A Side Villain…

Cafeteria was the most bustling place of the academy and one of the main reasons behind it was that students from all the years could come and talk with each other. Most of the time since the theory and practical classes were exhausting and there were many assignments and other things to do intra year students didn’t really mingle with each other. Yes there were intra year mock battles but they were few in numbers and hence the cafeteria was the place to go if you want to meet an upperclassmen or vice versa.

 

And that was the reason Origin academy’s cafeteria was just one of its kind, it was not that big when compared to other things but still was enough in size to allow free and unhindered movement and it’s sitting capacity was around two thousand students which again was again quite impressive. The quality, quantity and variety of food available here was more than enough for an individual, almost all the delicacies of the continent were available for a small price and if you can’t afford to pay then there was also this free meal which had decent things.

“This place looks hasn’t changed a bit, there’s still those comfy chairs to sit upon, that delicious food to be devoured, security guards at the entrance and exit gates who would come in if you cause trouble and most importantly a very special place for the plot but now that I am seeing all this in real life, it hits different.” Akira said and went to one of the counters to get the free meal.

 

‘Sigh’

 

“The only thing that has changed is I have become broke unlike someone who has a thousand gold coins as his monthly allowance and that too because he needs to learn how to live cheaply.” I am getting jealous of that guy. Well, let’s at least buy some popcorn to enjoy the show.

 

Akira went towards one of the paid counters and said to the staff behind the mirror,

 

“Hello Miss Martha, how are you doing?” Martha was an old lady probably around her 70s but due to the fact that she had taken a youth potion she could pass for someone who looks like a 40 year old and why does he know about someone like her? She is going to play a small role in the first major academy arc and overall she is a kind lady who treats everyone like her own children.

 

“Oh my!! Who are you young man?” She was not well known in the academy and only some of the staff members knew about her so how did this first year boy know her?

 

“You are quite famous mam, your red velvet cake has become a legend among the connoisseurs.” That was true, only a few people know about the special Red velvet cake in the cafeteria, it was considered a delicacy but was not known to many.

 

By this moment Martha couldn’t believe the young man standing infront of him, her cake was indeed famous but its reach was limited to a few third year students and some old faculty and it was a tacit understanding among them to not share about this so how did this boy know?

 

“Oh come on you are praising me too much, it’s just a cake.” 

 

“Hehe, that’s true it’s just a cake.”

 

“So would you like to have one?” She asked.

 

“Umm let’s leave the cake for today, do you have some popcorn?”

 

“Popcorn?” Nobody had ever asked for something like that.

 

“Yeah I am feeling like it.”

 

“Sure, let me look around.” She said and turned around to look for some corn which was kept in one of the containers so with a flick of her hand hot rays fell on corn turning it into popcorn she sprayed a lemon on it then poured some butter on it and put it into a small packet.

 

Akira took the packet and his free meal and went to sit on one table which was devoid of anyone, he sat down and started enjoying the free meal while waiting for the show to begin and soon enough the actors started coming in making him smile more and more.

 

Since the first period Richard was starving, in morning he was so immersed in his spear training that he forgot about eating and everything else and as a result when he ended his training it was already time to go so he skipped the breakfast and ran to the class and now finally that it was lunch break so he along with Lily and Aurora and her entourage came to the much famous cafeteria of Origin academy and he had to say that this place deserves all the compliments.

 

“Hey guys, what would you like to have?” He asked the two girls.

 

“I would take the free meal.” Lily said and as a commoner that was the right thing to do, food here was of course cheaper than outside but still it would cause a dent in your finances if you buy it everyday.

 

“No way, you gotta try the meatloaf hero sandwich, the double decker burger, the cheesiest pizza and a whole lot of other stuff, I have heard about them a lot so gotta try it.” He said enthusiastically.

 

“But isn’t that gonna cost a lot?” She asked with worry in her tone.

 

“Oh don’t worry I get a thousand gold coins as allowance, even if I buy all of the food it won’t end.” He said and pulled her hand to one of the counters.

 

Aurora just shook her head and followed the two idiots, she too was hungry but it was way out of line to act like Richie. She was the heir to the throne and there were some etiquettes to be followed no matter wherever you were.

 

Richard really brought a whole lot of dishes, the six seater table were completely filled making the other people sitting around look at them and think that maybe there are going to be ten people at that table but they were wrong as all this food was just for three people, two if you count Aurora’s small appetite out of the equation.

 

Richard began eating and of course he was not eating like a caveman but still his movements were unpolished and unbecoming of a prince, Lily was much better than him in this respect she was eating small pieces  and one dish at a time. Aurora had already eaten and was waiting for the two of them to finish so they could go away from this place.

 

At the present moment from the first year A,C,D and E section were present in the cafeteria only the B section was missing, there were some upperclassmen present too but they were far outnumbered by the enthusiastic first years who wanted to have a taste of this cafeteria. Akira had already eaten his meal and was now sipping on the apple juice waiting for the next actor to arrive at the scene and he didn’t disappoint him.

 

A boy who was tall, muscular and hairy could be walking in from the entrance of the cafeteria, his eyes were not normal like humans they had the ferocity of a wild animal, his face had several cut marks indication of the fierce battles he must have fought, his way of carrying him was elegant and yet he had a feral aura around him. His hazelnut hair was long and dense and he also had a tail which had similar characteristics to his hair, following him were a large group of first year students who all had that wild and feral aura around them.

 

They were the members of demihuman species and the boy that was leading them was Drake Lionheart, the only heir to Lionheart Empire, the empire of demihumans and the only one which could challenge the hegemony of the Von Astrom empire on the origin continent. But that never happened as they were always ostracized and

Discriminated against just because of the fact that their ancestor was a member of the demon race.

