Chapter 5: Aelaranthae Academy

Meanwhile, when Amantuile was at the capital, Lotharine had returned to his hometown, LeVerda. He was a mediocre mage, graduated from the Mage Academy with average score. LeAestas values magic above all else, and Lotharine was so mediocre that nobody looked at him as a candidate. So, he opted to work as a knight in another country to feed his family.

He dreamed of becoming a mage who created enchanted weapons. Alas, his score was less than stellar; he had not dared to try. However, things have changed since he met with the Aelaranthae. He asked for a magic duel with one of the elders and won. He was also able to copy Antheria’s enchanted sword with ease and tuned it for other elements.

When he was asked how he had progressed so quickly, he told them the truth. “The Aelaranthae of the forest had taught me the secret of mana. Come with me, and we shall learn together. They offered me to bring you all to learn!”

Of course, no one believed him. Knowledge was the most sacred thing for LeAestas. As LeAestas saying goes, ‘knowledge is worth more than gold.’. No one would give knowledge for free. Many even accused Lotharine to have indulged himself in forbidden magic and were suspicious whether they wanted to bring naive children as sacrifice.

And so, only Lotharine's sister and four of her close friends came with him. He sold everything he had and they returned to Aelaranthae village. Lotharine knelt to the Aelaranthae as he brought gifts. A wreath made with LeVerda’s laurels. Many people in the empire looked down on this gift, calling it weed. Nevertheless, a wreath is similar to a crown for LeVerda. Giving a wreath to others meant they viewed the others as higher standings.

Lindarine, Lotharine’s sister, was surprised when Lotharine tried to gifts a wreath to foreigners in foreign country. Lindarine had brought a silver necklace for gifts to indulge them. The Empire loved gold and silver. And thus, Lindarine thought these Aelaranthae were the same.

“welcome.”

“Greetings, Esteemed Aelaranthae. I brought you gifts. This gift might not be of value, but I know not what to gift you save my eternal gratitude.”

“We thanked you.” Ae Zir nodded as she came and hugged Lotharine.

Aelaranthae loved hugs.

“We also brought you gifts.” Lindarine presented the Aelaranthae with a silver necklace. However, the Aelaranthae frowned.

Aelaranthae were sensitive to emotions. Lindarine and her friends were filled with worry, anxiety and nervousness when they presented the necklace. It was sour and salty, like lemon mixed with salty broth from chicken. There was no relief of sweetness, no happiness of sugar. Just sour and salty. The Aelaranthae did not like the taste. And so, they refused the gifts.

“Thank you. But we do not need this necklace. Lotharine, you said they are here to learn?” The Aelaranthae replied. The sister’s heart sank further. The Aelaranthae tilted their head at the worsening taste of their feelings,”Do they really wanted to learn”

“Yes. Please! I want to learn and be like Brother Lotharine!” Lindarine pleaded. “If these gifts do not please you. Enlighten us of what you desire, we shall search it for you.”

The desperation hit the Aelaranthae like spicy curry. The Aelaranthae then took on Lindarine and her friends and taught them.

It turned out Lindarine was more competent than Lotharine. Not only they managed to be on the Lotharine’s level in just one year, they also began to study life magic. Magic to grow plants. It was a magic that was taught only to the most brilliant students in great families. Not to some peasant like Lotharine. All of this happened when Amantuile was still in the capital, before knight’s competition.

They just happened to miss each other. Before Amantuile returned, Lotharine’s family had finished their studies in the Aelaranthae village and was about to return to their hometown to brag.

“Thank you, Esteemed Aelaranthae! I will return and bring you more gifts!” Lindarine hugged Aelaranthae and the Aelaranthae accepted the hugs from her new students. This hug was genuine appreciation and thanks from Lindarine to the Aelaranthae. They were thankful. Thanks to the magic lessons, their family would never get looked down in the mage community ever again.

“You are welcome, anytime.”

Ae loved hugs.

When they returned to the Aelaranthae village nextime, Amantuile had already become a marquis. However, before that, Lotharine, Lindarine and her friends wanted to open an Academy in Aelaranthae village. The mage academies in LeAestas was strict in their acceptance. You must be in one of the great families and have immense talent to get accepted. Moreover, they were an exclusive community. They could get excommunicated if they happen to have relationship with other academies.

