POV: Rai Shinsei
The classroom was in a hectic state as many students scurried around in order to find a team and amidst the chaos, I found myself staring at Aria, who was the main focus of the class as she was surrounded with many students who practically begged for her attention.
I'm certain her Aspect has a healing factor, but trying to win her over against all of those students is going to be a hassle.
Although…
This might be a stretch, but if I'm correct about her wanting something from me, then maybe her joining our team will be less of a nuisance than I initially thought.
"Arthur, do you know what kind of Aspect Aria has?" I asked curiously as Arthur tilted his head in confusion as if my question was absurd.
"You don't know what Aria's Aspect is?" Arthur questioned in a tone that felt as if he was testing my intelligence, which nearly made me lose my composure as he even had the audacity to casually take a bite out of his apple.
"Arthur, if I knew what her Aspect was, do you seriously believe that I would be asking you?" I replied calmly.
"That's a good point, but I'm surprised you really don't know who Aria is though, considering that she's not only the granddaughter of Joseph, the strongest hero among this continent, but she also inherited his Divine Elemental Aspect…"
"Light Manipulation." Arthur stated as his response left me dumbfounded.
Although it makes sense why her name sounded familiar, the itch in my brain hasn't been satisfied yet as if there's something I'm missing.
I stared at Aria for a moment as I found it hard to accept that among this entire world, a wielder of a Divine Elemental Aspect was right before me.
In this world, there's a wide variety of Aspects, but they're sorted into three main categories.
Normal-Type Aspects, which is the most common Aspect to possess among Aspectors as it only enhances a specific trait, such as your own strength, speed, reflexes and so forth.
Unique-Type Aspects, which is considered rare among Aspectors as it gives your Aspect a special effect, such as the power to amplify your damage by a certain ratio or the power to generate shockwaves with a single punch.
Lastly, Elemental-Type Aspects, which is the rarest Aspect-Type among all Aspectors as you have the power to manipulate and create a specific element, such as fire, ice, and even light itself.
There are many sub-categories for Elemental-Type Aspects, but they are also sorted into three main categories.
Natural, Transcendent and Divine.
Natural Elemental-Type Aspects are your basic elements that many use within their daily lives, such as fire, water, earth and wind.
Transcendental Elemental-Type Aspects are much more advanced compared to your Natural Elemental-Types as they grant the Aspector with immense power, consisting of lightning, ice, gravity and nature.
As for Divine-Elemental Aspects, they are deemed as a blessing from the heavens as any Aspector who possesses one are granted with unfathomable power once they realize their potential, allowing them to either manipulate light or darkness itself and to believe that my own classmate is among the handful of people to possess such power is baffling.
Having her on our team would be amazing since we would have a healer, but considering her options and the fact that nearly everyone within the classroom wants her on their team, I can't imagine her accepting my invitation.
Not to mention, if Everett and his friend joins, that means we will only have one spot left and if Aria won't join without bringing a friend or two along…
I should have thought more deeply about this-
"Rai, I'll join your team." Everett said from behind as Arthur and I turned around to find him without his friend.
"Is your friend joining?" I asked.
"No. Julian said he wasn't prepared to go on his first mission without a supervisor, so he chose to look for another team to join." Everett answered as I noticed him fidgeting with his hand anxiously.
"As I said before, there won't be a hero supervising us. Are you sure you want to join us, Everett?" I questioned gravely as there was hesitation written visibly across his face until he gathered his courage and took a deep breath.
"I'm sure. It's just as you said. Anybody can be strong as long as they're not restrained by their own fear." Everett replied with a smile as I found myself grinning at his newfound determination.
"It seems like you understood what I was trying to say." I remarked as I shifted my focus towards Aria.
With Everett's friend out of the picture, we now have two spots available.
With the knowledge that I have, Sarah should be Aria's close friend as I noticed them walking together yesterday amidst my fight with Jordan and I also overheard them talking about personal matters, involving their living quarters and so on.
If Aria will join as long as Sarah joins, then our team composition should be very balanced…
So let's see if all goes well.
POV: Aria Akari
Nearly half an hour had passed and Sarah and I were still unable to decide who we wanted for our teammates as being bombarded by what felt like the entire class did not ease our situation at all.
I'm beginning to lose my patience.
"Aria, although our ranks are low, I can assure you that the three of us are more compatible to be your teammates than anyone else in this classroom as the three of us are all specialized in close combat! With us three on the frontlines, you and Sarah can-"
"Daniel, we've heard you for the third time, but if the worst comes to worst, can we rely on the three of you to save us? If we were looking for someone specialized in close combat, don't you think we would have asked for someone like Isen instead?" Sarah interrupted, her rude tone sparking a foul mood among the three of them as they hesitated to continue speaking before walking away.
At this rate, we're going to end up randomly assigned to a team if Sarah continues to belittle everyone.
