“You looked so cool in that Whitemane Leather Armor, partner,” Flavia commented as the group was walking out of the Mazaar Shopping District.
“Yes, it looked… really good on you, Narias,” Ileena added, trying to keep her gaze in front of her.
“Madam Froxen did an amazing job. I’m glad… it worked out,” Emilia touched one of her cheeks with one hand just briefly, before brushing her unruly hair away from her face.
An armor with magic properties? Now that I think about it, my former classmates were talking about equipping their in-game characters with the best armor and weapons they could get. Those were video games, but in here… Sigh… Growla’s shop has some magic armor and weapons for sale too. Why did I not think about it myself? Making some casual clothing out of that fur would’ve been a total waste for sure. Baah… Narias was thinking in his head at the same time. Still, that was quite a surprise. The girls could’ve made something for themselves anyway. I feel…
“Narias. Naaa… rias… Hello…” Narias suddenly heard his name being called out multiple times.
“Huh? What? Did… something happen?” Narias started to look around.
“That’s what I’d like to know, partner,” Flavia’s face was right in front of his.
“Eh? F… Flavia?” Seeing his bunny girlfriend’s charming face up close was enough to get Narias flustered.
“What’s wrong, parnter? You’ve completely zoned out,” Flavia’s face was still in front of his.
“Ah, sorry about that,” Narias threw one of his hands behind his head. “I was just… thinking you were so kind to have Madam Froxen make this outfit for me. You could’ve made… something for yourselves, really.”
“It’s called Whitemane Leather Armor. Humph,” his bunny girlfriend pouted her lips.
“That wouldn’t have been wise in my opinion,” Ileena adjusted her glasses, adding a very smart look on her face.
“What? Why?” Narias was curious why would Ileena say that.
“Simple. That Whitemane Leather Armor offers protection from physical attacks. It would’ve been unreasonable to have me or Emilia wear it since we usually cast spells from a distance. It is much more suitable for someone who fights upfront,” she explained.
“But then… Flavia should’ve been the one to get it. She’s the one who fights at close range,” Narias suddenly felt bad about it.
“Yes, I do, but… you were the one who would always jump in close range to help me and Growly fight the monsters inside the Magic Dungeon. Besides, Madam Froxen said the Whitemane Leather Armor would restrict my movements if I wanted to use my Anima-Transformation ability, since it wouldn’t allow for extra stretch and stuff. That would be really bad. So, that’s why I wanted you to have it,” Flavia added her adorable grin at the end.
“Well… thank you… again,” Narias felt extremely grateful.
“You’re welcome, Narias,” Emilia smiled.
“It was… an obvious choice,” Ileena added.
“It’s not much, but… how about I treat you to something before we go back to the campus? There should be a diner or two on our way back,” he offered.
“Cool. Thanks, partner,” Flavia instantly agreed.
“That’s very kind of you. I’m… feeling a little hungry,” Ileena agreed while trying to act normal.
“Thank you, Narias,” Emilia simply said thanks.
Wow. They’re all… so wonderful. Narias’s heart really skipped a beat.
After they had something to eat, Narias and his girlfriends returned to the campus. The rest of the weekend was rather quiet. The academy was to resume normal class schedule starting next week, so everyone was preparing for that. However, Monday morning wasn’t as normal as Narias expected it to be.
As soon as he stepped out of his dorm room, he instantly found himself surrounded by a group of students. The news spread fast. Many students did their homework, learning who the Centurian Conquerors team was, and so, wanted to either recruit Narias, and his friends, into their own student clubs, or wished to join theirs.
Growly being Growly, wasn’t really bothered by it. Besides, the way he was, not many students dared to approach him in the first place. Flavia had to resort to her loud voice and threats to keep the students at bay and Emilia was still unapproachable by how most of the students viewed her. That left Narias with thanking, apologizing and telling everyone he wasn’t interested in joining another club.
Other student club’s trying to recruit them was only one side of the coin, though. There were many students who actually wanted to join the Magic Research student club. That’s where Ileena came in. The club’s founder, and manager, wasn’t about to let just anyone join in. So, she had prepared a new application form for people to fill out if they wanted to be considered as possible candidates to begin with. And the application form was twice as thick as the one Narias had to fill out. Needless to say, that scared most of the wishy-washy students away. Some of them had picked up the application forms, but never returned.
The first few days of the new week were so chaotic, the Magic Research club members weren’t even able to train properly at their club’s place without being bothered by anyone. Ileena was dealing with all the enquires while Growly was acting almost like a bodyguard to not let any outsiders enter the building without permission. There were a few students who were so bold, and rude, to let themselves in without being invited.
“Geez… what a week. Are they all crazy? I hope I can do some proper training today,” Flavia complained as soon as she entered her club’s room.
“It should be fine. We had only a few students show up yesterday. I believe the initial excitement has cooled down now,” Ileena was reading a book, sitting at the table.
“Your Magic Dungeon exploration tests results were over the roof. It’s no wonder so many students were impressed by it,” Nicky added with a smile.
“Yeah, we did awesome, didn’t we?” Flavia grinned wide, showing a thumbs up gesture.
“Of course,” Nicky agreed with her.
“It’s normal. As soon as one club performs better, a lot of students from the underperforming clubs rush to join them. That’s why they never amount to anything,” Ileena commented, not lifting her eyes from the book she was reading.
