The snake glanced at Skyler, then at the floating marble-like artifact. She narrowed her gaze, staring at it intently. Even though she didn't know much about treasures, she could tell the artifact would benefit her.
Riruru looked at him one last time.
'For me?'
Skyler chuckled, a low sound, as he heard her voice, strangely pleasant, in his mind.
"Yes, for you. You need to get stronger."
She turned back to the marble, a touch of hesitation in her eyes. The cold emanating from the artifact bothered her, but she still moved out of his jacket, accepting his help as he held her towards the marble. As soon as she touched the artifact, it vibrated with cold Evol. Immediately, the floating marble scattered into silver patterns that etched themselves onto the sides of her head.
Skyler's lips lifted into a smile.
Satisfied, he walked back toward Alfanzo, who was watching him, feeling regret that such a good artifact was gone to a beast who wouldn't even know its full potential.
Skyler ignored the man, as if he were air. With a spring in his step, he rushed out of the tunnel, now that he was done stealing.
His next stop was the area filled with tall trees within the academy. Naturally, Max's future opportunities weren't his only target. He was going to steal the treasures and opportunities of the whole main cast.
'They are already strong. They don't need more treasures. I'm just helping them use what they don't need. Hehe.'
He sighed regretfully, thinking how he was four years late to enter the story. Or else he could have found even more treasures. But those treasures were already gone.
Skyler stretched his body before he began running toward the way he had come from.
He was good with directions, so recalling the exact spot where he had arrived after entering the crystal wasn't difficult.
Unlike his first experience, when he and Charles were trapped inside a crystal, this time he didn't need to break the core of the crystal inside the boss chamber to leave.
He simply needed to return to his entry point and use the portal there to return.
Anyway, now that he had decided to do whatever he wanted, he didn't even care to pretend that he had entered the crystal to complete a mission. He would just say he forgot about the mission—the mission to find a specific sand herb in the crystal.
Skyler chuckled, using his spells here and there just for fun. He destroyed every rock formation on his path, hoping to discover another tunnel. Unfortunately, he didn't.
He shook his head, a wry smile playing on his lips. What had he expected? He wasn't the protagonist in this story. Why would he be the one to uncover hidden treasures?
By the time Skyler left the crystal, it was a mess. The other students who would enter the place would surely be horrified to see the destruction he caused, which clearly disrupted the structure of the place.
Alfanzo could only shake his head.
After Skyler told Professor Noire that he would be going to his room, Alfanzo didn't intend to follow the young man any longer, despite having found very little about him. Like he was very lucky and a bit odd.
However, Skyler's blatant disregard for his stated intentions forced Alfanzo to watch him secretly from a distance. He watched as the kid snooped around the academy.
Skyler went from one location to another with no pattern. Not caring about the dark and silent hour when he should be asleep. His actions made him seem like a thief.
He would laugh to himself, curse, and grin like an idiot. What shocked Alfanzo was the fact that whenever the youth went to a new location, he would locate a treasure as if it were lying there waiting for him to pick up.
"What in the world is going on here?! Has the academy always been overflowing with treasures?? If so, why hasn't anyone found them before? And why does it seem like he knows exactly where to find them?!"
Alfanzo was beginning to question what he was seeing the more he watched Skyler. He felt so bewildered that he had to make sure he was seeing things correctly.
His head spun as he dazedly watched the youth slip into a building, only to come out with a good stash of Evol crystals. He was so shocked that he forgot he could simply question him about what was going on.
Skyler smirked as he tossed a sparkling, slender, finger-sized Evol crystal in the air.
"How can I let go of something shiny? In the original story, it was Elena who found these wind Evol crystals. But being from a rich family, she didn't bother taking them."
He glanced back at the building he had come out of, with a mischievous glint.
"If she knew that the crystals belonged to Professor Hawthorne, who had hidden his wealth in different places because of his paranoia, she wouldn't have left them."
Laughing, Skyler left the place, very much looking forward to the face the professor would make after finding his money gone.
This was his little revenge.
Professor Hawthorne had hit him in the head with papers. He still remembered it, along with the biting words of that jerk. He was just that petty. There was one more reason: he, Skyler, would never let go of anything shiny if it was within his reach.
Finally, Alfanzo jolted back to reality.
But Skyler had already vanished.
"Where did he go...?"
He muttered, his senses reaching out to find him. The act, however, disrupted the many powerhouses in the academy.
The principal was the first to warn him mentally that he wasn't allowed to utilize his power within the academy grounds.
Alfanzo hissed under his breath.
"I am going crazy here!! And they are worried about some damn rules!?"
He vanished to search for Skyler, oblivious to the fact that, seeing the sunlight, the kid had gone to have breakfast and attend his classes like the model student he was.
Not to mention, he would be caught too easily if he loitered around in the daytime.
While Alfanzo searched for him to find out if Skyler possessed a treasure-locating skill, he diligently attended all his classes.
Once Skyler was finished, he went to his room and locked the door. His expression turned very serious as he counted all the treasures he discovered in a single night.
Suddenly, noticing Riruru watching him lazily, he taught her to count. She blinked, very confused, but got his point when he said that they had to guard their wealth.
He had become quite wealthy in a short amount of time, and if anyone discovered their secret, they could be in danger.
Skyler's gaze swept over the treasures.
There were some natural treasures in the pile, but most were artifacts. Unfortunately, aside from a few, they were useless to him because he had only formed an elemental crystal for two elements so far.
Skyler's brows furrowed tightly.
"Hmm, these treasures are too few. I need to locate more. But for now, we have to make do with what we have found. Max and his team should have found more treasures."
Hearing him, Riruru's eyebrow twitched. Even she understood he was exaggerating when he said the treasures he possessed were too few. She didn't know much about his world or money, but she knew that if anyone were to see his wealth, their eyes would surely bulge out in astonishment.
He placed Riruru on the bed and hurriedly separated the treasures he could absorb to become stronger from the others, storing the remaining items in his storage rings.
"I still need to check the treasures I got from the generous blue dragon. To see if there are any that can help me get stronger."
A sigh escaped his lips.
"I have so much to do. Such a busy person I am. No one can understand how busy I am."
Grumbling, he shook his head and settled down cross-legged on the floor facing the bed. His gaze traveled toward Riruru.
"You can rest. I am going to form my third elemental crystal. When I am done, let's go downstairs to eat dinner. After that, we both have to go somewhere... hehe."
A wicked smile stretched across his lips. Thanks to Max, Jenny, Austin, and Elena being stuck in the first level of Battle Royal, he had a chance to take the center stage in the next big event about to happen soon.
"Apologies, dear older sister. But this time, I will be the one to meet with the Queen. I am sure our grandmother would not mind since you failed the only task she gave you."
He closed his eyes. He didn't have time.
The Queen's people would be here soon to get two of the Queen's grandchildren who were studying at the Starlight Academy.
In the original story, one of those people recognized Riya Ironhart, his mother, who had come to the academy to meet Jenny.
But this time, it would be different because Riya Ironhart wouldn't come here, as Jenny hadn't returned from the Battle Royal.