Lexi slid through the empty hallways with near silent footsteps. The fourth year halls were still silent and the lights dimmed. It would likely be another hour or so before any of the students actually woke. Enjoying the silence, she made her way to the second year hall and stopped in front of Makina's door.

She lightly rapped on the door.

There was no reply.

She knocked again, with a tad more force.

Silence.

Lexi sighed and dropped her hand to the doorknob. She had a sneaking suspicion that Makina was not the type to remember to lock her own door. Her deduction was proven correct as she gave the knob a twist and the door swung open silently on well-oiled hinges.

The room was almost exactly the same as the one that had been assigned to her. Small but comfy bed in the corner, a desk right below a sizable window, and another door that led to a private bathroom. The showers, however, were communal and found at the end of each hall.

Lying comfortably on the bed, one leg dangling haphazardly off the side, was Makina. Her mouth hung open and her hair had spread out wildly around her during her slumber. Lexi shook her head with a small smile. Despite Makina's status as a Spirit Goddess, the girl was still remarkably… normal.

"Makina." Lexi gave the diminutive Goddess a small shake.

"Mugh"

"Makina

"Leave me be, Cross," Makina mumbled, turning away from Lexi. "I am content."

"Makina."

"Your master has spoken."

Lexi sighed and grabbed a loose pillow. She tested its weight before giving Makina a solid whack across the face. Makina sat up with a gasp, her hands flinging in every direction. The temperature in the room dropped drastically. Lexi could see the condensation from her breath as she let out a soft chuckle at Makina's reaction.

Realizing she was not under attack, Makina let out a large yawn and rubbed vigorously at her eyes.

"Mortals should not wake Gods," Makina grumbled.

"I figured you might oversleep. Better to wake up early," Lexi said as she walked over to Makina's window and pulled the curtain open. Makina winced, expecting bright light, but the sun had yet to rise. "It is important we act quickly before another attack takes place. Vigilance is a pillar of success"

"It's still dark out!" Makina moaned, falling back into the bed and pulling a sheet over her head. "Leave me be until at least the sun rises. Then I shall be vigilant."

Lexi tugged the sheet away and Makina made a whiny noise, slamming her fists repeatedly against the bed, before sitting up and glaring at her.

"Fine, I am awake," Makina snapped. She waved a hand at Lexi. "You may leave now."

"You have a lesson with Cross in the afternoon. Be sure to treat him as a stranger and with the proper amount of respect. That holds true to Banksy as well. If you need to speak with any of us-"

"Yes, yes I know." Makina gave off a wide mouthed yawn. "If I am in trouble, go to your room. I believe you are worrying far too much. No matter what may be causing trouble here, I doubt it is a match for even the simpleton."

"Good." Lexi gave a small nod. "I am going to meet with Cross now. Good luck, Maki."

"Yes, yes, luck and all that," Makina said, leaning back against the headboard of her bed and closing her eyes as Lexi left the room.

xXx

Lexi was almost surprised to find Cross already in his classroom. He paced back and forth along the marble floor, slowly reading through a very thick set of notes that Servilia had supplied him. Though his movements and body language was lethargic as always, Lexi still noted with approval that he had actually managed to clean up his appearance. She especially found the glasses to be an endearing touch. No doubt something Servilia had thrown in specifically to bother Cross.

"Excuse me, Professor?"

Cross looked up and snapped his notebook shut. "Class doesn't start until- oh. You're here later than I expected. Have trouble with the brat?"

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

"Maki is fine," Lexi said, shutting the door to the classroom behind her. With a quick wave of her hand, a thread of shadow shot from her palm and secured the door.

"Showoff," Cross muttered under his breath as Lexi stopped in front of his desk and looked at the materials he had laid out. It was quite sparse, in her opinion.

"Are you ready for the first class?" Lexi asked.

"I still think you or Banksy should be teaching," Cross said with a shrug.

"That isn't what I asked."

Cross sighed and tossed the notebook onto the desk. "Yeah, I'm ready."

"Good. I assume you've made the proper seating arrangements?"

Cross pointed at the desk. Lexi followed his directions and picked up a hand written chart. "I got you next to the girl who found the victim."

"Good. And Makina?"

"I went through the records like you asked. The victim was part of the school's mentoring program. She was a 'big sister' to one of the second year students. I've made sure Makina will be close to that girl."

Lexi nodded. "Very good. Banksy should be arriving soon as well, so that leaves only one thing."

"What's that, oh fearless leader?" Cross said, stifling a yawn. He really wasn't used to being awake this early. At least not when he couldn't go back to sleep once he got on a train.

