Blessed Curse of Lust

Yelena and Lily sat down on the couch opposite Justin. He was flanked by two other members. One was a boy, at least that is what Yelena thought. His facial features and body were very androgynous, and his hair, which reached down to his shoulders, was a very light pink, almost white. The only real hint Yelena had was the clothes he wore, but even that could be deceptive in some cases.

On Justin’s other side sat a girl with bright blue hair, tied into a ponytail. She was quite pretty and, just like Yelena, carried herself with a certain dignity. Yelena didn’t recognize her, but she was, without a doubt, from a noble house.

“So, let me handle the introductions.” Justin leaned forward. “This is Noah; he is in his third year, just like me.” He motioned toward the boy sitting next to him.

“Nice to meet you!” Noah said with a stunning smile on his face.

Justin pointed to the other side, towards the girl.

“And this is Tiffany. She is a first-year like you and just joined.” The girl politely nodded towards Yelena and Lily.

“Then, of course, this is Yelena and her plus one, Lily.” Justin made sure to introduce them to the other two as well.

“First of all, let’s raise our glasses to you for joining. I’m looking forward to seeing how you will progress in the future.” Justin grabbed his glass from the coffee table.

Everyone raised their glasses high up.

“Cheers!” Justin shouted and started drinking.

Others followed suit, although they drank with a little more self-restraint than Justin did.

“So, I was wondering, did you join any group yet, Lily?” Justin asked.

Lily found it surprising that he was addressing her first; she thought she would be more or less ignored by the other members of the group.

“Yes, I’m in the Spectral Flames.” Lily answered the question.

They all nodded approvingly. Although there were some rivalries between the top three groups, they all admitted that both Raghal’s Swords and the Spectral Flames were excellent choices.

“That is nice. That means you are going the mage route then? What level of spell can you cast?” Noah asked the question.

Lily awkwardly laughed when she heard that.

“Well… I still can’t cast anything without premade circles.” She admitted.

Everyone’s eyes went wide hearing that. Justin looked over to Noah.

“Are the flames slipping? It can’t be that bad. Sorry, no offense to you, Lily; it's just that they normally don’t let anyone join unless they are at least a level 2 mage.” He didn’t try to offend Lily, of course, but it still was rather unbelievable.

Noah shook his head. He probably knew more about the Flames’ situation than Justin, which is why he asked him.

“Not as far as I know. They had a good number of amazing recruits this year, too. Although I heard some buzzing going on there. Haven’t figured out what it is yet.” Noah replied.

Yelena sighed. She was a little annoyed. Not at the group, but at Lily. She kept underselling herself in these situations. She starts with the worst, instead of telling what she really excels at. Once again, it was up to Yelena to clarify things.

“Lily has mana overflow ability. That is why she was allowed in.” She explained.

Everyone’s jaw dropped when they heard that. It was pretty rare for someone to have overflow. They all stared at the redhead girl who seemed a little embarrassed in the face of all that attention.

“Yeah, that makes much more sense now. They would jump on the opportunity for sure. I bet they didn’t even let you breathe since you joined.” Justin laughed.

“Well… they are enthusiastic for sure. Still, they’ve been very helpful since I joined. I had some issues with controlling the overflow, but they helped me a lot with that.” Lily answered.

Justin seemed to realize something after hearing Lily’s words.

“Then it was you who flooded that classroom, right?” He had a grin on his face.

Lily nodded. She was still embarrassed about what happened on that day. She is probably never going to fully live it down.

“Hey, that is not an issue. It is a pretty cool ability to have. Besides, at least it was just water.” Justin shrugged.

“True, water is not a big deal. Though we are moving on to fire spells next week.” Yelena added and chuckled a little.

Justin had a concerned look on his face.

“Shit!” Justin said.

The next moment, everyone erupted in laughter. Even Lily, who was still a little embarrassed about all the attention she was getting.

“Ah, anyway! Don’t worry too much about it. The guys at the Flames know their stuff, so you will get things under control in no time.” Justin took a little bit more serious tone to encourage Lily,

Lily smiled and sipped her drink. She knew Justin was right. People in her group know and understand magic well, and they were already a tremendous help in her progress.

“Speaking of school stuff. Have you taken any jobs yet?” Justin changed the topic.

Yelena and Lily looked at each other. It wasn’t that long since this came up between them, too.

“Not yet. We are still discussing the details. There is a minor disagreement between us on how to proceed. Lily wants to take up some regular jobs, and I prefer waiting until we unlock our Vareen to do combat ones.” Yelena explained their situation.

Both Justin and Noah gave the girls a knowing nod.

“That question is as old as the school itself. Most first-years ask that question when it comes to it. Which is better: taking low-paying jobs and trying to get whatever they can before the first target, or waiting, training, and going for the combat ones that pay much better?” Justin already knew this conundrum; he himself had probably gone through it.

“So, which one is the better?” Lily asked the question.

Justin pondered for a few seconds how to best answer the question.

