Chapter 117: High Stakes
(Rodova Military Academy – Principal Alric's Office)
The atmosphere inside Principal Alric's office was thick with tension.
Standing before him with their heads lowered were Professor Marvin and Major Hen, both receiving a well-earned scolding.
Alric was far from pleased with how the two were structuring the training regimen for Leo Skyshard and Su Yang—and today, he was making his dissatisfaction crystal clear.
"Skyshard had to seek YOU out, Hen, just to find a challenge in sparring."
His voice was sharp, laced with irritation as he slammed a data slate onto his desk, shattering it into pieces.
"His own class is so far behind him that he doesn't even see them as competition, yet you continue letting him fight those weaker opponents day in and day out? How is he supposed to grow like that?" Alric asked, as he grit his teeth before looking towards Marvin.
"And you, Marvin—explain to me why these boys haven't failed your training regimen ONCE in the last thirty days?" Alric asked, leaning forward, as he placed his fists onto the desk.
"What happened to training till exhaustion? What happened to pushing them past their limits?
Did you suddenly grow soft? Weak? Have you lost the stomach to push students anymore?"
Both Marvin and Hen stood in silence, their heads lowered in shame.
Alric rarely involved himself in the day-to-day affairs of students. But Leo Skyshard and Su Yang were different.
He believed, no—he knew—that those two were Rodova's ticket to victory in the Circuits, and that belief was what fueled his absolute insistence on their growth.
And right now, he wasn't seeing the level of intensity they needed, which made him feel very frustrated about the current state of affairs.
"Skyshard just selected two (Divine) ranked skills from the Academy Archives.
Skills that he will now have to learn and master from scratch before the Circuits.
Did NONE of you think to advise him against this?"Alric asked, as the frustration in his voice grew sharper.
"Did NONE of you consider that learning new skills is NOT the fastest way to becoming a Grandmaster?!"
His fists slammed against the desk once more, veins visibly bulging at his temples.
"The difference in skills doesn't matter when you transcend to the next realm! Yet the two of you let him be led astray?"
Alric exhaled sharply, his voice lowering into a dangerous growl.
"What does he know? He's just a kid.
YOU are supposed to be his mentors."
His piercing gaze locked onto Hen, who finally responded—his voice firm but measured.
"With all due respect, Principal, I already made provisions for Skyshard to start sparring against ex-Circuit champions and senior fighters, just like you had instructed me to—" Hen began,
"But those matches were scheduled for next month, as according to our previous growth models, he was only supposed to outpace his class around that time." Hen explained, as Alric's expression darkened slightly.
"But Skyshards growth rate has been absurd ever since he took that first Awakening shot.
And it's not my fault the academy doesn't have suitable opponents lined up for him on short notice." Hen explained, as Alric let out a slow, deep breath—as if restraining himself from flipping the entire desk over.
Then, his eyes narrowed, and his voice dropped into something dangerously quiet.
"The academy couldn't find anyone suitable?"
He repeated the words slowly, letting them sink in.
Then, with a sudden explosion of frustration, he threw up his hands.
"WOW, Hen. What an excuse. Truly.
Do you expect me to believe that YOU—Major Hen, the so-called 'Three-Headed Serpent Killer'—don't have a single personal connection you can call on to spar with the kid?"
Alric's piercing glare locked onto Hen's.
"Do you really expect me to believe that?"
Silence.
Hen had no answer.
And Alric did not need one as his voice hardened into pure command.
"It's called taking initiative, Hen. It's called going above and beyond as an educator."
He leaned forward, his presence suffocating.
"And YOU are supposed to do it." Alric flipped out, as he made his point absolutely clear to both Hen and Marvin.
"From tomorrow onwards, I want YOU Marvin, to train those two boys till they drop dead.
And YOU Hen, to arrange proper circuit level competition for them, on a daily basis.
We must mould them from now, because if we don't, we might not just fail to take the top-spot this year, we might also lose second place!" Alric said, as he tossed a fresh data slate towards Marvin.
—---------
As Marvin and Hen leaned in, their eyes scanning the data slate that Alric had just tossed their way, their expressions immediately darkened.
The more they read, the heavier the weight in the room became, as for a moment, the two could not believe their eyes.
"B-but this makes no sense, they were ranked fifth last year? How did they suddenly get so good?" Marvin mused in disbelief, while Hen clutched at his gray hair, tugging at them in pure shock.
[ SKY NEWS REPORT :- Shock 5-4 Close Finish stuns the universe!
Geneva barely edges out Clarence Academy in a thriller at home. Captain Ramos had to step-in personally to ensure the win! ]
[ NINE TAIL NEWS :- A shocker at Geneva home ground.
Team barely edges out rank-5 Clarence Military Academy, after the appearance of shock 3 Grandmasters in the opponent squad.
Talks of a Horizon Merchant Group sponsorship for Clarence underway ]
[ ALL THINGS CIRCUITS :- Shocking news from today's Circuit match-up between Clarence Military Academy and Geneva Military Academy, where the champions were stunned by an early 3-0 lead by Clarence.
Captain Ramos had to personally clean-up in a close 4-5 win.
Can Clarence replace Rodova as the number 2 academy this year?
Can Clarence clinch the top in the underdog story of the century?]
As Marvin and Hen looked at these reports, they could momentarily not believe what they were seeing.
Geneva wiped the floor with Rodova last year in the circuit finals, winning convincingly 5-1.
Yet they had such a close- encounter with Clarence this year, which spoke volumes about how strong the Clarence Military Academy team really was this year.
"And they fucking signed with Horizon. It's official…. The papers don't have it yet, but I know.
For the first time in 22 years, Horizon Merchant Group has decided to not sponsor the Rodova Military Academy Circuits team and go for Clarence Military Academy instead.
Apparently they believe it's better for their image to go with Clarence who will put-up a better fight, rather than Rodova who they don't believe will make it to the finals—" Alric said, as he seemed to be a broken man when he spoke those words.
Horizon was one of the biggest sponsors in the circuits world, and in the past their support for Rodova was always guaranteed.
However, it seemed like after 22 years of waiting for Rodova to retake the top spot and getting no results, they had decided to sponsor Clarence now, who they saw as having better odds of winning it all, or at least becoming the new number two.
"The stakes this time are as high as they get—
We were not affected much when we dropped from rank1 to 2, because the benefits that both receive are almost similar.
However, if we fall to 3 and lose access to the supply of complete Genetic Awakening Serum, we will stop attracting the best talents and it will all go downhill from then.
And that's why, we must not fuck up this year.
And that's why, we must win the circuits this year—" Alric said, as both Marvin and Hen finally understood what was at stake now.
This bonus sponsored by patron Cervantez91 via supergift. please thank him in the comments for the same.