" you could say.
Marshel Helsper
I think by way of armored boot. The horror of being in the Blue Knight's vice grip and seeing that boot come in at your knee... Oof.
Google Google
I'm not the best at advice. Great story, but don't be Afraid Delay your story. After all Most of us in the Patrion Is here to support the story. One more thing, Try not Rush your work. Think as much time as you need.
Tainted_But_Thriving
The comments on her penmanship are absolutely hilarious great job writing
SoylentPudding
Emma casts non-magic missile
Michael Halpern
knee first as a warning shot
Pete Magnuson
Seems like she slept through it yeah. The "shudder as a ghost takes over" is probably when she disables autopilot
Michael Halpern
I predict at least a destroyed knee. cause, small high velocity object
Conviviacr
.... Don't touch the bird lady... She is Emma's equivalent of the US's boats.... You will get obliterated and your realm sent back to the stone age ...
Google Google
One of the Noble students: She has perfect handwriting!!???
Kirk Childers
DO NOT PROVOKE THE SLEEPING GIRL!
TheEagerReader
I hope the author keeps this pace. Things are progressing now. Can’t wait for the full chapter to drop.
Bbobsillypants
I think she just fell asleep, and no one noticed.
Gawain Dragon
These always make me more fired up for the next day!
Lorventus
Ohhhhh this is gonna go bad for someone... Just... Really gd bad... Broken bones and torn muscles bad.
Generationslayer
I'm waiting for the moment where someone ask her to correct something on one of her homeworks so she holds out her hand and a laser like from metal gear solid 5 comes out and rewrites the answer and everyone's like "wtf was that!"
tom
So Emma did get the off-button hypospray?
Christian White
Imagine if Emma was TRYING to impress these people
