It hadn’t taken long for everyone in Mryefall to explain the entire situation to Angelus after he woke up. As he already knew, he did suffer from an extreme case of mana overflow. And as Angelus found out, it had taken him a whole week to recover from the overflow. At first, when it was found out that he had such a large mana expulsion, Claudia tried to take care of him for the first few days. But then adventurers from the Champions Academy had come and pretty much kidnapped him, saying that he was now too valuable to lose. They were kind enough to let them come with, but not enough to let them pack anything. So now there he was, at the Champion’s Academy medical wing, trying to calm Claudia down.

“I told you I’m fine Claudia.”

“Oh? Did you become a doctor in the week that you were knocked out? Did Asclepius decide to educate you in healing and medicine in the week that you were knocked out? No? Then I’ll be the one to decide that.”

It had been three days since he first arrived here, and now he was in the middle of getting an examination from Claudia. He’s been awake for almost two hours, and he had just got finished with what felt like ten examinations from people who he didn’t know. And his mood didn’t get better because it was someone that he knew.

“I didn’t decide that, the doctors did.” He retorted.

“Oh please.” She scoffed, examining his body with glowing eyes and touching him with bright hands. This was an ability that everyone in Myrefall, as well as Cyris, was familiar with, it was her ‘Detect injury’ skill. As she explained it, it was a general skill that all healer classes would get, either at the start or later. “What do they know.”

“I would hope a lot seeing as they’re doctors.” He joked, but she didn’t laugh. he wanted to try and reason with Claudia, to make both her and Olivia stop worrying, but right now she was in a mood. What mood was that, it was the ‘I know better than everyone else because it's my kid’ mood. The mood that all mothers were known for having after a bad injury happens to their kid. She probably did know more than the doctors that examined him, As far as he knew, as they weren't adventurers. But if they were hired by the academy, then they must be great at their jobs.

“And they don’t know you as well as I do. Olivia and I used to bathe you, we feed you, we used to change your diapers.”

“Okay, I get it,” Angelus shouted, embarrassed at her words. There was laughing behind him, Angelus turned and glared at the group. Annie was covering her mouth and Donavin made no attempt to hide his laughing. “Don’t laugh, it wasn’t like it could change my own diapers. Besides, it was you two who couldn’t stop pissing the beds until you were eleven.”

Their laughs immediately stopped, replaced with anger and embarrassment. Angelus sat there, a sly smirk on his face. That was until Olivia came up and silenced them with one glance.

“Enough, let Claudia finish her examination.” they looked like they were going to say something else. but Olivia then looked towards the kids and her eyes widened. “Stop that right now Lily, Ren, drop her. What makes you think that’s a good idea.”

Everyone looked to the kids, not including Claudia. Lily, Ren, Sylvia, and Juno were all looking up at Spiritus. It was still stuck in the ceiling, it hadn’t moved an inch since Angelus accidentally gave the upstairs neighbor a heart attack. Thankfully, the doctors said that the old man would recover from it.

Right now, Lily was sitting on Ren’s shoulders, reaching up to try and get a hold of the scythe. She had enough common sense to reach for the staff of the scythe, but that was where it had ended. Ren had turned around, red-faced and breathing heavy, he looked like he was going to drop Lily with or without Olivia’s instruction.

“Okay.” Ren breathed, and not one second later, he collapsed. Lily shrieked as she fell, landing on a bed that just happened to be behind her and Ren. Ren wasn’t so lucky, as he landed on his butt, and from the sound of it, he landed hard. Everyone winced at that sound, but Claudia didn’t even wait for Ren to start crying, using one of her skills, she shot a white beam at him. Her experience in healing the children showed how she didn’t even take her eyes off Angelus. That was another one of Claudia’s abilities, ‘Heal bolt’. It allowed her to shoot out a short bolt of healing magic at whatever she targeted. It was an ability that Angelus thought was awesome when he was younger. Even now he thought that the skill was great, but now he had his own skills. Ones that were, if true, unique to his class. That was how all champions were after all.

“Lily! Come over here right now!” Olivia shouted, Lily stiffened up and tried to back up into the headboard of the bed. But like many attempts before she couldn’t get away from an angry Olivia. What followed was a scolding that Angelus didn’t care to listen to, instead, he looked at the scythe that was still stuck in the ceiling. Claudia had caught his gaze and followed it, sighing when she saw the scythe.

