‘He’ll pass through the gate in only one, huh? How cocky.’

Ashki smiled, because really, Jered didn’t know any better. It was almost amusing. Almost.

Royal or not, the kid had nowhere as enough experience as he had. And if Jered had to join their ranks—which was basically a guarantee at this point—Ashki had to ensure the brat knew that he was not ‘that’ special. His crimson cape danced lightly in the aftermath of his mana flaring up. 

The winds stirred, the mist dispersing. 

“Those three have placed great expectations upon you, kiddo. Wouldn’t want to disappoint them, eh?” Ashki leveled his sword at Jered, brown eyes locking onto black, “Don’t worry, fella, I won’t hurt you. Well, not too much.”

Jered’s perpetual smile thinned down into a thoughtful frown, the silvery mist around him flickering like wisps of the souls he had consumed, “Perhaps I was wrong in my assessment, and for that, I apologize…” he said, and after a couple of seconds of contemplation, a bright green flame reared up in his hand, “This will only take two minutes.”

With one leisure step, the ground where Ashki stood crumbled, the cobblestone bursting up. As for the man in question? He had whizzed back into existence behind Jered, sword arching at Jered in a mantle of crescent energy, “Your overconfidence is going to get you killed on the battlefield, boy.”

Jered’s body dematerialized in a plume of thick smoke, and when the energy cleaved a path through it, he was nowhere to be seen. That didn’t deter Ashki. Waves of mana flowed into a single spot, and he immediately pinpointed the position. Ashki was hyperfocused as he pivoted on his foot, his hand gripping tightly the handle of his sword as he charged more energy for an overhead swing. 

The blade of his sword collided with a burst of emerald fire. It swirled around them in rampant, sizzling waves, creating a vacuum in the middle that Ashki couldn’t freely step out of. The heat was almost unbearable. Luckily, Ashki’s obsidian armor was spelled with a set of enhancements that made it adaptable to any temperature. 

Of course, a temperature that approached that of the surface of the sun wasn’t something anyone, or anything, could simply adapt to. Sweat ran down Ashki’s forehead, his sword energy briefly playing a tug-of-war with Jered’s ‘Green Flames of Greed’. 

The flames were the first to give in, quickly splitting in twain once Ashki’s energy overwhelmed them. A narrow passage was cleared through it. He leaped into the passage, sword hanging back and accumulating energy for another attack. Once he reached the end of that tunnel, however, he came face to face with the propelling darkness that spewed out of Jered’s hand. 

It started as a swirl, shapeless, almost powerless too. But as it zoomed into Ashki’s face, it slowly thinned down and elongated into a spear that made his heart thrum. He didn’t want to test his armor against that Royal-Tier spell, so in an incredible feat of agility, he formed a mana platform mid-air, stepped on it, and somersaulted out of the way. 

Jered’s ‘Lanza del Diablo’ crashed onto the ground, widening the crater and swallowing debris and smoke. Meanwhile, Ashki’s landed on another vertical mana platform, and using it as a springboard, rebounded towards Jered. His sword was set horizontally, the glowing tip spearheading for his young foe. 

The wind whipped all around them as he broke the sound barrier. 

It was too fast for Jered to dodge with ‘Shadowport’. His ‘Physical Enhancement’ could vaguely make out the speeding shape of Ashki, but commanding his mana to do the same wasn’t simply an achievable feat yet. 

He had to buy time first. He raised his hand, a ‘Mana Barrier’ raising with it. The golden, shimmery barrier barely lasted a second against the crescent wave of sword energy. It shattered in gilded sparks, raining all over him. 

Jered's reflexes acted up faster than he could think as he craned his head back. He watched as the tip of Ashki's sword glided by a few inches from his eyes. Space was distorted, and the ensuing shockwave stung his face like a punch. 

With a well-timed 'Shadowport', Jered tunneled away through the distorted space right before a second crescent wave engulfed his head. 

When he reappeared, Ashki was already upon him, a hurricane of stabs blocking out any route of escape Jered could have made use of. He couldn't keep up with the pace of his opponent—not that he needed to.

