Chapter 400: The First-Year Champion Returns

By Monday morning, the Academy’s exhibition arena was crowded enough that Arthur wondered whether someone had announced another tournament.

Students packed the viewing stands, and a banner above the entrance read: FIRST-YEAR COORDINATION EXHIBITION.

Arthur grinned. "I didn’t know so many people wanted to watch training."

Sun leaned over the railing. "They don’t want training. They’re waiting for you to blow something up. I heard three students arguing about whether your Guardian Strike could destroy the entire course."

"It probably could," Arthur admitted.

"Don’t encourage them," Vedas said, examining the carefully arranged buildings below.

Athena studied the course map. "They’re testing precision and independent command. Anyone expecting a repeat of the championship will be disappointed."

"Hopefully in a good way," Athy added.

A student behind them recognized Arthur. "That’s Cronwall! He reached Gold Rank before the rest of us!"

"He beat Mithra in the final," another said. "I wonder what Principal Steven taught him."

Mithra, standing beside Arthur with Melo, smiled. "I was wondering that too. Apparently he’s very secretive about his training."

"You watched half of it," Arthur protested.

"And I still want to see what you do in front of an audience," she replied.

The crescent ornament he’d won on Saturday hung from Mithra’s bag; his lantern charm remained on his jacket. They exchanged smiles.

"They’re smiling at each other again," Sun muttered.

Kong looked confused. "Is that bad?"

Eden floated beside Vedas. "They’re happy. I like it!"

Star bounced agreement from Arthur’s shoulder.

Principal Steven stepped onto the instructor’s platform. "Today’s demonstrations won’t be decided by who produces the largest attack. They’ll be decided by who accomplishes the objective. Arthur, you’re first."

Arthur headed down the stairs with Vedas and Star. "All right. Let’s give them something good to watch."

...

Four wooden towers stood around a miniature village. A silver beacon rested inside each, while moving training constructs patrolled the streets. Two bridges connected the village to an elevated platform.

An instructor approached Arthur. "Collect the four beacons without allowing the hostile constructs to destroy any of them. You’ll have six minutes. The structures are fragile, and the course can change."

Arthur looked toward Vedas. "Commander?"

Vedas scanned the routes. "I’ll take command of the central approaches. Star should handle the tower with the narrow service entrance. You take the exposed platform; the enemy has clear sightlines there."

"Sounds good," Arthur said, without suggesting a replacement plan.

The signal sounded. Arthur leapt toward the platform, golden energy collecting around his arm, while Vedas directed the friendly training constructs toward the crossroads. Star flattened itself, slipped beneath a barred doorway, and emerged inside the first tower.

A silver light flashed.

[Beacon Secured: 1/4]

"That fast?" a student exclaimed. "The slime didn’t even fight anything!"

"It didn’t need to," Athena remarked from the stands. "It chose the only route the guards couldn’t cover."

Arthur disarmed the platform’s defender with a controlled strike. Rather than throwing it into the tower, he redirected the construct toward an empty stretch of ground and caught the second beacon.

[Beacon Secured: 2/4]

A siren rang. Without warning, the two bridges retracted, separating Arthur from Vedas. Three new enemies appeared near the third tower, and its front entrance slammed shut.

Sun sat forward. "There’s the surprise!"

Arthur looked toward Vedas. "Want me to cross over?"

"No," Vedas called back. "They want us to regroup. Hold your platform; I’ll approach from the rear. Star, the third tower!"

Star sprang from the first building, stretching between two stone ledges to cross the narrow gap. It clung to the third tower’s outer wall, copying the rough grip of the stone beneath it. Inside, the nearest guard turned toward the sound of a bell Arthur deliberately struck on the far side of the platform.

Vedas used the distraction to direct two friendly constructs around the rear approach. They pinned the enemies between the walls without damaging the tower. Star slipped through a ventilation opening and touched the beacon.

[Beacon Secured: 3/4]

"He didn’t tell Arthur what to do," one student said in surprise. "Vedas gave the orders himself."

"And Arthur followed them," another replied. "Did you see how he moved the guard away instead of destroying it?"

The fourth tower began sinking into the ground. A timer appeared overhead: twenty seconds.

Arthur saw that the nearest bridge was still retracted. A full-powered leap could shatter its roof.

"Vedas, can you clear the western path?" Arthur called.

"Already moving," Vedas answered. He intercepted a construct trying to block the lane, swept its legs out, and signaled Arthur through.

Arthur accelerated, stopping short of the tower as its roof sank almost level with the street. He reached through the opening and took the final beacon with three seconds remaining.

[Exhibition Challenge Completed.]

[Beacons Secured: 4/4]

[Structures Preserved: 4/4]

Applause rolled through the stands.

"He didn’t use a massive attack once!" someone shouted.

"That’s the point!" another student answered. "Look at how quickly they adapted when the bridges vanished!"