“Come to the Aelaranthae village! We are building an Academy there. Anyone can learn!” Lindarine shouted. The city of LeVerda was shaken to the core as Lindarine took an apple seed and grew an apple tree in a week in the middle of the plaza. A show that was usually only presented by a headmaster of prestigious academies.

“We are the proud LeAetas! Anyone else who is more knowledgeable than us in magic is chaos demon!” One of the elders denied Lindarine‘s invitation.

“They are not! We have talked about this before.”

“And? What did it cost you? How many years have you sacrificed for this knowledge? Two hundred? Three hundred? You will not only enslave yourself but also your kin!” In LeAestas, knowledge was often traded for service. Important knowledge was usually traded with decades of service.

“They did not need my service yet. But I did offer them years of my service. As long as they need it. I am grateful to this knowledge they have bestowed me. For they shared what you all wish to hide. Now, I am closer to understanding the Arboretum. The nature. It was all thanks to the Aelaranthae!”

“Hm… You are in service of the Aelaranthae, yet here you are. What if they need you?” The elders mocked him,“You have betrayed your oath.”

“I have asked for their permission. I wished to create an academy in Aelaranthae village. This will prove that they are benevolent. Many should know about the Aelaranthae. For they are kind, benevolent, and radiant!” Lotharine extolled the virtues of the Aelaranthae. The proud elder, merely smirk. They had nothing to lose, if they accepted, then Aelaranthae’s knowledge would be theirs. If the Aelaranthae asked for recompense later, they need not to provide any for they signed no such contracts.

”…. We shall prove your words… An Academy will be built. Moreover, we shall send several of our professors there too. Go, and ask for a piece of their land where this Academy will be built.” The elder then leaves.

The mages were hungry for knowledge. However, they are extremely cautious. They incessantly warned their professors not to give anything of value to the Aelaranthae. Silver and gold may be paid, but life is more important than gold. And thus, the elders advised the professors to not swore an oath to the Aelaranthae.

Of course, the Aelaranthae do not care. They have no needs. The academy was purely Lotharine and Lindarine’s idea to begin with. However, the income of new residents with new emotions intrigued The Aelaranthae. At this time, Amantuile had returned with the news about being the Lord of Lucianne. In Aelaranthae village, They were reunited.

Amantuile was very excited about the prospect of Aelaranthae Academy. However, the mages were less eager to work with the Antheria empire. In the end, Amantuile asked the Aelaranthae to make another space beside the LeAestas academy to open up the academy for Antheria’s mage. LeAestas knew about Antheria’s noblemen’s greed, that’s why they are very cautious. If this was their land, they would outright reject such requests. It was incomprehensible for mages from different academies to be adjacent even in LeAestas. Mages value knowledge. They feared it leaked. However, this was not their land. And thus, they had to accept it when the Aelaranthae gave Amantuile their consent. Little did they know that this move would change them for the better.

Several years passed. Mages grew in numbers in Aelaranthae Academy and in turn, the Aelaranthae village developed. It was no longer a village at this point. People often called it Aelaranthae Town. The surrounding forest has been cleared except the small patch of land where the Aelaranthae kept their deer and around their house for they needed space to let the treehouse grow. It was certainly a misnomer to call it Aelaranthae Town when there were only two Aelaranthae there.

The news of such an Academy was heard by both Antheria and LeAestas. The greedy nobles from Antheria wanted the mage to work for them since they studied in their lands, the mages of LeAestas, of course rejected it for it was not Antheria's land but the Aelaranthae’s.

The mages from LeAestas also had a bone to pick with the Antheria. Their mages were increasingly proficient using magic tools made in Aelaranthae academy. And thus, they accused both Antheria and the Aelaranthae for leaking their magical knowledge. The Antheria’s mages, of course, rejected such claims. All of them studied under the same teacher, The Aelaranthae.

