For a moment Acer stared at the approaching students behind, and then at a tan guy running across the lawn.
'Looks like Adam decided to get serious!' A smirk appeared at the corner of his lips, his gaze still fixed on the latter. 'I guess it'll be a chase.'
Acer shot twice his length above the ground, crashing to the ground at breath rate.
"Jesus christ! Acer! What the hell' you doing?" A repulsive voice made Acer roll his eyes and sigh. He returned his gaze to the slender girl - a small bob of silk amburn hair cascaded upon her head.
'Getting serious!' He ignored the rest of her words and soared yet again into the sky, tearing through the air and landing just beside his opponent.
Barely able to regain composure after landing from the altitude, a ball of black radiant suddenly shot at him, aiming at him with a deadly precision.
The shot of black radiant was precise, but fortunately, small enough to allow Acer an easy duck.
With lightning speed, he thrust his palms forward, his unblemished smile unwavering as he cast "[Lightning Bolt]."
A flashy stroke of pulsating lightning shot from his palms, straight at the athletic figure of his rival, who however, only chuckled, finding humor in Acer's attack.
Quickly he ran in the opposite direction, avoiding the bolt in an effortless attempt.
With a clean motion, he turned around to face his pursuing mate, his legs barely avoiding contact with a transparent wall that was currently preparing the field for a brutal phase of training.
Adam's smile and posture conveyed a warning that caused Acer to halt in his tracks. His arms were outstretched, palms open, and his thumb clenched against his middle finger.
Both teenagers exchanged an unfriendly smile—the kind that a winner would give to his defeated opponents.
"Do you think—" Acer was cut short, stunned by a red tint that flashed past his eyes.
Despite only seeing the missile-sped projectile as a blur, a burning sensation etched his skin, hinting at the fiery grace that came with it.
Even Adam seemed surprised by the accuracy that narrowly missed his face. His expression twisted as he gazed at the girl.
But she glared at Acer, her burning gaze enough to leave one's skin as a lump of ash - all from from her hazel eyes and wrinkled brows, "This is teamwork, ehnn?!"
Acer was lost for a second, gazing at the air before remembering he was in the middle of a battle.
His gaze trailed to an image that hovered inches below the spherical dome that surrounded them—a perfect picture of the target - dark-skinned and sharply edged face.
'Adam Coe! This damn boy.' Acer clenched his fist - a subconscious reaction to the shockwave that ran through his spine.
"[Lightning Infused Punch]" Acer voice reverberated the spherical hemisphere like an explosion, and only one thought passed through his mind - to strike Adam dead on the spot.
His fist brushed through the air, infused with spiraling lines of lightning that would have made any student pass out.
However, it stopped midair when he realized its target had disappeared, now running aimlessly at the chase of the two other students. 'What the hell!'
'Was I petrified or what?' Acer regained composure, his face beet red with embarrassment. But he didn't have the time to buckle down his head - he had to join his mates in the hunt.
Their mission was to hit Adam in the hopes that he would fall and thus be disqualified.
However, because the task was now clearly too late to complete, the students stood apart, waiting for the ten-second countdown beside the hovering image of the boy to end.
'I'm probably the one they'll be hunting this time. I better gear myself up!' Acer heaved with cautious eyes that carefully examined the three other students, especially Adam, who shared the same gaze.
'Thinks he's the god of all 'cause of his ability—year two student in class four... Pfft!'
Only instinct made Acer roll his eyes as he shook his head, his gaze turning to the time-lapse.
3…
2…
1…
At the climax of the countdown, when the four students thought it was going to be another chaotic chase, the dome disintegrated into a sherd of nothingness, allowing the scorching heat from the sun to brace their skin.
"Geez!" The girl with red hair exhaled with her palms resting on the girth of her thin waist.
Now, at the end of the fierce battle disguised as a training phase, none of the students could deny the weight that had been lifted from their shoulders.
Simultaneously, a man began to walk toward them, closely accompanied by two adult females - one on each side, and a class of twenty students. "You performed incredibly well in this phase, Mr. Coe."
He had a voice like emerald, honeyed and justly wired with an amount of complexity.
With a smile, he greeted Adam and looked at the only female in the group, "So did you, Miss Ashley!"
