"If abilities are created by the gods, then Arts are the creation of humans. Abilities are the gates to use mana to impact the world, leading to external or internal phenomena, that are considered outside of the norm." The bald old man told them in the lecture hall.
'Well, my Art would disagree.' Arthur thought with his hand underneath his chin. Beside him, Oliver was snorting. Yesterday's party seems to have taken a toll on him. Arthur didn't drink a lot, for obvious reasons. They were in a giant lecture hall, lectured by a man about Arts.
"What's the required level for us to use Arts?" A student asked.
"Great phrasing. There's a difference between using and training, as using the art in battle requires liquified mana. To say, you need to be at the Rei-rank. However, since a large portion of you are only at the neo-rank, you'll only be allowed to train your Arts."
"And what if we use it in battle?" The same student asked.
"You'll damage your energy channels, making it difficult to advance to the rei-rank. That's a risk you'll have to face."
"Isn't it better to simply wait until we're at the rei-rank?" Another student asked something that Arthur was wondering too.
"Well, it's better to damage your channels than to die." The old man said with a knowing smile.
He then went on about the fundamentals of energy channels, the anatomy of the body, how to circulate, and other explanations that they would need during their afternoon activities.
During the class, Arthur was half thinking about Reece's words and the mark Jaran had left yesterday. Reece's advice was irrefutable, as Arthur didn't feel any difference in his lifestyle after he had awakened.
When he asked himself whether he was happy, Arthur couldn't answer. He was stronger now, he enjoyed fighting to his heart content, but that didn't make him particularly happy.
It seems that his worries shifted from being starving due to poverty to death by his enemies. At the end of the day, every day was filled with challenges.
"Zzz..."
Oliver snored loudly beside him. The professor's sharp ears picked it up and he threw the marker like a dart toward Oliver. It wasn't particularly fast, so Arthur could have stopped it, but he didn't want to antagonize his professor.
"Ouch!" With a 'pa' sound, Oliver's head jerked backward. He looked around and froze when he saw the professor glaring at him.
"Ten rounds around the field!" The professor hmphed and resumed his lecture. Oliver rubbed his head with a pout.
'Well, I guess not everything is the same.' Arthur smiled as Oliver mumbled under his breath, making the professor glared at him again.
The class ended quickly and they were given a break before their afternoon practical class. The break was for lunch but Arthur decided to spend it without Oliver. As for Jonah, he was invited out by Amelia.
Arthur had told Jonah that he didn't like Amelia but simply knew that she wasn't that honest about her feelings for Jonah. His reply astounded Arthur, who hadn't looked at it from this point of view.
"Even if she's trying to fool me, she's the stronger than me. If I'm able to win her over before she realizes I'm weak, then I'll be the one fooling her." Jonah told him on the balcony.
"But what if she leaves you once she knows?" Arthur asked.
"Well, that would prove her true motives. I'll still enjoy the care of such beauty, hehe. Unless, of course, you..."
He laughed and kicked Jonah out of the balcony. Before their class began, Amelia asked Jonah out for lunch and he agreed. Truly, Arthur feared the politics in this place.
He left the whining Oliver and headed toward the lecture hall of the Nightfall dorm. They were also coming out and as soon as they spotted Arthur, they surrounded him with Arlo in the lead.
"What are you doing here, coward?" Arlo asked while rubbing his chin and pocketing his hand. With his handsome appearance, he was friendly even to the Daybreak dorm members. However, Arthur kept embarrassing him, so his hate was understandable.
"When did the campus become yours?" Arthur shrugged. "I'm here for a friend."
"Oh, that little chick?" Arlo grinned. "Don't worry, I'll take care of her."
"Who are you talking about?" Arthur furrowed his brows. "Little chick? That's not the person I'm friends with."
"What?" Arlo was stunned. "You were talking to her yesterday. They say that you two were together in the second test, too..."
"Pft, hahaha!" Arthur snorted and laughed heartily. "Is that why you wanted her to fight me? Haha!"
"Why are you laughing?" Arlo and his gang got closer, surrounding him. "You bastard, I'll..."
"She's just someone I used during the test! To think that you thought I was friends with a commoner. Oh, foolish Arlo." Arthur smirked.
"Shut up!" Arlo's mana threatened to explode, but Arthur didn't care. He took a step toward him and spoke inches away from his face.
"My real friend is right behind you, why not take a look?" As soon as he said this, Arlo glanced backward and his mouth turned into a line.
