Chapter 12: Encounter

Aurora faced a mannequin that attacked her.

Her body was heavy because of the gravity with which the room was affected, but her blows were quick and precise, as if she could not feel the force of gravity.

Gravity made her feel like she was carrying weights on every part of her body, but her movements were unaffected even when she dodged.

Reinforcing her body with magical energy allowed her to withstand the gravitational force and keep her movements efficient without losing either strength or speed.

She followed her instincts to manifest her combat aura, but could accomplish nothing and only smashed the dummy with the strength of a B-Rank fighter.

“I still can’t use my combat aura,” Aurora muttered exhaustedly as she deactivated the gravity in the room.

Like sword aura, combat aura was a manifestation of experience and training; instead of imbuing it into a sword and then manifesting it, fighters were only supposed to manifest it in their fists.

The combat aura was a characteristic trait of the A-Ranks, but the fighters achieved a breakthrough in their strength and endurance once it was manifested.

It was very different to hit with her fist reinforced in magical energy than to hit it reinforced with her combat aura... The strength of the latter simply eclipses the former.

“Well, it’s normal you’re not a fighter,” commented Alice, who was in the room's corner.

This room was small and disconnected from the training room because when training began, the gravity device could be activated and the entire area would be affected.

“Hey, you hurt my feelings,” Aurora said in a weak, slightly fake tone, hearing her friend’s honest words.

The truth was that Aurora wasn’t a fighter; that was the biggest reason she had a hard time manifesting her combat aura and officially becoming an A-Rank, even though her strength, agility, and stamina surpassed her current rank by far.

Alice ignored her friend’s victim role and, munching on some chips, asked. “Why don’t you ask Professor Miller?”

Professor Miller was an A-Rank swordsman and fighter; he was also experienced and skilled with a wealth of knowledge capable of helping students.

“Well...” Aurora muttered hesitantly.

Asking the teacher was a good option, however...

“I already asked him, and he always tells me that I lack ‘soul,’ no matter how much I improve or how perfect I move every time I fail to manifest my combat aura, he tells me that I lack soul,” Aurora said, dodging Alice’s gaze.

During the previous week, Aurora had snuck out to ask the professor personally, but he always answered her with the exact phrase and even sometimes...

“He even recommended me to change my style since I had no talent as a fighter,” Aurora added, giving a sigh.

“That’s true,” Alice stated, confirming Professor Miller’s recommendation.

Aurora wasn’t bothered by those words; it wasn’t that she lacked confidence; it was just that after a couple of years; she failed to advance as a fighter, revealing her lack of talent in this area... However, there was a big problem.

“I’m not a person who gives up easily,” Aurora stated in a serious tone.

Unfortunately, she was too stubborn to leave something in the middle and give up easily.

That was the very reason why Alice could honestly tell her that she lacked talent and Aurora wouldn’t be affected by it.

And even if they supported her or not, she would still do what she wanted.

Sure, she was sure her friend was comparing her to what she was actually talented at. However, it was still the same.

She would keep going.

“Clean up,” Aurora ordered.

The next moment, a gentle damp breeze blew into the room, and both the sweat on Aurora’s body and her clothes disappeared, leaving her in a state of total cleanliness.

The gravity machine and this artifact were the reason Aurora chose to train here... She loved the cleansing spell, all it lacked was for her to add a scent, and she would look like she had just stepped out of a bath.

“What do you think I’m missing?” Aurora asked curiously.

Alice hadn’t come into the room just to stand next to Aurora; she watched the training to give her an aim and unbiased critique... Just for the small price of dinner.

Alice ate her chips with a thoughtful expression and commented. “Your movements are fast, precise, and strong as always, but they are still mechanical.”

“Mechanical?” Aurora asked.

“Yeah, you know. The moves look like they were copied from an old manual... Your experience and ability allow you to adapt to each scenario and excel, but in the end, they still feel mechanical,” Alice commented, and seeing that Aurora was more curious, she exemplified. “Like a robot or a golem... That’s why Professor Miller says you lack ‘soul.’”

Hearing those words, Aurora nodded and said. “I still don’t understand.”

She was trying her best every moment to defeat her enemies, using the best moves she could perform with her body, but in the end, everyone kept telling her the same thing.

“How about asking your master?” suggested Alice as she wolfed down her bag of chips.

Aurora’s lips twitched at that suggestion, but after letting out a long sigh, she nodded and commented. “I think that will be best.”

Her master wasn’t as reliable as she wished, but in the end, he was her master... And that was her only option.

They both left the small training room and then walked down the hallway.

