After what felt like a long night of Allen doing his utmost best to act like a proper guest at August's banquet, he was glad to be back in his dorm at the academy.
They had gotten back really late, with all three of them tired and exhausted. Despite the highly annoyed expression on Rose's face, she didn't say a word at all. Allen suspected it was due to the sheer exhaustion.
It wasn't until they got back and went their separate ways that Rose finally spoke. After a little bit of complaining, she finally said goodbye to the two of them and swiftly made her way back to her dorm room.
"Well, she was in quite an irritable mood," August grinned. "It's best we let her get her proper beauty rest"
"No kidding," Allen shook his head.
The two of them spoke a little bit as they headed towards their own dorm rooms. Once they had to go separate ways, they then said their goodbyes.
Allen had quickly jumped into the bed the minute he could. Saying he was just exhausted at this point was just an understatement. He was glad to be back in his bed, ready to go to sleep. However, sleep wasn't easy that night. The events of that night all kept flowing in his head, keeping him awake.
The first was meeting Reynold Windblade. Allen wasn't expecting to meet him there. He seemed genuine, however there was still the issue with Allen's duel with Nathaniel. There was a chance, according to William, that Reynold himself supplied the magical artifact directly to Nathaniel. Perhaps he wasn't involved, but Allen won't know for sure unless he asked him outright one day.
The second was the dance with Rose. It was very embarrassing for him, especially when Rose proclaimed that she wasn't giving up on trying to get him to fall for her. Allen wasn't sure what she had in mind, but knowing her it probably wasn't good. Then again, it would probably be better than anything Sarah would attempt.
The third, and last, was the conversation he had with August on the balcony. The strange look on August's face as he spoke about his troubles not only as a prince, but as a regular person. Then of course, there was the fact that he claimed he would need to make an important choice later down the road. Who knows what it could be, and when?
Not too long of him sorting out his thoughts, he finally fell asleep.
The following day, he got ready and began to head to class, ready to start a regular day. Before he could get to class though, he saw a familiar face with a back to the wall and arms crossed that he was not expecting to see so early in the morning.
"Hey Allen, did you enjoy your banquet?," he said with a grinning face.
"William?!," Allen said, surprised. "Don't you have morning paperwork to do?"
"We don't talk about that," his eyes looked like they were about to die as he shook his head. "Anyways, I have something to tell you real quick"
"What might the Head Director want with me at this hour?," Allen gave him a look.
"Just some quick information you need to know. The Training Club's meetings and activities will be temporarily postponed, for now," he informed him.
"Postponed? Why?," Allen asked, a little annoyed.
"I can't tell you why," he shook his head again. "Just know that no one did anything wrong, and the club is not in danger of disbanding or anything. Just know that your activities will be closed for a few weeks, is all"
"Of course it has to," Allen sighed.
"I know how you feel. But trust me, you won't be all that mad when you find out what's happening soon," he gave a reassuring smile.
"What's happening?," Allen asked, a curious look on his face.
Suddenly Allen heard a voice screaming bloody murder down the hall, most likely Rose's.
"Well, that's my queue. If you see her, tell her you didn't see me! Bye!," William exclaimed as he quickly disappeared from sight.
"Why is he like this?," Allen smacked his forehead.
After William's sudden appearance, Allen was now finally back in his class he had been waiting for. Ms. Florence at her desk reading, Thomas and Cecily conversing, and the other two students sitting quietly doing their own things. Despite how odd and out of place his class may seem, it still brought a smile to his face every time he walked in.
Ms. Florence barely acknowledged him as he walked past her desk, heading over to Thomas and Cecily. He took his seat next to them as they greeted each other.
"So, how did your banquet go? Meet any cute girls while you were there?," Thomas asked, his eyes practically gleaming.
"Shut it, Tom," Cecily exclaimed as she wacked the top of his head with a textbook for probably the 50th time at this point.
"It was a lot better than I expected…," Allen admitted, as Thomas patted the top of his own head.
"Mind telling us?," Cecily kindly asked, pretending she didn't just wack Thomas.
"Sure," Allen nodded.
"Are you guys going to forget Cecily just hit me with her textbook again?!," Thomas exclaimed.
"What do you mean?," the both of them replied. Thomas just slammed his head into his dusty desk in response.
Allen then explained all the details of the banquet, but left out the part of his conversation with August.
"Wait, you got to dance with the Student Council President?!," Thomas exclaimed, jealous. "I wish I could've- ow!"
"Well, it was a part of the banquet, and we figured we would participate," Allen replied, pretending he didn't just see Thomas get smacked again.
"I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it more than you thought you would," Cecily smiled.
"Thanks"
"Yeah, I also still can't believe that he met Reynold Windblade," Thomas shook his head.
"I can't either, and I still don't know what he wants. It may not be as bad as I think it may be, but I will have to keep him in mind," Allen said, as he thought to himself once again.
"I also hope it's nothing bad," Thomas agreed.
