By the time the duel ended and the crowd started pretending they had not been watching my every little movement, my stamina had already come crawling back.
Level-up recovery.
Honestly, one of the few good things about this unfathomable system.
My legs no longer felt like wet noodles, my arms had stopped screaming, and my head was clear enough that I could actually form thoughts without feeling like an exhausted mess.
Which was nice.
I stepped out of the arena with Ironhowl resting against my shoulder, and the first thing I saw was Arial.
She was waiting near the edge of the duelling grounds, hands clasped in front of her, posture stiff with concern.
Victoria stood beside her, arms crossed, expression calm in that way that usually meant she had already judged everyone around and found them disappointing.
The moment Arial saw me, her shoulders relaxed.
"Master Augustus," she said softly. "You're alright."
"I'm just a little tired," I replied. "Which, for now, feels worth celebrating."
Victoria's eyes swept over me once.
Then she nodded slightly.
"Acceptable," she said. "I was preparing a pep talk if you lost."
"Reassuring."
"It was not meant to be," she said with a small smile.
Arial let out a small breath, like she had been holding it since the duel started.
I noticed.
Looks like she really was worried about me.
I shifted slightly so I was standing a little closer to her.
Not enough to make it weird.
Just enough to make it less lonely.
Victoria noticed that too.
Her mouth twitched.
"Your father is looking for you," she said.
I blinked. "My father is here?"
"Obviously," Victoria replied. "This family has the habit of appearing at inconvenient times."
That sounded about right.
I turned my head and started looking around for him.
Ahhh... there he was.
Oliver Ironcreed was walking toward us through the crowd like the entire duelling grounds had decided to move out of his way out of pure instinct. He looked perfectly composed, arms behind his back, armoured coat neat as ever, expression unreadable.
Which meant he was in a good mood.
Which was dangerous for me.
The last time he was in a good mood, he trained me for a week straight.
He stopped in front of me and looked me up and down.
Then I said, very calmly, "So you finally decided to show up" while staring at him.
"I was busy," he answered.
"…I won the duel."
"Yes," he said. "Eventually."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"It means," he replied, "you made me wait."
Arial immediately looked like she wanted to disappear into the ground.
Victoria, the traitor, looked entertained.
I sighed.
"Sorry," I said. "Got a little busy not dying," sarcastically.
"Mm." He nodded once. "Good work."
Damn, he ignored my sarcasm.
That was it.
No speech.
No grand fatherly moment.
Just that.
Then, after a beat, he added, "Congratulations on your promotion."
I glanced at him.
That was much easier to believe.
"Thanks," I said.
He turned slightly and began walking away like he expected me to follow.
Which, of course, I did.
Arial and Victoria fell in beside us.
The crowd slowly shifted back into noise behind us, but the four of us moved along the stone path toward the estate grounds.
For a little while, nobody spoke.
Which was unusual.
And suspicious.
So naturally, I broke the silence first.
"So," I asked, hands tucked into my sleeves, "what kept you busy?"
Father didn't even look at me.
"Work."
I glanced sideways at him.
"Work?"
"Yes."
"That's vague."
"It is also sufficient."
Victoria gave a tiny snort that she tried to hide by looking ahead.
I ignored her.
"Dad," I said, "you didn't come to see me win a duel, congratulate me, and then act like I was late to a meeting. That's not 'work.' That's clearly 'something important.'"
He gave me a flat look.
"You're learning to be annoying."
"I learned from the best."
That earned me the faintest twitch of his mouth.
Then he said, "You requested a recommendation for Sage's Vision Academy."
I slowed half a step.
Right.
That.
"…Yes?"
"You really thought," he said dryly, "that because you asked for it, the elder council would simply hand it to you?"
I stared.
"Well. I mean. I hoped."
"Naive."
I grinned despite myself. "You're saying that like it's a bad thing."
"It is."
Victoria, still walking beside Arial, folded one arm over her stomach like she was watching a drama she had already seen twice.
Father continued, "I was laying the groundwork."
That made me blink.
He glanced at me then, finally.
"Convincing the other elders to speak in support. Arranging the conditions. Handling the ones who demanded something in return."
I opened my mouth.
Closed it.
Opened it again.
"…You were doing all that?"
"No," he said. "I was sitting around and hoping your low luck would carry you ahead."
I looked away.
That stung a little.
Mostly because he was right to say it.
I had been acting like a recommendation was just a polite request.
Father went on, "Some elders wanted promises. Some wanted favours. Some wanted guarantees about your future standing. I had to navigate all of them."
I frowned.
"…Did it cost a lot?"
He answered without hesitation.
"As a blacksmith, I have earned more favours than I can count."
I looked up.
"And your mother," he added, "has done even more. One of the best healers in the kingdom tends to collect gratitude like most people collect dust."
I blinked.
That was true.
My mother's reputation alone could probably summon more than half the western part of the kingdom into obedience if she asked nicely enough.
Father spoke in the same calm tone.
"I cashed in some of that."
The words landed a little heavier than I expected.
I looked down at the path.
"…So I just made you do all that?"
"You did," he said.
I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling a little guilty now.
"...I didn't realize it was that much."
He glanced at me.
"Focus on growing up, kid, steadily and cautiously."
That sounded suspiciously like concern.
Then he added, "Leave the rest to this old man."
I snorted.
"You're not old."
He raised an eyebrow.
"You're only in your six-hundreds. You're still in your prime."
Arial made a tiny choking sound beside me.
Victoria's shoulders twitched.
Father looked at me with the kind of expression that suggested he was deciding whether I wished for a beating.
Then he said, "You should be careful who you borrow confidence from."
I grinned.
"Wouldn't dream of it."
We reached the outer edge of the second branch grounds, where the stone path opened toward the estate roads.
Father's communication crystal suddenly chimed.
He paused, took it from his coat, and glanced at the message.
His expression changed only slightly.
But that was enough.
I leaned a little closer. "What is it?"
He tapped the crystal once, then looked at me.
"Your recommendation has been confirmed."
For a second, I just stared at him.
Then I looked forward again.
The Academy recommendation is confirmed.
So it really had been that.
Not just my duel.
Not just my request.
All of this had been building in the background while I thought I was just going around carefree.
I let out a slow breath.
"…So the duel was a test?"
Father slipped the crystal back into his coat.
"Partly."
I frowned. "Partly?"
He looked at me side-on.
"The family wanted to know what kind of heir you would be under pressure."
That made me stop walking for half a beat.
Not enough for anyone to notice.
Just enough for the thought to settle.
So that was it.
Not just competition.
Not just stepping stones.
They had wanted to see whether I could stand in front of attention and not fold.
Whether I could carry the name without acting like a fool.
Whether I could be visible.
I resumed walking.
Father noticed, but didn't comment.
Then he said, almost casually, "The people recommended for the Academy will be the family's face, after all."
I glanced at him.
That explained even more.
The recommendation wasn't just a reward.
It was an investment.
A public one.
I exhaled slowly.
"Great," I muttered. "So I'm not just going to the Academy."
"No," Father said.
"I'm going as one of the family representatives."
"Yes."
"That sounds exhausting."
"It's definitely going to be."