The offer hung in the air.
Damian stood up without a word, his expression completely blank.
He turned and started walking toward the door.
"Where do you think you’re going?"
Ashford’s voice carried surprised irritation.
"We’re not finished with this conversation. Sit back down."
Damian kept walking, not even glancing back.
"There is always a price to be paid for knowledge, boy. A truly smart person understands when to submit and bow their head to superior power. The Noble families have not even taken you seriously as a threat yet, or you and your family would already be dead.
You think beating a few student heirs in sanctioned matches ans anything? You’re an ant they haven’t bothered to step on yet.
Accepting subordinate status under my family’s protection is the only way you survive what’s coming when they decide you’ve beco annoying enough to deal with properly."
Damian’s footsteps stopped.
He stood there with his back to Ashford for a long mont, his long crimson hair obscuring his face.
Then he glanced back over his shoulder, just a small turn of his head, just enough to look Ashford directly in the eyes.
"Did you really think I have no backing? That I’ve been operating completely unprotected this entire ti?"
His voice was soft, almost curious.
"Do you not know who my master is, Professor Ashford?"
For the first ti, Ashford’s expression flickered with sothing other than bored superiority.
A pause and a mont of uncertainty.
"Headmaster Kaiser. Yes, I’m aware of that relationship. And yes, that status provides you with a certain degree of protection from direct action. But even the Headmaster’s protection has limits, especially when it cos to your family.
What about them, Damian? Your parents, your sister, your extended relatives. They don’t have the Headmaster watching over them. They’re completely vulnerable to pressure or elimination if you continue being a problem."
Damian turned around fully now, and sothing about his expression made even Ashford lean back slightly.
A smile... Soft and almost gentle. Completely terrifying in its implications.
"...Did you really think I care about the Valcor family? Professor, I’m an orphan who was adopted into that household. I never developed any genuine attachnt to them.
Honestly, they don’t even know the real . We’ve barely spoken beyond surface-level pleasantries since I arrived."
He walked closer to Ashford’s desk, his movents casual but sohow threatening.
"Go ahead and check my behavioral records from before the Norrington City incident. Did anyone ever wonder why there’s such a dramatic contrast in how I act now compared to how I acted then?
That’s because I never made my real intentions or personality known before coming to the Academy. I wore a mask for years. The Valcors think they adopted a quiet, grateful boy. They have absolutely no idea who I actually am."
Damian’s smile widened.
"So please, tell the Noble families they’re welco to kill the Valcor family if they think that will pressure into submission.
I’ll attend the funeral, drop a few appropriate tears, give a moving speech about family being taken too soon. But I myself will remain perfectly safe under the Headmaster’s protection, and my actual operations won’t be affected in the slightest.
They’re not my real family. They’re just people whose na I happen to carry."
Complete silence filled the office.
Ashford stared at him with sothing approaching horror mixed with disbelief.
Nathan looked shocked, his anger forgotten in the face of this revelation.
Damian turned and walked toward the door again.
"Thank you for your ti, Professor Ashford. This conversation has been very educational about how the favor system works among Nobles. I’ll rember that for future reference."
He opened the door and walked out without looking back.
****
Outside in the hallway, several students who’d been lingering near Ashford’s door quickly scattered.
They’d been listening. Of course they’d been listening. A eting between a controversial first-year and an Imperial family professor was too interesting to ignore.
And they’d heard everything.
Damian didn’t care. Let them spread what they’d heard and let the rumors grow.
He’d just deliberately painted himself as soone completely ruthless, willing to sacrifice even his adopted family without hesitation.
It was a lie, of course.
Deep inside, he knew it was a lie.
But he couldn’t let his enemies know about his real weaknesses. Couldn’t let them understand what he actually cared about beyond his carefully constructed image.
The Valcor family wasn’t weak either, which made the lie more plausible. His adoptive parents were both A rank awakeners when he was adopted, and he strongly suspected they’d advanced to S rank by now based on various indicators.
S rank awakeners weren’t easy targets. There weren’t many people in the Federation who could threaten them directly.
And honestly, Damian had no idea what his adoptive parents actually did for their livelihoods.
They’d never discussed it in detail. Maybe when he went ho for his birthday in a few days, he could finally ask those questions.
But right now, maintaining the image of soone without conventional weaknesses was more important than truth.
"Damian, wait!"
Nathan’s voice called from behind him.
Damian stopped and turned as the professor caught up, looking embarrassed and angry and sothing else that might have been impressed.
"I’m so sorry. I thought Ashford would honor the debt properly. I didn’t expect him to be so blatant about demanding submission. That was humiliating and I feel terrible for wasting your ti with this."
"It’s not your fault, Professor Nathan. You tried to help , and I appreciate that regardless of the outco.
Ashford’s behavior tells everything I need to know about how Nobles view favors and debts."
Nathan reached into his coat and pulled out a thick, worn notebook.
"Take this. It’s my entire life’s study on theoretical foundations for skills and weapon arts.
Every concept I’ve developed, every frawork I’ve discovered and every principle I’ve tested over twenty years of research. It’s not as comprehensive as what Ashford could teach you, but it’s sothing."
His voice was rough with emotion.
"I can’t give you formal instruction because the families would crush for it. But this notebook is just an old professor giving so notes to a student. Nobody can prove anything or punish for that."
Damian took the notebook carefully, feeling the weight of two decades of accumulated knowledge in his hands.
"Thank you, Professor. This ans more to than you probably realize. I’ll study it carefully and make sure your research isn’t wasted."
"I know you will. You’re the kind of student I always wished I’d had the courage to be."
Nathan hesitated, then spoke more quietly.
"In the future, when you’ve built what you’re building, when you’ve changed what you’re trying to change, maybe I’ll find the courage to actually join you instead of just helping from the shadows. Maybe I’ll finally beco the person I used to be before the system broke ."
Damian looked at him for a long mont, seeing the conflict and hope and self-loathing all mixed together in the professor’s expression.
"You’re welco to join whenever you’re ready, Professor. The door is always open for people who genuinely want to build sothing better.
No pressure and no judgnt for waiting until you’re certain. Just know that you’ll always have a place if you decide to take that step."
Nathan nodded, unable to speak around the emotion in his throat.
Damian turned and walked away, his mood cold despite the successful acquisition of Nathan’s research.
The interaction with Ashford had reminded him of everything wrong with the current system.
The casual dismissal and the assumption of superiority. The complete lack of respect for anything beyond Noble status and power.
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