By the time the lesson ended, years had been taken off Jon's life. The moment the teacher finished the lesson and left the classroom, when he slowly turned his head to the right, he met a pair of eyes silently scrutinizing him. Then, with nothing more than a single tilt of the head, Jon gets up from his seat and heads for the door. Kael, too, is coming along right beside him.
When they stepped out of the classroom into the hallways, a group of thugs who happened to cross their path abnormally and abruptly changed their direction, heading back the way they came as if they were literally fleeing.
"Do you have anything to do with this, Jon?"
"You could say that, sir. When he first arrived here, they showed me their teeth a little, so I disci..."
"That's enough. Should I call you Jon, or by your previous name?"
"I am Jon now, permanently, sir. I did as you said and turned over a clean slate; thank you."
"I don't recall ever telling you to start a clean slate. Also, do not call me 'sir'."
"How could you not remember? You tied me up and told me to start a clean slate, don't you remember?"
"Ah, I remember now. It was you, wasn't it? The one who stabbed me."
"Did you really forget?"
"Look, even I'm surprised by this. I can't believe how I forgot you. I guess my mind is a bit too occupied, my apologies, Jon."
"There's no need to apologize. It was a long time ago anyway. I suppose we were on opposite sides back then, weren't we?"
"Drop the act, Jon. I know you're not afraid of me. Now, I remember you more clearly."
"Haha, so you did remember. You really didn't come here for me, did you?"
"As I said, I had completely forgotten you, but it surprised me that you actually listened to me and started a clean slate."
"One fight—I had put everything I had into a single fight. I even almost killed you. But you won; you spared me and told me to start a clean slate. You were a rival I respected, and you won. Of course, I was going to listen to you."
"Luck was simply on my side back there. If you hadn't stumbled at the last second, I would be dead right now. So, drop the respect."
"Don't say that. A deal is a deal; I am your subordinate now. Let's grow even stronger together. Since we're on the same side now, no one can stop us."
"You asked me why I am here, didn't you?"
"Yes, but what does that have to do with our current topic?"
"I've withdrawn from the dark world; or rather, I was ordered to withdraw. I've started a clean slate, just like you."
"It seems this is Tora's doing. In that case, there is nothing to be done, but I am still with you until the end, my friend."
"Thank you, Jon. I guess we are together now. But, may I ask you one last question?"
"Why? Because everyone is watching us. Think about it—two strangers speaking in a foreign language; isn't it normal that we'd attract attention? I'm heading back to class now. You should drop by the principal's office. It's in the middle of the main hallway on the third floor; there's an ornamental plant by the door."