Jade's Persistence
Strength 477
Speed 492
Defense 369
Intelligence 449 +30
Quick learner(Rank E) Advanced Appraisal(Rank E) Stealth(Rank F) Mana Consume(Rank C)
Better Balance(Rank F) Fast Thinker(Rank E) MP Efficient(Rank C) Mana Creation(Rank C) Vision illusion(Rank C) Lesser Teleportation(Rank B)
I watch in pity as the once cheerful hero lays motionless on a bed. It's a scene that almost makes me wish for how things used to be. One where he might call me dumb names and act way too jokingly about everything.
Now he doesn't do any of that.
I sometimes find myself just sitting here waiting for him to get up one day. I bet he would play it off as him being tired and he would be back at it…
I shouldn't focus so much on this sight I need to focus on reality.
I will soon have to take my seat inside the classroom. As of this current moment, there is nobody seated inside indicating I must be early. This leaves me with a very important choice.
Front row? At first, it seems nice. The short distance helps with staying focused and catching any small movements. On the other hand, it leaves me vulnerable. It's too far from the exit and leaves my back wide open. The middle one is the worst of both worlds, leaving me still too far from leaving and too far to the front to see any small movements. Back it is.
Right left or middle row then? Can't be left, way too close to the door, good for leaving but that also goes for anybody else that once to start trouble with me. Then that leaves the middle or right…
Hard choice but I think I'll go with right. It might seem secluded at first but that only plays into its strength. It leaves me with the ability to see everything without allowing anybody to see me even if they walk by. I'm too out of the way without me noticing them.
Looks like it's going to be the back right seat.
Ha, could you imagine thinking of just figuring out where to sit? No, I just happened to "feel like it". No need to overanalyze everything if you just do whatever. It seems like being as dumb as Akari acts really has its perks.
It takes little time for students to come into the classroom and fill it up. Most seats get taken, except one seat right next to me.
"Oh my Celestia, is that Akari? Who would have thought I would bump into you here? Oh my, and it seems you left a seat for me as well."
"As a reminder Jade I do despise you and everything you stand for."
"Well, it seems that acting nice won't get me anywhere. In which case how are you doing you no life freak?"
Now I don't think I gave her explicit advice to let her be mean to me but it's better than her pretending she's some innocent princess. At least she gets mostly quiet after her rude remark.
People like that drive themselves on others' attention, not giving them any makes them shut up real quick. Well for a little bit that is. It's only when the teacher of the class mentions something that must have interested Jade.
A bit quieter than normal Jade starts talking to me, "You hear that magic circles and chanting are the only forms of creating magic."
I have already gone through many classes where they lie and pass it off as truth. This is a mistake mostly caused by harmlessly passing off the information they truly believe to be correct.
This class seems to be continuing this trend, most of what they say is full of lies. This class feels a bit more different as if the instructor is purposely lying or not telling the entire truth.
I find it interesting for a magic class how much they downplay the usefulness of spellcasting. It's true it has its downsides but I feel like they are taking it way too far.
"This is why I never pay attention during these classes" I whisper under my breath.
Jade seemed intrigued by me finally speaking and decided to grasp onto it.
"What do you think you know more than a class 4 magic mage?"
"I don't 'think'. I know," I say.
Jade really likes that one. Her face turned into some weird smile and I heard her say "Oh really" Before raising her hand.
It doesn't take long for the teacher to notice her and immediately asks "Yes Jade? Do you have a question?"
"Well, Miss. Acarnia I was just wondering if there is any way to speed up chanting magic?"
Well, this is definitely interesting.
The teacher thinks to herself for a bit walking back and forth before replying "Yes, in fact a large portion of higher-level magicians is simply refining their spells to be easily chanted as fast as possible."
"So in the highest level of spell casting what do you think is the max distance someone can be to cast a spell to immobilize an attacker before they can reach you with a weapon?"
"Well if at least say they are the top of their class I would have to say 21 feet. If you have an average or even an amateur then it would be much longer."
21-feet huh? That's quite the distance, If it really was that long I might even be persuaded not to go down the fire-casting route.
"What if the person was only inches away from you?"
