Chapter 204 – No real joy
"I don’t want you to heal my arms or my eye." Cassius said to the Apothecary before him, stunning the old man greatly.
They were inside the room created to heal the students before sending them out in front of all the spectators.
The room Cassius was in belonged only to the top three rankers of the year.
So one could imagine his deep surprise when he saw Anesthesia arrive as the second ranker.
He legitimately jumped out of his bed, thinking he was dreaming. Anesthesia took it very badly and cursed him.
Cassius didn’t even have time to recover before seeing Emrys appear in his broken state.
The two were now lying on their own beds, after being treated by the Apothecary. Like Cassius, Emrys refused to heal his right hand. He seemed to have a plan.
The other rankers, however, were gathered in a separate room.
Already, Cassius could see the difference in treatment. And he knew this was only the beginning.
He sighed inwardly and looked at his body. It had healed dramatically thanks to the Apothecary, and he was now clean and in fresh clothes.
The only things left were his right eye and his arms. But...
"Just leave them be." He repeated. "For now, you can make fake arms so I can get through the ing ceremony without much trouble."
"May I ask why?" The old man asked, his green eyes shining clear despite his age. "I’ll need a reason to give the Dean if you don’t want to be healed by us."
’How can I tell you it’s an opportunity to forge better arms and a better right eye?’
He clearly could not say such a thing.
Cassius would have asked Ananke what to say in that moment, but the silence was still loud.
He sighed under his breath, trying not to think about it right now, and answered. "Our family walks the Blood Path. My mother is very skilled in healing, and I would prefer that she heal me."
The Last Born smiled gently. "That’s all. A matter of preference."
The Apothecary looked at him for a moment, then nodded slowly. He didn’t particularly care. Cassius had the right to choose who would heal him.
So with his power, he fitted temporary arms made of wood onto him. His right eye was left empty, a void of a socket.
It was eerie, so Cassius closed it.
Throughout the whole process, the Apothecary spared many glances at Cassius’s left eye, finally making him remember the eyepatch he had lost during the battle.
’Not only that.’ Cassius thought, irritated. ’The Echo of the Desdemona is still there. I need to go back to the Entrance Testing Ground to retrieve it.’
His thoughts began to churn, trying to distract himself from the void left by Ananke’s absence.
Cassius had never known he was so dependent on her. Even when she was silent, her presence had always filled him entirely.
Now here he was, a Palatine, just as he had promised her, and she was not here to celebrate with him.
Somehow, everything felt dull.
’I’ve been so fixated on being Palatine all this time, and lost my arms and eye for it. Now that I’ve obtained it, I’m already thinking about the next steps. About the next things to obtain.’
Was this how his life was going to be? Always running toward power and resources and information? Running, running and running?
Cassius smiled bitterly. ’Once again, do I have a choice? It’s either this, or I lose my family. So there’s no point thinking about it. Let’s run. We have no choice but to run anyway.’
After that, Cassius took a deep breath, clearing his worries — for Ananke was not here to help him if he lost himself within them — and began thinking about the Echo and his eyepatch again.
’Only the Dean has the power to open the Testing Ground.’ He thought. ’But would she do it for me? Even if I’m first ranked?’
Cassius didn’t know, but he would have to try anyway. There was also the fact that, now that his eye had been revealed, he would certainly bee a target for those curious enough to believe he possessed the Refining Process.
He had no such thing. His eye was inherited!
But they wouldn’t believe him anyway.
Still, that was something he already knew. And had already planned to act against.
’This is the moment the Sect enters the game and begins the missions. And...’
His left eye flashed with an unknown light.
’...I also need to prepare for the next Event. But for now, the most immediate thing I need to do is gather GeumGeum for the Queen and regain my arms and eye. I want my goddess’s opinion on how I should do it.’
Speaking of GeumGeum, Cassius wondered why the Fated Quests hadn’t appeared yet.
Was it because everything wasn’t over yet?
’Sigh. Let’s just get through this.’
Just then, after confirming that Anesthesia and Emrys were also feeling better, the Apothecary left the room, finally leaving them alone.
His departure prompted the voice to echo inside the room, speaking to each of them.
it said, making them all focus. "> it said, making them all focus.
It paused, letting them digest the information, then continued.
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At that point, the ceiling parted, and three suitcases wrapped in white and blue chains fell down, landing in front of each of them.
Each suitcase bore its owner’s name.
