The spars continued, with the rest of the students opting to not try what Daneel had just done. The previous student's expression when he had done so and failed was still fresh on their minds.
Meanwhile, Daneel walked to a location a bit away from the rest of the students who were waiting for their matches. He still had quite a bit of time before his next match, and he planned to sit down at a nearby tree and wait for his turn.
Just as he was about to seat himself, the court mage stepped out of the air in front of him.
"Daneel, come with me. The King wants to see you.", he said, before tapping his shoulder and making him vanish.
They reappeared on the podium, making the spectators and the dignitaries wonder what a student was doing there. But, noticing that it was Daneel, they could only think that the King had taken special notice of his talents and had summoned him to award him.
Daneel, on the other hand, was trying hard to control the anger that was threatening to overwhelm him. Although the man in front of him had not been directly responsible for what had happened to his family, he still held equal blame for letting such a thing happen.
The King, who had been watching the matches till now, turned his head to see the kid who was now on the stage.
The feeling of anger was replaced by one of fear as the King's gaze focus on him. He felt as if he was being stared at by a primordial predator which could kill him with a casual swipe of its hand.
[*DING*
Host is under the affect of secret technique "Weighty Gaze". As the host is directly experiencing the affects, PAM-2 can develop the technique if host maintains contact with the technique for 10 seconds], came the voice from the system.
Throughout the year, the system had always been developing spells if he observed them multiple times. For the first time, he could develop a technique by simply being affected by it. Also, it was a technique used by the King himself, so Daneel thought that it must be quite valuable. He decided to hold on no matter what.
The court mage had a disapproving look on his face seeing what the king was doing. Daneel, on the other hand, had an expression of resolution as if to say "Throw whatever you can at me, I can take it".
As the seconds ticked by, Daneel felt more and more like he was being crushed by an enormous boulder from above. He knew that all he had to do was kneel, and the pressure would go.
Yet, he held on. Although the pain hounded him, making him bleed from his nostrils at the 7th second, he still held on remembering all the suffering and all the pain. Pain from the hunger when they had nothing to eat. Pain when he saw his father limping around. Pain when he heard his mother crying from the other room, scared that they would have to starve the next day.
No matter what, he did not want to give up.
The court mage's expression turned uglier and uglier seeing Daneel's worsening condition. Just as he was about to speak out and try to stop the King, Daneel collapsed onto the ground, kneeling with both his legs bent.
[Secret Technique "Weighty Gaze" ready for development], came the sweet voice of the system, making him smile although he was kneeling on the ground. He had endured, and he felt joy in this small personal victory that no one else would know about.
The King shrugged as if it was Daneel's fault that he had not knelt earlier. In a cold voice, he said, "You chose the path of a paragon. Kellor will explain to you why you will fail if you do not give up now. I have had my eye on you ever since you opposed my son at the testing area. You think you are so special just because you have pseudo-legendary potential?
"Laravel is the least talented of my sons and he needs some tempering, so I sent him to the academy. Of the others, 4 possess pseudo-legendary potential, and my Eldest Son, the future King, was blessed by the heavens with Crimson level comprehension. Even if you somehow advance to have Crimson comprehension yourself, you can never hold a candle to someone like him who trained for years already possessing such legendary potential.
"Take my suggestion. Swear a magic oath that you will forever be a vassal of the Royal Family of Lanthanor, dedicated to following our orders till the end of your life. Your father will be reinstated in the army and you will be showered with riches. I will let you enter the legendary batch and obtain the best resources and teachers without any limit. Choose not to, and nothing will change. Remember, you are just an ant that I can crush under my boot whenever I wish. You can never amount to anything that will threaten my Kingdom. Concede your match against Laravel and I will take it as your acceptance. "
Daneel kept his head down, although he was bristling with anger at the King's words. Now was not the time or place to lash out. His time would come. He would wait, like the tiger that eyes the lone deer, to pounce with all its strength when the time was right. Only, he was still a rabbit, and he had to become that tiger first.
"Kellor, take him away.", the King said, before turning back his attention to the matches.
With another tap, Daneel and the Court Mage were back at the tree.
The hair on Daneel's hands stood up straight as he felt the air crackling with energy around him. Looking around, he saw a sight that he would never be able to forget.
The court mage stood with his head lowered, while balls of fire, lightning, ice and water constantly blinked in and out of existence near him. Even a small tornado started forming on the ground, making Daneel get up and move back.
An expression of utter fury was on his face.
Yet, he seemed to be struggling to control himself. After a few seconds, his expression returned to normal although the signs of the anger were still there.
"He goes too far! I am sorry, Daneel. I don't know what the previous king was thinking when he gave the throne to this man who is so obsessed with his bloodline. I repeatedly advised him to punish his sons and attract you to the kingdom's side. He does not care. He is blinded by his eldest son's potential, and does not care about anything else but growing his own power and extending his life.
"Daneel, I know you. I have inquired about you and I know that you will not concede.
"The only good thing is that his attention is short. When you do not concede, he will be angry at you, but he cannot act against you as there are too many people watching. Later, he will be busy in his own pursuit of power, so you will be fine. Only, you will not be able to enter the legendary batch.
"I will do everything in my power to help you. First, let me tell you about the Paragon's path. A paragon is one who has all elements at his beck and call. Depending on the situation, he can control anything and everything to obtain victory even against opponents many levels above him.
The problem is that all those who have started on the path of a paragon without possessing Gold Comprehension have failed. The maximum level they could cultivate to was Human Mage-6 before running out of lifespan and dying.
"A mage advances in level by slowly increasing the number of elementary particles he can connect with, particle by particle, thus tempering his mageroot and inducing it to transform. There are certain thresholds which indicate when the transformation will occur.
This number can only increase with time, and a paragon splits his time between too many particles. Thus, without Gold Potential, it is impossible to advance quickly enough to enter the next level and obtain more power.
The strongest paragon from Lanthanor who reached the level of Human Mage-6, could defeat a Human Mage-8 in combat. Born with Crimson Potential, he could turn the tide of a war single handedly.
Yet, he died in a century while his peer with the same potential still lives to this day. All because he chose a single focus.
And that man is my master."