With only mere days since Allen's victory over Rose in the fourth round of duels, the results have already begun to spread all across the academy. Not only has the Weakest Mage managed to best the Student Council President, Rose Marion, but had somehow managed to capture her heart.
Allen had to do everything he could to avoid the curious and jealous masses of the students, but even that was not enough. He found he needed to frequently hide or run as he walked the halls of the academy.
In addition, due to Ellen Marion's outburst towards Allen's victory, indifference towards her own daughter, and her constantly being a step behind Edmund, many of the students have begun to question Ellen's position as Head Director, whether temporary or not. Even most of those higher in rank, who benefited the most from her unfair rules, had their own indifference.
Despite everything going on, there was some good that came out of it. Allen has managed to pass one of his conditions required to pass his first year, and has made it back to D rank. Nothing made him happier than to return to Mr. Lyon's class, where his friends Thomas and Cecily awaited him.
To add on, Rose made her amends and apologies with all of the former training members due to how she treated them, especially Allen, Cecily and Stephen. They have all forgiven her, and want nothing more than to continue their friendship with her.
However, that did not make it easier for Allen to explain Rose's sudden "declaration" to Stephen and Thomas, who had hounded him constantly for answers.
Regardless, Allen had one major thing on his mind, and that was either trying to fix or replace Rose's rapier, which he had broken during their duel.
"Fix my rapier?," Rose asked. "How are you, or anyone else going to fix my rapier? There's too many pieces to count!"
"You sure did a number on that," Stephen pointed out, examining what was left of it. "You sure you have a regular sword of your own?"
"I don't know how I broke it," Allen claimed. "Perhaps the force of both my mana usage as well as my magical strike broke it?"
"Perhaps, but it doesn't change the fact that it's practically shards of sand now," Stephen shrugged.
"Don't worry about it," Rose reassured him. "I can make do without it"
"But I still owe it to you," Allen said.
"So you're going to replace it?," Rose asked, in disbelief. "With what funds?"
"Uhh, I'll figure that out as I go," Allen said, looking around for a quick answer.
"Don't worry, I'll pay for it," August jumped in, raising his hand.
"You will?," the three of them asked at once.
"Let Allen worry about getting you a replacement. Just think of me as your… sponsor?"
"Thank you August!," Allen shook his hand.
"Yeah, yeah, you can thank me later. Just don't think of this as something we can do all the time, alright?," he winked.
"Of course, I don't plan on taking your money like that," Allen assured him.
Now with August promising to cover the costs of getting Rose a new rapier, all that was left was to acquire one. But that brought up the next biggest question - just how were they going to get one?
"I hope you didn't overlook that small detail, did you?," August asked, eyeing Allen.
"I definitely have a plan!," Allen reassured him, putting a finger up.
"Alright then, lead us to it!," Rose declared, as she pushed the both of them forward.
I do not have a plan, Allen thought, as his eyes went dead.
The three of them were in the shopping districts of London, in pursuit of getting Rose a new rapier. They originally invited Stephen along with them, but he passed, saying he had other important things to do, but they really knew he was probably chasing after more girls.
The original plan was to get Rose a new custom rapier, to make up for the loss of her family's custom rapier. After all, not many blacksmiths were located in London, due to magic being considered more important, but those that were there could surely craft a custom rapier, right?
Now that Allen was expected to lead the way to getting a new rapier for her, he had two options - pretend he knew what he was doing and somehow get one, or ask the two of them for help.
Well, I'm not going to waste their time and pretend I know where to get a rapier, and a custom one at that, Allen thought, as he saw Rose eyeing some magical artifacts up ahead.
"Say August," Allen asked, tapping his shoulder. "You're a Prince. Don't you know anyone that could get us a rapier?"
"So you didn't have a plan," August chuckled.
"Hey! At least I'm asking for help!"
"Alright, alright, fair enough, " August agreed. "To be honest with you, while I am a prince, and the first in line to succeed the throne, does not mean I have many connections regarding magic related matters"
"Why not?," Allen asked, confused.