A 'Mana Barrier' was conjured as quick as it was pierced through. 

Jered flew out of a swing, avoiding the fate of being beheaded. Ashki couldn't fly freely as he could. Instead, he had to make use of mana platforms to jump around and follow after him. He was definitely quick with his feet, but Jered had the aerial advantage. 

'Soul Eater' was quickly eating away at his reserves. He had to end the match before his mana pool decided the outcome for him. 

Ashki had just stepped on another mana platform, arm loading back in preparation for a crippling energy wave. Jered narrowed his eyes and 'Shadowport'ed straight to him. 

They were face to face now. 

Through the slit of his helmet, Ashki's eyes widened in surprise. 

Jered was way too close to him for his swing to be effective. Naturally, that didn't mean he was completely helpless. With nimble fingers, he whirled the handle of his sword down, his hand now clutching it firmly in a reverse grip. 

Instead of stabbing forward, he stabbed backward, towards himself. If Jered was suicidal enough to take it head-on, Ashki wasn't entirely sure he would have come out of it unscathed either. 

Except that Jered, as crazy as he might be, was definitely not suicidal. The air around them turned hazy, the rolling heat quickly reaching a temperature that made the interior of Ashki’s armor suffocating. That was the first signal that tapped his danger sense. The second one came in the form of a bright, scorching white whirlwind of fire that swept around Jered. 

It rippled threateningly, and then it burst forward at Ashki. There was no way he could have avoided that. It was too close, and the mana foothold underneath it was slowly giving in. There was no way he could dodge that. 

He simply wasn’t fast enough.

With a war cry, Ashki let his mana explode outwards. It collided against the advancing dome of fire. 

He was determined. If he could not avoid it, then one way or another, he’d bring Jered down with him.

Even if he had to lay down his life for that.

Ashki’s right arm swelled as he pumped whatever meager amount of mana he had left through it. A shaft of blinding light elongated itself from the tip of his sword, a few inches from impaling Jered just as the latter’s reckless stunt was about to burn him to death.

Time froze.

It was not as if everything was moving in slow motion like some sort of last-second enlightenment prior to their inevitable death. The concept of time had simply ‘ceased’ to exist, as if someone had taken a photograph and stared at the unmoving scenery, forever printed into that exact instant in history. 

The ripples of Jered’s ‘Green Flames of Greed’ had come to an abrupt half a breath away from Ashki’s body. Likewise, Ashki’s sword light refused to move an inch forward and reap Jered’s life. 

Gravity must have gotten heavier too, for an unseen pressure was trying to crush Jered’s body down onto the ground, yet it stayed there, mid-air, stuck between opposite forces. 

“Now, now… we can’t allow that,” Ravenn’s sigh reverberated like a rush of wind, “Spectacular performance, but allowing you to kill each other would quite defeat the purpose of the recruitment, wouldn’t it?”

Jered could distantly hear the calm yet confident stride of a powerful presence. No doubt Ravenn. 

The thick, intrusive mist cleared a path. And out of it walked Ravenn. Dark hair. Purple eyes that glowed merrily. And a cheeky smile. The man seemed to proudly wear his emotions on his sleeve, either that or it was all a ruse, “Well, hello there ~” the man’s relatively handsome face was stretched into a happy expression.

Naturally, neither Jered nor Ashki was in any condition to greet him back. 

Behind Ravenn, two more silhouettes made themselves known. A woman with flowing, black hair that fluttered to a non-existent breeze, her face hidden by a quite sinister-looking mask. Next to her stood the tallest one among the trio, his white beard tied by silver cuffs.

While their clothes differed, they shared one particular piece of garment that was eye-catching. A cape. It was clipped on one shoulder only, leaving the other completely exposed. 

It was dark gold, smooth, seemingly made with the finest silk, and with the crest of the royal family emblazoned across the chest area. Which was a faded gray seven-cornered star. It was highly intricate, with hieroglyphs of a tongue long lost to the world, and with an eye in the middle. 

