NOVEL FROG Chapter 19: that’s how it is with a disciple and master
Erik was stunned by what had happened. Although he had truly felt in danger from the look the guards gave him, which prompted his instinctive reaction to grab the handles of his machetes, he hadn't thought anything would actually happen.
In Erik's mind, those looks might have been some sort of test by the guards or perhaps a bit of envy, since he was his master's first disciple and had appeared out of nowhere. However, Sigrún's reaction left him completely speechless. Shortly after, a calm male voice resonated in the place.
"Calm down, Master Sigrún. There's no need to make such a scene. The most likely thing is that the boys were just surprised by your new disciple, that's all. Let's let bygones be bygones and stop the problem here."
"Sigrún? Who the hell do you think you're talking to, Theodore Blackthorn?!"
Sigrún's cold voice, full of murderous intent, responded as the pressure in the city doubled, and she was enveloped in deep blue flames, like a blazing star.
The man, Theodore Blackthorn, immediately stepped back in panic when he saw Sigrún's state, looking at her with evident fear before speaking in a trembling, terrified voice.
"Don't think you can do whatever you want and get away with it, Sigrún Eldurdóttir! My family won't stay silent if something happens to me!!"
"Hehehe, let's find out then,"
When Sigrún spoke, her words dripping with evident mockery and disdain, a multitude of runes appeared in the air, as if written by an invisible hand. Each rune had defined and sharp contours, with every stroke and curve pulsating with energy. Just then, an ancient voice, resonant with power, echoed through the space.
“Calm down, Sigrún, don’t make a scene.”
“Tsch.”
As soon as the voice sounded, the runes and the fire around Sigrún vanished, and she clicked her tongue in annoyance. At the same time, white spheres of light appeared around the guards and the terrified man, only to disappear with a bright flash.
Shortly after, two different guards appeared in front of the tower, dressed similarly to the previous ones. They bowed respectfully before Sigrún.
“Welcome back, Master Eldurdóttir.”
Sigrún simply nodded with a cold expression and entered the elevator behind the guards, followed closely by Erik and the wolves, while the star-haired boy still had a look of confusion on his face.
After taking a seat in the elegant elevator, which resembled a first-class airplane cabin with beautiful and comfortable leather seats that automatically adjusted to the body's shape, Erik looked out of the corner of his eye at his master. Curiosity was etched on his face.
As the elevator door closed, Sigrún asked in a calm and relaxed tone, as if she hadn't been exuding that monstrous pressure just moments before.
“Are you wondering if I’ve always been this explosive?”
“...” Erik merely looked at his master without saying anything; after all, if she was that explosive, it was better not to provoke the lion. However, knowing this in advance might help him avoid trouble in the future.
A joyful laugh escaped from Sigrún’s alluring lips as she saw the blank expression on her disciple’s face. She then cheerfully commented,
“Hahaha, don’t make that face. Although I must admit I have an explosive temper, it’s not as exaggerated. This time was just a small scene to make my point.”
“… Am I in danger?” Erik asked with a bit of surprise.
“Hehe, you catch on quickly. You could say, in a way, yes. Although no one will have the guts to attack you directly, many will try to make your life difficult at the university. After all, envy is very common here, as most have overly fragile egos.”
A beautiful smile graced Sigrún’s lips, growing happier each month with her decision to take on her first disciple. After all, it’s always a pleasure to talk to intelligent people, and the star-haired boy had proven on more than one occasion that he possessed a sharp mind, capable of quickly grasping the essence of things despite his young age.
"So, what you did was send a message that said something like, 'Even a wrongly directed look at my disciple is an offense to me. Imagine what will happen if I find out they are doing something to him'?"
"Hehehe, as smart as always."
Sigrún replied in a singsong tone while smiling at her disciple, who responded by bowing respectfully, clearly imitating the guards, and spoke in a respectful tone.
"Thank you very much, master."
"Hahaha, you’re really very sweet. But don’t try to imitate the guards; you don’t have to do that, not with me or anyone else. I’m your master. Think of me as an older sister. Your problems are my problems; that’s how it is with a disciple and master."
Sigrún responded while looking tenderly at Erik and reached out to ruffle his hair, which made the boy look into her eyes for a moment, as if confirming something in her gaze, before replying with a slight smile.
"I understand, master."
Sigrún and Erik continued talking about random things, mainly about the orbital station and such, until suddenly a light started blinking, and at the same time, an emotionless voice announced.
"Landing will be achieved in 5 minutes from now."
