Three beds were placed side by side in a hall-sized room. Aron and Chris occupied one and their new roommate sat on the opposite one. "I hope we don't have any misunderstanding now?"
"None, boss." Ben shook his head rapidly, under the fear that the fire boy might take another swing at him. "Good. Then can you explain what's with the dilapidated state of this place? How come the girls live in such luxury and we have to stay in this decaying ruin?"
Aron pointed to the crumbling plaster on the walls all around him and an acrid smell that prevailed all over. Having lived most years of his life in an 8 by 8 shared room, he was probably not in any condition to complain. Yet, he can't help but question the naked prejudice.
"Ohh.. so you guys don't know?" Ben asked. "Nah... I had visited the girls' hostel a few times, so I assumed the boys' hostel to be not very different. Imagine my surprise..!" Aron explained.
"Huh..?" The boy surnamed Gallant rubbed his chin in contemplation. "Aren't you the new student here? How come you visited the girls' hostel? Even students like us are rarely permitted to enter that place."
"Hmm... It can't be that difficult, can it?" Chris added, looking at his friend. "Not sure. I never faced any difficulty because of my status as a slave." Aron rationalized.
"A slave?" Ben was in apparent shock at the new revelation. "You were a slave?" He questioned the raven-haired guy, who smiled back at him. "Yes. As a matter of fact, I still haven't got rid of my status."
Ben's mind spun, trying to think it through. "What did you say your name was?" He asked, obviously having missed it the first time in his superiority complex.
"Aron and Chris... I am sure it's not polite to ask for repeated introductions." Chris had still been annoyed at the mean welcome they received here. Anyone will be after they saw the state of the building and then were attacked for no rhyme or reason.
"Yes.. Aron.." Ben held his head, trying to recall where he heard that name, and then it hit him. "You.. you.." His throat dried up instantly staring at the peaceful kid with a stupid smile on his face.
"Yeah, dimwit.. that's right. He is the one from the Gamma trials." Chris stated contemptuously, taking pride in his pal's achievement. Ben's face had lost color. A slave named Aron.. What tragic luck?
If the rumors were correct, this pacifist sitting in the same room as him was said to have one of the most talented individuals to have ever joined the academy. While half of the academy still had their doubts about the validity of his accomplishments, Ben was certainly not in a position to verify the claims for them.
Recalling how he heckled the boy in the very first meeting, Ben gulped. Even when Chris had punched his face, he was only afraid of him, thinking nothing of his companion. In truth, the only reason he was acting subservient to Aron was because of the fire boy.
Only now did he realize that the dark-eyed boy was even more impressive than Chris. For some reason, now that he was aware of his identity, Aron's beaming smile was giving him creeps.
"Heyy..? Are you listening.. Gallant boy?" Chris's shout woke Ben from his stupor. "Yes.. yes boss.. tell me." Shaking his head he sat straight in attention.
"You didn't tell us about the reason for this ostensible contrast between the treatment of the genders." Chris protested.
"Oh.. my bad." Ben tried to calm down his racing heart, though his eyes never left Aron. "That.. actually it's not any sort of prejudice against the male students, rather it's because we have been too incompetent to afford a building like that?"
"Afford a building? What's that supposed to mean?" Chris could hardly gather anything from the response. But on the other hand, Aron got a hint of the issue as soon as he heard the word afford. "Please don't tell me we need points to upgrade this building as well?"
Ben nodded his head, acknowledging the view. "It does." An undeniable shame surfaced on the boy's face. "But.. I thought the Credit points are awarded only to individual students. Can you accumulate them and have your entire building upgraded like that?" Aron dwelled and Chris chose to listen to the newly disclosed facts without interference.
"Technically you can but that's not how the girls got a new building." Ben's words intrigued both friends who turned to find confusion in each other's gaze. "Then?"
Ben sighed and took a deep breath, rearranging his thoughts in order. "At the end of every year, the academy holds the graduation ceremony for the fourth-year students. During the ceremony, games are organized at a massive level with students from each year participating."
Both Aron and Chris were aware of these annual games, however, Ben was not done talking. "The games decide 4 winners, one from each year. Every winner is awarded a wish that the academy shall grant, provided it's in their capacity to do so."
Ben stopped for a while before looking at the boy with pure devotion in his eyes. "You see, our situation was not very different than the female students four years back. They too just like us had been living in a similar building. Nevertheless, things changed when the Divine Nebula took the stage. As you might have known, she won the competition every year."
"Divine Nebula? You mean Rivia Rutherford, don't you?" Chris comprehended. "Yes, there is no one else with such a grand title to her name." Ben answered much to Aron's wonder.
No matter where he goes, one name always snoops into the conversation. 'Julia's sis must have been even more amazing than she let's out.' For some reason, he had a feeling that Julia was underplaying the achievements of her elder sister.
