'Well… that was simple' The elderly man thought as he looked at Lord.
He had really thought that it would have been impossible to convince this unreasonable brat with how the conversation was going.
But it turned out that all he needed was to offer some food and he'd make this unreasonable brat become reasonable.
For him, getting some food wasn't at all hard with his power and position, so he felt that he had lost nothing.
'Cheh! This brat is at least more reasonable than those stuck up aristocratic children, Bah! Just thinking about those little shits gets my blood boiling!' He thought, comparing between Lord and the completely unreasonable aristocratic children that overestimated every bit of themselves, the crude but elderly man couldn't help but praise Lord's far superior qualities!
The more the man thought as such, the more he became convinced that he had found the star student he was looking for.
............…..
Lord had chosen to follow the elderly man who had taken off his shadow-like form.
As he looked towards the elderly man, Lord was surprised (?) that instead of turning to another direction, the man had turned to the gate.
"Open!" The elderly hoarse voice shouted.
Creek~ tiinnng~
The sound of wood creaking and metals moving were heard as the golden gate 10 meters in height fully opened.
The gate opening revealed a landscape, filled with beauty!
Inside laid a magnificent scenery that looked absolutely stunning!
There was a small clear blue lake by the left side with large green patches of grass filled with life.
There were even animals!
One must know that during the apocalypse nearly all animals either mutated or died off, leaving an extremely scarce amount of animals on earth.
So having animals was a near-impossibility as the government would never allow such extravaganza, even for the elites.
Looking at this scene, Lord was simply shocked, he had no word to describe the sense of peace and comfort such a scene had given to his fatigued mind and tired heart.
Lord had seen the barren world out there, it was unforgivable to all, the harsh temperatures could kill if you didn't have the correct gear and supplies while the wilderness and life in the outside world had grown incredibly hostile, even plants had enlarged and became flesh-devouring.
The images of the outside wilderness and this calm and peaceful view clashed in Lord's mind. It made him feel indescribable emotions.
"Brat! Wake up from your daydream, we don't have all day, you're going to be late for your Awakening Test soon, you wouldn't want to miss that would you?!" As Lord was dazed, the voice of the elderly man resounded through his mind.
'That's right, I don't have all day to appreciate this scenery, I need to get going!' He made up his mind and started following the elderly man who had started walking earlier.
...…
Walking through the scenery made Lord even more curious and feel indescribable. He felt calm in his mind but his heart was beating heavily.
Lord was truly curious about this small paradise; it was unimaginable to anyone like him.
As Lord kept inspecting the scenery and animals, he soon noticed a large building come to his view.
The building was a swan white hue, it had a medieval church like aesthetic with cherubim statues strewn all around the garden which was in front of the building.
The building was absolutely beautiful!
Its aesthetic was elegant yet magnificent, its vibrant color that gave the building a sense of holiness!
The very design was like a mix between a medieval church and the Taj Mahal.
Lord knew what this building was, the Church of Rubeda.
During the apocalypse, all kinds of forces and powers rose, the Rubeda Church was one such example.
Although no one truly knew how the Rubeda church came to be, or how they became so powerful that the World Government was forced to be careful.
The Rubeda Church had a lot of mystery surrounding its origins and goals, however as it had been over 70 years and the Rubeda church had done many meritorious deeds, the suspicion had been subdued.
Lord followed the old man and observed his surroundings, the awe-inspiring emotion he felt being there was indescribable.
"Old man… Who are you?" He softly whispered looking at the back of the slightly hunched elderly figure.
Who was this old man?
How could he come to this paradise-like land so freely?
Even when Lord came to the church, he wasn't expecting to go inside, but to be given food, the church gave a special meal for those who had just become sixteen years old.
The church, like many other factions and powerhouses did this so that they would have favorability with those who became Awakeners.
In this terrible world, there were never enough Awakeners, even if half of the population was Awakened there still wouldn't be enough to take down the apocalypse.
It was simply too hard!
"Hahaha! Kid, if you become my disciple you could have all this luxury! Aren't you happy?!" The old man laughed turning his head back, contrasting to his age he spoke with the spirit of a youth.
"I am indeed tempted, but I still don't know who you are." Lord had a few ideas as to what the old man's identity was, however he didn't wish to jump to conclusions when nothing was assured as of yet. Lord had built this mindset through his years of scavenging.
"Bah! You young people and you're overthinking!" The old man scoffed at Lord's insistence and turned back to walking.
"Well, I have been alive for sixteen years because of this 'overthinking' so I have the capital to believe it's effective." Lord retorted, what did this old man know about his life and difficulties? How could this old man know just how many times Lord had nearly lost his life by not thinking?
Since the old man didn't, Lord naturally didn't care about his scoffing.
The opinions of those who didn't know or hadn't experienced his kind of life simply didn't matter to Lord.
"Old man…. Why are you specifically choosing me? I don't even know you." Walking, he asked the old man why or even how the old man was choosing him?
"Heh, heh, of course it was when I saw you at the gate brat!" The old man chuckled and said as if it were a matter of fact.
"That makes no sense, I am wearing clothes and look inconspicuous! How can you judge me so greatly when you have nothing to see or prove?" Lord retorted, even if the old man had some see-through Awakeners ability, he couldn't have judged Lord so greatly simply off his body.
"Brat, this old man's been alive longer than your grandparents, if this old man doesn't have the sense to see uniqueness, what would this old man have done in this life?" The elderly man, without turning back, spoke in a softer hoarse voice that didn't match his previous shouting voice.
"So you're still not going to tell me what your name is or who you are?" Lord asked calmly, not expecting any responses.
"Hehe! You're still onto that? You damn brats are persistent!" The old man, rather than scolding again, mockingly praised him.
"Cheh! Old man, don't tell me you're also a masochist that enjoys rejection?" Lord remembered how the elites 'castrated' themselves and shivered, he wondered if this old man was like them but instead liked rejections!
That would truly be horrible!
'Bah! Brat, if it weren't for the fact that those 'Elite geniuses' were trash and complicated reasons I wouldn't have needed you as my student!' The elderly thought as he went back to being hard to get.
Arriving inside, a maid-like servant greeted them and took them to a table near the garden.
"Your food will be ready soon, brother Lord" The maid said as she bowed and walked off.
"Mmm." Lord silently gave a nod.
A silence took place between the elderly man and Lord for a few minutes.
"Your food is here brother Lord, please enjoy it!" The servant smiled as she placed the food on the table and walked off again.
"Hmm" Lord hummed as he admired the food, it was an Indian style breakfast.
Munch!
Munch!
Gulp!
"So, *munch* How do you want to talk? *munch" Lord said while munching on food, seeming to not at all be worried about his rude behavior.
"Rude brat.." The elderly man sighed in annoyance, he was someone of high prestige yet had to force himself to please a rude youngster.
"So, how much do you know, brat?" The elderly man asked something incomprehensible.