"Where are you off to, Lucian?"
Lucian looked over at the voice that just called out to him. Surprised and annoyed that someone would stop him again while he was mid thought.
He saw that the boy who spoke was a large, tall young boy. Or would he be considered old now that Lucian himself was 12? He had vibrant, blue eyes, a well chiselled face and golden yellow hair. He looked far older than he actually was, with his body being well muscled, looking like a bodybuilder who had been working on his physique for decades.
"The Nurse." Lucian just gave a short answer.
He was struggling to remember the name of this particular youth. His mind was quite foggy still, and his inherited memories hadn't quite settled in yet. It was best to play it safe and just give short replies while he figured things out.
"Haha… Lucian, don't you know you have to pay the hall tax before you get my permission to go anywhere?" The boy continued speaking to him though, looking as if he had zero intention to stop.
'So he's one of those types.'
Lucian originally thought he must have been one of the previous Lucian's friends, but it seemed not. It was clear that the old Lucian's timid and cowardly personality would be completely incompatible with this brute, which was only made glaringly obvious by the way he was speaking to him.
'Hahh, trouble's already found me and it hasn't even been 10 minutes since I inhabited this body…' Lucian kept his thoughts to himself, instead taking a secret glance at his surroundings and making note of everything.
He looked to see if anyone else was nearby, whether to help or to hide suspicion. But it turned out to just be him and this new boy. The hallway itself was quite long and wide, causing their voices to echo quite far — Lucian noticed this and made sure that for the next few moments, he kept his voice down. The less people who heard him speak, the better it would be for the both of them.
'Why does trouble always find its way to me…'
To be quite frank, Lucian was already in sort of an odd mood after finding out he had not only died, but had now transmigrated into this odd world. He was already still experiencing some residual effects of transmigrating, and he barely even managed to get used to his new body.
It was hard to readjust to this new life, he had spent 35 years getting used to his old body in his old world, so taking on the role of a 12 year old was difficult, to put it lightly. All this, while simultaneously having to try and appear normal, like he was still the same person they thought he was. But after hearing this rough looking youth speak, his mood quickly changed from odd to sour.
"How… interesting," Lucian muttered to himself.
"What was that?" The rough looking youth said, unsure if he was hearing things or not. He was probably thinking something along the lines of, 'This brat dares to speak back to me??'
However it seemed his old habits were coming back to bite him already, as he had spoken his thoughts aloud unknowingly. But it seemed the brawny youth wasn't that interested in what Lucian actually had to say, as he glossed over it in only a matter of moments.
"Here I thought you'd never show your face again after what happened last week." The boy, at least twice Lucian's own size, sneered. "Thought you could hide away forever, huh?"
Lucian's mind shifted through the lingering memories of his predecessor. It took a great deal of effort out of him to go sifting through his memories with his mind still groggy, but he felt like he needed to know more about the boy to understand what was going on in this current situation. As a scientist, Lucian liked to have all the facts before he made a decision on things.
Eventually, after thinking hard and long, a vague recollection started to form. This was Roderic, a constant thorn in the side of the previous Lucian. He was twice Lucian's size — in both height and girth, as Lucian himself was actually quite short and skinny for his age. He was the sort of bully who thrived in places like these, where the weak willed were gathered for easy pickings to the stronger kids.
But instead of fear, Lucian felt something quite different. Amusement. It was like watching an insect crawl across a perfectly laid experiment guideline, thinking itself significant. When in the grand scheme of things, it was just a tool for a greater mind, a higher being to observe and understand concepts it could never even begin to comprehend.
"Roderic." Lucian called out to him, testing the name on his tongue.
"To what do I owe the pleasure?" Roderic sneered, clearly amused with Lucian's sudden bravery and willingness to talk some smack back to him.
The hint of sarcasm in his voice wasn't subtle at all, and it must have struck a chord. It seemed Roderic wasn't used to the previous Lucian responding back to him like that, and he tried to hide his anger with his amusement. The cover up was clear as day for Lucian though.
Roderic's expression darkened, and he took a threatening step forward, fists tightening at his sides.
"Don't play games with me, runt. I said pay the hall tax."
Lucian tilted his head, feigning ignorance. "Hall tax? I don't recall such a thing being in the academy rule book?"