Chapter 11
It was with a heavy heart that I threw on my suit at the end of the break, which fitted quite nicely with my newly gained muscle mass. The muscles weren't too big due to me tempering them with endurance and speed, so it looked more like a dancer's body that fought heavily on the side than a muscle-bound meat head that would have made all my clothing unwearable. I refused to look like my father, so I made sure to even it out.
I straightened my tie in the bathroom mirror before wetting my hair to sweep my faux-mohawk back into position. I needed to get it trimmed up soon. I walked out of the building, nodding at the landlord who was reading the paper next to the door before sliding on my helmet. I walked out and hopped on my Davidson. I had to make a stop to buy some fuel, but I still made it to school with fifteen minutes to spare. I couldn't wait until junior year where I could park in the lot at school, well, that and the fact I would be able to legally drive.
My first class was Art, so I found my way to the arts wing before taking a seat in the back. I apparently still had my dangerous reputation, so no one got within spitting distance of me and I believed my suit and aloof attitude towards the class unnerved the teacher, one Miss Parris.
The class was going to be the introduction to art, ranging from pencil drawing, to pottery. The first class was just an introduction to the course, so I barely paid any attention, choosing to go over how I was going to fit two hours of hardcore training into my schedule. It would be simple to begin with, but I would soon need to up the miles I started with as ten was too easy, so up to fifty which would take me two hours, then another hour and a half of training, so four hours. Hmm... I could make it thirty which would take me little over an hour, saving me time and still get me warmed up. I would have just enough time to get to the clearing, get dressed, work out, bath, change clothes back to my suit and drive to Junior's. If I couldn't do it, I would cut down my clinching time as it wasn't too important as of now.
The bell couldn't have rung sooner and I was out the door before anyone was finished packing, my dress shoes barely made a sound as I used my ten levels in stealth to passively quiet my foot falls. My next class was Greek, which I was looking forward to as I would like to level up my Linguistic skill so that I may understand languages I encounter in my life more easily.
The man walked up to the front of the room as the bell rung, "Hello students! Eímai kýrios Hale. You are here to learn the fine language of Greek! Now we call it Greek because that was just how it translated to our language back in near forgotten times when we used a far outdated form of English than the one we have today. This language, as you know, hails from Minstral and is still spoken there at this moment. Today, we will be going over the syllabus and handing out the course textbooks to everyone. Now, turn to the first page of the packet and we can begin."
I had gained the Greek language skill once the man said his name in the language and when I got the text for the class, I gained one more level in Greek as I read over the first page as the man went on about what we were to do during the semester.
I mostly ignored the man as I read the grammar book as well as the English to Greek dictionary that came with it. With my INT score, I could easily remember the grammar rules even if some heavily contradicted what my language went with. Over the course of my read for the next hour, ignoring the teacher mostly, I gained eight points into my new skill and one in Linguistics. As I finished the grammar book, I received one INT points for my studies which placed me at seventy-five. I had gained a few while training my body during the break as I figured out the leveling system.
The Linguistic boost for the new level let me go back and comprehend the subtle parts of the language that the beginner book hinted at, but didn't really explain. I only got one more in the skill, but with my memory and the way my skill was set up, I should be able to be fluent in the language by the end of the break. I would need more books on the language as well as much more grammar and culture books to understand why that word means what it does beyond the basics. One more WIS for me for thinking of that.
I put away the grammar book, but continued to read the given English to Greek dictionary to familiarize myself with the words. As I went through it, I got through a fiftieth as the bell rung for the next period, gym class. I placed the book back into my pack and made a note to myself that I would need to download some audio language software so I knew pronunciation of the language. It was one thing to read, but a whole different story to speak it.
The teacher took role and passed out locks for the day. I was slightly upset that we didn't do anything productive, so I just sat in the back of the bleachers that was our seats and read my dictionary some more, trying to get another level before the class ended. In the end of the period, I had figured out that for every fifty words times the level I was at with the skill, I gained another level in it. That meant that I was now level thirteen and it wasn't even the end of the day! Now, I need to know how to pronounce the script to put sounds to the writing I knew. I couldn't form a sentence for the life of me, but I at least vaguely knew the words and how simple sentences were structured.
