( Saturday, After classes )
"Alright, this is it, I've had enough of the idiot principal and his excuses. Today is day 91 of Rocky's absence, but he's still not here yet...." Sophia said, sounding relatively angry.
"Well, we should wait till dinner time today, we already pestered Principal Liam after class yesterday, I don't think it's wise to bother him again" Erin said as he opposed the idea of getting on the bad side of the unstable principal.
"Oh come on Erin, grow a spine.... Isn't Rocky your best friend?" Sophia said angrily as she had enough of Erin and his cold attitude towards her.
"What do you think, Sir Buhara? What should we do?" asked Erin as both Sophia and Erin looked towards him expectantly.
Buhara did not have the quickest of wits, he was an honest guy who could feel emotions as well as humans, however, when it came to higher intellect, Buhara struggled slightly in that area.
Leaving decisions to him wasn't the optimal choice in any situation, however, stuck between Erin and Sophia, he was the only one with the power to mediate.
"Buhara has to pack bags for tomorrow's mid semester. Buhara abstains from voting" said Buhara as his decision shocked both Erin and Sophia.
Surprisingly Buhara had taken the smart way out of this situation, however, whether it was by design or whether it was just an accidental choice remained unknown.
"Well I should help you I guess and we should also collectively pack a bag for Sir Rocky in case he returns tonight" Erin said, as Sophia sighed in exasperation.
The family's pressure to locate Rocky's whereabouts had now gone over her head so much so that her failure to locate him was negating all the merits she had built up by taking a dagger to her chest.
In the last letter she received, her brother openly stated his frustrations with Sophia and urged her to do better.
"I can't believe you guys, I'm going to go confront principal Liam, with or without you guys" Sophia said as she slammed the bench she was sitting on and stood up from her seat in anger.
"Don't bother me you mad woman, Rocky Yadav is back already" said a familiar voice as when Sophia turned she saw a frowning principal Liam walking towards her with Rocky in tow.
"Sir Rocky!"
"Puny human?"
"Rocky-"
Said Erin, Buhara and Sophia as the three were shocked to see the change in Rocky's physique.
Rocky was taller now, his legs were thicker, his muscles were rippling and he looked more like a barbarian than a human.
Buhara was confused on whether or not he could call Rocky a puny human anymore as Rocky's height had surpassed the seven feet mark, allowing him to tower above the group just like Buhara.
While not fully orc size yet, Rocky was not small like most humans either which was why Buhara felt confused as to what he should call him.
Her intentions may appear pure, but we can assure you they are everything but pure.
Please beware of her
From the True Elite Guild,
Written on behalf of guildmaster, by your aunt Amelia. ]
Rocky's smile on having returned to the university immediately turned into a frown as he read this letter.
On one hand he received the good news of traitor Joe having been apprehended, however, on the other hand he received the news of Sophia potentially deceiving him.
While he did not wish to jump to conclusions yet, since he witnessed Sophia being stabbed before his very own eyes, Rocky did not take this warning lightly either.
Having gained the ability to see through an individual's aura, Rocky wanted to verify what Sophia felt towards him personally as he walked towards the principal's cabin with a clarity of mind on what he wanted to do next.
************
( Present moment )
Rocky observed the aura of Erin, Buhara and Sophia towards him, upon his return.
Buhara and Erin had a dark green aura when they saw him, which signified friendship and positivity.
They weren't faking their joy, those two were genuinely happy to see him and genuinely happy that he had grown stronger.
Sophia on the other hand had the jealous yellow aura when she first saw Rocky return which turned to blood red when he refused to answer her query.
'Red.... The colour of murderous intent' Rocky thought as he shook his head and wrapped his arms around his two friends.
There was no reason for him to show hostility to Sophia now, since she was convinced of their friendship.
However, now that Rocky knew about her true intentions, he was not going to fall into her tricks in the future.
Instead, he was going to be the one manipulating her now.... From today, he was going to be the one who would play the game.
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/// A/N - This bonus chapter is sponsored by patron Rippin, please thank him in the comments for the same.
Bonus Chapter 3 of 4 for the day! Let's go- ///