"Well in that scenario there is no way for a spell caster to survive, you see class-"
"What if you didn't have to chant at all?"
Most of the class turns around to look at her but she stays confident. I pretend I've never seen her in my life.
It doesn't take long for the class to reject her question. "That's impossible, how would you get the mana?" One asks. "If that was the case the battlefield would be full of them" Another adds in. "It simply can't be done, trust me I tried," a student says, holding his arm out and staring at it with his friends laughing.
Jade stays defiant until one person stands up in the classroom to confront her. "Maybe you should stop talking to that freak Jade. He seems to be giving you weird ideas." A younger fatter school kid says.
And for the first time in this class or in any class for that matter, I raise my head in interest. It's the first kid that has actually been able to insult me to my face, well other than Jade of course.
What an ugly this new character seems to be. I don't think I will take the time to describe much of what he looks like. I would rather not spend the time doing so if It means I have to remember his face much longer than I have to.
So as fast as my head went up, it went back down. It also seems Jade's reaction is interesting as well. She has her hand clenched on the table. Glancing up at her face her eye seems to be twitching and her face is contorted into a half smile.
I let out a chuckle. What a funny sight.
"Brennor, what a funny coincidence bumping into you here." She says holding that funny-looking face.
Brennor huh? Does she already know that kid or does she just get around that much? Hmm, I'm sure even her standards aren't that low.
The teacher who at this point failed to calm down the class has no better time stopping the now arguing students.
"Common sweet stack we all know you've been hanging out with that no life. You should sit with us more often. We might be able to remove the gunk left behind from the freak." He says snobbily.
All this kid is doing is enforcing my opinion about these snobby, lazy, ungrateful-
Jade's table suddenly flips over falling with a loud bang. Terrifyingly an angry Jade storms over to Brennor. I watch her pull out a small instrument from her waist that when she activates turns into a spear.
As she approaches Brennor stays oddly calm. It is obvious he's scared but I can tell he knows he'll be safe. Even when Jade is holding him up with one hand from the scruff of the collar Brennor has an annoying smirk on his face.
It's then the fun finally ends. The teacher who had all this time been trying to calm the class finally had enough and chanted then activated a spell. It was extremely bright but that was about it just some flashy bright light.
Thankfully my tactful position of having my head down spared me from most of it. Everyone else wasn't as lucky.
"Enough!" Miss. Acarnia's voice boomed. "Jade, Brennor, both of you, in my office, now."
With only a bit of hesitation, Jade put him down and they both followed the teacher out of the class leaving the rest of us here to speculate. Well for me it just gave me more time to relax.
Even if the students did get any information from me that didn't stop them from discussing it between themselves.
"I've never seen her get that mad before."
"Well I have but only when she talks about her Betrothal"
"Do you think that was him?"
"I know it was he won't shut up about it"
"Do you think he's jealous of the unique student?"
"I didn't know I heard Jade and that odd kid was hanging out after hours."
After I take a glance up the refrain from discussing anything too loudly and even quieter if it happened to include me. It's kind of them but doesn't really accomplish much. Most of what they're saying just sounds like useless hearsay anyway.
Jade, Brennor, nor the teacher return before the class ends. I watch the other students leaving so I stretch a bit and get up.
To my surprise, Jade was waiting outside. She leaned against the wall, arms crossed.
"Careful your facade is falling," I say walking past her.
"I thank you for the statement but I always get this way around Brennor." She says following me.
She continues following me but something feels off. Jade looks uncomfortable in some way. I would rather she didn't act like that.
"Something bothering you Jade?" I ask pretending I care.
"Well, I think now you might be less interested in helping me learn now. I guess you can probably guess what I might use it for." She says with her head down.
As if I care.
"A contract is a contract. Your petty drama doesn't interest me one bit… Plus with only two conditions and no longer three I have no problem following the few terms left.
After our quick and immediately embarrassing fight for Jade, it didn't take long for me to remove a condition from her three.
Jade's face becomes more flushed than normal "I swear you better not do anything weird or else you're dead."
"What type of guy do take me as," I ask.
Jade then spends the rest of the day listing off all the horrible things she thinks of me as.