Sure I gave this game thing a lot of grief, but it had helped me so much in my life, I couldn't help but be grateful for the skills it helped me in, even if I was the one doing things, it still made what would have been years, happen in only a few months. Such as Greek, the level I was at now, I would have taken most of the year to even get halfway here.
The last class I had was with Miss Garza. I arrived in the room and was immediately seen by the teacher, mostly due to the fact that I was given a berth of about seven feet. "Oh Mister Arc! There you are! Please stay after today, I have an offer for you!"
"I won't be in anymore plays miss, " I said frankly as I made my way to my seat. "I need to train for my E-class hunter's licenses and I will hopefully do well enough without the extra credit."
"Oh... Umm... well, still come stay after class, I might be able to convince you!" I just tiredly nodded. The woman would get me to stay one way or another, so I might as well stay. The woman was almost giddy as she shut the door. The woman skipped over to the front of the class and gave everyone a big smile. "Welcome everyone! I am Miss Garza and I will be teaching you acting, singing, dance, and many other things in our time together! As you heard from Mister Arc, we host plays here. This is not required, but it is encouraged to try out as even that will get you a little extra credit."
The next half an hour was the teacher blowing through the syllabus as she said, "You all don't care what's on here. You'll figure out what you're learning when we get to the thing."
The large, energetic woman clapped her hands once everything was gone over, "Okay, now. Up, up, up! We are going to start this year out by doing a basic improv! Now, someone give a theme and we'll go with it."
A freshman near the back raised her hand, "Umm... How about, like, uh, boot camp?"
The teacher gave a bright grin, "Ohh! That's perfect! You can act and we can get to know everyone's names! Okay, everyone line up, Jaune, please stand... here." The woman pointed next to her.
It would seem I will be the drill Sargent for today. 'Well, I get to channel my inner Bic.' I walked over to the place she pointed to as everyone got in a straightish line.
"Okay, Jaune, you are the drill Sargent today. Please begin," the teacher told me and I gave her a lazy nod.
"Okay, first before we begin, we need to know military formation. Everyone look to your right and raise your left arm straight out. Move so you are all in an orderly line." The class slowly followed this command and it was obvious they hadn't even seen a military formation outside of movies. "Alright, first things first, standing at attention is like this." I got into the position naturally. "Feet together at a ninety degree angle, shoulder squared back, chest out, hands tight at the side, thumbs straight against index." I nodded as people tried to do this. I leaned over to the teacher as everyone was figuring things out, "How loud should this be?"
The teacher looked at me and snickered, "Not too loud, but we have most of the wing to ourselves, so slightly under shouting." I nodded as I tossed my jacket over to a seat.
"Alright," I said quietly. "Attention!" I called out clearly as I walked over to the first guy in the line, a large fellow with a mohawk. The people jumped at my voice and stared as I walked. "Eyes forward people, you aren't here to gawk now are you?!" The students jumped once more and their eyes snapped forward. I stood in front of the big guy, "What is your name recruit?"
The young teen started, "M-my nam-"
"Wrong!" The teen flinched at my voice. "You are no longer an individual, you will address yourself as 'This recruit' only and you will start and end each and every sentence with 'Sir!' Am I clear recruit?!" I didn't get in his face like Bic would, didn't even move, but the guy looked scared.
"Ye-" The teen began before I cut him off again. He winced at his mistake the moment it came out of his mouth.
"Doesn't seem too clear!"
"Sir yes sir! This r-recruit's n-name is Robby!... Sir!" I nodded and gave him a small smile to ease his tension.
I mumbled for only him to hear, "If you are ever confronted like that, never stutter, it just agitates drill Sergeants." The teen relaxed a bit and nodded. I moved down the line to the next student, a small petite girl, "Name?"
"Ss-ss-sir, this re-recruit's name is Anna... Sir." I nodded and continued down the line until everyone has had a turn. I returned to my place next to a snickering Garza and stood at parade rest. "Recruits! Dismissed!" I relaxed my shoulders and gave a small laugh as everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Apparently I was convincing as I gained two levels in my acting skill. "Alright, my name is Jaune Arc by the way. Nice ta meet you all."
