It couldn't get any worse…
Before Scar could recover from his injuries and deal with his punishment for losing the duel against Storm, he was summoned by the Supreme Council.
The room was somewhat dim but incredibly luxurious, adorned with priceless artifacts.
It was a circular hall lit by two opposing sources. Cool blue light filtered through a tall, narrow window on one side, and warm golden light from the opposite direction, reflecting off the massive statue under construction just beyond.
An intricate bull crest lay carved into the stone floor at the center of the hall. Scar stood surrounded by high-backed wooden chairs, evenly spaced in a circle.
Three of the twelve seats remained empty. The occupied ones held individuals Scar couldn't risk rolling his eyes at.
These were practically the kings and queens of the human realm, selected based on strength, heritage, history, and status.
They pulled the strings for the Supreme Academy and the world beyond, though the high court and legislative powers stood as checks before any string could be pulled.
Even so, Scar had his eyes on three people at the moment. The first was an old, masculine man with thick, swept-back silver hair and a full, well-groomed beard and mustache, both equally gray. A scar encircled his left eye, blinding it. He dressed in a white short robe, posing like a Greek god.
His presence was commanding and authoritative, but his current actions undermined that entire demeanor.
He kept peering at Scar like he was the most fascinating thing he'd ever seen. Scar couldn't help but avert his eyes.
Of course, he knew who the fuck that was. That was Arthur Rover, his uncle. The man who'd named him Scar after saving his father from a Scarlet Kin attack, the one that left Arthur with the scar on his left eye.
Scar knew he couldn't hide from someone like him forever, but he hadn't expected to see Arthur here.
But Arthur wasn't the only person putting him on edge. A man leaned back in his seat, dark-haired and dressed in a black suit, elbow propped on the armrest with fingers brushing his mustache. He looked like he'd never smiled in his life. That was Karl Velanora, Haven's father.
One he detested the most sat to his left: potbellied, dressed in royal garb like he owned the world, casually eating dessert as though he weren't at a council meeting. Lotus Morales.
He was Dain's close ally, Scar's nemesis. What exactly bound them, Scar didn't know, but since he was little, he'd always seen them together in newspapers. Rumors always mentioned their names in the same breath.
Still, he had to keep his cool. He knew why he was here.
EHEM
Karl cleared his throat and seized the room's attention.
"Scar Hide, grandson of Isaac Hide. Our records show you were enrolled in this academy some time ago, and that you have received an Inheritance."
Scar gulped as Karl locked eyes with him.
"Why are you choosing not to use your Inheritance? Or is it that you don't possess one?"
Fair enough. The academy needed everyone to use their Inheritance so they could be monitored and controlled. Too many Akumas had gone beyond control, and that made humanity wary and the world stricter.
Before Scar could speak, a man before him spoke.
"I don't think that's the problem. He finished all his medicals and had everything needed for an Inheritance. He simply chooses not to use it."
Scar sneered.
'Huh? 'Simply'? Who'd simply choose to be hunted?'
Scar thought, then turned to a woman on his right. She looked even scarier than Karl.
"This academy doesn't exist for your convenience. As an Akuma, you don't get to choose when or where your Inheritance is used. Use it now, here, without delay."
Scar's expression grew dark. She looked surprisingly young, yet her demeanor was stern beyond her years.
She didn't have to say anything else. Calling him an Akuma was enough to reveal she was human and hated his ass.
Karl immediately leaned forward.
"Lady Aina is right. With the Epic Competition only two months away, we can't risk citizens panicking over a student refusing to use their Inheritance."
In the moments that followed, only a few people remained quiet. Everyone else shared their take on his situation. He couldn't utter a word about his own fate. That's when it clicked, he wasn't brought here to be heard. He was brought here for the council to impose its will.
Karl seized the moment.
"We won't tolerate defiance. Show your Inheritance here and now, or be executed. Power above humanity does not come with the privilege of secrecy."
"I agree. The Inheritance will return to us no matter the outcome. If he refuses to use it, his death is justified."
"Show us or die."
"I couldn't agree more."
Scar trembled in his boots. He kept glancing toward Lotus, who was still enjoying his dessert, yet to let his opinion be known.
His thoughts jumped frantically. The only power he could willingly use was decay, and if he did, Lotus would immediately catch on. That would be his end. Worse still, he had no idea how many in this room were Dain's allies.
Yet he had no choice. He crouched down, his palm resting on the cold stone as his body was drenched in sweat and his hands trembled. The fear wasn't his alone, he could feel it.
He'd been working on it, replaying over and over the moment one of his predecessors, Bianca, used dark flames.
That was still known to the Ruler of Zeus, but at least it had been used just once before and could still buy him some time to figure out his next move. Yet nothing worked.
The memory was crystal clear yet fuzzy and confusing all at once.
Scar's entire body was drenched in sweat as he said his goodbyes to Isaac in his mind.
"Wait!"
Arthur said and leaned into his seat, stroking his beard.
"Have we considered the possibility that he simply doesn't know how to use it? He's clearly struggling. If this is a first-of-its-kind Inheritance, then it's natural it would take time to manifest."
Scar's eyes sparked.
'Oh, my savior. Uncle Arthur!'
He would have hugged Arthur given the chance, but he wasn't a Rover at the moment. They were nothing but strangers.
"That argument holds some weight. However, none of those individuals possessed combat experience comparable to his."
Arthur shrugged with a smile.
"He trained to be a Royal Knight before his call?"
Though Arthur's tone was childish and lighthearted, he was met with anger.
"And yet none of them needed more than two weeks to use their Inheritance."
He shrugged again.
"What if he's a slow learner?"
The exchange continued, with Arthur responding in his usual carefree manner each time.
It would have been far easier to simply ask Scar, but as an Akuma, he'd lost all autonomy over his own existence.
Soon enough, Arthur's persuasion tilted the tie in Scar's favor.
Karl spoke.
"Two weeks. Prove your Inheritance in a duel. If you don't, the next time you're called before us, it'll be to decide which side of the podium your head rolls to."
Harsh, but Scar loved it.
He felt immense gratitude toward Arthur and desperately wanted to show it, but he simply couldn't.
'Two weeks, huh? My head can't roll that easily… it'd probably bounce instead.'