Psychic Parasite

Chapter 100: Artifact
8:00 AM, Jyorta woke up in a hurry, taking a glance at the timetable.

”Today is Madam Rizenne’s class; if I am late by even a second, I will not be allowed entry.” Jyorta sprang up and picked his basket, hurriedly placing his uniform and toiletries inside. He then locked his door and bolted towards the restroom.

8:20 AM, Jyorta returned to his room, having freshened up in record time. He then placed a pen in his pocket, picked up his notebook, and exited the room. Walking towards the end of the hallway, he noticed sounds from Haesha’s room, showing signs of hurried activity.

’She has the habit of getting ready at least 30 minutes before the time. I wonder why she is running late today.’

Jyorta knocked on the door, producing muffled sounds. He didn’t want to sound rude by using too much force. Ten seconds after he had knocked, the door opened as Haesha peeked out, glancing at him.

Her expression looked tired, evident by her baggy eyes. It seemed like she hadn’t had much rest the previous night. Noticing Jyorta, Haesha gave a wry smile, ”Give me a minute, I am almost done.”

”Okay,” Jyorta nodded, leaning on the wall beside the door, waiting for her. Due to the time constraint, he already decided against eating breakfast. It would be too late by the time he swam through the long queue. Moreover, the classes were held in the Head Office Building; meaning, he would have to consume ample time to traverse till his destination.

A minute later, Haesha walked out, slinging a small bag over her shoulders. It had an open section at the top, showcasing a book and a notebook placed in it. There was also a pouch at the bottom, containing some stationery.

”Shall we go?” Haesha said in a hurry, taking a glance at the time displayed in her watch. She then began to braid her long hair, her actions swift, looking natural. There was a sense of elegance in the way she tied up her hair, accentuating her appearance, serving to accelerate his heart rate.

”Sure,” Jyorta nodded, accompanying her as they descended the stairs. On the way, they noticed the Espers belonging to their batch hurrying after them, looking tired. Some of them even sleepwalked, their eyes barely kept open under sheer willpower.

Taking a glance at Jyorta’s face filled with confusion, Haesha sighed, ”The scores of you and Laila have spurred everyone to work harder. 12,000 Credits, I can’t even imagine getting that sum.”

”Ahaha,” Jyorta chuckled, ”The truth of the matter is that the two of us have been tutored by the Walta Professors. That is the only reason our base is that strong.”

’One of us is a transmigrator while the other is a transmigrator plus an old monster. Moreover, I have already appeared for all the tests in maths, and chemistry. I have also taken quite a few tests in physics, one of my strong suits to accumulate that score. After this, I would also have to start learning like others to gain more Credits.’

”Walta professors…” Haesha scrunched her brows, trying to recall the name. After a couple of seconds, her expression froze, looking at Jyorta in shock, ”You mean, Professor Rishinik Walta and Professor Rishishen Walta?”

”Yeah,” Jyorta nodded, confirming her guess.

”How rich are you to be able to afford them? Is there even a limit to the wealth of the aristocratic families?” Haesha muttered, feeling her head spin.

”There is nothing of the sort,” Jyorta shook his head, sporting a wry smile. ”The taxes we have to pay are even higher than the common folk. Moreover, we also have to pay taxes to our Family to support research. If we didn’t have anyone at Tier 3, we would have been doomed. Many branches in our family are ridden with debt when the capable ones are killed.”

He then sighed, continuing with a sombre tone, ”Central command also tasks us missions every month. Paving the path for the development of the city, those tasks are left to the aristocratic families. So, we would have to send most of the elites from our Family to the Wild Zones and kill the Frenzy beasts.”

”So, there is no free lunch after all.” Haesha nodded, feeling her previous illusions shatter.

”Hey, at least we possess an Unranked Skill.” Jyorta smiled, ”This massively increases our strength. Using that, we can easily complete our tasks. Our Family members that have become Shifters are incredibly rich. We wouldn’t have been imposed with such taxes if we didn’t have the capability to pay them.”

8:30 AM, Madam Rizenne arrived in the auditorium, closing the six double-doors upon entry. She then noticed a sharp decline in the crowd, the ones seated sporting tired expressions.

Seated in the 4th row, Jyorta felt many stares on his back, some of which were full of fighting spirit. Turning his head, Jyorta glanced at the numerous faces turning away, unwilling to make eye contact. A girl among them stood out, glaring in his way.