Miss Garza gave a loud series of claps, "Bravo everyone! I haven't seen improv acting that good in years! Oh, I look forward to teaching all of you! Nicely done Mister Arc, where ever did you learn how to put on such a convincing drill Sergeant?"
I rubbed the back of my head with a light blush of embarrassment on my face at the compliment, "Um... Well... I was part of a militarized town beyond the wall for a few months when I was thirteen. I was trained as one of their guards, so I had to go through boot camp like everyone else, so I knew how they acted."
"Ohh, exciting!" The woman said as she clasped her hands together. The teacher then turned to the rest of the class, "Alright everyone, there is only a few minutes left, so mingle among yourselves. Jaune, with me please?" I gave her a nod as I picked up my suit jacket and pulled it back on.
We went into her office and I leaned against the wall as she turned to me, "So, there is this play coming up in three months. The Wizard's lament. It's another musical like before and I would like you to try out for the part of the wizard since you did such a good job with Jack Skellington. Auditions aren't until next month to get everything set up, so you have time to think it over. The play is in May, so everyone has time to memorize and practice."
I blinked at her before sighing, "I make no promises as I need to go against and hit an above A class hunter to get my E class licenses, so I'll be extremely busy over the next month. If I complete the test, I'll give it a go, but if I fail, I wont. I can't give up on my hunting if I want into Beacon."
The woman nodded in understanding, her short blonde hair messily waving as she did so, "Well, let's pray you complete the test so we can get you back on that stage!" The teacher said with an ecstatic look in her brown eyes. I nodded and left the office to get my things from my seat.
The bell rang just as I grabbed the strap, so I threw it over my shoulder and left to go grab my bike from the parking garage. I pulled out my scroll and started searching around for language software. I ended up buying two bundle pack of the Dragoon's Emerald language software for the price of only two of their programs, because who could beat a deal where they save seven hundred lien in an eight hundred lien order. I ended up with the languages; Greek, Thai, French, Japanese, Spanish, Arabic, Italian and lastly because I ran out of ideas for languages, Tibetan.
It was a spurge, I would admit that, but I hadn't really bought anything for myself in forever. Sure, I needed food, shelter, and clothing, but the only thing I buy for luxury was my music. Plus, who knew when it would become necessary to know nine languages, that seemed like a handy as hell ability. "WIS increase for turning impulse into wise decision." I stared at the message as I threw my leg over my bike. 'I may be grateful, but that doesn't mean you have to be a dick about it.'
I slid my earphones in as I drove and listened to the first part of the Greek program, which was a nine part series that was meant to make the user partially fluent in the language if they put the effort into it. I had a speaker on my headphone in my helmet, so I was able to repeat back the things that it told me to. I had it set for only the speaking parts for now because I was driving, but I would be going back to set up the full thing when I had time. A cool part of my HUD was that I could directly connect it to my scroll, so I had a screen in the corner that I could glance at to see what it was talking about. It wasn't able to be interacted with, that was exclusive for my email, but it was still useful in its own rights.
For the work out that day, I listened to the language and by the time I had gotten to Junior's, I was seventeen levels deep, which basically meant I could say hello, goodbye, and the basic things a two year old knew and could respond to. It wasn't great, but it was a start. From the boost, I believed there was one hundred levels to learn. I figured that once I reached fifty, I would probably get a level a week for the next while. I looked up the time it takes to become fluent in a language, which was about three years for ones like Japanese and the like, but with my linguistic skill, I should get that type down a few months less.
The distraction was welcome, since I didn't have to focus on how tired I was, nor what type of hell I was subjecting my body to as I hefted a rock more than my body weight over my head and brought it down ten times, only to repeat later. Along with the two points in STR, I also gained one in INT for studying diligently, I had a strong assumption that the point had been building for days, so I really just pushed it over with my four hours of Greek study after school. With the high score, my mind easily comprehending things around me and it made understanding things so much easier. I was no where near a savant in anything, how could I ever be, I wasn't even a genius, but I was on the top tier of average about to be in the gifted section if I do say so myself.
