The submission to take the practical exams instead of the written ones was simple enough, taking little more than five minutes as I signed the paperwork and submitted it to the group of Professors that were beginning to organize everything.

We were told that we had to wait until tomorrow in order to learn whether we were accepted for the practical exams and who we were going to be heading out into the world with, which immediately had both Lu’Shaki and Kha’Miero frowning as they sat beside me at lunch.

The Orc was a little grumpy as she stabbed at her steak and stared a hole into her plate, while the Draconian masked her disappointment a bit better as she just sat there, nursing a glass of wine that paired well with her own steak.

As for me I wasn’t that concerned about the practical exam since it was just something that I wanted to do and not something that really ’mattered’, while the idea of going out with a bunch of people I barely knew was actually somewhat exciting.

I had spent so long already being practically glued to my friend’s sides, so there was a sliver of me that was actually hoping to have a group that I had never talked with before to do these practical exams with.

"That’s stupid."

Lu’Shaki’s grumbling drew me out of my thoughts and made me smile as I glanced over at her, contemplating what to say for a moment before I just decided to shrug and resume eating, though she had caught that smile and felt ’aggrieved’.

She showed her displeasure by reaching over and grabbing my thigh, squeezing it hard and frowning at me before she leaned close and whispered "What’s got you smiling like that, hm? Laughing at my plight?"

"Oh~? The potential chance that you won’t have me around is something you’re considering as a ’plight’ now~? How flattering~!"

My ever expressive Orc friend tilted her head and stared at me from up close before she lunged forwards to steal a kiss, doing exactly what I was expecting from her and drawing out a soft moan as I enjoyed her taste after having taken a bite of this scrumptious meal.

When she separated from me she softly growled "I told you before, didn’t I? I’ve grown accustomed to having such a beautiful Human fawn over me day and night... of course I’m aggrieved.", which painted my cheeks a pale shade of red as I stared up at her from beneath my lashes.

That proved to be a mistake as she lunged back down and slid her hand between my thighs, rubbing her fingers against my rapidly stiffening cock before pulling back once more as she murmured "We have some spare time... wanna make the most of it..?"

I was about to say yes when a plate clattered to the table on the other side of us, drawing our attention over towards the newcomer who was flashing us a grin as she took a seat; Taji didn’t care about our glares one bit, nor did she give a damn about anything besides her own desires as she reached over and stole some of my food.

"You all signed up for the practical exams right~? Can’t wait~ to see who I end up being paired up with~! This’ll be rather interesting, don’t you think? Any of us mixed together, out there in the wide open world... where anything~ can happen~?"

The Hyenakin continued to grin at us as she started to carve up her roasted chicken breast, effortlessly turning it into multiple bite sized pieces as she studied our reactions; when none of us rose to take that bait she just shrugged and took a bite herself, her eyes lingering on me far longer than the other two.

"Well, figured I’d just come and see my favorite~ people and let them know that things might just get a little interesting here in these upcoming days~! A little birdie told me that the Academy isn’t holding back at all~ with these practical exams. We’ll be heading to some really fun places, and with fun places comes even more fun people~!"

She took a few more bites and studied us for another second before adding "Apparently one of the Professors got approval for an oceanic exploration, sailing up and down the Coastline De Astrali dealing with some of the pirates and bandits in the area. Fun, right~?"

"I don’t remember asking you anything at all, Taji."

"Well that’s because you didn’t, dummy~! Figured I should just share some information with the interesting people I have my eye on~! After all, if we all happen to get assigned to that group that’s sailing, wouldn’t that be fun~?"

Completely ignoring the low growl from Lu’Shaki and the silent pressure that Kha’Miero was exuding, Taji smirked and continued to focus on me as she took a few more bites of her meal, her eyes shining with something that I didn’t want to acknowledge right now.

"That’s all from me then~! Have fun, you three~!"

Taking her plate and giving us a mocking bow, Taji departed just as suddenly as she had arrived, leaving us alone once more and causing Lu’Shaki to grumble something to herself before she leaned over and rested her chin on my shoulder.

"Now I really wanna go have some fun..."

The way she said that like some kid pleading to go play was amusing, though considering what we were going to be ’playing’ it might not have been the best thing to think... though it was very fitting, especially since she gave me a bright smile when I nodded in agreement.

Before she could grab ahold of me and attempt to drag me out of the cafeteria early, I swatted her hand away playfully and returned to my plate, determined to finish my meal before she put me through a workout and had me sweating out a lot of calories.

As for Kha’Miero, she just hummed softly and bid us farewell for now, leaving us as we were and heading off to find Sera or maybe even Hecate; for a moment I was wondering if I should say something to her, but Lu’Shaki just started quietly informing me of what she wanted to do to me, and suddenly my mind was a bit too preoccupied.