Chapter 20

“Why are you so out of it Basara?” said Melinda as she looked at me.

We were now inside one of the buildings that were around the School main building.

This was like a dorm room for students of this school. Lady Akari was to soon join us but for the moment I and Melinda were alone inside the giant room.

I kinda feel weird about the whole thing, a boy living together with two girls, but I should still remember my status, I am here to serve, and learn nothing else.

“Nothing,” I said a bit dejected.

“You should not bother with whatever result that thing showed, it must have been faulty, I know for sure that you should at least get a higher score than that.” She said trying to comfort me, this girl was quite frank, she was a nice person, some of the rare kinds of people that I have ever met in my life.

“Thank you for your words, but that is not the real reason. It is the looks of everyone, not towards me but towards our lady. Having an incompetent servant only serves to ruin her image within the school.”

“Lady Akari won’t be bothered with such trivia, don’t worry about it. Just practice and try to prove them wrong, I know you will.” She said with a smile on her face.

It was almost evening, Lady Akari was invited to a noble’s gathering, While we, her servants were not, this was the case for everyone within the school. Though we should have accompanied her, the school insists on leaving the Nobles to attend this banquet with the supervision of the school staff, once this Gathering is dismissed, we will continue our duties like the usual.

The room we were at was quite grand, it had several separate rooms, where I took one. While the remaining two were for Lady Akari and Melinda.

After arranging the luggage, I found nothing better to do. So I decided to take a tour outside and see the size of this school.

“I will head out, I want to see this school in its entirety,” I said to Melinda who gave me an approving look without saying anything.

Once out I saw the vastness of this school, it was ten times the size of Lord Ling’s manor.

Behind the main building was the grand arena, and as I approached I saw many people gathered there.

On the Arena, there was a fight. Two guys were fighting, they were servants. However, this seemed more like a spar than a fight.

One of them was bulky as an ox, while the other looked small and meager. I don’t think I recognize them, due to me not having paid attention to them in the phase of ranking.

The bulky guy was actually being pushed back by the small guy, he struck like a mountain but every strick of his would be redirected or countered, they were not using blades or tools, just martial combat with empty hands.

Every time the big guy strikes the kid either evade, dodges or counters with swift and small hits.

Hitting the same spots over and over again.

‘Hmm, swift palms… I guess this art still lives on’ said Nocturne

‘What is that?’ I asked

‘That is a martial art derived from sucking at the stress points of the human body, forcing the blood circulation to destabilize, a continuous usage of the art forces the enemy struck with it to lose consciousness, a specialist can actually kill their enemy with one hit.’

‘That sounds dangerous,’ I said

‘Indeed, fighting against a swift palm practitioner head-on is suicidal’ said Nocturne

‘However it seems that big guy is not falling down,’ I said

‘the small kid is going easy on him. He could have destroyed him many times over, probably he is not showing his full strength, however, the other guy is a natural at strengthening, his muscles are forcing most of the attacks to deal less damage and reach their maximum potential, however, there is a limit to defending’ said Nocturne

Then the big guy keeled over and fell.

“Sebastian Luge wins!” said a man wearing the school staff uniform.

There was a small crowd of people around them that began cheering while others looked dejected.

“50 points will now be transferred to the winner. Next challenge please”

“Points?” I said then a boy with red hair wearing a butler's outfit like mine casually said

“The school implemented a new system. Each student is given a number of Points at the start of the school year, they can use them for their daily necessities and even upgrade their ranks if possible.”

“Oh, I never received anything like that,” I said

“Well that is probably due to your double negative status, Points are given based on the potential of everyone.” He said with a smirk

“I guess your life in this school will be rather hard.”

“What is your name?” I asked

“I am Viktor Dilen,” he said giving a courteous bow “Servant of the House Dantess”

I am Basara, Servant of the House Ling,” I said giving the man a nod of acknowledgment

“Is there a way to get these points?” I said

“The easiest way to get them is by combat, you can bet a certain number of points, Winner takes all.” He said

“How are the points distributed at first though?” I asked.

“Each servant’s potential grants them a certain amount of points. An F class servant Gets 1000 points, and for each rank and additional 1000 point. A servant with an S class gets 7000 points.”