“Olivia, can you please take everyone outside to get something to eat for Angelus please?” The scolding stopped as Claudia spoke up. Angelus didn’t notice before, but now that it was mentioned, he was starving and was starting to feel weak.

“What!” Ren said, surprising everyone as he had been injured not that long ago, not to mention he didn’t speak out very often. “But I want to ask about Angelus’s class.” As soon as that was mentioned, the rest started to complain. Even Annie, who was usually one to do as she was told, said that Olivia could go by herself. Claudia looked back to Olivia and something seemed to change in the woman's face.

“None of that now children.” Olivia said, her tone different from the usual strick and commanding voice. It sounded soft and understanding, not even Angelus or Donavin heard this before. After those words, everyone went quiet, choosing to follow Olivia out the door, leaving Angelus and Claudia alone. Claudia had continued to do her work for a minute before sighing again and speaking.

“So, You got a class now Angelus,” she said, stopping her scan for a minute and smiling at him. “Can you tell me what it is?”

Angelus tilted his head. “I thought that you already knew what it was.”

When everyone was helping Angelus catch up, Annie and Ren had excited and explained that everyone knew a champion had been born. they would have still been on that topic right now if Claudia hadn't stopped everyone to examine him.

“I just want to hear it from you,” she said excitedly. But it was strange to him, it wasn’t the usual joy that she’d have, it didn’t have that usual glow in her eyes that she did when she talked to them. It was a dull and almost blank look in her eyes.

“Yeah, I got a champions class,” Angelus answered excitedly.

“Really!” she gasped, but again, it didn’t seem genuine. Like she was just putting on a face. “Is it a fighters class, like you wanted.” that one was different, it was desperate. Now he was starting to get confused, but he just kept going.

“It is, two of my skills are for damage and one of them is a shield.” He started to ramble on about his abilities and how they would all be unique to him. How he already had two passive abilities. He even talked about Spiritus and how it was a gift from Uwrath, and it was soul bound to him, and how it gave him two extra abilities. Throughout the entire explanation, she smiled and nodded along.

“So you're going to be fighting a champion beast then? Off to a far land to try and save the land and get the princess,”

“If she comes along, I definitely won’t shy away from her.” Angelus said smoothly and tried to give his best impressing of a suave smile.

“Oh really.” she deadpanned. “From what I remember that nice girl from the bakery gave you hints that she liked you.” She was smirking now, and Angelus was blushing. “What was her name again, oh right, Victoria. You were so awkward around her that I was getting concerned.”

“Stop that!” Angelus growled, but that never worked on Claudia. With a soft flick to the nose and a smile, she silenced him. “I’m not awkward.”

“The way you stuttered on that date with her, you could have fooled me.” she giggled, this time, it was genuine. This conversation about him and his love life was genuine, but when it came to his class, she was putting on a face. Like she just didn’t want him to see how sad she was so she had to hide it.

“Are you okay Claudia?”

“No, I’m not!” She suddenly shouted, making Angelus jump back. She took deep breaths in an attempt to calm down. Raising her hands and continued her examination. Nothing was said for five minutes, but when she did speak, Angelus almost didn’t catch it.

“You know, during the ceremony, everyone was praying for you to get a class.” She said softly, guiding her hands across his abdomen. “The kids were praying for you to get a fighters class as you’ve always wanted, even Sylvia was praying for you.” there was no emotion in her voice as she spoke, and it was dry too. She swallowed and tried to say more, but didn’t.

“Y-You didn’t want me to get a class…Did you?”

“No Angelus, It’s not like that.” Claudia groaned, putting her face in her hand. “I didn’t want you to get a fighters class, Angelus.” Angelus leaned back at her words. She didn’t want him to get a fighters class? But why? This was something that he’s wanted for years, something that he trained for. Claudia knew of this and had supported him ever since he had first told her, and now here she was, telling him that she never wanted his dream to come true.

“Why?” Angelus breathed out, he wanted to be angry, but he just didn’t have it in him to be angry with her. If anything he felt more betrayed that she would support him all this time, only to say she didn’t want it after all.

“I hoped that you would be like so many others, Angelus.” She said, looking up and meeting his eyes with tears in hers. “I hoped that you just wouldn’t get a class and be safe. If you did get a class, then I had hoped it would be a crafter or a scholar class. If you were somehow fortunate enough to be a healer, I hoped you would work in a hospital.” She then chuckled, the smile lines on her face wrinkling as she did, not that it matched her previous ones. “But no, you somehow had to break past all of those hopes and get exactly what you wanted. Not only that, but you somehow got Uwrath, a god that has never made a class besides Decagon, to give you a champion class.”

