Chapter 22

  So, I’m a Bully

  After class today, I would have to classify Mr. Zion as sycophancy at its finest.

  What I mean by that, is that the note he received during homeroom did indeed speak of my being chosen by Madame Bloom to be her Apprentice. A fact that I managed to prove when I made a particularly wide arc around the class, moving by his desk close enough to read his note without being too obvious about the fact.

  At that moment, I was awarded with a system message letting me know I could fill up one of my two now opened Free Slots, thanks to the transferring of Mana Extraction and Rejuvenation Healing to my newly attuned Class slots.

  Reading the prompt that was no doubt gained from my ability to quickly read and understand the information on the note that I observed with but a glance would be helpful. If nothing else, it might help me identify if another Necrotic Assassin is following me with an Obfuscation type Skill.

  Thinking back to that event yesterday, I realize the only reason why I noticed something was off was due to my enhanced hearing. An apparent side effect of my Music Resonance Skill.

  With this new Skill, I could have two highly attuned senses that could help alert me to danger. Realizing that I still have one open Skill slot, and that Master Bloom has promised training for improving both my Improvised Weapons, and Music Resonance Skills, I realize I can take a flier on this one.

  Also, the fact that it is Uncommon is another selling point as it seems to be rather easy to max out early. Particularly if all I need to do is look around at things. Additionally, this looks to be a Perception and Intelligence based Skill, which thanks to the addition of Intelligence will slightly improve my Mana. Given that my whole profession in life is related to having a Healing Caster Class,

  With that, I decide to go ahead and acquire the Skill.

  Not too impressive of a Skill, but it is a passive Skill that will pay off with a net bonus of +12 to Perception and Intelligence. Not much, but when trying to get all of your Attributes to average more than 80 points, it is huge. Especially since my Mana now counts as one of my Key Attributes to determine my Class’s overall rating. Fortunately, my singular Luck stat is not affected by this, otherwise I would be really up a creek.

  I am about to go deeper into my need to rapidly advance my Attributes as quickly and efficiently as possible, when I happen to notice Mousey outside. Not that his name is Mousey, but he always has an odd stutter that makes it hard to understand what he is saying.

  Seeing him just awkwardly standing there, waiting outside my classroom, I realize he is waiting for me. For a moment I wonder if Mr. Karl let him out early, just so he could get here to meet me. I wouldn’t put it past Mr. Karl, he is a bit of a softy, and I can’t say I don’t mind the company.

  “Hey Mousey!” I exclaim excitedly at seeing him. At my comment, I see him recoil as if he had been visibly slapped. For a moment I wonder why, and then he responds.

  “It, it’s Moss. Mossey,” Mousey begins and suddenly I realize why my mind went to Mousey as they are so similar. That said, it is clear why my mind made the association. But before I can go too much further down this rabbit hole, he continues, “Quinten Mossey.”

  “Oh Quin?” I ask, thinking that might be better to remember than Mossey.

  “Ye-yes,” Quin “Mousey” Mossey stammers out, his face turning a faint shade of pink at my new nickname for him. Seeing his reaction, I decide not to tease him too much.

  “You ready to walk you to class?” I ask, realizing he might be a bit too shy to ask for help in public.

  “Ye-yes, very much.”

  With that, the two of us begin making our way down the hallways. Since his class is on the way, it really doesn’t bother me to walk with him.

  As we walk, I can suddenly hear all the different conversations going on around me.

  “Yeah, so like what should I do?” One of the fashionistas ask Veronica Smoulders, using that tone that is so sickeningly sweet that it grates on your ear drums to hear. To make matters worse Veronica Smoulders responds.

  “Well, what I would do is…”

  Just hearing their inane prattle grades on my nerves. I almost think this new heightened understanding of the acoustics around me is a bad thing, when I hear something that sets my blood boiling.

  Malicious laughter.

  Anyone that has ever heard a gaggle of boys know that once you hear that sound, something stupid is about to happen. Stupid in this case is Johny DiVoratore.

  “Here they come now,” Johny calls out to his gaggle of friends. Seeing him, my fist tightens, reminding me that I still have not put away the first of my giant tomes. Apparently, there is a good thing about being on the homeroom teacher’s do not disturb list, for it was the first time all year that Mr. Zion never bothered me. Which was great, as I used all first period focusing on learning more from one of the Skill Tomes I had been given.

