…
Before a doorway, a boy with long, tied black hair walked in. His pupils were glimmering with a slight red light, and his smile was always present on his face. Which made him look oddly amicable.
However, everyone looked at his head—more specifically, what was on it.
"So you really came, huh? I thought you would cower away. And do you really think you can beat me with that small bird, haha?" Rowan mockingly laughed out loud.
On Dante's head was a black owl-like bird with a white bone-like mask. It looked extremely cute; its eyes were deep black, almost void-like.
It looked around curiously; when someone would wave at it, it would tilt its head to the side, then wave back with its wing.
He was quite late compared to others, but early compared to the teacher. As he looked around for Sylph, he noticed an old woman with tanned skin standing out. She was looking right at him with a smile.
He also smiled back, and just as he was about to ask who it was, the tanned teacher appeared next to him. He didn't look surprised, as if predicting that this would happen.
"What a fascinating bird; its face is protected by a skull? Where did you find something like this?" She curiously asked him, her anger having completely disappeared.
"Hello there, young, kind lady, I am called Dante. Would you mind showing some manners by introducing yourself first?" Dante backed away when she tried to touch the bird, a gentlemanly smile on his face.
The teacher looked surprised and then laughed, "Hahaha! Of course, I am sorry I got a little distracted by your pet. My name is Kaida, and I'm the beast-taming teacher."
"Oh! So you must be my teacher, then. I'm sorry for being absent yesterday. I was having some affairs to attend because of Skully." Dante spoke in an apologetic voice.
"Hoho, no worries then. It's not everyday that we can see someone as polite and gentlemanly as you at your age." She then chuckled.
"Would you mind me observing your pet? I can pay you a hefty price to bu-"
"I'm sorry. He's not for sale, unfortunately; we've developed a special bond; he's like family to me," Dante slightly apologized.
The teacher then told him not to worry.
After a few moments, Rave, their swordsmanship teacher, entered the dome-shaped class.
She looked at the old woman and said, "Kaida, what are you doing here?"
"Haah. My dear Rave, can't I come and visit my dear colleagues in peace and without any ulterior intentions?" Kaida smiled.
"I am here to witness these young kids fight; it has been a while since I observed the younger generation fight."
"What fight? I was not informed." The red-eyed teacher responded.
The small kid from last time took the initiative to talk again about Dante's and Rowan's duel and their bets. The teacher looked at Dante in an inquiring way, as if asking if he was forced into this.
She then looked relieved when she saw him smile. Her knowledge from their first class lesson told her that Rowan would absolutely massacre Dante.
..
On the concrete floor of the huge dome-shaped classroom stood Dante, and on the other side of the arena appeared Rowan.
"In this duel, if Rowan wins, Dante has to not have any interactions with a student named Sylph. And if Dante were to win, he would be granted any wish from the Rowan family as long as it was in their power.
In this match, everything is allowed. Are the terms of the duel accepted by both students?" Rave asked in a monotonous voice.
"Could you make it so that only if one is unconscious or incapacitated, only then will the match end?" Dante asked.
"Rowan, do you mind?" She looked at Rowan.
"No," he answered with a smile, as if he were thinking about how to make him suffer.
"Ready?"
"" Yes"" Both of them answered at the same time.
"Beat that asshole!" "Massacre him!" "Yeah! Wipe that bastard's smugness from his face!"
Hundreds of students were looking at them while encouraging Rowan to beat Dante.
Their teacher then lifted her hand in the air and then announced,
"Alright then, the match can start in 3, 2, 1, go!"
Just as the match started, the red-haired boy launched himself forward really fast, a two-handed sword in his hands.
Dante couldn't react and lost both his arms as he backed off.
Rowan stopped sliding a few meters after slashing Dante's hands. He was still in his upward slashing stance; he was waiting to hear the class's cheers.
But was met with silence and gasps. When he looked back, he had a horrified look.
…
Dante, who had both his arms amputated, didn't let the slightest sound of pain escape his mouth; he even smiled. As if already having predicted this outcome.
What shocked everyone was the already regrown left hand, which was picking up his right arm and casually reattaching it.
The audience looked somewhat disgusted and surprised; it was way too weird for a student, much less a weakling, to have such a skill. And not give the slightest care for his cut-off limbs.
Rowan, shocked, didn't let himself be dazed by this strange sight. He started running again; this time, he would slash horizontally to cut off his legs, then end him.
As if understanding his thoughts, the bird, which was just discovering and looking at everyone and everywhere, focused its sight on Rowan.
He felt a slight chill down his spine when the void-like holes seemed to be watching his soul.
"It's just a small birb; what can it do, haha?" He unconsciously laughed out of panic.
Just as he was about to get closer than five meters, the ground started becoming wet and muddy. Rowan slipped on the very slippery mud.
He didn't fall, but he clearly lost balance. After stabilizing, he continued to run toward Dante, and when he was in front of him, he rapidly swung his sword horizontally. But then.
*clang*
The sound of metal hitting metal could be heard by everyone. When they looked at what had stopped this deadly attack, a black wing cover with illusionary yellow scales could be seen.
The black bird, which had been calm and relaxed, had joined the battle. He had easily blocked that hit.
