Chương 202: Annabelle

Once Mage Teft called the patrol, Damion headed back towards Silver Spire Magic Academy. There was no point in him waiting around for them to show up and he had a feeling that if he did they would want to inspect his gains from the dungeon. Considering how many of the Demonic Beasts were killed with Earth Shard or Fireball, Damion did not think it would be a good idea to reveal them too openly.

His personal spatial storage was crammed full of Demonic Beast carcasses and aside from wanting the cores from them, he really had no use for the rest of the materials. Given his past experience in dungeons, Damion knew the materials were valuable, but he did not know where he could unload them. The only artificers he had a good relationship with were in Saung. Ethan could probably help, but his family's shipping business worked in Saung's Green Zone and the surrounding Yellow Zones.

There was no way for him to be able to get the items to him, unless he moved his gains into his spatial rings and sent them by carrier, which would be asking to have them stolen. By the time Damion arrived back at school he had formulated a plan. The materials from the dungeon run were all C Rank and below, which meant it would not be a problem for the smaller artifact shops to handle.

There of course was the chance that a single store would not be able or willing to purchase everything, but if it was a matter of trade, unloading his personal storage space should not be an issue. After landing near his dormitory, Damion hurried inside. If he was fast, he could make it to Argentum and back before dark. First he needed to bring Elicia up to speed and see if she had a recommendation on a smaller artificer shop which was not known to be affiliated with any of the noble families.

However, when Damion entered his dormitory he found a different sort of problem. Arguing in his living room were two young women. Elicia was one and the other bore a striking resemblance, though the second young woman's blonde hair was not pulled back in a braid like Elicia's, letting it flow freely down her back.

"Good, Damion is back. He can tell you to go home," Elicia said as Damion walked through the door to join the argument.

"You know full well I can't go home. You got yourself kicked out of the family because you chose not to fulfill your duty. I won't be forced to suffer the same fate as you."

"Annabelle, it isn't like that," Elicia started to try and explain, but Damion cut her off.

"As I understand it, I am free to choose my own attendant. While the school may have dismissed Elicia. I hired her and paid her personally. I have no need for the school to assign another."

"The Headmaster has rejected your proposition. And Elicia has been ordered to leave the campus before nightfall," Annabelle informed him.

"This is our grandfather's doing. If you really cared for Elicia, as you claim, it would have been better to just sleep with her. What's it to you if you leave an heir in the Sorin family?"

"If the Headmaster forces Elicia to leave, then I may have to reconsider if I want to stay in an academy that doesn't respect my choices. As for getting you or your sister pregnant, it isn't going to happen."

"Are you sure you want to continue to antagonize the noble families?" Annabelle asked.

"If you keep defying the Sorin family, we won't be able to continue to protect you." Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

"Protect me?" Damion scoffed.

"I was nearly assassinated a few months ago. Since then, I've basically been a prisoner in the school grounds. I still have not heard a plausible explanation to why Devon Blanche would want to kill me. What difference does it make if I leave school now and not in six months when I finish the term?"

"The incident in the labyrinth was unfortunate and not sanctioned by the elders of any noble family, of that you can be sure. While I can hardly speak for the elders of any family, I do not believe any of them want you dead."

"What makes you so sure?"

"Because you are alive. If they wanted to kill you in the labyrinth, they would have. There are dozens of A Rank mages working constantly in the labyrinth for the noble families. Any one of them could have squashed you with little more than a thought."

"That's comforting to know," Damion muttered.

"And you think giving in to what they want will keep me alive longer? Once I don't serve a purpose getting rid of me will only make more sense to them."

"In that case, I suggest you hurry up and get stronger," Annabelle told him.

"B Rank mages might not be the top of the food chain, but once you reach B Rank you can't be so easily removed. Especially, if you have a famous face."

"I'll keep that in mind," Damion replied as he thought on his current magic power. The last few weeks he had slacked on his training due to working on the creation of his spell, but if he reapplied himself, he was sure he could reach B Rank before he graduated.

"I'll head straight back to the family, grandfather may be the headmaster, but you are right, he can't force you to take an attendant you don't want," Annabelle told Damion before turning to her sister.

"Stay safe little sister. I don't know what your plans are after this, but I hope you find your own place. Contact me if you need me, I'll try and do what I can." The two young women hugged before Annabelle left the dormitory. For several minutes, Elicia did not say anything. When she finally broke the silence, she pretended nothing was wrong and casually asked Damion about his day of exploring.

Deciding it was better to play along and ignore everything that happened in the last few minutes, he filled her in on the events of his day. By the time Damion finished, it was getting too late to be able to go to Argentum and back, so he decided it would be better to finish off a quest. While Elicia was preparing their evening meal, he approached her with his request.

"Can you teach me Tal?"

"I thought you understood only people noble born are allowed to learn the language of the nobles."

"It isn't like I'm going to go around flaunting it. I'd just like to be able to understand what people are saying about me."

"I haven't noticed any of the noble scions going around speaking in Tal about you."

"What is the worst that can happen if someone finds out you taught it to me?" Damion pushed.

"Exile…" Elicia paused after she said it. There really was no downside to teaching Damion. She was already kicked out of her family, being exiled simply meant she would not be welcomed into any other noble family or employed by any entity controlled by a noble family. Hardly different than what she was facing already.

"Fine. I'll teach you a few words."

"Great. I'm a fast learner with languages, that should be all I need." Elicia doubted his words at first, but she had seen his remarkable talent with Nashto, so perhaps he was telling the truth.

"Pinggan," Elicia said pointing to a plate on the counter. She then pointed to a spoon, "kutsara. Knife is palang."

"How do you say, want to go eat dinner with me?"

"Bisa kang munta mangan apunan kayabe ku?" Ding {Quest Completed} [Quest: Learn a new language – Status: Complete – Reward: 100 Experience, 10 Store Credits]"Buri kung munta keka keng apunan," Damion said to Elicia after the Magic System filled his mind with the Tal language.

"How… it isn't possible to learn a language that fast," Elicia said in disbelief.

"I think I just proved you wrong," Damion answered in perfect Tal, causing Elicia's eyes to widen.

"You've just been messing with me. Someone taught you the language before, Dean Teft maybe."

"Nope. Besides, isn't she common born like me? Isn't that why the Thorn family conspired to get her fired as dean before?"