MI141: Tension : Politics (Patreon)

Seeing Alex place his hand on the pommel of his sword, Paul's expression morphed into a deadpan as he asked, "Seriously...?" in an annoyed tone.

Before Alex could respond to Paul's words, Jean garnered the attention of everyone present by chiming in to declare, "The Viscount is correct. I am more than capable of making decisions for myself..."

Misunderstanding Jean's intentions, an arrogant and victorious smile developed across Alex's face as he sneered in Paul's direction. He was so full of himself that he didn't even consider that Jean would follow up her previous statement by adding, "To that end, I ask that the Viscounts step aside. It isn't very courteous to block the path of a lady, much less one who already has an escort..."

Without waiting for the duo to respond, Jean walked past them and linked arms with Paul. When Alex saw this, his expression went from disbelief to cold fury as he stated, "Someone of your caliber and beauty shouldn't be wasting your time with a reprobate such as this. If you joined the Knights, I could put in a good word and have you promoted to the Rank of Member 1st Class without cause. Even if this cur becomes Water God in the future, it won't be for another ten to twenty years at the earliest. Don't waste the most important years of your life-"

Interrupting Alex's speech, Paul lazily remarked, "For someone who tells others not to meddle in people's personal lives, you sure do chatter a lot. And seriously, man? Trying to bait a woman with promises of 'putting in a good word' for them? That's just sad..."

Glaring daggers at Paul, Alex growled, "I've heard just about enough from you...!" as he retrieved a pristine white glove from his pocket. The moment he tried to throw it at Paul's face, however, Jean deftly snatched, her eyes narrowed as she said, "The sentiment is mutual..." before throwing it back at him.

Not anticipating Jean's actions, Alex found himself at a momentary loss. However, instead of acknowledging what she said, he resumed glaring at Paul, asking, "Cowering behind a woman? And here I thought you couldn't disappoint me further..."

Instead of reacting as Alex expected, Paul adopted a 'friendly' smile as he mused, "Cowering? I'm just allowing Jean to do as she pleases. You know, that thing you arrogantly encourage others to do despite actively trying to sway and manipulate her...?"

Reacting like someone that just had tea thrown into their face, Alex took a deep breath, eyes widening and nostrils flaring as he replied, "Slanderous cur! You think you're in any position to lecture me!? I'll have that tongue of yours ripped from your mouth...!"

Though he really wanted to do it himself, Paul stood still and maintained his 'friendly' smile as Jean released his arm and stepped forward to slap Alex in the face. Paul would have punched him, personally, but seeing the man reel back as a crisp smack echoed throughout the amphitheater was pretty satisfying...

As Alex found his foot, hand gravitating towards his cheek with a look of disbelief on his face, Jean took the liberty to remind him, "My Master may have had his status and title stripped away, but it doesn't change the fact he was born to the Lord and Lady of House Notos. He is also the Special Envoy of the King and the chosen successor of the Water God. If he goes on to become the next Water God, the only person he will be obligated to answer to is the King. Remember that the next time you refer to him as a cur or question his standing..."

Answering in Alex's stead, Marcus held his long-time friend back as he adopted a smile and replied, "Please forgive my friend his indiscretions. It is no secret he has become infatuated with Dame Jean. Ardor is known to cloud the minds of men and women alike when the mark of their affection is beholden to another. It was never his intention to insult or offend..."

Hearing Marcus's words, the look on Alex's face alternated between hate and disgust. He clearly didn't agree with them but forced himself to smile near the end as he expressed, "Viscount Blackbird is correct...I permitted my worry for Dame Jean's future and prospects to cloud my judgment. It was never my intention to offend the King's Envoy..."

As Paul's status as a Special Envoy placed him as a member of the Royal Court, even if only provisionally, he could make things difficult for Alex if the King lent his ear. The latter had been aware of this from the start, but seeing Jean look past him as Paul approached had caused him to lose the facade of calm and poise he had painstakingly cultivated over the years.

Understanding that Alex was attempting to cover his ass, there were few things Paul would have enjoyed more than kicking it then and there. The thing that stopped him was Jean returning to his side and linking her arm through his. Similar to Marcus placing his hand on Alex's shoulder, this was her way of holding him back, not because she was worried about his chances of victory, but because they hadn't come to the Capital to pick a fight.

At least not yet...

Forcing a 'friendly' smile, Paul responded to one of Alex's first questions, explaining, "I was led here by one of the Dean's secretaries. My teacher has arranged to have me exhibit my skills and assist with lessons at least thrice a week. Earl Whiteowl happily agreed to her suggestion, so here we are..."

With an expression that looked like he had swallowed a bug, Alex replied, "I see..." in a somber tone. He was scheduled to teach three more classes today, which meant he would have to tolerate Paul's presence for at least an hour, maybe four. He could use this as an opportunity to embarrass the fallen Lordling, but that probably wouldn't earn him any favor with Jean or the Earl...

