As we move forward, we reach the section of the wall where the most difficult missions are posted. Some of the students here—clearly third-years—frown upon seeing us, but they say nothing. I think that after what happened with Damien, Ronan has gained a certain reputation. The rumors—which have reached me—say that he is so ruthless and powerful that even another dark mage preferred to throw himself out a window rather than face him.

And honestly, for once, the rumors are telling the absolute truth.

Well, except for the "ruthless" part. Ronan is just a poor boy who was locked away, a little naïve, obsessed with me and his god, and otherwise, a total sweetheart. That said, you definitely do not want to get on his bad side—he might just lose his mind and do something crazy.

"My lady, look at this," he says as he lifts one of the small nails to pull a parchment from the board.

Ice worm eggs are one of the main ingredients that alchemists use in their potions for cold resistance and cold cures. Travel to the dungeon in the Blue Mountains to collect ten pouches.

Recurring mission.

Points awarded: 2.5 per pouch.

Estimated difficulty: 5.

Mmm… earlier, I saw an informational note pinned to the board that said points are based on difficulty. 1 is the easiest, and 5 is the hardest. A difficulty level of 5 is recommended for full third-year student parties.

Well, I think this Blue Mountains mission looks like a great choice for me, and I doubt other students will want to take it.

It is a shame that we are not allowed to just grab the whole stack of notes—there are five—to prevent anyone else from taking them.

"It is perfect, Ronan. Thank you very much."

"Newbies, what are you doing? This is not your section of the board, and this mission is definitely not for you."

A boy—arrogant—just snatched the note right out of Ronan's fingers. He looks a bit older than me, so he must be a third-year student.

"That note is mine," Ronan responds, his voice perfectly calm, though I suspect he is not taking this well. "Return it. If you want to go to the same dungeon—which I do not recommend—take the trouble to pull your own note from the board."

"And who is going to stop me? A lowly noble like you? A first-year rookie who thinks he can handle the hardest dungeon? This dungeon is for me and my group. Get it through your head who you are talking to."

As he speaks, he puffs himself up like a peacock.

"I am Octavius Laltiery, of House Laltiery, a ducal family. In my year, I have the highest score, and my group will be chosen for this year's games. You and your little friend would only be in the way in this dungeon."

Ronan starts murmuring something.

Oh no.

He is about to start something right here, in the middle of everyone. He cannot attack another student, no matter how much they provoke him.

I quickly place a hand on Ronan's arm, trying to calm him down.

"Let it go, Ronan, please. It is not worth it."

"You cannot attack him in front of all these people. They would punish you. Imagine getting expelled for a few days from the academy," I shout mentally.

Okay, maybe I am a little nervous.

Because without Ronan, I am not going to be able to do everything I want in that dungeon. It stings to admit it, but I need him. He is smart, he has his skeletons, and he helps me. It is not that I am useless—I just do not see myself learning to use the bow on my own. And if I summon the dark wolf, then the pup will not level up. I would have to settle for an easier dungeon…

And I also do not want him to get locked up. Mary or Vincent would definitely blame me for not keeping a better eye on him.

Not like I am his mother...

"I understand, my lady," his mental response pulls me out of my thoughts. "No teaching lessons in public. A shame—I have a minor disease curse I need to test."

Well, I mean, if he gave him gonorrhea or something, it would not be the worst thing, right?

Bianca! I scold myself. They would know it was Ronan. And there are witnesses.

Ah, poor Ronan. Here I was, thinking he was about to throw some brutal attack spell, and the guy just wanted to curse him. I am such a cynic.

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"I see you know your place," the idiotic student mockingly says to me.

"My place is wherever my strength takes me. And that happens to be this dungeon," I reply while snatching the paper back.

And I even manage to stay perfectly calm while doing it, without letting on how much this situation is rattling me. A point for me.

"If you want a fight, we will see you there. It will just be Ronan and me, so bring a nice, big group if you want to have a chance," I add.

The murmuring among the surrounding students grows louder. Initially, it is just the third-years, but now others have gathered to eavesdrop.

Honestly, this is just like back on Earth, when I was in high school and someone during the lunch break would yell, "Fight!" Please, they are literally forming a circle around us...

"How dare you?" he asks, offended, and tries to snatch the paper back, but I gracefully dodge him.

Oh, baby. Who are you calling a newbie? Because I am level 8, and I just saw that you are only level 7. A mage, I am guessing, since I seem to have more agility than you.

Is this really the best this kingdom has to offer for the games this year?

"I will repeat myself—since I do not think you would dare to assault a first-year student, abusing your power and then answering to the headmaster—if you are looking for a fight, we will see you in the dungeon."

I would blow him a kiss, but I am saving those for Sol.

"Calm down, Octavius," a dark-haired girl says, placing a hand on his arm just like I did with Ronan earlier. "I do not think they even have the guts to go to the dungeon, but if they do, we will teach them exactly why rookies should not mess with senior students."

