The Author's POV

"Are you sure you're alright?"

Passing by stalls without even glancing at them, Kevin worriedly looked at Emma who remained silent throughout the whole time they were walking. After that accident, Emma had a gloomy air around her. It felt as if she had erected a tall barrier that prevented anyone from approaching her.

"Hey! Hey!"

Suddenly Emma stopped walking. Raising her hand slightly, she wiped away the corner of her mouth.

Looking down, her azure blue uniform now had a small red stain on it.

Noticing it, Emma quickly pulled her hand back to hide the small stain. But although Emma tried to be subtle with her actions, it couldn't escape Kevin's eyes which immediately widened in shock.

"Shit!"

Grabbing her hand, Kevin immediately dragged her out of the elective fair.

It seemed like the earlier confrontation had resulted in Emma sustaining some internal injuries. The fact that she refused to kneel even under all of that pressure goes to show how much willpower and determination she had.

Fabian's rank was most likely around the C range which was around two ranks higher than Emma whose rank was still E- borderline E rank.

Subjected to such pressure, Emma was bound to suffer internal injuries. If not for the fact that Kevin's rank was E+ borderline D rank, he too would've suffered serious internal injuries.

-Smack!

"Don't touch me"

Raising her voice, Emma smacked Kevin's hand away. A split second after realizing what she had done, Emma froze and lowered her head in shame.

"I-I'm sorry"

"It's alright"

Not taking it to heart, Kevin stopped and looked at Emma.

Her complexion had become a lot paler than before, and looking at her carefully now, Kevin could see Emma slightly shivering. Almost as if she was suffering from extreme cold.

'shit, how come I didn't notice this before!'

Cursing at himself, Kevin thought for a bit before gritting his teeth.

"Here"

Taking out a light green potion from his inventory, Kevin handed it to Emma. This potion was one of the rewards that he had gotten after completing a quest that the system had given him.

He had saved it in case he got severely hurt, but seeing Emma suffering, Kevin couldn't control his impulse and decide to give it to her...

In the first place, the only reason she got hurt was because of him. If he had not asked her to bring him around for the elective fair, none of this would've happened.

"...I appreciate your concern"

Looking at the potion Kevin had given her, Emma was slightly touched, but she still rejected it.

"I insist"

Noticing Emma's stubbornness, Kevin tried to forcefully put the potion in her hand, only to be rejected by her once again.

Seeing that he could do nothing to make her take the potion, Kevin gave up.

Her hand, which was slightly trembling, reached out for her pocket. Taking out her phone, she quickly dialed a number.

After a couple of rings, a pleasant and gentle voice could be heard from the other side of the phone.

—Young miss how may I help you?

"I need someone to pick me up"

—Is something wrong miss?

"Everything is fine...please come and pick me up"

—...as you wish young miss, I will immediately dispatch someone to pick you up.

Sensing something, the lady on the other side of the phone immediately called for someone to go to Emma's location.

-Tak!

Soon after hanging up her phone, a butler calmly walked in their direction. He donned a neat black blazer with a slight opening where his white unwrinkled shirt could be seen. A black bowtie hugged his neck and accompanied by his well-polished shoes that shined under the campus light, further added to his elegance. He had a full set of white hair which was a result of his age. At the edge of his eyes, which were obsidian black, wrinkles that extended all the way to his upper cheeks could be seen. Lastly, what stood out the most about him was his nicely trimmed mustache that rested below his nose.

"Young miss"

Elegantly bowing in front of Emma, the butler greeted Emma.

"Uncl-e Norman please bring me home"

"..hm?"

Noticing that something wasn't right, Norman looked up and saw Emma's pale face.

"M-miss!"

Rushing in to support her, Norman grabbed her shoulders in a panic.

"I'm fi-khhh"

Seeing the panic in Norman's eyes, Emma tried to brush it off, but as soon as she started speaking a red trail of blood fell from her nose. Soon she passed out in Norman's arms.

"Miss!"

Lightly shaking Emma's body, Norman looked around in panic. Taking out his phone he quickly called for backup.

After he finished calling for backup, he gently laid Emma on a bench. After making sure that Emma was okay, Norman's demeanor completely changed as he coldly looked at Kevin and asked.

"Tell me what happened"

Helplessly nodding his head, Kevin quickly recounted what had happened moments before.

As he listened attentively to Kevin recounting about the incident with Fabian, Norman's face became gloomier by the second.

"...the Parkers, good, good"

Standing up, an extremely strong bloodlust permeated the surrounding, suffocating Kevin. Fortunately, Norman was controlling his bloodlust as it could only be felt within a certain radius.

If one of those weaker students were to suddenly be exposed to this bloodlust, they would've suffered mental trauma.

Soon, two black cars arrived at the front of section B where a bunch of individuals with black suits came out. Forming a line, they pushed away all students that were trying to take a look at what happened.

Carrying Emma in his arms, Norman looked back at Kevin and said

"Tell the dorm supervisor that Emma will be absent for at least a couple of days"

Nodding his head helplessly, Kevin agreed

-Clank!

Closing the door to the car, the cars soon sped into the distance.

