Ep 33. You're A What? (3)

  In the darkness of the b, newborn pups powerlessly whimpered in the cold. Their bony mother covered them with what warmth she could offer, sharing what little life she had to her children. Families of all sorts of animals were scattered throughout the b besides, though there was hardly any noise. A clowder of rats screeched louder and louder, hungry to feast on the animal corpse that their owner would toss into their cage.

  The only noise filling the b besides them were occasional sounds of ughter.

  “This, this is…t, t, this is it…!”

  Within the darkness was a single dle that dimly lit the table it was on, and a sy man madly running his hand across the wood’s surface. Scattered about the table were series of bottles, vials, and syringes, and the man would soon take one of the needles into his hand.

  He then violently grabbed one of the wolf pups, tearing him out of his mother’s embrace. She whimpered iance, but amouo little as the doctor kicked her unscious.

  The syringe in his other hand was then immediately stabbed into the pup’s chest. Os tents were ied into the animal’s heart, the puppy was tossed away, falling onto the cold floors as he whimpered in pain.

  White streaks visibly bloated out of the puppy’s veins as his body began to expand. The small whimpers became lower and loitch. Parts of the pup’s fur began to harden into white scales, eventually c almost all of his body. A mound of flesh ripped out of his bato a shape of a torn wing, and the head became distorted ahened into a reptile’s jaw. A half-scaled tail stretched further and further until it was the same length of the rest of the animal’s body.

  Soon, the whimpers had pletely drowned out. Repg the pup’s voice were low growls of a man-sized beast, its blue eyes glowing menagly in the dark.

  ? ? ?

  “…Oh hey, what’s gotten into you? You’re not sleeping for once.”

  “My dear brother has informed me that I should be paying attention if I want to pass the uping exam for this css.”

  Several weeks had passed since Serenis began attending the Magistitute as a supposed human named Zion. Most of her time here had bee sleeping, especially during her first week when csses majorly sisted of magic theories and formutions which she couldn’t be bothered to listen to.

  However, ever sihat bsted adva exam, her csses had pletely ged – for the worse, as far as she was ed.

  If the stories about the deity of marue, then not only did she have to feign the identity of a “perfectly human student”, she had to stand out as an exceptional one. And doing so required the dragonlord to ace her exams…or at least not fail them. But that task had been so much easier in her first-year csses.

  Serenis was bnkly staring towards the front, where an instructor was busily expining how different racial biologies affected individual mana circution. She was listening, and somewhat attempting tister what she was hearing – but Light could tell that her friend wasly being successful.

  “Well, you ’t know everything…though, it’s weird you know so little about mana biology when you’re that good at using magic.”

  Throughout their time iures together, Light had e to realize a few things about her odd peer. The most obvious was their uionable mastery over elemental magic; even in third-year level courses, theories and spell formutions were o pointless before the genius that could best an archmage in a duel.

  Oher hand – and the more shog realization – was their ck of knowledge in almost everything else. Just the other day, Zion had asked her the name of the try they were living in. Or what the Mage Association did. Or what sort of nut a ‘donut’ was.

  This ck of knowledge especially became evident in their mana biology css – mostly because the instructor teo ask a lot of questions to the students iure at random.

  Like now.

  “So, here’s a question: how are first-geion halves bor’s see, how about…Zion? Do you know?”

  “? Copution.”

  A number of students looked away in embarrassment, and another few rolled their eyes at the dragonlord’s answer.

  At least the s-word wasn’t spoken out loud.

  The instructor audibly ughed at the dragonlord’s response. She shook her head, wiping off her joyous tears.

  “It’s a isception – unfortunately, incorrect. Ms. Torin, being a half yourself, perhaps you know the correswer? How are first-geion halves born?”

  When Serenis turo face her neighb peer, she noticed that the half girl’s body was shaking ever so slightly. Even though Light khe answer, she found her voice stu her throat, making it a struggle to speak it out loud.

  “Um…mana…evolution.”

  The instructor beamed back a pleased smile towards the half girl, nodding her head several times as she turo the chalkboard.

  “That’s correow, everyone pay attention, as this is an important part that will surely be on your exams.”

  The instructor turo her chalkboard, writing the phrase ‘Mana Evolution’ as she began her expnation.

  “Mana evolution is a phenomenon that only occurs among animal species that possess a heart. As Ms. Torin has pointed out for us, it’s a form of evolution that’s induced by mana. Now, you might be w: if all that’s required is mana and a heart, wouldn’t this phenomenon be sweeping the world? The truth is, it’s not so simple.”

  She then proceeded to write three bullet points underh the phrase: ‘Heart,’ ‘tration,’ and ‘patibility.’

