Nicole called her personal student's number.
It was past eleven in the morning. The day after the monthly evaluation was off from any lessons or club activities. However that only went for the students of that year but as a teacher her schedule remained the same.
Only after she got a breather did she get to call him. The matter was very serious so she would have preferred to inform him face to face and also accompany him later on. But she still had other work to do and the timing was truly not convenient for her so she had to resort to this.
Just a bit earlier she was informed by the vice principal's assistant about the meeting time for her personal student. She obviously decided to inform him as soon as possible. It was a private meeting with the vice principal, a noblewoman, so she surmised that he would need some time to mentally prepare himself.
The call was picked up few moments later and she greeted him before getting to the point,
“Blue, the meeting time has been decided. It is at one pm at the academy administration office main building. Be sure to go there a bit earlier, okay? Nobles are very attentive to punctuality. Don't leave behind a bad first impression.”
“I will be mindful of your advice.”
He replied and then conversed about some of his doubts regarding the things to be careful of during the conversation and such nuances. She replied while basing it on her previous experiences and the call dragged on till a reminder alert made her notice the approaching time for her next schedule.
“I need to hang up now. Be sure to be attentive there!”
“Alright, teacher. Have a nice day.”
She thus ended the call and headed out of her private office in the faculty management center. While going on her way to the destination she couldn't help but worry that the vice principal might not have called for him just to check his potential as a student.
A lingering worry of her priority on him being snatched couldn't help but surface.
°°°°
Blue introduced the trio to Horizon and let the horse explain the previous events that he had to go through because of “accidentally finding” the egg.
The trio was first shocked that the strangely oppressive and daunting horse could talk with them in their mind but they quickly adjusted to it as they focused on the story that unfolded, especially the part about his “abductor” who was still out there probably searching for him.
This naturally put a frown of worry on their faces but Blue didn't let them be stuck on it for long as he asked Laura to keep Horizon company when he wasn't there. She readily agreed as she was also very curious about this fascinating creature.
They kept talking for a bit more and later, Blue excused himself as he got a call from Nicole. He exited alone and picked up the call. The meeting he was waiting for was now confirmed and so he began to plan for it as he managed to squeeze some more information out of Nicole about that vice principal.
When the trio called for him, he went back inside to explain about the sudden schedule he had now. Unsurprisingly, Laura decided to stay inside instead of being in the cloud house. With a new conversation partner of a fantasy horse she wanted to better familiarize herself.
Clara had skipped her class lessons and was also planning to skip other compulsory subjects for today but after learning about his schedule she decided to attend the remaining lessons. There was also the matter of yesterday night and being around them right now was very awkward for her so she excused herself.
Karla however kept her mother company and wanted to probe about yesterday night as her mind still seemed to be restless.
With everybody on their way, he also prepared as he dressed in his usual black leather jacket to head half an hour earlier to his appointment.
At the academy administration office premises, he showed one of the drones his special permit for the meeting and it escorted him to a waiting room. He patiently waited there and about five minutes later, a man in his early thirties entered before introducing himself,
“Student Blue, it is a pleasure. I am the assistant of vice principal, Russell.”
“Nice to meet you, teacher Russell.”
“Haha, actually I don't teach in the academy so calling me assistant Russell is more appropriate. Anyways, the vice principal is busy with her work right now so I am afraid you will have to wait till the appointed time. I will keep you company for now.”
“I understand. Then may I ask why the vice principal wanted to meet me? Though I heard from teacher Nicole yet I can't help but worry if I have broken a rule or…”
“No, it isn't about any disciplinary action. She just valued your talent during the monthly evaluation. So she wanted to have a proper discussion about it.”
“Ah, I see. I am very grateful for such an opportunity. However I am afraid that I would somehow end up saying something uncouth as I am not well-versed in noble etiquette.”
“Our vice principal is very broad minded so you could rest assured for that point. Just be polite and mindful of your words when you meet her. Though from what I have seen till now, you will do fine so just be yourself.”
Russell complimented his demeanor with a nod of appreciation as he kept conversing with him for the remaining time. When it was close to one pm, he led him to a room where she received guests in the academy. It seemed that he had been able to leave a much deeper impression on her than he originally surmised.
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After the assistant opened the door for him, Blue saw the vice principal, Julie Auburn, for the first time face to face. He had to say that just the projection from back at the exam center wasn't able to fully express her beauty that greatly appealed to a human's taste.
She seemed to be in her early twenties. Her height was tall and her curves were graceful while the three sizes were modest. Her skin was pale white as if she suffered from anemia but obviously not. Her scarlet hair flowed gently behind her slim back. Her eyes were light blue and her eyelashes long, eyebrows slim. Her nose was sharp while her lips were thick and pink red. She wore a cyan frock which greatly accentuated her charms.
She was standing just a bit away from the door, giving him a nice view of herself. She stood on her spot as she moved her hand towards him with a calm face.
