Tobi's steps didn't stop despite Rem putting up his guard and a slight frown stretched across his lips as he felt the Shapeshifter's gaze move away from him and then fall upon the Mika, his eyes shining with a momentary urge to battle.
'So he ignored me,' Rem thought but he could feel that Tobi's gaze hadn't fully left his figure- it was still lingering on him, as if expecting him to react.
And Rem nearly did react- but he held himself back, not wanting to fall into the Opponent's track.
"Tobi, being as sly as ever, huh?" Mika quipped as she saw her fellow Apprentice walk toward her while holding his guard up and also observing.
"I'm just making sure," Tobi quipped while breaking into a sprint and meeting Mika mid-air, both Apprentices crashing into each other and sending a small shockwave through the air- they were both sent hurtling backward by the force of their collision but nevertheless, they stood back up and charged at each other yet again.
Rem with nothing to do, began an analysis of Tobi for the day it came to finish him off… The boy's defensive skills were mid at best and the same thing could be said for the rest of his parameters, they were barely on par with someone as skilled as Mika as he was quickly beaten and Rem couldn't help but think of what would have happened if Cole and Mika fought- despite being quick and strong, Cole was bound to lose as even Mika hadn't started drawing upon the latent power which was within that tattoo- for some reason, it seemed all-too familiar but he couldn't quite place it.
"Hehe, I won against Tobi," Mika said as she spread her hands apart with a smile on her face.
Instructor Martinez took a step back onto the battleground, a proud smile tugging his lips.
"You two are the current top Cavalier Apprentices amongst your peers, this Battle royale wasn't only going to involve you challenging the others for nothing," Martinez said, "The two of you have been given permission to take a C-grade weapon from the treasury later today, as I said earlier, We the instructors are here to help you out so feel free to reach out to any one of us, and also the training facilities which are on the fourth floor are free for you to use as well,"
Rem gave a small nod, determined to use everything that the Mansion could offer, helping himself grow into a stronger Warrior.
"Your first lessons begin tomorrow at 9AM and you are required to be on the 5th floor to learn how to use Magical weapons," Martinez said, "You are free to roam around the Mansion but note that there are some places you cannot enter without permission from myself or Master Drew, and all apprentices are expected to be at the dinner table 6PM sharp, don't worry about sharing this information to the fallen Apprentices- they will be informed by the maids,"
#####
Rem closed the door behind him and instantly took off his tracksuit, drenched with sweat- being an Apprentice wasn't easy but he would manage, Rem was sure he made a good impression on the Instructors after all he beat Cole.
He needed the good impression not because he was trying to get their attention but rather they would train him according to his abilities, and train him happily as well.
"I think I should bring them out," Rem said as he reached for his old knickers which lay on the bed and rummaged through the pocket of his secret compartment, pulling out three vials of Healing potions in succession.
Rem slowly lay them on the bed and sighed.
"I should store them aside for now," Rem said, "They will come in handy later,"
With all the battles set aside for the future, Rem was bound to need the healing potions and besides if he wanted to sell these- he would have to visit a Black market and the experiences of last time were still fresh in his mind, what he needed before attempting to go back to his former residence was more power and being an Apprentice was bound to grant him a lot of that.
"I should go for a shower," Rem said while picking up the vials and pushing them into his small wardrobe with relative ease, he would work out a secret compartment to keep his important stuff in later.
Rem quickly took off his underwear and grabbed a towel from the rack, Cole had been a fierce opponent with great speed and Rem would make sure to jot his name down on the list of people he ought to be wary of.
#####
Taking a bath and wearing regular clothes felt refreshing to Rem, he wasn't wearing a tracksuit but rather clothes that were in his new closet- A Black T-shirt with crimson shorts, they fit him nicely.
Rem opened the front door and found himself in the front yard, he had a mission… he wanted to make sure he understood the layout of the land he was going to live on, also he wanted to plot a way to escape if push came to shove- he would never drop his guard, even in a place where there was constant food and amazing living conditions, Humans were not to be trusted at all and Rem knew first-hand what it felt like to be betrayed.
He shook his head, clearing his head of memories threatening to infiltrate and began his walk, upon taking a few steps through the property- Rem found himself in front of the towering black gates which were six meters tall, even Rem wasn't tall enough to see their top… they were also two meters thick making it a rather sturdy gate, yet if he wanted to scale it, it would take minimal effort.
Even if he couldn't use the handles, he could gather magic into his feet and leap toward one of the emblems that adorned the gate, gaining a sturdy hold of it and scaling the gate. His gaze tore off the gate to the two guards which stood next to them.
They were the people that had opened the gate for him to enter, and if he wanted to leave, they would subsequently be the ones that would open it for him- Rem could sense they were strong, with senses probably carved after years of combat experience.
The two guards stood at the gates on both sides, one of them stood straight and tall with a steadfast expression on his face while the other leaned against the gate, his hands rested on the thick gate like some sort of pillow.
They were having a conversation but Rem couldn't hear much of it and he decided to move on- after walking once again, his eyes set upon the Battlefield where they recently had the battle royale… it was cleaned thoroughly and all the Instructors which had been standing there before had left, the only thing he could see atop was Mika, her fists clenched and her tattoo glowing slightly in the sun.
There was this urge, a wave of familiarity that seemed to engulf him yet he couldn't wrap his tongue around it, a sort of feeling that Rem couldn't comprehend and sure enough Mika turned to face him, their eyes meeting in a heated gaze before Mika turned away quickly, her focus going away from the peculiar black-haired boy and to her training which was vastly more important.
But Mika couldn't deny it, a vague feeling of familiarity surged through her veins but she cut it off… She wouldn't let a man get in the middle of her training.
After watching Mika train for a short while, Rem explored the rest of the Compound and compiled his research together- the walls were about four to five meters tall and pretty thick too, almost as if they were purposely reinforced but once again, it was nothing he couldn't handle with the help of his Goblins or Death Wolves.
Rem really hoped he would get a chance to visit a Dungeon again- there were many monsters which were just perfect for harvesting, but once again, He had to get stronger… that original feeling of weakness, he wanted to drown it entirely.
"Hey," Cole said and Rem spun around, kicked out of his thoughts by a familiar voice.
"What do you want?" Rem asked coldly- although he could sense the arrogance in Cole's voice gone, he still didn't want to have a friendly demeanor with his fellow 'Apprentices', he didn't want to get attached and held back by unnecessary feelings.
If he had learned anything up until this moment, fighting for someone else was stupid- They had hands, right? Couldn't they just fight for themselves? In life, one prioritized their life over that of others… In the end, no human was willing to let his life get taken for the sake of protecting another human- it sounded stupid in his ears.
"Being an Apprentice isn't easy," Cole said.
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Author's Note:
If you're enjoying the book so far, don't hesitate to add this to your library and throw in some power stones for me, and if you're feeling really generous- you can support me with a golden ticket or two, and a gift too!