Chapter 23

It had been days since Naell enrolled in EDSD. He had already transferred to the gentleman's dormitory and had already bid the rest of his companions farewell.

Butler Lebrut was hesitant to leave as he had already experienced how lazy the young master could be. Though it was true that he was at first, scared of Naell, the butler grew fond of the needy owl and the very relaxed young master of Beryldot.

Even the inn owner and his staff were hopeful they would stay for a longer time. They knew that they would miss the presence of the Baron's son of Beryldot, and his companions as they were all kind and generous in their stay.

Lieutenant Estra and the rest of the soldiers were also sad in their departure, as they found all their time in Taglagas enjoyable. Not to mention, the capital of Autumn Kingdom was far more vibrant than Beryldot, as even businesses and parties seemed to have never slept.

There was even a moment where they once again bore witness to how reliable Naell's magic could be. Several days ago, the lieutenant and the others requested their young master to have his first official mission with them. The young master could only agree reluctantly, as they were really persistent about it.

The quest Naell had accepted was to find the missing beast companion of a noble. He thought it would be easy, as Owly could use his beast instincts to track another beast, but as it turned out, the quest was much bigger than what any of them had anticipated.

The missing beast was actually the work of a syndicate group that had been kidnapping children and beasts for trafficking. A fight brewed out as they discovered the hideout of the criminals.

As the culprits' actions left a bad taste in their mouths, their young master's "NO KILLING BUT CUTTING WOULD SUFFICE" method, and Owly's infuriating dark magic, resulted in a fiasco of nightmares for the criminals.

When they reported the events to the kingdom, they were rewarded handsomely. Some nobles even wanted to meet Naell, but he refused to do so and even made the lieutenant finish all the necessary documents.

Still, stories circulated and often got exaggerated, to the point where even they, who had done those things, were not aware that they were the culprits of the new horror story circulating Taglagas.

It became quite a hot topic, as rumor had it, that if one heard the deep sound of a HOOOooo, a frosted ghostman bearing a translucent complexion would visit their dwelling, and with its chilling bloody eyes would judge that person from their evil doings.

They say he was often accompanied by an undead man, who might've been considered a good uncle in the past, and a crow that was fairly fat for its own body as it would often devour the flesh of the wicked.

None of the rumors seemed to matter to Naell, as he was still occupied with adjusting to their new place.

However, he couldn't deny that he had cringed at every moment he'd hear of the dreadful stories.

As they walked, Naell thought of how the dormitory truly was as big as what he and Owly had expected. Luckily for the young master, upon his arrival, only a handful of people were present. Most were still either on vacation, or simply on a trip. He did not dare cause any commotions to draw in any attention, yet some were still intrigued as he was a noble.

Commoners often lived on the first floor, as it was inexpensive out of all the floors. Andrew and his companions were staying on the second floor, where rich commoners or adventurers often resided. The 4th floor and the fifth floor were only accessible to the high ranking nobility, and professors of EDSD.

Naell actually wanted to live on the first floor as it was the most accessible out of the five floors. Yet, his application had been denied.

The options left were either: the second floor, which he wholeheartedly rejected, and the third floor. He knew that even if the building was big, living on the same floor as Andrew would increase the likelihood that their paths would cross. Therefore, without any choice, he accepted living on the third floor, where lesser nobility often boarded.

Naell had no qualms with his room. It was spacious and the ambiance was relaxing, as the whole floor was rather exquisite, befitting a place for a noble. Not to mention, he was glad that people on the third floor minded their own business, as he knew nobles were prideful enough to not gossip.

As a poor excuse of a noble, he barely wondered what the upper floors looked like, and had no interest in dealing with anyone. Yet far from what Naell had believed, some of the other lesser nobility, would happily wag their tails at the upper floors.

Moments later, the place Naell madly wanted, was already in front of his eyes.

"To my newfound sanctuary, please take care of me."

Owly could only sigh at Naell's cringeworthy speech and exaggerated salutation. He had been waiting for that day when he could finally enter and explore the place where hundreds and thousands of knowledge were written and archived in the sacred place called "THE LIBRARY."

Upon entering, Naell's excitement grew, as for every step he took, what beheld him was a vast space entirely filled with books. Tears of joy overwhelmed his sight, as the lingering scent of the pages of paper, made him squeal a little.

• Are we really going to spend all of our hours here? HOOT. •

Rhetorically asked Owly, who was quite annoyed with the idea.

Naell could only laugh in disappointment. He would have to teach the young owl how to appreciate books soon. With a [ POOF ] a basket of sweets entered Owly's sight.

• Well, it can't be helped, HOOT. •

Naell was glad that it all went well. It was quite pricey, but he was willing to spend as much as he could in order to please the fat bird partner of his. Besides, he really needed to research more and find clues as to where and when the fortune quest would be.

