Chapter 15 - Who should I pick?

After I have placed all the books in my room, I suddenly remembered that I have somewhere I need to be this afternoon. I hurriedly looked into the map that was given to me earlier and looked for the place where the academe attendants stay. The old man at the admission office told me to go there to pick my attendant this afternoon.

I walked out of my room and went straight to the confirmed place on the map. I ended up in front of a huge wooden door. I knocked on the door and saw an elderly man sitting at a table nearby. I told him my circumstances and what I needed and he guided me to sit in a spacious room with a comfy chair and served me some juice and biscuits. He said that he will call on the attendants so that I can take my pick. It is mean to think this way but why do I feel like I went to a pet shop to pick a puppy I will be bringing home?

I waited for about 10 minutes and heard a flurry of footsteps. I then saw about 40 or so men come in to the spacious room and lined themselves in rows in a well-trained manner. They lined up just like how they did in the ceremony yesterday.

The elderly man approached me and said, "These are all the remaining attendants you can choose from. There were more yesterday but the other 26 newly summoned saviors have already taken their pick."

I looked around and saw the attendants' stoic faces again. I remembered the rants they had at the magic circle yesterday and felt unsure if I have to really take my pick. I couldn't help but look around and look for those people that were very vocal about their dislike of the situation they are in. Everybody hated serving a woman which means that they would not be fully loyal to me or any woman for that matter so why should I pick one and make myself worry everyday if I will get stabbed in the back.

I stood up and walked around while looking closely at each man lined up in rows. Near the back of the room, I saw Ioannis looking at me intensely. When our eyes met, I felt a surge of energy deep in my soul. Is this resonance? I did not feel any aphrodisiac-like effect that men have as per what my inherited memories is telling me but I knew the resonance exists because of the number 94 above his head, of course.

I saw his surprise when our eyes met. I abruptly broke eye contact and pretended as if I did not notice him looking at me. I chose to look at the elderly man and asked, "Is it really required that I choose an attendant?" He simply said, "Yes. You have to pick one before the classes start." I pondered for a while and decided to delay my pick for now.

I know that Ioannis also felt the resonance but considering I just arrived in this world and need to get used to life here first, taking in a man is a complication I am not prepared for right now. With how intensely he was looking at me, the effects of that 94 must be strong. Surely, he's never letting go once I give him even a slight hint of acceptance. I might as well decide to be neutral for now, not accepting and not rejecting either should be the safest route.

I told the elderly man my decision and promised to come back in the next couple of days to pick one. I walked hurriedly out of the door without looking back.

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Ioannis' POV

When the old man told us that someone came to pick an attendant, I already had an idea who it was. I felt glad that she finally woke up, can walk around now and even found this place with no issues. After the happiness, I suddenly felt scared and thought, "What if she picks someone else?" I was feeling a mix of jealousy, anger and possessiveness which is really weird.

The old man asked us to dress appropriately and hurry up since we can't have the savior wait for too long. We all dressed up with the usual attendant uniforms that we have and hurriedly went to the large room where she has been waiting in.

I went to my designated row and couldn't help but stare at her. I am wondering why the other men doesn't seem to bother looking at her. With how beautiful she is, why doesn't anyone notice it?

She was talking to the elder and I heard her ask if she really needed an attendant and the elder answered her that she indeed needs one. She was walking around the room, checking all the men carefully. I saw her eyes linger on some men for a longer time than others and I felt an unexplainable pang of jealousy again. I did not notice that I was already staring at her for so long and my breathing started to turny erratic.

She suddenly looked my way and our eyes met. When that happened, I suddenly felt a strong surge of electricity course through my body. I bet that even my soul was affected. My legs seemed to have turned soft and I started to feel like I'm losing my balance. My body temperature shot up and I started feeling dizzy. It took everything from me to stay standing in line.

As quickly as our eyes met, she looked away and it resulted to an intense pain in my chest. I strongly felt that I was rejected or even abandoned and I couldn't help but look down while trying to control my emotions. I finally realized what these inexplicable feelings were. My eyes widened and I asked myself, "This is resonance, isn't it?"

I looked up again and saw her walking quickly out of the room. My mind went abuzz and the first two questions that came to my mind were "Why did she walk away?" and "Did she not feel the resonance?" I know women don't feel it as strong as men do and the next questions were, "How can she just ignore the resonance? and "Did she not like me?" I had a lot of other questions but I was already at my limit. My legs lost its strength and I plopped on the floor. I felt hot and dizzy too. I started hyperventilating and then I saw everything turn black.