267 Spirits
Each of the students remained in their seats for a few moments after Isabella left, all of them in deep thought. They all had a huge wake up call today.
The two large figures of Aislan and Eldric shot their gazes to the right and left, respectively, immediately landing on the figure of an orange haired boy who was about to speak, who audibly cleared his throat upon noticing them looking at him.
'I just wanted to say one word!' Seraphin thought in frustration.
As soon as Isabella left the classroom, Kael turned towards Atticus with his characteristic expressionless face. "Hey," Kael greeted.
'Hmm, he's not even bothered about the situation?' Atticus noted.
Ever since he had heard about the attack on the planet, Atticus had already prepared for and anticipated the worst.
This became particularly evident when he observed that every youth of the Ravenstein family was gathered and sent to a camp where they were instructed to fight beasts and compete with each other.
This was all done when they were 10 years old! Of course they were training warriors!
What else could they possibly be doing when they were essentially compelling 10 year olds to engage in such activities?
Atticus decided to leave this matter for another time and responded to Kael's greeting, "Let's leave?" He asked.
Kael nodded, instantly standing up from his seat. Atticus also stood, and they both started walking out of the class.
Each of the other youths were still grappling with what they had just heard and weren't completely paying attention to anything.
If they had, they would have seen both figures of Atticus and Kael walking in tandem with each other, a sight that would have shocked them all to the core.
The door parted, and they both left the class.
Seeing the door close behind Atticus and Kael, each of the youths seemed to snap out of their daze.
And as though it were some kind of cue, one by one they all started standing up and leaving the class.
After a few seconds, only the figures of Zoey and Lila remained in the room. The latter was in deep thought while staring at the door where Atticus had left through.
While the former was battling with an internal dilemma, literally.
'Come on, Zoey! He's absolutely perfect! Tall, handsome, and most importantly, doesn't think with his dick!' A cute, petite voice sounded in Zoey's head, making her release another sigh for the umpteenth time.
'Not this again,' Zoey thought in her head, a slight frustration bubbling up within her.
Honestly, hearing such a petite voice uttering a vulgar word like 'dick' would seem quite jarring.
And that was how it sounded in Zoey's head, but she was already far too used to it.
She knew better than anyone that despite her petite voice, Lumindra was far from underage.
'Yes, this! Zoey, this is your chance. He's perfect; I'm sure you can still catch up with him if you leave right now!'
Zoey shook her head once again. 'Why the hell are you so hell bent on this? I mean sure, he's a little bit handsome and tall with a nice physique, blue eyes, Im-" Zoey's line of thought was abruptly broken by a cute,
'Ahem!'
Zoey froze.
'Why the hell...'
'Hehe,'
'Shut up! I was just repeating what you said!' Zoey instantly gave a feeble excuse in justification but Lumindra giggled even louder, making Zoey turn a little crimson in embarrassment.
'Why did I say that?' She wondered.
If Atticus had heard her earlier thoughts, even he doesn't know how he'd react. But he would sure as hell be happy.
'Why else? Don't act like a clueless fool with me Zoey, You're obviously interested in him!'
'Interested? Me? That can't be,' Zoey shook her head.
It was true Atticus's actions had surprised her. She had also heard every single word he told Lila, and she could feel the weight and gravity constrained in them.
He didn't care about her gender or looks; he wasn't messing around.
But even with this, how could she be interested in him?
Zoey shook her head.
It just wasn't possible.
Lumindra couldn't help but shake her unseen head, seeing Zoey in denial.
'Well, I can't blame her; this is probably the first time she's feeling this way.'
'Listen Zoey, this is probably the first time you've ever felt any interest in the opposite sex, so it's a bit understandable why you're acting like a clueless fool.
'But your feelings cannot lie. Your grandmother also approved! And most importantly, he's strong,' Lumindra's voice turned more serious as she said that last part.
Hearing her, Zoey couldn't help but raise an eyebrow in slight shock. Lumindra had been with her since her childhood, immediately she awakened.
In Eldoralth, mana had existed since the very beginning. And the first beings to harness and wield this ambient mana weren't humans nor the other races in the alliance; it wasn't even the magic beasts either.
It was a being many in the human domain didn't even know existed, and yet they move around them, Spirits.
Only those blessed and deeply connected to mana could perceive and interact with spirits.
And in the vast expanse of Eldoralth, the Starhaven family was the sole known lineage capable of forming bonds with these ethereal beings.
Within the realm of spirits, some had existed long before humans, possessing strength equivalent to a Paragon.
Similar to the hierarchical system for human abilities, novice-Paragon rank, spirits were also categorized from tier one to tier seven, with seven being the most potent, able to match a Paragon in strength.
In stark contrast to other families, the Starhaven tradition dictated that as soon as a member reached the age of seven, they were granted the opportunity to bond with a spirit.
But most individuals from the Starhaven family usually bonded with spirits of lower tiers, even their brightest geniuses typically attained spirits of tier 5.
Although this information was currently being very well-guarded that even the other tier one families were unaware of, upon awakening, Zoey Starhaven had bonded with a tier 7 spirit.
Creation is hard, cheer me up!
