His body was curled up in a resting posture as he stared at me lazily.
I didn't know how it worked, but I could sense him alive and residing within me.
I summoned him again.
Blue light spiralled from my chest as Felix reappeared beside me in his natural beast form.
I summoned him again.
Then again.
And again.
Until the act was fluid. There was no delay.
Just a thought.
And he was here.
Once I was confident I had to summon Felix effortlessly, I put him away.
I stood up and began to clean up the area.
Firstly, I discarded the cage.
Secondly, I cleaned the magical circle that I had drawn on the ground.
It took me fifteen minutes to clean the area and scatter some leaves and branches from the trees and bushes around me to cover up my trace and make it seem as though an ordinary beast had been there.
Thirdly, I had to return to my dorm, pretend as though nothing shocking or of value had transpired, and go to sleep.
...
I approached the main fortified gates of the male dorm, which were made of reinforced steel and towered 5 meters (16ft) tall. They were crafted with the latest cutting-edge technology to ensure the students' security.
I noticed a figure leaning against the gates.
It was a young girl with smooth dark skin and loosely tied black curly hair. She was dressed in a navy blue blouse paired with trousers of similar colour, a sleek black fitted military-style jacket with silver embroidery draped over her top, a pair of knee-high combat boots on her legs, a belt designed with slots, and a full black glove over her hands to match her attire.
Sewn on the left side of her jacket was the insignia of a sword blazing with a cloudy mist, indicating that she was a student of the Magical Swordsman Path.
This was the standard uniform of the Prestigious Grand Avalon Academy.
It was one of the most outstanding academies in the world, tasked with training awakeners - humanity's last hope - to help them grow into capable heroes who could fight against the cataclysm pouring into our world.
Ivory.
She was a commoner who had joined the Grand Avalon Academy under a scholarship provided by the Zahara Clan in hopes of becoming a powerful Hero in the future.
The tuition for the Grand Avalon Academy was expensive, and the entrance exam to join the academy was steep and rigid.
Only talented individuals from prominent backgrounds and commoners with extraordinary potential could acquire scholarships to enter.
Middle-income range families would sell their properties to send their children here in hopes that they might become powerful heroes in the future and use them as a ladder to pull themselves up to a higher status in society.
So, every student wore the Grand Avalon Academy's uniform with pride.
However, her navy uniform blouse was wrinkled and halfway unbuttoned. Her combat boots were stained with dirt, and her silver-embroidered black coat hung loosely from one shoulder.
It was too revealing and inappropriate for a student.
Her eyes were bleary and red-rimmed.
I didn't know her too well, but we had crossed paths before.
As I approached the gate, I noticed a terrible scent that pervaded the air -
Alcohol.
I didn't know where she had gone or what she had done to be in such a mess, which had resulted in her standing outside the boy's dorm, and I didn't want to find out.
It wasn't my business.
A Zahara Clan scholarship recipient had enough potential to become a formidable hero in the future unless they experienced unfortunate circumstances or were unlucky.
To see that the scholarship was wasted on someone like this...
Pathetic!
She noticed me.
I passed by her, pretending as though I hadn't seen her. Arriving at the gate, I placed my thumb on the thumbprint scanner to verify my identity.
Beep.
The scanner lit green.
Identity confirmed.
The sound of footsteps stepping behind me echoed in the air.
"H-Hey, c-can you help me?" A drowsy feminine voice soaked with alcohol and something else resonated in my ears.
Distress?
No. Too well-timed. Too desperate.
I turned to the side and narrowed my eyes at her.
"You are lost?"
She staggered forward, placing her slender hand on my shoulder. "The girl's dorm... I don't know how to get there... Please.."
I gently removed her hand from my shoulder.
"I will head in and call my dorm supervisor so he can help you out. Wait here." I went straight to the point.
No need to waste words with someone I would barely speak with in the future.
"....Aren't you supposed to be a gentleman? I'm lost. The least you can do is show me where the girl's dorm is. Hic... Hicc.. Why don't you want to help me?" As she spoke, tears welled in her eyes, dripping down her cheeks.
She did her best to wipe them clean with the back of her hand.
Too much crying. Too many years. Too public.
Her behaviour felt rehearsed.
If I were a typical teenager who grew up in an environment deprived of love, I would done my best to help.
I would hope she remembers my selfless act if we encounter each other in the future.
My thoughts would have spiralled down to pursuing her for a romantic relationship to patch up an unresolved childhood trauma that would sooner or later become a menace to society.
But I wasn't.
My instincts screamed 'trap.'
I was aware of all the cliches that could go wrong, and I wasn't going to fall for any of them.
My reputation in the academy was far from what I would have liked it to be, primarily because of the influence of Zahara Clan's descendants.
If word got out that I was with a drunk girl - a Zahara Clan scholarship recipient outside the male dorm, my reputation would continue on a downward trend like investors going to buy milk.