Chapter 26: Danger assessment
"We can't accept this! You're putting our lives at risk!"
"What if he attacks us!? What if he goes crazy, like the Sword Saint did!?"
"This isn't fair!!"
"Why would the Renegades allow such a thing again!? Please, we beg you, tell them to reconsider!"
Colt's brows knitted in frustration as he frowned at the trainees from behind the counter.
Since all the cadets were now here, he'd returned to his position to inform the train to come when it was ready. But the group had followed him back with furious and anxious expressions as they assaulted him with a series of complaints.
He'd already explained to them that the decision was out of his hands, and yet they wouldn't listen. He agreed with everything they said, but they refused to understand that he couldn't do anything about it. It annoyed him greatly.
"That's enough!" Colt shouted finally, his annoyance becoming more palpable. "This was the decision of the Sentinel and the High Council. Like I've said countless times before, I have no power to change it. The half-human has been assigned to train here for the next three months to become a knight. Just like the rest of you."
"For your own sakes, it's best you all come to terms with that reality."
***
Arbus watched the other trainees bombard the Ramarta Renegade with complaints from the waiting area. Naturally, he was the only one still sitting there, since everyone had left the moment he approached.
Their wariness for Arbus was like a physical thing keeping distance between them and him.
But this time, Arbus didn't let it get to him as much as usual. He was tired of the constant suspicion and prejudice he always experienced, but for the first time since Tarok, he could sympathize with his persecutors.
It only made sense for them to be on edge, considering what just happened to Terytl-B. He remained silent as he leaned against his chair, glancing at them from time to time.
He noticed some of the trainees glancing back at him with nervous expressions. It was obvious that they were still afraid of him.
After all, they had no way of confirming if Arbus was actually just a half-human or not. They were too afraid for the doubt in their minds to simply disappear, no matter what the officers here said.
There are documents confirming that he's just a half-human that's here to train. Sure. But what if it's fake?
All the Renegades here confirmed his identity already. Sure. But what if they're lying? Or worse, what if they simply believe that was the truth when it wasn't?
Humans were unpredictable and dangerous, and no incident concerning them could be understood normally.
Arbus's eyelids closed as his mind drifted. 'Three months. I only have to be here for three months. After that, I'm officially a real Renegade. And after that, I can advance. And continue advancing till I get a Heart-shard. And when I do... I can achieve my goal.'
'All I have to do is hold it in. Just like always.'
Arbus's brows furrowed as he suddenly felt a figure towering above him. He opened his eyes as he looked towards the far end of the room again, only to have his vision blocked by a bright yellow jacket.
He frowned, glancing up as he finally noticed which of the trainees suddenly felt comfortable enough to get close to him. It was one of the white Mornans in the group.
Naturally, it was not the girl, who was glaring at Arbus silently from across the room. Or the one in the attire that Arbus could only guess belonged to a royal house of some kind. No, it was the white Mornan with bright purple eyes. He had a curious expression etched on his face as he looked down at Arbus.
"...What do you want?" Arbus asked incredulously.
The white Mornan didn't say anything for a while, simply staring at Arbus. Then, he shrugged, dropping down as he suddenly took a seat beside Arbus.
Arbus's brows narrowed even more as he watched the white Mornan.
"So, are you really just a half-human?" the white Mornan asked, turning to Arbus with his curious expression.
Arbus blinked in surprise at the question. Then, he looked away, his cold expression reappearing. "Isn't that obvious?" he said, gesturing to the faint markings running down the side of his face from below his ear.
"If I wasn't only half-human, then I obviously wouldn't be here." Arbus continued.
"Oh! A possible half-tarokian? That's pretty cool." The white Mornan said with interest.
"But, that doesn't really prove much I'm afraid." He added with a shrug.
"Things like that are pretty easy to fake these days, unfortunately."
The white mornan glanced at Arbus with narrowed eyes. "You're not a human with some sort of mind control ability, right?. Cause that would really suck."
"I've heard of stories about Renegades stumbling on towns visited by humans, only to find everyone under a mind control of some sorts that forced them to attack outsiders on sight."
He smiled. "Just hoping this isn't one of those situations, and that these Renegades aren't already under your control. Which is why they're acting so normal."
Arbus snorted. "Quite the active imagination you have. Fortunately for you, it's nothing as spooky as that. I'm simply a half-human that came here to train and become a knight. That's all I care about right now."
The white Mornan held his chin, as if contemplating something. "Hmm, well, I guess you don't exactly look like the evil puppeteer sorts. Still, it doesn't hurt to check how much danger I'm actually in."
A grin appeared on the white mornan's face as he suddenly leaned back in a relaxed manner. "Well, since I've confirmed you're not here to kill everyone or something, I guess I can rest peacefully until the train arrives now. I was getting tired of standing there and watching everyone complain."
Arbus's expression became incredulous again as he glanced at the white Mornan. "...You call that a confirmation? You just came up and asked me a question."
The white Mornan simply shrugged. "Well, that's all I can do in this situation, really. What other choices do I have? If I'm wrong and you're actually a Human here to play with us before killing us, then there's not much we can do about it."
His expression darkened slightly. "After all, a Human was capable of wiping out an entire planet in the span of a few hours, only three weeks ago."
"I doubt they'd be anywhere to hide from you in that case."
Arbus glanced down at the floor, not saying anything.
"But, if I was wrong about you, then there's nothing to fear."
"...I guess that's one way to look at things. The others might not agree with your methods, though." Arbus replied as he felt the eyes of the trainees directed towards him. They were looking between him and the white Mornan this time, some of them visibly shocked that someone could casually sit beside a half-human like that.
"Who cares? They can stand around and complain all they want. I can already tell whoever sent you here didn't do it on a whim. The possibility of them reconsidering their decision now seems nonexistent."
"Like the officer said, it's best to accept reality." the white Mornan said with a sigh.
Then, he suddenly remembered something as he looked at Arbus again. "My name's Alexander, by the way. What's yours, half-human?"
Arbus didn't respond for a bit, causing Alexander to wonder if he was going to say anything else.
"...Arbus. My name's Arbus."
Alexander smiled, extending a hand toward him. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Arbus. I look forward to training with you."
"And really hope you're not planning to kill everyone later."
Arbus wasn't sure how to respond to that last part, which was probably meant to be a joke. So he didn't. He glanced at Alexander's hand, an unreadable look appearing in his eyes. He had no idea why this White Mornan was suddenly acting so casual with him all of a sudden, and naturally felt a bit suspicious.
Still, since there was no reason for him to be hostile, he simply accepted the handshake. "I look forward to training with you, too."