Seeing the opening door, Drai hurriedly sat up.
A young man entered the room. He was tall and had silky smooth blonde hair that was at nape-length.
His build was average and had a light tan. He was wearing a jacket and cargo pants, both beige colored. He also had a big backpack like Drai.
Upon seeing Drai, the young man smiled. After taking off his shoes, he put down his backpack near the sofa and walked toward Drai.
"Well, hello there, roommate! I'm Christo Maglan," the man greeted while offering a handshake.
"Hello. My name is Drai Varz," Drai replied while shaking Christo's hand lightly.
"Ouch!" Christo winced as he felt his hand almost crushed.
Seeing this, Drai was stunned and immediately released his grip.
"Seems like you're a strength type, huh? You better be careful with that. Others with low constitution would've probably broken their hand just now," Christo advised as he caressed his now reddened hand.
"I'm sorry. I'm not used to touching others, so I couldn't properly control my strength," Drai responded.
"Don't worry about it. By the way, is our roommate already here or is it just you and me?"
"I think the last guy hasn't arrived. When I got in, there was nobody here and the beds seemed untouched," Drai recalled.
"That's good. Now I can take the second-best bed," Christo said merrily before grabbing his backpack and putting away his belongings.
Drai watched as Christo did his tidying while merrily humming.
'Why is this guy so cheerful? He must be a socialite… He kind of looks like those so-called nobles too. Is he from abroad?' Drai wondered.
Finishing up, Christo picked up a thermos and a cup, and brought them to the sofa.
"Come here, Drai. I've got some nice tea for you. It's from my hometown," Christo gestured.
Slightly hesitating, Drai went to sit on the sofa, next to Christo.
Drai felt awkward being this close to someone he just met a few minutes ago, but he thought that it was impolite to refuse his hospitality.
And in the end, they were roommates so they would end up getting closer anyway. It's just that Christo was too friendly! For a loner like Drai, this was quite overwhelming.
"Here, I hope you enjoy it," Christo offered the cup.
Drai looked at the drink. It was unlike any tea he'd seen before.
The liquid was transparent and pinkish. Its steam was fragrant.
Upon drinking it, Drai tasted a mellow sweetness with a tinge of fruitiness. Somehow, he was reminded of the riverside at his hometown where he used to train. He closed his eyes and embraced the warm yet fresh feeling flowing down into his stomach.
Seeing Drai's reaction, Christo let out a pleased smile. He then poured his own into the thermos lid before drinking.
After he was done savoring the tea, Drai opened his eyes, only to see Christo staring at him with a wide smile.
"Nice tea!" Drai blurted as he blushed.
"It's a nice tea indeed. It's a prized item in my hometown due to its taste and calming effects."
"I'm sorry, I didn't bring anything from home except for my clothes. I didn't know I would share a room. I thought I would be by myself just like usual," Drai smiled wryly.
"No problem," Christo chuckled. "This is just my habit."
"Bringing tea?" Drai asked.
"Making friends," Christo corrected.
"Oh… Well, I think you're good at it," Drai said sincerely. He knew that if it were with someone else, Drai would've probably not conversed this much beyond the initial greetings.
"I do try to be good at it, since it's part of my greater interest."
"Oh? And what's that?" Drai asked curiously.
"Well, it's—"
"BANG!!!"
A loud sound startled Drai and Christo. Christo turned his face toward the slammed door, looking curiously. Meanwhile, Drai stood up and braced himself.
A hand was stretched through the door, as if relishing the disruption it had caused.
The hand pulled back slowly. Then, a young man silently entered.
His appearance stupefied Drai and Christo, as he seemed to have jumped out of old eastern movies.
The man was wearing what looked like a black eastern robe of the past. His shiny black hair was at waist-length, tied behind his back.
The man wasn't very tall and based on his features, was of mixed descent. He had a sheathed sword at his waist and his sharp eyes looked around the room before stopping at Christo and Drai.
Christo smiled at the young man but wasn't reciprocated. The man was instead focusing on Drai as he saw Drai's slim yet chiseled body and intense stare.
Meanwhile, Drai was actually deep in thought.
'What the hell, dude!? Maybe you wanted to look historical and all, but that expensive-looking suitcase is ruining it! You should've gone all in and wrapped your stuff in a cloth or something!
'Ugh… Now whenever I watch a kung fu movie, I'll be expecting some dude to appear, dragging a shiny Lewie V'ton suitcase. You've ruined kung fu movies for me, dude…' Drai painfully thought.
Luckily the newcomer couldn't hear these thoughts or he would've vomited blood.
Seeing the tension between these two, Christo stood up and approached the young man.
"Hello there! I believe you're our third resident. My name is Christo," Christo offered a handshake.
The man looked at Christo, silently judging. He then shook Christo's hand and nodded slightly.
"This Young Master goes by the name Jian," he stated most peculiarly. "By the way, who is that person?" Jian gestured toward Drai.
"That's our roommate, Drai. He was the first to arrive here," Christo replied while feeling goosebumps due to Jian's manner of speaking.
