Side Story Jezabel POV: The Ghost Of The Shell (2)

"No, sir. Their leader, Nick, killed a Griffith in one hit a few weeks ago. They train almost every day, and their growth rate is incredible. I can hardly even put up a fight anymore."

"So Nick is the strongest?"

"I don't know about that. Josh is some kind of genius when it comes to sword fighting. He might not be able to hold a conversation, but I don't remember the last time I saw him take a hit."

"Which one is Nick?"

"You'll know if you talk to them. He has this way of looking at people. It feels like he's looking into you, like he can see what you're thinking."

"Anything else?"

"The last one is a girl named Sakura. She might seem sweet, but my blood ran cold the one time I saw her angry; she's a lot stronger than she looks. They go in and out of the forest at will. I don't know what they do in there, but recently, they've started bringing a lot of fungus and dead monsters out with them."

"How are they not dead?"

"I don't know myself. Nick says they have an escape plan, but I don't know anything about it myself."

[Monster's Bane.]

A few memories flash through my mind as I begin to connect the dots.

"You may leave." I return to my desk and sit down. Sampson is still standing in front of me as if he has more to say. A combination of curiosity and annoyance fills my voice as I ask him a question. "What?"

"Pardon me for asking, but those kids aren't in trouble, are they? I mean, they may be a bit unruly, but they're good kids. I'll vouch for them if–"

"Shut up." silence fills the room. "They haven't done anything wrong that I know of, so you can go."

"Thank you, sir." Sampson salutes once more and leaves the room. Hugo walks back in and closes the door after seeing him out.

"I can't believe he stood up to me?"

"Maybe you're losing your touch?" Hugo needles.

"Pull any more information that you can about Sampson and those kids."

"There isn't any; I've already checked."

"Nothing?" I raise my eyebrow in his direction. He sighs and pulls out a handful of papers.

"Sampson has been a guard for three years without any achievements or disciplinary action levied against him. Those kids have done a handful of beginner quests, sold some ingredients at the guild, and are enrolled in our introductory class."

"That's it?" I ask while glancing over the papers.

"That's it."

"So they just came out of nowhere?"

"Seems so, sir."

"I'll have to step in on that class."

"Travis is still recovering from his last expedition, so there will be a substitute for today."

"Travis is such a wuss. Cancel the substitute; I'll be teaching today."

"Very well, sir. I'll make the arrangements. Class begins in thirty minutes."

"Thank you, Hugo."

As I stand behind the podium, I watch the students trickle in one at a time. The classroom is just as gray as everything else, but I feel a faint sense of excitement. I see a faint glow of red out of the corner of my eye and turn to the door. A group of three children walks in. They couldn't be more than ten or eleven. I watch as they sit down at a table to my right. Every time I look away, I see a faint red glow coming from their table, but it disappears when I look over at them. Then I decide to just ignore it. After everyone is seated, I introduce myself.

"Good morning, class. I'm Jezabel, the head of this guild branch." I scan the room and try not to look to my right. I explain the current situation and move on to the first lesson.

"I suppose I'll start with the most interesting thing that's happened around this dump of a town in the last few years. The Elemental. Do any of you know anything about Elementals?"

No one speaks up, and I can see the nervous expressions on their faces. A few people don't seem nervous, but they are the exception. In fact, one of the younger kids at the far right is drilling into me with his eyes. Sampson warned me about this one; he must be Nick.

[To kill a Griffith in one hit at his age. He might actually have some potential.]

I could just call on people that look like they know something, but I decide to mix things up a bit.

"Okay, if someone doesn't raise their hand in the next five seconds, I'm gonna start taking them." All the students raise their hands immediately. I burst out laughing, continuing to rattle their feeble minds. "You fucking cowards crack me up. You there, start talking."

I call on one student after another as they give canned responses. "Worthless, next!"

I find myself growing bored, so I call on the boy sitting next to Nick; I believe his name is Josh. I point at the boy, who sits straight in his chair.

[He's just as much of a coward as everyone else.'

"They're big!" he shouts.

[My god, he's even worse than what Sampson said. I'm supposed to believe he's a prodigy?]

The class erupts with laughter. I had raised the tension to such a degree that they were just looking for a reason to laugh. I hold back my reaction with a frown and turn on him.

"Are you making fun of me?"

"No." He doesn't even smirk when he responds.

[I might as well pick on Nick now.]

"You," I say, pointing at him, "Aren't you the one that killed a Griffith?"

"Technically, yes," he says as he stands up.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I shoved a spear down its throat while other people held it in place and managed to break its core."

[That was how he did it? Is he insane?]

"You're dumber than Travis, aren't you?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Then what the hell are you doing in this class."

"I'm trying to be less dumb," he says as if it's obvious. I keep trying to get a rise out of him, but he counters everything neatly.

"Bahaha, you stupid idiot. Well, I guess you can admit it, at least."

"Yes, ma'am."

"What do you know about Elementals?" I ask a few more questions and give a few more answers until I feel the topic has been covered properly. I'm only a substitute, so I just need to keep them engaged for today. I dismiss the class and watch them file out the door.

"Perfect. Let's train and then head to the forest. Josh, make sure to hold onto your notes; we can use them to quiz each other later."

"Okay!" Nick gives some orders, and the two other children agree. He seems to be surrounded by a reddish aura as he leaves. Once all the students have left, the room falls back into a blinding shade of gray. I follow them out. As I walk back to my office, I grow weary. A dull headache rises from the back of my head. I massage my temples for a moment to try and soothe the pain. There is a small stack of papers on the right side of my desk, so I pick the first one and look at it.