Cadeus’s body felt much better when he woke up in the next morning. The deep tiredness he felt in both his body and mind yesterday was gone, replaced by a rejuvenated state buzzing with energy.

Normally he would be struggling to get out of the bed trying to deal with the normal body urge to continue sleeping, but that did not happen today. Today, he was able to wake up without any temptations to resume sleeping. That was good, this means that he was able to get a fulfilling rest last night.

With his eyes still opened, he suddenly noticed the lack of sunlight within the room. Usually, what woke him up would be the sunlight that shone in through the windows that he always forgets to close. But today, there was not much sunlight. The colour sky was dark sapphire, making it seem as if the sun just set in to pass the turn over to the moon.

He then looked at the clock at the side of his bed to confirm the time.

5:13 am

That’s way too early if you think about it.

If this was any normal day, in an hour’s time, he would have just awaked, start heading towards the baths, change, and wake up Nadav in time for Breakfast. But today, waking up an hour earlier disrupted the usual routine.

As he slowly sat up straight on his bed, Cadeus thought about what he should do now.

Should he go back to sleep?

Or should he stay awake?

If he chooses to stay awake, what should he do with this spare one hour?

Cadeus looked outside the window. The sun was just about to rise as the sky had hints of turning dawn blue. At this time, few students and members of the staff would be awake. The Academy would be mostly quiet and empty, the ideal kind of social environment Cadeus always favoured.

“Hm…”

Cadeus scratched his head. He could go back to sleep. However, he did not want to risk waking up late later. Cadeus soon came to the conclusion that sleeping again was definitely not a very good idea. Getting up, he decided to bath, change and head out for a morning walk.

TOA

The peaceful morning walk was interrupted in a matter of minutes.

As few people bother getting up at this hour, Cadeus thought that he could take his time to walk a few rounds around the campus to enjoy the cold morning breeze, some peace and quiet, and watch the sun slowly rise over the horizon.

But this rare peaceful moment of loneliness was soon terminated when Cadeus reached the middle of the pavement road linking the dormitories to Coral Hall.

While Cadeus slowly admired the scene, his thoughts were soon cut off when he felt someone’s presence at some distance behind him.

Well… to be more accurate, Cadeus heard footsteps, footsteps moving at a fast pace.

Someone was jogging... no running.

Turning around, he could see the silhouette of a person behind him, and that person was running towards him at a very fast pace.

Based on the figure of the silhouette, she’s a girl?

The girl continues to maintain her fast pace.

At the speed she’s going… was she going to be all right?

The reason why Cadeus was feeling slightly concerned, was because that girl did not seem to be aware of what could be in front of her. Her head was bent low, and her fringe kept swaying from side to side. She’s obviously not looking ahead.

It takes a lot of routine running to reach the stage whereby it’s easy to remember the road ahead. The paths, directions and the possible obstacles were all naturally determined through muscle memory. If she could run at that speed with everything in mind, she must have been an extremely regular morning runner.

It took several more moments before it occurred to Cadeus that there was a danger of her running into him. But once he had given some thought to it, Cadeus knew that that was never going to happen. The girl was not exactly running towards him, its just that she happened to be running along the same walking lane that he’s on. Besides, while the girl was running at the very centre of the walking lane, Cadeus was standing at the extreme left. She would not crash him, not unless she harboured the ill intent to do so.

Like what he expected, the girl ran past him. However, within that very instance when she ran past him, Cadeus recognized the face of the person who absent-mindedly ran past him without being aware of his existence.

Ok, perhaps not that absentminded, for it took around ten more steps until that girl realized she ran past someone she recognizes. Once she became aware of his existence, she instantly ceased running forward and quickly backtracked to confirm Cadeus’s face.

“Hm? Oh! It’s Cadeus. I knew I saw that face somewhere before. What are you doing so early in the morning?”

‘I knew I saw that face somewhere before’ huh…

As usual, She’s totally straightforward as always…

“Hi Rieze, I can see that you are running as usual.”

Wearing nothing but a black sleeveless tank top over a red sleeveless undershirt, with an extremely short sport dark blue pants, accompanied by a grey cotton jacket wrapped around her waist, the auspicious going girl’s name was Rieze Krustzugar. She’s a Zeffernon local born Dark Mage, and currently a first year student like Cadeus. If you want the simplest words to describe her, it would be energetic and straightforward. Having known her for the past three months, those were the only two words Cadeus could come up with to express this kind of girl he was acquainted with.

Calling her odd would be overdoing it, as she’s not entirely difficult to communicate.

“What are you doing running so early in the morning?”

“What do you mean? This is my usual routine run that I commit to everyday.”

“You wake up this early everyday to run? Wow.”

“It’s nothing much. Besides, I’m more interested in why are you up so early. In these past three months since I know you, this is the first time I am seeing you this early.”

“It’s nothing really. I just got up earlier that’s all.”

“Hm…”

Rieze crossed her arms.

“What time is it now?” she asked.

“Erm… 5:38 am?”

“For someone who always wakes up just before breakfast, today is very unusual indeed.”

“Is it?”

“Normally people who wake up very early just drop back to sleep. But you bothered to change and come down to take a long morning walk. All in all, I can think of only one reason why you would be up so early in the morning.”

“Really?”

What kind of unusual idea did she think of this time?

“You feel very bad about something that happened yesterday. Feeling guilty has robbed you of your sleep, hence you are spending time walking now to come up with an idea to resolve the issue.”

“Wrong.”

Totally wrong.

Seriously… how on earth could she come up with this sort of logic?

“Come on now, you can talk to me if something happens.”

“Why are you buying your conjured logic before confirming the actual situation?”

Seriously… she gets too straightforward at times…

“Hm? If that is the case, what are you doing up here so early in the morning?”

“True, I did wake up earlier than expected. But I thought that if I sleeping again, the chosen option might result in me waking up late later, which is definitely not good since being late does not serve you any good.”

“Oh… I see. So its not some psychological behaviour?”

“… What makes you think that this is a psychological behaviour?”

“When someone feels extremely guilty, psychologically he will not find peace until he resolves the issue. Waking up extremely early is a rather explicit expression of such a psychological outbreak due to the culmination of an unresolved event.”

“Where exactly did you read all of this?”

“I read it from a book that has been confiscated recently. That’s really strange. That writer seems to be highly confident that the behaviour is an express of severe psychological distress.”

“Please burn that book if you are not going to make any sense out of it.”

How on earth did she get her hands on such a book?

She was never a book person to begin with.

“Ah! I just remembered!”

“Hm? Did you forget something?”

“No, no, no. Just recently, I heard that you are one of the competitors for Procona Powder. Is that correct?”

“… Word seems to travel very fast. Don’t tell me that I have become something akin to a celebrity?”

“With that family name of yours, you are already one big celebrity. Is that correct?”

“Please… don’t remind me.”

This is getting nowhere. Cadeus changed the topic back to its original direction.

“Rieze, why did you mention Procona?”

“Well, I have been overhearing tons of stuff regarding that certain ingredient.”

“Yeah… I’m pretty sure.”

Well… given the taxing demand for such a common ingredient, its pretty obvious you would hear some news in regards to the current situation. Cadeus thought.

“So what have you been hearing?”

“I was not paying attention at that particular moment, but it seems that people are saying things in regards to Board Quests related to Procona. It could be rumours, but I think you might want to confirm on that.”

“Rumours?”

Cadeus mood swung for the worst. The very mention of the word ‘rumour’ brought back some pretty nasty memories.

As students need adult mages to commission Board Quests to earn their own keep in the world of Zeffernon, fully established mages also needed the help of students as well. Fully established mages usually did not return to the Academy campus once they have settled down in their various professions. They were too busy to accommodate time and effort to travel all the way back to the island.

However, being mages who had graduated from Triple Orb Academy, graduates would always remember two important things. First, there will always be students looking for odd jobs to earn extra pocket money. Second, certain ingredients could only be harvested in areas within Academy grounds, particularly that of the three Colour Sectors.

As such, Mages who were in need of extra help or ingredients would always commission Board Quests for the students to work or harvest the desired ingredients in their stead.

Students usually did not concern themselves with details of the commissioners or their works. Whenever it comes to Board Quests, the standard blissful setting would be to accept the quest, get the job done, submit all the necessary requirements and be rewarded.

However, when rumours start to circulate around the commissioners, or the Board Quest. Well… let’s just say nothing good never comes out of it, in most cases.

Bad things always happen whenever there were rumours regarding Board Quests or their commissioners, particularly before the Board Quest was completed. It’s a kind of jinx that was rather deeply circulated amongst the students in the Academy. At first Cadeus was reluctant to believe in all these sorts of phenomenal speculations. However, after a series of paranormal events within these past three months he had spent living in the world of magic, the word ‘jinx’ or ‘phenomena’ became a term Cadeus took seriously to the extreme.

Rumours were always built upon doubtful truths that were often swayed with implausible interpretations. If magic were at work, these rumours circulated by ill intentions would sometimes result in a jinx or a phenomenon curse.

Ever since Cadeus first set foot in a world where magic prevailed over science, he had experienced multiple events that involved various kinds of such phenomenal speculations and anticipations. It first started with the enrollment trials, then the events during Colours classes, and finally the Board Quests, whereby the ‘Mystical Box Quest’ left its heaviest mark. Cadeus was extremely lucky when Sing and Nadav were there to help him. If it weren’t for their experience in handling situations related to the immaterial, Cadeus would have been severely injured, or worse, dead.

Thus, Cadeus became someone who used to completely disregard jinxes, to someone who treats everything phenomenal and ominous with extreme caution. As such, whenever there was something he’s doing that might be jinxed, Cadeus always hoped that he’s not affected.

“Please… no rumours.”

“Hm… I think there was something else.”

“What? Oh no… please, not more rumours?”

“Ah! There is one more matter I think you ought to know.”

“Please, don’t say that it is a rumour.”

“I heard that you are involved in two fights recently too. Is that correct?”

…

…

…

“Huh?”

What’s with this sudden change of topic?

Cadeus was glad that there were no additional rumours, but how exactly did the conversation turn into this direction? Plus, how did she know of this? Those events only happened just yesterday.

“Um… ok, first off, let me make a slight correction. The correct number is one. I was involved in a fight yesterday in Tenebris Vacuum when the three idiots wanted trouble. However, the ‘second fight’ did not occur at all since Davian was there to make sure it didn’t happen.”

“Oh! So Davian was there. Did you get a warning from the Student Council?”

“Why would he give me a warning when I am not the instigator? Besides, these incidents just happened yesterday. Where exactly did you get all of these information?”

“Well Educator Cecilia off course.”

“Eh?”

Then, it came to Cadeus’s head.

“Oh right. Educator Cecilia… I forgot that she is your Educator.”

Educator Cecilia was one of the five Educators in Tenebris Vacuum. She’s the Educator who was responsible for overseeing Rieze’s class, which happened to be the only all girls class in Tenebris Vacuum. Aside from being an Educator, Educator Cecilia also had a secondary Specialization as a Dark Apothecary. She was one of the few Educators who served as the Academy’s nurses, tending to any needs should someone get landed in the infirmary. Should any student get any sickness or injury, she would always be there to patch things up.

Since she was a Dark Mage, she often had to deal with the notorious numbers of Dark Mage students who landed up with a few broken limbs due to countless pointless fights and other incidences that happened both within and sometimes outside the Academy. If there were any Dark Mage that landed in the infirmary, she would be the one who deals with them. That was one of the main reasons why she was so updated with news of recent events, especially those about fights sparked by Dark Mage students or those that get involved with them.

