It hadn't taken more than a few minutes to tidy up the very little he owned. There was a certain fear that came attached with the situation where one would visit your room. This fear being none other than the fact that regardless of how hard you cleaned, and how keen of an eye you had, something was still out of place and will be spotted by your guest instantly.
Despite not having brought much, just four sets of clothing and his wooden training sword. Still, he felt as though Delilah would find something embarrassing of his.
The minutes ticked away monotonously. He had gone out ahead of time to purchase some snacks to share with her. Every piece of material they would need for their study session already laid out on the table.
Now Vicius stood by the front entrance, eyeing up anyone that came remotely close to him. It was one thing for the third ranked student to be suspiciously standing by the door for no apparent reason. But when Delilah arrived. The first year Luminary. Then hell would let loose.
Students, regardless of hierarchies, loved to gossip. A girl going into a guy's room? Juicy, sure.
The Luminary going into the room of the third ranked? That is enough gossip to fuel local news agencies for several weeks.
Knock knock
Vicius opened the door.
The luminary, the pinnacle of power in their year now stood across from him.
"I think you would've attracted less attention if you wore a bikini here."
Before Vicius stood Delilah, wearing a long brown trench coat with a disguise you could buy at a prop store. Her round goofy glasses barely allowed for her emerald eyes to peek through, which led into her bumping against the doorframe.
"Yeah but if I came wearing a bikini to your room, you would hardly be able to get any studying done."
Vicius shrugged. "Got me there."
He practically dragged her up the stairs and into his room. And finally with a heavy thud the disguise could come off.
Delilah's brown hair swished through the air, her glistening green eyes lightly caressed Vicius sending a chill down his spine. Alarm bells were already ringing through his mind. He had come to this conclusion long ago, but being so close and alone allowed him to finally appreciate it in full. Delilah was a diamond in a sea of coal.
"I appreciate the reverent gaze, but we are here to study."
She sat down on the floor beside the small desk. Several multicoloured books found their way onto the table. Each carried a different label.
'Circles.'
'Ingredients'
'Safe Incantations'
'Offerings'
"Alright. From what I know about you, you scored in the high 80s in Alchemy. So you must at least understand the basics. The last question on the exam was rather tough, but only if you weren't…."
She nudged at Vicius, hoping he would finish sentence.
He sighed. "It would be tough for anyone except you-"
"Correct!! I have a feeling you will be a quick learner! No. I know so!"
'I think her ego might be too big…'
He simply joined her on the floor and pulled a pen from thin air.
"You really bought one of those tacky wands? With a pen inside of its hilt?" She rolled her eyes at how cheap of a wand Vicius had decided to use.
In reality, this wand was all he could afford. True wands could cost as much as a house if they were made of decent materials. It was far cheaper to purchase these bad ones to use for a month or two.
"Not all of us were born into money miss Luminary. And more teaching, less interrogating me on my poor financial decisions."
Surprisingly Delilah allowed his insolence and began teaching him.
Alchemy was the process of equal exchange. If the god of Alchemy deemed two different items to have the same value then it would be possible to exchange them.
This can manifest in two ways.
"So you could either trade in an artefact or loot for another artefact or tool correct?" Vicius spoke in an inquisitive voice.
"Very much so! Additionally, in a life or death scenario, you would be able to trade body parts for permanent enhancements."
Alchemy had plenty of other uses too. In combat alchemy can be used to deflect spells or absorb them, turning them into shield or other forms of primitive life.
But alchemy still held many secrets. The most common has been trying to ascertain how to create gold. Millions of attempts have all lead to the same outcome. Gold was the purest metal that could not be affected by alchemy.
=======
Roughly three hours had passed, the time was approaching 8 PM and the sun had long since fallen past the horizon. Two teens sat back onto the floor, gazing at the ceiling.
"Thanks."
But it was met with silence.
Vicius went to stand, to illuminate the room. But Delilah stopped him.
"The darkness is nice, let's stay like this for a little longer."
Vicius shrugged his shoulder, not that she could see it. But she hummed a tune in appreciation.
"Can I ask you a question Delilah?"
"Go for it."
"Why do you stream? Especially when you get no viewers."
She paused for a long moment. There were no correct answers, only truths and lies. Was she willing to spread herself open to a boy she had known less than a week?
Her heart grew tight for a moment. A wave of stingers flowed through her veins, would it truly be a problem for him to know? She wondered.
"I…just wanted to be someone."
'To be someone? How come one not be someone when being born as the daughter of a Duke?' Was she lying to him? Vicius wasn't sure. He hadn't known her for long enough.
"What about you? Why were you watching my stream for so long? Aren't there better, more popular streamers than me?"
Vicius took a very short pause before answering.
"Because I liked you."
A loud thud accompanied by a gasp.
Delilah was lucky the light was turned off. The last thing she needed was for him to see her blushing.
"Right, makes total sense. Who wouldn't like the great and amazing me?" She tried brushing off the statement with some chilidish fits of laughter.
But as it faded into the darkness, Delilah moved one final time. Her lips drawing close.
"Sorry. And thank you."
And their lips melted into each other.