Over the course of the next few days, most people strayed away from Leo whenever possible. Although it was a pretty rough place due to the training and mindset of the people going in, the sheer brutality of Andrew's beatdown deeply disturbed a lot of people.
Of course, though there were also plenty of people who didn't care and even said that Andrew deserved it. While most people agreed with the idea that Andrew deserved a good smack in the back of the head, they didn't think he deserved to be hospitalized.
Regardless, eventually people stopped avoiding Leo as they got over it. Faust was worried that he might get beaten up by Leo since he had caused a lot of annoyance to him. But Leo had only welcomed his company back, not even mentioning what happened to Andrew.
Luke on the other hand gave Leo some personal space on the first day but afterwards still hung out with him. He thought that everyone else was just being stupid in their reasoning. Leo had gone about a month only showing a reaction once to Andrew, besides the beatdown that is. The beatdown had only happened due to Andrew killing Bun, there probably wasn't much more to it than that. Andrew was well within the line before by Leo's standards, so Leo just ignored him, but when he killed Bun, it was like Andrew was trying to beat the record for fastest crippling.
Leo was slumped back in his chair waiting for Ethan's class to end, he was currently explaining about blending in during undercover missions, but Leo wasn't paying much attention. Instead, as his graduation was drawing near, he was thinking about the gangs of Riftmoor.
While most would call Riftmoor a city of beauty being trampled on by thugs, Leo really only considered it a place. Riftmoor was an extremely beautiful city where magic was rampant and had been for a long time. It was the oldest human city still standing and it feels like it.
It was by far the largest human city in the world. It was so ancient, that among the various skyscrapers, you could find huge castles. It was such a vast city that you could find anything you wanted. The magic was also ancient and was just a part of life for its residents. There were large battlefields from ages long forgotten which were cursed so badly, nobody had ever been able to clean them, luckily, they were in the outskirts.
Not to mention, the ground always had flowers growing every which way. It was almost as common as grass. No doubt it was also the result of some magic spell. The city had many spells like this, which seemingly served no purpose other than to inspire wonder. Like at night when paper lanterns sometimes flew through the sky, their fire and paper seemingly immune from the almost ever-present rain. Or every new moon when a dragon made of fireworks soared through the dark sky. It is apparently a tradition for sorcerers to do stuff like this in this city, as the number of humans who can use magic are incredibly low.
Those humans were often called sorcerers and they were very few and far between. Some called them blessed and it was fair to call them that, the only real explanation was that the gods decided to bless them for whatever reason.
Compared to other places, the gangs in Riftmoor were different, the scale at which they operated was something else entirely. Riftmoor was beautiful, the people dwelling within were not, they were akin to savage beasts hungry for money and power.
Previously, Leo had come to know some of these gangs, you had to if you lived on the streets. It was just a part of life that he had managed to exploit quite often. In fact, Leo would consider himself to be allies with one of the gangs of Riftmoor, specifically the Crimson Wolves.
They were the undisputed kings of the underworld there, well, at least they were when he had left. But the news John had given him prior made him worry slightly. The Ivory Eagles had been wiped out, but now they were back? It wasn't something just anyone could do.
As he sat in class, he pondered to himself, "If the Eagles are back there's no shot in hell that Montague had managed to build it back up by himself. His muscles are restricting the blood flow to his brain too much for him to bring back the Eagles from the dead." Leo started tapping his fingers against his desk.
"If it is the angels, what's their goal. Would it be beneficial to take over the spot of the Wolves? Hmm. Yes, if they could do that, they'd get the seats in the human government. Alone that isn't much, because they already have enough to guarantee humans ally with them if we head to war."
Leo's fingers suddenly stopped.
"But if they already have enough power to cause that, what's the goals of the angels here? What if they aren't angels but a third party framing them? What would the benefits of that party be by destroying the Wolves? A power vacuum perhaps."
