「I know you are hiding something, but which is it? It's been creeping me out for a while now. Don't get me wrong, I can sense you, but you are like a little ember compared to these two being massive bonfires.」

Damian says, intensely staring into Cycelia's emerald eyes with a serious face.

「Huh? But I'm not hiding anything!-」

She denies, shaking her head and waving her dainty hands in front of herself.

「Look, I believe you. At least, I believe that you think you are not hiding anything…」

Damian cuts in, interrupting her with his hands spread above his shoulders.

「But I really am not…」

Cycelia meekly insists, lowering her head.

「…Like I said, you may think you are not, but the reality may be starkly different. With Tisha and Neela, at least I know where I stand, but with you… Well, let me tell you a little story from my village…」

He lets out a troubled sigh, and crosses his arms, looking at the three with his mouth lightly scrunched to the side.

「…It was a pretty long time ago, when I was a little boy. There was this guy, his name was Derrick. We didn't really talk much, and I never really thought much about him. He was just nice, normal.」

Damian shrugs, and briefly spreads his hands. He continues.

「I was obviously born with my blessing, so I could sense how dangerous people are all the time. Derrick never really struck me as odd. He'd walk up from time to time, ask me how I'm doing…」

He shrugs once more, looking outside the hallway's windows at the darkness outside. The sun is far too low to shine onto anything past the Academy's tall walls at this point.

「…I'd say I'm fine, he'd say good, see you later, and leave. Just idle village pleasantries… There's not much else to do in a village most of the time. I was always a recluse, so I didn't even have friends.」

「That's kind of sad, pants-shitter.」

Tisha chimes in, and although her words are derisive, her face is entirely serious and bears a hint of pity.

「Tsk… Don't pity me over something like that. I didn't care about other kids. I'm just saying I was bored most of the time.」

Damian rolls his eyes, ignoring her insult. He sighs, and continues his story.

「Anyway… I've spent most of my youth in the village tavern. I'd always sit in the corner by the window, and just waste time there. Sometimes I'd help cleaning, sometimes I'd get juice on the house…」

He shrugs his hands and shoulders, grimacing a little, then continues.

「…Overall, it wasn't a bad deal. It was rarely packed to the brim, so the owner would turn a blind eye to me sitting there, and the girls would come talk with me during slower hours. Everything was fine.」

「…For someone who doesn't care about other people, you sure talk about yourself a lot.」

Neela innocently remarks, tilting her head. A little exasperated, Damian rolls his eyes and clicks his tongue.

「Tsk… I am trying to make a point, and I'm almost there, okay?… Derrick had a friend. As far as everyone knew, they were buddies for life, you could catch them drinking in the tavern all the time.」

He looks at Neela with an annoyed expression on his face, and continues through the interruption.

「So then, one day, just like any other day, Derrick came to the tavern. His friend was there, drinking at the bartender's table, so naturally he sat down next to him. Honestly, I remember the whole scene…」

Damian continues, then his expression grows serious, and a little glum.

「…Hey buddy, how's it going?… Hey, Derrick… I think I've seen them greet each other like that a hundred times, at least.」

He quotes the two, and his face remains grim while he looks down at the floor, avoiding either of the three girls with his gaze.

「…Again, normal. Nothing out of the ordinary. The place was mostly empty at that hour, so I could hear them talk from across the room. Derrick ordered a drink, and they talked about random stuff-」

「So the story is about some guy drinking in a bar? That's why we're not studying? Or doing something fun, at least?」

Tisha chimes in again, spreading her hands.

「Tsk… If you allowed me to finish, then you would know what I'm getting at!… Anyway!…」

Damian huffs angrily with his arms crossed, and his face becomes visibly displeased again.

「…Derrick then pulled out a dagger, stuffed it in his friend's throat, and slashed it apart.」

With a deathly serious expression, he turns his eyes to Cycelia's emerald ones.

「Wha-?…」

Neela's head perks up in surprise, and she is visibly taken aback with her brows greatly furrowed.

「Well, that escalated quickly…」

Tisha comments in a cynical, lightly amused tone, although her blonde brows are struggling to hide her surprise.

