There were no classes for me today.
And I haven't slept since last night.
It's not that I couldn't. I didn't want to.
I've been constantly meditating. In just a few hours, I believe I've made some decent progress.
I couldn't really measure my performance because even this method…of ripping the core out was new to me.
But I was able to sense most of my aura now. But utilising it to its maximum capacity was still difficult.
From what I could understand, the aura in my body was just like ink. If the ink were to move on its own, I wouldn't be able to paint properly. But now my body holds that ink still.
All I need is a mind strong enough to draw with that ink. And in a way, this was better for my 'Ace' power, Perception.
*Knock* *Knock*
Pulling me out of my thoughts was the knock on the door.
Standing up from my sofa on which I was meditating, I moved towards the doors.
Yes, sofa. I don't get the point of meditating on the floor with legs crossed. I'd rather close my eyes and be comfortable while focusing my mind on meditation, not keeping my body straight.
I injected the little aura I could in my ring. And my appearance changed back to Marcus Rile.
Opening the door, I was greeted by a young girl with chestnut hair tied in a ponytail, in a black uniform.
Ailsa Krell. A knight cadet. She was holding a letter envelope.
'Well, aren't I receiving a lot of messages?' I scoffed, thinking about it.
"Greetings, Professor Ri-." She was about to finish her greeting and almost bowed, holding her skirt in elegance. But I cut her words off.
"Yeah, morning," I waved my hand and turned back, heading towards my office bench.
"Come in, take a seat…"
"Ah-…Alright," She mumbled and followed.
"I heard Krells like the northern tea," I said.
But…wait…
I don't know where the tea is.
"Adults do…it has a strong aroma," She replied.
"Strong tea's not good for kids," I shook my head in agreement.
"So, what brings Miss Krell here?" I asked, taking a seat in front of her.
"You must know what happened to my elder brother, right, Professor?"
'I do. I helped our saintess come out of that situation clean, after all.' I thought.
"Following that, I-I'm the heir of Krells now," She said, and stretched both her hands out, holding the letter with the seal of wolves on it.
"My father, Duke of Krells, invites Professor Marcus Rile for an official meeting, and he entrusted this invitation to me," she said.
"He understands your position, and he respects you as the head of the Rile family. And considering all of our political standings, he chooses to keep this invitation discreet," She continued, still holding the letter, but her eyes were constantly looking down at her legs.
Ailsa was not a child who existed in the game I remember. But it's not just existing; it looks like she's trying hard to shine.
She became the council president, and despite being sloppy, she's delivering an official invitation to Marcus Rile, who's not just a professor, but a Count that has a major trade network of the Lunar Kingdom under his control.
I smiled at her, "An official invitation?" taking the envelope from her.
"Can't refuse a Duke's call now, can I?" I spoke, exaggerating my words.
"Yes," she nodded, staring at me, opening the seal of the letter.
---
'To Professor Marcus Rile'
'My daughter speaks of you with respect she rarely grants.'
'I invite you to the keep of Black-Ice as my guest. There are matters regarding the future of my house, and the past of yours, that cannot be discussed through couriers.'
'We have a common burden, Professor. I believe it's time we bury it.'
'With expectations,'
'Duke Mordrak Krell. Lord of the northern wolves.'
---
Alright…
'Well, this was pretty straightforward, I thought he'd at least mask his words…'
"When do we leave?" I asked.
Ailsa straightened her back. "Uhm, my carriage is ready at the backdoors of the academy, so we can leave whenever you want…"
'She was already expecting me to accept? Well, that's a given, sometimes even I forget that I'm not a prince right now…'
"Go ahead…I'll be there in moments," I said, and she nodded, stood up, and left the room, gently closing the door behind.
'Matters regarding the future of his house?' I chuckled. 'Fools…'
'All brawls no brains. That's what they're like right now…their desperation for vengeance is so strong that instead of directly consulting the queen by requesting an audience, they're brewing a rebellion, because they think that she didn't bat an eye to this incident…'
'And that's because she's not even present in this Kingdom…she's in seclusion, and these dumwits are being played so well that they're ready to disrupt the balance of the Kingdom by starting a civil war…'
I sighed. 'I know Mordrak has lost it because his son died, and Krells are a house of warriors; they don't want a woman as their leader, so Mordrak isn't even thinking about Ailsa's future.'
'This won't do…children shouldn't suffer for the consequences of adults,' I thought.
The clothes I decided to wear were simple. Bisque shade Coat, a blanched almond coloured vest and a white shirt, with Bisque shaded pants.
Yes, they were light in colour. Opposite to Ymir's black clothing.
If I were being honest…Even the face of Marcus was handsome. That slightly tanned skin, dark eyes and hair, needled golden earrings. But Ymir…he looked like someone who's stepped into the mortal realm just to show off his looks.
If Marcus was handsome, Ymir was Elegant, his face was just a lady killer. Even I loved that look so much that I didn't want to wear Marcus' disguise.
I scoffed, looking at myself in the mirror. 'What am I even thinking?'
Shaking my head, I took my cane and left the office as it locked itself.
There were three entrances to the Lunar Academy. But the third entrance, which was connected to the headmaster's building, was different.
It opened in the jungles, at the backside of the academy, and led to a special path created by the headmaster himself, acting as a teleport gateway for anyway around fifty kilometers radius for a swift exit without being noticed.
The gateway looked nothing like a portal. It was just a gap between two massive trees; the only difference was that in the lush greenery of the forest, these trees stood out with their wisteria petals acting like leaves.
They were odd, but beautiful. And their leaves glowed all the time.
Arriving near the gates of the estate, I saw a white carriage with a silver wolf's emblem.
Seven white wolves the size of a huge horse, leashed with white chains, were at the front of the carriage. Five knights on brown horses and woollen cloaks surrounded the carriage.
Ailsa was standing beside one of the knights of her house, discussing something about the beasts on the path to northern territory.
It looked like even the Knights didn't notice me while I casually walked and leaned on the carriage doors with my arms crossed, listening to her talk.
"A whisperer? Are you sure? Weren't their whole pack killed by my father?" She asked, there was no fear in her voice, but worry.
"The traces our scouts examined only pointed at them, my lady," The Knight responded, holding the hilt of his sword even tighter. He was more worried about the journey, it seems.
'Whisperer, huh?' I thought.
They are mid-ranked beasts. B grade classified. They look like hounds with no fur and eyes. But they're tough to deal with because they move in packs, and their speed is phenomenal. Not to mention their jaws are poisonous.
"But…don't worry, my lady. All of my men are peak tempered, ranked Knights. And even I myself am an emanant. And I believe Professor Marcus has also reached the peak of emanant rank." He reassured Ailsa.
She was just a child right now. But she still managed to reach the level of aura bound, being a mid-ranked knight herself at the age of eighteen.
"But…he's our guest, we can't request his help, much less, look weak…we're Krells, Ser Drako, make sure it never happens that he has to step up," She replied with a stern look.
'Oh? Impressive,' I thought, and nodded. There are not many emanant ranked knights in this world. And sending one to be an escort was something that showed how powerful Krells were.
"Shall we move now?" I spoke, and all of them flinched.
Every single knight had their eyes wide open in shock, even Ser Drako, who was talking to Ailsa, stared in the direction this voice came from.
"When did-"
"I've been here for a while…" I replied.
"Ah-…" Ailsa thought of the words she was about to speak.