"During madam Rivia's first year itself, when she emerged as the victor, wishing for a new hostel building for her fellow classmates." Ben continued his line of thought.
"And they granted that? The wish seems a bit excessive to me." Chris added, to which Ben pecked his head. "It is. Especially when you consider that she didn't discriminate against us as well, asking for new accommodations for girls and boys alike."
His words surprised Aron even more than he already was. Ms. Rivia must have been a kind soul indeed. "Then?" Chris was impatient to hear what happened next.
"For one, her demand was truly on the excessive end of the spectrum, still there had never been a precedence of a student using a hard-earned wish on the collective good." Ben mentioned with both his listeners nodding their heads like puppets, certainly they agreed very much.
"As such, her wish was granted and that's how the girls got a newly built and extravagant place to stay." "Then how come we got the short end of the stick?" Chris was quick to respond.
Ben sighed wryly. "Simply speaking, principal Madelyn disagreed with the notion of us getting a new building as well. According to her, the male students had not proved themselves in order to deserve a new place to live. She assured Rivia that the day a male student wins the graduation ceremony games, she will complete the other half of the wish."
Chris was not very convinced about the situation. "Hey.. there are four chances every year to grab the top spot. How come you guys could not win a single time for the last three years?"
"Haha.. well.. what can I say.." Ben laughed in self-derision. "We have come close.. a few times but it had never been enough to clinch the first spot. It's always the girls who grab the first spot for each year." The boy looked rather despondent, implying their sad state.
"Damn.. these guys are even more pathetic than I assumed." Chris was angry. Had the seniors been meticulous enough, he would not have to stay in this shitty place while his sister enjoyed all the luxuries.
"Ahem.. let's not come to conclusions. I am sure they must have been trying their best." Aron's supposed words of support only made Ben blush up in indignation.
"Um.. actually, it's been more than more than a decade since a boy won first place during the graduation ceremony." His confession left the other two boys speechless, lacking words to describe their emotions.
"There is a first time for everything.. I guess." Even Aron was not feeling very confident now. Chris wanted to bang his head in the wall but somehow managed to keep his sanity. "That's enough disappointment for a day, brother. Let's unpack our luggage." He suggested distracting themselves from the miserable circumstances of their fellow members of the community.
"I will help you guys." "No need. Please don't touch my stuff." Chris warned Ben who wanted to scoop in to assist the boys. "Haha.. please don't mind him. He is in a sour mood today." Aron mitigated the tension.
"What about the food? Is it just as bad as this crumbling building?" After accommodation, food was definitely the next big concern. Ben's stiff face recovered a lot after Aron's intervention and he laughed out.
"That's the only saving grace here. The rooms might be bad but the food is the best. You need not worry about that." Aron was greatly relieved. After the incident with the vampire, his food intake had increased quite a lot. Hopefully, this place can keep him satiated.
Ben collected his mess scattered all over the floor. "I get it you two are strong. But please take my advice and stay clear of the senior students." He offered his advice causing the two boys to turn to him once again.
"Hmm? Do we need to face bullying?" Chris narrowed his eyes, not enthused by the disclosure. "Well it's not too bad, but yeah, things like that do happen if the senior year guys get a hold of you."
"Hmph.. they sure got to fix their priorities right. Brother, make sure you don't go out alone. I shall accompany you, lest these guys try something funny." Aron didn't know how to feel about this but he nodded his head nonetheless.
He can understand Chris's concern about his identity as a slave, which was almost certainly going to attract some unwanted attention. Living life in slavery had taught him that lesson pretty well.
"One more thing I got to ask you, brother Ben." Aron turned around to find their new roommate collecting what seemed to be some erotic journals from under his bed.
Ignoring the fact that this was the same edition Ava's father was having with him, he cleared his throat. "About this.. do you know any way a slave could regain his or her freedom?"
Ben fell in his bed, mulling. "I thought you would ask that. I think it depends on a case-by-case basis." Even Chris was not very knowledgeable on these matters so he chose to keep quiet.
"Firstly, the sure shot way is to do something meaningful for the nation. This had been the way people have relied on the most to increase their ranks. All the noble families did assist the kingdom in the times of crisis, that's how they were awarded their status."
"Just like that, you can render your services by taking part in the war efforts against the Orc clans." Ben stated. "I am sure there must be other ways?" Aron asked, not willing to serve in the army so soon.
"There are. Like you can support some expeditions that are important for the country. Take part in them and if you are recognized, you can easily win back your freedom."
Ben's words quashed much of Aron's hope, and he can see that clearly. He thought for a few seconds and then came up with another observation. "Else.. if you don't want to wait for too long. I guess there is a single way."
Aron's eyes brightened. "There is?" Ben grinned back. "Hehe.. Become an alchemist. If you can wiggle your way into the profession, even as an intern, there is no way they can't help you get rid of the slave tag."
< Kudos!!>>