A memory from last week flashed into his mind when Isolde, one of the few elves in his class, had talked to him.
Elion had casually cracked a joke afterwards, which she had found quite funny, so she laughed her breath out.
It just so happened that William had watched the whole interaction.
Elion had felt his gaze boring into his back, but he thought nothing of it at the time; but it seems William had not forgotten.
"That bastard!" Elion hissed.
It was no secret that William was a self-entitled bastard who thought all women belonged to him.
And since he was talented and even had better-than-average looks, they let him get away with it.
Seeing Elion and Isolde, one of the few girls who treated him like air, conversing so naturally must have pissed him off.
So, he decided to remove Elion from the picture.
"Just you wait..."
"Anything else I should know about the system?"
[.....]
[No.]
After that, he slowly dozed off to sleep, not even bothering to take a shower despite how sweaty and grimy he was.
Early the next morning, the academy's automated lights flickered awake just as Elion's own eyes did.
He groaned, rolling over to bury his face in his pillow.
He glanced at the clock - 7:00 AM. Class didn't start until 9:00, which meant he had plenty of time to deal with the nagging aches and figure out how to approach today.
Avoiding William wasn't going to be enough.
He needed to subtly shift the power dynamic, plant a seed of doubt in the guy's mind, or at least make him question whether messing with Elion was worth the risk.
Dragging himself out of bed, he headed to the small washroom attached to the dorm room.
The shower was lukewarm, but it was still blissfully better than sleeping with a death wish.
As he finished rinsing off, he thought about how he was going to start setting targets; the best place to start was with the girls in his class.
But for now, he needed to focus on class itself.
It was mandatory to attend all classes, and skipping any without a reason would be a surefire way to get expelled.
Once or twice was fine, but any more than that would lead to a disaster.
After drying off and getting dressed, he took a deep breath and headed out to the cafeteria.
The scent of freshly brewed coffee greeted him as he walked in.
Breakfast was already out, and students were already busy with their meals.
He grabbed a tray and found a table in the corner, far enough away from the loudmouths and popular mages.
The academy was no different from any other school; there were always cliques, and he hadn't exactly endeared himself to many people since joining.
His eyes scanned the room, searching for a familiar face among the crowd.
Some of his classmates were around, which meant, if anyone spotted him, they were sure to be surprised.
Not enough time had passed for them to be aware of his return.
And no one was close enough to be shaken by his supposed death, so it would be no surprise if they were going about their day as usual.
Once he was done eating, he decided to walk to class.
The walk was quiet. Elion's classroom was in one of the smaller theatres, with tiered seats rising around a central stage where lectures and demonstrations were often held.
When he stepped inside, the murmur of conversation immediately stopped.
Six students were already there, three guys and three girls.
Their laughter cut off mid-breath as their eyes landed on him.
Shock flickered across their faces, like they'd just seen a ghost.
"Hey, look, Elion's alive!" Rachel blurted, her voice rising in disbelief. Her curly auburn hair framed her face as she gawked at him.
"What the, how!? Didn't you fall into the lower floors?" Another guy added.
One of the guys shot up straighter, frowning. "You've got to be kidding me," he muttered, glaring at Elion as though expecting him to dissolve into mist.
Elion didn't respond.
He simply walked past them, his footsteps echoing softly.
He climbed up to the back row and sat down, dropping his bag beside him. His gaze slid briefly over the group, but he didn't offer a word.
They looked like they wanted to swarm him with questions, but hesitation held them back.
He was still Elion, the class outcast, the one nobody wanted to be seen getting too friendly with.
At least, most of them.
One girl let her curiosity get the better of her, Aria. She bounced up from her seat and made her way toward him.
Aria was short, lively, with a sharp bob cut that swung with every step.
She looked more like a doll than a student because of how short, petite, and cute she was. She leaned over slightly, a playful grin curving her lips.
"I see you made it out of the dungeon alive?" she said, her tone light but edged with genuine curiosity. "Care to share the deets? Everyone thought you were dead."
Elion opened his eyes to meet hers.
At this angle, he could see the faint dip of her neckline and a big portion of her upper breasts.
Whether intentional or not, it felt almost teasing.
If I didn't know better, he thought, I'd say she's trying to seduce me.
"Yeah," he said flatly. "I'm alive. There's no big story. I got lucky, found a teleportation circle, and got out."
She tilted her head. "Seriously? Just like that?"
"Just like that."
"Hmm." Her smile didn't fade. She leaned in just a bit closer, enough that he caught the sight of her pink bra, more of her creamy chest, and even a faint outline of her areola.
The scent of her perfume assaulted his nostrils, sweet, floral, and distracting.
"Really?"
"Yeah." Elion's thoughts, however, were elsewhere, even as they conversed.
Okay, fuck it, you will be my first target.
He decided there and then, one way or another, I'm going to make this vixen mine!
She was just way too provocative and relaxed around him. Maybe she was like this with everyone, but that didn't matter.