Gamodren showed the kids the various vacation spots in the large town along with introducing them to the main market. Basic weapons and equipment could be bought, but anything special must be obtained at the school or during a field trip.

Bella was telling Kyrion about the mythical pastime called thanksgiving. While based on a lie, people celebrated it by eating something known as a turducken. A bond of gluttony was formed between the two. The thing is, gluttons don’t get along in the same restaurant, so they agreed not to eat in the same buffet at the exact same time.

Kyrion and his group eventually made it back to campus. Cecil and Bella split off to go do whatever. The group stayed quiet when it came to Kyrion’s natural hair color, as it was obvious that they were after him or someone who looked like him.

The three, led by Gamodren, were brought to a relatively cheap-looking dormitory that was currently falling apart. The building was split into two wings separated by a ward. Males on the left, females on the right.

Somehow Kyrion felt these beds would be more uncomfortable than those at the Beansprout Academy.

“I hate it here already.” Kyrion mumbled.

“It’s only temporary and this is the only dormitory that doesn’t charge A.P to rent. This way we can get the building done and move in as soon as possible.” Gamodren clasped his hands.

“So you’ll be staying here Gamodren?” Kyrion asked.

“Gods no. I have a suite in another dormitory. I’m planning on upgrading when the building is done however.” Gamodren replied with a smile.

The receptionist for the dorm was half asleep. Her old eyes staring off into the middle distance and wrinkled face made her look like a husk. White balding hair on her head and a flurry of missing teeth were noticed when she gave a cheerful yet disturbing smile as she saw the new tenets.

“Excuse me. We require the finest rooms you have, Ms….” Kyrion asked.

“Mars. You may call me Ms.Mars.” The old woman said.

“Ok. Ms. Mars. May we please have the finest rooms you have available?” Kyrion put on his adorable child face. Which looked bizarre when combined with his height, baldness, and lack of an eye.

Gamodren shook his head with a smirk.

“Well arn’t you a charmer. Saddly our best room on the boys side already has someone in it. It’s meant to hold two though. So I’m sure you could share it.”

“Another roommate… Gonna have to keep an eye on them.” Kyrion rested his face on his right hand.

The old lady seemed to take that as a joke and laughed before realizing no one else was laughing.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Luckily for you two the girls side doesn’t have many occupants. Mostly because of the rat and roach infestations.”

Tiffany squirmed a bit at that revelation.

Ceres looked fine, if not happy. “So meals are included?”

“My aren’t you an optimist.” The old lady looked to Gamodren.

“I’m just dropping them off.” Gamodren said before he backed out of the dormitory.

“Fine fine.” The old lady had the kids sign a few things before handing them room keys.

Kyrion entered his room on the third floor of the building. Curiouslly he examined the two small bedbug-ridden beds and sighed. “This is not going to work.”

Kyrion’s bed had to go, and so it did. He put it into his space and walked to a discrete area where he dumped the evil thing. He then returned to the room and cleaned before placing some choice plants near the window. Rodents would now be turned away from the room.

Summoning a ready-made king-sized bed, Kyrion effectively took up 50 % of the room.

“Hmmmmm… That other bed is an eye sore.” So Kyrion disposed of that bed as well. Moving the stuff that didn’t belong to him into the closet.

Kyrion was not a great roommate. One could argue that he was a horrible roommate. That same person may also refer to him as an awful person. Sadly Kyrion was running on delirium, the day proving to be highly exhausting, and he had a lot to unpack. His brain immediately went into a deep sleep.

A boy in grey clothes entered the room hours later. A perplexed look on his face as he looked at the room that had been heavily redecorated. Then at the fact that there was only one bed in the room. His beds were gone, and his stuff was missing. And some brute snored loudly enough to shake the room on a king-sized bed.

The boy sighed as he rubbed a hand through his silver hair. “This has got to be some sort of sick joke. Two can play at this game.”

The boy rolled the sleeping Kyrion onto his stomach to get him out of the middle.

Kyrion rolled again in his sleep. Off the bed and into the floor, where a loud crash echoed.

“Sorry are you ok!” The boy checked on his roommate, only for the loud snoring to continue.

The boy sighed as he sat on the bed. Moments later, he fell back on the soft bed. Sleep quickly caught up with him, and he gave into the mattress.

The following morning Kyrion woke up with someone else in his bed. While he was on the floor.

Kyrion stood up and looked at the silver-haired boy sleeping in his bed. Kyrion was suspicious. Walking around the bed with his arms crossed, Kyrion didn’t look happy. Though on closer realization, he did remove his roommate’s bed. Why did he throw out the other bed?

The silver-haired boy started to stir, so Kyrion waited patiently. He needed a guide, and this one was ripe for the position.

