Mage Academy 6: A LitRPG Magic Academy Light Novel (Imperial Summoner), page 2
"Hey, dad."
Danny sighed and glanced over as his three sons came walking up. The oldest, Jonathan, was eighteen, and almost ready to enter the Academy himself. The youngest, Solomon, was only thirteen, but he looked every inch a warrior.
Behind them came Nicodemus, their great-grandfather, who somehow continued to look just as spry and strong as ever.
"Hey, son." Danny slowly rose and turned to them. He spread his arms wide, and the three boys ran to him and gave him a great hug. He hugged them tightly back, then looked up at Nicodemus.
"Thanks for bringing them."
"Anything for the most powerful warrior in the realm." Nicodemus chuckled. "I couldn't well refuse your summons, could I?"
"I guess not." Danny laughed slightly.
Nicodemus smiled and stepped up next to him, then nodded down at the grave.
"Saying goodbye?"
"Something like that." Danny grimaced, then folded his hands.
"What's that mean?" Solomon looked up at his father, and Danny felt a pang shoot through his heart.
"It means that dad is going away." Jonathan answered. "And we're going to be staying here."
"What?" Solomon gaped at Danny. "You're leaving?"
"For now, yes." Danny sighed and pulled his son in close. "Things are complicated."
"You could just give it up, you know." Nicodemus spoke up with a small chuckle. "You could just turn in your robes, and go live as a civilian. You're quite rich."
"I know." Danny grimaced, then sighed. He knew that Nicodemus was giving him a chance to explain himself, and he appreciated it. "I have to go, though. The Emperor has offered me something. A chance, and I have to take it. The safety of our world could depend on it."
"Is the world in danger again?" Solomon asked. "You have to go fight lots of monsters again?"
"Something like that, yes." Danny grimaced. He glanced over at Jonathan, who gave a tight-lipped nod. "That's the price you pay for being strong, for being powerful. Sometimes, you have to make sacrifices."
He knelt down. "Think you can do that for me?"
Solomon set his jaw, then nodded tightly. Danny hugged them tightly once more, and all three boys turned and started to walk away. His middle son, David, lingered for a breath longer, then hugged Danny tightly before heading back to the carriage outside the cemetery.
Danny watched them go, and Nicodemus stepped up next to him.
"Don't worry." Nicodemus murmured. "They've already been attending boarding school for a few years now. Fellworth's School is the finest in the nation, they'll grow up into good men. I'll keep an eye on them, and your father will, too, and once they graduate and can move up into the Academy."
Danny winced, and Nicodemus put a hand on his shoulder.
"You're going to be okay. They'll be okay. Your father didn't make the decision lightly. I had many long conversations with him, not just this last week, but over the course of the last year or so. He wasn't the one trying to discourage your live-summon classes."
"He's still the one who gave the order." Danny shook his head.
"Yes, well, I think at his age, we can forgive him a little bit of senility." Nicodemus answered, smiling out at Danny with his ancient, wrinkled eyes.
"And how old are you, exactly?"
"Let's not get into the weeds over this." Nicodemus shook his head with a small laugh. "Now, if you'll forgive me a bit of curiosity, what's the Emperor offering you?"
"I don't know." Danny answered truthfully. "All he would say is that it was a second chance, and that it was important."
He paused, then continued. "I think it has something to do with Isa."
"She's up north, isn't she?" Nicodemus asked.
"Mmm, hmm." Danny nodded. "My father and I saw her earlier this year. She found an old ice dungeon that overflowed, and we took it down. She thanked us for our help, but it seemed to me like something was off. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but she seemed upset. She wouldn't tell us what it was, though, just said that she had more work that she needed to do."
"Curious." Nicodemus shook his head. "I haven't wanted to say anything, but I've felt trouble in the air as of late."
Danny had felt the same thing, but he wanted to know exactly what his grandfather was talking about.
"What do you mean?"
