My Fate System

Chapter 176 – A New Boss

The academy was as Sergio imagined it: a place for nobles to prove that they were superior over other nobles and for the commoners to realize that strength means nothing without status.

Yuxi said that many commoners were bullied, but Sergio cannot help those he does not see. Their boss instructed that they stay away from other nobles no matter the cost.

"I cannot imagine bossman studying here," said the alchemist with awe as he stared at the tall building. "Does that mean that he is going to be back here soon?"

Yuxi grunted at the thought of it, but Sergio did not mind. Sometimes, he admitted that he was too delusional. However, even his broken mind can feel the pain caused by that incident.

'The young lady is waiting for us,' gestured Yuxi to him, and Sergio nodded. He met her only once before, and she seemed to be close to Yuxi, almost like siblings. Yuxi said that the boss had saved her life before when he asked her about it.

It was still a mystery why the young lady helped them and gave them a home. A mechanic was rare, but an alchemist was as common as chickens. So it was not hard to pick up someone like the bossman did with him.

"I wish to stay here," said Sergio as he stared at the youth walking together, chatting happily. "It looks like a nice place to make friends."

Sergio had never been to a school before, and it was always a mysterious place for him. He understood that people studied here, but he always studied alone, so the thought of studying with others was a mystery to him.

'The young lady said that we need to visit A3 clubroom,' gestured Yuxi and pointed at a giant building with whitewashed walls and windows which reflected the sky. 'Are you ready?'

"I am always ready," answered Sergio, even though he did not know what he was ready for, exactly. Yuxi guided him, and they got more than one look, mostly from girls.

Sergio was aware that his appearance was not that bad, almost good. However, he always thought that those who approached him for his appearance were the ones he should avoid. That was why when Nikolai said he needed his skills, Sergio was thrilled.

'This is it,' said Yuxi as they reached a sliding door. Sergio read the sign above them, and it said Alchemy Club. The mention of alchemy sent a jolt of happiness through his body.

"Welcome," said a tall man as they entered the room. "You must be the newest members I was told about," he offered Sergio his hand, which he shook.

The man frowned as he felt Sergio's rough hands, but he tried to hide his feelings. However, Sergio was equally amazed that someone who dabbled in alchemy could have such unblemished hands.

"I will be your examiner, as per the lady's request. I am the Alchemy Clubmaster, and if you pass my test, you can join the club."

"I don't want to join this club," frowned Sergio, but Yuxi nudged him.

'The lady wishes you enroll so that she can justify your admission. Furthermore, the academy will provide all resources for your experiments.'

'I do not need resources. I have enough money from the boss,' gestured Sergio. 'I will wait for his return.'

'Then, you will have to leave the academy,' gestured Yuxi, and the Cubmaster remained quiet throughout the exchange. 'This is the only way for you to stay here.'

Sergio did not say anything more, but he tried to remember why he wanted to be here. The first one was that his boss was here too, and he should return eventually. The second reason was Yuxi, whom he liked.

The alchemist imagined a life where he had to be alone in a house, working on his alchemy with no friends or people who cared about him. There would be more blood and more scars on his body.

"I understand," nodded Sergio. "Let me do this test."

Then, he passed. It was almost too easy. The recipe was there, and it was not that hard. Alchemy never betrayed him. It always works if you listen to science. 

Yuxi held his hand as she jumped up and down with excitement. Sergio saw the clubmaster's bewildered face, and he could not help but feel that something was amiss. However, the happiness of the girl before him overshadowed that doubt.

"Marvelous," said a crisp voice from behind them. Then, footsteps echoed in the empty room as the newcomer walked toward them.

Sergio turned, and Yuxi was on her knee in an instant. The person who arrived was none other than the one he met once when they returned to Rohan.

"I can see that Yuxi did not lie about your abilities," said the beautiful woman, who walked as if she ruled the world. "I am happy to have you to my party, Sergio."

"A pleasure to meet you again, Miss Valkyrie," bowed Sergio as Yuxi asked of him. "I am not sure that I understand what you mean by party, but I am happy nonetheless with your praise."

"My party is called the Drunken Stars," she smiled as she offered him her hand. "And we need an alchemist to meet our demands. Furthermore, your expertise is also needed on the field."

Sergio stared at the hand she offered him and then glanced at Yuxi. His friend looked at him with big, round eyes that betrayed her desire for him to join this party.

The image of his boss appeared in his mind. Sergio was somehow apprehensive from this woman, who appeared out of nowhere. It would be troublesome to leave the party when his boss returns.

Yuxi, however, seemed to be at this party too. Sergio could not abandon her like what happened to him. She was his friend too.

'Anything for friendship,' thought the alchemist as he kissed the hand offered to him.

***

Cecily opened her eyes. It was an unfamiliar ceiling. The memories of what happened took a few moments to settle and organize themselves. However, when they did, she jumped, agitated.

"The darkness!" she shouted to look around her, but she was in a regular room. A pair of a man and woman were sitting beside her bed, looking at her with amusement.

"…is gone," answered the young woman who wore silver armor. She had a smile on her face as she stood and bowed. "A pleasure to meet you, Cecily Rainmaker. We are members of the Vangir Guild."

"Vangir?" repeated Cecily with disbelief. "What is one of the major guilds doing here? Furthermore, where is here? Where is Tanari?"

"A lot of questions, as always," laughed the woman. "I met you once before, but you probably do not remember. We needed to borrow some funds from your family, and I visited you."

"I remember you," sighed Cecily as she grabbed her head. "I apologize for being so brazen. However, please understand that it was not easy to survive The Great Unseen."

The room was quiet, and Cecily realized that something was amiss. As she lifted her head to see, she found the two guildsmen exchanging glances.

"There is no need for apologizes," the man waved his hand. "We have already asked Captain Tanari over what happened. However, he says that he passed out in battle. You are the only person who knows what happened afterward."

"And?" frowned Cecily.

"We want to know how you crossed the Great Unseen," the woman spread her arms. "We are trying to cross it ourselves, but there is no way for us to know the method. We found masks and lanterns, but the scouts say that they are not enough."

"They are indeed not," sighed Cecily. "We were taken by surprise, too. The darkness has disabled the Wide Mana Array, and there is no way for us to learn from each other. However, I gathered everything in my notebook… AAAAA!"

"What's wrong?" jumped the two guildsmen as she started to scream. Cecily grabbed her face as tears pooled into her eyes.

"My precious notebook, no, I cannot lose it."

"A notebook?" frowned the man. "You are lucky to be alive, so why do you care about a notebook?"

"You imbecile," she shouted. "That notebook contains all of my ideas and plans. Whoever finds it will know the secrets of the Rainmaker Family!"

"You should not be concerned," laughed the woman. "There is no one who is going to find it. After all, you lost it in the darkness. There are no humans there."

"Oh," exclaimed Cecily. "Yes, no humans can survive the darkness. So we all need to wear masks unless we want to be poisoned."

'Then, what about that man?' pondered Cecily.

"Well, yeah," the woman was awkward because Cecily started a solo monologue. "We need your help and knowledge, miss. We know about your great abilities. There is a place we must reach, and we need to cross the darkness to get there."

"A place you need to be?" muttered Cecily. "Ah, you must mean those ruins you bought from the kingdom. Its name, as I remember, was Abani ruins."