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  The other tome was in my backpack bouncing heavily against my spine. But this was not an issue, for what was an issue at this moment was Johny and his little gaggle of thugs. Seeing him spring to action, I suddenly realize just how Impressive my Rare Skill Music Resonance truly is, particularly as it helped my mind pluck him out as a threat. A discordant note, trying to upset the harmony that was the school’s natural order of things.

  “Yo, you seem di-distracted,” Mousey Quin stammers out.

  Hearing him, I suddenly snap back to him and realize that just like yesterday Johny is once again making a beeline towards him. Still can’t learn, that or because of what happened last time, I am about to take a defensive posture before Quin, when I realize the angle is off. As Johny isn’t even focused on Quin, but rather my new Eagle Eye Skill helps me take in more details. I can see the angle of his approach, how he all but sprinted to the far side of the hallway. At which point he turned back towards his friends and waited.

  A pincer? That is the tactic that my mind expects. But something is off, as we go past, Johny makes an all too forced look away from me and towards the wall. I watch him, and his cronies as we pass.

  “I’m fine, just thinking about Music class,” I respond trying to appear casual. As if I don’t know what is about to happen next.

  “Oh, yo-you like music?” Quin asks.

  For a moment I am about to ask if he even knows me, but suddenly my Eagle Eye and Music Resonance Skills harmonize in a way I never thought possible.

  Clip-clip.

  The sudden thudding of dress shoes on the smooth marble floor. The way the kids coming in the opposite direction all have their eyes go wide with fear and confusion as they see something they are not used to.

  “Watch it,” the cries of random onlookers call out, all signify to me that some one is charging at me.

  I pause, my fingers quickly moving to regrip my massive and thick tome in my hands. Then when I hear the footsteps less than a pace away, I violently turn, thrusting out my book with both hands at an upward angle, while leaving my right pivot foot planted hard into the ground. This is the same technique I would use if it were wielding a spear to impale charging calvary.

  Thud.

  What happens next is a matter of simple physics. A cautionary tale of what happens when an accelerating force meets an immovable object.

  Everything I did, the sudden turn, the quick thrust caused me to take up a good four more feet than I would have originally. The result was that I managed to catch an unsuspecting Johny mid-stride. At a perfect point, where he had no traction with his leading foot, and was about to lose all traction with his trailing foot. Causing him to slam into the suddenly appearing horizontal book. At which point his body still filled with momentum bunched up, using the book as a fulcrum. One where the top and bottom halves both tried to go forward, but instead, the lighter top half gave way, flipping backwards, while the denser bottom half continued going forward, sliding under the outstretched book, like a runner trying to slide under a tag while sliding into base.

  With the initial part done, I move my left foot out of the way and do a half turn away from the rest of Johny’s goons, while lowering my tome to my left side. The side that would give me the most distance to cover and generate force when encountering said goons.

  Fortunately, the Goons seem to be smarter than their leader. That or, their leader just had better Attributes and managed to charge forward first. Regardless, the goons all skitter to a stop.

  Sq-squeak.

  Their shoes making the unmistakable high-pitched sound of people running in the hallway. A sound that is bound to draw the attention of any decent teacher.

  Glancing around, I can already see a reluctant Mr. Karl staring at me. His eyes all but screaming at me, again?

  I of course want to explain that it wasn’t my fault, that I just heard the sound of something coming quickly behind me and turned to look. But to my surprise Mr. Karl has already turned around and is going back into his classroom, no doubt trying to avoid being noted as a witness to what just happened.

  Realizing that suddenly all eyes are on me, including the teachers who had been called out by the sharp squeaking sounds, I put on an act.

  “Oh, you seemed to have fallen,” I call out loudly. Not yelling, but loud enough to project my voice for all to hear. Then continuing the charade, I add on, “this is why they tell you not to run in the hallways.”

  At that, I bend down and grab one of Johny’s arms that are desperately clutching his chest. Realizing this will look bad if he comes away with injuries from me two days in a row, I practice my newly acquired Rejuvenating Healing Skill.

  I don’t know if it is the extensive practice that my Master had me go through all night, perfecting this Skill’s imprint on my mind. Or if it is a matter of my Class’s synergy bonuses helping out, but I feel the flow of Healing energy filtering through the our hand to hand contact going easily to his problem areas and healing any damage almost instantly.

