Morgan walks out from the slums area, his whole body isn't in good condition, he looks like a beggar with white underwear, his eyes look at the crowd who look at him while covering their nose, suddenly he heard someone calling him, he looks at the direction where the noise came from only to find an old man with black suit.
"So, you are here, kid."
It was Herlan Rewead, he was still wearing that black suit, Herlan hurriedly came closer to Morgan, then he tossed a gold coin to a street clothes stall and gave Morgan a thick brown coat to cover his body. Morgan immediately wore that thick brown coat; his body soon became warm.
"Old man, I need to talk to you, I've done the job."
"Alright, let's find a nearby hotel, so we can talk this comfortably."
Both of them walk to a grand yellow building, a hotel with a sign name The Scotsman, a luxurious hotel that the aristocracy use, Morgan wants to say something but he quickly scraps the word. He is really tired now, he just didn't care anymore at this point with this old man.
"It's room 21, follow me."
The receptionist quickly guides Morgan and Herlan to room 21, after they arrive he bows down to Herlan when he tosses him a gold coin as a tip. Morgan looks at Herlan with disbelief, what kind of person tosses around a gold coin like a bottle cap.
"What are you doing kid?, get inside" Herlan gestured to Morgan to enter the room, Herlan already sat at one of the chairs, again tossing his gold coin to an empty brown table in front of him, when a gold coin touched the table surface, a whole buffet appeared magically, and that gold coin disappeared.
"Have some tea and biscuits"
Morgan becomes dumbfounded when he looks at Herlan who is sipping a cup of tea then dipping a biscuit elegantly.
"Why did you do that old man?" Morgan curiously asked Herlan, he keeps tossing gold coins here and there, Herlan just shrugs and he explains.
"To get the best service of course, in this hotel The Scotsman, if you are generous, he will treat you with the best service, like this room and these delicacies."
"I see… He sounds like a reasonable guy, the owner of this hotel."
Herlan tilts his head, he sips his tea and immediately corrects Morgan's words.
"What are you talking about, the owner isn't a human being it's this building itself, this building is alive you know."
Morgan spurt the tea from his mouth then widens his eyes and frankly jumps from his seat, Herlan gets splashed by that spurt, his face and suit is wet now, he just nonchalantly wipes it with his handkerchief.
"Please behave, you don't wanna get kicked or banned from this hotel, don't you?"
"B-behave? Old man this building is alive, yet you didn't care about it? what if we are inside its stomach or something, waiting to get processed and get turned into concrete or a cement!"
Morgan panicked; he nervously looked around trying to see if there was a slight change about his surroundings, while Herlan chuckled when he saw Morgan's reaction.
"Bahahaha… stomach? goodness no, it's just this building has its own consciousness, long ago when this building was still in the construction phase, apparently the contractor did a thing called project sacrifice to speed up the progress of it."
"Is that so, *gulp*… so what happened and what is that project sacrifice thing."
Herlan turned serious as the lights inside the room went out and the window forcefully got open, the chilling wind pierce through Morgan's body, making all his hair rise up.
"The contractor used one healthy slave as the foundation of the building, the building got completed early, but the spirit of that poor slave became one with this building, it controls all the furniture and all installation here, it brings horror and terror for whoever wants to settle in this building, it became a haunted building. And then after so many years, I discovered this cool place and immediately bought it, then turned it into a hotel business without an owner, and I gave this place the name "The Scotsman."
Herlan smiled then the light turned on and the window got closed, it's real… this building really has its own consciousness.
"A-awesome… I'm glad that it didn't try to consume us for energy or fuel or something like that."
"Heh… enough about that… so what is it that you want to talk about… Can I assume you found something with your investigation?
Herlan smirks a little there, Morgan flinches when he notices that, but he quickly changes the subject, this is a really important matter that he needs to convey to Herlan.
"Yes… Here is the additional candy I've acquired…and one officer died, he is Sgt. Chriss Briss, he got shot in the head, and here is the crucial information, the one who manufactured this sweet candy, this cursed drug… is Jeremiah… he is the boss, he goes by the nickname Doctor, he controls the slums area…"
Herlan rubs his chin and nods his head, trying to process all the information from Morgan.
"I see… good work kid, so that's why there are a bunch of officers running for their lives to the church with one young lady with velvet red hair wearing black and red academy uniform… The reason I can't help you is because I need to attend the funeral for the high priest, Mother Roselyn. The church really wants to know the identity of the one who was brave enough to kill the high priest. That's why I give you this work."
