“So, who is it that wanted to see us?” Noah asked as they headed down the stairwell that led into the advanced track meeting area. They’d been walking for a few minutes in silence, the only noise out of place being the clicks coming from Ulya’s puppet as it moved.

“Verrud,” Ulya replied. “He’s a water mage and solidly in the middle of the pack as far as the advanced track professors go. His students are as well.”

“Interesting,” Noah said. He took a moment to draw his domain in, trying to contain it as best as possible. He still wasn’t great at controlling it perfectly, but he hoped it was enough to avoid being completely egregious. “Was there a reason he wanted to talk to us? And why are you running his errands?”

“Because I just joined the track,” Ulya said, sending Noah a flat stare over her shoulder. “Though I suppose you, Moxie, and Silvertide have taken that role from me.”

Noah let out a snort of laughter. “If you think I’m going to run around delivering messages for the advanced track, you’re sorely mistaken. They don’t provide anything nearly important enough to get me to waste time doing that.”

“Thanks,” Ulya said dryly. “I appreciate it.”

“Hey, someone has to do it. Your work is definitely useful. I just have no plans of doing it myself. Why don’t you just have your puppets do it, though?”

“I used to,” Ulya said, coming to a stop at the doors at the bottom of the stairwell and pausing in a failed attempt to conceal her annoyance. “A pair of certain someones broke them all.”

Ah, right. I took out a few and then Silvertide used the rest as bait to take out Wizen’s other puppets. That’s rough.

“Right. Forgot about that bit,” Noah said with a sheepish grin. He rubbed the back of his neck. “Couldn’t you use the thing you’ve got walking around with us now?”

“I’d leave myself defenseless if I did that. All my Runes are specifically for puppets. I don’t know how to fight in any other way. Not effectively, at least.”

She pushed the doors open before Noah could respond. The banquet hall stretched out before them, considerably emptier than the last time they’d been there. There was only one person in the room.

Verrud sat at the far side of the table, a book in his hands. His dark hair draped around his face, obscuring it from sight, but the golden nametag on his uniform would have given his identity away even if Noah hadn’t recognized him.

He looked up as the three of them approached and closed the book in his hands with a snap. Noah hadn’t gotten a great look at him during the previous meeting. The man’s features were pinched and serious.

He had thin eyes that seemed to be permanently locked in a half-asleep droop and lips that were borderline indistinguishable from the rest of his face. Verrud set the book to the side and interlaced his fingers, leaning forward and inclining his head in greeting.

“Professors. I’m pleased you were able to make it.”

“I was unaware there was an option to refuse,” Noah said. “Is there a reason you wanted to speak to us before the meeting? We would have been here in a few hours anyway.”

“Of course there was,” Verrud said. “Do you think I ask Ulya to run around bringing people places for no reason whatsoever?”

That remains to be seen.

“I’d certainly hope not,” Noah said. He and Moxie walked over to sit down at the table across from Verrud. Ulya hung back, watching with undisguised interest from the corner of the room. Noah didn’t blame her. He would have done the same thing.

“Does this mean you’re about to enlighten us?” Moxie asked.

“It seems we’re going to skip the niceties.” Verrud shrugged. “That works for me. You joined the advanced track at an interesting time, both of you. Amid the debacle with several of our members dying out of the blue, we barely got time to get to know much about each other.”

“I get the feeling you’ve already looked into us, though,” Noah observed.

“Of course I have. We don’t allow just anyone into the advanced track. I’d already done some research, but you two have a rather interesting background. A professor who was Rank 1 only a few months ago and the exiled aide of the Torrin family’s head. Quite a ways you’ve come, isn’t it?”This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“Are you leading somewhere with this? I thought you said were doing away with the niceties,” Noah said, tilting his head to the side. He hadn’t quite figured out what Verrud’s angle was yet. The man obviously wanted something.

Is it to do with our students, maybe? He could be scouting out the competition to see if his own are at risk from us. Either that or he’s interested in me or Moxie specifically. Is he part of one of our families?

“I was just stating a few observations. Observations that I only grow more curious in. A number of professors in the track believe you have a powerful backer, especially after you showed up with two highly ranked mages at the last meeting. Is that true?”

“Does it matter?” Noah countered. “Even if we did have backing, the only thing that matters for the advanced track are our students and our own abilities.”

“Very true. I doubt you’ll be willing to give me much more information with regard to yourselves, so I won’t waste time asking. I suspect it will come out soon enough regardless. The reason I called you here today is to warn you.”