“As harsh as ever, aren’t you Ileena?” Her tiny friend chuckled. “But come to think of it, I think I saw a few of our former club member come to apply to join us. What happened to them?”
“I refused them, of course,” Ileena answered in a calm voice.
“Really? Why is that?” Nicky wanted to know.
“I have no reason to trust them after they left our club and almost got us disbanded,” again, Ileena was calm, but serious at the same time.
“Yeah, that makes sense,” her friend had to agree with Ileena again.
“But come to think of it, it would be good to get more club members,” Flavia added, crossing her arms in front of her.
“I am not against people joining our club, but I am yet to receive a single fully filled out application form,” Ileena added, before turning the next page of her book.
“Bummer…” Flavia smacked her fist into her other hand’s palm.
“Hello everyone,” Narias has finally showed up.
“Hi,” with Growly accompanying him.
“Yo’, partner. How’s it going, Growly?” Flavia’s mood instantly changed.
“Hi Narias. Hello Growly,” Nicky greeted them both as well.
“Hello Narias, Growly,” Ileena stayed at the table.
“Huh? No one’s… there?” Narias started to look around.
“Hah. I was surprised myself. Looks like the field is clear. We might be able to have some proper training today,” Flavia confirmed there were no nosy students around.
“Ok, great. I would like to use the gym room today, if you don’t mind?” Narias was ready to start training right away.
“Yeah, lift weights,” Growly admitted he’d like to do some weight training as well.
“Then how about you and me do some training together, Ileena?” Flavia was raring to go too.
“Sorry, I agreed I’ll wait for Emilia today. How about you go with Nicky instead?” Ileena refused.
“Alright, Nicky, let’s go,” Flavia didn’t even wait for Nicky to say anything.
“Ah, I guess I have no choice,” Nicky honestly didn’t.
Narias and Growly hit the gym room while Flavia and Nicky went outside to train together. Emilia showed up some time later and, without wasting too much time, went together with Ileena to do whatever training they agreed upon as well. The boys were eager to break an extra sweat, so it was the girls who went to use the bath first. After they were done, Narias and Growly went in to treat their sore muscles to a relaxing bath as well. The boys were still inside the bath when an unexpected visitor showed up at the Magic Research club, catching the chatting girls unaware.
“Well, well, well. That’s quite a place you have here,” Miss Salroze entered the main club’s room.
“Woah! Don’t scare me like that, Miss Salroze,” Flavia almost jumped from being startled.
“Miss Salroze? Ah, ahem… Hello and welcome to our student club,” Ileena was surprised to see her as well, but was quick to remember her manners.
Emilia and Nicky greeted the female teacher as well.
“Apologies for bursting in like that. I probably should’ve knocked before entering,” Belinda apologized.
“It’s ok, Miss Salroze,” Ileena reassured her.
“For sure. We had so many people simply barge in during the whole week, it was becoming unbearable,” Flavia on the other hand, had no problem telling the teacher what she thought.
“Flavia,” Ileena threw a stare at the bunny girl.
“What?” Flavia furrowed her eyebrows, not understanding why Ileena would glare at her like that.
“Hah, don’t worry about it. You must’ve had it rough, considering what your group has achieved during the Magic Dungeon exploration test. Speaking of your group, there’s a few of you missing,” Belinda looked around.
“Oh, Narias and Growly are taking a bath. They should be done soon… probably,” again, it was Flavia who responded first.
“Taking a bath, eh?” The female teacher had an interesting look on her face, then looked to the side, not exactly trying to see someone or something. “That’s right. Ranga told me this was not an ordinary student club building.”
“If I may ask, what is the reason you came here for, Miss Salroze?” Ileena asked politely.
“About that,” Belinda turned to face her. “I came to officially congratulate you all for performing so well during the dungeon exploration test. Jean was very pleased with it as well. Too pleased, if you ask me. Anyway, since you’ve done so well, Jean had instructed me to come visit you and… offer your student club a reward, within reasonable limits of course. So, is there something that you’d like for your club?”
“A reward?! Heck yeah!” Flavia was excited, and loud.
“Wow, isn’t that great?” Nicky clapped her hands.
“A reward for our club? But…” Ileena was a little surprised to hear it.
“Sceptical, are we?” Belinda noticed Ileena’s surprise. “Don’t worry, each student will receive credits according to how well they did, but since majority members of the… ahem… Centurian Conquerors team were from your student club, Jean approved for your club to receive an extra reward.”
“Hey, maybe we could get some more space then?” Flavia was quick to suggest it.
“Extra space?” Ileena wondered.
“Yeah. We had so many students want to join our club. If we get more people, we will need more space, right?” Flavia was optimistic, even when Ileena told her earlier that there wasn’t a single student who returned a fully filled out application form.
“That would be great, wouldn’t it?” Nicky agreed with Flavia on this one.
“It might be… a good idea,” Emilia was in favor as well.
“In that case, would it be possible for us to get more space, Miss Salroze?” Ileena finally gave in.
“More space, eh? Jean must be a mind reader, humph,” Belinda chuckled to herself. “To tell you the truth, I didn’t expect for this house to be so big. So, how about you show me around and then we will check what can be done about adding more space for your club?”
“Great,” Flavia jumped from her seat.
“How about we start with our gym’s room?” Ileena suggested.
“Your gym’s room?” Belinda was curious.
