I WAS The Rank–1 Hero-Chapter 139: Voiceless Cry [4]

—Clink!

"Fuuuu..!"

Watching Zane vanish from her field of vision, Ruby slumped on the sofa.

After experiencing a rather troublesome night with Zane, her mood couldn't be any worse.

"Did I say too much?"

This was the first time Ruby had scolded Zane, and she felt guilty.

Throughout her time with Zane in the auction house, her entire focus was on him and him alone. The guy whom she loved so much. The very same guy who was acting strange after seeing Lily.

Remembering Lily, Ruby turned her head to the little girl resting on the sofa next to her. Lily was awake, blinking several times, her gaze fixated on Ruby.

Although this made her smile, Ruby had actually started noticing something.

"Lily," she stretched her arm towards Lily and lightly tickled her chin with her slender fingers.

"..Aaa.." Lily let out a vivid chuckle, showing her small teeth while she held Ruby's finger.

"This can't be… right?" Ruby squinted her eyes at Lily, and this time, she inspected Lily's throat by scanning it with a device carefully.

—Beep!

The X-rays and CT scans of her throat displayed on the holographic window in front of her.

Studying it, Ruby let out a sigh of relief.

"Fuuuu… She seems fine."

Looking down at Lily, who was curiously blinking her eyes, Ruby asked her,

"You can talk, right?" She poked Lily's cheeks.

"Weird…"

No matter how much Ruby poked her, brushed her, or even tried to talk to her, she only giggled or let out a mumbled cry… but she never talked back.

Remembering Zane's words, this creature called elf was an extinct species, where only that elf queen's soul and this tiny girl were alive… who could live up to millions of years. But Lily was only 7 years old, a rather contradictory fact, considering that except for Lily, her whole species got wiped out millions of years ago.

Then—

"Who birthed you?" she asked.

"..Aauaa…" Lily giggled before holding on to Ruby's finger.

She acted like a baby despite being 7 years old.

Ruby concluded her thoughts, and what she learned made her feel even more pity toward Lily.

She concluded that Lily was someone who was birthed by some other means, maybe an experiment. But watching Lily, who acted like a baby and wasn't able to talk, pointed to the idea that Lily was not treated like a normal girl her age. Maybe she was even left alone, unable to adapt to any languages.

"Lily..."

She reminded Ruby of her past self, who was left all alone, never treated as a child her age, and used as a tool by a powerful organization.

Quivering her chin and biting down on her lips, Ruby picked up Lily's lightweight body onto her lap. Lily rested her head on Ruby's shoulder before she started playing with Ruby's crimson hair.

"Easy there~," Ruby chuckled at her touch. Wrapping her arms around Lily, she said, "I will be your family from now on."

…

Time : 12:30 P.M, Next Day

Location : Class 1A, first year building, Nova Academy.

"Yaaaawwn..!"

Rubbing my eyes, I couldn't help but feel a little restless today. That auction house was fun. I bought so many cool artifacts from them.

I will visit them again.

The items will be delivered to the [Mercenary Guild], to Amy this afternoon, so I will just have to collect them from her.

"Zane…" Beside me, Aria hit me with her elbow before asking me something in a low voice.

"Did your fever go down?"

"Fever?" I blinked at her in confusion.

"...eh?" Aria asked with her usual cold tone, "Are you doing fine now?"

She placed her palm on my forehead and then pulled it back. "You look normal."

"I'm always normal," I commented.

"Alright…" She then returned her focus to the class Prof. Whitelock was teaching.

In the first place, I had various things to worry about right at the moment. After yesterday's encounter with Wisdom, I did some digging on her with the help of Amy. And the results were quite shocking.

Wisdom the Ex-Rank 33 hero of the Hero Chart, three years ago, before I even joined Heso Association. She was the one who got her license revoked and later sentenced to a death statement by the HA (Hero Association).

According to the reports which I had read on her, she was the mastermind of that Frostvile Museum incident, which even I got caught up in.

So, her report made me even more curious. I utilized my remaining time before my classes and went through her file. And guess what I found?

Her entire report was nothing but a fabrication.

Wisdom wasn't the mastermind at all. She was just someone who got wounded by the Association. They threw all their shady blames on her, making her the most hated ex-hero in the world.

—Tak! Tak! Tak! Tak!

Tapping the desk, I thought about the thing that was bugging me the most.

How was she still alive though?

Knowing the HA, they took their work seriously, and they will do whatever benefits them—even if it's something like accusing heroes.

Wisdom must have known something about them.

