✨ please, Take your time to read. ✨
Hades felt the spiritual energy coursing through every pore of his skin and his vessel growing 10% larger.
In common terms, entering the second stage meant doubling the total capacity of the lowest-ranking talent, but the boy only took a brief rest before continuing to hurl fireballs for the next two hours, while activating a transparent protective sphere that completely covered his body.
Three hours later, the two-meter-high and 1.5-meter-wide wall was reduced to rubble at exactly 10:30 a.m. At that moment, a boy approached him and greeted him. —"Good morning, Hades."—
After the brief greeting, the boy looked at the rubble where the wall had stood, and due to the shock, his rehearsed presentation was ruined. —"Good morning,"— Hades replied, snapping the boy out of his shock. —"You are...?"—
The boy finally reacted with a grimace disguised as a smile, which, due to his obvious discomfort, completely exposed him. —"Sorry, my name is Elrick. Principal Alexandra assigned me as your guide to the school, its rules, and the surrounding area."—
Hades nods and rubs his stomach. —"Perfect, where do I find the cafeteria.?"— Elrick nods and points the way behind him. —"This way, buddy."— Hades turns around and follows the boy closely.
The boy leads Hades past a couple of buildings before arriving in front of the cafeteria. —"We're here."— He points to the building's entrance and adds, —"If you have any questions, you can ask the Holo-Watcher. This device is amazing and shows you the exact way."— Hades raises his wrist where the Holo-Watcher is attached.
Elrick nods, but before saying anything else, the boy looks at the Holo-Watcher on Hades' wrist. —"What, what.?"— He's so amazed that he can't even form a complete sentence, as he points at the device.
Hades already knew the reason just by following the guide's gaze, and dismissed it. It wasn't that Hades was rude; quite the opposite, or Elrick's questions would never end.
There's a sign above:
[Cafeteria #2]
Looking at the holo-watch screen, a map appeared with Cafeteria #2 at its center, and Cafeterias #3, #4, and #5 were attached.
After looking at the map, Hades asked the question that came to mind. —"Where is Cafeteria #1?"— Upon hearing the question, Elrick smiled. —"That cafeteria is special, and not just anyone has access to it."—
—"Wow!!!"— Hades commented in surprise.
Elrick nodded. —"It's obvious that someone like you wouldn't have a clue."— Before the boy finished speaking, a notification sounded on Hades' holo-watch.
"Ding"
An advertisement appeared, filling the entire screen.
[Cafeteria #1 congratulates Mr. Hades on his recent enrollment at this institution and invites him to visit our select and exclusive VIP restaurant any day of the year without a reservation.]
Elrick also hears the message and, curious to know what kind of notification he's receiving, peeks out to read a bit. —"What the hell."— He shouts after finishing reading and looks the boy in front of him up and down.
A myriad of emotions flood Elrick's mind after learning of such a legendary message and its magnitude, with only one thought on his mind. (What kind of person receives a personal invitation from such a wonderful place.?)
Because we're not talking about the convenience store on the corner of the block; we're talking about the third most exclusive place in the entire Academy.
The only place that functions like a country within a country.
—"Oh."— Hades comments before closing the notification and walks without a care in the world toward Cafeteria #2.
But the boy hadn't even taken two steps forward when a shout shattered the tranquility of the atmosphere. —"Stop right there, you son of a bitch!"— Elrick even stepped in front of the boy and extended both arms..
Suddenly, all the students around them stopped what they were doing to stare more closely at this unusual pair.
Elrick realized his mistake and immediately lowered his arms and stepped out of the way. When the boy finally calmed down, he cleared his throat. —"I'm truly sorry. I confess that for the first time, I let my emotions get the better of me, but you have to understand that they only issue 100 invitations all year, and those who are worthy of receiving them are the future of our country.."— With that, and to confirm his words, Elrick nodded in agreement.
Hades looks surprised. —"That's it."— At the boy's words, Elrick nods again, even more convinced, and adds, —"Of course, in that place you'll meet the cream of the crop of the academy."—
—"That's not necessary for me."— Hades comments, ready to continue on his way. —"Wait, wait."— Elrick says, even placing his hand on Hades' chest.
Then, realizing what he's done, he offers an apologetic smile before removing his hand. —"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, but you have to understand. If it means nothing to you, for me it's like a wild dream that not even aligning all the constellations in the universe could achieve."—
Hades nods. —"Fine, but what do I get out of it?"—
—"Reputation. Recognition. Everyone will look up to you. Aren't you interested in everyone at the Academy recognizing your worth?"— The boy next to Hades replies.
—"The validation of people who will never care about me isn't among my priorities."— As he finished speaking, other boy burst out laughing. "Ha, ha, ha." While laughing loudly, the person began patting Hades on the back.
—"Well said, kid, well said. I don't know you yet, but I recognize your way of thinking, and I like it."— This third person commented, continuing to pat Hades on the back.
If Elrick had lost his temper for a few seconds before, this time the boy was so furious he shouted, —"Jhin, you, Storm Raven, what the hell are you saying.?"—
Then he pointed at Hades' holo-watch and said in a deep voice, —"Come on Hades, show this fool what you've got."— Hades turned on the screen and displayed the message to the newcomer.
Jhin didn't read it; he simply shook his head. —"So what, nobody will break an idea..."— The boy doesn't finish his sentence and grips Hades' hand tightly. —"Black, because you, an unknown mortal, possess this black beauty."— As he zooms in on the holo-watch screen, Jhin sees more clearly and finishes reading. —"Shit, shit, when, how...?"—
—"Hey, you three idiots, why don't you do your cheap comedy monologue somewhere else.? Don't you see you're ruining the atmosphere for the cafeteria's patrons.?"— An instructor casually passing by remarks, and several students nod in agreement.
