Wrenley stepped up to the path and intercepted the three guests before Mai and her two subordinates could make their way to Gray and Emrys and held out his hand in greeting.
Zylith Mai reluctantly tore her eyes away from her targets and took the red-haired man's hand, shaking it firmly.
They exchanged a few words, and Gray scowled as Wrenley and Zylith both turned to look at him, figuring that they were somehow in cahoots with each other.
Emrys pursed his lips, uncertain how he should react upon seeing the woman that attacked him without reason at school yesterday. "What's going on? What's she doing here?"
"Let me ask you a question, kid," Gray started.
"Yeah?"
"That woman is an extremely powerful, senior executive at the MA headquarters. Did you know that?"
"M.A.?" Emrys echoed in confusion. It took a moment before his eyes widened in realization. "Hell! So M.A. was the abbreviation for the Association?! Damn, why didn't I figure that out earlier? I thought she was some criminal."
Gray lowered his eyes at the way Emrys said 'criminal', shifting his gaze away to stare at the two conversing mages outside the threshold before continuing with his question. "You said you wanted to join the M.A... Then that woman attacked you. Do you still want to join?"
Emrys cast Mai an uncertain glance, and the woman caught his gaze and smiled, unexpectedly. His hands turned into tight fists at his side as he quickly looked away, only to see Gray's expression full of contempt whilst he continued to watch Mai and Wrenley.
"Is...is this a trick question?" he inquired.
Gray snorted. "No," he answered simply. "If you don't, then I'll make sure we'll see that the M.A. will never bother us again. If you do, then we'll at least hear the woman out and see what she wants."
"Oh..."
Emrys looked down at the floor, completely at loss. Yeah, he wanted to join the Association. After all, what better path could a mage in this nation take unless they had something else they were really passionate about?
But...why does Gray seem to hate those people that everyone looks up to?
But he promised that he'd help him get into the organization...
Emrys looked up at Gray, making his decision with confidence. "I want to join the Association," he declared.
Gray turned to stare down at him and smirked, though there were traces of reluctance in it.
"...Okay."
_______________
"We meet again."
"Tch." Gray tilted his head to the side, eyeing the five mages that stood around him and the kid through the gaps between his strands of hair. "What do you want?"
Apparently, the important guest Madam Flair was supposed to meet was Zylith Mai, and the very reason for the visit was to request the Madam to lend her mage bodyguards to help her quicken the search for the capital's wanted candidates...
...and it was purely coincidence that Gray and Emrys, the ones that Zylith were after, had ended up in the Flair's household.
After she did a small briefing with the Madam, Wrenley led Gray and Emrys to the open court near the east of the property, where Zylith and the three other mages stood waiting.
Zylith stepped forward and removed her silver-rimmed glasses, placing them into the side-pocket of her long, black coat. "I didn't get to introduce myself properly last time. My name is Zylith Mai, and I am the General Instructor of the Association's main branch in Lunis."
"General Instructor, eh?" Gray repeated flatly. "Impressive."
Zylith smirked. "It doesn't sound that impressive if you say it that way."
Gray rolled his eyes.
She sighed. "Well..." She gestured at the four other mages surrounding them. "These are trained members of the Association's branch in Cille, hired as bodyguards for the Flair's, I'm sure you already know."
She held out her hand towards the red-haired man first. "That is Wrenley." Then she turned to the blue-bracelet guy. "Wylis." The blonde woman. "Tessa." And finally, the middle-aged man in casual clothes. "Amerion."
Gray blinked and blinked. "...Nice to meet you," he finally forced out. "Where's the last one?"
The five mages shared a look. "The last one?" Zylith echoed, confused.
Gray flashed them a dumb look. "The butler," he said. "All you mages are gathered here...so where's the butler?"
Wrenley shook his head. "The butler is not-"
He stopped when Zylith held up her hand. "He is right. The butler has the powers of a mage." She turned her head and glanced at the taller, black-haired young man, impressed. "Sensing one who has not even unearthed their powers yet, you are quite remarkable," she noted.
Gray made a face. "Not very," he muttered. He reached up and ruffled the top of his head and shifted his weight to his other leg impatiently. "Let's get straight to the point, shall we? It's simple. You just have to answer my questions."
