The day was coming to an end and so Aron was making his way out of the academy. Along the way, he heard countless students gossiping and chatting over the day's events.
"I heard those lady Rose fanatics say she's looking for people knowledgeable on beasts, is that true?"
"Did you hear? Apparently even professors are running around, so it must be true, right?"
"Guys, what about that tremor earlier? The whole academy practically shook for a moment..."
"Probably the professors experimenting or we'd have been told, right?"
The more Aron walked the more he heard different views and rumors concerning what had happened that day. 'Everyone seems so giddy about these topics, a shame they have no idea just how well they've been fooled by that woman.' Aron thought to himself before remembering how his conversation with Lady Rose had ended.
...
[ "Your words hold ground, but quite frankly I'd prefer to kill you where you stand boy." Lady Rose had muttered ]
[ "How honest of you. Are you that confident in killing me and coming out unscathed?" Aron replied somewhat sarcastically ]
[ "No, I'm not. That's what I find most aggravating... however, I'm still willing to risk it." However that only served to cement Rose's take on the matter ]
.....
As Aron recalled that brief exchange of words he had with Lady Rose, he showed a smirk, not even trying to hide his sharp canines. 'What a troublesome woman. However, now that everything is in place... you'll learn I'm much more than a simple talent.'
As this thought ran across his mind, Aron's aura became even heavier and his usually ever tense muscles relaxed. He was no longer in a state of self suppression, be it the urges or his instincts, everything was surging violently within his body.
Those with senses keen enough subconsciously moved away from Aron's direction while those who weren't just looked at him cautiously.
On the surface, he more or less looked the same with only a few features standing out like his slightly sharper than normal canines and his eyes. He ignored the gazes and looked at his hands for a moment.
The feeling of being absolutely unrestrained was one he hadn't felt since he awoke from Metamorphosis. Truly something that felt indescribably wonderful.
He wasted no more time and left the scene, leaving many bewildered as to why they felt a sense of danger just being near him.
....
Aron arrived at his residence not long after that and found Evanora standing outside while numerous servants were moving items from his home and into a carriage.
Aron hadn't spent much time in Galos City but he'd purchased a few items he didn't want to leave behind.
When the servants saw him, they paused for a moment and respectively bowed. They treated each member of his faction with respect as ordered by there Masters Claudia and Xavier, Evanora on the other hand just watched them moving what they had to while casually snacking on a thick piece of meat.
"Once you're done here, I'd like you all to deliver a message to all members of the faction..." Aron approached the servants and passed on the message he wished to have delivered.
"This..." The servant seemed hesitant to comply after hearing what Aron told him. A streak of sweat could even be seen running down his forehead. "What? Too hard a task to carry out?" Aron asked plainly with a bit of visible irritation in his voice and almost instantly, the servant shook his head vigorously.
"No, no, no, it is but a simple task. I was simply thinking—" Before the servant could continue, Aron cut him off. "I didn't ask you to think, can you or can you not pass on the message?" The charm most servants thought Aron possessed was replaced by a certain viciousness.
Few dominant beasts had kind demeanors, rarely did they not act as they wished regardless of the other party's concerns or circumstances.
Although Aron had asked, his question basically left no room for refusal as the servant gulped and complied. "I'll deliver it with the utmost haste..." he said in a shaky voice but only received a blank look from Aron who then turned and prepared to leave.
"H-hold on, Sir, we were also told to deliver the weapon you commissioned, it's in the back of the carriage but..." He trailed off and gained a few nervous glances from the other servants as well.
"Could you just spit it out already? You're short on time." Aron's remark made the man shiver and grow tense as he gave his reply. "It's in the back of the carriage but it's far too heavy for any of us to lift even when we work together..." the servant looked rather embarrassed as he revealed this fact but Aron said nothing to him and went to the back of the carriage.
Said weapon came in a two meter long wooden case with intricate markings. Aron didn't waste time appreciating the decor and simply opened it before looking at the weapon inside.
It a was a one and half meter long double bladed battle axe of dull silver in color. Part of its handle was wrapped in smooth brown beast leather while the rest of it had many intricate carvings clearly for an aesthetic purpose. At its crown was a horned skull that separated the two blades on the left and right.
After glancing at it for a moment, Aron effortlessly lifted the battle axe out of its case and weighed it in his hands. 'Sure enough, it's absurdly heavy, I'm more impressed they managed to make a weapon out of a metal used to make heavy shields.'
As Aron was immersed in his thoughts, the servants looked at him strangely. 'It took the combined effort of ten augmenters to load that thing, why make a weapon from a metal that's highly resistant to mana in the first place?' the servant thought to himself while shaking his head.
"The time you're wasting ogling can be used better, don't you think?" Aron asked without even facing them and they immediately scrambled and returned to loading what remained. "Eh—right away, Sir!"
"Evanora doesn't like that weapon." As Aron was walking in, Evanora casually gave her opinion on Aron's new weapon.
"You don't like anything you can't eat." he replied without stopping and walked inside while she followed behind and shook her head. "Evanora thinks that isn't true. She likes many things..."
As Aron's figure disappeared into the home, the servants felt like a great weight had been lifted off their shoulders and they sighed in relief. They focused their gaze on the servant who Aron had gave a message to with curiosity, but he remained frozen in place for a little while longer. "L-lets hurry up!" he ordered suddenly and didn't say anything more.
Meanwhile behind a building near Aron's manor, two figures could be seen lurking in silence.
"He's planning something big, If we can find out what... Lady Belle will definitely praise us!" An excited Aela broke the silence and looked towards Aron's manor with confidence while Reginald wore a look of worry.
"Aela, let's go back. Something feels off about him today." Reginald expressed with concern in his voice, having observed Aron carefully for a while, he knew the Aron they saw just a while ago was slightly different from the one they'd be tailing the past couple of days.
The only similarity he could make was with the Aron from "that" night—the night he looked death in the eyes.
"Even if we get caught, we're not on his property so we aren't breaking any rules. If he acts up, he'll be in the wrong." Aela patted her chest and explained because from what she knew, Aron's known actions were all within the rules so she was sure he wouldn't break them now and make an enemy of Lady Belle.
"Rules, huh..." Reginald didn't add anymore words, he simply muttered this and looked on at Aron's manor as the eerie feeling within him grew stronger.
A short while later the carriage had finished being loaded and exited Aron's property with haste. When Aela asked if they should pursue the carriage or stay and observe, Reginald immediately picked the carriage. A feeling in his heart wanted him to be as far away from Aron as he could.
"Hmm, I suppose we could learn where he's taking all that stuff. It may be useful information to Lady Belle." Aela giggled to herself and patted Reginald for what she thought was some good thinking.
It was times like these when her lack of common sense really shined. So long as the topic involved Lady Belle, Aela would be the most focused. It was almost like her intelligence lowered whenever she did something for Lady Belle's sake.
It was this same mentality that left her with little to no friends aside from Reginald who put up and sometimes even encouraged her antics.
This content is taken from fr(e)ewebn(o)vel.𝓬𝓸𝓶