Chapter 49: Meeting Two Childhood Friends
BAAM!
FWIP!
As Gray casually strolled in the hallway, multiple battles were already happening as the students were trying to kill each other.
The walls shook from the impacts, and the floor cracked under heavy blows.
But he didn’t even look their way, and just walked through the storm as if none of it mattered.
[...All of them are stronger than you.]
Jasmine muttered dryly.
’Yeah,’ Gray admitted in his head, his eyes scanning lazily ahead.
’But my strings can still kill them.’
[That’s such a cheat skill...]
’Maybe. But Cassandra... she noticed.’ His brow furrowed as he tilted his head slightly.
Shnk!—
A knife whistled past, close enough to ruffle his hair before sticking into the wall.
’She’s really strong.’
[About that... when are you going to kill a Vessel? If you don’t, I’ll never get my power back.]
Gray’s eyes widened at her words.
’I almost forgot about that... but I cannot kill them nonetheless. At least... I can’t kill Lyra... she’s way too useful.’
[Then, are you thinking of killing Cassandra?]
He stopped mid-step, thinking about Jasmine’s question for a moment.
’Not yet. She’s way too strong for me right now...’
Then, a slow grin appeared on his lips.
’But let’s put that aside. Time to meet an old friend~.’
The hallway opened into the cafeteria.
And immediately, he raised an eyebrow upon seeing the number of students there. It seems that the cafeteria is actually shared among the different grades.
For classes, each grade has its own building, but it appears that there is only one cafeteria.
’Welp... Jasmine, can you sense Lyra’s aura?’
[Yeah. She’s right in front of you.]
Gray’s faint smile soured the moment he looked as...
Seated beside Lyra was a handsome young man with golden hair, the kind of face that would’ve made girls swoon.
Crack...
Gray’s neck twisted, vertebrae popping one after the other.
The sound alone made a few nearby students flinch and shuffle away, chills crawling up their spines.
[Who’s that?]
Jasmine asked curiously.
’Dimitri El Rey,’ Gray muttered inside his head, his gaze locked on him, as the thought of many ways to torture him appeared in his brain.
’Heir of the El Rey Dukedom. And the bastard who stabbed me in the back. He’s the one who led me to the place where they stole my talent. I thought he was my best friend... but he wasn’t.’
[Ohhh~]
Jasmine’s voice turned slighly playful.
[Dear sweet~ revenge~]
Ignoring Jasmine’s words, Gray suddenly plucked a tray of food out of a random student’s hands.
The poor kid started to complain, but froze instantly when Gray’s cold eyes cut into him. The student went pale and shut his mouth, shrinking back.
Then, Gray walked straight through the crowd, tray in hand, and stopped in front of a familiar figure.
Clink.
He set the tray down on the table, right beside her, ignoring the chatter of the other girls sitting there.
"Yo, Jess. How ya doing?"
The girl’s fork slipped from her hand, clattering against her plate. Her eyes trembled as she looked up at him.
"...Ah... G-Gray?"
Jess’s hands trembled as she covered her mouth, her eyes glistening.
For a second, she looked like she couldn’t believe what she was seeing, then she suddenly launched herself forward.
Fwump!
Her arms wrapped tightly around Gray, her face pressed into his chest.
"I’ve missed you so much!" she cried, her voice cracking as her shoulders shook.
Gray didn’t stiffen or push her away. He simply placed a hand on her back, gently patting at a slow pace.
[Who’s this?]
’Jessica El Rey... Dimitri’s younger sister...’
At his words, Jasmine laughed before speaking.
[Pfft...You really are the devil.]
When Jess finally pulled back, she sniffed and quickly wiped her cheeks, embarrassed at the tears.
Then she broke into a shaky smile.
"How are you? I thought your talent was stolen!" she asked, her voice still shaky but filled with hope.
Gray tilted his head, lips curling into that lazy, knowing smile of his.
"That apparently wasn’t my only talent."
Jess let out a breath that turned into a laugh of pure relief. She balled up her fist and punched his shoulder, not hard, but enough to make a soft thunk.
"You bastard... you really are a genius!"
"Took you long enough to figure that out." Gray chuckled at her words, tilting his chin like it was obvious.
Jess giggled, shaking her head, her long hair brushing across her face as she tilted it slightly.
"Ah!"
She suddenly glanced to the side and noticed three girls staring at them with wide eyes and curious smiles.
Her face turned red.
"Right! Uhm, this is Gray. He’s... he’s my childhood friend!" she quickly announced, almost too loud.
The three girls perked up instantly, all leaning closer.
"Childhood friend, huh? Well, aren’t you interesting?" The first one, a slim girl with mid-length auburn hair, leaned her chin on her palm with a sly grin.
"I’m Elira. Nice to meet you, Gray." The second, taller, with silky auburn hair tied back, gave a polite smile.
