293 Annoying John
"Again? I'm honestly a bit weary of these conversations, Headmistress," I stated in a tired tone.
Three days had passed since the incident in the Capital of Zestel. In that time, Melfina had called me repeatedly for my account of what transpired with Manuel.
"What more do you want to know?" I sighed. "I defeated him, and he ran away. That's the whole story."
Melfina looked at me, exasperated. "Manuel Hylkren is a notorious criminal, and you're reducing it to beating him and him running away, Amael."
"That's the truth, though."
"Over ten years ago, he killed the previous Prophetess and caused destruction in our capital. Now, after years, he reappears. You must understand our curiosity about what happened between you two," Melfina said.
"Listen, Headmistress, this guy might be a dangerous criminal for you, but I've faced worse in Celesta. Brandon and a shitty God chasing after my fiancée. So, you see, Manuel Hylkren is the least of my concerns, unlike you and the other Heads," I emphasized.
"He killed my daughter-in-law and tore my family apart," Melfina muttered, lowering her gaze. "You encountered him. We just want to know where he is and if he'll return."
I sighed at her words. "He'll likely return, given his interest in Celeste and her prophetic power, which, by the way, you conveniently kept hidden from me. But if he does come back, be ready to deal with him yourselves, because I couldn't care less about him."
"I don't think you can avoid this so easily, Amael Olphean. You killed Brandon Delavoic, and now you've crossed paths with another member of their group. They're aware of your presence here in Sancta Vedelia," Melfina said with a wry smile.
"I'll handle them if they become a nuisance, that's all," I shrugged, rising from my seat.
"Good. Now, this is the bill for all the damages done to my city," Melfina tossed a paper at me.
I widened my eyes at the exorbitant amount. "Wait, what the hell is this?"
"You have the audacity to ask me that, Amael," Melfina shook her head. "You destroyed a substantial part of my city, and you're the reason for that deep crater. I managed to keep it hidden from the other Heads, but you won't be able to stay concealed much longer."
"Mom is going to kill me…" I mumbled with a grimace as I exited.
She was already upset when I returned with a broken arm. Well, it's money, so she probably won't mind that much. I hope so.
…
"What's on your mind?" John asked as we strolled through the academy corridors, heading to class. We didn't really speak much for three days for the future plans after all.
"How are things going with Amelia?"
"I swear I'll kill you, Edward," John shot me a menacing glare.
I chuckled a bit before transitioning to a more serious topic. "Looks like you've irked Alvara's gang. Lykhor's brewing something against you."
John snorted. "Do I need to be wary of those jokers?"
I raised an eyebrow. "Well, yeah? You still haven't fully unlocked your bloodline, right?"
John clicked his tongue. "Working on it. It'll happen soon. Hecate promised."
"Hecate promised? That's supposed to comfort me?" I asked, maintaining a neutral expression.
"Don't give me that look. It's just a deal I made with her," John replied.
"Fine. Don't expect me to bail you out if you get ambushed."
"Not like I've relied on you for anything else before," John scoffed.
"Oh, really? Maybe you should be grateful that I took down Brandon Delavoic?" I retorted.
"Jayden would've handled it without you," John shot back.
"In that case, I'll ring Amelia."
"What for?!" John snapped.
A predictable reaction.
Bringing up Amelia's name whenever I'm losing an argument tends to get under his skin.
"Well, kudos for standing your ground against Pierre without fully awakening," I praised him.
John scowled and shrugged. "Next time, I'll finish him. And why the hell didn't you eliminate that bastard Manuel when you had the chance?"
"Are you kidding me?" I retorted, irked. "He's an Apostle. I can't just take him out that easily and not in the middle of a city."
"I'm just irritated that we're not capitalizing more on our knowledge. Offing Pierre and Manuel earlier could've spared us a lot of headaches down the line," John expressed.
He wasn't entirely wrong, but...
"Killing them then would've made the plot even more unpredictable. We can only really meddle with the main characters within the academy. I'm not so sure about Ante-Eden and Behemoth. Nora was a significant threat due to her ability, which is why I wanted her gone," I explained.
"Then what? We sit back and do nothing?" John asked, clearly bewildered.
"No. During the Dolphis Horn Event, we're going to make our move. We'll prevent Behemoth from taking the Horn," I stated seriously.
10:27
"That event…" John murmured, a hint of apprehension in his voice.
"It won't be easy, but it's our chance to take down at least one Behemoth Executive," I added.
"Taking down an Executive... those guys are monsters. I don't even know if both of us, even with me awakened, can beat one…" John muttered.
"Cut the pessimism and get stronger quickly if you're so scared."
"Who said I'm scared?" John scowled at me.
"Amelia told me."
"Screw you!" John grabbed my shirt angrily.
"Stop wrinkling my shirt!" I grabbed his arm, annoyed.
"Are you two fighting again...?" We both turned to our left and saw Amelia and Elizabeth.
"Speaking of the she-wolf," I grinned at John.
John pushed me away and ignored the duo.
"Why did you call my name?" Amelia seemed to have overheard us.
"Oh, that? John wanted to know-hmmmf!" John quickly covered my mouth.
"John wanted... what?" Amelia asked curiously.
"Nothing," John replied. "Why the hell would I want something from you?"
"Y-You don't need to be so harsh, you stupid!" Amelia glared at John and walked past us.
"Look, she's upset now," I said, removing his hand.
"I don't care," John said before storming off, clearly irritated with me.
What a tsundere.
But I'm pretty sure he isn't completely indifferent to Amelia either.
"Amael," Elizabeth nodded at me.
"Elizabeth, have you rested enough?" I asked with a yawn.
"Yes, thank you. And you?" She returned the question.
"I'm fine as well," I showed her my right arm. "Thanks to you."
"I was just helping a classmate," Elizabeth said with a smile.
There was a brief silence before we both went our separate ways.
[<There's something between you two.>]
"Yeah, I feel like she's keeping something from me."
[<That's not what I meant!>]
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