[ 48 ] Allies? With you?

The three noble kids had proven even more useless than Kal had originally thought. 

After Vae took chase in the hope of backing Kal up, they went on the attack against Ellie and Arix. They had actually gotten close to catching Ellie and Arix and the decoy Astral Pouch with 100 points, but a point-blank wave of the noble boy’s wand had resulted in its ice spell reflecting off Ellie’s Shield and freezing the three of them in place.

Eventually, the noble kids used basic fire magic to free themselves, but not before Ellie and Arix created distance. When Vae sensed the mana discharge taking place between Kal and Caesil, he backtracked, realizing that Kal had the situation under control, and instead focused on clearing his path of retreat. 

Once Vae released his focus on Puppet Hand, the shrubby lost its left, but the remaining vines still wrapped around the nobles, and he casually made his escape as they toiled to break free.

Keeping an eye out, Kal sensed Vae’s mana as he came running through the forest. Thanks to his cloaking techniques, it felt like a muffled light, making it hard to pick up on but unmistakable once he spotted it.

“Glad you caught up,” Kal waved, stepping out from his concealment.

“It seems like you didn’t need my assistance,” Vae replied.

“Help is always welcome.”

“Talk later, let’s get moving. We’re not that far,” Ellie interrupted.

Kal nodded, though he felt little threat from Team Allseeing. Until Caesil recovered his mana, they were fangless.

Not wasting time, Team Ebenshire doubled back to the Aeries and followed the riverbank for a good half hour.

They had spotted dozens of small islands along the Aeries during the exam and agreed that finding a suitable spot to set up a semi-permanent camp would be a good idea now that they topped the leaderboard. And since setting up camp on an island would give them a degree of defense against teams like 

Kal was eager to challange himself, but it would be foolish not to consider the risk of adventuring about with so many points on them. After all, even if he could best every other potential student taking the exam, it didn’t mean he was immune to ambush.

Unfortunately, fortifying themselves on an island was easier said than done. Kal had lost the summoned leaf when the grimcaps attacked him, so they would need to find an alternative passage.

An idea struck Kal as they jogged along the riverbank, and he reached into the Astral Pouch, retrieving the will-o'-the-wisp lantern. 

I wonder how far those guys have gotten? They still had plenty of botflies for trading, and the groups they had come across so far hadn’t been too eager to stop and talk.

Kal focused his thoughts on the leaf-summoning girl. The light was faint, almost invisible, but it was there, leading deeper into the forest to their right.

“Hey, you guys,” Kal said, halting his teammates.

“What is it?” Ellie said. 

“I think we should go this way.”

“Huh?” Arix crooked his head.

“It’s the leaf girl; the lantern found her.”

“And?” Ellie said.

“I presume you have a plan?” Vae added.

“Well, think about it. If we can get another leaf, then we can sail across to one of the islands. It’d be silly rushing into danger now that we’ve secured the top spot, but hanging about here isn’t much better.”

“We already gave them a botfly. What else are we going to offer?” Ellie said.

“Anything,” Kal said, bringing up the leaderboard and scrolling down.

56. Team Lunar - 85

“Look, they’re not doing too well. Us, on the other hand? We’re sitting at the top with plenty to offer. What if we offered them an alliance? All they would have to do is help keep our Astral Pouch safe, and in return, we would give them an objective to push them above 100 points.”

“This is your diplomatic side, is it?” Vae raised a brow. “I was starting to think all your brains and brawn were focused entirely on combat.”

“Hmm,” Ellie tapped her chin. “I don’t hate it, but what’s to stop them from trying to steal the pouch once our guard is down? It’s all good escaping to an island, but a lot of good it’ll do if we invite our enemy alongside us.”

“Point taken, but they didn’t even try to steal from us last time. And besides, who’s to say they can? Look, I beat that Astral Prince guy, but he’s got real tricks up his sleeve that might work better next time, and who knows, there might be even better mages out there. Team Lunar, on the other hand, doesn’t strike me as a particularly great risk.”

“Possibly, but they also have more to gain by betraying us now,” Vae said.

“They seemed pretty nice to me,” Arix shrugged.

“Look, I’m not suggesting we let our guards down,” Kal countered. “But they need 100 points to ensure an academy spot. We make it clear that if they turn against us, we’ll take everything they’ve got. There’s still a risk they’ll get greedy, but they’ve got plenty of reason not to take the chance and guarantee their admission into an academy.”

“A couple of their team members did indeed look older,” Vae conceded. “Risking failure will weigh heavier on their thoughts.”

“I guess,” Ellie said. “As long as they agree to stay away from the pouch.”

“Obviously,” Vae said.

“So, we agree?” Kal said.

“I do,” Arix waved.

“Yes, you have my support.”

“Yeah, fine. Let’s give it a try,” Ellie said.

Team Lunar wasn’t far away, and within several minutes, they had caught up to the group of mages, taking a break not far from the river.

“Not a step closer,” Michel shouted, standing atop the trunk of a turned-over tree. “Why are you following us?”

I guess they’re a little sour, Kal noted Michel’s creased brow.

“We’re looking for allies to beat this thing with and thought your team might be interested,” Kal said, taking a step closer as the rest of Team Ebenshire held the rear.

“Allies? What kind of stupid trick are you trying to play on us?”

“Michel, take it easy. Hear ‘em out, at least,” Bandy hissed from behind him.

