POV: Aria Akari
As my breathing quickened, my heart raced anxiously as my mind raced with unnecessary doubts from being unable to save Rai, who was on the verge of death as his internal organs ruptured from his fight against Wrath.
"How could this have happened?! I thought Rai was winning against Wrath, so how is he unconscious?!" Everett questioned nervously as he began to panic while Arthur crouched down beside me and checked on Rai's pulse.
"You're wrong. It may have seemed like Rai was winning easily, but gravity is one of the few elements that can cause internal damage and not only did Wrath land several gravity empowered attacks, he landed three fatal attacks on Rai, who endured one of them without the use of his own Aspect. It's a miracle that he's even alive right now, but if we don't get him to a hospital soon, he'll die-"
As Arthur was explaining Rai's condition, Pride suddenly appeared before us with his Aspectual Force concealed and smashed his fist into Arthur's jaw, but to his surprise, Arthur managed to activate his Aspect in the nick of time as he endured Pride's attack, prompting a scowl from Pride as his fist rested against Arthur's cheek.
Pride?
Was he waiting for Rai to fall unconscious?!
"I knew you were waiting for this, you coward." Arthur said as he shoved Pride's arm away from him and tried to unsheathe his sword, but despite Arthur's extraordinary instincts, Pride's combat prowess prevailed as he prevented Arthur from fully unsheathing his sword by placing the palm of his hand onto Arthur's bent elbow, forcing him into exchange of hand-to-hand combat as Pride landed a sharp backhand across Arthur's face.
As Arthur staggered backwards, Pride stomped his foot into the ground below with considerable force, breaking apart the earth from beneath us as Arthur lost his balance and in that moment, Pride's leg's bursted apart from within as he lunged forward and smashed his fist into Arthur's abdomen, sending him flying backwards into the distant forest as he spewed out blood while steam issued from wounds across Pride's legs until they were miraculously healed in an instant.
Arthur!
POV: Pride
I know I'm a coward for my actions, but I refuse to let them escape alive after what they did to my comrades.
Arthur is too strong for me to handle and I'm unable to kill the other two in time because of Joseph's granddaughter, but with the remaining power I have left…
I'll kill this boy!
"RAI!" Joseph's granddaughter screamed anxiously as I clenched my fist and tried to impale the boy's chest, but to my bewilderment, I struck an invisible force resembling a wall of wind, preventing me from killing the boy, despite using every ounce of my remaining strength.
"What?" I muttered incredulously as someone tapped on my shoulder, prompting me to face them as I was met with a tall, black haired man who wore a carefree smile, but as I gazed into the man's mint green eyes, I was met with a cold reality as I began trembling in fear from realizing the identity of the man that stood before me.
"Ryan… Zephyr?" I uttered in trepidation, baffled that someone of his caliber would appear before me as my body was enveloped in cold sweat while my mind ran amok, searching frantically for a sliver of hope in surviving against the behemoth of a man that towered above me.
I don't know why Ryan Zephyr is here, but my pride no longer matters.
I have to survive at any cost!
"I know this kid can be annoying, but you see, he's my precious student and it's not his time to die yet." Ryan said with a lighthearted chuckle as I immediately stood from the ground and tried to punch his face, but my desperation was in vain as Ryan parried my arm into the air with his own, stepping forward with such finesse that it seemed as if the wind itself beckoned to his calling and in the moment he placed his hand onto my chest, I felt the impending doom of death looming upon me.
"I do hope you survive this. I have some questions to ask you later." Ryan added with a carefree grin as he blasted a devastating force of wind into my chest, sending me flying backwards through the distant forest at an unfathomable speed until I slammed against the Exterel Mountains, creating a giant crater on impact as my consciousness slipped away from me.
POV: Ryan Zephyr
As I observed the unnecessary path of destruction I created, I let out a sigh.
Maybe I overdid it, but more importantly…
The document of the mission stated there were several A-Class heroes on stand-by, but instead, I found a dead hero hanging from a tree with no other heroes to be anywhere in sight.
The only reasonable deduction is that the other bodies are scattered throughout the forest or the Hero Association never sent any to begin with.
I pinched my nose irritably as I felt a headache beginning to conjure until I turned around to find Aria, Everett and Sarah staring at me with their eyes widened and mouths agape from my unanticipated arrival, but despite confirming their safety, I noticed there was a student missing as I quickly scanned the area.
Where is Arthur?
As I pondered, I sensed someone sprinting towards us through the forest as if it was none other than Arthur, who emerged from a thicket of trees as his eyes widened in surprise from my appearance.
"Headmaster? What a good time to see you." Arthur said with a sigh of relief as he deactivated his Aspect, seating himself onto the ground as I looked at Rai, who was unconscious with blood trickling from his mouth.