The day next day, I woke up and started my Greek lesson for the morning after I cleaned up. I had another suit ready for the day. I drove to school learning some more, downed a horrible breakfast. Learned that I could draw for shit, but still got a skill in it. Next was the part of the day I was looking forward to. Gym class was starting today!
I made my way to where I picked my locker out and stripped out of my suit, pulling out a wore muscle shirt that had multiple rips from wearing while forest running along with my solid black exercise shorts. I tossed all my things into the small locker I was provided with and left to go begin class.
I was one of the first people in the room, so I sat down on the bleachers to wait for everyone to get ready. It was a sad day when it took the girls of my class twenty minutes to put on gym shorts and a top. They also kept looking at me with strange emotions in their eyes. Must be judging my attire. Compared to the suit I usually wear, this shirt was a wreck.
My teacher, coach O'Neill blew his whistle and my class lined up near him. "Alright, we have the cardio room first today. We will be going over proper lifting tomorrow and hit the weight room then, but today, just use the machines to run. In forty minutes, we'll come back to the big gym and play some basketball."
I followed the class into the room and some of the jocks hopped on the machine, but half the guys and all but three girls just decided to sit around and do nothing. I shrugged at the lazy behavior as it didn't affect me any. I picked one of the free machines in the back and started it at three miles an hour to get it going and before long, I was going my normal running speed of twenty miles an hour, the top speed of the treadmill.
"Arc, what the sam hell are you doing?" I heard O'Neill ask me from the side.
"Running, sir?" I questioned. What else was I suppose to do, he said to run and that was what he instructed everyone to do. "You said to."
"Yeah, to run! You're sprinting at the top speed this machine can handle!"
I looked over at the man, I wasn't that fast. I guess for a normal citizen I was, but upper tier hunters had been known to easily hit speeds of fifty miles an hour at a jog. Ozpin, the headmaster of Beacon, was document at a speed of two hundred only recently and the man was no longer in his youth nor was he trying too hard, he was at the time searching for grimm, so he was still aware of what everything around him was doing. "Um... I'm a hunter sir, so this is my running speed. I could sprint, but I think I go about twenty-six miles an hour doing that though."
The man looked at me as I looked at him, still running. The man, an elderly gentleman with grey hair and a grey goatee and mustache combo, just sighed and told me, "Just don't get hurt Arc." I gave him a quick salute before going back to running, slowly inclining the machine to add an element of resistance. I ended up running fifteen miles by the time we left for basketball. I was sweating, but since my arms were dry, it wasn't that bad of exhaustion.
Basketball was just competitively shooting hops, so I didn't do much, but I did gain a new skill as I threw the basketball. "Throw (Passive): Level 1 – Ability to throw an object which can be lifted. +2% accuracy with thrown object." This could have a great deal of use in my life. I could think of many scenarios where throwing something could benefit me, such as a grenade for example. That was a big one that this could help with.
The new skill got to level three by the end of class, but I wasn't even tired from the game as I toned myself down to an average citizen level so everything was fair for the people I was playing with. I changed into my suit for the last class of the day and quickly left to reach the drama room in time.
The day was spent explaining what stage presence was, all the little things went into it. Needless to say, I worked on my Greek while she talked. I got a condensed version of the basics of everything this class taught so I could pull off the play. I tuned in every few minutes and after an hour of explaining things, we were put in groups, so I stashed away my scroll after pausing the lesson which was how to write the basic words, much harder than learning to speak or read I had come to understand. I could speak simple sentences, but spelling them out was a pain in my ass.
Once the day was over, I was back to training. I didn't gain anymore levels in my main scores, but I did get two more in Greek which got me to level twenty. I was studying the language six hours a day, so my progress wasn't too nonsensical. Well, I needed to get to my job, so I pushed my progress from my mind.
I gave a yawn as I changed for gym the next day. I only got five hours of sleep most nights which was better than two, but I wished I could sleep the full six like I did on break. I took my seat as I waited for everyone to get ready, so I wiped out my scroll to do more of the writing portions. I heard the whistle call for everyone to line up, so I quickly and discretely slid my scroll into my inventory as I got to my feet.
