Discordant Note | TBATE

Chapter 53: Fiachran Ascender's Association

Toren Daen

The Fiachran Ascender's Association was almost overwhelming. It towered over the nearby buildings, casting them in its vast shadow. Motifs of basilisks coiled around supporting columns, judging any would-be ascenders who walked the single paved path to the building.

On the side, a slim canal wove through the structure, allowing a steady flow of goods and people. Basilisk statues watched from here like gargoyles, too, keeping a watchful eye on their domain.

Hofal walked down the path lined with statues of mages without a hint of hesitation. I hurried to catch up, trying not to look like a wogart with how much I stared.

I was dressed in my best clothes. I wore a bright waistcoat with light embroidery over a plain white button-up shirt with loose, breathable sleeves. I wore my fingerless leather gloves, covering my red chain tattoo. Dark trousers and tall boots adorned my lower half, while a solid buckled belt held my saber and dagger.

I'd taken to calling my saber 'Oath' and the dagger 'Promise.' They were fitting names for weapons as refined as the deserved titles.

I fell in lockstep with Hofal as he went through the gates. The sound inside hit me like a wave, but I'd been expecting it. The ceiling was tall, with a dozen platforms for tempus warps and portals around the main hall.

As Hofal and I walked further on, I appreciated the various services this single place offered. It was like the Walmart of Ascensions: everything you needed, from training services to blacksmiths to healing rooms, could be found here.

Hofal led me to the area for ascender candidates, which was notably filled with people. I stood nearby as Hofal quickly signed me up for a striker's practical skill assessment.

The receptionist's eyes lingered on my signet ring when I handed her my metal identification card. I'd gotten that in the interim of training for this assessment. It displayed my name, birthdate, and miscellaneous information such as my home city. Stamped next to my name was the sigil of Named Blood Daen as well.

Once I was signed up, I moved toward the waiting area, receiving a few stares from the waiting candidates. They visibly sized me up, some of the boys tipping their chins up as they met my stare.

I raised a brow at one, wondering what he thought he was doing. Eventually, he began to flush, his posturing breaking under my visible skepticism. With a roll of my eyes, I sat down in a nearby seat. Hofal gingerly let himself into the chair next to me.

The posturing they do is absurd, I thought to myself. It feels pointless.

Granted, I was a twenty-something man in a seventeen-year-old's body. That young academy graduate sneering down on me looked too much like a high schooler trying to seem bigger than he really was.

"It is the way of this continent," Lady Dawn supplied. "They prance and puff out their chests like roosters, desiring their High Sovereign's praise above all."

I don't think using a bird analogy works when you say it, I thought to Lady Dawn absently. Considering you technically are one.

"It is foolish to call the phoenix race birds," Lady Dawn almost squawked, sounding notably indignant. "It is birds that wish to mimic us, in the same way the basilisks attempt with their paltry wings."

Fair enough, I replied. Though the resemblance is uncanny... I teased, earning a huff of irritation from the bird in my head.

I was drawn out of my internal thoughts as I noticed a trio of mages walking with upturned noses and blank expressions on their faces. I might have called their expressions regal, except they fell closer to disdain. They all wore long, flowing robes of black with red lining, clearly uniformed. Thich chains were around their necks, a stylized black horn pendant sitting prominently on their chests.