I wonder if Rai-
As if he read my mind, Rai suddenly appeared among the crowd surrounding me as he approached my desk, met with a cold glare from Sarah as I was left surprised by the coincidental timing of his arrival.
What a strange coincidence.
"Is there something you need, Rai?" I asked politely as my question drastically lowered the volume of the chatter around me while their unwelcoming glares focused solely on Rai, who became the main source of attention.
"I wanted to ask-"
"The answer is no. As I just told Daniel and his friends, we don't need any low-rankers dragging Aria down on her first mission. There's plenty of other low-rankers within the class, so go ask them instead of pestering us." Sarah chided as a few students snickered at their remark while others laughed with contempt towards Rai, who remained silent and ignored the obnoxious mockery directed at him.
What is so amusing about disrespecting your own classmate?
"You should take Sarah's advice. Someone as weak as yourself has no chance in joining Aria's team anyways, so move over and-"
Amidst Owen's rambling, he smoothly glanced towards me with a confident smile, expecting me to praise him for his pathetic actions as instead, he was only met with my cold, disgusted gaze as he laughed sheepishly before backing away quietly.
What a delusional boy.
"I'm sorry Rai, but can you please ask your question again?" I asked with a gentle smile.
"Have you already joined a team?" Rai asked, sparking a few snickers within the crowd surrounding me as I ignored their blatant disrespect towards Rai.
"Not yet. That's what Sarah and I were trying to figure out at the moment." I answered as Sarah let out a vexful sigh.
"Is there even anyone on your team to begin with? I hope you don't seriously expect us to join your team when there are obviously better options available." Sarah berated as her insolent tone irked me.
Sarah can be disrespectful at times, but her attitude towards Rai is uncalled for, although…
Why is Rai tolerating all of this?
"Myself, Everett and Arthur." Rai answered calmly.
"Arthur? Why would someone like himself join you and that other worthless low-ranker who gets his ass beat everyday by Jordan?" Sarah asked incredulously as a few students chuckled at her mockery, but despite Sarah being my best friend, I couldn't allow her to ridicule Everett, an innocent student who is just trying to better himself.
"Sarah, you've gone too-"
"If I'm not mistaken, I don't recall ever asking you to join. The only one I want is Aria. Unless you have something to contribute other than your mouth, I don't want an immature brat who refuses to respect those around her. If Aria wants you on the team, then so be it, but if you don't have anything useful to say, then I'd advise you to keep your mouth shut." Rai rebuked harshly with a sharp glare as the crowd around me became silent while Sarah was left perplexed, unable to respond accordingly as she clenched his jaw in frustration.
"What did you just say-"
"We'll be happy to join your team, Rai." I declared with a smile, deescalating the situation as my answer left Sarah baffled, causing her to stammer amidst her questioning my decision as well as the crowd around me.
I don't care what they think of my decision.
If I had to choose between self-entitled students who mock those beneath them or Rai, who stands up for what he believes in, despite the consequences, I'd rather choose the latter.
"Thanks." Rai replied with a smile as he left my desk while most of the students initially surrounding my desk dispersed into separate groups in pursuit of forming a team.
"Aria, are you insane? Why in the world would you choose to join their team?" Sarah questioned.
"Did you have a team in mind?" I asked as Sarah was unable to answer, averting her gaze.
"It'll be fine. Not only will we have Arthur on our team, but I have a feeling that there's more to Rai that meets the eye, so there's no need to worry." I added with a smile as Sarah deadpanned.
"So you made this decision with a gut feeling?" Sarah asked as I nodded with a grin.
"We're doomed." Sarah stated with a sigh of defeat as I turned to watch Rai converse with Arthur and Everett.
I also want to know what kind of person he truly is as there must be a reason why the Headmaster wants me to recruit him into the Student Council.
POV: Rai Shinsei
"Any luck?" Arthur asked, wiping tears of joy from his eyes as he finished showing a video to Everett, who remained silent with an awkward smile as he was unable to understand the joke.
"It wasn't easy, but I managed to convince them to join our team." I replied, sitting back into my desk while Arthur showed another video to Everett, who looked at Arthur as if something was wrong with him.
"While we still have time to spare, I suppose we should know of everyone's Aspects beforehand." I suggested, but deep down, I was also curious.
"As you know, Aria's Aspect is Light Manipulation and as for Sarah, I think her Aspect involves something to do with healing, but as for my own, I possess a Unique-Type Aspect called Delayed Impact." Arthur stated as I shifted my eyes towards Everett.
"My Aspect is also a Unique-Type that's called Energy Transfer, but unfortunately I'm unable to even use my Aspect properly." Everett replied embarrassingly as he scratched his cheek.
Delayed Impact and Energy Transfer.
