Chapter Four: As Flat as Bread

Early in the morning, the students of the Necromancy Department hurriedly got up and made their way toward the Dark Arts building. Jack was filled with panic and reluctance, but after hearing Han Shuo's plan and realizing Han Shuo was seeking revenge on his behalf, he thought to himself that if even someone as timid as Han Shuo dared to try, how could he be any less than Brian? In the end, Jack agreed.

Along a cobbled path, towering stone statues of Babylon Magic and Martial Academy's most outstanding students from every generation lined the way. These statues were grand and lifelike, each figure representing the pride of the academy.

One of Brian's tasks was to clean the dust from these enormous statues. Since he was about ten years old, he had dragged his small, thin body to do this job. Back then, Brian was even shorter and had to carry a little ladder just to barely manage the work; otherwise, he would go without food for the day.

Standing beside the statue of a great archmage with a large beard—this archmage was named Claire—Han Shuo was brushing dust from Claire’s chest when he said to Jack, “Tell me, Jack, wouldn’t it be great if one day our statues stood here as well?”

“Brian, don’t daydream! We’re just servants. As long as we have enough to eat and aren’t beaten every day, that’s good enough. Becoming a mage? Impossible! Oh, Brian, you’ve really changed. You never used to think like this, let alone come up with such wild ideas!”

“Why not?”

“To become a mage, you need exceptional talent, you have to get into a magic academy, pay massive sums in tuition, and undergo countless trials. Even noble children need real talent to become mages. We’re just commoners—we shouldn’t even think about it. Oh, I forgot, you don’t even have personal freedom; you’re a servant for life. You’re worse off than me, with no hope at all!”

“But we’re already in the magic academy and don’t even have to pay tuition. Isn’t that a huge advantage? If we don’t learn a bit of magic, how could we ever dare call ourselves students of Babylon Magic and Martial Academy?”

“Brian, stop acting so confident. We’re not real students—we’re just servants. Uh… At least I might be able to leave the academy someday, but you—you might never be free.”

The chubby Jack watched Han Shuo absent-mindedly wipe the archmage Claire’s statue with an ambitious gleam in his eyes, instead of his usual focus. Jack thought Han Shuo was acting strangely and spoke his mind honestly.

“Ha, let’s not talk about this anymore. Look, the little witch Lisa is finally on her way. Let’s get to business!” Han Shuo spotted Lisa in the distance, moving with a slight limp. He thought to himself that after six years as a servant here, he had at least learned people’s routines.

Lisa always got up late and usually strolled alone to the academy, and today was no exception. The little witch wore a black mage’s robe, her golden hair draped lazily over her shoulders. She looked as if she hadn’t slept well, yawning as she walked.

Lisa was quite beautiful, though at sixteen, perhaps not fully developed, her chest was still rather flat. Rumor had it she was quite dissatisfied with this and had been seeking ways to remedy it.

Han Shuo and Jack watched Lisa approach, pretending to be absorbed in cleaning the statue as they whispered conspiratorially.

“How could it be, Brian? Did you hear that right—Buck said that about Lisa?”

Suddenly, Jack’s whisper grew louder in surprise.

Lisa, lost in thought, instantly snapped to attention when she heard her name mentioned, her eyes scanning ahead warily.

Every girl wants to know what people say behind her back, and Lisa was no exception. To keep the boys from noticing her and stopping their conversation, she cleverly hid behind another statue, ears perked and eyes darting with curiosity.

So it’s that half-crazy Brian, Lisa fumed, ready to settle the score with him later. But first, she wanted to hear what Buck had said about her.

Han Shuo grinned foolishly. “You heard right. Buck was just telling other students that Lisa’s chest is as flat as a piece of bread someone stepped on!”

At these words, Jack stifled his laughter so hard his chubby face turned bright red, his body shaking with the effort.

On the other side, Lisa’s rosy cheeks turned livid, her beautiful eyes glinting with fury, her lips twitching as she ground her teeth audibly. After trembling in rage for a few seconds behind the statue, she stormed off toward the teaching building, forgetting her plan to settle things with Brian.

Watching the little witch Lisa rush away, Jack could no longer hold back and burst out laughing. “Brian, you’re too wicked! Even I know Buck likes Lisa, and Lisa hates anyone talking about her chest. With her like this, Buck is doomed!”

