"I've found it"
August shouted in the cold environment of the grand hall. Student mages, some sweating, some tired up to the point of backlash and some with frustrating determination in their eyes.
All of them looked up to watch the one aspiring mage present there, who just shouted like he had found the way to destroy the spell formed by their teacher.
It was a kind of blissful relief for the other students, that there was someone among them talented enough to come up with a counter in that limit amount of time.
If this part of class would've progressed like the previous one where no one was able to guess the right answer and leave their teacher with disappointment —it would've been a kind of defeat for them.
Therefore when someone among them shouted loudly, it could only mean they've found which all of the class wasn't able to find. The weakness or the mechanism by which it operates.
Apart from the weakness, the working mechanism of any spell was also extremely helpful in coming up with a counter against that. By reverse engineering, it was easy to point out the parts where it surely or probably would fall weak.
August stood there becoming the centre of attraction of the whole crowd of aspiring mages in his age group. Most of them probably knew him already.
Well, it was all but given. Their town wasn't that big and who could've possibly not have known the only child of the only ones considered as nobles in that small place.
There were many people however who hadn't seen the young lord face to face. And there were many in that class not knowing the relationship between their teacher and that boy who stood there, dressed in casual clothing.
August waited savouring the moment, contemplating once again if he had left anything out of calculation or not. With an expression of genuine happiness and satisfaction on his face he came back to reality not so long after.
For a brief moment he was left confused by the fact that, how was he suddenly the centre of attention?
Then another realisation came to him when he recalled what he had done after figuring out the working of the spell his mother had put up before them as a challenge.
His mother however...
Wait!
He looked at her smiling face and eyes warming up with satisfaction. He could clearly make out from the expressions of her like she was saying, "got you."
'you really, really are a genius, mom'
Indeed, his mother was able to do what she was trying very hard to do. It was all to make him feel involved. August, as he held back whatever he has known up until now in order to avoid becoming the centre of attention.
Which his mother knew well. Like she also knew her son would not remain idle if faced against a worthy challenge. Therefore she just had to prepare a difficult challenge as a bait and do nothing but wait for him to come out and fall in the trap she'd prepared.
Which he did when August finally realised what was keeping the ice from breaking apart.
Now he had no choice. No say in the matter. He couldn't possibly remain hidden after all that.
Now August has to present something praise worthy or he has to become a laughing stock before all of them.
The choice was all his.
Time was running fast.
'Ah! I feel like a mouse in a cage'
He let out a sigh and started walking towards the centre stage where thick spikes of ice stood tall, never faltering before any of the counter spells.
Stood before a tall spike of hard ice shivering due to the cold. Unlike other students he couldn't warm himself with the mana if he had done so, the echoes would never have left him alone.
Every eye on that grand hall of class was stuck on him not giving August any chance to back down. He didn't have the time to second guess his moves either. It was a defeat.
He looked at his mother who was still standing at some distance letting the students experiment with their spells and find out the answer for themselves. She had the same confident expression which looked like more of a smug face to August.
Nyra, Elias as well as all the other students stood there trying to make sense out of the actions of that strange boy who was here in casual clothing like he didn't want any protective gear at all.
"—Don't waste our time—" someone shouted from within the crowd as the strange boy just stood there staring at the crystal blue ice for a while.
"—What is he doing?—" another voice came and then suddenly the hall with pin drop silence previously, was covered with noise and whispers. There were doubts stirring up within the hearts of other students.
August finally shifted his gaze away from the ice.
"Mage Elias and Mage Nyra" he called out for the two individuals he had his eyes on, "could you please come here for a second" he looked at the rest of their confused faces and gave a simple and direct answer to all of their confusion and doubt, "all of you please stand back, don't worry I've got this."
He brought the two mages closer and whispered something in both their ears one after another.
Two mages did as they were told, standing as they faced each other with a spike of thick ice between them. Elias looked at Nyra, he did seem to have doubts about this ordeal but he went with that after all.
Nyra made her thin blade sharper while Elias did the same with his strength using their core elements. Then with a sudden clap as a signal from August, they both struck the ice surface with all of they've got at the same time within different locations.
The sharp sound resounded like a powerful vibration in the grand hall. As it was expected from the clash of two powerful core elements on a hard surface at the same time.
The impact felt powerful but there wasn't even a crack on the surface of hard crystal blue ice. The mood of whole class was about to go down as it was previously, more frustrated even —however the strange boy with raven black hair walked towards the ice spike. Stopping at arm's length from it, he punched the hard surface with his bare hands even without cladding his hand in core element. Well he didn't had any but the class didn't knew that.