The three of them conversed about Allen's attendance at the banquet as well as what Thomas and Cecily had been up to for a bit longer, until Allen finally told them what he needed to.
"I just heard from William this morning that the Training Club's meetings will be postponed for a few weeks," Allen informed them.
"Postponed?!," Thomas explained, very annoyed. "Why?!"
"He said he could not tell me, but I would figure out why soon," Allen added.
"You'd figure out why? So much for the head director being helpful…," Thomas' head dropped.
"No matter the reason, the club is postponed whether we like it or not. For now, let's just focus on studying so we can pass our D rank exams," Cecily suggested.
"Oh yeah, good point Lily!," Thomas beamed. Cecily nodded with a proud look on her face.
"We should be just about ready for the exams. When were we taking them again?," Allen asked.
"Well if you two would concentrate more on your studies, we probably could have been C ranks at this point," Cecily sighed in annoyance.
"And we have the gracious Lily to thank for helping us study and not leaving us behind!" Thomas said sarcastically, which earned him another smack on the top of his head, to no one's surprise.
After some time had passed of them continuing their conversation (and attempting studying), class was finally over.
"Alright you all, class time is over. Time for all of you to leave," Ms. Florence announced from her desk.
"Well, time to head out I guess," Thomas said as he got out of his chair. "Should we meet up with everyone else to do something? Since our club is postponed, after all"
"I'm not sure what everyone else has planned, but I'm sure Rose is busy with Student Council work and Stephen reluctantly helping them," Allen responded.
"What about Alice? Unless she is Sarah today?," he asked, still confused on how that works.
"I believe my sister has her own studying to do today," Cecily answered.
"And August?"
"I have no idea," Allen shrugged.
"Well, guess it's just us today! Should we get some training in, or tour London today?" he asked.
"I'm up for either," Allen answered.
"Lily?"
"How about we take a small break. We can tour London for today," Cecily smiled.
"A break? Let's go!," Thomas was jumping from excitement.
"Hey, you three. Especially you Thomas. Out of the room now!," Ms. Florence yelled, pointing towards the door.
"Yes ma'am," Thomas quieted down and began to follow Allen and Cecily out of the room as Allen was laughing.
The three of them began to make their way towards the exit of the academy. But before they could make their way out, three students were in the middle of the hallway, blocking the way.
Each student wore a different colored uniform - gray for air, brown for earth, and blue for water. There were two boys, and one girl who wore the brown uniform. As they began to get closer, Allen noticed they were all first year D ranks, indicated by the circular silver pins on their uniforms with '1D' printed on them.
As Thomas continued to talk to Cecily as they drew closer, Allen had an odd feeling about this. He didn't think they were going to start a full on fight in the middle of the hallway, but he suspected they may give them trouble, based on the looks on their faces as they stared at them.
When they finally reached them, they did indeed block their path, not allowing them to go further.
"D ranks? What do you guys want?," Thomas asked.
"Can we help you?," Allen added.
"You're Allen Fleming, aren't you?," the boy with the gray uniform asked.
"Yes, but why do you ask?," Allen gave him a curious but cautious look.
"It's easy to spot you, considering the sword strapped to your waist, but you're a bit different up close in person," he said as his eyes examined him.
"That would mean the other two are Thomas Terrastone, and Cecily Rivertide. The other two F ranks with Allen," the other boy with the blue uniform added.
"Really? I was suspecting a Terrastone to look a lot more dignified," the girl with the brown uniform finally spoke, rolling her eyes.
"Just who are you three? What do you mean by dignified?," Thomas asked, an annoyed tone in his voice.
"It would be wise if we introduced ourselves," the boy in the blue uniform spoke up, just as the other boy had opened his mouth.
"Hmph, good point," the boy in the gray uniform said after clearing his throat. "The name's Adam, you three"
"I'm Sybil, best if you three remember that," the girl said, a proud look on her face.
"And I am Oliver, but my name isn't really that important," the boy in the blue uniform finally answered, sighing after he spoke.
"Well, nice to meet you then?," Allen responded, not sure to be glad or annoyed they introduced themselves the way they did.
"So, why is it that a Terrastone, a Rivertide, and a boy with a sword are all F ranks?," Adam asked, crossing his arms. "It makes no sense to me. Just what did you three do?"
"Just what do you mean?," Allen asked, looking at the three of them. He still didn't know what they wanted.
"Hmph, don't even bother. It's annoying to have to look at a Terrastone that can't pull his own weight in his family, despite being in the most influential earth family," Sybil glared at Thomas.
"What did you just say?," Thomas aggressively asked, starting to step in closer.
"Tom, don't," Cecily warned, grabbing him by the arm.
"Lily, I-"
"An F ranked Rivertide isn't better either," Oliver added. "Especially one descended from Judith Rivertide"
Cecily gave him a nasty glare that would throw anyone off, but Oliver looked unfazed.
"Alright, that's enough," Allen raised his voice. "You three-"
"I've found it interesting that a boy from who knows where suddenly shows up with a fancy sword, somehow magically getting admitted to the academy," Adam interrupted. "Then he turns around and throws Nathaniel Rivertide for a loop, beats Stephen Windblade, and now has connections with the Prince of England. Odd, isn't it?"
