Chapter 11: Ch. 11 - New Face
"Oh."
"It's understandable. He is the one who is most at fault." (Valde)
"It wasn't his intention for this to happen though."
"That's true, but he fully blames himself for what happened." (Valde)
"What do you think we should do?"
"I think we should give Ronald some space. Emotions are still high, and it may need some time to cool down." (Valde)
"Why not I go forgive him now?"
"You could, but I think Ronald would still blame himself." (Valde)
…
"Are you hungry?" (Valde)
"Yeah, a little."
"How about we go to the cafeteria. I think you can leave the infirmary now." (Valde)
"Sure, I'll meet you outside. Let me get freshen up first."
After Valde left the room, I got out of bed and went to the bathroom. Looking into the mirror, I saw a similar but different face. A distinct vertical scar stretched from my cheek through my left eye and ended just above my brow on the left side of my face. I brushed my finger against my new scar. I hesitantly opened my eyelid only to discover a dull, pale, and dead eye hiding beneath. It possessed an eerie look to it. I closed my left eyelid.
"Looks like I won't be showing anyone my left eye anytime soon," I muttered.
After accepting my eye's new condition, I turned on the sink and splashed my face with water.
(A few minutes later)
I stepped outside the bathroom to see Valde leaning against the wall waiting for me. I had dressed back into student attire and cleaned myself.
We headed towards the cafeteria, exchanging small chit-chat the entire way through. I learned that I had been unconscious for a few hours, and therefore, missed all the afternoon class. Fortunately, it was only the first day of school, so I shouldn't be that far behind.
We eventually arrived in the cafeteria, which was still brightly lit when it was already very dark outside. Only a handful of other students were in the cafeteria, as most students had already eaten dinner.
The moment I stepped into the cafeteria, I felt multiple gazes fall upon me. Many students who saw me enter started quietly whispering to their friends. It appears I had become the talk among the campus.
Just the day before, I was still a nobody, now I assume everyone knew me as the kid who almost died on the first day of school.
Valde and I filled our tray with some food and found a secluded spot in the cafeteria to eat.
"What have the talks about me been like so far?"
"They're quite varied actually. Some paint you a moron, and others consider you as a hero who sacrificed your life for a fellow student's life." (Valde)
"That's surprising. Tell me more about the former."
"That one is more popular among the noble students. Some of them felt frustrated that a non-noble, let alone a thin-blood like yourself, achieved a grand feat before they did; therefore, they started spreading a false version of the story." (Valde)
"Are their egos that fragile?"
"Some of them, yes. Want to hear the content of the false story?" (Valde)
"No. I think I'll pass on that."
After the two of us finished eating, we decided to head towards the library. Valde convinced me that although I only missed the first classes, I should still do my best to catch up tonight; additionally, it never hurts to be more knowledgeable about my class subjects.
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(Inside the headmaster's office)
"It seems as though our plan had failed." (Headmaster Bonner)
"Yes, it does seem that way." (Magical Hat)
"Our plan to forcefully awaken Ronald's bloodline was going perfectly until..." (Headmaster Bonner)
"Until the boy, Azrail performed a miracle," the magical hat finished off Headmaster Bonner's sentence.
"Yes. Until Azrail performed a miracle." (Headmaster Bonner)
*Knock* *Knock* *Knock*
"Come in." (Headmaster Bonner)
A figure cloaked from head to toe in a dark cloak entered.
"I have arrived at your call Master Bonner." (???)
"Explain to us what happened from the very beginning of the plan. Do not cut out any details." (Headmaster Bonner)
"Yes master." (???)
"As you had instructed, we planned to awaken the target's bloodline by putting the target into an artificial life or death situation." (???)
"Yes." (Headmaster Bonner)
"Without Sir Joseph's knowledge, we had removed the protective magic on the sacrant's pin, which would have prevented any students from entering without Sir Joseph's permission. Before the beginning of Sir Joseph's class, we snuck out one of his creatures, knowing that when Mrs. Kimberly learns about it, she will most likely drag Joseph out of his class." (???)
"Yes, up to this point, everything has gone perfectly according to plan. Skip to the part about Ronald." (Headmaster Bonner)
"Yes. Using mind magic, we implanted the suggestion of going to the sacrant's bin into the target's consciousness the day prior. The target approached the sacrant's enclosure and entered it. We had starved the sacrant for the past few days to maximize its aggression, ensuring that it would attempt to eat the target. However, we did not plan for the human boy companion of the target to throw a rock hitting the sacrant's eye perfectly, resulting in the sacrant redirecting its focus onto him." (???)
"Why did you choose the Sacrant? If I remember correctly, aren't there many other species in Joseph's classroom that could also threaten Ronald's life?" (Headmaster Bonner)
"There is. However, we deemed the Sacrant to be the best fit because it wasn't strong enough to completely paralyze the target in fear or weak enough not to be able to trigger the life or death response of the target." (???)
"I see. What happened if Ronald didn't manage to awaken his bloodline if the sacrant had followed through with chasing him?" (Headmaster Bonner)
"We had protective measures set in place beforehand. If it looked like the target wasn't going to survive the ordeal, we would've swooped in and saved the human boy." (???)
"Why weren't those protective measures used to save Azrail then?" (Headmaster Bonner)
"The protective measured were designed and prepared with only the target in mind. We did not consider the possibility of the sacrant going after the human boy was in our plans. There was not enough time to adjust the protective measures to protect the human boy." (???)
"I understand now. Azrail attracting the sacrant's attention is not something even I would have considered. I do not blame you for what has happened. You may leave now and start formulating a new plan to awaken Ronald's bloodline forcefully." (Headmaster Bonner)
"Yes master." (???)
After saying so, the cloaked figure left just as quietly as he entered.
"Do you think its luck or skill that Azrail perfectly threw a rock into the sacrant's eye when he was more than fifty meters away?" (Headmaster Bonner)
"I believe it to be luck." (Magic Hat)
"Hmmm." (Headmaster Bonner)
"So Azrail's destroyed left eye could only be considered as collateral damage then." (Magic Hat)
"I suppose so. How sad that there is nothing we could do to help his ruined eye." (Headmaster Bonner)
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