“I’m with Michel. They look dodgy,” Ike said, narrowing his glare on Team Ebenshire as he stepped out from behind the trunk Michel stood on.

“Can you two hotheads just cool it for a second?” Team Lunar’s fourth team member said, stepping out from the other side of the trunk.

“Listen to Daphne,” Bandy said. “We just hear them out. We haven’t found an objective all day and its only getting harder and harder. You really wanna fail this thing, Michel?”

Magic Hunt objectives had been getting harder and harder to find as teams gathered them all up, and while it was likely many had gone unfound, there was no guarantee they were within reach, and the hunt was big. 

“Fine, I’ll listen,” Michel shook his head. “You’ve got two minutes. You better make this good.”

“You have seen where we are on the leaderboard, haven’t you?” Kal raised a challenging brow.

Team Lunar shared curious looks at one another.

Wait, really? They’re not even keeping up to date with the top of the leaderboard? These four are clueless!

A second later, all four of them open up their holographic leaderboards.

“Team Ebenshire,” Bandy stammered with a loose jaw.

“So what, you’re at the top?” Michel huffed. “Am I meant to be impressed? Honestly, that just makes me think that I should take your pouch from you.”

“You can try,” Kal shrugged. “Team Allseeing was the last team to try that. It didn’t go so well for them.”

“Wait, weren’t they at the top just before?” Ike said, eyes widening in realization.

Well, at least they’re not completely out of the loop.

“Tell us, what do you want from us?” Bandy stepped out from behind Michel. “If you’re so good, why do you need allies?”

“We need another one of your floating leaves and your protection. Look, we’re planning on sailing out to one of those islands. We’re at the top now, and that paints a target on our back. That means we have to be cautious, and the first step to doing that is having a defensible and retreatable camp. But we’re not just asking for a favor. If you were to help us, we’d be willing to give you an objective to raise your score up to 100. We’re good at this, trust me. This is about as close to a guaranteed academy spot as you’re going to get,” Kal said, catching the eyes of each of them.

“Why would we want to be associated with you if you’ve got a target on your back, like you say?” Michel challenged.

“Soon enough, everyone will have a target on their back,” Kal said. “Objectives are getting harder and harder to find, and there are still plenty of teams with less than 100 points. What happens when they can’t find anything, and they’re running out of time? It’s going to get ugly out here, and even your 85 points will start looking pretty attractive. We’re asking for protection, but we’re also offering it. Be smart.”

“He’s got a point,” Bandy said.

“What about you, Ike?”

“I dunno. I don’t like ‘em, but Bandy is right. My dad’s going to kill me if I fail the exam again.”

“Ah, damn, the endless planes,” Michel groaned in defeat. 

“Come on, Michel,” Bandy pleaded. “Ye really wanna end up some hack mage’s assistant out in a backwater like Hoggenhigh?”

“Sixteen generations of mages,” Ike bemoaned. “When Aunt Nicky failed, she became the laughingstock of the family. She doesn’t even get invited to Hallwater anymore.”

“Fine, fine, fine!” Michel shouted. “We’ll work with you, but you give us the objective first,” he added, pointing at Kal.

“Nope, no way,” Kal crossed his arms. “Not going to happen. If you want to work with me, you summon two leaves, one for your team and one for us. We sail across to the island, and you help us keep other teams away for the rest of the exam. Then, and only then, will I give you the objective.”

“What? That’s insane. How do we know you’re even going to give it to us? You’re telling us we have to put all our trust in you, and you don’t have to take one damned risk!”

“I am putting trust in you,” Kal’s expression bent seriously. “Letting you join us on the island is trust. But ultimately, I have the points, and you don’t. If you don’t want to work with us, that's fine. We’ll find somebody else.”

Kal had already split the objectives into two pouches while they were running back: one he carried with 200 points and one Ellie carried with the other 200 points. This way, even if they were robbed, they would still have enough points to pass the exam as long as they held onto at least one pouch.

“Don’t listen to him; we want to work with ya,” Bandy hurriedly said, summoning a leaf and throwing it down to Kal. “Here, take it.”

Kal jumped to catch the leaf and grinned. “Okay, this works. Looks like we’re allied.”

“Good job, Bandy,” Daphne cheered.

“Awesome,” Bandy nodded and summoned a second leaf. “You lead the way.”

“Hey, wait. I never agreed to this,” Michel sneered. “Have you forgotten that I’m the leader? I was the one who put this whole team together!” 

“Who cares?” Bandy shot back. “You can always stay here by yourself and keep looking for objectives if you like.”

“B-but–”

“You heard her,” Daphne nodded, hurrying after Bandy. “Either come with us or get back to work.”

“Get back to work?” Michel gasped with indignation.

“Sorry, Michel,” Ike said soberly, looking at his feet. “I never live it down if I don’t pass the exam. I need this.”

“What, you too, Ike? This betrayal.”

“Oh, get over it,” Bandy groaned.

“Sorry,” Ike muttered and skipped to catch up with the others.

“Looks like your team has left you,” Kal said. “Oh well. If you change your mind, let us know. Everyone else, let’s get moving.”

“This isn’t fair,” Michel whined.

‘I suggest we set up camp in that island,” Vae said, pointing out across the Aeries at one of the larger islands.

“Sounds good to me,” Arix nodded.

“Just come on, Michel,” Ike turned back. “We all know you aren’t doing this alone.”

Downcast, Michel hobbed down from the trunk and trailed several feet behind, refusing to look at anybody.

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