He got up around noon. He brushed his teeth in his room's bathroom and went out to find something to eat.
The moment he left... someone was sitting in the living room, on the sofa, with their legs up on the wall, reading something.
He was stunned when he saw him, and so was the guy looking back at him.
"It can't be... Even when they send me here, they make me share a room?" The guy complained, clearly dissatisfied, and quickly got up to see his roommate, accepting him very quickly because he had no other choice.
As soon as he got a better look at him, he frowned.
"Lux..." His mouth tightened when he said his last name.
He couldn't have worse luck.
Edward didn't know him. "You're not a new student, I'm pretty sure of that," he said.
The other man who was planning to greet him shrugged and returned to his seat.
"Of course, I'm not a new student. I just got out of one of the punishment areas after a month. Tsk, damn teachers," he said and decided to ignore the man in front of him because it was problematic to associate with a Lux. Even he, who was a bad student, would get a bad reputation if he hung out with him.
For his part, Edward frowned.
'A guy who was punished for a month in one of the punishment areas as a roommate... That's how low my surname is regarded here,' he thought ironically. It was nothing new to him, although he hadn't expected it.
'Sigh, how do I ask him why he ended up there? He could be a thief, and what I bought would be in danger,' he thought.
The guy there looked at him when he noticed his gaze and sneered.
"Hmph, don't call me a thief. I wasn't sent here for that. I don't intend to rob you, although I can't say anything about hurting you. Anyway, your belongings are safe. If you have any." He replied, before continuing to immerse himself in the book he was reading.
Edward was somehow grateful that this guy was good at reading his face. It would be awkward to ask him, somehow.
'What is he reading?' he thought and looked closer.
The Dark Knight.
That was the title of the book.
Edward was partially stunned, but then he shook his head and ignored the fact that this guy was reading some kind of Batman novel in a fantasy world.
"I'll be back late," he said casually, before walking out the front door.
Once outside, Edward went to one of the food stores, ate something, and then checked out the academy and the city in general.
He visited every place he should have known. The different academic buildings and even the residential areas. Here, he realized that the residential area was quite nice and large, although the houses were exorbitantly priced.
But they were practically mansions.
He spent the whole day getting to know the place, though most of it was spent in the training areas, learning about them.
Most of them were free for students.
He returned to his room late, and the guy was already asleep, so he went to bed.
He woke up early, and on his second day at the academy, he practiced his sword skills in one of the enclosures, alone all morning, until the afternoon arrived.
'It's time,' he thought.
He had already gotten to know the academy; for now, he didn't need training, as he knew it wouldn't make a difference. So he just wanted to receive that mission to know how to prepare for it.
So, after a long walk through the city, he went to the elders' offices inside the academy.
"Student, this is a restricted area," said one of the guards at the entrance to the building. It was very well guarded, with many guards. Among them were also students who were serving some kind of punishment.
"Elder Owen told me to come... I am Edward Lux. Could you please inform him that I am here?"
All the guards who heard him looked at him in shock.
"Are you sure it was Elder Owen?" asked the oldest of them, a man in his forties. He was the captain here.
At his question, the young men who were detaining Edward stepped aside to let him do his job.
"Yes, I'm sure."
"Hmm." He nodded and looked at one of his subordinates. "Go ask the Elder, I'll take him to the hall."
"Yes, sir."
After the man ran off, Edward was allowed to enter under guard.
"Is your last name Lux, student?" asked the man who was guiding him into the building.
"It is, sir." Edward nodded.
The man seemed to sigh and stopped asking questions. He seemed to foresee the unfortunate fate that awaited this small, new student, but it was not his place to say anything.
And Edward was used to that, so he had nothing more to say. He followed the guard, who led him to a rather large waiting room.
"Wait here..." The guard stopped halfway when he saw a man sitting right in front of them, waiting for them.
"You came quickly, student Edward," he said.
"Elder Owen!" The guard shouted in shock.
Edward simply greeted him. "Professor Owen."
Owen nodded and looked at the guard. "Go back. I'll take care of this," he said.
Although the guard didn't understand how that man got here so quickly, if he had passed by here 10 minutes ago and there was no one there, he had nothing to say.
Elder Owen was not just anyone; his tricks were not simple things that he could guess.
"Yes, Elder. Call me if you need anything." He patted his chest before going out to find his subordinate to tell him it wasn't necessary... He didn't have to wait long, as his subordinate was already coming to inform him that Elder Owen was not in his office...
Owen motioned for Edward to sit in front of him, then spoke.
"A Cursed Land, even if it has flaws and is weak, is something that a Beastmaster without training in spirituality cannot pass. Reconsider your stance; you can choose one of the good-level dungeons we have. I can issue missions for any of them," he said.
"It's not necessary." Edward shook his head in refusal. "Professor Owen, I have an advantage that I must exploit if I want to stand out. You know that, right?"
"An advantage becomes a misfortune when you bite off more than you can chew," Owen replied.
"But if your jaw is strong enough, that bite can do the job. Now is my time to take advantage of having the strongest jaw to strike," Edward assured him.
He was telling the truth, but at the same time, he was lying. His words were real, but that wasn't why he would try.
Even so, Elder Owen didn't need to know his real motives. He wasn't going to tell him about the system, although he didn't know if he knew about it. He preferred to keep quiet about his trump cards for now.
Owen smiled. "You've got guts," he said, shaking his head, and took out a rolled-up scroll, which he placed on the table.
"Go ahead. This is the mission I can issue to you. Take a look."
Edward nodded and grabbed the scroll with sweaty hands.