“What’s your name, soldier?” the professor asked Freddy.
“Name’s Freddy Stern, Sir,” he answered.
The man nodded. “Where’d you serve?”
Cocking an eyebrow, Freddy took a moment to think about how to respond. Should he just openly say it was the Northern Belt? The gazes of the lined up students behind him were boring a hole into his back, so that would just be an open confession that he was Freddy Cliff. “It’s complicated, Sir,” he said instead.
Professor Earnest gave him a long look before nodding again. “I figured that was the case. Very well. Please, if you will, can you stand right there.”
Freddy moved to the spot beside the man.
“Face the crowd,” the man insisted.
He followed the instructions, finding himself right beside the professor, facing the crowd down. It was awkward as hell. Freddy still couldn’t tell what the man was playing at.
Suddenly, the professor clasped his hand behind his back and started pacing to the side, away from Freddy. “Can anyone here tell me what a null state is?”
Everyone raised their hands, including Freddy.
“PUT YOUR FUCKING HANDS DOWN!” the man shouted loud enough to make the students’ bones rattle, and just like that, every pair of hands in the room was lowered. He turned around instead, facing Freddy. “Soldier Stern, can you tell me what a null state is?”
Freddy hesitated for a moment, guessing he was about to be blasted before the entire class. “It is a state when an archhuman can no longer cast an ability above the cost that is covered by their satellite.”
“Thank you, Soldier Stern. Now, can you please tell the class what that feels like?”
He paused, caught by surprise by the direction the man was heading. “Uh…” He gave it a moment. Freddy had indeed landed himself in such a state several times before. Hell, he had hit his RETI cap for both blood and water at the same time. He lips twisted down involuntarily at the recollection. “It is awful, Sir,” he said. “You usually have at least one ability you rely on in a pinch. When it can no longer be cast, it’s like the floor drops out under you, and suddenly, you’re in freefall.
“There’s ways to fight around a lack of essence, of course, but once you hit the null state against an opponent who has essence to spare, unless you have a wicked essence regeneration talent, you’re fighting an uphill battle. And even if you survive, what about after the battle? You aren’t always in a situation where you can easily make your way out of danger. Enemies aside, not having access to your full repertoire can screw you over in a million different ways.”
“Excellent answer, Soldier Stern.” The man turned to face the class again. “There is something of a disease spreading among younger archhumans. This idiotic idea of a caster. Someone who just casts abilities from a range, and doesn’t particularly focus on physical power. Among Lords, not one person identifies as a caster. Same as the Overlords. You want to know why?”
He paused, baring his teeth in barely restrained anger. “Because when you run out of essence, you are either whatever the hell you have to be to survive, or you’re dead. Over ninety fucking percent of you maggots have never felt what it’s like to experience true life or death circumstances, but at the very least, given by the fact you’re in my class, you are self-aware enough to know you’re lacking.”
Turning around, he faced Freddy again. “We will begin with unarmed combat, and slowly build up to whatever you can fit inside that storage ring on your finger. You are not above carrying a crossbow, or a bomb, or poison in your ring. And don’t give me that but it hurts your latent aura spiel. Because your latent aura means jack shit when you’re dead, and I promise you, not one Overlord made it to their station without using every means available to them.”
“Now…” Taking a few steps forward, he put a hand on Freddy’s shoulder. “Which one of you worms would you like to try their luck against Soldier Stern?”
Freddy’s eyebrows raised in surprise.
A few hands went up, and the professor called out a muscular man who was maybe an inch shorter than Freddy. The man stepped moved with a grace betraying an excellent physique, and plenty of knowledge on how to use it.
“What’s your name, student?”
The man squinted at the professor. “David.”
“David fucking what?” The professor set his jaw. “Actually, don’t answer that. You’re David Asshat from today on.” David gaped in shock, but the professor ignored him. “Now, Mr. Asshat, if you will, can you tell us if you have a talent that can give you an edge.”
David ground his teeth as he forced a smile on his face. “Superior Physique. All my physical capabilities are more than doubled.”
Impressed whistles sounded through the crowd of onlookers. Even Freddy nodded in acknowledgement. That was a pretty good talent. Good enough that Freddy wasn’t entirely confident he could win without using abilities.
“That’s right about the best talent you can have if you plan on becoming a null-state powerhouse. Did you sign up for this class because you thought you’d excel at it? Thought it would be an easy grade?” The professor snorted. “I don’t mind it, but first, I think it would be healthy for you to learn where you stand.” He turned to face Freddy again. “Soldier Stern. Do you have a talent that will give you an edge in this fight?”
Freddy highly doubted he’d be brutally murdering the guy, or even injuring him particularly hard. Thus— “No, Sir.”
“All right, then. It might even be a fair fight, then. Still, try not to injure the kid too hard. I’ve gotten too many warnings from the committee already.” He winked at Freddy with a grin as he stepped back.
Did this guy know something about Freddy? It definitely felt like it.
Shrugging, Freddy made his way to a clearing away from the onlookers, with David Asshat standing before him. The guy looked eager to tear Freddy apart. He suddenly took his shirt off, likely to stop it from getting torn. Freddy looked down, and followed in his stead.
The crowd muttered at the sight of Freddy’s “tattoo.”
“You fellas need some oil while you’re at it?”
Freddy laughed at that, together with many other students. Asshat just looked offended.