「Yeah… It did. I remember his face. It was this perplexed, confused look of surprise. He probably didn't see the blade, and was wondering what Derrick had even done. He moved his hand to his throat, and looked at it…」

Damian nods, concurring with Tisha, keeping his eyes locked on Cycelia.

「…Then blood spewed from his mouth, he jumped up to his feet, stumbled backwards over the stool, and fell on the ground. I remember his eyes rolling to the back of his head, too.」

He adds, with a grim expression on his face. The three look at each other, all mildly shocked and a little concerned.

「…How long ago was this, if you can remember all that?」

Neela asks, tilting her head.

「Dunno… Maybe ten or so years, give or take.」

「…You were how old?」

Tisha furrows her brows, looking at Damian with concerned eyes.

「Like eight, or nine. I don't know…」

He nonchalantly shrugs, and lets out a short sigh. The girls glance at each other again, and look at Damian with significant pity in their eyes.

「…Anyhow. I remember Derrick calmly took a gulp of his drink, then looked at me. He was completely expressionless, as if nothing happened. I remember the girls screaming and crying, people were yelling for the guards…」

「…How did he plan to get away with it?」

Tisha asks, after a moment of thinking heavily.

「He didn't. He set the dagger down on the bartender's table, and returned to drinking. The bartender snatched it away, and told him not to go anywhere. He just shrugged. He kept drinking until the guards ran in…」

Damian replies, shrugging his hands above his shoulders. He sighs as he explains, returning his eyes back to Cycelia, who is silently listening with a troubled look on her face.

「…Again, in a small village, everyone knows each other. The guards were on edge, so they told him to get up and walk towards them with his hands on his head. He paid for his drink first.」

「And he just surrendered?」

Neela asks, gently shaking her head in utter confusion.

「Yeah, he did. He was as obedient as a sheep, the guards didn't even need to hold him while they were tying him up. On his way out he turned his head towards my table and said, see you later, kid.」

「Weren't they going to hang him for that? I don't care what you think about us, not even northerners would do something like that to their friends.」

Tisha asks with her fists on her hips, sounding almost incredulous.

「Yeah, they were. And they did. Since the evidence was overwhelming and the witnesses were plentiful, he was on the rope before his friend even got buried.」

Damian nods, briefly glancing into her ice-blue eyes.

「…Why did he do it?」

Cycelia finally speaks up, albeit very hesitantly. The two lock their gazes, looking at each other in brief silence.

「Nobody knows. In my village, it's a mystery to this day. The guards kept asking and asking, but he never told them. It's strange, because everyone thought he was a deeply religious man. So…」

The handsome student sigh, briefly lowering his head before his eyes return to Cycelia's.

「…Do you understand why I'm so wary about you now? You are nice, but I can't sense much danger from you, even though I know I should. Who's to say you're not another Derrick?」

Damian says with a serious face, and turns around, continuing onward. The girls lag behind a little, but rush to catch up.

「…Am I not nice?」

Neela asks, sounding almost upset. He clicks his tongue, and sighs as he looks at her over his shoulder.

「You are. You both are, I guess. It's just her that is a pest.」

He replies, and nods his head towards Tisha. She lets a huff out of her nose, rolling her eyes away with a smug smirk on her face. They continue onward, searching for signs of something unusual…

…

A few hours later, well into the night…

There is nobody left in the halls, except the four ghost hunters. In the relative silence, runic automata zip along the walls towards somewhere, their legs making the only sounds other than the echoing footsteps. Although nothing has happened for a long while now, and the group is weary from all the walking, they can't help but remain on edge. The atmosphere in the Academy's hallways is not conductive to relaxation at all, the glow of the levitating lamps is ominous, and none of them can shake the paranoid feeling that someone might be watching them.

「Heeeey, pants-shitter… Can we call it a night already? My legs hurt…」

Tisha asks, groaning and audibly fatigued. He looks over his shoulder at her, silent, although his mouth is scrunched to the side in frustration. Neela and Cycelia are not in any better state.

「…Fine. Let's finish this wing, and try again tomorro- Ah!」

Damian suddenly shouts out, startling the drowsy girls behind him as he begins backpedaling.

