New Identity

Kyle was startled after hearing this but as soon as he recognized the owner of the voice he couldn't help but look behind him with a helpless look on his face.

"Master Heinz, please don't scare me like that. I didn't even hear you enter from the door. Is there a secret passage here? Or did you use some sort of teleportation technique?"

"Hah… Teleportation? I didn't think I would hear that again. There was no way I can use something like that." Heinz said as he walked closer.

"So that ability really exists… That's good to know." Kyle muttered thoughtfully.

"Just how many bottles of silver powder did you use this time? It's not cheap, you know?"

"Ahem… I just want to make sure that this pocketwatch won't cause trouble."

"Mhmm… Can I inspect it?" Heinz asked.

"Of course. If possible, can Master also check how long will this seal last?"

Heinz agreed before Kyle handed the pocketwatch…

Although Kyle asked for his master's opinion about the sealing ritual, he didn't mention anything about the pocketwatch at all. This is also the first time that Heinz saw him perform the sealing ritual.

"Mhmm? Isn't the energy contained too low? There's no need to seal this item at all. The Level 2 Sealing Ritual you performed is enough to seal this for about 10 years or even more. Ahh, you're just practicing, right?" Heinz asked after realizing the negligible mystical properties of the pocketwatch.

Normally, this kind of low-grade mystical item wouldn't need ritual sealing at all. Suppressing it with one's power would be enough to ensure that it won't act up.

"Y-yes, Master Heinz… It's a practice. I'm already training my Spells and Phantasm State. I've also finished reading all the books on the shelves... So doing what I've learned would be very helpful for my growth."

"Very well. It's indeed good to experience certain rituals… Just make sure you do it here to be safe."

"I understand, Master Heinz… Can you also tell what kind of effect this tiny black flame does if it remains unsealed?"

At this question, Mr. Heinz closed his eyes as he tried recalling the specifics of this mystical property.

"Mhmm… Since it's a black flame with no other properties around it, it has something to do with death. However, since it's incredibly tiny, at most, it can probably attract bad luck once every other month if you're wearing it all day."

"Once every other month… I guess it's not a big deal but it's better to seal it as well."

Heinz nodded and added. "You can also suppress it with your energy… Anyway, if you deliberately trigger it, you can probably use it as a catalyst to bring illness to your target. Well, you'll learn it in the academy. It should be a class called Rudimentary Usage of Mystical Artifacts. You should pass that subject. It's important."

"Yes, Master Heinz!"

After confirming that Kyle's ritual wouldn't cause trouble, Heinz finally left leaving him to continue with his practice.

Click…

Kyle checked the pocket watch once more as he looked at the unmoving flame inside by entering his Phantasm State.

'I think it had gotten bigger… But the difference is too little… I can't confirm yet.' Kyle shook his head as he decided to check it once more after a few months.

Checking it every day would make it more difficult for him to see the minuscule changes.

With this in mind, Kyle just continued practicing his spells since there are no other things to do anymore. There is no corpse delivery and there are no more books to read.

Of course, he would also re-read a few advanced books from time to time. Even though he doesn't understand most of them, committing them to his memory might be useful once he started his Arcane Studies.

Time passed quickly and in a blink of an eye, the enrollment for the freshmen of Year 894 had just ended.

Last year's classes started on May 8 of Year 893 while this year, the classes would start on Monday, the 7th of May.

Kyle still has less than 5 days to wait and currently, he's in town buying new clothes and other things he might need inside the academy.

During this time, Kyle has already completed the special training arranged by Mr. Heinz. Unfortunately, he doesn't have anyone to compare with so he was still unsure how he differs from the nobles or those people who grew up from a family with mysticism background.

"Vale!"

As Kyle was waiting for his turn in the tailor shop, he heard someone calling for Vale outside the shop. He ignored this as he continued reading the fashion magazine in his hands.

"Vale…"

Again, he heard the name being called by a familiar woman's voice… However, this time, she was already closer to him.

Finally, he recalled something as he immediately look up and answered. "Yes?"

There, he saw Denise looking at him with a smile. She then pursed her lips as she whispered to him.

"You have to get used to your new name… Hurry up, Sir Heinz is waiting." Denise said as she turned around and left.

Kyle could only sigh as he advised the tailor that he'll be out for a while.

'I already expected to have a new identity but I really can't get used to this name…'

Apparently, he had three choices for a new name that Heinz had prepared for him.

They were Eustace, Clovis, and Vale. All of them were related to Heinz and had a noble background. Even the Headmaster has already agreed to this…

Eustace is an orphan adopted by Whithope Family. It is a family working for Heinz. He is supposedly 14 years old this year but was killed by one of Heinz's experiments. No one knows him aside from the Patriarch of the Whithope and Heinz himself.

Clovis Becker, on the other hand, was Heinz's nephew. He also suffered the same fate as Eustace.

Lastly, was Vale Chambers.

According to Heinz, Vale was vulgar and petulant, but very capable. This is to be expected from somebody with a gruesome past.

He was born and grew up in a fairly rich family in a developing port, he lived in peace until he was about 8 years old, but at that point, life took a turn for the worst.

He lost his family to a food shortage and was caught up with the wrong people. Heinz found him when he was 11 years old in the streets and was finally adopted by the Chambers Family through his recommendation. Unfortunately, he was only able to survive until two years ago...

What Kyle liked about Vale's identity is the benefits he'll get from being part of the Chambers Family.