Chapter IV: Entering the Academy

Chapter IV: The faculty

Hey guys, just here to explain that each time a character speaks or thinks, there will be a letter like this (X) after the quotes, instead of the X, there will be the first couple letters of a character's name.

For example: "Fuck you, you little shi- kid!" (A)

In this case, Asshole was saying this.

-x-x-x-

As Mark "slept", Hana, the lady with perfect skin who made the umbrella for Mark, could be seen walking to her shop with hurried steps.

To think that woman would ask her to come to her window at night, seriously, she was worried the maniac would stab her or something!

Hana couldn't help but shiver in fear at the thought of Markaleria, the woman who had single-handedly destroyed an entire castle.

Many rumors surrounded such a person, the weak love to gossip about the strong after all, and many of them conflicted, naturally.

Either way, some of them were bad enough that poor little Hana gave a 1000 Rheingold discount, nearly crashing her business AND forcing her to spend a good portion of her life savings, just to make sure she ended up happy.

Gods-Spirits- And humans all know that you do not fuck with a mage. And besides, she can call on that favor later... Maybe...

She walked in front of her shop. As she inserted the key to the door, she found herself stunned to see the door swing open.

Someone broke in.

As this realization came over her, she stumbled back.

Vampire activity has spiked in the area recently, but for some reason, no help has been sent yet.

And now, her life is effectively ruined.

She gripped herself. Might as well investigate the inside right?

And so she walked inside.

The store was mostly untouched. The valuables were there too, but she could hear scuttering from the basement, which is where her room is, and where her husband should be sleeping right now.

She grabbed an enchanted knife she made for the guards from one of the shelves and walked down the stairs, her hands steady thanks to her practice with Eternum and the forge.

Of course, this did not prepare her for the sudden kick she received to her back, sending her tumbling down the stone stairs.

Her hand released the knife, which tumbled a few meters away from her.

"Agh!" She grunted out as her hands caught the impact, but one of her legs was certainly bruised, she might limp for a few days.

If she survives that is.

She turned around, terrified of what kind of creature she might see, only to see a human.

The Vice-Headmaster, still a dignified gentleman wearing a dark grey top hat along with a matching dark grey trenchcoat and pants, looked down upon the commoner in front of him with his silver eyes.

Empathy could be seen within them, yet it felt distant, especially so when his expression was filled with zero emotion.

"S-Sir Victor! I was worried that someone had broken in! D-Did you happen to see what happened...?" (H)

Hana is no moron, she knows that he kicked her down those stairs, but if a necromancer, and a potent one at that, wanted her dead, then what could she hope to do?

A dignified, regal voice answered:

"I've seen much Hana. And I must say, you are very unlucky." (V)

Hana crawled back, slowly and subtly, preparing to dash for her knife.

"Aw come now, that is no way to act, is it?" (V)

Victor then snapped his fingers, and from his shadow emerged a pale humanoid.

Its shape is androgynous but still humanoid, albeit its ears showed elven heritage. Its hair is white, its sclera is ruby red, and its pupils are like black gemstones.

The creature is wearing no clothing, so Hana could conclude it's male, nothing extraordinary could be seen regarding its physique, and while normally she would complain about being flashed, now is not the time.

"I quite like this one, and it took a liking to you, so I apologize for the inconvenience." Hana rushed to grab her knife, and as she did so, the creature rushed at her.

It caught up within a second.

"You can rest easy, your soul will be left untouched." (V)

The creature dug its sharp fangs into Hana's neck as she screamed.

"NO! PLEASE! NOoghghg" (H)

She rapidly lost her ability to speak as waves of chemicals invaded her system, rendering her neck numb, then followed her chest and brain, and as they went numb, she died.

The creature continued to feast, sucking up so much blood that Hana soon looked like a shriveled grape, and Victor stared as her spirit left her mortal form.

A sight no mere "dude" could see, that is for sure. Though her soul is plain average.

Nonetheless, as a gentleman, he had promised to leave it untouched, and so he watched as it hovered above her body and, in a few seconds, disappeared.

The creature stood up, its maw now closed, hiding away the sharp fangs within.

Its face is covered in blood.

"Michael" (V)

It seemed to respond to the name.

Victor then motioned for it to approach him, which it did.

He grabbed a handkerchief and gently wiped the blood away.

"You shall starve for a week for ruining my handkerchief." (V)

The creature, understanding its fate, bowed slightly in apology.