"My family does have dealings with the Triumvirate," he explained. "But not with the mages in the shopping districts. That is best left handled to the Triumvirate"
"So nothing?," Allen asked, annoyed.
"Sorry," August shrugged. "I'm only here to purchase the rapier, not to gather one. I'll leave that to you!"
August gave him an encouraging thumbs up, as Allen sighed in defeat.
Just what am I going to do?, Allen thought as he quickly looked around the shops for some ideas. Just what shop would even create rapiers, or weapons for that matter? Are there any blacksmiths available here?
As Allen eyed around for ideas, his eyes once again landed on Rose, who was having a friendly conversation with a mage shopkeeper. She pointed towards a ring and seemed to ask a question, to which the mage began to reply.
"Wait, that's it!," Allen said out loud, as an idea formed in his head. "I know somewhere we can try!"
"Oh, finally getting ideas in that empty head of yours?," August asked, eyeing him curiously.
"I- forget that. Let's grab Rose and get going!," Allen said, as he already began to move.
"Oh- alright then!," August said, as he tried to quickly follow behind him.
Allen made a quick grab for Rose, who shook with surprise and annoyance, at the sudden interruption of her conversation.
"I have an idea, let's go," Allen quickly explained, as he pulled her by the hand.
"Wait-," Rose started to say, with a face of embarrassment, but gave up halfway through.
"Oh, so that's how that is…," August commented, with a small smirk.
"Don't you dare," Rose said, eyeing daggers at him.
August quickly put his hands up in defense, just before picking up his face to follow behind Allen.
The three of them made their way for an unknown destination, with Allen taking the lead. They weaved through several different groups of people or crowds, as Allen shot for his destination. If all goes well, there's a good chance they could find someone to help them acquire a new rapier for Rose.
"Just where are you going?," Rose asked, as Allen kept tugging on her hand.
"You'll see here soon," Allen assured her, as he tried to look ahead, through a few people.
"Wait, you're not-"
"Here they are!," Allen said out loud to the both of them, as they arrived closer to the front of a crowd.
"We have items for all!," a voice shouted, gathering the attention of the crowd. "You name it, we have it!"
"Reynold Enterprises?," Rose asked, surprised.
"You know about them?," Allen asked, as they settled down in the crowd.
"Well yeah, of course. What mage in a higher family isn't aware of their existence?," Rose pointed out. "Not to mention, the owner is Reynold Windblade, the eldest son of Solomon Windblade"
"Good point," Allen agreed with her.
"So I'm assuming you believe this business, which is well connected to the Triumvirate, to assist you?," August asked, eyeing him. "You do realize, even if they are willing to make our request, how much time or funds it could take?"
"Well, I suppose you're right," Allen agreed, as he sighed. "But it was the best idea I had"
"Well I suppose it's something, but let's hope it's not too expensive, yeah?," August asked, crossing his arms.
"Uh- right. If it's too much, we'll just find something else," Allen said. After all, he wasn't going to make August pay too much.
"Well let's hope they can get what we want, or something else more suitable," August commented, as he looked up near the stand.
"They had plenty of things last time," Allen assured him. "I'm sure they can help us, in some way or another"
"Well, as I said before, I'll leave it to you," August said as he shrugged.
As the three of them looked ahead at the stand they had set up selling their items, they noticed a few of the employees running the stand, with one person in the middle shouting out to get everyone's attention, that they noticed earlier. Allen's hope was to get his attention, and if things went right…
"Wait, I think I know him," Allen said, as he got a better look at the guy in front. "I saw him here months ago!"
"You know one of their employees?," Rose asked, almost in disbelief.
"Yeah, I visited here with Thomas and Cecily, way before my first duel against Nathaniel," Allen explained.
"That far back?," Rose asked. "And how do you know him?"
"Well… he noticed me and wanted to buy my sword…," Allen explained, scratching the back of his head.
"He wanted to do what?!"
"Wait just a moment!," the shopkeeper up front yelled out suddenly. "I recognize you! Come up here!"