Not only was there a room with the gravity machine, but dozens of them despite their astronomical price... That revealed that the Hero Academy was very well funded.

When they finished the hallway, they arrived at the gymnasium where a few students were located.

At this point, as it was the afternoon, most of the students were in a few classes they had selected.

Both Aurora and Alice only selected three classes in addition to the combat class, so they had plenty of time.

The duo slightly caught the attention of the few students who were exercising their bodies... It would be better to say that Alice was the one who caught the attention.

After all, even though it had been two weeks since the test. Alice had not revealed her abilities even in the combat classes, and many students were paying attention to see her perform in person.

They both pressed on, oblivious to the stare.

“Tch... I still haven’t found a style that suits my talent.”

“Order a weapon that you can use with your ability... According to what you said, you can overload some devices; a weapon that has a high overload resistance will be lethal with your ability.”

“That sounds good, but I’d like something else...”

Aurora paused as she looked at the duo, doing weights near the exit.

Cristian Cortes, the swordsman who led a group in the test, and Andrés Silva, the other leader who took control of the academy’s cameras.

“...” The duo turned their gaze to both of them.

Who had halted, and Alice blinked with the chips inches from her mouth.

Aurora coughed and advised. “Have you thought about using drones? That’s a style widely used among tech-related talents that focus on control.”

“Ehmm...” Andrés hesitated upon hearing that advice from a person he didn’t know, but since it seemed to be done with good intentions, he nodded and explained. “I’ve seen videos, but... It comes out very expensive.”

Among the mercenaries, hero or adventurers were some technology-related talents that were quite strong.

Usually, these individuals used drones and controlled them at will like a small army of machines. These drones ranged from magical drones enchanted with powerful spells, psionic drones that replicated some psionic abilities, or other drones with powerful weapons.

Unfortunately, they cost too much and were usually used by those who could splurge money.

Aurora nodded indifferently at that obvious answer, as it was a very recognizable style, still, she pointed out. “At the Academy, there is a storage room where former students leave their weapons, objects, and artifacts... I’m sure you’ll find drones that are still useful.”

Not only had the former students created their own drones, but they often upgraded, and among them, there were always some who left their weapons to the academy hoping that it would be helpful for future students... Aurora knew one individual who had already graduated from the academy but had left valuable things for his future classmates.

“Really? Thank you,” Andrés said and quickly left the training room, quite excited about the information.

Cristian gave a sheepish smile and chased his partner.

Aurora shook her head.

That was the problem of not knowing the benefits of the academy.

With those thoughts, she continued on her way and muttered. “I hope someone will also advise me...”

******

“So, what do you want for dinner?” Aurora asked as they walked through the streets of the technologically advanced city of Atlantis.

The tall buildings, bright billboards, hundreds of cars, and countless people walking represented this wonderful city.

Alice ate her chips as she walked along with Aurora.

“How about Italian food?” Alice asked, looking slightly hungry.

“You know that pizzas don’t represent all Italian food, right?”

“Emh... Well, pizza then.” Alice replied, avoiding Aurora’s gaze.

Aurora held back her smile.

—It would have been simpler if she said she wanted to eat pizza. —Aurora thought, amused by her own friend.

They both stopped on the side of the sidewalk, and before Aurora could react, Alice used her holographic watch to look at the nearby restaurants.

The restaurants not only showed the location, prices, meals of the day, and reviews, but also revealed how busy they were.

All that to provide their diners with all the information that was needed.

Alice moved quickly through the different restaurants and, in the end, ended up selecting a well-known restaurant that was full and reservations were needed, but once she hit the book button, she quickly completed the transaction successfully.

“The benefits of a food lover!” Alice exclaimed with a proud tone.

Aurora just shook her head with an amused expression.

Since the restaurant was nearby, they both walked around, exploring the city.

Both Alice and Aurora didn’t know the city Atlantis, it was true that they had come for business, but they always quickly returned to the ‘no-man's-land’ also known as Africa.

So they both explored the city where they would be staying for some time.

The city, in a sense, was ‘magical’; there were many ordinary people, but they could also notice some individuals who used magic.

It wasn’t advanced magic, just simple minor spells with almost zero attack strength and posed no threat.

Most of the people were D-Rank, individuals with abilities, but ultimately ‘normal’ in the crowd.

Those people tended businesses on the street using their fire magic to take care of the meals they prepared, or other times, some managers cleaned their stores with magic.

Simple and easy to cast spells that were used in everyday life, which unfortunately they could not improve beyond one point because of their talent or their own ability.

