Chapter 136: 136 Another challenge.

Moonlight spilled through the stained-glass window. The light illuminated the dimly lit room, which still teemed with activity even though the date had changed.

The scent of old parchment and sharp ink still lingered in the air, accompanying the man, who still awoke with dark circles under his eyes.

Though his gaze was blurred, his finger clung to the cold steel pen, still coated with a fresh ink on its tip.

As he wrote silently, the flame on the candle flickered unnaturally as he could feel the wind suddenly invade his calm sanctuary.

His brows knitted in displeasure, and then the man turned toward the window on the side and watched an alluring thigh slip from the robe.

Its smooth skin, which glistened upon contact with the light, seemed irresistible.

“Hmm, do you want to try for a bit?”. The robed woman asked as she drew near to the man. Her lips parted into a teasing smirk.

However, the man snorted to dismiss the heat that gathered in his system and lowered his gaze to resume his task.

“What do you want, Calypso?”.

In an instant, her figure disappeared, and the man could feel a soft mound pressed against the back of his head, transmitting a seductive warmth that roused his male instinct.

“Fufu, relax; I hate rushed things,” Calypso whispered in his ears. Her hand traveled down to the man’s button, then caressed his chest tenderly.

“I won’t repeat myself, Calypso”.

However, despite the woman’s invitation, the man kept his composure firm and set his priorities straight.

“What do you want?”.

“Aaw, so sad”.

Calypso detached herself from the man. She slipped to his side and touched the man’s forehead.

The tip of her finger glowed in black. Then, an image of the recent fight with the boy resurfaced in the man’s consciousness.

He blinked several times, confused. ’A black haired-boy? But, where do I see him?’.

As the man probed and shifted his attention aside. The woman spread her lips and walked toward the window.

“Find out about this boy, for me?”. Calypso touched the frame of the window, letting her black robe flutter by the passing breeze.

“Wait!”. The man’s voice was calm, but it carried a dignified tone that halted the atmosphere in the room.

Calypso turned to him. The woman exhaled as she noticed the man’s expression twisted in anger.

“What?”.

“What about my wife’s illness? You promise me, Calypso”.

“Oh, that”. Calypso’s brows raised. She rubbed her chin and nodded. “Fine, I will give you the information after you provide the details related to the boy.”

A vein popped out on the man’s temple as he slammed his fist.

“I’ve had enough with this. You always kept things to yourself and never gave me what you promised.”

Hidden beneath the shadows on the hood, Calypso’s brows twitched, barely lashing out her anger toward him for the plan she had concocted always foiled.

However, she was not the type to back down and be pressured by others. She took something from her pocket and threw it at the man whom he snatched in midair.

“Give those to your wife. I’m sure her condition would be better”.

“…”. The man opened his palm and saw several grey pills as big as pebbles.

“As for the cure, I will give it to you in later times when you have finished this task.”

The man exhaled sharply and dove into his own memories.

His brows knitted, trying to recall the boy’s appearance that reminded him of someone he knew, someone who was recently close to him.

“If you want to know about the boy, I can introduce you to his family members; luckily, he was around here.”

His cheek twitched to see the woman in the robe smirked ominously.

“Is it a male? Or?”.

“A boy”.

Hearing that word, Calypso jumped from her place and landed her butt on the desk. She leaned closer and placed a hand on the man’s chin, lifting it to match her gaze.

“Who is he?”. Calypso licked her pink lips, stirring something deep inside the man’s heart.

“He was…”.

After the man told Calypso the identity, she dashed out the window, leaving the man shedding a cold sweat drenched on his back.

He leaned toward the seat and exhaled sharply, feeling the night breeze that chilled his bones to a freeze.

“Hang in dear, My love. Soon I will cure you from your suffering”.

His voice sank into the pit of the surrounding shadows. Not knowing that the darkness within was filled with ridiculed laughter that mocked his belief.

*****

“Haaa”.

A spirited shout from a white-haired boy rang across the field in the academy where his pers watched him fight their strongest, Jin.

With a bokuto in hand, Jin tilted his head to dodge the thrust and deflect Allen’s wooden sword.

He leaped back, giving the boy a chance to launch another attack.

“Come”. Jin tightened the grip on his hilt and lowered his center of gravity.

“Alright”.

Allen nodded and dashed forward. His body glowed in golden light, coating his skin with a physical enhancement spell.