This bickering happened to elevate Aelaranthae’s fame even further. With fame and glory, came envy and hate. The Aelaranthae do not like that. Aelaranthae do not feel fame and glory for themselves, they could only feel it in others. They brought no happiness for them. However, they could sense envy and hate as clear as day. Such emotions were too bright to ignore. The envy and hate ruined the sweet taste of passion and camaraderie. It was like someone had put rotten meat into your pudding and ice cream.

“Esteemed Aelaranthae, please ensure that these mages do not bewitch you. Their —”

“What? Bewitch her? Aelaranthae are wise and intelligent. We learn much from them. Don’t insult them with your greed and pettiness. Begone from this academy. This academy is for the intelligent! Not for brainless monkeys like you!”

Such disputes were but common occurrences in the days of late. Aelaranthae were seen as the lord of the land, and thus, they were often asked to mediate such disputes. The Aelaranthae were increasingly frustrated with each dispute. For they occur often and have no peaceful resolution.

“All of you, begone. You are not welcome here.” Ae Nae, who managed this dispute, despite being praised so highly by both parties, felt like she was hit by dirt to her face. The jealousy and entitlement beneath their praise was felt directly by her. It felt like she was being puked and was forced to lick someone’s feces. The disgust was apparent in her face.

“Oh, are you finally getting rid of this outsider, what a wonderful idea. As expected of our Esteemed Aelaranthae!”

“You must be deaf. The wise Aelaranthae was clearly getting rid of you, brainless monkey. I knew you were stupid, but I didn’t know you were also deaf.”

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“BEGONE!! Or I shall make you!”

*Booom

A wave of mana blew the tables and chairs that were presented to her before Aelaranthae’s house. The front yard of their house has turned to be some sort of city hall for Aelaranthae Town during these years. The Aelaranthae rarely traveled far and people often looked for her guidance in these lands. So, some carpenters happened to donate tables and chairs for Aelaranthae to listen to their pleas. Most merchants and peddlers also displayed their wares here, elevating its use.

Most disputes with villagers, like land borders or price negotiation were resolved with a happy ending. Some kind of dissatisfaction always occurred but it tasted like orange. Sour and sweet. The Aelaranthae could savor the taste. It was quite a novel experience for them. This happened because the Aelaranthae were fair. So, most people accepted their judgment and advice. The Aelaranthae were happy because their salty and troubled faces turned sweet and smiles by the end of the day. However, when political interest comes into play, there is no end in sight. They do not seek peaceful resolution, but ousting the opponent. And so, The Aelaranthae began to show their wrath. It was the first time the Aelaranthae began to punish people.

The diplomats from both countries fled with tails tucked between their legs. However, that didn’t mean they gave up. They approached Ae Zir, who was teaching a professor just now. Little did they know that Aelaranthae were just a step away from hive-mind. A step was too much, Aelaranthae were just an inch away from being a hive-mind. Aelaranthae were capable of telepathy. Since they were born at the same time, have the same wants, and have similar body, they often think alike. In any dispute the Aelaranthaenhave in their virtual room, it always ends up with a peaceful resolution. They could understand each other’s feelings. There would never be any strife of discontent if everyone were capable of what the Aelaranthae do. However, the ambassadors didn’t know that.

And so, these ambassador’s efforts were in vain. The goddess above giggled at the 100% reenactment of Ae Zir that struggled to contain her anger and disgust. With the same shout, she kicked both of these diplomats out of their land.

These diplomats did not yet give up their pursuit of power. They soon turned to Amantuile and Lotharine, asking for their favor. However, instead of receiving help, they were exiled. To Amantuile and Lotharine, these diplomats were a selfish bunch who did not value friendship and only worked for their own gains. They show not even a morsel of gratitude for the Aelaranthae who gave them gifts of knowledge and did not expect anything in return. And so, they were forcefully evicted.

Both kingdoms did not react to all humiliation their ambassador received in fear of the Aelaranthae siding with the other side. Aelaranthae town has grown too big to ignore. However, The head of the town, The Aelaranthae themselves have no allegiance. In fact, they have begun attracting allegiance from neighboring lords such as Amantuile. This fact worries the nobles of both kingdoms. But since they see each other as rivals, they could only react by giving the Aelaranthae gifts.

