The evaluations were in. Crawford Winfield stood before Max, his nostrils flaring as he read Max’s report. Despite having received an approbation, Max found out that Laurel had criticized his behaviour. Forced to deal with the ex-military man, he was left with headaches.

Crawford’s position as a teacher was the only thing stopping him from consigning Max to a hundred whips. His desire to punish Max instead came out in the form of harsher training. Subjected to almost twice the usual amount of practice, Max felt like even the underworld would be akin to heaven at this point. Sulking and sweating, with no way to worm his way out, he scowled as he watched Lewis and a few others laugh and snicker at his rare moment of plight.

“If you like seeing him work that much… then go join him!” Crawford roared at the sight of their actions, leaving the teenagers cursing their luck. Their pitiful state became a lesson for the rest of the students who quickly looked away and kept to themselves.

Collapsing at the end of it, Max lay, sprawled on the ground, giving no thought to his appearance. He focused less on complaining and more on gasping for air, all the while hoping that the oxygen deprivation wouldn’t kill him.

“He should be here. I do believe that this is his class.” Max heard an annoyingly familiar voice amid his panting. Bradley appeared, leading a group of uniformed knights. Their steps synchronized, the men’s movements resembled a march, the metal on their boots creating a distinct sound with every step. From the swords at their waists and the lion crests on their jackets, it was clear that they belonged to some form of armed forces.

Noticing the group of five, Crawford blocked their path. Expressionless, he observed the symbol of the lion. “Miss Walker belongs to mage class.” He coldly stated. “What are you doing here?”

“They have come here for Max ‘Walker’.” Bradley smirked, emphasizing the Walker in Max’s name as he peeked at the young teenager, the schadenfreude obvious. “Gentlemen.” He said, “That is the boy.”

Max sat up with a frown, meeting each man’s gaze and placidly waiting for the scene to play out.

The four nodded, but were once again blocked by an irritated Crawford. “This is Asterisk Academy. Not even the Duke can do as he pleases here.”

“Crawford, these men are here on Duke Walker’s orders.” Bradley grunted unhappily, “Do you intend to go against the Duke?”

“Mind your own business.” Crawford snorted without sparing him a glance.

The new arrivals were already a source of attention. Attracted by the crest, the class’s gaze continued to shift between the men from the Walker household and Max with interest. Lewis crept up behind Max. “That crest belongs to Duke Walker’s family. Stay put while I get Amy.” He hurriedly whispered and left without giving Max the opportunity to stop him.

“Major Crawford, you’re making things difficult for us.” One of the guards saluted and stepped forward with a bitter smile. “We’re just here to do our jobs.”

Crawford responded with a terse acknowledgment. “What do you want?”

The man took out neatly rolled paper from the pouch on his waist. Unfurled, the parchment revealed a decree which was presented to the stoic Major. “I believe that this should clear things up.” He said.

“What’s your name, kid?” Crawford asked as skimmed through the scroll with a scowl.

“Victor, sir.”

“You were in the army?”

“I quit just as they promoted me to captain.”

“Max” Crawford barked, beckoning his tired student to come over. “Duke Walker has asked for your presence.” Crawford explained to Max, “The Academy has agreed to his request. It seems that he has questions about the incident at Ironforge.”

A summoning to the Duke’s castle was unexpected. Max frowned, wondering why the Duke simply couldn’t ask his daughter. This seemed more like an excuse to meet him.

Sounds of hushed gossiping confirmed that the surrounding students had heard everything. Crawford frowned. The onset of enthusiastic whispering from the previously debilitated students irked him to no end. Handing the decree back to Victor, he turned around to roar, “Quiet! Or you’ll all be doing sets till the nightfall.”

“Wasn’t the matter at Ironforge settled?” Max asked. “I was told that Count Paterson was already informed of the details.”

In response, Victor eyed Max for a moment and shrugged. “We’re only responsible for bringing you to the castle. How could we be privy to the matters that concern the upper nobility?”

Max chuckled. “Fair enough.”

Bradley silently celebrated, taking great pleasure from the development. Like Max, he understood that the matter at Ironforge was simply an excuse. At the Induction, his face off against Max and Crawford had left him retreating in embarrassment. Now that he could finally see himself getting even, he found it difficult to suppress a smile. The chance for revenge had literally arrived at his doorstep and there was nothing Max could do to avoid it.

“Can I at least change before we leave?” Max asked, his clothes still soaked in sweat.

Minutes later, rolling his eyes at Bradley, Max followed behind Victor and his companions with a fresh, dry set of clothes. He couldn’t understand how someone so narrow minded was qualified to teach in one of the best schools in the Empire.

Contrary to Max’s thoughts, Bradley was actually an excellent teacher with a near perfect grasp over the profundities of magic. If not for his flawed personality, he would undoubtedly be among the best in the academy.

Crawford, still in the middle of his class, remained with the students while Bradley flashed a mocking smile before leaving with the men.

Amy and Liliana stood near the gate, having rushed there as soon as they had heard word from Lewis. Amy was sure that a word from her would sort the mess, but Liliana didn’t feel as optimistic. Worry was apparent on her face as she began fretting if Max’s summoning had anything to do with his unknown identity.

