~Alliances and Animosities~ - {CyNari}

Parents [Ch 7]

"Hey, Mejah. Good morning!", I said as I walked up to my seat in the classroom. Todays first lesson contained everything regarding preparation of experiments. Stuff like, where to find instruments for specific research or how to get your hands on usable samples.

I already learned a lot of it in my studies with Tighnari but it couldn't hurt to get some memory refreshment.

"Good morning, Collei! I hope you got a good night's rest after yesterday.", he said after placing down his book.

I was still a bit sleepy since we both studied for this lesson extensively the day before.

The door opened and our teacher stepped into the room everyone went quiet and he began to speak: "Good morning, class. As I already told you, we'll do a field trip today where you will showcase your ability to collect the highest quality samples. We'll head west of Sumeru City after I gave you your worksheets and instructions-" He began telling us how we should behave. In my mind it was pretty obvious that we don't try to pet alligators but it was still worth mentioning.

There was a knock on the door. "Ah, seems our escorts have arrived. Come in!", our teacher yelled and two figures entered the room, one of them rather familiar. I felt everyone tense up as they looked at the white haired man. "These two gentlemen will ensure our safety throughout the trip-" The whole class began to chat immediately. "Isn't that the General Mahamatra? We're doomed." "He will arrest us for even breathing in the wrong air-" "Oh noo, the pressure..."

Cynos gaze wandered through the rows and everyone went quiet after looking him in his eye. "As you may already know, I'm the General Mahamatra Cyno and this is my assistant Bas. We will accompany you today on your day out." Cyno crossed his arms in front of his chest and looked rather displeased. Bas scratched their head. "What the General meant is, please be not afraid to come to us if you spot a fungi or any other monster near the class. We will take care of it!" Bas put their hands on their hips and looked over to their superior which gaze only hardened.

Now that I looked at them long enough I noticed a familiar silhouette. The ears, the tail, the messy ponytail and long hair band; yeah, that must be the person that was with Cyno the other day! Valuka Shunas are really rare and usually less social but they seem nothing like that.

As they both stood side by side I noticed a similar fashion style, probably because they're both from the desert. Bas wore a black crop top with a pyro vision dangling from their neck and a loose piece of fabric. You could see a decent amount of muscle through it. Both armes were covered in bandages up to the elbow and a sword was attached to the low hanging belt. They wore dark red shorts, covered by a piece of fabric resembling a split skirt, and black boots. Cynos outfit was basically the same since forever but his hair grew a little longer and his face got more defined. His eye still got covered by his fringe, not helping his dangerous appearance.

"Please keep in mind to follow their instructions and don't handle things yourself. They're here to help us if anything happens.", the teacher said as the class got chatty again. Both Matras nodded in union and got a silent response back from the class. "You will fulfill the tasks in groups of three! You don't get to choose, I already assigned you your partners!" The class grunted for a moment but quickly regained silence after noticing Cynos eye slightly squinting.

The teacher called out everyone. "-Collei, Mejah and Laina will form a group." We bumped our fists together and grinned widely. A girl in the front row tensed up a bit but I couldn't be bothered.

After a bit of chatting between the Matras and the teacher, we all went to the western exit of Sumeru City. Cyno and the teacher went in front of us and Bas walked behind the group. Mejah and I walked in the center of the masses. "Man, the General Mahamatra looks so pissed the whole time. Let's hope he won't arrest us by the end of the day..." Mejah wispered in my ear as we walked along with the others on a small path towards the forest. I just smiled a bit. "We didn't do anything wrong. He won't do anything to us as long as you follow the rules of the Akademiya. That's his job, right?" He nodded but wasn't very convinced by my words. The walk continued in silence and we arrived by a small riverbank within a group of trees. The teacher turned around and dismissed us.