"It's been two months since we last saw each other, and a lot has happened in that time."
Damian sat down in the instructor's chair behind the desk, his blood-stained clothes and exhausted posture contrasting sharply with the authority in his voice.
"I went to the forest behind the Academy for training. It wasn't planned, otherwise I would've dealt with these Noble bastards before disappearing for so long."
His crimson eyes swept across the faces of the thirty-two students gathered in the old shooting range.
"Now I come back and find that the Mafia has been reduced to just us. The same people who participated in the first mission in Tranquil City. Everyone else ran away the moment things got difficult, claiming we couldn't protect them or provide resources."
Many of those present looked down at their feet, embarrassed. Among those who'd left were their friends, people they'd trained with and trusted.
It stung worse than any Noble insult.
