Shadow Author

Using my smartwatch to buzz in I opened the door to my dorm room.

It was just as I had left it.

Closing the door behind me I decided to take a quick shower before going to sleep.

When I entered the bathroom I turned on the water before checking myself out in the mirror.

I was still in complete awe of how I could have such a great look.

Throughout the day I took some extra time to examine the faces of all the other students I came across.

Part of me thought that the standard of beauty was much higher in this new world. Although that was true to some extent, I was still out of the ordinary.

There were still students who had crooked noses, greasy hair, poor jawlines, and unusually developed bodies. That was mostly due to all of them still being in puberty.

Taking a closer look at myself I couldn't find any such flaws. Plus I also had a well-defined body. Given those facts, I arrogantly gave myself a ten out of ten.

When taking into account everyone else in the school I tried to compare their looks to mine.

Thinking back, I realized that pretty much every high-ranking student had above-average looks.

This made me question if power was equal to beauty. If my thoughts were right I wondered how I would look when I was ranked at the top.

Another thing I noticed was that every named important character in the novel had a greater appearance than those of high rankers.

The girls were straight-up fairies while the men were perfect sculptures.

Willow and Charlotte were both gorgeous.

Although surprisingly there was one who looked even better.

Yet it wasn't in terms of beauty because all three of them were equal. Rather it was based on preference, specifically body characteristics.

Golden and black hair didn't pop as much as the other color in my eyes. In addition, their bodies were very different.

Charlotte was quite a bit shorter than me and well… only had a good ass.

Willow on the other hand was too toned for me. I prefer fair, silky-skinned girls. Also, her mountains were exactly that, mountains. I didn't know if there was a letter in the alphabet that could give them justice. If I knew implants existed in this world I would call her out but in some way I imagine them to be real.

Others may like Charlotte's and Willow's builds but to me, they favored or were lacking in some sections.

The other girl though was perfect all around. She had perfect-sized boobs and a plump ass. Big enough to grip onto, small enough not to get in the way, and they fit the exact figure of my dream girl.

While my thoughts went crazy from hormones the water had been running the whole time.

Soon enough the heat from the water caused the mirror I was enchanted with to fog over.

Realizing I had been lost in my thoughts I took a quick steamy shower and went to bed.

The next day I woke up bright and early. Learning from my mistakes I decided not to go to the gym. Instead, I opted to continue to make use of Mana Breath.

An hour later when classes would begin I got dressed and made my way over.

After leaving the dorms I walked through the hallways absent-minded until I reached Mr. Vankay's Magic Theory class.

Entering the room there were only a few students who had arrived before me. Mr. Vankay himself wasn't in the room yet which made me happy.

Making my way toward the back of the class I took a seat in the same spot I had previously.

Once I was settled I closed my eyes and started using Mana Breath again.

Twenty minutes later the classroom was filling up and someone sat down next to me.

"You are here?"

"Yeah, you were right, all I needed was some sleep."

"That's good."

Of course, the person was none other than Charlotte.

"Hey, why do you sit so far back?"

"So people don't disturb me."

"Am I disturbing you?"

"Actually yes."

Talking affected my breathing pattern which makes it so that I can't use Mana Breath.

"Really?"

Looking over at the girl she seemed disappointed.

I let out a sigh.

"It's fine."

'There are only around ten minutes left till the lesson starts so it's not that big of a deal, only annoying.'

But then Charlotte started gathering her things.

"I can leave."

"I said it's fine."

"You also said that I'm bothering you."

"Now I'm telling you to stay."

Charlotte paused and looked into my eyes for a few seconds. When I didn't show any emotion she put her stuff back down and took a seat.

"… okay."

Turning my head away after a minute passed in silence I decided to go back to using Mana Breath.

'It's awkward now.'

However just as I was about to begin Charlotte spoke up:

"Sorry."

"You don't have to apologize, I should be the one for what I said."

"No, that's not it. What I'm trying to say is, sorry for everything I put you through. From lying to the council and making a big deal in Miss Smith's class to tricking you into staying with me."

Glancing into Charlotte's eyes I could make out her feelings to be sincere. She was truly lowering herself to apologize to me.

Giving her the same respect I said:

"I accept your apology, just know that due to the deal connecting us, I'll never leave you."

Charlotte seemed to be happy with this but then her smile faded away.

"Actually I wanted to talk to you about that, I was thinking-"

"Good morning everyone!"

Cutting Charlotte off was Mr. Vankay as he entered the classroom and immediately went into today's lesson.

Telling Charlotte that she would have to finish later I leaned back and shut my eyes.

Since Mr. Vankay's class was completely useless to me I decided I would make the most of it and focus on using Mana Breath.

While his voice faded away in my mind I blocked everything out so I wouldn't lose concentration.

Sometime later I felt a nudge come from my side.

Opening my eyes I looked over at Charlotte.

"Yeah?"

She started fidgeting.

"Uh, do you know this?"

Looking down at her notebook I saw a magic-based question.

[What is Aura?]

"Why do you think I would know the answer? Why not just ask Mr. Vankay?"

"I could, but aren't you the one who said you already knew everything and that it was boring?"

"That's true… it's the manifestation of mana condensed by one's own will."

"Then how would one go about doing that?"

"So that's why you're asking."

"What do you mean?"

"It's obvious, you're trying to use aura."

"And what if I am?"

I looked into Charlotte's eyes trying to understand her determination.

What I saw was someone who desired power.

"I'd say you're crazy."

"And if I am?"

"Look, aura is something only a master class swordsman can utilize, are you there yet?"

"No, but I'm close."

"Hmm."

"So will you help me?"

"Just because I know what aura is, why do you think I'll be able to teach it to you? They are very different things."

"Because you're strong!"

"Strong? Me?"

"Yes, for some reason you're hiding your capabilities but I can tell that you are strong, really strong. Stronger than me!"

'Is she blind? I can't even use a sword!'

"But I'm not."

She smiled.

"Yes, yes, you're not."

Then she winked.

'What warped idea does this girl have of me?'

"I can't help you because I can't use aura."

Charlotte looked disappointed.

"Oh, I see."

"But."

"But what?"

"I can get someone else to help you."

"Really? Who?"

Now she looked excited.

"Who it is doesn't matter, what does, is I can make it happen."

"Thank you!"

"Don't thank me yet, in return, I need a favor."

She looked skeptical.

"What is it?"

"It's a secret for now but there is no need to worry, it's nothing extreme."

"It's nothing bad is it?"

"No, you can trust me."

"Okay… we have a deal."

"Great!"