After clearing up things with Sulong and starting a new page, built on cooperation, Zeke returned home and packed the necessary stuff he needed to take with him to the dormitory.

By the time he ate a bit of food, he was feeling an overwhelming sense of fatigue due to his brief confrontation with Vanessa.

It took him a great deal of Aether as well as absolute concentration to stop her blistering cold aura and the icicles.

He got to experience firsthand the gap between himself and one of the top students of Erys. Of course, Vanessa was a third-year and she had been training in Aether Manipulation since a young age, but that didn’t make Zeke feel any better.

He had the System, which was-arguably- a much more efficient and fast method of progress. First, he had to catch up to his peers and climb the rankings, and, eventually, he was confident in reaching the apex and no longer having to worry about ridicule, bullying, or the constant comparison between himself and his successful siblings.

…

With a relatively large backpack, Zeke kept yawning during his short trip to Erys. He had to complete the Daily Tasks, which were incredibly difficult to do when he was mentally and physically fatigued.

‘I hope they don’t throw me with a bunch of obnoxious roommates.’

As all the students who had not been living in the dormitory were moving in, the morning lessons were delayed by a couple of hours.

Zeke arrived at the main hall of the First Year Building, the sleepiness was replaced by giddiness as he impatiently waited for Erva to come and allocate each new arrival with their respective dorm room.

Very soon, the young female teacher arrived and distributed small papers to everyone present, including Zeke, who glanced at the number.

He didn’t waste any time and immediately headed to his temporary ‘new home’. Not only would he no longer have any privacy, but it would also become significantly more difficult to meditate or train ‘Aether Control’, as both required a silent and calm environment.

Once he arrived in front of the deep-brown wooden door, Zeke let out a heavy sigh and hesitantly opened it, his view instantly welcomed by a surprisingly spacious and square-shaped room.

The room was clean and seemingly separated into four small ‘parts’, each one equipped with a neat bed and a singular desk.

As per Erys’ strict rules, each dorm room would have exactly four students, and Zeke’s was no exception.

However, the moment he laid eyes on the three people inside, he was rendered speechless.

The first one was unfamiliar to Zeke; He was a short youth with short and curly beige hair, a pair of unique sky-blue eyes, and barely noticeable freckles on his cheeks. He looked more harmless than Zeke, and was currently reading a book while sitting on his bed.

The second person, surprisingly, was Samuel, Zeke’s most recent ‘friend’. The youth beamed at him as soon as their gazes met.

“I knew it would be you!”

Samuel was ignored as Zeke shifted his attention to his third roommate and, quite possibly, the worst of them all.

Azmer was standing near the window, a frown on his face as he quickly processed the situation, which only worsened his mood. Still, he did not offer a greeting or voice his displeasure, instead, he resumed staring at the campus with arms crossed.

After a short silence, Zeke walked to the last ‘unclaimed’ bed and took out his notebooks and whatnot. Samuel, being the lively person he was, could not sit still or mind his own business.

“Honestly, I thought they were going to dump Fylard with us. Usually, they don’t put two students of the same class together.”

“...”

Zeke looked at the quiet freckled student across from him, who was sneaking glances at the two of them.

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

“Unlike you, I don’t like living with others. Let’s just keep to ourselves, okay?”

“What? That would be so boring! We’re friends and roommates! Of course, we should have a bit of fun.”

After saying that, Samuel walked to the unfamiliar first-year student and patted his shoulder.

“This innocent-looking young man is Alan Perison. One of the two Defects in class D.”

In contrast to Zeke’s stone-faced expression, Alan was half-embarrassed half-nervous as he politely bowed his head.

“That gloomy fellow is Zeke Orland. He used to be a Defect… I think you two will get along fine!”

Once he was done with the introductions, Samuel drifted closer to Azmer but stopped mid-way when the latter raised his hand and coldly said,

“I’m not here to hang out with you losers. Mind your own business and be quiet.”