The teacher just yelled out, "Weight Room!" and started walking out of the gym. My class followed and we found ourselves in a medium sized room fulled with weight racks, machines for exercise, and a series of platforms. "Alright, now, I need someone to help me demonstrate the proper techniques, so Arc, front and center."
With a heavy sigh, I walked to where he was, next to one of the bench presses and stood there. For the next five minutes, he walked everyone through the proper way of benching, the grip, elbow corrections, how deep down, and how to spot.
Once that finished, I was used to demonstrate how to squat right and then he went over the machines using some of the jocks in the class. With all said and down, we were released into the room. There was no plan, but to stay active which, like yesterday, most of the class didn't do. I took the time to do some benches, so I set up my bar with two plates on both sides, about two hundred and twenty five pounds in total if I added the bar's weight. I estimated that my lifting strength with my arms was three times my STR level, so with my twenty-five percent boost to my lifting from my Affiliation with it, I should be able to handle this weight no problem. Legs were about three and a third times my STR, so I could do more with my legs than my arms.
As I finished, I heard the teacher laugh next to me, "You're a monster Arc! Keep up the work!" I snorted as I sat up to add tens to the mix as it was too easy to do ten reps. My boulders were hard to judge the weight with, but they are only slightly heavier than the bar I had.
The next thirty minutes, I did my thousand rep routine at the weights I was only slightly use to and managed to complete the STR level that I started yesterday during training right as I finished the ninth set on my military press. I was reaching the point where I would need to start using my leveling points to up my skills, but I was going to hold off until it was needed or at one hundred, but that would be five points every ten levels, so I had to earn the point gain.
With my muscles painfully swollen, I got off the racks just as coach blew the whistle to get everyone back to the big gym for the sport of the day, which was more basketball. I even gained a level in throw as I played the game, though I didn't try too hard due to being tired as shit still from the weight lifting. I was also worried that I would overdo it as that wasn't going to affect the work out I did after school, so I had basically doubled my weight lifting for the day like I tripled my running yesterday.
Drama class was boring, but I did finally finish the first lesson of my Greek program before I had to participate.
My first three days of class set the basics for my time through the next month. I worked out to the point of exhaustion and sickness everyday, pushing myself to limits that even Bic couldn't have dreamed of every moment outside of school and work. Breaking my limits took me to level one hundred and seven in my VIT, an unheard of increase at the point I was at my scores. My STR grew to level eighty-five and my DEX to level ninety with all the speed drills I did for my boxing styles. My blade work took a backseat to my hand to hand skills for the time as it was to assist my overall speed.
Hand to Hand (Passive): level 40 - Fighting without weapons. +200% damage with body, +200% speed with body in combat. Augments all aspects of combat.
Boxing (Passive): Level 26 – Combat Sport that fights with punches with heavy footwork. +52% damage punches deal, +52% speed of punches, +52% better footwork
Muay Thai (Passive): Level 15 – Combat Sport that uses stand-up striking with various clinching techniques. +30% more striking power, +30% better grappling, +30% speed of strikes
I could only go so far without a partner in Muay Thai, but that didn't matter to me any, I was faster, I hit so much harder, and I felt far more powerful than I was last month. I had no delusion that I was past a E class, but I was diligently getting close to be ready for my test. All I needed to do now was work on my blade skill which had only leveled up twice in the month of intense training.
A telling feat of my strength was that I could now dent an oak tree with a punch at my hardest, I didn't do that often as it hurt greatly to punch a frozen tree. Once school was over, I was at the bookstore for my blade books. I already knew which books to grab since I researched which styles were advantage for fighting grimm, so I grabbed a book on old Vale sword fighting, which used bastard swords and small heater shields to fight with. I would need to go buy a shield, but that was no problem. Other than that, I picked out a Minstral book on military fighting called Spartan fighting. Where Valian was powerful, Spartan was fast and agile, meant to never stop moving even with the shield that they used. A perfect combination with blades.
Once the books were in my grasp, I realized it wouldn't be for another two months that I would be ready for the test if I needed to get average at these sword skills. I sighed as I paid for them, I guess I could do the play thing so that I had some type of hobby that wasn't improving my body. I did enjoy playing Jack Skellington, so I guess I might enjoy playing a wizard.