Arthur lifted Star in celebration. The little slime swelled proudly, and Vedas accepted the cheers with a dignified nod that lasted until Arthur raised his arm too.

"Commander Vedas!" Arthur called, making the audience cheer again.

Vedas looked faintly embarrassed. "You could have warned me."

"Wouldn’t have been as fun."

...

Steven met them at the exit. "You made the correct choice when the bridges disappeared. Why didn’t you order Vedas back to you?"

Arthur glanced at his partner. "Because he knew the situation better from his side. I only needed to handle the part I could see."

Steven nodded. "And your partners didn’t wait for instructions they didn’t need. That’s what I hoped you’d learn."

First-years crowded around Vedas to question his tactics. Arthur caught him enjoying the attention.

A student crouched beside Star. "You climbed that wall? Incredible!" Star proudly displayed its starry interior.

An instructor approached Mithra. "Your championship performance impressed our faculty. Would you and Melo be willing to demonstrate an infiltration exercise?"

Mithra blinked. "Right now?"

Arthur turned eagerly. "You should! I want to watch."

Mithra glanced at him, her confidence returning. "Then watch carefully. I don’t intend to make it easy for you to guess what we’re doing."

Melo’s tails swayed. "Finally. My turn to be admired."

Sun scoffed. "You’ve been waiting all morning."

"And I’ve been very patient," Melo replied.

...

The village became a guarded courtyard. Six sentries surrounded a red ribbon, trained to detect disturbances and illusions.

"Retrieve the ribbon without being detected," the instructor announced. "The sentries have studied your use of duplicates in the championship."

Mithra smiled. "That’s thoughtful of them."

At the signal, Melo released a faint shimmer near the western wall. A copy of Mithra darted across the courtyard, and two sentries turned immediately. Their detection crystals flashed red, rejecting the illusion.

Sun grinned. "They caught her already!"

Athena shook her head. "Look at the other four."

The sentries shifted west. Melo created footsteps overhead; three guards looked up, leaving only one watching the ribbon.

Arthur watched, fascinated. "She’s not trying to fool their crystals. She’s making them look in the wrong places."

Mithra had remained outside the courtyard, studying their movements. When the last guard adjusted its position to watch the roof, she crossed through the gap it had abandoned. Melo’s illusion faded behind her as she moved in and took the ribbon.

The sentry turned just as she stepped back across the boundary.

[Infiltration Exercise Completed.]

[Detection Events: 0]

The audience erupted. Sun stood up so quickly Kong nearly dropped his snack.

"She didn’t fight any of them!" Sun exclaimed.

"She didn’t need to," Athena replied, smiling. "She made them defend the wrong approach."

"That’s terrifying," Athy observed. "I approve."

Mithra held the ribbon overhead, and Melo spun happily around her. Arthur applauded louder than anyone.

"That was incredible, Mithra!" he shouted.

Students crowded around to ask how she’d avoided detection. Mithra explained that her first illusion was meant to redirect attention.

"If they know your favorite trick," she told them, "let them prepare for it. Then give them a different problem."

A student who had watched her championship matches shook his head. "I thought you were going to use the same copies again. That was much smarter."

Mithra laughed. "That’s the nicest way anyone’s told me my old tricks were predictable."

...

Arthur joined her. "Your illusions were amazing. You beat their detection system without setting it off!"

Mithra smiled. "You enjoyed watching?"

"Of course. You were brilliant."

Melo floated between them. "Careful, Arthur. Compliment her like that in public and people might think you like her."

Arthur grinned. "They’d be right."

Mithra froze. Sun’s mouth fell open behind her, and Athena slowly raised her eyes from her notes.

Melo stared for one delighted second before bursting into laughter. "He actually said it!"

"Arthur!" Mithra exclaimed, covering her warm cheeks.

"What?" Arthur laughed. "It’s true."

She lowered her hands just enough to smile at him. "You’re impossible."

"But you had fun on Saturday, right?"

"I did," Mithra replied, her blush deepening. "Very much."

Steven approached before Sun could add anything. "Excellent demonstrations, both of you. Arthur, your partners made independent decisions while you protected the objectives. Mithra, you turned the sentries’ preparations against them."

He looked between them with a suspiciously amused expression. "I also see the festival went well."

"Father, not here," Mithra pleaded.

Steven chuckled. "Then I’ll save my questions for another time. Arthur, we’ll meet tomorrow morning for your final review. And the remaining expedition records connected to that fragment have arrived."

Arthur’s eyes brightened. "Really?"

Vedas closed his eyes. "Of course. Another mystery."

"Possibly another adventure," Arthur said, delighted.

Mithra slipped beside him. "Then we’d better make time for another date before you disappear into ancient ruins."

Arthur looked at her and smiled. "Definitely. I’ll make time."

Behind them, students continued discussing not merely the champion’s power, but how much he and his friends had improved.