19 Hybrid

I sighed, again with the assassin. It seems that this world really does want to push me in that direction. Though, if I think about its things seem to have been set up that way. Even my weapon is one preferred by assassins. It is not quite as fast as a dagger but has slightly reach. A short sword is a good weapon for assassination. Coupled with my stats it truly is a good way to go.

Resigned to my fate I tuck the book into my cloak. If I can couple this with a good movement skill perhaps, I really will have a chance. Besides my ability with a crossbow isn't something to scoff at.

I looked back at the room that had been my home for the last six months. Time really has flown; I doubt the rest of my time in this world will be as easy going as the time I had spent with the carefree girls here. With Ares on my shoulder and Lily on my side I left the Legion while the girls were still asleep. Rose was already waiting for us outside the door to the legion as we exited.

She led us to the military barracks here in the sect and gathered up some horses for the journey. There was no need for food as we all only drank blood, but she did grab a couple jars of ground up herbs. She explained that two herbs when combined could be used to keep blood fresh and ready for consumption. She went as far as to show me what the herbs looked like and their names. The first one was obviously a type of rose at first glance, except that it was pure black. Its name was a blood rose, as it was nourished by a beast's blood, it then sent nutrients back into the blood to help preserve it. They were often found growing out of beasts in the wild. The second was a kind of nut that reminded me of a walnut. It was called the Vampire Aria. Or the Aria for short. Its rejuvenated blood and was often used as a purifying agent for blood transfusions. The two herbs together could keep blood fresh for around a week, longer if the blood was kept warm.

The botany lesson over, Rose had us mount our horses. Rose had a horse to herself, while Lily and I shared one. The situation was stemmed from originally only I was going to be coming back. Neither Lily or I minded though, after all we were often much closer than this.

The journey would take around a week if we were mounted and did not encounter much difficulty. This was assuming that we left at sunup and left at sundown. That was around twelve hours, as the days and nights were each 12 hours. It took some time to get used to, but it was very similar to winter back on earth. Nights were usually not as dark as back on earth though, on account of the two moons.

The first day of travel went rather quickly and without incident. The constant rubbing of Lily's chest on my back did lead to a midday pit stop though. At night Rose began to teach me what she knew of the sword. She explained that there are five basic moves in swordplay "stab" "slash" "parry" and "riposte" "feint". To stab is a thrust forward, keeping your feet planted on the ground. To slash to cut either horizontally, diagonally, or vertically at the opponent. There are 8 different directions to slash. To parry is to block the opponents attack with your sword. To riposte is to counterattack an opening after a party, and finally a feint is creating a false attack.

"All of basic swordsmanship can be brought down to these five points. If you wanted to get technical there were four, which was stab, slash, parry and feint as riposte would be either a stab or a slash. However, they are of finding an opening and attacking in that small window was a feat all its own and deserved its own spot. Once you master these 5 things you will be able to learn sword techniques, however until you master these 5 techniques even if you read all the skill books in the world you would be unable to learn them. "

After that she had me practice every one of them except riposte for the next 3 hours. After that she finally let me go to sleep. I was given second watch. During watch I read and memorized the skill book on stealth. I then began to practice it as I patrolled around the camp.

Just like this, seven days passed very quickly until we reached the gates of Taryln. I had got lucky and reached small success in stealth the night before. It made me less noticeable when attempting to hide. At great success I would be hard to notice if I kept still, and less noticeable while moving slowly. At perfection I could move at full speed or stay still with no chance of being noticed unless the person had high perception.

We are led through the city, and it did not take long before we arrived at the Academy. The building was built in an extravagant manner and reminded me of a mixture of a castle and a university. The main building of the academy was built like a castle, and Rose explained that this is where many classes were held as well as the teacher's offices.

There were several dormitory buildings off to the side, and they were separated by male female. There were coed apartments for the High ranked students, which is where we would be staying, even though we did not qualify as high ranked students. However, this was the only place on campus that would allow us to stay together.

We walked into the castle and were led to the registration office. Rose explained the situation, and everything was quickly handled. The lady at registration only lifter her eyebrows at us staying together but did not say anything. My registration was done rather quickly, but as Lily was an addition hers took longer and involved them testing her potential. As her blood entered the round stone the yellow that we had expected was no longer there. It had changed to a deep violet lily, with blood dripping from the petals. Everyone in the room was shocked at the sight. Somehow lily had become an Esper. The registration lady gasped. "I have never seen this particular image before, but the violet color is only present when it is a natural demonic Esper. The blood is quite obviously a sign of vampirism, though it only appears as blood for an evolved Esper and not a natural one. Hybrids are rare, and that alone Grant's you the right to the VIP suites, let alone simple entry into the academy...what did you say your name was Lily? Well your name and your subtle scent certainly gives a clue as to what the Lily represents. I will expedite this process; you will go start your classes tomorrow. Rose will show you to where you will be staying. "

Our room turned out to be a stone four plex building. The room was upstairs. It reminded me of a studio apartment. It was one large room without a kitchen, and a separate bathroom. There was a large bed on one wall with a nightstand on either side of it. There was also a couple of chairs and a coffee table, as well as a desk and bookshelf. The room was rather simple, but it was fully functional. Behind the building was a courtyard that could be used for training.

After the long journey we were both rather tired, so we took a bath, had a little "exercise" and went to bed.