House of Amarin

Days went past when Solren arrived at the Institute of Eight Elements, docking with his personal flying ship. It was a small vessel, built to accommodate only a few people, looking like a catamaran from the outside. It was a quick and nimble ship, sailing through clouds with ease. When he docked in and disembarked, his brother was already there, waiting with a broad smile plastered all over his face.

"Solren!" Lauron laughed, clasping his hands and pulling him into a hug.

"Long time no see, brother!" He returned the hug, slapping his back.

"I heard about Razael. I wouldn't worry; he is tougher than the two of us put together!"

"True, he is the most similar to how Father is!" Solren smiled, walking with his brother, heading into the city. "How's life for you? I'm surprised you lasted this long here!"

"You are too blunt, Solren." Lauron shook his head with a small smile, "But I get it! Turns out I'm a good teacher! Aaaaand… the cute girls do help keep up my resolve when it comes to working day and night."

"That is what I meant." His brother nodded, "I expected you to return home earlier with a scandal biting at your heels."

"Tsk… Please! I'm not an amateur! I know how to ensure that no seeds bloom after my watering of fertile fields!" Lauron said proudly, receiving an over-exaggerated eye roll from his brother. "By the way, you came at the best time! Want to see something fun and exciting?"

"Hm? Yeah. What is it?"

"Koadriana is attending a competition this afternoon, and Lia and the rest of her group will be there. It may turn out to be a fiery exchange even though we are talking about water manipulation."

"Trouble?" Solren asked, raising an eyebrow, already guessing.

"Part of being kids!" Lauron chuckled, waving, "Lia needs to experience it firsthand, and this is a controlled environment. Best place to do so!"

"She would do just fine in the outside world too." Solren nodded after a bit of thinking, "She has the mind of our mother. The only difference is she has already grown past her."

"Only her body. For now." Lauron joked a little, "But yeah, her brain ticks on the same frequency as Mom! This makes me slightly afraid of what she will become when she matures! Who do you reckon will take the mantle of Family Head? She or Razael?"

"Oh? Not you or me?" Solren asked back, surprised a little, but he was also considering the same since a few years back.

"Nah! I'm not cut out for that, and I know it! You neither! You are a soldier, and I am a bachelor~!"

"That is true! Well, if you ask me, I say none of the two."

"Huh?" Lauron stopped, totally unexpecting such an answer, looking at his younger brother with question marks in his eyes.

"Mom is too strong." Solren said, explaining his thoughts with a slight smile, "For the foreseeable future, she won't step down from the position, not until she is forced to do so… and by that time? We all may have our grandchildren ready for the position!"

"Haaah…" Lauron let out a long breath, seeing the logic behind it. "You know, you are probably right!"

"I am." He nodded with a matter-of-fact tone. "So… What about this competition, and why is it going to be interesting?"

"I'll explain!" His older brother slapped his back, leading him toward where it would be held in a few hours. "I am partially responsible for it in a way!"

"Why am I not surprised?" Solren shook his head while Lauron just shrugged.

"I can't help that my beauty overshadows everything else next to me! I can't be faulted for enchanting so many maiden hearts!"

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……

Koadriana and the rest of the group arrived at a lake not far from the Academy. It was a popular place amongst the students who had either nature or water as their main element. They could come, relax, meditate, and connect their mana to nature, trying to gain some kind of insight. Sealing themselves away in a meditation room would not present these kinds of opportunities; it was unavoidable for mages to seek inspiration from nature. This time, however, the place was taken over primarily by 2nd and 3rd-year students, numbering around a hundred. Multiple platforms were erected around the lake's calm surface and soon to be used for the upcoming competition. Stands were built for spectators, and the tallest one, closest to the lake's surface, was for the judges. They were made up of 4th-year students without exception. Lorin immediately recognized the small group but only glanced at them once, not giving his fellow judges any indication of his involvement besides being there to rate the performances. Besides him, four others were sitting, talking nonchalantly, enjoying the warm autumn sun, and waiting for the event to start.

"Huh… most of the spectators are also wearing teardrops on their vests!" Raufon noted as they were walking amongst the crows, heading towards the lake.