「What!? What!?」「Huh!?」「Did you sense something!?」

They chaotically ask. He pushes past them, and trips on his back.

「Something!… It's there! I can sense it! The same feeling!」

Wide-eyed, he points at an unassuming door nearby.

「The ghost?」

Tisha asks, looking at him with a sharp gaze of her ice-blue eyes. Terrified, he meets her gaze and nods his head in panic.

「We… We gotta get out of here!」

「But you said we're supposed to find it and fight it?…」

Cycelia asks, furrowing her brows over her shoulder while he's down at the floor.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

「Forget that! I'm not dying over a stupid bet!-」

Clack…

「Hrk!」

The quiet, yet comparatively immensely loud noise of the door handle being pressed down upon rips their attention away. Damian gasps in panic, almost choking on air. The three exchange frightened glances, with Cycelia being the second most scared person of the group. Neela and Tisha raise their hands, pointing their palms towards the door, standing at the ready in a dueling stance.

Crrrreaaaaaaaaaakkk…

While Cycelia's eyes dart between the two, and her hands aimlessly jump about in panic in an effort to find some use for themselves, the door slowly swings open.

「Shit! Shit! We gotta go!-」

Damian yelps out, scrambling up to his knees to jump up to his feet.

「…Straf?」「Straf?」「…It's you?」

The three girls utter out, completely stunned by Straf as he emerges from the room with his brows lightly raised above his bored eyes. There is a rectangular plate on his chest, hanging off the leather straps slung around his shoulders.

「Ah, Lia. I didn't expect to see you he- Tsk… What's this prick doing with you?」

Straf asks as he notices Damian huffing out large series of relieved gasps with his hands on his knees.

「Ahhh… It's just you… What are you doing here?…」

Damian asks, straightening out with one last large exhale.

「I am the one asking questions here… Lia said she's going to hang out with her friends. Why are you here? Huh!?」

Straf asks as he leans down, growling right into Damian's handsome face.

「Wha-? I was just-」

Damian tries to mumble out an explanation, but the presence coming from Straf is crushing even without his blessing.

「Straf! I meant him too! We're all friends!」

Cycelia comes to the rescue, chiming in. With his hands in his pockets, Straf straightens out, looking at her over his shoulder with his mouth aslant.

「…Is that true?」

He asks her friends, glaring at them both. A slight chill runs down their backs.

「Y- Yeah, I guess…」「Suppose so…」

Tisha and Neela meekly reply, lightly nodding their heads.

「H- Hey! I don't remember saying we're-!」

Damian protests, but Straf's glare snapping to him immediately silences him.

「…Well, yeah, I guess you could say we're friends… Yeah…」

He quickly shrinks, looking down and away from Straf's glare.

「That right?… C'mere, buddy.」

「Huh?」

Straf says, forcefully wraps his arm around, and pulls him roughly out of the girls' earshot. The three exchange confused looks, but remain where they are.

「We both know there's no being friends between a man and a woman. We are driven by biological impulses, and I'm sure you're a young boy with a whole lot of impulses. When someone can't control their impulses…」

He says, gesturing with his free hand as Damian obediently listens bearing a tight-lipped grimace on his face.

「…The society calls them psychopaths. Now, let me tell you something, buddy… I am not society, so I don't need to pretend I'm civilized. If you try to act on your impulses with the wrong friend…」

Straf extends his index finger, and looks at Damian with an exaggerated smile on his face.

「…You will have a great scientific mystery ahead of yourself. The title of that mystery is,「how did my legs end up up my ass?」and only you will be able to figure it out!」

He adds, painfully pressing his index finger into Damian's chest. Damian gulps nerviously, staring into Straf's oddly bored, yet amused eyes.

「With that in mind, which of the three do you want to act your biological impulses out with? You can pick any number from one to two, and there is only one wrong answer.」

Straf asks, spinning Damian around to face the girls, tightly gripping onto his shoulders.