"Mathias." A voice called to him snapping him out of his thoughts. "You're carrying a package in a suitcase and two people are trailing you. One is on foot and the other is in a car. You're located in a city; how do you get away without getting caught and without letting them know you've noticed them?"
"A city… I've always liked sewers. Lead the foot pursuer to a location that the car pursuer can't reach. Going through a traffic dense location is always a good way to do this, but alleyways with doubling back can work as well. As for the foot pursuer, once you've shaken off the car, lead them to a remote location and break line-of-sight and enter a manhole. Once in the manhole, there are a few things that can happen, they might notice it close whether by catching up or hearing it, or they might not notice at all. If they do notice, hopefully you found a sewer that is intricate right by the entrance, and you don't just get a long straight sewer. If they don't notice, well, good. Either way, book it and break line-of-sights."
"A satisfactory answer. Good job." Ethan turned away and started asking other people questions.
Leo couldn't bring his mind back to the gangs, so he just dropped it. He was missing too many pieces to solve the puzzle anyway. Luke and Faust looked towards Leo with complicated expressions.
Faust mumbled with confusion, "You seem to have spoken from experience."
Leo replied looking over with a calm expression, "Well I spent some time living in Riftmoor, lots of things happen there that you have to pick up on."
Faust nodded slightly, mumbling once more in understanding, "I see…"
On the other hand, Luke's eyes widened, "You grew up in Riftmoor?!"
Faust answered instead of Leo, "I grew up there as well, is there a problem with that?"
This time it was Leo's turn to be surprised, albeit only slightly.
Luke replied quickly to Faust, "N-no. It's just that I heard that city is ruled by gangs and criminals. That you can't go a block without being mugged."
Leo's brows furrowed slightly before he said, "They might be criminals, but they still have standards. You won't find the big gangs really doing any normal crimes. They're less gangs and more syndicates to be honest. They reserve their crimes for," Leo paused trying to find the right words, "certain people…"
Faust looked at Leo before nodding slightly, "Yeah, there is plenty of regular crime but that goes for any city. It's the top dogs that cause all the headlines, but they usually keep it pretty contained. Well, that is if you consider unparalleled corruption contained."
The conversation didn't last for much longer and the three left their class and headed outside to Mr. Griffith's class. When they arrived at their squad's spot, they saw Andrew. He was staring at the dirt, his head obstructed from view.
Leo, Luke, and Faust arrived before Andrew and not a single word was spoken between the four. The dirt field was eerily silent as the surrounding students eyed the squad. Mr. Griffith stood silently near the forest's edge with his eyes closed.
"I'm sorry." Andrew lifted his face with a rather dead expression, but his eyes stayed lowered. His face had healed very well after the doctors used magic on him combined with his grim regenerative factor. The only thing that had changed was a scar from where his skin was torn across his nose. It was a jagged scar from the skin being forcibly split by Leo's elbow.
The silence grew once again as the three watched Andrew. For nearly a minute nothing happened until Leo spoke up.
"It's fine." He spoke simply and without any urgency. He looked towards Andrew without any animosity and instead slight relief.
This reaction slightly shocked Andrew, but he nodded quickly. Faust and Luke didn't know what to say at the development, so they simply said nothing, and they didn't say anything for the majority of the class.
Afterwards they went to their third block and a peculiar thing awaited them. As the group of four, as well as Kyle and Evelyn entered the room they were greeted with a very bloody sight. On the floor was their third block teacher, which Leo has trouble recalling their name even now, laid dead.
Standing over their body with a gun in her hand was the bunny as well as some security guards. The guards picked up the teacher's body and wrapped it in plastic. They then threw it onto a clear tarp and rolled his body up. Afterwards they picked it up by the ends and hauled it out of the classroom, doing their best to avoid puncturing anything to prevent blood from dripping onto the floor and bumping into any students.