"It is the competition for the element of water! Even if someone is not participating, they can still gain some inspiration just from watching!" Ceiline answered, looking towards Koadriana, who was nonchalantly walking between them. "You look confident!"

"I am~" She replied with a slight grin, looking at her with one eye, "I'll take it easy at first, see what the rest can do. I'll hold back until the last round~!"

"That can be dangerous." Aurora signed, letting Ceiline do the translation for the others. "I would wash them away from the start."

"And where is the fun in that?" Koadriana laughed.

"I agree. That is why I enjoy competitions like this. Breaking the ego of some overconfident newcomers." An unfamiliar voice said, and as the group stopped, turning towards it, a 3rd-year student was walking towards them with a group of girls following her like shadows.

She was as tall as Koadriana, and her dark-blue hair reached down to her waist, cascading behind her like a waterfall, gently moving in the light wind. Her aquamarine-colored eyes watched the others, scanning them until she rested her gaze on Lia, who just tilted her head to the right.

"Oh…" Lia snapped her fingers, recognizing Yanura amongst them. "That is the girl you punished, no?" She turned towards Sion, who just nodded with a slight smile. "Isn't it great? They could heal her, so she still has all of her teeth!"

"Yeah, the coward who ran to mommy for help," Sion answered, not masking the contempt in his voice at all.

"Good try." The 3rd-year girl answered before the others could, gazing towards Koadriana, trying to get a read on her. She felt the fluctuations of her mana, being around the Magi level, further raising her confidence as Koa was a tier below her. This should be easy.

"Like what you see?" Koa asked, easily withstanding her gaze, wearing her school uniform pretty loosely.

"I hope you make it to the finals." The girl said, and as she was provoking Koa with her eyes, Keily pulled on Lia's sleeve.

"Is she that Heliett girl…?" He whispered, feeling nervous, being looked at by multiple eyes of women, burning with a type of jealousy and weird anger, disturbing his keen senses. With Lorin's tip, they already knew about the group, and that Koa was the target of today's competition. They were expecting underhanded moves, knowing that the judges were already bribed to look away if something happened.

"Yep, the mommy figure of the group that worships Lala… But I think they didn't realize that none of them are to Lala's taste." She replied, and her voice was not soft at all, drawing attention to themselves and making Keily flinch. "Lala likes active girls~! Like Koa! This group is too passive for him!"

"Too bad you won't participate," Heliett said after a brief pause, watching Lia, trying to see if this was blatant provocation or just the words of a kid. Lia surprisingly only shrugged, answering with a disappointed voice.

"Yeah! I would love to, but sadly I can't cast any kind of water spells yet!"

The opposing group just laughed, taking it as nothing but boasting, the action of a kid. Only her side knew that she was earnest in her words.

"Let's go!" Koa said, walking past them, surprisingly eager to leave the little confrontation. "If I don't confirm my presence with the administrators, I won't be able to compete!"

"True." Aurora followed, signing with her hands, and Ceiline automatically translated it. "I wouldn't want you to miss out on a chance, trampling over some tramps~!" By the time she said it, it was too late to slurp back her words, so she only lowered her head, trying not to look at anybody in particular.

Some of the girls, including Yanura, standing behind Heliette, wanted to lash out with crude words, but their leader simply raised a hand, silencing them.

"Don't." She said calmly, watching them leave. "Don't bring shame to yourselves publicly. Learn from Yanura's mistake. If not for you sullying our group's reputation." She looked at Yanura, making her lower her head, watching the grass in fear, "I'd not be here. I'm not angry because of what you did but because you were caught! I'll teach you, girls, how to do it without getting a strike and bringing shame onto our association!" She turned towards the rest with a sly smile. "I also heard something exciting!"

"What was it, Sister?" The others asked, widening Heliett's smile.

"That the Prince himself will come and watch the competition!"

"What, Master Lauron himself is coming?!" Yanura raised her head, shocked, just like the others around her. "Because of them…?" She leaned slightly to the side to watch their backs disappear in the crowd. Her words quickly ignited jealous flames in many of the other's eyes, burning in a bright green color.

