"I see." Baelthon leaned back again, speaking now in a normal voice as if they'd been discussing the weather instead of some secret plan. "Then it could even serve you with your current situation. Distracting the boy a lot could be just what you need for him to have the possibility of failing at least one exam in the next trimester."

"It's..." Aldric processed the idea, his political gears turning again after the paralysis. "Risky. If he gets upset by any chance..."

"Everything is risky in politics," Baelthon responded with the 'wisdom' of someone who'd survived decades of noble intrigue. "Even staying still affected us greatly, right? But this... this attacks something his brute power can't solve. His supposed mana control, his apparent genius for battle and beasts if they're real... none of that helps him when it comes to adolescent emotional navigation. Even if he turns out to be a genius, he can't possibly have had the time to be one at everything, right?"

He paused, letting that settle…

"And if it works, if it really distracts him enough, then he doesn't just fail one exam. He becomes vulnerable. Predictable. Manipulable in ways he isn't when he's focused, like any man."

The implications hung heavy in the air. Everyone had weaknesses. Historically even geniuses. Especially when it came to matters of the heart.

Aldric looked at the papers scattered on his desk. The inadequate lesson plans. The useless notes about protocols Ren clearly already mastered. Evidence of his failure, his miscalculation.

Then he looked at Baelthon, weighing options, calculating risks and rewards with the instinct of someone who'd spent a lifetime in political warfare.

"What do you need from me specifically?"

Baelthon's smile widened, satisfaction evident in the curve of his lips. "For now, just continue being his tutor. Act... humble, maybe. Like you've learned your lesson about underestimating him or something."

"And then?"

"And then," Baelthon stood, heading toward the door with the unhurried pace of someone whose plan was already in motion, "present it to him as a 'prize'. So when the appropriate moment arrives, we introduce the catalyst element. To capture his attention in ways power and politics cannot."

He stopped at the threshold, looking back over his shoulder. The light from the hallway cast his face in shadow, making his expression unreadable.

"After all, even geniuses are fools when it comes to matters of the heart. And teenagers... well, in matters of the heart, teenagers are the biggest fools of all."

And with that, he left, leaving Aldric alone with his thoughts and a new strategy that finally gave him some hope.

Maybe he couldn't control Ren's power.

Maybe he couldn't manipulate his intellect.

But emotions...

Emotions were completely different territory. The kind of battlefield where intelligence and power could mean nothing, where the strongest could be brought low by the simplest weakness.

And everyone had vulnerabilities there. Everyone made mistakes when their heart was involved.

Surely... Even Ren Patinder.

♢♢♢♢

The days after the exams passed in a strangely pleasant calm.

Ren had anticipated more drama, more nobles trying to challenge his results, more accusations of fraud or theater. But apparently, even the most vocal skeptics had decided to wait before making more aggressive moves.

Or maybe they were simply planning something more elaborate. With nobles, you never knew. Silence could mean acceptance or preparation.

Larissa's classes continued, this time focused on the second trimester's protocols. More complex movements, more elaborate scenarios that separated "good" from "perfect".

"You're going to have to demonstrate more real-time management," Larissa explained while showing him a particularly complicated sequence of formal gestures. Her movements were fluid, practiced, each one flowing naturally into the next. "Not just theory. They'll put you in situations where you'll have to make immediate decisions while maintaining appropriate protocol. And the 'war games' will be important too... Sadly your Hydra won't reach Gold 1 in time. Still can't believe it can…"

Ren watched with his mantis active, the jade creature copying each of Larissa's movements with photographic memory. Every angle, every subtle shift of weight, every minute detail captured and stored perfectly.

"Understood," he said, then executed the sequence exactly as Larissa had shown it. His body moved like hers had, mirroring her grace with uncanny accuracy. "But I don't think I need to have it on Gold Rank to win against the other schools anyway..."

Luna, watching from the side, made a sound of disgust. "I hate your mantis."

"Me too," Liora added in sympathy with Luna's frustration. "It's completely unfair."

"It took you years to learn what I can copy in seconds," Ren admitted with guilt coloring his voice and a sigh at having heard the line so many times. "I know."

"Don't feel bad," Larissa said, though there was a touch of amusement in her voice despite her attempt at sympathy. "Just... make sure you use it well. These abilities become instinctive after sufficient practice. You can't depend only on your mantis in all situations."

"I know," Ren repeated the sequence without the mantis, this time with his own muscle memory. It came out quite badly, though slightly better than before. His body fought the movements, trying to optimize when it should replicate. "But I'd never manage it in time... Still, I feel guilty for not knowing, so I practice without it sometimes too."

The admission carried genuine regret. The mantis was a shortcut, and his father said shortcuts always came with a price.

"Very well," Larissa nodded with approval, satisfaction evident in her expression. "Then for the second trimester, you're more than prepared. Now you just need to focus on..."

"The mid-year interschool exams," Ren completed with another sigh, now one that carried the weight of accumulated responsibilities. "And normal classes. And territory management with Zhao and Arturo."

"Exactly," Larissa smiled, though there was sympathy in the smile again. "Welcome to being an 'elite'. The work never ends."

Classes with Zhao were intense as always. Preparation for advanced collection, survival strategies in hostile territories, resource evaluation. Zhao hadn't loosened his training regimen even a bit, if anything he'd intensified it now that Ren had proven he could handle higher expectations.

Though Ren was anxious to put everything to the test in something more practical than theoretical. Unfortunately for him and even Zhao, they had too many things to do to be able to get lost in the wilderness for several days.

Sessions with Arturo about territorial management were equally demanding. Tax policies, resource distribution, dispute resolution between vassals, infrastructure maintenance. It was the kind of tedious administrative work that made Ren miss the simple days of just cultivating beasts.

"This is boring," he'd complained as always after two hours reviewing territorial zoning documents. His eyes had glazed over somewhere around page fifteen of property boundary disputes.

"This is leadership," Arturo had responded without sympathy, not even looking up from his own paperwork. "Glory is in battle. But the bulk of real work is in papers nobody wants to read."

But all that was manageable. Challenging, yes. Exhausting, definitely.

But manageable…

Thanks to Ren no longer needing almost any classes with Aldric.

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