Tracey's powers gave her an almost see-through vision, allowing her to peer through any obstacle with ease. One of the abilities that her vision provided her was to analyze the mana channels of any person without any difficulty.
All the bodies in the hall had come to a standstill with bright mana patterns visible inside them. Her eyes focused on the boy sitting opposite her. The area around his heart was especially bright, even when compared to other humans in the room.
What surprised her more was that this boy's heart was beating at twice the normal rate. 'How can this be?' She can tell that this was probably his normal heart rate, with each pump being multiple times stronger than natural.
"Ahem!!" "Cough!! Cough!!" The entire hall returned to normal with a single noise. No one had noticed anything and only Tracey was left in a fit of coughs. "What happened?" Gloria hurriedly patted her back, trying to calm the girl down.
Tracey looked back at the boy, this time with her special vision, and found him staring right back at her. She broke out in cold sweat and holding onto Gloria's hand, dragged her to the restroom.
"What's the issue, Tracey? Did you discover something?" Gloria believed in the abilities of her friend and right now her serious face was telling him that she got some news for her. "It's okay.. calm down..!!" She massaged her chest, allowing her to rest.
"Cough.. the warden... She probably detected me using my vision." "Fuck!" It was Gloria's turn to be vexed. "Cough.. sorry about that." "It's okay. It was my decision anyway. We might be in for a spanking but we will see about that."
"So? Was that it?" At her question, Tracey shook her head firmly. "Noo! It's about that boy with Julia.. he... he.." Suddenly she found herself unable to put her thoughts into words. "Hey calm your tits, girly. Just tell me what you saw?"
Tracey slowly nodded her head, taking a deep breath. "He is not a human." "Hain? What's that supposed to mean?" With another deep breath, the pink-haired girl let her body rest against the wall. Now visibly calmer, she organized her thoughts composedly.
"How should I explain it? His mana channels.. are vast. Simply speaking... It's like he can discharge a massive amount of mana, all at once." Gloria massaged her head, unimpressed by the girl's explanation. "What's the big deal in that?" Tracey shook her head forcefully.
"You don't understand because you can't see. His channels.. they were much brighter than anyone else around. Much more powerful than you, Julia, or for that matter even Hera's." This time her expressions changed perceptibly.
"It's like he is a profound beast in human form." "It can't be that exaggerated?" "Huh.. that's not the only issue. His heart rate is double that of a human's, added to that are his extraordinary strength and perception. I have never had the opportunity to scan a vampire, but from what I have read in books, the signs are similar to one."
Her words were out of this world. It will be a significant matter if they had a vampire kid with them. Then again, if Tracey can notice these anomalies, what's stopping the seniors at the academy to do the same. "Mana channels like that of a profound beast and a body that resembles a vampire.."
Gloria can only repeat Tracey's words, unable to come to a conclusive answer for her findings. "Ahh... I don't understand. Just keep your mouth shut for now." "But Gloria... it's a vampire we are talking about." Her friend protested the idea of staying silent.
"We are not sure about it just yet. Besides, didn't you see that, didn't you see the boy eating his meals without any care in the world? How do you explain that?" Common sense told them that a vampire should be unable to digest anything other than blood, but both girls have seen how much Aron loved his meal.
Tracey had no answer for that. "I think you are right. Let's not be too hasty." She finally agreed to Gloria's suggestion. The blue-haired girl nodded her head, adding. "Don't worry, I will try to keep tabs on this guy. He is just a slave, it should not be too difficult." Tracey was happy at the faith Gloria should have in her.
The girls returned to the dining hall only to find that Julia's group had already left. Completing her dinner with the group, Gloria left the mess only to be stopped by a lady. "Both of you, come with me." Addressing the two girls, the woman turned around to take her to leave.
The group of girls knew that most probably the warden had noticed Tracey using her vision. "Cough.. all of you return to your rooms for the night. We will see you around tomorrow." No matter how conceited Gloria was, her leadership can't be questioned.
The girls didn't argue with her, leaving one after the other. Gloria and Tracey navigated their way through the corridors to land in front of a door with a name tag that said a single designation 'WARDEN'. Both girls turned their heads to look at each other before, Tracey stepped forth to knock on the door.
