Chapter 17: Academy
As Grey practised the sword art, just like with the spear, time flew by quickly. The monotony would have killed anyone else, but this was Grey we were talking about. He had spent an entire 5 and a half centuries doing the same thing over and over. He didn't even have desire then, and his suppressed emotions made him dull, just like all other demons.
So, now that he had those two, one would think that the monotony would bore Grey endlessly, but he found that repeating something he loved doing was never boring. The thrill he felt when a move clicked, when something worked out, and when he felt himself get stronger. All of it served as a bigger motivator for Grey, so he was able to keep going every day.
And just like last time, it took Grey 4 years to perfect the moves. Once again, he needed experience to go any further. And it was experience that he would be getting, for he was officially of age to register for the academy.
Grey ran down the stairs in his usual outfit; a baggy, white shirt, and ripped, black jeans. He thought that he looked great in it, and absolutely no-one could deny that statement.
Grey was now 17, 6' tall, and his body was perfectly sculpted. 14 years of PT, 4 years of martial arts and 8 years of weapon training would do that to you. He was slender, but with muscle in all the right places, a clean cut 6-pack, compressed muscle all in a package wrapped by his handsome face. He had inherited the best parts of his mother and father, and a little narcissism. Still, the narcissism couldn't put you off from his body, and since Grey had enjoyed his childhood as the duo had planned, he was now back to mature Grey.
Of course, there was still much to see in this life, much to do and much to learn. Just because he was no longer going to be another version of himself, did not mean that personal development stopped.
And Lucas and Samantha had to admit, Grey's personality was fantastic. He listened, he was kind, and other than slight narcissism and pettiness, he had no faults. He was endearing and cunning, with the guile of a fox, but it was in such a way that you found yourself drawn to his other side. The maturity that the boy showed was exceptional, and his work ethic infallible.
THUD!
Jumping off the last few steps, Grey landed with a thud. He ran to the kitchen, sliding into his chair. In the next instant, his food was in front of him, piping hot eggs and bacon.
"Thanks, Mom… And good morning!" Grey was rather excited, so he almost dug into his food before saying good morning.
"Good morning to you too, Grey. Excited?" Samantha asked as she watched the boy wolf down his food. She received a head nod in reply, but Grey was too busy eating to bother with anything more.
As Grey finished up the scraps of his food, Lucas walked into the room, just out of the shower. He may have been 47, and a lazy bum, but he knew how to keep in shape. Samantha blushed slightly, but Grey didn't see it, as he was putting his plate into the sink. He did hear, however, the sound of a kitchen towel hitting flesh, before someone scampered upstairs.
"We'll be leaving soon, right?" Ignoring it, Grey asked an important question, his excitement evident in his voice.
- Eager much? Actually, why are you excited? You're going to school to learn stuff you've already learned. All you're getting is practical experience. - Fallen Star spoke, confused as to why Grey was so excited.
'Well, it's not just training. I'm going to meet people my age, and make friends. Demons didn't make friends. We did our 'job', chatted for 5 minutes, and then never spoke to one another.'
- Ahh, I see. -
"Yes, Grey. We'll leave as soon as your father is ready." Samantha told him.
---
About half an hour later, all three of them were out the door, heading to the centre of the city. There, lay a series of portals that could take people anywhere.
When Grey had heard that dwarves had made portals, he was confused. How could people without Space affinity make things that transport objects through space? This had led him onto a searching spree of several hours, trying to learn the secrets of portals. It was to no avail, however, as it was a dwarven kept secret, one they had no plans to release.
Not that that mattered, of course, as Grey had something that knew most universal secrets. Fallen Star told Grey how the mana of two points could be forced to breathe at the same, separate tempo, which, when inputted with spatial co-ordinates, created a portal. It helped Grey greatly with his spatial comprehension, which would come in handy when he finally got to learn about his other affinities. Space, Time, and Null.
Grey had only researched these topics before, afraid of the consequence of being found out. It was one thing to be a super genius at the age of 3, and another to break the laws of comprehension. No-one, absolutely no-one other than Grey, had more than 2 affinities. It was a universal law, one he had broken.
The drive to the Hero's Association, where portals were kept, was a short one, only an hour long. It was filled with light discussion and hearty laughter that filled the hover car. That's right, hover car. It utilised several dwarven workings to float, and it was something Grey had learned many years ago.
They arrived at the Hero Association, which was jam-packed with many other vehicles. Today was the day that the best academy in the world would have its examinations for new students, so everyone was rushing to get to a portal.
The academy, Tri-Arkus Academy, or colloquially known as 'The Island' was an academy run by the 3 races, to teach people to become Heroes or Hunters, in the war against Vampires and Mana beasts. Everybody wanted to go to The Island, as it had the best facilities.
The Island was, shocker, on an island. It was situated on the corner of the Human domain, 1,000 km offshore. This meant that it was as far as one could get from Vampire territory. Not only was it the best, it was also the safest.
