***
"Hey, hey, stop… bro." Lucian ran to catch up with Lami. Lumia wasn't with them. "You still mad? It was a joke, a harmless one."
"I'm not mad," Lami said without sparing him a glance.
"That's what they'd say."
"I'm not. Just let it go."
Lami truly wasn't mad anymore—not in the slightest.
"If you say so. The lesson will start in an hour. Wanna eat?"
"I'm not hungry, but I'll accompany you."
"Ahhh, you won't make me eat all by myself? You're an angel."
"...Piss off."
"Look, you are mad."
"..."
Lami gritted his teeth. Lucian was starting to get on his nerves.
The two idiots started to make their way to the cafeteria, talking about this and that. It was Lucian who was initiating the talk, though.
The next class was Weapon Arts with Reiko Minamoto which made Lami excited. earning practical lessons from such a legendary figure was a once-in-a-lifetime chance.
He had to make the most of each class.
***
"Are you going to eat all that?"
"Of course. A man's stomach always has to be full, you know."
Two youths looked for a place to sit and eat. The tall boy had a platter full of different dishes, and the black-haired boy was simply biting a green apple while walking.
"...I see."
"We need to get to the top first hundred soon. They have their own kitchens in their rooms… Well, can't call those things rooms—they're more like suites."
"Can you cook?"
"Of course I can."
"...You didn't strike me as one."
"...I'll cook you the best food you will ever eat. Trust."
Lami narrowed his eyes. "Really?"
"Really. you'll see," the tall boy promised with confidence.
They settled at the edge of the table where a woman wearing a baseball cap, hiding her features, was eating her meal, sipping the ice-cold drink alongside.
Even though the woman had no reason to eat at the student cafeteria, she enjoyed it.
She liked it there.
Hearing the gossip and the developments was a plus in her book. Those made her reminisce about the good old days.
When everything used to be simple.
The woman was still young, but her shoulders carried a heavy burden.
Being a Monarch at the age of 22 wasn't all that good for her lazy personality. She was a new Monarch, and her strength wasn't comparable to the higher-ranked ones, but she was a figure of hope.
The difference in strength was unmistakably greater between Monarchs compared to other ranks. The woman was a big fish in a big pond, and yet she wasn't the biggest.
Her abyssal dark eyes, which cast an air of coldness, lingered on the two boys.
They casually discussed different topics. One of them aloof and the other one cheeky. She knew both of them.
Lami Stern, the one Calista was impressed about, and Lucian Valor. The two didn't arouse any interest in her.
However, there was something oddly familiar about Lucian. She couldn't pinpoint where she had seen him before, but the itch of recognition was undeniable.
As she was thinking, the crimson-eyed youth snapped his head at Reiko, noticing his sudden movement Reiko slowly looked away.
'Did he see through my disguise?'
Not only was she hiding part of her face, but also suppressing her mana with a relic. It shouldn't have been easily distinguished.
'Hmm?'
Reiko started to understand Calista's words, not realizing that her presence would always be known to people with good senses. It wasn't something that could be easily concealed.
Reiko decided to take a closer look at the names Calista had mentioned.
'Mateo, Vinny, Seren, Eleanor, Alicia from Class B, Lami, and although they didn't fight Lucian and Lumia as well.'
***
The duo's wandering took them deeper into the forest, where the dense trees seemed to close in around them. The air was fresh, but Lami's mind felt foggy.
"This is the right place?" Lucian scratched his chin, it seemed they were lost.
"I fucking told you to follow the normal route. We'll be late," Lami retorted.
Even though Lami was furious Lucian still grinned like an idiot. "If we never got lost, we wouldn't learn what getting lost truly meant."
"...Are you stupid? What kind of logic is that?" Lami's tone was sharp, his expression unamused
"... Discoveries need to be discovered."
Lami glared at Lucian with widened eyes that were full of contempt.
"Don't worry, I am the best navigator," Lucian said, putting his arm on Lami's shoulder.
Lami's face turned grim as he sighed. "You already said that 15 minutes ago. In what godforsaken place are we!?"
Lami gave up. He couldn't keep up with this guy…
Even their Pockets malfunctioned, refusing to display their location properly.
The duo walked for a few more minutes in complete silence. They were completely lost.
Rustle- Rustle-
As they were about to give up Lami noticed a slight rustle coming from one of the bushes. Pointing out to Lucian, he got ready to summon his weapon at any time.
However, it wasn't needed as the figure who emerged behind the bush was a person they knew.
"Oh! Hello," the boy with brown hair and hazel eyes said. He was Mateo Pierce, the top-ranked student in the practical test.
"What's up? Got lost too?" Lucian asked.
"Mateo cocked his head in confusion before replying, "..Lost? No. But are you?'
"No—"
"We are, thanks to a certain someone." Lami's menacing glare pierced Lucian.
Only if looks could kill…
Lucian shrugged. "It is what it is. But …Mateo what do you mean you're not lost? You came from the wrong way. I can show you the way if you want me to."
Lucian stepped closer to Mateo, casually draping an arm over his shoulder. Mateo tensed immediately, shrugging Lucian's arm off with a sharp motion.
Lucian hesitated, glancing awkwardly at Lami; however, Lami refused to give any reactions to the boy.
"No, you're going the exact opposite way. This forest is special. It messes with the senses, also Pockets don't function properly," Mateo said as he started to guide the duo.
'It's weird, though. If it messed with senses, then how come he is unfazed?'
He had heard about some parts of the forest being unnavigable due to safety concerns. Academy shouldn't be easily infiltrated from less guarded areas so the forest was acting like a barrier.
"How are you able to traverse easily then?" Lami asked.
Mateo's hair was tousled and uniform in bad condition with quite a few tears around. He patted the specks of dust away then turned his attention back to Lami.
His hazel eyes scanned him sluggishly, a slightly confused frown appearing on his face.
"I have my… ways."
The slight pause didn't go unnoticed.
'Have my ways? Hmm.''
Lami dived into his mind gallery to find what that 'way' could be, though nothing came out of it.
It could be a Skill or an insanely overpowered Relic. Lami didn't have a method to confirm his suspicions so he put it aside.
"Okay, then lead the way," he said.