My Greek learning was going well, I was already at level thirty-seven with it by the time I reached my clearing. That meant I could speak like a five year old, huzzah and all that jazz. The first book I cracked open was the one on Spartan techniques since I didn't have a heater shield on me and the fact that I was already okay at dodging from boxing. I didn't know how okay, but I could move around a punch if someone threw it at me.
I took my plan that I ended the month with and changed it a bit to focus more on sword work until I had it down pat, then I would eventually balance it out.
-Twenty mile sprint through woods
-Three, five minute rounds of shadow boxing
-Three, five minute rounds of Muay Thai shadow boxing
-Four, five minute rounds of combining styles in shadow boxing
-Fifty minutes of Spartan sword
-Fifty minutes of Valian sword
-Twenty minutes of combining the sword styles once proficient enough
-Ten sets of ten Bench Press, ten sets of ten squats, Ten sets of ten Military press
-Clinches for five minutes
-Stretches for five
I didn't cut anything out, but I did place more time in for my blade than I would for my boxing. My workout would take me about three hours and forty minutes to complete, giving me enough time to do a quick bath and drive to Junior's.
My new regiment in place, I was dead tired from working out, but I felt a bit better that I knew a little bit more of the styles even if I could get them yet due to the lack of shield. Work was boring as always, but I did level up my insight again finally, placing it at twenty-seven.
After school the next day, I found myself waiting at a stage with the script of the wizard's part in my hand. My training was coming along nicely and I felt I had what it took to be an E rank, so I allowed myself to indulge in a small extracurricular pleasure. I would have to do a few lines and part of one of the songs for my audition. "Next!" I heard and I walked out with the script in my hand. "Name and what are you trying for?"
I scratched my face as I said, "Jaune Arc, trying for the wizard." The director for the play, which wasn't Miss Garza, but some new guy that I guessed was another drama teacher, waved his hand at me to continue.
I did my lines to the best of my abilities, knowing that the wizard's motivation was just doing something needed even if it was considered evil by the people. I added a slight lazy spin to his lines and a more breathy voice to show age, but not enough to sound fake. My acting skill helped with that part a lot. The song was to complain about the damsel being annoying, so I had to put an annoyed, slightly angry spin on the song while projecting my voice.
"I ask you again, why won't you just shut up?" finished up the song and gave a small hesitant bow as the man clapped. "Um... Thanks for giving me the time to do this." On that note, I left to go do my new workout. The weather was getting colder, but with my fifteen levels in my frost endurance, my body felt like it was only just above snowing, instead of inches layering the ground.
Through my continued riding in the snow and ice with my motorcycle, I had leaped to level thirty in driving it, which while didn't give me any boosts, I did feel completely comfortable driving in the dangerous conditions. I made a stop at a weaponsmith and picked up a good heater shield for only two hundred lien. I analyzed it before purchasing and got background.
Basic Heater Shield – One of many mass produced shields made in Vale for basic use
700/700
Blocks bladed damage, but kinetic energy still takes full effect
My workout went well and I gained the two sword skills now that I had the shield. It was only ten minutes into each practice that I got the skill, so I didn't waste any time learning them.
Valian Sword Style (Passive): Level 1 (50) – Ability to use the Valian sword fighting style effectively, use heavy strikes and hard blocks to fight. +2% damage to sword strikes, +2% damage with shield bash.
Spartan Sword Style (Passive): Level 1 (50) – Ability to use Spartan sword fighting style effectively, uses accurate strikes mixed with agility to strike while blocking any attacks with shield. +2% speed to strikes, +2% accuracy of strikes, +2% dodging speed
It was with a pained stride that I walked into the club for the day to stand in as the bouncer to guard against anyone that thought to disturb the peace or sneak past the man. The man knew what he was doing, but since it was so cold out, we had to rotate every four hours so no one got frost bite.
The young adults thought they could get by the new bouncer, but when I overpowered a citizen that was two times my height with muscles bigger than most peoples' legs, they got in an orderly line. I bet if I had kept my glasses off and revealed my face and scar to the people, they wouldn't have tried to get by me. My reputation hadn't really diminished over time, but people had gotten use to my presence once more.
