Chapter 58 Where's The Fun In That?

Rolling off the bed with a thud. Lank immediately crawled away from his proximity, his back against the wall.

"You sure are a friend!" He pointed an accusing finger at Nix, who only scoffed once he had been drawn out.

"Tch-"

'Such insult!' He gasped, lowering his hand.

"I'm the best you could ever get!" He said with pride.

"Says the person who can't even hold a sensible conversation with females or solve whatever conflict he has with Lumina but instead hides in my dormitory like a rejected pet!" He countered, a smirk playing on his lips.

Finally he had been able to say a bit on his mind and he was so glad by the outcome. It felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulder.

'Who said fire gift users are to be wary of?' He wondered, thinking he had gotten away with what he had said.

Blinking, he was shaken to the bones at the close proximity Nix had with him, his hand on his neck in a quick hand movement, raising him upwards, his legs dangling from the floor.

[Congratulations you have unlocked a new trait: Defensiveness. A quick response against real or perceived threats or criticisms]

'Wary! Yes, definitely be wary of them!' He panicked, his eyes widened in shock.

He had tried to retaliate, but when he saw a blue flame-like glow engulf Nix's hand, he felt it drain in on his strength, making him drop his hands to his side and defenseless.

"For the sake of our friendship, I'll spare your life." Nix replied coldly, letting go of his grip on Lank, the flame immediately dispersed.

Thud!

Lank was left in a coughing mess, it took some while before he could get the feeling of his hands, but when he did, his hand shot straight up to his neck as he tried catching his breath.

Exhaling and inhaling continuously until he had found a steady pace and his breathing had normalized.

"What the hell was that?! How did you just close the gap between us in a blink of an eye?" Lank blurted out in rage.

He had a near death experience in the hands of someone he had termed for the first time in his life as a friend.

"Surely I deserve an explanation." He snarled, it wasn't all fun and jokes anymore.

Nix looked at his hands, he had a confused expression. What he had done felt a bit out of character, he never attacked innocent people but something he had said had triggered his reflex action.

"I don't know." He replied, clenching and widening his fingers, observing.

"You almost killed your friend!" He said the last part in spite.

"I apologize for causing you harm. It wasn't intentional." He took a seat, resting his elbows on the table top. Resting his head on his interlocked fingers, deep in thought.

"Just that?" Lank queried.

Nix's brows twitched in frustration, he didn't need any form of confrontation. Until he could figure out what had brought about that unlock of a new trait, he might as well be caught in it's trap once more and whoever it might be, wouldn't be so lucky.

"What else do you want? A bow or a gift?" Nix countered, his head still lowered and his face obscured by his hand.

Lank watched him for a while, he realized he was asking for more than necessary. He had gotten an apology, he should be content with that, until he found out what had happened to Nix.

"That was totally unexpected," Lank admitted, leaning on the wall once more. As much as he hated to admit it, he could see why the fire gift users were termed dangerous to deal with.

"I didn't expect you would react in such a way to my taunts, if I had known–"

"What did you just say?" Nix rose his head, his interest immediately sparked up at that sentence.

He turned to the side to face Lank, he had been trying to rack his thoughts on what could have triggered that notification, but what he had said might have some sort of connection.

"I said I didn't expect you would react in such a way to my taunts..."

"Taunts!" Nix repeated, nodding his head in understanding.

"A quick response against real or perceived threats or criticisms." He muttered to himself, finally understanding where Lank's words fell in.

"I would advise you to cut down on your taunts when speaking with me." He advised.

"Where's the fun in that?" He scoffed.

"If you don't want a near death experience, I advise you to stick with my simple advice." Nix retorted.

'This is what you get when you agree to having a roommate–even a temporary one into your life.' He internally facepalmed.

"Simple advice, my ass!" Lank rolled his eyes, displeased by the mindset Nix had towards his words.

Nix shook his head, a smile made its way to his face. He still didn't understand why the system had said he should bond with Lank, but ever since he did, he had been immersed and surrounded by other people's lives in the process too.

It was a breath of fresh air from the usual loner attitude he had hoped to maintain while being in the academy.

But he had also realized that he shouldn't have taken out his frustration on his friend in the process as well.

"I can tell you're reminiscing on whatever past event in your life." Lank said with a raise of his brow, folding his arms.

Nix looked at him, chuckling at the familiarity of the words, "using my words against me, huh?"

"Well...you spaced out." He continued.

'Again, with my words.' Nix shook his head, a smile gaining in on the corner of his lips.

"Exactly when are we going to sleep?" Nix switched the mood of the whole discussion.

"When you tell me why you chose to stay here instead of your dormitory." Lank blinked, pouting, and trying his best to put up an innocent face to the best of his ability.

'Again with that topic!' Nix internally facepalmed, he had been expecting it to be brought up once again.

But there were still some pressing issues he needed to take care of, in the form of that face Lank was making.

"How many times do I need to stress? Do not use that face with me!" He scowled, ready to aim a pencil on the table at Lank.