"Just what are you trying to say?," Allen asked, trying to get in front of Thomas and Cecily in case something happened.
"Like you lot are any better!," Thomas yelled, trying to subtly get in front of Allen. "All of you are D ranks, just one rank above us! I don't see any of you in C or above!"
Cecily nodded in agreement as she still attempted to hold Thomas back. Allen kept looking between them and the other three, thinking about what to do.
"Oh really? You have something to say you failed Terrastone?," Sybil had an aggressive grin on her face, as she also stepped forward. "We may be D ranked, but at least we haven't sunk so low to the failed rank! As Terrastone or Rivertide no less!"
"Want to say that again?," Thomas kept trying to move forward, with Cecily starting to have a harder time holding him back.
"Being D rank isn't as easy as you three may think," Oliver spoke up again. "We are still at the bottom of the spectrum, but we still have a chance to get better. Being F rank subjects you to a horrible classroom, with a teacher who could care less. We don't have any of those problems in our classrooms"
"Oh really?," Thomas asked, managing to move past Allen. Cecily couldn't hold him back anymore.
"Have something to say, Terrastone?," Adam asked, getting in front of the other two.
As Allen debated what to do, the argument only got worse as insults kept getting thrown back and forth, with even Cecily adding in her own. The other students around them began to notice what was going on, already forming a circle around them.
Why can't we ever just have one normal day?, Allen thought as he sighed.
"You're just weak!," Sybil yelled, throwing a punch at Thomas.
But before Allen could interject, Thomas already cast magic on his arms, fortifying them as he usually did. He crossed his arms in front of him as her fist hit them, dealing no damage to him. You could tell that it hurt to directly punch his arms, with the surprised yet pained look on Sybil's face.
"Alright, that's enough," Adam stepped in between them, surprising them all.
Thomas and Sybil both stepped back, caught off guard by his sudden actions.
"We may have some things we want to settle with them, but that does not mean we need to be aggressive about this," he announced.
So much for not being aggressive with your words earlier, Allen thought.
"Hmph, he deserved it. Any weak Terrastone shouldn't even be here," Sybil argued, still hiding the fact that her fist was still slightly in pain.
Before Thomas could say anything, Cecily already grabbed him by the arm, stopping him. He turned back to her, giving her an apologetic look.
"I know how you feel Sybil, but still attempting to start a physical fight in the hallway is against the rules," Adam argued back.
"But-"
"Why not settle things with a three on three duel?," Oliver surprisingly interjected. "No use in breaking the rules in front of all these students"
Sybil had looked around her, finally noticing all the students drawn by the commotion. She finally decided to step back, attempting to hide the embarrassed look on her face.
"Well, what say you three? Do you three accept a three on three duel?," Adam asked.
"Way ahead of you," Thomas agreed.
"Yes, we can settle things that way," Cecily added.
"What about you Fleming?," Adam asked, giving him a curious look.
Everything about this whole situation came out of nowhere for Allen. He still wasn't sure why they had a sudden issue with the three of them, and were already looking for a duel. Well, this wouldn't be the first time a duel was suddenly sprung on him. He finally decided to make his decision.
"Alright, I accept. We can settle things as early as tomorrow, after class" Allen declared.
"Tomorrow? Very well, we will see you then. I shall bring this up with a teacher," Adam answered as he turned around, preventing Sybil from adding anything.
"Don't be late," Allen shouted as Adam's group already started to back away.
"We won't!," he shouted back, giving him a determined look.
After things had finally settled down in the hallway with all the curious students on their own way again, the three of them stepped aside.
"Hey are you two okay?," Allen immediately asked.
"I'm alright, but I am mostly worried about Thomas," Cecily looked at him with a concerned look.
"If I want to be honest, no. But I am glad you asked Allen," Thomas answered, giving himself a breather.
This whole incident reminded Allen of when Nathaniel's buddies had bothered Thomas and Cecily, and Allen stepped in to intervene. Eventually he settled things with Nathaniel, at least for now.
He didn't suspect the three of them had any connections to Nathaniel, but he still found it rather odd they decided to start something in the hallway. And just where were the teachers to stop something like that from happening? He would have to talk with William the next time he got a chance.
"What's important is that we are all okay. I can trust both of you to wait until tomorrow to settle things?," Allen asked.
"Yeah"
"Of course"
"Alright, well I think our plans to tour London are halted for today. Should we head to the training room to help release our anger and calm our minds?," Allen suggested.
"Sure. Could always go for some training," Thomas responded as he and Cecily both nodded.
With things decided, the three friends made their way to the training room. They will have an interesting day tomorrow, a three on three duel with the D rank students they just met.
Despite the odd turn of events, Allen still felt as though there will be interesting things coming ahead. Just what could William and the academy be planning as the three of them prepared to face three D ranked students in a duel?
Volume 5 End