Chapter 618: The Boy
"Are you really sure about this?"
A black-haired boy sat in front of Thalen's table. On the table was an oval mirror, small but large enough to capture one's entire face.
The boy glared into the mirror, pulling one strand after another and checking himself out. His black hair cascaded in silken waves with a subtle yet mesmerizing detail-the tips and roots glowed faintly with a bluish hue, like the edges of a midnight flame.
This ethereal tint caught the light, harmonizing perfectly with his piercing blue eyes, which seemed to hold the depth of an endless ocean.
Against the pale backdrop of his skin, the interplay of dark and blue created a striking contrast, as if shadows and light danced in quiet rebellion, radiating an aura that was as haunting as it was captivating.
"Crap, was I always this stunning?" The boy's hoarse voice echoed in the massive library like cold smoke drifting through the upper air of a colossal hall.
In front of the boy was seated the headmaster of Tharion citadel, his black, lustrous hair evenly groomed back, slick and neat.
Piercing violet eyes glued to the paper in his hands, not sparing a glance of attention to the boy sitting in front of his table, feeling himself completely.
Thalen exhaled. He tugged at the edges of both brows with his thumb and index fingers, rubbing them in a circular motion, then moved his hand to rub the corners of his eyes.
After which, he sighed and dropped the papers on the table and gave the boy in front of him the first look in a while.
"Are you really sure about this?" Thalen asked, gesturing at the paper in his hands.
The boy seated before him curled up a lip. "Why? Is there something wrong?"
"I just can't understand you. If you'll be going to the academy, you should be going as a student. After all, you are sixteen. It takes a lot of balls to say you want to be an instructor in the academy."
"It takes a lot of balls to be a Sage at sixteen." The boy grinned maniacally.
His grin made Thalen's head suddenly heavy. He had been going through this serious pain in his head all because of the tasks that this boy had been asking him.
"Well, the academy will not give you the position of an instructor."
The boy's brows curved into a gloomy scowl. "What?"
"Yes. Like I said, it is difficult. However, they are willing to give you an interim instructor position. With your rank as a Sage, you've earned the right. But they demand that you drop by for an interview."
"An interview? What the hell is it with that strictness."
"Well, they are the only one of their kind that exists, so of course they are strict with their rules. Besides, becoming an interim instructor, you'd still get paid and be able to do the things you want to do as an instructor. Interim just signifies that your position is temporary until you've proven yourself worthy of a permanent place in the academy."
The boy leaned back into his chair and gently tapped his hands on the armrest, creating a progressing rhythm that made Thalen frown lightly.
"Will you stop that?"
"So let's say I was to fly to the academy and get rejected, I'll have to come back?" Northern leaned forward. "I'll burn the whole place down before coming back." His tone dripped with viciousness.
Despite the cold and oppressing air that the boy exuded, Thalen's demeanor was unchanged, unaffected.
He stared indifferently into the boy's blue eyes and said evenly.
"I doubt the academy would let someone like you go. They will, one way or another, make sure you enter."
"Because I'm a Sage at sixteen?"
"You are the only one of your kind to ever exist."
The boy looked down for a moment, a small frown tugging at the edges of his brows.
'I don't understand why everyone is making a fuss about this. I aim to be a Paragon by eighteen, I wonder how they will be. And by twenty, I hope I can reach the pinnacle. So, the rest of my life would be with ease.'
The boy sighed with relief and shifted his gaze back to Thalen.
"Well, that is fair. Thanks for your help. And what about the other thing?"
Thalen, from the papers strewn across the table, picked out a white envelope and tore it open.
He brought out a silver card that was in it and read the name on it out loud.
"Lael, Artemis Rian. What's the inspiration behind this new name?"
Northern arched a brow in cold hostility. "Since when did you start to care about other people's business?"
"Since that other people was capable of crossing over two ranks in six days. So your first name
is Lael, middle name, Artemis, and last name, Rian. That's quite a unique combination. It makes you feel like a foreigner."
"How so?" Northern inquired with a sharp focus pinning in on Thalen.
"Most names in the Central Plains have an origin and ties to history; the letters are not haphazardly used. Only a foreigner will bear a name starting with R. If a citizen of the Central Plains were to, they could be killed for it because it belongs to the Empire."
Northern grimaced. "That makes no sense. Ryan is R and he is definitely from the Central Plains."
Thalen was silent for a few seconds, his lips tightly shut.
His sudden silence made Northern suspicious. Northern narrowed his eyes.
"Spill it. What do you know?"
Thalen sighed helplessly. He still lingered for a few beats of the heart before speaking.
"Ryan... I looked into his family. They are foreigners."
Northern's gaze became sharp. "Foreigners?"
"Yes. They moved to the Central Plains about a hundred years ago. They are the renowned Chalice of the Cold Flame."
Northern squinted his entire face. "What is that?"
"It's their legacy. His family has a deep-rooted legacy found in their talent. The legacy was founded by the first patriarch of his family and was named Chalice of the Cold Flame. Ever since his era, every other patriarch has upheld this legacy. Until a certain branch couldn't, because of it they were banished from the family and migrated to the Central Plains about a hundred years ago."
"I'm not quite understanding... What legacy is the Chalice of Cold Flame supposed to be?" "I'm not quite sure too. This is the closest anyone has been to finding out about them. Only they hold the secret to crossing the ocean, and the Empire is in constant communication with them. Many people think they are one of the major reasons why the Empire has been able to amass enormous riches across the continents."
Northern's eyes went out of focus for a while. He was silent, his lips slightly opened.
'Ah, now that I think about it... he made a weird statement while we were in the rift. What was
it again?'
Northern lingered for a bit before the words surfaced in his mind.
'I am not a son of ice, I am a son of cold flame...'
Northern's lips curled into a cunning smile as his cold voice crawled out.
"It seems there is more to this boy than meets the eye."
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[Author's Note]
Hello everyone, it's been a while. This is the start of a new arc, The academy arc and things
would be taking an interesting route from here.
Thank you guys for your support through it all, I'm lucky to have guys that have come this far. And I hope one day, this book gets the recognition you all think it deserves.
Just keep voting your power stones, golden tickets and spend those coins, heheee... it helps
motivates me as a author. It's my joy and gratification to realize that there are people that
love my book so much to spend on it.
Now, for the main reason I am here.
Do you guys think we should change Northern's name in this new arc, of course, everyone would come to know him with a new name in the academy but what about us?
We've gotten pretty used to Northern already, haven't we?