"Stand straight-" (V)

"HANA? YOU THERE?!" (?)

Hana's husband, mister Davlos, shouted.

"Ugh," Victor grunted in annoyance.

"Well, you may just eat again today." (V)

The creature, like an excited puppy, piped up and almost rushed out, but it contained itself.

Davlos, a halfling with blonde hair and blue eyes, walked around the shop, noting the missing knife.

His eyes turned sharp as he realized his wife was in danger, and he just messed up badly by shouting.

The lack of a response disturbed him-

"I'm here honey! There was a robber, come down!" Hana(?) answered.

Davlos sighed in relief, he then walked down the stairs.

It was dark, the magical lights his wife made must have run out of power.

Yes, that must-

He suddenly felt himself get dragged by a much stronger force, throwing him off balance as his head slammed against the stone stairs, and then the stone floor.

He should feel pain, but he was barely conscious enough to think, so pain was a mere memory now.

Michael dragged the poor halfling away into the couple's bedroom, where he then proceeded to rip his throat out.

"helepgeogehmemehehg" a garbled mess came out instead of a call for help, which Victor did not mind.

He emerged from a corner of the room, looking over the dying man, and scoffed.

"To think you were at a striper bar while your wife was being sucked dry. Not in a pleasant way mind you, you animal." He then turned to Michael.

"Turn him." (V)

Michael did as ordered, biting into the man but not allowing too many chemicals into his blood.

Davlos trembled as he became a vampiric creature.

Gods, is this punishment for his sins?

Nobody saw the couple again, Hana's shriveled corpse was never found, and Davlos went missing.

The clamoring of plate armor could be heard all around the town in the morning as guards patrolled, now more intensely and more often since the town's main magical item maker had gone missing.

The clamor "woke up" Mark in his bed.

In his immense boredom, which developed as a consequence of lying down with his eyes closed for many hours, he decided to meditate, which helped to pass the time.

Of course, before this, he tried doing different things, such as planning out his future or just rolling around in bed for no reason, Momma wouldn't have it though. She demanded he shut his brain off one way or another, and he complied.

Meditating was as peaceful as always, though it felt deeper, most likely thanks to his enhanced cognitive functions.

As Mark stood up, he looked down at his pajamas.

He put them on roughly at two AM after he realized that laying around in bed while in his uniform was probably not the greatest idea.

The pajamas consisted of a loose black shirt and loose black pants, nothing fancy. Except for the fact that they felt very nice on the skin, and whenever Mark focused on them, they cooled the air inside them to a comfortable level.

Considering that a business like the one he is in could afford only three fragile magical items, something of this caliber must have cost quite a bit. Still, Mark certainly is not complaining about having it.

He put on his uniform again, which he neatly laid out on the floor next to his bed at night, receiving a whistle from Pervert as he did so.

Mark ignored the degenerate and headed downstairs with his new cane in hand, he didn't lean on it as he walked, instead, he twirled it in his hands to get used to wielding it.

Not to mention the wood felt quite nice to the touch.

As Mark walked down the stairs, he noticed some guests seemed to be visiting, currently eating their breakfast.

Judging by the amount of light, it is currently 7 AM, but the sun has already fully embraced the land.

Alena could be seen with a strained smile on her face, clearly troubled by something, but pretending everything was okay.

Mark sat down on a stool in front of the bar in front of her and leaned his head on his hand as he spoke:

"What's up? You seem a bit troubled." (M)

Alena looked at him as she gave another customer, a man with brown hair and a scruffy beard, his breakfast.

"Well, you know the cups?" Mark nodded, "Well, they are gone. There is only one left." She sighed in pain, "Those things cost me a fortune!" (Alena)

Mark, guilty, asked: "How much did they cost?" (M)

"300 Rheingolds." (Alena)

Mark felt cold sweat go down his back as he realized the crushing blow of losing that much money, and while he doesn't have exactly the best understanding of the currency in this world, he could tell that it is a fuck ton of cash that he flushed down the toilet.

"And those things needed maintenance and stuff too!" (Alena)

"O-Oh... Well, I could help you buy new ones?" He slightly squirmed in his seat.

"Aw, that is very sweet of you baby, but no." (M)

"I mean, I should have plenty of money to spare right? What is my new salary gonna be like again?" (M)

Alena smiled gently "No dear. There is no need." This time, she said it more firmly.

Mark felt bad, but also internally clicked his tongue, he wanted to figure out how much money he should expect in the future.

Well, too bad, he would find out later.

