Fate Alchemist - A Regression Academy LitRPG

Wulf laid on his back, staring up at the infirmary ceiling. He was pretty sure he didn't sleep that night, though he may have dozed off for a few hours. His gut was warm where the Healers had used their Skill, and though it wasn't instantly perfect, he'd heal. There might be a scar, but the process was fast enough that he could be up and moving in a few hours. After that, only a few days before he'd be completely healed. It couldn't come fast enough. He hated sitting around, doing nothing.

In the morning, light poured in through the windows of the infirmary. Wulf pushed himself up, swung his legs off the side of the cot, and looked outside.

The harbour was still a mess from the recent fight, and though the efforts to clean up the fiends' corpses were underway, it would take a while. Eventually, they'd stop trying to clean up the bodies. At least, that was how it happened in his previous life.

But then again, maybe he could stop it from getting that bad.

In the time he'd spent in Centralis, the outer wall had nearly doubled in length, which admittedly wasn't much, but progress was speeding up. By now, the few deciduous trees around the city were starting to go yellow. There weren't many of them, and it wasn't cooling down much, but it was starting to feel like autumn today, given how overcast it was.

As soon as he tried to stand up, the infirmary door swung open, and Dr. Arnau stepped in. This time, she was alone.

She walked over to Wulf's cot and stood by the foot. "Mr. Hrothen. Good morning."

"Good morning, professor." He dipped his head.

"I've already extended this offer to your crewmates," she said, "but I would like to formally sponsor you, now that Dr. Azanthius has decided that your bravery should be commended, and no punishment given."

Right to the point. As always.

Wulf blinked. He'd never had anyone choose to sponsor him, and he wasn't sure even how that worked, though most crews in the Academy needed a sponsor, a professor to put their names forward as a potential candidate—and a professor with money. Oftentimes, the professor paid many expenses when it came to Oronith business, like equipment, repairs, dream-socket upgrades, and more.

"I…uh, can you do that?" Wulf asked.

"The Arnau family fortune is old money," Dr. Arnau said. "How do you think I bought my own ship? I may not be as influential as Lord Umoch, but I can put my name in that hat." She sighed. "And, I'll admit, it is very helpful that you seem capable of acquiring your own equipment."

"The Field doesn't respond as well to equipment someone purchases or gifts to you," Wulf said.

"Observant, and very good."

"If we fail," Wulf said, "you'll lose more reputation, and I'm sure Lord Umoch will do everything to ruin you for helping us. Just like he's doing everything to ruin us for hurting his reputation slightly."

"Then you had better not lose." She sighed. "I can't let Lord Umoch win."

"Neither can I," Wulf said, then nodded. "Alright, I accept the offer. Did the others accept?"

"Much quicker than you, I'll add." Arnau crossed her arms. "You thought of the consequences for me, first, didn't you?"

"I need to be careful of what I do and who I drag into this."

"That's ominous." She shook her head. "You know where to find me, and you know where my officer hours are." She handed him a new sheet of enchanted parchment, and his old leather bracer, which he fastened overtop the bandages on his left forearm. "I figured you'd need that. Consider it the first reward of my sponsorship."

After that, Dr. Arnau left the infirmary. Wulf put his uniform back together as much as he could, though he'd have to get that rip fixed at some point.

A moment later, he assessed his status, checking for his new Mark. It'd been a while since he got it, but it was at the very bottom.

[Mark unlocked: Viridian]

[Viridian] Awarded for defeating an obsidian-variant golem much higher than your tier. Obsidian and its variants resonate with you. Though obsidian may have small pores, they can hold poisons crafted by your hand for many days.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

That…would be useful. He was glad it wasn't a Skill, because it wouldn't have felt worth it, but it was essentially free. He'd gladly take the Mark.

Then he stood up hesitantly and walked to the door. No one tried to stop him. One of the Healers watched, but she didn't say anything. Either they didn't care, or they weren't concerned that he'd hurt himself.

But in his past life, he'd been injured enough to know when he was able to move or not. Maybe it was just a feeling, and maybe it was a bit of stubbornness, but he wasn't going to drop dead, he knew that much.

He retraced his steps through the north wing of the academy, taking staircases and travelling through the nearly empty hallways. It was still early in the morning, and classes hadn't begun yet. He was pretty sure it was a Fourthday, so there would be classes running.