“So the maximum amount can get to 14 000 points,” I said

“Yes, that is a lot of points, however, there was never anyone with that score, the maximum was 13 000 and it belonged to the royal family.”

“How can we rank up?” I asked

“You need to upgrade your card, for each rank up, you need to pay twice the number of points there is to get to it. To rank up from class F to rank E it will require 2000 points, but from E to D it will take 4000. You see where I am getting?” he said

“Yes, ranking up all the way to S class should be extremely difficult with just points.”

“Yes, that is why there is the option to swap ranks, you can challenge a higher class to a duel and if they accept and you win you may be able to take their position in the class.”

“Interesting.” I said, “But I guess no one will even accept a challenge without proper compensation.”

“Yes, to challenge a higher class member you will need to provide appropriate compensation for their risk of drinking. And they must accept.” He said with a smile on his face.

“Thank you for the information, I appreciate it,” I said

“No worries, But with all respect to your house, I believe that your situation is quite dire, you will probably not be able to rank up. But all hope is not lost, you can still get points by doing various Jobs at the school notice board”

“The notice board?” I asked

“Yes, there is a huge board that will put some quests to the students, Even achieving high grades in school grants you points, just work hard and you will certainly catch up, Even none fighters this way can get a chance.” He said, “It is only fair”.

“Thank you for everything,” I said

“No worries, not everyone here is an enemy you should make sure to ask whenever you are in need of assistance, I am sure many will help.” He said as he left.

Good, now I should go check out the notice board.

‘So many uselessness, but it might be a good opportunity for you to learn more if you take in these challenges.’ Said Nocturne.

I then headed back towards the school leaving the arena.

Once before the school gate, I saw a huge board with many students around it.

Once I made it through I read the different quests on it.

Some gave up to 1000 points but the condition of them was absurd.

“It needs for us to fetch a Silver fang’s horn. They inhabit the Undying Forest behind the school”

‘Oh, quite an interesting challenge, you should take this one Basara, it will prove your worth.’

‘What is a silver fang?’ I asked

“It is a Wolf of sorts, it has a horn on its forehead and a gray-like silver fur, its entire body is useful for alchemy and its horn is quite precious for making some remedies and alchemical concoctions,” he said.

‘Can I hunt it?’ I asked

‘If it is alone, then maybe you might be able to take it down with my help, however, a Silver Fang is always accompanied by a group of wolves. You will need assistance’ he said

‘Hmm, I should probably ask Melinda then, ah wait… there is a condition’

Looking below the request it said

‘Minimum class Rank A’

Sigh…

I can’t take this one.

Looking all over the other quests, they all had a condition, even some herb gathering quests had an at least F class quest.

This is really starting to annoy me.

“You should probably just try your luck with a challenge then Said Nocturne’

Nothing is going how I like.

I wanted to look at the fights but decided to check out the entrance to the forest behind the school.

It looks like most quest requires one to visit the forest.

‘That place is giving enormous signs of life and many powerful beasts reside in it. Don’t venture too far, it is dangerous’ Said Nocturne.

‘Don’t worry I don’t plan on croaking on the first day here.’

Once I reached the entrance to the school forest I saw an old man lying there he was wearing old clothes and something like a cloak that covered his face, only his white beard could be seen he looked to be enjoying the breeze.

I didn’t want to bother a man sleeping so I went forward.

“Where are you going Lad, that place is off limits for the unworthy.” He said without batting an eye or moving an inch

“I want to take a look at the forest,” I said

“You are not here for a quest, are you?” he said

“No, just some sightseeing.”

“You need to prove your ability before you enter anyway. What class are you?”

I hesitated before speaking but then said

“A double negative,” I said with a bit of embarrassment, however, the man didn’t say anything. I thought that he would chase me out but he said

“You may proceed, here,” he said and threw me a coin.

“What is this?” I asked

“This is to help you if you are troubled, once you press on it a teacher will soon appear by your side and help you, however, its usage costs 500 points.” He said

“I don’t have 500 points…” I said

“I know,” said the old man with a smirk. “Your master However has it, it will be deducted from your master’s balance,” he said then continued on with his light nap.

The gates then opened and I entered.

