Both Tilda and Mark were stunned by the sudden question. That had to be the most direct question Mark had heard in a long time. Tilda frowned at Lightening Rider in anger for how forward he was, but she did not try to take back the question. She gazed at Mark expectantly as she was also curious to hear what he had to say.
They were all there when Mark fought against that calamity class. Tilda knew that at the start of the fight, Mark couldn't even hold his own against that monster at all. He was just as weak as they were, but then, all of a sudden, Mark's power skyrocketed in the middle of the fight, and he gained the strength to win against the calamity.
That was barely six months ago, and now he was fighting against Eldritch class monsters? There had to be something going on here.
Mark shrugged and smiled.
"I can't really explain it even if I wanted to. My blessing finally kicked in properly, I guess."
What a fucking cop-out.
Both Tilda and Lightning Rider immediately knew that Mark was just telling them to mind their own business. Lightning Rider thought that he would be able to get a straight answer from Mark if he asked a straight question, but it was obvious that Mark just didn't want to tell them about his blessing. Well, in that case, there was nothing he could do.
The duo didn't know that Mark was actually telling them the truth. The only reason why he was able to get this strong so quickly was because his blessing finally kicked in properly. If not for that happening, Mark would have died in that building against the ant-headed calamity class.
Lightning Rider just scoffed and turned away while muttering a goodbye, and Tilda grinned at Mark before going to pull Lightning Rider away. Lightning Rider was just salty because he was being left behind by someone far younger than him, especially after everything he said to Mark during the fight against the calamity class, but Tilda knew that there was nothing he could do about it.
Mark just had so much more potential, and there was no way they could hope to keep up.
"Alright Mr. Sovereign, we just came around to say hello. We need to finish off our patrol before leaving. Oh yeah, the headmaster said he wanted to speak to you. He said you should come to his office before going to class."
Mark thanked Tilda with a nod and watched them walk off. Once they were gone, many other superhumans started to approach Mark.
"Mr. Mark Vanitas, my name is Tucker and I am the head of the Feline Guild! We just met at Life Academy! If I could have a moment of your time!"
The principal was a strict man and after everything that had happened, Mark expected the principal to tell him to be careful around the other students and not to do anything that would put them at risk.
But this was the last thing Mark expected.
"Mr. Vanitas. Tell me, how was your break? I know the circumstances leading to the break were unfortunate, but I hope you were at least able to use the free time to recuperate from your battles. I watched the fight you had against the monster on television and I must say, you have only grown stronger with time. It is unbelievable how powerful you are."
Mark nodded calmly and told the principal that he was fine. The break wasn't as long as he hoped it would be, but that wasn't important. The principal chuckled at Mark's words, but after some time, he sobered up and leaned back in his seat.
"In light of the recent incidents that occurred before the break, the government has mandated that we put aside a significant amount of money for the hiring and retainment of some superhumans for the protection of the students. We haven't been able to put forward any leads regarding the whereabouts of the killer who took the lives of Miss Esmeralda and Mr.
Colton, but that is no reason for us to stop our activities. It would be paramount to allowing the killer to win."
Mark frowned slightly as he tilted his head to one side. After hearing all of that, he thought he finally got to the bottom of why he was called here. Did the principal call him here because they didn't have enough money to retain the superhumans? Mark would understand if that was the reason why he was summoned.
Superhumans weren't cheap, and from the number of people Mark saw outside, he knew that it must cost millions to retain all of them.
"Does the school need an investment?"
The principal's eyes widened.
"What? No, no! We have received way too much from your family already! I couldn't possibly ask you to bring out even more money for our sake!"
Mark waved away the compliments.
"If you need money, then say so. I understand how expensive it is to hire superhumans, and I'm impressed that you're putting this much effort into it, so I don't mind."
The principal smiled.