"Hm," Jian curtly nodded as he stared at Drai.
Drai wasn't paying attention to this interaction since he was still distracted by the suitcase. A scene of ancient eastern villagers bringing their suitcases to the fields was currently playing in his mind.
Seeing that Drai remained silent, Jian ignored him and walked toward the beds.
Looking at the beds' arrangement, Jian nodded.
"This Jian will be taking this spot," Jian said as he headed toward the lone bed.
"Uhm… Drai already took that one," Christo mentioned.
"It doesn't matter. He can move," Jian replied coldly as he put down his sword on the bed. Then he opened the small cabinet and started moving out Drai's stuff.
Christo turned to look at Drai, wanting to see his reaction. Yet, to his surprise, Drai was just standing still, staring at the now empty space where Jian was standing just moments ago.
"Uhm… Drai? Jian is taking over your bed."
"What?" Drai blankly replied. His mind was currently watching an epic battle between two kung fu masters who were smashing each other with suitcases.
"Your bed," Christo gestured while shaking his head helplessly.
Drai looked toward his bed and finally realized what was happening.
"Hey! What are you doing!?" Drai raised his voice in anger as he saw his stuff being thrown out.
Jian glanced at Drai but didn't respond. He was opening his suitcase to transfer his belongings to the cabinet.
Seeing this, Drai became furious. He quickly walked toward Jian and shoved away his open suitcase, expelling the various items inside it all over the floor.
"Courting death!!!" Jian roared. He took his sword from the bed and held it threateningly, ready to unsheathe it.
Seeing this, Drai fumed. "You're taking your weapon out, wanting to kill me for a mere squabble!? Good!"
Drai immediately dashed to the leftover bed and grabbed the corner of its metal frame. With one arm, he lifted it high until it nearly scraped the ceiling.
Drai turned around and glared at Jian while wielding the disproportionately large bed, ready to slam it on this rude fellow.
Upon seeing this monstrous feat, Jian and Christo gaped in shock.
Jian paled and his body trembled. He tried to steady himself but failed and dropped his sword instead.
It was at this moment Jian knew he f***ed up.
Jian suddenly knelt down and lowered his head.
"Have mercy, Mighty Warrior! This Jian has eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai!"
Seeing this sudden development along with the puzzling statement, Drai was dumbfounded. It suddenly dawned on him that this Jian guy might have some problems with his brain.
Seeing that Drai was still glaring at him without any intention of lowering the "weapon", Jian hurriedly added, "This Jian is just a lowly person who is ignorant of the world, truly deserving a beating!"
"Are you saying you want me to beat you with this?" Drai asked with a strange look in his eyes, wiggling the bed.
"No, no! This Jian realizes his mistakes and wants to make up for it. If Sir Warrior is willing, this Jian will subordinate himself to you during the academy!" Jian thoughtlessly replied, afraid of being slapped to death by a bed.
"So, you admit that you're wrong?"
"Yes, yes!" Jian nodded vigorously.
"Okay, then I'll let it go. But I don't need a subordinate. I just want you to stop talking weirdly," Drai said as he returned the bed to its original place.
Seeing this, Jian let out a sigh of relief before replying, "Sir Warrior's request is acceptable, but it might be a bit difficult…"
"What's difficult about it? You just have to refer to yourself with a proper 'I' and speak clearly without riddles. Oh, one more thing. You also need to curb your arrogance. If you go around offending people left and right like that, one day you'll die without a burial."
Hearing this, Jian fell into silence. Drai also looked at him closely, wanting to see if he's willing to change his attitude.
On the sofa, Christo was watching this drama with amusement. Too bad he didn't have popcorn with him. Tea didn't suit the situation.
'Being roommates with these people, my academy life sure won't be dull,' Christo chuckled.
After a while, Jian finally spoke up.
"Okay, Mighty Warrior—"
"Drai. Call me Drai," Drai cut off.
"Yes! Okay, D-Drai. I will try to change my attitude and speech, at least in front of you. Thank you for being lenient on me."
"Sure. I just don't like edgy dudes, especially the ones stealing my sleeping spot."
"Ah! I'll tidy up your belongings right away!" Jian realized and frantically picked up Drai's clothes that he threw out.
Drai just shook his head and headed back to the sofa. Sitting down, he massaged his temples wearily.
"Are you okay?" Christo asked.
"Yeah. Just a bit tired. This is why I prefer to be alone. Interacting with people can be a nuisance."
"Hahaha. Most interactions don't end up with swords and beds clashing, Drai," Christo said laughingly.
"Hehehe. I did go a little overboard. But that was because this Jian dude was too overbearing. Imagine getting cut down trying to defend your bed. Isn't that a bit too much?" Drai asked.
"It is. But I have a feeling that there's more to Jian's demeanor than meets the eye."
"Hm? You mean he has a reason for being a cosplaying asshole who talks weirdly?" Drai questioned.
"Yes, I think so. And if I'm not wrong, it has something to do with his class!"