"It was an attempt for sure." (A)

"Shut up Asshole." (M)

"I love how you insult him almost every sentence, it's bliss for my ears" (P)

Mark, now done with that interaction, decided to return to his room, cane in hand.

As he got up, however, he noticed the door to the inn swing open, revealing Victor and Michael.

Michael could be seen dressed in a school uniform, made out of a black vest with golden pins and a white bowtie. His shoes were also black, and he wore nothing on his head. The sleeves of the uniform are currently on the shorter side, reaching the elbow, as it is the middle of the summer.

Mark approached them, suspecting Victor was there for him.

(PICTURE)

"A pleasant morning to you, miss Markaleria. I trust you are prepared for your departure?" (V)

"Good morning to you as well Vice-Headmaster Victor, I'll be ready in ten minutes or so, had a few last-minute errands to run." Mark glanced at Michael, who could be seen observing the patrons with great intensity.

"May I know who this child is?" (M)

"Of course, this is the little thing I came to pick up, he shall be a new student at our academy." As Victor spoke, Michael politely bowed.

Any noble could tell that his form is perfect. Even Michael noticed how naturally he bowed.

"Just know that he cannot speak, he is capable of making groans at best." Michael made a "mghmg" sound, which felt very gruff and rapidly changed tone. "Do not worry, his mental faculties are perfectly attached." (V)

Mark nodded and went down on one knee, lowering himself so that the teenager would be more comfortable.

His pale skin, poor complexion, and inability to speak made Mark feel terrible for him, and he wanted to say hi in a way that didn't make him look like a threat.

"Hey, my name is Mark-aleria, it's nice to meet you." (M)

"Great pause there." (A)

"Shut up." (M)

Mark reached out a hand, waiting for Michael to reach out his in response.

Michael glanced at Victor, who motioned for him to do as he wished, Mark took note of this interaction.

A father figure perhaps? Their appearances couldn't be more different though...

"...Is that an elf ear?" (A)

"Oh my God, it is an elf ear." (P)

Mark pretended not to mind the ears. He also stopped himself from laughing at the fact that both had the same realization, yet both were thinking completely different things.

Either way, the duo shook hands, Mark was expecting a more informal greeting, but the kid has manners if nothing else.

"Who are you calling a kid Mr. 16 years old?" (P)

"That is concerning actually dear. Your students might be older than you!" (Mom.)

...Judging from his appearance, he seems to be around 16...

"...Let's not think about such things." (M)

Mark then walked up the stairs, Victor opted to wait outside on the street.

Mark quickly threw his books together, realizing he could only carry a few.

"You think it won't have a fucking library?" (A)

"It will, but will it have the basics?" (P)

"True dear, looking for books that explain the basics might be difficult. We are supposed to know these things after all." (Mom.)

And so, Mark grabbed three books: "How To Manipulate Eternum", "The Simple Codex of Supernatural Beings", and "Eternum Sensing."

With these three in hand, Mark walked down the stairs, with him he also had a purple backpack with his clothes, and... Well, it could only fit all of his clothes.

Oh! And his bronze cup too. Would be bad if he forgot it.

Mark looked at the door, on the other side of which Victor awaited him.

The sun is in that direction right now, the shop does have an extension over the entrance, so he could only pray that it would buy him enough time to pull out his umbrella.

"You can do it honey!" (Mom.)

With that, Mark stepped outside with a deep breath, waving Alena goodbye.

He immediately sensed the sunlight in the air, tingling his skin, and giving him an intense shiver up his spine.

But he did not burn.

Luckily, the storefront cast a shadow barely large enough for him to stand beneath it.

Mark immediately changed his cane into an umbrella, focusing a bit on doing so.

Manipulating Eternum still felt strange, he couldn't feel it or sense it, but could still direct it.

Like walking without eyesight.

Nonetheless, He looked around a bit, noticing Victor and Michael standing a bit off to the side, talking about something.

Mark couldn't hear them even as he stood only a few meters away, most likely magical interference, but as he stood within two meters, Victor turned to him.

"Ah, apologies Ms. Markaleria. We were merely talking about a private matter." (V)

Michael nodded rapidly.

Mark smiled at this and spoke: "It's alright! There is no need to be worried about that. Would you like more time?" (M)

"Oh, not at all. I have the teleportation scroll prepared. Do you have everything?" (V)

Mark nodded and stepped next to him: "Yes, let us depart."

