"You’ve got to be kidding me, right?"
Tristin’s voice broke through the murmurs spreading across the training ground.
His eyes were fixed on Maxwell, who had already risen from his throw pillow and moved to join the other students who claimed to have reached the required level of mastery in one of the Three Main Skills of Alchemy.
Unlike Vera, Veda, Diane, Ravenor, and the other recognized geniuses standing among them, Maxwell’s presence immediately attracted attention.
And not the good kind.
"Yeah... how can a loser commoner learn a skill like that?"
Basil added without bothering to lower his voice.
He looked Maxwell up and down with open disbelief, almost as if Maxwell standing among those students was some kind of mistake Professor Kent hadn’t noticed yet.
Tristin shared the same thought.
His expression slowly darkened.
Even if his Master is someone great, who cares?
He had already investigated enough about Maxwell to know the commoner wasn’t completely ordinary.
That still didn’t make sense to him.
He’s still just a commoner.
Tristin’s fingers tightened against his knee.
To him, talent in Cognis wasn’t something that should simply appear from nowhere.
The children of Alchemist families were born into bloodlines that had produced Alchemists for generations. They were trained from young ages, given resources, taught how to control Cognis, and introduced to concepts ordinary people might never even hear about throughout their entire lives.
De-formularizing was already difficult enough towards learning the Law of Inversion.
Yet Maxwell...
A boy born from commoners without any known bloodline capable of using Cognis...
Was supposedly talented enough to stand beside the recognized geniuses of Britannia?
No way.
Tristin refused to believe it.
His jaw tightened.
I refuse to believe that a Prince like me is below some commoner who was simply lucky.
The more he thought about it, the worse his expression became.
Maxwell noticed Tristin’s glare.
He also noticed Basil.
And the many other students were staring at him as though he had committed some terrible crime by raising his hand.
"Well, too bad for you."
Maxwell shrugged.
"I do know how to use the skill."
There wasn’t much anger in his response.
He simply sounded confident.
That confidence only made several students react more.
"He’s lying."
"No way."
"Does he think saying it confidently makes it true?"
"Maybe he learned some cheap imitation and thinks that’s the Law of Inversion."
More voices joined in.
Some students laughed.
Others whispered to their friends while openly looking toward Maxwell.
The training ground, which had only recently become quiet, slowly filled with noise again.
Cherry remained seated near the place where Maxwell had been sitting before, he joined the students who claimed mastery.
Her fingers tightened slightly against her skirt.
She looked around.
Almost everywhere she turned, someone was staring at Maxwell.
Some looked doubtful.
Some were amused.
Others didn’t even try hiding the contempt on their faces.
Cherry’s brows lowered.
She knew Maxwell could be reckless with his words sometimes, especially after what he had declared during the welcoming briefing on their first day, but hearing so many people openly mocking him still made her uncomfortable.
Maxwell himself didn’t seem bothered enough to back down, he only usually felt embarrassed about the attention.
His golden eyes moved from one student to another.
Then...
"Quiet down."
Professor Kent’s voice carried across the training ground.
It wasn’t a shout.
He simply raised his voice enough for its firmness to cut through the conversations.
The effect was immediate.
The laughter stopped.
Students closed their mouths one after another.
Kent remained seated in his folding chair for a moment, the black shades still resting over his eyes.
"There is no need to behave like uncultured children."
Several students immediately looked away.
Kent raised one hand.
"Everyone who raised their hand will be tested on their level of mastery before they’re awarded any Academy Points."
He pointed toward the students standing at the front.
"Only after passing that test will they move on to learning the second skill."
His hand lowered.
"And before anyone starts complaining about favoritism, secret tests, family influence, or whatever else your minds can come up with..."
Kent smiled faintly.
"The test will happen in front of all of you."
That silenced a few remaining whispers.
If Maxwell was lying, everyone would see it.
And if he wasn’t...
They would see that too.
"Professor?"
A hand rose among the students.
Kent turned.
Logan Drakes had raised his hand.
"Yes?"
"Would it be okay..."
Logan’s lips curved into a smug smile.
"...if I’m allowed to be the one to test the commoner?"
Several heads turned toward him.
Maxwell’s golden eyes narrowed slightly.