They went around to show each room that the Magic Research student club was using. There weren’t many of course. There was the main room that they’ve been talking at just a moment ago, gym’s room, storage room and bathroom, with the bath itself. It was still occupied by the boys, so they didn’t go inside to see how it looked. There was one more room next to the bathroom, right in front of the storage room, and the stairs to go to the second and the third floors, but all those rooms were locked and not accessible.
“Ok, let’s see what we have here,” the teacher took out the keys and unlocked the door opposite the storage room. “Of course, just like I thought. I doubt it would be of any use to…”
“Wow, such a huge kitchen,” Flavia was instantly impressed after she entered the room which was used as a kitchen before. “Isn’t that great? We could cook and eat together here.”
“That’s true. It’s very spacious,” Emilia agreed.
“It’s so much fun eating together,” Nicky commented.
“I… I would like to learn how to cook better,” Ileena, who was the last one to enter the kitchen room, admitted, also feeling slightly embarrassed about it too.
“Hey, check this out…” Flavia was already inspecting the place.
“What? They… actually want a kitchen?” Belinda didn’t expect to see such reaction from the girls. “Hah, figures. And why am I surprised? Huh? Wha-”
At the same time, the door to the bathroom opened and Narias walked out, not expecting to find anyone standing in the corridor. The kitchen room door was right next to the bathroom door on the side, and since Belinda Salroze was still standing in the corridor, he literally bumped into her, even if just slightly.
“Ahh… that was a nice ba- huh? Ah-“ Narias wasn’t really looking in front of him when he was walking out of the bathroom. As to be expected, he bumped into the person who was standing there, almost tripping and falling down. In order to keep his balance, he quickly extended his arms forward to reach for the wall, so he wouldn’t fall. As a result, he ended up pushing Belinda to the wall with him, as well as pressing himself with his body at her due to the inertia of him falling forward.
Oops… Wha- Huh? I hit the wall, but… it’s kinda soft… A thought flashed in Narias’s mind before he opened his eyes.
“Wow, talk about being bold,” Narias heard a soft whisper in his ear.
“Huh? Ah… Eehm…” Narias was about to exclaim out loud from the surprise, after seeing Belinda’s face right in front of his, but quickly shut his mouth to keep it quiet. He had both of his hands rammed against the wall, with Belinda being right in the middle. Her back was pressed against the wall with Narias pressing against her. It looked almost like a scene from some romantic drama movie Anthony’s sister used to watch. “Miss… Salroze? Why… are you here?”
Even when he asked it, Narias didn’t push himself away from her.
“Well, I missed you too,” Belinda had her alluringly mischievous smile on her face. Her eyes quickly jumped left and right, as if trying to catch something, which made Narias become confused about his current situation even more. Noticing his confusion, and verifying it was safe to do so, Belinda swiftly pressed her lips against his, grabbing onto his shirt to keep him exactly where he was.
“Mhm…?” Narias wasn’t exactly resisting her kiss, however, his mind was panicking, hearing the girls’ voices coming from the open side room, or knowing that Growly was about to leave the bathroom any second now.
“Aahmm… Be careful… someone might see us,” Belinda said with a tease, her lips still touching his.
“Uh? Oh, aaa… S… sorry, I…” it was hard to tell if Narias was flustered because of her words, her kiss, or the thrill of someone seeing them.
“Don’t be. I’m not…” Belinda continued with her tease, but it had to end right there and then.
“Miss Salroze? Miss Salroze, can we… Oh, Narias. You’re finally out of the bath. Eh? Is something wrong?” Since they couldn’t see the teacher from where they were, Flavia came out to check on her, only to find Narias standing in the corridor as well.
“Huh? Ah, yeah. I just got out and… I was surprised to see… Miss Salroze standing there,” Narias’s face was all red.
“Oh, that’s right. You couldn’t have known she was here,” Flavia said with a laugh.
“Sorry, I will go grab a drink, ok?” Narias really needed to cool off.
“A drink? Oh, he must’ve had a really hot bath. His face was all red,” Flavia wondered, then quickly turned to Belinda again. “Hey, Miss Salroze, could we get the kitchen for our student club? Pleeease.”
“You really want it?” Belinda acted like nothing happened just a moment ago. She walked inside the kitchen to take a better look around. “I guess… it can be arranged, but Jean will have to approve your request first. And if she does, they will have to do the kitchen renovation works. It looks… unusable as it is right now.”
“Oh, a kitchen. Cool,” Growly left the bathroom and went to check inside the room which was always locked up till now. The bear boy grinned excitedly upon entering the kitchen room, noticing the teacher being present only a few second later. “Miss Salroze… I hope the cake was nice.”
“That’s right. We didn’t have a chance to ask you about our Thank You gift yet. How did you like it, Miss Salroze?” Flavia wanted to know.
“Your Thank You gift?” Belinda crossed her arms in front of her. “Well, calling it a surprise would be an understatement.”
“For real. It was such a surprise to us when Narias told us he wanted to buy flowers for you, Miss Salroze,” Flavia told her with a laugh.
“Was it now?” The teacher turned her head to glance at the person who just entered the kitchen room. “I must admit… as unexpected as it was, it was also extremely pleasing.”
“Cough… Ah… sorry,” Narias almost choked on his drink when she said that.
“I hope… the book about the Orchivids was useful, Miss Salroze?” Ileena asked, trying to hide her slightly embarrassed face.
“Yes, it was. Thank you for that, Ileena,” Belinda said.
“I bought the card,” Flavia wanted to let her know.
