Inquisitory Division (2)

 1:42 p.m.

Ka-cha!

Vivian and 4 of her companions exited the office and another group of 5 trainees replaced them.

As Vivian and her companions were walking, she stopped and turned to Turd and Xander.

"The both of you are going to get your textbooks now?"

Turd and Xander nodded.

"Yes. You?" said Turd.

"I'm getting mine too," said Vivian.

***

Inside a library.

Thud.

A man wearing a mask without the sun symbol on the forehead placed a stack of books along with some writing materials on top of a counter in front of Vivian.

"Honored Crusader Heliza, please take note that you will have to return the books once you're done with the Training Course and they should be more or less in the same condition. If you've lost or damaged them, it will affect your final evaluation."

Vivian nodded.

"Okay, I will keep that in mind. Thank you."

She picked up the books and the writing materials and placed them inside a bag before walking away.

Everything including the bag was provided by the Inquisitory Division so none of the trainees had to spend a single coin. However, when it came to food, it was a different story.

When Vivian exited the library, she saw Turd and Xander chatting a couple of feet away from the entrance and they turned to her.

She went over to them.

"Our class starts tomorrow. Do you have any plans?" said Xander.

"I'm going to drop these things inside my room and then buy some personal things and do some exploring around the area before heading back to my room. Why?"

"We're going to buy things and do some exploring as well."

"Separately," Turd added.

Xander turned to Turd.

And before he could reply, Turd continued.

"If the both of you want to buy things and explore the area together, the both of you are free to do so. I suggest that we move separately until the Training Course ends. I just don't want to risk getting my identity exposed and lose points during the final evaluation."

"Brother Tristan is right," said Vivian.

Xander turned to her.

"But Sister Pla--"

"Sister Heliza," Vivian and Turd corrected him.

"Sorry, I'm still not used to using our new names. What I'm trying to say is that the Inquisitory Division's exams are notoriously hard. So wouldn't it be smarter for the three of us to work and study together? And even if someone else decides to target us, we can target them as well to keep both parties in check."

As far as they know, Vivian was the strongest out of their batch.

"But there's a problem," said Turd. "What would you do if a veteran trainee decides to target one of us? Can you counter them with a threat?" 

"But how would the veteran know our faces and names? It's not like they've been with us during the Basic Training."

"And what if someone from our batch decides to make a deal with the veteran?"

"Then that would be considered foul play. But even if that happens, why would a veteran even bother to do such a thing? I don't believe that a veteran would waste their time applying for another Division just to mess with fresh trainees like us. It's not like anyone would get any points or privileges in kicking out a trainee."

Turd glanced at Vivian but bit his tongue.

He wanted to say that Vivian was a person with 4 Magic Arts and it wasn't unheard of that people would target people like her who have 4 Magic Arts and above and are still growing.

"Either way, I rather keep a low profile and spend my time attending class and studying than worry about dealing with politics and other shenanigans. But in case there's an emergency, just call me," Turd said before turning and walking away.

Vivian glanced at Xander.

"Brother Sandmaster, I also agree with Brother Tristan's plan. Just call me in case there's an emergency."

She turned and began walking away as well.

***

2:22 p.m.

Vivian was walking down the street and absorbing everything around her surroundings.

This is so beautiful…

An underground city…

Technically, it wasn't a city but the word felt right for her because she was too lazy and excited to think of a proper term. 

Back in her original world, there was no such thing as a place like this. And even if there was an underground city, town or village, she didn't have enough money and status to enter such places.

Vivian continued glancing around her surroundings. There were people walking around, young and old. There were different kinds of buildings: hotels, tailoring shops, weapon and armor shops, apothecaries, restaurants, etc. -- basically just like a normal human settlement. 

Her eyes landed on a restaurant.

Hmm…

I remember watching a documentary where I miner dug a bunch of tunnels for a year…

And one day, he caused an explosion because he lit a cigarette inside the tunnel because he hit some minerals or gas…

I don't know if it's true though…

Also…

She perked her ears.

The sounds are amplified…

There were two people wearing masks without a sun symbol on their forehead a couple of feet away from her and she could somewhat hear their conversation.

I didn't expect this…

And aside from the noise, she noticed another thing as well.

Although everyone was wearing a mask, there were a few people who were wearing what looked like a half-mask -- the upper portion of their face was covered while the lower portion wasn't. This allowed them to eat or drink while still wearing a mask.

This place looks like one big dress-up party…

I wonder if there's any crime here…

Also…

Who are these people that aren't wearing any Priest cloak…?

Are they special citizens…?

Are they allowed to enter and leave this base as they please…?

Vivian continued sweeping around her surroundings.

There also seem to be no Guards and Knights…

Are all of these people fighters…?

Her eyes glanced at three children running around with their masks on.

Their clothes don't look bad…

But I don't know what to make of this…

But damn…

I want a place like this…

She raised her head and stared at the ceiling.

There were no light bulbs or any light source on the ceiling, just cave walls. The only source of light came from the lampposts on the streets and the light bulbs inside the buildings.

She returned her gaze to the street.