Her careful tending and knowledge of such matters eventually led her to be a constant consulting witness for the Discipline Committee, who often drop by her office to collate information that might help them in finding the true culprit who was the cause of upstart fights.

“Shit… was Educator Cecilia complaining about it?”

“Nah. She wasn’t exactly complaining about it.”

“But she was talking about it. Am I right?”

“Pretty much. I just happen to be there when she mentioned your name to Viegra.”

“Wait, hold on. She was not talking to you?”

“Not exactly.”

Not exactly?

“So… you eavesdrop on her?”

“No I did not. I was just overheard her when she was talking about it.”

“… Isn’t that just the same as eavesdropping?”

“Wrong. Eavesdropping means that you are intentionally trying to listen secretly to a conversation behind the backs of the conversers. I was not there with any intentions of listening secretly behind Miss Cecilia’s back.”

“Right… so let’s say you overheard it accidentally.”

“I did overhear it accidentally.”

“So… did Educator Cecilia mention anything in stall for me?”

“Well… from what I recall, she definitely did not place you at fault. Though the second fight did not become a fight, you definitely gave her extra work to do with the first fight.”

“I see… that’s rather safe.”

“But she did mention how you have this awful habit of giving your all to put your opponents into total knock out.”

“Irrelevant. Wait…”

After rewinding the conversation in his head, Cadeus realized that she mentioned another critical piece of information.

“Did you just mention that Educator Cecilia was talking to Viegra?”

“Yes? Is that correct? I did mention her did I?”

That’s bad, very bad.

Cadeus did not like the sound of it.

“… Why would Educator Cecilia be talking to the Head of the Disciplinary Committee?”

“Sorting out fights is the Disciplinary Committee’s job. I guess Viegra probably heard about the fights that you are involved in.”

“Yes I know that, but why Viegra specifically? Why does she have to hear about this?”

“I don’t know. Maybe she’s just there because she happens to be there?”

“… This situation is so not good at all.”

In seeing Cadeus slightly worked up just over the mention of Viegra, Rieze gave him a pat on the back.

“Relax. You are not the instigator this time. The Disciplinary committee only deals with idiots who instigate fights. Am I correct?”

“Yes… Thanks, that sounds very assuring.”

“No problem.”

“So… did Viegra mention anything about me?”

“Hm… well, all I know is that she already placed you in her tracking list.”

“Shit. That means that I am already noted am I?”

“I think Viegra probably noticed you already a long time ago. I mean, with your family name and all.”

“Rieze, you are not exactly helping here.”

For once, Cadeus moaned openly. Cadeus was fine if Educator Cecilia is talking to some random person who’s part of the Disciplinary Committee. The usual members of the Disciplinary Committee were not entirely bothered once the situation had been resolved, but Viegra? The Head of the Disciplinary Committee? Viegra was bad news, very bad news. Especially when you were the one who’s her current target of disciplinary enforcement.

“Rieze, can I at least hear a guarantee that Viegra won’t take my head?”

“Hm… nah. I don’t think so. Viegra does not seem that interested in you to the point where she will keep tabs on you. Besides, I’m sure she has tons of delinquents to look after. Besides, if Viegra ever comes looking for you, I think it’ll just be a warning. She only acts and deals disciplinary actions only when some idiots refuse to listen to her.”

“… Thanks. That’s pretty nice to hear.”

Rieze proceeds to stretch her legs.

“Well, I need to start running again or else my adrenaline will go down. I’ll see you at breakfast later.”

“Oh… right. I’ll see you then.”

Ending this conversation, Rieze started dashing fast down the walking lane. Leaving Cadeus rooted to the ground to observe her disappearing silhouette.

The time now should be…

Cadeus took out his pocket watch.

6:34 am

It’s already approaching the time where he usually gets up.

By now, the other students should already start to wake up. It should be a good idea to return to the dormitory. Or perhaps, he could enjoy a couple ten more minutes?

Hm…

Cadeus could just walk straight to Coral Hall, but out of customary obligation, he decided to go back to the male dormitory. Waking up Nadav was usually his job. This was because whenever Nadav wakes up late, the usual morning pace will suddenly speed up very quickly when Cadeus had to get him back on schedule.

There might still be some distance to cover in order to get back to the boys dormitory, but Cadeus was confidant that he will still be punctual. Even if Cadeus takes his time, he would not be counted as late. Besides, he had already changed and ready to proceed to Coral Hall.

Keeping his pocket watch, Cadeus turned and started walking back towards the boy’s dormitory.

TOA

Cadeus knocked hard on Nadav’s door three times, and it was immediately answered.

“You sure took longer than usual to get to my door.”

“You sure took faster than usual to get ready for Breakfast.”

“You are five minutes late.”

“You woke up before I came.”

“Right… this morning is full of abnormalities.”

“Just say that today seems unusual. You better not accidentally jinx something like what happened last time during the ‘Mystical Box Quest’.”

“Oh… right… What took you so long today?”

“Long?”

“I mean. You always show up on time.”

“And you? It always take me five minutes of pounding on your door, ten minutes to get you out of the bed, and fifteen minutes to wait for you to get ready to move to Coral Hall. If you ask me, I’m the one who is surprised.”

“I dunno… just happen to wake up full of energy.”

“I see… please keep up this standard. You will save me a lot of energy.”

“Oi! That’s mean!”

“No, I’m just direct.”

“So what about you? You sure took your time.”

“Woke up an hour early, decided to take a walk.”

“A walk? Seems too damn long for a simple walk.”

“It’s quite a rare moment to wake up early, so I thought I would take my time. Before I knew it, it sure took longer than expected to admire the Academy during a quiet morning.”

“Right… knowing you, you love quiet places so I shan’t comment.”

“Thank you.”

“Did you take the opportunity to steal a peek at the girl’s dorm?”

“Sigh… Why are you bringing this up?”

“Well, it’s a whole quiet morning on the outside. I can picture a very nice scene, where – ”

“Shut it, before I am forced to shove my fist into your face.”

“Oh come on! It’ll be an adventure!”

“The only adventure I see is getting thrown into the detention room.”

“Avoiding the detention room is easy. All we need to do is not get caught.”

“And what? Do you realize that if we get caught doing something this outrageous, we’d get expelled?”

“It’ll be fine! Next time we get the opportunity to wake up early, we’re going to the girl’s dorm to take some sneak shots!”

“Good luck. I’m not going.”

“Tch! You are no fun.”

Cadeus ignored that. Coming back to the matter at hand, the time is already past 7:00 am.

“Come on. I bet Sing is already waiting for us.”

“Right, right. Lead the way. I’m right behind you.”

TOA

After getting breakfast, the two of them went for their usual spot. However, when they approached their usual sitting area inside Coral Hall, Sing was not there at all.

“Funny…” Nadav said.

“Yes… where is Sing?” Cadeus followed.

The two of them glanced around the entire hall, hoping to see her silhouette somewhere near the food station or the spot that it’s usually taken by White Mages.

But…

“She not there.”

“Yes… and she’s also not there.”

“Where could she be? She’s usually earlier than the two of us.”

“Maybe she went to get something. Never mind, let’s just wait first. She’ll show up eventually.”

The two of them waited for ten minutes, but still no sign of the last member. With breakfast getting cold, Nadav’s stomach could not hold out much longer.

“Shit, I’m hungry.”

“No you don’t. We wait for Sing before we start, bear with it.”

“But Sing is still not here, and do you know what makes matters worse?”

“Your stomach?”

“Well that’s an answer but not the one I have particularly in mind.”

“Which is?”

“Sing is late, and Sing was rarely late. Can’t you see any implications?”

“Hm…”

Cadeus gave a thought.

“If Sing will not be joining us, knowing her, she would sent someone who is already on their way here to inform us to carry on without her.”

“But no one came to us.”

“Correct. That means…”

“That means, what?”

“If she was in trouble or injured, she would also ask someone to inform us. Which means…”

“Yes?”

“Nadav, what time did we left the girls dorm yesterday?”

“Just before lights out?”

“What time does Sing sleep usually again?”

“10:30 pm sharp, but what does sleep got to do with any of this?”

To answer Nadav’s question, Sing appeared dragging herself to her usual seating opposite the two of them.

“ *Yawn* Good morning.”

At the very instance she sat down, she leaned towards the table and stretch herself. Then she wrapped her arms underneath her chin and nested her head to rest, eyes closed.

As they saw this abnormal display in front of their eyes, Cadeus and Nadav initiated another of their private conversations.

“Hey… She yawned.”

“Yup.”

“She did not get breakfast before sitting down.”

“Yup.”

“She’s sleeping on the desk.”

“Yup.”

“She even got dark circles underneath her eyes.”

“Yes Nadav, I can see all that.”

She arrived without getting breakfast, folded her arms, made an attempt to sleep on the table and she even got dark circles under her eyes. Clearly, the Sing this morning is not the usual Sing the two of them know very well.

With all the abnormalities indicated in front of them, the two friends both looked at each other and came to a common conclusion. There’s only one cause for Sing’s current unusual behaviour.

““She definitely stayed up late last night, again”” The two said together.

“Obvioiusly. Sing’s a living schedule. She rarely sleeps past 10:30 pm.”

“Could it be due to over reading in regards to the powder making?”

“It could be… but she’s a fast reader…”

In seeing that Sing is not very keen on shifting her current position, Cadeus could only take the initiative to start a conversation.

“Um… Sing, are you ok?”

Sing spoke back without even raising her head in a rather lethargic tone.

“Cadeus, be a good man and get me some breakfast.”

She did not even look up… now that means something.

“Um… ok? What do you want?”

“Two large sized German sausages and three upsized American pancakes. For the pancakes, I want two scoops of butter and three scoops of syrup. Oh, and help me get two cups of milk.”

Cadeus and Nadav looked at each other again.

That’s a lot of calories for a girl’s morning breakfast. For as long as they both knew her, Sing rarely ate this much during breakfasts. But when she did, it’s either she overworked herself in the previous night, or the night before was not a night she wants to remember, the former being the more likely.

Since asking further would not be radically ideal, Cadeus could only get up from his seat. In seeing this opportunity, Nadav edged in a request of his own.

“Oh Cadeus. Get me some eggs as well.”

“It better not be three eggs again.”

Nadav opened his mouth to respond, but since Cadeus guessed the right number of eggs, he suddenly lost the right words to say.

“… You’ll only get one.”

“Geh! At least help me take two.”

Cadeus pointed at Nadav’s breakfast plate.

“You already have two eggs lying down there. That is way too many eggs for the morning. Plus, recently you have been eating five eggs per day. That is definitely way too much. If you want a fourth egg, just get it yourself.”

“Tch! Shouldn’t have trusted this asshole.”

Ignoring Nadav’s cockiness, Cadeus left for the food station.

TOA

Meanwhile, at the other side of the hall…

“Sigh…” Susan rested her head on her folded elbows.

“What’s wrong Susan?” Padrela asked.

“What am I going to do?”

“Do about what?”

“The sandwiches.”

“Hm? Oh… you mean the three different types you made two nights ago?”

“Yes…”

“They look nice, you even made me try a sample. They are very good.”

“Yes but that is not the problem.”

“Hm?”

Having a ‘?’ appearing above her head, Padrela could not help but tilt her head in confusion. While she was trying to find an answer to her friend’s plight, Susan suddenly tilted her head towards her.

“What am I going to do Padrela? What if he does not like them?”

Padrela is still trying to figure out what was tormenting her friend. However, from the instance Susan mentioned the word ‘he’, she immediately knew who Susan was talking about.

