How To Survive A Calamity

I glanced at the terms and details of the sponsorship one last time as i poured mana into the pen and signed it.

"If i didn't know better, it sounds like you're quite embarrassed to be seen with me," i joked dryly.

Under this whole entire tedious process, Arslan's and i real connection will be kept a secret. He was the Vice-Headmaster, and according to him he had never had a student or a disciple before.

If one suddenly appeared right now, there would be a lot of eyes and tongues wagging about. Things would openly become considerably more uncomfortable for me with all sorts of expectations drawn my way. Ironically, Aegis Academy was acting as a shield.

It was just like having the prettiest girl at school saying "Hey, you're mu boyfriend, but let's keep it a secret okay? I really like you though ~"

Arslan coughed with a laugh.

"Well, when you put it that way it does kind of sound..."

He didn't get to finish that. Instead the next moment, he said again:

"We're here."

I paused, folded up the letter and looked around dubiously.

"Here, where?"

Trees...trees as far as the eyes could see. We were still in the middle of a forest after all.

"Listen closely," Arslan said.

So i did. I lingered and focused my hearing on the sounds all around me.

Then I heard it... Something.

"Water?"

It sounded like the rushing and crashing of waves. A river perhaps.

Arslan smiled as he moved forward again, pushing through the bushes like a curtain of leaves just in front. "Not quite."

I followed after him dubiously. The crashing sound of water became more prominent.

On the other side of the bushes was indeed a rushing river, but the roaring sound came from a crashing waterfall that poured into it from a slippery cliff above.

"Woah..."

The sound was almost like thunder. The waterfall was at least seventy feet tall with pouring streams that caught the sunlight of day in the air and caused the river to rage.

I had no idea there was such a place in the Academy.

Arslan laughed before me. "First time seeing a waterfall?" He spoke over his shoulder.

It was. In both my lives.

I also didn't think the Academy grounds had something like this.

But i was even more curious why Arslan brought me here now.

I took in the sight while Arslan continued walking towards the river from the bank completely relaxed and at a leisurely pace.

Then he walked onto the rushing water and stood on it. The moment his feet — the sole of his shoes — touched the river's surface, he didn't sink or drown; instead he balanced upright against the raging surface like he was standing on solid ground.

Mind you, the river wasn't just calmly flowing; with the force of the waterfall crashing into it, it had a powerful current that made it rush down stream. It was rolling with waves.

Yet Arslan stood completely steady.

It looked amazing, but i wasn't completely surprised. Curious at best.

As if he could sense my gaze, he turned back and gestured at me.

"Come on." He gave a smile that almost seemed taunting.

Then he turned again and, casually walking across the surface of the river like it was normal, headed for the waterfall.

I dubiously gazed at his distancing back, sighed and followed after him.

Arslan's walking-on-water bit might have seemed fancy and demure, but it was simply an Aether trick even though i had never done it before.

But once i saw Arslan do it, i think i got the gist.

I circulated a fraction of my Ether casually and took a step onto the river. My feet landed evenly on rhe surface without breaking it, and i walked across it just as the same.

Except, i may have underestimated the ease and how casual Arslan made balancing on the waves and current was.

"Dammit...!"

It was much harder maintaining balance over the current, rather than staying afloat. Still i followed after Arslan ahead of me.

It was like trying to wall across a speeding treadmill.

Meanwhile, Arslan finally stood before the waterfall crashed, at the point where the waves were more violent. The pouring water parted like a curtain as the waterfall split open and gave way before him.

At the same time, i barely managed to catch up behind him, dangling my hands to the sides next to me while maintaining precarious balance.

I was so busy trying to maintain balance that i couldn't even properly marvel dubiously at Arslan parting the current.

Or the carven behind it.

He grabbed my hand. "Come on," and pulled me along into it.

Behind the parted curtain of water, a spacious carven was carved into the cliff. The inside was cool, and sharp rocky stalactites hung from the carven ceiling and droplets of clean water occasionally dripped from it.

It was dark, but nothing my eyes couldn't cut through or manage. The waterfall closed off at the entrance behind us again, drowning the entire carven in a muffled silence.

I could still feel some of the vibrations from outside and above.

Arslan stood next to me with his arms crossed behind his back.

I side glanced at him, dubious.

"And this is?"

He smiled and stepped ahead of me.

"This is where we'll begin," he said.

"Begin what?"

"Your training of course," he looked over his shoulder and pointed at me. "Don't you want to know more about that mark on your left arm?"

I finally caught on to what Arslan was talking about and looked down at my left arm. It was still bandaged up under the sleeve of my blazer.

"A part of the agreement was that, you become my student...and i teach you how to control your Karma."

I could feel my heartbeat rise a bit. "Is that possible?"

Evem Meta had acknowledged the severity of what it meant to he branded by a Devil's Karma. It wasn't something you could easily get rid of, and i doubted if it were possible to control it.

Arslan smiled slowly again.

"Since you're officially my protégé now, I'll let you in on a little secret; yes, it is"," he pressed the side of his index finger against his lips. " But don't go telling anyone okay?"