As they left, the five students who happened to arrive first, slowly shuffled into the classroom warily. Leo was excluded because why would he care? He'd be dead if the bunny wanted him to be.
When they sat down and the additional students filed into their seats, Bunny sat there and scratched her head, slightly ruffling her black hair. Then she spoke up.
"Er, your teacher was a defector, luckily we don't think he managed to sneak out much. Uh, well, I'll guess I'll give take over the class for now, it's the least I can do."
A lot of the students took a moment to realize their teacher wasn't here anymore because they never paid attention to his class. Upon hearing the Bunny's words their minds were blown.
"A defector? Here?"
"How'd they slip through?"
Murmurs started arose between the students before Bunny quickly silenced the chatter with a simple raise of her hand.
"Evidence suggests that they defected right before they came here. Meaning that since the vast majority of angels didn't even consider them an ally, it wasn't likely that we would know for some time. And that's exactly what happened. Anyway, he has some papers on his desk he seemed to have been about to give to you."
She clicked the microphone on the desk and Olivia came from somewhere with some other assistants and quickly handed out the papers. While Olivia handed out the papers she glanced at her watch and spoke.
"I'll cut your classes short today, but I believe these papers are about your final exams. In Ethan's class you have to take a test on paper, Augusto's you'll being doing some practical squad tests, in fourth block it'll be tests given individually based on whatever your teacher wants to test you on. As for this class, you have the dreaded, wild exam. We'll be sending you out in the wild, hence the name, to do a certain low-level mission before you graduate and become enlisted as privates."
She raised her finger and continued, "Now, some of you are going to take the advanced placement test. You'll be given a higher-ranked mission and you can join ranks of the second-class special operatives if you pass with a high enough grade.
"Those of you sent on these missions upon success will be eligible to become either knights or inquisitors. If you choose to become an inquisitor, you'll be a part of the military police and be separated from your squad, otherwise, the rest will become knights.
"Now, those of you being sent on normal missions, some of you will be assisting those taking advanced placement tests. You'll be dealing with a smaller portion of their overall mission and are to follow that squad's orders should they give you any."
She paused for a moment before adding, "And examiners will follow you loosely in case you get into trouble." She dismissed the class with a wave and left the class leaving Olivia dumfounded.
Olivia walked to the front, "I guess you all can head to your dorms or get something to eat..." She scratched her head before disappearing from wherever she came from.
Leo looked at the paper handed to him.
Advanced Placement Squad, Recommendation based on: Individual Talent
Individual Talent Scores: A+
Squad Talent Scores: D
APS Recommended by: Ethan Burns and Augusto Griffith
Location: Riftmoor, East Grimash
Assignment: ABDUCT Avery Holmes Jr. in a DISCREET manner. If not a plausible outcome, ELIMNATE Avery Holmes Jr. in a DISCREET manner.
Briefing: Avery Holmes Junior is the son of Lord Holmes, aka, Avery Holmes Senior. Lord Holmes took over Myer's Munitions after the death of Selina and Thomas Myers one year ago. Myer's Munitions is a major developer of the human military's equipment and supplies.
Our goal is to abduct Avery Holmes Jr. in a discreet manner (detection is acceptable as long as the target is already in custody) to use against Lord Holmes.
If Holmes Jr. is eliminated discreetly, Lord Holmes will be blackmailed with his son as collateral as long as Holmes Jr., has not been detected by Lord Holmes.
If the elimination has been detected by Lord Holmes, eliminate Lord Holmes if possible. If not possible, retreat and the call for reinforcements, this will result in a failing grade.
Assistance: Examiners will be nearby to help in times of hardship, lean on them if need be. Depending on the situation points may or may not be deducted. Castille Squad will be your supplementary squad and they will be investigating the Ivory Eagles, a major gang located in Riftmoor.
