Chapter 38: No funny business
Complicated thoughts clouded Rocky's mind after he caught a glimpse of Sophia's tattoo.
He wondered if kidnapping Sophia to barter with her patron god for the release of Riva was a sensible idea?
He wondered if kidnapping a fellow student from the University was possible or not?
He wondered if she had any involvement with the disappearance of his sister at all, or was he hating on someone innocent?
"Damn it, damn it, damn it-" Rocky cursed as he paced around his dorm room with no control over his emotions as somehow the presence of Sophia itself riled Rocky to a point which Rocky could never have expected.
Usually, Rocky was a calm and composed individual, however, at this moment he felt anxious as he could sense that something was amiss.
Could her presence in the university at the same time as Rocky be coincidental?
Was this some sort of a high level game being played between gods?
Rocky had no idea as to what the answer to these questions was, however, his guts told him that the champion of Olympian gods being at the same university as him could not be a coincidence.
" Puny human! What happened? Why did you become so upset?" Asked Buhara as he and Erin also reached their dorm room, chasing after Rocky who left them in the dust.
" Sir Rocky? Are you okay? You don't seem like a gentleman who would be riled up easily, would you perhaps like to share what happened? Orc Buhara seems like a good listener" said Erin as he calmly gestured Rocky to take a seat, as the presence of others around him prompted Rocky to regain his composure as he let out a deep sigh and smiled once again.
" I'm okay! I just felt nauseous from the crowd. Felt like returning to the dorm fast" Rocky lied, as Erin picked up on his lie immediately but chose to remain silent.
" Puny human became nauseous? Puny human truly puny. Orcs like Buhara never become nauseous, Orcs strong" Buhara said, as Rocky's lie went completely over his head as he believed it to be true.
" It's okay sir Rocky, it happens to the best of us" Erin said, comforting Rocky as he did not press for answers that Rocky did not wish to share.
Nodding affirmatively towards Erin, Rocky thanked him silently for letting the matter go, as he returned to his normal state of mind.
His gut told him that the Champion of Poseidon being here could not be a coincidence and that he needed to beware of her, which was why Rocky decided to take a cautious approach while interacting with her in the future.
************
Sophia had already seen a photo of Rocky before coming to the university for nourishment of young talents, so she already knew who he was.
As Rocky made his way from amidst the crowd, Sophia recognised him in an instant, as she noticed his facial expressions in extreme detail as he gazed upon her.
His expression changed from one of awe at being mesmerized by her beauty to that of disgust as he observed her tattoo as he immediately pushed back and left the crowd once he realized the patron god supporting her.
'What a cutie' thought Sophia as judging by his reactions she could already make out that Rocky would not be amiable to conversing with her directly.
Should he be mesmerized by her beauty, being influenced by the charm artifact that she wore, Sophia would have tried a more proactive approach to entering his good books, but after judging his reaction today, she realized that a direct approach would fail miserably.
Rocky was wary of her and to break into his good books under these circumstances needed more nuanced 'coincidences'.
'Hmmm, this should be fun-' she thought, as with a soft smile she plotted her future plan of action.
************
( Meanwhile, somewhere on the academy grounds )
A humble man with curly hair, a long entangled beard and a monocle walked through the academy grounds with his hands behind his back and a slight hunch forward.
*mamsbxjsmss*
He seemed to be mumbling something imperceptible under his breath as by his cadence and demeanor, it seemed like he was extremely angry.
" Revealing her identity so soon? How narcissistic does one have to be to do this….. this is not good, not good" he mumbled to himself as he clutched his hands and grit his teeth.
" I don't care about gods. I don't care about your internal fights. This university is MY domain and I am it's sole operator" he murmured to the heavens, seemingly taunting the gods to test his wrath if they dared.
" Gigolo, Pigolo" he said, as two ghosts materialized themselves beside the man, awaiting his instructions.
"Keep an eye on the two champions. Knock them out unconscious the second they try something funny.
I will not tolerate any funny business in my university" he said as gigolo and pigolo vanished from his sight, fading into the air as if they never existed.
While the students were yet to meet him, the man ordering the ghosts was none other than the principal of the university and the madman who was feared throughout the first fifty floors of the tower.
The Ghost Whisperer, Liam Hartley
Chapter 39: Unexpected Call Up
( The next day )
The next morning, both Rocky and Erin woke up with red eyes.
