It was not long before I got completely encircled by a mass of people, mainly women around my age, but even a good proportion of men. I could see the crowds around my classmates had thinned and they were glaring at me, probably for having taken away the attention of their respective crowds.

“So you're John, it's a pleasure to meet you…”

“Oh, wow, you are so handsome! Wanna take a drink?”

“Oh, don't you think it's quite noisy here? We could go to a more secluded place…”

Numerous advances were sent my way. In the eyes of the senders, I could only see pure dishonesty, particularly in the ones who had called me handsome. It seemed like Marnie's efforts had been wasted.

Anyway, even while ignoring the clear lies aimed to win me over, I found all this attention extremely unpleasant. Considering it was all done with the purpose of becoming my partner I felt… extremely annoyed. All these people were nuisances. I didn't have any intention, nor desire, to get to "know better" any of them. It was the first time I had felt this way, but apparently it was true that archumans tended to behave like monks.

“Excuse me, ladies, but I'm already waiting for someone” I tried to say as politely as possible.

The people around me were quite stunned by this revelation, but after a moment they resumed their attack more decidedly, going so far as to grab me and press themselves against my body, trying to get my attention. I felt every hair on my body stand up and my vision flicker for an instant.

I closed my eyes and clenched my teeth together. I had to keep my calm. Although my instincts were urging me to push everyone away and escape, I had to control myself. I couldn't risk hurting civilians. Anyway, I made a mental note of working on getting better at controlling my urges.

“Please, let me go. This is very unpleasant” I said in a rude tone, while gently but firmly getting all the hands off of me.

I started walking away. Noone tried to stop me, but I could see disappointed and annoyed looks all around me. I finally made up my mind to find Faye. With a little bit of luck, her presence could help shield me from unwanted disturbances.

It didn't take long to locate her. Although smaller than the crowd which had been encircling me, she too had her fair share of attention, mostly in the form of a male audience.

She was wearing a long black dress which reached down to her ankles and left the back open. From the gown, her leg peeped out. Her hair was elegantly collected in a chignon, kept together by a floreal pin.

What most attracted my attention was the eye bags hidden under a light veil of makeup. I smiled satisfied: apparently what Marnie had told was true and she had been working hard for the sake of our scheme. Although I too had been working hard, it had been mostly for myself.

I accelerated my pace and soon appeared in her field of view, but she didn't seem to recognize me. When I tried to get near, a young man taller than me blocked my way.

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“Get in line, kid” he said trying to appear threatening.

Before he could understand what was going on, I put my hands around his arms, lifted him from the floor and put him down a little to the side.

“No line for me~” I sneered at him.

He didn't mutter any word and simply looked at me with a stupefied expression. The same procedure repeated itself a couple of times before people took the hint and opened their way for me. I appeared in front of Faye, who was sipping a drink.

“Hello my lady, may I take a moment of your time?” I said with a small smile.

Faye sent me an annoyed look before turning back to her drink. After a second, she frowned and looked at me once again, this time more attentively. Her eyes opened wide and then she simulated a happy smile.

“Oh John, finally you are here! Let's go!” she said, taking me by the hand and guiding me towards another section of the plaza, far away from the suitors.

“Why did you take so long? I've been waiting for an hour!” she reprimanded me.

We had taken place at a secluded table, away from the centre of the action. A couple of times someone tried to approach us, but was rapidly driven away by Faye's disgusted look.

“I was eating” I answered simply.

Her left eyelid twitched slightly.

“So you were playing around? You do understand it's the first occasion this month we can meet, right? You should have come immediately!”

“What are you talking about? I tried looking for you this past month, but I was always sent on my way”

“I was busy, ok?!”

Faye's anger was palpable. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm down.

“It's ok Faye, remember, we must appear as a lovey-dovey couple, so keep it in” she muttered in a low voice, not noticing I could hear her.

I decided to change the subject.

“How's your work going?” I asked.

She reopened her eyes and looked at me.

“It's going well. I hate to admit it but it seems like you were right all along” she answered.

“Can you be more clear?”

“Well… it seems like I have an academic inclination after all… I memorise everything almost instantly”

“See, I was right, wasn't I? You are indeed a genius”

I nodded satisfied. Finally her talents were bearing fruit. She seemed a little bit embarrassed by my praise, but I pretended not to notice.

“What are you working on for now?” I asked.

Her expression lit up.

“Oh, everything, basically. In fact, I barely sleep, but it's okay. I've already gone over the basics of each subject, but I am particularly focusing on biology, topology and materials sciences. Well, that doesn't mean I am neglecting the other subjects of course, after all every single piece of information is useful. There are so many things to learn and, oh, I've recently started working at the local hospital as an assistant to the surgery professor. You know, if we want to continue with your crazy plan I must be proficient in many things. Well, the more time passes, the less crazy it seems. In fact, I've already jetted down some ideas, but they need to be refined. Ah, and did you know that…”

I let her continue speaking of this and that, while looking at her with a genuine smile. The more she talked, the more fired up she got. After a life spent toiling in the fields, she was finally satisfying her innate curiosity. It was good to see her so happy. Nevertheless, I understood that from this point going forward I should keep an eye on her and help her stay focused on our plan, because there was a great probability she would get side-tracked while trying to learn everything she could.

“There is something else to consider” I intervened after some time, putting a stop to her rambling.

“What is it?” she asked with a curious expression.

“I need you to take a look at historical accounts. Apparently, I'm similar to the archumans of the older generations. Marnie should be able to explain it better. It may make everything more difficult, but I'm sure you will be able to get to the bottom of it. In the meantime, I'll make sure to train hard”

I could see the fire shining in her eyes. Now that she was in her natural environment, her past fearful self had completely disappeared and only the young woman ready to take on the entire world had remained.

“Well, I think I can handle it” she answered proudly.

Both resolved to give our all to our objectives, we continued discussing our plans until late into the night.