"The hunt's not starting anytime soon," Richard said, a mischievous glint in his eye. Suddenly, tiny balls of wind appeared beneath his feet, lifting him off the ground. "I'd rather have fun than hang out with you guys."
As he zoomed towards the training hall, his wind balls accidentally scattered Alexa's books. Her eye twitched in annoyance.
Richard zoomed around the hall, his feet hovering above the ground. Young warriors, mages, and healers watched in awe.
"How's he doing that?" someone whispered. "Wish I could do that!"
Richard basked in the admiration until Isaac Ironheart entered the hall. Richard's recklessness caught up with him, and he face-planted onto the floor.
**********************"
I can't wait to use this in the hunt – it'll be a game-changer," Aiden said, hurrying toward the hall for the announcement.
"Finally! I'm beyond curious and excited," Aiden exclaimed, but his enthusiasm was short-lived. Memories of the shadow Yaijuus flooded his mind, and his expression darkened. "I swear, I'll wipe out every last one of you.
"Yo, Aiden!" Peter called out, waving enthusiastically. Aiden waved back.
"My sister's been looking for you," Peter said with a grin, glancing at Pelia, whose face turned bright red as she stepped on his foot.
"Ow!" Peter cried out. "Sorry, I missed my step," Pelia said quickly.
The crowd of evolved ones, around four hundred strong, gathered in the hall, eager not to miss the crucial announcement about the upcoming hunt. They faced Isaac Ironheart, a highly respected figure in the Atlantian kingdom.
Isaac raised his hands, silencing the crowd. He cleared his throat and began to speak.
"Greetings, youngsters," Isaac began, his voice resonating through the hall. "I'm sure you know why you're here."
"Yes, sir!" the crowd responded in unison.
Isaac surveyed the room, nodding in approval. "Many of you think you're ready for the Yaijuu hunt, but you're not. You believe you can go solo, but you're not there yet."
"That's why this hunt will focus on teamwork," Isaac declared, his voice booming through the hall.
Pelia glanced at Peter, mouthing "I told you" with a smug expression. Peter rolled his eyes good-naturedly.
Isaac continued, "But here's the twist: you won't be working with your own class. You'll be paired with a different class."
"Different class? What does that mean?" Peter asked, confusion etched on his face.
"It means you'll be working with students from other classes," Isaac explained. "For example, you and Pelia are warriors, while A and D are mages. You'll be paired with them."
"Who's A and D?" Peter asked, still confused.
Pelia face-palmed, shaking her head. Aiden struggled to stifle a laugh.
"In this hunt, each team will consist of five members: two warriors, two mages, and one healer," Isaac clarified.
"Great, we just need to select two mages and one healer," Peter said, striding toward the mage group.
"Wait, what about Aiden?" Pelia asked, nodding toward Aiden's confused expression.
"Why don't you team up with Rhea?" Peter suggested.
Pelia and Aiden exchanged a look, sighing in unison.
"What's wrong?" Peter asked.
"How about you and Aiden team up, and I'll work with Rhea?" Pelia proposed.
Peter's eyes widened in realization. "Oh, right."
"Want to team up, Aiden?" Rhea asked, tapping him on the back.
*************************
"According to these records, Rhea Ironheart stands out," Alexa said, scanning the unranked warrior class records.
"And this guy," Richard pointed to Daniel's record, furrowing his brows. "Son of John Lancaster, no surprise."
Fredrick chuckled, shrugging. "I heard she beat him in a spar. He deserved it, but still..." Richard trailed off.
"So, Rhea or Daniel?" Alexa asked Fredrick.
"Rhea, hands down. She's number one, after all," Fredrick replied.
"You haven't seen her fight," Alexa countered.
"Being at the top means she's strong, right?" Fredrick said.
Richard chimed in, "He's not wrong."
"Guess I'll team up with the twins, Peter and Pelia, then," Richard said, already making his move.
Before Alexa could respond, Richard zoomed off on his ball of wind.
"Looks like it's just me and Fredrick," Alexa thought.
Fredrick grinned, "Time to make some friends." He strolled off, hands in pockets.
*********************
Peter nudged Aiden's back, prompting him to agree. "Okay," Aiden said with a light smile.
Rhea apologized, "I'm sorry for what happened months ago." Aiden nodded curtly. "I have my reasons."
Rhea's expression turned thoughtful. Aiden glanced around the hall. "Now we need—"
A ball of wind interrupted Aiden's sentence. Richard appeared, grinning. "Looks like you two know each other. Nice! I'm Richard Sky. Nice to meet you."
Richard offered handshakes to Rhea, Pelia, and Peter. When Aiden extended his hand, Richard's expression turned scrutinizing. "You're the one with no evolved type? Restricted awakening, right?"