“I do believe that this concludes the examination,” Ravenn stated cheerfully.

Astoria and Rudolph nodded, agreeing with his assessment. Jered had passed each test with flying colors. Regardless of whether they had some misconceptions or personal bias against the young man, in the face of his talent and power alone, it all gave way to anticipation.

Anticipation on having him as a team member, and a prospect Arch-Magus. 

“To go toe-to-toe with Ashki like that…” Rudolph muttered, his hand stroking his beard in thought, “… I wonder who would have come out victorious, had we not interfered.”

Astoria crossed her arms and rolled her eyes, though none of them could see her do that, “Neither. They were evenly matched.”

Jered, who was still stuck in the middle of his ‘Green Flames of Greed’, begged to differ. He was almost certain he would have come out on top. Maybe a little roughed up, yes, but there was no doubt about his victory. Ravenn waved his hand, and time seemingly unfroze. 

Except that Jered’s flames were snuffed out along with Ashki’s last-ditch attack. 

“How long…” Jered asked as he floated down. 

Ashki landed softly next to him, arms crossed. His armor was a bit singed, but otherwise with no sign of any crippling injury.

Ravenn shrugged, “A little over six minutes…”

“I see…”

“Tch!” Ashki huffed. 

It turned out that the both of them were wrong about the duration of their scuffle—by a long shot too. Jered still didn’t agree with the result. After all, he was not as fresh as Ashki had been. He had successfully gone through two tests, one of which seriously tested his pain tolerance and willpower, and even defeated a Doom Fiend. How many people could claim such a bold achievement? 

“You’re the first to pass, young one,” Astoria approached them with light, gentle steps, “We are delighted to welcome you to the Royal Guards,” she ended with an appreciative nod, and a smile that couldn’t be seen, but could be heard. 

“Exactly!” Ravenn cheered, clapping his hands, “We are a relatively small and tight-knit group. And as you’ve already been made aware, we have the crucial duty of ensuring the safety of the royal family. For that reason alone, we hardly step out of the palace, but don’t let that intimidate you. You’ll be assigned to one of the ‘unguarded’ princes or princesses.”

“Unguarded?” Jered frowned. 

“Hah, I say 'unguarded', but really, that’s only when it comes to Royal-Tier guards. Those are rather rare nowadays, you know? That’s why you’re quite the windfall to us. Talent can be groomed, however, it takes time. A lot of it. But a young, talented man who's already a Royal Magician? Now, that’s way more than we could have asked for.”

Rudolph grunted, silently offering his agreement. 

Astoria continued where he left off, "That doesn't mean they're not protected. It just means they're not protected by someone competent," at that point, she heaved a troubled sigh, "Until this war for the throne comes to an end, you'll serve as the shadow and shield of whoemever you'll be assigned to. Once the coronation ends, you'll be free to do whatever you want. Naturally, that'll be up until the new emperor or empress conceives a child."

Jered smiled and nodded along with her explanation, secretly hoping they'd all end up killing each other. Being a bodyguard was already bad enough. He had no intention of becoming a magical babysitter. Rainey had grander plans for him. 

Ravenn wore a childish pout as he glared at Astoria, "I wanted to be the one who told him that..."

She promptly ignored him, "We'll prepare your new apparel in the upcoming days. I'm not much of a seamstress, and Ravenn has no finesse for enhancement. For now, take this," she slipped a hand somewhere into the space next to her and retrieved a ring. It was an ethereal purple color, most likely made from a mineral that didn't exist on Earth. It reflected light in a multitude of shades of purple, and it was absolutely beautiful, "This is the Proof of Loyalty. Clothes can be faked, but this can't. Make sure to wear it at all times."

And then she levitated it towards him.

Jered caught it and slid it into his finger. Luckily, he had the foresight of stowing Akashka's ring away before the examination began. It wouldn't have a been good idea to advertise where his 'true' loyalty lay in. With a smirk, he flashed the ring to an irate Ashki, who replied with a 'Tch!' and snapped his gaze away.

Oh, they'd get along swimmingly. He just knew it.