Zac Pearce

It had been a few days since Dante had his movie marathon with the girls, and both he and Sophia had gotten used to their daily routines.

Dante was technically working as a bodyguard for the blonde, but he enjoyed going out every morning and spending his time on campus, believing that it was a peaceful place for him to keep reading the pile of books that Camille left for him.

He hadn't felt anything strange around their apartment ever since he started living there, but the warlock didn't let his guard down, not wanting to put the girls in danger, feeling like he owed them for caring for him.

The warlock couldn't keep attending every class with Sophia as a guest, so he would wait for her nearby, reading whatever book he had at the time.

He had noticed that not many people approached him anymore, which wasn't the case at first, where he would get interrupted every few minutes by curious students entranced by his looks.

It's not that he didn't enjoy talking to people, but he still didn't mind some solitude when reading. Besides, he spoke daily with the people he felt owed to, which held the most priority in his head.

One day, after accompanying Sophia to her classroom, he looked around for a bench to read on.

Noticing that none of them were fully unoccupied, he sat next to a male student who was playing video games on his portable console.

At first, the warlock tried focusing on his book, but he could faintly hear the game's soundtrack coming from the student's earbuds, piquing his curiosity.

The man had brown, slightly reddish hair, wearing a pair of glasses and casual clothing that could have been considered fashionable by others—wholly immersed in his game.

"Yes, a new record—Ah! Who are you!?" the man muttered as he turned his head, noticing Dante peeking over his shoulder.

"Oh, apologies. That thing you were doing looked interesting," Dante replied.

"What? My BeamDeck? Oh, you have a good eye, my friend!" the man exclaimed with excitement.

"This bad boy is the newest model that came out. It has a one terabyte SSD, HDR OLED display with anti-glare glass, 240-hertz refresh rate, 24-hour battery runtime, and I can change the color of the buttons LED lights… cool, huh!?" he enthusiastically continued.

Dante had absolutely no idea what he was talking about. Nevertheless, he found the man's passion for the console pretty compelling, making him want to learn more about the "BeamDeck."

"Ah, sorry. I started rambling…" said the man, scratching the back of his head with a slightly awkward smile.

He introduced himself as Zac, and he was a computer science student who was making time until his next class began.

"I'm Dante," the warlock replied, shaking his hand and scooting closer to him.

"Dante? I think I heard some students talking about you. Are you the movie star guy?" Zac asked, detailing the warlock for the first time and thinking that he definitely looked like one.

"Heh, no. I don't think I'm talented enough for acting…" he replied, making the two of them share a quick laugh.

"Are you a student?" Zac continued.

"No, I'm kind of like a bodyguard for someone, so I just wait out here while they finish their lessons…" said Dante.

"You? A bodyguard?" Zac pondered out loud, placing a hand on his chin and inspecting the warlock up and down.

"Hmm, I guess you are pretty tall, and your eyes are sort of intimidating—that should fend off a few thugs, no doubt…" he muttered.

Dante chuckled again, thinking that Zac was a pretty funny guy, and after sharing a few chuckles, he offered the warlock to try his portable console.

"May I? I've never played a video game," the warlock commented, making Zac express some indignation.

"Huh? You've never played a video game? Like, never ever?" Zac replied with another question.

Dante had read some vague information about game development from a technology encyclopedia that was given to him, but he had never seen one in person.

The pair spent one-and-a-half hours playing games, with most of that time being Zac explaining to Dante how to play. Still, it was a refreshing experience for both.

"Oh, here you are!" said Sophia, who was finished with her lessons for the day.

"Hi, Dante!" Victoria commented, walking beside her blonde classmate.

The warlock apologized for not checking the time, but the two girls laughed it off, saying that he seemed to be having fun.

On the other hand, Zac couldn't believe that two of the most beautiful women on campus were casually speaking to Dante.

"Ladies, this is Zac Pearce—Zac, this is Miss Sophia and Miss Victoria," the warlock said, introducing his new friend to the pair.

"Pearce…?" Victoria muttered, approaching the man a little more and inspecting him closer.

"The guy who got the highest score for the all-paid scholarship?" the brunette asked.

"Uhh, y-yep. That's me," Zac nervously replied, deviating his eyes slightly to the side so he wouldn't stare at Victoria for too long, feeling like her beauty was blinding.

"Ohh, impressive!" she said, praising the man for his skills.

Dante didn't know what a scholarship was, but not wanting to embarrass himself in front of the other students, he saved his question for the walk home with Sophia.

"I gotta run to the library. I'll see you guys tomorrow. It was a pleasure, Zac!" said the brunette after some small talk, bidding farewell to the group.

'Sh-she remembered my name!' Zac thought, mesmerized at Victoria's beauty and demeanor.

"We should get going, too. See you tomorrow, Zac," Dante followed up, waving at his new friend as he walked away.

"Did…- Did I just make a new friend?" Zac muttered to himself, clenching his BeamDeck tightly in his hand with a smile before hastily picking up his bag and walking to his lesson.

____________________

"Hey, Sophie. What's an all-paid scholarship?" Dante asked the blonde girl as they crossed the busy streets.

She explained that Novis University had a program where, every few years, new students were allowed to take a test, and whoever got the highest score would get all their essential needs paid for by the college.

It was common for people from lower-income households to take the test since most of the students at NU had wealthy families and could easily afford the education along with their needs.

Novaria had dozens of public universities that provided free education. Still, the prestige of attending Novis University is what made it so expensive, as all graduates from there were guaranteed to succeed.

"I see. So, Zac was the one who got the highest score last time…" Dante muttered.

"Mhmm. I had never seen him until today, but I heard a rumor when he passed the test…" Sophia continued.

The rumor said that Zac's mother had a terminal disease, and since they were from a district called Dewmore, known for being one of the poorest areas in the country, he never had the resources to treat her.

After Zac got the highest score in the test, the university placed her mother in one of the best hospitals in the capital, where she had been staying during his college life.

However, no cure had been found for her disease, so the best they could do was keep her alive for a bit longer.

"Incurable disease, huh…?" Dante muttered to himself.

"What was that?" Sophia inquired.

"It's nothing…" he replied.