30 Bad news

It would only be fair for Vanessa to explain her methods first before questioning him about his, but that would leave her in an awkward position. She was not used to her peers being so sharp. Normally, others her age, especially boys, would go along with whatever she wanted. Even if she didn't have them wrapped around her finger, they at least didn't go against her.

Intrigue flashed in her eyes, but she suppressed it. She was here for another reason.

"What's your relationship with Silas?" she asked directly, instead of beating around the bush.

"He's a friend," Nero responded casually.

"A friend? That doesn't seem like it. From what I've heard, it looks more like you're bullying him than being a friend."

"Why do you care? Don't tell me you're one of those with a bleeding heart."

Nero was genuinely amused at the thought, though he didn't believe it for a second.

"Silas is a good kid. I don't know what it's like around here, or what your relationship with him was before this. I can tell that no one in class wants to cross you, so maybe that's why you got away with it before. But I don't abide by bullying, and I'm not going to just ignore it like everyone else."

Instead of answering, Nero suddenly burst into laughter, which annoyed Vanessa. She could not tell exactly what kind of person Nero was yet, but if he was looking down on her because she was a girl…

"You still have more than one weapon, don't you?" Nero asked, as he looked at her with a wide grin. He could tell where it was, but her left and right hands subtly moved in different directions when she threatened him. Chances were high that she was subconsciously reached for her weapons.

She did not respond, but her pupils dilated, and that was all Nero needed to get his answer. Of course, he was not going to explain to her how he knew. There was no reason to reveal her tell.

"Look, I don't know what your deal is, but Silas is a friend. He has some personal issues because he feels like he's weak, but that's only because he has a severe misconception about what strength is. If you're so worried about him, feel free to join us tomorrow. You can judge for yourself whether I'm bullying him or not."

Without waiting for her to respond, Nero walked out of the room. She did not attempt to stop him, either. He made a mental note about her unusual interest in Silas. The boy, for all his potential, was not worth much right now, so chances were Vanessa's real interest was in his parents. He'd ask Gabriel to investigate them as well.

But, more than anything, Nero just wished to remain uninvolved in whatever was going on for as long as possible. He had just started his aether training, and he didn't want anything to disturb it.

Nero returned to his dorm room and, after taking a quick shower, began studying. He had been tasked with finishing the entire review book for card crafting, and that was exactly what he was going to do.

The book was filled with information about all kinds of materials used to craft 0 star cards, as well as their affinities. Since Nero's objective for the class was to craft a card for his own ability, he paid special attention to all materials which had an affinity with both the cold as well as fire.

How he was going to balance the ingredients would be an interesting challenge, and he wanted to come up with an answer on his own rather than relying on his teacher's aid.

Around 7 pm, Gabriel finally returned to the apartment, and his mood did not look good at all.

He placed a lunch box he brought in front of Nero before going to sit at his own table.

"What's wrong?" Nero could not help but ask. He couldn't think of anything that might have ruined his mood.

"The attack on AAB was one of three," Gabriel answered gravely as he opened his own meal box, which was nearly overflowing with noodles. Where had he gotten these meals?

"At least, as far as I can tell, it was only part of three. The other two attacks were outside the city, and targeted the apple orchards. They've been completely burnt down."

Nero, who was about to begin gobbling up his own meal, froze. The orchards were attacked?

"Everything is too hush hush, so I can't find out the details. But it's hard to hide an entire burnt orchard, let alone two. It's only a matter of time before word spreads. But that's not even the worst of it. There's news from the hills. There's been several sightings of the Angel of the fog, which is unusual because the army knows well not to cross the set boundaries in the fog.

"But the worst thing is the casualties. A preliminary estimate suggests several hundred are dead in the vicinity of the ruins, if whatever they're targeting really are ruins to begin with."

Nero put down the chopsticks that came with his meal box. Hundreds of casualties, not counting however many had died in the two attacks in the city. The draft notice was probably going to be upgraded.

"At least there's some good news, though," Gabriel continued. "Army reinforcements have already started arriving. At least two battalions have been spotted passing by the city."

"I need to get a new phone," Nero said. "I need to contact my parents in case of an emergency."

"Oh, yeah, I got one of those as well," Gabriel said as he started patting down his pockets. Eventually he found what he was looking for, and threw a small, black brick looking phone at Nero. It was the cheapest, most basic phone. But it worked, and that's all that mattered.

"Thanks," he said, but before they could continue their conversation, someone knocked on the doors.

"There are a couple of officers outside the apartment looking for Nero," someone said from the other side.