"Hard to say." Nicodemus sighed. "But I've touched evil before. I've fought the Deepcorp, more than once. I've gone toe to toe with dragons, and I've infiltrated the depths of humanity. I'd like to think that I've gotten a pretty good feeling for when things just aren't right."
"Right now, there's something going on. People in the Imperial Court are just a bit too stiff. Army units are coming back in more battered than they should."
He paused, then continued. "And I know this is going to sound crazy, but even more so than that, the animals of the world don't seem right. The birds flying over the city aren't right. The fish in the rivers aren't right. There's an evil spreading, lurking, influencing."
"For the moment, it's lingering in the shadows, exerting an influence over the living that can't quite be explained. I'm convinced that it's real, though, and it's probably what's led to your expulsion."
Danny grimaced and nodded. "I've felt the same thing, I'm afraid. I'm glad to have it confirmed, at least, I'm almost happy to have it confirmed."
"Whatever happens, keep your head about you." Nicodemus flashed a small smile at him. "I'll take care of the kids, don't worry. If you need advice as you go forward, don't hesitate to let me know, though I'm afraid that I won't be much use in a fight. My old bones are finally giving in."
"I'm just grateful for all you've done in the past." Danny nodded. "And all you're doing right now, for my kids. I'll see you later."
Nicodemus nodded and walked off, and Danny paused. He turned once more back to the grave, then turned away, knowing well that there was every chance he would never see it again.
With that, he boarded his own carriage and rode off, winding through the streets toward the Imperial Palace. It was across toward the eastern side of the city, and he soon found himself rolling through the immense gates. It had been rebuilt following the War, and now sparkled and shone brighter than ever before.
Silver fountains shot streams of water high into the air, while stone statues looked down upon everyone from a wide ring around the main courtyard. The carriage clattered along through the courtyard, winding past delegations and parties, until it came to the main steps.
Danny disembarked, sighed, and then headed up and into the building.
He was met by a butler, and conducted through the vast and sweeping halls, soon arriving at the throne room itself. Golden doors looked out at him, which were opened by several guards. As he walked into the vast and expansive throne room, Emperor Ezra rose from his throne and beamed.
"Danny!"
"Ezra!" Danny strode forward as quickly as he could, and Ezra came down from the throne. The two met in the middle and embraced, thumping one another on the back.
As they pulled apart, Danny looked over the emperor and sighed. "You look great! Few white hairs in your beard, but you look like you're living it up."
Ezra smiled. He had a thick beard that fell down to his chest, despite only being twenty-nine years of age. "I'm doing well! The Empire is rebuilding, and oh, I don't know if you've been told. The Empress is expecting a child!"
"What? That's amazing! Congratulations!" Danny grinned from ear to ear.
"You'll have an heir now!"
"We'll see if it's a boy or a girl, but either way, the imperial throne is secure." Ezra nodded. "Oh, it's good to see you."
"Now, if we could only arrange a few of these meetings when things weren't dire." Danny chuckled.
"Yes, certainly." Ezra sighed, then motioned to a door on the side of the vast room.
"Shall we?"
Danny nodded and followed the emperor into a small conference room. It was decorated with paintings of the Imperial City, except for one wall that held an enormous map of the Empire. There were a large number of pins and notes drawn all across the map, indicating where repair efforts were still ongoing, and where dungeon flareups had been reported, along with an assortment of other things.
The emperor closed the door behind them, motioning to several guards to keep the door barred.
When they were fully alone, Ezra sighed.
"So what exactly hasn't the general public learned about the state of things?" Danny asked, sitting down at the end of the table nearest to the map. He angled his chair so that he could see it, and the emperor came and sat down next to him.
"Oh, a lot of things." Ezra sighed. "Tax rates, the state of shipping that we're establishing between the Empire and the nations on the other side of the world, as well as—"
"Ezra." Danny raised an eyebrow. "You didn't call me in here to talk to me about tax rates."
