Chapter 11: Interference

Rewen's eyelids fluttered as a bright ray of light struck down at his face. Rubbing his eyes, he yawned and opened them. Looking at the bright light coming from his glass window, he grunted. "I should put on covers, though it works as a good alarm clock." Flipping his quilt, he got up and looked at the time. 

7:06 a.m.

Academy will start at 8:30 and it takes about ten to fifteen minutes from his home to the academy. Rewen yawned once again as he stepped out of the room and went straight to the bathroom. 

It was locked. 'Cal should have already gone to the factory, so it should be Denny.' He surmised and knocked on the door. "Don't take too long. You hear me?"

Rewen waited but didn't get a reply. 'It was weird.' If it were any other person, he wouldn't have thought so but his cousin Denny is the type of person who usually becomes talkative in the bathroom. He wondered a few things and a sudden thought struck him. "I should be careful around her today."

He moved to the basin outside his bathroom, rinsed his mouth and washed his face. As he was about to grab the towel, he heard a sharp shriek coming from the bathroom. 'Denny?' Rushing up to the bathroom door, he knocked. "What's wrong? Any roaches?"

He didn't get a reply but instead heard the sound of footsteps within the bathroom and the door opened only for Rewen to undergo a massive shock. A tall figure with bright red hair dressed in uniform looked at him with a smile. Behind the tall girl, Denny stood with a towel wrapped around her body. 

Rewen, at once, took a step back but he was halted as his T-shirt has been grabbed by the person in front of him. Puckering her lips as if induce a seductive atmosphere, she said. "What's the hurry? How about talking with me for a while?"

"What can I do for you, Miss Yeri? Haha, it's been months since I have seen you. For you to adjust your busy schedule just to visit my humble abode is my extreme pleasure-"

"Cut the bullsh*t. I heard you broke up with Young Miss?"

Rewen was repeatedly cursing in his mind. The tall woman was one of the personal bodyguards of Svety and her background, as well as strength, is not simple. She shouldn't be less than a Rank 4 Mage. One must know that in the entire Eastern Dream Academy, the top-most government officials are not more than Rank 5 and this woman standing in front of him was at least a Rank 4, which automatically makes her comparable to any High-level Combatant. In short, fighting with her is useless. 

"Yes. I'm not sure if you know it or not but I have interference. What I did was the natural and logical course of action."

Unknown to him, when he said this, Denny's face was warped in shock. However, Yeri's face didn't change a single bit. "I don't care." After saying so, she loosened her grip on his shirt. 

Rewen adjusted his collar and spoke in a grave tone. "What can I do for you?" 

"I want you to go back to her."

"What if I don't?"

Yeri smiled. "Tervon! Beat this kid up!" All of a sudden, a man in his 20s appeared beside her. The man sized up Rewen from head to toe. "Even if you are not letting fear show to your face, you are brave. I'll give you that." He then turned to Yeri and spoke in a mild tone. "Why beat him up?"

Yeri sneered. "This kid broke up with the Young Miss yesterday."

"My, what a grave sin," Tervon said in a serious tone but Rewen could swear he smelled some sarcasm hidden. Rewen kept standing contemplating what to do. 'Running isn't an option since any of them could catch up to me…'

As time passed, Yeri became annoyed by the fact that they were doing nothing. "Tervon, beat him up and let him know his mistake." Tervon didn't speak and was about to make a move against Rewen when Rewen suddenly blurted out. 

"Wait, wait, wait. Answer me one thing. If you beat me up today, will you leave me alone?"

"No. We'll come every day."

Rewen showed a difficult face. "I see. Okay, then! I'll go back with Svety. Is that alright?"

Yeri and Tervon looked at each other. Being expert bodyguards, they had dealt with countless stubborn people so when Rewen provocatively said "what if I don't", they directly thought that he was stubborn. After a while, Yeri nodded appreciatively and patted Rewen's shoulder and disappeared. 

Rewen sighed and walked into the bathroom and looked at Denny. "Are you done?"

Denny didn't reply to his question and asked in a commanding tone. "Did you really have interference? When did it happen? Why did you not tell me?"

Rewen was irritated but knew that she was only worried about him and thus, answered. "Yes, it happened around two years ago-"

"Two years!!? WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING ALL THIS TIME!?"

"My mind was not clear. I didn't want to go sit at home like a useless person. I wanted to go to the academy. Besides, did you not notice my falling grades? Didn't you notice that my behaviour changed?"

"Stop! Do you even understand the gravity of the situation you are in!? I'll see what Uncle and Aunt have to say about this." With that, she stormed off the bathroom. Rewen bitterly smiled looking at her back and regretted telling her. 

*Bam*

While he was showered, he heard a loud knock on the door. Grabbing the towel, he opened the door. "What's wrong?"

"Everything's wrong. Here, Aunt is on the phone." Without letting him say a word, Denny shoved the phone to his hand. Helpless, Rewen brought the phone closer to his mouth. "Mom?"

A calm voice came from the other side. "Rewen."

"..."

"Incompetent fool."

*Beep*

"..."

Rewen didn't know whether he should feel happy or sad. He was a bit troubled at this mother who is a woman of few words. Since childhood, he didn't remember having a conversation with her that lasted for a minute. He handed over the phone to Denny making a sad face. He knew he had to endure a lecture from her if he didn't show that he was affected. Only by showing remorse and guilt could he be spared. 

Denny stared at him. "Rewen, you can come to me if you have any troubles."

***

After a shower, he wore his uniform and looked at the mirror. "Good to go." He then thought about how the previous Rewen endured everything and felt slight admiration. Two years ago, Rewen was a freshman in high school and with his excellent grades, he was a bright student. One day, he suddenly found another soul trying to invade his soul space. He had a Stage 5 Interference, which was extremely deadly. Stage 5 Interference means having only about 3-5% of his soul space in his control. 

In his high school, he was bullied and was alone for the most part. He became a gloomy bottom student. Due to his behaviour, he was lectured by Cal every day, bullied by his classmates thrice a week and became a disappointment to his parents. Gradually, he started hating everything. On several occasions, he lashed out publicly. However, no matter how much difficult it became, he never once admitted that he had Stage 5 Interference. 

It was childish. If he openly confessed, he would have lived better but he didn't. While Rewen didn't approve of his ways, that didn't stop him from admiring him. 'You were a tough guy.'

"System, I forgot to ask but where is the interfered soul?"

The system replied in the usual emotionless monotonous way. [Replying to the Host, it's inside the system inventory.]

"When I would be diagnosed, would my soul space show the other soul?"

[No. But if the Host wants, it can be done.]

"Good."

When Rewen took over the previous Rewen's identity, he found that he could control 100% of his soul space. Initially, he didn't want to let anyone know that he had interference but then he thought about the previous Rewen and decided to let his family and friends know that they didn't give him the right treatment. It didn't sound worth the fuss but Rewen believed it was worth it.