Aiden nodded. Richard's tone turned critical. "Hope you won't be a burden in this hunt."
Peter chimed in with a bright smile, "You too." Richard scoffed.
Fredrick approached, clearing a path through the crowd. "Hello, Rhea Ironheart." Rhea greeted him calmly, "Fredrick Finland, Neo Finland's son."
Peter whispered to Pelia, "Do you know Neo Finland?" Pelia responded with a tired look and a whispered reply, "He's one of the masters at Zeru's Academy, Peter."
"Oh," Peter said, intrigued.
Fredrick approached Rhea with a smile. "Care to join my team, Rhea?
Rhea pondered the offer. Richard turned to Pelia and Peter. "What about you two?"
"Sure," they chimed in unison.
Richard led the trio away, leaving Aiden, Alexa, Rhea, and Fredrick.
"Aiden will join us; he's a warrior like me, right?" Rhea glanced at Aiden, who nodded in confirmation.
Aiden thought to himself, "Better to team up with someone familiar for now."
Alexa glanced at Aiden, then studied the unranked warrior records. Fredrick did the same, his expression turning disappointed.
"He's near the bottom of the list, but she chose him anyway," Fredrick thought, sighing inwardly. "He'll definitely be a burden."
Fredrick suggested, "Wouldn't Daniel be a better choice? He's the second-best in the warrior class."
Fredrick's tone turned critical. "This guy's going to hold us back based on his records. We need a strong team for the hunt."
Aiden assured Fredrick, " I won't be a burden."
Fredrick nodded and departed with Alexa to find a healer, saying, "In this world, only the strong survive."
Aiden thanked Rhea, who smiled lightly in response.
Ten minutes later, Isaac Ironheart re-entered the hall. The youngsters fell silent, awaiting his instructions.
"We believe you've formed your teams," Isaac announced loudly.
"Yes, sir!" they responded in unison.
Isaac continued, "As a team, you must understand each other's strengths and weaknesses. Familiarize yourselves with your skills, so you'll know what to do in critical moments."
The youngsters nodded, taking note.
"You have three days to optimize your teams. On the fourth day, you'll embark on the hunt." Isaac smiled briefly before exiting the hall.
Excitement filled the hall as young warriors, mages, and healers cheered. Daniel scowled, "Rhea chose Aiden over me? We'll see how he survives this hunt."
Aiden, Rhea, Fredrick, Alexa, and Cedric formed a circle, eyeing each other. Aiden's face lit up upon seeing Cedric, his roommate.
Fredrick gestured to Cedric. "This is Cedric, the second-best healer according to records. Lucky find."
Cedric nodded at the group. "Hello everyone." Aiden returned the nod.
Alexa cleared her throat. "Now that we're all here, let's review our team: two warriors," she pointed to Rhea and Aiden, "two mages," she indicated herself and Fredrick, "and one healer," she nodded at Cedric.
The team nodded in agreement.
Alexa continued, "We need to understand each other's evolved types, like Mr. Isaac said. Cedric, as a healer, you primarily heal wounds, right?"
Cedric nodded. "Yes."
Fredrick pressed for more information. "Is that all you can do? No other abilities that might be useful in combat?"
Cedric hesitated. "N-No."
Fredrick's expression turned disappointed. "I see."
He thought to himself, "Another burden. Understandable, given healers aren't typically combat-skilled. If Aiden was strong, he'd protect the healer."
Meanwhile, Alexa thought, "Great, now I have to take care of two of them."
***********************
Meanwhile in the Goon's bar.
"How much have we made so far?"John Lancaster inquired.
One of his men replied, "Five hundred thousand yokiris, sir."
"Phew, that's a lot, amigo!" Diego whistled.
John smiled, eyeing the bag filled with yokiris. "Yes, it is. And I'm taking this for myself."
"Wait, amigo! There's a saying about sharing the love."Diego protested.
"And there's another saying about spending without thinking being stupid."John countered.
Diego scratched his head. "Who said that?"
"John Lancaster." John took a sip of his drink, savoring it
Diego raised an eyebrow. "I thought we were partners, amigo."
John's expression turned serious. "We are, except when it comes to spending. You don't take my advice, and it disrupts our partnership."
"When did this happen?" Diego asked, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
John Lancaster's expression turned stern. "Remember that bet you made? You spent two hundred thousand yokiris in one day."
Diego's face reddened. "I was going to make more, amigo..."
John's voice rose. "By making a bloody bet, Diego Sandreas?" He dropped his drink, his eyes fixed on Diego.
Diego covered his face with his hat, looking down in embarrassment.
"Anyway, the hunt starts in three days." John composed himself, crossing his fingers.