The brown haired youth spoke first, breaking the silence. They passed through the busy street, however his voice was not muffled out by the sound of passersby. 

"Yes?" Finn raised his head to face him. 

"...how is he? Miss Shia has been rambling on and on about that man."

Surprised at the quick enquiry, Finn opened his mouth to reply, "Quite blunt."

The comment was aimed at Templeton. 

"What can I say, I am a bit straightforward."

He replied to it, but did not show any shame. 

"If I had to say something about him..."

He paused, thinking back to the moments he had with Jack, before replying. 

"He's a simple man. That's what I felt. No lies, no empty words, just a simple straightforward man... Hm, just like you, but he has, uh...a kind disposition, I think."

"Are you calling me rude?" 

He asked, but there was a hint of sarcasm. 

"Maybe. What do you think, Mister?" 

"Ha. Cheeky. But I heard some bad things about the man you just praised. Not just bad. Did you know, he's hated by the higher nobles."

"Uhh...no."

He stuttered slightly, because he knew. Not much, but he knew some of it, and the reason? 

"Plagiarism and red hair don't sit well together. I suppose that's one of the reason he is hated by most."

Templeton said softly. 

"Plagiarism?" 

Finn asked, feigning ignorance. 

His expression went unnoticed by Templeton who was busy looking around for the right store, but he had heard his words and decided to reply. 

"His elder brother 'claims,' to have made a thesis on an important topic, but it was later stolen by Jonathan. But even without definitive proof, the case was easily dumped on his head, hence he came to be known as a thief. And do I even need to speak of red hair?"

Finn opened his mouth to say, "Ha. I see."

"Stop." 

He felt an arm on his shoulder. It was Templeton's, stopping him before a small tailor shop. 

"We're here." 

_________________________

"Excited? Or scared?" Or both?" 

Shia connected a fist with Jack's shoulder. 

"It's just, it's been a long time since I've seen her."

Shia had filled him on the person he was meeting. And as expected, his reaction was...

She noticed his expression distort, but he tried his best to keep his discomfort hidden. 

"Doesn't matter. You'll feel better when you see them." 

Grabbing his hand, she pushed open the door, barging in. 

"Ahh. Late...!"

The sturdy voice boomed across the room, but calmed itself. 

—Qease

The chair cracked as the man stood up. 

"Welcome boy!" 

The owner of the voice got closer, pushing past Shia, going for the person behind her. 

The man was tall, taller than Jack by a head. 

He looked down at him with an unknown expression before throwing his hands around him and pulling the man into his embrace. 

"Ho. How are you?" 

His excitement was evident in his voice, the excitement that came as a result of long wait. 

Jack was taken aback by the sudden pull, but decides to give in, loosening up. 

"I'm fine, Marqu—"

"Marquis?!!"

The man exploded. It sounded similar to rocks tumbling down. 

"Uncle! Uncle!" 

He stammered looking up at the man, "Sorry uncle, it's just that..."

"Don't be shy, you're still the same I see." 

He laughed out before pulling back from Jack. 

Jack noticed his face. Few wrinkles plagued the experienced face, but coupled with his expression and the sharp moustache, the man was incredibly handsome. 

"People don't change like that, uncle Alex. And uh, how is she?" 

Jack took a step back, asking. 

The Marquis's eyes lit up with a mischievous glint. 

"Who? My wife or my 'daughter'?"

"Uncle!!"

"Why don't you ask her yourself?"

He moved out of the way, revealing the scarlet beauty behind him. Her tender expression sent waves of memories rippling across him. 

"Hailee..."

_________________________

"Magic Bullet!" 

—Boom!

"Amazing, Milady. It seems you have a knack for Arcanism."

"Yes. Maybe I should have started earlier." 

Daniela said. 

She purposefully said in a tone that implied she had once been reluctant to learn Arcanism. 

"How about moving it a step further?" 

She asked Wyge, her voice laced with slight enthusiasm. 

Wyge paused before replying. She was already stunned at the astounding rate at which the Princess was learning. 

She had already constructed a build, and successful performed a basic spell, 'Magic Bullet.'

While this might seem simple, that was not the case. 

Mages took days and weeks to perform what Daniela had just done in mere hours. 

"How about one more lesson?" 

Wyge replied after having made up her mind. 

"Alright."

"Take a break. It's necessary before moving on to the next step."

"I will." 

...

'Everything's been going great. All that's left for me is to prepare for the academy.'

Letting out a deep breath, she clasped her hands together in unison. 

The small sense of unease gnawed her mind during times. Initially she tried to push it off, but the feeling had been intensifying, growing more unbearable by the day. 

'I feel like I'm missing parts of my memories. Not just Daniela's, but mine too... I can't remember...but the word...'

