John Winthrop strode into the clearing, a harsh scowl on his face as he swept his gaze across the clearing, making eye contact with each of the attackers. “Fifteen,” he growled. “I count fifteen of you. Are you serious? It takes that many to defeat a single student? A level 14 useless failure at that?” He shook his head. “Disgraceful, the lot of you. How low have standards at the Institute fallen? At least have the balls to fight him one-on-one.”

  “Like you did?” the warrior at the front called out. He turned his back to Levi – an unforgivable move; Levi nearly punished him for it – and strolled up to face Winthrop. “How did that work out for you, Johnny-boy? Oh right, you intentionally threw the fight to make a quick buck. You have no right to talk.” Several other students nodded in agreement, glaring darkly at Winthrop.

  “Oh piss off, Keith,” Winthrop said. “That’s a baseless accusation and you know it. I’m from House Winthrop, you really think I’m wanting? I chose to spare Levi and give him another chance because I saw something in him during that fight.” Levi let out a polite cough, which everybody ignored.

  “Another chance?” Keith laughed. “The fuck are you talking about, man? This is Ironwood. Since when did you have a change of heart? You hated him back then. Doled out some of the most vicious beatings I’d ever seen.”

  Winthrop faltered. He glanced at Levi for a moment, and Levi was surprised to see something that looked like shame flicker across his eyes.

  “Be that as it may,” Winthrop said, returning his gaze to Keith, “At least I never attacked him in such a deplorable manner.” He cast a contemptuous gaze around. “Ganging up on him like this fifteen-on-one… Are you supposed to be adventurers, or just mindless thugs? There is nothing honorable about this.”

  “Honorable? Holy shit, you’re such a Knight,” Keith spat out the word like it was a curse, “This is why nobody can stand your class. Bunch of uppity bastards spouting about honor. Do you think you were being honorable when you set out to maim Levi last week?”

  “No,” Winthrop said. Levi blinked. “I do not. I thought I was, but I’ve since realized how wrong my actions were. That’s why I’m here now – to make amends.”

  Keith narrowed his eyes, taking a step closer to Winthrop, getting into his personal space. He was slightly taller than Winthrop, and he glared down at him. “You’re going to defend Ironwood? Fight on his behalf?”

  Winthrop stared back, unwavering. “If that’s what it takes…” A double-edged longsword materialized in his hand. “Then so be it. It would be remiss of me if I allowed this ignominious display to continue. The question here is…” He narrowed his eyes. “Are you willing to fight me?”

  Keith paused, his eyes flitted down to the longsword in Winthrop’s hand. Clearly, he hadn’t actually expected Winthrop to escalate, much less draw his weapon. A long silence descended over the clearing as the other students waited with bated breath, seeing what Keith would decide. They looked much warier than before, and for good reason.

  Winthrop was ranked second in the year. Though he wasn’t on Liliya’s level, he was still far stronger than everyone else in the year. Of course, with the massive numbers disadvantage, Winthrop would probably lose if they fought – but he also had the additional political protection of House Winthrop. There would be actual consequences if they attacked him.

  But at the same time, Keith’s reputation was now on the line. Backing away now when they so obviously had the upper hand would almost certainly damage his pride, especially once word got out. And to a noble, that was more damaging than any political consequence could be.

  Levi could see the moment Keith made up his mind, his gaze hardening with resolve.

  “You know what, John?” Keith said. “Fuck it. There’s only a week left before we graduate and become fully fledged adventurers with all the additional rules and regulations that come with it. We might never get this chance again.” He flicked his hand, summoning a massive war axe. “I never liked you that much anyway.”

  Winthrop snorted. “Didn’t you once beg me to tutor you after class?”

  Keith flushed. “I didn’t beg, I asked politely. Besides, that was ages ago.”

  “The fuck you mean, it couldn’t have been more than five months ago–”

  “You’re gonna regret throwing in your lot with Ironwood,” Keith said. “Goddess knows what’s even going through your head at the moment. Don’t worry, though. I’ll be sure to knock some sense back into you.”

  Winthrop smiled grimly. “You can try.”

  A loud metallic clang rang out through the air as their axe and longsword clashed against each other, sparks flying from the power of their blows. They struggled against each other, putting their weights behind their respective weapons. Then Winthrop narrowed his eyes and forced Keith back before immediately leaping back to avoid the hail of arrows that rained down upon him a moment later.

