Sovereign Crest

"The hierarchy is calling? Thomas repeated.

"Can you even hear yourselves? Why the hell are you both laughing like it is nothing?!" Thomas got upset with their easiness.

Corbin and Alex turned back to him.

"Look, we will handle things as they come, have we not always?" Corbin grinned.

"Sure have," Alex replied back to him.

There was no point speaking to either one of them concerning this matter. Thomas sighed and they finished up eating before heading back to their dorms.

It was clear Corbin was a close friend and that both had lived sheltered lives prior to entering the academy. However quite the opposite could be said for Thomas.

His life was filled with nothing but bad memories. Parents passing away at an early age. Being taken into an orphanage. Later released to attend middle-school and live alone in a scrappy and old apartment. The bullying and beatings for being an orphan.

The cycle never stopped, and Thomas thought his acquaintance with Alex and Corbin would provide for him to lead a different life.

Back at the dorm they all jumped right away into Thomas' bed together.

"Why are you two in my bed?" Thomas pushed against their shoulders to create some room for himself.

"Aww… do not be like that! Let's look at the schedule for tomorrow together! Alright?" Alex spoke and resumed his buddy-like voice like always.

The three of them glanced at the schedule. Morning classes were always mandatory, they would hold briefings about future expeditions, demons, portals and anything else that was of importance. However classes in the afternoon were not.

Attendance needed to be kept at a bare minimum of sixty percent. Skipping was allowed as long as you attended the bare minimum, the morning classes and passed the set exams.

"Seems pretty chill. And if exams get too hard, we have our brawny brains right here," Alex roughed up Thomas' hair playfully and Corbin followed.

They explored the rest of the apartment. There was a kitchen and a small rounded table to dine at. Beyond the table there was a smaller kind of a terrace, beyond two glass doors. It was spacious enough to do training in.

Then there was the bathroom with a shower and a hot tub. The entire apartment was customized and ran with magical electricity. Meaning the water was instantly at any degrees you set it to and the lighting was ultra quick and adjustable.

"Sweet… and dibs!" Alex remarked and shoved the remaining two out of the bathroom before locking the door.

"Not fair!" Corbin complained and banged his hand against the door.

"I will have the first shower, suck it losers!" Alex kept his playful tone.

Corbin went in next then Thomas last. They had a small group discussion before calling it early evening. The plan was to wake up early and explore then make time to find the right classroom. Apparently both Alex and Corbin admitted their orientational sense was one left to be desired.

Thomas agreed to the plan, since none of the three had any experience of the academy's layout. The plan was solid and they all went to bed.

However Thomas had trouble sleeping. The Arcane System kept him up and staring at the ceiling. Now that he managed to pass the exam and find some time to think about it, the system really terrified him.

In some twisted and alternative reality way, Thomas really did die back there. And even if he did not, his life would not be the same as it was now, or starting tomorrow.

He needed to find more viable information about the system. Perhaps the library tomorrow would be a good start? There was also the issue with his "Lower Analysis" and "Locked Skills". Thomas needed to level up in order to figure out more about the system.

Then the other passive reminder made him feel nauseated. The first passive skill "Redo". Was it activated by his death? Did he have to die every single time? How many deaths before Thomas would reach his final curtain for good? His head started to ache, too many thoughts occured at once.

Thomas grabbed tightly the locket that was still hanging around his neck and tried his best to relax.

"If this much is true, I either activated you through smearing my blood... or worse, my death, and it is best to keep you close at all times," Thomas shut his eyes and refrained from staring at the ceiling to ponder any further.

Deep breaths in and out, and eventually Thomas managed to drift off. When morning came around there were already two rowdy noises going around the apartment.

"Will you two ever shut up?" Thomas rubbed his eyes while waking up and stood up in bed.

"No," They both responded simultaneously and grinned to fully annoy Thomas on purpose.

Thomas prayed deep down that these two numbnuts were better at battle than their lively and endless nonsense and their ability in disturbing others. Before Thomas could get out of bed and yawn, a couple of clothes were tossed in his way and obscured his vision.

"Why did you toss clothes in my face?" Thomas removed the clothes promptly and gasped for air while staring at Corbin.

"Our uniforms came this morning, now come on, get dressed and let's head out sleepyhead," Corbin smiled broadly.

Thomas got dressed and met them later by the door. Their uniforms were brand new and were made of some fancy and enchanted smooth like material. Thomas had never felt anything quite like it before.

They had a white-t shirt underneath a black school blazer and black pants. Also there was a badge to indicate them being first-years with a green colored gem in the center of a bronze crest.

When Thomas saw Corbin and Thomas he realized why his crest was bronzen. Corbin had a silver crest with the same green gem, and it was to indicate him being of an upper-class. However Alex had a golden crest and it really stood out by its color alone.

"The royalties or nobles really want other people to know, huh?" Thomas quietly kept his thoughts inside.

For the nobles and royalties distinguishing yourself apart from those beneath you was something as natural as breathing air to them. The hierarchy was already underway with the crests being the first step.

"Silly thing about the crests, right?" Alex read Thomas' thoughts by the looks of his expression.

"Do not worry about it, we all know bronze and silver are the cool ones," Corbin put his arm around Thomas, then Alex did the same.

They headed out together in high spirits. Corbin and Alex wanted Thomas to ignore the implications concerning their crests.

Right as the door shut behind them, a new message appeared before Thomas' eyes.

[Daily Quest: Inspect More People]

[Reward: 10 Exp]

"Inspect?" Thomas chuckled.

It certainly had a nicer ring to it than "Lower Analysis".