She couldn't recall the word, but it seemed to hold deep meaning. 

No...it wasn't deep meaning of anything of sorts. It seemed to be resentment, fear, and...love? 

'No! What the hell is this? This sensation of burning in my chest.' 

She placed a hand over her bossom, feeling her heart thump rythmatically. 

"Uhh...this is the worst." 

'But why am I doing this?'

The question finally came to her mind. 

Yes. Why was she doing this? What was her motive? What did she stand to gain from this? Is this the path I truly want to see?

Just like the unexplained sensations from earlier, she had felt an unknown force compelling her to perform these tasks. 

But was it as simple as that?

"Let's continue, Milady."

_________________________

[Hailee, why don't you show the good man around the academy?]

[Huh! Miss Shia, Me?]

[Yes, you! Now leave. I have something important to discuss with the Marquis.]

[Huh?]

...

The two trudged through the beautifully maintained garden of Nexarion. 

"...How are you, Johnathan?" 

She finally gathered enough confidence before asking. 

"Fi-fine! Yes. I'm fine." 

He said, but the tense reply made the air more awkward than it already was. 

It wasn't exactly his fault, but he couldn't help but feel out of place. 

His lips parted a bit before pushing out the words. 

"So, how have you been?"

"Barely hanging on, I suppose." 

At her words, his eyes softened up. 

"I wanted to say something. Is it alri—"

Before he could complete it, Hailee cut him off. 

"Why are you speaking like that? Weren't we closer than that? Are you angry at me, or is it something else? Please answer me honestly."

'?!'

Jack paused, stopping in his tracks. The words seemed to have more of an effect than he had thought. 

"... I..."

The words were stuck on his throat. He tried to force it out, but they just wouldn't form. 

—Taktaktaktak

His fingers tapped against his own fingernails, growing anxious. 

The few seconds of pause felt eternal. 

Was he admitting to Hailee?

Was he truly angry at her, or was he afraid of her reaction at his sudden appearance? 

—Taktaktaktak!

His fingers continued to hammer itself against his nail. 

This did not go unnoticed by Hailee. She had sensed the discomfort, but she wanted to know, truly wanted to know what he felt. 

"...it was not exactly my intention to run away back then. I was still a child, I did not get the chance to feel the world around me, I had no time to choose, what I chose to do was a result of my impulsive thinking. I thought I made the right choice, until I realised I had left everything behind."

"But..." 

At his words, Hailee opened her mouth to consol him, her eyes softening. 

"—I understand. You needn't say anything else, brother."

"Ha..."

At her words Jack felt light. 

The mountain of hurt wouldn't disappear at once, but that was one small rock off his head of worries. 

"Hailee. Back already?" 

One of the passerby called out to her. 

"Hey—!"

She stopped, leaving her words. 

Because the person who had just greeted her was—

"What's wrong? You look like you saw a ghost...?"

He stopped, his eyes followed her changing gaze which fell on the man. 

"Jonathan?"

"Elias?"

_________________________

"Why did you call me here?" 

The silver haired man sat on the soft cushion, his posture confident and proud. 

"It seems the silver fox is as rude as ever. Why did you 'summon' this idiot?" 

"Careful now, Marquis. I do not take such words lightly."

The silver haired man spoke. It was non other than General Thomas. 

"Oooohhh...I'm scared."

The Marquis mocked him. 

"Stop it you two. I dont want my office torn apart like last time." 

Shia muttered, clearly displeased at their behaviour. She was not one to be concerned about such matters, since she herself was laid back, but things could get pretty heated between the two at times. 

"Whatever." 

Thomas turned his head away from the Marquis, scanning through the portraits in the room. 

"Yes... Shia, what is it?" 

"I've been wanting to tell you two something. I think 'that' group is back."

At her words the air around the room tightened. 

"Are you sure?" 

The Marquis was the first to ask, leaning forward. 

"The recent event—of course there is no definitive proof. But it's just like them. Don't you think so too, Thomas?"

While pretending to look around, he spoke. 

"I hope it's not them either."

That was all he said, but his words hung around. Despite his uninterested act, he was totally concerned about it, just like Shia and Marquis Alexander, but he did not show it. 

"Why are you here by the way, Alex? I'm sure this is not what you came here for."

Thomas asked Alexander directly this time, pulling his eyes off the wall and facing the Marquis. 

"Ha...it's my daughter. She wanted to see her childhood friend. The new professor you two recruited."

Thomas's eyes slightly widened, "he's here?"

"Yep."

Shia replied to him. 

"Oh ho! I never thought the General would be interested in someone besides women who caught his fancy." 

Alexander burst out laughing, one hand in his stomach clutching it tightly. 

"You!!"

_________________________