“I think the best would be to wait. It is a personal opinion, but I found it more worthwhile. The points you get for regular jobs are hardly worth the time they take. Sure, it might seem a lot now, but with each new target, the bar will be raised higher. That means eventually those couple of points feel negligible. Not to mention, it is time that you can use for training your magic, or your sword skills.” Justin explained his point.

It was pretty much the same thing as what Yelena said. It wasn’t that Lily doubted her, but hearing it from a third-year student with much more experience made it sound more convincing.

“Makes sense. Maybe that is what we should do. I still need to get my magic under control and learn at least some level-1 spells, so it is true, I can’t really waste time.” Lily admitted it.

“Did you already assemble a team? I assume the two of you will stick together, but what about the rest?” Noah asked.

Especially for combat missions, teams were essential. Going out alone or even in a duo was reckless and extremely dangerous. It was a good way to come back maimed or never come back at all.

“It is still in progress. We have a third member, Thea, who is in Raghal’s Sword. To start, we are likely going to look for some low-risk jobs and take them with only the three of us; then we will work our way into a full party eventually.” Yelena told their plans.

Normally, a full party would be six people. Three warriors and three mages, with one mage focusing on support. In their case, Yelena could technically fill both mage and warrior roles, though she was thinking of more warrior focus.

“Sounds reasonable enough. I mean, most don’t start with a full party. With you being a hybrid, the easier jobs wouldn’t be too difficult to tackle with just the three of you. What about you, Tiffany? Do you have a party in mind?” Noah turned to the girl who was oddly quiet during the whole conversation.

She was slowly sipping her drink; Yelena expected she wasn’t even really paying attention to the discussion happening next to her.

“I do. Not a full one yet, but it will do for now.” She replied.

The way she said it, it was pretty clear what she had wasn’t a permanent arrangement. It was not rare; many students would try to form parties with people they liked or thought would be good enough. In many cases, these parties break up and new ones form instead. It can take a lot of effort to find the right people with whom one can work effectively.

“We will see. Maybe we can get some people from here if they don’t have a party or from the Flames and the Swords. We will work it out as we go.” Yelena already had a plan to do some scouting and to have Lily and Thea do the same in their groups.

“Wise idea! You should try to get a full party together before the end of the month.” Noah urged them to move quickly.

Lily looked confused. She understood that it would be important to have a full party as soon as possible, but why specifically before the end of the month? Yelena sensed Lily’s confusion.

“After the first month, they will start posting jobs for the dungeons. Those worth the most.” Yelena explained.

The dungeons were a magical and very mysterious phenomenon. They appeared randomly throughout the realm in the form of a stone gate. Upon entering, they would be transported to a location full of monsters.

It was not an easy task to take down even the low-ranking dungeons, but it was very rewarding. It was not only a good training, but also each monster killed would drop a mana crystal that could be sold or used to make magical tools and equipment.

At the end of it, there was always one or, in some cases, multiple stronger monsters. Defeating them would not only drop the aforementioned crystals but also valuable magical equipment as well. Oddly enough, in most cases, the equipment given fit the needs of the party members who took them down.

Although this phenomenon was still extremely dangerous. Not just entering, but leaving it alone too. If nobody cleared it within a couple of weeks or months, the gates opened, and the monsters could get out. For this reason, it was critical to deal with them as soon as possible.

It was mostly done by adventurers or the country's soldiers, but in many cases, academies like Laffey laid claim to them to train their students.

Lily, of course, knew about the existence of the dungeons. Everyone who didn’t live under a rock would know them.

“So then the plan would be to get to them as soon as we get the chance?” Lily asked.

“Something like that, yes. Of course, there will be some competition over them, since they don’t happen that often, but if we can get a decent team together by the end of the month, we would have a good chance to take one of the first ones that pop up.” Yelena answered.

That was her plan. Successful dungeon runs not only gave the highest number of points but also rewarded them in other ways. It was perfect in many ways. The issue was to get a proper party together by that time. They only had three weeks left, so they had to move fast.

The conversation was cut short when Danny approached the group from behind the couch, where Justin and the others sat. He quickly vaulted over, almost kicking Noah in the head before landing between him and Justin.

What made it even more impressive was that not a drop of his drink was spilled, despite the glass being almost full. He looked at the two girls in front of him, then turned to Justin.

“Why are you hogging the newbies, eh?” Danny asked him.

Justin shook his head, but he was smiling.

“I’m not doing such a thing. Just having a pleasant conversation.” He answered.

Danny shrugged, then turned his attention towards Yelena and Lily.

“Yo! I’m Danny Fulg! Nice to meet you!” He flashed a seductive smile towards Lily.

Yelena put her arm around Lily’s waist and pulled her closer to her.

“She is with me. Don’t even think about it!” Yelena said, especially after hearing about Danny’s reputation with women. “This is Lily Renla, by the way.” She introduced Lily to him, just to be polite.

Danny laughed and leaned back.