"Headmaster, Rai-"
"I know. His internal organs are ruptured, but there's no need to worry because I've brought Jennifer with me." I said with an assuring smile as Jennifer arrived at the scene, activating her Aspect with her Aspectual Force concealed as her red aura enveloped our bodies, healing everyone at once with incredible speed and efficiency as they watched their own wounds disappear within seconds in awe.
"Your healing is on a completely different level than my own." Aria remarked with a disheartened expression.
"I have twenty years of experience with an awakened Aspect. You have the Aspect to manipulate Light itself and you're still relatively young. With your potential, you'll reach a level that I couldn't even begin to comprehend." Jennifer replied with a comforting smile as she deactivated her Aspect while Aria nodded with a determined smile.
As everyone conversed with one another, I walked towards Rai and placed him on my back as he slept quietly from fatigue.
Thank you for saving everyone, Rai.
"There's a driver waiting for you all at the entrance of this forest. Is everyone ready?" I asked as my students nodded and began following behind Jennifer with the exception of Arthur, who stayed behind with me as his eyes brimmed with curiosity, begging to ask me questions.
"Go ahead, Arthur." I said as Arthur sighed, matching my pace as he placed his hands inside his pockets.
"I have several questions for you and I want the honest truth." Arthur said with a serious tone as I glanced at him before nodding.
"If you knew the severity of this mission, why did you send us? Everything went wrong and if it wasn't for Rai, we would have all been killed." Arthur asked calmly as the rest of my students conversed with Jennifer.
"You and Rai were the sole reason I even allowed you all to accept this mission although, I was unaware that the details of this mission were false, but I should have taken more precautions before sending you all on this mission. I apologize for that." I replied.
"I see. I guess my main question would be about him." Arthur said as he looked at Rai, who slept peacefully on my back.
"I knew there was something off about Rai the day that I met him, but after witnessing his power, there's still something I don't understand."
"Who is Rai? For somebody as strong as him, it doesn't make any sense that I've never heard of him before." Arthur added as I smiled at his curiosity.
"As of now, it's not my place to tell you, but when the time comes, I'm sure Rai will explain everything to you. What I can tell you now is that Rai's life up to now has been far from a normal one. Any more questions?" I asked as there was a moment of silence from Arthur thinking to himself.
"Since you seem to have history with Rai, I'm sure you know of his power, so if the two of us were to fight, who would win?" Arthur asked as I noticed Aria glancing behind to check on us.
"I'm assuming you want to fight him, is that correct?" I asked with a smile.
"As you know, my goal is to become the strongest. After Avery went overseas, I was bummed out because he was the only one I could truly test my limits on without worrying about his safety, but after experiencing Rai's power today, I believe he's also someone that I can fight without restraining myself." Arthur replied with a grin as I chuckled at his elation.
"I understand, but if the two of you were to fight…"
"Rai would win." I replied earnestly as Arthur clicked his tongue.
"So he's that strong?" Arthur asked with a nervous grin as I nodded while we exited the forest.
His potential is boundless, but the same could be said for you, Arthur.
You two are so similar that it's no surprise you get along with each other.
As we arrived at the car, I waited for the students to enter inside first before placing Rai beside Aria, who subtly blushed as Rai's head fell onto her shoulders.
"When do you think you'll be back?" You know how Rylie can get when you leave her watching over the academy alone." Jennifer asked as she sat down in the passenger seat of the car.
"I'm not sure when I'll be back. It depends on how long the authorities take to arrive, but Rylie should be fine until then. She needs to learn responsibility anyways." I replied as Jennifer sighed with a smile.
"Very well. Please take care of yourself and I'll see you back at the academy." Jennifer said as I waved everyone off while they drove into the distance.
After watching them leave, I headed back inside the forest to check on the Seven Sins bodies as I pulled out my phone and turned it on.
My phone isn't jammed anymore, meaning that there was never a jamming device to begin with, but someone who possesses an Aspectsimilar to that of an electromagnetic pulse.
It couldn't have been Pride since I watched his wounds heal instantly and as for Wrath, I assume his Aspectis Gravity Manipulation considering the internal damage Rai received, but what I don't understand is why the person chose to watch from afar instead of intervening.
They could have easily killed my students with the help of Pride and yet, they chose to watch, but despite their actions…
There's still the mission I have to think about.
The only ones who have the authority to give missions are Joseph and the Executives, but why would they give me false information that jeopardizes the lives of students?
There's too many unknown variables as of now and the only one who could give me an answer would be Joseph, who is currently away as of now.
"What a mess." I muttered to myself with a sigh as I took out a box of cigarettes from my pocket and placed one in my mouth, taking a moment to relax as I closed my eyes and relished in the peaceful atmosphere, listening to the comforting ambient noise of the wildlife scattered within the tranquil Exterel Mountains.
Had I known this mission was merely the prelude to a catastrophic war that would lay waste across the land of Jiyu, I would have cherished this moment of peace.