“It was… quite a card too,” the female teacher commented.
“What about the cake?” Growly was still waiting for the answer.
“Yes, did you like the cake, Miss Salroze?” Nicky was curious to know too, since she was the one to suggest buying it.
“The cake?” Belinda lowered her head to think about it. She then raised her eyes up, adding a mischievous smile on her face. “The cake was so good, I felt like each bite was taking me for a ride into a Dream World.”
“Pff… Cough, cough… ugh…” this time, Narias actually choked before he could finish his drink.
“Hey, are you ok, partner?” Flavia became worried about him.
“Yeah… cough… I’m fine. Sorry… I… cough…” He had to scramble to get himself in order. A very satisfied grin flashed on Belinda’s face, which she managed to hide the next second, so nobody could see it.
“Good cake?” Growly on the other hand, was thinking about the cake itself.
“Wow, that cake must’ve been really good,” Nicky agreed.
“Hey, I’d like to try that cake myself,” Flavia joined in.
“Buy it next time?” It was hard to say if Growly was asking a question or talking to himself.
“Yes, let’s do that,” Nicky took it as a question.
Hmph… Belinda smiled to herself, then gave one last look around the kitchen. A kitchen, eh? Maybe that’s a better choice for now, since I am sure there’d be only bedrooms upstairs. Let’s keep them locked for the time being.
“Alright, I think it’s time for me to go. I’ll inform the headmistress about your request. She will probably approve it, but I can’t make any promises,” Belinda informed, ready to leave.
“We understand. Thank you, Miss Salroze,” Ileena thanked her.
“Yo’, this will be so awesome,” Flavia was extremely happy about it.
“One more thing, I need to talk to you… in private,” the teacher turned to Narias.
“Me?” Fortunately, Narias was already done with his drink.
“Yes, it’s about…” Belinda noticed everyone was curious about her request. “About your performance during the dungeon exploration. It shouldn’t take long. I’ll wait for you outside. Take care the rest of you.”
“Yes, I’m… coming,” Narias had no reason to keep the teacher waiting.
“Flavia, did Narias do something to upset Miss Salroze during the Magic Dungeon exploration?” Ileena asked as soon both of them left the room.
“No way. I mean… I don’t know,” Flavia couldn’t think of anything.
“I can’t think of anything either,” Emilia admitted.
“Narias was cool,” Growly said.
The group kept guessing, but couldn’t come up with anything specific.
“Excuse me, but… what did you want to talk to me about, Miss Salroze?” Narias didn’t know what to expect.
“Thank you…” Belinda had her back turned to Narias, so he couldn’t hear her very well. She then turned her head to face him. “Thank you for not telling anyone about us.”
“Oh, that. I promised I won’t, so…” Narias rubbed the back of his neck.
“I’m glad… you’re keeping your promise. I… I apologize for putting you on the spot back there. I’m talking about the cake, not about you jumping on me the way you did,” Belinda smiled with a tease.
“Aah… sorry, that was an accident. I honestly didn’t expect anyone to be there and the way it happened…” Narias became flustered again.
“Hey, I am not complaining about that part,” she turned to face him fully.
“Yeah, me neither. Huh? Ah… I meant…” Narias was put on the spot by himself this time.
“Hmm,” which made Belinda chuckle. “That aside, I honestly wanted to talk to you about your performance during the dungeon exploration. I noticed something during the fights. Tell me, do you know your mana capacity, or its limits?”
“Well, my parents always said I had more magical energy than the average child of my age,” Narias answered.
“That wasn’t my question,” Belinda furrowed her eyebrows. “What I’ve noticed was you were casting more spells than anyone else, but at the end of each fight you were the least one tired. That could’ve been explained for Flavia and Growly since half beast-humans and beast-humans are physically stronger, but you… you always had energy to spare. I bet you weren’t using your abilities to the fullest either.”
“Oh, I… I guess… maybe…” Narias didn’t know what to say.
“So, here’s the thing. Starting next week, you’ll be training with me. Unfortunately, I can spare only one day a week, but it should be enough to start things off,” Belinda was motioning with her hand as she spoke.
“What? Really? Does mean you’re finally willing to supervise my training, Miss Salroze?” Narias became excited.
“Supervise your… Oh, I think you got it all wrong. I wasn’t talking about your regular training at the academy’s arena after the classes are over. I am talking about our one-on-one training at my place,” Belinda ended her explanation with a mischievous smile.
“Huh? Your place?” Narias instantly blushed.
“Oh? I was talking about a real training. Not about what you just thought,” Belinda commented with a tease.
“Ah… I… I didn’t think about anything,” Narias was really bad at lying.
“Really?” Belinda saw him right through.
“Well, ok. I… I thought about our Dream World as well,” he admitted.
“Ah? I… Ahem,” his straight answer made Belinda catch a flush this time. “Anyway… That’s all I wanted to talk to you about. You’ll be informed of Jean’s decision about the kitchen and… I will let you know about our training schedule. Take care… my ‘dream guy’.
Belinda was walking away, throwing a wave of her hand with the last words she had said.
“Thank you and… I’m looking forward to our training, Belinda,” Narias responded to the walking away sexy female teacher.
Eh? Why you… Belinda didn’t turn around, but Narias’s words made an impact. Her cheeks were burning red too. Damn it. I thought I had an upper hand, but he managed to get me in the end. And I had to remember the wall hug too. Tch… I need a drink.
