Chapter 9
The train arrived at the station, and the passengers began to get off.
"Let's head back to the academy now," Alex said.
"Alright," Rin replied as he glanced toward Eugene and the others. "Come on, the sun is about to set."
Fred, Reem, and Eugene got off, and as they talked, they headed toward the academy's restaurant. Eugene and Fred were chatting together.
"No, I prefer black cow milk more."
"I've never drunk that before…"
"Really? I thought Eliso Village produced it a lot."
"No, that's just rumors."
Rin spoke with a slight hint of nervousness in his voice. "How about we have cake with tea?" He looked at them, his nervousness increasing. "Or… we could just go back to our rooms…"
"Haha! Why are you this nervous?" Fred laughed lightly.
Reem said with a soft smile,
"You should be more confident in yourself."
Eugene raised his eyebrows with a smug grin.
"Yes, be confident like me! Hahaha."
"Hehe… you're right," Rin replied with an awkward smile.
"So, what are we eating?" Fred asked.
Eugene suddenly looked toward the small house beside the restaurant around 220 meters away. A simple wooden house, brown walls, and a triangular green roof. It was Moses' house.
Despite earning a lot of money, he still lived in this modest home.
"Hey, Eugene! Why are you standing there?" Fred shouted from the restaurant entrance.
Eugene turned his head. "I have something I need to do. Go ahead and eat. I'll catch up with you."
He then headed toward Moses' house.
Rin said,
"… Hey, sit oh, he already left."
"Should we wait for him?" Reem asked.
"No," Fred answered as he walked inside.
"Why not?" she asked again.
"He's probably going to meet Moses."
"Do you think he'll be long?"
"No. I know Moses well he talks a lot. Eugene will be stuck there for at least an hour or half an hour."
They all entered and went to order their food.
At Eugene:
Eugene arrived and knocked on the door three times.
Knock… knock… knock.
He waited about a minute before the door opened automatically.
"Oh, it opened on its own. Why am I even surprised? He is a high-level farmer after all."
He entered. The house looked small from the outside, but the inside was huge.
Eugene's eyes widened.
"Wow… this is insane."
A voice came from his side.
"Welcome, Eugene. What do you want?"
It was Moses, standing on a tall ladder searching through books on his massive shelf.
"How did you know I came?" Eugene walked toward him, holding his shoes after taking them off at the entrance.
"I sensed your feather energy," Moses replied.
"Is that also one of the traits of high level farmers?"
"Yes, it is."
Eugene then extended the shoe toward Moses.
Moses raised an eyebrow. "Why are you giving me your shoe?"
Eugene blinked.
"It's your shoe. You gave it to me this morning, remember?"
Moses stood silent for a few seconds.
"Oh, right… I remember now. I bought a new pair."
He pointed at his slightly glowing blue shoes.
"…Thanks for returning it. It's very valuable to me."
Eugene wasn't focusing on his words. After a few seconds of silence, he remembered the strange thing he saw earlier.
"I have a question…"
Moses climbed the ladder again to continue searching. "Go ahead, what is it?"
"Can some weapons or tools used by farmers… manipulate reality? I mean, make someone see things… that others can't?"
Moses paused, surprised, and looked at him.
"Why would you ask something like that?"
"No reason… just curiosity."
Eugene avoided eye contact.
Moses doubted that Eugene was "just curious," but he answered anyway.
"Yes, such items exist. But they're very rare and extremely hard to control."
"I see…" Eugene reached into his pocket and took out the tool that Professor Alex bought for him.
"Do you know how to activate this device?"
Moses looked at it as he descended the ladder with the book he wanted. He took the device and examined it carefully.
"Where did you get this?"
"Professor Alex bought it for me," Eugene replied.
"This is a very valuable tool especially for your situation. Make sure to thank him in your next class."
"Don't worry about that. I just want to know how it works."
Moses handed it back.
"It's simple. Release your feather energy and wait a bit. It'll activate automatically for about 30 minutes."
