Chapter 236: Busy Wednesday
Chapter 236: Chapter 236: Busy Wednesday
Chapter 236 – Busy Wednesday
Isolde walked slowly toward the Hall of Missions, her uniquely soundless, void-like presence helping her greatly in reducing the number of glances thrown her way.
More than half of them came from men, looking at her with eyes that screamed they wanted nothing but a taste of her.
The exact kind of eyes she would have loved to gouge out. and make sure to feed them their own. But, alas, she couldn’t actually act on her envy.
They were far too numerous for that.
’I guess there’s a downside to everything.’ She whispered to herself, thinking about the double-edged sword her beautiful and unique appearance had become.
In the past, she hadn’t been concerned with such matters. No one noticed her. But now, Isolde had to be extra careful whenever she was outside, walking among a throng of men and women who might do anything to her at any moment.
’And in class, too.’ She grumbled, remembering the second Teacher of the Fourth Year. ’His eyes... I hate his eyes when he looks at me. I don’t know why, but every time I feel his gaze on my body, I get this huge sense of disgust crawling over me, like millions of ants going in and out of me.’
Oh, it was a damned lie. Isolde knew very well what it meant.
It meant the Teacher was a danger to her. But it was far easier to convince herself of the opposite than to acknowledge the dangerous truth, because to be a Teacher in the Academy, one had to be at the Fourth rank.
And to teach the Fourth Year, one had to be extra special. Extra powerful.
And Jules Glassscion was undoubtedly powerful.
’And from a Tier Two Family.’ Isolde added, shaking her head as she looked at the Hall of Missions looming a short distance away.
’I’ll deal with it later. For now, I have a mission to take and complete.’
Isolde had studied all the information Meadow had given her about the Damned Village and its Fractured Land.
By now, she knew what to expect and had prepared accordingly.
’Let’s hope the fruit is actually useful. I need to be more powerful than this.’ She gently bit her lower lip, remembering Cassius’s prowess.
Cassius was now stronger than her.
Hell, even other students from the second, third, and even her own year were far stronger.
The gap between a year’s Palatine and another year’s third ranker — even though she was older — was truly wide.
No one became Palatine while merely being strong. The proof was Cassandra herself.
And Isolde knew that fact better than anyone, remembering how Lilien had held the Palatine spot tightly since the beginning. True, her twin brother helped her, but she was no less fearsome.
Now, this was her opportunity to bridge the gap between herself and all these monsters.
And she was ready for anything.
Keeping herself motivated, Isolde walked more confidently toward the Hall, only to halt abruptly, her purple eyes falling on a woman hurrying past her.
She twisted her body to the left and immediately grabbed the woman’s elbow, bringing her to a startled halt that made her yelp.
"You! What are you doing?" Esmeray shrieked in boiling anger, snapping her head toward the culprit with a promise of pain in mind...only to look blankly at Isolde, her anger suddenly vanishing like smoke.
"Isolde?"
"It’s me." She nodded. "Sorry for the sudden action. Did I startle you?"
"Oh no, no, no, it’s fine, sweetheart." Esmeray laughed nervously, respectfully removing Isolde’s hand from her elbow. "I’m just a bit sensitive today. That’s all."
Isolde stared at her silently, her eyes narrowing subtly, noticing her flushed cheeks, dilating eyes, and ever-so-subtly trembling body.
Something was wrong, she knew. And that something looked eerily similar to that time.
The day Esmeray killed a whore in front of everyone, while naked.
Instantly, Isolde began to fear the worst, not wanting her in-law to be seen in such a deplorable state by the world. Her reputation, and that of the Hood, would be finished forever.
However, just before she could speak again, Esmeray continued hurrying away, as if hard-pressed by time.
"I’m sorry, sweetheart, but I just took a mission." She said, her lips trembling. "And I want to complete it quickly, before tomorrow. I’ll go now. Have a nice day, okay? Say hi to Cass for me. Tell him to stop skipping class, haha."
She left Isolde no chance to answer as she bolted away, disappearing into the crowd.
Isolde stood there, dazed. She immediately took out her phone and sent a message to Cassius.
<Cass, I saw Esmeray today taking a mission.>
She began walking toward the Hall of Missions again, hesitating over the next message, yet deciding to send it.
