Chapter 43: Fate Fragment

Nikolai enjoyed the 16 Roserian Gold Coin clinking in his bag as he walked out of the hall. He smiled with contentment as he walked through the school, every student looking at him warily.

He returned to his dorm room, where he found his roommates sitting in the living room while discussing something. As soon as he returned, Ro Za jumped up and welcomed him.

“Niko!” Ro Za said with an affectionate smile, but his brow was twitching. “I hope you forget what I said earlier; I thought you were someone else!”

“Oh?” Nikolai was taken aback by such a blatant lie. “There’s another first ranker?”

“That is… ahem.” Ro Za’s face was flushed and awkward. “I was drunk, so I wasn’t at my best! Please forget about it!”

‘Bro, would you get back to the room this quickly if you were drunk?’ Nikolai smiled but didn’t say anything. He ignored Ro Za and went to his bed and looked at the package on it.

“The Academy?” Nikolai was surprised. Lan and Nar were glancing at him as they acted as if nothing changed. Nikolai opened the package and found two cards. They were a stats card and an item card. “So generous!”

“It’s the reward for obtaining the first rank. Congratulations!” Lan said while adjusting his glasses. “I knew you were going to achieve big things in the future, but you surprised me!”

“Hm!” Nar nodded in agreement. “Let’s take care of each other from now on!”

“Uh, thanks.” Nikolai looked at Nar with raised brows. The last time he heard this guy talk, he was saying how disgusting Nikolai was. Shaking his head, Nikolai looked at the cards.

One Item from the Rohan Vault.

Five Crystals from the Rohan Vault.

‘The vault?’ Nikolai was pleasantly surprised. He knew that the first ranker obtained more rewards, but he didn’t think they were this bountiful.

Nikolai took the cards and his bag. He wouldn’t delay things as he had to infiltrate a gang and impress a daughter of heavens. Nikolai left the dorm and went straight for the vault. It was the ancient building in the academy’s middle ground and the first one the founder constructed.

The Rohan vault looked like a temple that no one renovated for years. Yet, it was well maintained. As soon as he approached it, Nikolai could smell the aroma of cherry trees.

A narrow walkway surrounded by a pond on each side greeted Nikolai when he walked in. White and black koi fishes danced in the water that had cherry petals floating on top of it.

Nikolai walked until he reached a door where an old man sat reading a book. He was facing the cherry trees, and a giant umbrella blocked the sun off his bald head.

“This student greets Principal Rohan!” Nikolai placed his hand on his heart and bowed slightly. The aged man placed the book down and smiled at him.

“You are polite, boy.”

“You deserve anyone’s respect, principal.” Nikolai knew better than disrespecting this man. And as he said, he had earned Nikolai’s respect from his past life.

“Haha, and why is that, exactly?” The principal stroked his beard with a pleasant smile. “Do you know of my merits, or are you trying to flatter me?”

“After graduating from the Royal Academy, you became the vice-guild master of the Royal Guild, led by his majesty. In the Battle of Ores against the beastkin, you went alone to save a strategically abandoned city.”

“Hahaha,” The principal laughed heartily. “Then you know why I ended up here.”

“I do.” Nikolai nodded, not knowing if he should say it. “They call you the Slaughterer of a Thousand Man.”

“Then tell me, boy. Why do you think I deserve respect?” The principal’s eyes were sharp. “I have not earned that title because of my strength but my foolishness.”

Nikolai paused. The man in front of him didn’t have this title because he was a mighty war hero. It was because his choices resulted in the death of the men under him.

“You saved the lives of tens of thousands of people. You chose the lesser evil, but it was still evil.” Nikolai closed his mouth after that and took out the cards from his bag. “I’m here to receive my reward, principal.”

“I can see how you’ve ranked first. You are a wise child.” The principal nodded and took the cards. “Come, Nikolai Yaran. Let’s reward you properly.”

The principal stood up and opened the door behind. As the two walked in, a strong wave of mana rushed out. This wave was the accumulated mana in all of the crystals and the magical items that the academy had.

“What crystals do you want?” The principal asked.

“Three for mana, and two for intelligence,” Nikolai answered without hesitation. He already decided on them before he came here.

Nikolai had no plans to be a mage now, as that would require a tremendous number of resources, and it would also leave him vulnerable to physical attacks. Furthermore, mages couldn’t survive without a party. Most of his plans were to be alone.

“Oh, not strength or agility?” The principal was surprised. “What an oddball you are.” The principal then went on and took out the F-rank crystals from a few cabinets.

Nikolai smiled in response. He knew that at their age, strength and agility were the most important. However, if he spotted the monster early, he would have more time to attack or flee.

The mana was crucial because it was the most significant weakness Nikolai had in his past life. There were so many times he almost died because of his low mana. Furthermore, there was one crucial aspect.

‘I can’t attack spirits without mana.’

Nikolai still remembered the system alerting him about a spirit calling in the forbidden area.

“Here you go.” The principal gave him the crystals as if they were candies. “Let’s choose the item then.” The principal went to another room and opened the double doors.

The myriad of lights danced in harmony as Nikolai walked in. There were all sorts of items, from weapons to artifacts to potions. As he looked around, Nikolai realized that all of them had potent magical properties.

“Choose an item, and I’ll tell you what it is.” The principal said, and Nikolai had a sense of deja vu. Before he left the academy, the principal also offered him an item to help him go on.

As Nikolai walked through the shelves, he felt in awe of the items, but they weren’t enough to grab his interest. He didn’t even look at the swords, spears, and claymores.

“Are there any enchanted guns?” Nikolai asked, but the principal shook his head.

“Guns are too complicated and ineffective for an enchanter to take an interest in them. If you want one, you’ll have to look in the association or the mechanics’ hall.”

“I see,” Nikolai nodded. He walked toward a wall that had bows hanging from it. He admired the craftsmanship until he found a peculiar longbow that looked quite shabby.

It looked as if someone tied a string to an arched tree branch. Nikolai found it a surprise that such an item would be kept in the vault.

“Oh, that. A student found it long ago, and there was no actual use for it.” The principal explained, but Nikolai’s system told him otherwise.

[The System has detected a Fate Fragment.]