It was very direct. At least, that what was Baston thought of Zeverius Academy. He never thought the principal suddenly invited him to stay at here, even though he already studied at Prius Academy. Although the
offer was good, he wasn't tempted because in this prestigious one, it had much
troublesome things to handle once he stayed here.
"Not really, I'm already satisfied in Prius Academy…" Baston simply answered.
"I see…" Principal Zener then took a paper and read it aloud, "As far as I know, your treatment in Prius Academy can be said to be the worst one until recently when you showed your talent in front of everyone. Still,
it's not better than the first one."
"It's because I try so much hard to live low-key after that event," Baston thought, then replying to the principal, "It's alright. I don't
mind it by the way."
"Really? If you stay like this, you won't get your revenge sooner to your father then. The limited resources held by Prius Academy is
quite little compared to us. If you stay in here, I can promise to always provide the best resources and the best teachers for you. Your development will be much more than the academy you stay now."
While the principal was busy convincing Baston, the teachers from the side had already entered the discussion. Even though they were only the spectators here, but they had their own opinion when seeing how Baston acted to the principal's offer. His earlier rushed composure was nowhere and it was replaced with calm demeanor.
"Look at that fat boy… He's nowhere liked the boy we saw before. I thought he had a tendency to rush ahead as soon as we give him the offer, but it seems he's clear-headed," one of the teachers commented.
"Yes, it's really unlike many students we saw before. Perhaps, the event with his father forced him to be the adult quickly."
"I think so too. Judging by the information we got, this Baston lived as poor class from the start of academy. His treatment was the
worst and not to mention the living room, he was also bullied by other students at there."
"Do you think he just awaken his magic talent after meeting with Angus?"
"I don't know for sure…" the teacher shook his head, "Let's monitor him for a moment. The principal is still asking question to him, so at the best, we can only make a summary based on his answer."
Baston contemplated the best answer he could give to Zeverius Academy. If he kept rejecting the offer without good reason, it would sprout a suspicious moment for everyone. Just by looking at the reputation,
Zeverius Academy was way much better than Prius Academy. Ordinary person would
likely choose this one rather the average one. Besides, based on his strong magic score, he didn't need to think about tuition fee again since it would be bore by them.
If he said there was a kind of nostalgia feeling about Prius Academy, there was already a nonsense since Baston didn't have any good memory from the beginning. With Panton who always bullied him plus the meagre food provided, everyone could see the treatment was very bad. Even though Prius Academy had already tried their best to mend their treatment before, it was still not good enough.
"I'm sorry but I feel I'm used to stay at Prius Academy for now…" Baston finally replied after being silent for a while.
"Oh, I see…" Principal Zener wasn't disappointed, but kept asking Baston, "May I know why you still decide to stay at there, even though the treatment is worse than here?"
"There are too many nobles here…"
"Too many nobles?" Principal Zener was confused.
The teachers from the side were also confused, but one of them began to link Baston's statement with his present condition. He had an acute sense that this seemingly simple statement wasn't simple in the meaning. Just for a few seconds, he showed a knowing look and quickly informed his colleagues about it.
"I think I know what he meant…"
"What is it?" the other colleagues were interested.
"Do you remember how he has a grudge with his father? It seems his father's family is one of the students in this academy. There's also
a possibility that one of noble students here has connection with this father's family, making Baston feels uncomfortable to study here."
"Why do you think so? It seems too far-fetched to think like that. We don't know for sure why the fat boy said that. There's also another possibility that he's afraid some noble students here make trouble for him."
"I don't think so…" another teacher replied, "That boy dared to confront Clark which was having high nobility title, yet he still pursued
until the end. If he's afraid, he will just stay silent. Even though student Clark made a trouble for him, the best thing he could do actually leave the meeting abruptly."
"Yes, it will be like that. The matter of investigation also is actually just boasting in the end. No nobles can command the security staff dispatched personally by the kingdom. They might just give advice, but the decision won't end up in their hands."
"True… true… In the end, Baston is not afraid of nobles, but he seems trying to keep distance of certain noble in this academy. Judging by his reply, there might be a possibility two or more nobles here knew his
father. To make sure he can stay undetected, he then prefers staying in Prius Academy."
The teachers slowly made their own assumptions, even though Baston himself didn't clarify the truth. They even were quite proud that they finally could deduce the meaning for Baston's words. One teacher then whispered their assumptions through magic to Principal Zener, making him knew what Baston meant by it. As soon as he heard it, the principal nodded gently. Truly, there was a specific reason why such a talent still stayed at the average Prius
Academy.
"I understand. Too bad such a talent will be wasted…" the principal sighed, "You're afraid if you stay in here, there will be a chance
that your father actually comes and forces you into submission, right?"