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"Wait!" Anesthesia finally spoke, frowning. "Is that allowed? A man and a woman together?"
"Why are you butting into my affairs, sister-in-law?"
"Don’t talk to me, Cassius."
"e on, we shared emotional moments together not long ago. Why are you being so cold to me now, hm?" He smiled, then looked at Emrys. "And how did you allow her to bee second ranker, Emrys? Are you still in love with her? Let me tell you a secret, Anesthesia is now obsessed with my—!"
"Cassius, you fucking bastard!" Anesthesia jolted up from her bed, about to lunge at him.
However...
the voice said, and the Fallen Heiress found herself rooted in place, unable to move."> the voice said, and the Fallen Heiress found herself rooted in place, unable to move.
Cassius laughed at her. Emrys smiled awkwardly.
The Chosen One had expected some change in Cassius. But the man was still the same insufferable bastard.
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’Beast?’ They all thought.
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The trio nodded slowly.
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The voice disappeared soon after, leaving them behind.
Anesthesia looked at Cassius. "Close your eyes, or I’ll tell her."
"Would you really choose to speak with her?"
"I’ll do it if it means putting you in a terrible situation."
"Aren’t you cute?" Cassius laughed. "And I wouldn’t look at you even if you offered me the world, sister-in-law. Rest easy."
He used his fire and built a wall around himself.
Anesthesia then spared a cold, murderous glance at Emrys. "I’ll gouge out your eyes if you try anything. I swear."
She was not joking, and her eyes confirmed it to Emrys even more.
That was when the reality of their relationship began to sink into the Chosen One’s mind.
He remembered the days when Anesthesia would have undressed in front of him without a second thought.
Now, she was ready to kill him for it.
A strange feeling rose inside his heart. He opened his mouth as if wanting to say something, but closed it again seeing her look.
He sighed and created a wall of lightning, like Cassius.
Anesthesia did not doubt Cassius’s words. She knew him well enough now to know he would never stoop so low.
But Emrys...
She narrowed her eyes at the lightning.
’...don’t think I’ll pity you after your loss. This is only the beginning, Emrys. I will make your life, and the lives of everyone unlucky enough to be close to you, a living nightmare.’
After that pledge, she focused and dressed herself.
Soon enough, all of them were done.
The trio looked at themselves, marvelling at the uniforms.
The Academy uniform was white and navy blue.
Cassius and Emrys wore navy trousers, a white dress shirt, and a fitted blazer, while Anesthesia wore the same attire with a pleated skirt instead of trousers.
Anesthesia additionally wore detached black leggings, giving her a stunning appeal.
On their right sleeves was the marking of red claws, identifying them as First Years.
The three looked at each other and realised that somehow... the most handsome and beautiful people were the top three rankers — if one didn’t count Theophane.
They were all stunning, though Cassius’s appearance was diminished by his wooden arms and missing right eye.
The time had finally e, and all three were teleported to the arena, directly onto the podium.
Cassius found himself standing on the spot reserved for the Palatine. Anesthesia was in second place, while Emrys was third.
The remaining twenty-one students were gathered together on a stage below them, though a keen eye could see how the top ten stood slightly apart.
The arena erupted into applause, and people began calling the names of Cassius, Anesthesia and Emrys.
Some called for Klaus, while others called for the Prince and the Princess.
The ceremony began with the Dean of the Academy making a short speech about the value of the Academy and its purpose.
Her voice was colder than usual.
Afterward, she congratulated everyone, especially the top three, and promised Cassius the symbol of his Palatine status once the Academy officially started.
The Last Born felt a strange sensation from the Dean. For some reason, she couldn’t stop looking at his eye, and he almost sensed a trace of anger directed at him.
Almost.
However, all of that became unimportant when it came time to choose the teacher who would be his master.
Cassius Desdemona had been waiting for this all this time.
As the Palatine, he had the first choice.
His eye didn’t even hesitate. Instantly, among the numerous teachers, he ignored his own aunt — who was making obvious gestures for him to choose her — and locked his eyes on an old man playing with a wooden sphere.
This was the Master who could guide him perfectly.
Cassius smiled softly and nodded in his direction.
"I choose Teacher Kai."
The old man, Teacher Kai, stopped moving his sphere. He spared Cassius a glance, tilted his head, then — while everyone listened in tense silence — answered flatly.
"I decline."
The arena froze.
—End of Chapter 204—
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