A Lulling Melody

Like a surging tide, it gushed through her.

Eli felt the presence of a summoned creature nearby. She immediately braced herself and surveyed their surroundings, searching for the source. Seeing her change in demeanour, Hal had an inkling of what's happening. He then grabbed her wrist and made her look at him again.

"Is it a summoned creature?" he asked to which she nodded as confirmation.

Then all of the sudden, a specter-like, menacing shadow hovered above them, paving way for a momentary dimness.

The two looked up in bewilderment, only to find a horrendous silhouette as gigantic as a behemoth, which they're only able to take a glimpse of as it already vanished in the blink of an eye. A soothing tune then played out of nowhere, echoing all around and perplexing them even more. Everyone inside the greenhouse stiffened upon hearing this. It rings in their ears like a cradle song, entrancing them to feel somnolent and fatigued.

As soon as danger registered in his head, Hal quickly palmed his ears and turned to his companion.

"Eli, cover your ears," he instructed before dragging her to take shelter under a tree.

The ash-haired girl complied, alarmed at the effect of the mysterious tune to the others. Then, all of the sudden, glowing pebbles of water that seemed to radiate a palpable portent began to rain down on them. Upon contact with these orbs of liquid, a rugged, stony layer mantled the listeners' unmoving bodies, eventually turning them into rock statues.

In a split second, everyone but them went frozen still like terracotta sculptures.

Witnessing the mystifying sight, Eli quivered in horror. The human statues reminded Hal of what he saw earlier at the booth, thus leading him to suspect that only one creature had done both, which was the same entity who's responsible for the downpour of those magical water droplets.

A coal black, thick fog began to cloud over them – the usual foreboding indicator of an impending doom. Not too long, the ominous dark haze turned into swirls of dusts, unveiling a winged beast, as huge as a two-story building, with stunningly breath-taking opalescent feathers. The summoned creature also had a very long tail with a shiny, metallic pearl colour and sharp, glinting azure eyes.

Overall, it looked downright ethereal.

Enchanted, Eli only gaped at the giant bird with saucer eyes, but then, she sensed something abstruse about its presence, making it a bit different from the previous villains she encountered. While her head remained muddled, Hal didn't waste any more second and transformed into his Aristian Emperor's persona. Golden dusts shrouded his frame and revealed a gun-wielder in a black admiral hat and fluttering coat.

"It's getting away!" Eli shouted, pointing at the retreating colossus.

The mammoth creature then flapped its fascinatingly vibrant wings before soaring through the air. Hal and Eli had no choice but to chase after it.

In the meantime, a few students just went through a turbulence while walking down the once peaceful hall.

What took place and stirred an uproar among the onlookers was a frenzied chase, starring a student in denim jacket and surprisingly, their ever collected Student Council President. At first glance, the former seemed to be in a frantic treasure hunt while the latter looked like a demon king in pursuit of his next prey. Witnesses say that the 'Tom-and-Jerry' duo appeared to be heading in the direction of the library.

Minutes passed by, Zeke emerged at first place in the feverish race.

The young heir barged in the library with a bang. Doors slammed open and exposed the one single occupant in the room. A lone blonde student, probably around his age he speculated, was just about to gobble up an entire chocolate cookie when he appeared. He seemed to be having a feast of sweets all on his own. A whole tray of tooth-rotting snacks was spread on the table before him.

Zeke then recalled that the girl earlier told him that this Claes person was currently at the library, thus instantly suspecting him as the playwright.

"So, you're really here... Sorry for what I'm about to do, pal," he taunted, voice low and vehement.

With that, Zeke immediately engaged in combat with the blonde who seemed to pretend he didn't see him. Unfazed, he just dodged all of his attacks as if it's nothing, knocking over the platter of sweets in the middle of their scuffling. With a series of mere handstands and flips, the blonde already overwhelmed him in a matter of minutes, which only provoked the young heir even more.

Infuriated, Zeke then fished something out of the inner pocket of his denim, revealing a long, glowing golden chain. He felt a gush of pride when his opponent recoiled in surprise at the sight of his weapon.

"This is my family's heirloom, by the way. If you don't want to get hurt, just spill it! Tell me all about the secrets of this academy," he ordered quite pompously.

"You're the Chairman's son?" the blonde asked, making him flinch for a second.

"That's none of your business, okay? Anyway, I saw the show. You're Claes the playwright, aren't you? The cat's already out of the bag so don't even bother denying it," he retorted with a smug smirk.

What the blonde did next completely caught Zeke off guard.

He suddenly approached him with the speed of lightning and grabbed his wrist before flipping his body backward and sending him to the ground with a loud thud. The young heir groaned in pain as he lied on the cold floor. Glancing upwards, there he saw two purple eyes peering down at him menacingly.

"Don't you dare lump me together with that woman," he hissed through gritted teeth, much to his flummox.

A moment later, Zeke found his own shrunken figure brooding behind the librarian's counter. Allen had arrived right after he met his embarrassing downfall in the hands of the person he mistook as Claes. The two of them were now chatting, with Allen explaining the situation and clearing up the misunderstanding.

"I'm sorry about this, Noah. He's just out of my control," Allen grumbled with an exhausted look.

"It's fine. I'm also sorry for getting riled up. I should've treated him better since he's the Chairman's son," Noah replied with a sour tone, glancing at the crouching boy at the corner.

"I understand. He kinda deserved it for making a mess. Quite a strange kid, isn't he?" the red head commented with an amused grin to which the blonde only nodded in agreement.

"By the way, where's Hal?"

"He's out with that girl. He asked me to guard the library for a while and gave me sweets in return."

Allen's eyes widened at this in surprise.

The fact that Hal was able to bribe him with food was common knowledge since Noah was known for having a sweet tooth. However, Hal leaving his duties to someone else, even if just for a bit, only happens once in a blue moon. He seldom depends on anyone, which is one of the very few similarities he shares with his predecessor. Their leader has always been a reserved and meticulous stand-alone worker. Once classes were finished, he'd go straight to the library and spend the rest of the day there.

This was probably his first day-off from library duties since coming to this world.

"So he asked you, then? That makes me a bit jealous," Allen mused out loud, implicating his desire to be the receiving end of Hal's reliance.

"It's all because of her..." the blonde whispered, voice suddenly daunting, much to his bafflement.

"Noah?"

"Hal's unneeded change and that boy's insolent attitude earlier. It's all her fault."

Noah's expression darkened, eyes glazing with venom. Allen only peered at him meaningfully, knowing quite well the reason behind this.