Zylith Mai frowned. "That's not-"
"First, why did you attack the kid?"
The woman's frown deepened, not understanding until she remembered the high schooler that was standing right next to him. Her face brightened up. "Ah. Emrys, correct?" she said.
The mages all turned to look at Emrys, and he took a step forward, his hands resting inside the pockets of his jacket. "Yeah, that's me."
She dipped her chin with the slightest bow forward. "I sincerely apologize for that. I was too carried away when I found one of the wanted candidate's for this year's mage recruits. I wanted to personally test you out myself. I admit destroying the school campus was entirely my fault."
Emrys blinked in surprise. "M- mage recruits?!" he stammered.
Gray raised his eyebrows.
Ah...so this is what this was about... So it seems that this whole situation will work out in Emrys' favor then, since he wanted to join the association in the first place.
"Yes," Zylith said. "Every year, the Association will search for new potential recruits throughout the nation to train to become part of our organization. The outcome depends on the results of your training and what you wish to achieve."
Emrys took another step forward, his eyes shining with some sort of excitement and hope. "Really?" he asked.
"Of course," she answered. "Those who have been acknowledged by the organization definitely have great skills that can be of use to strengthen this nation. You wield the ice element, which is already quite uncommon. That is all the more reason we want you within our ranks... All you need to do is agree, and we'll complete the rest of the registration procedure for you."
"Cryokinesis?" Wrenley whispered underneath his breath, eyebrows raised. "I know we only have about two or three of them in our military ranks-"
"Anyway," Zylith interjected, "our offer is open, and you are welcome to accept it at any time." She reached inside her coat and pulled out a card, holding it out towards Emrys. "This is my contact information, I'll be available at any time."
Emrys quickly accepted the card with both hands, staring at the shimmering material with wide eyes. He looked up in surprise when the taller woman suddenly placed her hand on his shoulder, alerting both himself and Gray.
"Now, Emrys," she said. "I want to speak with your friend for a moment...alone."
"Huh?" Emrys glanced behind his shoulder at Gray, as if he were asking for permission to go.
Gray only shrugged and waved him off. "Won't be long," he said.
"O- oh, okay." Emrys turned and headed down towards the path, still holding the card tightly. He gave one more uncertain glance behind his shoulder at Gray before he disappeared around the corner, leaving the six of them alone.
"That student, did you train him?" Zylith started.
Gray gave her a bored look. "And what if I did?"
Zylith sucked in a breath and ran a hand through her hair. This man...won't be as easy to deal with as the high schooler, she thought. Even now, she still has not found any useful information on him.
But most importantly, she can't read his power clearly.
This man can be dangerous.
"Training another mage is not easy," she pointed out cautiously. "And you managed to block my attack yesterday unscathed. I have quite a few questions for you."
"Ask away," he replied. "I have all day." He watched Wrenley flex and unflex his hands at his side, the expression on his face not necessarily a friendly one. "If you want to fight, I'd gladly do that too," he added, a sneer spreading across his mouth. "Just don't cry when you lose."
"Hm..." Zylith frowned at his words. "Rest assured. We're not here to fight."
"That doesn't explain why I'm surrounded."
The woman glanced from side to side as if she were only now realizing the strange formation her subordinates were standing in. "That... that was merely a coincidence," she insisted with a sigh. "Let's just get on with the questions, please, sir."
"Gladly."
"What is your name?"
"Gray."
"...Just Gray?"
"Yeah."
Zylith pressed her lips in a thin line, no doubt not satisfied with his answer. Still, she continued.
She slipped out a device and gave a few quick taps, revealing security footage and pictures from the arson incident in which Emrys and Gray worked together to put out. She zoomed in on the damp building, ice blocks cluttering towards the top of the structure.
"This building was set on fire last week and put out by two mages, according to witnesses. The evidence clearly points to an ice wielder, which is Emrys, no doubt. But the part we can't figure out is the one who put out the fire overall, which we assume should be the work of hydrokinesis."