The three of them immediately turned their attention up front, to which they held immediate eye contact with him. They looked between the three of them, confused if he was talking to them.
"You there, the young air mage with the sword!," he called out, pointing to him.
"Me?," Allen asked, as he looked between August and Rose.
"Yes you, you idiot," Rose said. Who out of the three of us is an air mage and has a sword?"
"But I thought maybe August-"
"Last I checked, I am not an air mage," he shrugged.
"Don't be a shy lad, come up!," he called out again, gesturing with his hands.
"I- alright," Allen said, finally giving in.
Allen weaved his way through a confused crowd, with all of their eyes suddenly on him. Allen didn't really like the attention as much, but what else could he do considering the circumstances? He made his way up near the stage, where the eager shopkeeper and a few of the other employees eyed him curiously.
"I remember you from months ago," he finally spoke. "I offered to purchase your sword, was it? Have you reconsidered the deal?"
"No, I'm actually not here about that," Allen explained. "I'm actually here for-"
"Ah, you must be very curious about our wide selection of magical artifacts then!," he said, pointing a finger up. "I'd be very glad to show you around!"
"No, not that," Allen said again. "I actually wanted to purchase something else, a bit more custom-"
"Oh, wanting to order a custom magical artifact?," he asked, eyeing him curiously. "We've been getting that a lot more recently. Unfortunately, we only do those kinds of orders for our special clients"
"No, not a magical artifact!," Allen raised his voice, annoyed that the shopkeeper kept interrupting.
"Not a magical artifact?," he asked, confused. "Perhaps you're wanting-"
"A rapier!," Allen cut him off. "A custom rapier!"
"A custom rapier?," he asked, trying to wrap the thought around his head. "Very interesting, but I don't believe we do that kind of service with our company, but it could be something we could look into. For now, what's your name lad?"
"Allen Fleming"
"Allen… Fleming…," he repeated, almost in a trance. "Wait I-"
"I've spoken to your boss before," Allen explained. "Reynold-"
"Ah, yes, yes, I know you!," he shouted, almost deafening Allen's ears. "Our boss has specifically advised us to give you special treatment! Why didn't you tell me your name earlier? What a lucky one you are!"
"Uh… right…," Allen said, as he looked away in slight annoyance.
"Well, bring your friends over with you!," he gestured. "We can talk more over to the side!"
"Well, don't you have connections?," August commented, as Allen grabbed the both of them.
"Shut up," Allen whispered, as the three of them made their way to the side of the stand, where they wouldn't be interrupted.
"Now then," the shopkeeper clapped his hands together. "Before we get to business, allow me to introduce myself. My name is John, one of the higher ups of our esteemed company. May I have the pleasure of knowing your friends' names?"
"Rose Marion, current Student Council President of our academy," she introduced herself, and shook his hand briefly.
"Ah, I'm aware of who you are. The daughter of Ellen Marion…," he said, examining her.
"Yeah," she answered awkwardly.
She's probably still recovering from all that happened recently, Allen thought.
"And you are?," he asked, turning his attention to August.
"The First Prince of England, August Lionheart," he introduced himself with a slight bow.
"The prince?!," he asked, almost in disbelief. "Forgive any rudeness I may have shown!"
"It's all good," August casually answered. "I'm not here on any serious business, so you can just refer to me as August"
"Very well… August…," he answered, then turned his attention back to Allen. "Well… you've certainly made friends with some important individuals. I see now why our boss Reynold has taken such an interest in you!"
"If only Allen happened to know other important individuals in our mage community. I wonder what would happen then," August said, clearly teasing him.
"Yeah…," Allen awkwardly answered. He decided it would be best to leave it at that, and not to tell John who else he knows.
"Anyways," John said, getting back on track. "You wanted to order a custom rapier, yes? While our company does not offer that service, I am sure one of our esteemed partners could do just what you want!"
"Really?," Rose excitedly asked.
