I have a massive headache.
'It has been a while since I felt like this,' I thought.
I could feel sunlight on my face and opened my eyes.
Looking around, I could see wood walls with some paintings hung on them. Scalpels, potions, and bandages were stored in cupboards and on trays around. Large windows showed the sun's rays. A clock on the wall showed it was 12:34, just after noon.
I checked myself and found my injuries stitched up and bandaged.
I was dressed in a cloak similar to a hospital gown from my old world.
My clothes were on a table nearby, and they seemed to be repaired and cleaned with magic.
I noticed a handle sticking from the wall with a sign below it.
I pulled it and heard a ring come from outside the room.
"You're awake," a soothing voice said as a nurse, a middle-aged man with kind brown eyes and a steady demeanour, walked in.
"What… happened?" My voice was hoarse from my dry throat.
"You passed out after the fight for an entire day. From severe mana deficiency and overexertion by the looks of it," the nurse explained while handing me a glass of water and placing a hand on my forehead. "It was very brave of you to do that, but also very foolish."
I thought about the fight and remembered the Hellhounds, my spirits, the barrier, and how badly I was injured.
I shook my head.. "I am an adventurer. Being reckless is part of the job. Besides, I know for a fact that no one here can use the kind of magic that could kill those things."
She tilted her head and asked, "What makes you think that?"
"Hellhounds are demons. You can kill them, but they will come back unless the core is destroyed, which is harder than said. Though the ones I fought could because something was reviving them.
The only way to kill demons without breaking the core is by using Etherial magic," I explained.
"Etherial Magic?" the nurse asked.
"Holy, Infernal, or Spirit magic," I said while raising a finger for each.
"Oh," she exclaimed, but asked, "Wait, how did you know we don't have people who could use those?"
I smiled., "My injuries were stitched and bandaged. If a holy magic user were here, they would have healed me.
I would have seen a Spirit magic user, and if there were an Infernal magic user, the school would have gotten a warning about the Hellhounds before the attack, as that kind of ritual requires time. And if the school does have someone, they are the one who caused everything."
She stared at me in amazement and said, "Ok, that is impressive. Did you figure that out on your own?"
Smiling, I said, "Not everything, but yes."
My thoughts began to wander, and I asked, "What about everyone else? Was anyone else hurt?"
"Everyone survived," the nurse reassured me. "And no one was hurt other than you."
I let out a sigh of relief, closing my eyes briefly.
We continued to talk for a bit about a few unimportant things when the door suddenly opened, and the nurse jumped in surprise as the Headmaster walked in.
"Could you please leave us alone, Roran?" the Headmaster ordered while masking it as a question.
The nurse, Roran, quickly composed himself, realizing who it was, nodded, and left the room.
We waited a few seconds in silence until the Headmaster broke it and said, "I want to thank you for your help with the situation yesterday."
I nodded.. "It's no problem. I did what I had to. I'm just glad they were weaker."
She raised her eyebrow. "What do you mean weaker?"
"The large Hellhound was a Rank 4 Demon. Those are equivalent to a party of A-Rank Adventurers at least," I explained.
"I am nowhere near the level of a single A-Ranker, even with my Spirits. Besides, the Hounds were probably in a weakened state because of their... creation, but if left alone, they would have grown stronger if given enough time."
I decided to leave out the concern of someone controlling them, as it could be problematic for me later, and I wasn't sure if the Headmaster was involved or not.
She nodded, tapped her fingers against her thigh, and said, "I see. So the only reason you won was that they were in a weakened state." She took a moment to think.
After some time, she looked at me again and asked, "You said Spirits. Are you referring to the creatures you summoned?"
"Yes, I am a Spirit summoner, and those two are the spirits I have contracts with," I said.
I originally wanted to hide that fact from the faculty, but circumstances didn't allow that.
The Headmaster nodded her head, hiding her excitement, and asked, "What do you remember about the fight against the Direwolf? It could lead us to the cause of its evolution."
I could sense her treating me nicer than a moment ago, and it didn't feel right.
I recounted the fight and then said what I remembered from the fight against the Hellhounds.
When I was finished, she asked, "What do you know of the barrier that surrounded the Arena?"