‘Well am already here, there is no point in turning back, I should probably continue forward.

I really hope nothing serious happens though, it will be quite irresponsible for me to make trouble for Lady Akari.

‘Don’t worry about that, first you must look for some resources, this forest contains many treasures, you can make use of them and they will help your current situation a lot.” Said Nocturne

‘Treasures?’ I asked

“Yes, though many of them had been plucked out, there are still hundreds of rare ingredients laying in this forest waiting to be discovered, I can sense them.” He said

‘I find it strange that there remain many of the said Treasures, shouldn’t the school have taken all of them? I asked’

‘Normally yes, but I guess it is that they either couldn’t locate them or chose to leave them for the students to find. Either way, this is a good opportunity for you to learn alchemy.’ Said Nocturne

‘Alchemy?’ I asked

‘Yes, the art to bend the rules of the world.”

‘You mean like turning stone to gold?’ I said as I read about alchemical legends.

‘Gold is useless compared to what you can do with true alchemy lad, now head forward there is something hidden under that tree’ said Nocturne.

I moved forward, looking at this normal looking tree, it wasn’t that different from the ones next to it, but after using Monochrome vision, I saw that one of its roots was different from the others.

‘What is that?’ I said

‘That is a golden root of Yggdrasil. It is an incredibly rare item, and very hard to spot or locate, you should dig it. It can be used for some concoctions’ he said

I then began digging the ground, until I reached the Root.

‘Should I just rip it out? It looks quite sturdy’ I said

‘Let me take over’ he said and took control

He placed his hand on the root then black flame covered it, and severed it from the tree.

‘Good, he said then placed it on the ground.

‘The root will start emitting a strong scent, it will attract various creatures to it, you must cover it.’ Said Nocturne,

I removed my vest and covered the root with it.

We should head deeper, there are many other things you can take with you, always use your vision to spot creatures or the treasures sprang about in this place.

Once I regained control, I felt a bit fatigued

‘That flame is taxing to the body, I am not proficient in using it, and it costs a lot of stamina to use, but that was the only way for you to cut the root out.

‘Couldn’t you use the scythe?” I asked

‘No, that weapon serves to severe life, if I had touched that tree with it it would have withered, that and the root.’

‘Oh. Quite fearsome indeed.’

Oh, look, bird beak mushrooms! I said as I looked at huge colocations of mushrooms growing from a withering tree.

‘That doesn’t look like a treasure. Said Nocturne’

‘No, it actually is!” I said then moved forward to the tree

‘Explain? I am sure I have seen many incredible resources of nature, but this is most definitely not, it gives not even the faintest aura of Qi

“These mushrooms rarely grow on trees, where I used to live, once in a while once I find one or two of them I can roast them or put them in a soup, they are definitely delicious and have a great aroma to them.’ I said as I started picking them up.

I then went towards a tree that had enormous leaves and began putting the mushrooms on top of the leaves.

Once finished I carried the root and the mushrooms with me and moved forward towards a location that was giving off a strong Qi signal.

‘A ten-leaf clover’ said Nocturne, as I looked at the almost camouflaged clover.

It was inside a field of normal clovers and would be really hard to spot.

‘Take it while uprooting it all gently pull it from the ground not to ruin the roots.’ Said Nocturne.

Once I did I placed it in the vest alongside the Root.

“It is quite the harvest,” Said Nocturne in a joyful manner.

“there is another ingredient nearby but there is a creature near it. You should move with caution, I cannot know for sure what kind of a beast it is from just his Qi signal but I guess it is a bit strong’ said Nocturne.

Then I remembered the Silver Fang and hoped that it is not it.

‘Hmm, I guess you should move faster, the beast Qi signal is declining fast… and there is also the smell of blood.’ He said

Then I approached and saw a painting stage littered with wounds all over… it will not make it.

“ a golden stag… their horns are precious, you must take them too’

‘What are we gathering these for? I said ‘are you trying to make something out of these? I asked

‘These ingredients are not related to each other, and will not make something, however, they are still precious and it will be a wast to leave them be. You may need them later though, so don’t bother with the quantity and just get them for now’ he said as I approached the stag.

It looked frightened as it tried to run, but it was powerless. And couldn't move.

