Chapter 263: Understanding [2]

"....." An immediate silence followed after Julien's actions. All eyes were on the opposing team whose faces were pale as they struggled to move. It was a sudden situation that took everyone aback, but the culprit behind the situation was clear for everyone to see. Kiera, who had previously been scolding Julien, stood still before smacking her thigh and laughing. "Kakaka, there you have it. That's the spirit!" She seemed to be enjoying the situation. "I knew from the start that you were on our side!" Leon, on the other hand, continued to mumble the same thing over and over again as he shook his head, '....And he called me a snake. He's the real snake.' Evelyn, who stood next to him, stared at him with a confused look as she took a step back while Aoife glanced at Julien for a brief moment before feeling the urge to smack her head. "Alright, looks like this isn't going to work." With a sigh, Professor Hollowe waved his hand and the opposing cadets were immediately able to breathe again. "Haaa... Haa..." "This!" "Professor...!" As expected, the moment the cadets got it together, they all glared in Julien's direction. He stood at the back with a passive look, taking in their gazes without much of a reaction. He acted as if none of this was his doing. 'No, it's your doing.' Aoife felt her face harden. Things grew progressively worse when two people headed over to their side. Immediately, Aoife felt a massive headache coming her way. In particular when she laid her gaze on the figure on the right. His height was average. With long black hair and slanted green eyes, he didn't appear all that threatening at first glance, but Aoife knew the man all too well. 'Vice-Chancellor of the Bremmer Central Academy.' She had seen him multiple times in the past back when she still used to reside in the Megrail Estate. He would come to visit from time to time in order to relay to the Emperor any messages that the Chancellor of the Academy had. Aoife didn't have a good feeling when she saw him head in Julien's direction. 'He's not happy.' This much was clear to Aoife who prepared to speak up. However, contrary to her assumptions, Vice-Chancellor Soren wasn't actually angry. With squinted eyes, he marched forward and he set his eyes on the cadet responsible for all of this. A clean black uniform with the Haven logo imprinted on the side. Looks that could be considered amongst the best of those he had seen, and an unperturbed, almost immovable gaze that didn't waver even as his gaze was on him. "State your name." The Vice-Chancellor spoke in a calm and even tone, but there was an undeniable tone of authority within his voice that made his request seem more like an order than anything else. "....." A lack of reaction. The cadet didn't seem to be inclined to respond. Taking in the reaction, the Vice-Chancellor briefly closed his eyes. 'Another troublesome one. How do they all end up going to Haven?' He had already seen what had happened long ago. Not only the girl with white hair but the boy before him. How did Haven manage to recruit such troublesome cadets?

"His name is Julien." "....Answer when he's speaking. Stop with your nonsense." Several voices interrupted from the side. They were the other members from the Haven Institute as they neared him and tugged him by the clothes, shaking his body and making his head sway from left to right. The sight was a comical one. Had it been any other occasion, the Vice-Chancellor would've laughed, but the situation changed the moment he heard the name. "Julien?" The Vice-Chancellor's eyes squinted as he took a better look at the cadet before him. "....As in the previous Black Star? The one who had to forfeit his role due to an injury?" His words were met with several looks of shock. They mainly belonged to those who hadn't participated in the mid-terms and hadn't watched them. "He's the previous Black Star?" He certainly had the looks for it, but... Several gazes fell on Leon who stood next to Julien. 'He would make a more fitting Black Star.' At a glance, one could easily tell that he was the strongest of the group. This was especially clear to the Vice-Chancellor who was an Arch-Wizard. '.....It can also be that he just doesn't want to be the Black Star.' Taking into account that Aoife was the current Black Star, it made sense. She was also strong, but there was something about that gray-eyed cadet that looked different compared to the rest. Upon thinking for a moment, the Vice-Chancellor opened his mouth. "Are you the previous Black Star, Julien Dacre Evenus?" ".....I am." With a slight nod, Julien's eyes squinted. "But who are you?" The surroundings went quiet as everyone from the Haven side in some form or another smacked their own forehead. The Vice-Chancellor went quiet. He wasn't angry. He didn't expect everyone to know who he was. Seeing the look on the cadet's face, he could see that he meant no harm with his question. "I am the Vice-Chancellor of the Bremmer Central Academy." "Oh." Julien nodded, but the lost look on his face couldn't be hidden. Then, slowly, he turned his head to look at his peers. ".....What Academy is tha—!" "Cover his mouth! Don't let him speak further." Aoife hastily covered his mouth with her hand. Joining her was Kiera who went behind him as she hooked her arm around his neck. "Fucking idiot! Why do you always do this? There's a time and place for this shit." ".....!" Stunned, Julien looked around to meet Leon's gaze as he stood still with a frozen flat expression. But if one paid close attention, they'd notice the subtle shaking of his shoulders. 'This...'