"No, certainly not." Ezra slapped his knee. "And the simple answer is that I don't know much. Master Isa Fireworth has long been a friend of the Imperial Court, assisting us in a great many matters. She knows how to use the Globe better than anyone else."
"You remember the magic globe thing that lets you look all across the world? She uses it to keep eyes on things, and most of what she does is locate overflowing dungeons, as she did earlier this year when you and your father went up to join her. I think that little trip was more of a cover, though."
"She discovered something dark, though she hasn't yet told me what it is."
"But you have a suspicion." Danny posited.
"Not exactly, no. Frankly, we wouldn't be having this conversation if it hadn't been for the fact that you were just kicked out of the Academy." Ezra answered. "Perhaps we would have it in another month, or two, or ten, or in a few years. Whenever I finally had more concrete information to send your way."
"For now, I have very little that I can tell you. The only other bit of information I have is from King Korlok, and it may or may not be related."
"Alright?" Danny frowned.
"What of it?"
"King Korlok is king of the Nation of the Green Mountains." Ezra shrugged. "It doesn't roll off the tongue, at least in our own language. I'm told that it's something like Hinkerspladtch in their language."
"That sounds better." Danny laughed.
"Certainly." Ezra sighed. "Anyway, there's another nation not too far from his own, the Kingdom of the Pink Hills. Apparently that's the sort of way that all the kingdoms and nations are named over there. I can't speak to it myself, but it sounds like almost all communication into and out of that nation has gone dark."
"He only mentioned it offhandedly, said that he was sending envoys to some other nearby nations to see what they had to say about the matter. In any case, he sounded worried, at least to a degree."
"And you think it might be related to whatever Isa found." Danny frowned.
"I think it's certainly possible." Ezra nodded. "Again, this is all just supposition at this point."
"Aren't you supposed to be the Emperor? You know everything?"
At that, Ezra laughed. "I'm the Emperor, which means that I know nothing. Everyone gives me updates and summaries, so I never learn the full truth of anything."
"I suppose so." Danny chuckled. "Well, thanks, for this. I'll see what I can do about it. Maybe I'll use this time to head north, try to reconnect with Isa."
"I have a better idea." Ezra crossed his arms.
"You go and start up a new Academy."
"A new, a what?" Danny could hardly believe what he was hearing.
"You want me to go start up a rival academy?"
"Exactly." Ezra rose and walked over to the map, and pointed at a location far in the eastern part of the Empire. "It's a good three weeks' travel from the Capital, far away from the main roads."
"Inconvenient, for us, but more so for our enemies." Danny murmured.
"What's there?"
"An old fortress. We think that it may have once been controlled by the Deepcorp, but was abandoned by even them some time ago." Ezra shrugged. "We found references to it when digging through the Deepcorp records that we seized, and further expeditions confirmed that it's there and in working order."
"Well, mostly working order. You can clear out monster infestations, can't you?"
"With pleasure." Danny nodded.
After a moment, he shrugged. "Will I be completely on my own?"
"I've had the pleasure of speaking to a few of your fellow professors." Ezra answered. "You'll be traveling with Radiance and Margot, who will form the core of your new team. After that, you'll be free to take on new professors as you desire."
"I'm also told that Tess Stoneflower will be in the area. She's being transferred as we speak to a command post not far from it, where she'll be able to help you. And, of course, I'll send along Isa when I have a chance."
Danny puffed out his cheeks, then slowly drew himself up and nodded.
"I'll leave at once."
"In three days. I have a few more things I need to get together for you, and then you'll be ready." The emperor held out his hands, and helped Danny to his feet. "Look, I don't know what you'll be heading into. I mean, I know what the fortress will be, but I don't know what the issues are that Isa has dug up."
"All I do know is that danger is still out there, and as much as I would love for the Academy to become nothing more than the study of theory, we don't have that luxury right now. You need to be out there."
"The world is counting on you."