Maybe that's the reason they kept her hidden from the public's eyes. The HA didn't want her dead… so maybe she did know something about them… or maybe she was useful to them.

And no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't reach an optimized conclusion.

I was missing a few pieces.

—Tak! Tak! Tak! Tak!

And, to know the truth, I have to gather them as soon as possible.

"Mister Skylark." Someone called me from the podium, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I looked up, slowly tilting my frame toward the direction.

It was Prof. Whitelock.

Her wrinkled eyes were staring right through me, sending a chill down my spine. Sitting straight, I acted to focus on her.

"Yes, professor?" I asked politely.

Prof. Whitelock smiled before she answered.

"Can you guess what I hate the most?"

Not this again.

Heaving a sigh of relief, I answered her in the most polite way possible.

"I'm sorry, professor," I even stood up from my seat. Bowing lightly, I added, "I was just chec—"

Cutting me off, Prof. Whitelock scolded, "I know you got the highest score in Elemental Theory, but please respect my class and don't yawn… there are others who might get distracted by it."

I nodded my head apologetically.

Prof. Whitelock continued, "Even if you know all of this, then I recommend you just keep on listening…"

I nodded politely.

"And finally..." She looked at me, "meet me in the staffroom after class."

"Huh?!" Pausing my thoughts, I got nervous.

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But I didn't argue, I just nodded my head before she gestured for me to take my seat.

After all, I don't want my grades lowered.

The class continued till 02:00 P.M. It was longer than before, but today my master was on a mission, so her special training class was canceled.

Heroes and their duties...

"Haaaahh..."

"Shall we get going?" Packing her belongings, Aria gestured for me to move.

Standing up and turning around, I noticed several eyes were directed at me. Not out of envy, but with malice and jealousy. And the exact reason for that was the girl who was asking me to move with her.

What did I ever do to deserve this?! I cried inwardly.

'Existing.' Sera answered.

Shut it, ghost, or no cakes for you!

'Heh..!' Sera retorted, 'You promised. Now don't go back on your words.'

Yeah, yeah... it's not like I can go against your will.

Standing up from my seat, I walked out of the Open Elective classroom.

Lightly glancing at the corridor, I shook my head.

My eyes feel sleepy.

Maybe I shouldn't have done that info-gathering without sleeping.

Thinking about it, I realized—

My sleep cycle is messed up.

But it was necessary, and I didn't dislike it nor did I love it.

I just did it because I got curious about Wisdom and that explosion at Frostvile Museum.

"You look tired," Aria said, glancing at me from the side of her eyes.

Looking at her, I answered, "I didn't get a good night's sleep yesterday."

She nodded, crossing her arms together. "That I can tell."

We both chatted our entire way to the cafeteria before meeting up with Anna.

"Hey!" Anna waved at Aria, smiling ear to ear as she ran in front of her. "I booked us a seat and ordered a plate of cupcakes for you."

"Hello," Aria greeted her, giving her a high five in response.

I was standing right next to her, but she didn't seem to notice me. It felt as if she was ignoring me on purpose.

And that did me dirty. A few veins popped up on my head as I turned to her and said,

"Anna, I'm here too, you know."

She paused for a moment, gave me a brief side-eye, and then smiled again before pulling Aria by the hand.

"Come, the food is getting cold."

"..."

Seriously, what the hell did I even do to deserve this kind of treatment?!

'Existing.' Sera answered once again.

And that annoyed me even more.

Alright, only one cake for you today.

This ghost needs some serious punishment.

But just as I was about to take a step, a wave of dizziness slammed into me.

The floor beneath me warped, it was tilting, and stretching, like it was melting under my feet.

I halted, abruptly.

"...!?"

'Human?' Sera's voice echoed in my skull.

I stumbled a little on my feet before I felt my energy draining away.

I reached out instinctively, but my limbs felt distant, like I was controlling them through water.

"What—?!" I gasped, but the words came out sluggish, slurred.

My vision started to blur. I saw Anna and Aria's figures moving forward, not noticing my condition.

"Ann...a…" I croaked, my voice a rasp barely louder than a whisper.

My knees buckled. My skull felt like it was cracking open from within, as if something was clawing out to escape.

'O–Oi! Don't close your eyes!' Sera's voice was shaking now. 'Stay awake, you idiot!'

I tried. God, I tried.

"..hm?" Finally, Anna turned her head back in my direction, but I was already on the ground, my limbs quivering with each pulsing throb in my head.

"Zane?!" Anna panicked and ran toward me, and so did Aria.

Their approaching figures were the last thing I saw before I lost all consciousness.