Eleven's face flushed as he stared at the beautiful woman standing before him.
"Ah, Sister Sylvia. I was just teaching an unruly newcomer some manners. There's really no need to involve my brother."
She chuckled lightly.
"I'll think about it. But tell me—are you here specifically to bully him? I know you don't like the food here and usually eat outside."
The guides nearby immediately began to gather around when they saw Sylvia Wales—the famous S-rank Esper from the Wales family, one of the strongest families in City M—approaching and speaking to Eleven.
They wanted to greet her.
After all, among the Wales, she was the only one known for being approachable.
People whispered, wondering if she had come to the Association to find a capable guide, as the Wales family had few in their ranks and often turned to the Association whenever their Espers needed guiding after a dungeon raid. Amid the commotion, the handsome blind man who had been the center of attention was quickly forgotten.
Zephyr took a deep breath and focused on eating as he straightened the bent fork, but a little later, after Sylvia had finished talking to Eleven and those around her, her sudden voice directed at him made him pause.
"Don't worry about Eleven anymore. Just enjoy your breakfast, young man. Really—I am dragging this troublesome kid away. And if he ever bothers you again, tell me!"
Zephyr sneered unconsciously; he could hardly remember her ever being kind. She had always been cold and irritable toward him for as long as he could remember. His sneer halted her hand, which was about to pat his shoulder in a show of sincerity.
He stood up abruptly, stunning both the crowd and the woman. He then turned his head toward her, but hearing no reaction at all, he knew she didn't recognize him. Well, she had only seen him with her own eyes in childhood—when he was born—before she lost her sight. So, how could she recognize him now? He finally opened his lips.
"Thanks for your kind concern. But I have long learned to handle myself, so no need."
He waited, but there was still no reaction. That made him understand that, unlike him, who still recognized her voice—even though the voice he remembered had always been very cold—she didn't remember even that.
Suppressing the urge to laugh at himself, Zephyr turned to walk away, only to hear Eleven's furious voice calling after him.
"What's with your attitude? She is being kind, and yet you don't show any gratitude!"
Zephyr didn't respond. Eleven rolled up his sleeves; now he had a good reason to beat this arrogant prick—but Sylvia waved it off.
"It's fine. Leave him alone. I was the one who suddenly interfered on my own."
Just as Sylvia and Eleven turned to leave the cafeteria in search of a guiding room—since she had originally come here to get guiding but had seen a familiar face and decided to just get guiding from him—a loud and clear voice rang out from afar.
"Is the world beautiful?"
The voice immediately captured the attention of those present, though they were not sure who the man was addressing.
Sylvia turned to look at the tall, unfamiliar man standing in the distance. She frowned. Actually, inwardly, she was annoyed by him—he exuded an aura she really didn't like.
Yet, seeing no one respond to his sudden, strange inquiry, Sylvia replied with a smile.
"It is."
Unconsciously, she reached for her eyes—the most captivating feature of her face.
They had once been blue, but one day she fell ill, and they lost that beautiful sea color. Now, they were gray—deep and bright, as if filled with the light of countless tiny stars.
Zephyr's eyelashes lowered slightly at her reply, and he walked away without looking back, afraid she would see the faint smile on his face. Perhaps, deep down, he really didn't regret giving his sight to his sister, although it had been something precious. At the time, his family had mattered more.
But now, they were no longer family.
Therefore, the smile on his face was only fleeting, for his heart had grown cold after he signed the paper that severed their ties.
A while later, he finally found the building's exit. He asked someone for directions and soon arrived at the massive training dome behind the Association towering building.
But luck was really not on his side that day, for one of the instructors assigned to help newcomers during their initial training was Nana Parker—who narrowed her eyes the moment she spotted him in the dome.