Vile Evil Hides Under The Veil

Eren woke up early the next day. He got ready and wore all the F-Rank gears Nina had given him. Jake caught him in the living room and was surprised to see the latter in combat mode.

"Bruh, where are you going this early in the morning? That too in a get-up like that? The intra-class war still has 4 days remaining, you know. And homeroom classes aren't that bad. Plus, they are free. You'll not lose anything if you attend them."

'I'll lose my time though.' Eren thought to himself. But he didn't say it out loud. He just informed Jake about his departure to the sanctuary.

"I'm aware of that, Jakey. It's just that I've decided to accept some missions from Besanc. Shouldn't take me more than two days."

"Oh. Alright then. Speaking of Besanc. Do you know Ken Riverine from our class of 1/C got beaten up by unknown assailants yesterday? Rumour has it that he had accepted low-level missions from the Besanc that the senior students were eyeing. The guy has been hammered badly and is currently admitted into the academy's infirmary.

Almost the entire first-year influential lot is standing behind Ken now. A lot of renowned first-year students have used their advantage of getting prioritized for low-level missions and started accepting them after finding out about Ken's serious condition. It is to make a statement to the senior students that they can't just bully us first-years.

But the seniors seem to only focus on Ken for now. They are often seen near the infirmary as if to scare Ken some more than they already might have. I don't know what the guy did to piss off the seniors like this! But neither side is going to back out now. Especially the upcoming inter-year ranking war between first and second-years is going to get heated up more than usual.

The academy is staying true to its stance and playing neutral. It has basically made it clear that the students would have to sort out the mess that they had created. It won't intervene and play as a mediator.

Ken has a lot of allies and enemies after just three days into the academy. Can you believe it? The name Riverine is enough to rile up the masses, I tell you.

You must have applied for Besanc after this event as well I reckon. Although the seniors aren't targeting any other first-years, it is better to be safe than sorry. So you might want to stay alert about any possible ambush in the forest."

Jake saw a radiant smile forming on Eren's face after he told him about the latest and most gossiped about event among the first-years these days. He was about the ask the latter why he seemed happy about the news but was faced with a sudden request from him:

"Yeah, Jakey I'll be careful. Don't worry about Mr. protagonist. He'll be fine on his own. Meanwhile, do me a favour, alright? Go to the potioneering lab for the first-years and see if there's a notice about Levine starting her lectures or not."

"Hmm? Levine? THE Levine De Montmorency? Why do you want to attend that hag's potioneering classes? From what I've heard about her, her Merp charges are high per lecture. And she is very serious when it comes to any matter related to potions.

They say that Edward Jener is a much better choice than any of the potioneers available in the academy for first years. First, he is the in-charge of the first year's potion lab. Second, Sienna Slughorn has decided to join his classes. You already know about the girl's family background. Who doesn't know about the Slughorn potions?

A lot of students from our class as well as the students from other classes have decided to follow in her footsteps. Why don't we join Edward Jenner's lectures too?"

Edward Jenner. The same lab-in-charge who was in cahoots with Sienna in Eren's previous timeline. The butcher knew that this timeline was no different in that department. The old him would have thought like Jake and opted for Edward's classes. But he was not old-him anymore.

"Jakey, if you want us to be learning potioneering together, we can't even think about joining Edward's classes ever. Trust me on this. Let's just say the guy is bad news and would someday lure a calamity on himself and his students."

Jake could feel Eren was being serious. What Eren said sounded less like a prediction and more like a prophecy.

Eren had exuded the exact seriousness when he told him and his father that they should stop interacting with Jason Storm. At least till they complete their trip to the city of Lionhearts. He knew exactly what happened after that. Therefore Sullivan Jr. decided to trust Eren this time too:

"*Long sigh.* Alright. I'll check out the lab and find out about Montmorency's classes. Someday, we'll sit with mugs full of root beers in our hands and you'll have to tell me from where you get such news. You know this right?

Anyway, I'm getting late for Ace Julia's classes. Most of us guys attending her lectures don't care about illusions and shit. But we sure like looking at her figure getting seen through semi-revealing clothing during her lectures. Hehe!"

Jake attempted to entice Eren into attending the homeroom classes but it was in vain. The duo bid adieu to each other in a hurry and went their separate ways after leaving their dorm house.

The sanctuary was a few hours away from the first-years' dorm township region. Eren had to use Blitze Steps a few times to get there. Not only did it make him get there faster but also allowed him to practise the spell while moving to his destination.

The academy had deployed an energy shield around its borders.

But the sanctuary did not get included in that protected region. This was the deal with the Amazons. The academy would keep their rights over their portion of the Beast Sanctuary intact without having to deploy the energy shield around the forest. The Amazons would be allowed an unhindered entry. And in return, the students would not be prosecuted if they got into the land protected by the Amazons.

Therefore, LA had the department of Besanc create a check-post to allow its students to enter or exit the Beast Sanctuary. It would keep track of the number of students and their status in the forest. And would deploy rescue or investigation parties if any emergency arises.

This post would also serve as a contact and connection the academy had with the Amazons. So naturally, LA employed the Amazon it had in its ranks as its representative to make that connection smoother.

"Good day, miss… err… Adapt Marla. Looking as stunning as ever, I might add. I'm here to enter the forest for my missions."