“Before we continue this conversation, you are talking about Cadeus aren’t you?”

“… Yes.”

“I don’t understand. Haven’t you passed him the sandwiches already?”

“Yes.”

“So? If Jouna and I are happy with it, I see no reason why he wouldn’t like it.”

“But when we saw him yesterday, he did not mention a single word about it. Oh no… what am I going to do?”

Susan started scratching her hair with both her hands. In seeing her friend in such disarray, Padrela paused for a moment and thought about the possible outcomes Cadeus would have in response to the sandwiches.

“From what I have seen so far, Cadeus does not seem to be a bad person. Even though the sandwiches may not taste good, I’m sure Cadeus will appreciate the effort you spent.”

Susan looked back at Padrela.

“Really?”

“I’m sure of it. Look, you even bought one of those expansive food boxes to preserve the sandwiches. I’m sure Cadeus would take your presentation into account. He is not that bad for a person right?”

Padrela thought that she said the right words to encourage her friend. However, the deduced response failed to lighten up Susan’s mood.

“Sigh… I should have asked him about it when we bumped into him yesterday.”

Just when Padrela wanted to say something that might encourage her, Jouna swooped down her breakfast plate and gave Susan a slap on the back.

“Yo! Morning.”

“Jouna, eating five upsized pancakes with an abundance of butter and syrup is going to make you fat.” Padrela commented.

“It’s ok, no problem~. I burn more calories than the two of you combined anyway.”

Totally uninterested in the current conversation, Susan merely rested her head and sighed again

In seeing her mood so down, Jouna could only have a ‘?’ appear on her head.

“Did something happen?” she asked Padrela.

“She’s worried about her guy.”

“Ah! You mean Cadeus? What’s the issue?”

“Do you remember the three sandwiches Susan made?”

“Yes? What about them?”

“Apparently Susan gave them to Cadeus yesterday and now she’s worried about his opinion.”

“Really? Come on Susan. What’s there to worry? If your sandwiches are good enough to make me want to have a sixth helping, why would someone like Cadeus not like them?

“You don’t understand Jouna. Sigh…”

“Ah… but we saw him yesterday. He’s fine.”

“He’s not thinking about the sandwich at that point of time…! What if he has not even eaten them yet? Ah! What should I do?”

Unlike Padrela who is still trying to find a way to encourage her friend with words, Jouna quickly lost interest in Susan’s emotional crisis. Looking around to satisfy her current boredom, Jouna suddenly got a glimpse at a certain Dark Mage they are just talking about. He is alone, and he is heading to the buffet station.

“Oh! I think I see a chance!”

“Hm?”

Following the direction of Jouna’s gaze, the two of them could see Cadeus approaching the buffet station.

In seeing this new opportunity for interaction, Jouna grabbed Susan by the shoulders and dragged her up to her feet.

“Come Susan! Let’s go get your man!”

“Eh? W-Wait! What are you – ”

TOA

Two large German sausages, three pancakes, three scoops of syrup, two scoops of butter, two glasses of milk and one last egg for Nadav. Cadeus repeated the sequence as he used the provided tong to gather the dishes. When he was done, he took one last look at the buffet station to see if he really needs anything else.

Guess not…

He was about to head back when two familiar faces blocked his path.

“Morning Cadeus.”

“M-Morning.”

It’s Jouna and Susan again, but for some reason Padrela is absent from their group, and Susan does not seem to be in her usual self.

“Good Morning. That’s odd, where’s Padrela?”

“Oh! You noticed Padrela is missing! Yay! She’s going to be happy!” Jouna exclaimed.

“… It’s no big deal. It’s just that I imagined that the three of you will always be together.”

“Yup! Best friends for the win! We’ll definitely say something like that if we are still on Earth.”

“Yes… except that we are not on Earth right now.”

“So, I take it that the grey guy yesterday survived?”

Cadeus knew instantly that she’s talking about Nadav.

“He did, barely though.”

“Oh lucky him. Did you guys ran into the Warelock?”

Though it was not easy to notice, there is a slight indirect implication that she meant ‘oh, that’s a shame’ in her first three words earlier. It was hard to tell if she is being intentional or just looking for amusement. Cadeus felt that it leaned towards the latter, but he eventually decided to let the matter slide.

“Well, we did came across a canine, but I’m not too sure whether that’s the Warelock.”

“Hm… if the two of you managed to leave the forests without that much of scratch I’d say that’s not the Warelock.”

“Perhaps.”

Jouna took a peek at the huge plate Cadeus is holding.

“Wow, you really eat a lot Cadeus.” She said.

“… Still not as much as you Jouna.” Susan added.

“Hey! You can’t blame someone for having a huge appetite in the morning.”

Seeing such a friendly scene in front of him could only bring a smile to Cadeus’s face.

“Jouna, you misunderstand. This it not for me.”

“Oh really? Who is it then?”

“Most of it is for Sirena, the rest is for Nadav.”

Upon hearing Sirena’s name, Susan twitched her left eyebrow slightly.

“Cadeus… you help to bring breakfast for that White?”

“Yes, just for today.”

“Why are you already around for that White?”

“Sigh… Susan, stop calling her that.”

Susan just gave him the ‘you better not talk back to me’ face.

Uh oh…

Better back off just a little bit here.

“There is nothing wrong with that. I’m just stating a fact. She’s White. What’s wrong with that?”

“…”

Cadeus could not find any will to make a counter statement.

Jouna on the other hand, is not that entirely bothered with the fact that Cadeus is hanging out with someone who has a different colour of magic. Mages who originate from Earth are not entirely sensitive to the colour discriminative issues that Mages from Zeffernon would have. While being totally oblivious to the current topic at hand, Jouna indirectly changed the topic.

“Three upsized pancakes? Is that all she’s taking?”

“Um… not exactly three pancakes. The two large sausages are also for her.”

“Does she eat so much?”

“No. Today is an exception. It seems she pulled up an all nighters last night. She tends to get extra hungry in the next morning when she does that.”

“I see… anyways, do you want to hear an interesting rumour?”

“Rumour?”

“It has something to do with your board quest.”

Now at that, Cadeus gave a slightly serious expression. The sudden shift in topic suddenly rose what Rieze mentioned earlier. In his mind, Cadeus thought that now might be the time to ask some serious questions.

“… What’s the story?”

“Ok listen, there are two parts to this. The first part has to do with the commissioners.”

“The commissioners? What did the commissioner did this time… wait. You said commisioner(s). You stressed the ‘s’, does that mean that more than one commissioner is involved with this?”

“Yup, a whole group of them to be more precise.”

“A whole group?”

Cadeus is not liking the sound of that.

“So what about the commissioners? Are they dubious personals?”

“No, no, no, none of those kinds. You see, different people write all sorts of commissions correct?”

“Yes.”

“Ok, so due to the sudden large number of procona requests, the general idea of the current situation is that various kinds of Alchemists are in great need of Procona because of some supply crisis, Procona Fever.”

“I can see that everyone is getting well informed with the news.”

“Ah but you see, the rumours seem to state things differently.”

“How so?”

“Well, people are saying that the commissioners behind the quests behind Procona Powder are all mostly false names.”

“False names?”

Now that sounded very dubious.

“Word has been going that an unknown group of Alchemists are giving multiple Board Quests for the powder. They commission the quests in a multiple fashion under false names, but at the end of the day, this unknown group will get all the powder there is to have.”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

“Where did all this speculation originate?”

“Well, you have been in the thick of this Procona issue. Have you heard anything about a particularly expressive group that has been on the wild hunt for Procona?”

Cadeus suddenly thought about what the first shopkeeper said yesterday when he was in Demerith’s Street.

“Wait… something does not make sense. Why go through such lengthy methods just to get one ingredient? Are we looking at market competition?”

“Hm… for as far as I know, the main problem behind this is that Alchemists always have a limit in regards to the amount of ingredients they can get from trading, harvesting and from Board Quests.”

“By limit you mean law?”

“Yup. It’s an annual limit set up by the High Council in order to control the market ingredient stock.”

“Wow… I thought that the High Council is all about politics. I didn’t know that they take care of the economy too.”

“I doubt they care too much about economy. It’s the High Council’s way of controlling the ingredient market in case things got out of hand. Besides, I am not too sure how the High Council settles things, but part of it does deal with the ingredient stocks. But that’s a fact you might want to confirm.” She added.

Hm… It seems that Jouna was not totally in the know on how the High Council roughly operates.

But regardless, the current conversation was falling astray. Cadeus decided to be Jouna back on topic.

“So… coming back to the topic at hand.”

“Yes, so if we follow this speculation, it means that some Alchemists are going way above the annual limit chart.”

“Or at least a group of them are.”

“Well you how it is, such groups are obviously courting for trouble. Getting ingredients beyond the limit count is something akin to breaking a minor law.”

“What can you do with so much powder?”

“Who knows? Maybe they are intending to make a nuke.”

“… You can’t make a nuke with Procona. You need uranium. Wait… are you telling me you can make a nuke with Procona?”

“Hm? Oh no, no, no. I’m just joking.”

That is not one assumption you ought to be joking about Jouna… Cadeus thought.

“What’s the second part of the rumour?”

“There are speculations that the High Council is going to enforce a temporary ban on Procona Powder.”

“…”

“…”

“… What?”

“You heard me, a temporary ban.”

“What the heck? Did they mention any reason?”

“No reason. Like I said, speculation. The High Council did not ban Procona yet.”

“But I thought that Procona is an effective alchemical medium. Why would the High Council ban such a necessity?”

“Who knows? Maybe it is to control such groups who were keen on getting mass quantities that is beyond what they ought to have.”

“But if you ban an ingredient, you affect the whole alchemical society. Plus, haven’t the High Council already banned another list recently? The Alchemists in the capital are already quite edgy in regards to this new change. If the High Council bans another key ingredient…”

Cadeus did not finish his statement, but Jouna seems to understand where he was going. However, a speculation is still a speculation. Jouna shrugged her shoulders and waved her palms out to give the ‘I don’t know’ posture.

“I’ve already said it, the rumour on the ban is speculation. It has not happened, it might happen, maybe it even won’t happen.”

“Hm…”

“But if I were you, I’d better get all the powder I can get before the rumours turn into true events.”

“… You’re just one girl full of all kinds of information aren’t you?”

“Hehe~ I just like these kinds of things.”

It took several more seconds before Cadeus remembered what he was holding all this while.

“Oh shucks… I better be getting back to pass these over.”

“Oh right… you better do. Whoever is supposed to eat that sure is going to be very hungry.”

“Don’t remind me about it. I’ll see you guys later in Tenerbis Vacuum.”

“Sure, see you.”

With that, Cadeus left. Though it would take him a couple more minutes to realize that Susan remained quiet for most of the conversation.

TOA

As Jouna watched Cadeus back, she turned to Susan and made one reproaching comment.

“In the end, you did not ask him about the sandwiches.”

“Yes…”

“What’s wrong with you?”

Susan instantly shot Jouna the ‘who’s really to blame’ look.

“Woah… what’s with the ice?”

“What’s with the ice? Have you spared a thought to think about what you just did?”

“… Am I at fault?”

“You think? You just took the entire conversation from me!”

“Woah, woah. Chill… let’s take one step back and relax.”

“Relax?”

Perhaps Jouna chose the wrong time to say ‘relax’, as Susan’s mood turned for the worst.

“You were supposed to help me ask about the sandwiches! How did the conversation shift to his Board Quest?”