Aelaranthae like receiving gifts not because they liked the gifts themselves, but simply because the person who gifts them often carries them with positive feelings. Gifts were a token of appreciation. Not political tools. This was their thought until another ambassador tried to placate them. The fact another ambassador tried to give them gifts out of the blue made the Aelaranthae tilt their head in confusion. The gestures from these diplomats were the same as any other, Their voices were the same. but the feelings behind it were different. The Aelaranthae were confused as to why their feelings were full of sickening greed and hatred. It tasted like a cloy of expired jelly with spices. That’s why the Aelaranthae either refused or forgo using these gifts.

It needed to be said that at this point, the Aelaranthae were already twenty years old. Their bodies did not change in the slightest, They remain small and petite. Unlike before where it was peaceful with just villagers around, the Aelaranthae have to navigate the political feud between these two nations now. Politics did not merely come from one entity. They influenced others.

The Aelaranthae felt the taste of emotions in their little town changed in flavor as political strife happened between the two kingdoms. The mages began to distance themselves from mages of other nations, creating a political faction mixed with envy and hatred. Since they did not like the taste, they began to investigate. The great purge of Aelaranthae began.

“Leave.” Ae Nae said as she pointed her finger to a professor. Then, she pointed to another. Then, another. The Aelaranthae based their judgment on the feelings the mages harbored within themselves. There were no rules in Aelaranthae town above The Aelaranthae themselves. When they were told to leave, they must leave.

At the end of the month, over a thousand people were exiled from Aelaranthae Town. The Aelaranthae wanted to purge another thousand, but as they were pleading with all of their heart, they retracted their orders. The Aelaranthae were powerful and smart. However they were not omniscient and they were still young.

It was a logical course of action. If they did not like something, they told them not to do it again or leave. However in political turmoil, no matter what your decision is, you always come up worse than before. The atmosphere in their little town became worse and the Aelaranthae were confused. Fear gripped the hearts of many. Many aspiring mages and swordmage now feared they would be banished from the academy.

For mages of LeAestas, getting told to leave the academy was akin to getting dropped out without a diploma. They would never be able to learn here again and their future will be ruined, some would even prefer to die. It would be hard for them to get a job. After all, mages society revolves around its academy. If you anger the academy, they would ostracize you. It was the worst execution that could happen to the mages.

Other mages from Antheria had similar feelings. The Aelaranthae were the head of the town. Getting exiled means angering the lord or nobles within Aelaranthae town. The Aelaranthae have been the subject of attention. The king desperately tried to coax these Aelaranthae for they had the resources the king wanted the most, the chalice of life. Few towns and other cities would take you in if you anger these Aelaranthae.

Thankfully, it did not take a genius to analyze Aelaranthae apparent fury. Everyone saw who the Aelaranthae first cast out of their town. They could also make sense that almost all of the subsequent exiles were related to the bickering of those diplomats. The only question was how did those Aelaranthae knew?

And so, The mages of both kingdoms began to coexist. The Aelaranthae still frowned at them for they knew they were faking it. However, as the old adage said, ‘fake it till you make it’ soon enough, the mages began to actually bond with each other regardless of nationalities. In less than a year, some of them even viewed Aelaranthae town as a separate nation from their hometown.

The Aelaranthae tilted their heads. They were smart, but they had no experience with the behavior and emotions of humans. They wondered whether the improved atmosphere was because of their doing or whether it would improve on their own. Nevertheless, the town was lively and there was no sign of any bickering, so the Aelaranthae were happy.

The kings and elders from both nations had different feelings. The nobles in court were jealous at the meteoric rise of Aelaranthae town. Since Aelaranthae town was in the jurisdiction of Marquis Amantuile, his fame skyrocketed with the Aelaranthae. Human swordmage rivaled that of royal knights and Mage from Tower of Mana were produced one after another from Aelaranthae Academy and they all held the Aelaranthae in high regards. Most of them were then employed inside Lucianne, either as a mage, technician, or knights.

