The sun had long since risen and any thoughts from last nights existential self debate had long since faded in the mind of Alleluia. The fourteen year old was currently sitting in class with only one thing running through his mind.
".... F*ck its hot....", the groan of Grise, the lanky boy sitting beside him was the only thought everyone in the class was currently thinking.
The last week of spring was an absolute scorcher for the denizens of Lake Rail City whose current temperature exceeded 39 degrees..... and that was in Celsius!
Many of the rail lines entering and exiting the city had to be transferred or carefully monitored as they raced down the tracks. The affect of the heat caused some of the metal that went into creating the tracks started to either expand under the strenuous heat, or even distort some of the older rail roads.
It wasn't very common for this type of heat to occur at such an early time of year. Many of the people living in Lake Rail City foresaw a huge increase in rail road cancellations as well as an increased traffic in and out of the city. This also meant that many businesses inside the city would suffer. The economic drought might last over two months at the very most.
Alleluia let out a loud sigh as he adjusted his tie while staring up at the blackboard at the front of the class. The teacher was going over the history of life essence and life techniques, a subject that interested not just him, but many of the other students in the class.
After all, who didn't want to become a transcendent and gain eternal glory? Teenagers, especially teenage boys, dreamed about the possibility of becoming Knights and fighting for their country.
The teacher, a middle-aged woman with a rather prominent hunch, started drawing a strange diagram that resembled the human body. The various major organs were added, but dozens upon dozens of strange and geometric lines covered the body. Some created spirals and others spheres. To most of the class, it just looked like a three year olds scribbles.
The hunched teacher spoke,
"This is a rough diagram of the human body. As you can see, the major organs can be seen as well as the various life passages that are present throughout the body. These passages contain the innate life essence that is within every living being. Currently, in all of you, it is completely stagnant. Knights however, have stimulated their life essence with life techniques, and can manipulate their life essence into life power, and use it to create feats of immense physical ability".
None of the boys even chuckled at the image of the male reproductive organ on the board. This class, was one of the few that no-one dared to muck around in.
She continued,
"As far as we have observed, there is exactly 720 life passages throughout the body. Their are 12 Primary Life Passages, and 59 Subsidiary Passages within each of the 12 Primary Life Passages. When Knights awaken their Life Power for the first time, one of the 12 Primary Life Passages are opened. After opening this first Primary Life Passage, the other 59 Subsidiary Passages can slowly be opened. This is a Rank 1 Knight".
All the boys looked on with awe at the teachers words. Most of them were familiar with the concepts of Life Passages and Life Power, but this was the first time they had ever heard the term, "Rank 1 Knight".
One of the boys, a freckled ginger kid named Russell, raised his hand with a huge smile on his face,
"Does that mean that once all 60 Passages in the first Primary Life Passage are open, they have to open another Primary Life Passage?".
The hunched teacher nodded, a satisfied grin marred her lips.
"Correct. Every 60 Life Passages is what we call a bottleneck. It means that one has reached the peak of their potential in that particular Rank, and must prepare for breaking through to the next stage. This would be a Rank 2 Knight".
Another one of the boys, one sitting directly in front of Alleluia put his hand up with a curious look on his face.
"Teacher, is Mr Tobias a Rank 2 Knight?".
Alleluia went wide eyed for a moment and covered his mouth to stifle his laughter which thankfully went unnoticed by the boy in front of him.
The woman at the front smiled and merely shook her head at the young boy's question.
"No. Mr Tobias is a Rank 1 Knight. As far as I am aware, he has only opened 10 Life Passages. With these 10 Life Passages however, he could kill everyone in this school before the authorities get here. If it was someone with a high combat prowess, it wouldn't even take 10 minutes.... Alleluia, how about you explain the distinction between Life Techniques. Unfortunately, it seems that my student has exceeded my knowledge on the subject".
All eyes in the room turned to Alleluia who blinked several times before sighing and walking to the front of the class. He picked up a piece of chalk and gave a look to Miss Torii who nodded as he started his own drawing.
An exact replica of the drawing beside it.
He spoke,
"The difference in Life Techniques can mean the difference in life and death in a battle between Knights. They can influence the attributes of ones Life Power as well as the affects that Life Power has on others. For example....".
Over the top of the original drawing of the human body, the words [Burning Grass Technique] was written.
And over the top of the second drawing, the words, [Surging Flood Technique] was written. Both drew the eyes of all the boys in the room.
"The [Burning Grass Technique] is a Life Technique that emulates the sensation of burning grass. It does not create a flame like you may think, but gives ones Life Power the attribute of fire. Those touched by Life Power practiced by this technique will experience a heavy burning sensation as if they were on fire. It is a technique that is very useful when dealing with enemies who use wood attributed Life Techniques. In addition, despite its name, it is quite a passive fire attributed life technique, without the explosive, uncontrollable and powerful force of real fire".
He pointed to the second drawing.
"On the contrary. the [Surging Flood Technique] is quite the powerful technique. It possesses the insurmountable force of a surging wave behind it. Life Power awakened when practicing this technique gains an enduring and oppressive quality towards it. It can also not just make Life Power more fluid and adaptable, but also the body. Those who practice it experience a fluid and ever-shifting presence to their movements. For those you utilize a sword, especially a long sword, I would recommend this technique".