Doe Squad Information:
Leader: Mathias Doe, A-
Dealer: Mathias Doe A-
Grim: Andrew Griffith A
Soul Mage: Theodore Faust A+
Specialist: Luke Sharpe A
Leo squinted his eyes slightly before placing the sheet of paper in his backpack, which he promptly slung over his shoulder as he left the classroom.
Their final week of training flew by quickly. During this time Leo and Andrew's relationship barely mended, although it was safe to say it barely existed in the first place. That being said it was around where it had started originally, like back then, there was a faint air of displeasure shared between the two.
At the same time, their fellow squad members improved bit by bit. Faust had already managed to shed his lantern which was practically required for new soul mages. The lantern was a strange and ancient technology developed to help draw out the soul realm and shape it into the mage's desires. This of course only allowed them to do what they were capable of, a mage specializing in fire couldn't suddenly use water. The lantern also had a downside of limiting one's outputs, meaning at a certain point it was no longer beneficial to use, and it was the equivalent to taking the training wheels off of a bike. Either way, Faust had proven himself to be a prodigy amongst mages by not needing the lantern at the end of training. The only downside Faust had was he was apprehensive about using everything he had. He would play his music but not amplify it as high as he could.
Leo thought he was still relatively naïve about the world and thought that during their graduation he'd most likely manage to overcome it. At least Leo hoped that would happen.
As for Andrew, he was already an extraordinary sharpshooter, so he spent most of his time learning about demolition and explosives. In his spare time, he would try to make ammunition using his soul realm as fast as possible. He had managed to get the time down quite a bit for a beginner. It only took him twenty seconds to form a single low-caliber round. Which might seem like a long time but compared to others who needed around a minute, his time was excellent.
Luke had finally shed all his hesitation when it came to injuring himself. He had found out early on that if he didn't it would actually cause him pain. This was due to the abnormally high amount of blood in his body and the fact that his body constantly produce a lot more. Blood angels were also highly valued blood donators too because of this.
Luke's magic on the other hand had stagnated a bit. He could replicate Olivia's fire serpents and make blood serpents, but he didn't know where to go from there. His serpents weren't as dangerous as Olivia, nor could they do as much damage to the opponent. Olivia's fire serpents constantly emitted a roaring fire and anything nearby had a high chance of burning out of existence. When they attacked someone, not only did they have to worry about their bites, but their body would also practically melt if the serpents got nearby. When they were bitten by the serpents their flesh would be burned through instantly and the areas surrounding the wound would get fourth degree burns. This was true whether it was a largest or smallest snake she conjured. Afterwards the wounds would cauterize and needless to say, if the opponent survived, they'd have a lot of health problems.
But for Luke, his snakes just hurt a bit. It was like getting bitten by a normal snake without the venom, which is painful, no doubt, but not lethal at all. So, he opted to create many tiny snakes to restrict and strangle his opponents. It was working so far but he could only create so many, so it was really only good for one-on-one situations. John told Luke that blood angels were much like specialists in that their abilities are generally unique, so he should spend some time experimenting.
The squad as a whole had gotten slightly better together as a result of the beatdown Leo had given to Andrew. Because of it, Andrew and Faust rarely argued anymore and if they did it was hushed and private, they tried their best not to inconvenience anyone. That is obviously a weird thing for an argument, but Leo thought that Faust was decently weird, so he accepted it.
Eventually their final day drew to a close and they packed their things to leave the compound, ready to head into their new lives. After packing they all went to a sealed off section of the main building that was heavily guarded, upon arriving at their destination, they were all put to sleep.
When Leo woke up, he had found himself in the Tower that he had originally left from. The Tower was located in Inullum, which was the human country that bordered the demon country. They were the only country that openly did anything with demons and the only country that was allies with them.
There were Towers in most cities, some were hidden and were instead a small bunker, while others were like the one in Inullum which were very obvious. But now that they were free from their restraints of the training compound, the squad found themselves preparing to travel to Riftmoor, located in the largest and most powerful human country, East Grimash.
Leo's old home.