Snow adjusted the sleeves of his black hoodie before glancing at himself in the mirror. Black pants, midnight-blue sneakers... good enough.
Opening his school system, he nodded to himself.
"It's time."
As he walked toward his first ever class, his thoughts drifted.
Among the Miracle Babies, only two of us are old enough to begin training.
Two more will join next year.
The rest won't arrive until my third year.
Snow rested a hand beneath his chin, tilting his head as he usually did.
"Tsk..."
"What a troublesome lineup."
Angelina's words echoed through his mind.
Rule number one!
"Master... information is power. Know your enemy, and you'll avoid an early death."
Rule number two!
"Never underestimate your enemy. The moment arrogance takes root... you've already lost."
Snow's eyes narrowed.
"I know nothing about the other nine."
A faint sigh escaped him.
"No... guess I should call them the other Elites."
Thankfully, Michael's abilities were perfect for gathering intelligence.
I'll leave that to Mirage.
A small smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
Recruiting Michael had been the right decision.
Taking a quieter route, Snow made his way toward the Elite Building.
He looked up at the enormous structure.
"...Did they really have to build it this far away?"
Unlike the other classrooms scattered throughout Eden Academy, the Elite Building stood in isolation.
It was practically a small mansion.
Private training grounds.
Living quarters.
A café.
A weapon hall.
Everything had been prepared exclusively for the Miracle Babies.
Snow frowned.
"...Something tells me we'll be spending a lot of time here."
He wasn't sure he liked that.
It would limit his freedom to move around the academy unnoticed.
Still...
He continued forward.
The moment his foot crossed the entrance...
His entire body froze.
Every instinct screamed.
Danger.
Snow stopped walking.
His blue eyes sharpened.
...What is this?
The feeling wasn't directed at him.
It came from deeper inside the building.
There were two presences.
One was powerful.
Its aura flowed freely throughout the entire building without restraint.
The person standing his instructor maybe.
Strong.
Experienced.
Nothing unusual.
But...
The second aura...
Snow's pupils contracted.
It was perfectly controlled.
Not a single ounce leaked unnecessarily.
Yet beneath that perfect control...
Something savage slept.
Something alive.
Something desperately trying to break free.
Snow had only ever sensed aura this dense once before.
His own.
If Snow's aura was a silent blizzard waiting to consume the world...
Then this person's was an untamed storm waiting to erupt.
They were complete opposites.
If that person was a ticking time bomb...
Snow was a sheathed sword.
Inside the classroom, two figures waited.
An instructor stood at the front.
A young boy sat comfortably in his seat, absentmindedly swinging one leg.
His emerald-green eyes suddenly opened.
"...Oh?"
A grin spread across his face.
"So that's him."
He laughed quietly to himself.
"That's a terrifying aura..."
"Who walks around carrying something that cold?"
The instructor slowly looked toward the classroom door.
"...What kind of monsters did this academy recruit?" the thought crosses his mind
Outside...
Snow reached for the handle.
He paused.
Then slowly pushed the door open.
The first thing he saw...
Were a pair of brilliant emerald eyes already staring directly at him.
Neither of them looked away.
For a brief moment...
The world felt strangely silent.
---
Meanwhile...
Michael flexed his fingers, still getting used to the changes within his body.
"So..."
"What was it like for you, Angelina?"
Hidden within the shadows, Angelina smiled.
"It felt as though every pore in my body had opened."
"I could sense shadows I'd never noticed before."
"My senses became unbelievably sharp."
"It wasn't easy adapting to all that power..."
"But eventually I did."
Michael listened carefully.
"The biggest change, though..."
"My beast evolved."
She smiled proudly.
"My panther's bloodline ascended."
"It became a Mythical Pantera."
Michael's eyes sparkled.
"...That's incredible."
"I've never felt this powerful before."
Angelina chuckled.
"You'll get used to it."
"My beast hasn't reacted yet, so it might evolve" Michael said.
"I can't tell whether it evolved or not."
"That's normal."
"The evolution takes time."
"For now, focus on adapting."
"You can still fight like usual, actually better than before. "
"You'll already notice you're much stronger than before."
Michael grinned.
"Yes, ma'am."
Back inside the classroom...
Jayden rubbed both arms dramatically.
"Man..."
"Your aura gives me goosebumps."
The grin never left his face.
Snow finally stepped inside.
Their eyes met once again.
Then...
Pain.
A violent stab shot through both boys' Spiritual Gates.
Their expressions changed instantly.
BOOOOOOM!!
Emerald winds exploded throughout the classroom.
At the same moment
An avalanche of icy mist burst from Snow.
The room trembled.
Frost spread across the floor.
Windows froze before shattering into thousands of glittering fragments.
Desks slid backward.
Walls groaned beneath the pressure.
Within the emerald storm...
Two glowing green eyes slowly opened.
A faint silhouette with radiant white wings flickered behind them.
Within the icy mist...
Another pair of deep-blue eyes appeared.
Cold.
Ancient.
Unmoving.
The two soul beasts glared at one another through the chaos.
Both Snow and Jayden struggled to suppress them.
Neither understood what was happening.
Then...
Another aura erupted.
Unlike theirs...
This one was perfectly controlled.
The instructor finally moved.
His spiritual pressure expanded with overwhelming precision, wrapping itself around both storms before forcefully compressing them.
Slowly...
The raging winds subsided.
The freezing mist retreated.
Silence returned.
The instructor adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat.
"Ahem..."
"I suppose our first lesson..."
"...will be aura control."
Snow ignored him completely.
"Luna..."
"What was that?"
Jayden held his aching head.
"...Are you crazy?"
Neither boy had been speaking to the instructor.
The poor man simply stood there...
Wondering if he'd already lost control of his classroom.