  “Mana evolution requires three distinct ditions to be met by the mana iion. First, the ed mana must reach the animal’s heart; sed, it must be extremely trated; and finally, it must match the animal’s affinities and wavelength. The prevalence of this phenomenon is…”

  The professor went on to expin additional details of the phenomenon for quite some time, but Serenis’ expression remained quizzical and doubtful.

  ‘…What in the world even is that?’

  Halves, by her definition, were simply those borween two different races. She’d seen enough childreween dragons and mankind during her era to know how they were born; she’d thought no different of the various other halves that roamed this human city today, like Karas and Light. To her, an animal ‘evolving’ into a half was unheard of.

  Her thoughts remained fixated oioning the validity of the topic as the lecture went on. In fact, even after the two hours of lecture, she couldn’t get her mind off of the phenomenon – and surprisingly, it seemed like someone else couldn’t get it off their miher.

  Light’s usual chattiness had pletely vanished as they exited the lecture hall. They’d usually make their way over to Karas’ office together after a lecture, but today the trip had so far been dead silent. While Serenis erfectly tent with their all talk, the dragonlord couldn’t help but notice the half girl’s trembling ever sinswering the instructor in css.

  “Child, is everything alright?”

  “Huh? What? Who, me? Yeah, I’m okay, why?”

  “Look at your arm.”

  When Light looked to her own arm holding the bag strap across her shoulder, she finally realized its stant shaking. She tried to sciously stop it, but to no avail.

  “Oh, uh…it’s nothing. I’m just a little cold.”

  “We’re still indoors. The temperature hasn’t ged in weeks.”

  “Uh, maybe I’m getting sick then. e on, move along! Yonna do your research-thing again, right?”

  “And yoing to wait today as well?”

  “Yep.”

  Aside from the first day of Karas’ research with the dragonlord, Light had spent every single day in the libraries or nearby s, waiting for the professor to apany her on the way home. The half girl had cimed that she was just studying harder now that she was ihird year, but Serenis still found it odd; it just seemed like the half girl was refusing to head home by herself, even in broad daylight.

  The shaking didn’t make it aer. If Light was in fact getting sick, then that should’ve been all the more reason to go home a.

  ‘Odd for a child ont to run straight to their before. What’s keeping her here?’

  Mier when Serenis opehe door to Karas’ office, she could see a giant pile of papers on his office desk. His eyes were only half open, and he waved a weak greeting towards his students as they came in.

  “Ah…Zion. Light. I appreciate you both ing again, but I’m afraid I’ll be quite occupied today.”

  “What is all this?”

  “Well, you see…another professor had to call io an injury, and I was tasked with marking some of the assigs their css had. I also have my own csses to care after, so they’ve been piling up a bit. Feel free to head home for today. I apologize for wasting your time.”

  “Is that so? If you’d like, I wait.”

  “No, that won’t be necessary. It’ll be very te into the evening when I finish, if I even do finish within tonight.”

  “Not a problem. I’ll be seeing you, then.”

  Serenis closed the door without ever entering. She spared a go the half girl at her side, who was shaking a little more noticeably than before. And throughout that entire exge, Light hadn’t said a single word – when she’d usually speak more than Serenis ever would.

  “Child.”

  “…Huh? Yeah?”

  “If you’re afraid of going alone, would you like me to apany you home?”

  “Afraid? W, what’re you talking about? Why would I be afraid?”

  “Then will you go home alone? If you’re ill, you’ll he rest.”

  Light’s gaze fell down to the floor. She had, in fact, been pnning to stay however long it took until Karas was doh work. Even though she loathed the thought of having to stay on campus for so long, going home alone hadn’t even been an option she was sidering.

  But she didn’t want to let on that she was terrified of going home alone for whatever reason. Nobody could ever find out.

  “You know, there’s a…small donut shht o where I live.”

  “…?”

  “…Wanna e try some? They’re really good.”

  The default answer when offered food had always been an adamant ‘no’ for Serenis.

  But on occasion, the dragonlord would make exceptions – usually for reasons that had nothing to do with the food itself. She nodded back to the half girl, not at all ed about what the menu even was.

  “I don’t see why not.”

  The half girl’s shaking visibly lessened as her friend agreed to join her on their way home. After all, as far as Light was ed, her friend was a genius that could apparently best an archmage in a duel; there weren’t many that could guarantee safety better.

  Light led the way as they began to head home together in rushed steps. Serenis tried to remain indifferent, but two questions still her mind – the first being her curiosity as to why the half girl was so against going home alone.

  And her sed question, was…

  ‘Again, what kind of nut is a ‘donut’?’