Staring at the departing cars, Kevin fell into deep thought before going back into the dorm.

...it seems like he'll have to visit the elective fair another time.

...

Parker tower, Ashton city

It was currently nighttime in Ashton city, and the lights coming from the cars drifting in the distance formed beautiful yellow and red stripes that stretched all the way to the horizon.

Inside of a large office, on the top floor of a tall glass building, the silhouette of a man looking down the busy streets of Ashton city could be seen.

"...that is all"

Standing a few steps behind the man, a butler kneeled on the floor as he read the report in his hand.

After the butler read the report, a deathly silence permeated the room.

Soon the silence was disrupted by the cold voice of the silhouette standing by the window side of the office.

"...Push the plan forward"

"Sir!"

Abruptly standing up, the butler immediately tried to voice his objection.

"k-hhukk"

...but before he could do that, the butler found himself facing the ground as an unimaginable pressure bore down on him. No matter how much he struggled he could not move. This was especially shocking since the butler himself was a B-rank Hero.

The fact that he could not move despite his high rank goes to show how powerful the individual he was serving was.

"...Do as you're told"

Without looking back, the silhouette once again spoke. This time, the butler didn't even dare to talk back as he could only nod his head on the floor.

Soon the pressure died down and the butler was able to regain his mobility.

"Call him to my room"

As the butler was ready to leave the room, his master spoke once again.

"Yes master"

-Clank!

Elegantly bowing his body forward, the butler left the office. Soon, the office became enveloped in silence as only the sound of the man's breathing could be heard.

-Knock! -Knock!

"F-father?"

The tranquil atmosphere was soon broken by the sound of a knock. The door slowly opened and a face could be seen peeking from the other side of the door.

Fabian, who was on the other side of the door, trembled all over as he waited for his father's permission to enter the room. His previous arrogance could no longer be seen as he resembled a scared rabbit trapped in a cage.

"...enter"

-Clank!

Obediently listening to his father, Fabian carefully entered the room and closed the door behind him.

Soon an awkward silence enveloped the room.

Sweat could be seen falling from Fabian's face as he stood with his back straight not daring to sit down.

Unable to stand the tense atmosphere anymore, Fabian was the first to break the silence.

"F-father?"

Turning around, the features of the silhouette were revealed under the room's lights. His facial features were similar to that of Fabian, however, despite his age, which was in the late fifties, there were no wrinkles on his face. If someone did not know about his age they could've easily mistaken him for a twenty-year-old college student.

What separated him from a regular student was his distinct sense of authority that could be felt from his demeanor. It felt as if he was a judge that dictated who was guilty and who was innocent.

-Gulp!

Swallowing a large mouthful of saliva, Fabian waited for his father to respond.

"...How do you plan to fix your mistake?"

"Y-yes"

hearing his dad's cold voice, Fabian stood up straight and fumbled on his words. He was too nervous to speak.

Frankly, Fabian since young had rarely ever spoken with his father.

He was the third in line of the Parker family, and wasn't doted on as much as his brothers. However...he still had everything.

His family, which was passed on for generations could be considered as one of the strongest in the current human domain. They managed to rise from the bottom to where they were now thanks to their business-orientated mentality.

The Parker conglomerate was responsible for selling and trading cores, monster parts, and skills. They had so much money that could last each member for generations.

Being neglected, Fabian spent lavishly to substitute the missing paternal love that he never received from his parents.

On the off-chance that he did meet his father, he would always be intimidated by his presence which exuded authority.

To him, his father never felt like a real father...he felt more like his boss.

"I want you to finish what you started"

Seeing that his son was still too timid to hold a conversation with him, Micheal Parker, the current CEO of the Parker conglomerate spoke up.

"eh?"

Not expecting what his father was telling him, Fabian looked at his father in confusion.

"You heard me clear...I want you to finish what you started."

"B-but woul-dn't that start conflict with the Roshfield family"

Smirking coldly, Micheal Parker looked at his son in contempt

"The deed has already been done, you think they'll do nothing after what you've done?"

Hearing his father's words, Fabian lowered his head. He was right, now that everything had already started it was too late to regret it.

"I've been planning this for a while, you've only pushed forward the inevitable"

"...so now I want you to go through with it to the end, I want you to thoroughly crush Emma Roshfield"

Staring at his son, Micheal Parker slowly walked next to him and patted his shoulder

"Prove your worth."

Feeling his father's large hands, Fabian felt something inside of him rise. It was something that he had never felt before...reliance?

As if a fire had suddenly ignited inside of his heart, Fabian Looked at his father in the eyes and asked

"But if I target her, wouldn't that make me the prime target of the Roshfield"

Smiling slightly, Micheal turned back to look at the busy streets of Ashton city.

"You have to mask your actions...hire some people to create conflict within the academy so that you can veil your true target. Emma Roshfield"

"Once everyone is too distracted with the conflicts, you will strike and deal a fatal blow to the Roshfield family's only successor"

Staring at the busy streets of Ashton city, Micheal Parker grinned coldly. Looking at the Roshfield tower not so far in the distance, Micheal Parker raised his hand and slowly clenched it.

"It's about time that the Parker family got rid of the Roshfield family"