The third, with wavy auburn hair and a playful gleam in her eyes, waved a hand dramatically.
"Mira. Don’t mind me staring earlier, I was just curious." She ended her sentence with a wink.
Gray raised an eyebrow and leaned back in his chair.
"Gray Vireux D’Aurélion."
The moment the surname left his mouth, the three froze.
In a single instant, the polite smiles faltered, Mira’s wink hung in the air like it had been cut off.
Even Jess’s eyes widened slightly, her breath catching.
Gray had already expected that kind of reaction, after all, his reputation was fucking terrible.
The biggest Playboy in the entire continent.
The fallen noble..., and many more.
Gray’s lips curved faintly as he let the silence hang just long enough to squeeze them.
Then he leaned forward again, eyes half-lidded.
"...But not anymore. Now it’s just Vireux. My mother’s surname."
The tension eased slighly, but then, Mira suddenly grinned even wider than before.
"Ohhh, so you’ve got a little drama behind you, huh?"
"Guess that explains the calm act. You don’t really seem like the ’disgraced noble’ type." Elira tilted her head, her polite tone carrying a teasing lilt.
The wavy auburn-haired girl leaned closer, her eyes gleaming mischievously.
"So, Vireux... what should we call you? ’Gray the Mysterious’? ’Gray the Fallen Noble’? Ooooh, how about Gray the Heartbreaker, which is closely related to your reputation? You’ve already made Jess cry."
Jess gasped slighly.
"H-hey! That’s not fair! I was happy, not sad!" Her face went bright red.
Gray smirked, lifting his fork lazily before pointing it at the auburn-haired girl.
"Keep talking like that, and I’ll need to forcefully shut your mouth."
Mira, on the side, snorted.
"Oh, confident, aren’t we?" She leaned her elbow on the table, chin propped up.
"I like that."
"Don’t tease him like that!" Jess puffed her cheeks, swatting at Mira.
"Relax, Jess. We’re just curious. He’s the first guy you’ve ever introduced to us. Of course, we’re going to test him." Elira laughed softly.
"Also... my name is Keira, by the way." The girl who had given Gray a ton of nicknames added, "And if you didn’t notice yet, we’re tripplets."
At her words, Gray’s gaze swept over the three of them, his lips curling up slighly.
"I can see that."
[The authority 『Beauty』 is currently in effect...]
The three girls exchanged quick glances at each other, the faintest blush creeping across their faces.
"Ahem!"
Keira cleared her throat first, trying to mask the warmth on her cheeks with a smirk.
"Well... at least you’ve got good eyes."
"Yeah," Mira chuckled, flicking her hair back.
"Most guys don’t even notice right away. Or they just stare and make it awkward. You, though..." She tilted her head, gaze narrowing with amusement.
"You make it sound like a compliment."
"That’s unusual." Elira gave a small, graceful shrug, her smile reserved, but her eyes lingering on Gray a moment too long.
Jess’s jaw dropped as she glanced between her friends and Gray.
"W-wait—don’t tell me you three are already falling for his act?!" She turned back to Gray, eyes wide in disbelief.
"Seriously?!"
"Act? I don’t need an act. I’m just speaking the truth." Gray casually replied as he leaned back slighly.
That single line was enough to draw an audible reaction.
Mira laughed, Keira groaned dramatically, and even Elira pressed a hand to her lips to hide her smile.
Jess puffed her cheeks harder, practically glowing red.
"Ugh, you’re impossible! You can’t just... just say things like that so casually!"
"Why not? Unless, of course... You want me to compliment you instead of your friends?" Gray tilted his head slightly toward her, his smirk widening.
Jess froze.
"T-that’s not—!" She buried her face in her hands, groaning.
"Ooooh. Jess, I think he just checkmated you." Mira, meanwhile, leaned forward, grin wicked.
Keira joined in, pointing her spoon at Jess like it was evidence.
"Yup. Totally losing this battle. I mean, even we’re a little flustered, and you grew up with him."
"I hate all of you right now..." Jess’s voice came muffled from behind her hands.
Gray simply chuckled at her words before his eyes landed on the triplets, who were also looking at him.
"But triplets, huh? That must be... exhausting."
"Exhausting for who?"
The three of them leaned in, mirroring each other almost perfectly.
"...Anyone who thinks they can handle all three of you."
The table went quiet for a few moments...
But then...
"Pfftt..."
Laughter burst out from the tripplets, half from embarrassment, half from amusement.
Jess peeked through her fingers, glaring at him with burning cheeks.
"Y-you’re not supposed to flirt with my friends!!"
"Who said anything about flirting?" Gray turned to her.
"I was just... making an observation."
But Jess wasn’t convinced.
Thunk!
Her heart hammered in her chest as she smacked his arm again, though this time, her hand lingered just a second longer than before.
And at the same time, Gray felt a gaze on his way... and seeing the familiar blonde-haired face...
He smiled faintly.