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“You looked so cool in that Whitemane Leather Armor, partner,” Flavia commented as the group was walking out of the Mazaar Shopping District.
“Yes, it looked… really good on you, Narias,” Ileena added, trying to keep her gaze in front of her.
“Madam Froxen did an amazing job. I’m glad… it worked out,” Emilia touched one of her cheeks with one hand just briefly, before brushing her unruly hair away from her face.
An armor with magic properties? Now that I think about it, my former classmates were talking about equipping their in-game characters with the best armor and weapons they could get. Those were video games, but in here… Sigh… Growla’s shop has some magic armor and weapons for sale too. Why did I not think about it myself? Making some casual clothing out of that fur would’ve been a total waste for sure. Baah… Narias was thinking in his head at the same time. Still, that was quite a surprise. The girls could’ve made something for themselves anyway. I feel…
“Narias. Naaa… rias… Hello…” Narias suddenly heard his name being called out multiple times.
“Huh? What? Did… something happen?” Narias started to look around.
“That’s what I’d like to know, partner,” Flavia’s face was right in front of his.
“Eh? F… Flavia?” Seeing his bunny girlfriend’s charming face up close was enough to get Narias flustered.
“What’s wrong, parnter? You’ve completely zoned out,” Flavia’s face was still in front of his.
“Ah, sorry about that,” Narias threw one of his hands behind his head. “I was just… thinking you were so kind to have Madam Froxen make this outfit for me. You could’ve made… something for yourselves, really.”
“It’s called Whitemane Leather Armor. Humph,” his bunny girlfriend pouted her lips.
“That wouldn’t have been wise in my opinion,” Ileena adjusted her glasses, adding a very smart look on her face.
“What? Why?” Narias was curious why would Ileena say that.
“Simple. That Whitemane Leather Armor offers protection from physical attacks. It would’ve been unreasonable to have me or Emilia wear it since we usually cast spells from a distance. It is much more suitable for someone who fights upfront,” she explained.
“But then… Flavia should’ve been the one to get it. She’s the one who fights at close range,” Narias suddenly felt bad about it.
“Yes, I do, but… you were the one who would always jump in close range to help me and Growly fight the monsters inside the Magic Dungeon. Besides, Madam Froxen said the Whitemane Leather Armor would restrict my movements if I wanted to use my Anima-Transformation ability, since it wouldn’t allow for extra stretch and stuff. That would be really bad. So, that’s why I wanted you to have it,” Flavia added her adorable grin at the end.
“Well… thank you… again,” Narias felt extremely grateful.
“You’re welcome, Narias,” Emilia smiled.
“It was… an obvious choice,” Ileena added.
“It’s not much, but… how about I treat you to something before we go back to the campus? There should be a diner or two on our way back,” he offered.
“Cool. Thanks, partner,” Flavia instantly agreed.
“That’s very kind of you. I’m… feeling a little hungry,” Ileena agreed while trying to act normal.
“Thank you, Narias,” Emilia simply said thanks.
Wow. They’re all… so wonderful. Narias’s heart really skipped a beat.
After they had something to eat, Narias and his girlfriends returned to the campus. The rest of the weekend was rather quiet. The academy was to resume normal class schedule starting next week, so everyone was preparing for that. However, Monday morning wasn’t as normal as Narias expected it to be.
As soon as he stepped out of his dorm room, he instantly found himself surrounded by a group of students. The news spread fast. Many students did their homework, learning who the Centurian Conquerors team was, and so, wanted to either recruit Narias, and his friends, into their own student clubs, or wished to join theirs.
Growly being Growly, wasn’t really bothered by it. Besides, the way he was, not many students dared to approach him in the first place. Flavia had to resort to her loud voice and threats to keep the students at bay and Emilia was still unapproachable by how most of the students viewed her. That left Narias with thanking, apologizing and telling everyone he wasn’t interested in joining another club.
Other student club’s trying to recruit them was only one side of the coin, though. There were many students who actually wanted to join the Magic Research student club. That’s where Ileena came in. The club’s founder, and manager, wasn’t about to let just anyone join in. So, she had prepared a new application form for people to fill out if they wanted to be considered as possible candidates to begin with. And the application form was twice as thick as the one Narias had to fill out. Needless to say, that scared most of the wishy-washy students away. Some of them had picked up the application forms, but never returned.
The first few days of the new week were so chaotic, the Magic Research club members weren’t even able to train properly at their club’s place without being bothered by anyone. Ileena was dealing with all the enquires while Growly was acting almost like a bodyguard to not let any outsiders enter the building without permission. There were a few students who were so bold, and rude, to let themselves in without being invited.
“Geez… what a week. Are they all crazy? I hope I can do some proper training today,” Flavia complained as soon as she entered her club’s room.
“It should be fine. We had only a few students show up yesterday. I believe the initial excitement has cooled down now,” Ileena was reading a book, sitting at the table.
“Your Magic Dungeon exploration tests results were over the roof. It’s no wonder so many students were impressed by it,” Nicky added with a smile.
“Yeah, we did awesome, didn’t we?” Flavia grinned wide, showing a thumbs up gesture.
“Of course,” Nicky agreed with her.
“It’s normal. As soon as one club performs better, a lot of students from the underperforming clubs rush to join them. That’s why they never amount to anything,” Ileena commented, not lifting her eyes from the book she was reading.