"Oh, okay. Thanks. I also have another request."
"Another request? And what is it?" Moses asked as he walked toward his desk large wooden table stacked with books and files. Organized yet chaotic. That was Eugene's impression.
"My request is… can I get the schedule for classes and the teachers' names?"
"Didn't they give you one on the first day?"
"Well… it burned by accident. Hehe."
Moses opened a drawer and searched for a moment before pulling out the lecture schedule.
"Here. And try not to burn this one."
Eugene smiled faintly. "Alright."
He took it, walked to the door, and before leaving said,
"Thanks, Moses."
"You're welcome," Moses replied.
Eugene stepped outside. Night had fallen. He looked up at the sky, admiring the countless stars. The air was cold, clouds heavy seemed like it might rain.
He unfolded the schedule. The stone transformed into a large sheet like a map.
"Why is this thing so huge…"
He studied it.
"I have a lecture tomorrow… about meetings and the emperor's condition?"
His eyebrow rose in confusion.
"Why do we have a class about something like that? I want to be a farmer, not a social… whatever.
Three hours?! Why do we need to study the social condition of this planet's history for that long?!"
He kept walking toward his apartment.
"Hey, you."
A faint voice came from behind him.
Eugene turned.
He saw a small creature pitiful and strange-looking. Bald with patches of hair, huge eyes, a very large nose, messy yellow teeth, red clothes patched with green fabric, only about 100 cm tall. No eyebrows. Enormous feet with green, dirty nails that looked almost poisonous.
Eugene felt disgust and fear.
"Yes? What do you want?" he asked uncomfortably.
"Tell me your name."
"And why do you want my name?"
"Why are you afraid? I just want to know your name."
"…Eugene."
"Eugene, huh? Hehehe… hahahahaha!"
The creature laughed in a disturbing, unnatural way.
A chill ran through Eugene's body.
He immediately ran toward his apartment. The air grew colder and colder, his heartbeat rising. He felt like his steps were getting slower.
By the heavens… what is happening?!
He opened his door, rushed inside, and slammed it shut behind him.
He caught his breath. After a while, he cracked the door open slightly to check.
He looked everywhere.
The creature was gone.
"Who was that…? And what did it want?"
Eugene set the schedule down, changed into his brown, soft pajamas.
Just before going to bed
Knock… knock.
He froze.
"Damn it… is it that thing again?"
He approached the door slowly, each step heavier with growing anxiety.
He reached the handle cold to the touch and pulled the door open quickly.
"Oh… Rin. You scared me."
"What are you doing? Didn't you say you'd come eat with us?"
Eugene yawned.
"Aaaah… later. I'm sleepy now."
"Man, since we entered the academy you haven't stayed alone most of the time. Are you doing something bad?"
Suspicion was clear in Rin's expression.
"Bad? What's wrong with you… You know what I've been through lately."
"That's no excuse. Actually, being around others will help your mood. I read that in a book."
"Oh my god, spare me your books. Anyway, I'll sit with you guys tomorrow. I'm really tired."
"You're so stubborn." Rin turned to leave. Before Eugene closed the door, Rin added:
"And don't forget to set your alarm so you won't be late."
"Don't worry."
Eugene returned to his room.
He turned off the lights.
"…Who turned these lights on? I'm sure I left them off."
It was strange, but his exhaustion overpowered his curiosity.
He threw himself onto the bed
the soft fur of the Ice Beast mattress pushed him upward slightly, as it absorbed impact and rebounded with extra force.
"I wish I could stay in bed forever…"
"Aaaaah…"
His eyes slowly closed until he fell asleep.
Click.
The light in the living room turned on.
The door to Eugene's room creaked open slightly, letting the light spill inside.
A long shadow appeared clearly someone was standing in the living room, right outside Eugene's room…
Was it the same person who watched him at the clinic earlier?
Or someone new?
End of Chapter 9