Her dark-brown hair cascaded down like a waterfall around her shoulders, their density thick. She sported large eyes, burning with fighting spirit as she glared at him. For a second, her eyes were the only thing in his vision, occupying his focus.

Jyorta retracted his gaze away from her, looking towards the dais, ’She is one fiery girl.’

Haesha placed her hand above her mouth, leaking out a cute yawn, ”Jyorta, if I were to fall asleep during the lecture, wake me up.”

”Sure,” Jyorta nodded, ”I got your back.”

Madam Rizenne clicked a button, standing behind the podium. A screen flashed behind her, showcasing numerous weapons listed based on their Tiers. ”Our topic today will focus on Artifacts and Relics. In the afternoon session, you will be getting firsthand experience in wielding them. You can choose a weapon of your choice and issue them for your practice.”

The image of a sword flashed behind her, occupying the screen, ”Artifacts are classified based on the Tier of the Frenzy Beast they originated from. Even though a steel sword is better than a sword made from the bone of a Tier 1 Frenzy Beast, we wouldn’t classify it as an Artifact.”

She glanced at the faces of the students, looking at their facial features that looked tired, on the verge of falling asleep. ”This is due to the presence of aura. Even Tier 1 Frenzy beasts possess an aura. It is just that the aura they emit is feeble to the extent that you can’t feel it. It gets prominent at Tier 3 where it would begin to affect children below the age of 16 and the ones at Tier 1.”

She then recounted some of her experiences, detailing to the extent the aura affected each individual, varying from Tier to Tier. She then noticed that the students falling asleep one after the other, with many others looking attentive only superficially. Their minds didn’t seem to have the capacity to grasp the information she delivered.

Heaving a sigh, Madam Rizenne waved her hands, producing a large sphere before her. It shone with a pale blue light, looking viscous like water, spanning two metres in radius. Gentle waves formed on its surface, traversing from one point towards the opposite, forming ripples.

Sparks flew out, carrying a thin disjointed stream from it, merging into the body of a student on the first row. Within a second, the same thing repeated, entering the bodies of all the students present, elapsing not more than a second.

The pale blue sphere had shrunken to a great extent, only left with a sphere with a radius of 10 centimetres. It had decreased in radius by 20 times. Under her input, the remaining amount turned into mist, dispersing across the auditorium.

Each time the students inhaled the air, a part of the pale blue mist would seep into them, enriching them, decreasing their fatigue. Jyorta rested his back on the chair, lowering his left shoulder, his lips muttering a silent prayer.

Seated to his left was Haesha, using his shoulder as a pillow. She had fallen asleep mid-lecture. Even though he had promised to wake her up if she fell asleep, he paused in thought, wondering about the method to wake her up.

Should he nudge her shoulder? Give her hand a light tap? He was slightly clueless but, mostly hesitant. His left shoulder was currently the happiest body part; he didn’t want to destroy his happiness.

’She is tired, even if she wakes up, she wouldn’t be able to understand much. I can always teach her later about everything that happened in class. Please don’t get up; sleep well!’ Jyorta made a convenient excuse, feeling his mood brighten up for the better, barely able to look at the previous night’s incident with an optimistic perspective.

For the first time, he was a bit disappointed in seeing the Unranked Skill Regen in action. As the pale blue stream gushed into the bodies of each student, they woke up one after another, feeling fresh, their fatigue washed away.

Haesha too followed suit, placing a hand on her forehead, blinking her eyes in confusion. She blushed, darting her eyes towards the dais. She then opened her mouth, slightly parting her lips, leaking out a voice that was equivalent to a whisper. Her tone was apologetic, filled with the intent to apologise.

”It happens,” Jyorta waved it off like a gentleman, tapping his left shoulder a couple of times, ”My sister complimented my shoulder to be one of the best pillows in Marble city.”

Seeing his smug expression, Haesha chuckled, her eyes looking lively, full of vitality. ”It was comfortable indeed.”

”Now that you are all awake, let us continue with the lessons,” Madam Rizenne continued, ”Artifacts are generally items processed from the remains of Frenzy Beasts. They retain a part of its aura and characteristic. Even though they are present in negligible amounts and are barely helpful, their potency varies depending on the tier.”