“Warn us?” Moxie asked. “About what?”

“Not everyone in the program is pleased at your acceptance – particularly you, Magus Moxie. Your student Emily is no longer in line for Torrin leadership, but she still poses a threat. There are those that want to be rid of her, and they have since even before Evergreen’s demise.”

Noah’s brow furrowed. It seemed like Verrud was being honest… but the information he was sharing also wasn’t really all that much of a surprise. Emily had been in line to lead the Torrins after Evergreen died.

It was only logical to assume that there were other Torrins that didn’t like that, and they were a big enough family that it was quite likely that there were other Torrins from different branches that wouldn’t think much of Moxie or Emily.

None of that was a reason to call them over to the meeting room hours early, which meant one of two things. Either Verrud was trying to gauge how much the information would worry them, or this situation was considerably more than just someone that didn’t like Emily.

The way he’s worded this sounds like Emily or Moxie are directly in danger – probably Emily. Nobody would dislike Moxie enough to bother trying to do anything to her. She’s not a political threat when she’s exiled, but Emily is a different story. I suppose she could still try to claim the leadership position even if Evergreen is dead.

“I don’t suppose you’d be willing to elaborate on that?” Noah asked casually.

Verrud gave Noah a wry smile and shook his head. “You’ll find that out soon enough. I’m not sticking my neck out that far. It will be fairly obvious, I’d say.”

“Fair enough,” Noah allowed. “When you say that Emily is at risk, how much are we talking here? Are there going to be threats on her life?”

If there are, I’ll be responding in kind.

“Directly? Most certainly not. What kind of place do you take Arbitage for?” Verrud exclaimed, staring at Noah in disbelief. It took everything Noah had not to laugh in the other professor’s face.

It looked like he’d never had the misfortune of finding out that Arbitage’s neutral zone was really more of a neutral suggestion. That actually spoke rather well of the man – unless, of course, he was lying.

“I see,” Noah said. “So what are we expecting, then?”

“If I knew, I’d tell you. I’m not the one interested in Emily failing out of Arbitage. I value the advanced track for what it is. A way for students to push themselves and grow stronger together with their professors. I have no interest in the politics. Not everyone sees things the same way.”

He said he wouldn’t tell me and then proceeded to do just that. Whoever this is will be trying to make it hard for Emily to graduate, then? Sounds like they’ll be interfering with tests or otherwise trying to make her look incompetent.

Noah’s eyes narrowed as a thought struck him. Some time ago, at the survival exam, someone had been interfering with his students. The amount of monsters attacking them was abnormal and none of them had possessed the tokens that they were supposed to collect.

He’d never completely confirmed the reason as to why that had happened. There had been bigger problems to worry about at the time, and it had seemed possible that Evergreen herself had caused the trouble to try and hinder Emily so she’d lose her bet.

Is it possible that was something more that Evergreen just took advantage of – or didn’t plan entirely? If that’s the case, we can expect someone to be messing with just about every exam from here on out. But… why would Verrud come out and tell us this? I don’t see what he gets out of it.

“A proper fight,” Verrud said.

Noah blinked. “What?”

“You were probably wondering why I bothered telling you any of this and didn’t just wait to see how everything played out during the next exam,” Verrud said. “It’s because I want a proper fight. My students and I joined this program to push ourselves. The resources are convenient, but we have enough power from our own noble families. We don’t truly need them. What we need are competent opponents.”

“And you think that we can be that?” Moxie asked, her words failing to reveal any emotion. "Are you sure? You did point out yourself that our position is pretty tenuous. Vermil was a Rank 1 just a short while ago. Most of our students aren’t nobles.”

“Even if it weren’t for the two mages accompanying you last time, it is clear that you have something interesting about you,” Verrud replied. He pushed back from his chair and rose to his feet. “And your students have come a far way. Far enough for me to suspect it to not be a fluke. I look forward to seeing what you and your groups are capable of later tonight during the meeting.”

“That’s all?” Moxie asked. “You only called us here for that?”

“I have gotten everything I wanted,” Verrud replied with a thin smile. He stepped past them, heading down the hall and up the stairs until the echo of his footsteps faded into the distance.

“He’s… surprisingly decent,” Moxie observed in a hushed tone. “I wonder what noble family he’s from.”

“Yeah,” Noah said thoughtfully, looking out in the direction that Verrud had left. “As do I.”