How To Survive A Calamity

I easily pushed the matter discussed with Chelsea and continued on with my day. I didn't think it was anything too serious i had to be deeply concerned over.

I attended a few Extra classes about Dungeons and Gates for a few hours then took a break towards the evening.

I would have liked to hit the training room right about now.

Classes were temporarily suspended— everyone, first years, were busy preparing for the exercise every which way. Which meant, by this point, the training grounds would be packed full by jittery, sweaty teenagers anxious over even the sound of a buzzing fly.

It was annoying.

I was better off just waiting a while longer until after sunset or there about. But then again, if i waited long enough until nighttime, i would have even lesser time to train before curfew.

It was at times like this i was envious of the top Rankers like Deandra and Ceres who had privately training rooms and facilities built in their dorms as privileges.

Weren't those guys beyond lucky?

They even had privileges and access to facilities like the simulation chamber. The universe knows what i would do if i had such continuous access.

It was almost enough to make me want to rank up.

Almost.

That would mean I would probably have to challenge people like Ceres. Come to think of it, i haven't met any other Rankers aside from Ceres and Deandra who both coincidentally happened to be classmates with me.

I have no idea how strong or different the remaining top rankers are, but i guess the rankings were put in place for a reason. Ceres had to be the standard, right?

But i knew better than many, ranks don't also determine everything.

Sunset came before too long, and the cadets all began to retreat to their various devices. Meanwhile, i took my chance at the training hall yet again until after curfew.

The exercise was in a day, i had begun to reach the end of all of my possible preparations.

"Oh that's true. I need to call back Hamlet before i forget. Where even is that bastard slime?"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

As i returned back to my dorm room, walk-in underneath the silver moonlight late into the night, i let my thoughts scattering and wander, when all of a sudden, i stopped.

Aegis was a large institute spread made up of a variety of structures, there were certain parths that cut right across certain regions, linking various points across along the way called Walkways.

It was literally almost like a 'yellow brick road '. Just follow the road, and you'd most likely, definitely not get lost.

More or less.

There was a similar walkway leading from the first year training hall, and intersecting across to that of the Dormitories at the other side. During the day, the walkway would be filled with constantly streaming amount of cadets going about their business, but late into the night like this, the road was made bare and empty. Especially when it was long past sunset and beyond curfew

Only the subtle, gentle sound of the night breeze remained under the moonlight and the shadows of the night.

But at the moment, i halted my steps and stared at a not so distant lonely figure sitting on a nearby bench and staring at the moon.

It was a handsome young man with falling red hair and bright orange eyes, wearing a casual white silk t-shirt tucked into straight black pants.

The young man with an almost uncanny beauty swept back his falling red hair that poured down his neck and turned around. He gazed towards my direction, and his lips pulled into a strange smile as he stared at me.

His bright eyes seemed to deepen. There was a certain distinction in his gaze when he looked at me.

It felt suffocating, his bright orange eyes deepened as moonlight poured over his falling hair. It felt like something 'gazed' into my whole being and my muscles froze for a quick second.

But the next moment, it was as if i had imagined all of it.

The strange man's eyes...the suffocating feeling all of it vanished as the man blinked. The strange sensation simply ceased like a forgotten dream.

Then the mysterious man waved at me from across.

"Hey, there."

Before my brain could keep up with what i thought i imagined, i heard the mysterious young man call out at me.

I blinked out of my thoughts with new found wary and gazed back silently, hiding my inner turmoil.

"Hey, do you mind, could you come here a bit? Hmm?" The man continued to wave amicably as he gestured for me to approach him.

His tone was light, friendly and jovial, if my instincts didn't know better, i would think he was just a nice, regular young man.

But, not just any 'nice and regular' young man would be out in the walkway, sitting alone, at such a time this deep into the night, in the first place.

[...]

Well...aside from me.

But then again...

[You're not normal.]

I ignored Meta's jab, dismissed my thoughts, but withheld my caution and took a carefully step forward with my arms in my pocket.

With a glance, i gazed over the man's casual appearance and environment, and drew certain possibilities and conclusions.

'Perhaps he's an instructor?'

He certainly didn't look like a cadet...?

I wasn't sure. No, i had no idea!

What exactly does it mean to look like a cadet?!

There were dozens of instructors in the academy, on the other hand. And much more i barely knew anything about.

But if he really was an instructor, wouldn't that mean i might be in trouble for loitering around this late, long after curfew?

Suddenly, i froze my steps at that realisation and my eyes widened.

'Should i just run?'

If i ran now...

"Pfft! Relax, young man. I'm not an instructor, so i won't bite you for walking around by this time." Suddenly, the man said with a small laugh, interrupting my thoughts, almost as if he could read my mind.

"Eh?" A small noise escaped my lips.

Then the man leisurely leaned back on the bench and elegantly crossed his legs. He looked at me with the same smile and pointed at his face in amusement.

"You're expression."

In the end, i could only breathe a sigh and walked towards him casually.

"You're not an instructor?" I asked cautiously, formally.

If he wasn't an instructor, then was he really a cadet?

My mind raced behind a flat expression.

'An intruder... perhaps?' Explore new worlds at empire

A wild guess entered my head.

The mysterious man with a strange smile tilted his head slightly, his red hair falling over.

"Something like that."

"...How can i help you?"

Eventually i was standing only a few centimetres away from the bench, and asked while standing before the sitted young man.

He raised his chin, gazing up at me. His bright orange eyes stared at my face, and he chuckled softly.

"No need to be so stiff and formal, i already promised i won't bite. Haha!"

"Please, do overlook my manner of speaking — even if you say that, you can't exactly expect me not to be wary about a strange and mysterious individual sitting alone under the moon this late into the night when the rest of the academy should be asleep, now, could you?"

The man nodded readily, his eyes smiling equally.

"Yep, same could be said about you, but I'm not going around asking where you're coming from, or what you're doing loitering this late, am i?"

I gazed at him deeply, holding my expression before saying.

"So we both agree we both, what we're doing now seems suspicious to any outsider."

"I don't think any outsider would have any right or excuse, either, in this case." The man said.

He was still smiling as he responded at me and said

"I won't ask any questions."

I shrugged.

"What questions?"

The smile on his face curled longer and he tilted his chin.

"Indeed."