 

But with the passage of time a lot of things have changed and the general perception towards demihumans has changed completely. Yes there were some factions which were opposed to this but currently they were not in power so they couldn’t do anything. Akira who witnessed Drake’s entry along with everyone else couldn’t help but smile thinking that finally the big boy had arrived.

 

If Akira was supposed to be a side villain in Richard’s fate then Drake would be what you call a deuteragonist, he and Richard are the two most important characters of this story it would be their relationship which shapes the fate of this world. They are going to become best friends, brothers in arms heck Drake would even attempt to sacrifice himself in order to save Richard but all of that is in the future presently they are like oil and water completely opposite of each other.

 

Richard who was happily devouring the food was confused by the sudden silence in the vicinity so he looked up to see what’s wrong and at that moment his eyes locked with Drake’s untamed eyes and a standoff began, everyone knew about the rivalry of Richard and Drake since childhood both of them had been trying to prove themself better than the other guy even Aurora who had taken Richard as a rival knew how much serious Richie became when faced off against Drake.

 

Oh and if Richard’s innate skill was that of Spear God then Drake had that of Sword God meaning that until a sword was in his hands and there was fighting spirit left in him then he can’t be defeated, of course that was limited to his own strength and a whole lot of factors but that’s what written in game’s lore. It was like the developers wanted to make a character who wouldn’t lose to Richard in status or skills, a character who could keep him in check, a character who would force him to train even harder, to break his limits and become the number one in the world.

 

Their standoff was going in and it was Drake who broke the silence,

 

“If it isn’t the pathetic prince of spear.” He snarled at him.

 

“Hmm? Did I just hear the sword trash?” Richard replied cheekily.

 

“Is that so? Why don’t you come here and find out who the trash is?” Drake said and leaked his aura

which resembled to that of a lion king.

 

In response Richard also flared his aura and soon enough their aura was now enveloping the entire cafeteria making the weaker students faint even the stronger upperclassmen, Aurora and Lily were having difficulty to resist that so how did Akira manage to stay unaffected? 

 

Well he used the simple theory of Mana reflection, this theory was taught in third year and although it appears useless if used wisely could save one’s life in certain situations, well situations like these.

 

What was now currently happening was that mana was being released into the atmosphere in the form of aura and since the two parties were trying to crumble the other party’s aura their mana supply was erratic and not streamlined so if you use your own mana along with the mana present in atmosphere it could create a reflective barrier where all the unnatural and unwanted mana would simply bounce off giving the illusion that the user is able to resist the aura while in reality he is simply reflecting it back in atmosphere.

 

“What the fuck?” Akira couldn’t help but say after seeing the panel in front of him. He had achieved so much exp for just using a theory in real life? Could it be done? In the game these theories were just theories and everything one wanted to do was controlled by programs developed by developers but this is not a game world anymore so maybe this is something unique to the real world.

 

On the other hand since their auras had reached a dangerous level the guards decided to step in and control them and as soon as one of the guards came both of them reverted their auras, it would be useless to do anything in front of guards and then have your name submitted to the student council.

 

Now in the aftermath of their aura game, around 80% of the students fainted and those who didn’t were not doing that good. Akira who calmed himself and saw the guard walking in clicked his tongue as according to him it was a great chance to see the protagonist getting his ass kicked but maybe that wasn’t supposed to happen.

 

When Richard and Drake went back to their respective tables they had a little chat with other people, the aura game they had played just now was intentional they were both princes and were not that stupid enough to just casually flare their aura and cause so many students to faint. It was done for two purposes, first to actually prove superiority against one another and second to check the talent and strength level among the first year.

 

“Did you note all of their names?” Richard asked his lackey.

 

“Yes afterall not a lot were able to resist that aura.”

 

“Hey what in the hell what were you guys trying to do?” Aurora was angry but confused at their display of power.

 

“Didn’t you notice?” He asked her.

 

“What are you–” She stopped as her mind analysed the situation and came to the conclusion.

 

“Uhh… What were you trying to do and who is that guy?” Lily, who also managed to stay awake, asked him.

 

“Well his name is Drake Lionheart and he is a prince too.” He kept it short and that confused her even more. Richard didn’t want to explain so he urged Aurora to do as he was currently looking at the notebook with the names of people he wanted in his faction.

 

Aurora began explaining, “What you just saw was their method to determine the best talent and strength among the first year, the students who managed to stay awake like you and me are the ones to look out for and if possible bring them in your faction.”

 

“Samantha, did you note down their names?” Aurora asked one of the elf girls in her faction.

 

“Yes your highness I have.” She replied.

 

“Let me see.” Aurora took the notebook from her hand and began looking at the names.

 

On Drake’s table they were also having a similar discussion, one of the panther kin asked Drake,

 

“Drake this is the list of students who have managed to resist yours and Richard’s aura.” Her tone was very professional and very similar to that  of the personal secretaries back on Earth.

 

“Almost everyone from the A section, 80 percent from B section and 60 and 30 percent from C and D respectively.”

 

“Hmm what about the E section?” He asked the panther kin.

 

“One.” She replied.

 

“One percent?” He asked.

 

“Not just one student.” She said and this created some interest in everyone's eyes.

 

Richard and Aurora had also reached similar results and when asked about the E section there was the same reply, just one student.

 

This was unbelievable, someone from the E section was able to resist the aura blast of two princes? How laughable is that but it is truth and it would not be wrong to say they were quite curious to know his identity.

 

“Who is he?”