Vale sat forward slightly, his dark eyes steady as he spoke.
“You’ve got resources, Isaac, and that’s a wonderful thing. You can use those resources to poach people.
“But people who follow you just because you give them those resources will leave you the moment someone else offers more. That kind of loyalty doesn’t last.”
Isaac didn’t argue. He let him speak.
Vale continued.
“And the ones who won’t budge… the people who are loyal to the Governor? They’re not weak. They’ve tied their futures to him. Some of them owe him their lives. You think they’ll look the other way when you try to take the throne?”
“I’m aware of the consequences,” Isaac said simply.
“No. I don’t think you are.” Vale leaned back, arms crossed, but his posture was still alert. “The Governor’s been in power for years. He’s cautious, patient, and he’s built a loyal foundation.”
Isaac studied him quietly, then asked, “So what are you really trying to say?”
Vale’s lips thinned.
“I’m saying the real problem isn’t just his influence. It’s that he hasn’t done anything ’wrong.’ Or at least, nothing people know about. He’s greedy and he hoards resources, sure.
“But that’s not illegal. That’s not evil. The public still supports him. Unless you find something real—something that proves he’s crossed a line—the people who support him won’t leave his side.”
Isaac’s brow furrowed.
“Does that mean…?”
Vale nodded slowly. “I’ll support you. And I’ll allow Celia to join your Guild. But only under one condition.”
“What condition?”
“You have to find dirt on the Governor. Find something he’s done and in doing so crossed the line. Then we’ll talk.”
Isaac’s fingers tapped lightly against the armrest of his chair. He didn’t look frustrated or surprised.
Instead, he seemed to be thinking of a solution.
Vale had a lot of dirt on the governor.
But he had his own reason of not handing them to Isaac and instead testing Isaac this way.
’I can only help him if he proves that he can stand against the governor.’
If Vale was alone, he wouldn’t have tested Isaac, and gambled on him by supporting him already.
But Vale was not alone.
He had his sister to protect.
He couldn’t and wouldn’t hand over his sister’s future to someone he barely knew.
Isaac was strong, but strength didn’t equal stability.
For all Vale knew, Isaac could be worse than governor.
So while Isaac was searching for dirt on governor, Vale would judge his character and resourcefulness.
If Isaac was worth supporting, then Vale would gamble on him.
If not….
’I’ll take Celia and leave this city.’
The city had already been swallowed by darkness and become corrupt.
Vale wouldn’t let that darkness touch his sister.
He would make sure she kept shining like an untainted star.
Finally, Vale stood up, brushing the front of his coat.
“If you manage to find some real dirt—enough to actually shake the Governor’s foundation—I’ll allow Celia to join your guild if she wants. Until then, she will stay under my protection.”
“Understood.”
Isaac gave a slight nod.
“And one more thing,” Vale added as he turned toward the door. “Be careful around Arlene.”
Isaac’s gaze sharpened. “Why?”
“She’s the Governor’s spy.”
Isaac was surprised.
He had only met Arlene twice, so he had not been able to judge her character properly.
But he hadn’t expected her to be a spy given how much Celia trusted her.
Vale reached for the door, but stopped.
He looked over his shoulder at Isaac.
“You should return to Fortified City 50 tonight.”
Isaac blinked, surprised. “Why?”
Vale didn’t answer. He simply opened the door.
But just as he was about to step through, he paused again.
This time is expression turned a lot more serious.
“One more thing, even if Celia joins your Guild don’t get too ’chummy’ with her. If I see you getting too close to her…”
He didn’t finish the sentence. But the warning was clear enough.
Before Isaac could reply, Vale vanished.
His figure shimmered, and the faint outline of his form disappeared altogether.
Invisibility again.
The front door remained slightly open, swaying from the subtle breeze that drifted in.
Isaac looked toward Professor Catherine.
“What did he mean by that? And why should I go back to Fortified City 50 tonight?”
“I’ll check and let you know,” she said.
Her image glitched briefly.
Isaac blinked.
For a split second, he could have sworn he saw a brownish and furry tail, swaying behind her.
But it disappeared instantly, like it had never been there in the first place.
Had he imagined it?
Professor Catherine didn’t seem to notice his reaction, or maybe she was ignoring him.
Her gaze met his again, this time with a more practical tone.
“What are you going to do about finding dirt on the Governor?”
“I was going to ask for your help with that,” Isaac said, not even trying to sound modest.
Professor Catherine tilted her head, then smiled.
“Alright. But I’ll need to be paid.”
“What is the price?”
As they talked, they returned to the living room. Isaac sat on the sofa.
“Well,” she started, stepping towards him. “Digging up dirt on the Governor, sneaking around, and delivering it safely back to you. That’s not cheap. And it comes with risk. A lot of it.”
