Zephyr was quick to erect a barrier of wind around him and the others next to him. Ice and debris harmlessly pass by them as the battle finally settles down.
"Is it over…?" Questions left the mouths of the examiners as they all collectively regained their senses. In the center of the destroyed battleground, a figure stood tall. Dust subsided as black hair was shown fluttering slightly. Zain stood next to the unconscious body of Elise as the spectators looked on.
"I-Incredible…."
"How have we not heard anything about him until now?!"
"What training has he gone through?"
The examiners continued to talk amongst themselves about the outcome of the fight, but Zephyr quickly quieted them with a hand clap.
"While it is quite impressive what Mr. Zain has managed to pull off, I believe we should be getting some medical attention to Miss Elise." They all stopped and quickly ran down to the field to help her out. Zephyr stood in the stands before changing directions and walking down to the field.
"Carter, be sure to contact Miss Elise's parents about this matter. And start finding some materials to rebuild this area."
"R-Right away Sir…" Carter left on his way to follow his orders, as Zephyr continued watching the scene from above. A smile grew on his face as he kept his eye on Zain.
'This confirms it...I've retained all of my skills from the future. Along with my athletic abilities and battle sense..' Zain was deep in thought, not even paying attention to the scene around him. He took a deep breath before walking off. 'But it's still not enough….This power was meaningless in front of that bastard.'
The last image he saw before he died had flashed before his eyes. That pitch black mask, showing no expression or emotion, gave rise to deeper emotion within Zain. 'More….I need more power.. In order to stop that son of a-'
"Leaving so soon?" A voice called out to him before he completely left the room. Stopping in his tracks he focused his gaze to where it came from. Zephyr had suddenly appeared next to Zain's side, holding a gentle smile on his face. His emerald eyes were hidden behind his glasses, and his large build came closer and closer to him.
"If you're here to ask me about repairs, I don't have the money for that." Already guessing what the principal was after, Zain gave a fast counter in hopes of stopping him, but it seemed to be unnecessary.
"Oh don't worry, I've already got that covered. What I wanted to talk to you about however, is something else."
"And what's that?"
"You're trying to enter the advanced classes, aren't you?"
Zain looked over his shoulder for a moment before turning around fully, facing the principal down.
"Don't even think about talking me out of taking those courses. I've already made up my mind."
"I wouldn't dream of it, it's just, you do know the requirements for it, don't you?"
"The requirements for getting into advanced lessons are a score of over ninety on the written exam, and a passing score from two out of the three of the examiners in the physical exam. What of it?"
Zephyr was taken aback from his statement. "What of it?" While his response may have sounded rude, to Zephyr, all he could see was Zain's overwhelming confidence.
"You aren't worried that you'll miss the requirements?"
Zain scoffed slightly before turning around and leaving the room, but not without a few parting words.
"Why don't you ask the princess in the crater behind you? Should give you the answers you want." His footsteps echoed throughout the hallways before his figure was completely gone. Zephyr sighed before giving a smirk.
"I seem to have gotten a troublesome student. Alright then...how to break this to Miss Elise's parents..." His eyes looked at the unconscious student who had finally been placed on a stretcher before getting taken out of the room. Just as Zephyr was about to go on his merry way, the voice of his secretary pulled him back.
"Sir, you better have a good reason for letting all of this happen..!" Carter's voice clearly held panic and worry in it. Sweat glistened from his forehead as his eyes held nothing but worry in them. Never in his entire life has he seen a "Black Mage". Their existence is something you don't see often, or at all. The power Zain had wielded shook him to his core.
"The daughter of a noble family has just been carried off in a stretcher, and a student who caused all of it just walked off as if nothing was the matter. Not only that, but something is extremely wrong about him! Our records indicate nothing about him being that powerful!"
"With time, many people change."
"No matter how much time they're given, nobody can gain strength and abilities like that, that quickly! I understand you let him into this school because of an old friend of yours, but still! There's too much of an unknown risk with his presence, that much has been made clear to me now!"
Zephyr stopped in his tracks, letting the words of his secretary rest on his mind for a moment.
"Three weeks prior to today, you received a mysterious letter. The contents inside obviously held ulterior meanings underneath the words written on the paper. Ever since then, you've been making more and more radical decisions, especially when it comes to that young man..."
Zephyr slowly turned to look over his shoulder, now fully taking in the intense glare that Carter was holding on his face.
"Zephyr...what are you hiding?"
Outside the arena, Zain walked his lone path back towards his apartment. He was deep in thought as he walked through the streets.
"It's hard for me to believe that I've actually gone into the past, yet here I am...is this hell instead? A punishment for failing to save the ones closest to me?"
The sounds of the street flowed into his ears, along with the happy noises of other people walking by. Zain watched as they all smiled, talking with friends, family and lovers. As he continued to observe them, he looked to himself in a nearby window. His reflection stared back at him, showing his intense glare. He took his own image in for a moment before continuing to walk on.
"Probably not. Hell wouldn't have people running around as happy as they are at the moment." As he walked through the crowds his mind continued to wander, thinking as to why he was here. Why send him of all people into the past? Was this some kind of fluke? A purgatory that he was subjected to with his lingering regrets after he died? Zain continued to think over why this was his situation before giving a large sigh.
"There's no point in asking questions I'll never get the answers to. Whatever the reason, the fact remains the same. This is the past, and the past is my current present...even so, the past is simply the past. Unless something changes, that future will inevitably come…"
The chaos of the world he once knew flashed before his eyes once again. Streets filled with demonic beasts, innocent lives being taken without care. And in the center of that chaos was that masked mage. Zain's fist clenched tightly as he finally made his way back home.
"As much as I hate to admit it, eventually that future will come here again. And I'm the only one with this knowledge. I have to get stronger...even stronger than I am now. I don't care if I have to rewrite my entire past to do it, I'll make sure you don't get away with this!"
Zain had strengthened his resolve even further. His sole purpose now was to strive for greater power. Power great enough to change history itself.