Chapter 38 Meeting (Part 1)

"First, you are the peacekeepers of the academy, low and medium level disputes are to me handled by you, the rankers, as you see fit. You have the authority to detain a trainee if you believe it's necessary. You may each choose 3 trainees from class 2 or 4 to assist you in peacekeeping. You and your assistants will be the only ones permitted to use your abilities within the academy without the permission from an instructor. All of your actions regarding the other trainees and disputes must be within reason, if you abuse your authority, you will be punished." Lieutenant Anders explained.

The same maids that had given them each their badges, came out again, this time placing 3 more badges in front of each of the rankers. These badges had a number matching that of the ranker the assistants worked for. The badge was red and the number black, the shape was that of a triangle, so as not to cause confusion with the rankers badge.

"The authority over a situation will be transfered to the highest ranked among you present. The only person within the academy that has more authority that you 5, is myself. Rank 1, Leofalor is the second highest authority and so on. Any questions?"

Snythe raised his hand to indicate that he would like to speak, and the Lieutenant gestured for him to go on. "Will our assistants actions impact us in any way?" He asked

"Yes. If your assistants perform an action that is unjust or they abuse their power, it will reflect poorly on you, potentially causing you to be punished with them." Lieutenant Anders replied.

Leonard went next, "Will we be able to dismiss our assistants at any time and for any reason, or will we need to provide an explanation as to why they were replaced." He asked in a deep voice.

"You may change one of your assistants once every 2 months. If you need to change multiple assistants or you need to change them sooner than that time, then you will need to provide an explanation." Lieutenant Anders answered.

Snythe raised his hand again, "Do our assistants ranks work the same as ours. For instance, does Leofalors assistants have more authority that the other rankers assistants?" He asked.

"Yes, an assistants authority is tied to their ranker. Of course, none of the assistants have more authority than any of the rankers." Lieutenant Anders said.

Leo raised his hand, "What is a ranker able to do to another ranker, or another rankers assistants, if it is deemed necessary. For example, if I witnessed one of the rankers abusing their power, would I be able to treat them as any other trainee when resolving the matter?"

"If such a situation arises where a ranker is abusing their power, then as a higher rank you could temporarily strip them and their assistants of their authority until the matter is resolved." Lieutenant Anders replied.

Nila raised her hand, "And what if Rank 1 were to abuse their power, none of us has the authority to stop them." She asked looking at Leo out the corner of her eye.

"If that were to happen, then one of the other 4 rankers should speak with me. You will be free to act in the moment but it will be a struggle of authority and power that may get messy. This is a new system, and so there will be problems that we shall rectify as they appear." Lieutenant Anders said.

Leonard raised his hand, "For disputes of a higher level, what would our role be in regards to handling them?" He asked.

"The larger issues will be discussed among the rankers, you will then take a vote on what to do after discussing the issues and possible solutions. Hmm.... We can implement a similar system for when rankers need punishment, the ranker in question would be excluded from the vote and I shall replace them." Lieutenant Anders suggested.

Everyone at the table nodded at the suggestion and Leonard was satisfied with the answer to his question.

No more hands were raised and Lieutenant Anders went on to the next topic of conversation.

"The next topic will concern the duels between trainees. All trainees will be allowed to duel each other, however, there must be an assistant or ranker present to officiate the duel. Rankers may only duel each other in order to exchange positions, this can only happen once every 3 months . Duels between your assistants will function the same way regular duels do, but a ranker not affiliated with the assistants must officiate it." Lieutenant Anders explained.

Leonard raised his hand, "Are we allowed to prevent a duel from taking place, or are we simply meant to officiate?" he asked

"You may stop a duel from happening, but you must have good cause for doing so."

Snythe raised his hand, "Are trainees who duel each other allowed to place conditions that the loser of the duel must follow, such as doing a task, or giving up ownership of an item?" He asked.

"Yes they may place bets on their duels, and I won't stop others from placing bets on duels either. But if someone is being forced to do something unethical due to losing a duel, punishments will be handed out." Lieutenant Anders said.

Snythe had a devious smile on his face when he heard the answer to his question. 'This guy is going to be a problem going forward... I just know it.' Leo thought while looking at Snythe.

Leonard raised his hand again, "Are there certain areas where duels should take place, or are there specific areas we should avoid having duels?" He asked.

"The cafeteria and the bottom floor apart from the courtyard are off limits, as well as the trainees rooms. If possible, all duels should be moved to the courtyard." Lieutenant Anders replied.

Nila raised her hand, "I have a question regarding the assistants and rankers accommodations. Are the rankers to be seperate from the regular trainees? Are the assistants to be seperate as well? I can imagine that it will be uncomfortable for the trainees to live with their figures of authority." She asked.

"Yes that's right, I forgot to mention it. The rankers will be given their own rooms from now on. Your assistants will share a room next to your own. This should be satisfactory." Lieutenant Anders said.

Everyone nodded in agreement. 'This is great I can have my own room again. I do like my roommates though... I could make them my assistants, I have nobody else to choose from anyways. That way I'll be in contact with them going forward, even if we don't share a room anymore.' Leo thought.

After a moment of waiting, with no more questions being asked. "Our next topic will be about the challenges made to the rankers by the trainees each month." Lieutenant Anders said.