The Grand Lord University is genuinely worthy of its titles. Seraphina thought. The pen in her hand danced across the screen on her desk, leaving behind virtual ink patterns forming sentences and paragraphs. Her answers flowed from her mind and straight into the real world, with every vital detail accounted for.
This went on for hours, yet Seraphina did not once falter in her posture and pace. At timed intervals, she would rest and stretch—her efficiency and accuracy therefore guaranteed. When the darkness of the night reached its peak, she finally let her stylus rest, as her desk fell into slumber.
Silently she stared out into space. Her eyes, which could've taken in the vast cityscape visible from her window, had lost focus. Her eyes darkened despite the lights of her room, and an eerie aura permeated her figure.
I hope it's quick, this time.
The noble youth allowed her eyes to close shut, and tears of crimson red began to pool at its corners.
Drip, drip, drip.
Droplets of blood fell onto her desk. An aura of suffering exuded from each one, freezing the room in a baneful atmosphere.
Still, Seraphina did not waver as she sat in silence. Her body was a stalwart fortress, incapable of even a quiver. She poured all her energy into her consciousness as she withstood the pain that assaulted the depths of her soul. Her only weapon was the sheer force of will that she wielded thanks to the opal ring on her finger.
The curse that was laying waste to the Ravenscroft family was waging war against her, and she was barely putting up a fight.
When it was all over, the regal youth of noble blood had grown pale and weak. Her desk, which should've been overflowing with blood showed no signs of being tainted. There was no proof that all her suffering had passed.
It was as if the last several minutes were but a dream that her mind had conjured. A simple hallucination brought about by academic exhaustion.
Alas, if an entire family experienced the exact same thing at the exact same time, then coincidence wouldn't be a fit explanation.
Eighteen minutes? Seraphina stood up and walked up to a human-sized cabin. Weariness laced her usual confident demeanour. Her pursed lips threatened to bleed. It's getting worse.
At around the same time, a youth with empty, obsidian-coloured eyes and hair with streaks, transparent and white, had stepped inside a similar human-sized cabin. After an arduous process that numbed his hands and bogged his mind, Areii had completed his own assignments.
He glanced at the Quantum Watch on his wrist, silently admiring the words on display. After an entire month of waiting, the installation of the application, [Unholy Trinity], had been completed. However, not a single piece of helpful information was given to him. All he got was a long list of names and three blank spaces.
After a moment of thought, Areii chose to leave it alone. The mysterious and vague were things that were better left to fate, or else any curious cat would cease to continue its cravings. His original intentions resumed their cyclic patterns when his [Virtual Mind Cabin] whirred to life. In the blink of an eye, his consciousness was sent to planet Aquamarine's world-renown Virtual Realm.
Indeed, the moment Areii blinked and reopened his eyes, he found himself in a totally new world. One that he had grown familiar with in the month that had passed him by. This was the world of Energy Sorcerers—Aquamarine's one and only [Inheritance].
Areii had no choice but to become one of these Energy Sorcerers despite his desire to resume his previous climb to power.
This place is simply a temptation beyond imagination... Areii sighed, once more, in admiration. It had become a ritual for him to gape in awe at the environment he found himself in. Earth's Seven Wonders of the World paled in comparison to even a single structure in this vast realm.
It was as if every Energy Sorcerer poured their heart and soul into each construction, siphoning all of their creativity from the world outside. Compared to the bland Grand Lord University, this place was the Kingdom of God.
"You're here," A soft, modulated voice shook the air near his ear. It was calm. Regal. Yet full of the subtleties of compassion. "Did something come up? Postponing our escapade will not have too much of an effect on our plans."
Areii shook his head. He shifted his gaze towards the young lady who spoke to him. Simply, he spoke. "It's nothing, Lady Seraphina."
Then there was silence.
A twitch shook Seraphina's brow. "Very well. Let us make haste then. We need to acquire that item before the others."
"Mhm," Areii nodded like a drifting ghost. He took off in a sprint, caring not if Serpahina was able to keep his pace. "Do you have any information on those others you speak of? What kind of Sorcerers are they?"
"Four Barrier Mages and eight Blasting Mages." Serpahina's pony-tailed, silky black hair danced like a whip in the wind. Her swift footsteps exuded grace as the pair ran through a scenic city street. The massive artistic buildings that lined both sides of the glowing rainbow road took ages to pass.
Areii frowned. "Are two of these pairs those rumoured double blaster partnerships?"
Seraphina let loose a giggle, their sprinting was nothing in the face of her virtual physique. "Indeed they are. How well do you think we'll fare against them?"
Areii couldn't help but ridicule his own progress when the lady caught up to him. The amount of Core Energy that the noble before him could expend was much greater than his own.
I am not suited to be an Energy Sorcerer... Just forming my Core had taken me three whole weeks. I barely made it before the four-week deadline.
"It's going to depend on how well you time your shields." He replied.
Seraphina couldn't help but smile. "Then you can count on me. I will make sure they are perfect."
After her confident claim, Seraphina felt a flame of excitement bubble in the depths of her chest. She had been heavily advised by her peers against choosing the commoner to be her combat partner. According to them, commoners were rude and without purpose, like headless flies. Their common sense was beyond understanding, and their own talents were severely lacking.
Although her peers were correct in the fact that Areii Layvann was rude and lacking in talent, Seraphina had been incredibly suspicious of his presence in the star section, A-1 Leviathan. Her intuition had screamed into her consciousness. It claimed that the boy was going to be a vital personage for her in the future.
She needed to associate with him when the entire class had disregarded his presence as air. That way, she could incur his gratitude and be in his good graces.
Areii Layvann is definitely a tactician—that brain of his lacks the naïveté of youth. It's a good thing I found him before anyone else had. Serpahine couldn't help but reveal a brighter smile. With him, I can raid monster nests without sacrificing too much. I just have to deal with his problematic status.
Without sufficient standing and societal power, it was going to be difficult for the rest of Seraphina's team to trust in a mere commoner's strategies. Not even marriage could fix this gap as it did for other purposes. Lives were to be put in the hands of the capable. Commoners were most certainly not the definition of such.
She could not help but sigh as she recalled the disappointed expressions of her friends and family.
"We're here." Areii's voice shook her out of her thoughts.
Following Areii's gaze, Seraphina looked through the emerald green thicket, spotting movement just up ahead. The sounds of energy being launched back and forth were like church bells. Every collision caused Seraphina's own energy to roil.
"How are we going to go about this?" Seraphina unpinned her cloak, letting it cascade down her curves. Her beauty was in full view at this moment, yet her companion made no attempt to admire her.
She instead watched as a dangerous glint shone in the depths of Areii's eyes. A pulse of energy burst like a blooming rose from his body, heating up his skin.
"Plan A." He bolted forward with mad gusto, a gun appearing in his right hand. "Ambush!"
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