Chapter 91: Spatial Tokens

A day passed with the case pertaining to Adam becoming more and more talked about. Most could not believe the vice-principal of one of the second-year groups was behind the entire thing.

While most could not understand his reasoning, the elites could. The elites were a class of people who did not easily accept anyone they had once seen as inferior.

Perhaps none of it would have happened had Asher not granted Adam access to that training facility.

When Adam had looked into the matter during his arrest, he discovered that one of the people involved worked at that training facility. That had pissed off the vice-principal when he found out.

Since the man could not confront Asher about it, he decided to take matters into his own hands. But why stop there when he could get the kid expelled for good?

The vice-principal’s trial, along with everyone involved, was only a day away. While the academy made preparations for the trial and at the same time tried to control the spreading word, Adam received a call from his master.

Adam had spent the day mostly cultivating, polishing his created skills and planning the kind of evasive skills he wanted when the call came. He was to meet his master at the administration office.

Hopping into his car, he drove off.

***

Asher sat behind his desk doing nothing in particular, his gaze distant. The past week had been a hectic one for him. And it all had to do with his disciple.

Many families pressured him for the sake of his disciple. What ticked him off the most was his family. Like the other powerful families, they had expressed their desire to have Adam swear fealty to them.

They argued that because Adam was his disciple, the boy should naturally fall under them. The alternative was something even he could not simply shrug off.

But that was a matter for the future.

He snapped out of his thoughts when his spatial senses picked up Adam’s presence. He swiftly sat back and turned his chair to face the view behind him, putting on his signature look.

Adam did not have to see him worried or anything of the sort. As far as the boy was concerned, his master was a carefree man with very few worries on his shoulders.

The doors swung open a moment later as Adam walked in. Reaching his master’s desk, he gave a small bow and greeted him.

"It’s been a while, master."

Asher turned his chair around, one leg crossed over the other, a subtle smile playing at his lips.

"Indeed..." the vice-principal said. "You had one job, Adam. Stay out of trouble."

Saying that, he gestured to one of the chairs before his table.

"I tried my best, master," Adam replied smugly. "But trouble seems to follow me everywhere I go. It’s like a girl who has a crush on me. I’m just too handsome."

"That’s not something to be proud of, kid." Asher shook his head. "But good job staying calm in that situation. Anyone else would have crumbled under the weight of those accusations."

Asher had heard about the assassins sent after him during his first mission. And unlike the confused others, he had a few guesses. He just wasn’t sure.

"Why don’t you tell me about what happened during your first mission?" Asher asked. "As you already know... I’ve been away for a while."

Adam nodded, his expression turning serious. A flicker of dread flashed through his eyes as he spoke. He had been pretending to be unaffected all this while. Truth be told, however, he was terrified.

Mission season was almost upon them. Adam did not want to live his life in fear, which was why he was in a hurry to create evasive skills.

"There isn’t much to say, actually." He answered. "Those assassins were sent to test my capabilities. Had they had other intentions, I would have been a goner."

Asher’s brows furrowed for a split second before returning to normal. His guess had been partly right. He did not like the sound of that at all.

"I see..." he muttered thoughtfully. Looking at his disciple, he asked. "What do you make of that encounter?"

"That I need to get as strong and as resourceful as possible. I don’t want to live like a prisoner, always terrified of stepping out."

Asher calmly observed his disciple’s demeanour. He could see the fear and worry in the boy’s eyes. And the kid was right. Such a life was no different from that of a prisoner.

He pulled out a small rectangular case from his drawer, the sleek build giving off a faint feeling of power and elegance. He then pushed it over to Adam.

"In this rectangular case are three tokens imbued with the spatial attribute," Asher explained. "They’re something I prepared for you in case of emergencies like what you described."

Adam took the small case and opened it, staring at the three circular objects in wonder. He could indeed feel the spatial attributes coming off the tokens. Looking deeper, he noticed the intricately inbuilt runes.

He had just recently learnt about the existence of storage artefacts, rune masters, and a whole lot more that most people did not even know existed. So he was not too surprised to see the spatial tokens.

Asher continued, watching Adam admire the tokens. "Each one is a one-use item that would randomly teleport you several kilometres away from a dangerous situation. And I need not mention the downsides."

Adam understood what his master meant. While the tokens were a lifesaver, they could also teleport him to other dangerous situations if he was unlucky. Regardless, the tokens were very much appreciated.

’I can use them as a foundation to understand the spatial element, and even create better evasive skills!’ Adam thought to himself, feeling his excitement bubbling inside.

The spatial element was one of the elements he was having trouble with, and his master had just cut that problem in half. He couldn’t be more excited.

"Thank you."

Adam raised his head and said, the sparkle in his eyes making his master glad.

"Don’t mention it, kid. But that is just one of the reasons why I called you over." Asher continued. "Due to the accusation you suffered at the hands of a staff member, the academy wishes to compensate you for your troubles."

"Really?" Adam was surprised.

"Naturally, I had something to do with it," Asher answered smugly. "Your master will not watch you suffer that kind of injustice without repercussions. Tell me what you want, and I’ll make it happen."

Adam’s gaze wandered upwards as he thought about what would be a suitable compensation. There was nothing he really wanted, as with his Cyber Dive skill, he had access to all kinds of information and study materials.

His master patiently waited for him to think through the offer. A little over a minute later, Adam lowered his gaze and answered, "There isn’t anything I’m particularly interested in. Though I’m wondering if the academy could make an exception and allow me to skip all my compulsory classes."

"Skip your compulsory classes?" Asher raised a brow.

"Yeah... There isn’t anything they teach that I can’t learn by myself." Adam answered. "I would rather spend most of my time training and taking missions. Of course, I’ll still do the assignments."

Asher observed his disciple, pondering the suggestion. Adam was right about those classes. He had personally seen how monstrously talented the boy was. And he had to admit, the academy no longer seemed capable of training someone like Adam.

"Is that what you truly want?" He had to ask. "You could ask for some interesting artefacts, money or knowledge not available to the public."

"I’m sure."

"Very well. Consider it done." Asher nodded, glad his disciple wasn’t greedy for material things.

"Thank you, master."