“Haha, we were not even able to reach my office.” Neron chuckled, pointing out the fact that we had been transfixed on a single location for a while now.


    I joined in hisugh.


    “You should head back. I’ll be right behind you.” He said, making shooing gestures at me.


    I nodded and made for ss.


    “Hold on, Jared. Onest thing… how did you know I had a White Mana Core?”


    I stopped dead in my tracks and looked at him with an air of mystery around me. Just as he refused my request and dyed it for ater time, I wasn’t going to give him an immediate response.


    “It’s a secret. I’ll tell you after you fulfill my request!”


    Upon saying this, I turned back to the direction of my ss and sped along the clear path. In a few moments, I would be seating in my usual spot.


    ***


    “What an amusing kid…” Neron whispered to himself as he saw Jared run off from a distance.


    He had a bunch of emotions swirling within him, but the young man kept them on a lid. Even though his cool guy act remained, Neron couldn’t help but leak out a small smile of amusement.


    The kid had said and done stuff that would make it unbelievable that he was just 12 years old. The sky grin he made, the manner run which he spoke, the craftiness he exhibited… Jared was the most bizarre child of that age he had met.


    “I expected him to be different since he scored so high in the exams… but not to this extent.”


    If Neron didn’t know any better, he would have thought he was speaking to an adult—Jared even gave such an impressive speech on magic theories. From Neron’s experience, he only knew one other student who was as impressive as the one who just left him.


    Himself!


    Neron Kaelid, also known as the child of magic, a genius among geniuses. In his time, he had gotten a perfect score and was an elite among the Elite… unparalleled among his mates. That didn’tst forever, though.


    Neron shook off the thoughts of his past and focused on the youngd that now showed him prospects. He wondered about many things, like how the boy knew of his core… and why he had a pure white Mana Core too.


    “Does he know about the advantages of a white Core…? Does he know about that technique? No, impossible… I invented it…”


    Neron shook his head slightly, realizing that more time was being expended while he stood idly, thinking about nothing but Jared Leonard. The boy had managed to captivate his attention, distracting him from the usual thoughts of magic he usually had. Still, this wasn’t a bad feeling.


    He looked forward to the future that would soon present itself to him. Would Jared be able to ovee the trials ahead of him? Bing first in the Inter-ss Exchange was certainly something that would be quite enjoyable… he had done it too, after all.


    “I wonder…”


    With this final whisper, Neron made his way back to ss to teach a General Course.


    *****


    sses ended well, at least in my opinion. It was a little awkward looking at Neron after that little conversation we had, but I subdued any feeling of embarrassment. He had certainly rejected me now, but he would regret that choice for now.


    I was going to blow his mind, no, everyone’s. With that settled, I needed to focus on my next move. Yes, that move involved two people that were of interest to me.


    With lectures over, everyone left the hall and either made their way to the library, the dorms, the cafeteria, or just loitered and talked in their already established groups.


    I easily spotted Edward and Anabelle, seeing them both discussing as they moved in the direction of the library. With my enhanced hearing, I eavesdropped—silently apologizing for intruding on their privacy.


    Apparently, Anabelle wanted to collect some materials from the library, and Edward was apanying her.


    They discussed many things, of which, as I expected, I was a part. Anabelle was upset that Edward was seating beside me. This was expected since I knew of her animosity toward me. Her voice depicted concern for Edward, but it also showed something else… she was nagging him, as a mother would to a child.


    Despite her tiny frame and child-like faced, Anabelle sounded like a mature big sister. The boy she spoke to, Edward, obediently listened to her every word and looked almost helpless as her words battered him.


    The bizarre situation looked silly, really. It almost made me burst out inughter from the distance at which I observed them. As if this wasn’t surprising enough, Edward gave a response that made me twitch a little in shock. The reason he had been so keen on seating beside me… why he kept looking at me during lectures.


    “I can’t help it, Anabelle… I don’t know why, but I really admire him now… I just wish I could have another conversation with him…” His voice was a mix of admiration, childish idolizing, and a tinge of timidity.


    My mouth nearly dropped when I heard this. I quickly picked up my pace behind the pair since their voices were getting fainter and I needed to maintain a minimum distance to hear them.


    They kept walking and talking, with Anabelle giving remarks that clearly showed her bad impressions of me. Edward tried his best to convince her to think otherwise, but his ideals were nothing but fragile pieces of paper to her iron will.


    ‘It seems I’m already seeing a path…’ I grinned slightly, feeling satisfied for getting information on my targets.


    It was clear that Edward was as good as won over. If I offered to make him better, he would bite easily. The issue was Anabelle. During the sses we had, I had shown my intellectual abilities, so she must have had a good idea of my capabilities. Plus, the rumors about my scores in the exams must have reached her and I even beat Edward.


    There was no way Anabelle didn’t know that I was amazing. It was just that her image of me was distorted. In order to win over to my side, I needed to do something—soon.