Chapter 171: THE MISSION CENTER

Lyra walked into Stella’s office and immediately spotted Kael, Charlotte, and an unfamiliar student standing inside.

She paused for a moment before putting on an exaggerated expression of betrayal.

"Oh, my students have betrayed me!" Lyra cried dramatically, pretending to wipe away tears. "You hated me so much that you decided to meet Stella behind my back."

Kael remained completely nonchalant.

Seeing that her first attempt at getting a reaction from him had failed, Lyra immediately turned toward Charlotte.

"Charlotte!"

Charlotte froze.

"Why? I expected the betrayal from Kael, not from you! I thought we were family after everything we’ve been through together. I guess the teacher of Class 1-A doesn’t teach as well as the teacher of Class 1-D."

Stella, who was seated behind her desk, rubbed her forehead.

It was obvious that she was already accustomed to Lyra’s shenanigans.

Kael, however, understood exactly what Lyra’s statement meant.

He glanced at Stella.

I guess she doesn’t take those superficial rankings to heart.

After all, they were friends.

"No, Miss Lyra, you’re misunderstanding the entire situation," Charlotte quickly explained. "Kael just thought that a student from Class D might be able to help us during the tournament, so he decided to bring her here for special training."

Lyra nodded with a smile before patting Charlotte on the head.

"Is that it? Sorry, I overreacted like that."

She then turned her attention toward Kael.

"Now, that is new. From what I remember, only Class A students can participate in the Inter-High Tournament. Why do you think someone from Class D would be eligible to enter?"

"Well, I do know that only Class A first-years and second-years can participate."

Kael paused.

"But how many times have they actually won?"

Lyra fell silent.

After a moment, she scoffed.

"I don’t think I agree with the fact that you think a student from Class D would be better than the students in my class."

Her gaze shifted toward Lilian, who stood shyly in the background, clearly wishing she could disappear into the wall.

Stella also focused her attention on Lyra without saying anything.

"What exactly do you mean by that?" Kael asked, genuinely stunned.

Lyra raised an eyebrow.

"Excuse me?"

"The students of Class D are better than the students of Class A."

Kael’s expression became serious.

"And it isn’t just a statement. It’s a fact."

Everyone in the room was stunned.

Even a slight smile appeared on Stella’s face.

"What are you trying to say?" Lyra asked.

Kael folded his arms.

"Well, both Charlotte and I are currently in Class A, but we were previously in Class D. I was actually at the very bottom of Class D’s rankings."

He paused.

"But during the first-year tournament, I defeated the strongest students in Class A single-handedly."

Kael smiled smugly.

"If there were a school newspaper, the front page would probably read: ’Class D Student Takes Down Class A’s Strongest Students.’"

Lyra was stunned.

For once, she didn’t have an immediate comeback.

Kael’s smug expression only grew.

Charlotte, standing beside him, couldn’t help but smile slightly.

She remembered when she had first trained with Kael. Back then, the two of them had given each other milestones to reach.

Her own goal had been to enter the top 100.

Kael’s goal had been to become the top-ranked student.

At the time, his goal had seemed almost impossible.

Now, Kael was easily the strongest first-year student in the academy.

However, seeing the smug expression on his face, Charlotte immediately knew what he was doing.

He was stroking his own ego.

She sighed.

Lyra finally released a sigh of her own.

"Alright. Then what exactly is so special about this girl?"

Kael turned toward Lilian.

"For starters, her name is Lilian, and she has healing magic."

Lyra’s eyes twitched.

All that speech just for her to have a typical ability?

She smiled calmly at Kael.

You better have a good reason for this, or I’m going to whoop your ass.

"I see," Lyra said.

Kael noticed her expression.

"You might take it as a joke, but sense her mana and you’ll understand why she’s special."

Lyra turned her attention toward Lilian.

Lilian immediately became nervous and tried to shrink away under Lyra’s gaze.

Lyra’s expression changed almost immediately.

"She has..."

She stopped herself.

Then she turned toward Kael.

"How did you know about this? I doubt you’re at a rank where you can use your mana to sense someone’s essence."

Kael smiled.

"That should be the least of your worries."

He glanced toward Lilian.

"I’m more interested in wondering how the Church would react when she uses it in the tournament."

The atmosphere immediately became serious.

Stella’s expression changed.

Lyra’s playful demeanor disappeared.

Even Kael’s smile became more restrained.

Charlotte and Lilian, however, were confused. Neither of them fully understood what Stella’s earlier reaction meant.

Kael knew.

Mostly because of his knowledge of the game.

"Well, you guys shouldn’t really worry about that."

Kael turned toward the door.

"I’ll handle the matters concerning the Church."

With that, Kael motioned for Charlotte and Lilian to follow.

"Oh, and Stella," he added before leaving, "we’ll be coming tomorrow."

"Alright."

Kael stepped outside with the two girls.

He turned toward them.

"Alright, ladies. I’ll be heading back to my dorm."

He began walking away.

