Bree was smiling at him teasingly.
She was clearly pleased to watch him realize that things aren't that easy.
It was especially hard for him.
Nobody was teaching him the essentials of living in the academy. He was dropped in the academy and hoped that he could survive on his own. Kai turned away, clearly annoyed at the predicament, "I'm having trouble because I was neglected. Nobody is teaching me anything about these stuffs."
"And nobody would, unfortunately," Bree added, and then paused. "Except for me."
She glanced at Kai's torso, seeing that he was struggling to turn properly.
"I saw your fight in the cafeteria earlier today," She nodded in acknowledgment. "Not bad. Though you're really stupid to try to do that, since they could cripple you. But at the very least, you held your own."
"Very funny," Kai clicked his tongue. "Go ahead and laugh if you want."
"I'm being serious. Why are you so grumpy?"
"Maybe because I lost?"
Bree giggled and patted his shoulder—assuring him, "Don't kid yourself. You knew you were going to lose, so why even bother?"
"First impression, remember?" Kai replied, recounting what she said to him.
She couldn't hide her smile at the answer.
Feeling her face turning red, she hurriedly took out a small vial. "I also brought you this," She pointed at where his nasty bruise was. "May I?
"I'll apply it myself," Kai sat up and took off his shirt. He clenched his jaw at the sharp pain of stretching his torso, which ended with Bree helping him in the end. He then took the vial and applied it to the purple bruise himself. "What is this?"
"A better medicine than your patches," Bree pointed at the one long wing above the academy crest on her chest. "I am a High Angel, so I got way better things than you would."
Once Kai applied it, he leaned back against the wall.
He was still disoriented by what had happened earlier.
"So, who's your Patron God?" Bree asked curiously, tilting her head a little. "Mine is Eileithyia, the Goddess of Childbirth and Labour, with a 7,9 rating. I'm telling this to you so that you would treat me right."
"Treat you right?" Kai scoffed. "For what?"
"Didn't your sister tell you?" Bree raised a brow. Her lips curled into a teasing smirk. "She said you should have a lot of kids. A perk from my Patron God is that I'm very fertile, and the children who came from my womb would always be above average Supernals."
Kai choked on his own saliva at what he heard.
He wasn't expecting her to say that out loud, especially to him.
It was only a joke. At least he thinks she was joking, but she said it like it was normal.
"How did you even hear that?" He asked.
"I'm at the front row," She shrugged. "I heard everything she said."
Everyone seemed to have heard what she said.
Considering what she said, Kai felt like she was trying to get close to him because of something her sister said. He didn't know what exactly, but there must be a reason for her to do this much for him.
He was curious, but that can be pushed for later.
Right now, he might align himself with Bree until he can get the hang of living here.
"I haven't gotten through the awakening ceremony, but I knew that my Patron God doesn't like to openly announce her name, but she's the Goddess of the Primordial Night," Kai said openly, thinking that Bree might know something about this. "You've heard about her?"
"Goddess of the Primordial Night?" Bree contemplated, then shook her head. "No. I don't think there's any record of her, and I'm quite versed about these things."
For the next hour or so, Kai and Bree got to know each other.
Both talked about their lives on the surface.
She is the youngest daughter of a politician, whom she was reluctant to name, and has been living normally. Her siblings are all older than her, and most of them naturally become Demons. Bree doesn't want to be close with them, so she chose to become an Angel.
Contrary to most, she has many Divine Locks.
Eight to be exact.
But Kai felt like she was lying, but he didn't press further.
"Did you see what's going on in the backyard?" Kai asked. Both of them were now more comfortable, with Bree sitting beside him. "I saw a couple of Angels taking things out of a magic circle and loading them into the basement."
"Probably for tomorrow's exam," Bree waved it off. "It's a flying exam. Not enough time for you to learn to use winged boots, so don't think much about it."
Kai nodded and looked around.
It felt like they had been talking for more than an hour.
"Don't you have curfew?" He asked.
"Nope. A High Angel is pretty free," Bree nudged him with her elbow. "You're kicking me out now? After I saved your life, you now told me to leave? Wow. Fine—I'll leave you in your sad basement alone."
She stood up and dusted her uniform.
As she was about to head to the staircase, she stopped and looked over her shoulder.
"Aren't you going to stop me?" She asked.
"Stop you? Stop you for what?" Kai tilted his head in confusion. "I'm sleepy already."
"Eugh… You really need to socialize more," Bree rolled her eyes. "So annoying. Fine."
She quickly went up the staircase and reached the door.
"Oh, wait!" Kai rushed to the staircase. "Do you know Matilda? She looked capable."
"You're joking with me, right?" Bree questioned sharply, lips slightly parted, almost like she was at a loss for words. But Kai was serious. "I really want to kick you right now, but I'll play nice since you're not in the best condition."
"What?" Kai raised his arms, confused. "You said I needed help."
"She's a troubled girl, but yes," Bree exhaled roughly through her nose. "She's capable. But not as capable as I. And if I remember correctly, she is of Athena."