Erik was completely surprised by this information. After all, they had been in the elevator for less than 30 minutes, and he hadn’t felt anything. For him, the cabin hadn’t moved at all since he entered; he even thought they were waiting for more passengers or something.
When the 5 minutes passed, the door opened, and Sigrún led Erik through a corridor filled with thick metal doors guarded by guards dressed in futuristic black armor, who had quite ‘large’ presences, though far from Sigrún’s.
But something curious Erik noticed was that, from time to time, he felt like he was passing through some kind of invisible membrane, so he kept ‘looking’ at them with curiosity, which Sigrún noticed right away and casually explained.
"Those are detectors. Everyone entering needs to have valid identification. In your case, it’s the rune that recognizes you as my disciple."
"That’s impressive."
"Hahaha, yes, and quite expensive too."
"But master, why is there so much Myst here?"
Something Erik noticed as soon as the elevator door opened was the incredible amount of Myst flooding him. It felt like an uncontrollable tide constantly crashing into his body, causing great discomfort to the point where he even had some difficulty breathing.
"Oh, that’s thanks to the magical arrays covering the planet. They not only help protect it but also greatly increase the concentration of Myst, which is very useful for training and things like that. So it’s killing two birds with one stone."
"I see..."
By the time they traversed the entire corridor, Erik felt like he was in an airport. After all, the place was very similar, with waiting chairs, lots of shops, what looked like ticket counters, people with luggage, many types of signs, and beautiful giant glass panels as walls.
When they reached the exit door, Erik noticed something impossible to overlook. Amid the crowd, a figure stood out greatly due to her supernatural beauty and elegant demeanor, with bright golden eyes, brown hair that fell in soft waves to her shoulders, and a colossal presence on par with Sigrún’s.
The beautiful woman was dressed in a robe with the emblem embroidered on the left side similar to Sigrún’s, but in her case, the robe perfectly fitted her body, highlighting her curves, giving her an authoritative yet incredibly attractive air.
The woman’s expression was calm and serene as she waited, emitting a peaceful yet incredibly powerful aura, making her tremendous power clear to anyone. But the moment the woman saw Sigrún, a smile adorned her beautiful face, and she approached with elegance.
"Welcome back, Sig," the woman greeted with a soft and melodious voice, to which Sigrún immediately responded with a smile.
"Hello, Eli."
The beautiful women embraced, creating a lovely scene that caused several passersby to turn their heads for a moment, though they quickly reacted and continued on their way. Soon the hug ended, and the beautiful brown-haired woman turned her gaze to Erik and greeted him with a smile.
"So, you’re the little Erik. You’re very handsome. Come, greet your master."
The woman’s words surprised Erik, who immediately turned to look at his master with a face full of confusion, but Sigrún quickly spoke with annoyance.
"That’s something that hasn’t been decided yet. Don’t force it."
"Fufufu," the woman looked playfully at Sigrún, but quickly turned to Erik and continued, "Well, little Erik, your master still wants to play hard to get, so for now, greet your future master."
"Hmph."
Sigrún huffed in annoyance and turned her head, leaving Erik between a rock and a hard place. So, without having many options, he decided not to anger someone with a presence as monstrous as his master’s and greeted formally.
"Hello, it’s a pleasure to meet you. My name is Erik, and I am Master Eldurdóttir’s first disciple," Erik spoke in a serious voice while slightly bowing his head.
"You’re very polite, and it’s a pleasure to meet you, Erik. My name is Eleonora Silverwood. You can consider me your master’s older sister."
"It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Silverwood."
"Fufufu, come on, I’ll take you to my house."
After Eleonora’s words, an incredibly beautiful and intricate geometric magic circle appeared under the group’s feet. It started to glow, captivating Erik a bit, but he suddenly felt dizzy and stumbled slightly.
Erik quickly regained his composure and looked around, only to be surprised to find that he was now on what seemed to be a balcony of an impressive mansion, adorned with an incredibly large garden that looked like something out of a fairy tale, full of flowers and bushes of all kinds of colors and magical lights floating around.
"Fufufu, you’re very cute looking around like a little mouse, Erik."
"I apologize, Miss Silverwood," Erik immediately apologized to Eleonora, to which she responded amusedly.
"There’s no need to be so formal. I’ll be your master in the near future, so just call me Eleonora."
Eleonora commented in a cheerful voice as she sat in a beautifully decorated crystal chair, next to a similar circular table where a tea set and plates of cookies appeared, making Erik’s eyes shine with great intensity.