Han Shuo snickered and put his brush away, urging Jack, “Forget cleaning Claire. Let’s go watch!”

Egged on by Han Shuo, Jack stuffed his brush into his pouch and laughed, “Come on, I want to see Buck get what he deserves for hitting me this morning!”

The two little servants from the Necromancy Department gleefully followed Lisa, hurrying toward the teaching building and leaving the other students puzzled. What had gotten into the two most timid servants today?

The Necromancy Department was a branch of the Dark Arts at Babylon Magic Academy, sharing a building with the Dark Arts students, where teachers instructed them in magic each day.

One had to admire Lisa’s speed. By the time Han Shuo and Jack arrived, Lisa had already lost her temper and was fighting with Buck.

“Lisa, even the servants know how I feel about you. How could I possibly say such things? Who told you that?” Buck’s left eye was swollen, and as he dodged a “Bone Arrow,” he shouted his grievances, looking utterly wronged.

Buck, after bumping into Jack earlier, had beaten him up, and Brian had suffered even more at his hands. Buck was the son of a minor noble, only seventeen years old, and a lowly necromancer’s apprentice. Against Lisa, already an official necromancer, he stood no chance. Since he liked Lisa, he was even more cautious in his attacks, but it was no surprise he quickly got the worst of it.

“Hmph, that’s none of your business. It was said unintentionally, but it can’t be wrong. Since you’re so malicious, take this!” Lisa, not wanting to expose Han Shuo and Jack and be ridiculed in front of the crowd, put all her effort into teaching Buck a lesson.

“Oh, fallen undead warrior, at the call of the dark emissary, show yourself!” the little witch Lisa chanted, raising her slender arms. Two bone-white skeleton warriors appeared before her, brandishing matching bone swords at her command and charging toward Buck with a clatter.

Han Shuo stared, dumbfounded. This was his first time witnessing necromancy in action, and his curiosity and excitement soared as he watched intently.

“Lisa’s spiritual power is impressive—she can summon two skeleton warriors!”

“Hmph, the Necromancy Department is already so weak, and they can’t even work together. No wonder they’re the weakest branch in the academy—a disgrace to the Dark Arts Department!”

After Lisa summoned the skeletons, some Dark Arts students nearby started to gossip. From their conversation, Han Shuo learned that even the same spell had five levels of power, depending on the caster’s spiritual strength. A powerful necromancer could summon many more skeleton warriors with this spell.

Buck, dejected, cursed the rumor-mongers a hundred times over. If he had mastered the curses of the Dark Arts and his spiritual power was strong enough, Han Shuo and Jack might not find things so funny.

Chased in chaos by the two skeletons, Buck finally managed to summon a small skeleton of his own and, together, they fought Lisa’s minions.

The watching students laughed uproariously at Buck’s sorry state. Distracted and flustered by their jeers, Buck was kicked in the stomach by one of Lisa’s skeletons, turning pale as he doubled over in pain.

Seeing Buck hurt, and the skeleton ready to strike again, Lisa quickly dismissed her summoned minions, sending them back to their plane.

After all, this wasn’t a life-or-death battle, and duels to the death were strictly forbidden in the academy. Seeing Buck injured, Lisa’s anger had mostly subsided.

Buck picked himself up and sent his own skeleton back as well. Then, spotting Han Shuo and Jack laughing at him, he stormed over, cursing, “You two lowly wretches dare to mock me?”

Unable to vent his anger at Lisa or the older Dark Arts students, Buck saw only Han Shuo and Jack—two servants—left to take out his fury, especially as they laughed at his expense.

Seeing Buck charge past, Lisa, whose anger was fading, flared up again at his arrogance. Her face cold, she chanted, “Endless darkness, grant me death’s power—let the pain of the soul fall upon him! Agony of the Soul!”

As Lisa finished the spell, a shadowy black orb formed, twisting and writhing through the air until it became a flickering black flame.

Buck, seeing Lisa casting the spell, suddenly dashed toward Han Shuo and Jack and, just as the spell was about to hit him, rolled on the ground.

Han Shuo, still laughing heartily, was completely unprepared. He watched as Buck rolled away and the Agony of the Soul spell struck him square in the chest.

A sudden, splitting pain shot through Han Shuo’s head. His eyes rolled back, his face still twisted in laughter, and he fell stiffly backward to the ground.