“Well… you had trouble finding the right words so I just brought up a random topic in the hopes that you will regain your confidence to ask.”

“And your random topic got his undivided attention. Do you think I could interject when you two were talking about something serious? Plus, you end up helping him in the process! How is that going to help me?”

“But I wasn’t hitting on him that’s for sure… uh oh.”

Jouna instantly regretted saying that. She had to look away in order to avoid Susan’s accusing gaze.

“W-Well… not all is lost. Look, you have colour class again later right?”

“Yes?”

“Then don’t you have plenty of opportunities to ask him about the sandwich?”

“But I can’t ask him directly…”

“You can. Ask, and it shall be received, or don’t ask and remain forever in the dark.”

“But what if he does not like the sandwiches?”

“Sigh…”

Faced with a friend who is so indecisive when it comes to matters regarding the famous ‘L’ word, Jouna can only place her palm on her forehead. Seeing Susan in such distress, Jouna could only try to help her come up with an idea.

“Tell you what, why don’t you make another batch and present it to him? You can ask about the previous sandwiches while you do it.”

“How am I exactly going to do that?”

“Why don’t you do something along the lines of ‘Hi Cadeus, how are the sandwiches I made for you the last time? I made another batch. Would you like to give it a try?’ or something similar?”

“… What if he refuses?”

“I don’t think he is the kind of person who would refuse a generous offer. All the more since he knows you, and If he did refuse, I’ll put a curse on him.”

“I don’t know… I can’t bear the thought of…”

“Of what? Cadeus rejecting the sandwiches?”

Susan gave a weak nod.

“Come on now Susan, it’s not like he’s outright rejecting you. You haven’t even confessed.”

“… I know…”

Oh gosh. Now she looks even more dejected.

Jouna racked her brains to give Susan some encouragement.

“Ok, let’s put the plan for some other time. Why don’t you start by just making three more sandwiches?”

“And let them all end up in your stomach?”

“Hey hey, there’s no need to get so worked up.”

“Do you know how much effort I put into making sure you did not mistake the final products for the prototypes?”

“Ouch… that hurts.”

“Besides, I’ll need to use that preservative box again… oh!”

Susan grabbed her hair with her hands.

“I forgot! I passed that box to Cadeus and I forgot to ask him to pass me back!”

“Then just go and ask him for it. There is nothing wrong about taking back what is yours. Perhaps that could be another opportunity to ask him about the sandwiches.”

“I… I don’t know…”

“Sigh… I can’t believe I’m seeing this. Susan!”

“Yes?”

Jouna grabbed her by the shoulders and gazed straight into her eye.

“When you ask him for the box, you ask him about the sandwiches got it? I’m not going to take a no for an answer this time you hear me?”

“Y-Yes!”

“Good.”

Satisfied, Jouna released her grip on an intimidated Susan.

“Jouna… you can be quite scary at times.”

“Susan, I’m going to be very honest with you. If you remain indecisive and fail to confess, one day another girl could beat you to it and she might be the one who gets all of Cadeus’s affections.”

“That’s… not possible. Many people do not like Cadeus.”

“Not true, I find him cute. That means that you are not the only one who might develop any keen interest in… don’t look at me like that Susan, you know precisely what I’m talking about.”

“…”

It seems that Susan got the wrong end of the message, but thankfully Jouna managed to get her actual message through.

“Look… my point is, don’t hesitate to approach him and ask for the box. The box is yours isn’t it?”

“Yes…”

“Then isn’t it natural to ask for it back?”

“Yes…”

“All I am asking is for you to ask about the sandwiches when you do. Simple?”

“Yes…”

“Good. Just take this one step at a time.”

“You sound so confident Jouna… have you ever been in a relationship before?”

“No… but I have seen a lot of cases back in my hometown. I can get a lot of case reference.”

“…”

“You just said ‘how helpful is this friend going to be’ in your head but I’m going to ignore it. In any case, priority number one is to ask Cadeus about the sandwiches while getting your box back got it?”

“Yes…”

“Once you have established a strong relationship in the future, then will we think of something.”

“We?”

“We all will. You, me and Padrela. We’ll all come up with the perfect scenario.”

“What for?”

“What for? For you to confess of course!”

At that very remark, Susan’s face turned bright red.

“C-Confess?”

“Hey. Don’t look at me like that. He’s your man isn’t he? You have to act decisively at the right moment, or you’ll miss the boat forever.”

Susan suddenly just stood there as if she just entered a long period of shock, but when she recovered, it was clear that she’s aware of what she had to do in future.

“Ok. I got it. But if you are going to help me again, you better not repeat what you did just now.”

“Before I promise I want to confirm again. What do you mean when you said just now?”

“Getting all his attention.”

“Yeah sure. I promise.”

On an off handed note, Jouna decided that Susan must never know about Cadeus’s visit to the girl’s dormitory yesterday.

Based on what she had seen so far, Jouna was positive that Susan’s the kind who gets pesky if she sees the boy she likes getting attracted to other women.

If Susan gets the wind of it, not only would Cadeus be affected, but she and Padrela would never hear the end of it.

TOA

Sing was clearly not looking very happy when Cadeus got back. She really gave him a pure ‘I’m hungry and angry’ look and even puffed her own cheeks in irritation.

“Yes I know. I’m late, you’re hungry, and I’m sorry… wait did I just did an end rhyme?”

“Who cares Cadeus? Can you please put the plate down?”

“Oh… sorry.”

An angry Sing was never someone you want to cross. Cadeus quickly laid the plate in front of her and let her start eating on her own. But from the moment he did so, he and Nadav witness yet another sight of Sing that they were only privileged to see as her very close friends.

Whatever happened last night, it clearly left Sing extremely hungry and it gave her an appetite enormously unusual for a girl of her age. At the very instance Cadeus laid the plate in front of her, Sing started gorging nonstop. She instantly sliced a large portion of her pancake and chewed furiously, she tore through the large sized sausages and gobbled down her two glasses of milk. In a flash, she was already done with cleaning up her plate.

“I’ll be back.” She added.

The next thing Cadeus and Nadav knew, Sing immediately got out of her chair and left the table for the buffet station, obviously craving for more food.

Leaving them stunned, Cadeus and Nadav could only look at each other.

The previous night must have been a very tedious night for Sing, as she’s totally not her usual elegant self.

Realizing that staying stunned would only make breakfast colder, Cadeus eventually went back to filling his stomach. While he did so, Nadav began his interrogation.

“So, that’s quite some time you spent.”

“What do you mean?”

Nadav gave him a playful sneer.

“Don’t playing dumb. We both saw you talking to Susan and Jouna.”

Cadeus could already read Nadav’s mischevious thoughts. He sighed and gave Nadav one single word before continuing his breakfast.

“No.”

“No?”

“No, and don’t you dare start thinking of any funny ideas.”

Watching his friend chewing his food, Nadav was not satisfied.

“Come on, spill the beans. Jouna asked you out didn’t she?”

“Why is it that girls and relationships are the only things you are capable of thinking?” Cadeus uttered.

“Ha! Think you can avoid this? Fess up now Cadeus, before Sing gets back. Which girl did you have in mind?”

“None.”

“None? Come now Cadeus. At this rate, you’ll never get a girlfriend by summer break. Do you want your mother to keep you out of the house?”

“What kind of mother shuts her own son out for not bringing back a girlfriend?”

“Um… For as far as I know, your mother seems like the only kind of mother who would do that. Are you sure you don’t want to risk it?”

“… True.”

Cadeus could not argue against that, whenever it comes to the subject of girlfriends, his mother can get very… enthusiastic.

“Never mind, it’s ok. If I can’t get a girlfriend by summer break I’ll just refrain from going back to Earth.”

“Um… isn’t that a little harsh on your mother?”

“Isn’t she the one who’s harsh to begin with? Besides, why are you so keen in my relationship issues?”

“Nothing, just helping your mother do some spot checking.”

Cadeus gave Nadav a disapproving glare.

“My mother did not ask for your help so don’t.”

“Would you like me to call her to ask?”

“If you do, I swear I will punch you.”

“Ouch… I guess I better not volunteer than…”

This current conversation seems to be going nowhere, so Nadav decided to change the subject.

“So… if you are really not going back to Earth during summer break, where will you stay?”

“Maybe the Academy to do some side jobs, or maybe I’ll head over with you to your grandmother’s.”

“Hm… that’s not a bad idea. Grandma always welcomes extra company. You’ll get to enjoy her famous scones. Oh!

I can even get to introduce you to Cassandra! Wait… that… actually might not be a good idea.”

“Really? Why?”

“I already have you in the Academy to beat me back to shape. I don’t need double punishment when I get home.”

“Oh wow…”

Cadeus immediately developed a sense of respect for this Untouched girl named Cassandra. If she could reign Nadav’s nonsense in without being able to use magic, she must really be one special kind of a girl.

“Sounds like this Cassandra of yours had a rough time reigning your nonsense in.”

“I’m going to ignore that.”

Sing soon got back and resumed eating her second helpful. Since she was not entirely in the right mood, Cadeus thought that perhaps she could help him reign in their enthusiastic friend.

“Oh by the way, Sing.”

“Hm?”

“Nadav recently came up with a very interesting plan.”

“Eh? Did I? Yup! I did!”

Nadav was caught off guard at that very comment. But, as a person who always treats any situation as ‘it comes as it goes’, Nadav feigned knowledge despite not knowing what Cadeus was talking about. Sing on the other hand, did not seem quite interested in this. In fact, she seemed reluctant to hear the details.

“… Why do I get the feeling I do not want to hear this?” Sing said.

“Trust me, you will want to hear of this.”

“Wait… Cadeus, before you continue, which plan are you talking about?”

“Strange thing is, we both woke up earlier than expected, Nadav suggested we go and peek at the girls while they change in their dormitory.”

“… Eh?”

Taken totally surprised by Cadeus’s sudden betrayal, Nadav could only leave himself stunned and rooted in his current position.

In response to this new revelation, Sing could only sigh while placing a palm on her head.

“You really can count on Nadav to come up with such a bizarre plan. I’d take it that you managed to reign him in?”

“At the moment, I managed to discouraged him. Whether he is keen on this plan in the future, I dare not say.”

“Cadeus! Why did you betray me?!”

Now all is left was for the princess to announce the final sentence.

Sing made a girly tilt of the head, closed her eyes and gave Nadav the cold oppressive smile. At the very sight of such a scary lady, Nadav was instantly reduced to extreme paleness and cold sweat.

“Nadav, I’ll pretend not to hear that. However, if you ever get caught peeking at girls, you’ll get one heavy punishment from me, personally.”

“R-Right… whatever you say… my lady.”

“No, I am serious. Even if you get yourself expelled in the process, I’ll make sure to find you, and give you one deserving lecture that will grind you until you turn over to a new leaf.”

“Ok! Ok! I won’t do anything funny, crazy or perverted so don’t give me a lecture! Please!”

Sing left a suspense following to make sure that her message got through. Facing a really harsh smile, Nadav could only hold in his breath. With her message gettting through, Sing decided to let Nadav off the hook this time, and she soon returned to eating her second wave of breakfast. Relieved, Nadav finally let out the air he has been holding up for the past thirty seconds.

“Phew… dodged that one big bullet.”

“You clearly ask for that.” Cadeus added.

“Ask for that? I didn’t ask for that! Shut up!”

Done with her second helping, Sing looked like she was thoroughly satisfied. With breakfast out of the way, on to more important matters, Sing took out her sling bag and rested it on her thighs.

“Ok guys. Update on the special item.”