  Levi watched with a raised eyebrow as his assaulters switched targets onto Winthrop. Not all of them; three of them shared a glance, then turned and ran away, not wanting to get involved. But the rest had likely gone through the same thought process as Keith, and were now fully committed to the attack.

  Twelve against one. Terrible odds for Winthrop by any measure. Yet somehow, he managed to hold his own, mostly due to the shining full body suit of silver armor that had shimmered to life around him. It was extremely high quality, and Levi could sense numerous enchantments radiating from the armor. Arrows deflected off the metal plates harmlessly, and axe and sword strikes didn’t even dent the surface. Only the shards of ice and bullets of water that the mages hurled had any real effect, but Winthrop was able to dodge them easily enough, somehow maintaining a high degree of maneuverability despite the armor covering him.

  Slowly but surely, one attacker fell, then two, then three. The rest backed away as another brawler fell, Winthrop bashing the hilt of his sword against his skull. There seemed to be an unnatural weight behind Winthrop’s strikes. Levi activated his True Sight for a second to confirm it; some external power was increasing the mass of Winthrop’s weapon without actually making it heavier, likely his Conceptual Skill.

  Between Winthrop’s higher level, his superior skills, and the attackers lacking the power to penetrate his armor, he might actually win.

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  The others knew it too, their expressions becoming nervous and uncertain as they looked at each other. Their morale was visibly collapsing with a third of their numbers already out for the count.

  “What’s wrong?” Winthrop grinned viciously as nobody moved to engage him. “Getting scared?”

  “As if,” Keith scoffed. He was bleeding from a cut on his arm but was otherwise uninjured. He hesitated. “That said though… Perhaps we were a little too hasty.”

  “Uh huh.”

  “You are a respectable and admirable student of the Institute, someone that we have no issues with.”

  “Right.”

  “I mean, what are we even doing here? Are we really coming to blows over Ironwood? Is he really worth it?”

  “Mmm.” Winthrop gave him an unimpressed look. “Shall we call a truce?”

  “We shall call a truce!” Keith declared immediately. The other students nodded vigorously in agreement. Keith smiled. A trickle of sweat rolled down the side of his face. “I’m glad you were able to see reason.”

  Winthrop snorted. “Anytime, buddy. Anytime.” He nodded at Levi. “Come on, Levi.”

  Levi smiled in amusement as the attackers parted before him, forming a path. “Thanks, Winthrop.” He made his way over to Winthrop, uncaring of the glares that the other students shot him as he walked past. “I appreciate the assist.”

  Winthrop grunted. “Whatever. Let’s just get out of here.” His armor shimmered then dematerialized, returning to his inventory. He turned to Keith. “Unless there was something else you wanted? Shall we hold hands and sing a song to show that there are no hard feelings?”

  Keith gave him a withering look. “Just fuck off, man.”

  Winthrop smiled smugly. “Yeah, I thought not.”

  He turned around and began walking back to the tower, Levi falling in line next to him.

  “Good thing they agreed,” Winthrop said quietly. “Continuing the fight would’ve been a pain–”

  His eyes widened.

  Keith’s eyes widened.

  Levi’s eyes narrowed into a frown as he caught Keith’s massive axe with one hand, his magic instantly nullifying its momentum and preventing it from crashing into the back of Winthrop’s skull. The arrows, ice, and water bullets slammed into a wall of wind a moment later.

  “Okay,” Levi said. “That’s kind of messed up.”

  He snapped his fingers. Instantly, Keith and his allies all slammed into the ground, their bodies straining against the sudden terrible pressure that pressed down onto them. Winthrop stared at Levi with wide eyes as Levi walked forward until he was standing in front of Keith’s prostrate form.

  “Attacking someone from behind after they offered you a truce…” Levi shook his head. “You’re lucky you turned your axe so you would’ve only hit Winthrop with the flat of the blade instead of the edge. Otherwise, you’d be little more than a stain on the ground right now. That being said, though…”

  The pressure increased even more, and Keith gasped for breath as his bones creaked and his torso compressed into itself.

