The promotion was utterly dull. The event featured many important figures but was too crowded to establish any meaningful alliance. The couple had also just come out of a noble wedding, and the current political interactions simply couldn't match that.
Moreover, the many conversations had obvious hidden intents. Khan's fame had gotten too big to present political deals in a public environment. Almost everyone tried to plan private meetings, which Khan couldn't directly accept due to his busy situation.
Many also tried to use Monica to get to Khan, but her status made it even harder for any interested figure to offer proper deals. She was a rebel, but the Solodrey family stood at her side, creating a barrier no one could overcome in a public meeting.
The event lasted far longer than anyone had predicted, leaving the couple exhausted once it ended. The mental strain of dealing with so many influential figures in a single day was too much even for Monica, but a silver lining existed. As much as everyone wanted private meetings, Khan and Monica had undeniable reasons to refuse them.
Those reasons kept the couple busy for the following days. Khan spent his entire time submerged in reports and studies, while Monica dealt with interviews and social obligations that had become mandatory after the promotion.
Khan was a Major now, the youngest Major and fourth-level warrior in history. Everyone wanted a piece of him, but that would hinder his already delayed duties, so Monica took care of the public aspects of their life.
Ideally, the couple wanted to prolong that balance as much as possible, mostly to give Khan time to catch up with his studies, but obligations eventually fell on him. He had promised the Global Army part of his knowledge, and the time to fulfill his end of the deal arrived sooner than expected.
After three mere weeks from the promotion, Khan found himself in an isolated classroom inside the embassy. His birthday was only a few days away, and Monica had even agreed to delay the celebrations for their second anniversary, but the network had no interest in that. The public was too curious about today's events to waste time on the usual gossip.
The half-circular classroom had the usual elevated stands and interactive desks, with a small platform at its bottom. Khan stood there, leaning on the professor's table with his arms crossed, and his closed eyes didn't stop him from inspecting his empty surroundings.
Khan's condition had stabilized in the past weeks, but he could still feel power brewing inside him. He could make the interactive desks flicker and his eyes shine, but his attention wasn't on that.
The classroom was clean, and Khan's uniform was as tidy as possible. The two sets of four stars on his shoulders reflected the place's artificial illumination, flashing whenever they hit the right angle. Everything was ready for his first lesson, and thoughts swirled in his mind, taking the shape he had planned in the past weeks.
Khan wanted to focus solely on his imminent lesson, but different thoughts inevitably surged and grew louder. He had read the list of experts chosen for his class. He had studied those figures with Monica, learning about their achievements and relevance. Three weeks shouldn't have been enough to bring them to the Harbor, but the reality was far different.
That quick development revealed how important the topic was for the Global Army. Sure, some experts probably were only driven by scientific curiosity, but Khan was sure a few had received orders from above. Such lofty figures wouldn't have abandoned their positions and ongoing experiments so suddenly otherwise.
Khan believed he understood the matter's relevance, but that quick response forced him to rethink the situation. He knew the Global Army wanted his knowledge, but its eagerness had exceeded his expectations.
Eventually, the classroom's metal doors opened, and the sounds of steps reached Khan's ears. Various auras tainted the symphony, affecting the synthetic mana with unique vibes. Many were muffled, almost weightless, as if a barrier prevented most of their features from leaking into the environment.
Some barriers weren't natural or the result of technique. Khan smelled the synthetic nature of those protections, realizing how wary those experts were. They didn't only know about his senses. They had also prepared accordingly.
Yet, other than the overall power level, Khan still felt tinges of emotions. He didn't know whether the barriers were imperfect or his senses had gotten too strong for them, but the result was the same. He would have an advantage, and nothing would stop him from exploiting it.
The experts slowly approached different seats, taking their time to inspect the classroom and the closed-eyed Khan. A few expressed discontent with the place and Khan's lack of welcoming words by sneering and snorting, but everyone eventually sat down.
At that point, Khan opened his eyes, and the atmosphere changed. An invisible weight fell on the seven experts as he scanned them, and the short glow radiated by his irises brought surprise to many faces.
Only three of the experts were at Khan's level, but no one could match the intensity of his presence. Even as a newly-advanced fourth-level warrior, Khan was in a different league. His battle experience alone would put him there, but many understood his suffocating aura was more than that.
"Thank you for your time," Khan announced, breaking the tense silence. "I apologize for the discomfort. I'm still adjusting to my new state."
No one spoke, but few allowed themselves to show some reactions. Two of the youngest experts wore curious and captivated expressions, while others saw those words as an intentional lack of respect.
"I know you are busy," Khan continued, "So I'll start immediately."
Khan ran his eyes across the small audience once again before voicing the initial statement planned in the past weeks. "Humans are young, na?ve, and dumb when it comes to mana. That much is undeniable."
A few fists slammed on the interactive desks, and some experts stood up in anger. Shouts like "ridiculous", "preposterous", and "ignorant" resounded in the classroom, but Khan only focused on those who silently accepted his statement. One man in particular attracted his attention, and seeing him raise his hand spread a chilling feeling inside Khan.
The man was old. Wrinkles filled his face, and a well-kept, long, white beard stretched from his chin. Long white hair that reached his shoulders also fell from his head, and messy grey eyebrows almost covered his half-closed eyes.