At the very instance she said that, the two boys stopped whatever they were doing and gave Sing their undivided attention.

Sing reached for within her sling bag and took out two containers. One of which is the same sapphire container that Cadeus and Sing got when the two of them are at Demerith’s street yesterday. The other container is just about the same size, but it is made out of tin.

“This one over here is what Cadeus and I got from Demerith’s street. While this is what I managed to make last night.”

Cadeus and Nadav just gazed at the tin container like two idiots who failed to see thought a simple magic trick. For some reason, they seem to fail to register the event right before their eyes.

“Um… Sing… this is…”

“Did you really just made a sample last night?”

“What else do you think?”

““…””

Slowly, Cadeus reached out for the tin container. Opening it, he could smell the familiar scent of expired ethanol. As He and Nadav looked in for inspection, they saw nothing but refined grey sand. Reaching out for the sapphire container, they compared the contents within. Both samples looked exactly the same. There appeared to be no deviations of any kind.

While Nadav just stared at the powder in the tin container blankly, Cadeus began asking the important questions.

“How much grams is this?”

“About 25 grams. In considering the fact that we still got three flasks, I think we should have enough to make 800 grams, or maybe more.”

Cadeus and Nadav looked at each other and gave each other the satisfying smile of anticipated triumph.

This was great news indeed. This morning could not start any better.

“How long till you can make that 800 grams?”

“It should take me the whole afternoon. If all goes well, we can submit the powder to the commissioner by evening.”

Cadeus and Nadav gave each other the look of anticipated triumph.

“Did it take a lot of the fluid to produce something of this quantity Sing?”

“No, not much. I still got a large handful from the first flask you handed me two days ago.”

“How long did it take for you to do this?”

“Hm… for the first time I managed to get the powder state after around forty minutes. But that is because I had insufficient equipment. But don’t worry. I managed to book a lab room in the 3rd Laboratory so I think I should be able to replicate the same process in around… twenty minutes?”

““You what?””

Cadeus and Nadav were stunned at Sing’s disclosure.

Of course they would be. There’s a reason for their surprise.

Triple Orb Academy had three laboratory buildings, whereby each laboratory had its own level of clearances aligned according to their locations and the Academy’s rules. All three were greatly utilized for teaching the art of Alchemy and Conjunctions. In addition, they were also widely used by various Masters and Specialists for their ever-expanding areas of research.

The 3rd laboratory was one of the two laboratories in the larger island. It’s more of a general utility laboratory open to mages from all different levels. While the 3rd was more open to the entire Academy, the 2nd was more restricted to the Apprentices and above since it was built in the smaller island to suit those who follow the tertiary curriculum. The 1st however, appeared to be more dubious. Even though it’s also on the larger island, it only granted access to senior staff members who were only of rank Specialists and above.

Students such as Cadeus, Nadav and Sing were denied access to all three laboratories obviously due to their lowest status as Students in the magi hierarchy. But the more important reason was due to the fact that Alchemy was not part of their first year module.

Since they did not have any fundamental knowledge, the Educators could not afford any accidents happening in the laboratories. Without any exposure to the basics of alchemy, there’s a high chance of conjunction blunders and people could easily get hurt. The only way for Cadeus and his friends to gain entry was only for them to pass their trials and become Acolytes. Once they become Acolytes, they would get the study course for basic Alchemy, which in turn would allow them to enter the laboratories.

How Sing managed to secure an entry before this, was something that’s definitely out of the ordinary.

“Students aren’t allowed in the laboratories. How did you manage to get access Sing?”

“I got permission from Educator Giselle.”

“When did this happen?”

“While you and Nadav were in the Tenerbis Vacuum yesterday.”

“How did you do it?”

“I aced three major tests and four quizzes in a roll. Getting permission to use the labs seems like an appropriate reward.”

Cadeus and Nadav paused and look at each other.

As it always turns out, Sing was always a few steps ahead of them.

“Don’t get too confident yet boys. I still need time to get familiar with the process.”

“Do you need any help? We can just drop by after lunch should you need anything.”

“Nah, I will be fine. The last thing I need is for Nadav to mess up my equipments, especially when our big deadline is tomorrow.”

“Oi!”

“No seriously. Is there anything we can help you with that does not necessarily have to involve us with your lab work?”

“Hm… now that you mentioned it… I think I might need a few more things to help me get the powder processed.”

“Really? Like what?”

“Charcoal and sulphur. I have a feeling I will run out of those very quickly, especially the sulphur.”

“Shouldn’t there be enough in the 3rd Laboratories?”

“I managed to book the room for usage, but I’m not confident that the lab room will have enough of those two ingredients. I have a feeling I will be using them… a lot.”

“So our only option now is to get them outside the Academy. They are not costly… right?”

“Hm? Oh no. They are cheap and bountiful. Charcoal and sulphur are a must in several key Alchemical processes. No Alchemical shop can run without these two ingredients. If they don’t well… let’s just say that the shop is not exactly an Alchemical shop.”

“Where did you… oh never mind.”

Cadeus was about to ask Sing where she learned all of this, but after a quick though, he decided to forget about it. Even though Alchemy was not a subject they were required to learn in their first year, it should come as no surprise if Sing read about Alchemy in advance. Besides, she must have gotten more information from her father’s notes when she attempted powder making last night.

“So sulphur and charcoal. How much do you need?”

“Get me around… hm… 950 grams of each.”

“Ok. Looks like you’ll be coming with me to the Capital again this afternoon Nadav.”

“1.9 kg of charcoal and sulphur. This should be a piece of cake. We ought to have plenty of time once we are done…Wait! Hang on a sec! I got a perfect idea!”

“Before you say anything further, we are not going to spend the extra time hitting on girls.”

“Damn it… I was so close. Cadeus, you are no fun at all.”

It seemed like the clown immediately forgot that his frivolous nature just almost got him killed. Both Sing and Cadeus instantly sighed in response to this carefree attitude. Deducing Nadav’s mischievous intentions without any need of using their ears was a skill that the two of them subconsciously refined overtime.

Putting aside this conversation, Sing noted the time difference and reached for her own watch.

“We better finish up, clock’s ticking gentlemen.”

“What? It’s already coming to 9 am?”

“Ok, ok. Just let me finish my egg – ”

Nadav froze at his spot for a few seconds.

“Hold on.”

“What?”

“Where’s my egg?”

“What?”

“You know, the one where you brought back for me from the food station.”

“Oh… It was on Sing’s plate?”

“Eh? SING! You ate my egg!”

“… Opps.”

Nadav instantly shot an accusing finger towards Cadeus.

“Cadeus! This is your fault! You did not put the egg on my plate!”

“Quite whining. You already ate two, you definitely need to cut down on the egg yokes or else you’ll fill your body with unnecessary cholesterols.”

TOA

“Ok… let’s try this again… [Thermal Fuse]!”

“Eh? It didn’t work? Shit!”

“Argh! Stupid paper! Why won’t you BURN?!”

The scene shifts back to Tenebris Vacuum where Cadeus and his class are finally going through a proper lesson. The class is being held in one of the training halls in the Academia building.

As what Educator Garth mentioned yesterday, today it is [Distance Spells]. [Distance Spells] as the term suggest, are spells that are casted and resolved from a distance away from the caster. They are set differently from the basic [Point Spells], as magic is not casted directly from any focused point of the human body.

If we go back to the First Absolute Rule of Magic, Magic begins from the Blood. The first source of magic was blood, but if used wisely, magic within the blood could manifest beyond the physical vassal.

In order to cast a successful [Distance Spell], the influence of the human mind is the most critical. If one wrong calculation is made, the casting process will fail, and the spell will disintegrate the moment it is casted.

In order to make this session fulfill its practical significance, Educator Garth had prepared an exercise for them.

The exercise was very simple. Practice stands were prepared and spread all around the edge of the hall. Students were required to practice casting [Distance Spells] of any elemental choice to destroy any three targets. Destroy three of them, and you’re free for the rest of the lesson.

The lesson plan was simple and straightforward, but there’s one slight problem.

Educator Garth was not around to help them out.

After giving them instructions for the exercise, all he did was wrote additional instructions on the casting procedures on a nearby chalkboard. Once that is done, he went like ‘I have to teach you, but I just got another breakthrough. I’ll tell you guys what. I’ll write down simple instructions on the board, you’ll all just have to figure everything by yourselves for today’, before disappearing back to his office.

With such a simple explanation, the exercise seemed to be too simple that many students around Cadeus quickly assumed that things would be over after five minutes. After that, they can get to spend the remaining three hours of Colour Class doing whatever they want.

They were wrong.

Twelve minutes have already passed, and not one single person had been successful in destroying one single target stand.

“Sigh… Well this looks encouraging.” Cadeus muttered.

“What is?” Susan asked.

Cadeus made a gesture to the whole depressive scenario.

“Well, it is our first time doing this together as a class.” Susan added.

“First time?”

Cadeus raised an eyebrow.

“Susan, you and a lot of people here knew magic long before I did. Casting [Distance Spells] should be a piece of cake to you.”

“Um… well, about that.”

“Hm?”

Susan paused right there as if to prove Cadeus wrong. For some reason, it seems she could not comply with the assumption he made automatically. With that level of quietness, it was easy to gauge the reason behind it.

“Susan… please don’t tell me you have never touched on [Distance Spells] before?”

“Um… haha… no.”

“No? Even someone as good as you have not casted one [Distance Spell] before?”

“Well, [Point Spells] is just what been all we have been exposed to before enrollment. We don’t really start on [Distance Spells] until we became the Academy’s students. I’m sure everyone here is just as clueless as you are.”

“Clueless… eh?”

Cadeus sighed.

“We wouldn’t be stuck clueless if Educator Garth is here to properly train us.”

Before he retreated back to his office, Educator Garth only taught them two [Distance Spells]. A fire elemental based [Thermal Fuse], and a lightning elemental based [Shocking trigger]. The technique to cast both spells were the same, it’s just that they were of different elements.

The instructions to the casting procedures were already written on a nearby chalkboard. Educator Garth spent quite the effort to make the procedures as clear as day before abandoning the class for his recent ‘breakthrough’, so the class was continuing despite the absence of its teacher. This apparent abandonment of his present duties was the reason why Cadeus got the impression that this exercise was nothing more than a simple push over for Educator Garth to pre-occupy his students while he dubiously returns to writing his conjuration thesis.

Sad to say, this only reflects poorly on how less interested Educator Garth was on the overall well being of his students. Although… that might change in the future to come once he decides to take a break from his thesis, if he ever gets to decide.

Miraculously, the class was still operating at full attendance. Given the usual nature of disgruntled students, it’s really a surprise people were actually taking things seriously. Cadeus thought that half the class would drop out from this hall to skip the practice session, but it seems that his classmates were keen on seeing this through, regardless of all the unsuccessful attempts just to cast one [Distance Spell].

In addition to the lack of inspiration within this class, Cadeus could see that Claire was totally not in the mood for this. Looking bored, she retreated towards the wall behind and started reading a book. Cadeus guessed that she must be highly confident in her capabilities if she could afford to lay off just like that.

“It quite assuring to see that some of us are more confident than the others.”

Susan followed Cadeus’s gaze and knew what he was referring to.

“Claire is on a different level. I’m sure she knows a lot more kinds of spells compared to the rest of us.”

“Just because she’s a pure born princess? If she is so great in spells and magic, then why hasn’t she graduated yet?”

“Shh! Please don’t say that out loud! What happens if she heard you? Plus the reason why Claire has not graduated yet is because it take a lot more to be a Mage than just getting spells right!” Susan instantly added in a loud whisper.