"Even if that is the case," Heliett said, "This is the best time to shine. So display your best behaviors!"

Many of them nodded by instinct, but Yanura also formed a new thought in her head. Was Heliett aware of this beforehand? Or was she betting on it? Now she would be at the forefront, displaying her brilliance before their Prince Charming. With one stroke, she just managed to make sure that if any of their group had a chance to get close to Master Lauron, it was her…

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……

Lauron and Solren were arriving a bit late. The competition was still not underway, but every spectator was already seated, and the participating students were standing ready before their number was called upon. The two received a small ovation when they arrived. Even if many didn't know who Solren was, his posture and knightly appearance were just as captivating as Lauron's wilder, a bit leisurely look. His shorter blonde hair and deep, blue eyes captivated many girls' gazes as he stood beside his brother, simultaneously flashing kind smiles.

Many thought it was directed toward the students who were excited as the whole event suddenly turned into something that House Amarin was interested in. A piece of big news, no matter where one lived. They didn't know that the duo smiled because their gazes met with Lia, who was waving, jumping up and down, happy to see them, and even Aurora's eye lit up after seeing the presence of Solren.

"So… Is this some kind of martial competition?" Solren asked, intrigued, sitting down next to his brother on an elevated vantage point, having a perfect view of the entirety of the big lake. He was searching for Koadriana with his eyes, quickly finding the girl near one of the platforms and winking back at them.

"Not wholly." Lauron answered, ignoring the speech given by Lorin, welcoming everyone here, "The Tower of Water organizes a competition every three months with different themes. This is the one for the Fall Season. The top five are rewarded, while the winner gains a free lesson in the Tower. That is why it is most popular amongst 2nd and 3rd-year students. 1st-year students are too weak to participate most of the time, and 4th-year ones are usually tasked by either judging it or organizing the event. It has multiple stages; the first always aims at style."

"Style?" Solren asked, intrigued.

"Yes. The participant list needs to be culled first! As this competition is designed for manipulating water, the first round will be about how well and quickly the kids can do it. To entertain everybody, it also needs to be flashy! The judges will then narrow it down to their ten best."

"It explains the ten stages…." Solren nodded, quickly grasping the situation.

"That is when the real fun starts! They'll start competing for real… that is when we will see how they try to sabotage each other's performance! Everything is permitted unless you make it too obvious and get caught!"

"Sounds… evil," Solren murmured, furrowing his brows.

"I didn't know that the Undead fight fair and square. What, did the Intelligent forms have some kind of revelation? Dropping the schemes and mind games? They no longer try and manipulate, infiltrate, and brainwash us?"

"Take it as I said nothing." His younger brother sighed, conceding the point.

"Thought so. This is why I said that this is good. The Institute is a controlled environment. When shit hits the fan, nobody can escape the brown shower."

"I always wondered how you can talk girls into your bed with a mouth like yours."

"I can mask its stench with flowery talk~!" Lauron laughed, joking openly with his brother, showing a side that only his family knew about.

As they were talking, Aurora just sighed, signing with her hands to Lia, speaking without uttering a word.

"Lauron still has a filthy mouth."

"Hehe, he is funny!" Lia grinned, answering with her own hand signals, knowing that Aurora managed to lipread them from that distance. "I like Brother Lala! I'm also happy that Solren came too, aw! If Razael were here, that would be the best! Maybe Koa would give her all from the start, then! Ehehe!"

"She must win this. Or I'll tease her for the rest of her life because of her big mouth!"

"Worry not!" Lia laughed, standing up, taking a very deep breath, and shouting out, overshadowing all the cacophony of voices as the first batch of competitors, including Koa, stepped onto the platforms. "BEAT THEM ALL DOWN, KOA! SHOW THEM THAT NOBODY CAN FUCK WITH THE MISFITS!"

In their own place, Solren and Lauron looked at each other, twitching their mouth, hearing their little sister's voice wash over the crowd, silencing everyone else.

"That was…" they said simultaneously, "Completely like Razael."