  For the second time in as many days, the system seems to be giving me a sign with its recommendations for my last remaining Skill Slot.

  Before I was granted this for feigning attacks against spirits. This time I got it for apparently seeming like a victim to this whole encounter. Which I was, I mean I would have been fine with avoiding Johny entirely had he not tried to do whatever this was. What was his goal? I couldn’t tell.

  Pop.

  There is a faint popping sound as I feel his rib pop back into place. I’m not certain if that was from this, or a prior injury that I just so happen to be speed healing. Yet, looking at me he seems to have a look of shock on his face.

  “She taught you the Advanced Major Healing Skill?” Johny asked. Hearing him butcher the Skill I mentally shake my head, realizing why he was left off the family tree.

  Then on a whim, I take the Skill Actor, as I know I can level it up a bit here shortly. Also being offered the same Skill two times is a sign that you can likely go relatively far with it.

  Seeing that Skill, I mentally do the math and realize that maxing out this Skill, a Skill that I seemingly have a natural proclivity towards will net me an additional +12 to all my Major Attributes, other than Mana. A solid overall Skill, even if it will likely take me longer to max out over the other Uncommon Skills I have recently acquired.

  Realizing this is my chance to put my newly acquired Actor Skill to good use, I begin immediately by first accidentally letting go of Johny’s hand.

  Thump.

  Once again Johny gets dropped to his ass, which I use to feign like it is my fault due to being a weak female.

  “Oh my goodness, sorry about that, my hand must have slipped,” I begin. Then before even Johny can react, I lean in closer and pull him up. As I do, I whisper a warning into his ear.

  “Fai attenzione a chi chiami feccia” or watch who you call scum, I hiss directly into Johny’s ear. A gesture that might almost appear intimate, if it wasn’t a warning given to Johny. A direct provocation of when he called Mousey feccia, or scum yesterday.

  I of course am not stagnant with my threat, as we are moving. I am in the process of lifting him up easily with my enhanced Strength. This makes it tough for anyone to read my lips or get more than my tone as I lift him to his feet. Then once we are up, and my threat has been fully conveyed, I prop him up, while holding him at arm’s length to view him.

  There we lock gazes and I give him the crazy stare. The stare that lets you know she means business. Then to defuse the situation, and make it appear like this was little more than a hallway accident. An accident caused by an overly zealous boy going too quickly down the hallway and tripping. I give him a wink with my left eye, while quickly patting his cheek with my right. Again, the threat is clear, you won’t even see my attack when it comes, so act right.

  Seeing that he is up, even if he is a bit unsteady, I turn back to Mousey, I mean Quin, and ask, “shall we?”

  I ask, while making an overly grand gesture for the two of us to continue.

  “Ye-yeah,” Mousey stammers out, looking from me, to Johny, then back to me.

  I watch him and the rest of his gang as we leave, my Eagle Eye Skill coming into full effect. While I don’t expect him to be dumb two times in the same period, I never underestimate stupid people.

  ***

  (Johny DiVoratore)

  Johny just stood there in a daze, his head reeling from everything that just happened. Inadvertently, he felt his hand reaching up to touch his left cheek, right where her right hand had so delicately pampered a second ago.

  At that touch, there was energy. He had heard about feeling a jolt when you find the one. Stories told to him by his birth mother, a fool who believed in the power of love. But after that encounter, and after staring into her intense violet eyes, Johny now found himself to be a believer.

  “Hey, you okay man?” Dillon called out, he was supposed to be Johny’s backup but had gotten cut off by a wave of students coming the other way. By the time he managed to worm his way through the cluster, Johny had already been decked out to the floor.

  At first his back, his chest, and his everything hurt. But then she healed him, quickly too. Far quicker than the School Nurse had managed to help him yesterday. Suddenly looking at the retreating back of the girl who had manhandled him for back-to-back days, Johny realized he had been wrong about his ideal woman.

  He had thought she would be a bouncy blond like his second cousin Ithica Bloom, but he was wrong. Seeing the same violent tendencies in the girl that just left. The same violent tendencies that were only hidden by a thin veil of civility, Johny knew he had found the one.

  “Yeah, let’s go,” Johny said realizing he might need to rethink a few things.