20 Does A Lobster Have Enough Meat? (1/2)
In a town packed full of people, a young boy rode on top of a beast. The orange and grey coat of the beast stood out in the town, it's single horn looking sharper than fine swords. The young boy held onto the horn which could pierce through the thickest of armors. This boy, with his ashen, obsidian-like hair, looked like a beautiful demon. The grey tattoos that evoked jealousy from countless people shined like the moon on a dark, dreadful night. The two men in front of the boy had their own unique characteristics. The man with inky-black hair gave off a cold presence that made people want to stay away. His ocean blue eyes scanned the surroundings, intimidating everyone on the path. The more enthusiastic man, beside the cold one, had flame-like hair that stood out even in the darkest of areas. His golden eyes glowed like the radiant sun.
”Daddy look, that guy has a lobster on his head!” From afar, a little boy sat on his father's shoulders. His little fingers pointed towards Brajus' red hair.
”What did you say?! Come here! Say it to my face! See if I don't put a lobster on your head!” The boy's father walked away with an awkward smile, while the boy on his head continued to laugh. Brajus' face became as bright as a tomato. He was feeling both embarrassed and angry.
”See what I said, lobster head? Haha!” Arnin laughed from behind him, which further angered Brajus. He turned around and gave Arnin a piercing glare before ignoring him once again. He touched his short, red hair and brought it in front of his eyes. He released a sigh before walking with a hunched back. His eyes seemed less alive than before and his face became duller. Arnin continued to laugh at him with mockery.
Arnin calmed himself down and looked at the buildings that slowly began to reduce in numbers. Up ahead, Arnin noticed a hill that climbed towards the sky. The path widened from stone into the dirt once again. The trees were nowhere to be seen; all that was left was a smooth hill path. As Arnin approached the massive hill, he noticed a stand at the base. There was a gate that stood in front of the hill, but the passage was blocked by a few people.
”Kid, we are approaching the academy gate's so you better behave yourself.” Brajus turned around and spoke to Arnin like a superior. He felt that with all the teachers that were going to be around, he had enough backing to face Arnin. Although he was trying to act high and mighty in front of Arnin, he didn't get a single reaction from him. Even worse was the fact that Arnin was completely ignoring him.
”Hey, are you listening? If you listen to me now, then maybe I can help you later. What do you say?” Brajus put on a mocking and superior smile. He tried to taunt Arnin but he didn't notice him getting flustered or scared. Suddenly, Arnin turned and looked at him.
”Lobster head, would you mind quieting down? Some people aren't into seafood.” Arnin evilly smiled towards Brajus who was about to rush towards Arnin. Dane turned and grabbed Brajus.
”Go and see if the others are here or in the academy.” Dane didn't have time to bicker so he only gave a command before leaving. He then turned to Arnin and looked at him expressionlessly. ”To get into the academy, you have to take an exam of talent and other small things. You can go on and do that while I go report some things to the teachers.” With that, Dane left Arnin alone with Vilis.
”Since the village elder isn't here yet, I will just complete the tests. Maybe I can get accepted before he arrives.” Arnin couldn't see the village elder when he came. He still had a day before they would arrive. Arnin got off of Vilis and walked towards the entrance to the hill. He found a teacher holding a pen and paper, so he walked towards him. He inspected the teacher as he approached him and was surprised to find a cultivation level that was much higher then his own beasts. Since Arnin didn't fully understand the realms, he didn't know what the teacher achieved. However, it was on the same level as Avian's, or at least around the same level. The teacher had long silver hair that reached just below his shoulders. He wore glasses with large lenses and had a small mole on his left cheek. His asphalt eyes intently stared at the piece of paper in front of him. His clothes were half black and half white. The white side had a symbol of a coal-colored moth, while the black side had a pure, paper white butterfly
”Excuse me, would you happen to know where I can take the entrance exams for this academy?” Arnin politely asked the teacher. The man abruptly lifted his head and looked at Arnin with surprise. He looked down and saw the small Arnin and smiled, but when he saw the beast behind Arnin his smile froze.
”Little boy, is that your beast?” The teacher had some fluctuation in his speech. He didn't look frightened, rather he looked surprised and even somewhat envious.
”Yes sir, this is my beast, Vilis. So, where can I take the exams?” Arnin went back to the main topic. He only really cared about the exams, not making small talk with a person.
”Oh yes, the exams. You don't need to go anywhere, I am one of the conductors for the exams. Well, I wouldn't call it an exam. It is more like a talent check and battle test. So, how did you get such a beast?” The teacher seemed distracted when he spoke. He went back to the topic about the beast.
”Teacher, can we talk about the beast later? Let's first get the main things out of the way.” Arnin helplessly tried to avoid the topic about the beast. He found the teacher to be quite laid back. Although Arnin didn't mind, he still found it tiresome to answer the same questions for different people.
”Oh sure. Haha. So, the talent check is extremely quick. I want to stick your hand inside this aura flame. Depending on the color that appears, we will know how high your talent is. Let me first tell you how each talent is divided from lowest to highest. Brown, Yellow, Orange, Red, Green, Blue, Purple, and White. One has to have at least Red flames to gain entry into the academy. However, if they get Brown or Yellow, their battle scores determine their entrance. Also, if there is an off chance that none of these colors appear, then one has to take an extra test. First, they would take the battle exam and only if they do well will they be allowed to do the final exam. The final exam is special so I won't mention it right now.” The teacher spoke a mouthful before finally taking a break. He released a breath and smiled towards Arnin weakly. Arnin nodded seriously.
This time the test was very detailed. They incorporated the unknown as well, which Arnin found to be extremely surprising. In his past life, that was never a result. It got him thinking that maybe there were others like him and Lilise who had the black talent or some other color talent.
The teacher produced a flame on his palm which seemed to be colorless. It was a weird flame that was abnormal and mysterious. Arnin lifted his hand and slowly submerged it into the mysterious element. There was no pain, or any sort of negative feeling. It felt like the wind was wrapping itself onto his hand. Suddenly the flame began to change color. It didn't turn into any of the colors that the teacher said, which Arnin didn't find too surprising. The teacher, on the other hand, was astonished. His eyes began to glow when he looked at Arnin. The flame color increased in height and turned pitch black tinged, with an ashen grey hue. The flame didn't stop increasing in height. It reach the the length of a full grown man, but it still didn't stop. Arnin noticed that the higher it grow, the greater the glow in the teachers eyes. Arnin quickly pulled his hand back and placed it by his side. The flam stopped moving and began to shrivel up. It faded into the open air and turned back into the colourless flame from before.
Sweat poured down the teachers face as his breathing rapidly increased. He tried his best to collect himself, but that became too difficult so he allowed himself to act like a fool. The people from the surrounding noticed the large flame so they walked over. However, by the time they reached the location, the flame disappeared. A man that had similar clothes to the teacher walked out from the crowd and rushed towards him. He quickly stood beside the panting teacher and began to question.