"Ah, so I presume the rapier will be for Rose here? Very kind of you Allen. So she must be your girl-"
"Just a friend," Allen quickly answered, getting teasing looks from both Rose and August. "I- I'm doing this as a favor, as I owe it to her"
"Ah yes, I clearly understand!," John answered, chuckling. "Let's get down to the details, shall we?"
He clearly does not understand, Allen thought, as he sighed in defeat.
"Now then, young Rose. What kind of rapier would you be interested in, so I can write down the details?," he kindly asked, getting out a pen and paper.
As John and Rose talked about the rapier out of earshot, Allen and August talked amongst themselves, with August teasing him a few times to Allen's annoyance. The eyes in the crowd were still directed at them, but Allen hoped this would be over soon.
"Alright!," John said, as he got their attention. "I've gotten most, if not all of the important details from young Rose here. As for costs… well, we can definitely throw in a very nice discount for our special client here"
"He means you, Allen," August nudged him.
"Oh, right! thank you very much!," Allen respectfully answered.
"As for the final cost… well, I will reach out to you at a later date. For now, we'll get to the important details and get the project going. Does that seem fair enough?"
"Yes it does, and I appreciate it," Allen thanked him, as they prepared to take their leave.
"Great! Well if you need anything, anything at all, you know how to reach me, Allen. Hope to do business again with you soon!"
Allen gave him one last wave, as the three of them headed back to their academy. Now that he's managed to get that out of the way, all that remained was waiting.
After some time passed to allow Allen to settle back into his D ranked class, the small resistance members met again in Mr. Garet's office to explain recent events, and how they will proceed going forward. With Allen's victory over Rose, and support from Mr. Lyon, their group now had both of them added to their team. Now that they're not so much of a "small resistance", they'll have plenty of support from everyone, at the cost of Mr. Garet's room being crowded for each meeting (to which he did not take kindly to).
All that remains on Allen's current goals is to make it to C rank, but just how will he do so? Allen is aware that he could attempt to pass the general C rank exam, but with Ellen's influence and Allen's lack of magic, it may prove to be more difficult than originally anticipated.
In the end, Allen decided that pushing to win the tournament would be the best alternative, as no matter what strings Ellen may try to pull, she cannot deny him C rank for winning the annual tournament.
Mr. Garet was very pleased to learn of Allen's new goal, considering his own goal is for Allen to stand out, and he would no doubt further stand out with a victory in this year's tournament.
However, Allen is not the only one looking to win the tournament, as both Stephen and Thomas still remain. Stephen is by far the most excited, as he no longer has to hold back against Allen if they face each other, with Allen's duel condition out of the way. Thomas jumps in on this, as he too wants a rematch with Allen. Mr. Garet added that the rivalry between them will help push all of them to succeed more.
Luckily, with Ellen promising to no longer rig the tournament duels, they will have more confidence in knowing if they are put against each other, it was coincidence and not intentional. They hope it remains this way, and Ellen holds to her promise.
Before they had reached the end of their meeting, Charles had jumped into the room, to everyone's surprise. While he had been busy with recent family affairs, he was still a member of the small resistance, ever since right before Allen's duel against his older brother, Nathaniel Rivertide.
While it took much time for everyone to settle down and finish their discussions, they finally departed to attend to their own work and study.
After a few days had passed, and before the duel matchups had yet to be announced, Rose received her new rapier, way ahead of schedule.
Her new rapier was a lot similar to her original one, with a shiny silver grip, and a beautiful light blue blade, but with a touch of her own personalization - a blue colored rose centered on the grip. A reference to her nickname, "The Blue Rose", it would seem she wanted it to associate with her weapon.
Rose was very grateful to Allen and August for her new rapier, and promised to wield it to meet her own goals and ambitions, rather than blindly follow her mother or even others.
Rose may be out of the tournament now, but that doesn't mean she cannot use her new rapier in practice, with the rest of her friends. But Allen, Thomas and Stephen all have a lot of practice to catch up on, in preparation for the fifth round of the annual tournament.
While the pressure of not making it to his second year is lower, Allen still has a lot of work to do if he wishes to make it to C rank through advancing in the tournament.