The Novel's Sidekick

Q: What is Roghara?

A: It was the sword dance that was played during the Demon-subjugating festival every year. Legend has it that Roghara uses all four standard forms of stances in the dance.

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The path was lit with bright lights on the occasion of the year-end festival. The city was crowded, even though it was almost midnight. On such occasion like the year-end Demon-subjugating festival, it was a pretty common view. Some are looking at the stages; while some are waiting for the fifth moon to appear in the sky.

Children ran around in glee, even in the crowded road. A few of them almost collided with May. She had to get out of the way for them once in a while. The huge loads on her back certainly did not make it easy for her.

While somehow the children seemed to ignore the man with the dark sunglasses next to May, who was strolling nonchalantly. They could not even come into contact with Adarsh, who was much more in middle-of-the-path than May.

The two of them finally returned to Starlight city after adventuring for half a year. Both of them lived their entire life in this city and celebrated many festivals here. The scene of lights shimmering, people yelling, children playing, dancing certainly made them feel home.

"We actually made it on time, Adarsh," May said, walking a couple step forward. She had an enormous bag on her back while two slightly smaller ones were on her arms. While Adarsh strolled with only a handbag, making a mockery of chivalry.

"You were making a fuss about nothing," Adarsh said, grumbling. "Look, your moons have not appeared yet. I seriously don't know if you have even grown up a little."

He had sunglasses on even in the night, yet he looked as cool in it as how silly Scar's underling Julies appeared in it. Well, compared to the bald and small wannabe delinquent, Adarsh had everything going for him.

"Look, who's talking," May snorted. "It was like yesterday, you are grumbling about not getting to play Rockball on our way."

"Do you want to go to the academy directly or spend some time here?" Adarsh conceded, noting May's eyes wandering around the shops and other things that were installed on the occasion of the festival.

Who would believe me if I said I had appointed her to take care of me? He wondered, watching her childlike wonder. Well, May was always the responsible type of the duo, but on occasions like this, she becomes excited and restless like a kid.

She wanted to go to the academy first after the long journey they'd been on for the past two weeks, but after seeing the gleeman dance with the children and the crowd's laughter, she was reconsidering. She was restraining herself quite much, considering the new role she has been given.

Abruptly, a firework exploded in the middle of the mountain sky, making a distinctive noise from the usual ones. The crowd's eyes drifted there at once, cheering. They did not know why they were firing fireworks. The main festival was supposed to be tomorrow, yet they all cheered.

May's lips, which were curved up, stiffened at once upon seeing the fireworks. It was the pulses that came along with the fireworks that made her stiffen.

"That is an emergency signal, right?" Adarsh asked, frowning. His keen senses already picked up the spiritual pulses that explosion released.

May nodded. "Looks like someone from the academy is in trouble on the mountain," she said. "We should go—"

"I should go," Adarsh said, looking at the afterglow of the fireworks. He gave his handbag to May, preparing to leave. "You stay here. I'll be back in two minutes."

"Adarsh, wait. Your eyes. They had been through the surgery only a couple of weeks ago. Wait up for me, for Ishar's sake."

May's words were in vain, as the youthful figure beside her shot into the sky and rushed towards the mountain, flying. May yelled from behind, but Adarsh put nothing on his mind.

Gritting her teeth at her friend's callousness, May searched around to find a safe spot to leave their belongings. Finding that did not prove difficult as well. She went inside a permanent shop near the road and dropped her bags.

Asking the shopkeeper to take care of it, she prepared to leave as well. She took in a breath, as the dust under her feet churned. She pushed against it to lurch up in the air. May was certainly good at this, but the time she wasted on settling their belonging in that store, Adarsh already took half of the distance as lead.

It did not even take half a minute for Adarsh to appear in the sky where the signal popped a few moments ago. At that very moment, he sensed the sealed site before him and a person on her knees below.

Adarsh flew down and glanced at the girl. "I know you," he said to her, though no name appeared in his head. He knew her face, but it was quite hard for him to remember names.