To become a genuine skill user, one did not need to have just one skill, but to have strength, talent, and the ability to improve.

After all, in the end, some individuals, although they could cast minor spells, could not continue to improve as a mage because of their low magical energy capacity; it was just like psionics.

Aurora liked this atmosphere.

People were not bothered by having or not having abilities, neither were they afraid or jealous of those who possessed that ability.

They just went about their lives comfortably, as usual.

To achieve this kind of environment, mankind suffered a lot, but in the end, it could be achieved after a great effort.

While thinking those things while enjoying her vacation, Alice paused.

“What the...”

Before Aurora could ask what was happening, she could feel a slight disturbance in the magical energy.

It wasn’t as if a barrier was being erected but rather as if the magical energy was twisting because of an out-of-the-ordinary existence.

“Over there.” Alice pointed towards a street.

Aurora reinforced her body with magical energy and, without hesitation, started running down the middle of the street.

People looked at her in disbelief for a few seconds, and some were about to scold her, but they heard an alarm.

“You are advised to leave the area. A monster has appeared,” a mechanical voice sounded from the vicinity where Aurora was approaching.

Aurora moved quickly through the stunned crowd, and as they began to calmly but quickly move away from the area into businesses that were enclosed by large metal walls, she had to perform evasive maneuvers so as not to crash into the crowd or disturb the cars that were looking to move away in an orderly fashion or enter the parking lots.

The safety and quick reaction of the crowd made Aurora nod because of their caution and calmness, but she also praised the buildings that had minimal security systems in place for such cases.

Moving at an incredible speed, Aurora reached an area of a parking lot where a grotesque creature stood.

A black-colored wolf with brittle fur, eyes full of savagery and madness.

That wolf was growling like a lunatic at a young man who seemed to have frozen in fear.

Aurora reacted immediately with impressive naturalness.

She reinforced her body with magical energy and charged towards the young man.

Her speed surpassed a mere B-Rank fighter, and in just an instant, she reached the young man and pulled him to save him from the wolf’s claw.

With the young man in her arms, Aurora rolled on the ground due to her charging speed, but since her body was reinforced with magical energy, she did her best to keep the young man from being hurt by her reckless rescue.

“Are you okay?” Aurora asked when they stopped, but her gaze froze, and then she blinked in disbelief as if in a dream.

A young man with delicate and refined features stood beneath her.

The most striking thing to Aurora was not his delicate and beautiful appearance, but his eyes.

Eyes that were similar to two precious sapphires... That seemed to contain the whole universe.

Those eyes looked at her with evident surprise, but those same eyes could not hide their radiant glow.

“Beautiful...” Those were the words that came out of Aurora’s mouth.

“Huh?”

—Huh?

Both the young man and her system let out a sound of surprise in unison.

The young man blushed immediately, but coughed away his embarrassment and commented."You’re cute too."

Aurora’s lips quivered, but she felt too embarrassed by her abrupt compliment and because the young man seemed to say those words to hide his shyness.

With a hint of embarrassment, Aurora ordered. “Leave this area. It is hazardous here.”

As if she was an influential expert trying to comfort a civilian, her tone made the young man unable to hide his amused smile since she was above him, having saved him.

Aurora quickly got up from the position she was in and, without looking back, headed towards the black wolf.

That monster that had been born from the energy of Chaos and was a corrupted being that only sought to eliminate any living being it encountered received Aurora’s embarrassed look and...

“UHg... UGhh...”

It received a swift and merciless beating from Aurora, to the point that the monster that had just been born and, although weak, would be considered a B-Rank, lost consciousness and fell to the ground.

Aurora, without celebrating her victory, left the scene with a speed that left only remnant images.

At her high speed, she found her friend approaching, walking down the empty street, and without waiting for an answer, she held her arms and declared with embarrassment. “We have to run away!”

How on earth did those words come out?

She didn’t know, but she was highly embarrassed.

After all, those words came out so naturally and so suddenly, she was even surprised herself.

She never thought she had such a brazen side inside her.

******

The young man stood up, still dazed, but a smile could be seen on his face, looking slightly cheerful and amused.

“Are you all right?” asked a man with a severe tone suddenly appearing at his side and seeing that his young master was still looking at the place where the young woman was, he asked. “Would you like me to find out who she is?”

The young man returned to a serious, almost indifferent expression, and shaking his head, said. “No need.”

His very indifferent tone seemed too far removed to that young man who had blushed, but if anyone looked at his lips, they could see a small smile.

Looking down at the creature on the ground who was groaning in pain, he muttered. “I never thought this would be the day I would fall in love.”