"What?" Baston was dumbfounded.
Luckily, the real him was inside the book. If not, everyone could see him making a fool of himself since he never thought they thought
differently than him. At first, he felt Zeverius Academy was more amazing than his present academy. He still remembered back then when a few noble students bumped into him, making the plate crashed to the floor. Fortunately, there was no more trouble in that day except the spilled food. Considering this occurrence, with so many famous nobles in this prestigious academy, who knew how many people would make his life more troublesome than before.
Baston was thankful of the invitation, but he wouldn't let troublesome things kept bothering him. He thought since he rejected their offer, there was nothing to talk about, yet the principal seemed eager to start
another new conversation. The old man pondered for a moment before talking to
Baston.
"The ice element you have is quite rare now. There are not many nobles who have this blessing in their family. If someday, there's someone who disturb you over this thing, you can come to us if Prius Academy can't
solve it for you."
"I will think about it. Thank you…" Baston bowed down a little, "If there's not anything, then I will excuse myself."
"One last question. It's my personal one I guess," Principal Zener said, "The awakening of your magic before is not triggered by the great wizard Angus, right?"
Baston didn't answer but only nodded a bit to him. The fat boy then left the room while behind him, the principal chuckled happily since his guess was actually true. As the old man who dealt with magic for many years, he could deduce the truth about Baston's talent. The failed testing done by Baston before was should be on purpose as a means to convince everyone that his magic was an unexpected gift by Angus. Principal Zener also believed Angus and the principal of Prius Academy knew about it, but since no news thrown by them, it meant they decided to keep it a secret.
"Just as I thought… He's not a simple boy…"
Just by his clever thinking, Principal Zener really wanted Baston to stay at Zeverius Academy. The prosperity of this place wasn't only depended on how many talented students he could get, but also by how smart the students when they faced a certain situation. Most nobles only depended on
their money and authorities, so if there was an unsolvable problem, they only knew this method of thinking. Outside of these 2 ways, they wouldn't know other way and it would make them defenseless by the time they realized they couldn't solve it by usual means.
Meanwhile, Baston wondered about what Principal Zener said on the way back. The thing was his ice element could become troublesome in the future made him worried about it. He didn't know what kind of trouble he would face, so he just took it aside first. Anyway, since the trouble itself wasn't
happening right now, it was useless to ponder about it. Taking the stare at the ice bead that the Zeverius Academy gave him as a present, he wondered what he could do about it.
He asked Alicia and Anderson that this thing was quite precious for certain wizard. Since Baston had the same element on it, it could
boost his knowledge regarding his affinity with the ice element. Of course, it was very good, but unfortunately, this thing was useless for him. His knowledge regarding the ice element was already at the pinnacle since it came directly from the old book. Rather than using it, he would like to just sell it. When he conceived the idea, Alicia and Anderson thought there was something wrong inside his head. Such a thing was quite rare to meet, yet the fat boy didn't
intend to use it for himself.
Whether they felt it was a pity to throw away, Baston didn't care since it would be useless anyway for him. At present, he needed money more than this kind of thing. If he asked money, Alicia and Anderson wouldn't mind to give him some from their wallets, but Baston thought his image would be soon
crumbled after this. In Prius Academy, he stayed low-key and people almost forgot about him. He also didn't speak much because it would give a mysterious vibe about him. The only time he talked too much was when he needed to secure Anderson and confronting Clark at Zeverius Academy. There was no more quest, so there was no need to become a chatterbox.
"If you really want to sell it, you might find Panto. His father is merchant, so he will have many channels to promote it to many buyers. In that case, the price can be increased higher than normal one," Alicia gave her opinion.
"Panto, huh?" Baston was pondering, "Alright, it seems quite good."
"I don't understand why you don't use it for yourself? This ice bead will have many benefits to you as a wizard with ice element."
"Because it's useless for me…"
"Useless?" Alicia couldn't believe it, but since she didn't know him well, she couldn't rebuke it, "Anyway, don't regret it when the
opportunity is gone later."
"I won't…" Baston simply replied, "I won't regret it. As soon as I get the money, I will try to visit that place."
"That place?" Alicia thought differently.
Baston actually wanted to visit a few restaurants nearby. He wanted to taste some of delicious dishes at there. At present, he could only watch it from the side of road, lamenting his empty wallet. But it would soon be different once the money was in his hands. Unfortunately, Alicia started to analyze the meaning differently. She thought since the academy matter finished; Baston would get back to deal with the cult. His action all this time was quite hectic, but she believed he did it on purpose. She wanted to follow him, but there was no good reason. If only the two of them, people would soon make a gossip about them. It wouldn't end in a good way since trouble would visit in the future.