Noble left the provost's office before Const could give her more information. How could she wait? Time was of the essence!
What would Bee Two do when finding out that a research associate was in the works? Noble hadn't exactly prepped the android for that transition. There hadn't been time.
Speeding across campus, Child of Promise looked far less stately than she had on her previous trek. She didn't care.
Her mind was picturing the altercation that might already be taking place.
Who would come out on top in a fight between Bee Two and an Awakened warrior?
Normally, Noble would always bet on the awakened because they had the strength and cunning, but Bee Two was no normal robot. If anyone could outsmart the human race and take over, Noble would put her credits on Bee Two even over a Nightmare Creature. Not that she would ever tell her assistant that. The android might get the wrong idea and think that Noble desired world domination.
'As if!'
Noble had already been given more than enough responsibilities for two lifetimes. Unlike the Sovereigns, she was not seeking more influence over her fellow man.
Anyway, the real loser in a battle between an android and an Awakened warrior would be her classroom. Only the blast chamber was self-healing. It would not do a lot of good if the rest of the room—or worse, the entire building was destroyed instead.
"Prof—Provost Noble?" A student with long auburn hair barely got out of her way as she passed.
"Excuse me!" Noble avoided the student and did not stop to chat.
The building with her classroom came into sight. It was still in one piece, much to her relief. When she got inside the building, no one was fleeing through the halls. Things felt strangely quiet.
'No one's emotions are even remotely perturbed. Maybe they didn't come to the classroom after all.'
Noble didn't want to think about the possible alternative—that her assistant had learned of the applicant's approach and took preemptive action. She really didn't want to find a corpse in her classroom.
The provost instinctively extended her sense to search her classroom. Someone was still inside, and they were alive.
More than that, they seemed excited, elated even.
Noble wasn't sure what to make of it. When she finally entered the room, Noble only grew more confused. A single person was standing by the blast chamber, examining it with a serene expression.
The individual had long, luxurious hair that was a soft blonde. They were wearing a flowing robe of an almost identical color, looking like it might be made of spun gold. When the visitor turned, Noble's eyes opened wider.
The delicate features would have made most mundane girls jealous.
Spying Noble, the visitor smiled. "Are you the Provost?"
"I am. I'm Noble. Sorry for making you wait. Const only just told me you were here." The floating woman glanced toward the alcove before descending the steps.
"Think nothing of it! I was admiring the craftsmanship of this ingenious chamber. Is it your handiwork?"
Noble furrowed her brow. 'Did I accidentally do a hard shutdown on Bee Two?'
Surely all of this intrusion could not have escaped the android's notice!
Noble coughed. "Uh, I commissioned the initial design, but it has seen upgrades over the years that I cannot take credit for."
"Well, it is a magnificent thing to behold. I regret not taking your class while I was at the Academy. It was truly my loss." The young Awakened clicked his tongue.
"Forgive me. I know you are here for an interview, but I regret that I did not catch your name." Noble felt a little silly.
In her panic and then relief, she was only now recovering enough to do things properly.
The visitor bowed. "How clumsy of me! I was a little flustered to meet you."
The young man did not seem outwardly nervous, but inside he was a ball of energy. The calm and chaotic seemed completely opposed to one another, yet somehow they worked together in harmony.
"I am Kakuja. It is a pleasure to meet a celebrity like you."
Noble blinked at him. She was very afraid to ask him for which thing he considered her famous. If it was the video with the Song sisters, Noble wasn't sure how she would react.
"It is good to meet you as well." The provost floated a chair from the room toward her desk. "Please, have a seat."
Kakuja glided across the room, his nervous excitement not showing in his measured steps. He brushed back his long sleeves and sat with a posture that would make noblewomen of old take notice.
"I would like to start by saying that I am honored to be considered for this position. Research is something I am profoundly interested in, and I believe I am uniquely suited to helping others utilize their Memories more effectively."
Noble nodded. "I am interested to hear your qualifications, but first I need to get through a few things that are make-or-break for this position to work."
"Of course." Kakuja's smile never wavered, but she felt his emotions spike. Her intention had not been to make him nervous, but if he was, hopefully that would show how he would behave under pressure.
"First, we now have all incoming students sign a neutrality agreement when they enter the Academy. Would you be willing to have a similar clause in your contract?" The Provost eventually wanted all staff to officially pledge not to take sides. Const had been the first to do so formally, though.
"Can you explain?" Kazuja furrowed his brow.
"It would state that you will treat all students with fairness and respect as individuals regardless of affiliation with a clan or not." Noble recited the line as she remembered it.
"Shouldn't that be done no matter what?" Kakuja ran his fingers through his hair contemplatively.
"It absolutely should. But it is nicer to have clear expectations."
The applicant nodded slowly. "That makes sense. Yes, I will treat every student with honor and kindness regardless of their political leanings. I live in Bastion, but I won't let what is going on there interfere with any work I would do here."
"That is good." Noble could feel that he meant it. "Next, how often would you expect to be here to work? Awakened usually set their own schedules, but since you would be taking on my research and assisting me with courses, I need to know how often I can rely on you."
"I spend most of my time in the waking world, so I can be here as often as the job requires. I guess you could say I'm flexible." Kazuja's answer was a little too accommodating, but Noble could see he was sincere. He seemed easy to work with at the very least.
"We can negotiate the hours then. Now that that is out of the way, I do need to invite someone else into the interview process. Since you haven't attended my classes before, I advise you to remain calm." Noble pressed the button on her desk.
The alcove began to open, but shut just as quickly with a hiss. Noble frowned and pressed the button again. Was the system malfunctioning?
No, Noble was sure that it wasn't. She tapped her fingers on her desk with a frown.
"Bee Two, get out here."
A metallic voice echoed in the alcove. "No."