"I see…then when I meet you earlier…"
"Yeah… a couple hours ago, one of the officers told me that you bravely divert all the ambusher attention to you and went into the slums, I thought you got lost or something but I didn't expect you come out at night from the slums area, what happened there, if I may ask, kid."
"They all tried to silence me by killing me, there are thousands of them so I had no choice but to gather them all into a big warehouse there, the perpetrator of the burning orphanage incident is also there, that's why, I fought like a madman for many hours there."
Herlan grit his teeth and slam the table surface with his right fist, cursing out loud after hearing that information from Morgan.
"Bloody hell, a bunch of dickheads tried to kill you?... they crossed the line, didn't they?... so, who is the perpetrator, the one who burned and killed the high priest, Mother Roselyn?"
"It's the bald man with a scar on his face, and his friends, they are the lazy crooks… according to Sgt. In Chriss Briss' report, the chief inspector Bobby the fat-man secured the dead body of the perpetrator."
"Bobby the fat-man...ahh, bahahaha yeah that's right, it's him alright always trying to look for an opportunity to climb the rank and become the chief officer, alright I'll report this to the church tomorrow, anything else?"
"There… I encountered Jeremiah, the Doctor… he said that The Sanctuary is just a mere tool created by someone… they are desperately searching for an item that shouldn't exist in this world…"
Herlan froze for a moment, even his hand slipped up and the cup he held dropped, then Morgan continued.
"The Mask of Existence."
*Clank*. The tea cup Herlan held crashed into the ground and broke into parts, Herlan got up from his seat, shocked and he widened his eyes, he was breathing quickly, his body trembling a lot.
This is way too coincident right? To the point it looks like a bad opera script, did Herlan become the reason why this is all happening? Was he the one who triggered all of this to happen, if at that time, he killed Morgan-no, Conny back there at that altar in the cursed coast redwood forest, that should've solved all the current problems right?
Should I kill him? Now that I know the truth? Herlan's thoughts led to extreme choices for this person in front of him, Conny, but the image of young Herlan overlapped with Coenonymphic made him spaced out.
"Old man, you okay there, hey old man you're scaring me" Morgan voice snapped Herlan who was lost in his thoughts, he wiped his face with a handkerchief to wipe his beads of sweat on his forehead.
"I-I'm sorry kid, it… it just from now on you must be extra careful to who you are, forge your identity if you need, good thing I am the only person who know about your secret…but…in the near future I can't protect you, they… the moment they killed me that's the moment they noticed you, all the races, organizations around the world will hunt you down."
"W-what why I don't have anything nor possess anything worthy."
"Did you forget that mask? It's an item to awaken evil god, to make that said evil god descend to this world, that's an item that shouldn't exist in this world, kid."
Morgan weakly look at the food in front of him, suddenly all his appetite is gone, does that mean his life will be the same as this food, all the people will try to consume him, to get this mask from him, that he doesn't even know why and when he picked it up, Morgan wants to vomit, his life really turned into worst.
"I suggest you take a rest, kid and… I don't know for now, you need to lay low, don't do investigation work again, go to the Stella Ethereal Academy if you want, to learn or just unwinding on the club in Royal area, erase this Morgan identity, that's it from me kid, don't let your guard down, and I will take these three candies from you to turn it to the church."
Morgan- no Conny sits at the edge of the bed and let a long sigh after Herlan closed the room door and leave him alone, Conny eyes look at the ceiling, he didn't know what to do now, suddenly, his face contorts into a black vendetta mask, with wavy medium length messy black hair and a pale skinned body.
"Huh… I didn't think anything and my face turned into this appearance… Does this mean it wants me to lay low?... it looks suspicious though especially this black vendetta mask thing… what if I take it off…"
Conny tried to take it off and Conny saw his face under that mask through the nearby mirror, he felt this face wasn't his original face, somehow, he felt he forgot his true appearance once. in the mirror he saw his current face.
A blue eye that looks like a clear blue sky, a sharp jawline, a flat nose with a perfect nose bridge length, a smooth skin face, his face looks straight out of sculpture, it was majestic and exuded an aura of divine.
"Is this my face?... I didn't remember I made it though, like that Morgan Jester face, what was my true face again?... I can't recall it, ah whatever, it's just a face… at least I still remember my name… my name is Conny."