The discord grew when the Aelaranthae refused to give any more chalice of life to anyone. Because of this, the king had decided to raise the tax for Lucianne. The 50% tax was ridiculous for the people of Lucianne. They tried to tax Aelaranthae town too, but it failed. The government practice in Aelaranthae town was unique. The Aelaranthae never accepted any money, they did not need any money and the people tended to self govern themselves, occasionally calling for The Aelaranthae to mediate disputes. And so, no matter how much they raised the taxes, since the income of Aelaranthae Town was zero, it posed no problem for the Aelaranthae.

Amantuile adopted the same stance. He set the tax to be 0, all knights to do voluntary service. Then, they should have side jobs here and there. Seeing the town of Lucianne prospered even though the income dropped to 0 percent infuriated the court. They petitioned the king to replace Amantuile but the king hesitated. His goal was never money to begin with. It was the chalice of life. If other nobles tried to do this, they would face a subjugation army. What Amantuile did was essentially tax evasion after all. But the Aelaranthae were powerful. Even if they came with a subjugation army, they realized they would lose. So, they let Lucianne for the time being. Not going further but mocking Amantuile’s representative in the court.

Lotharine had a problem on his own. Many mages called upon him and his sister to enter Aelaranthae Academy. The board director of education was displeased because Lotharine had enrolled over four thousand mages into this academy on a yearly basis. Over half of the town of LeVerda had studied in Aelaranthae Academy. Seeing their own university’s student enrollment drop by 50% seemed to harm the prestige and finance of the Tower of Mana.

However, they found no dirt to mock Aelaranthae Academy, and even if they did, the cheap tuition, better learning environment, and Aelaranthae’s skill at magic thwarted all attempts to defame it, and Lotharine was proud of the fact that the Aelaranthae were pure in their pursuit of knowledge. Aelaranthae Academy enrolled even someone with small mana talent, those people soon became professors and taught others and the cycle propagated. Right now, people are rarely taught by the Aelaranthae themselves in Aelaranthae academy because these professors taught them beforehand.

However, Aelaranthae Academy had one major flaw, its location was technically in Antheria, a foreign nation. If the Aelaranthae succumbed to the demands of their nobles, all LeAestas knowledge could be stolen by the humans. This baseless fear was ingrained in the elders that even Lotharine himself was affected. And so, the headmasters proposed two solutions to him. Either move Aelaranthae academy to LeAestas’ land, or make Aelaranthae town an independent country.

However, Aelaranthae hated diplomats and politics. The exiles of over a thousand people in a week made it clear that The Aelaranthae will not entertain any political debate. The Mages in LeAestas were distraught over how to persuade the Aelaranthae. Lotharine then turned his attention to Amantuile. The elders were very skeptical since Amantuile is Antheria’s noble. However, to their surprise, Amantuile welcomed the idea. It was as if fate blessed these meetings for Amantuile saw hope to save Lucianne.

Lucianne was in a precarious situation due to the heavy taxes imposed by the greedy king. However, civil wars or rebellion were frowned upon by the Alliance, they were not sure they could win either. This was due to the war against worshipers of chaos god. If the Alliance members do as they pleased, it would create a crack where the chaos god and monsters could take advantage of.

However, with the arrival of a new race, The Aelaranthae. The idea of creating a new nation was possible. Besides, the forest the Aelaranthae were first found was uninhabited in the first place. However, they did not know if the Aelaranthae could procreate. As far as they knew, the Aelaranthae were aloof creatures, often sitting and pondering in their tree house. It would be a disaster if the lines of the progenitor were to be extinguished.

And so, the negotiations were halted. All the mages of LeAestas could do was secretly send money to Amantuile in hope to keep Lucianne afloat until the time was right.

Fate smiled at them, for the Aelaranthae had said that they wanted to visit Lucianne. The peddlers indulged them and they rode a carriage together. Now that they are away from Aelaranthae Academy, they felt entitled to speak about politics to the Aelaranthae.

When the Aelaranthae arrived at Lucianne. They strolled around the city, but they frowned at the taste of the emotion worn by the townspeople. The despair and hardship by the heavy tax was like sludge that refused to go down your throat. Before going home, they were invited by Amantuile to his office. There, Amantuile gave them a straight question.

