"..Are you threatening me?" A smile tugged at Lancelot's lips as he leaned back in his chair, completely relaxed.
The swords trembled slightly in the air, a subtle reminder of his precarious position.
"Threatening you? Oh no, of course not." Ector grinned, "I can't just have a loose magus running about in my territory, can I? The sensible approach is to nip you in the bud. However…" He drawed out,
"If I apply for the Entrance Exam to your magus academy, I'll no longer be a 'stray', and instead be a part of your faction?" Lancelot finished, eyes shining with understanding.
In truth, even without the threat to his life, he would have accepted the offer. There were a multitude of benefits, like the chance for a more 'up to date' magus education.
Lancelot had understood that Ddraig, having been stuck with him for the past 15 years, had not been able to catch up on all the latest magus terminology and findings.
Additionally, by accepting this offer, he would have the backing of Ector, the western contender for the throne, and one of the wealthiest men in the kingdom.
Lancelot, however, didn't understand why Ector had given him such an amazing opportunity. He didn't have any outstanding qualities, well, he didn't have any that would be detectable by Ector.
Though, he was never one to look a gift horse in the mouth.
"I accept," Lancelot responded,
Immediately, the swords burst into flames, and when they receded, the swords were gone.
Lancelot secretly let out a sigh of relief, feeling a heavy weight fall off his shoulders.
"But, what would happen if I failed the Entrance Exam..?" He asked curiously.
"Don't think about it, a person like you definitely won't." Ector cryptically smiled, "Anyways~" He pulled out a piece of paper from one of the thick stacks of paperwork.
"Fill in this application form, every participant has to."
Lancelot took the form, glancing over the details.
"Huh.."
He frowned, picking up the application form and showing it to Ector, pointing to a certain section.
"Why does it say 'The Solar Magus Academy will not be responsible for any deaths!?"
'Risking my life? In an Entrance Exam..?'
Lancelot had been expecting something difficult, yes, and he was sure that it was a physical exam, but life endangering?
That changes everything!
"I run the most prestigious magus academy in the entire kingdom! Of course, the entry requirements have to be sufficiently strict, and this exam is a physical one!" He arrogantly proclaimed, chin raised high and eyes closed.
'..What a punchable face..' Lancelot sighed, lamenting internally.
He had no choice anyways, this was his only path. He could only move forward, no matter the risk.
In life, if there is no risk, there is no reward.
"So, when does this exam take place?" Lancelot furrowed his brows, making plans on the spot.
He had, at most, been a magus for a day. Without sufficient preparation, he would undoubtedly lose to the other competitors.
Not to mention, the other students would be the children of powerful and influential nobles or merchants. Ector was definitely top 10 in terms of strength with his Master Class strength, despite his.. 'unique' nature, meaning that his lessons and teachings are incomprehensibly valuable to nearly every magus.
This meant that every competitor is either the heir to an ancient aristocratic family, or a prospect heavily nurtured.
This all meant that he needed time to prepare!
'At minimum, I can put something together in a month..' Lancelot made a rough estimation, waiting for Ector's reply.
"Oh? When will it take place?" Ector scratched his chin, a thoughtful expression on his face.
"Ah, right! It takes place tomorrow!" He flashed Lancelot a toothy grin.
"..."
"What's with that look on your face?" Ector raised an eyebrow.
"Nothing, nothing.." Lancelot's face was like a sculpture, yet his eyes were unnaturally dim. His eyebrow twitched erratically and violently.
"Oh! And you haven't told me your name." Ector exclaimed.
Lancelot simply snatched the quill from the inkpot on his desk, filling out the form.
Wordlessly, he handed it to Ector.
"Hmm, Lancelot.. Good name, but a bit of a mouthful. I think I'll call you Lancy instead-"
"Absolutely not!"
"..Fine." Ector narrowed his gray eyes, pouting.
"..You're like, what, thirty? Stop doing that." Lancelot angrily sneered.
Normally, he would be respectful to a Stage 5 Master Class level person, yet Earl Ector seemed to have a talent at getting underneath his skin, making him lose his decorum and respect.
Lancelot wondered if it was inherited from his past life. Vortigern definitely knew Ector, being Arthur's older brother and all.
"Thirty? Ah, you're making me blush." Ector grinned, "I'm turning fourty-five next year, actually."
Lancelot was surprised for only a moment, recalling the lessons from Ddraig.
When a magus advances their Stage- no, 'Class', their soul, much like the awakening procedure, fuses with their soul. However, during the Awakening, the soul only makes a partial connection to the body. With every increase to your Class, your soul would fuse more and more with your body, increasing the strength of your Emblem and body.
Naturally, it would slow down aging, but not stop it.
The hourglass of time falls incessantly, and every person is a grain of sand, constantly falling.
So what if one person was mundane, and another was Elite Class or Master Class? They would all similarly reach the bottom of the hourglass, and die.
Ector raised an inquisitive eyebrow, "It says here that your Emblem is 'Crafting'?".
Ector was even more interested in Lancleot now. Even disregarding that insight he had into Lancelot's mindset, he had never in his 30 years of experience seen anyone with an Emblem related to 'Crafting'.
"Yeah." Lancelot paused for a moment, "It lets me combine two items, fusing the qualities of both of them. It's pretty random right now, though. The result is only something I can vaguely influence."
"Hmm, and your Sub Ability 'Analyze' complements it nicely.." Ector pondered for a moment before snapping his fingers.
With a burst of flames, a normal looking sword appeared in front of Lancelot, hovering in the air.
"Can you try fusing the sword and the quill together?" Ector requested.
"Yeah." Lancelot replied, concentrating.
[Analyze]
[Forge Steel Sword]
[Made from a Master Class 'Forge' Emblem, capable of dealing extremely high damage of all types!]
[Evaluation: B Rank, Epic Tier.]
[Warning! Currently beyond the user's limits to use 'Crafting' on.]
Lancelot looked on with confusion.
'I already fused an Epic Tier item, why can't I now..?' He thought gravely, mind racing.
Sancho's original blood longsword was Epic Tier.
'The only thing different from then and now, is..' Lancelot nodded as he understood the issue.
'Back then, I had Ddraig's help!'