Conny lay down on the bed, trying to sleep, suddenly that black vendetta mask, envelop his face, like it magically wears on its own to Conny new face, then Conny soon fell asleep because he was too tired today, tomorrow he will go to Stella Academy to learn things, that's what he decided to do.
----------------------------------------
Stella Ethereal academy, it was founded by a famous savant, Dr. Benedict Devlyn, he was the person behind the invention of steam-powered machine and gun firearms, he founded this academy with his own wealth in hope that the Welsterven kingdom became a better place and hope the people serve the kingdom with their full potential, the alumni of Stella Ethereal Academy holds significant reputation with their skill and knowledge they became a valuable asset to the kingdom, the former king of Welsterven established many facility because of their skills and knowledge, the law enforcer department, the engineer department, house of parliament, royal military department, two hospitals facilities one in Royal area as a medical center and the other one is near the church area, thanks to the honorable alumni of Stella Ethereal academy. Dr. Benedict Devlyn became an education symbol in the Welsterven kingdom from his motto, Knowledge is important for oneself and the society we hold.
Stella Ethereal Academy has three main buildings, on the left wing is the education center it has classes, canteen, gathering hall, the middle building is for the administrative and library, and the instructor lounge, finally the right wing, the biggest building, is the dorm for it students a total of 300 first year students, 200 second year students, and 100 third year students. The reason why Stella Ethereal Academy became a top education place is because we strictly select student with potential, if you didn't show anything worth then you will get kicked out, we determined it by giving a rank for our students, black and red uniform for Newbie, dark blue and red maroon uniform for Advanced, and finally a full black uniform with red hooded cloak for the highest rank Master, they are a total of 10 Master ranked students in Stella Ethereal Academy.
Those master ranked students enjoyed the highest privilege both in the academy and in the whole Welsterven, most of them usually from the aristocratic families, not one a commoner get to master ranked students since they exist a gap when the noble kids trained and study at an early age, but who knows about this year batch, so students study diligently, break your limit and shine brightly like a star.
"*Yawn… that instructor sure talked a lot, did he not realize that it's still early?"
Velvet yawned, she can't help it, she is not a morning person, and yesterday she feels exhausted, after she woke up, there is a crowd of journalist that tried to interviewed her about the sudden giant of fire and the dark hue on the charred-burned orphanage building, the police officers told the journalist an incident occurred that forced them to leave the area and come to the church, the police officers succeed retrieving Sgt.Chris Briss died body, he was died while protecting his subordinate on an ambush, his family soon came to see Chriss dead body, his daughter, his son, his wife cried when they see their father, her husband in a coffin, the crowds too feel an immense sadness when they see the family cried while hugging each other.
Many police officers helped Velvet answer the remaining questions, but there is one question they can't answer, a question about one ranked inspector officer, Morgan Jester. Many police officers avoid answering it by trying to make a joke or saying it's against the rules to talk about their superior. Velvet wants to express her gratitude for helping her knowing the truth about the burned orphanage but that ranked inspector, Morgan Jester, he is too mysterious not many people know him, a top tier unit that bravely fought against a hellish creature and left without any praise nor appreciation.
This morning Velvet read a newspaper, it said that the police chief inspector Bobby G Bee, successfully catch the perpetrator of the Burned orphanage building case, that made him got promoted into Superintendent position, Velvet know that the one who catch that perpetrator in truth is Morgan Jester but it seems the media and the police didn't mentioned him, did anyone forget about him? no, it's impossible, not when he had that good looking appearance, Suddenly Velvet remembered something embarrassing, she was blushing really hard to the point her whole face reddened up, her hair turn-wait her hair is already red from the beginning.
W-Why did I remember that moment…*awawa*…i-it's not my fault he just…there when I'm about to pass out…and…and he smiled because it all ended well…
Velvet's mind is imagining that moment, that special moment when she is in Morgan's warm embrace, and witnessing that smile, that damn smile, both her hands fanning her reddened face, the crowds of students near her look at her with weird expressions. "*Fuuh*…it's so hot here…hehe… or just my imagination… hehe."
Suddenly, all the crowd's attention went into the speech bar, there they saw a white young lady wearing the black and red uniform, her wolf white haircut, her face depicting of that goddess, from her hair to toe she is white, she is Silvie, the number one student from all the 300 first year students here, a commoner who beats all the first-year Noble students, even the second-year students look at her from the second floor. She is already an advanced rank student but if it's not her request to be the same as everyone, she chooses to stay in the newbie rank.