“As harsh as ever, aren’t you Ileena?” Her tiny friend chuckled. “But come to think of it, I think I saw a few of our former club member come to apply to join us. What happened to them?”
“I refused them, of course,” Ileena answered in a calm voice.
“Really? Why is that?” Nicky wanted to know.
“I have no reason to trust them after they left our club and almost got us disbanded,” again, Ileena was calm, but serious at the same time.
“Yeah, that makes sense,” her friend had to agree with Ileena again.
“But come to think of it, it would be good to get more club members,” Flavia added, crossing her arms in front of her.
“I am not against people joining our club, but I am yet to receive a single fully filled out application form,” Ileena added, before turning the next page of her book.
“Bummer…” Flavia smacked her fist into her other hand’s palm.
“Hello everyone,” Narias has finally showed up.
“Hi,” with Growly accompanying him.
“Yo’, partner. How’s it going, Growly?” Flavia’s mood instantly changed.
“Hi Narias. Hello Growly,” Nicky greeted them both as well.
“Hello Narias, Growly,” Ileena stayed at the table.
“Huh? No one’s… there?” Narias started to look around.
“Hah. I was surprised myself. Looks like the field is clear. We might be able to have some proper training today,” Flavia confirmed there were no nosy students around.
“Ok, great. I would like to use the gym room today, if you don’t mind?” Narias was ready to start training right away.
“Yeah, lift weights,” Growly admitted he’d like to do some weight training as well.
“Then how about you and me do some training together, Ileena?” Flavia was raring to go too.
“Sorry, I agreed I’ll wait for Emilia today. How about you go with Nicky instead?” Ileena refused.
“Alright, Nicky, let’s go,” Flavia didn’t even wait for Nicky to say anything.
“Ah, I guess I have no choice,” Nicky honestly didn’t.
Narias and Growly hit the gym room while Flavia and Nicky went outside to train together. Emilia showed up some time later and, without wasting too much time, went together with Ileena to do whatever training they agreed upon as well. The boys were eager to break an extra sweat, so it was the girls who went to use the bath first. After they were done, Narias and Growly went in to treat their sore muscles to a relaxing bath as well. The boys were still inside the bath when an unexpected visitor showed up at the Magic Research club, catching the chatting girls unaware.
“Well, well, well. That’s quite a place you have here,” Miss Salroze entered the main club’s room.
“Woah! Don’t scare me like that, Miss Salroze,” Flavia almost jumped from being startled.
“Miss Salroze? Ah, ahem… Hello and welcome to our student club,” Ileena was surprised to see her as well, but was quick to remember her manners.
Emilia and Nicky greeted the female teacher as well.
“Apologies for bursting in like that. I probably should’ve knocked before entering,” Belinda apologized.
“It’s ok, Miss Salroze,” Ileena reassured her.
“For sure. We had so many people simply barge in during the whole week, it was becoming unbearable,” Flavia on the other hand, had no problem telling the teacher what she thought.
“Flavia,” Ileena threw a stare at the bunny girl.
“What?” Flavia furrowed her eyebrows, not understanding why Ileena would glare at her like that.
“Hah, don’t worry about it. You must’ve had it rough, considering what your group has achieved during the Magic Dungeon exploration test. Speaking of your group, there’s a few of you missing,” Belinda looked around.
“Oh, Narias and Growly are taking a bath. They should be done soon… probably,” again, it was Flavia who responded first.
“Taking a bath, eh?” The female teacher had an interesting look on her face, then looked to the side, not exactly trying to see someone or something. “That’s right. Ranga told me this was not an ordinary student club building.”
“If I may ask, what is the reason you came here for, Miss Salroze?” Ileena asked politely.
“About that,” Belinda turned to face her. “I came to officially congratulate you all for performing so well during the dungeon exploration test. Jean was very pleased with it as well. Too pleased, if you ask me. Anyway, since you’ve done so well, Jean had instructed me to come visit you and… offer your student club a reward, within reasonable limits of course. So, is there something that you’d like for your club?”
“A reward?! Heck yeah!” Flavia was excited, and loud.
“Wow, isn’t that great?” Nicky clapped her hands.
“A reward for our club? But…” Ileena was a little surprised to hear it.
“Sceptical, are we?” Belinda noticed Ileena’s surprise. “Don’t worry, each student will receive credits according to how well they did, but since majority members of the… ahem… Centurian Conquerors team were from your student club, Jean approved for your club to receive an extra reward.”
“Hey, maybe we could get some more space then?” Flavia was quick to suggest it.
“Extra space?” Ileena wondered.
“Yeah. We had so many students want to join our club. If we get more people, we will need more space, right?” Flavia was optimistic, even when Ileena told her earlier that there wasn’t a single student who returned a fully filled out application form.
“That would be great, wouldn’t it?” Nicky agreed with Flavia on this one.
“It might be… a good idea,” Emilia was in favor as well.
“In that case, would it be possible for us to get more space, Miss Salroze?” Ileena finally gave in.
“More space, eh? Jean must be a mind reader, humph,” Belinda chuckled to herself. “To tell you the truth, I didn’t expect for this house to be so big. So, how about you show me around and then we will check what can be done about adding more space for your club?”
“Great,” Flavia jumped from her seat.
“How about we start with our gym’s room?” Ileena suggested.
“Your gym’s room?” Belinda was curious.