  “It appears you all need a lesson in how to be better people,” Levi said. He cracked his index finger. “Fortunately for you, I’m more than happy to teach you guys. We’re still on Institute grounds, after all. I hear it’s a place of education.”

  Levi and Winthrop returned to the Institute tower together, ascending the stairs to get to class. Winthrop was very pale, his eyes constantly flickering over to stare at Levi, while Levi hummed a cheerful tune under his breath. They exited the stairwell on the thirty-ninth floor and ducked into an empty hallway devoid of students and professors. Then, leaning against the hallway wall next to each other, they finally started talking.

  “I have to say, I didn’t quite expect to see you showing up,” Levi said. “Unexpected, but not unwelcome. Thank you, Winthrop.”

  Winthrop nodded. “Of course. Call me John, by the way. I noticed them sneaking away after lunch, and…” He shrugged.

  “Why did you decide to help?” Levi asked curiously.

  “Two reasons,” John said after a moment. “One, you could’ve easily defeated me anytime during our fight last week.” He shook his head. “The onlookers couldn’t tell, but I was completely outmatched. You had every right in the world to beat me to a pulp, especially after it became clear I was attempting to maim you beyond repair. But you didn’t. You didn’t strike me even once.”

  John let out a long sigh, shoulders slumping against the wall. “I didn’t understand at the time. I still don’t, really. You could’ve humiliated me with a public thrashing. Gotten your revenge for all the times I used you as a punching bag and increased your own reputation in the process. Anyone else in the Institute wouldn’t have hesitated. But instead…”

  He touched his shoulder. The same shoulder Levi had clasped at the end of their fight. “Instead, you chose to resolve things peacefully.” His voice became quiet. “It made me think about a lot of things. Reconsider a lot of things. I… I’m sorry, Levi. Truly. I regret treating you the way I did.” He clenched his fists. “Keith was right. I was just being an uppity hypocritical bastard.”

  Levi stared at John in surprise. Then, he smiled.

  “It’s all good,” he said. “For what it’s worth, I do understand where you were coming from. I don’t hold it against you.”

  John inclined his head, and Levi could see him relax a little. “As for the second reason as to why I decided to help…” He fell silent for several seconds. “After Liliya returned from the Ascension Trials, she seems lighter. Happier. More than passing the Trials alone could explain. I didn’t know why at first, but after seeing you two interact in the dining hall… it became obvious.”

  Levi didn’t respond, instead looking at John with an unreadable expression.

  “We were friends once, you know,” John said, almost ruefully. “Back when we were just children, before her father… well. For as long as I’ve known her, she’s always had to carry around an incredibly heavy burden all by herself. I tried my best to help, but it wasn’t enough. Yet, somehow, you were able to break down her walls and help relieve some of the weight on her shoulders. That, more than anything, was enough to convince me to help.” He paused. “Also, I was a little worried for the other students’ safety. No offense.”

  Levi chuckled. “None taken.” He tilted his head. “I see. Thanks for telling me.” He sighed. “I don’t know how much you know about Liliya’s situation, but… I do wish to help her.”

  John’s expression darkened. “I know enough. I’m still too weak to do anything against Montague and Marquis Volkov, but…” He smiled. “You’re strong, aren’t you, Levi Ironwood? I hope you succeed.”

  “Heh,” Levi grinned. “Just wait till the news comes out next week.”

  John blinked. “News? What news?”

  “You’ll see.”

  After a second, John inclined his head. “If there’s ever anything I can do, please let me know.”

  Levi nodded. “Will do.”

  They fell into a strangely amiable silence.

  Then, a nervous, disturbed pallor appeared on John’s expression.

  “Will they…” He swallowed. “Will they ever recover?”

  Levi hummed. “I’m sure they will.”

  “And why were your threats so focused on their spleens?” John asked, sounding both horrified and morbidly curious.

  “Why not? I think they deserve some sunlight too. And if our dear classmates ever cause trouble again…” Levi didn’t finish the sentence, instead just smiling lightly.

  John shuddered. “Please remind me to never get on your bad side.”

  Levi blinked innocently. “I have no idea what you mean. I just wanted to make sure they’d learn their lesson.”

  John laughed. It had a vaguely hysterical quality to it. “I think they did. Oh trust me, I think they did.”