“Would you be willing to found a nation?” Amantuile asked.

“We are independent. The people may come and go as they please. We will not manage them.” The Aelaranthae thought it was a hassle.

“There are heavy taxes imposed on Lucianne. If we don’t give them the chalice of life, the tax is going to increase.”

“The water cures many ills. It should only be used for those that ailed.”

“you won’t sell them?”

“We will not.” The Aelaranthae answered. Amantuile frowned. Why was it so difficult for the Aelaranthae to give a drop of their blood? It was just a drop.

However, Aelaranthae are a never-changing enigma. Made to the goddess’ ideal. A drop of blood would forever be lost should they choose to give it to them. It would take them years for it to be regenerated. Aelaranthae knew this when they gave their first blood, and so, they hesitated. Besides, it hurts to wound themselves.

Aelaranthae hated pain

“I see…” Amantuile was downcast. Seeing the disappointed look on his face sends the Aelaranthae into doubt. But before they conversed with Amantuile, he threw another question, ”In that case, will there ever be a third Aelaranthae?”

Amantuile implied whether the Aelaranthae could procreate and the Aelaranthae were sent in a wonder. They answered, “we don’t know. Time will tell.”

Amantuile thought the negotiation broke down and sighed, but the Aelaranthae were not leaving. They merely stared at him as if pondering something. Then, they asked ,”How much money will you pay for one such chalice? Will that make the people in Lucianne happy?”

“Yes! Any amount you want!” Amantuile replied, his face cheered.

“We shall give you one. However we shall not give you another in twenty… no… thirty years…” the Aelaranthae said.

The Aelaranthae have no needs and they rarely have wants for they could only indulge in the feelings of others. The Aelaranthae town was flourishing, goods from merchants came and went. Many captured their eyes. However, the biggest reason for them to start wanting money is that they feel like they would need it sometime in the future.

It was pure instinct. But the Aelaranthae do feel like they would need a huge amount of resources in the future. Thankfully, since they were in a civilization and not wilderness, all they needed was gold. The Aelaranthae felt a dissonance in their body. It told them to prepare.

And so, a thousand gold was paid from the empire’s treasury. The king was in joy. But human greed knows no bounds. Now that a trade was made, the king thought they could simply pressure the Aelaranthae with more money. When Amantuile said there won’t be any more chalice for decades, the king was furious. He added more taxes to Lucianne in hope the Aelaranthae would feel pressured. Amantuile soon knew that his king was not to be trusted.

And so, he began to build an army and denied paying his taxes. He began to pull his representatives from the court. The empire took a cautious approach. They knew Amantuile was close to the Aelaranthae and did not want conflict with them.

The reason the king wanted the Chalice was simply because he did not heed Aelaranthae’s words. Even though he was healthy, he still drank from the chalice. He was old, and even though you drank medicine, time will still win in the end. Soon after he drank from the chalice, his body began to feel invigorated. He feels thirty years younger. His white hair gradually turned brown, His wrinkled face smoothed out little by little, it felt like the old time. He could grasp his sword once more and the joy of training with knights brought him joy.

But such joy did not last long. Mere months later, he feels weaker than before. His body grew pale and he was bedridden. The chalice of life was not addictive by nature, it merely tried to fix what was broken or gave a weak part a boost. His granddaughter who also drank from the chalice was healthy and she still strived in her education and training for knighthood.

The surge of energy granted by the chalice was what made the king addicted. His body was old and the chalice did not grant immortality. Once the effect expires, the body returns to what it was before.

The king thought he could gain immortality by continuously drink from the chalice, so he sought it with fervor. However, the Aelaranthae did not provide him with a steady supply of the water. And thus, the king agonized as his life inched closer to his grave.

Nevertheless, for now, the king has obtained another chalice from Amantuile. However, no matter how he conserved it, he could not possibly last thirty years from this chalice alone. It would only prolong his life for one or two years at most. He could only hope for the Aelaranthae to retract their statement. And thus, he asked several spies to find out what the Aelaranthae needed.

He didn’t know that Aelaranthae had no needs.