They went around to show each room that the Magic Research student club was using. There weren’t many of course. There was the main room that they’ve been talking at just a moment ago, gym’s room, storage room and bathroom, with the bath itself. It was still occupied by the boys, so they didn’t go inside to see how it looked. There was one more room next to the bathroom, right in front of the storage room, and the stairs to go to the second and the third floors, but all those rooms were locked and not accessible.
“Ok, let’s see what we have here,” the teacher took out the keys and unlocked the door opposite the storage room. “Of course, just like I thought. I doubt it would be of any use to…”
“Wow, such a huge kitchen,” Flavia was instantly impressed after she entered the room which was used as a kitchen before. “Isn’t that great? We could cook and eat together here.”
“That’s true. It’s very spacious,” Emilia agreed.
“It’s so much fun eating together,” Nicky commented.
“I… I would like to learn how to cook better,” Ileena, who was the last one to enter the kitchen room, admitted, also feeling slightly embarrassed about it too.
“Hey, check this out…” Flavia was already inspecting the place.
“What? They… actually want a kitchen?” Belinda didn’t expect to see such reaction from the girls. “Hah, figures. And why am I surprised? Huh? Wha-”
At the same time, the door to the bathroom opened and Narias walked out, not expecting to find anyone standing in the corridor. The kitchen room door was right next to the bathroom door on the side, and since Belinda Salroze was still standing in the corridor, he literally bumped into her, even if just slightly.
“Ahh… that was a nice ba- huh? Ah-“ Narias wasn’t really looking in front of him when he was walking out of the bathroom. As to be expected, he bumped into the person who was standing there, almost tripping and falling down. In order to keep his balance, he quickly extended his arms forward to reach for the wall, so he wouldn’t fall. As a result, he ended up pushing Belinda to the wall with him, as well as pressing himself with his body at her due to the inertia of him falling forward.
Oops… Wha- Huh? I hit the wall, but… it’s kinda soft… A thought flashed in Narias’s mind before he opened his eyes.
“Wow, talk about being bold,” Narias heard a soft whisper in his ear.
“Huh? Ah… Eehm…” Narias was about to exclaim out loud from the surprise, after seeing Belinda’s face right in front of his, but quickly shut his mouth to keep it quiet. He had both of his hands rammed against the wall, with Belinda being right in the middle. Her back was pressed against the wall with Narias pressing against her. It looked almost like a scene from some romantic drama movie Anthony’s sister used to watch. “Miss… Salroze? Why… are you here?”
Even when he asked it, Narias didn’t push himself away from her.
“Well, I missed you too,” Belinda had her alluringly mischievous smile on her face. Her eyes quickly jumped left and right, as if trying to catch something, which made Narias become confused about his current situation even more. Noticing his confusion, and verifying it was safe to do so, Belinda swiftly pressed her lips against his, grabbing onto his shirt to keep him exactly where he was.
“Mhm…?” Narias wasn’t exactly resisting her kiss, however, his mind was panicking, hearing the girls’ voices coming from the open side room, or knowing that Growly was about to leave the bathroom any second now.
“Aahmm… Be careful… someone might see us,” Belinda said with a tease, her lips still touching his.
“Uh? Oh, aaa… S… sorry, I…” it was hard to tell if Narias was flustered because of her words, her kiss, or the thrill of someone seeing them.
“Don’t be. I’m not…” Belinda continued with her tease, but it had to end right there and then.
“Miss Salroze? Miss Salroze, can we… Oh, Narias. You’re finally out of the bath. Eh? Is something wrong?” Since they couldn’t see the teacher from where they were, Flavia came out to check on her, only to find Narias standing in the corridor as well.
“Huh? Ah, yeah. I just got out and… I was surprised to see… Miss Salroze standing there,” Narias’s face was all red.
“Oh, that’s right. You couldn’t have known she was here,” Flavia said with a laugh.
“Sorry, I will go grab a drink, ok?” Narias really needed to cool off.
“A drink? Oh, he must’ve had a really hot bath. His face was all red,” Flavia wondered, then quickly turned to Belinda again. “Hey, Miss Salroze, could we get the kitchen for our student club? Pleeease.”
“You really want it?” Belinda acted like nothing happened just a moment ago. She walked inside the kitchen to take a better look around. “I guess… it can be arranged, but Jean will have to approve your request first. And if she does, they will have to do the kitchen renovation works. It looks… unusable as it is right now.”
“Oh, a kitchen. Cool,” Growly left the bathroom and went to check inside the room which was always locked up till now. The bear boy grinned excitedly upon entering the kitchen room, noticing the teacher being present only a few second later. “Miss Salroze… I hope the cake was nice.”
“That’s right. We didn’t have a chance to ask you about our Thank You gift yet. How did you like it, Miss Salroze?” Flavia wanted to know.
“Your Thank You gift?” Belinda crossed her arms in front of her. “Well, calling it a surprise would be an understatement.”
“For real. It was such a surprise to us when Narias told us he wanted to buy flowers for you, Miss Salroze,” Flavia told her with a laugh.
“Was it now?” The teacher turned her head to glance at the person who just entered the kitchen room. “I must admit… as unexpected as it was, it was also extremely pleasing.”
“Cough… Ah… sorry,” Narias almost choked on his drink when she said that.
“I hope… the book about the Orchivids was useful, Miss Salroze?” Ileena asked, trying to hide her slightly embarrassed face.
“Yes, it was. Thank you for that, Ileena,” Belinda said.
“I bought the card,” Flavia wanted to let her know.