“Relax Susan. I doubt she would be bothered with a slight comment like that. Besides, I’m sure she probably thinks of this exercise as a whole bloody waste of time.”

“Well… maybe it is a waste of time to her. But it is not for us.”

“Hm… true, and here I thought I am always behind the rest of the others.”

“Cadeus, stop looking and start practicing.”

“Hm? Oh sorry. My mind is lost in thought.”

“If you keep slacking off when everyone around us is trying so hard, what are you going to do when everyone has advanced a level whereas you are still stuck not knowing what to do?”

Slacking off?

Cadeus did not believe that he’s slacking off. He was merely observing things around him before he starts his attempts. Besides, since everyone around him had yet to succeed in casting one [Distance Spell], it did count as a good idea to sit back and observe first before he wastes pointless energy. Plus if there were anyone who did succeed, Cadeus could learn a tip or two if he observed well.

He wanted to provide a counter argument, but from the moment he attempt to open his mouth, Susan gave him a ‘you better not argue back’ look. Knowing her, Cadeus is quite confident she would not take no for an answer. In seeing how Susan’s expression will not change, Cadeus raised his arms in a surrendering motion.

“All right, I get it. I’ll start practicing.”

“Thank you.”

“Still, I’m wondering why no one bothered skipping this class since Educator Garth is not here in person to inspect us – ”

“AH! THAT’S IT! I’M LEAVING!”

Before Cadeus can finish his sentence, a huge cry of frustration could be heard from the other side of the hall. It seems that one of the male students had given up on the apparent futile casting attempts. That student marched up to his practice board, slammed it with his fist and proceeds to stomp angrily out of the hall. He indirectly drew the entire class’s attention onto himself, but it seems that he does not give a damn.

While observing this new fold of events, Susan tilted her head towards Cadeus and made a slight comment.

“You just said why no one bothers leaving to skip this class right?”

“Yup.”

“I think you are going to find out about that pretty soon.”

The student who gave up was just several steps away from the hall’s massive doors, when suddenly a supernatural phenomenon happened. Wait scratch that, the word ‘phenomenon’ is underdoing it. It was more of a materialization of some elemental spell rather than an actual phenomenon.

Small, translucent bright bluish lights began to materialize around the hall’s entrance. Their numbers were few, but gradually more lights began to manifest. Soon, the hall’s entrance was swarming with small bright bluish lights. Eventually the student who attempted to ditch the class was forced to stop in his tracks. Upon seeing the bright blue lights, his face suddenly started to turn slightly pale.

Cadeus was not an expert on spells yet, but he could feel strong magic within the mass of small bluish lights. From the looks of every student in the room, it looks like they could feel it too. The swarm of bluish lights began to assume a physical form, and the huge mass took the shape of a massive blue translucent golem.

The student who defiantly wanted to leave, became stone cold. Unsure of what to do, he did only one thing that anyone in his situation could do, panic.

“AAAHHH!!!!”

With a frantic cry, he started shooting out aggressive [Point Spells] towards the translucent golem. [Lightning Pulse], [Fire Ball] and [Thermal Pulse], the student kept throwing these three spells and continuously cast them without ever considering his own Cast Limit.

All his attacks proved to be ineffective, as the golem continued to walk towards him. Be it lightning or fire, the elemental golem proved to be unaffected as it continues to walk towards that doomed student.

By the time the golem was directly in front of the student, the student had already begun to show symptoms of hitting his own Cast Limit. He started hyperventilating and lost the strength to stand up straight. With one knee on the floor, that student began to look around the hall towards his fellow students, hoping that some would offer aid to fight against this monster.

No one moved a muscle. Everyone was well aware that student will not be spared. Since he was the lone target of such a monster, no one was offering to be a Good Samaritan and get in its way.

Even though he was wavering and kneeling on the ground, the blue translucent golem showed no mercy. It raised its clenched fist and slammed it square on the student’s head.

A loud sound akin to a huge electric shock resonated throughout the hall. Once the translucent golem did its job, it dispersed itself back into numerous small blue lights. Before long, they all started to dim until they faded from existence.

Once the entire scene is over, the entire class shifted back their attention to whatever they were doing. While Cadeus was absorbing the events that just unfolded, Susan turned her head back to him.

“Do you still want to skip this class?”

“Right… I was not exactly expecting that.”

That thing that just electrocuted that student was Educator Garth’s familiar. Rather than a living being, it was actually an Elemental Construct. From what Cadeus and Susan knew, that thing was created as a by-product when Educator Garth was conducting one of his experiments for his conjuration thesis. That thing can assume any shape at any size, and it can even switch in-between elements of its choice.

“To think that he’d sent this very familiar to inspect the class on his behalf… Educator Garth must really want to confine his students before they really cause some trouble.”

“That’s actually rather typical of him.”

“Sigh…”

It seems that the whole class just chose to move on without caring for the student that was mercilessly punished. In fact, due to this recent development, Cadeus’s classmates seem to be more motivated in casting three successive [Distance Spells]. Everyone just got back to the exercise, continuously attempting to cast a [Distance Spell] without success. Those that had given up due to the lack of results earlier immediately got back into practicing, regardless of how hopeless the casting progress may be.

While waiting for someone to successfully cast one [Distance Spell], Cadeus’s eyes went to the fallen student by the hall’s entrance.

Curiosity got the better of him.

Cadeus decided to approach his unconscious classmate. No one would care if all he did were a bit of observation, and it’s not like he’s ditching class. Cadeus doubt that the Elemental Construct would go for him.

In seeing that Cadeus was still not practicing, Susan lost focus and turn her attention to him.

“Cadeus, what are you doing?”

When Cadeus chose not to answer her, she moved up to him to see exactly what he is up to.

Cadeus knelt and took a good look at the student who suffered the consequences of attempting to skip this class. He just laid there unmoving. Cadeus then placed his right fingers just an inch away from his nose and then checked his carotid artery.

His pulse is weak, and his breathing is slow.

He’ll live, but he’d best get to the infirmary if he wants at least an additional 60% survivability rate. If he is left lying there, there is a chance that he will loose his breathing and pulse in such an unconscious state. If so, he will have a higher chance of death.

“Someone better call Educator Garth.” Susan said.

“No need. His familiar should notify him automatically.”

“Is Educator Garth going to come back?”

“Hm…”

Silence followed to several seconds since Cadeus was not entirely sure of what to do. If they attempt to leave without completing their exercise, Garth’s familiar would show up again and give them the same disciplinary treatment. If they really want to help this poor fellow, they have to get their three [Distance Spells] done before they could really do anything. The only thing they could do was to stay and wait for someone outside the class to intervene and bring the fallen student to the infirmary. However, Cadeus doubt that someone would bother poking their eyes into a boring session like this.

Educator Garth had a rather bold reputation of not being present whenever he was needed, and Educator Cecilia probably would be busy teaching to take note of this event. As for Educator Norex and the others… they would probably be elsewhere.

In the midst of the silence, an unexpected voice broke the uncomfortable atmosphere.

“He’ll live. You better not waste your time with him.” Claire interjected.

Cadeus turned to see her still reading her book.

“You are not going to help?”

“Why bother? He got what he deserved.”

Ouch… as expected of a harsh princess.

“Besides, shouldn’t you worry about yourself?”

“Meaning?”

“Have you casted your three [Distance Spells]?”

“… No.”

“Then you should. Besides, even if you did cast your three spells, you can’t get that student out since he failed to cast his own set of three. It will take Educator Garth to reinstruct his own familiar in order to let the failures pass.”

“You have got to be kidding, even though he is down?”

Claire did not return any comments. She probably felt that she had said enough. Feeling uninterested, she returned to reading her book, totally disregarding the possibility that the fallen student could face death within minutes.

Cadeus wanted to say more in regards to that matter, but Susan grabbed his arm and stopped him.

“That’s enough Cadeus. Let it go.”

“Susan.”

“Please Cadeus. Honestly, I don’t think Educator Garth is going to come back. Just worry about yourself and cast your three, or we might be stuck here for at least the rest of the day.”

“…”

Whatever remaining moral conscious was left in Cadeus, leaving someone that might die was something he would not do. But now was not a time for moralities.

Cadeus had to come to terms with the fact that he had yet to cast any [Distance Spell]. He needs to cast three of them in order for Educator Garth’s familiar to let him pass. If he could not accomplish the goal of the lesson, helping the unconscious student is already something out of his league.

Furthermore, he did not want to drag Susan into one of his confrontations with Claire. It’s definitely inappropriate, especially when Susan was a Lesser Noble. Dragging her into such a confrontation with a Greater Noble was absolutely not in her interest, nor will it help her in the future. Besides, the conversation was between Cadeus and Claire, and Susan had no part in any of it. Rather, Susan refused to interrupt or insert any comments in consideration of her own social standings among Nobles. Any further debate with Claire might make matters worse for her.

Ultimately, Cadeus decided to let the matter go and allow Susan to lead him by the arm away from Claire towards the target practice boards.

TOA

Once they are at a distance away from all the target stands, Susan let Cadeus go and got ready to make an attempt to cast a spell.

“Ok… here goes…”

“What are you going to cast?”

“[Thermal Fuse].”

“Ah, the fire spell. Don’t accidentally cast a big one.”

“Like that will happen.”

Susan took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Cadeus could feel Susan building up the magic within her. She brought her right hand up, opened her palm and looked at it to make it her focus point.

According to the instructions written by Educator Garth on the chalkboard, there were two main components to cast a [Distance Spell]. They’re the location for the spell to manifest, and the right amount of magic needed to make it happen.

Picturing the spell form is easy, but the problem was to get the mass of energy to evoke the spell and materialize its form at the desired location. The trick to doing so, was to have precise control over the flow of magic from within your blood towards the area outside of your body.

The steps were written as the following:

1. Picture the spell in your head

2. Gather the flow of magic into your fingers/palms

3. Leak parts of the magic out towards the target of your choice

4. Materialize the spell

The steps might appear to be easy, but the third step was what causing everyone to reach dead ends. The part where you have to leak portions of magic out of your body was something entirely alien to Cadeus and his class.

Normally, spells were casted directly from focused points around the body like the hands or feet by amassing the magic within, harnessing it and project it with the spell form that was imagined from the mind.

Leaking the magic from within towards the target away from the body before casting the spell was something never attempted before. Without Educator Garth around to provide proper guidance, this class became a whole new experience altogether.

Stepping up, Susan crouched slightly and started getting ready to cast her spell.

Closing his eyes, Cadeus could feel the movements of the energy within Susan’s blood.

Susan redirected the flow of magic within her towards the palm of her hands. Since [Thermal Fuse] was a fire spell, the palm of the hands is a common focus point for mages to cast fire spells.

Slowly and steadily, Susan raised her open hand and began leaking the magic towards the target of her choice.

There was nothing wrong with what she was doing up to this point. But strangely enough, Susan’s magic slowly dispersed the instance the paranormal energy left her body. There were fragments of her magic left around the target. However, it was not enough to cast a spell.

Like the rest of the students Cadeus had been observing, The bulk of the magic needed to cast the spell all dispersed around the air. A spell could not be casted with the remaining small pockets of magic around the target.

When Susan was ready, she opened her eyes.

It looks like she intends to continue despite the fact that her current magic build was not enough.

“[Thermal Fuse]!”

Cadeus folded his arms and waited for the anticipated results. His eyes went to the direction of Susan’s target stand.

Nothing happened, just as Cadeus expected.