“So that is how it is, huh? In that case, you don’t have to worry about me. Sure, I like women, but I’m not an asshole. I’m not going after somebody who already has a partner or clearly stated they are not interested.” He stated.

Danny grew a lot in Yelena’s eyes. She was a bit worried he might still try to push his luck, but it seemed he was a much better person than he looked.

“Although you might want to be careful around Yuna. Heard she is on the hunt.” Danny laughed.

Justin shook his head after hearing that comment.

“You talk about her like she is some kind of beast.” He reprimanded Danny.

“What? Have you seen that woman? I mean, for fuck sake, her arms are almost bigger than my entire torso.” Danny seemed rather heated about this.

Yelena raised an eyebrow. While she figured Danny was more of a technical fighter than a strength-based one, he was by no means a weak-looking guy. It was hard to believe what he was saying was true.

Justin was about to open his mouth, but he was interrupted by a chair flying out from the hallway that led to the training room. The chair crashed against the opposite wall and broke into tiny pieces.

“What was that?” Tiffany asked what both Yelena and Lily were thinking.

Justin was rubbing his forehead, trying to figure out how to explain what just happened. On the other hand, neither Noah nor Danny seemed phased by these events.

“What you just witnessed was our two charming fourth-year members, Yuna and Lorenzo, having a fight again. Don’t worry, you will get used to it.” Justin explained the situation, but it brought up more questions than it answered.

Soon enough, a skinny-looking guy with long blond hair came backing out from the hallway. Both his fists were up in the air, assuming a fighting stance. Judging by the way he jumped backward, it was safe to assume he was dodging something or, more precisely, someone.

Just a moment later, a tall girl appeared, facing the guy in a similar fighting stance. Although Danny was exaggerating a little, the girl was indeed very muscular. She had short black hair and light brown skin. Unlike the others, she didn’t wear a formal outfit; instead, she seemed to be wearing the school-provided workout uniform.

Neither Yelena nor Lily could tear their eyes away from Yuna’s glistening muscles and well-defined abs. Yeah, Danny was right about something. They really need to watch out with her. Or not, after all, more partners were always better for Yelena.

“Get back here, you bitch! I’ll break your fucking neck!” Yuna screamed as she was swinging at the guy.

He skillfully dodged the attack and deflected the follow-up one with his hand. He punched back, but Yuna blocked his attacks without any problem.

“Um… shouldn’t we stop them?" Lily asked with a concerned look on her face.

Danny, Justin, and Noah all laughed at that question.

“Good luck trying to do that. They would take even me apart if I tried.” Justin said. “Don’t worry, they are not serious. It will calm down in a minute.” He tried to clear up their worries.

Despite what he said, it didn’t seem that way. In fact, they looked like they would kill each other in any second now.

“As Justin said earlier. You will get used to it. These two have always been extremely competitive with each other, but in reality, they are good friends. They just end up annoying each other all the time, which leads to them fighting.” Danny explained the situation further.

It was hard to believe that they were good friends. Sure, Yelena and Thea had sparred countless times in the past to test their skills, but they never started a brawl just randomly. Yelena couldn’t imagine these two being friends.

As the two moved, Yuna grabbed onto a wooden desk holding a very expensive-looking vase.

“If you break that, you will pay for it!” Justin told her in a very serious tone.

The girl froze up. She was likely trying to gauge whether it was worth it. In the end, she let go of the table and huffed. Looks like neither of them wanted to continue the fight after they were interrupted.

“Good choice! Now, come introduce yourself to the new recruits.” Justin told them.

Both Yuna and Lorenzo looked at each other and shrugged. Their fight was over, so it was better to do as Justin said.

Both walked behind the couch where the four other members sat. They eyed up and down the newest members as well as Lily.

Yelena and Lily couldn’t help but look too. From closer, Yuna’s body seemed even more impressive. She must have been working out or something because the sweat was glistening on her muscled body.

Yuna reached down and grabbed the drink from Danny’s hand and downed it in one go.

“Fuck you!” Danny snapped at her.

The girl grinned and gave the empty glass back to him.

“Fuck me yourself, coward!” She said.

Danny shook his head with an annoyed look on his face. Yelena could guess these types of interactions weren’t exactly rare around here.

“Nice to meet you all. I’m Yuna Uyekk, and this fuckhead here is Lorenzo.” She pointed at the skinny-looking guy next to her.

“I’m Yelena Hellag, and this is Lily Renla, my girlfriend.” She replied.

Tiffany also introduced herself. Once that was done, Yuna walked over to the couch where Yelena and Lily were sitting. She moved between them and sat down. The girls had to jump to the side to avoid being crushed.

Yelena felt the couch suddenly tilt backward from the force of Yuna sitting down. For a moment, she thought the couch would trip over and make them fall back. Luckily, that didn’t happen.

Yuna then put her arms on top of the backrest, going behind both Yelena and Lily.

“So, how do you like the school so far?” She asked with a toothy grin.