No time was spent gawking at the marvelous site of the Bastion; I sprinted towards my dormitory and smashed the door, pushing the bedside table in front of it just in case.
If it was like this…then the problem of accommodation and basic necessities had been solved, meaning there was no need to search for employment. It would have been for the best. All my efforts had to be thrown into growing my abilities.
And what other way did I have but to leech off others? Scratching my hair, I began to flcik through the memories of Arlen in order to find a suitable victim.
They couldn't be too strong, lest I suffer the 'repercussions' of a mind difference; they also couldn't be too weak, or else I would be wasting an opportunity that came only once every 6 months.
Someone between the 800-900 ranks would act as the perfect target. At that range, it would be the second years of the Bastion as the majority.
With the range now decided, I started to piece together a feasible plan. In theory, it wouldn't be too hard—simply walk up to a second year, place my hand on their head and give support as a senior and walk off with all their achievements and memories.
In practicality, however, there was a high chance I would get slapped to the ground if I tried that.
Why the hell would anyone want support from a failure? Wasn't that calling them a failure as well?
"Shit, shit…Arlen, how could you be this bad? This doesn't even make sense! Just because I'm weak, why the hell does every single student ostracise me!? The fucker two ranks above me doesn't get half the abuse hurled at him!"
A vast majority of the Bastion life Arlen had experienced was quite blurry to me, preventing me from understanding the exact nuances of his treatment. Only vague snippets at the injustice he faced were present.
Regardless. There really wasn't much choice.
Looking at the setting sun, I carefully stepped out, ensuring that no other 4th years were outside. Luck was indeed on my side; the academic year had yet to formally start, and so the number of people currently in the Bastion was significantly lower.
Dormitories were split between years, which were then further split into 3 different buildings. Using these to promote competition, those three's infrastructure were incomparable to one another. Higher ranked students of the year procured themselves a better abode, compared to the lower ranking students who did not have access to the many privileges that the other buildings had.
And that was exactly why I decided to go to the middle ranked building of the second year. At a glance, there was room for at least 150 students to reside in here. It lacked any design apart from the single dragon symbol situated in the middle; the rest of the building was a simple ebony coating.
Entering even the near proximity of the building required an entry card, as the entirety of the building had been protected by a silver gate.
150 potential victims. Considering the time, maybe there would only be 50. Just one of them. That was all I needed.
Scanning the area for any people, I retreated towards the side of the gate and began my wait.
Minutes turned into tens. The sun had nearly become fully submerged, yet there wasn't a sight of a single student.
Sighing, I turned my back and started my return.
As I did so, I saw a figure walking towards my direction. Although I had now gone too far out to be sure if he was going to the second year dormitory, I was willing to test my luck.
Straightening my shoulders, I gave a steady gait towards the man and softly smiled. Looking at his sunken eyes, my smile faltered temporarily. Even noticing that his eyes were sunken was due to me being keen, as the majority of the upper half of his face was covered by silver hair.
Under the now rising moonlight, he almost became an ethereal figure.
I involuntarily gulped.
Strong. Without a doubt, it was impossible for this man to be a simple character. Was he even a human, or a spiritual entity? His stature was hunched back, and the complexity of his skin was ghostly pale.
His eyes were unfathomably deep. A sharp tint of gold was present in his iris, and they had now rolled to look at my face.
…Not him. Definitely, definitely not him! I would die if I tried anything on him.
Running would be the wrong move. Instead, I kept walking as if nothing was wrong. I wouldn't invite this calamity over to me.
"Haaa!" Tension flooded out my body as I verified that he was out of my range. Short segments of Arlen's memories tried to play, but I couldn't get a full grasp on them. They seemed…distorted.
Shaking my head, I once more scanned the area in the hopes of finding someone.
If storms come, will light shine afterwards?
A wide grin was plastered on my face as I ran towards an individual even the memories of Arlen could remember.
The untalented fucker of the second year! We had confided with each other about the struggles of being the worst!
….Fuck! What was the point of parasyting from him!?
Today ended as an utter failure.
Heading to my dormitory with haste, I went to sleep with a heavy heart. There were only 2 more days until the Bastion would start operations once more. The influx of people would definitely increase!
On the first day, I decided to catch the worm as early as possible. Before the sun had even began to rise, I had situated myself in front of their dormitories. Well, I had planned to.
I had detected a 4th year. Better yet, it was Arlen had clear memories of. That bastard had beaten Arlen on multiple occasions—this time wasn't going to be different.
Calming my nerves took a few hours, but I renewed my determination and charged forward once more!
Another 4th year was seen. They shared a similar past as the other one.
Another 4th year.
And another.
"Fuck! Fuck all of you! What the fuck is wrong with all of you?! How can this many people beat up the same guy!? Why the hell did you all decide to come today out of all days, you fuckers!?"
Slamming my fists into my bed, I vented my deep frustrations at the sadists who continued to pour into the Bastion. Not only 4th years, but students of every year had started to come en masse.
Second years were a part of that group. If those damn 4th years weren't there, then I would've accomplished my fucking goal by now!
Like that, the entirety of the day was wasted in my room, prying secretly through the window to see if any suitable target would come.
Perhaps it was an over exaggeration. Arlen definitely had some moments when he wasn't beaten for 2 weeks. What if now was the same?
Unfortunately, I couldn't rationalise taking the risk. There would definitely be a better time.
On the second day, I continued to curse the 4th years. I sent curses sincerely to them, in both my head and in thought. I really…wanted them to receive my intent. I needed them to get my damn intent and jump into the sea!
Dark hair strands were littered across my room, partially due to my scratching.
It couldn't be like this.
I still hadn't rationalised it. But I had to. Once the lectures started, there would be no time to keep myself safe from the entirety of 4th year and also find a suitable target. At least, it wouldn't be a short time for everything to align my way.
One year was all I had. Wasting it for the perfect time wouldn't work.
Leaving my own dormitory was the biggest problem. 4th years wasn't the only problem. 3rd years were also sufficiently dangerous.
Exploding all the energy I had, my legs bolted towards the second year dormitory; the entirety of my body had been covered by a black cloak I had found in Arlen's room.
Along with the wind, all I could hear were my own mutters. "Please work, please work, please work..."
They were indeed there. Chatting amongst themselves, I saw a group of 4th years—if they were too engrossed in their conversations or not, I would now see.
…Safe.
I was safe!
A smile bloomed from underneath the cloak as I reached my destination. This time, there were a plethora of different subjects I could choose from. Without much thought, I walked towards a lone man.
"Greetings, Junior. I wish you prosperity and luck for a lifetime and even the next! May blessings be showered upon you! Even if things get tough, always persevere! I'm rooting for you!"
Placing my hand on his head, I nodded.
[Memory Parasyte].
I felt a clash in my head for a short while. A stream started to flow within my right arm, finally exiting through my palm and into the man's head.
[Parasyte has attached.]
[Tier 1 ■■■]
[Leeching process: 43d: 16hr: 25m: 21s]
The red slates still followed me here, popping up to notify me of the success.
Before the man could even reply, I sprinted back. Not towards my dormitory, absolutely not, but into the toilets. Locking the door,I made myself comfortable. Perhaps, I would be here for a few hours until the coast had cleared.
Rather than that, I began to focus inside my head. A new pocket of memories had formed, though rather barren. However, contents were slowly starting to pile into it, albeit with extreme lethargy.
Glossing over it didn't give much benefit to me, only telling me about the man, whom I discovered to be called Sunny, had eaten for breakfast.
"Fuck…was my hypothesis wrong?"