"I know it was you."
Ava spoke, staring at Isaac with sharp eyes, her previous annoyance and frustration disappearing.
Meanwhile, Isaac simply raised an eyebrow as he sat opposite her, confused at her vague words.
"Know what was me…"
Before Isaac could finish, Ava cut him off.
"The Intruder. I know it was you."
Isaac paused as his cheeky demeanour crumbled, replaced with a tentative expression, glaring at Ava as countless thoughts ran through his mind.
Ava said nothing, not following up as she decided to watch Isaac's reaction, waiting for what he was going to say.
She was prepared for him to lie, speak on how she was mad or didn't know what she was talking about.
And in truth, she didn't know if that was a lie.
She had nothing to go off of. Just a hunch. But that was enough.
However, a sudden smirk appeared on Isaac's face as he rested his cheek on his fist, his eyes showcasing a glint of mischief.
"How did you know?"
"What…"
She blurted out. No matter how many times she played this Scenario in her mind on her way here, not once did she expect it to go like this.
"So, I'm right? It was you who fought the Six? Who tried to kill Ms Wilson?" Though still surprised, Ava regained her stoic demeanour, her tone carrying a hint of blame.
"It's complicated." Isaac shrugged.
Currently, he felt nothing upon Ava finding out.
He didn't care that she knew. This was because he knew she could do nothing with this information.
Additionally, though Isaac didn't want to admit it, he enjoyed everything that was happening here.
He watched as Ava stared at him with fascinated eyes, her demeanour seeming as though she were sitting before something she couldn't explain.
He liked it.
The look of recognition.
It was the same look he used to give Netero, or the students give the Golden Six.
Superiority.
'Perhaps it's because I'd gotten so used to everyone thinking I was trash that this feels amusing.'
His smirk widened.
However, as it did, Ava noticed and quickly fixed her expression.
"I don't know what agenda you have against Aurelius or Ms Wilson, but I suggest you think hard about the next time you try to pull a stunt like that." Ava leaned in as she spoke in an intense tone.
"The Academy is working day and night to uncover what happened, and if you're figured out, you can wave our business goodbye. My family and the Khans will never work with you, and I'll be forced to drop the project."
It was true.
Due to the pressure from her family and Spawn, in order to save the reputation of the Longfields, she'd be forced by her father to withdraw from working on the Aroze.
She couldn't deny either. She'd worked hard to build her 'Innocent Princess' mask that if she were to deny, her father would think something was afoot.
"Don't worry. They won't." Isaac answered simply, slightly getting on Ava's nerves due to his lackadaisical attitude.
Saying nothing, she stood up, walking toward the door.
"But before you leave, I have something to tell you."
Isaac, the smirk disappearing from his face as he stood, stared straight into Ava's eyes.
His logical mind got the better of him as he suddenly realised Ava might be of use to him.
"What?" Ava asked sceptically. The last time he'd asked this was when he introduced the Aroze to her and had her replace his eyes.
Though she was suspicious, she couldn't help but be intrigued.
"In two days, the first year students will set out on an excursion."
Ava continued to stare, hoping she wasn't standing here just for Isaac to state the obvious.
"But something will go wrong. People will be hurt."
At least, this is what the message stated, though Isaac did sugarcoat it.
Saying this, Ava's expression changed from one to shock, then to anger as she grit her teeth and took a step forward.
"Don't tell me you're planning on doing something stupid."
With everything she'd just learnt about Isaac, she quickly assumed the worst.
But she was cut off swiftly before things became out of control.
"Calm down, I'm not behind this. I'm just trying to stop it." Isaac protested as he raised both hands.
Ava paused, scoffing soon after.
"Yeah, right. You don't expect me to believe you're some sort of White Knight saving everyone from the big bad wolf, do you?" Ava snarled as Isaac's expression didn't budge.
"I'm not a White Knight nor is my main intention to save anyone."
He didn't want to be either. A hero who had a convoluted mindset and simply saw the world in black and white was far from what Isaac desired to be. He detested it.
"Then why?"
Isaac thought on the answer for a few seconds, thinking of the best way to phrase it.
"I made a toast."
Ava raised an eyebrow, confused.
"Besides, it's my life which is also threatened. If I'm being honest, I don't care what you believe…"
Isaac tossed a bracelet as Ava easily caught it, analysing it for a few seconds.
"...I just need you to be wearing that at all times.
[Artifact (Forged): Dimensional Space (C-Rank)]
Ava was confused to say the least. She had countless questions and no answers.
"You still haven't told me what's going on. And what's this bracelet for?"
"I don't know much either. But you need to be wearing that bracelet. There's only one item inside and I'll need you to open it when I tell you to and only then."
Isaac could see the reluctance in Ava's face. He didn't blame her. She knew nothing and was suddenly told people might die.
Despite not explaining the sheer scale of the problem, it still caused Ava to rethink.
He simply needed her to…
"Trust me. Please."
Ava quietly stared.
She knew that Isaac was only telling her this because she would keep the secret. She had to.
Putting on the bracelet, she began to walk out of the room as she turned her head back slightly.
"I expect a detailed explanation once this is all over." With these final words, she opened the door as she left the room.
[Is her help worth the risk of our plan going awry? The plan doesn't require a third party.]
Isaac listened to the tranquil voice play in his mind from Merlin.
[Our plan is also one based on little to no facts. Simply predictions.]
Isaac sat back down as a black cat entered through the window.
[And you're planning to use her in case things go wrong? What if she denies your plea for help or summons the item in her bracelet sooner?]
Isaac shook his head as he grinned.
[Using Ava if things go wrong? No, she would be useless and wouldn't help. Instead, I plan to use the Demon's Blessing. The berserker who fights like she's got nothing to lose. She was trying her best to hide it, but I could tell. She was excited.]