“What are you doing in my room?” Silver asked groggily.

“Watching you sleep.” Kyrion said, bored.

“But why?”

“I need someone to give me a tour. I don’t even know where breakfast is.” Kyrion said.

“So you want me to help you. What do I get out of it.” The silver-haired boy looked up at his roommate.

“A friend!” Kyrion said with a sunny smile on his face.

“My first class is afternoon. Goodnight.” The boy covered his face with the nice blanket.

“I’ll let you keep the bed when I move out.” Kyrion stated.

“You got rid of the bed in the first place. Its your responsibility to provide a replacement.”

“Tch.” Kyrion clicked his tongue.

“So you give up?” The boy asked from under the cover.

“I’ll be your servant for a day.” Kyrion bowed.

“Hmmm… What can you do?” He asked, an eyebrow raised.

“Anything within my power so long as you ask.”

“Three favors then. You may try to run out on the deal. I don’t know you.”

“So you do one and I do three?” Kyrion asked.

“No. I take you to the cafeteria and then your first class. I only get one extra, though that doesn’t matter much as I’ll give you a tour of the campus after all of that.”

“Mmmmhmmmm.” Kyrion squinted his eye.

“Is that a no?” The boy started to go back asleep.

“I accept those terms.” Kyrion sighed.

“What? Ok. I Maximus will be your guide today.” Max got off the bed.

Kyrion stood there staring at his roommate. Something about them being similar but different.

“Can you go? I need to get changed and your staring is starting to weird me out.” Max said.

Kyrion decided to leave it alone and wait in front of the dorm. Quite a few people had gone, yet he hadn’t seen Tiffany or Ceres leave the dorm. Something wasn’t right. So he decided to open up his mana senses to try and detect them.

Suffice it to say, the dorms were warded against these abilities. And the backlash had the bald boy’s nose bleeding.

“Got it, got it. No peeking.” Kyrion healed the wound and then sat down.

Minutes later, Maximus arrived in a grey uniform. His silver hair was combed back, a white-glove over his right hand.

“You took forever… I’m starving here.”

“Follow me then Starving.” Max led the way to one of the dining halls.

A self-serve spread with tons of breakfast options for a growing spirit master.

“I have memorized this route.” Kyrion said.

“Go get us a table. I’ll get a plate real quick.”

“Is that a favor?” Kyrion asked.

“Does it have to be? Would you rather get food and have nowhere to sit?” Max asked.

“Fine.” Kyrion found a small empty table and took a seat. Before he started, people watching. Oddly enough, Kyrion had a feeling that he was being watched from somewhere. Though whenever he’d look, the pressure was gone. Had his previous attempted kidnapper been half as competent, Kyrion would probably be six feet under right now. Suffice it to say, Kyrion was on edge.

Max returned with a frugal plate of food in hand. A rude expression on his face as he sat down. His glove, not quite on his right hand.

“Your not going to gain any weight if you only eat that much.” Kyrion said.

“Why would I want to gain weight?” Max asked.

Kyrion squinted at his roommate before he stood and shrugged. “Just thought you’d want to grow big and strong. Did you do something to your hair or something?”

“It’s probably just the wind.” Max said.

Kyrion raised a nonexistent eyebrow.

“You sure have a lot of expressions for someone without eyebrows.”

“Sure…” Kyrion left to get a few plates of food. Squiring some extra away in his space for later. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but something was off.

Returning to his table, two unfamiliar goons were surrounding Max. Kyrion dubbed them Dee, and Dumb, as he didn’t bother learning their names.

The thin blond boy with piercings slammed a hand on the table. “Me and my brother here are very tired. Why don’t you stand up and give your betters this table along with the food on it.”

“Very hungry. If you don’t move now, we may need to get physical.” The pudgy orange-haired boy said.

Max seemed more irritated than scared. When Dee (The blond), grabbed Max by his shirt and threw him to the ground before taking his seat.

“Go get me another plate. This is hardly anything!”

The ruckus drew the attention of some of the younger kids, who looked at the older pair in fear. The older kids were apathetic at this point.

Kyrion was also apathetic when he looked at the scene. He’d help his roommate, but he wouldn’t fight their battles. Well, not for free anyway. Kyrion crossed his arms and approached Max.

Holding an overflowing plate of food in one hand, he placed his right on his roommate’s shoulder. Passing a wave of healing mana throughout their body, healing the minor scrapes from that throw. They were pretty sturdy.

“Oi! You’re the drunk from yesterday! Come here for more robing? No one’s going to save you today.” Dumb said as he raised a fist threateningly.

“What are you talking about?” Kyrion asked the shorter duo, his height of 5” 8 proving to be intimidating to the preteens.

“Adults shouldn’t be here. This is a battle between youths. You can’t be a student and your too weak to be a teacher.” Dee said.