While cursing like a sailor within his mind, Alex adopted a 'friendly' smile of his own as he said, "I'm sure the students will be beside themselves with anticipation to have the 'legendary' Paul Greyrat as an instructor. My class ordinarily focuses on Sword God techniques and footwork, but it wouldn't hurt to give students a taste of what both Schools are capable of..."

Imagining Paul attempting to show off only to have his guard broken like a piece of fine glassware, Alex's smile gained the undertones of a sneer. If Paul were foolish enough to pit his Water God Style against his Sword God Style, Alex would happily shatter the illusion of his prowess.

Seeing through Alex's surface thoughts, Paul had to resist the urge to roll his eyes as he replied, "We'll see. Based on your reaction, I would imagine they're more likely to criticize and condemn me. It's amazing how brazen people can be when they know nothing of the circumstances surrounding someone..."

Interpreting Paul's words as a taunt, Alex couldn't prevent himself from snorting. It wasn't nearly as condescending as his previous snort, but it conveyed his disdain for Paul's bravado clearly...

...

..

.

After returning to the Citadel and finding no emergency, Reida grabbed one of the on-duty sentries by the collar, asking, "Did anything happen while I was away?" in a threatening tone.

As Reida was somewhat notorious for beating the hell out of people, a noticeable shiver racked the body of the young sentry as he replied, "T-T-The only thing of note is the arrival of the Sword King, Sir-"

Without waiting for the youth to finish, Reida dropped him before taking off like a bullet towards the depths of the Citadel. She knew her coward of a son wasn't daring enough to do anything in front of the students, so she ignored the lecture halls and dojos as she made her way toward the instructor housing area.

Detecting traces of Electro Energy even before she arrived, a conflicted look marred Reida's face as she halted outside the door to Ei's and Lilia's room. She could feel the Vision nestled between her breasts humming as it absorbed imperceptible Elemental Particles from the air, and, though it wasn't noticeable to most people, Reida could feel an extremely powerful sword intent lingering in the air.

Understanding what must have transpired, an uncharacteristically tired sigh emanated from Reida's throat. She wasn't fond of the man Vuldar had become, but there was a very brief period where she had enjoyed watching him grow. Perhaps if she had praised and held him more, his father wouldn't have been able to control and manipulate him with such ease...

Shaking her head, Reida muttered, "No sense in regretting the past..." before turning away from the door to Ei's room and walking over to her own. She suddenly felt exhausted, so while it would probably be better to report the situation to the King and do damage control with the Greenbull family, she decided to take a nap. If someone came by looking for Vuldar, she would tell them the truth; she hadn't seen him once since he ran away crying weeks ago...

With that in mind, Reida plopped face-first into her bed, her voice audibly strained as she muttered, "Dumbass..." in a sulky tone...

...

..

.

Though most students had a habit of showing up mere moments before class was supposed to start, Philip Boreas Greyrat had always enjoyed being among the first to arrive wherever he went. His eyes appeared to be perpetually shut, but the reality was that he had been born with enhanced vision, not all that dissimilar to Paul. Instead of the ability to track fast-moving objects with ease, however, his eyes were able to zoom in on and enhance the details of whatever he was observing.

While some might consider such an ability incredibly useful, the truth of the matter was that it was an extreme inconvenience. Despite his efforts, Philip had never been able to control his nascent Demon Eyes. When his vision wasn't constantly zooming in and out, it was giving him super high definition views of the individual pores on people's faces. Thus, unless he was attempting to intimidate someone with his almost ghostly-blue eyes, he kept his eyes squinted to the point they appeared closed.

Fortunately, while many considered him to be pretty creepy, Philip's propensity to squint ensured he almost always had a smile on his face. This made him seem a lot more approachable than other Nobles, so he was fairly among middle and low-ranking Nobles.

As per usual, Philip opened his left eye just enough to get a better view of his surroundings the moment he entered the amphitheater. When he did, his vision immediately focused on several prominent features around the arena before 'involuntarily' zooming in on Jean's breasts and the seam of her formfitting white pants. Then, and only then, did he notice a man with hazel brown hair and familiar leaf-green eyes looking toward him.

Recognizing the man's identity pretty much instantly, the smile on Philip's face became more prominent as he squinted his eyes and made his way over to the arena. Ever since Jean and Eula had arrived, Philip had been eagerly yet patiently awaiting Paul's appearance. Part of this was due to a desire to ask how Jean and Eula had aged up alongside him, but the main reason was as could b expected. If he could receive the backing of House Notos through Paul, his chances of inheriting the Lordship would increase exponentially. At the very least, that's what his father, Lord Sauros Boreas Greyrat, had told him during their most recent exchange...

...

..

.

(A/N: Looks like Paul isn't the only one playing politics...Amarant is a Lord for a reason xD...)