If I am correct in my understanding of their Aspects, then it makes sense why Arthur is as strong as he is, but as for Everett, it doesn't make sense why he's not at least a mid-ranker with an Aspect such as his own, unless…
Amidst Everett's conversation with Arthur, I glanced at the frame of his body as everything began to make sense.
His body is too weak for his own Aspect.
It's like a glass of water.
Once you fill the glass, the excess water will leak and the same can be said for his Aspect.
If he absorbs too much energy, then the excess energy will be forced out from within, resulting in his limbs potentially bursting apart-
"What's your Aspect, Rai?! You must have a crazy Aspect, right?!" Everett asked with an ecstatic grin as his eyes brimmed with curiosity.
"It's nothing special. My Aspect is a Normal-Type that enhances my reflexes." I replied as Everett's expression continued to brim with awe while Arthur glanced at me skeptically before letting out a sigh.
~
An hour had soon passed as Rylie began class after a member of each team informed her personally of all the members on their respective team.
She then covered the basics of what it takes to be a hero as she explained thoroughly the risks that heroes could make if they're not careful, but despite her detailed explanation, I eventually ignored her lecture and began staring outside the window, allowing my mind to drift into daydreaming until the class ended as I had no use for her teaching.
"Alright class. Do not forget that you all have your written exams this week as well as your first mission in the week after. I'm sure most of you are aware, but for those who aren't, the dress code policy for heroes is very flexible with the exception of wearing anything inappropriate. You all will be receiving a balance to spend on an outfit, but if any of you order anything inappropriate, then it will be confiscated immediately."
"Your outfits will take a few days to ship, so please order them within the week as you will be held responsible for your own outfit. If nobody has any questions, you all are dismissed." Rylie explained as she seated herself at her desk while most of the students rushed out of the classroom in joy.
Even though this class is only three hours long, it still feels like an eternity, but I guess it's way better than your standard school.
At my previous school, I had multiple teachers and the school day was at least seven hours long, consisting of multiple educational classes with gym and lunch scheduled between them.
This school only provides basic education as they solely prioritize teaching the fundamentals of what it takes to become a hero as well as developing your Aspect to its full potential.
With Arthur suddenly walking out of the classroom in the middle of Rylie's lecture, I assumed I was going to be alone for the rest of the day as I stood from my hair and yawned, but among the desolate classroom, I noticed Aria was still here as she was focused on writing notes within her notebook, despite everyone being dismissed.
She's truly dedicated to becoming a hero.
I guess it's no surprise though since she is the granddaughter of Joseph, The Vanquisher Of Darkness.
"You didn't leave with your friends?" I asked as my curiosity tempted me to read over her notes.
"I told her that I was going to be busy today, but the truth is that I'm not happy with the way she treated you and Everett, so I decided to focus on studying today as we have our written exam this week." Aria answered with a smile as I noticed a goal written at the top of her notes.
"To become the greatest hero just like my grandfather."
Noticing my intrusion of her privacy, Aria became flustered as she immediately closed her notebook out of embarrassment.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to read-"
"No, it's okay. I know it's a silly goal for somebody like myself anyways." Aria said with a faint smile that held a hint of sadness within it.
"I don't think it's silly at all." I replied earnestly as Aria's eyes widened in surprise.
"Your goal is to become the greatest hero and in order to achieve that goal, you're bound to go through the harshest adversities and as you do, everyone's hopes and dreams will be riding on your shoulders. A goal like that has my utmost respect." I voiced as Aria's expression began to brighten, rousing a warm fuzzy feeling within me as her incandescent golden eyes brought a smile to my face.
"Not to mention, the blood of the greatest hero runs through your veins. If anyone has a chance at becoming the greatest, don't you think it would be you?" I added as I heard Arthur calling my name.
Arthur?
"Rai! Let's grab something to eat! I also found Everett and he said that he also wants to come!" Arthur shouted with a large grin as I noticed Everett being forcefully dragged by him while Aria and I pitied him, sharing a single thought within our minds.
Are you sure he asked?
"Sure. I'll meet you two outside in a few minutes." I replied as Arthur waved the two of us off while dragging Everett across the floor.
Hang in there, Everett.
"Would you like to come with us, Aria? I'm sure they wouldn't mind." I asked.
"Sure." Aria answered with a smile, putting her notebook away and picking up her school bag as the two of us headed towards the exit until I realized I left my school bag at my desk.
"I forgot to grab my bag. I'll meet you all outside." I said with a sigh as Aria nodded with a giggle amidst leaving the classroom, leaving just Rylie and myself within the classroom as I grabbed my bag and began heading towards the exit while trading a glance with Rylie, whose eyes had been focused on me since she dismissed everyone.
"What do you want?" I asked, approaching her desk as a mysterious smile crept upon her face.
"Nothing much honestly, but I suppose I am curious about one thing…"
"Who are you really, Rai Shinsei?" Rylie questioned sternly as her smile immediately vanished.