No joke, he barely knows the names of a few handfuls of people. May was good at that, that's why he accepted her as his assistant. All he could remember about this girl was that she was a student of the department of the Magi and an honour student at that.

"Magus Adarsh?" Yeriel was bewildered at first, seeing the man in his early prime. The dark sunglasses made it quite difficult for her to recognise, but she knew only one person with such a bearing. Moreover, there were some rumours that he had been appointed as their new president.

Adarsh nodded, looking at her state very carefully.

The post was not the president of some club or students' council in the academy, but the actual president of the Starlight Academy. Though he will only be the acting president, covering for his teacher, he was still at the very top of the academy. There was technically no one above him, including the seat holders of the Magi and Knight divisions.

"There is a bloodsucker and an undead ghoul inside the sealed space," she said, fumbling for words. She was clearly not in her right mind. Among many branches of magi, she chose the path that did not lead her to battle on any lines, so encountering such creatures today crazed her head dearly.

Not to mention, she healed two people and created a hole in such a short time, drawing in more than what she was capable of.

Adarsh, or rather, the acting president of the academy, arched his eyebrows and put his palm against the dark wall that restricted his entry.

"Don't worry," he said, and tremors appeared in the barrier's wall. The wall started to shake heavily, and it did not take even a couple of seconds for the barrier to collapse. The wall sundered like scraps of paper and then turned to nothingness.

Yeriel's eyes widened, as she had never seen such a display of power before. It took her all to create a small hole for her to slide out, and the barrier repaired itself the very next moment, yet seeing the scene of the entire barrier collapsing, her surprise was not unjustified. She guessed gaining the post of president was not small talk.

'Bloodsucker, huh?' Adarsh's eyes drifted forward, and he saw a few students on the ground.

‘They don't need my help, but the disturbance a little far from there might not be the case,’ thought Adarsh as he flew away towards the main source of the disturbance at once, shouting, "May will come soon, don't worry."

. . .

Lorne was fighting against the vampire, even though blood was oozing out from everywhere on his body. This fellow had not learned to stop, and even the vampire lord seemed to think that.

The bloodsucker did not have it easy, but the success was within his arm. The only thing that got him down for good was the death of Xion. A loyal underling like that was hard to come by. But given the few attractive ladies he saw, he tried to lighten up his mood, chuckling on the thought that how fun it would be to feed on them.

Abruptly, his expression darkened, and his long brows knitted together tightly. The barrier he erected with an artefact and his own undead energy crumbled, like a balloon popping.

'What happened? The kids did it?' he thought. "No, that can't be possible. Did the professor wake up, or did someone else appear, but how could they have broken it so easily?' The thought of fleeing came into his head, but he felt reluctant about leaving empty-handed. Moreover, he had not finished his actual job yet.

"Let's get my body function rightly first," he said, and advanced towards Lorne, intending to feed on the Knight.

All the battles and the chase took a toll on his mind and body. He had strayed away from his normal behaviour as a noble vampire long ago.

Lorne was barely standing and even his spirit force had run out. He tried hard not to collapse, and saw the vampire coming at him, but then the bloodsucker stopped and looked up.

It was not a bird that was in the sky, but a human figure, with dark sunglasses on. It was not just the bloodsucker that had the question, but Lorne as well.

Adarsh came down and looked at the undead from head to toe.

"You are the only one that came?" the vampire asked, considering how much more difficult it would be for him to deal with another magus.

If this person was on the same level as the old professor, then he probably had to make a run for it.

Surprisingly, he did not feel threatened or under any pressure of spirit force from the youth, like he felt against Professor Ranyan, but he could not be callous.

"Well," Adarsh said, glancing at Lorne and all around. "My Knight should be on her way, though I reckon her trouble will be for nothing."

"Big words," the Bloodsucker said, understanding the meaning behind that phrase. "Are those dark glasses for some sick fashion that you human play with, or are you truly blind?"

"Actually, this is quite troublesome," Adarsh agreed, gesturing at his glasses. "But what can I do? The world is just too bright for me."

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