“…What?”

Susan stared at her own hands in disbelief.

“How? I thought I followed the instructions?”

“Perhaps there is not enough magic around the target.”

“No it shouldn’t be. I followed the instructions.”

Cadeus kept quiet.

Susan was unaware of the fact that her magic slowly dispersed from the moment it left her body. Well, this was not something new. Cadeus was long aware that Susan did not have the same acute sense of magic that he had.

Knowing Susan, she would not take it very well if Cadeus tried explaining something that she cannot see or sense strongly. If he starts blabbering about the current of magic, which was something that she could not feel nor see, it might seem pretty nonsensical, and Cadeus disliked being nonsensical in front of others.

The only course of action left, was for Cadeus to try to cast one [Distance Spell] on his own. If he could produce a different result, he could understand how the magic should orientate once it leaves the body. If he succeeds, he might be able to help Susan with her error.

Cadeus got ready; time to give this a shot.

Stepping up in a position where he would be parallel to one of the target stands, Cadeus closed his eyes and brought his right hand up.

Cadeus decided to cast [Shocking Trigger] since he’s more comfortable with the element lightning. As he was using a lightning orientated spell, the fingertips would be the spell’s focus point. Getting ready, Cadeus gathered the magic within his blood and directed it towards his fingertips. Slowly, small light bluish sparks could soon be seen materializing around his fingertips. Once he had gathered enough mass of magic around his focus point, Cadeus leaked portions of that mass towards the target stand of his choice.

This was where things started to get complicated.

While leaking part of the magic out of the fingertips seems easy, getting the leaked portions to the target was another thing altogether. Upon the initial stages of leaking the magic from his fingertips, Cadeus soon discovered that he had to multitask between holding the energy within his fingertips, and sustaining the portions that were leaked towards the target. While ensuring that magic was leaked steadily from the fingertips, Cadeus also had to keep an eye out to prevent the leaked magic from dispersing.

As he carried out this procedure, Cadeus soon realized that he had to finish this quickly. If he drags this tedious procedure, he would eventually lose focus. If he fails, it would result in an incomplete spell, and everyone knew what would happen when a spell was incompletely casted.

Gathering what he could around the target, Cadeus quickly install the spell form in his head and casted the spell.

“Invoke, [Shocking Trigger].”

Cadeus snapped his fingers and waited for the spell to manifest across the other side of the hall.

Nothing happened.

The target practice stand Cadeus chose stood there untouched and undamaged.

With a tilt of his head, Cadeus looked at his own hand.

“…Ok?”

Not that bad for a first attempt… was what he might say in his head. Everyone around him had failed casting even one spell for the past twenty minutes or so. This should count as normal, but deep down Cadeus really felt that he could have done better.

Did he miss out something?

“You got it all wrong imposter.”

Once again, that unexpected voice intruded itself into his thoughts. Cadeus turned to see Claire still having her eyes on her book.

“I was not expecting your help.”

Claire flipped a page, eyes still focused on the book.

“Who’s helping you? You idiot, I’m just stating that you got it all wrong.”

“Then why even bother telling me?”

“Would you rather I don’t? Besides, your attempts are so pathetic I can hardly look.”

Dosen’t that apply to the rest of us? So why me? Cadeus thought.

“Then don’t look. Besides, I am quite surprised you even bothered looking since you are reading your book and all.”

“How rude.”

Claire flipped another page, eyes still focused on the book.

“I can see that you always fail to control that uncouth mouth of yours.”

“At least I am doing something, as compared to a certain someone who has done nothing except reading her book.”

Claire looked up at Cadeus in response to that retaliation.

“What did you say?”

Though it was only for an instance, the two of them casted hostile glares at each other.

From the moment they did so, the surrounding students ceased whatever they are doing and looked at them.

Since everyone was quite familiar with Cadeus’s bad relationships with the nobles, seeing a stand off between him and one of the Greater Nobles was often a common sight. But in normal circumstances, the viewers would just continue on their business to avoid getting dragged into unnecessary trouble. Besides, who wants to stay and dig their own grave by observing? Which idiot wants to get in the bad books of a Greater Noble?

That was what would normally happen. But since today they were all stuck in the same hall, this was one spectacle no one could avoid.

Staring at this rather familiar scene, the observers could only wait with various anticipated results.

Is he going to get his ass kicked?

Is Claire going to punish him with a curse or one of her special spells?

Or, is Claire going to let him off again with an insult he cannot return?

How obvious. People could be so predictable at times.

Cadeus was not in the least affected. He knew that despite the sparking exchanges between Claire and himself, nothing major would happen.

Usually, confrontations with Claire under the eyes of the open public tend to end off with the third option.

Knowing Claire, her upbringing would not let her attack someone under broad daylight without a legit reason.

The most she could do was to leave him dangling there with some nasty comment before ‘majestically’ leaving the scene with her usual dominating aura.

But that was not going to happen either.

They were all stuck in this hall, and no one’s going to leave until they hit their quota.

As luck would have it, he was not the only one who was aware of the kind situation they are in.

Once she became aware that they had become the centre of attraction, Claire gave a warning gaze to her surroundings. The students instantly scattered away to continue their futile attempts to cast a [Distance Spell]. While Susan was reluctant to leave, but she quickly got out of the way when Claire shot her another warning glare.

With the busybodies out of the way, the two of them can return to exchanging barbs without the need to worry about onlookers.

Cadeus thought that Claire might resume her bombard of provoking insults, but surprisingly, Claire stood up from leaning against the wall and started walking towards him.

Feeling uncomfortable with this sudden change of pace, Cadeus could only voice his concern.

“… What do you want?”

“To see if you are not as dumb as I thought you are.”

“Meaning?”

Cadeus braced himself. The next few words she says might instigate a lot of anger. Gosh… he really needs to hold in all the emotions in order to not make matters worst.

“Cast another spell.”

…

…

…

Ok, that was rather unexpected.

“Sorry?”

“Are you deaf? I said cast another spell.”

Making such unreasonable requests out of the blue can only come from someone like Claire. Arguing at this point is completely useless. Cadeus took a deep breath and decided to make another attempt. Repeating the same procedure he did to alter the flow of magic in his body, he gathered what he could and re-casted the spell.

“Invoke, [Shocking Trigger].”

Nothing happened.

The target stand opposite him lay there as plain as day.

“…I must have missed something.”

“You didn’t just missed something, you missed a lot of things.”

Claire adverted her gaze away to the multiple number of target stands at the other end of the hall.

“Well, your initial intake of the procedures from the failure of others is not necessary wrong.”

“Yes, I can see that. Your point?”

Claire look at him with a smile that was full of collaborating schemes.

“What’s with that look imposter? Can’t solve the answer on your own. If you want my help, you’ll have to owe me another one.”

“No thank you.”

“…That was rather quick.”

Cadeus rather fail a trial than owe Claire another favour. He had enough trouble coming from any of her dubious requests. If he keeps piling up favours one after the other, one of these days, she’s really going to get him killed.

Wanting to have nothing more to do with her, Cadeus turned his head back towards the target stands. Keeping this hostile conversation would serve no greater purpose.

“Hm…”

Claire looked up with her eyes closed, as if she was in deep thought.

“Sigh… what now?”

At the very next second, Claire snapped her book close with a flick of her hand.

She smiled.

“Hm. I am in a very good mood today.”

“What good mood? Weren’t you just in a bad mood exchanging barbs with me just now?”

“Hm… look at the mood of the class, you can feel the dread of futility all around. How filthy.”

“You are deliberately ignoring me aren’t you?”

Claire swung her book and placed it just inches away from Cadeus’s nose. It was done so fast that Cadeus ended up moving back slightly on reflex.

“Be grateful. Since I am in a good mood, I’ll spare you the humiliation and give a live demonstration.”

Pop!

Cadeus felt a huge vein pop within his forehead.

Claire really knows how to mince up the words to piss him off. But retaliating against her in any format would only make the situation worst, so Cadeus bit his tongue and did his best to refrain himself from further instigating this unpredictable noble.

Claire kept her book to the side and proceeds to move up until she is at a comfortable distance away from the target stands.

Then, Cadeus sensed it.

The whole actual process lasted for about five seconds, but what Claire did was a lot for Cadeus to digest.

First, there was the buildup. Though he cannot see it, Cadeus could sense a dangerous level of magic building up within her. Then, as she continued to build up the magic within her, Claire leaked out portions of the magic she gathered out of her body.

It was exactly the same that Cadeus did earlier. But Claire did not direct any of the magic to a focus point. She just leaked the magic out of her like a leaky gas pipe with multiple small gaps and holes.

Sensing the flow of magic, Cadeus followed the invisible trail until it reached the opposite side of the hall with all the target practice boards. The magic Claire was leaking soon developed into the form of a spinning whirlpool. Surprisingly, the invisible whirlpool was retaining all the energy that Claire leaked from her body. Though some of it ended up dispersing to the surroundings, the majority of it was still left intact at the very centre of the invisible whirlpool.

As Claire continuously amassed the whirlpool with magic, Cadeus had difficulty understanding her intentions. Even for a simple [Distance Spell], Cadeus knew that the amount of magic Claire amassed was more than necessary for just one spell. She could cast the spell in an instance with just a flick of the finger, but Claire chose to slowly build up the level of magic that is within and around her.

What was she up to?

Gradually, the environment around them underwent the usual changes whenever the corruptive nature of Dark Magic was present. The temperature increased and the air was sucked of its humid moisture. Although they were in the middle of a hall, the comfort of shelter was soon replaced by suffocating thin air, as if oxygen had become deprived to the human nose.

Whatever Claire intends to cast, she’s going to do it big, and it would take a while for the environment to recover its previous state.

After a few more moments, Cadeus knew, she’s finally ready.

At the very last minute, Claire directed the rest of the massive energies she had been saving within her to the other side of the hall. She then brought her right fingers up, and snapped her middle finger against her thumb.

“[Thermal Fuse]!”

In a flash, a huge burst of fire materialized at the centre of the practice hall and engulfed the entire area at the opposite side.

The spell covered a wide radius, engulfing everything around it like wildfire. Every target practice board within its radius was incinerated in the process.

Once the spell is finally resolved, the remaining scene revealed how deadly that single [Distance Spell] was.

The target practice boards that were within the spell’s radius became roasted with black scorches and ashy rusts. Those who were right in the middle of the spell’s materialization were melted hot into grey waxy wastes.

As they saw how Claire laid waste to a considerable number of target stands, the whole class just stood there rooted to the ground. Claire just literally burned over half the numbers of target practice stands, and she did it as if it was nothing.

In the midst of absorbing the scene before him, Cadeus could not help but feel an element of awe. This was not to say that he had new found respects for Claire, but it would be a lie if he said that he never admire her capabilities to cast magic this freely and affluently.

In Cadeus’s eyes, the spell was cast perfectly.

Satisfied with her handiwork, Claire returned her attention to Cadeus.

“Did you get it?”

Cadeus could only shrug his shoulders.

“More or less.”

“Is that so?”

It seems that she had nothing more to say. Claire turned and proceeded to leave the hall.

“The rest is up to you. If you still have not got anything out of this live demonstration, then you really are an idiot.”

Is that so?

As expected, that monster of a familiar did not stop Claire from leaving the hall. Once her silhouette disappeared, Cadeus returned to the focus of the lesson.

After several more seconds, the rest of the class also reverted back to its smaller groupings and the persistently failed attempts.

With Claire out of the way, Susan returned to Cadeus’s side.

“What was that all about?”

“I would like to know myself.”