「W- What are you talking about? I don't understand-」

「Tsk… Seriously, you're still going to pretend?… Look at their chests. That really does nothing for you? No impulses hitting any buttons there?」

Rolling his eyes, Straf clicks his tongue in frustration. He looks back at Damian with a tight-lipped expression on his face, and asks away, leaning in closer. Damian's eyes drift towards Cycelia's shirt.

「Hey. I said there is one wrong answer. Are you trying to fuckin' lose on purpose?」

Straf shoves his glaring face into Damian's field of view before he can even catch a proper look at Cycelia.

「What? No- I- I'm confused!」

Damian exclaims, loud enough for the girls to hear him, at least. The three look at each other, exchanging confused glances again.

「…Wait, it's not me misunderstanding and you're actually into men, right?-」

Straf's head perks up, and he asks with a concerned expression on his face, leaning away a little.

「No! No! What are you-!? What do you want from me!?」

Damian exclaims with his arms spread, now more frustrated than afraid of Straf. He once again wraps his arm around Damian's neck, and leans into whispering distance to his face.

「Alright, buddy, here's the deal. You're going to die tomorrow, don't ask how, or I will actually make it happen… You can pick one or two of the girls to come to your room, and you can do whatever for 24 hours…」

Straf explains, looking at the three girls with Damian. He then extends his index finger again.

「However!… Picking one certain girl from these three will lead to your premature demise, rather than another premature embarrassment. I'll give you a hint…」

He adds, then leans into Damian's ear, keeping his eyes locked on the girls.

「She has chestnut hair, green eyes, a really pretty face… roughly F-sized chest, and her name is Lia…」

Straf says, and straightens out, keeping his arm wrapped around Damian's neck like a python around its prey.

「With that in mind, which one will you pick? Can you figure out which one is the wrong choice… Buddy? Remember, you can pick up to two!」

Patpat!

「Khakhukh! Khukh!…」

Straf lightly pats Damian on his chest, causing him to lose his breath and cough from the force of the impacts.

《He isn't just a powerful mage… He's physically monstrously strong!》

Damian's terrified eyes look up at Straf's uncannily handsome smug face.

「Pick.」

He insists, and Damian reluctantly looks at his selection. The girls all tilt their heads, looking at the two with their brows furrowed.

「…Do I have to?」

He asks, bashfully looking aside.

「You don't… But one thing will lead to another, and your toes will be tickling your small intestine.」

Straf nonchalantly declares, holding his hand on Damian's shoulder like a proud father.

「Then… The blonde, I guess…」

Damian replies in a hushed voice.

「Ah! Good pick! I know a blue-eyed blonde as well, but she's kind of a bitch.」

「Well, this one is one too…」

Damian shrugs, looking at Straf with his mouth aslant, and visibly uncomfortable.

「Ah. So they're all like that, huh?… Shame. What's wrong with the other one?」

Straf asks, looking at Neela. She notices his gaze is focused on her, and she breaks eye contact, abashedly pursing her lips.

「Nothing. I'm just not greedy.」

Damian explains, and shrugs.

「Ah. Well, alright then, she'll come around eventually, anyway… Okay! Remember what I've told you! It's mission critical to the integrity of your legs!」

Pat!

Straf exclaims, and gives Damian a light pat on the back, sending him flying towards the girls.

Thud!

The handsome student flops flat on his face, causing the three to furrow their brows in concern.

「Urgh!… Bastard…」

Damian grumbles, picking himself up off the floor.

「…What is that on your chest, Straf?」

Cycelia asks, looking at the crystal-like plate hanging off his shoulders. There is one like drooping onto his back as well.

「Ah. This?…」

Straf says, patting the plate on his chest.

「…It's just a little prototype I've cooked up. One of my first magitech creations. Behold!…」

He exclaims, striking a pose with his hands spread and knees lightly bent so that he may lean backwards a little.

「Spell armor!」

Straf shouts with a proud grin, looking at the four. Perplexed, they look at his smug face, then look at the odd plate.

「…Isn't that just a spell shield, then?」

Tisha asks, and glances at Neela with her brows greatly furrowed.

「No! It's actual armor against spells! I am a genius!」

Straf replies, frustrated that his clever invention is not being sufficiently appreciated…