One look at each other's face and they understood that they had both suffered the same horrible fate of listening to Buhara's snoring all night long.
" Buha…Buha….buharararararara"
That orc literally snored his own name at night, making it extremely difficult for Rocky and Erin to sleep who were not accustomed to such sounds.
Not wishing to be a nuisance, they tolerated it all night long, however, the effects of sleep deprivation were visible on their faces the next morning.
"I wish I still had a refreshment potion. That would've helped" Rocky said, looking into Erin's eyes, as the latter reached into his belongings and brought out a vial of cheap grade refreshment potion.
" Here, I've bought this to prepare for examination nights, but I guess we can share one on this beautiful morning" Erin said as Rocky opened the vial and drank half, before passing it to Erin who drank the other half.
Although not as potent as the potion the system gave Rocky, it still helped him get over the fatigue and drowsiness, as he felt ready to tackle the day ahead.
***********
( The grand orientation hall, UFNOYT )
Early in the morning, all the newly enrolled students gathered in the grand orientation hall, for the mandatory student orientation.
It was only today and the last day of University, which was graduation that all students mandatorily gathered under one hall, as one could witness the full strength of the batch.
Rocky sat alongside Buhara and Erin, with Rocky sitting furthest to the right, then Buhara sitting on three chairs at once, with Erin sitting to the furthest left, as for two rows behind Buhara, no other student dared to sit, leaving the space empty as to not block their own vision.
Overall, the entire hall was jam-packed and there was an atmosphere of visible excitement and ambition.
Towards the very end, near the stage, some teachers stood in front of the first row, who would be the instructors teaching the students the various subjects and on the stage stood the principal of the university, the infamous ghost whisperer, Liam Hartley.
Currently he stood on the stage wearing his monocle in peace, however, he was only waiting for everyone to settle down before starting his speech.
About 90% of the students had arrived before time and already settled down, however there were a few who were still entering, while a few were clamoring around Sophia, who just like yesterday was the center of attention.
She was sitting a few rows below Rocky, and Rocky had his eyes trained directly at her.
He observed her every move, every action, however, as of now, she only appeared to be a very amiable and gentle lady.
"Alright, it's 9 am, Close the doors" said the principal as his voice boomed throughout the hall and all the entry doors to the grand hall, closed automatically.
He paused for a moment, as everyone took their seats, and although there were over 5000 students in the hall, within seconds there was pin-drop silence as the principal's reputation preceded him.
" I am Liam Hartley, the founder and principal of this prestigious academy that has produced some of the finest climbers that the tower has ever seen.
I founded this university because my younger brother was chosen as a climber, but because of inadequate training before challenging the floors, he lost his life.
I won't go into the details, I'm sure it's a story you all must have heard, but that day, I vowed to create a proper institute to train as many as climbers as I could, as nicely as I could, so that what happened to my brother would not happen to anyone else" The principal said in stone cold voice, as even on a sensitive topic like losing his brother, his voice did not show any emotional fluctuations.
"In this university, there is only one thing that I do not tolerate and that is lack of effort.
Every week, I personally read the progress report of all you 5000+ newly enrolled students and those amongst you who do not work as hard as I expect you to, face the wrath of my ghosts in your nightmares" Liam said, as he candidly admitted to torture like practises.
" My motto is simple. I will beat you into the best version of yourself, even if you don't wish to become one yourself" He said, as Rocky had goosebumps run all over his spine when he heard the conviction with which the principal spoke such tricky words.
" The teachers here are top class, the best instructors, paid the highest salaries all across the tower, and they are all here for one reason and one reason only, which is to shape you all into the best version of yourself.
Regardless of what path you choose for yourself. The end goal is excellence.
Which is why we only admit excellent students and only graduate excellent students as well" He said with pride as a soft smile broke out on his face.
" Now. Before I carry on, I must say that amongst us today, are two distinct individuals who might think themselves to be a little more 'special' compared to the rest of us…..
These two individuals have made history by being the first two individuals to ever join the university on full scholarship, so let us welcome to the stage amongst thunderous applause.
The champion of Poseidon Sophia
And
The champion of Gemini Rocky" Liam said, as the entire university broke into thunderous applause.
Rocky, who had no idea why he was exposed like this, stayed rooted to his seat in complete silence, while Sophia stood up with an evident frown on her face.
Apparently, she did not expect this turn of events either.
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/// A/N - Bonus chapter for hitting the PS target, good job everyone! ///
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