The trio walked into the Association, wowed by the size of the building. Lucas and Samantha had seen it many times, but they still couldn't get over it. For Grey, it was his first time there, so he shared a similar reaction to them.
The Hero Association and the Hunter Association, were 2 of 3 branches of the Tri-government, made of dwarves, elves, and humans. They both followed a scale of G to SSS, with both - and + subranks. It was a way of grading its members. Of course, there was also the Leagues. This correlated to the top 500 people of each Association. You were not limited to one Association, either, you could be both a Hero and a Hunter.
Grey and his parents walked to the portals, getting in line for The Island's portal. It would be a long wait.
---
Grey stood in front of a portal, it was a wavy blue wall, that one could sort of see through. A lady next to the portal told them to walk through it, so he happily followed her words.
The world turned black, and his stomach churned. Before Grey could register anything, the world came back to him, and he found himself on his knees, hands against the floor, puking his breakfast out.
A hand came to pat him on the back, which he gratefully accepted.
"Oh my, I forgot that you have never been through a portal before. I shouldn't have given you food. I'm so sorry." He heard his mother say, regret evident in her tone.
"No. Don't worry, I'm fine." Gathering himself, Grey slowly stood up with the help of Lucas. Looking around, he could see most teens on the floor, puking their guts out, similar to him a few moments ago.
'What the hell happened, Fallen Star?' Grey asked his partner for an explanation, and one was sort of given.
- Well, what do you think would happen if you travelled really far in a very short time frame? - Fallen Star made him figure out the answer by himself.
'Uhh, motion sickness, nausea. That sort of thing… Oh! I get it. I travelled thousands of kilometres in a split second, and my body felt all of it.'
- Correct. It would have happened to you if you had ever tried to use Space Manipulation, or if you had mastered Light Manipulation and used Elementalisation. Your body moves too fast, and it reacts accordingly. Enough use of this instant travel, and you'll get over it. Don't worry. - Fallen Star spoke.
'But didn't I move through space? Why did I feel the motion?' Grey thought, confused by interspace travel.
- Well, interspace travel isn't folding two points to meet each other. It's entering a different space where distances are different, and then exiting it. This is why you feel the motion. - Fallen Star lectured.
'Ah, I see.'
Grey looked around, happy with what he had learned, only to once again be confused. Where was he?
"Um, Dad. Where are we?" The room was massive, with white walls, a white ceiling and a white floor. White as far as the eye could see.
"We are in the reception. In about 30 minutes, the portals will shut off, and the exams will begin. Well, I say exam, but it's just one test. I don't even know why they make you come here. They can just test you at the Association." Lucas began to rant as usual, and was quickly shut up by Samantha.
---
Just as Lucas had said, in about 30 minutes, the lights flashed, covering everyone in momentary darkness. Once they came back on, Grey was no longer with his parents. In fact, none of the parents were present any more.
'Hmm, they most likely separated us to begin the test, but where are we? How were we split?' Grey's inquisitive mind span at high speeds, trying to figure out the mystery of how they were all no longer where they once were.
Luckily for him, the one bearing the answer appeared on the stage that was now in front of him. He was 60 years old, but he looked like he was 45. Grey immediately figured out who the man was.
"Hello, my to-be students. I am Jay Alv, Rank 1 in both the Hero League and the Hunter League. You may have heard of me. I am the bearer of an otherworldly attribute, Starlight." Upon hearing the words of the man, Grey found his answer.
'So Starlight can be used for transportation. Fascinating.'
"WOW! IT'S JAY ALV!"
"CAN YOU BELIEVE IT! RANK 1!"
"CAN I GET YOUR AUTOGRAPH?"
The teens in the room all began to speak up, expressing their excitement at the fact that they were with Jay Alv.
"Now, now, calm down." He spoke, instantly shutting everybody up. It seemed that he was quite charismatic, for he could take control of a room in just a few words.
"Behind me are several testers. You will line up so the machine can measure your statistics. Any disorder will result in immediate failure. There is no need to give us any details, upon scanning you, we will know who you are. Before getting to the machines, however, you need to get changed."
As Jay spoke, several people holding folded up suits came around, handing everybody one. The room must have had several thousand people, so it took a while for everybody to get a suit.
Once the people had gone back to the sidelines, Jay spoke.
"I will now give you privacy to get changed. You will need to get out of your clothes, unfortunately, so keep hold of them once you do." Upon finishing his remark, Grey found himself unable to see around him. There was a small circle that he could see, but no more. He could not even walk past the walls set up.
'This must be Jay Alv's Dark spell. It's probably custom-made. I wonder what the chant is?' Grey thought, whilst putting the suit on.
It was rather tight, and stiff, but Grey got the hang of it.
'It's like a blood pressure cuff, but everywhere.' He pondered.
About 5 minutes later, the walls suddenly disappeared, revealing everyone in the suit, with their clothes in their hands.
"Alright. Now, please line up. And do so orderly." Jay said, to which everyone followed perfectly. No-one wanted to miss the chance to enter The Island over a small mishap.
"Begin!"
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
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