Scale sat with her knees together and her hands rested lightly on her p, occasionally smoothing the wrinkles from her dark-blue skirt. The rge cushioned chair swallowed her petite figure, the backrest stretching behind her like a pair of wings. The room smelled sweet like peppermint despite the woody, rustic upholstery. This was the Principal’s office, and Scale was meeting Connor “The Hound” Kelly, the S-rank hero who controlled the Awakener’s Association High School, P.S. 111.

  Connor’s hair was the color of coaguted blood, a dark red bordering on bck, and his wide chin and broad shoulders made him look more like carved granite than a man. Behind him three spears were id on a dispy, each radiating a threatening mana earned through sughter. Even Scale found the presence uncomfortable; though she wasn’t intimidated, it was rare to come across such an aura. It reminded her of a Great General from the other world, a man who stood on the forefront of an endless war.

  The conversation between the two had been going on for quite some time now. Both had a good idea about the other. Their probing had finished and it was finally time for the real discussion to start.

  “Miss Altiman,” said Connor with a roguish smile, “I am not a fool.” Despite his very Irish name and looks, he didn’t have an accent.

  “You could have fooled me~” Scale, as always, liked her bad banter. She snickered to herself.

  “I am aware of why you’re really here.”

  “To educate the next generation?” Scale put on the most innocent face she could manage. She wasn’t a great actor.

  “Pfffft,” Connor barely held back his ugh. “I am aware of your retionship with the Tomtoms.”

  Scale’s eyes narrowed. “Oh?”

  “They wanted you here to help their daughter escape her…” Connor paused and flexed his fingers to make air quotes, “Situation.”

  “And what situation would that be?”

  Connor leaned back in his seat. He rubbed his chin and grinned. He decided to expin in a different way. “Do you know why I don’t interfere with bullying?”

  “Because you’re a dick?”

  “Yes.” There was no hesitation. His answer was instant.

  “Ah.” Scale tilted her head. “Wait, what?”

  “You hit the nail on the head. I am a dick.” He leaned forward and put his hands on his desk. “Because only a dick can push these kids to be better.”

  “Ah.”

  “The Awakened are warriors. My job is to raise these children to become strong. To learn confidence, pride, and strength.”

  “What does this have to do with you letting kids be bullied?”

  “One word. Conflict. It is the crucible through which humans grow. Children’s fights are a microcosm of the world they’ll eventually live in. Tomtom's kid needs to learn to stand up for herself. How can we expect her to fight against monsters when she can’t even stand up to children? How can someone ever trust their back to her on a battlefield? The Gates are no pce for cowards.”

  “So you want her to drop out? Is that what this is? You don’t think she’s cut out for being a Hunter?” Scale’s tone was icy. Her eyes narrowed and she stopped fidgeting with her skirt.

  “No!” Connor spped the table but due to its construction it didn’t even flinch. It was made from a special mana-graded wood that few could damage.. “That’s not what I want. I don’t want her to quit. I want her to grow. I want her to stand up for herself. I want her to be better!”

  Scale scowled. Her eyes glowed a fierce blue. Her nose wrinkled. But before she could say something, Connor started talking again.

  “I know you’re strong. I know you’re strong enough to flip this school upside down and rip it down timber by timber.” He ughed as he stood up. “But can you deny my words? Can you deny that the best solution is to have Harper stand up for herself and overcome this tribution?”

  “That would be the best solution, but that doesn’t mean you can just ignore this. Not everyone can do that. These are people, not weapons.”

  “Then they shouldn’t become hunters.“

  “How on earth has the School Board let this happen?” Scale clicked her tongue. She wanted to beat the snot out of this arrogant asshole, but something about his words resonated with her. Her nature as a dragon pulled towards arrogance—despite how hard she tried to deny that part of herself.

  “They normally don’t agree with me, actually,” said Connor. “But our goals align this time. The ones bullying Tomtom’s kid have some impressive connections. The Board would rather Tomtom’s kid drop out and have this whole issue disappear altogether.”

  “So Harper can’t stand up against them anyway or she’d be punished by these connections?”

  “No. If she stood up to them I would protect her from the Board.”

  “Did you ever tell her that?”

  “Of course not! That would go against my principles. The courage to stand up alone can’t be—”

  “This is nonsense!” Scale growled. “Humans are pack animals. Humans need support. No one is an isnd. If you always take such a hands-off approach you’ll never be able to shape these children into the warriors you want.”

  “Do you think coddling them will make them strong?”