“It was… quite a card too,” the female teacher commented.
“What about the cake?” Growly was still waiting for the answer.
“Yes, did you like the cake, Miss Salroze?” Nicky was curious to know too, since she was the one to suggest buying it.
“The cake?” Belinda lowered her head to think about it. She then raised her eyes up, adding a mischievous smile on her face. “The cake was so good, I felt like each bite was taking me for a ride into a Dream World.”
“Pff… Cough, cough… ugh…” this time, Narias actually choked before he could finish his drink.
“Hey, are you ok, partner?” Flavia became worried about him.
“Yeah… cough… I’m fine. Sorry… I… cough…” He had to scramble to get himself in order. A very satisfied grin flashed on Belinda’s face, which she managed to hide the next second, so nobody could see it.
“Good cake?” Growly on the other hand, was thinking about the cake itself.
“Wow, that cake must’ve been really good,” Nicky agreed.
“Hey, I’d like to try that cake myself,” Flavia joined in.
“Buy it next time?” It was hard to say if Growly was asking a question or talking to himself.
“Yes, let’s do that,” Nicky took it as a question.
Hmph… Belinda smiled to herself, then gave one last look around the kitchen. A kitchen, eh? Maybe that’s a better choice for now, since I am sure there’d be only bedrooms upstairs. Let’s keep them locked for the time being.
“Alright, I think it’s time for me to go. I’ll inform the headmistress about your request. She will probably approve it, but I can’t make any promises,” Belinda informed, ready to leave.
“We understand. Thank you, Miss Salroze,” Ileena thanked her.
“Yo’, this will be so awesome,” Flavia was extremely happy about it.
“One more thing, I need to talk to you… in private,” the teacher turned to Narias.
“Me?” Fortunately, Narias was already done with his drink.
“Yes, it’s about…” Belinda noticed everyone was curious about her request. “About your performance during the dungeon exploration. It shouldn’t take long. I’ll wait for you outside. Take care the rest of you.”
“Yes, I’m… coming,” Narias had no reason to keep the teacher waiting.
“Flavia, did Narias do something to upset Miss Salroze during the Magic Dungeon exploration?” Ileena asked as soon both of them left the room.
“No way. I mean… I don’t know,” Flavia couldn’t think of anything.
“I can’t think of anything either,” Emilia admitted.
“Narias was cool,” Growly said.
The group kept guessing, but couldn’t come up with anything specific.
“Excuse me, but… what did you want to talk to me about, Miss Salroze?” Narias didn’t know what to expect.
“Thank you…” Belinda had her back turned to Narias, so he couldn’t hear her very well. She then turned her head to face him. “Thank you for not telling anyone about us.”
“Oh, that. I promised I won’t, so…” Narias rubbed the back of his neck.
“I’m glad… you’re keeping your promise. I… I apologize for putting you on the spot back there. I’m talking about the cake, not about you jumping on me the way you did,” Belinda smiled with a tease.
“Aah… sorry, that was an accident. I honestly didn’t expect anyone to be there and the way it happened…” Narias became flustered again.
“Hey, I am not complaining about that part,” she turned to face him fully.
“Yeah, me neither. Huh? Ah… I meant…” Narias was put on the spot by himself this time.
“Hmm,” which made Belinda chuckle. “That aside, I honestly wanted to talk to you about your performance during the dungeon exploration. I noticed something during the fights. Tell me, do you know your mana capacity, or its limits?”
“Well, my parents always said I had more magical energy than the average child of my age,” Narias answered.
“That wasn’t my question,” Belinda furrowed her eyebrows. “What I’ve noticed was you were casting more spells than anyone else, but at the end of each fight you were the least one tired. That could’ve been explained for Flavia and Growly since half beast-humans and beast-humans are physically stronger, but you… you always had energy to spare. I bet you weren’t using your abilities to the fullest either.”
“Oh, I… I guess… maybe…” Narias didn’t know what to say.
“So, here’s the thing. Starting next week, you’ll be training with me. Unfortunately, I can spare only one day a week, but it should be enough to start things off,” Belinda was motioning with her hand as she spoke.
“What? Really? Does mean you’re finally willing to supervise my training, Miss Salroze?” Narias became excited.
“Supervise your… Oh, I think you got it all wrong. I wasn’t talking about your regular training at the academy’s arena after the classes are over. I am talking about our one-on-one training at my place,” Belinda ended her explanation with a mischievous smile.
“Huh? Your place?” Narias instantly blushed.
“Oh? I was talking about a real training. Not about what you just thought,” Belinda commented with a tease.
“Ah… I… I didn’t think about anything,” Narias was really bad at lying.
“Really?” Belinda saw him right through.
“Well, ok. I… I thought about our Dream World as well,” he admitted.
“Ah? I… Ahem,” his straight answer made Belinda catch a flush this time. “Anyway… That’s all I wanted to talk to you about. You’ll be informed of Jean’s decision about the kitchen and… I will let you know about our training schedule. Take care… my ‘dream guy’.
Belinda was walking away, throwing a wave of her hand with the last words she had said.
“Thank you and… I’m looking forward to our training, Belinda,” Narias responded to the walking away sexy female teacher.
Eh? Why you… Belinda didn’t turn around, but Narias’s words made an impact. Her cheeks were burning red too. Damn it. I thought I had an upper hand, but he managed to get me in the end. And I had to remember the wall hug too. Tch… I need a drink.
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