Alleluia stopped drawing and turned to the class and pointed at both pictures.
"Now, who do you think would win in a fight? Considering that everything is the same, age weapon, weight, height and the number of Life Passages opened, who would win? [Burning Grass Technique]? Or [Surging Flood Technique]?".
All the boys in the room gave each other a look and started muttering in their own small groups. Alleluia, who was standing up the front of the class sent Miss Torii a glance who nodded excitedly at the level of interaction the students gave during Alleluia's teaching.
The fourteen year old waited several more minutes before the class had split into two groups. Less than half stood on the side of the [Burning Grass Technique] and the rest stood on the side of the [Surging Flood Technique].
Alleluia turned to Ruto who stood on the side of the [Burning Grass Technique].
"Piggy. Why did you pick the [Burning Grass Technique]?".
Unfazed by the nickname the apparent piggy walked forward and puffed his chest out as he explained his reasoning.
"The pretty boy said that the [Burning Grass Technique] carries a flame attribute. It emulates the sensation of fire and people can get burned from being close with this type of Life Power. The damaging effects of the [Burning Grass Technique] would be able to defeat the opponent more quicker, as they would have to expend their Life Power more quickly in order to block the damage. If they chose not to block it, they have just dramatically reduced their overall power and in the best case scenario for me, I would've just killed you".
Alleluia nodded slightly at the reasoning the piggy gave and turned to Grise who was standing on the side of the [Surging Flood Technique].
"And you Q-Tip? How would you handle it?".
The tall and lanky boy ignored the nickname although did turn slightly red in the ears as he spoke.
"The [Surging Flood Technique] contrary to the [Burning Grass Technique] has an innate advantage due to its water attribute. Water subdues fire so it would have the upper hand from the get go. Additionally, it has a power enduring aspect just like a real wave. The defensive power of the [Surging Flood Technique] is just as great as the offensive power of the [Burning Grass Technique]. Since it would become a battle of attrition, the one who can last the longest is the one that will win".
Most of the boys standing behind Grise agreed with his line of thought. Some appeared conflicted after Ruto's explanation and seemed more aligned to the [Burning Grass Technique] than the [Surging Flood Technique].
Everyone looked at Alleluia expectantly, eagerly awaiting his answer. In an in-depth analysis of Life Techniques, only the Professor could beat Alleluia. If he wanted to go into more detail he would've analysed the Life Passages as well as the affects of their attributes as well.
But considering that this was only a third year middle school class he restrained himself from voicing his actual opinion.
"You should all know that the battle could go either way. Factors like perception and combat awareness affect a Knight's combat prowess as well as their physical attributes. But considering that we made all of that stuff equal with the only differing factor being Life Technique I would have to say that the winner would most likely be..... the [Burning Grass Technique]".
Aggrieved and excited expressions rang out throughout the entire classroom as the minority standing closest to the windows jumped up in down as they spouted obscenities while harassing Grise and the others.
Said victims of harassment could only look towards Alleluia with a puzzled and questioning look in their eyes. They doubted the bias of his opinion considering his personality, so how did the [Burning Grass Technique] beat the [Surging Flood Technique]?
The fourteen year old cleared his throat and spoke.
"This may seem unfair to some of you, but the [Burning Grass Technique] is actually a Rank 2 Life Technique. Despite its passive appearance, the burning sensation would be able to burn right through the [Surging Flood Technique] despite its defensive powers. This entire simulated combat question was designed to show you the difference in Life Technique Ranks. A Rank 2 Life Technique means that it can bring one up to the level of a Rank 2 Knight. It also means that it can bring out more potential when compared to a Rank 1 Life Technique".
He smacked the diagram of the [Burning Grass Technique] causing some of the chalk and dust to fly up in the air. It stopped any retorts coming from the losing side but Grise just stood up and spoke anyway.
He wasn't upset or angry, just confused.
"So the final determinant in battle is Life Technique Rank? The higher the Rank the stronger one can become?".
Alleluia nodded in a serious manner.
"Yes. If two sides, equal in every way possible fight each other to the death, the one with the higher Ranked Life Technique will win. That is the general consensus of every Life Technique researcher".
Everyone nodded understandingly but a single hand raised itself amongst the crowd of young males. The freckled ginger kid, Russell, stood up from amongst the winning [Burning Grass Technique] boys and raised his hand.
"I understand if you don't want to answer it but I'd like to ask anyway..... if you fought someone using the [Burning Grass Technique], under the same conditions, you specifically Alleluia.... would you win?"
The class grew eerily silent and all eyes shifted from the nervous redhead to the calm and silent black haired boy standing at the front of the room. Many felt a extremely strong tension in the room and felt shivers run down their spines as the corners of Alleluia's mouth slowly curved upwards.
"Me? Against some using the [Burning Grass Technique?].... Every single time, no matter what circumstances favor the opposition, I have absolute confidence of winning. Better than that, I could do it in a single strike".