POV: Rai Shinsei
The three-day weekend that every first-year received passed by quickly as I laid in my bed, staring at the ceiling of my dorm in a daze while I allowed myself to bathe in the beam of the morning sunlight peeking through the blinds of my room.
"Are you going to skip class today?" Arthur asked, adjusting the collar of his uniform to his liking as I rose into a sitting position and wiped the crust from my eyes.
"I'm not sure yet." I replied with a yawn.
I've only been here for three weeks and yet, I can't imagine myself lasting another month listening to Rylie's boring lectures as I have no interest in becoming a hero.
"You're probably unaware, but today is the beginning of our new course and I heard that the course will be about the Principle Of Aura. Of course, someone like yourself is overqualified, but I think you should attend class today so you can at least know what the requirement is for passing the final exam." Arthur suggested as he began eating an apple, which seemingly spawned out of thin air as I was nearly inspired to ask him for an explanation until I brushed away my curiosity with a sigh, knowing that it's meaningless trying to comprehend his unnatural actions.
The Principle Of Aura…
I remember when Ryan once tried to explain it to me when I was a kid, but because he is terrible at explaining things, I was unable to grasp it fully as I was forced to learn about it on my own and from what I learned, aura is the manifestation of your Aspect in the form of intangible energy that can be manipulated into a weapon with proper control.
Once you manipulate your aura, its form becomes tangible as the strength and intensity of your aura is based on your Aspectual Power and another fact that I've learned through a rather unpleasant experience is that aura can even disrupt the natural flow of Aspectual Restoration, which works naturally and actively, depending on the insight of the user as aura could even render it completely useless.
I can understand why it's important for heroes-in-training to learn Aura Manipulation as you gain the ability to empower your attacks with the addition of negating one's natural regeneration, but why would Arthur, who is also just as overqualified as myself, have the need to go to class?
"Arthur, you should also be overqualified, so why are you even bothering going to class? Especially if you can just skip whenever you want without any consequences?" I questioned Arthur in the midst of him finishing his apple as he threw the remains away into his trash can, which had a concerning amount of apple cores within them as he had just emptied out his trash can last night.
"You see, I actually don't have any idea on how to manipulate my aura." Arthur deadpanned, creating a moment of silence as for a second, I genuinely believed he was joking until his expression remained the same.
"Are you serious?" I asked incredulously as he confirmed with a nod.
"Then how were you able to use an aura-infused attack in your fight against the Cardinal Sins?" I questioned.
"I don't know how to explain it, but in a fight that requires me to focus, I'm able to instinctively do things that I shouldn't be able to do such as manipulating my own aura or using techniques that I'm unfamiliar with. I'm not too sure of the reason behind it, but it's been like that ever since I was young." Arthur answered casually as his explanation gave birth to a single thought.
He's a genius.
"I see…" I said as Arthur pulled out another apple from his pocket and took a bite.
"So instead of skipping class, I decided to take this course more seriously as I've put aside learning Aura Manipulation for far too long now. I'll be heading to class early, so if you do show up, I'll see you there." Arthur said amidst his mouth being full as he grabbed his school bag and left the dorm, leaving me alone as I stood from my bed with a stretch before heading towards the bathroom to wash my face.
With the exception of the infirmary, I only skipped a few days of class within the three weeks that I've attended this academy, but Ryan has been nagging me constantly about it as unless I'm sick, a member of the Elite Ten or ranked among the top fifteen of the academy, I'm not allowed to skip class.
As annoying as it is, I guess it doesn't hurt to know what the requirement is for the final exam.
With a tiresome sigh, I proceeded with my daily routine as I prepared myself for class.
~
Stepping outside of my dormitory, I took a moment to relax in the cool crisp air of autumn as it reminded me of my hometown and once again, the liveliness of the academy brought a refreshing sense of nostalgia as I held my hand out and allowed a few cherry blossom petals to dance into the palm of my hand.
Although it was for only a moment, I found myself imagining a world where those that I loved were still alive.
A world where instead of seeking revenge and sacrificing years of my life for the sake of my dream, I instead attended this academy as a normal student who enjoyed the leisure of the youth, but as the cherry blossom petals blew from out of the palm of my hand, I found myself back in reality, where my parents along with everyone of my hometown laid lifelessly among the ruins of what used to be my home.
The image remained vividly within my mind, reminding me constantly that the sole purpose of my existence is to avenge those that were taken away from me and nothing more.
Maybe in another world, I could live as a normal person.
Standing still, I embraced the crisp breeze that brushed across my skin until I eventually cured my momentary depression with a sigh and began heading towards the academy.
Although I doubt that I could ever accept this place, I do have to admit that the weather here is rather pleasant, but there's something that's been bothering me…
Amidst my stroll towards the academy, I noticed Jordan trailing me, keeping his distance far enough to prevent any suspicion from onlooking students as I pretended to be unaware of his presence.
Why is he following me?