"Amazing," Isabella muttered under her breath.
Harrison had long since joined them in the control room, and the duo, along with the other operators, had been watching the intense battle that took place.
The reason for Isabella muttered remark wasn't even because of Atticus's show of power. To be honest, at this point, they were all getting numb to his mind blowing feats already.
And besides, what he had displayed during this battle still paled in comparison to what he unleashed in the Shadow Seraphon's caves.
The reason she had said that word was because of one thing: his other division members. And Harrison shared the same sentiments as his daughter.
It was crucial to remember that each one of them were the lowest of the low, complete weaklings with little to no fighting experience. But in the span of three weeks, they had transformed into a formidable army.
It was simply unbelievable. They were now well-organized, well-coordinated, and completely efficient.
'It's like he was born to rule,' Harrison thought.
How Atticus had acted since they had sent them all to the expanse wasn't how a leader would act.
A real leader would follow through in everything his subordinates did. A leader would make an effort to bridge the gap between himself and his subordinates and try to get to know them better.
A leader would stand at the forefront of his subordinates in any battle.
But Atticus had done the complete opposite.
Atticus provided precise and simplified orders to his subordinates, without bothering to check on their progress personally. He only received periodic updates on their advancements.
Since they were thrust into the expanse, Atticus never tried to get closer to any one of the youths.
After asserting his dominance over the group, he kept his distance, yet his authority never diminished for a single second — it only added to the respectful way he was treated by the other youths.
And lastly, during the battle, apart from the time he had told them to prepare for battle, Atticus didn't utter any words to them again. The only communication was through Lucas, who disseminated Atticus's instructions to the others.
Atticus wasn't a born leader; he was a born king. It was as though he was born to rule.
Harrison's lips seemed to curl up a bit as he gazed at Atticus's figure on the screen, 'He should be able to put the other races in their place,' Harrison thought.
He quickly returned his expression back to normal before anyone in the room could notice.
Harrison turned his gaze away from the screen to the operators present in the control room and spoke, "Keep up the good work," causing each of the operators to quickly stand up and bow in respect.
With those words, Harrison turned and left the control room.
After a few seconds, with Isabella's features in a contemplative state, she also turned and left the control room without a word.
Once Isabella left, many of the operators slumped in their chairs as exhaustion enveloped each of them.
It wasn't that they had done something strenuous for them to be exhausted; it was simply due to the roller coaster of emotions that Atticus had taken them through today.
It was simply too much.
"Haha, how ironic," one of the operators suddenly spoke.
"What is?" another inquired.
"It's just… to think we complained about how boring it had been a few hours ago and now we're complaining about things being too eventful," the first operator replied, finishing his words with a chuckle.
The other operators in the room all joined in the laughter. It truly was ironic.
"Do you know the ones I pity the most?" another operator suddenly interrupted their laughter.
All the other operators in the room turned to look at him with inquisitive gazes.
The operator smiled and continued,
"The people I pity the most are the students that have to fight that monster."
A complete and utter silence enveloped the control room as those words settled in.
*****
Atticus turned his gaze towards the direction of the forest. 'It didn't come?' He pondered.
Atticus had half expected that the Shadow Seraphon would have shown up during the battle. He was, of course, ready to face and kill it off if it ever did, but it never showed.
'Maybe it can't leave the cave,' Atticus considered. There were many reasons that came to his head, but he felt that this was the most plausible explanation.
Taking his gaze away from the forest, Atticus took a step forward.
SPLASH
"Hmm?" Atticus muttered, turning his gaze downwards to see a pool of blood below him, ankle-length.
Atticus turned his gaze around him. It was then he realized how much carnage he had unleashed. "Damn, I went a little far," Atticus muttered with a chuckle.
Unlike the last time where there were no remains of beasts left because Atticus had turned them all to ash, this time around, each of the beasts he killed had their blood and gore spill on the earth.
And gazing at the number of corpses around him, it was complete and utter carnage.
Stretching in every direction were the remains of the fallen beasts, their bodies split into thousands upon thousands of pieces.
The ground was a gruesome tapestry of spilled gore and guts, a macabre display that left an indelible mark on the earth.
The pool of blood extended so far that it saturated the ground in a staggering radius of 500 meters away from Atticus, dyeing the once natural hues of the earth in a haunting shade of crimson.
But despite how bloodied and crimson the area was, despite the number of beasts he had killed, Atticus's white robe remained spotless. Even his shoes.
He was instinctively utilizing the air element to form a thin barrier around his form throughout the duration of the fight, preventing any blood or even dirt from staining his body.
Atticus suddenly remembered something. He quickly turned his gaze to see Aurora, who was already moving towards him rapidly.
'Shit,' Atticus thought. Focusing on the earth element, Atticus allowed his form to suddenly sink into the earth, leaving a furious scream behind,
"Atticus!!!"
