SSS Talent: From Trash to Tyrant Chapter 505: Meeting with the Directors [II]

Kaelen held back until everyone settled into their seats before he spoke once more. His voice resonated through the chamber with serene command, the sort that compelled obedience without any need for coercion.

"You all know why you were called here."

Silence met his statement. The four students opposite them carried themselves differently, but unease touched every one. The wolf-lycan stood resolute, shoulders broad and watchful. The bat-lycan harbored greater strain, as though anticipating hostility to erupt anytime. The pair of elves remained more subdued, their poise refined enough to appear tranquil from afar.

Kaelen wasted no time on idle talk.

"The academy knows several students got entangled in the recent war. Blood relations drew some nearer to the conflict. Fate pulled others along. That chapter's closed, and we're not pretending it isn't." His gaze swept the room steadily and deliberately. "We're here to state the academy’s stance plainly. Events beyond these walls remain there. No vengeance or taunts will occur inside. Nor will anyone drag familial vendettas into our halls and claim righteousness."

Eryndor lounged with arms crossed, staying silent for the moment. Selara bent forward over the table, absently twirling a tiny glass vial in her fingers. Althea hadn't stirred since Trafalgar's arrival, rendering her presence even more imposing.

Before the strain could build further, the wolf-lycan advanced a step.

"I don’t have a problem with that."

Kaelen yielded him the stage with a subtle nod.

The lycan faced Trafalgar. "You don’t need to worry about me. Or about where I stand."

Trafalgar’s face showed little shift, yet his focus intensified.

"During the war, I wasn’t exactly there by choice," the lycan explained. "I was more hostage than fighter. Just a pawn shifted around because someone more powerful willed it." His jaw clenched recalling it. "Then the Void Creatures arrived, altering everything. You offered a path. Battle alongside you, or remain and perish."

Aubrelle stayed mute next to Trafalgar. Pipin’s head cocked slightly, as if straining to hear more.

"We picked to fight," the lycan pressed on. "It marked the first real option we'd had in ages."

His focus lingered on Trafalgar.

"You probably don’t remember me."

Trafalgar rubbed his neck awkwardly for a change. "No. I really don’t."

A faint twitch tugged at Eryndor’s lip. Selara appeared mildly amused too.

The wolf-lycan exhaled briefly. "Fair enough. Chaos reigned back then." His voice evened out. "But I remember you. So I'm stating it plainly. I appreciate what you did."

Trafalgar offered a brief nod. "Then I’ll accept it."

The lycan spoke on before the discussion wandered.

"As for the Thal’zar name, shifts have already occurred. Darian du Thal’zar clarified the family’s direction. We can't remain bound by ancient wrongs and bygone errors eternally. Forward we go. That's our path now."

Trafalgar nodded once more.

’Darian is doing a good job.’

The next idea followed swiftly, pragmatic and urgent.

’Tonight I’ll speak to Caelum. I need him to inform Father about two things. One, Mayla. Two, I want to meet Darian.’

Kaelen observed the interaction without interference. The atmosphere hadn't eased, but its tension had realigned. At minimum, the Thal’zar faction showed genuine intent to confine the war to its origins.

One elf released a measured breath, the sort from biting back preferred retorts. His features betrayed scant emotion, yet resentment simmered subtly. The other elf lifted his chin a touch, neither aggressive enough for confrontation nor forgiving enough to conceal war's scars. Though not of the Sylvanel line directly, both bore its influence deeply enough to shape their bearing.

Finally, the first elf voiced his piece.

"We are not here to start trouble."

The second chimed in moments after, tone parched and reluctant. "What happened in the war happened there. We won’t bring it here."

Kaelen acknowledged it sternly.

"See that you do not."

His staff tapped the ground lightly once, yet the echo rippled like a boundary etched in stone.

"I do not care what banner your families bled under. I do not care what grudge survived the battlefield." His tone grew firmer, wielding unyielding might like rock beneath currents. "If any of you transform this academy into that war's extension, punishment won't stop at you."

Those words struck with greater force than prior ones.

Kaelen allowed its gravity to linger. "Your deeds here impact houses, retainers, and kin linked to your names. Foolishness from one will send repercussions far wider than this chamber. Remember that before challenging me."

The bat-lycan tensed sharply. The wolf-lycan dipped his head in assent. The elves offered no protest. However deep their grudges ran, they weren't so foolish as to ignore the peril.

Kaelen’s gaze turned next.

It fixed on Trafalgar and Aubrelle.

"And that goes for both of you as well."

Trafalgar faced him steadily without recoil. Aubrelle positioned herself beside him, hand gently near Pipin, her expression serene and inscrutable as ever.

"You carry more weight than most of the students in this room," Kaelen stated. "That renders your conduct riskier, not safer. Influence grants no license."

Trafalgar nodded curtly.

Aubrelle dipped her head with her usual assured grace. "Of course."

That sufficed.

The gathering relaxed thereafter. The students stirred first, chairs scraping faintly, steps echoing irregularly across the floor. Eryndor rose from his chair with the solid nonchalance of one perpetually poised for combat. Althea stood more silently, shadowy and stern like a sheathed sword. Even Kaelen withdrew, the meeting's core aim fulfilled.

Trafalgar figured that marked the conclusion.

Selara thought differently.

"You two stay."

Her words sliced the air with sharp, effortless clarity, like she'd recalled the key detail at last. Her emerald eyes darted between Aubrelle and Trafalgar, vibrant yet enigmatic.

The others continued toward the exit.