"Wow. So when do I start?"
Ysine’s proud smile widened. "Lysara emphasized that you should start as soon as possible," Ysine replied, noting the eagerness in his voice.
"I think I’ll start tomorrow then." He could not wait for it. And the timing was perfect.
His reckless experint in the pool just monts ago, that uncontrolled burst of Kinetic Acceleration that ended with him slamming painfully into the crystal wall—was a reminder of his biggest problem.
He had all this raw, nascent potential Vitae abilities from Daphne and Ravena, but no idea how to control them without nearly knocking himself out.
He desperately needed a teacher. And while Mireille had volunteered, she was not better than a real qualified teacher.
Zaeryn’s grin turned predatory. Warlady candidates.
His mind latched onto the implication. This wasn’t just a solution to his training problem; it was a goldmine for him. An entire academy filled with the most powerful, high-tier, and, given this world’s baseline stunningly beautiful won in the Queendom. Won he would be training with, sparring with, bonding with.
There was probably going to be every tier of Vitae wielder, from tier 4 to tier 2, and possibly tier 1, but that was very rare. Even in the whole kingdom, you could count how many tier 1 vitae wielders there were.
This wasn’t going to be just a school for Zaeryn. It would be more like a dating place for him. It was the only way he could mimic Vitae.
Marceline’s words echoed in his head: ’Seduction is just another battlefield.’
’And now , I’ve just been handed an invitation to the main armory.’ he thought to himself.
He let out a short, sharp laugh of pure, unadulterated excitent. He grabbed Ysine by the waist, lifting her in a celebratory spin before pulling her close.
"Ysine, this is the best news I’ve heard today!" He said.
"Zaeryn, what do you think you’re doing?"
He kissed her, hard and sudden, a kiss of pure gratitude and explosive new purpose.
Ysine laughed, caught off guard by his sudden enthusiasm but lting into the kiss, relieved and happy to see how happy her baby boy was. "I’m glad you’re happy, darling," she murmured slightly, pulling away from his lips. "I knew you’d like it."
"Happy?" Zaeryn set her down, his eyes blazing with a new fire. "I’m ecstatic."
Ysine’s smile softened, her hand coming up to cup his cheek, her thumb brushing his skin. The genuine, blazing excitent in his eyes was a relief. "I can see that," she said warmly. "This is a real opportunity. Athea... she really ca through for you."
She couldn’t help herself from praising Athea. After all, it was her job. But even deep down, she knew that it was the high commander, for whatever reason, that had pressured Athea into agreeing to this. Athea didn’t originally want him to. All she wanted was for him to keep hiding, so that her secret wouldn’t get exposed.
Zaeryn’s enthusiasm didn’t dim, though he privately filed the na ’Athea’ away. He still had complicated feelings about the mother he’d never known, but right now, he didn’t care who pulled the strings. The result was all that mattered.
"Right," he said, pulling back from their embrace, his mind already racing with plans. "If I’m starting tomorrow, I’ve got a lot to prepare for."
"Well, go on then?" Ysine urged him.
Zaeryn made his way out of the room.
Ysine watched his form as he left, a smile still on her face with a warmth that was quickly spreading lower than her heart. Nothing gave her more happiness, than seeing Zaeryn and Aeris happy and safe.
She touched her lips, still tingling from the force of his kiss.
Zaeryn walked down the hallway with excitent.
A school for Warladies. It was the ultimate cheat code. A buffet of high-tier Vitae signatures, all gathered in one place.
When he got back to the pool, Ravena and Aeris were inside, leaning against the far edge as they talked.
Zaeryn dropped back into the pool, the warm water closing over him before he surfaced with a splash.
"Hey!" Ravena called out to him.
"Hey."
"What’s got you looking like you just won the lottery?" She teased, treading water slightly to face him.
"Close," Zaeryn said, a happy grin spreading across his face as he swam closer. "I’m going back to school."
Ravena leaned back against the pool wall, water lapping at her shoulders. She crossed her arms over her chest, a smug look on her face. "What? Back to that boring academy? Why are you happy about that? I honestly think it’s a waste of ti. It’s not like you’re studying to be sothing like a future grand Matriarch, a judge or just to have a seat on the Matriarch tribunal."
Aeris rolled her eyes. Ravena didn’t miss an opportunity to flaunt what school she was accepted in. And she had the right to do so, given as it wasn’t easy to be accepted to go to the school to be a noble, and beco a Judge on the Matriarch Tribunal, but still it was annoying.
"Alright, we get it, Ravena. Your school is for future queens and world-rulers. You want a dal?"
Ravena just continued to grin smugly, a slow, confident tilt of her lips. "I don’t need a dal, Aeris. I’ll have a seat on the Tribunal. That’s real power. Not... whatever it is they’re teaching him at his regular school." She waved a dismissive hand, splashing a small arc of water. "What are you going to be Zaeryn? The world’s prized specin?"
"Your noble academy is not the only path to power. When I master my Vitae abilities and mimic more, I’ll be the definition of power." Zaeryn shot back, "And also... no, I’m not going back to that academy,"
Zaeryn corrected, his voice dropping. "I’m being enrolled in an elite training facility at the Aureth Citadel. The one reserved for Warlady candidates."
Aeris’s eyes narrowed with genuine shock.
"Wait. You’re serious? They’re letting a male into the Warlady academy? Zae, that’s... that’s never happened. Ever."
Ravena pushed off the wall, swimming slightly closer. "An academy," she said slowly, her voice dangerously quiet. "Full of... Warladies? Full of... won?"
Zaeryn’s grin widened. He turned his head to look at her, his eyes glinting with the exact mischief she loved and feared. "The future War-lady’s, high-tier won in the Queendom, all in one place," he confird. "It’s a target-rich environnt."
"You’re unbelievable!" Ravena snapped, splashing a hand in frustration, though there was a grudging laugh behind her anger. "You’re going there to train, not to speed-date!"
"Why not both? If that will make him stronger, then he should go for it." Aeris chid in, pushing off the wall to float on her back, her shock lting back into that wicked grin.
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