“Let’s stand over there, people are about to start arriving and the entire place will fill up,” Isla said as she led Arthur to a corner of the platform where they stood alone. Others looked at them curiously from afar as they were very eye-catching, but nobody approached them yet.
Several minutes passed as students started appearing on the platform, one after the other as they filled the place. Their numbers slowly increased at a steady pace.
“The atmosphere is already so tense,” Arthur muttered as he crossed his arms and rested his back against the wall.
“It’s expected. These people aren’t sure of what’s about to happen. Their expectations and fear are overlapping.” Isla replied.
“Damn, you’re really good at psychological analysis, where did you learn that?” Arthur asked with a raised eyebrow.
“… To survive where I come from, you have to be able to read people really well. The better you can read them, the better your position is.”
“Hm, so when you met me first time, what did you think of me?” The boy thought for a moment as a grin appeared on his face. ‘Hahaha! That’s a good question!’
“Do you mean my first impression of you?” Isla turned to look at him.
“Yes, first impression.”
The girl went silent for a moment as she tried to recall what happened that day. Their first meeting was quite a unique one so she couldn’t easily forget it. In fact, it left an impression on her to that day. The way he had almost killed her entire team and then said that she was a horrible leader, she had never met someone like that before. Yet, as disrespectful as it was, Isla didn’t really hate it.
She found it rather amusing.
“Hmm, I would say… quirky is the right word to describe my first impression of you.”
“Quirky?”
“You were a very quirky individual. I couldn’t predict what you were going to do or say next.”
“… Is that a good thing?” Arthur gulped.
“It’s definitely not negative. We wouldn’t be here if it was a negative first impression. I usually don’t give second chances.” Isla said in a calm tone.
‘Damn, that is quite ironic since that first encounter could’ve not gone any worse.’ Arthur laughed inwardly as he stared at Isla.
“Though, what you said that day, was that truly your first impression of me?” Isla returned the question.
“… Uh, to be honest, yes. I thought that you weren’t really that good of a leader for not properly leading your group. But, I could’ve not been any more wrong.” He replied as he rubbed the back of his head.
“What do you mean?” Weirdly enough, Isla seemed even more curious of what he was thinking about.
“I mean, I have seen how you lead the group and you are a really good leader. I don’t have any complaints.” Arthur shrugged.
He had seen how Isla dealt with the situations. She was smart, decisive, and caring enough that she tries to protect her group from any harm. She was a true leader through and through and Arthur believed that firmly.
“…” Isla stared at the boy with a blank expression. He couldn’t read what was going through her mind at that moment.
“Is that so?” She muttered and turned away.
‘Did she not like that?’ Arthur squinted his eyes.
But, at that moment, he heard a noise coming from afar.
“Isla!!”
Looking ahead, he saw a group of three people approaching them. Arthur immediately recognized the group as his team. Herculia, Emmy, and Danny. They all looked exactly like their game avatars but with some minor differences.
“Wait, is that you, Arthur?! Holy shit, you look different, man!” Herculia exclaimed when he noticed Arthur. “I didn’t recognize you.”
“Haha, that’s what she said.” He replied. “I look cooler, don’t I?”
“You definitely look far more dashing, hehe!” Emmy laughed.
“Hey! Don’t insult how I looked before so blatantly!” Arthur jokingly exclaimed. Herculia and Emmy laughed loudly.
Meanwhile, Danny looked from the side with the usual glaring look. He was inspecting Arthur with his eyes.
‘The serum had done an overhaul on how he looks. How much power did he gain for such a drastic change to happen?’ He thought to himself.
Danny was aware of the serum effect. But, never did he think the serum could make someone change so much in such a short period of time. He even noticed some changes in himself, but not to the extent of Arthur. It requires him to be pumped with an unbelievable amount of serum.
“Looking good, Danny.” At that moment, he heard Arthur speaking to him.
“… Thanks.” He replied blandly.
“So, when are we going to get inside?” Herculia asked.
“So far, the elevators are still closed. It seems we should wait for someone to open them for us.” Arthur replied.
At that moment, he started listening to some whispers coming from people close to them. Since the place was now getting more and more filled, they couldn’t really hide their conversations from his sharp ears.
“Look at those people…”
“Wait, do you recognize that girl?”
“Yeah, isn’t that Isla Goldsmith?”
“That big guy… It’s Herculia Norman! Isn’t his dad the previous world champion boxer?”
“That short girl too! That’s Emilia Forger!”
“Isn’t she the daughter of a powerful businessman?”
“That guy is Daniel Maine! From what I know, his family owns several airports across the world.”
“Wow, how are all these individuals here? And they seem to be together?”
“Though, do you recognize that fifth guy?”
“Hm? No, I can’t recognize him. What about you?”
“He doesn’t look familiar to me. Who is he?”
“I wonder if he’s also a rich second generation like them.”
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‘I’m not a second-generation dipshit, idiots!’ Arthur rolled his eyes as he ignored the group. He was aware that he was standing around extremely influential and powerful individuals while he was just another guy.
But, he really didn’t care that much. If these were the only people ready to accept him as their friend, then he was fine with that.
As he was contemplating that, he heard the students around him gasp. Immediately, he looked up to check what was happening when he noticed it. High in the sky, two giant platforms slowly descended through the tubes down to their level. The glass gates of the elevators started opening on their own.
“…”
Everyone watched in awe and nobody moved at all. Then, a voice spoke to them.
“Please, get into the elevator calmly.” The voice boomed through the entire place, reaching everyone there. It was calm yet also very powerful, almost as if it was ordering them to do so.
At first, they were a little surprised, but then, their curiosity finally took over and one by one, the students started getting into the platforms.
Like waves, they entered the gates without hesitation. Their excitement was clear in their eyes.
“I think we should go too. It’s time.” Arthur said as he started walking.
“You’re right, time to see what the fuss is all about. They better not disappoint.” Herculia stretched and followed Arthur.
Unbeknownst to them that the moment their feet stepped onto that platform… A whole new world was about to open to them. A world meticulously crafted to create heroes. And by heroes… They mean warriors.
A//N: Don’t forget to give the book some golden tickets for good luck! :3