“Hah?! Why are you so on edge? I’m trying to strike a friendly conversation here.”

“And I told you to piss off.”

Azmer rudely waved his hand at Samuel and then went to his desk, busying himself with his phone with his back facing all of them.

…

When it was finally time for lessons, Zeke and Azmer, although classmates, avoided each other like the plague.

‘I keep feeling this burning sensation.’

Strangely enough, the stinging pain from the Rune of Life didn’t disappear. Zeke first attributed it to his lack of rest, but he started having doubts when the pain continued unabated even though he had slept.

In his absent-mindedness, he bumped into someone in front of the classroom.

“Ouch! Watch where you’re going!”

Julia rubbed her forehead and blurted those words, seemingly about to start a fight. However, when she saw who it was, she swallowed her anger and frowned.

Out of the blue, she stretched her hand and grabbed Zeke’s only to let go when she felt a wave of electricity invade her body.

“You… what’s happening to you?”

Perplexed, he tilted his head and didn’t respond. Before the girl could inquire any further, a tall silhouette came from behind her and, with a stern voice, said,

“Julia Lopmore, class is about to start. You two, Zeke.”

Christopher looked down at his students and motioned for them to enter, which they did. Zeke kept rubbing the back of his hand whereas Julia was eyeing him suspiciously.

****

“My husband won’t stand for this! You will regret everything!”

Amy’s mother, Melissa, was handcuffed and sitting at the back of an armored van. She was being taken to the one and only prison in this nation, located a short distance away from the Sunken Metropolis.

She was neither provided with a lawyer nor afforded the chance to go through a just trial. Instead, she was indicted for various crimes, most of which she had done.

Melissa didn’t know how they got hold of concrete evidence, but that was inconsequential due to the absence of a trial.

To make matters worse, she was being escorted to the prison by soldiers instead of officers, which was odd.

As the road was becoming rocky, the uncomfortable back of the van kept shaking intensely. However, everything came to a sudden halt when a deafening explosion occurred.

Melissa, along with the handful of armed soldiers sitting in front of her were thrown into the air for a couple of breaths as the van was hit by the violent impact and spun around.

There were sounds of gunshots, which lasted momentarily.

With her leg broken and her head bleeding, Melissa frantically looked around, shaking the unconscious soldiers near her feet.

Alas, there was no response and, very soon, a black mist slipped through the edges and wrapped around the back door, literally ripping it away using a monstrous force.

Much to the woman’s surprise, she saw Amelia standing there.

“You… this was your doing?! You slu-”

Melissa’s words were replaced by a loud cry as the black mist wrapped around her ankle and dragged her outside, her body slamming on the dirt.

Jonathan materialized next to Amelia and pointed at the fearful and injured woman.

“Your target. Your kill.”

Even though she yearned for revenge, Amelia hesitated as black-colored lightning emitted from the crystal embedded into her chest.

Eventually, when she vividly remembered the abuse and torture she had been unjustly subjected to, Amelia couldn't control her emotions and unleashed bolts of lightning that pierced Melissa’s body.

The banshee-like shrieks of the profusely bleeding woman reverberated across the surrounding forest, but no help came.

Revenge wasn’t as sweet as she imagined, nevertheless, Amelia couldn’t find it in her to spare Melissa, not after her father died.

Melissa tried to beg but a thick thunderbolt struck her head, ending her life once and for all.

As it was her first time killing someone, Amelia’s hands were trembling and her body was shaking ever-so-slightly.

She composed herself relatively quickly and turned to the van. She saw Jonathan crawl to its back, trying to finish off the remaining soldiers.

“You don’t have to kill them.”

He stopped moving and half-turned his head, staring back at her with his blank and lifeless eyes, his lips ever mumbling nonsensical stuff.

The mist came out of his hand and snapped the soldiers’ necks, causing Amelia to look away and grit her teeth.

She didn’t think it was necessary to kill them, but she knew that she was in no position to object. After all, she was planning to attack the van alone and he willingly tagged along to help.