Ariel's words lingered in the air for a while, as neither of the boys could believe their very eyes. Ariel suddenly turned to face the window and narrowed her eyes. "We don't have time; we need to leave now."
Footsteps rapidly approached from behind Alan; upon looking behind him, he could see the terrified and worried face of Mother Amy.
Alan's eyes met Mother Amy's gaze, and his lips quivered with hesitation as if he were experiencing conflicted emotions. Soon, Alan sealed his lips, staring deeply into Mother Amy's eyes. Alan bowed his head before speaking loudly. "I sincerely thank you for raising me for 16 years; I am leaving. Please take care of yourself."
He turned towards Ariel, giving her a slight nod. Ariel nodded her head before bolting out of the orphanage, and Alan immediately sprinted after her. Leon left alone, was baffled by the situation; he repeatedly turned his head towards Mother Amy and back to Alan numerous times. Then, Leon smacked his forehead with his arm before looking directly into Mother Amy's eyes. "Thank you! and I am sorry!"
Leon straight away turned and dashed towards Alan and Ariel, completely leaving Mother Amy stranded. Her brows were tightly knitted, forming creases on her forehead, and her mouth hung slightly ajar. After a moment of silence, she closed her eyes before showing a gentle face as she murmured to herself. "Stay safe."
...
In the night of Doria's slum, three teenagers continuously ran through the streets with great effort, while one utilized her wind abilities to increase their speed. Leon, who's seriously contemplating his decisions, finally turned towards Ariel and asked. "Who are those people?! And why are you running? Damn, I have so many questions." Then Leon gave Ariel a serious glance. "You're an elf? not only that, what was that magic you used."
"Blessings, that's what's called blessings; there's a small mention of it in my book," Alan answered for Ariel. Having heard blessings within his ancient book, he believed it to be a myth until now.
Ariel nodded her head. "Yes, that is correct. This is called a blessing, do you know anything else."
Alan thought for a few seconds, unable to think of any significant detail. "Not really all I know; it is a power that a person can possess."
Once again, Ariel slightly nodded her head. "That is true; however, I must explain to you the basics of blessings." Ariel paused, organizing her words, before continuing. "A blessing is something that every living thing has the potential to receive from birth. For a typical human, that potential of being blessed may be one in a thousand, and for a creature with lower intelligence, it may be one in ten thousand."
"However, those with ancestry rich in blessings, are practically granted a blessing; for example, humans that descended from royal bloodlines have a one in five chance of being blessed, while demihumans such as elves are one in three." Alan and Leon listened in silence as they took in the new knowledge.
"Those who are blessed from birth have a fixed magical affinity; in my case, I am born with the affinity of wind. People who are born with multiple affinities are an extremely rare exception."
"Blessings and affinity have a strong connection with the eye of the individual, one with a blessing possesses a unique eye that produces a unique glow once used, For me, I am born with emerald eyes corresponding with the wind and neon green eyes once activated." At last, Ariel broke off her lengthy explanation to focus on finding her way out of the slums.
After a long silence, Alan looked toward Ariel's back. "I understand that but why have u requested us to accompany you?"
Just as Alan questioned Ariel, they had arrived at the entrance to Doria City, where a long bridge and towering stone walls separated the town from the surrounding wilderness. Ariel turned around to face both Alan and Leon; however, before she could say anything, Alan suddenly stiffened.
An intense feeling of intuition surged through Alan as he felt something was wrong and something terrible was going to occur. Alan's eyes once again returned to a grayscale world, only able to see the white figures of Ariel and Leon. A glint of azure light flashed between Alan's iris as he sensed the presence of another human directly next to Ariel.
In an instant, Alan drew Ariel with his left arm away from the unidentified man. A man in a pure black outfit noticed Alan's inhuman awareness and quickly leaped forward, launching a powerful overhand strike. Within Alan's monochromatic vision, the speed of the man's movement slowed drastically, allowing Alan to smoothly sidestep away from the heavy blow. Immediately after evading the attack, Alan clenched his right fist, igniting it in a teal blaze.
Instantly, a radiant azure light struck the man's chest, exploding into a large cerulean blast, propelling the hooded man through the air. Blue sparks floated around Alan, covering him in a blue glow. He raised his arm to his face in extreme disbelief as his eyes displayed the same bright blue and purple hue as the ember within his hand.
Leon's eyes looked as if they'd pop out of their sockets; to him, this was a greater shock than discovering Ariel was an elf. Ariel gave a small giggle before saying. "I forgot to mention that to truly use the powers of your blessings, you have to believe in the powers of blessings."
Leon and Alan both looked at Ariel with a dumbfounded expression. Ariel then again revealed a big grin.
"Have you not realized yet? You both are blessed."