Hades, for his part, ignores everyone present and continues on his way, finally entering cafeteria #2, followed by the two boys.
Upon entering the establishment, Hades went straight to an empty table. He sits down and looks around.
Then a female voice beside them says. —"Before you order your food at those service panels."— She points to some screens in front of the tables before reaching the food service area.
Then the girl continues. —"First, you must register your name. The system at the academy tells you if you qualify to eat at any of its five cafeterias. If your name doesn't appear, you must leave and buy food elsewhere."— She points to the exit..
—"What she says is true."— Elrick clarifies, pointing to the girl, and adds. —"It's not just the cafeteria that has this type of system; there's also the library, the gym, the recreation area, the playground, and even the training fields. You need a certain level of skill and knowledge to enter and train there."— Both the girl and Jhin nod in complete agreement.
Elrick steps forward and politely offers his hand to the girl. —"Nice to meet you. I'm Elrick Clark, Specialty: Earth Mage."— With that, the girl nods and shakes his hand. —"Artemis Bullrich, Specialty: Ice Sorceress."—
After the cordial greeting between the two, the third boy steps forward and also offers a friendly greeting. —"I'm Jhin Müller, Specialty: Wind Mage."— Artemis nods and offers her hand to Jhin as a courtesy.
Before any of them can sit down, they all turn back to look at Hades almost simultaneously, expecting an introduction, at least as a simple courtesy, but seconds tick by and after a minute nothing happens.
Before any of these three can complain about the situation, a fourth voice appears. —"Hey, kid, this is my table."— Upon hearing this, Hades looks up to see who's making such a comment, having previously been glued to the holo-watch screen looking at the menu, but the newcomer hadn't finished speaking. —"You have 5 minutes to get your filthy ass off my chair or else don't blame me for being rude."— Followed by an unsettling silence from everyone near the table..
The newcomer is a young guy, about 18 or 19 years old, tall, with a robust build. The three boys, along with Hades, immediately recognized him...
He's the classic troublemaker who usually takes advantage of new students, and since he wasn't wearing a uniform, Hades was like a spotlight shining right in the middle of the meadow, as he was in a place where new students are bound to be constantly harassed.
Obviously, the academy knows about this kind of thing and encourages it, since it's a highly competitive place.
Due to this type of circumstance, none of the three boys at the table with Hades could intervene unless they wanted a direct confrontation.
⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜
Committee Surveillance Room:
—"Sister, what are you planning.?"— Samantha asked her sister, who was standing right next to her with a grotesque smile. —"Just wait."— Alexandra commented, pointing to a specific monitor. —"Now there are only two paths left: Run or fight."—
—"What is our role in all this.?"— Samantha asked.
—"When Hades is about to retreat, you must go in and save the boy from his misfortune. This will start to add points to our cause.,"— Alexandra says proudly.
—"What a stupid idea..."— Before Samantha could say anything else, Alexandra shows a message sent by her parents: it specifies what they must do to gain his trust as soon as possible before his potential explodes and he is noticed.
Suddenly, a red light comes on and an image appears on the central screen.
—"Great. You and your brilliant ideas.,"— Samantha says, visibly annoyed, before leaving the surveillance room, closely followed by a very embarrassed Alexandra. Along with the two of them are several instructors and agents from the disciplinary committee.
⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜ ⁜
Inside Cafeteria #2
Everything was normal, as everyone expected. Hades got up from the table, ready to leave, even straightening his chair. He was under the watchful eyes of countless students.
As Hades was about to leave, he took a step back, while the smile on the face of the boy who had confronted him grew wider and wider. This was a clear display of his victory over the new kid.
Victor needed to brag about this to the nearby students, but especially to the pretty girls present.
For this reason, and other smaller ones not worth mentioning, Victor, confident of his victory, raised his fist and with his other hand grabbed part of the sweatshirt. —"Coward."— With that, Victor threatens to smash his fist into Hades' face. But just as everyone anticipates the imminent impact of the fist on the new kid's face,
a transparent sphere appears mere centimeters from Hades' face. "PAW!"
A sharp crack is heard, followed by a cracking sound from Victor's fingers. And as if this weren't humiliating enough for a fifth-stage student facing a recent entered. Victor's hand is repelled with such force that it's visible to even the person furthest away in the cafeteria.
Victor, obviously, becomes enraged to the point of shouting.
It's unclear whether it's from the pain in his hand or from his anger, but the boy leaps forward. Ready to land his next blow with his red battle aura swirling around his fist..
Victor is thrown into the air like a rag doll, falling several meters and taking down with him anyone and everything in his path,. regardless of whether they are students, tables or chairs.
After Victor lands several meters back, a deathly silence fills the cafeteria.
One of Victor's friends tries to take advantage of the confusion and, after loudly casting a spell. —"Fire Ball."—A ball the size of a ping-pong ball appears in his hand, which he immediately fires at Hades. But unlike the previous two punches, this fireball is stopped and disappears without a trace.
Seconds later, several people enter the cafeteria, among them Alexandra and Samantha.
The instructor from the law and discipline committee shouts,. —"You three are under arrest under academy regulations.!"—Pointing at Hades, Victor, and the last boy who got involved..
A few meters behind, Samantha demands: —"Now that you've gotten your hand in so deep, what do you plan to do.?"—
This time Alexandra wrinkles her face in response, because if she interferes in the decisions of the Law and Oversight Committee, the board of directors will try to find trouble, but if she does nothing, Hades will end up being punished..
◈—◈—◈
To be continue...
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