The idiot nods and yanks another note from the board, not even bothering to pull out the pin first.

Oh… such a badass.

I smile, turn around, and walk away.

By the way, I realize that, even though I am still nervous, I am enjoying this. Back on Earth, just the thought of a confrontation like this would have given me anxiety.

Well, walking away is not that easy. The crowd has boxed us in, and they seem disappointed that there is no fight.

Ronan steps up beside me and simply stares at the students while his aura grows more menacing. A shame he does not wear his lich robe in class. In any case, it doesn't matter, since even those without light magic can feel it. They pale and step aside for him. I think it is an instinctive reaction.

Even though he no longer has that gaunt, sickly look—he has put some flesh on those bones—Ronan still gives off major bad vibes. The sinister kind. The kind that says he is going to do something to you that you would not even imagine in your worst nightmares. The kind where skeletal hands crawl across the floor toward you as you sleep. The kind where he curses you with something that leaves you permanently screwed.

I shake my head.

Ronan is not like that.

He just looks like he is.

"Then Joe can help me with the bow, right? I wanted to ask Catrina, but I did not know that all classes were canceled, including the Wednesday afternoon training," I ask once we have stepped away from the crowd.

"Of course, my lady. We could head to the gym so he can start teaching you the basics here at the academy."

"Yes, that makes sense. Thank you."

Besides, the gym has beginner weapons suitable for training, which will help me learn. However, I will need to get a bow for the dungeon, so I will have to stop by the city before heading out on the mission.

"The goblins at the forge… they do not make bows, do they?" I ask mentally while walking toward the counter, where a long line of students is already forming to register their groups and missions.

"They have their own, the ones they know how to craft. They do not need a forge for that. But they are very basic—it would be better if you bought one," he replies through the same channel.

"Hey, guys, what did you pick?" Darius spots us and walks over, followed by the others.

He is as cheerful and carefree as ever. It seems he has already gotten over the mix of mild irritation, sulking, and disappointment from us not joining them. I think it is about the bear. Or the scorpion. The guy is obsessed with riding them.

In any case, they line up behind us, and I hand the redhead the note.

"Level 5? I thought you were going for something easy. And just the two of you?" He widens his eyes. "Oh, of course, Ronan's skeletons and zombies."

He claps Ronan on the back.

Oh no, he is gonna kill him…

Actually, Ronan seems to handle it better.

Either he has increased his constitution, or he is simply no longer as sickly as when he first arrived—or maybe a mix of both. Because Darius is not holding back; he is as rough as always.

"They will manage just fine," Vincent chimes in, though he still seems a little disappointed that I did not let him come with us.

"And you guys?" I ask after retrieving my mission scroll.

Vincent hands me his.

It is also a dungeon, difficulty level 3, a recurring one since they need to collect bear hearts.

"You are going with them?" Ronan asks Mary, surprising me.

"No, I took a research mission. I picked it alone. Some farmers want someone to find their missing granddaughter. It is difficulty 4, but not because it is dangerous—just because there is a lot of investigation involved."

Knowing Mary, I'm not surprised she chose a mission where she feels like she's truly helping. I smile at her.

"Well, Ronan and I are heading out. I want him to help me learn how to use a bow so I can train in the dungeon."

"Right…" Theodore comments, skeptical. "You are going to learn how to use a bow in a level 5 dungeon."

"Well, I will shoot at rabbits or whatever animals we find on the way to the dungeon," I say with an innocent smile.

"Sure."

"Do not take it personally, man," Vincent tells him, resigned. "It is not that they do not want to go with us—it is just that they really are capable of learning a new weapon while clearing an entire dungeon. And well, it is ranking points. I get why the two of them, being so high in the rankings, want to stay on top."

"And get ahead of me?" Darius exclaims. "You are going to have to let me ride the bear and the scorpion after this," he says to Ronan, very seriously.

"Only if the scorpion agrees as well," Ronan replies.

Darius grins and raises his fist to the sky in victory. I roll my eyes and take a few steps forward as the line moves.

I am glad they are not taking it personally that we are going alone. To be honest, the ranking excuse Vincent used to cover for us is a pretty good one—if we want to be number one, it makes sense that we would go on our own, especially with how broken Ronan's undead are.

I owe the prince one, but I will not say it out loud—he already thinks too highly of himself to be giving him even more reasons.

When our turn comes, I register our group and the mission. The assistant professor at the counter looks at us strangely and warns us about the mission's difficulty, advising us to choose an easier one. Catrina steps in and assures her that there is no problem. Good thing—because the assistant looked about ready to deny us the mission.

And that is it!

Everything is set to apply fire channeling to my arrows or bow and keep leveling up.

Oh, yes! In moments like these, I do not miss my life on Earth one bit.

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