"Come in." The girls took a deep breath before pushing the door open to enter. The same woman who had approached them earlier was sitting beside another lady, both of them going through a document. "Greetings, Mrs. Jayden."
The valiant-faced lady raised her head, dropping her pen down and placing both her hands elegantly on her desk. "Greetings, young ones." Both girls lingered on with batted breaths, waiting for the woman to continue.
"I don't need to tell why you two are here, do I?" Gloria nodded her head. "No, Mrs. Jayden. We know our mistake." When faced with the personification of menace itself, it's always better to repent and ask for forgiveness. Those who dare Mrs. Jayden, never have a very good ending. They have learnt at least this much in the past year.
"Good." The lady possessed the semblance of a smile on her face. "What should we do with them, Mrs. Holmes? Any suggestions?" The lady turned to her subordinate, who couldn't care less about the situation.
"Just send them to work in the stables of the Beast taming department. I believe they need some capable workforce to look after their beasts." Tracey gulped, knowingly fully well what 'looking after the beasts' involved.
"Ma'am.." She was about to open her mouth when Gloria turned to glance at her, making her stop midway. "Hmm..? You got something to say?" Mrs. Jayden noticed their actions. "No, ma'am. We are ready to serve a punishment for our mistake. And we will make sure something like that doesn't happen again."
"Nice. I do like the discipline that the MacMillan family garner in their kids... Anyhow, about your previous mess up. Let's not make you go through all that. How about you two help out the faculties with the screening exams tomorrow? I saw that you were overly interested in a slave boy, you can get a lot more personal that way." The lady chuckled to herself, but no one else dared to laugh in the vacant office room.
The shine in her eyes was like a predator inspecting its prey. Just with her sight alone, she was making their throats dry up. "A nice deal if you ask me. What do you guys say?" She asked them, regardless the girls knew there was no room for any negotiation with warden.. ever.
"It will be as you said, Mrs. Jayden." Beside Gloria, Tracey sighed in relief. Anything was better than serving in the stables of the beast department for a young maiden. "Hmm? You guys need anything else?" Mrs. Jayden who had resumed going through her documents raised her head once again.
"No, Mrs. Jayden. We will see ourselves out." Tracey hurriedly pulled Gloria out, not taking any chances. Who knew when this tyrant's mind will snap, sending them back to the stables?
"Thank goodness... Haha... For a moment I was terrified." Tracey remarked once they were clear of the warden's den, only to find her friend lost in thought. "What are you thinking? I think we got ourselves a bargain."
Gloria shook her head as they continued walking towards their lodgings. "It's not about that. Rather I was wondering about the slave boy. He seemed to be very close to Julia's group. You think they know about him?"
Tracey bobbled her head for a while before shaking it off. "No idea. We can't exactly ask them, can we?" Coming to no conclusion, both girls can only drop the topic, for now, walking off toward their respective rooms.
***
"Hey.. no need to be nervous about it. Just do your best." Ava slapped Aron on his back, encouraging him. Both of them were walking back towards the necromancy department since Ava resided t her own house, instead of the girl's dorms.
"Ehh.. thanks. I am not nervous, just excited." Ava burst into chuckles. "That's the spirit haha.. You can return to your place. I can get back on my own." "No need. It's been a long since I met Mrs. Rumi. I will say hello to her as well." Aron saw the girl squint her eyes suspiciously at him before turning her head. "Do as you wish then."
Aron wasn't sure why exactly he received that cynical glance, hence they navigated their way to a house that was situated right next to the necromancy shop. Compared to the large store the residence was much more humble. *Knock* *Knock*
Aron feasted his eyes at the mature woman as soon as she opened the door for them. "Ohh... I see. Our girl brought in a new boy today." Her sarcastic tone left the girl annoyed as she wiggled her way out. "Huh.. it's your own little boyfriend that wished to see you hmph.." Aron heard her retort from inside the house, not taking her words to heart.