Her tone was teasing, but her eyes were sharp.
“Just tell me. What do you want?”
She kept walking toward him.
There was a strange sweetness in the air.
It was faint at first, but it got stronger with every step she took.
It filled his lungs, muddled his thoughts, and quickened his heartbeat.
His body tensed up before he realized it.
The scent wasn’t perfume. It was something more dangerous, and alluring than that.
Professor Catherine stopped in front of him, standing close enough that he could feel her presence pressing down on him.
One knee slipped between his legs.
Her fingers brushed his face, holding his face upward so he looked directly into her eyes.
The moment she touched him, a current ran through his nerves.
His Dragon instincts flared.
He could feel them clawing at him from within, urging him to act, to grab her, and to push her down.
He clenched his fists and forced himself to breathe slowly.
“What… do you… want?” he asked again, voice rough, breath uneven.
Professor Catherine stared at him in silence.
Then it all vanished.
The scent faded like mist in the wind.
The electricity from her touch disappeared.
His pulse slowed, the heat in his veins started to settle, and the haze in his head cleared.
Professor Catherine let go of his chin and took a step back.
“You did good job in resisting that. It was a surprise test. Though, if you would’ve failed, it would’ve become a different test. But too bad, you passed,” she winked.
He gave her a deadpan stare, still trying to calm his dragon instincts.
“What is the price for the information?” he asked.
“What do I want?” she repeated casually. “You can’t give it to me, Isaac. Not yet. So for now, I’ll help you for free.”
He frowned slightly.
“In exchange, when I eventually ask for something, you won’t say no. That’s the deal.”
“Alright,” he said, still trying to clear the buzz in his head.
Even though his body was calm again, his thoughts were lagging.
He didn’t ask what she meant. He didn’t think he had the mental clarity to unpack it at the moment.
With a clap of her hands, Professor Catherine’s mood shifted.
“Anyway,” she said brightly, “enough of that. Let’s head to the backyard. I’m going to teach you how to manifest Aura today.”
She was already moving toward the door.
Isaac followed her outside, silently grateful for the change of pace.
’She becomes quite dangerous when she decides to tease seriously.’ he made the mental note.
The backyard was mostly barren.
It was mostly an open plot of hard-packed dirt, with a few training dummies and other equipments lined up near the far edge.
There were some marks from old weapon practice, and a few discarded weights scattered around, but nothing fancy.
“This should do,” she said.
Isaac stood in the middle of the yard and stretched his shoulders. He still felt a little off balance, but that was probably from earlier.
“So, what exactly am I supposed to be learning?”
“Aura. Since you already know Sword Aura that will make learning Aura easier.”
Isaac nodded.
“How do I start?”
“Feel the energy in your body. Aura doesn’t come from outside. It comes from within. Mana flows through the world, yes, but Aura is your internal current. It is the power of your life force.”
She exhaled audibly.
A faint shimmer pulsed along her skin.
It was subtle, almost like heat waves rising off pavement.
“That’s Aura?” he asked.
“Yes. You’ll feel it when you tap into it. It will make your body stronger, and your senses sharper. Think of it as activating the full potential of your body.”
Isaac tried to focus.
He’d used Sword Aura many times.
That was easy.
It just involved channeling ’inner energy’ into the blade.
But using Aura on your body only?
That was a bit tricky.
He clenched his fists, trying to sense something beneath the surface.
His mana moved easily enough.
But trying to move Aura was like grasping at fog with bare hands.
“Try directing your breath. Center your thoughts in your chest. Don’t chase the energy. Let it gather,” Professor Catherine said, walking behind him.
He adjusted his stance, and drew in a long, deep breath.
His vision narrowed.
His heart beat steadily, slowly.
He imagined drawing in everything he had—mana, willpower, life force—and pulling it into the center of his chest.
He kept at it for hours.
After what felt like eternity, something stirred.
It was faint, but it was there. Like a spark at the bottom of a well.
“Good. Now focus that into your arms,” Professor Catherine said.
He did.
And just for a moment, his limbs felt heavier. Not in a sluggish way, but instead they felt denser, and stronger.
The dull thrum of energy began to rise up his spine.
He threw a punch at the nearest dummy.
The wooden target normally shattered, but this time, his punch shot through it like a bullet.
“That’s more like it. You need to train it a bit more to be able to use it in battle, but you’ve got the idea,” Professor Catherine said, smiling.
Isaac exhaled.
The sensation faded just as quickly as it came.
He tried to use Aura again.
’I feel like I can use it, but it’s still like trying to grasp at empty air.’
He would have to train more to be able to use Aura as easily as he used Sword Aura.
“I see why people take years to get good at this,” he muttered.