The students near Velvet murmured when Silvie took her position in front of the speech bar, most come from the noble kids saying, how dare a commoner, I can't stand being here listening her… and blah blah blah, to the point Velvet ignored all of it and focused on Silvie speech.
Did she notice me…she is not looking at me right?
It's the truth, Silvie is looking at Velvet and she even smiled, then began her speech.
"To all my friends and the instructors here, it is my joy to be here and I know I'm not the kind of person that you saw every day, my dream is to become a hero to protect those in need and help them that's why I enrol to this academy, I hope I will learn from all of you here."
Silvie closed her speech and stepped down from the speech bar, what greets her is not a clapping hand but a loud laughing roar from the noble kids and the second-year students, some instructors even shut their mouth trying to suppress their laughter.
"HAHAHA WHAT? A HERO? SOMEONE AS PALE AS YOU BECOME A HERO? HAHAHA JUST GO HOME AND GET OUT FROM HERE, YOU WEIRD ALBINO"
"YOUR SKIN IS SO WHITE DID YOU GET AN UNTREATABLE ILLNESS OR SOMETHING? WHY DON'T YOU SAVE YOURSELF FROM THAT ILLNESS INSTEAD OF EVERYONE? WHAT IF YOU SPREAD THAT WHITE ILLNESS? HAHAHA."
"A HERO IS TOO GRAND FOR YOU, WHY DON'T YOU BECOME A WHITE FOOL INSTEAD? HAHA."
It was horrible, the gathering hall went wild and some students threw many insults at Silvie who was sitting in the front row. Strangely, she didn't care at all about their insult. Velvet, who saw that, admired her mentality a bit.
What a strong mentality…I wish I could have that kind of mentality…
After Silvie's speech the instructor gives a simple guide of how they will live and study in this academy.
"On your dorm room there will be a schedule from Monday to Friday, there you will see what kind of classes you need to attend and you have three chances to absent for one semester, there will be a total of 2 semesters for year one students, if it exceeds three you will get a D grade immediately, D grade means you need to get a remedial on the next semester, if you get sick for more than three days you need to request for sick permit, you can get it from the middle building on the administrative area, for now familiarize yourself with your environment, I'd recommend you to go to your dorm room, you get a key when you pass the entrance exam, on that key there is a number, that number is your dorm room, That's it from me and welcome to the Stella Ethereal Academy."
All the students get up from their seat, Velvet too, she glances at Silvie, she sees that some people throw stuff at her, it's the noble kids and their gang, Silvie just lowers her head and sits there alone in the front row.
It's too cruel…I need to check on her
Velvet approached Silvie who is lowering her head, Velvet touch Silvie Shoulder, then she sits near Silvie and said
"H-hey… you okay?…ignore them… they are a nasty bastard…I'm here if you want someone to comfort you"
Silvie straightened her body, there Velvet saw Silvie left side head bleeding, it seems the throwable object hit her quite hard, the blood trickled down to Silvie uniform, Velvet widened her eyes and immediately wiped that blood using her handkerchief.
The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
"Oh, my goddess… stay there let me help you… here…here…does it hurt now?"
"I'm fine… this is nothing." Silvie said nonchalantly, Velvet got triggered when she heard Silvie said that, why is this gal pretends to be strong, when you are this tiny and vulnerable, that's what in Velvet's mind, then she said while keeps wiping the bloods on Silvie left side head.
"What do you mean it's nothing!? they hurt you even though you did nothing to them… isn't that cruel and unfair? don't worry from now on your older sister will protect you from them…ah my name is Velvet."
"I'm Silvie…why did you claim to be my older sister??"
Silvie tilts her head and looks at Velvet with a weird expression. Why is this person calling herself her older sister, aren't they all from the same age?
"Huh? it's obvious! I'm your older sister I'm 17 years old, I'll be 18 years tomorrow, and you are 15 years old… hehe you can't fool me I can discern a person age when I see their face… especially you, you still have this cute bubbly cheek…*pupupu*, hehe"
Velvet pinch Silvie cheek, she giggles when she looks at Silvie who is unable to block that pinch, Silvie pouts at Velvet for treating her like a little kid, then she realized something and said.
"you're 17 years old? So, does that mean…"
"Yup all the people here are 17 years old or 18 years old… you're the youngest student in history of Stella Ethereal Academy, you know"
"Huh? Sir Herlan didn't say anything about this…"
Velvet gets up from her seat when she hears Silvie's words, she frantically grabs Silvie's shoulders with both hands, her face full of shock.