Rowan, even though he was shocked, didn't cower in fear and instead started swinging in every direction. But each time it would strike a vital spot, the bird would easily block it.
"Alright, I'm bored; let's end this quickly, Skully." Dante said this in an exasperated voice.
When Rowan heard that sentence, he backed away, observing what trick he would show. Before he could reach the other side of the arena, the black bird started flying toward him.
It was slow and flew very leisurely, but it still caught him with its speed. The red-haired kid then stopped at once and swung diagonally but was stopped by the same yellow scales.
"Annoying pest!" He yelled, but before he could make a movement, he felt the sensation of the ground.
When he looked up, he saw the black-haired boy from above holding his sword like a baseball bat. He then brought his sword high up above his head.
Rowan, paralyzed on the ground, saw the sword slowly making its way up and then rapidly falling down in an executioner's stance toward his neck.
He started fearing for his life, but before the sword could reach any further, a hand grabbed the blade easily.
The red-eyed teacher then stood in front of Dante and asked, "Were you trying to kill him?" Her voice was a little chilly.
"Perhaps? Who knows? I trust your abilities, Ms. Rave. Hehe." He answered in a leisurely voice, and a small smile appeared on his face.
Rowan, on the other hand, heard the little boy's sentence. His eyes started tearing up.
Everyone was shocked, but most were looking at him with disdain and saying, "Vicious bastard!" "Using such dirty tricks!"
'Are they dumb or something? I just beat up this guy, and they're barking as if I really didn't use what we call battle tactics.' Dante thought.
"Alright, that's the end of the duel; back to class. Kaida, would you mind returning? Before Rave could ask the beast-taming teacher to leave her class, she discovered that she had already done so.
…
After getting beat up by his classmates in swordsmanship class because he couldn't use his pet. Dante walked toward his room.
On the way, he found himself becoming dizzy, and before he knew it, he started collapsing on the ground. Not before seeing a purple-haired silhouette approach him from a distance away.
..
When he woke up, he tried to move but noticed that he was attached to a long steel plate. To his side, Iris was slowly engraving things on his chest and the side of his neck.
"Teacher, did you put me to sleep?" Dante asked tirelessly.
"Donno."
"What do you mean?"
"And done."
"What's done?"
"The seal."
"To seal what?"
"Informations, I can't have you wonder around knowing what is happening here, can I?" She grinned, as if happy with her hard work. She then wiped her forehead and dropped the magic tools.
He then felt the restraints on his limbs and body disappear.
"Teacher, you do know that I would have agreed if you had asked me?" Dante said it annoyingly.
"Yeah, sure, I would also let a madwoman, ahem, researcher, engrave things on my body, saying that it was for her own security." Iris rebuked.
"You do know that I don't have any memories, and even fewer people I would sell your information to."
"Who knows when you remember them?"
"…"
"Also, if you try to spill the beans, your heart will stop and your neck will explode. Just saying~."
Dante then, in a comically tragic voice, answered, "Teacher, I'm hurt; how could you betray this young man?"
"Shut up already."
"Ok…"
She then took out a small cage, and in it was a restless black bird. When it looked at the perfectly fine Dante, it relaxed.
"I am intrigued as to where you found this bird."
"Don't know, I just saved its life when it was dying, and it started bonding with me." Dante lied as if it were second nature.
"We can release it; it's really docile when it is not forced into a cage." He informed me sarcastically. Then she walked toward the cage, opening the lid.
'I think it's a special cage; there's no way it cannot break that thing without efforts. Or maybe it hasn't reached adulthood; I just woke up with this thing sleeping next to me. Dante thought.
"What intrigues me even more is its skill; it's a skill from an evolved giant crocodile; the skill is pretty weak compared to them, but it still is strange." Iris voiced her thoughts.
"Hey Skully, do you have any ideas?" Dante asked the bird, who just tilted its head, not understanding.
"See, even he doesn't know."
"Why do I feel like you've become more sharp-tongued?" she asked.
"Donno, maybe next time you do something to someone, ask?"
"Come on, don't be silly about such a small thing." Iris rebuked.
"Alright." Dante, as if nothing had happened, smiled as he looked at the red runes before his eyes.
I can undo the seal if the host wants to.
'Don't.'
When the seal is off, your teacher won't be able to detach.
'I said, don't.'
"So, teacher, have you concocted me a new gift?" he asked in a false voice.
"Do you think I am such a craft god or something? How can I make good things like that because you asked for them?" The teacher seemed kind of pissed off.
'Maybe she misunderstood me when I said that magic was easy?'
"So you're claiming that you can't do...?" Before he could finish his taunt, he was sent flying across the room by a wind blade.
Luckily for her teacher, there was nothing on the way, as his lower torso was cut clean.
"You shouldn't become accustomed to violence, teacher. Imagine you do this to a poor student." Dante slightly chucked as he crawled toward his lower half, healing in a few seconds.
"Maybe if you were just fucking quiet, then maybe I wouldn't have to resort to this, you dimwit." She answered in a cold voice, genuinely offended by Dante's taunt.
Dante, on the other hand, was having a different kind of thought: 'Why does she look so cute when annoyed?'
He was starting to doubt if even a psychopath would find this kind of scene cute.
…