"I hope you are doing well Mrs. Rumi." The matron pulled the boy inside, making him sit on the couch. "Hehe.. all good, kiddo. Please don't take her words seriously." "Haha.. that's fine, miss." The lack of affection in his entire life had made the boy very susceptible to anyone who shows even a small goodwill gesture towards him.
In that regard, Mrs. Rumi had been one of eminent support to him. That's why before his test tomorrow he at least wanted to meet her once. The lady found the boy looking all around the cozy house. Giggling to herself she responded. "Haha.. that guy is not home. He must be lying in some dumpster.. drunk huh.."
"Haha.. he drinks that much?" That was a redundant question. He himself had seen the man dribble around like a qualified drunkard. "Don't even get me started. Anyhow leaving that aside.. is there something you need?"
"Nope. Just wanted to see you." For a moment Rumi was stunned, not sure how to respond. But looking at the cheerful face of the boy with absolutely clear eyes, a warmth emerged inside her. Only now did she recall how the boy had been at an orphanage for most of his life. It wasn't difficult to make sense of his actions when taking that into consideration.
"Come here, kid. Sit here." She pulled the kid over, making him settle in her lap. Both of them engaged in a long hearty chat. "So you are going to go through the screening tomorrow? Wow.. I didn't think you will take it this fast."
"Yeah, me neither. But madam Nancy wants me to qualify tomorrow." "Han? Madam Nancy? You talking about Nancy Burton?" Aron can only scratch his head at that. "Well I don't recall her complete name but she works at the library. And yeah.. she got blue hair."
Rumi can't believe her ears. Nancy Burton was like a legend in the kingdom. She had taken part in major battles against the Orc tribes. It won't be wrong to say that she had been one of the pillars that had kept this country safe.
The more she talked about this kid the more unfathomable he came out to be. "How many connections like this do you have, brat?" Aron can only chuckle at the stupefied expression of the lady. "Well, I am not sure if it can be called a connection but yeah, Julia was the one who introduced me to her."
Rumi nodded in understanding. His words made sense, she had heard that madam Nancy had been quite close to the two girls from the Rutherford family. They were probably going to talk further when they heard someone step in through the main door.
Tracey's powers gave her an almost see-through vision, allowing her to peer through any obstacle with ease. One of the abilities that her vision provided her was to analyze the mana channels of any person without any difficulty.
All the bodies in the hall had come to a standstill with bright mana patterns visible inside them. Her eyes focused on the boy sitting opposite her. The area around his heart was especially bright, even when compared to other humans in the room.
What surprised her more was that this boy's heart was beating at twice the normal rate. 'How can this be?' She can tell that this was probably his normal heart rate, with each pump being multiple times stronger than natural.
"Ahem!!" "Cough!! Cough!!" The entire hall returned to normal with a single noise. No one had noticed anything and only Tracey was left in a fit of coughs. "What happened?" Gloria hurriedly patted her back, trying to calm the girl down.
Tracey looked back at the boy, this time with her special vision, and found him staring right back at her. She broke out in cold sweat and holding onto Gloria's hand, dragged her to the restroom.
"What's the issue, Tracey? Did you discover something?" Gloria believed in the abilities of her friend and right now her serious face was telling him that she got some news for her. "It's okay.. calm down..!!" She massaged her chest, allowing her to rest.
"Cough.. the warden... She probably detected me using my vision." "Fuck!" It was Gloria's turn to be vexed. "Cough.. sorry about that." "It's okay. It was my decision anyway. We might be in for a spanking but we will see about that."
"So? Was that it?" At her question, Tracey shook her head firmly. "Noo! It's about that boy with Julia.. he... he.." Suddenly she found herself unable to put her thoughts into words. "Hey calm your tits, girly. Just tell me what you saw?"
Tracey slowly nodded her head, taking a deep breath. "He is not a human." "Hain? What's that supposed to mean?" With another deep breath, the pink-haired girl let her body rest against the wall. Now visibly calmer, she organized her thoughts composedly.
"How should I explain it? His mana channels.. are vast. Simply speaking... It's like he can discharge a massive amount of mana, all at once." Gloria massaged her head, unimpressed by the girl's explanation. "What's the big deal in that?" Tracey shook her head forcefully.
