Canterlot Academy Trials

Outside the tower…

Spearklip and Rufus had began to back up Uziel to deal with the numerous Abyssinian guards outside the tower. The goblin woman had thrown out all sense of morality when it came to dealing with them as she swiftly dispatched each one she came across.

“Where’s Ziwa?! Answer me you shitheads!” she growled as he grabbed up one of the cat gangsters and continuously bashed her head into the side of the tower. “Answer me!”

“...W-we--AGH!--...she’s in one of the dungeons!” the jaguar woman yelped, “Odu didn’t want any witnesses!”

As soon as she had her answer, she tossed the cat woman aside, only for another gangster to try and sneak up on her, something she noticed from the corner of her eye until...

“Oh no you don’t!” Rufus called out as he tackled the puma man by charging into him. Unlike most of his other opponents, the puma man seemed to put up a decent fight. For a moment, Rufus could feel the paws of the puma pushing against his horns, but he was quick to counter this.

With a hefty upward tilt of his head, Rufus flipped the puma into the air, and timed a dropkick so hard that the feline went through the solid cobblestone of the castle walls.

At the same time, Spearklip had been engaged in combat with the caracal woman. In an ironic turn of events, the zebra mare had wrestled the jungle cat to the ground where she proceeded to twist her arms and legs until she couldn’t move anymore.

The two student mercenaries would continue to duke it out with the gangsters, but meanwhile, on a hill overlooking the tower…

“...it seems as if we’re dealing with more than just your average university students,” Odu remarked as he stood next to Sha’Beel, watching the situation from above. “They clearly have a heightened sense of training that’s comparable to even you.”

“I see…” the tigress muttered in a worried tone, “What does this mean, sir? What do you want me to do?”

“The next time you see that diamond dog, kill him,” Odu commanded as he turned to leave, “Make an example out of him that we can use for our prime directive.”

Sha’Beel tilted her head, “...where are you going, Master?”

“To get my…brews ready,” he replied from over his shoulder, “If we’re dealing with yaks and zebras, then I need to be on top of my own game as well. Remember, a true warrior finds success in their own skill. If you can’t follow that, then commit hara-kiri.”

As the tiger man left, Beel started to look inwards, wondering if she was really fit for this. Could she live up to her Master’s desires? Was it even worth it? Or was she simply being a coward and needed to face her fears?

‘...I have to do this. I have to.’

Inside the tower…

Given the awkward situation that he found himself in with the two monkeyfolk, Fang opted to back away and rejoin Uziel when she entered the tower.

“Hey, dogface! Seen my sister anywhere?!” she called out.

“I haven’t,” Fang shook his head, “Come. We’ll search for her together.”

“...what’s up with them?” Uzi asked in reference to the two primates that were locked in a heated conversation.

Fang ushered the goblin along down the stairs. “...it’s not something we should get ourselves involved with. Let us find your sister.”

While they didn’t wish to stay behind, Laurent certainly did. The lynx boy was eager to learn more about his newfound idol. Once he had given Bullet a cigar, the monkey man lit it up and took a hit from it while speaking to Lee.

“...you should not have left,” she chastised his past actions, “We could’ve worked things out and you left me hung--er…hanging for years!”

Bullet sighed, exhaling the smoke from his mouth. “...I wanted to love you. I really did. But to take the pain off of you, I decided to leave that life behind. If I wasn’t accepted there, then I’d find a place that would accept me. It’s not something you can understand from a commoner’s perspective, Liánhuā.”

True. Ultimately, whether she liked it or not, Lee simply couldn’t comprehend what it was like for him given that they lived a world’s length apart from each other. Even so, she didn’t want him to carry the burden alone.

“...Yin Bei…you’re right. But despite that, I still love you regardless,” she pleaded with him, “...and I have no intention of going back to my parents unless Emperor Chang removes them from power. I refuse all of their marriage arrangements and made love to you behind their back for a reason…”

"...And I loved every second of it," Bullet coughed once from the smoke, “...hmph. But that's good to know. Sadly, I got a job to do. Money is the only thing that really matters in this world anyway. That’s how your parents got to where they are after all…” he scoffed and patted Laurent on the head. “Stay safe, yeah?”

“Y-yes sir!” the lynx boy mewled happily as he watched his idol mercenary leap up to a nearby window.

“See ya, kid. …Goodbye, Li. Make sure he gets home safe for me, wouldja?” he muttered before jumping out.

“Isn’t he so cool?!” Laurent squealed as Bullet left.

Lee simply folded her arms and scrunched her face up due to frustration. “Yīgè yúchǔn de dǎnxiǎoguǐ…”