'She... has been gone for quite a while now, hasn't she?'
Never mind returning in a couple of hours, as the day had now passed over to Sunday, Dona had now been gone for more than ten hours. So needless to say, the emotion that had started out as a bit of curiosity had now also been replaced by pure anxiety.
It didn't help that I couldn't contact her on her phone either, acting so as to exaggerate the emotions inside of me even more. And at some point, I just couldn't take it anymore. So I headed out, without any kind of reasonable plan.
'-Aarick, you don't have to worry about her, you know? Even if something did happen, if she can't deal with it, why do you think you would be able to?'
Breathing in the late night air under the lights of the city in the dark, feeling the slight cold enter my lungs, I was aware that Lucifer was right. There was no way I was going to solve a situation that Dona couldn't solve herself.
Yet, at the same time, I couldn't allow myself not to do anything.
So, I ran forward, just running while looking everywhere for the teacher that had gone missing, while at the same time trying to keep my inner turmoil under wraps.
****
[3rd person Pov]
"Fuck! I can't believe teacher would just go back on his promise like that! Shit! It's all because of him, that punk!"
Walking home from the bar where he had spent the night with some upper-classmen from his old school, trying to cheer himself up with some alcohol and women, there was no doubt that the brown-haired student was all but happy this night.
Though attending Augustus had inevitably shown him just how untalented he was compared to the other students, he had gotten an opportunity of a lifetime, an opportunity where Mr. Ainsworth would send an official recommendation to the Phoenix guild.
Simply put, his life would have been more or less set. Even if he might not have risen through the ranks, even the lower-ranked hunters in the biggest guilds made more than enough money to live comfortably and then some.
But it had all come crashing down, just because a white-haired punk didn't know his place!
"I swear, next time I see you, Aarick...!"
And then something very peculiar happened. A certain youth was running on the other side of the street. Although he was now wearing a black set of training wear, his white hair was still illuminated by the street lights to the point where it was impossible to not see who it was.
So with that, Hugo couldn't help but smile, seeing the youth running toward the outskirts of the city, an area that would no doubt be very scarce with people this late at night. Because out there, Rellea was still filled with abandoned factories and old buildings, so there was no nightlife for anyone to enjoy.
Picking up his phone, he quickly called up the upper-classmen that he had just left behind at the bar, knowing that they still owed him a couple of favors from before.
"Yeah, there's someone that needs to learn his place. I'll send you my location. Yeah, that's good. I'll see you soon."
Then, he moved forward, wearing a manic grin as he followed Aarick to the backstreets of Rellea.
****
[Aarick's Pov]
'-Say, darling, how did you come to the conclusion that she might be here?'
'I... don't know...'
Though I had tried to act rationally, I had somehow ended up in a very familiar abandoned factory, a place that my head had subconsciously led me to. I had no idea why my gut feeling had led me here, but now that I had arrived, I could only think of myself as a fool for believing in it.
Then again, my little run had at least managed to clear my mind enough to realize just how stupid my worry was. There was no way that Dona would need my help.
'Haaa... I'm going home...'
'-Don't feel down, Aarick. Even if I find it quite ridiculous that an [F]-rank fledgling like you was trying to save Dona, I'm not unhappy to see you taking charge of the situation. If anything, that's what I like about you, and that's one of the reasons I chose you in the first place.'
'Thank you, Lucifer...'
Her words did lessen my embarrassment a bit, but sadly they didn't help much against the lingering stress I had when thinking about what could have happened to Dona. There was still a...
'-Aarick, get down!'
*BOOM!*
Feeling the vertigo of my body getting blown away, getting launched off the ground as I landed on the hard concrete floor a bit further away, it was impossible to stop my head from spinning.
Trying my best to determine whatever just happened to me, I saw a big hole in the torso of my black hoodie, and through the hole, I could see my scorched flesh. Turning my gaze upwards, now knowing that I had been attacked, I saw three figures approaching me.
With all three of them wearing white shirts, with varying kinds of pants complementing the shirts, it took a moment before I realized who they were. In the back, Bob 1 and Bob 2 was smiling widely while a certain bully that I had defeated in a duel was standing in the front, now quickly approaching.
"Tch! Not so cocky now, are we? Punk!"
*Bam!*
A hard kick was launched into my stomach, sending me rolling over the floor, with my vision spinning once again.
'-Darling, get up! You have to stand up!'
Hearing Lucifer's worried voice, I somehow snapped out of my daze mid-roll, managing to put my hands on the ground while using the momentum to nimbly get up on my feet, sadly still unable to now stumble a bit.
And that bit was more than enough for another fireball to be sent from the grinning student that for some reason wanted me dead.
*BOM!*
Luckily, I was at least in good enough shape to throw myself to the side, making the fireball instead hit one of the many concrete pillars in the factory, making the grayish material find itself a new decoration in the form of a black imprint.
"Hahaha! That's the only thing you're good at, isn't it Aarick?! Running away! Then, let's see if you can keep it up!"
Once again, a small ball of fire started hovering above his hand, and without hesitation, he launched it at me, followed by another, and another.
*BOM, BOM, BOM!*
A small flurry of fireballs was sent my way and once again I had no choice but to desperately tumble around, getting no chance of stabilizing my posture. If it hadn't been for that surprise attack to start the battle, I might have had more of a fighting chance, but right now I knew it would be impossible.
So with that in mind, I made a decision.
'Zero gravity!'
Putting power into my legs, I jumped upwards while at the same time dodging another ball of fire, sending my body soaring away to the ceiling rails of the factory, the only place I could think of as being relatively safe right now.
"Pillar of Earth!"
Suddenly, Bob 1's mouth opened, reciting a spell that resulted in a huge pillar of dirt coming out of the floor, instantly blocking my escape.
"Air Bomb!"
"Gah!"
A second later, Bob 2 also made his move, sending a bubble of air to my side, forcing me back to the ground once again when it exploded. Then, a foot landed on my chest, making sure that I couldn't move anywhere.
Hugo had taken his position above me, wearing a disgusting expression on his face.
"Who said you were allowed to leave? The night has just started after all! Hahaha!"
There was no way out for me. Getting hit by a sudden wave of deja vu, I realized that I was once again stuck in a situation where there was nothing I could do but experience the pure violence of youths that exploited their own powers.
But, then Lucifer spoke, and although her tone was gentle, I could hear a pang of sadness behind it.
'-It's going to be alright, Darling.'
Suddenly, my body started filling up with power, power that I somehow knew was coming from my heart which was acting very weirdly.
'Lucifer...? What are you doing?'
'-I am saving your life again! Unfortunately, I will probably have to sleep for quite a while after this, but...'
'Then I don't want it!'
Even if I stood at the risk of dying here, I understood from her words that 'quite a while' was far longer than any duration of time that I could accept being away from her. And I didn't want that.
No, just the thought of losing her even if it was for a limited time was so stressful that I felt like I wanted to throw up. Because she was the one thing I truly had.
Sadly, she still thought of my survival to be of greater importance than that.
'-It's going to be fine. Now, prepare yourself. Because after this, you might have to run away.'