His body blurred and reappeared on Jin’s right with a wooden sword aimed at Jin’s right flank.

However, Jin blocked the attack and used the momentum to shift his footwork to circle Allen and counter, which the white-haired boy dodged by jumping.

“Allen, I’ve told you not to waste your stamina on large movements.” Jin roared, his voice reverberating across the field, which made the other grimace with his ferocity in training Allen.

“Yes, I’m sorry”.

Allen replied; his body shrank as a chill ran down his spine, for Jin’s voice was like a blade that cut deep into his heart.

“Again”.

’As I thought,’ Allen inhaled deeply to calm his ragged breath. ’Jin was enormously strong’.

His ruby eyes flashed in determination as Allen gripped the wooden sword tight. ’I was right in choosing him as my teacher’.

They continued the sparring. Allen’s body glowed as he vanished from the place. His movement was swift like a light, bombarding Jin with his attack.

In the face of the storm, Jin deflected all the attacks with precise and calculated movements.

Allen was like a storm that hurled a barrage of stones, but Jin was like a mountain, steady and unfettered under the sky.

The students on the side field watched the spar with widened eyes. They realized that the boy named Jin was an anomaly who stayed within the first-year class.

They turned to the side and witnessed teacher Dannan, who was sunbathing while sitting on a folded chair and holding a paper to grade the students from Alpha Class.

As much as they were curious as to what grade they were accessing, the commotion in the middle attracted their attention once more.

A wooden sword flung backward and stabbed the ground, and they saw Allen, who flopped to the ground with ragged breath.

Jin exhaled softly, loosening the tension in his muscles as he extended his right hand to Allen, who blinked in confusion.

The white-haired boy blushed and took Jin’s offer. “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it”.

It’s been a week since the incident of Monster waves that shook the students’ hearts. Many of them still couldn’t forget those horrifying experiences.

However, some of them used the event as a stepping stone to reach higher and hardened their resolve to be a better version of themselves, like the person before Jin.

After the battle was over, Jin still recalled the boy who suddenly bowed before himself and asked to be trained in swordsmanship.

Of course, he had no reason to refuse, so Jin received it, and they had been trained for the past few days.

Thanks to the incident. The academy was closed for most of the time, so they had many chances to meet in the dorm yard every day.

In a week, Jin noticed a subtle change within Allen’s swordsmanship.

The boy was beginning to grasp his own strength and strive toward the path he wanted to pursue.

As they returned to the side field, five girls in the class approached them with fierce gait.

“Allen, your towel”.

“Here, don’t forget your drink”.

Lily draped a towel over the boy’s head, gently wiping the sweat. While Tania shoved a water pouch, the thing she had just used, with a faint blush on her cheek.

Jin snorted and saw Lucya standing before him, blocking his view of others.

Lucya exhaled with a frown on her beautiful face. She placed a hand on her waist and said.

“You already have this beautiful me and two other girls, yet you still want more?”.

“What are you talking about?”.

He shook his head and took the towel from his item box to wipe the dirt that had stuck to his skin.

“How was he?”.

Sivia walked closer; her voice was calm, like an ethereal pond that soothed his heart.

“Not bad; he had a talent, I guess.”

“I see”.

The silver-haired girl gazed to the side. He could see a flame had been lit in her azure pupils, wondering just how strong the current Allen was.

“Give the boy some air, okay.” Jin patted Silvia’s head, which prompted her to shift at him. “It was okay to be fired up, but don’t get serious, for he is still way behind yours.”

“Wow, such a harsh word you threw there”.

Iris retorted, her golden ponytail swaying as she leaned closer to his side, watching Allen’s group with a bit of pity.

“I’m just stating a fact, that’s all”.

“Well, I know, but”. Iris’s brows knitted and nudged Jin’s left ribs. “Restraint your mouth a little!”.

Jin twisted his neck, receiving the Elven girl’s usual rebuttal. “…Okay”.

“Alright everyone listen up”.

Danna’s voice echoed through the land, gathering the students’ attention toward him.

The man inhaled and loudly announced.

“I hate to run around the bush, so I will tell you this”.

Dannan paused before turning his attention toward Jin with a grin on his expression.

“Not long from now, the academy will be holding a martial arts festival, so make sure to be ready when the time comes.”

“…?”.

A huge question mark appeared above the students’ heads as they witnessed their teacher smirk.

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