"What are you ants doing to him?" Rae stood there with a cold expression. It was so cold that the rest of them backed away instantly.
"Nothing at all, Ruru!" Arthur said as he patted Arlo's shoulder. The latter stiffened and glared at Arthur.
"Don't think that this is over," Arlo said through gritted teeth before leaving with his gang. Only Arthur and Rae were left in front of the lecture hall.
Before Arthur could say anything, she grabbed him by the collar and glared in his face. Her scarlet eyes looked especially cold today.
"Don't dare use that name again, I'll rip out your tongue." She shoved him away after she finished. With a glance at the surrounding, she turned and walked away. "Follow me."
"Sure," Arthur smiled. One of the reasons that he was here was to meet Rae specifically, as he wanted to use his favor. However, the person he was looking for earlier wasn't Rae.
The two went to an empty classroom. Arthur wanted to make a joke about being confessed to, but he was sure Rae's pride would kill him.
"Are you an idiot?" She coldly said as she sat on the desk while folding her long legs in front of him. "What do you think you're doing by provoking Arlo more than once?"
"I know that I said we were friends, but I didn't think you would be worried about me." Arthur was genuinely surprised.
"Worried?" Rae puckered her lips in a smirk. "I don't want you to disappear like those before you. If that happens, I can't make you mine."
"You know about that?" Arthur frowned. "What do you know?"
"Ha," Rae's smirk turned into a grin. "Take it easy, the great detective. I'm not the culprit! Anyone can know that much from asking around."
"Why would you ask around though?" Arthur didn't let himself be provoked. He leaned on a chair as well and his attitude worked well to poke Rae's nerves.
"I'm bored, that's all."
"We're on the third day of college..."
"Yours, not mine. I've learned all these things ages ago. For your answer, I don't see why I should share my knowledge with you."
"You forgot that you owe me a favor?" Arthur smirked and pocketed his hands.
"Fine." Rae gnashed her teeth and tightened her grasp of the desk until it broke. "I've heard that..."
"Wait!" Arthur raised his hand. "That's not my favor. You think you can fool me with a few information pieces?"
"What?" Rae blinked. "You were..." She then frowned. "What do you want? Like I said before, nothing perv..."
"Protection for one year."
"You want me to protect you?" Rae's face brightened. "If you become my slave, then I will obviously..."
"Shut up about the slavery thing, what's wrong with you?" Arthur looked at her with a frown. She flinched and glared at him. "It's not for me, but to someone else. I'll send you their name later."
"I won't do it," Rae said coldly.
"Alright, bye." Arthur sighed and got up to leave.
"... You're not going to argue back?" Rae called after him, bewildered. Arthur turned around with a smile.
"If you're someone who would go back on their words, there's nothing left for us to talk about. It's not like I'm pleading, it's something you owe me. I just thought more of you."
"Shut up! Fine! Send me their name later!" With that Rae stormed out of the classroom but then returned. "Also, we're not friends." With that, she slammed the door.
Arthur blinked twice before he walked out of the classroom as well. He then headed toward the cafeteria to find the person he was looking for. She was eating alone, as expected.
As he passed by her, he slipped her a paper. He then ate quickly and left. He headed straight toward the library and waited. A few minutes later, glasses-girl arrived.
"What?" She asked while crossing her arms around her chest. It seems she still had a bad impression of Arthur.
"I have a deal for you. Oh, what's your name?"
"That's the deal?" She asked with puzzlement. "It's Sarah."
'Same as my mother.' Arthur noted. "That's not the deal, I have something to ask of you. I know that your ability is related to books and anything is written." He said as he sat down on the desk, gesturing her to sit as well.
"How..."
"That's not important. I need you to find the information about something in the library." Arthur took out his phone. "Do you recognize this?" He showed her a drawing he did for the mark.
"No, but that's absurd. There are a million books in the library." Sarah frowned. "I can't look through all of them, my time and energy are..."
"I'll offer you a one-year protection."
"No offense, sir. But your rank is..."
"Not from me, but Rae, the third ranker."
"That is..." Sarah blinked. "That is the person I fear the most..." She said while rubbing her hands nervously. "To be protected by her..."
"Then," Arthur smiled. "That would be hitting two birds with one stone. She won't touch you, and she'll protect you from any bullying or harassment. You should know that a commoner girl here is..."
With this final bit of coaxing, Sarah nodded and took the drawing. With this, Arthur would simply have to wait for the results.