The Chronicles Of New Havens

Freon narrowed his eyes and wondered before turning to Yuna, "I thought you went home? How come you came back?"

Yuna blushed a deep red. "I… I remembered I had to give you something." She fumbled into her bag and retrieved a thick notebook.

Freon took a glance and realized it was a collection of notes of university lectures. Although the university was very free compared to the academy, that was partially due to their lack of staff. Much like the Zino Kingdom, the number of Arcanists were still in its infancy. There were not enough senior Arcanists padding the ranks and most served in either research or military. Few had the time to teach the younger generation, so every lecture was a mini-treasure trove. Because Freon missed a lot during his time in the military, Yuna offered her notes.

"Thanks a lot, I'll be sure to return it."

Shirley watched with a mischievous grin. She teased, "You're awfully close to her, aren't you?" Yuna ducked her head like a shy child. She seemed nothing like the mighty Arcanist who dominated the rankings of the university. Her big eyes were begging for Shirley to stop.

"I guess so," Freon said offhandedly. "We've been friends for quite some time. She's one of the few friends I have in the university."

"Huh," Shirley wondered with disappointment. "Is that so?"

The boy frowned. "Is there a problem with that?"

"Nothing… Nothing at all," she waved.

"How long will you be around for?" Freon asked. "I can't feed you forever if you're planning on it."

Shirley stuck out her tongue. "Don't worry. I'll be gone as soon as I'm done."

"You wanted to find… your mother's medicine, is that right? Couldn't you find it where you lived?"

She sighed. "Normally, that was how it worked. The regular shipments aren't coming to my island anymore though."

"So, you came here?" Freon raised an eyebrow. He pondered for a moment. "As long as it's not some super rare or expensive medicine, it shouldn't be that hard to find. Are you sure you have enough money?"

Shirley revealed a bitter face and pulled up a small pouch. "This is," she coughed. "all I have…"

Freon raised an eyebrow. "With this much money, how did you plan on getting back home? I hope you're not planning on becoming a stowaway or threatening the captain."

"How rude!" Shirley held back the urge to bonk him on the head. "Why would you even think that?"

He feigned surprise. "You wouldn't?"

"Of course, I wouldn't," she played along.

Yuna glanced at the two of them talking so intimately that her heart stung a little. She felt so awkward that she slunk towards the door subconsciously. Freon saw her and she froze on the spot. The boy thought for a moment and said, "If I recall correctly, Yuna should know a very capable apothecary. She should be able to guide you in the right direction."

Shirley was fast to pick up social cues. She stepped in and clasped Yuna's hands. "Could you help me?"

Yuna muttered softly, "I'm not that capable… but I'll try."

"I'll be relying on you, Yuna," she smiled.

Yuna was initially hesitant and scared, but under Shirley's gentle coaxing, she gradually opened up. The three began speaking amicably like old friends in no time at all. As usual, Shirley was frightfully social-able. Her level of adaptability and friendliness would easily make her popular. Furthermore, she had the looks to boot. Even without the dresses or makeup of nobility, her natural beauty was a head-turner already. If it not for her home island's hostility, she would have been surrounded by friends and suitors!

"You had another friend, right? Gunther, was it?" Shirley wondered.

"He probably went home. Did you see him, Yuna?"

The girl shook her head. "We parted ways immediately."

Shirley pondered for a second. Although their time together was brief, she could sense… something odd about Gunther. Normally, her intuition about people was very accurate. She could grasp anyone's personalities to a certain degree. It was not anything mythical nor was it akin to Sir Roland's feat of body language reading either. Rather, Shirley thought it was more like reading a person's aura. Just like how a happy and energetic person would light up the room, while a sad and moody person would dampen the mood, Shirley could see a bit more. She was incredibly sensitive to these things and it allowed her to read people with surprising accuracy.

For Gunther, she could tell that he was overly reserved and acted prudently. Like an actor in a play, he seemed fake. This was completely different from Yuna and Freon, who spoke what they thought. Of course, that did not mean Gunther had ulterior motives. Not everyone could act freely. People had secrets or statuses that prevented them, and nobles were the best example of this. They acted righteous and superior, above the filth of the common world, but everyone knew how scheming and dastardly they were behind the scenes. Shirley only thought Gunther was the same and nothing more. She could not care less about why.

Thinking this, she threw the thought away. She was about to say something when her pupils constricted. A chill travelled up her spine and her muscles tensed reflexively. Killing intent! Without speaking, she dashed forward to grab Freon and Yuna. However, how fast could she be? Before she could do anything, the windows of this second-floor home were shattered, and half a dozen crossbow bolts homed in on them. They crossed the distance from bowmen to target in a tiny fraction of a second. The three had no time to react before the bolts were already in front of them. Their deaths were certain!

Everything happened in an instant and before the dust could settle, the three felt a tremendous aura surging, pressing down on their chests! The air trembled, as if reacting to the immense anger of a ferocious being! As the crossbow bolts closed in, their speed visibly lowered like travelling through water then ice, then metal. They stopped an arm's length away from everyone to dangle harmlessly in the air. Avin appeared at that moment! Although his strength had barely recovered even a tiny fragment of its original power, he was not to be trifled with! He was originally focused on recovering, so he was sleeping. Who would have thought things would turn out like this? If he woke up a second too late then Freon would have died! The Protector of the Arcellius Family was thoroughly enraged.

With a wave of his hands, the crossbow bolts fell to the ground. For such a simple spell, his magic casting speed was so fast that it was nearly instantaneous. It was unbelievable! For example, Freon's casting speed for the same spell might be ten seconds. In an intense battlefield, it might be dragged out to tens of seconds, if he could not focus. That was expected though since his Core Level was Low Gaseous Fog. Then, what about Yuna? She was Peak Gaseous Fog, a step away from Half-Condensed Drop. She could comfortably cast the spell in five seconds or so. When compared to Avin, whose speed was nearly instantaneous, one could imagine the power that he wielded! It was on a completely different level!