Psychic Overlord

Chapter 54: A Warning

Kaizer arrived at a small office in which the dean’s photo hung in a frame at the back, within which four other men were present. One was Kaizer’s own grandpa, Gerald Lunin, though he looked much younger, resembling an older Kaizer by about 70%, mostly lacking the intense blue eyes.

No wonder Dean Rochester recognized him immediately.

The others were a tall burly man who was bald and had a brown complexion while wearing tight black armor, a slightly shorter Asian man wearing a mandarin suit with long hair tied in a bun, a sword at his waist, and a young man no older than Kaizer with spiky black hair, dead fish eyes, and pursed lips full of impatience.

The rest of the office was rather neat and orderly, as expected of one who sat in such a position. There was a large wooden desk that sat smack-dab in the center, facing the door. On it were neatly stacked papers, an ink bottle, and a single pen along with a high-backed chair that stood behind the desk, its dark leather worn smooth.

To the left, a tall bookshelf stretched from floor to ceiling, filled with thick volumes. Some books were old, their spines cracked, while others looked somewhat new, with rather interesting titles based on esper abilities and esper history. A small glass table nearby held a brass clock that ticked softly.

On the right side, there was a window that let in sunlight, and looking out of it allowed one to view the academy grounds below. Heavy curtains hung at its sides, ready to be drawn if needed to close out the intrusive sun, while against the far wall, a cabinet held sealed documents and a few personal items.

A single chair sat in front of the desk for visitors, likely allowing the dean to focus on who he was dealing with personally. The room was quiet, the air filled with the faint scent of parchment and polished wood along with some air freshener that created a very pleasant aroma.

"Sit," Dean Rochester instructed Kaizer, who complied silently. The Dean then sat in his own chair and removed his tophat, revealing soft brown curls that were rather messily spread over his scalp.

"I have had only one student before you, and that person was named Drake Moore. He was also a reclusive young lad like you who treasured his words, so don’t worry about having to change your natural disposition to better mesh with mine."

Dean Rochester snapped his fingers and manifested a cup of hot tea, lifting it up to take a sniff. "If anything, it should be the teacher who takes his time to accommodate the student. Anyway, let me give a short introduction of myself."

He took a sip and spoke casually. "My name is William Rochester, and I was born on the 31st of July, 1965, in a hospital within the city of Manchester, to Patrick and Martha Rochester. I am about 77 years old, and I awakened my esper ability at the tender age of 12, when I woke up in the bed of my crush, Liliana, halfway across town."

"Putting aside the fallout on my reputation for that, I quickly realized that I had the ability to travel through space. As long as I can picture my destination, I can get there, and even if I can’t, as long as I have a fair idea, I can also make it there."

Dean Rochester put his cup down and crossed his legs. "My esper ability was initially ranked at S-, just like you, but after attending the Esper Academy branch in Westminster, I graduated with it at the S+ class after being trained in the special echelon by my instructor at the time, also the dean of Westminster Academy."

"Incidentally, that is how I met your grandpa and the two others you see in the portrait behind me. We were the only four students taken on by the dean in his lifetime, and each of us were S-class espers who became leaders of the esper society." Dean Rochester added as an interlude, glancing back at the portrait behind him.

Kaizer frowned deeply. "If Grandpa was an esper, then why did my dad not know about this?"

Dean Rochester sighed. "Mm, I met little Keith when he was young, and he likely won’t remember me, but I was taken by his cleverness. I am not surprised he has achieved what he has, but the simple problem was that he had no esper power."

"Among esper families, there is a strict rule: non-esper descendants must not be informed about the world of espers, made to live out their lives normally. This is because, throughout history, many second generations of non-espers have gone crazy due to their lack of power and upturned the whole world in trying to accomplish it."

Dean Rochester became grim. "The most recent example was the war before I was born. Non-espers are told that it started because of rejection to an art academy and a penchant for nationalism as well as racism, but that was only the minor reason. The major reason was simply that the fellow wanted to acquire esper abilities and turned the world over in order to get it."

"To be honest, I am surprised that an esper was born in your generation, but it’s just as well. You are here now and ready to begin exploring the depths of your power, though I am somewhat curious as to why you lied on your application," Dean Rochester said, startling Kaizer.

"How did I lie?" Kaizer said as he forcibly remained calm.

Dean Rochester glanced at Kaizer with amusement, like an elder who was aware that a child was playing tricks and was watching the child try to hide it.

"Your grandfather was also a psychic, but his telekinesis was weak. Rather, he was a rather powerful telepath and possessed the ability of telesthesia, which when combined, made him invincible in close combat as well as espionage and intelligence gathering."

Dean Rochester smirked. "Also, he was the only one who could detect me when I was hidden in the folds of space when we were fooling around as lads, also telling me that the reason was because he sensed my mind with telepathy, not telesthesia."

Kaizer: !!!

Dammit, Grandpa!

Dean Rochester tapped the table lightly. "I purposefully highlighted that it was your telesthesia, not for you, but for the others to hear so they don’t suspect anything. Given that your telesthesia is far stronger than your grandpa’s, I am assuming your telepathy is stronger too. Along with your powerful telekinetic ability, you have the capital to become abhorrently powerful."

Oh, so the dean did not know about his endless growth ability inherited from Rina. This made sense as even though there were abilities that could pierce the veil and find this out, it would be too absurd for the dean to know that so easily, given his own power was spatial travel.

So his notion that Kaizer could become the strongest was purely based on his current ability plus what Dean Rochester theorized about his telepathic ability. This allowed Kaizer to relax, but also brought forth an issue.

Should he tell the dean so that his instructor makes the most of his available power and resources to let Kaizer truly grow to the limit?

"Before we talk about your training, we must talk about the troubling circumstances surrounding your non-blood-related cousin or sibling, Rina," Dean Rochester began with a slight somber tone.

Kaizer was pulled out of his contemplation, and hearing that there was trouble surrounding Rina made him seriously alert. "What? What’s wrong with her?"

Dean Rochester gathered his words and spoke softly. "The problem is not with her, but with her esper ability and her heritage. You see, I have every reason to believe, after much investigation, that her father was my former student Drake Moore, the one you see with the impatience in my portrait behind me."

Kaizer raised his head to look at the portrait in a daze, noting that the dead fish eyes of the young man were as green as Rina’s, while some of his features did carry over to Rina. While countless thoughts ran through his head, he heard the dean continue to speak.

"You may not know, but my student was once the former strongest esper, known to all by the name of Reaper, a name I gave him upon taking him under my apprenticeship. His power was almost the same as young Rina’s, but he could also perform acts like controlling the dead and resurrecting those recently deceased."

Dean Rochester glanced at Kaizer knowingly. "Given that you warned Sylvia to be discreet, I am guessing that Rina must possess the same power. You are a smart young man, hiding her special ability and your telepathy for fear of relation, as this will make protecting you two easier."

"But you must know that she is also in grave danger, for there is a group, a group you are in fact very familiar with, who want her power," Dean Rochester added with a hint of grimness.