The most shocking part however was, when the block of ice broke and fell down from the ice spike. The hall grew deathly silent. The noise of that irregular block hitting the floor resounded in the silence. A shallow gasp escaped from someone, some stood impressed and some stared in confusion.
The hard surface of ice which seemed indestructible previously, now with only a feeble punch from that soft looking boy, crumbled on the ground.
Lady Sophia, the corner of her lips curled upwards in a genuine smile of satisfaction. She seemed proud like she knew that this would happen.
The silence was broken when the boy who made that miracle happen shouted dramatically with pain.
"Ouch! My hand" he jumped, "I've got a frost bite"
Before anyone could say something, Nyra said in hurried tone, "H—how did you do it?"
"It was easy" he replied in a rather casual manner, "you just had to struck the thing hard enough."
Nyra, if nothing else she got more confused with this vague explanation. Clearing her throat, she asked with a serious expression, "what do you mean?"
"Simple really" he said with the same manner, "you just had to hit the ice hard enough to overcome it's recovery part."
A shallow chuckle escaped from their teacher but she restored her composure as quickly.
"Recovery part?" Nyra asked, "but how? It— it's impossible. There wasn't any spell aside from the one here in action, so how could you say that?"
"Are you sure?" He replied picking up the fallen crystal of ice, "if not another spell then, how come is the class so.." he shivered for a moment, "...cold?"
"It can't be" she said denying his speculations, "the cold is just an after effect of the ice spell."
"Is that really?" He retorded now growing irritated of these questions. He was already in a bad mood for this presentation he had to do out of his own foolishness. No, not foolishness but curiosity. Which led him directly into his mother's plan and had to explain these students how to destroy this damn spell that also without using mana, "miss all I can say that, i happened to catch the additional spell and thought if hit three times it would surely fall."
The elaboration left everyone disappointed. On top of that some felt irritated and some even a hint of anger towards that strange boy for these vague explanation. Most of them were also convinced that the ice he broke was nothing but mere luck.
The boy who seemed like a genius a while ago, destroying the spell which all of them couldn't even pull off together— now he looked like an idiot who had his lucky shot.
"—don't waste our time if you don't know—" someone shouted from within the crowd.
"—i bet he didn't know anything—"
"—it was just his luck—"
"how could you say that?" A voice came clear to August knowing very well who that was. Elias spoke again, "how come only you had found the other additional spell?" Then with a smile on his face he shifted towards the teacher, "Miss Sophia wouldn't have told her son the answer, surely. Isn't that right, teacher?"
Lady Sophia flinched for a moment as the allegation she never expected, was directed towards her. For her, it was a class just like any other. The only thing she wanted to do was test the new class as well as her son. What could possibly be wrong about that.
She had expected students to know that August was her son but she never even thought something like this could happen.
Grand hall of the class drowned in the whispers and murmurs. Most of them were audible enough to be made a sense out of. The doubts of students grew more and more when their teacher was taking this long to neglect this allegation of cheating.
Lady Sophia wanted nothing more than denying this stupid and nonsense allegation suddenly put up on her. Any other time she would not have taken this long to answer, but this time however things were
...different.
No, she hadn't told August about any of the stuff related to this class. Hell, she even didn't knew he was gonna attend the trial class.
But to tell students all this, felt like giving excuses. She had to give an appropriate answer to the young mages. The answer how August knew there was another spell or rather element in play. She had to tell them it's not that he already knew the answer.
It was because he can sense all the elements around him. No more like they force to make him aware of their existence. It was because he had no core element. It was because he was ambiva...
No, she can't do that. Ambivalent mages were look down upon. Very much even. Sophia, she can't let everyone know, her son wasn't like them. She can't tell them he had no core element.
She knew very well if that happens, other students will also behave differently towards him. They will not, never think him as an equal. He would always be looked down upon. To ruin her son's life with her own hands? What kind of mother could do something like that? Only to save her own reputation of all?
Hell with the reputation.
She made her mind to tell the students something else. To take the blame all upon her. What could possibly happen? Will they kick her out for a mistake? No. She sure would have to face some consequences however. Some silly rumours also.
She wanted her son to show his brilliance before his peers, but not in this way.
Sophia opened her mouth, before even she could say a word however, the boy with raven black hair and dressed in casual clothing let out a loud chuckle following a shout,
"Knew the answers before? What a load of crap. It's not because of that, idiot. It's because I am ambivalent."
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