  “I think there is a difference between offering guidance and coddling!” Scale spped the principal’s desk, obliterating it in a casual dispy. The building shook. The cloudy sky outside the window was cleaved in half, revealing the sun. Students wandering outside the building stumbled, but then they continued on their way, clearly used to such random events.

  “Then prove it to me. Use your time as a Guest Lecturer to make these children stronger. Show me the difference!” Connor ughed with confidence even facing down the insurmountable wall in front of him. He knew he could never win against Scale in a battle of fists, but he was without fear. He trusted in his own spartan methods, believing them to produce the best results. He knew full well that some children wouldn’t make it, but those that did would be stronger for their time in the forge’s fire.

  Scale’s pride wouldn’t let her back down. She grit her teeth and nodded. “Fine. I’ll prove it. I’ll show you the proper way to guide these children to make them into excellent people.”

  Scale sat down in her provided office and groaned. “Fuck, why did I say that?” She cursed her past self. What could she possibly teach these kids in the first pce? She only ever bowled over her opposition through pure power, never bothering to master the small intricacies of mana and technique that would aid beginners the best. She originally intended to halfass her position as a professor in order to wander the school grounds and hopefully observe Harper… But now she had staked her pride on something she had no right doing.

  “My methods are crude and I rely almost entirely on my own talent. Goddammit how do I—” Scale sat up in her seat. She remembered her own words earlier. No one is an isnd. If she didn’t know the answer then there was no shame in asking for help, and in her contacts she just happened to have two of the best control-type mages in the world. Scale opened her contacts and scrolled down to Sarah’s name.

  “Scale I’m a little preoccupied right now,” Sarah’s voice sounded distorted. In the background the sound of gunfire could be heard.

  “Ah. Sorry. I wanted to ask for your help with something but it sounds like you’re busy.”

  “I am.”

  “Should I call back ter?”

  “I’m going to be busy for a few days at least. I’ll be free Friday, though, if you want to hang out then. Alyssa gets way cuter after we hang out with you.”

  “Wh-what?” Scale felt her cheeks heat up.

  “It’s true!” Loud gunfire interrupted her next words. “Shit. Sorry, sister-in-w, gotta go!”

  The call ended. Scale sighed and scrolled down to her sister next on the contact list.

  “Sis can this wait?” Alyssa sounded nervous.

  “Ah. Are you busy too?”

  “Very. In the middle of Gate prep. Me and some A’s are diving in twenty minutes. Supposed to be a high corrosion."

  “Are you with Sarah?”

  “No. She said she had something important to do today. Why are you asking?”

  “When I called her she seemed really distracted and I could hear gunfire in the background—”

  The call ended immediately as Alyssa hung up the phone in a panic. Scale stared at the ‘Call Ended’ text on the screen and truly started to feel nervous. Her first lecture was scheduled for this afternoon and she genuinely had no clue what to do.

  “Welp. I’m fucked.” It was time to face the music. Her eyes narrowed. She technically had nothing but her pride to lose if she didn’t do well, but to a dragon such a blow would be crippling. How could she ever face the world again if it became known that she was just a loser with god-like powers that could delete anyone if she wanted-------Scale suddenly realized embarrassment wasn't actually that big of a deal.

  “If I’m going down, though, I’ll at least beat the shit out of that principal first.” She decided to rex her nerves by relying on her old-reliable backup pn: extreme violence.

  In his office, Connor suddenly felt a powerful chill down his spine. He cradled his three spears and looked in the direction of Scale’s office. For a moment he considered running away. He was one of the few that had seen the recording of Scale’s ‘training’ with the Association Chairman. He grit his teeth.

  “No. I’m not wrong.” He reaffirmed his beliefs. Even in the face of a falling sky he would not bend his principles. He would not run away.

  Meanwhile, Sarah sat in front of her television holding a video game controller. Rainbow LEDs shined throughout the room. Empty energy drink cans were scattered haphazardly like discarded toys.

  "Push B!" She screamed into her mic. Gunfire echoed through the immersive directional speakers. She was 40 ranked points away from the highest tier in Haven Battles, the world's most popur arena shooter, and she intended to use her vacation time to reach it. Behind her, her phone continued to vibrate with the ringer turned off, showing Alyssa's number on the screen. She was too absorbed into the game to notice. She had tossed the phone behind her after being interrupted by Scale earlier. Besides, it wasn't like anyone important would be calling her at this time. Alyssa and Scale were her only close contacts, and she knew her wifey was busy with work.

  Sarah crushed another energy drink and then dumped an entire pack of beef jerky into her mouth while totally pwning noobs. (She was currently on a four game losing streak. It was definitely her teammates fault, though. Not hers.)