“Did you know what just happened?”

“You saw what happened, so why are you asking me?”

“You just got Claire’s help. I never saw Claire like that before. She seems more… friendly to you doesn’t she?”

Cadeus could not believe what he is hearing right now.

“You call that being friendly?”

“She did help you didn’t she?”

“Yes… Though for what reasons, I cannot say.”

Susan mouth curled downwards in disapproval.

“What exactly did you do that prompt this change?”

“What have I done? I’d like to know that myself.”

“Did you owe her another one?”

“No. If she were to bring it up, I’ll just tell her that does not count. Well, time to see if I can replicate what Claire did.”

Putting the conversation to an end, Cadeus redirected his attention to the target stands in front of him. Choosing a new one for the job, Cadeus thought back on what Claire did earlier and made another attempt.

First, gather all the magic he needs into one single part of his body. Leak out some of it from multiple parts of the body towards the specific targeted location in the form of a circular whirlpool. Then, once all the magic had left the physical vassal, activate the spell as if you were lighting up a fuse at the very last minute.

When Cadeus reached the very peek of all these procedures, he snapped his left finger as he triggered the spell to manifest.

At the very next second, a loud screeching sound filled the air. A small light bluish ball of electricity could be seen materializing at the very centre of the target. After that, there was a flash of extreme bright light, and then everything was gone.

What was left in place of the small bluish ball of electricity is a large scorched gap big enough to almost tear the target practice board into two, along with lingering small arcs of sparkling electricity to boast the lasting effects of the [Distance Spell].

TOA

After grabbing her sling bag from the unused lecture hall, Claire proceeded to walk down the tall corridors of the Academia building. Little did she expect company so soon. As she walked down the corridor, she saw an acquaintance leaning against the wall arms folded and looking at her. Judging by the body language, he must have been waiting for her for quite some time.

“Oh my. If it isn’t Acriscius? I thought Educator Norex is having another lecture regarding magical theory. You must be highly confidant about acing the theory exams if you can afford to lay off here of all places.”

“Spare me your sarcasm. Oh… and if you were wondering, Educator Norex finished his lecture ten minutes ago.”

“Then why are you here? Do you have any business with me? Or are you requesting a rematch? If you lose the duel you’ll have to owe me another one, like the last time, and the last, and the last".”

Acriscius shook a free hand left and right.

“I’m not here about any of those. I hear you have been keeping tabs on the imposter.”

When she heard this, Claire rolled her eyes.

“Sigh… Cadeus again?”

Acriscius raised an eyebrow.

“Cadeus? You can say his name now?”

“What’s wrong with that. I am getting a little tired of saying the word ‘imposter’. Speaking two syllables definitely saves more energy compared to speaking three.”

“Are you now?”

There’s definitely the hint of suspicion in Acriscius’s voice. Whatever was in his head, Claire was sure that he suspects her of something.

“All right, out with it. What are you concerned about?”

“Why would I want to tell you?”

“I’ll strike off three favours you owe me for a solid answer.”

“…What is it with you keeping tabs on that fellow?”

“Keeping tabs? Cadeus owes me plenty. I’m just making sure he stays unspoiled until he finish his usefulness.”

“And just how would an imposter be useful?”

“He may be an imposter, and a low born. But you cannot deny that he has talent.”

“Are you saying that the imposter has a capability of magic that is undeserving of him?”

“He’s Pure Blooded. I think that ought to be a strong point to consider. How many Pure Blooded Dark Mages are there as compared to the other two colours?”

Acriscius gave a look that came close to spitting in disgust. But as much as he hated it, Claire had a valid point. There’s always the issue of the shortage of Pure Blooded Dark Mages. Even though the numbers of Greater Noble Families were equally piled across the three colours of Magic, the same cannot be said for the Lesser Nobles. In terms of numbers, Pure Blooded Dark mages have always been of a low count ever since the end of the Trebunus Crisis. Also, according to the latest statistics reports leaked from the High Council’s investigations, the general birth rate of Pure Blooded Dark Mages had dropped into a dangerous slim for the worst since the last century. As such, Pure Blooded Dark Mages were always valued highly like the sort of the dying breed, especially since the Progenitor family of Dark Mages died out long ago.

“It really bothers me that the disgusting imposter is Pure Blooded.”

“He is, whether you like it or not.”

At that very comment, Acriscius became more suspicious of Claire’s intentions. Unaware of her schemes and goals, Acriscius asked her one question.

“Aren’t you being overly considerate?”

“Meaning?”

“Why are you even considering that the imposter has any value? Are you getting friendly with him deliberately?”

“Please, don’t be ridiculous. Why would I bother forming ties with someone who does not bring me any actual benefit?”

“If what you say is true, then can you please explain why did you help him cast a [Distance Spell] when you can leave him to his witless end? On top of that, you do not leverage him with the bombardment of favours.”

At the comment, now it’s Claire’s turn to raise an eyebrow. Even though it is recent news, its no surprise that Acrisicus would hear about it so soon. Though he is a little of a thuggish character, Acriscius had his own network of information. If Claire were to assume the most accurate, it would be that some of his lackeys that happened to be in her class got itchy mouths and started blabbering without thinking of the consequences.

“Perhaps I ought to silence your lackeys who turn out to be in my class.”

Acriscius held up his hands in a non-aggressive motion.

“Relax. No one is telling any funny stories. I properly instructed them not to do so.”

“Thank you.”

“Just doing what must be done. Now, could you please explain your actions?”

Claire took a moment to gather her thoughts. She really needs to phrase her answer carefully as to not breed any further misunderstanding.

“Think of it as a small investment.”

“A small investment?”

“Cadeus owes me remember?”

“Yes?”

“He may be an imposter, but he has some worth being an exceptionally skilled mage. If I ‘help’ him, he would prove more useful in serving me if I need him to do something dangerous for me.”

“So basically, you are using him as a meat shield to accomplish something with a degree of danger in your stead.”

“Precisely.”

“But why help him? If he owes you, he is practically a meat shield. Why bother investing in his skills where you can use others who probably owes you more.”

“Because he is Pure Blooded and he just happen to be in my class.”

“… Is that it?”

“Is there anyone else more capable in my class?”

“No.”

“Then, stop asking. Besides, I got good something out of it.”

Acriscius raised an eyebrow.

“Which is?”

Claire reach for the gap within her sling bag and took out a black book.

As she moved the book side by side, Acrisicus widened his eyes in recognition of the black leather and the silver ornamented wordings on the cover page.

“That’s… one of the Progenitor Black Books.”

“Indeed. It’s legit.”

Claire extended her hand that held the book, prompting Acriscius to judge the rare treasure himself.

Though Acriscius was cautious about the book’s origins, he eventually took it.

“Are the curses within curbed?”

“I don’t know. You want to look inside?”

“Have you?”

“Do you take me for an idiot?”

“No.”

Being overly cautious was a must when it comes to tempering the Progenitor Black Books. Who knows how many deadly curses were placed in the book to protect the knowledge that the Progenitors meant only for their own kind. Judging from how Claire could hold the book without any issues, the cursed that were probably engraved on the book’s cover were most likely curbed. However, looking within, was an entirely different issue altogether.

Slowly, Acriscius reached out his hand and took the book for his own evaluation. There were a few methods to test if the book was authentic, but such matters were meant for the experts. If there were a first handed method that Acrisicus know of, it would be to test the magic essence stored within the book for its potency to inflict a large degree of harm, physically and mentally. It may not be entirely efficient in determining the actual origins of the book, but it should be enough to see if it is at least legit.

Gripping the book tightly, Acriscius applied his own magic to scan every section of the book. On the surface it seems plain and simple with a few traceable enchantments here and there. But as he searched deeper, the magic essence within the book revealed a far more apprehensive network filled with layers and layers of coded runic inscriptions. Though Acriscius could identify the runic inscriptions, their natures differ amongst various types, and most of them were unfamiliar. Whether they are curses or other forms of enchantment seals, Acriscius did not know. But if handled wrongly, they could deal a considerate amount of damage. The network was so deep, that Acriscius dare not probe any further.

“It does seem legit. Where did you get this?”

“From Cadeus’s sling bag.”

Acriscius frowned.

“How did that imposter come by such a treasure?”

“Who knows?”

“How did you ever find out that he had one?”

“I didn’t. I took the liberty of fumbling his belongings to see if he had anything interesting. When I searched his sling bag, I found it.”

“You stole it.”

“Taking something highly dangerous from someone’s careless hands for safe guarding does not count as stealing.”

“I see… and this happened… when?”

“After I left the class. I did finish my lesson quota way before the others.”

“The imposter does not have his bag with him?”

“No, today we went through practical. We all left our bags behind in the lecture hall.”

“I see. So you weren’t seen.”

“Obviously?”

Acriscius handed the book back to her.

“He’ll notice that it will be gone.”

“So what? At least the book is in safer hands.”

“You mean your hands. Are you going to decipher the coded passages and take the knowledge for yourself?”

“If it does bring me any benefit, why not?”

“Do you even know what are the topics of research within the book?”

“No, but I got a name.”

“The author?”

“Zelnarius Pride ve Lu, got any idea what he is known for?”

Acriscius gave a thought.

“No. The name does not ring a bell.”

“I see…”

Acriscius gave a look of concern.

“Are you sure you ought to be probing inside that book without the assistant of the Intellectuals?”

“The less people knew I had this, the better.”

“Do you have at least one Intellectual to consult?”

“Yes. Privately hired.”

“Ah… family consultant?”

“Yes. But I’ll only approach him when I need to, I don’t want my father to confiscate this from me before I find out what kind of knowledge this book withholds.”

“But doing this alone would – ”

“Deciphering runic codes can be done with proper study. Once the right knowledge has been attained, anyone can do it.”

“You do realize that it is going to take years to decipher just one book.”

“Who said I’m going to decipher the whole book?”

“You mean you’re not?”

Claire waved the book back and forth.

“I don’t even know what is in it. Once I have deciphered enough to gauge what this book is about, then I’ll think about deciphering the whole thing.”

“I see… still. It really troubles me that the imposter managed to get it.”

“It could have been anyone else. It could have been… an ambitious old Mixed Blood who would use the knowledge for selfish reasons. It could have been a White Mage who had thoughts of destroying the book. It could have been in the hands of a Intellectual who’d rather have it on display in a dusty glass stand than have any actual use of it. It could even fall in the hands of Saymeur.”

Acriscius got a slight goose bump when Claire mentioned that name.

“Don’t say that name again.”

“Sorry. But did you get my point?”

“Yes. Point taken.”

Claire kept the book back into her own sling bag.

“Is that all you want from me?”

Though it is obvious that he had nothing more for her, Acriscius just chose to add a reminder at the end.

“… You better not make it seem that you are establishing a ‘friendly’ relationship with him.”

Claire could only sigh.

“You worry too much.”

Wanting no more to do with this conversation, Claire just walked past Acrisicus and continued on her way.

While he watched her back, Acriscius could only shake his head.

Claire maight see herself fit to judge the situation, but Acriscius knew that by having any ties to that imposter, she’s indirectly getting herself into unnecessary trouble. She may be confident, but Acriscius doubt that she would wade herself out of it if she ended up getting dragged into a huge major trouble.

There’s also the matter of that book. Acriscius was not sure where she got that level of confidence, but that was one of the infamous Black Books. Deciphering it was never an easy task, and the curses within are all said to be extremely dangerous to the point where professional help was a must to have.

Acriscius often wondered what would make Claire go through that extra mile for that imposter and for something so dangerous.