The presence of a five-star was something Freddy couldn’t get used to. Despite only leaking a mere trace of her aura, it was like a nail being hammered down the middle of his skull. It was nothing like Overlord Umbra. At least he could still think straight before that mountain of a man.
Before the empress?
His mind was so scrambled he could barely string two thoughts together.
To make things worse, she was just standing there. He continued kneeling, not daring to get back to his feet or raise his head. Her gaze licked across every inch of his skin, judging his very existence. For uncomfortably long, she stayed like that. Then, she moved.
The empress walked over to the couch in the middle of the room and sat down. It was far too grand of a gesture for just plopping her ass on a seat, but Freddy had no intention of commenting on that. Or saying anything whatsoever, unless prompted otherwise. Speaking of—
“You are quite the talent. Even among the many youths of your calibre I’ve met throughout the years, you are peculiar. Such fierce passion for conflict, I have seen in far too few. Make sure you don’t lose it.” She paused for a long moment, her expression darkening a bit. “I will openly admit that your talent, while outstanding, isn’t the reason I am here. I want you to guess why I’ve come.”
“I wouldn’t dare presume, Your Highness.”
“Do dare, I beg you.”
Freddy’s stomach clenched at those words. “I…” His mind spun in a frenzy, seeking any possible reason why. He had a bad feeling about this. It couldn’t be that incident in Nova York… right? They said that five-stars had impeccable memory, so she surely remembered his face, even if she’d only seen it for a brief instant. But why would she care? His stomach dropped as he remembered something. Oh fu—
“I do not believe that you are Silver Heart. Going around faking your identity and killing the children of Lords is quite tasteless, but I am not here to reprimand you for that.”
Freddy’s entire body broke into a sweat as the empress slowly got up. She walked forward, squatting before him. Even in a squat, she still towered above him as he knelt. “Show me your soul construct.”
He didn’t grit his teeth, regardless of how hard he wanted to. There was no choice in the matter. He also resisted the urge to wince as his stomach twisted into an anxious knot.
Please just keep your mouths shut, he begged of his soul construct as he allowed it to unravel and materialize.
The Cycle Scythe appeared, and it was quiet. Deathly so. Freddy released a small sigh of relief. Good to know that it won’t try getting me killed, at least.
“You did ask very nicely,” one of the mouths suddenly said with a grin.
Freddy froze.
The empress paid no heed to the suddenly talking scythe, focusing on its surface instead, caressing it, and releasing a little scoff through her nostrils as she revealed a sour smile. “I have collected countless prime remnants over the years. Luck is yet to smile upon me.” Her hand clenched around the scythe, and for a moment, she looked like she wanted to tear it out of his soul. “Do you believe in fate, boy?”
He barely even heard the question. The fingers of her hand, wrapped tightly around the construct’s shaft, made him awfully afraid. He didn’t know nearly enough about awakened soul constructs to be comfortable with her so openly wanting to take it away.
She can’t do that… can she? He swallowed, suddenly remembering that she’d asked him something.
Freddy didn’t know how to answer her question. He believed in a kind of fate, sure, but he wasn’t confident if that’s what she was asking about. “I do not believe that things are predetermined, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“That’s not what I’m asking.” She stared directly into his eyes, and he couldn’t help but look away, straight down at the ground. “I have a theory that the world reacts to one’s wishes. The harder you want something, the more likely it is you will get an opportunity to grasp it.” Her grip tightened enough that Freddy worried she would crack the scythe. “So tell me—
“What is it that you wished for that the world led you to a unique prime remnant?”
Chills ran down Freddy’s spine at the sheer intensity behind her voice. “I…” He trembled. “I… Sorry, unique?”
“You didn’t even know, did you?” She laughed bitterly, swinging her head back and putting a hand on her forehead. “It is always those who don’t know limits that ultimately surpass them. Maybe my resolve just isn’t strong enough…” She suddenly released the scythe and got up, walking back to the couch and sitting down. “It wasn’t the answer I was hoping for, but you’ve enlightened me, nonetheless. In turn, I shall grant you a small favor.”
Freddy’s back straightened. A favor from the empress? Even small, it should no doubt be—
“Your tuition for the University of Starhold will be covered in full, with a large credit allowance for classes. You enroll tomorrow.”
The confusion lasted for all of a second until he realized what was happening. She wasn’t going to wait for him to request a favor. She would inflict one upon him. And given her tone, he wasn’t getting a chance to refuse any time soon.
Either oblivious to his crushed expectations or uncaring of them, she continued, “Upon arrival, you will be handed a list of classes you are to take to catch up. On top of that, you will be tasked with selecting ten additional courses of your choosing.” Her eyes narrowed into slits as she pierced him with a look. “You are woefully undereducated, and unless corrected, I fear you will keep making ill-advised choices regarding your path.
“As a sponsored ward of the empire, you have a duty to uphold a certain standard. Be it in regards to power, culture… or education. You have muddled through until now, but if this continues, it is only a matter of time until you blunder your potential away. I also expect you to openly carry every badge you have been granted, without exception.”
He tensed, dread coursing through his body at the mere idea of doing that.