Victor nodded and pulled out a scroll on which a complicated circle could be seen, he muttered some strange incantations, as he closed his eyes.

With careful and precise movements, he drew the circle in the air without using his sight, he then opened his eyes and the space in front of him collapsed inward. Forming an unstable-looking rift that seemed to clash with the reality around it.

The destination remained unknown, only darkness could be seen within the rift.

Mark stared at the rift and felt fear, no part of him wanted to step through it. His fear of Black Holes certainly doesn't help either in this situation.

Victor, now with the scroll slowly falling apart in his hands, motioned forward.

Mark, gulping down his fear alongside his saliva, stepped through.

And it certainly felt... Strange.

Mark saw nothing of interest, all that was in front of him was a corridor of void with a light at the end of a long tunnel.

And so, he walked.

It took a minute or so of walking, Mark looked back, only to see a portal made out of a thick, oil-like substance behind him in the distance.

"Ew" x4 (A/Mom./P/M)

Mark looked at the portal in front of him.

It, unlike the oil one, is glowing white and is made out of a milk-like substance.

"It looks like cum." (P)

"...You just had to say it didn't you." (M)

Mark sighed and walked into the (totally) milk substance.

He blinked a couple of times as he immediately brought his umbrella up above him, protecting him from the sunlight which singed his skin ever so slightly.

Mark gasped in awe at the sight now before him.

A medieval castle stretched out on top of a small mountain in the middle of a Y-shaped valley, multiple walls protect the academy's interior while floating lanterns and candles illuminate every nook and cranny, though they seem to be in the middle of shutting down as the day begins.

The castle itself has layers, with each one being smaller and higher than the previous one.

A waterfall cascaded beneath the academy through an archway beneath a bridge down into the valley below, where a thick forest could be seen, with trees as tall and ancient as those in the Amazon Forest dominating the scene.

One in the distance dominated even these, as a tree that must be at least equal in height to the Statue of Liberty swayed in the distance.

"It is quite a sight." (V)

Mark quickly recovered and coughed awkwardly.

"It indeed is. Should we enter the academy now?" (M)

"But of course." (V)

Victor then led Mark through the various stone medieval streets, which were mostly empty for now.

"It is rather empty." (M)

"Well, the school year starts in a week, and since most students can teleport over..." (V)

Mark nodded.

The first layer is filled with parks, trees, fountains, and a few communal places, including obstacle courses.

As Mark walked, he noted the stone soldiers guarding each gate entrance, wielding a stone club, each one could probably squash a normal person like an ant.

They are triple Mark's height after all.

"Quite intimidating I know, but you need not worry, they only harm trespassers." (V)

Mark nodded.

Runes could be seen carved into many things, including the guards. If Mark could feel Eternum, he would currently be overwhelmed by the presence of this place. Much like Michael.

Mark also saw a couple of ghosts, spirits, elementals, and undead walking around, doing maintenance.

Mark simply waved at them to not be rude, for which he received a kind of stunned silence. Like they saw something strange, they stared at him, which prompted Mark to quickly skedaddle out of there.

From the second tier and up, the greenery became rarer, with the streets made out of firm stone and various buildings, towers, and other things taking up space.

Victor led Mark to a pair of large grand doors here, and with a wave of his hands, the doors opened.

The inside of the academy is incredibly prestigious, what seems to be gold lines the walls, statues made of marble can be seen everywhere, chandeliers made out of the same gold stretch from the dark oak ceiling, and the crest of the academy can be seen in every hallway.

Various couches, potted plants, and various luxurious carpets adorn the halls.

Before anything though, Victor pointed to a hallway filled with small, numbered, square-shaped wooden structures put on top of each other.

"Please change out your boots for the ones present inside the box, your is box number 132." He then added, "You need not worry about theft, divination charms observe almost everything inside the academy." (V)

"Alright." (M)

Michael also walked in to change his shoes, which, unlike the girl ones, had no heel.

Mark then changed into a pair of black boots, they are very short, not even reaching above his ankle, and have a very tiny, stubby heel.

He could walk in them just fine, thankfully.

"I do hope the shoes are comfortable, we did our best to ensure they fulfilled your requests." (V)

"They are perfect, Thank you." (M)

"You are most welcome, now, I shall give you a brief tour, a map, and then I'll leave you be." (V)

And he did just that, showing Mark where the canteen is, where the various libraries dedicated to different types of magic and topics are, where the student dorms are, and also where his office which also counts as his room is.

-x-x-x-

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