Zylith cast his blank expression a suspicious glance. "Wylis here is the only hydromage here in Cille," she informed, gesturing at the brown-haired young man with the bracelet. "But this was not his doing. The other possibilities are that you or Emrys are in acquaintance with this person, or...or you are that person."
Gray smirked. "And what makes you say that?"
Zylith stepped forward, her eyes narrowed. "I do not know why, but as deep as we have searched, we cannot find any information regarding you or another unregistered mage, which we find extremely questionable...and frustrating."
"That doesn't seem to be my problem-"
"Are you that person, or are you not?"
Gray sighed and relented, scratching the top of his head. "Yeah, that was me," he admitted. "I put out that fire."
"Then you are a hydrokinetic mage," Zylith concluded confidently. "But I have another question. Why is the water you produce...black?"
Gray shrugged. "Honestly, I don't know either," he answered honestly, irking the executive even further. "I can't answer a question that I don't know the answer to. And when did I ever say I have hydrokinesis?"
She flashed him a faint look of irritation. "So...you are not hydrokinetic?"
Gray shrugged again, suddenly finding this a bit funny since he also didn't know the answer to that question. "I don't know," he repeated.
"You! How do you not know your own powers?" Amerion suddenly interrupted, an outrageous expression on his wrinkled face. "Stop messing around, you little brat! And just answer the questions!"
"Amerion!" Zylith snapped dangerously, a sudden gust of strong wind picking up around them.
"Ugh." The middle-aged man and the others braced themselves as the powerful wind blew against them, causing their clothes and hair to fly in all directions.
The only two who remained unaffected was Zylith, no doubt since she was the one who harnessed this power, but Gray as well, which she found was another unexpected surprise.
The breeze died down, and the whistling went away.
Amerion grumbled underneath his breath as he plucked the leaves out of his clothes, and Tessa struggled to maintain a steady composure when she noticed her blonde locks stuck in insufferable tangles.
"What is your power?" Zylith asked, this time in a more demanding tone. "Which element do you possess?"
Gray gave her a wry smile and shook his head. "I'm sorry. But I don't want to tell you that," he simply said.
"What?!" This time, one could clearly see the frustration in the executive's face, and she gritted her teeth to keep herself from losing her professional stance. She cleared her throat and asked, calmly this time, "Why don't you want to tell us? A mage's power is usually made known to the public."
Gray shook his head again. "I already said. I simply just don't want to tell you."
Zylith pursed her lips, not sure how she should respond to this. This was the first time someone had refused their requests like so, and she could not help but see this as a bit suspicious.
But still, she wanted him on their side, even if convincing him didn't look like it was going to be easy. If it were because of some unknown reason why he didn't seem to trust them, then she would simply have to slowly gain his trust.
"I see," she said, giving in to his troublesome behavior towards them. "Would you like to enter our association as a part of this year's new training recruits?" she tried.
"No."
Zylith clenched her fists at his immediate response, trying to figure out what was going on inside Gray's mind. Just what did he want? He is a mage, and every mage would gladly accept when they were offered an opportunity to join their ranks.
Why is he the only one to refuse them so stubbornly?
Was there something the organization was doing wrong? If so, they must change. They can't afford to go wrong with the nation's mages, even if it were one individual.
Or was it perhaps...some grudge?
Zylith took in another deep breath, settling on a new decision. She has only met this one man twice, yet there are so many mysteries about him. He was able to train Emrys to an extraordinary extent, he was able to block her attacks with ease, and his range of power...she couldn't read him at all, even with him standing right in front of her.
He was even more powerful than herself, who was ranked seventh on the nation's chart of the greatest mages. She could sense it, but she just didn't know how much more powerful.
Right now, the Association is suspecting the rise of a major terrorist group, all mages. They were in a desperate situation, even if it were only an estimation at the moment; if they were going to fight them, they needed to gather more powerful mages, and she felt one of those people needed to be Gray.
Has to be.
"You don't want to join as a candidate, that is fine," she stated. "But..."
She stared Gray dead in his dark eyes, which seemed to hold more to it than its outwardly, simple and uninterested facade.
"But the Association has openings for positions as 'Instructor', and you have proven the abilities to fulfill the position, considering Emrys' range of power. Will you accept?"