"W-wait…S-Sir Herlan? The Watcher, Herlan Reward?... you know that honorable sir Herlan?"
"Yes... what's wrong? He is my guardian… he is the reason I become who I am right now?"
Velvet freezes for a moment, then she weakly sits at the seat next to Silvie, did she hear it right? She knows who sir Herlan is, because in the past, he was the one who taught her something. Herlan taught Velvet how to be a marksman, all kinds of shooting weapons, all kinds of shooting style and shooting position got drilled into Velvet's head.
Her last lesson from sir Herlan is that Velvet needs to shoot down a flying eagle using a sniper, Velvet struggle really hard from it, that last lesson traumatized her, but when she is about to give up, suddenly she has a wild idea… how about creating her own sniper, her own weapon.
She made a long sniper using scrap metals she found, and the gunpowder from the black smith to make her own bullet, installing a makeshift medium telescopic lens wrapped it with clothes to blends with the nature so the eagle didn't get startled, she tries every day to shoot the eagle, day and night, whether it's scorching weather, raining, and harsh cold winter.
Her body became malnourished, her bone lines looks visible, starving for 2 weeks, planning a strategy to shoot the eagle while also crafting her own bullets, until one morning, when the sun rises, she succeeds to snipe down the flying eagle after many failures, Herlan then recommended her to enrol at Stella Ethereal Academy. That sniper broke when Velvet finished her final lesson but she still remembers the blueprint how to create it, hell if it's not for sir Herlan request to not sell the blueprint, she already swimming in a pool full of golds, that's how scary her invention is, her talent is indeed in hands.
"Hahaha… I didn't think you too get taught by him… then it decided I'm your older sister both by age and the same person who taught us."
"Okay…big sis."
Velvet blush when Silvie calls her big sis… she is so cute, she reminded her of the tenants of her orphanage… it seems now she didn't get lonely in her academy life, not when Silvie is here.
"Okay as your big sis why don't you show me your key… OH!! We are roommates, oh my goddess…Silvie!!"
"B-big sis Velvet… I can't breathe"
Velvet hugged Silvie when she looked at the number of her dorm room from her key, it's the same as Velvet door room number, number 21, Velvet immediately released her hug when she realized she went too hard on Silvie as she kept tapping Velvet's shoulder.
"Hahaha… I'm sorry… as my forgiveness how about I became your tour guide, here, I will show you around"
"Sure."
Silvie went along following Velvet, as Velvet began to describe one area after another, she really does her tour guide duty seriously.
"On the left side of the gathering hall is the canteen for students to eat, it's quite vast… I think all the students from first, second, and third year eat here, if they want..."
Silvie nod her head, there are a couple of students in dark blue and red maroon uniform eating their breakfast in groups, there is one person who eat his breakfast alone, he wears a full black uniform with red hooded cloak, Silvie can't see his face because of the red hooded cloak.
"Why is that person sitting and eating alone there, big sis?"
Velvet looks in the direction where Silvie points her finger, but she is not seeing any person there, there is just a table and chair, there isn't anyone eating and sitting there.
"Are you sure? Silvie… there isn't anyone there… but tell me what kind of uniform they wear, maybe I know about it."
"Hmm… he is wearing a full black uniform with a red hooded cloak… ah he conjured something…"
Velvet widens her eyes and swiftly looks at Silvie beside her, did she hear it right? A student with full black uniform and red hooded cloak is here, that's the master ranked students, the smartest and strongest students, there are only 10 of them, it's such a big deal to even notice one of them, even the instructor needs to gives an announcement for them just to attend class, that's how important they are.
"W-what did he conjure?"
Velvet Fidgety asked Silvie who is able to see the stemmed master ranked students.
"He conjured… a cardboard… he showed it with his hands to me… it said 'don't bother me, I'm eating here'."
Velvet awkwardly laughs and bow her head multiple times, to the direction of that empty table and chair.
"Ahahha sorry whoever you are… we didn't know… because we are still newbies, come on Silvie apologize to them."
"Alright."
Silvie copied what Velvet does, and both of them went to the stairs at the right side of the canteen, and Velvet began to explain the structure of the building again.
"these are the third-year classes, they are just one level higher from the canteen, moving up, these are the second-year classes, they are one level higher from the third-year classes, and finally... wait let me catch my breath first… *phew*… finally these are our classes, the first-year classes, on the third floor, then moving up here is the rooftop."