Hours went by, yet Naell was still full of energy. His unfaltering stamina could have been attributed by the ambiance the library was giving, but mostly, it was because of the book he was engrossed in.

The Golden Apple

A greedy king from Nonau, the Empire of Dwarves, came and brought changes in his reign.

Materials, mostly gold, were stored and locked in his treasury as he halted trades from other kingdoms just to have it all for himself. They say that the king loved gold more than anything else, before meeting his one and only beloved wife. One fateful day, evil began spreading throughout the world.

The evil killed hundreds and thousands of beings, as it was told that those were curses sent by the dead demon king, who was still crawling from the depths of damnation to once again bring havoc into the world.

The dwarven king's only beloved wife contracted that evil. He wept and begged the celestials that he would do anything in his power in exchange for his wife's well-being. It was said that upon feeling the dwarven king's solemn pleas, he was visited by a messenger of the celestials that purified the evil away from his wife.

The king was so thankful that he changed his ways, and before long, he was recorded and known in history not for his greed, but for his righteous heart.

It was written that the king gave all his gold to help those who had been struck from the curses roaming around the world.

The celestials were touched by his compassion that they made trees that bore golden apples in their branches. Those golden apples were then used by all, to purify the evil from one's heart.

Golden apples are now rare fruits that can only be seen sprouting miraculously from magical trees.

Though the golden apples were discovered to truly have healing properties supporting its lore, scholars have considered its description to be half accurate, as it was only capable of healing minor diseases and not truly purifying existing evil.

'It would probably take me some time...But I'll definitely have it for myself.' Naell's thoughts were clear. From that moment on, Volume 4's villain had already lost her opportunity to gain wealth and power from the golden apples.

As the sun was beginning to set, Naell reluctantly agreed to Owly's sound judgment. It was time for them to go home. They decided to eat dinner outside EDSD as the luxurious food inside the school was, at the moment, too costly for them to often afford.

As they walked, they still could not get used to the ambiance of Taglagas, as even at night it was booming with smiling people and vigorous businesses, yet all those noises could not hide the voice of someone calling out to him.

"Hey! Naell--- Naell!"

Naell tried his best to ignore the loud voice he was hearing, but in doing so, was forcibly pulled by the good-looking guy who was still shouting his name.

"It really is you! Why weren't you answering me?" Angrily declared the guy, who upon closer look, really had the refined look of a distinguished noble.

Naell got a little irritated as he felt the pain of being grabbed in the shoulder. Yet, what truly got him mad was the failure of his own weak body as he was easily pulled away without any resistance.

'I've even been working out...' He thought.

"Ermmm, I'm sorry. Who are you and could you release me?" He could only ask and not think of the consequences it might bring him later on.

"What are you talking about... It's me, Casper." Still yelling, he retorted as he slowly let go of Naell.

Naell then recalled that when he was investigating "the past Naell's connections", he had a playmate who was two years older than him.

"...Mr. Casper of Genoja?"

"Geee Naell, don't be so formal... That's Big brother to you. Anyway, how have you been?"

Casper, the son of Count Genoja had always maintained a good relationship with the house of Beryldot. There was a time when he was a guest in the house of Beryldot for four years, whilst he studied in the nearby school of the estate. There he befriended the younger Naell, who at the time, was already known for his bad behavior.

Even so, the old Naell, regardless of his irritation, could not help but be on good terms with the good-natured Casper.

The Genoja household was also a well-known family, as they were wealthy enough to even be respected by the higher nobility.

"What are you doing here, Mr.---BrO?" Awkwardly said Naell who was still aching from the pain.

Casper could only smile softly as he thought,

'Naell's demeanor is still as awkward as ever... I bet he still has his fair share of misunderstandings.'

"I just got back from Genoja. What about you? What's with your hair? What are you doing here this late, and who is this little friend of yours?" His curiosity was no secret as he bombarded Naell with questions.

Naell could only explain one by one as they headed for a restaurant not far from the academy. After a while, his blond hair and bright blue eyes gazed in satisfaction as all his questions were fully answered.

"To think you awakened at an odd age AND gained a companion as you're about to attend your school. Yup, I'm glad to know you're doing great!" Casper was relieved to know that Naell was actually fine with all the rumors circulating about him.

They talked some more, while Owly slept quickly after devouring his and Naell's desserts. Seeing this, Casper found the owl's unusual sweet tooth hysterical.

As the night grew shorter, Naell had finally managed to persuade Casper to part ways.

"See you again, Naell."

"Likewise--- Bro."

Naell was glad that Casper was actually going to his vacation home, and not directly to the academy.

The books that Naell read in the library failed to tire him out, yet he immediately felt drained from the unforeseen event that was Casper, regardless of how friendly he actually was. He even wished he had been the ghost from his world, and not the friend he claimed he was.