He naturally knew about this particular etiquette of player nobility so he calmly stepped forward and took her hand before moving his forehead to touch it. He waited for a moment and then seeing no rejection from her he raised his head and planted a soft kiss on her hand before taking a step back to stand in attention.
“I am pleasantly surprised that you took the effort to remember our etiquettes.”
“Lady Auburn, after being informed of your intention to meet me it would be disrespectful if I didn't show any of my sincerity.”
“Oh my, since I have received your sincerity then I also need to be a proper host today. Come, take a seat.”
She said with a slight smile on her face as she moved to sit on the main seat within the room. He respectfully took his seat a bit away from her.
“During the monthly evaluation yesterday I was very satisfied with your performance.”
“Thank you for your kind words. It is my fortune to be noticed by her ladyship.”
“Hmm, I also have to mention your manners and speech is very refined today. It seems you are taking this meeting very seriously for such dedication to my norm.”
“Thanks to teacher Nicole and assistant Russell's earlier guidance, I have learned to not embarrass myself for this meeting.”
“Haha, really now? Initially, I only wanted to have some discussion with you about how to better bring out your potential to the fullest but now I think it won't be appropriate to match your dedication to impress me today. In previous times, no students who I invited were up to your caliber. I should give an appropriate reward for such an ideal student.”
“Ah! Lady Auburn there's no need to trouble yourself over this. Just being in your noble grace is enough for me.”
“Fufufu, if you keep saying such things then it is counterproductive. Let's see… Do you remember when you first awakened and those impurities were expelled from your body?”
“Yes, your ladyship. I do.”
“Actually, there are hidden impurities in the body that still remain. There is a way to get rid of it but such a thing is only known to nobles… and maybe a few unusual commoners who had some fortuitous encounter, anyways, I will bestow upon you this opportunity to truly purify yourself. Just wait a bit. Russell, enter for a moment.”
She then called for the assistant and the guy promptly entered with a respectful expression. Julie thus instructed him to prepare the medicinal bath, that he actually had already used way earlier, and notify them when it is ready to be used.
“Lady Auburn, you are too kind to me. I will work hard to be worthy of this kindness.”
“Then keep studying seriously and enter the top three in the next monthly evaluation. How about that?”
“I won't disappoint.”
He said in a confident tone with a solemn expression. Obviously, his looks and many physique abilities were immensely helpful at getting her to be so favorable towards him at their first meeting. His delicate choice of words, eloquence, expressions, mannerisms and most importantly acting had compounded the effects further.
Though this medicinal bath was useless for him, he will have to play along for obvious reasons.
“Good. Are you aware of how the lessons will be conducted after the first monthly evaluation?”
“Yes, your ladyship. Teacher Walter informed us that we will focus on leveling up by doing activities that are related to the class we got.”
“Exactly, since you are in a combat class then you will be doing combat related activities for this second month. There is actually a prize for the student who can reach the highest level among their peers right before the second monthly evaluation. The prize is the usual academy points but a generous amount. By the way, how many academy points do you have now?”
“Umm, I have 440.”
“As expected of a top ten, oh wait, it should be top five now. A student in their first year will automatically have 500 points at the end of their term after the midterm test as long as they didn't get their points deducted for indiscipline. I have read your profile. Your girlfriend's elder sister is in the third year so I am guessing you had already learned from her about the total points needed for graduation, right?”
“Yes, your ladyship, I have inquired about this.”
“Then I don't have to explain it. With your talent graduating within a year is no problem even without the added bonus of that academy point reward so I will change it up for you. It will also serve as your motivation for this month.”
“I am ever grateful for your consideration.”
“Hmm. If you could achieve the highest level among the first year students this month then I will take you to the Mountain of Triumph for training. If you didn't remember, this facility is very important for our academy and there will also be an ordeal for the first year students, or it should be called pre-second year students at that time.”
“Though getting deep into the Mountain of Triumph is out of the question since principal's permission is required for it, even being able to train on the periphery is an immense boon for your current self.”
“This… if I get such a headstart then…”
“Hmm? Oh, you're a Paladin, after all. Let me give you some good advice, student Blue. You need to grasp all the opportunities that come your way. If you are hesitant then your path as a player will either stagnate or will be cut short. A little bit of selfishness to improve yourself further isn't unrighteous, you know.”
“However, this is also good. Not being covetous but considering fairness. With this personality, though your leveling progress would stagnate a bit but you will face less obstacles and more players will appreciate you.”
“...”
Blue kept silent as he showed a deep pondering look while keeping his head a bit lowered. However, he was obviously just sneering inwardly. Consideration about fairness?
What nonsense!
All of this was just to build up an image that was consistent with his plans. He would be the first one to scheme others to death if there was a fortuitous encounter for himself to grasp without any damages.
That being said, this conversation has been very fruitful. He obviously couldn't appraise her just like other teachers or faculty members in the academy but even without it he could tell just from the vastness of his experience that Julie's initial curiosity and impression towards him as an extremely handsome top prodigy had changed to a much more preferable version for herself.
This was all done even before the medicinal bath was ready for him.