Kent tilted his head.
"And why would you even want to stress yourself doing that?"
His voice sounded genuinely uninterested.
Logan stood.
He placed one hand against his chest before looking around at his fellow students.
"Well, Professor, you can already see that many of my fellow students find it difficult to believe someone like him could master a skill like the Law of Inversion."
He spoke calmly, almost as though he had appointed himself the representative of everyone who doubted Maxwell.
Kent stared at him through his shades.
"What makes you think he can’t master it?"
Logan barely needed time to answer.
"It’s because he’s a commoner."
He said it as though the answer should have been obvious.
A few students nodded immediately.
Then several more.
From their expressions, they genuinely didn’t understand why Kent even needed to ask.
Cherry looked around at them.
Her worry increased.
She then looked toward Maxwell.
He hadn’t spoken again.
His golden eyes remained narrowed on Logan, who stood there wearing that calm, satisfied expression.
Kent remained silent.
One second passed.
Then another.
"Fair enough."
Several students blinked.
Cherry looked toward him in surprise.
Kent didn’t appear particularly bothered by the prejudice Logan and the others were showing toward Maxwell.
Not because he necessarily agreed with them.
He simply didn’t care enough to turn the lesson into a lecture about their opinions.
Besides...
His shaded eyes briefly moved toward Maxwell.
He did cause some of this himself.
Kent remembered the first-year welcoming briefing.
Maxwell hadn’t exactly entered the Royal Academy quietly.
The declaration he had made that day had drawn attention toward him from the beginning.
If he was going to say things that made other students watch him...
Then he would eventually have to prove himself.
He just has to prove them wrong.
A quiet laugh escaped Kent.
There was another reason he found the situation amusing.
The day I’d see people trying to bully my Leader’s only student...
The thought alone was almost funny.
Almost.
Kent’s expression gradually became more serious.
His attention remained on Maxwell.
There was still something Kent himself didn’t completely understand.
Why would he choose a commoner as his disciple in the first place?
Kent knew enough about his Leader to understand that such a decision wouldn’t have been made carelessly.
There had to be a reason.
His gaze sharpened behind the dark lenses.
Is he really that talented?
Perhaps this test would give him part of the answer.
Kent finally looked back toward Logan.
"Normally, Karla and I would be the ones testing everyone."
Karla, who had been standing beside the teaching materials, glanced toward him.
"But since you’re so eager to advocate for all the students who don’t like Mr. Maxwell..."
Kent waved one hand.
"Fine."
Logan’s smile widened.
"Thank you, Professor."
He gave a polite bow before returning to his throw pillow.
Tristin smiled.
Basil did too.
Several students around them exchanged satisfied looks.
Maxwell simply watched.
He didn’t complain.
He didn’t ask Kent to reconsider.
If Logan wanted to test him...
Then Logan could test him.
"But that won’t be today."
Kent’s next words stopped some of the excitement.
Logan looked back toward him.
Kent stood from his folding chair and stretched his back.
"Today..."
He turned toward the students who hadn’t raised their hands.
"...is for you weaklings who can’t even master the Law of Inversion at your age."
"..."
Several faces immediately darkened.
"Professor!"
One student complained.
Kent ignored him.
Instead, he turned toward the students who had already reached the required stage.
"The rest of you should shoo."
He lazily waved his hand.
Nobody moved immediately.
Kent waved again.
"Shoo."
Vera stared at him plainly.
"You have a remarkable way of making your students feel valued."
Kent turned his shades toward her.
"Thank you, Miss."
"That wasn’t a praise though."
"I’ve decided it was."
Vera looked at him for another second.
Then she turned.
She had no intention of wasting her free time standing through a lesson on a skill she already knew.
Diane followed her almost immediately, moving with the same sleepy lack of urgency she carried almost everywhere.
Willow also left with them.
Ravenor departed shortly afterward.
Felix, Gareth, and Desmond also decided not to stay.
Before leaving, Gareth turned and waved toward Tristin and Basil.
Desmond lazily raised one hand as well.
Then the three walked away from the training ground.
Grace and Grant left too.
Several other students who had already learned the skill followed.
Not everyone departed, however.
Cyrus moved toward the back of the training ground and found somewhere to sit.