Staring at the scene, the Vice-Chancellor didn't know how to react. What sort of situation was this? "What are you doing, Leon? Help us get him away from here!" "Yes." With stiff movements, Leon moved forward grabbed Julien by the back, and tried to drag him away. At the same time, Aoife let go and addressed the Vice-Chancellor. "Vice-Chancellor, I apologize for what you saw. He tends to do this often. He's not trying to offend anyone... He just tends not to go out often." "....I see." The Vice-Chancellor squinted his eyes. She seemed easier to talk to than the rest. He should've probably addressed her first. Things wouldn't have gotten to this point had he done that from the start. "I can see that he didn't mean anything bad by his words. I am not offended." "I'm glad that is the case." Aoife secretly sighed in relief while silently glaring at Julien from the corner of her eyes. He and Kiera... why did they always end up provoking everyone with their nonsense? "Are you really the strongest in your group?"

The sudden question threw Aoife off-guard as she stiffened on the spot. "Pardon?" "Don't get me wrong. I can see that you're strong but isn't the title you currently hold something that is given to the strongest?" "....Yes, that's the case."

Aoife pursed her lips. As expected, he could see right through the fact that she wasn't the strongest in the group. "Then...?" He didn't finish his sentence, but as his gaze wandered behind her, Aoife understood what he was trying to imply. Relaxing her brows, Aoife inwardly sighed. 'It came down to this in the end.'

Lifting her head, Aoife opened her mouth to reply when a voice suddenly cut, "A person's rank doesn't reflect their true strength." "....It's as I said. A person's rank doesn't reflect their true strength." Stunned, Aoife turned her head to see Julien standing at the back with Kiera and Leon by his side. The Vice-Chancellor's head tilted as his gaze wandered toward Julien.

"What do you mean by that?" "....It's as I said. A person's rank doesn't reflect their true strength." Julien turned his gaze toward Leon. "He's ranked higher but I beat him." Leon stood in silence without a change of expression. Julien was partially right. He had indeed beaten Leon, but there were a few things that he had left out. Such as the fact that it had happened a long time ago...

But this was something only they knew. To the Vice-Chancellor, the piece of information seemed shocking and almost unbelievable. "Is he telling the truth?" "Yes." Leon replied shortly after. 'Is this a lie...?' Despite Leon agreeing, the Vice-Chancellor didn't buy it. He had keen eyes, and he could see at a glance just how powerful Leon was. In his mind, the two of them were lying to protect Aoife's honor. 'How cute.'

But. His eyes turned cold. "I don't like it when I'm being made fun of like this." The air suddenly grew tense. Aoife, who stood by the side shuddered at the sudden change. The same was true for everyone present. "....I'll give you one last chance to tell me the truth."

The Vice-Chancellor's cold voice echoed throughout the area, gently spreading throughout every corner as the air around them chilled considerably. "Did you really defeat him, or is this all a lie you made up to protect her honor?" "I didn't lie." Julien remained firm with his answer. "I defeated him." "Yes." Leon also added to his statement. 'These two...' The Vice-Chancellor felt his brows knit together tightly as his eyes lingered over the two. He couldn't detect any changes in their expressions, and it almost seemed like they were telling the truth, but he believed his eyes. He didn't think this was true at all. They were messing with him. Even if Julien was an Emotive Mage, the Vice-Chancellor could see the huge gap in rank between the two.

Especially since Leon had undergone body reformation.....It was simply impossible. "I have shown restraint when you did what you did to the other cadets, but what I dislike the most is when I'm being lied to. If you—" "I'm weaker than the two of them." A voice suddenly cut through. Immediately, all eyes fell on Aoife who had her head lowered. "Even if what they said is the truth and you might find it hard to believe them, I am indeed weaker than them. The title doesn't belong to me but to Julien. I only took it since he was injured. I will be giving it back to him when I have to go ahead." Aoife's eyes trembled as she managed to articulate her words carefully. The situation was getting out of control, and she didn't want things to escalate further. With that being said, she was a little happy that the others were willing to help her, but Aoife had already come to terms with her inadequacies. She knew she was weaker than them, and she also knew others could see it. There was no need to lie like that. "....."

The surroundings turned quiet after Aoife's words as all eyes fell on her. Aoife didn't look up. She didn't want to see those gazes. All she could do was look down. On the other hand, the Vice-Chancellor was smirking. 'I knew it was a lie.' There was simply no way his eyes could deceive him. "It wasn't so hard to say this, was it?" He brushed his hair back lightly, taking a quick glance at Julien and Leon. He was a little disappointed in the two, but he hid his feelings. For now, they were all on the same side, and there was no need for him to go hard on them. The only reason he had come was due to how the situation amongst the cadets was unfolding. Had it not been for that, he would've remained at the back. "Alright, since—" "....I didn't lie. I did beat him." Clench.

The Vice-Chancellor clenched his teeth as his gaze fell back toward Julien. 'Still not giving up?' It had been a while since he had felt this ticked off. On the other hand, Aoife was staring at Julien with slightly open eyes. 'What are you doing?' She had done all of this so that the situation would smooth over quickly. Why was he doing this? "I didn't lie, and I can't be bothered to lie." Julien stepped forward, his steps gently echoing throughout as he came close to the Vice-Chancellor. "If you don't believe me, then you can test me yourself." Suddenly, Julien closed his eyes. When he opened them again, as if the very air had been sucked out of the area, the color of his eyes changed.

From hazel to red, and from red to purple...

"...." "...." What in the world?