"Athena? If she's of Athena, doesn't that mean she's more capable than you?"
"..." Bree scoffed in utter disbelief. Her eyelids twitched at the brazenness that was coming out of Kai's mouth. "I'm going to leave before I go insane. Don't forget to wake up early every day. We have mandatory exercise every morning."
Once she left, Kai resumed reading the book and then used Deep Slumber.
Frankly, he couldn't wait to use Deep Slumber again.
Unfortunately, tonight, he couldn't get to that void expanse.
He woke up to notifications hovering before him, "Oh? I can get exp like this?"
[You have gained 2 exp]
[Perfect Slash is now accessible to you]
Kai sat up on the mattress and looked down at his chest. He sensed a change inside him upon obtaining the Perfect Slash. It was a cold sensation, like his blood was turned into ice.
It mainly focused on his muscles.
A grunt escaped from his lips as the coldness felt hot from how cold it was.
Soon, his body throbbed once, and then the cold sensation disappeared.
Kai stood up and stretched, trying to sense the change.
He felt lighter, but that might be from the Deep Slumber.
"Status."
…
[Status]
Name: Kai #####
Rank: Grade 0 Awakened
Bloodline: First Son of the Primordial Night
Primordial Lock: 1
Legacy Skill: Deep Slumber
Legacy Imprint(s): Nigh-Phantom
Ending: Perfect Slash (Incomplete)
Path: -
Ending Fragment: -
Quest: -
…
[Physical Stats]
Strength: 4
Speed: 4
Dexterity: 5
Constitution: 4
Mana: 20
…
"No changes to my physical stats," Kai muttered after checking, and then his gaze noted the change to his status. "Both the Path and Ending Fragment sections returned to normal, but there's an additional Ending section.
"Incomplete?" His forehead creased. "Maybe I should meet Noxian again."
Rumble—!
Kai snapped his gaze up, frowning at the dust and dirt dropping from the ceiling.
Something was happening above.
Curious, he climbed the staircase and opened his door slightly to peek outside.
"What is going on?!"
"Fuck, what is that thing?! Shit!"
"A Sky Gate! A Sky Gate must've opened nearby! Call the professors!"
It was total chaos.
Kai could see students running around, trying to get out through the front door. Some stumbled and fell, but none cared. It was clear that they were running from something, but he didn't know from what.
Growl…
Just then, his heart skipped a beat.
He could hear a growl from right beside the door. It was a low rumble that rattled the bones. Every single instinct was telling him not to move, and he listened. Despite his urge to close the door, he remained completely still.
A massive, furred leg passed the gap—black, corded with muscle under coarse hair.
Then the other.
Each step was loudly thudding from its heavy weight.
The form slowed, filling the narrow view. A barrel chest, bare and rippling with raw power. Arms thick as timber, ending in broad, grasping hands. Finally, the head came to view, turning slightly into the light.
It's not a face, but the bleached, elaborate skull of a great bull with gleaming red eyes, and crowned by a rack of horns that could pierce stone. Kai covered his mouth, daring not to even breathe.
He waited patiently for it to pass.
His room was at the corner of the main hallway, parallel to the front door.
The closest room to him was across the intersection.
I need to leave the building. Let's try the back door.
Kai silently stepped out of the room when the monster went to the other side.
Of course, he didn't forget to use Nigh-Phantom, making sure that none would easily locate him. As he made a turn and saw the back door, a few students were there, and he cursed at the fact that the door was covered by a wall of black stone.
He tried checking the window, but it was also blocked.
Does it have stone affinity? That's not normal.
Mooo—!
A deep, grating bellow pierced the air, followed by the sound of thudding steps.
Kai saw a black figure appear and slammed onto the wall.
It was the monster, and with a swipe, it sent three students flying like a rag doll.
Almost instinctively, Kai opened the door nearest to him and stepped inside. He did not close the door, since that'll only make him cornered if the monster went to him. He peeked at the situation and realized something.
It's not killing the students. Only knocking them out.
Crash—!
Kai's eyes landed on a woman pressed against the black stone wall.
She holds the monster's horns with her hands and places a foot on its forehead to stop it from crushing her. Kai recognized her instantly; it was Matilda. Screw it. No way out, so the only way is to kill it.
Creeping slowly, Kai grabbed a knife from one of the unconscious students' hands.
He made his way close to the monster and waved his hand.
Matilda saw him, and hope returned to her eyes instantly.
"Divine Armament!" She bellowed.
She summoned a sword entirely made of light from thin air. Her Legacy Skill. It was hovering beside the monster's head. She then motioned Kai to strike with a nudge of her head, and he did.
Kai sprinted and made a leap.
Even now, the monster hadn't noticed him due to his Nigh-Phantom imprint.
He tossed the knife and grabbed the sword firmly. With a rough exhale, he swung it straight to the monster's neck.
Moooo—!!
Kai has no experience in killing monsters, but for some reason, the blade's swing was perfect and cut deep. Once the sword was all the way inside, he dropped down and pushed, slicing through flesh.
And with the sound of a loud thud, the monster's body dropped to the ground.