Cail felt that he need to calm himself down after hearing news about the man whom he hated the most. After his mother fell asleep, he slowly dragged his motorcycle away and turned on the starter the moment he was already far from his home.
He went out to get some fresh air. His body still ached from last night, so he'd better focus on relaxation for now.
He found a comfortable spot under a big tree in the park.
Leaned his head against the tree, he sighed. No birds, no people, just the rustling of leaves and the sound of the wind whooshing. This feels...
Damn! It's not relaxing! It's creepy!
"I was here a week ago, where did all the birds go? Did they all die?"
This looks like the beginning of some thriller movie, and Cail's character is the guy at the introduction who just saw someone get murdered.
He rubbed his hair and erased those random thoughts. He opened his phone and put on some earpods. It's very quiet here. Very suitable for listening to music and relaxing, as long as you ignore the other possibility that this place is also a good place for crime.
He closed his eyes and contemplated about his plans for the future. What to do with the money? Should he invest it? He had no idea how; he had never studied investment before, so he'd probably mess it up. Should he hire someone to invest for him?
As his mind wandered around. He did not notice that at the park entrance, there was a group of teens huddling together, staring at him.
...
Idris leaned in and whispered to Hal, "Is that our instructor?"
Hal squinted his eyes at the figure under the tree. "Should be…?"
Unlike them, Clea showed no hesitation. "That's probably him. This plaza is sealed with a bind-cast artifact. If you're not from the academy, you're not allowed to get in."
Neris scowled as he thought of the guy that brought them into this predicament. "Sir Quill really just threw us out here with zero information."
Bram was already numb to their professors' antics, "That's Sir Quill for you. Now, let's get to the main issue. So… do we go talk to him?" He pointed toward the man beneath the tree.
Idris eyed the man again. Void energy rippled faintly around him meaning that he is a void energy user. Beside that, exactly like Clea said, the plaza was under academy control. It should be safe... right?
He exchanged a quick glance with Hal, and they both nodded.
Neris groaned. "Can't we just run away? Teachers from the academy are insane. No tender feelings for the young at all. We're probably gonna get tortured again, just like when Instructor Rafe treated us like attack dummies!"
Bram gave him a deadpan look. "If we run, Miss Cassia's gonna murder us. Anyway, the choice is yours."
Neris went pale, he gave up, "I regret enrolling in this academy."
...
Chilling under the tree, Cail had no idea of the trouble that was walking toward him.
Well, it wasn't until he heard a cautious voice,
"Uhm, excuse me, Sir?"
Cail looked up and saw a group of teenagers around his age looking at him cautiously.
They were wearing dark green... Uniform? Cail wasn't sure since it seemed to be a blend between a combat suit and a school uniform. On their chests was a gold badge with an I symbol in red.
"What's up?" he asked casually.
A timid-looking boy stared at Cail as if Cail's going to eat him, spoke, "Sir, we're Team 1 from Miss Cassia's class. Mr. Quill told us to report to you after we arrived. We're here for our artifact briefing."
What is this nonsense. Cail felt confused. "Mr. Quill?"
"Yes, Sir."
Did they mistake him for the wrong person? Besides, what's Team 1? What artifact briefing?! Miss Cassia's class meant they were students, so since they were here to report, did they mistake him as their lecturer or something? Or maybe someone is messing with him and this is just a prank.
Besides, he's just the same age as them. How did they mistake him for a teacher? He's just the same age as them!
Of course, the students had no way of knowing what Cail looked like since he was wearing a helmet, and Cail is kind of taller than average.
Aside from that fact, this place was controlled by the academy and Cail was also radiating a void aura. Those two are a very convincing factor that points out that Cail is somewhat affiliated with the academy.
There's no way Cail could convince them that he wasn't the instructor.
Sure enough, when Cail said, "You got the wrong person," all the students looked at him skeptically. They were already traumatized by the academy's eccentric teachers that they never believed what Cail said.
A jolly one smiled at him, "Hahahaha, Sir, quit joking. Miss Cassia and Sir Quill will kill us if we don't have our artifact briefing." Despite his cheerful voice, Cail could sense the hidden unease behind the laugh.
"I really am not your instructor or whatever. You got the wrong person," Cail said. After that, he leaned back on the tree and closed his eyes. This was none of his business.
He could still feel the intense gazes directed at him, and after a few minutes, he opened his eyes and saw the group still gawking at him like lost chicks.
He couldn't help but feel a surge of irritation, "What do you want?!"
They flinched at Cail's stern voice but they remained firm and answered in unison, "Artifact briefing."
"..." Cail felt like he was talking to a group of idiots.
"What's an artifact?" This time, Cail asked genuinely.
But the students seemed to have misunderstood him. "Artifacts are void-infused relics. They are objects filled with residual or active void energy. They function as amplifiers, regulators, or manifestations of power, and can only be used by individuals whose natural abilities can resonate with them."
Hearing the textbook-like answer, Cail was shocked. "The heck, these guys aren't tripping, are they?" Despite having different facial expressions, all five of them had the same compliant attitude. They really seemed to treat Cail as their instructor.
"Fuck, I didn't encounter some kind of cult or students from some fraudulent school, right?"
Thinking about "this looks like the beginning of some thriller movie and Cail's character is the guy at the introduction who saw someone get murdered," Cail thought, "He hadn't jinxed himself right? I hope not."
If before, he was kinda dismissive about the situation, these guys now really managed to grab his full attention.
He sat up properly and looked at them.
If Cail was asked what his impression of this group was, he'd say: Rich kids.
Just look at how poised and clean they look. Clearly, they grew up in a good home and had a great upbringing.
Cail is the type of person that, even though he has no idea what's going on, as long as he saw an opportunity for mischief, he'll grab that opportunity like a devil. That's his flaw.
Now, looking at this group of 'students,' Cail's bad taste ignited.
He narrowed his eyes, filled with mischief.