He wanted to watch.
Maxwell also remained.
Part of his reason was simple curiosity.
He wanted to see exactly how Professor Kent intended to teach the Law of Inversion.
More importantly, Cherry was still among the students who needed to learn it.
He would have to wait for her anyway.
Fatima stayed as well.
Her cousins were still participating in the lesson, so leaving without them didn’t make much sense.
Slowly, the number of students occupying the training ground dropped.
The wide training area felt less crowded now.
Kent watched the departing students for a moment before turning toward those who remained.
"Now that the geniuses are gone..."
He glanced at him back looking at the others who stayed behind.
"Well almost."
He walked away from his chair.
His boots moved between the columns of seated students.
Tap.
Tap.
Kent’s gaze wandered from face to face.
Then he suddenly stopped.
"Hmm."
He bent forward slightly.
Directly in front of Ezra.
Ezra looked up at him.
Kent stared.
Ezra stared back.
"I’m surprised."
Ezra’s expression didn’t change.
Kent leaned a little closer.
"Why are you here?"
"..."
Several nearby students turned toward them.
Kent genuinely looked confused.
Ezra Ashenlocke was one of the students he had expected to see standing with the others.
Especially after everything Kent had already observed from him.
"Also, you."
Kent suddenly straightened and pointed toward Selena.
Selena’s body stiffened.
She quietly turned her face away gracefully.
Apparently, she had nothing she wanted to say about the matter.
"And you too."
Kent’s finger shifted again.
This time, it landed on Strake Drake.
Strake looked back at him.
There were several other students Kent had expected to possess at least some usable level of the Law of Inversion, but he didn’t bother pointing every one of them out.
His attention returned to Ezra.
"Especially you, Mr. Ezra Ashenlocke."
Kent crossed his arms.
"Why haven’t you learned it?"
Ezra answered without hesitation.
"I didn’t learn it because I didn’t want to risk self-study."
Kent blinked.
"Oh."
He stared at Ezra for another moment.
Then he straightened.
"That makes sense."
There was no sarcasm this time.
Ezra’s reasoning was actually the correct decision.
The Law of Inversion wasn’t something an Alchemist should carelessly experiment with simply because they understood the basic theory.
It was powerful.
Very powerful.
But the danger behind learning it was just as real.
To perform the skill, an Alchemist had to reverse the balanced nature of their Cognis in a controlled manner while understanding exactly what they intended to alter.
One mistake could become disastrous.
If the Alchemist lost control during the process and their Cognis suddenly reversed incorrectly, that reversal could travel back through their Cognis system.
And if it reached their Star...
The Star could be destroyed.
For an Alchemist, that wasn’t a minor injury they could simply recover from after several days in the hospital.
They could die.
And the percent of deaths was eighty percent.
That was why having an expert guide the learning process was always the safer choice.
Someone experienced could notice mistakes before they became fatal, correct the Alchemist’s control, and prevent them from pushing the reversal farther than their current ability allowed.
Kent gave Ezra another brief look.
For someone who experimented as much as Ezra did with Alchemy and firearms, it was actually interesting that he had chosen to be cautious here.
But that caution had probably saved him from doing something stupid.
"Alright."
Kent walked toward the front of the remaining students.
The playful atmosphere surrounding him slowly faded.
He removed his shades.
Folded them.
Then slipped them back into the pocket of his long coat.
The students noticed the change.
Even Cyrus, Maxwell, Fatima and the few other students watching from behind became quieter.
Kent turned toward the class.
"Everyone..."
He raised one hand.
"Close your eyes and assume your meditation pose."
The students listened.
Ezra adjusted himself on the throw pillow.
His back straightened.
His hands settled into position.
Around him, students did the same one after another.
Eyes closed.
Breathing gradually slowed.
The earlier murmurs disappeared until the training ground became quiet.
The morning wind moved softly across the open field, brushing against their academy training clothes and carrying the faint sounds of other training grounds in the distance.
Ezra closed his eyes.
Darkness entered his vision.
His awareness slowly shifted toward the Cognis within his body.
Professor Kent waited until the students had settled properly into their meditation poses.
Then he finally spoke.
"Let’s begin the study."
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