When no one was around, I turned on my reading portion of my Greek software and studied the language. I could read basic sentences and figure out words enough to look them up, so my vocabulary was slowly expanding with the aid of my dictionary and the program. It got my mind off the finger numbing cold around me and the slight case of the sniffles I was developing by standing still in this weather. If I could work out, it would have been fine, but I had an image to uphold.
Two came around soon and it would seem they forgot to switch with me. It was cold, but I couldn't really leave my post. I checked in with Junior for the end of the day about that issue. "Hey boss?" The man looked up from his whiskey. "Um, was anyone suppose to switch with me doing bouncer duty like I did with Payne?" I asked Junior through my chattering teeth. The man looked at me and my trembling self.
"Were you out there the entire time?" The man questioned me. I could only nod as I tried to will myself to be warmer. "Dammit, who was on du.t..y... Whoops." I stared at him in confusion when he said that, wondering what that whoops was for. "Um... Sorry about that Arc. I had forgotten to set up a replacement to switch out with the bouncer for this week past you." I winced when I heard that, but nodded as it made sense why I was out there the entire time. "Sorry again."
I could only nod as I asked for permission to be dismissed, I needed a warm bed right now and just wanted to get the drive over with. When I got it, I hopped onto my cold bike and rode off to my apartment. The cold air blasting against me didn't help matters.
The next morning, I woke up feeling awful. I checked my status and found out why. "Cold: Symptoms will range from tiredness, weakness, headache, fever, and nausea. Duration: five days without medicine, two with antibiotics."
I groaned into my hands as my face burned. Fucking of course. With a growl of force, I made my body roll off my bed made of blankets and sleeping bags to start the day. I couldn't just miss a week of work, I had bills and food that I needed to pay for. As I showered and started throwing on a hoodie and jeans, I had to stop to catch my breath. 'Maybe I could miss a bit of school, I wasn't doing anything important there today, but I'll definitely go tomorrow and stick with my training today!'
I fumblingly took out my scroll and looked up my school's number. I typed it into the phone function and raised it to my ear. "Hello, Carroll High School."
"Hey, um, this is Jaune Arc, a freshman there. I just wanted to call in to inform you all that I wasn't showing up today."
"May I ask the reason for your absence."
"Cold. I do have a question though, I have no way of getting a doctor's or parent's note, how do I go about making this absence not illegal?" I didn't want to get kicked out of school because I missed school too much. The high school had a policy that if you missed six days without legal reason, you would fail the entire semester.
"I'm sorry, but you need one of those or it will be considered a mark against you."
I closed my eyes for a tick before replying, "Well, nice to know that. Bye." The woman said bye and I hung up before laying back down onto my bed. The resulting nap was three hours long and I did feel a little better after I woke up. Not enough to convince myself to go outside, but enough to study a bit more Greek to further my skill in the subject. I also glanced over the other programs I bought so that I gained the skill in the language for later.
After three hours of studying, I couldn't take laying still anymore and got up to go do my work out for the day. I felt up to moving around, so I grabbed my keys and helmet before heading down in my hoodie outfit. I added a neck warmer that covered my nose and mouth to it, so the wind wouldn't bite my neck.
Once I was in the clearing, I started my work out for the day like I always do. It became apparent that the weakness made it so I couldn't do the weight lifting and the tiredness made it so I could only do the max of ten minutes of training with my blade before I had to sit down for a bit and bundle under a blanket I kept on me. I didn't give up, but I didn't get much done for the day.
I had to get to work soon, so I changed into my suit, but put on another shirt under my dress shirt. It helped a little, but I was still colder than a freezer. I pulled into my normal spot under an awning that I found my bike under and went off to go stand guard by the DJ again. I wasn't my turn for another bouncing gig for the next week.
I was so cold standing there, but I did my job and checked everyone out to the best of my abilities. No one was a threat that I could see, but two AM couldn't have come any sooner. I didn't stick around and went home to go back to sleep.
Of course the cold wouldn't be stopped by the ability that shrugged off bullets to the lungs. That would be just far too silly!
