In the Royal Eisenverent Academy of the 13th emperor, you were either nobility, or fodder.
Unfortunately, I, William Bulwhist III was a mixture of the two.
My family name was good enough to earn me a spot in the Higher Classes of the First Year. Class-E to be exact. but amongst those people, I was the worst.
Not because of my looks, or lack of social status. I always made sure to keep my brown hair styled neatly, and my height was at a staggering 5'9. I know, it sounds short, but in the world of Greenhart, that is slightly taller than average.
As for my social status, my father was Sir William II, and he owned enough land to make our status well known amongst the empire.
So why was I fodder?
Simple. My body was unable to use Atherstrom, and without Atherstrom, a man was useless. I would be unable to learn magical spells, and the rate at which I learned weapon arts, and defensive arts would be slower than everybody else's.
That was why on my second week at school, I was forced to kneel and kiss the feet of Claudia Eagleton.
~~~
"Is he crying? Look, those are tears in his eyes, aren't they? Poor boy."
"Poor boy? What do you mean, poor boy? He cannot use Atherstrom. He is not a boy!"
On the rooftops of the Year One building, the hot green sun of the world beamed down on a group of four students huddled together.
Three of those students were standing.
Johan Valledon. A short blonde-haired boy with feminine facial features.
Harriet White, a tall chubby boy with an ugly face for a noble.
And Claudia Eagleton, a dazzling brown-haired beauty with a skirt too short for school protocol, and her sockless feet outstretched towards the boy kneeling in front of her.
That boy was me, William Bulwhist.
As I was surrounded by the three students, I only wished that I could rise to my feet and fight. But if I did, there would be no hope for me.
Despite Johan's facial features, he had already been marked as a Grade-2 Solar Mage. And Harriet, he was already a black belt in the defensive arts of spear-wielding.
Claudia wasn't as strong, but if I slapped her foot away from my face, I would earn myself a beating from her goons.
She pressed her foot against my cheek. It was smooth and smelled like bath fragrances. Like all noble women, she would never allow a single area of her body to be unclean.
"Kiss it," Claudia spoke in that smug tone.
"No."
THWACK
A heavy fist crashed into my jaw, definitely belonging to the chubby boy, Harriet White.
"You should be grateful that she's even letting you near her feet. If it were me in your position..."
Harriet looked hopefully at Claudia, but the girl wasn't even paying attention to him.
She looked down at me. Blood ran down my chin.
"Kiss it, I said. They are cleaner than you will ever be."
This time, I did as she ordered. My lips pressed against the milky skin of her feet. It was the most degrading act I had ever done.
I felt her leg tremble slightly from my touch, but she covered it with a laugh.
Chubby Harriet and Short Johan joined her in her laughter moments later, though I could sense the jealousy in their eyes.
"Every day at lunch you will meet me out here on the rooftop, and kiss my feet. Expect to be joined by others later on. A queen should have an abundance of slaves beneath her after all. Be happy that you are the first."
She was no queen. I knew her very well.
Her family, the Eagletons, were powerful, yes. Her father was one of the Emperor's Seventeen Swords after all. Yet, she was no queen. Only acted like one.
Without giving me a say in the matter, they left me alone on the rooftop. On the way out, the chubby boy Harriet kicked me in the face, sending me sprawling onto my back.
Alone, I looked up at the green sun until it stung my eyes, and stayed like that for a few moments.
When I first joined the academy last week, I remembered the excitement I felt. I barged into my step-sister's room to tell her I had been accepted. She was happy for me, since I would be in the same school as her. However, when she heard that I was being bullied for being Atherstromless, she neglected me like everyone else.
I had nobody.
"You shouldn't let them treat you like that."
A voice drew me from my thoughts. I sat up and looked around.
It seemed at some point, a girl had joined me out there on the rooftop. Her skin was tan, and her body small, yet faintly curved. Her hair was snow white, and her eyes were golden. She wore a white school uniform with golden accessories decorating it like a true queen.
She sat there on the edge of the rooftop, overlooking the vast school grounds.
I recognised her immediately.
"Cleopatra Baniquraz."
She looked at my sorry form as I lay on the ground. Her face remained unchanging, and emotionless.
"That is my name, yes."
Struggling to grasp the situation, I pushed myself to my feet and dusted off my clothes. Then I wiped the blood from my mouth.
"Are you here to bully me too?" I spat. "Want me to kiss your feet as well. Go on, take off your socks. I might as well kiss the feet of all the nobles in the empire, and finish with the Empress last!"
By the end of my rant, I was shouting. Yet Cleopatra did not seem bothered at all. It made sense, after all, her family owned dragons.
"Please do not suggest something so weird... and please stay away from my feet..." She said emotionlessly.
Judging from her words, I gathered that the dragon rider was not here to bully me. So why was she here?
She was in Class A, whilst I was Class E. She should want nothing to do with me.
She gave me an answer shortly afterwards, as though she could hear my thoughts.
"William Bulwhist, I want you to bully me."