The brown-skinned man stood at the front of the class and welcomed the students.
"My name is John Oliver, one of the two lecturers who will be taking you through this course — Introduction to Human Anatomy I. Without further ado, shall we begin?" he said.
One of the students, who had well-groomed, combed hair and wore rectangular glasses, raised his hand.
"Sir, is the Oliver Auditorium named after you?" he asked.
"Oh no, it was named after my grandfather, Jonathan Oliver. You see, he was one of the founders of this university in the 1960s. If you go to the university's senate building, you'll see his painting. We look quite identical," John Oliver replied.
'The vampire is a teacher? How unexpected, Iode thought.'
Soon, the class ended, and the students began to leave. However, Iode was approached by a brunette lady with round glasses, wearing a simple black dress.
"Hi, good morning," she said.
"Oh, hi," Iode returned the pleasantry. 'Is she here to collect my number?' he thought.
"My name is Dana Dianne. I couldn't help but notice you sat alone during the class. Do you have some kind of phobia around crowds?" Dana asked.
"..." "No, not at all," Iode replied.
"Do you have a class after this?" she asked.
"Huh? Yes, I do. It's a special elective — SEO," Iode answered.
"Awesome! I picked that course too. Let's go together," she said.
Iode scanned her from head to toe, then shrugged and walked along with her. On their way, they met their lecturer, John Oliver.
"Can I see you for a minute, Iode?" John asked.
"I'll be back," Iode said to Dana and went over to John.
John led him to a secluded spot near the path to their next lecture and asked,
"What kind of parahuman are you?"
"Para what?" Iode asked, puzzled.
"You don't know what a parahuman is? Sigh... That's a conversation for another time when we can talk properly. But first — have you ever met that human before?" John said.
"No, I just met her today," Iode replied.
"..." John was silent for a moment as he looked toward Dana.
"I'll just tell you this — watch your actions and steps around her. She's not an ordinary human. All in all, take care." John patted him on the shoulder and walked away.
Iode was left stunned. Sure, now that he looked again, Dana was different.
'Her golden core seems fiery in nature... and she has mana — the first I've seen since I came to Earth. She's probably a special and rare kind of human, he thought, walking back to Dana.'
"Do you know the lecturer? That must be great," Dana said, smiling innocently.
"I really don't know him. I just happened to stumble on him during the freshmen orientation," Iode replied.
"Oh."
Throughout the walk to the next lecture, Dana never stopped talking. Iode was both applauding her energy and exhausted by how much she could say in such a short time.
"Iode, people say I'm weird — because of my appearance and because I talk too much," Dana said, looking depressed.
Iode looked at her with a deadpan expression. He wanted to say something but swallowed it.
'Of course they call you weird. We just met, and you've already said a truckload.'
"You're a great listener — and not someone who judges quickly. Thank you for listening to all my ranting," she said.
Iode kept the same deadpan look. 'Oh, trust me, I've judged you already. I just didn't say it.'
They both entered a rectangular-shaped building. Just then, Iode spotted a red-haired boy with a wavy hair bang swooping over his forehead, sitting patiently in an empty row.
"Oh shit," Iode muttered. He looked around and scurried over to a nearly full row.
"Phew, dodged a bullet," he whispered.
Dana sat beside him, puzzled. "Anything wrong?" she asked.
"Nothing. I just managed to avoid a little annoyance," he replied.
Soon, the lecture was done, and the students began to leave. Most were heading in one direction.
"Iode, shall we go eat lunch at the cafeteria?" Dana asked.
"Hmm, sure. Let's go," he replied.
They both got food and sat on an empty bench and table.
"Quite unexpected to see you here — and with a lady, no less, Methuselah," someone whispered in Iode's ear.
'Only one person calls me that weird name... It's that clingy brat. How did he find me? Was it by coincidence... or is it the bond? Iode frowned.'
Reggie sat across from them.
"My name is Reggie, Methuselah's brother. And what might you be called?" he said.
"Methuselah?" Dana asked, puzzled.
"Pay no mind to him. The brat calls me that weird name for no reason," Iode said.
"I can definitely guess one reason he calls you that," Dana replied, glancing at Iode's white hair.
"Hello, goofy lot. How's yah day?" Nivea said, appearing out of nowhere and sitting beside Reggie.
"Look! Methuselah's found a girlfriend in just three days after resumption!" Reggie said with an innocent smile.
"Really? Who's my sister-in-law? What's your name?" Nivea added excitedly.
"What?!" Dana's face turned red. She didn't know how to respond.
"What heinous hell is wrong with you two?! She's just a classmate I met today!" Iode said, raising his voice.
"Sure, sure, you old fossil. I know you caught a lot of eyes today — she's the one you chose," Reggie snickered.
"Gah! These two are going to be the end of me. I gotta find another place to sit," Iode said, attempting to stand.
Suddenly, he felt a strange pulse run through his entire body.
He froze. Then he felt something itchy in his throat. He coughed several times, covering his mouth with his hand. When he stopped, he lowered his hand — it was covered in blood.
Iode's eyes widened in shock.
'Is it time already? Hades' curse must have accelerated it.'
He looked up and saw Reggie, Nivea, and Dana staring at him in horror. In the next moment, he felt his consciousness slipping away. Everything began spinning and drifting.
"METHUSELAH!!!"