My energy was still pretty full, so with a single thought, I imagined pushing every single bit of smoke away.
It consumed a lot of energy, but it worked like a charm.
With a loud wind chime, the smoke faded into the sky, revealing the surroundings as well as Trivet himself.
The bell tower had fallen and the ground beneath us was in shambles.
There were guards all around us too.
...I could also feel a powerful gaze coming from the academy.
It felt like I was being crushed for a moment.
So for this last attack, I wanted to show off a little.
I unfurled my weapons from my body and set all one hundred of them behind me.
This was identical to the first attack I had made, except at that time, I didn't use Lightning.
Now though...
Crackle
All one hundred weapons began crackling with lightning, and I purposefully increased their flashiness.
The weapons created a chain reaction as they crackled from one to another, and eventually, arcs of lightning began flying off into the sky.
The moment those arcs reached the clouds, a lightning strike descended.
Obviously, I could control where that lightning fell, so I made them all fall into the areas with no people.
Still... Since Lightning Manipulation was still at Intermediate rank, I was running out of energy really, really quickly.
I could keep this up for like 5 seconds more.
So as I stared at Trivet across from me, I finally launched all one hundred of my Clorafite weapons at him.
Crackle...
WHOOOOOSH!
They were so fast they had turned invisible.
And yet, Trivet recognized the danger.
Popping a cigarette into his mouth and lighting it, a large gray figure resembling an armored guardian appeared behind him.
It looked like an illusion at first.
Except it wasn't.
This was the Expert-ranked form of any manipulation type Gift.
They could create guardians in exchange for a large chunk of their energy.
I would be able to create a Lightning Guardian once my Gift reaches Expert rank.
But until then, I had to deal with this monstrosity.
The Smoke Guardian lowered its hands swiftly and caught my weapons.
Crackles and sparks resounded as the whole clash looked like a firework show.
More importantly, it looked like I couldn't pierce the Smoke Guardian.
But I did move it a few inches back.
And since that was possible, I decided to bet all my chips on one thing.
Would Trivet's energy run out before mine did?
I focused on my 100 weapons and began sending quick bursts of Telekinesis.
They pushed the guardian back further, and through the gaps in the guardian's fingers, I saw Trivet's figure.
A trickle of blood ran down his nose.
But the moment his eyes met mine, blood began trickling down my nose as well.
We were equally tired.
We were also already both at our limits.
But even then, I continued at it, pushing his guardian further and further.
My condition got worse, and so did his.
Though, when I realized that his guardian was slowly starting to fade away, I went for one last push and managed to squeeze two of my weapons through.
They shot past at a shocking speed, and before Trivet could fully turn into smoke, one of my weapons flew straight into his right eye, and as for my other weapon, it clipped his throat before bouncing off.
But that was enough.
The guardian vanished in the blink of an eye, and then I saw Trivet staring at me with a shocked look, holding his open wound on his neck.
He was bleeding bad.
One of my weapons was still inside his eye, while the other was falling.
In these situations, someone would most likely step in.
But I didn't want someone like this coming back and being a nuisance in the future.
So with that thought, I sent the falling weapon upward like a railgun, tearing through his neck and leaving out of the top of his head.
As the light faded from his remaining eye, I let out a sigh and focused on Trivet's head.
Then, with a single thought, Trivet's head burst like a balloon.
But that wasn't all.
I retrieved my weapon and then compressed his body to the size of a marble before finally tossing it into the sky.
The moment I did, a bolt of lightning descended, disintegrating what was left of Trivet's body.
And just like that, he was the first person I had ever killed.
Yet I wasn't nearly as fazed as I had expected.
If anything... I didn't feel anything.
Still, I turned to the side at the chime of a bell.
[Ding!]
[You have made progress on the following objective:]
[Objective: Protect the ambassador.]
There were more spies.
But I was exhausted.
Not only that, hundreds of soldiers surrounded me on the ground, and even the headmaster had arrived without me realizing.
He looked down on me from the ruined bell tower and, while brushing his gray beard, he said:
"Amon Everness, you are being arrested on the charges of treason, murder, and lastly, mass property destruction."
"For your own sake, do not resist."
A faint smile appeared on my face as I stored my weapons inside my dimensional ring and landed right beside the headmaster.
Of course, since my legs were broken, I controlled my legs with Telekinesis.
"Headmaster, it looks like I ruined the ambassador's grand entrance, didn't I?"
"..."
"Amon Everness, do you stand by what you have just done?"
Scoffing inwardly, I nodded.
This went way beyond him just being a spy.
"Headmaster, why did you let someone like him remain inside the academy?"
The headmaster just stared at me blankly.
"Because he was useful."
He wasn't even denying the fact that he knew Trivet was a spy.
"A use in the sense that I could gain more leverage over the Jaded Empire if I were to control him."
I frowned slightly.
"Even if it means starting a war between Aldraazan and the Jaded Empire?"
"..."
"A war could start, but it would also eventually end. You must learn to look at the bigger picture..."
It seemed like he was about to tell me more, but instead, he just shook his head.
"Nevermind. You will be facing trial tomorrow for the crimes you have committed on this day."
I met his gaze.
"And when does the project start, headmaster?"
"It will start tomorrow."
Good.
I had a feeling that if I hadn't done all that I did here and showed off as much as I could, he would've just tossed me aside.
But now, with my actions, I have gathered the attention of the king of Aldraazan, the headmaster, the ambassador, and every single person in this city.
As bad as my actions came off, I was a human with two Gifts.
So naturally, I would be getting a pardon with conditions that I had no intention to keep.
This was the cruel reality of this world.
It was also why Kevin was excused so many times even after accidentally killing thousands of people.
The ones in power just didn't give a shit.
Nonetheless, there was one more thing that needed addressing.
"Headmaster, our conversation last week—"
"Your actions have been taken with the interests of Aldraazan in mind..."
"The Siren Queen's interests also naturally lie with Aldraazan."
So this didn't make him move against her.
I'm glad.
He was a very practical man and someone who places interest on only one person at a time.
So for the time being, Clementine was safe.
However, I also knew he was someone whose mind could change at any moment.
So I will have to move out with Clementine outside of this city, perhaps in a remote place.
I knew a couple of good spots.
So after I survive the project, the two of us could live there instead of this city where everyone hates me.
Haha.
What a silly thought.
"May I go, headmaster?"
"Indeed. Fly down to the soldiers and turn yourself in. They will take you to prison for the night."
"Hmm..."
No thank you.
"I'll be confined inside my home until tomorrow, headmaster."
With those words, I began floating in the direction of my home.
I felt the headmaster's energy envelop me for a split second, but then it vanished.
He changed his mind instantly.
And as I turned my head slightly to glance at him, he was already gone.
So with a sigh, I flew across the sky.
Ballista bolts and arrows came flying at me, but I effortlessly redirected them with Telekinesis, and finally, I landed in front of my home.
I walked, or rather levitated, through the spacious garden, occasionally stopping to admire some of the flowers that had begun to bloom in the few months it had been since I planted them.
But regardless, I eventually made it to the door.
Right as I was about to open it, the door opened as the person on the other side stared at my condition, slightly horrified.
"Hey Clementine."