“What?” Kyrion was now lost.

“Give me that plate you got there, and we won’t embarrass you, old man.” Dumb demanded, capitalizing on said confusion.

“So this is what it feels like being called old. I’ll have to apologize to a few people.” Kyrion sat his plate on the ground as he whispered to Max.

“Do you want me to get rid of these idiots?” Kyrion asked.

“They’re older. More experienced. We’d get thrashed trying to fight them.” Max said, shrinking into a shell.

“I can try on my own if I have too. If you want me to that is. We could always give up and find another table.” Kyrion helped his roommate up. Noticing calluses on the hand hidden by the glove. He also saw that it didn’t quite fit the glove it was in.

“Fine. If you can make them leave us alone then go ahead and show off.” Max said with an odd glint in his red eyes.

“Hmmmm.” Kyrion sat his plate on the table.

“You can go now.” Dee said as he moved some excess food to the other plate on the table.

Kyrion did not move. He stood still in the lunchroom as though he was a fixture. The gazes of the onlookers passed on as though he had always been there. A trick he’d been using ever since he was a child to escape from classes, chores, and other minutia had become something he’d learned to invoke purposely. Something he improved on further with some help from Everest after convincing him that he’d mostly use it to avoid being a target. Since he was a healer and healers are targets when they can be seen.

The two brutes were a minute into eating their food. They felt their heads slammed into the table with enough force to break through the wood. Cuts and scrapes were made against their skin as splinters attacked them. They soon felt a cool sensation as they were healed without the debris being moved. Which meant the wounds would have to be reopened later to avoid infection. The worst part for the duo was that their heads were now fused to the table for the time being, and they would need a teacher to come and remove them from their predicament.

The rest of the cafeteria heard a booming sound followed by some cracks and, with delayed reactions, noticed that Dee and Dumb were restrained by a table. Kyrion and Max were nowhere near the crime scene at this point. As the former immediately carried that latter away. Along with a good portion of food from the self-serve area.

They were a good distance away when Kyrion put his roommate down. “Your pretty heavy for your size. Is most of that muscle?” Kyrion asked innocently.

A fist connected with Kyrion’s jaw as Max fell to the ground and dusted himself off.

“Owww. What was that for?” Kyrion asked, a sense of nostalgia washing over him.

“You have a very punchable face.” Max said.

“Well with that two favors are done. Since I didn’t retaliate.”

“My aren’t you cocky.” Max’s muttered though something felt off about it.

“Hmmm… Well can you take me to class. I’m looking for an Exac.” Kyrion said stoically.

“So you arn’t eating breakfast?”

Kyrion pulled out a fine porcelain plate that could have probably been sold for quite a fortune. Had he known the value. Sadly he didn’t, and since a plate is a plate, he summoned food on top of the fancy dish.

Max seemed to wince as food poured onto the plate. Sadly the food had gotten cold in the space. The ability not one that keeps items in a stasis.

After eating the food, Kyrion pilled on a second helping and a third before stopping. “Ah, right they took your food too. Want a plate?”

Max shook his head and took a step back. “You eat like a giant.”

“I am a giant. Kind of.” Kyrion said matter of factly.

“What do you mean?”

“Is that one of your requests?”

“Friends don’t count favors. You aren’t good at this.” Max smirked as though he found

“You’re the one who said they didn’t want to be friends.” Kyrion closed his eye and took a deep breath.

Max froze for a moment before scratching his head. “Lets get you to class before your late follow me.”

After a few minutes of walking, the duo made it to the room where Kyrion was supposed to meet for instruction. Unfortunately, nobody was there. Luckily a note was pinned on the door.

“Master Exac will be holding a practical lecture in training hall 4C.” Kyrion read it aloud.

“Down the hall and turn left. It’s the training room with a C on it.” Max explained.

Kyrion turned around to say thanks, only for Max to already have gone.

“Must not like doctors.” Kyrion shrugged.

As Kyrion made his way forward as he did so the sound of screaming could be heard, and he slowed his pace.

“Hokey! Pokey!” That was followed by some more screaming.

Kyrion looked into the viewing window that showed training hall 4C.

An old man around three and a half feet in height, bald save for a single white hair that shot straight up another foot in height before bending side to side. He was dressed in a white coat and slippers. On the ground were various students in various states of unconsciousness.

The old man’s head turned away from him before rotating his a full two hundred and seventy degrees and locking eyes with the boy.

“Who?” The old man asked before running to the window at full speed.

Kyrion flinched as the old man jumped into the window at full speed. The sound of shattered glass did not echo across the hall. The old man did not reach his target as he slowly slid down the glass-like window.

“Ah. He’s a quack.” Kyrion sighed.