The Jester of Halkeginia

Cloudy times

Tristain Magic Academy, Vestry Court

Saito stood up slowly. His entire body trembeled and he stumbeled forwards, towards the fallen noble.

The commoner...he had won. Won? No, that is impossible. Him? A commoner? The zero's familiar? But that was no special ability some familiars get, healing..maybe...icicles...no! He is human. A commoner! "No...what trickery is this!", muttered Guiche. Even as his body was paralized by fear, his mind refused to accept the impending loss. This, it was simply impossible. The tension was at an all time high, all the attention focused on Saito. This outcome was surreal. To the mages, cracks began to form in their world.

"So, Guiche de whatever...the noble! Do you surrender?", asked Saito. His voice was rather hollow, not befitting that of a victor. His thoughts still lingered on his doubts, his weakness.

Though Guiche, he saw it as a sign of ridicule. Yet his hands were unable to grasp his rose, his grip was to light and sweat was oozing off his skin. All his strenght was...gone. He couldn't even rasp out the words anymore, yet Saito saw this and declared:"Then it looks like I have won!"

He held his sword high, before strinking it edge first into the ground. A smirk found its way on his face, one filled with bemusement. It looked like he had found an answar to his inner struggles...or calmed them down at least.

"That's right, I shouldn't envy the others, I should stick to what I can do with what little I have. It is no use to look at what I not have. But what I have...I can work with that now!", mused the raven haired boy. He glanced at the defeated noble, thinking of something.

"Tell me Guiche the great...would you mind doing me a favour?"

This innocent tone, to Guiche it was almost predatory, as if a large wolf was smiling down at its prey.

"No, like a cat...intending to play with the mouse in between it's claws."

An audible gulp was heard throughout the Vestri Court.
---

Tristain Magic Academy, Servant Quarters

He had returned to the fateful place, now he just had to find it. Find it. Find it! Those were the thoughts spinning through Akami's head. Desperation. He was clinging to the last few straws of hope he could mustered. If the tome was really lost, how could he do anything meaningful. An Item invaluable will be lost, a tool with power he direly needed in a situation such as this. Without it, he will be..guideless. On one side stood a monster of ancient proportion, with the power to manipulate time and space itself, and on the other side stood, well, a clown! Nothing more and nothing less. What were the chances of him returning victorious if things wnt down hill!

"Hector would be a help, but with how my personality seems to be splitting up by some huge cosmic error, chances that he will be useful in the future are diminishing rapidly!"

Akami could not let that happen, he needed to pull himself back together.

"Akami, the book isn't as important as you think. You should return now.", said Hector. He was persuading him, but it did nothing to prevent Akami from his course of action. It only fired the fuel that kept him walking straight, his desperation to reach his desired future.

"Is he influencing him, is their bond stronger than anticipated? But why would the book be so important, he barely used it...", thought Hector, but the bad feeling he had only grew the closer they got. It was creeping up his spine, slowly but surely. Something wasn't going according to plan and he loathed it. Why could that boy not one time do what he was told, then everything could proceed.

Meanwhile the other occupant of Akami's mind had become silent, his outcries of rage and sorrow ceased minutes earlier. He only stared at the darkening sky. The storm that was building up in the distance was filled with power. It announced it's arrival with war drum like thunder.