Danny nodded, and a cold silence settled between them. They were embarking upon a new journey, one that Danny couldn't see the end of. Maybe they would come through in one piece, and maybe they would die as a new threat rose to encompass the world.
All he could do was press forward, and hope that, in the end, he would come out on top.
Auto save - [Savefile: Information]
Health: 100%
Mana: 100%
Quest: Head to the new Academy
Location: Imperial Palace, Throne Room
Inventory: Ascended Mage Robes, Crystal Sword, Writing tools
Skills: Monster Summoner (Lv. 100), Flame Combat (Lv. 25), Wind Combat (Lv. 25), Ice Combat (Lv. 10)
Relationships: Friendly with Emperor Ezra, Family Bond with Nicodemus, Family Bond with Jonathan, David, and Solomon
Time of Day: 11:14 a.m.
The Journey
Danny spent the next two days as a guest in the Imperial Palace. He had done so a few times in the past, and quite enjoyed it. It was living in the lap of luxury, and he savored it, knowing that he would soon enough likely be pressed for any sort of material comfort.
He dined from silver plates, and slept on a bed that felt like it was made of clouds. When he wasn't eating or sleeping, he spent his time in the imperial archives, gathering as much knowledge as possible.
Finally, the day of departure came, and he rose to find Margot and Radiance waiting for him.
The two women looked up as he walked into the breakfast room. The servants had prepared a small meal that they could take with them, and he smiled and nodded to them both. Margot wore her standard black and orange professor robes, while Radiance wore a white dress that clearly marked her as royalty.
She had obtained special permission to continue to wear the dress of the Silver Family when she became a professor, and the request had been happily granted for her service in the War.
"Radiance!" Danny beamed.
He gave his old friend a hug, then turned to Margot. "I've seen you more recently, but still." He hugged Margot as well, and they struck out through the palace.
"I'm sorry to have dragged you both into all of this."
"Pfft. If you think I had to be dragged, you're nuts." Margot commented. "The Academy was stuffy and boring. I'm glad to have the chance to get out and about."
Danny chuckled and nodded, then glanced over at Radiance. Radiance was naturally much more reserved and harder to read.
As they mounted into their carriage, she paused, then shrugged.
"I would be lying if I didn't say that I'll miss the Imperial City." Radiance answered. "That said, I'll follow you to the ends of the world. When I heard that you were being given a hard time because of your teaching methods, it bothered me greatly."
"I spoke up in your defense, you know. When all of us were in the Academy, we learned plenty from classes, but the majority of our skills were earned in the wild, getting called out to all sorts of random stuff throughout the realm. That's the sort of experience we need to be giving to our students, if they're going to be able to withstand anything in the future."
As Danny opened his mouth to agree, she raised a hand. "And I don't want to hear you defend yourself right now. Right or not, you haven't always been a paragon of virtue. I just have to imagine that when we get to this new Academy, if we take on new professors, you're not going to want other professors sneaking around behind your back."
"You've done well, but at the end of the day, you've made mistakes, too."
"I, that's fair." Danny bit his lip.
"And don't worry." Radiance leaned forward and placed a hand on his arm. She wore lace gloves that were cool to the touch, and sparkled with gemstones. "I spoke to your father. He doesn't blame you."
"In fact, I think he's happy that you're off to start up your own Academy. He'd rather that you had stayed here and just listened to him, but he is proud of you. He'll be watching from afar."
Danny grimaced and leaned back in his seat, and didn't say anything more.
With that, the reins clicked above their heads, and the carriage slowly rumbled off.
They passed slowly through the city streets, trying not to draw too much attention. Gone were the days when they had to sneak around, hiding from prying eyes, but they also didn't want to advertise the fact that several professors from the Academy were headed off to found their own Academy. Frustrated or not, damaging the reputation of the main Academy was only going to cause problems.
Soon, they reached the eastern edge of the city and ran through the large gate there. The sun was just rising, maybe nine o'clock in the morning, and the driver of the carriage snapped the reins a bit harder.