She then stood up from her seat, slowly walked up to Spiritus, and just stared at it. Angelus got up to follow, legs shaking from days of neglect. When he reached her side, he saw that she was glaring at the scythe, like it was the cause of all her grief. To her, it probably was, it was the weapon that he knew he was going to use to kill beasts. He reached up to the scythe to grab it, but Claudia grabbed his wrist before he touched it.

“Run away.” she said, so fast that Angelus didn’t catch it

“What?” Angelus said, not sure if he heard her right.

“We need to run away.” She nodded to herself, pulling Angelus’s arm to the door. Angelus was shocked for a second, now refusing to believe what he was hearing.

“What do you mean Claudia run away? Angelus tried to pull his hand out of hers, but it was like trying to pull it out of a clamp. “Let me go.”

“No!” She wasn’t even struggling against Angelus’s attempts to escape. And why would she, even though Angelus had finally gotten a, that didn’t make him stronger than someone who had their class for over thirty years. That didn’t stop him from still trying to pull his hand out. He couldn’t just run away as Claudia wanted, he had a responsibility now to Uwrath, and even though he didn’t know what the god wanted, he was still going to at least hear him out.

He tried to reach out and grab one of the extra beds that were in the room, but all he did was drag it along with him. He looked around, trying to see what he could use to try and help him escape. His eyes fell on Spiritus and an idea came to mine, calling out to it. Now that he had his eyes on it, he was able to see how the scythe moved to reach him. He watched as the scythe instantly turned a darker shade of black and melted into the ceiling. As nothing more than a shade, it moved from the ceiling to his shadow and shot into his hand in less than a second. Angelus wanted to marvel at the magic of his weapon, but Claudia already had her hand on the door and was about to open it.

Griping the scythe awkwardly in one hand and calling out mentally, he activated his skill ‘Scythe Surge’. Instantly the room blurred as he seemed to be pulled from one side to the other. He heard Claudia gasp and her body hit the ground, but he ignored her. Instead choosing to focus on this feeling, it was great. The speed, the wind, the sense of weightlessness, it made him feel like he was flying and nothing could stop him. When he felt like he was slowing down, he had the urge to activate his skill again, he was about to. But then his flight came to a sudden stop, starting with his face, and the rest of his body followed. He heard a crack and then his body hit the floor.

“I really hope that wasn’t my skull.” He thought as his vision swam. He thought he heard Claudia say something, but his ears were ringing. It felt like a few minutes passed before he felt warmth creep across his whole body.

“Did you feel that pain?” She didn’t wait for him to answer. “That pain is nothing compared to what you will feel when fighting.”

“I-no we can’t just ignore this Claudia.” Angelus groaned in relief as the pain started to leave his body. But he didn’t try anything until he was sure he was fully healed, when he was, he sat up and faced Claudia.

“Angelus, you don’t know what you’re getting into.” She groaned, rubbing her fingers against her temples. “I can’t just let you go through that Angelus, it’s too much.”

“How do you know that Claudia?” he responded, his tone straining as he tried to keep his frustration in check. “I might not have been an adventure, but Brutus told me what to expect not to mention the bo-”

“No!” Claudia shouted, now standing and thrusting her finger to his chest. “Don’t you dare bring up that damn book. That book was nothing more than a glorified fairy tale that tries to get impressionable kids like you,” she pressed her finger hard, pushing Angelus against the wall he crashed into. “Into being an adventurer.”

She looked like she was on the verge of breaking down, with tears in her eyes and her breathing erratic. She tried to blink back a few tears, but she started again before she could.

“None of that is the same as actually experiencing a fight, Angelus.” she continued. “Sure the story may tell you what Zepher lost, and Brutus may tell you what to expect of a fight, but they don’t tell you what really happens.” Claudia's eyes let loose a few tears as she grit her teeth. “No one tells you what it's like to kill your first beast or man, or how bad it hurts when you get hit by one. No one tells you that you’re guaranteed to lose someone you care about in this line of work, they expect you to know. No one tells you that not everyone holds the same values as you and will leave you if it means extra rewards go to them. They don’t tell you that you can't save everyone, Angelus. You have to experience that all on your own.” She suddenly reached out and pulled him into an embrace filled with both anguish and worry. “I had to experience that all on my own. And I can’t bare the thought of you having to go through that.” Her voice quavered as she spoke, leaving Angelus speechless. Claudia would often dance around her adventurer's life, saying that it was behind her and she wanted to focus on the now.

