Chapter 8: Chapter 8. First Friend
One by one, students began filtering into their respective classrooms. Each department had its own designated hall, but since Necrotize was an All-Department student, those boundaries didn’t apply to him. He could attend any class he wanted, completely restriction-free.
His first instinct pulled him toward the Magic Department. He knew next to nothing about Modern Magic Theory, and that alone was reason enough to sit in. He wanted to see what it was about.
The Magic Department classroom was spacious and well-designed. The interior was clean and carefully arranged, the seats laid out in neat, orderly rows that curved slightly toward the front. Tall windows lined one wall, letting in the morning light. It was the kind of room that had clearly been built with intention.
When Necrotize arrived, the class had not yet formally started. Students were still settling in, talking among themselves in small groups, filling the room with the low, easy hum of conversation.
Then he stepped through the door.
The hum stopped.
Every head turned. Every conversation died. For a suspended moment, the entire classroom held its breath.
Almost instinctively, most of the students rose to their feet. Chairs scraped. Bodies straightened. Some of them weren’t even sure why they had stood up. Their legs had simply done it on their own.
One person did not stand.
Carlos sat exactly where he was, arms loosely folded, eyes forward.
Why should I stand up for him. I am not his devotee, nor do I fear gods. Respect should be earned, not forced upon.
Around him, the standing students cast uncertain glances at each other. A few whispers broke through the silence, hushed and unsteady.
"W-what should we do? Should we just tell the God of Destruction to sit casually with us?"
"I don’t know. I honestly don’t know. I think we should all just stay standing until he chooses a seat, and then we sit down."
"Does that even make sense right now?"
Nobody had a better answer.
Seeing all this, Necrotize let out a sigh. It was within his expectations that they would react something like this. But one thing was good — they weren’t prostrating this time.
He looked toward the students and spoke in a calm and collected manner.
"I have told you all to treat me like a normal student. You don’t have to react like this after seeing me. You can relax and sit down."
Even after he said this, it took a little time for them to sit down. But eventually all of them did.
His gaze drifted across the rows until it landed on Carlos, sitting front and center. The moment their eyes met, something sharp and immediate flared within Carlos, a wave of intensity that most people would have called hatred.
Human or God, it doesn’t matter. One day, I’ll leave everyone in the dust and claw my way to the top. I swear it.
Necrotize caught the thought clearly.
A slight smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth. He didn’t know what had built itself into that kind of feeling, but he found it interesting. Most people in this Academy looked at him with fear, or reverence, or a careful blankness that tried to be neither. Very few looked at him like that. With something that direct and that personal.
He found he liked it.
He moved on.
His eyes continued drifting across the room until they stopped on a girl sitting quietly in the middle rows. She hadn’t drawn any particular attention from the students around her. She sat still and separate, the way someone does when they’ve gotten used to being overlooked.
But Necrotize’s gaze didn’t pass over her.
It stopped.
She’s the first person in this entire world born with a constitution like that. How fascinating.
He crossed the floor without a word and sat down in the empty seat directly beside her.
Lyra froze.
The panic that hit her was immediate and total, though she forced every trace of it off her face before it could show. Her mind scrambled in several directions at once. Should she say something? Should she look at him? Should she stare straight ahead and pretend this wasn’t happening?
Before she could settle on anything, he spoke first.
"Hey." His voice was easy and unhurried. "I’m Necrotize. Mind if I ask your name?"
Lyra blinked. "U-um." She pulled herself together quickly. "Hello. My name is Lyra. It’s a pleasure to meet you."
I have absolutely no idea how to talk to a God of Destruction. Just follow his lead. Do what he said during the entrance exam. Don’t mess this up. Don’t mess this up.
Necrotize heard every word of it. He kept his amusement entirely to himself.
"Likewise, Lyra," he replied. "Actually, I wanted to ask you something. Is it true you can only use Lightning Magic? No other affinities at all?"
Lyra stiffened slightly.
That was a carefully guarded secret, known only within her family. But sitting beside this person, she understood immediately how naive it was to expect a living god not to know.
"Yes," she admitted, keeping her voice quiet. "I can only use Lightning Magic. Unlike everyone else, I have no access to any other element."
Just as I suspected, Necrotize thought, his expression turning serious. But in all my time in this world, I’ve never seen anyone naturally born with a constitution like this. It shouldn’t be possible here. Is someone behind this?
He drifted inward, turning the question over, the classroom fading to background noise around him.
"Sir Necrotize?"
Lyra’s quiet voice pulled him back.
He blinked. "Ah. It’s nothing. Just thinking about something." He paused, looking at her properly for a moment. "So, Miss Lyra. You’re actually the very first classmate I’ve spoken to since coming to this Academy."
He hesitated briefly before continuing.
"If you don’t mind. Would you like to be my friend?"
Lyra stared at him.
"Yes?"