"I see... big sis why is there a person sitting up there?"
Silvie asked that question again, and just like before Velvet couldn't see anyone here, immediately she closed Silvie's mouth with her hand and both of them went to the first floor.
"*Aishh*sst-sst… let's go back, we need to go to the dorm building… you can go to the dorm building using that corridor, on the right side of the gathering hall."
Silvie nodded her head, Velvet still closed her mouth with her hand, she looks like a kitten now with Velvet grabbing her uniform back collar.
"And… tada! This is your room, the left bed is mine, the right bed is yours, the dorm building is large so if you get confused just wait for me in the corridor earlier okay?"
"Okay."
Velvet left Silvie alone, she wanted to eat her breakfast in the canteen, then Silvie sat at the edge of her bed, and she lay down on that single bed. It's so comfy, it seems the kingdom really invested a lot in this Stella Ethereal Academy.
I need to go to the library to get the lesson book…but…*yawn*… that instructor sure talks a lot when he describes the brief history of Stella Ethereal academy…I will take a short nap first.
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Conny- who is now walking to the Stella Ethereal academy with his new appearance, a gentleman with wavy medium length messy black hair and a pale skinned body. A blue eyes that looks like a clear blue sky, a sharp jawline, a flat nose with a perfect nose bridge length, a smooth skin face, his face looks like straight out of sculpture, it was majestic and exuding an aura of divine, moreover, his clothes that is just thick brown coat to cover his bare chest, long black trouser, and white hotel flip flop that he get from the Scotsman hotel as a souvenir made people steal a glance at him, still… he didn't know who he is, if a person ask his name or his identity that'll be difficult, Conny can't blatantly told stranger his real name, thus, he is in the middle of name-making for this appearance, he needs a new identity ASAP.
As usual Conny soon became an attention magnet or something, because the people starts gathering around him, journalist flashing their camera, and the ladies fangirling him, all the man on the street just look at him from the distance, jealous, envy, that's what all those gentlemen felt after seeing Conny now, suddenly one golden painted steam-powered car stop near Conny and honk the horn at him, the crowds look at the man sitting inside that car, and they went wild, two good-looking person met up in daylight, ah the jealousy from those gentleman keeps soaring high, because the one sitting inside the golden painted steam-powered car, he is from Royal area, the owner of many VIP Clubs and business in Royal area, the wealthiest person in the Welsterven kingdom, with his luxurious outfit from head to toe, his finger is full of golden rings, his blonde hair and blue eyes that exude aristocratic, he is William Feld.
"There you are my friend. Yesterday, I heard many people saw a good-looking fella roaming around here. It hurts my precious heart that you need to suffer by walking barefoot. Hop on, let me give you a lift."
William said that while opening his car door to the passenger seat, Conny looked at him, he seemed to have a dejavu feeling, then he remembered that he met people with similar attire like this person in the slum area doing the slave hunting thing.
The way he dresses is the same as the person I saw at the slum area… but his oval face, short nose, blue eyes, and his blonde hair… it's different from the person I saw at the slum area, that person has brown hair after all… maybe he is the boss of that person… I guess I need to take his offer since it's a free ride…
"Sure, since you insist."
Conny quickly sits at the passenger seat beside William, then William steps the pedal, the car moves quite fast, William laughs out loud when he sees the crowd looking at them with a dumbfounded expression.
"So, where were you heading to?"
"The Stella Ethereal Academy, I have to do something there."
William got surprised when Conny said he wants to go to the Stella Ethereal Academy.
"What a surprise, I too want to go there, you know, to see my son and my daughter… hahaha what a small world we live in, don't worry we'll get there fast enough than that stupid horse carriage"
"Hmm you seem to have a problem with horse carriage, may I know the reason for it?"
"Oh, of course I had a personal vendetta against the person who owns the horse carriage transportation service, man, he is such a dickhead, a boomer, he refused to switch to these beautiful steam-powered cars, what a shame, and let me tell you…"
Hmm vendetta huh?
As William went on and on with his chatter, Conny got an inspiration for his new identity, he decided to use it, since it sounds cool, he smiled a little, then William suddenly questioned snap him to reality.
"And now my friend I still don't know your name, my name is William Feld, how about you? "
"Me? You can call me Vendetta, Mr. William"
"Oh, what a gentleman you are it's so rare nowadays, if you had free time why don't you come to my cherished Club, The Felds, here just show this card and they will treat you with the best service Mr. V… ah hope you didn't mind if I call you Mr. V right? because it sounds convenient for me "
"I don't mind."