“All right, then! On the count of ten!” The professor slowly counted down.
Freddy was tempted to use Twisted Pendulum, but he felt that might be cheating. Frankly, the professor had an ungodly level of confidence in him, confidence he himself didn’t really have. When it came to talents that were useful for coping with the null state, an overall boost to physique was pretty damn high up there. The guy wasn’t just twice as strong. Doubling every physical capability compounded into far, far more than just a doubling of his power.
“… three… two… one… go!”
David leaped forward at immense speed, barely giving Freddy any time to react. On reflex, Freddy raised two fingers and thrust them at the man’s eyes. Just as David flinched, Freddy pulled his fingers back and used the opening to twist his arm and throw him on the ground, where he pressed a knee to his back and pulled both his arms to restrain him.
By the time Freddy even realized what he was doing, he had won the match. He released a mental sigh of relief. Thank god he doesn’t know how to use his strength.
“And that’s the match, folks!” The professor clapped. “Excellent work, Soldier Stern.”
“Hold on a minute!” David protested. “He aimed for my damned eyes!”
“Oh?” The professor’s voice chilled. “Let me see… Hmm…” Turning to the students, he asked, “Pray tell, does anyone see gaping, bloody holes where Asshat’s eyes should be? No?” He turned back. “Well would you look at that. I’m not just imagining it.”
“That was dirty!”
The professor revealed a predatory grin. “I didn’t believe it was possible, but you actually made an intelligent observation. Indeed. Aiming for your eyes was a dirty trick. And that’s probably the best way to summarize this entire class. I’m not here to teach you how to honorably duel an enemy to death. I’m here to show you every dirty trick man has ever invented. My hope is that none of you miserable twats ever enter a fight without pockets full of sand again. Now”—he turned to face the crowd—”are there any more volunteers?”
Nobody raised a hand.
The rest of the class went by in relative peace. The professor assigned the students into pairs and had them fight repeatedly, all while pointing out every way to grab an advantage. For some mysterious reason, women did a lot better than men in that class.
By the end of the class, everyone was bruised and exhausted. Except for Freddy, who had been standing to the side the whole time.
Once the class ended, the professor walked over to Freddy and tapped him on the shoulder. “Sorry for leaving you hanging like that, Sir. I would have sparred with you, but I didn’t want to lose in front of everyone in the very first class. You know how it is with new recruits.”
Freddy raised an eyebrow. The professor was a third-star, and he didn’t feel weak. Frankly, Freddy wasn’t too confident in beating him in a fight. “You’re a whole star above me, Sir. I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have an easy time.”
“Oh, Sir, you flatter me.” He smiled, damn-near blushing.
Okay, what is happening here?
“Just out of curiosity, what made you so confident in my ability?” Freddy asked.
The man’s smile weakened a bit. “Surely, this is a joke?” Laughing awkwardly, he gestured at Freddy’s badges. “These kids are used to getting all sorts of badges willy-nilly, but we both know that medals aren’t given out so easily. With your accomplishments, I have no reason to doubt your ability, Sir.”
Freddy halted. It wasn’t that the man knew something others didn’t. Not at all. He looked down at his badges, their luster reflecting the lights along the smooth metal. “I see… Well, thanks for the talk.” Freddy smiled, his back straightening a bit. “I’m looking forward to learning from you.”
“I just hope I can find a thing or two to teach you.”
Freddy walked out of the class feeling… strange. It didn’t go at all how he expected it to. And the more he thought about it, the more strange it seemed. That man wasn’t the weird one, here. If anything, he was probably the first person who made a reasonable estimation of Freddy’s ability based on the badges he had.
So why was everyone else so full of doubt? Were his badges just so over the top that everyone expected a catch? That was exactly the case, wasn’t it? And to make things worse, as a (technically) twenty-five-year-old two-star, his collection of badges made right about everyone else look pathetic in comparison.
Who in this ego-driven city could possibly accept that Freddy was who he seemed to be at face value?
No, there had to be a catch.
The question then was whether this was a good thing or not.
As he walked through the hallway, he realized that people were already ignoring his existence. In a very short time, he had become almost invisible, despite the shimmer of his impossible badge collection.
Suddenly, he felt incredibly stupid.
“Hey,” a voice came from behind Freddy. He turned to spot exactly who he expected to see. “You got hella lucky in that duel. Don’t go around telling people you beat me in a fight.” Indeed, there he was. The peacock spreading his feathers; the fool looking past the obvious in search of a more comfortable truth. Freddy smiled at him. “No worries, mate. That was far from a realistic battle.
“Obviously, you’d kick my ass in a real fight.”
David smirked. “At least you know your place.” He marched past Freddy, violently bumping into him. “Next time, don’t you dare pull any dirty tricks like that.”
Freddy watched the man march away with a small smile.
He was safe from being targeted by those more powerful than him. And he was free to study to his heart’s content. He had plenty of money.
Taking a deep breath, he felt all his stress wash away.
What was there to worry about?
Bit by bit, he would fill the gaps in his knowledge, erasing his weaknesses. He’d reach the third star in peace. He’d work on reinforcing his political influence, be it with the empire or the Umbra’s. There was no need to rush. Let them believe whatever they wanted.
When the day came, he would make sure he left no room for doubt.
Once he showed himself to the world…
It would be too late to do anything about it.