So magical…

Really beautiful…

But I guess it would be a huge headache if there was an earthquake or some loud music playing…

There's bound to be strict air and noise pollution laws here…

Just the smell of trash alone would be a huge headache…

She glanced at the floor which was paved with bricks.

Seem clean enough I guess…

Sniff.

Sniff.

All I can smell is the food coming from the restaurants…

***

6:28 p.m.

Vivian was inside her room wearing nothing but underwear and sitting behind her desk as picked up a large slice of pie.

Chomp.

Chomp.

After wolfing the pie with only 2 bites, she filled up her glass with a bottle of wine and picked it up.

Gulp…

Gulp…

Gulp…

Buuurrrggghhh...!

She let out a burp as she placed down her glass.

"Finally, real food on a daily basis…"

"But…"

She licked her teeth and lips.

Humans taste better…

"Yawn~!"

She let out a yawn before getting up and cleaning her desk. She placed the trash inside a trashcan and fell into her bed.

"Yawn~!"

She let out another yawn and her eyes felt heavy.

"I can't remember the last time I had this kind of peace…"

"Nothing beats having your own room…"

"I want to sleep already…"

And as she was about to fall asleep, her eyes suddenly opened and she got up.

"I need to shower."

She grabbed a bathrobe, a pair of slippers and bathing products that she bought earlier.

Her hand was already on the door handle when she suddenly stopped.

"Fuck!"

She turned around, grabbed her mask and wore it.

"I almost forgot about this shit."

When she returned and placed her hand on the door handle once again, another idea popped into her head.

Wait…!

Now that I thought about it…

Is it a smart idea for me to go outside and walk in the hallway like this…?

She let go of the handle.

The women's quarters are on the first floor…

But even if it's on the second floor, I have too many eye-catching qualities…

Just my purple or violet hair with red highlights is already damning me…!

She scratched her head.

"What the fuck, man…"

"Why didn't they give each room their own bathroom and toilet…?"

"This is just so unnecessary…"

She glanced at the clock on the Magic Panel beside her door.

6:32 p.m.

Maybe I should just take a bath late at night…?

But what if the others have the same idea…?

She thought about the hotels she had seen earlier while exploring the base.

Fuck…

***

1:32 a.m.

Ka-cha!

A door opened and Vivian entered her room.

Her hair was wet but was wrapped with a towel, her body was covered with a bathrobe and she was wearing her mask.

She let out a sigh.

This is too unnecessary, man…

Earlier around 6:00 p.m. when she realized that it was too dangerous for her to go to the bathroom and toilet, she decided to read her books and take a quick nap as she let time pass.

As for going to a hotel, it was out of the question or out of her budget, even if it meant that she could just use a loan.

But at least I finally took a bath…

She put away her bathing products and began stripping her bathrobe except for the towel on her head.

Her body shivered.

"Was my room always this cold…?"

She grabbed an underwear before putting on some lotion on her face and body.

I doubt it if anyone could be as smooth as me…!

I used [Heal] and [Greater Origin Transformation] while I was inside the bathroom…!

Although the spell [Heal] can heal wounds on the body, [Greater Origin Transformation] was much better. Not only does it heal wounds on the body, but it also keeps her body, especially her skin, in its optimized condition. And combined with the lotion, it only makes her skin look even better.

"Oh Vivian, why are you so perfect?"

I should go visit a spa one day…

To make myself even more criminally perfect…!

Once she was done applying lotion on her face and body, she waited for 10 minutes to let it all absorb inside her skin. After that, she removed the towel from her head and combed her hair before finally sliding inside her thick blanket.

"Ugh…"

She closed her eyes and curled into a ball under her blanket.

"Finally…"

"Warm…"

Her eyes suddenly opened.

"And I'm fucking hungry once again…"

Hmm…

Why do I feel like I'm forgetting about something…?

In regards to Vivian's question a while ago back in the carriage, the reason why no one bothered to guard her during the nights she was out on the days of Satur, the reasons was simple.

The first reason, the Holy City was relatively safe, especially for the members of the Temple of Priests. On top of that, Vivian spends most of her time in with her fellow Priests and Priestesses. And during the times she was on her own to hunt for live food in the streets of the Holy City, not only did she choose secluded places, but she was also careful.

The second reason was the appearance of the two new recruits, Warren and Elise, who had 5 Magic Art Affinities. Instead of wasting time and resources in capturing a 4-Magic-Art-person, they'd rather focus on a 5-Magic-Art-person.

The third reason was gender. Between Warren and Elise, Warren was more useful.

If they were to capture Elise, they'd have to impregnate her and wait for 8 months for the baby to come out and it's not even a 100% guarantee that the baby would have 5 True Magic Arts. Meanwhile, if they were to capture Warren, he could impregnate 60-90 women per month.

"Well, whatever…"

"Time to go back to sleep…"

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Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

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Please note that the chapters posted there are only drafts. So when those said Chapter Drafts will be published here, there will be some edits. They also involve a few secret outline notes/details that I won't publish here because they contain spoilers or dispel some of the mysteries. And at the moment, Chapter Drafts 268-272 are posted there.

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