Even the team who had just been teleported out were shocked at the sudden turn of events.
"A strategy used by the elite legions to take down magically defended locations.....what kind of wit is needed to even think of using it to pierce a defense trinket? And what kind of incredible cooperation is needed to execute it so smoothly?", wondered the judge out loud.
Hearing this, all 5 of them could do nothing but curse. Picking themselves up, they hastily made their way out while boos from the crowd followed them.
The noble who had given the order to relax had a twisted expression on his face, as if he were planning something sinister to take revenge on those who dared to boo him.
Yet, no one saw this seed of hatred that had been planted. Only one kid who was in the shade of a tree a little distance away was watching, taking note of all of the changes of expression apparent on their faces.
This was Daneel. Nodding to himself seeing that his plan was going well, he started walking towards the energized training chamber to get some training done.
Now, with Parallel Processing-1 in hand, he could train both his body and mageroot simultaneously. This was exactly what he had been dreaming of the whole year, so he resolved to spend every moment of time that he could in the training chamber.
Night quickly approached, bathing the academy in the soft glow of moonlight.
At the woods near the library, 6 students were gathered with 5 kneeling in front of the one in the center who had a bemused expression on his face.
"What are you all doing? Get up!", said Daneel with an exasperated tone.
The 5 of them had again arrived before the appointed time and had surrounded Daneel as soon as he had come.
Expecting that they would just thank him for the tip he had given, Daneel was shocked to see each of them fall to the ground, kneeling, while tears flowed from their eyes.
The silence of the night was pierced by the sound of teardrops falling on dry leaves.
Joshua managed to control his emotions first. Still kneeling, he raised his head to meet Daneel's eyes.
In those eyes, Daneel could see the sheer euphoria that came from obtaining victory after losing numerous times.
"You lead us to victory. For the first time, we felt that we were above the lofty nobles. For the first time, we felt that we weren't just insects that they could swat when they pleased."
The others nodded at his words while the tears still flowed unabated. As Joshua paused, all of them raised their heads and spoke in unison. The combined voice echoing through the forest gave a solemn tone to the atmosphere, making Daneel stand up straight and gaze at them all with a stoic expression.
"As per our word, we choose to give unto you everything that is ours. Please accept us as your followers, and neither heaven nor hell will stand in our way when we march on your word."
Although a few sentences were missing, this was similar to the magical pledge made by soldiers when they joined the army.
"I accept."
Hearing this, the 5 stood up and hugged each other with joy. If anyone observed the scene, they would be shocked to find out that Daneel had actually been the one hoping to take them on as followers.
The system's voice that echoed in Daneel's mind at this moment sounded like the horn that was blown to signal the start of a conquest.
[Achievement "First Oath Accepted" obtained.
"First Oath Accepted": By offering your help when it was needed the most, you planted a seed of admiration that bloomed into an oath of fealty. Congratulations on accepting your first oath!
1000 EXP awarded.
Total EXP: 2350]
After the 5 were done rejoicing, Daneel asked the question that had been bothering him since he had spectated the match.
"I only told you that the dome is susceptible to sharp attacks from above. How did you figure out a way to execute a leaping attack so easily? And most importantly, what made you want to follow me enough to make you kneel and feel so happy when I accepted?"
This time, it was Helvix who answered. Unlike Joshua who was a thin kid with dark hair and a long nose, Helvix was stockily built even for a 13 year old. His face had cheeks that would make anyone looking want to pinch them, and he was adorably round with a huge belly.
"We perfected it when we went to steal food from a merchant's warehouse near our houses. The wall was quite high, so Xander would jump in before letting the rest of us up. For some reason, I was always the one assigned to be on lookout while the others went inside."
Hearing Helvix's whining tone, Daneel couldn't help but burst out laughing. It was quite apparent why this round kid was left as the lookout.
The tension that was in the atmosphere was broken, prompting the others to laugh along and tease Helvix who still had a grumbling expression on his face.
"We commoners simply wish that we be treated fairly by the academy, which repeatedly shows favoritism towards the nobles. It was this simple remark that made those 2 beat us up, starting the whole thing. We don't know if following you will result in a change, but based on what we saw in the assessment and how you helped us when we were ready to give up, we simply want to take the chance.", said Joshua while the others smiled and looked at Daneel with hopeful gazes.
For the first time, Daneel experienced the feeling of someone other than his parents placing their hopes on him. All he had done was pass along some information that Elanev had told him in passing. Yet, they had chosen to swear an oath and follow him.
Although their oaths weren't magically sworn, in the pure hearts of the 13 year old, these oaths were equally binding.
Vowing to himself that he wouldn't let them down, Daneel gave them the first mission that he had had in mind for a long time. He instructed them to gather information about all of the commoners who were similarly oppressed, and the list of the nobles who loved oppressing them the most.
Then, they were also instructed to become friends with them and slowly broach the topic of fighting against the nobles like they had done. It had to be done casually while making certain that it was just a passing remark which wouldn't elicit any suspicion from the other party.
Deciding to meet back here in 10 days, the 6 dispersed, walking to their quarters.
Behind a tree around a hundred feet away from Daneel, a man with unkempt hair scratched the stubble on his cheeks while silently pondering something.
Staring at the exact spot where the 5 had sworn their oath, an expression of interest appeared on his face. Before vanishing, he flicked his finger, making a semi-transparent dome appear and flicker out of existence at the exact spot where Daneel had accepted the oath.
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