Vendetta took the shining red and golden card from William's hand, he looked at it for a second and put it inside his pocket. Then William went on and on telling Conny-no Vendetta his handsome son and beautiful daughter, how he wishes his kids to succeed just like him, and how he wishes them to be a business owner running multiple establishments, and so long and so long, Vendetta just nod his head while his mind wanders off to the street, hearing William chatter and the view of street with fast speed made him nauseous.
Help… I can't listen to this man talking about his kids any longer... if I jump from this car… it doesn't kill me doesn't it… forget about it… patience Conny no- Vendetta…*burp*…
After a couple minutes of chatter, whimper, and dizziness, both of them arrived at Stella Ethereal Academy, Vendetta looks at the three giant buildings in front of him, there is also a vast training field in front of the middle building, both of them parked the car near the entrance, there is a parking spot there.
"Awesome right, Mr. V? Apparently, this is the best education place in the whole of Welsterven."
"You can say that again, Mr. William, so… I guess this is where we depart?"
"Wait, let me introduce you to my lovely kids first, there they are, LUIS!!, MARGARETT!!"
William waves his hand from his driver seat while also honking the horn of his golden painted steam-powered car, one blonde young man and one blonde young lady notice the honk sound then quickly approach the car, that's located near the entrance.
"Daddy!! You are here!"
"Thank you for coming here, Father."
The young lady, Margaret, hugs her father tightly, while the young man, Luis, looks at them and smiles a bit.
"Hahaha, how are you faring this morning?"
Margaret released her hug and made a shrug, while Luis closed his eyes then he began explaining things.
"It's quite a long ceremony, it seems the instructor intentionally made it to be that long and the academy facilities aren't that great compared to our mansion and your club, Father"
Margaret nod her head multiple times hearing Luis explanation, then she finally noticed a gentleman sitting in the passenger seat, a gentleman with blue eyes that looks like a clear blue sky, a sharp jawline, a flat nose with a perfect nose bridge length, a smooth skin face, his face looks like straight out of sculpture, it was majestic and exuding an aura of divine, moreover, his clothes that is just thick brown coat to cover his bare chest, long black trouser, a gentle wind brush past his medium length messy black hair. Margaret got captivated by that picturesque sight.
Margaret dozes off for a second while gazing at that gentleman otherworldly figure, she didn't know this person nor saw him with his Daddy in the past, just who is this person, Luis and William voice snap Margaret back to reality.
"Sweetie, are you okay, you are dozing off for a second, you're scaring me."
"Hei, you okay? it isn't the usual you, what happened?
"H-huh? i-i'm fine…ah, Daddy who is this person?"
William and Luis look at each other, then look again to Margaret, they seem to notice something, could it be attraction or an affection then a smirk appears on their face, William whispering something to Vendetta, Vendetta nods his head.
"*Ahem*… Let me introduce him to you two, this is, Mr. Vendetta, you can call him Mr. V, he is my friend, I want to invite him to our club tomorrow, be nice to him"
"It's such an honor to make an acquaintance of you Mr. Vendetta, I'm Luis Feld, the first son and the eldest of the Feld Family."
Luis offered his right hand to make a handshake, Vendetta soon accepted the offer.
"Likewise, you're a polite young man, unlike in the story your father told me earlier when we were on the road."
Luis widens his eyes and he looks at his father with an embarrassed face.
"Father!! Why did you do that! That's my dark past!"
"I didn't say anything *whistle*. "
William ignored Luis' tantrum by making a whistle noise with his mouth, then he looked at his daughter Margaret who was fidgeting with her pointy finger. William made an eye gesture that said 'it's your turn'.
"O-oh… m-my name….my name is Margaret Feld, the youngest of Feld family, it's my *pweasure to be your acquaintance Mr. V."
Margaret was so nervous with her introduction that she didn't realize she made a tongue slip, both her father and brother hold their laughter by looking at the opposite direction, Vendetta get out from the car and closed the car door, then he knelt in front of Margaret to kiss her right hand, Margaret red was reddened up like a tomato, with her blonde hair it looks like a cheese tomato.
"Just hearing your name, it is my greatest joy, Lady Margaret."
Vendetta get up and wave his hand to the Feld family, he saw Margaret freeze on the spot and ended up passed out, her brother Luis panicked and immediately catch her before her back head hit the ground while William laugh out loud and gives a thumbs up to Vendetta, like he is saying good job.