"You don't understand because you can't see. His channels.. they were much brighter than anyone else around. Much more powerful than you, Julia, or for that matter even Hera's." This time her expressions changed perceptibly.
"It's like he is a profound beast in human form." "It can't be that exaggerated?" "Huh.. that's not the only issue. His heart rate is double that of a human's, added to that are his extraordinary strength and perception. I have never had the opportunity to scan a vampire, but from what I have read in books, the signs are similar to one."
Her words were out of this world. It will be a significant matter if they had a vampire kid with them. Then again, if Tracey can notice these anomalies, what's stopping the seniors at the academy to do the same. "Mana channels like that of a profound beast and a body that resembles a vampire.."
Gloria can only repeat Tracey's words, unable to come to a conclusive answer for her findings. "Ahh... I don't understand. Just keep your mouth shut for now." "But Gloria... it's a vampire we are talking about." Her friend protested the idea of staying silent.
"We are not sure about it just yet. Besides, didn't you see that, didn't you see the boy eating his meals without any care in the world? How do you explain that?" Common sense told them that a vampire should be unable to digest anything other than blood, but both girls have seen how much Aron loved his meal.
Tracey had no answer for that. "I think you are right. Let's not be too hasty." She finally agreed to Gloria's suggestion. The blue-haired girl nodded her head, adding. "Don't worry, I will try to keep tabs on this guy. He is just a slave, it should not be too difficult." Tracey was happy at the faith Gloria should have in her.
The girls returned to the dining hall only to find that Julia's group had already left. Completing her dinner with the group, Gloria left the mess only to be stopped by a lady. "Both of you, come with me." Addressing the two girls, the woman turned around to take her to leave.
The group of girls knew that most probably the warden had noticed Tracey using her vision. "Cough.. all of you return to your rooms for the night. We will see you around tomorrow." No matter how conceited Gloria was, her leadership can't be questioned.
The girls didn't argue with her, leaving one after the other. Gloria and Tracey navigated their way through the corridors to land in front of a door with a name tag that said a single designation 'WARDEN'. Both girls turned their heads to look at each other before, Tracey stepped forth to knock on the door.
"Come in." The girls took a deep breath before pushing the door open to enter. The same woman who had approached them earlier was sitting beside another lady, both of them going through a document. "Greetings, Mrs. Jayden."
The valiant-faced lady raised her head, dropping her pen down and placing both her hands elegantly on her desk. "Greetings, young ones." Both girls lingered on with batted breaths, waiting for the woman to continue.
"I don't need to tell why you two are here, do I?" Gloria nodded her head. "No, Mrs. Jayden. We know our mistake." When faced with the personification of menace itself, it's always better to repent and ask for forgiveness. Those who dare Mrs. Jayden, never have a very good ending. They have learnt at least this much in the past year.
"Good." The lady possessed the semblance of a smile on her face. "What should we do with them, Mrs. Holmes? Any suggestions?" The lady turned to her subordinate, who couldn't care less about the situation.
"Just send them to work in the stables of the Beast taming department. I believe they need some capable workforce to look after their beasts." Tracey gulped, knowingly fully well what 'looking after the beasts' involved.
"Ma'am.." She was about to open her mouth when Gloria turned to glance at her, making her stop midway. "Hmm..? You got something to say?" Mrs. Jayden noticed their actions. "No, ma'am. We are ready to serve a punishment for our mistake. And we will make sure something like that doesn't happen again."
"Nice. I do like the discipline that the MacMillan family garner in their kids... Anyhow, about your previous mess up. Let's not make you go through all that. How about you two help out the faculties with the screening exams tomorrow? I saw that you were overly interested in a slave boy, you can get a lot more personal that way." The lady chuckled to herself, but no one else dared to laugh in the vacant office room.
The shine in her eyes was like a predator inspecting its prey. Just with her sight alone, she was making their throats dry up. "A nice deal if you ask me. What do you guys say?" She asked them, regardless the girls knew there was no room for any negotiation with warden.. ever.