[You know, you two aren't that different. Her Gluttony is directed to war while yours is…]
Isaac paused as he thought this.
[Actually, why is it that you have that name?]
Isaac turned his head as Merlin sat on the window.
As if shrugging her shoulders, she replied.
[I tricked the Demon King and Supreme Deity.]
Isaac froze as a blank expression loomed on his face.
[That, and my thirst for knowledge.]
[Demon King…Supreme Deity…?]
Suddenly, his achievements against the Siren in the Dark Continent seemed vastly less impressive.
-SLAM
Before he could ask anymore, he noticed the door to his room open as a blonde figure walked in.
"Oh, Zach. How was the visit."
Isaac asked, drawing Zach's attention as the boy turned his head.
"Isaac? I just saw Ava Longfield walking in our dormitory building. What are you doing sitting alone in the…is that a cat?"
Zach raised an eyebrow as he noticed the black cat on the window.
"Oh, that's…Rem." Isaac quickly made a name on the spot. He didn't mind that others saw Merlin. She was no more than a cat in this form after all.
[Rem? Did you take half my name and read it backwards?]
Merlin spoke in a teasing tone, noticing Isaac's quick thinking, as if she were congratulating a child.
Merlin leapt off the window, landing on the ground with a tap as she took a seat on the nearby coach.
[Are you just going to sleep on the coach?]
Isaac asked. She rarely slept or wasted time.
[No. I know it doesn't look like it, but I'm reading right now.]
Isaac tried his best to keep a straight face so Zach didn't suspect anything.
"Um…okay. As for my visit…"
Zach's mood instantly deflated as he took a seat on the long couch beside Merlin.
"Johnny…has died."
"What?!"
Isaac leaned in instantly upon hearing this.
He wasn't particularly saddened, just surprised.
"It happened almost two weeks ago. He turned into a Terror."
Isaac's eyes widened while Merlin opened a single, but for very different reasons.
"Is Oliver okay? They were being held in the same location, weren't they?" Isaac leapt off his seat as Zach dismissively waved his hands.
"No, they were separated. But…"
Before Zach could finish, Merlin drew Isaac's attention away as she spoke inside his mind.
[Two weeks ago. That was the night I felt the powersurge.]
Isaac kept staring at Zach, nodding a few times to seem as if he were paying attention.
[What? You're saying that powersurge was from Johnny's Terror?]
[It seems that is the case.]
Now that he knew this, Isaac was glad he didn't let his curiosity get the better of him that day.
If this was true, the whole campus would be flooded with Professors of Aurelius, not to mention the amount of Inheritors, maybe even S.A. agents that would be at the scene.
"Who knew I'd be this stressed for a Scenario that isn't even mine?" Zach joked with a soft chuckle.
"It'll get easier. Most scenarios last a few months, don't they? Oliver has only been in there for almost four weeks. If we break down now, we won't last until he survives."
"Survives? Don't you mean 'if'?"
Zach asked. It was clear he'd long started preparing for the possibility that Oliver wouldn't make it back.
"No. I mean 'when'. He'll survive. He has to. After all, he still has to be the best professor Aurelius has ever seen…well, as long as the students live through his yapping."
Isaac added as they both paused, soon chuckling as the tense air was suddenly washed away.
***
Outside on campus, a girl with short white hair, short skirt and curves that made every boy who walked past avert their gaze, walked as if she was deep in thought.
'The Excursion. It's the same theory Cain had. He was right.'
Ava thought, remembering the meeting between the Golden Six.
But most importantly, Ava stared at her hand.
It was shaking.
It had been almost an hour since she'd spoken with Isaac, yet she still couldn't help but…look forward to when he needed her.
When she could finally withdraw whatever was in this bracelet.
When she could fight.
Despite making it seem as though her first priority was the safety of everyone, it was of little concern to her.
She didn't like to admit it, but human lives seemed so bleek after she'd taken so many.
She couldn't wait for chaos to begin, where she wouldn't have to worry about the eyes on her and finally let loose without a mask.
Her heartbeat quickened and her legs became weak just thinking about it.
With a large grin painted across her face that would make the other students feel a chill run down their spine if they'd seen, Ava had one thought that prominently stood out amongst the others.
Isaac. She'd underestimated him.
He was able to beat Katlynn, so she could only wonder…
'How strong is he really?'
***
-BEEP
-BEEP
-BEEP
In a dark room, countless individuals wearing lab coats, seeming as though they were Scientists, could be seen watching and analysing a scene behind a see-through wall as they whispered and ignored the constant beeping.
A large tube filled with liquid illuminated the area as one could see a human figure looming inside.
The figure's brown hair waved in the water as his hunched back, closed eyes and lifeless corpse made him seem as though he was deceased.
However, the countless figures behind the wall knew.
-BEEP BEEP BEEP
Suddenly, the repetitive beeping noise suddenly quickened, soon beeping rapidly as the scientists snapped their heads around, falling into a slight panic.
"What's going on?"
One man asked.
"His heartbeat is increasing and brain activity is skyrocketing."
Another replied.
"H-He's awakening."
It seemed as though the other scientists also came to this conclusion as all they could do now was watch.
And shortly after, inside the tube, the boy's eyes started to flicker, until they snapped open.
"He's done it. He's completed his scenario."
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
Next chapter title: Excursion [1]
Who would be the weakest in their verse if...
Goku wasn't a Saiyan
Naruto didn't have Kurama
Luffy didn't have a DF
Gojo didn't have infinity
...I just thought thought I'd ask this question from my discord server. Lemme know your thoughts.
If you wanna read 14+ advanced chapters, just check out my patreon!
patreon.com/JustMYSTERY
Also...
POWERSTONESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
(I'm obligated to tell you to join the discord)
discord.gg/wfxxZv8j4B