"Where is your tie?" Lexi asked, tilting her head to the side, her dark eyes fixed pointedly on his throat.

Cross froze before mumbling something too quiet for Lexi to hear.

Her eyebrow went up.

"Come on." Cross ran a hand over his face. "Don't make me say it."

She blinked at him.

"Fine! I can't figure out how to tie the stupid thing." Cross said, pulling the offending strip of fabric from his jacket pocket and tossing it at Lexi. She caught it deftly and straightened it out, smoothing out the crumpled material with her fingers.

Smirking ever so slightly she advanced on Cross.

"You should really learn to do this yourself." Lexi looped the tie around his neck and tugged him towards her. Off balance, Cross cursed as he nearly fell into her before regaining his balance. He reached up and caught his glasses as they began to slip from his face.

"It's not something I plan on making a habit," Cross said as he tried to straighten up. Lexi pulled him back down. "Why do you even know how to do this?"

"I am a Hunter, Cross. Tying people up is part of my job."

"You may want to phrase that differently with other people." Cross gave her a small grin.

Lexi lifted up her eyes to glare at him for a moment and pulled the knot painfully tight, Cross grabbed at his throat to loosen the restrictive material, but Lexi knocked his hand away. She let him suffer a moment longer before adjusting his tie back to a respectable, but still too tight by Cross's standards, position.

"Before I joined the guild, I went to a school with a similar uniform. Learning to tie them was part of my daily routine I had to do this for my sister too. She was never good at getting the length right," Lexi said as she straightened his tie and carefully buttoned up his jacket. "Appearance is everything in a place like this. Be sure you don't slouch or mumble. Speak clearly and never back down or show any signs of weakness or uncertainty." She smoothed out his clothing and gave him a tap pat on the chest. "These girls are nobles and will act as such."

Cross let out a small chuckle. "I think I can handle some nobles. I grew up with a princess, you know."

"I'm sure that was so troublesome for you." Lexi smiled as she reached up and combed her fingers through his hair, pushing it into a less haphazard position. She took a step back and admired her work. "You clean up rather nicely, Professor."

Cross pulled himself up to his full height and adjusted his glasses. "Ms. Alexis, I will have you know flattery will not be tolerated in this class. You will be judged purely on your academic merit. Now, I suggest you unlock the door and find your seat. Class will be starting soon. I would hate to have to mark you late for the day. I do not condone tardiness."

Lexi stared at Cross for a long time before lifting her hand up to her mouth and stifling a laugh.

xXx

"This. Is. Bullshit," Banksy grumbled as he lugged a heavy bag off tools up a seemingly endless flight of stairs. "All this money and no one can build a damn lift?"

"You'll get used to it."

The weight on Banksy's shoulders sudden fell away and he nearly fell forward. He craned his neck around, then up. Then up again.

A proverbial giant stood next to him, easily holding his bag aloft with a single hand.

"Name's Bane," The giant greeted with a small dip of his large head. With his dark skin and accent, Banksy placed him from Gorin.

"Nathan. And uh, thanks" Banksy said.

"This here is Wolf." Bane shifted to the side and Banksy brought his eyes down, realizing that a slim young man was standing behind Bane, easily eclipsed by Bane's girth.

"Pleasure," Wolf gave a small nod of his head. He looked perpetually tired, with dark bags set into his pale face and the shadow of a stubble that needed to be shaved. "We should probably keep going. We're gonna be late."

"Then let's go!" Bane grunted, launching himself up the stairs with ease, despite the heavy bags weighing him down.

"New guy?" Wolf asked as he continued up the stairs at a more acceptable pace.

"Yeah."

"Don't worry, it's a pretty easy gig." Wolf ran a hand though his messy hair. "Just make sure you stay out of the student’s way. Most of them are alright, but some of the little brats have a tendency to cause the faculty trouble. Don't want to get on daddy's bad side."

"Yeah, I can imagine." Banksy nodded. "How many more stewards are there?"

"Just us." Wolf sighed.

"Really?"

"Yeah. School doesn't take much to maintain honestly, so they rotate us. You get a month on, a month off. Most of the work is just upkeep of the grounds and fixing whatever breaks. The maids cover the cleaning and all that. The school prefers if we are unseen and unheard."

Banksy grinned. "Perfect."

xXx

Avril turned her face against the wind and pulled the hood tighter around her head. The air was growing cold. Her travel would be impeded if winter came early and she had to deal with iced over roads.

She did not have the luxury of time.

Leaning down, she gently tapped her horse on the side of the neck, spurring him into a faster stride.

She was still almost half a day’s ride from the next town on her list.