In fact, he had to attend and get caught up. He couldn't just skip so much. Not only were his combat rankings and advancement important, but there were also tests, and he couldn't just do poorly on them. No amount of recommendation from Dr. Arnau could fix bad test scores.

But first, breakfast.

Halfway to the main hall, though, a group of Lions marched down the hallway from the opposite direction. Varl was at the lead, and a bunch of other boys strode along behind him, looking self-important.

"Ah, just who I wanted to see," Varl said. "Save me a trip to the infirmary."

"Is there a problem?" Wulf asked.

"Just wanted to ask a few questions," Varl replied. For a few seconds, he was silent.

"Go on," Wulf prompted. He kept walking where he wanted, forcing Varl to quickly change directions and follow him.

"Did you see anything…unusual in the dungeons?" Varl asked. "Anything you feel the need to tell the headmaster about, for example?"

Wulf raised his eyebrows. You couldn't be more suspicious if you tried. He put his hands in his pockets. "Not really. I was there to help Arnau, and I was trying to get Athllas out unharmed." Admitting that he saw colossal fiends to someone who couldn't do anything about it wasn't going to end well. Either Varl knew something, or was just a curious student. If it was the former, Wulf didn't need a target on his back. If it was the latter, Wulf didn't need to go stirring up unrest and chaos.

Something told him it was the former. Kalee had said something felt off about him, too.

"Ah, alright. Just curious." Varl shook his head.

Yeah, sure, Wulf thought. "Sorry we couldn't find anything good for your reema operation down there," he replied. "I was keeping an eye out, but we got distracted."

"The prince is a valuable asset to our operation," Varl said. "Your work was commendable, though his being there was no accident. I sent him to report on your activities, because I didn't trust you."

"Well, I suppose I wouldn't trust me, either." Wulf was trying to sound charitable, but he couldn't help feeling a little irritated,

"He wrote me a report, and he said you are in all ways an average Pilot," Varl continued. "That Kalee, despite her unusual aspect, is a normal Mage. You two are simply…highly motivated, though he didn't know by what."

Wulf nodded. That was…interesting. He was still putting the pieces together in his mind, but clearly, Athllas had hidden the truth from Varl. He knew that Wulf wasn't exactly an average Pilot, considering Wulf had used some unusual Skills in front of him, and the same went for Kalee.

"He's right," Wulf said.

"The average Pilot doesn't use giant scissors," Varl stated plainly. "I'm curious, is all. Are you a greater threat to our operation?"

The way he said operation made it seem like there was something more than just reema dealing going on. Wulf couldn't just let this one go.

Wulf only shrugged. "I found them in Istalis. Just at a bit of an antiques shop. Thought they were neat." He pulled them off his back and handed them to Varl, then said, "Scan them if you want. They're a little magic, though not by much."

Varl held the scissors by the hilt and stared intently at them. His enchanted parchment adjusted, displaying a distant message that Wulf couldn't read.

"Indeed, very basic," Varl said. "Bone Cutters." He handed them back to Wulf. "Perhaps I was wrong about you."

Wulf took the scissors and tilted his head. "...Wrong?"

"I just thought that…there was something off about you. But no matter. We'll all meet the same fate in the end—whether it's a year from now or five hundred, everyone dies."

"Dark elf gloominess, huh?" Wulf said.

"Helps pass the time."

"I really don't see how." He tucked the scissors back into their sheath. "See you around."

"Yes. You too."

Wulf increased his pace, and Varl stopped. What a weird conversation. Something was going on with that boy, and Wulf was going to need to figure it out. At least he'd gotten into the Lions, and was close enough to investigate.

At breakfast, he found Kalee and the others in the main hall. They'd reserved a spot at the table for him. He scarfed down a full plate, and they were kind enough to provide a second one for him. Afterward, they parted ways.

He was dreading his classes. Codex Construction was a small class, and most of the students would've noticed he was missing. When he stepped into the room, most of his fears came true, and everyone was staring at him. By now, word had circulated around the academy of their little excursion. It was deathly silent.

Then everyone moved closer. A pair of elven twins dropped down on one side, offering to share their notes (which had extraordinarily neat handwriting) and another boy offered the same. Wulf thanked them, promised them that he'd take them up on the offer, then turned his attention toward Dr. Tallari.

Maybe it wasn't going to be so hard to catch up after all.