She raised her head, looking down her nose at him. “It is beyond shameful that you hide your glory. What are you so afraid of? With the empire’s protection, nobody above your rank will dare lay a finger on you, and you have the support of one the deadliest families this side of the world. If you are so afraid to take pride in what you are, then move to the wilds somewhere, because I won’t tolerate such cowardice on my land.”
Reflexively lowering his head, he muttered, “Yes, Your Highness.”
“Good.” She got up to her feet. “I will also be letting Leonard Santorio know of your identity.”
Freddy’s face drained of all blood. “Why?” he asked before he could catch himself.
“You dare ask?”
“I didn’t mean to—”
“He is a Lord who has loyally served the empire for longer than most.” Her voice grew icy. “Who are you to question why I reward his loyalty?” She scoffed. “He hasn’t survived this long without growing wise enough not to antagonize people like Lady Morleppe or Overlord Umbra, so I doubt he will take direct aim at you. But I can promise you he won’t let the incident go so easily.” A small smile crossed her lips. “I am curious to see how you handle the situation.”
Turning around, the empress headed towards the doors leading outside. Just as she was about to enter the hallway, she paused, as if deliberating on something. She slowly turned around. “April 29th, 2225. Make sure you ascend to the third star before then. Do not tell anyone I told you this.” She turned around again. “The days of peace are coming to an end yet again. I expect you to be thriving the next time we meet… and I expect you to tell me if breaking the triple block did you any good. Until then, goodbye.”
Her footsteps echoed as she made her way out past the broken door, turning, and disappearing into the halls of the building outside.
Freddy released a breath of relief, but it was half-hearted. Slowly getting up, his hand wandered to his temple, where he pressed to massage the immense headache away. Turning to the window, he spotted the hideous expression on his face. Inching closer, he leaned his forehead against the window—then smashed it into it, again and again, until spiderweb cracks spread throughout the whole thing.
His eyes drifted up again, to the endless islands floating above the city, the lights flashing without end. He couldn’t take his eyes off them, their mesmerizing forms flickering irksomely so far above.
His headache grew stronger, and a moment later, he passed out.
***
The University of Starhold was located inside a behemoth of a building, close to the center of the city. It took the form of a gigantic block of metal, reinforced to the highest degree, to ensure that any attack on the building holding the greatest minds of the empire would be kept safe as long as humanly possible in the case of an attack.
And right outside the building, roaming about the streets below, was a disheveled young man. He was hastily dressed, several buttons on his shirt misaligned, his trousers lacking a belt, and his long hair flopping in the wind. A string of curses fired rapidly under his breath, panic evident in his expression.
“Where the fuck am I supposed to go!?”
Freddy hadn’t expected to suddenly pass out like that, and he also hadn’t expected to wake up late in the afternoon. The sky above Faralethal was already dimming with the approach of false evening, and yet, he still had no clue how to actually get inside the stupid university building.
The empress had quite clearly told him that he was to enroll today. Sure, he had a pretty valid excuse for not being there first thing in the morning, but from their short interaction yesterday, the empress didn’t seem like a particularly reasonable person.
He was already considering whether he should just cut his losses and run away, changing identities again. Perhaps another subordinate territory somewhere would be nice. Somewhere south this time, where there’s sunlight and beaches, rather than concrete and ice.
He was running quite fast, so it didn’t take long for him to fully circle the building. Still, no entrance to be seen.
Tapping the closest passerby on the shoulder, he calmly asked, “HOW THE FUCK DO I GET IN THERE!” All while gently pointing in the university's direction like a completely sane individual.
The man blinked at the sudden interruption, scowling in Freddy’s direction. “You’re supposed to go there, you idi…” He pointed in a direction, but then halted. “Or was it there?” He pointed in a completely different direction.
Freddy simply turned around and stopped a second person.
Three passersby and a punch to the face later, he had his directions. Apparently, the entrance to the university was like 4 blocks away for some god-forsaken reason, inside of a completely different building.
The path there passed him by in a blur, and just as the evening set in, he made it to the entrance building.
It had been a long time since Freddy felt winded from running.
There was a notable crowd of people going in and out. Freddy followed those making their way in. It was a pretty small building, with a series of doors leading to god knows where, and a collection of booths for all kinds of purposes. On the other side of the building were two gates; one had a line of people going in, the other was spewing a bunch of students out.
There was a registration booth where he passed his ID, where a man scanned it and then handed him a university ID card and a tablet. “Special entry: Freddy Stern. Welcome to the University of Starhold! I believe this is yours.”
Freddy took the tablet without pause and moved to the entry gate.
The gate took straight to a conveyor belt that whisked him away. Judging by the speed and the distance from the main building, it would take at least a couple of minutes until he reached his destination.
There were several students both ahead and behind him. He nervously looked back, and then forward. I guess this is as good a time as any…
In the few moments of calm he had left, he couldn't help but remember the empress’s face. Was it hate that he felt? Not quite. Or… maybe. It was hard to explain. The woman felt less like a person and more like a force of nature.
She had visited him in the dead of night and instantly maximized his problems. It was almost impressive how efficiently she summoned conflict into his existence. He couldn’t help but laugh as he realized something. I’m the one who brought her there, aren’t I?
After all, she said it herself—the harder you want something, the more likely it is you will get an opportunity to grasp it.
He chuckled as he slowly took out his badges, one by one, and smacked them against his chest. “Oh, this is going to suck."