"It will be as you said, Mrs. Jayden." Beside Gloria, Tracey sighed in relief. Anything was better than serving in the stables of the beast department for a young maiden. "Hmm? You guys need anything else?" Mrs. Jayden who had resumed going through her documents raised her head once again.
"No, Mrs. Jayden. We will see ourselves out." Tracey hurriedly pulled Gloria out, not taking any chances. Who knew when this tyrant's mind will snap, sending them back to the stables?
"Thank goodness... Haha... For a moment I was terrified." Tracey remarked once they were clear of the warden's den, only to find her friend lost in thought. "What are you thinking? I think we got ourselves a bargain."
Gloria shook her head as they continued walking towards their lodgings. "It's not about that. Rather I was wondering about the slave boy. He seemed to be very close to Julia's group. You think they know about him?"
Tracey bobbled her head for a while before shaking it off. "No idea. We can't exactly ask them, can we?" Coming to no conclusion, both girls can only drop the topic, for now, walking off toward their respective rooms.
***
"Hey.. no need to be nervous about it. Just do your best." Ava slapped Aron on his back, encouraging him. Both of them were walking back towards the necromancy department since Ava resided t her own house, instead of the girl's dorms.
"Ehh.. thanks. I am not nervous, just excited." Ava burst into chuckles. "That's the spirit haha.. You can return to your place. I can get back on my own." "No need. It's been a long since I met Mrs. Rumi. I will say hello to her as well." Aron saw the girl squint her eyes suspiciously at him before turning her head. "Do as you wish then."
Aron wasn't sure why exactly he received that cynical glance, hence they navigated their way to a house that was situated right next to the necromancy shop. Compared to the large store the residence was much more humble. *Knock* *Knock*
Aron feasted his eyes at the mature woman as soon as she opened the door for them. "Ohh... I see. Our girl brought in a new boy today." Her sarcastic tone left the girl annoyed as she wiggled her way out. "Huh.. it's your own little boyfriend that wished to see you hmph.." Aron heard her retort from inside the house, not taking her words to heart.
"I hope you are doing well Mrs. Rumi." The matron pulled the boy inside, making him sit on the couch. "Hehe.. all good, kiddo. Please don't take her words seriously." "Haha.. that's fine, miss." The lack of affection in his entire life had made the boy very susceptible to anyone who shows even a small goodwill gesture towards him.
In that regard, Mrs. Rumi had been one of eminent support to him. That's why before his test tomorrow he at least wanted to meet her once. The lady found the boy looking all around the cozy house. Giggling to herself she responded. "Haha.. that guy is not home. He must be lying in some dumpster.. drunk huh.."
"Haha.. he drinks that much?" That was a redundant question. He himself had seen the man dribble around like a qualified drunkard. "Don't even get me started. Anyhow leaving that aside.. is there something you need?"
"Nope. Just wanted to see you." For a moment Rumi was stunned, not sure how to respond. But looking at the cheerful face of the boy with absolutely clear eyes, a warmth emerged inside her. Only now did she recall how the boy had been at an orphanage for most of his life. It wasn't difficult to make sense of his actions when taking that into consideration.
"Come here, kid. Sit here." She pulled the kid over, making him settle in her lap. Both of them engaged in a long hearty chat. "So you are going to go through the screening tomorrow? Wow.. I didn't think you will take it this fast."
"Yeah, me neither. But madam Nancy wants me to qualify tomorrow." "Han? Madam Nancy? You talking about Nancy Burton?" Aron can only scratch his head at that. "Well I don't recall her complete name but she works at the library. And yeah.. she got blue hair."
Rumi can't believe her ears. Nancy Burton was like a legend in the kingdom. She had taken part in major battles against the Orc tribes. It won't be wrong to say that she had been one of the pillars that had kept this country safe.
The more she talked about this kid the more unfathomable he came out to be. "How many connections like this do you have, brat?" Aron can only chuckle at the stupefied expression of the lady. "Well, I am not sure if it can be called a connection but yeah, Julia was the one who introduced me to her."
Rumi nodded in understanding. His words made sense, she had heard that madam Nancy had been quite close to the two girls from the Rutherford family. They were probably going to talk further when they heard someone step in through the main door.
