The Good Teacher

Jerain Hugin was the fifth and youngest son of the current Leader of the Hugin Clan, which was a Marquis' household under the Gruul Duchy. Born to a cabaret dancer turned concubine, with nine other siblings above him, Jerain's existence was more-or-less relegated to the extreme periphery of the clan. From birth, he'd have to grovel, beg, bow and occasionally steal to get what he wanted. Living like a servant in what was supposed to be his household fuelled the flames borne of his inferiority complex and moulded him into the kind of youth he was today.

As expected, Jerain's greatest wish and current goal in life was to supersede all of his siblings and eventually take on the mantle of Clan Leader. To do so, however, he required strength and backing. Unfortunately, the two were part of a loop that he couldn't gain entry into. To get better resources, one needed a strong backing, and to get a strong backing one needed actual strength to support their claim. Jerain could only curse over the unfortunate circumstances of his birth.

Jerain had to take every advantage he could scrounge, every step of the way, to get to where he was now. He was ruthless in his pursuit, to the extent of having his own mother eliminated and getting adopted by his father's main wife. He waylaid his siblings and "encouraged" them to pursue alternate pursuits in life to restrict his competition. He was all set on his path to success, yet a single entity blocked his way from getting ahead and that was his now Eldest Brother.

The teen was a force to be reckoned with, unbeatable in mind and body. Born with the Galgadorian Frame Physique that amplifies one's natural bone weight and musculature, which synergises with the Hugin Clan's Inexorable Momentum Cultivation Method, his Eldest Brother was a juggernaut in every sense of the word. That was until that fateful day when a minor disagreement between the Hugin and Bori clans snowballed into a full-on conflict, and the ancient "Resolution by Combat" was called. Jerain's Eldest Brother stepped forward as the representative of the next generation, and Gaige stepped forth from Bori Clan's side.

The fight did not pass the five-second mark before his brother was turned into mush. His brother, who was known to be unstoppable, could not move a finger against the overbearing force exerted by the void blanketing his surroundings. Ultimately, the teen survived, but only physically. The mind was still recovering, but the trauma had taken root. Yet Jerain's father did not change the line of succession. That was not fair... not fair at all!

Something had to be done - a show of force to tip the scales finally in his favour. And Jerain found just that, through sheer coincidence, in a dispute to determine stall rights for Sect Recruitment. He was perusing his options in both the Co-operative's and the Alliance's events being held simultaneously.

The True World Sect. An unknown that spawned out of thin air and would soon dissolve into nothingness like every other sect with such a background - that was what Jerain thought until the teen representing the Sect used a spell resembling the one Gaige used.

Gaige's spell felt overbearing. The void emitted a sense of pressure that naturally evoked fear. The Teen from the True World Sect, however, revealed no such pomp or flourish. His attack was direct and effective. It was unexpected because he revealed nothing, but the outcome was exactly the same. In both cases, the opponents were turned into human pastes. The best part, though, was that, unlike Gaige, the teen had no such Special Bloodline or Physique aiding him.

"*cough* I would like to join your Sect," Jerain declared nonchalantly as he stepped into the True World Sect's booth.

"Ah! Welcome," the man called Guy Larks, the Sect Leader, greeted as he stepped forward and extended his hand. Jerain reciprocated by taking the offered hand and shaking it.

"What attracted you to our Sect?" The man asked.

Jerain raised his finger and pointed it directly at the teen standing on the opposite side of the kiosk. "His attack. I want to learn it. I surmised that it would be a part of your Sect's unique cultivation library, so I wish to be a part of your sect."

"That's it?" The man retorted with surprise evident in his expression.

"What other reason do I need? Was that not your purpose in showcasing such an attack? In order to attract more potential recruits?" Jerain shot back.

The man hummed for a few seconds before asking, "What is your end goal?"

"I'll be frank then. I will learn the Cultivation Method and the complementary spells that he used during the fights. I will then use it to compete for the position of the future Clan Leader of the Hugin Clan."

"So your membership comes with an end date. Why should I recruit you if you aren't willing to invest yourself into the Sect? You will hold no sense of belonging with the Sect, nor will you feel any camaraderie with its members," The man emphasised with a faint smile.

"You don't understand your position here," Jerain scoffed. "It is you who will be investing in me, not the other way around. Your investment of time and resource into me will eventually return to you as both monetary and political support."

"Really now?"

"Do you not know who I am?" Jerain asked with his back arched, chest pushed out, and pride and disdain oozing out of his voice.

The man shook his head blankly. "Should I?"

Jerain sputtered at the blatant disrespect and grit his teeth angrily. "Are you recruiting me or not?"

"I don't think I will," the man denied within split seconds. There was no hesitation at all. His eyes were unwavering, and his voice was absolute.

Jerain's fist clenched harder. "Fine! How much?"

"How much... what?"

"How much for you to teach me that attack?" Jerain spoke the words with an irritated staccato.

"Markus!" The man called out over his shoulders. The targetted teen rushed over diligently.

"Yes, Master?"

"This boy over here wishes to learn |Gravity Field|. He is willing to pay for that knowledge. What do you think?" He asked the teen named Markus.

Markus shot out an evaluating gaze that cut through Jerain. "You don't have to pay me anything. I can teach it for free, but I doubt he will understand a word of it unless he learns the basic sciences. If you join our Sect, then it will be part of the foundational courses."

"As you can see, the knowledge you seek has a prerequisite," the man took over. "However, the prerequisite requires that you be part of our Sect. Unfortunately, you've made your stance clear that you don't want to do that - maybe in presence, but not in heart. So there is nothing I can do for you, I'm sorry."

"You will regret this," Jerain warned with a threatening tone of voice.

"I don't doubt that," the Sect Leader accepted with a sigh. "But put yourself in my position. A boy much younger than you walked up to an institution you poured your blood, sweat and tears into and stated that it was all worthless compared to him. The boy then went on to demean you and implied that he was actually doing you a favour by even deigning to grace the halls of your institution with his presence. He then disrespected you and your Disciple by suggesting that your values could simply be bought."

"Please leave," the man concluded.

"Look here-" Jerain was caught mid-bellow, as the man parted his lips and a raspy voice echoed all around him.

"Please. Leave." The voice demanded.

Jerain acceded. His body turned involuntarily, and he walked away in a hurry.

____

"That won't be the last we see of him. He didn't look like someone who'd give up so easily," Markus commented.

"I don't doubt that," Guy affirmed reluctantly. For a minute, his anger had overridden his self-control. "Maybe I shouldn't have used my voice and burnt bridges like that."

"No, Master. You were right to do so. That kid was being extremely disrespectful," Markus supported.

"Oh, what fresh hell will he cook up to get back at us?" Guy moaned.

"I don't think he will. The truly cherished Clan offspring are always followed by a hidden force to protect them. When you used the spell to influence him, no one stepped forward to defend him. This means that either he isn't worth much in the Clan, or he was here in a clandestine capacity. This means he cannot leverage his Clan's backing without taking a loss in some way," Markus reasoned.

"You know better than anyone just how petty people like him can be," Guy highlighted. "Let us anticipate the worst and prepare for it accordingly."

Unfortunately, Guy could not have predicted the extent of the worst-case scenario.

A few hours later, before the day ended, Revian visited their stall once again and officially signed on to the True World Sect. His new purpose in life was to achieve something extraordinary so that people all over the world would never forget his name. An admirable goal, and one that would definitely take him down a bounteous path. Guy went home that day with a fulfilled smile. Even one member was a new member.

But that one member was quickly turning out to be the last member to be recruited from the Event.

Guy suspected foul play, and he knew exactly who the culprit was.