Realizing it could be dangerous to answer, I gave a confused expression and lied., "Barrier?... I did notice a barrier around the Arena, but I thought that was the staff. Are you saying someone else caused it?"
The Headmaster didn't respond, but she seemed to buy the lie I told her.
I wasn't going to say it was because of the Primordial Spirit I have a contract with; they are considered equivalent to Gods by some people.
We sat in silence for a bit when, curious, I asked, "Do you know how they evolved? There had never been a case of wolves turning into Hellhounds like that outside of a ritual."
The Headmaster's expression darkened slightly, but she didn't answer immediately. "That is… a matter of investigation. For now, focus on your recovery. We have postponed the welcoming ceremony due to the investigation. It will take place in 5 days when things have calmed down."
"Rest. You've earned it," the Headmaster said and turned to leave the room.
Before the Headmaster left, she turned back and added, "Please come find me before the ceremony. I want to speak with you about your enrolment." Then she turned and left.
I decided to get changed into my normal clothes, as this gown was uncomfortable and I wanted to make sure I had all my stuff.
When I finished changing and making sure I had everything, I sat back down in the bed.
I laid back and stared at the ceiling, frustration and curiosity gnawing at my brain as many questions flashed through it.
'What had caused the Hellhounds to evolve? Was the Headmaster involved? What does she want to talk to me about? Does she want to silence me?'
I lay there and contemplated everything that had happened.
~~~~~~~
Terras POV
It has been 3 years since I enrolled in the Second Academy. The school isn't perfect and heavily leans towards nobles rather than the common people, worries more about reputation than ability, and does nothing to stop bullying.
I have taken it upon myself to care for the lower students and prevent them from being bullied.
I have done my best to change things, but no matter what, there is always someone doing something bad.
This year, I was looking forward to Jack joining the academy and helping me change this school for the better.
He should have joined last year, but was delayed because of circumstances he didn't tell me about and missed the Entrance Exam.
He is here now and scored the highest in the Exam with a score of 100, but passed out before he heard it after fighting monsters that could have destroyed the entire school.
He was rushed to the infirmary while the faculty handled the remaining Hellhounds.
Strangely, the smaller ones stopped moving and just fell over when the Alpha did. It was almost like the Alpha was the thing keeping the Hounds alive.
I know Jack's personality and how salty he can get when he does work but doesn't get paid, so I managed to get some resources from the bodies—
the hide, claws, teeth, a few bones, blood, and most importantly, the intact cores of four of the Hellhounds, plus the Alpha's. All of these resources were extremely valuable, so getting them was a hassle.
Normally, the academy would harvest the resources themselves and reward the students who killed it with half, but the academy wanted to keep it all for themselves, so it was a difficult task, but I managed.
Right now, I am on my way to check on Jack with some of his friends—
Araki, a lizardman and the eldest son of an old friend, Rirki, and a young man named Ark, whom Jack seemed to befriend during the exam.
Araki was very proud of Jack and was amazed by his power and skill, while Ark was behind us, walking quietly and looking pretty nervous.
"Are you sure it's ok for me to come with you?" he asked.
I turned back and said, "Of course. Even if you haven't known him for long, you care about him, and that speaks a lot about how your relationship will go."
"W-What do you mean by that?" he quickly said, flustered.
I gave a knowing smile and turned back to Araki, who was so focused on gushing about Jack that he didn't notice me talking to Ark.
When we got to the infirmary office, I noticed the nurse Roran sitting at the desk.
He noticed us and said, "Hello, Terra. Is someone injured, or are you visiting Jackson?"
Araki, surprised, asked, "How do you know we are visiting Jack?"
Roran smiled. "He is the only person here right now, so it's a simple process of elimination. I'm guessing you're friends of his."
Araki nodded.
I let out a smile and asked, "How is he doing?"
"You're lucky. He just woke up and is doing fine. He is talking to the Headmaster right now, but you can go in when she leaves," he said and gestured to some chairs.
We all sat down, but Ark sat a bit away, clearly nervous and a little uncomfortable.
I didn't pressure him, but gave him a warm smile.
'I wonder how things will go between them,' I thought to myself with a smile.
It didn't take long, as the Headmaster walked through the hallway a few minutes later.
She either didn't notice us or just ignored us, but that didn't matter.
We all got up, and Roran led us to Jack's room and let us in.