“Claudia,” he said, wrapping his arms around her and returning the embrace. He had often received hugs like this when he was younger. When he would have a bad nightmare, she would always be ready to give him a hug until he fell asleep. When felt he wasn’t loved, she hugged him, enduring the strongest punches and kicks that an emotional nine year old could produce. When he cried that his parents didn’t love him, she was there to assure him that they loved him. He felt very much the opposite in this situation. Except he didn’t have an answer that would comfort her, what could he tell her? Uwrath had told him that he had a task for him, a task that had forced him to make a champion class against his wishes. If it was to take a champion beast down, he still had no guarantee that he would get out fine or even alive. No matter how he tried to hide it, he was terrified at the idea of fighting a beast like the previous champions. But he also knew that he wouldn’t need to do that immediately. He would need to level his class first, and get more skills that would help him in his fight. But that still brought back to how he would comfort Claudia.

“Claudia,” he tried again, racking his brain for something. “I know that I told you I’ve always wanted a fighters class, and I’m still happy that I got one.” She squeezed tighter and cried softly. “But you’re right, I have no idea what I’m getting into. I only wanted to fight beasts that are in dungeons, or that are out on the field. But a champion’s class, I never prepared myself for this.” He took a deep breath. “But someone needs to do this, and Uwrath has chosen me. I have to see what he wants me to do.”

“We already know what he wants you to do Angelus.” She sobbed. “And it doesn’t have to be you, Angelus. There are thousands of fighters who can fight a champion beast.”

“But how many of them are champions Claudia? Who can be the one to kill the champion?” He countered. While it was never truly confirmed, it was believed that the only people who were capable of killing champion beasts were other champions. The theory was never put to the test, as it was only champions who killed the beasts, no other class had the opportunity to do so. They could damage them but never kill them.

“There could be more champions.” She answered. “You might not be the only one. There have been champions sent together.”

She wasn’t wrong, there have been times when two or even three champions have been sent to fight a beast. But if there were more champions, why wouldn’t Uwrath tell him in his message? Maybe Uwrath would tell him when he went to his temple.

“We don’t know that Claudia, as far as I know, I’m the only one.”

“That’s why we need to run away.” She tried to break out of his embrace, but she lacked the strength to leave him. “If you’re not the only one and disappear, they will need to find one.”

“What makes you think that they won't come looking for me?” That got her to pause. “If I’m a champion and what Ren said was true, that means there is a task that requires one. They will come looking for me, I’m sure of it.”

“Then we will hide away.”

“And how would everyone react to that?” Angelus asked calmly. “We’ve lived most of our entire life in Myrefall. Lily and Ren have friends that play with them, and for once, not out of pity but because they like them. Sylvia and Juno are finally starting to break out of their shells, getting over their trauma. You’re going to put them right back to where they started. Their making lives there in Cyris, I don’t want them to move because of me. ”

“Then we will figure something out Angelus, please stop making this so difficult.” She stopped struggling and looked him in his eyes. The tears were now flowing freely, her eyes red and puffy.

It pained him to shake his head. “I can’t do that to them Claudia, and I can’t do that to you.” Angelus felt awkward as he thought of the words he was about to say. He was never truly one to talk about his emotions, but he felt it had to be said. “I love you all too much to put you all through that.”

Angelus wanted to say more, but there was a knock at the door. Angelus thought it was everyone finally back from getting him some food. But they didn’t wait for an answer, instead choosing to open the door. One of the doctors that had examined him earlier had come back. He saw the state that they both were in and looked sheepish for a moment. Claudia tried to fix herself up as best she could, but there was no hiding the previous state she was in.

“Can we help you?” She asked, rubbing a hand to her eyes.

“Yes, I’m very sorry to interrupt.” the doctor bowed. “But there is a man that wishes to see the Champion.”

Angelus’s heart skipped a beat at the title. He wasn’t awake for a full day and now people were already giving him titles like that. He wasn’t sure if he liked it or hated it, but only time would tell how he would feel.

“His name is Angelus.” Claudia growled, making the doctor flinch at the tone. “What do you mean? Who could be here to see him?”

The doctor looked nervous when she asked that question, trying to look anywhere but Claudia’s eyes. He even turned to Angelus for help, but he only shrugged. Champion or not, he wasn’t about to get in Claudia's way.

The doctor seemed to finally gather his courage and finally said “The headmaster of the Champion’s Academy.”