The red-haired girl, Ashley, almost panicked as her eyes widened, looking cute with her pursed lips.
Rarely would any other student get complimented when Adam and Acer were in the picture. They were star students in the academy, although at different levels.
But both had an incredible knack for garnering attention - though, it looked like the tables were about to get turned.
While the teacher gave the other boy with standing black hair a thumbs up, he turned to Acer with a sudden change of mood, like he was exhausted by the mere sight of the lad, "How many times will I tell you to focus on the mission?"
"Adam is not your enemy, Acer. Try to conduct things into... friendly rivalry," One of the female teachers decided to interfere, a subtle frown looming over her oval face.
Acer would have spat on her glossy stiletto heels at that moment.
'Friendly competition with that boy! Huff!'
"We live in a world of eat or get eaten," Acer's response was swift but throated, depicting his disgust at the teachers' reaction, and even more, his eternal battle against Adam, "Nothing soft or weak can survive in it... And nothing is friendly in it."
He'd lived his life in tragedy. Orphaned at a tender age—into the fact that he was only in the academy because he was sponsored by the principal.
And for what reason… Because they saw the sheer prowess of lightning that coursed through his veins, and his strong potential to become a star in his ability. He proved them right all through his four years in the academy, excelling in every class tournament and exam.
Otherwise, he probably would have been expelled long ago.
So why did he have to grow soft and let himself be like every other normal person? It was an unacceptable feat for a person of his standards.
The three teachers, dressed in their respective modern fittings, could only shrug and let Acer take life's philosophy the way he deemed fit.
They had a job—to elevate the students' magical affinity and potential, leaving other things at their disposal.
After allowing the four students to rejoin their mates, the teachers decided to address the class. A tall slender lady stepped forward, dressed in a formal fit that yet exuded her graceful proportions and impeccable charm.
With a ghastly gaze at the screen of a wide device on her palms, she opened her small red lips, instantly pursing out neat angelic words, "The Elite Serenity will be here probably by tomorrow, or the day after." "Only two of you students… will make it to their board. So you should be inspired to work even harder."
The faces of every student on the plain field lit up with a smile, more than half of the students shifting their gaze between the four lucky students.
Acer, Adam, the redheaded girl—Ashley, and an average guy with standing black hair.
The class quickly rounded off after the announcement, each student dispersing into their various activities in a crowd of students.
--
Acer trekked toward a huge structure that stood meters in front of a wide pathway.
He was lost in a cave of thoughts, ranging from his performance in the competition to the teachers' comments.
But where was he wrong?
This was not the Earth he'd read about in books or memoirs.
The Earth he'd read about had seven continents, with humanity as the only known race.
However, this current Earth was cut into many small chunks, leaving humanity somewhere in the food web with a struggle to not become extinct.
Acer finally stepped through a circular opening that led into the gigantic vicinity of the structure.
It was stocked with blocks of tall shelves that almost touched the massive chandelier that hung on the polyvinyl ceiling. The wall was painted a smooth white, leaning the spotlight on the tiled floor made of intricate patterns.
The scent was majestic and elegant, brushing his nostrils with a sense of calmness and serenity.
The massive hall also had a small reading section with long rows of tables and desks, properly lit with the gentle rays of sunshine that reflected from the windows, and lighting works that trailed from all rounded corners of the premises.
After a few minutes of searching through the fine rows and columns of each shelf, Acer found the book he came for and drew it from the shelf.
Locking it against his chest, he proceeded to search for a spare seat in the reading sectiom and when he was settled, he recklessly dropped the book on the smooth and polished surface of the table, allowing specks of dust to blow off from the cover of the book.
Acer was about to flip the pages open before seeing an odd protrusion between a page in the item. Unlike the fine white edge of each page, the attachment was rather brown and aged, in direct contrast with every epitome of the book's real page.
This was a feature that he did not notice the last time he held the book. His curiosity piqued in an instant, and his fingers willingly withdrew the page from its unholy placement.
The words on the script looked neat and precise as he swept through them. Each word carrying a weight that tingled his nerves, and jolted back memories.
This was the summary of a skill he tried to learn weeks ago, 'Lightning Storm.'