<And she looked ready to recreate the same scene as that day.>
After sending those two messages, Isolde checked at the same time whether her sister, Anesthesia, had replied to her message, and was disappointed to see the painful reality.
She sighed under her breath, shrugged her shoulders, then stepped inside the building.
"I’ve had a strangely bad feeling since this morning."
She muttered under her breath, frowning deeper.
"A terrible one."
Then all her thoughts scattered like splintered rock across a vast plain under the loud, enthusiastic voice...
"Good morning, Soundless! Here for another Mission?"
...
The day passed in a blur, each student busy with their own affairs.
Anesthesia stayed inside her room all day, ignoring Emrys’s numerous messages wanting to meet for a talk, and her sister’s asking whether she was settling nicely into the Academy.
Her glowing purple eyes swept across the papers scattered on her bed. They were reports made by her men for information.
Information about Meursault, manager of Love de Bayard, and his family.
And the more she read, the more Anesthesia found ways to screw Love over.
"I always keep my promise, Love." Anesthesia whispered in a ruthless voice, her eyes settling on Meursault’s wife. "I’m coming for you, little bitch."
Then there was Sarah, who took the opportunity to head to the Academy’s Library.
She hadn’t forgotten that she needed rare materials to upgrade her Aspect. And now that she was in the Academy, Sarah could no longer afford to postpone it.
She needed to grow stronger and more useful.
But there, Sarah found herself in a strange situation, with an unexpected encounter.
...
Sarah of Secrecy was not the only one working hard.
Klaus had been training since 6 a.m., barely resting for anything. With Windy acting as his mentor, the Heir of Wind Spirit was actively trying to increase his control over Spirit Essence, to understand the true core of Wind...all to reach Spirit Form.
It was clearly not easy, and Klaus understood that more the longer he trained.
However, he had a goal as clear as day in his mind.
Still, rest was needed.
So during the night, Klaus left his room and strolled out into the Outer Ring, his mind on that young woman playing without an audience.
"I shall grace her with my presence once more." He whispered to himself, walking toward the isolated spot.
...
Love de Bayard had been touring the whole Academy in search of what she needed to save her skin.
And she’d gone as far as the very edge of the Outer Ring, where multiple poor-looking buildings stood clustered together, looking as though they’d collapse at any moment.
There, Love saw many students coming and going, their faces the epitome of commoner and poor.
The ground was a patch of dark earth filled with crawling worms, the air stinking heavily of smoke, and loss, and shit.
Looking at the scene, Love finally understood: this was where those unable to pay rent each month were sent.
A disgusting place with no hygiene. And with stairs.
"Bloody stairs. I hate stairs."
Love snapped her head toward the voice and saw a blind man with a stick, gingerly walking toward the disgusting dump, every step an obvious struggle.
Her face twisted in hidden disgust, but she didn’t leave.
Instead, she smiled widely, having finally found what she wanted.
...
In Hel’s Building, Meadow had invited Omm to her own room, smiling widely in welcome.
Omm was dying of shame and nervousness. He thanked Meadow so many times for her invitation that she grew literally angry.
In the end, she gave him the artifact she had promised and watched in anticipation as Omm used his Skill.
It was phenomenal.
Meadow had given him an artifact her mother had passed to her, saying it came from the Pit of Permafrost in the far north.
It was shaped like a closed fist, and had the effects of granting ice resistance, a frost-like aura made to frighten others, and a wisp of authority from the creature used to create it.
And when the Shepherd used his Skill on the artifact, a black and blue ring appeared on the ring finger of his right hand before disappearing into his body.
The next thing he knew, Omm was thrashing on the ground as his whole body became infused with frost essence, a voice whispering inside his mind in that agonised state.
"Commander... Commander... COMMANDER!!"
He lost consciousness, making Meadow jump in shock and fear, rushing toward him, noticing how the ice was spreading throughout the whole room.
...
While all of that was happening, Cassius finally managed, after a full day in the Realm of Mountains and Rivers, to return home.
It was night now, shadows blanketing the Academy, lit up by a sea of lights.
Cassius wanted a bath, then to look over Gossip Girl, before sleeping.
But he never got what he wanted.
Instead, what he got was a smiling Seraphim Hood sitting on his bed, legs crossed, the moment he appeared inside his own room.
"My pretty baby." Seraphim’s eyes curved. "Why haven’t you come to see your lovely aunt?"
—End of Chapter 236—