Inside the office, Lyra stared at the door.

"Sometimes I forget that we have students in this academy from the Great Noble Houses."

She glanced toward Stella.

"Aside from you, though."

Stella sighed.

"I’m not a student anymore. And I doubt they continue to see me as family."

Kael walked back toward his dormitory, feeling somewhat relieved after everything that had happened.

The semester had only just started.

There was still plenty of time before the Inter-High Tournament.

Kael smiled.

"Well, the semester just started. The tournament is still a long way away."

He finally reached his dorm room.

Just before he could open the door, a familiar voice echoed behind him.

"It seems the technique I learned works well."

Kael froze.

He immediately turned around.

Charlotte stood behind him.

Kael was stunned.

He hadn’t sensed her presence at all.

"What was that?"

Charlotte smiled.

"It’s a ghost technique Stella taught me during the holiday."

She paused.

"She said it would make a deadly combination considering my speed."

Kael nodded thoughtfully.

"Why didn’t you use it during our sparring match the other day?"

"I didn’t want to show you all my cards."

Charlotte smiled.

Kael nodded.

"Fair enough."

He studied her for a moment.

"But you’re a lancer. An assassin’s technique might not be suited for you."

He paused.

"But I’m sure you can make it work."

Charlotte smiled at his words.

Kael then focused on her again.

"One more thing."

He pointed toward her.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

Charlotte’s expression immediately changed.

"What do you mean, what am I doing here? Have you already forgotten what we agreed on yesterday?"

Kael stared blankly at her.

Nothing came to mind.

Charlotte’s eyes widened.

"Don’t tell me you actually forgot."

She sighed.

"We agreed to explore the Mission Center in the academy."

"Oh."

Kael finally remembered.

"Sorry about that. My mind has been occupied with a lot of things lately."

"I noticed."

Charlotte studied his expression.

"Especially when Miss Stella mentioned the Church."

Kael remained silent.

"Do you have some kind of problem with them?" Charlotte asked. "You’re from the Draven Family, after all. The Great Noble Houses aren’t exactly known for getting along with the Church, so I can understand that."

Kael nodded.

His thoughts returned briefly to their earlier discussion.

"That particular matter is something we’ll handle later."

He turned toward the hallway.

"But for now, let’s head to the Mission Center."

The two of them left the dormitory.

When Kael and Charlotte arrived at the Mission Center, they immediately noticed the number of students inside.

Some were examining the mission boards and checking which missions were available.

Others were returning from missions and reporting their completion.

There were very few first-year students.

The majority were third-years, since by this stage of their academy life, they could practically be considered actual Hunters.

Kael and Charlotte approached the mission board designated for first-year students.

Kael scanned through the available missions.

Then his eyes stopped.

A B-rank dungeon.

His eyes lit up.

"Let’s take this one."

Charlotte looked at the mission.

Then she looked at Kael.

"Shouldn’t we take something weaker?"

She pointed toward the mission requirements.

"It’s just the two of us, and this dungeon requires a full party. There’s also the possibility of a demon appearing."

Kael smiled confidently.

"First of all, we should be testing our limits instead of going to weaker dungeons."

He folded his arms.

"Secondly, I’m the top-ranked student. I’m sure I can bypass that rule."

"NO."

The clerk managing the mission board answered immediately.

Kael froze.

Charlotte burst out laughing behind him.

Kael slowly turned toward the clerk.

"What do you mean by that?"

He looked offended.

"I’m the top-ranked student. I should have the privilege of soloing a dungeon of my choice."

After all, Leon did it multiple times while he was in the academy.

Kael thought silently.

The clerk didn’t even blink.

"Only the top-ranked students of the second year and the top ten students of the third year have that privilege."

Kael’s expression collapsed.

He slowly laid his upper body against the mission desk.

"So I have to follow the rules?"

"Yes."

The clerk pointed toward the requirements.

"Get a party of five first-years with a second-year escort."

Charlotte was now openly laughing.

Kael slowly looked at her.

She tried to contain herself but failed.

"I guess we’ll have to change our mission or find people willing to join our party."

Kael sighed.

"Alright."

He straightened himself.

"But I’ll handle that stress tomorrow."

With that, he turned around and began walking back toward his dorm.

Charlotte watched his back before shaking her head with a calm smile.

She then headed toward her own dormitory.

Kael entered his room.

He didn’t even bother changing.

He simply walked over to his bed and crashed onto it.

He stared at the ceiling.

There were too many problems.

The tournament.

Lilian.

The Church.

The demons.

The Inter-High Tournament.

And now he had to find five first-year students willing to join him in a B-rank dungeon.

Kael closed his eyes.

I just want some peace.

He finally began to relax.

Then—

"Hello, Kael."

A melodious voice echoed from behind him.

Kael’s entire body froze.

His eyes slowly opened.

A cold sweat ran down his back.

He recognized that voice immediately.

He slowly turned his head.

"...Lilith."

The trouble had found him again.