Khan could easily delay the time for questions, but the man had been too respectful to ignore. His status also made him a prominent figure in the Global Army. He was Abraham Foxham, vice director of the entire scientific department.
Seeing Abraham lift his hand silenced all the other experts and made them return to their seats. Clearly, the man was deeply respected among his peers, and his presence in Khan's classroom proved once again the Global Army's interest in the matter.
Khan nodded at Abraham, and the latter used his strangely firm voice to utter a simple question. "Why?"
"Humans see mana as nothing more than fuel," Khan explained, "No different from the electricity used by our ancestors. It's much more than that."
Abraham lifted his hand, and Khan couldn't help but nod again. He didn't know the man's intentions or allegiances, but refusing someone showing so much respect wasn't in his nature.
"What is it?" Abraham asked.
"The mana is a form of energy," Khan said, "A higher form, if you will. Still, it's also alive, almost capable of individual consciousness."
Truth be told, the scientific field was aware of those features. After all, humans had interacted with different species and had come across alternative training methods. They simply thought theirs was better and more efficient.
"I know you have been aware of this for a long time," Khan continued. "I also know you did your homework before coming here, so I'd rather skip questions related to this topic."
"Do you also know why we are here?" One of the few women asked. She had long brown hair, tanned skin, and square glasses, but her behavior was unexpected. After all, she worked for Mister Zeckai, who had seemed inclined to buy Khan's favor during Colonel Norrett's evolution.
"Yes," Khan replied. "You want my training technique and what I showed to Madam Lamalot. You can have both as long as you master what I'll teach here."
Abraham lifted his hand again, and Khan's nod prompted a question. "Is it possible to have a demonstration of what Madam Lamalot reported?"
Khan's arms were still crossed, but the request made him break his stance. He had suspected the experts of wanting a demonstration. He was actually surprised the Global Army had waited so long after Colonel Norrett's attempted evolution.
The experts' concentration skyrocketed as Khan drew bright lines in the air, and eyes widened when the simple rune turned into an azure flame. Everyone watched the fire flickering in Khan's palm before falling silent once it vanished.
"How do we know it's not a simple trick?" The tanned woman questioned. "That little flame is hardly revolutionary."
Khan's fingers sprang to action, moving far faster than before. His gestures were so swift that many experts failed to follow them. A more complicated rune appeared in the air in a few seconds, and Khan didn't hesitate to punch it.
The punch sent more mana into the rune, activating it. A fiery bullet shot forward, flying above the stands to hit the wall on the other side of the classroom. A trail of flames also lingered in the air before dispersing after a few seconds.
The experts instantly turned, and the dark patch on the metal wall caused many gasps. The attack wasn't strong but remained an attack. Khan had launched a spell with fire properties even if his element had nothing to do with it.
The audience knew exactly how impossible the event was. They were aware some alien techniques could alter the properties of mana. Even a few human spells could. Yet, they had never seen or heard about summoning a completely different element.
To no one's surprise, Abraham remained the calmest among the audience, and his hand shot up to request permission for another question.
"Major Khan," Abraham called after Khan's nod. "The design of your technique takes inspiration from the Thilku runes, but I don't recognize its meaning."
'Impressive,' Khan sighed before addressing the question. "While I took inspiration from the Thilku runes, the theory has nothing to do with them. I imbue my designs with intrinsic meanings. Actually, I imbue the mana used in my designs with them."
The explanation brought silence. Each expert had come to the Harbor with different intentions and goals, but Khan's technique almost made them forget about them. After all, they were before something unprecedented, and their scientific instincts couldn't help but scream.
"What are the possible applications?" Abraham questioned.
"Theoretically?" Khan wondered. "The limit depends on my expertise or yours if you can learn it."
"Why can't you simplify the technique?" The tanned woman asked. "As the field's founder, you are the best choice for the task."
"I can't simplify two opposite and fundamental theories," Khan explained. "Since you have studied my connections, I'll just demonstrate it."
Khan looked in the tanned woman's direction and uttered the word "blow", making sure the entire audience heard him. To the woman's surprise, a soft gale blew on her face, slightly ruffling her hair.
"Shatter," Khan continued, eyeing a man who had mostly shown haughty expressions. A crack suddenly appeared on the expert's desk, making him shoot to his feet.
"Help my legs," Khan stated, and his figure disappeared, leaving the experts speechless. The latter inspected their surroundings until Khan cleared his throat, revealing his position beside the dark patch on the opposite wall.
"These are just simple applications of the Nele's techniques," Khan explained, jumping forward to walk in the air above the audience. "I asked, and the mana listened."
Complete silence invaded the classroom as the audience watched Khan fly back to his desk. He even resumed his previous position, crossing his arms to show how easy it was for him to perform those revolutionary techniques.
"Now," Khan stated, "For the Niqols' techniques."
Bright purple-red light suddenly filled the classroom, bringing the experts' eyes to the ceiling. Gasps and fear spread as multiple chaos spears and needles formed above the audience. Their surfaces looked unstable enough to explode at a moment's notice, but the accumulated mana slowly dispersed.