Standing at their side, Lewis’s thoughts aligned with Amy’s. He met Max’s gaze and silently assured his friend that he had the situation under control.

Amy instantly recognized the uniformed men as officers from her father’s force, their uniform a proof of their status. Her tone strangely cold, her face stern, she suddenly surrounded herself with an aura of majesty. “What’s the meaning of this?” She questioned, “Why haven't I heard anything about this?”

Not expecting an ambush, the four guards paused with looks of confusion before hurriedly saluting in respect. Victor then responded with a wry smile, “Young Miss, we are under the Duke’s orders to escort this young man to the castle.”

“What did Max do? Why are you taking him?” Liliana followed up, asking for an explanation.

Victor eyed his men, silently signalling them to mind their language and hold their tongues. “Miss, like we explained to Major Crawford, we are only the escorts. We aren’t privy to the specifics.”

Unable to restrain himself, Bradley also voiced his thoughts. “Miss Lockwood, since this matter pertains to the Duke, I suggest that you take a step back for your own sake.”

Liliana gnashed her teeth in anger. While her opinion of this professor sunk to new lows, Lewis walked up and joined the conversation. “Max is Liliana’s familiar. She has every right to demand an explanation.”

“Be that as it may -”

“Professor Bradley!” Amy icily interjected. “With all due respect, if Liliana isn’t entitled to be a part of this discussion then neither are you. Now if you’ll excuse us, I would like to speak to my father’s subordinates alone. Like you said, this matter pertains to the Duke and therefore me.”

The corners of Bradley’s mouth twitched as he failed in his attempts to suppress a scowl. Left with no way to retort, his eyes burned with rage as he turned around to leave without another word.

Max did nothing to hide his smirk. Deja vu? The event was practically a repeat of what had happened during the Induction.

Amy was concerned about Max. Because of his similarities with her brother, she was worried about how her father would deal with him. More importantly, she couldn’t even begin to imagine how her mother would react if she knew. This development was something she had to stop. “I will deal with my father.” She sternly said, “Leave Max here and tell him that he has to go through me first.”

“Miss Amy…” Victor replied as he stopped feigning a smile, his subordinates showing equally terrible expressions. “We report to your father and not you. So, unless he personally orders it, we will be taking the boy with us.”

Behind them, Max stood with a sullen expression. Why am I being treated like some sort of parcel? His desire to avoid conflict with a Duke was why he had complied with the orders, but that didn’t mean he was happy about the development.

Shocked by the retort, Amy stood mum as the guards began to leave.

“Max!” Liliana called out to which her familiar responded with a shrug and a reassuring smile. Clenching her fists, Liliana’s hand slowly crept towards her wand, but the pressure on her shoulder made her stop. Lewis stood beside her, solemnly shaking his head.

“Wait!” Amy’s sudden yell caught everyone by surprise. Storming towards the guards, the Walker household’s heir angrily said, “A lion’s cub is still a lion. Heed my orders!”

What’s with the dramatics? Liliana, Lewis and Max turned to Amy in surprised. Whether the young girl’s cheeks were flushed from rage or embarrassment was hard to tell. But her words had an unusual effect on the guards. Exchanging glances, for the first time, the group showed signs of hesitation. Eventually, however, another from the group responded with indifference. “But the cub’s authority still does not supersede the pride’s leaders. We can have this conversation again once you’re Duchess, young miss.”

Amy’s face drained of colour. As with Liliana, her hand twitched with the urge to reach for her wand, but ultimately, she watched as Max silently got into the carriage.

“See you in a bit.” Max said as the horse drawn vehicle began to move.

“We need to inform the professors now!” Amy immediately yelled as she broke into a sprint, worry and fear all over her face.

Liliana and Lewis followed after her in a daze. “Why? What’s wrong?”

Coming to an abrupt halt, Amy turned to face Liliana, looking apologetic. “Just now, I wasn’t being poetic. That line I said…” Nervously pausing, she said, “It was like a gift from my father for my fifteenth birthday, what I had to say if I ever wanted to supersede his authority, if I ever wanted to negate any of his orders to our personal forces.” Panicking, Amy explained, “He personally passed the message to the entire force. The catch was that I could only use it once. But these guys… clearly looked like they didn’t know what to make of my words.”

“They were imposters?” Liliana and Lewis gawked.

Amy nodded and hurriedly pulled Liliana along. “That’s why we have to let the Academy know. I was worried about them doing something drastic if I exposed them at the gate.” She said, “After we tell the professors, we’re going after them.”

“Aren’t we being too hasty?” Lewis argued, unconvinced. “This is a Duke we’re talking about. Maybe he told them not to listen to you no matter what. Besides, they had a decree with the Academy’s stamp of approval. Even if they were the Royal Family, they wouldn’t be able to fake that.”

“It doesn’t hurt to be cautious!” Amy spat.

Liliana gulped as she considered a far-fetched possibility. If it were the Minister, would he have the pull to get this done? Shuddering at the idea, she involuntarily let her thoughts escape. “They’re assassins?”

“Eh?” Amy turned to Liliana. “What did you say?”

Liliana shook her head, a sense of urgency suddenly burdening her shoulders. “Let’s hurry.”