Ryder and Kaylee both had shown up late for their class. One having gotten yelled at and looked at with annoyance. Others in his class had also looked annoyed however Ryder ignored it sitting next to the other commoners in the back corner of the room.
He had trouble listening to the lesson with his position, so he asked to swap seats with a couple people close to him. One of them had a serious look in his eyes when he looked back to Ryder.
"I'm sorry, but I will have to decline. Some of us truly wish to be here and learn, if you want the same then be here early next time"
The boy looked forward at the teacher listening intently to their every word.
'Woah… this dude is way to serious, it feels like he's in an intense fight instead of a classroom'
Eventually Ryder got up moving to the back of the class, he stood there enhancing his hearing with Soul Force as he goes along with the lesson.
On the other hand Kaylee walking into the class late didn't make anyone complain. Instead the teacher was happy to see her finally getting to class while a couple nobles began to move around giving her a seat at the front. The strange thing is the only people in this class was nobles.
'Ugh… now I have to deal with all these windbags huh… oh well! At least I'll be able to see Ryder later!'
She casually walked to the open seat sitting down like a proper princess trying to keep up a semblance of proper etiquette.
"Wow, she really is in our class!"
"Mhm! I told you man, I knew my information couldn't be wrong!"
A couple of the nobles in the back began to whisper to each other. They were obviously excited to see the princess, however many of them had other thoughts.
'This is my chance! If I get with the princess my family will fully support me! Maybe I'll even become the next king if she becomes queen!'
Many of them had similar thoughts, each of them had just been teenage boys fantasizing as Kaylee completely ignored them.
'Please tell me this isn't going to be everyday… Grandpa! I want to go home'
The princess was secretly troubled by this nonsense however she didn't interrupt them. Instead she acted like a proper princess listening to her teachers lecture.
———
"You all will be tested on this later so make sure your taking notes! I don't want people coming to me crying for a couple extra points because they didn't study!"
A vibration could be felt from every student at that moment. Some looked to the source noticing it was the badge of the academy notifying all students who have classes at the moment were to head to their next class.
"Go on, get out you all! I hope none of you are LATE to your next class"
The teacher shot a look to Ryder who just gave them a nod as he began to head down towards the exit. Though his steps were stopped by a couple black clothed boys.
One had green hair, grey eyes, and a cocky look on his face. This one has stood in front of Ryder stopping his advance.
The other had black hair, yellow eyes, a plump body, and a look of disdain on his face as he looked at Ryder.
"So a commoner thinks he can just not show up at the start of class huh? Who do you think you are? Thinking you can walk in after all of us and look at us with those filthy eyes!"
The green haired boy got in his face, he acted more like a wannabe thug then a noble in Ryder's opinion.
"Looks like someone needs to learn how we do things around here"
The chubby one added as the green one lifted his hand ready to slap Ryder only to get his hand caught by the boy.
When Ryder looked over to his teacher he noticed that they had seen the whole thing but completely ignored it.
'So that's how it is huh? No one will help me, and no one will give me respect unless I force them to, and here I thought we were training to become noble protectors not street thugs!'
"Release me at once trash!"
"No, I don't think I will. You wanted to try and attack first so-"
His words stopped as he brought his left arm up quickly slamming it into the green boys nose forcing his head to get thrown backwards however he wasn't able to go anywhere with Ryder's grasp.
This made the boy spit out a couple teeth and blood onto the floor were he stood.
"-it's only right I retaliate. Next time you pick a target make sure it's one you can handle"
He twisted the boys wrist making him slowly fall to his knees before Ryder released his arm and hit the boy with a right hook across the chin knocking him out cold.
Ryder didn't seem to have a hint of remorse as he looked to the chubby one before shoulder checking him on the way out the door.
The boy didn't know what to do, his friend had been overpowered with ease! He was scared stiff but what pushed him over the edge was his eyes!
'W-what was that… I-it felt like I was looking into a beasts eyes!'
The teacher who watched this was a little surprised about the outcome. He had believed the boy would have to sit there and take it but he easily turned the tables in a very physical way.
'At least he isn't a pushover, however his actions will only cause him more problems in the future'
The teacher watched the boy walk out sighing as he went back to doing paperwork.
———
Currently Ryder stood before a large rundown warehouse type building. It looked like it hadn't been repaired in a long time, though once he went inside everything changed.
The inside of the building was remodeled not to long ago, in the lobby area many kids sat waiting for their instructors while also talking to those they know in the group.
'Looks like it's going to be another lonely cl-'
He scanned the crowd searching for familiar faces, suddenly his thoughts got interrupted the moment he saw Jacob standing to the side away from the group examining the situation.
He had already noticed Ryder however he didn't give him special attention. They had already settled their differences giving both of them a new look of respect when they saw each other.
'It couldn't hurt saying hi I guess'
Before he even got the chance to start heading over Jacob had already started heading his way. The boy leaned up on the wall next to him not saying a word at first.
'Oh I see… guess he really takes his position and status seriously. At least one noble isn't here to mess around'
"How have your wounds been holding up? You sure you can be walking around like this with so many bruises?"
"Ha! I could say the same to you, how are your burns? Hope they haven't been distracting you from your classes"
Both of the boys chuckled a little after their little interaction as they looked over the group.
"Do you know what class this is? Like what it is about?"
Jacob looked to Ryder trying to see how much he knew so far.
"I have no idea, I just was told to be here for Mental Fortitude. I don't know how they are going to fortify our minds but I'm interested in learning"
Jacob laughed at Ryder's remark.
"Don't be to interested, this class is all about testing your willpower against real beasts! The school has captured spirit beasts outside and brought them here to train our willpower and courage for the future. Though our teacher is a real weirdo, that dude is completely obsessed with studying runes instead of training"
'Runes? Wait is he also the teacher for the Rune Creation class?'
His interest had peaked, he didn't know what you could do with runes however he did know one thing. Being a rune crafter was one of the most respected professions on the planet!
If he could create runes then he could break away from the disrespect he has been getting from those in the school. He was determined to test out a rune crafters capabilities before pursing the profession.
'If it is something that can assist Kaylee then I should at least take a look just in case'
At the end of his thought a man walked into the room, this man wore a lab coat with a black vest. This vest was covered in these lines and symbols however if one was to sense the power behind the symbols it could rival a gold rank expert!
"Hey, who ever has seen a spirit beast before raise you hand. If you didn't then sit quietly, today we are going to have you all walk up to specific areas so try your best!"
Mostly everyone was confused, though some knew what was going on it still felt odd having a teacher not even explain what they are doing.
'What a pain… just go in and get scared already so I can get back to my fun'
The man was in his 20's, brown scruffy hair, and green eyes. He looked unprofessional however he was a mastermind of all things runes.
'Finally! Let's see how scary these beasts are compared to little gold!'