Inside the staff building, Kayui could finally catch his breath. His body had begun to adapt.
"This way sir,"
A man in a suit, guided him to the principal. The man wore a white mask that resembled a shark, its black lines clearly outlining sharp teeth and gills.
'Shadow Opps.'
Shadow Ops or Shadow Operatives. Renowned government Warriors of Virgo. Some of the most elite fighters that the country could produce.
His presence was empty, like no one was there at all. Kayui shook his head and regained his focus. He was about to meet the Principal of the academy. If he messed this up, the next four years would be hell.
After a few turns and a flight of stairs, they arrived at a large door made of beautiful ebony wood.
"Through here." The man said, opening the door.
Red carpet spanned forward across a solid black quartz floor. The carpet stretched a few meters leading to a large desk the same wood as the door, with a large man behind it.
"Ah, it's nice to finally meet you in person, young man." His mouth moved with powerful confidence.
His face was smooth and pale, contrasting with his jet black hair, with streaks of dark gray running through it. He wore a black suit with a red tie, matching the room.
"You… you look just like your brother." His face seemed troubled, his gaze frozen on Kayui's face.
His grey eyes rested on him as well. He noticed a sharp line across his left pupil.
'A demon eye?' Was his first thought, but that wouldn't make sense given his high position.
'Something to look into later' he thought and eradicated the thought.
Awkward silence plagued the room.
Kayui cleared his throat uncomfortably as the man stared.
"Sorry, come here, this is your key and communicator. Everything from rules, schedules, and extracurricular activities will be here…" His gaze lowered to Kayui's mess of rags on his body.
"A fresh change of clothes will be in your room" he slowly leaned back and spun in his chair.
Kayui cautiously walked forward and grabbed the key, hesitating to grab the complicated device along with it.
"Be on your way now young man. Nice meeting you."
***********
Before he knew it, he was standing outside alone again. This time a few people were strolling around. The sun was setting.
"You posed to be here kid?"
He looked to where the voice came from.
A young man who looked a few years younger than him approached. His eyes were menacing and cold. Kayui's battle instincts kicked in before he knew it he raised his guard, his aura pulsating becoming visible. A purple hue resonated around him.
He wore the same uniform as Makil, olive skin and royal blue eyes. His hair blackish-blue and messy. His most harrowing feature was his icy black arm.
Kayui froze up and his throat felt dry. Only his 5 senses could feel the menacing boy. He couldn't feel any altitude from him. Even ordinary people had a little aura.
"I'm new here." He managed to let out.
"Oh yeah? Your altitude gives me a headache. Fix it" he said, his tone as menacing as his eyes.
His face softened and he continued to walk, ignoring Kayui like an ant on the sidewalk.
Kayui looked back. The boy shook his head and rubbed his temple before stuffing his hands in his pockets. "You're like a leaky faucet."
'Leaky faucet?'
He realized instantly what he meant.
Kayui looked down at himself. His instinct told him to close his eyes.
Immediately he saw it. His altitude, He could feel it. He felt his awakening, and it was leaking out of his chest.
A smirk crossed his face but quickly disappeared as he tried to control his energy. He felt a tug in his chest and the constant leak of energy stopped.
He felt reinvigorated.
His smirk returned as a smile. He walked to the dorm with his chest held high.
******
He twisted his key and pushed open the door to his new home.
Instant disappointment washed over him. The room was completely trashed, food, clothes and other disgusting items covered the floor. In the far corner, a familiar face lay lazily across a sofa.
A black ice shard flew at Kayui's head. In the same instant, he side-stepped and kicked an empty soda can towards a boy on the coach.
It flew faster than he could react and crashed on his head.
"Ouch! Bastard!"
He recognized who the intruder was and looked at his hand holding the key.
Kayui took a fighting stance.
"This is my room, idiot."
"The use of malicious altitude abilities is strictly prohibited in the dorm area." A robotic voice came from the hallway behind Kayui where the ice shard stuck out of another room door.
"Tazreal Naraka please report to the dorm office."
Tazreal, the boy with the black ice arm Kayui had met before, proceeded to walk past Kayui towards the stairs. He muttered multiple curses under his breath with a death stare all the way down to the office.
Kayui didn't even try to enter the dump of a room. Instead, he went to where he thought he'd spend the most time in the entire academy, the training hall.
…
As he walked around the campus he began to realize how huge it was. The walk from the dorm to the training hall took him just as much time as it did to get from the Black Mountain to his home.
"This place is an entire city within itself," he muttered.
A giant sign came into his view along with a building triple the size of his own apartment complex.
It read "Training Hall", in big bold red letters, contrasting the dark feel of the school.
He could see through the glass doors the modern feel of the building similar to the design of the other buildings, but there was noticeably more reinforcement.
As he stepped through the automatic doors a voice called out to him.
"Hey, you new here? If you're here you must be a fighter. No weapons?"
Kayui looked to the right. A hole in the wall with a sign above it that said "blacksmith" housed a small man with a scruffy beard. His curiosity was piqued.
He let go of his cool exterior and a sparkle appeared in his eye. "Are you an actual descendant of the Dwarf clan?" Kayui blurted.
The small man smiled and let out a hearty laugh. "Yes, indeed I am, young one. Any weapon you prefer fighting with? The name's Breer."
"It's an honor, Kayui." he said in turn, extending his hand.
Kayui had long heard about the legendary smithing clan of Dwarves. He had never expected to meet one in this place of all places. He knew they were usually outposted in the country of Taurous.
The man reached out and shook it firmly.
"I'm strong with long bladed weapons." Kayui said bluntly.
Breer took a step back and closed his eyes before waving a hand. Three distinct swords appeared in the air in front of him. One a traditional katana, another a basic, yet powerful sword, and the third a towering great sword.
Kayui took a second, amazed by the sudden appearance of the three swords. "Don't worry, first one is on the house." Breer said with a gleeful smile.
"I like this one." Kayui pointed to the Katana.
A purple sheath appeared around his waist containing the katana he had just seen before.
"Now off you go, you got lots of training to do right?"
Kayui hesitated in shock before turning around and heading towards the training rooms, excited to try out his new Dwarf-smithed blade.