"Ohh shit," Cole thought, before a reflexive crouch in an attempt to dodge the fireball.
Bam!
The fireball exploded on impact with the wall opposite their room.
"Ohh, my bad." Cole heard a voice coming out of the room.
"Hahahah, you missed." Another voice laughed.
Having dodged the fireball, Cole was now able to fully enter the room. In the room two other students stood there also staring back at Cole.
"Hello, I am Cole; I was assigned to this room," Cole politely greeted.
"Welcome, Cole," a bald-headed kid with an amiable expression replied.
"I am Bryan," he continued to say.
"Hi, I am Vincent." The other kid in the room responded.
After exchanging pleasantries with the students in the room, Cole surveyed the room he was allotted.
The room was moderately sized with two beds located on either side of the room; between the beds was a small cupboard where the students could store things.
The room was painted in a cool grey color that seemed to bring peace.
Noticing the two beds, Cole finally realized a problem.
"How are there three people in a room with two beds?" Cole wondered.
"Actually, my room is next door; I just came to have fun since both of our roommates weren't around," Vincent hurriedly explained after seeing Cole's expression.
"Byeeee," Vincent continued to say before Cole could even respond.
"And…sorry about the fireball," Vincent said as he left the room.
Cole was quite shocked by Vincent's reaction and hurried exit, so he could only look towards Bryan for some explanation.
"Ummmm, I don't know what he is thinking," Bryan replied while sliding his hands over his shaved head
"I have chosen the bed by the right if you don't mind," Bryan said.
"No problem," Cole responded before moving towards the bed by the left to drop off his stuff.
Shortly after Vincent left the room, Bryan too slipped away, leaving just Cole in the room.
He stood up from his bed before proceeding to head towards the window in the room, where he watched the sunset with a melancholic face.
"I am finally here; time to grow stronger." He said confidently.
About an hour later, Bryan returned to the room with multiple plastic bags in his hands.
"I brought you food," Bryan said while raising a bed towards Cole.
Cole was amazed by the generosity displayed by Bryan but didn't refuse; instead, he graciously accepted.
"How did you get this? "I wasn't left with any money," Cole asked while munching.
"Ohhh, you can use the academy points to get that," Bryan replied.
Academic points were the lifeline of students in the Spiriters Academy; they can be used to get anything. Techniques, manuals, food, clothes, day-to-day items, etc.
Academic points can be used for all.
Students are usually granted Academic points upon resumption, and they can gain more through tests, rankings, tasks, etc.
"How many academic points were we given?" Cole asked.
"Each student is usually granted 100 academic points in the beginning," Bryan replied.
Curiously, Cole opened his Academic watch to check his points.
[Academic points]- 50
Cole checked the number in front of him again, confused as to why he didn't have the usual 100 points that others were given.
He then noticed below the number a notice was written.
"One-star-ranked students usually get half of the usual amount."
Reading this, Cole wasn't too shocked; he wasn't bothered; he was just disappointed.
"The world isn't really fair to the weak." He muttered under his breath.
Bryan couldn't hear him say that from across the room, as he was completely engrossed in his meal.
Cole finished his meal in no time, proceeded to clean where he ate, and then lay in his bed.
Cole laid still in his bed as he pondered on his future plans and how he plans to grow stronger and exert his revenge.
In his thoughts, he slowly drifted asleep, his mind regaining a moment of peace and quietness.
The next two days went by fast, with Cole mostly cultivating using the World Absorbing Mantra and tending to his wounds while building a relationship with his roommate Bryan.
In the blink of an eye, the first day of class arrived.
Cole prepared as enthusiastically as he could; he wore his already prepared uniform and left the room for class with Bryan in tow.
Cole noticed something quiet while they were preparing. Bryan's uniform had two stars branded on the chest.
He checked his and saw a one-star brand.
"Does the discrimination really have to get to this? Every single thing marks off one star?" Cole questioned, annoyed.
The two roommates were allotted the same class; it was a class D in the academic building.
Cole and Bryan entered the class quietly, but their presence didn't go unnoticed.
The eyes of students in the class scanned across them, lingering slightly on the brands on their chest.
"What is a one-star kid doing here?" One student with a three-star brand on his chest asked mockingly.
The remaining members of the class, nothing but their eyes, displayed their approval of those words.
Cole completely ignored those words as he headed straight towards a seat in the back of the class.
The seats were made from a combination of plastic and metal to grant the perfect comfort to the students.
The class itself was just like a typical classroom; a whiteboard hung in front with a podium for teachers just in front of it.
Cole sat quietly in his spot, carefully observing the actions of his classmates, while Bryan found himself a seat just beside Cole.
"Ignore their words; they are all being childish," Bryan whispered to Cole.
Cole turned to him with a faint smile before turning back to continue his actions.
About 20 minutes later, a man with long black hair walked in, his face displaying a stern expression.
His body could only be described as almost perfect, his well-toned muscles peeking in areas where they should.
"Good Morning" The man said curtly.
"Without wasting time, We will be discussing Spiriters today." The man continued.
"You all are quite conversant with the topic, so let's see what you know."
"Hey you, tell us what you know." The man said while pointing towards Cole.
"Ohh damn," Cole thought in shock.