I wonder what caused it this pain. The wounds on it don’t look like wounds made from an animal…

‘These are wounds made from blades… there is a hunter here and he must be looking for this, I think you better finish this beast fast and take your trophy before things get complicated.’ He said

‘Wouldn’t that be stealing? I should probably just give it to whoever was hunting this’ I said

‘Don’t be an idiot, as a hunter he lost his prey he has no right to claim it.’

Sigh…

I then approached the beast and crouched down.

‘I am sorry for this,’ I said then brought the Scyth forward after summoning my book.

The Stag had a fearful look on its face and began breathing heavily, unable to escape and met with danger it was afraid of what was to happen.

I then placed the blade of the scythe on its neck and decisively pulled.

Blood gushed out and the stag soon passed on.

I then tried to cut the horns with the scythe but Nocturne once again said

‘Did you forget, using that scythe will ruin the material, use the flame I am sure you can use it on your own.’ He said

I then placed my hand forward and summoned the flame that cut the horns cleanly.

Placing the horns with the other ingredients.

‘It is getting darker, this animal’s blood will attract many beasts, you should leave for now’ said Nocturne.

“Alright, we should leave, we should go back here later, this place is a treasure trove.’ I said

“Indeed,” Said Nocturne as we left.

Once back at the entrance I was met with the same old man

“Oh, a good Stag’s horn, A golden root of Yggdrasil and a ten petal clover… what a great harvest for your first day,” said the old man.

“How did you know?” I said towards the man.

“Their smell, though covered it is still leaking…” said the man, “Are you willing to part with those items?” he asked

Then I took a step back… I think he wants to rob me.

The man held both his hands up and said

“Don’t worry lad, what is yours is yours, what I asked is, if you are willing to exchange those resources with School points I am ready to exchange them right now.”

‘The ten petal clover and the roots of Yggdrasil are for you, don’t exchange them no matter what he offers’

“How can I know that you will not just cheat me out of my loot, and give me a low price for their value?”

“For the stag’ horns, I can give you 500 points and 2000 points for the ten petal clover… as for the Root… how about 10 000 points?” he said

‘That much?!” I said

“You don’t know how valuable these things are, and believe me I am offering a reasonable price. You can check out the prices at the school Library it has many resources that can be found in it and their corresponding price. The school is ready to give any students that find rare ingredients a reasonable price for their efforts.” He said

“Hmm… I guess, I will have to decline for the Clover and the Root, as for the horns, you can have them.” I said

“Hmm, what a shame, I was really interested in the other two, but the horns are of use. I hope that you are not going to waste those precious ingredients.” He said

“Don’t worry, I think I will manage,” I said, “However, why is no one doing this, it looks easy to gain more points by foraging and scavenging the forest.” I said

“Because the forest hosts many dangerous creatures, rare are those that actually venture inside it. Only those of high class can have the confidence in challenging it, Death is no stranger to the ones that challenge the forest,and that is why I am here, I am here to prevent anyone not worthy of entry.”

“Well, why did you let me in?” I asked “Isn’t my grade a double negative. I shouldn’t be granted access normally

“Well, indeed you shouldn’t but, Basara. You are not unworthy.”

“Huh, how do you know my name?” I said

“Shen spoke a lot about you, and I guess I wanted to test you myself and you passed.” He said

“Who are you old man?” I said

“Just someone working for this school, nothing much,” he said with a laugh. “Now are you willing to give me that Horn?”

“Yes, but how do we exchange then?” I asked

“Your card, bring it forward,” he said.

And I did, as I handed him my card he placed his next to it and said.

“Exchange 500 points to Basara.”

And my card seemed to give a faint light, and a small number on the bottom side of the card was written.

500.

“Oh, thank you,” I said then handed him the horns.

“Hold up you thief!” said a womanly voice of someone that just left the forest.

This girl was… oh.

“In the name of my Father the King I Demand you to give back what you stole!” she said with an angry look on her face was showing and a finger pointed at me.

This was the first princess of the royal family Dior. Lady Lissandra… so the stag that I killed was her prey.

What is a princess even doing there? Weren’t the nobles all gathered at that banquet?

Shit… this is so awkward…