Linjos pensively scratched his goatee.
"I doubt the traitor is one of them." Queen Sylpha shook her head.
"Vastor has no faction outside his own. If the Kingdom plunges into chaos, he would lose at least half of his connections. He'd rather die than put to waste so many years of efforts.
As for Rudd, deep under that obnoxious 'old goat' attitude of his, there is a true loyal servant of the kingdom. Beware though. If you go even deeper, you'll find another old goat."
"What really puzzles me is how someone that has managed to infiltrate the academy to such a level can be dumb enough to send amateurs to kill fourth year students. Even if young, a dragon is still a dragon."
"Maybe he is not dumb. Or do you know something that I don't?" The Queen appeared to be quite amused.
"No, the investigation is still ongoing, but how hard can killing four students possibly be? Especially considering that two out of four remained scarred after killing a single person?"
***
White Griffon academy, somewhere else
"How hard can killing four f*cking students possibly be?" The traitor yelled while trashing their own apartment.
"Especially considering that I gave those idiots a complete background check on every single one of them?" A punch hit a luxurious desk, causing it to crack almost in half.
"The battle experience of three of them amounts to fighting acne! The last one is a deranged psychopath that only preys on the weak and magical beasts to make a quick buck." A bookshelf was ripped from the wall and crushed to bits, while the precious books were stomped mercilessly.
"Who would have thought that the reputation of the Ravagers was just a blatant lie?" They panted.
"They were supposed to hit and run, leaving no traces behind. This is a disaster! If I were superstitious, I'd think that Lukart's incompetence jinxed me. Luckily, it doesn't matter." It took a few deep breaths to calm down
"Worst case scenario, I can give Lukart part of my funds to keep him quiet. I just need a bit more time to put the last pieces in place, before I'm able to destroy this place to its very foundations."
***
Back at the academy, Yurial managed to doctor the story, explaining how they survived the ambush with little damage. To achieve his goal, he had to significantly reduce Lith's contribution to the battle, making a hero out of Friya instead.
Having a Mage Knight capable of Blinking proficiently before the end of the fourth year was something so rare, it even impressed the members of the Queen's corps. Many of them had undergone special training in the military to achieve the same result.
Less than half the students from even the six great academies were able to learn dimensional magic and even less would usually master the Blink spell. It perfectly explained why the initial assault had failed and how the Ravagers died where they stood.
In Yurial's version of the story, the three of them had provided cover fire while Friya Blinked through the battlefield using her rings to mow down the enemies.
"Your nerve and combat awareness are worthy of the Ernas' name." The Captain of their detail shook Friya's hand with eyes full of respect and admiration.
"If you ever decide to serve the Crown, I'll make sure there will be a spot reserved for you in the Queen's corps."
"Your words are too kind, it wasn't much." Friya was red from embarrassment, not because of the lie, but because she was actually able to do everything Yurial had said, if only she didn't panic.
- "This is the most humiliating moment of my life." She thought. "Being treated as a hero while all I could do was listen to Yurial's orders like a puppet and cover behind Lith's back. After what I went through, I'm still all bark and no bite.
I must master dimensional magic at all costs, until I'm able to turn this shameful lie into reality. I don't want to feel so helpless ever again!"–
"I'm deeply sorry for what happened." Once the corps' men left the office, Linjos gave his students a small bow.
"From now on, Professor Trasque will accompany you during your rounds. Along with the detail, of course. He is the best Battle Mage of the White Griffon. With the corps watching you from a distance and him at your side, it would take a natural disaster to harm you.