Transmigrated As The Villainess' Boyfriend With A... SSS Harem System?

As the afternoon brought with it the first Botany and Creatures class, the murmurs about Dayne Ascalar refused to cease.

I entered the Botany and Creatures classroom amid whispers. 'Crushed.' 'Perforated.' 'Who did it?' The words flew from mouth to mouth like pollen.

The classroom was in the south wing. An open space with a glass ceiling and cultivation tables lined up. It was extensive. Filled with potted plants of all colors. Terrariums with small creatures. Insects. Amphibians. Something that moved beneath the earth.

Professor Fendrel was watering and fertilizing some plants. His hands were stained with dirt, and his parchment-like skin was characteristic of someone his age. Small, black eyes. Each student who arrived was received with a slight smile and, with a theatrical gesture, directed to their seat.

"I am Fendrel," he said once we all sat down in the row of seats in the middle of the classroom. He had a soft voice, with a slight tremor and a measured pace. "Botany and Creatures of Earolden. If you expect to learn how to cultivate roses, you're in the wrong place. Here we study what grows wild and untamable in the most remote corners of Earolden, what bites and is capable of..."

He tossed a piece of meat toward an enormous pot containing a plant with three stems. At the top of the stems were three flat surfaces.

The three surfaces reacted, and from them emerged spines, then closed in half, upward, taking a shape similar to a mouth.

Everyone was on the edge of their seats. For the first time that day, the whispers about Ascalar ceased.

"...killing."

The three mouths fought over the piece of meat with a ferocity that made it seem as though they hadn't eaten in days.

Was this plant some kind of carnivorous species? I wondered what kind of place something like this could have come from.

"I know what you're thinking," Fendrel said without looking up from the carnivorous plant. "A dead student. Crushed. In an abandoned greenhouse. A lamentable situation. Very lamentable."

Fendrel picked up three plants and placed them on his desk.

"First lesson." Fendrel lifted the pot of one of the plants from his desk. The plant had white, transparent leaves. "This is a Cherub's Tongue. It reacts to Empero. Changes color according to the type that touches it."

He passed his hand over the plant. A green Empero emanated from him. The leaves turned blue.

"Physical. Blue."

He pointed toward us.

"Any volunteers?"

Liryl Taint raised his hand and headed to the desk. Upon touching the Cherub's Tongue, the leaves turned red.

"Elemental. Red."

He looked at me.

"Elcronne, right?" I nodded. "Duralianne told me about you. How about you come and try?"

Extending my hand, my black Empero emanated. The leaves turned violet.

"Conceptual. Violet. The rarest."

Layda wrote in her notebook, while the rest of the nobles murmured.

"The Cherub's Tongue retains the color for hours," Fendrel continued, putting the plant away. "Bookforgers use it to track Emperos."

My heart raced. If there was a Cherub's Tongue in the greenhouse where I found Dayne... No, it was impossible. The plants in that place were wilted and dry.

But what if...? An idea came to mind. I decided to test it once the crime scene was empty of people.

"But that's not what we'll cover today," Fendrel said, storing the plant. "Today we'll talk about Empathy."

He approached a terrarium at the back of the classroom. Inside was a small reptar. A scaly creature the size of a cat, with golden eyes and skin that changed color.

"Empathy," Fendrel said, "is the capacity of an Empero user to connect with living creatures. It's a trait everyone possesses to a greater or lesser degree. Some are born with more. Others develop less. But all of us can train it to improve."

The reptar changed from green to brown as Fendrel approached.

"The inhabitants of Rahlarka have it highly developed. That's why they ride dragons. Rather than taming them, what they do is understand them."

I looked at Anaïs. She nodded. They had told her the same in Rahlarka.

"Throughout the year," Fendrel continued, "we'll study the creatures of Earolden. Lesser dragons. Harpies. Treants. Unicorns and others. Each requires a different level and method of Empathy to connect. Some bite. Others hug. Most do both."

The reptar meowed.

"To begin, you'll need a creature," Fendrel said. "Each student will choose a small creature from Mayorka's extensive collection. You'll care for it during the semester. Feed it. Observe it. And, if you're lucky, connect."

The nobles grew excited. Ardwyn leaned forward. Lianza raised her eyebrows and showed interest for the first time in the entire class.

I was sure she was still upset with me. I would try to amend the misunderstanding later.

"Creatures will be assigned next week. For today, observe."

Fendrel opened three more terrariums. The nobles approached. Some touched. Others only watched.

I stayed back. My mind was elsewhere. In the abandoned greenhouse. In the Cherub's Tongue. In how I would manage to find the killer.

A hand touched my arm. Small.

Canaria Ascalar.

Her eyes were swollen. Her brown hair messy. She was shorter than me. Thin.

"Dariel."

"Canaria. I'm sorry."

"I don't know what to tell his parents. Dayne's parents." Her voice broke. "I don't even know how to react myself. He was my cousin. I saw him yesterday at breakfast. He was alive. He had asked me to watch his cat and I accepted with so much enthusiasm. And now...

She couldn't finish. She covered her face with her hands.

Leading her to a corner of the classroom, I handed her a handkerchief to dry her eyes.

"Is there anything I can do?" I asked.

"Garchi."

"What?"

"The cat. His name is Garchi. Dayne found him in the gardens two months ago. Adopted him. But now..." Canaria swallowed hard. "I can't keep him. Every time I look at him, I'll remember that Dayne found him. His parents won't be able to either. It's too much for them. I think he deserves an owner who looks at him with affection, not as a reminder of a pain that will never go away."

"Will you put him up for adoption?"

"I have to. But I don't know who..." She looked at me. "You? Could you...?"

Garchi. The white cat that led me to Dayne's body. The one that curled up on his lap without caring about staining its paws with blood. The one that meowed three times with its broken little heart.

Turning back to the other students, I saw them all looking eagerly at the magical creatures that would be their next pets. Many of them would forge an unbreakable bond with their pet, which in return granted Empero benefits: a new secondary ability, a combination of both their abilities, an increase in raw Empero... many possibilities existed.

Having one of those creatures would undoubtedly be a great advantage I couldn't waste.

Looking at Lianza, she seemed happy watching those creatures.

An advantage that could be crucial to saving her.

But... leaving that cat alone was also out of the question.

"I'll take him," I told Canaria with a smile.

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