"What a nice family…"
Vendetta minds wandered off when he walks through the training field, he can't help but imagined what if his family is still here, chatting, teasing and laughing like that Feld family did earlier, what a useless thought, in this world there is no what if, that's what in Vendetta mind while he shake off his head to throw away that delusion.
There are many students wearing black and red uniform come and go, the ladies, as usual can't keep their eyes straight by looking at Vendetta, they seem like being captivated by his appearance, even the Instructor ladies does the same, Vendetta who noticed this, he waves his right hand and smiled at them, that smile snap all of the ladies who is ogling him, their face reddened up and immediately went to their own business, still they are stealing a glance at Vendetta appearance once more.
I don't mind you all looking at me as long as you didn't start swarming at me, that's what in Vendetta's mind, he finally arrived at the middle building, a red three-story building, without wasting any more time, Vendetta reached the double door and opened it up. A scent of cedar wood pleased his nostril, what greet his sight is a receptionist table, a row of bookshelves on the right side, on the left side is a rest place to read, to have an afternoon tea, and a stair leading to the second floor on the corner of the left place.
"There are many bookshelves here… I'm glad I didn't need to spend my time exploring this whole place just to search for the library."
Vendetta immediately approaches the receptionist at his designated table. He is an old man with long white hair, face full of wrinkles, clear blue-sky eyes, and a gentle smile appears on his lips, when he notices Vendetta.
"Welcome to this place, may I help you with something, Sir?"
"Ah yes, I came here to learn how to read, did you have a book for it?"
The old man widened his eyes in surprise, then he smiled at Vendetta's determination to read at that age, when the people around his age didn't even bother to pick up a book.
"What an admirable person you are, Sir. Indeed, a famous philosopher once said. 'Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever', hmm today is 14 February, the book for people who want to read should be here already, let me pick an appropriate teaching book for you."
The old man gets up from his seat, as Vendetta waits for him at the rest area, it's so empty here, even though it's an academy place, it seems people rarely go to this library, or today just a special day where people prefer to rest, that's what Vendetta thought. After waiting for a whole minute, the old man came back with tons of books in his arms. Vendetta widens his eyes when he sees that, and immediately gets up from his seat to help the old man carrying the book.
"O-old man you might hurt yourself carrying those piles of books…let me help you…"
"Thank you, that'll be helpful indeed."
Both of them put the book down to the receptionist table, there is a pile of thick book and 3 thin books with a picture, Vendetta look at the absurd reading material he needs to learn, is this a torture of his own illiterate, does being illiterate is a sin here? In this academy, Vendetta didn't know he just stood there looking at the thick book with deadpan expression.
"Hohoho rest assured sir, those thick book isn't for you, it's for someone else, while the three thin books with picture is definitely for you, I hope you will diligently learn how to read, considering you, I think it'll be done in a flash without you realizing it."
Vendetta eyes brighten up when he hears that, that makes sense right? There is no way he would give me a thick book when I just barely started learning how to read. That's what is in Vendetta 's mind. Vendetta quickly took the 3 thin books with a picture. He couldn't wait to learn how to read. The place with the water fountain seemed like a perfect spot to read these books. Vendetta decided that he will go there this afternoon.
"Thank you, old man, do I need to- "
When Vendetta look at the receptionist table to ask for the old man whether he need to return these books or not, Vendetta sight didn't see anything, it's like that old man disappeared mysteriously without a trace, soon the whole place became crowded by a student wearing black and red uniform, dark blue and red maroon uniform busily searching for their material learning books.
What the… where did that old man go… I didn't even get to know his name…
Because the place became more crowded, Vendetta didn't have a choice but to leave this place now, but before he left, he noticed there was a piece of paper on the top of those thick books, it said 'To Silvie'. Even though Vendetta is illiterate, her mother taught her how to read names and things, and he can read the letter Silvie, because that word means her little sister.
A smile appeared on his lips, then he grabs a pencil near him, and draw a cute smiling bunny doodle below the word 'To Silvie', hoping that it will motivate her with her study in this academy, Vendetta let out a long sigh when he finished drawing that doodle, it's just a shame, really. If only that dreadful night didn't happen, if only his family is not a slave family but a normal one, would he enjoy the academy life with his sister? But, it is what it is, his brother Vendetta-no Conny is already dead, seeing his sister's face will only add salt to the injury, it's better this way, being forgotten, rather than hurting your loved one with their haunting past.