Adrian took a deep breath after his previous scream. It was good that Mike had done something to make sure others couldn't hear them.
"So, what is the name of your Aura? You must have gotten the knowledge in your head already," Eric reminded him.
Adrian stared at Mike's face for a few seconds before he realized what he was talking about. After he awakened his Aura, some knowledge regarding it—such as its name and what it does—had appeared.
He didn't notice it before because he was way too overwhelmed by the visions during his awakening and the charm of Mike.
Adrian closed his eyes and saw some words written there. The knowledge was not written in English or any other language he was aware or familiar with but instead in an unknown language, yet he could read it without any problem. He read out loud the words that had been formed in his mind.
Destruction Aura:
Allows the user to destroy anything they want to.
"Is this it?" Adrian thought. He tried to find out more, but this was really it. There was nothing more, nothing less.
Eric blinked after hearing the name and ability of Adrian's Aura. "So you are an Aura user of the Apocalypse pathway."
"Apocalypse pathway? It sounds like a very cool pathway. What is it about?" Adrian asked with a big smile on his face, his eyes shining with excitement yet again.
Eric heaved a sigh and explained, "The Apocalypse pathway is one of the 30 pathways that includes all the Auras that relate to chaos, apocalypse, calamity, catastrophe, chances, and possibilities."
"It seems to be very… destructive and random?." Adrian's smile faded away as his gaze turned dim. For as long as he had been alive, anything relating to destruction had always been associated with villains and evil. He couldn't help but feel like a villain. What if the cause of the entire city and everyone dying ended up due to him? He couldn't fathom the thought and shook his head in order to get his head straight.
Eric understood the thoughts that were going on in this teenager's mind. "You don't need to be sad. The reason why you got this Aura was because the Apocalypse region and you had a natural affinity with each other, and from the Apocalypse region, the Destruction Aura suited your mentality the best. No Aura user gets an Aura for no reason. Also, just because you have gotten a destruction-based ability doesn't mean you can't be a hero. Have you already forgotten Cat Noir from Miraculous?" Eric reassured Adrian. He had just awakened; any strong negative emotion was not good at the moment.
Adrian's eyes widened with light as he remembered Cat Noir. He also had a destruction-based ability, but he never stopped being a fun and charming character who fought villains and protected the people of Paris.
He laughed inwardly before his attention was grabbed by Eric's little coughing.
Cough! Cough!
"So anyway, let's forget all the less important stuff and focus on the basic knowledge that you will need to understand the world of Aura and start your journey. You must have a lot of questions. I will answer them one by one after telling you the basics."
"I do have a lot of questions," Adrian thought in his mind. Eric took a deep breath and started to explain. "There are 30 pathways total in the universe as of now; more pathways can be formed with the passing of time. A person has to be at least 16 to be able to awaken their Aura. There are two ways to awaken your Aura. First is to awaken it naturally—this is a rare case and only happens with talented individuals who are loved by a pathway from the start or have a mentality that is similar to that pathway. The second way is to use a type of relic called 'awakening relics.' The ring I gave you to touch was one of those awakening relics. Its entire purpose is to make a person with the potential to become an Aura user make a connection with the 'Layer of Natural Aura', and if a region has any interest in the person, they can make a connection with that person and give them an Aura best suited to their mentality, awakening them as an Aura user of that pathway—like what happened to you."
"There are six ranks that an Aura user can climb in their life. After awakening, every Aura user starts from the rank of Nova, which is the weakest rank among all the ranks. You are currently one of the weakest Novas in the universe, but it's okay—you have just awakened. After this comes Rank 5, known as Auri Nova; Rank 4, Lysi Nova—this is the rank that I am currently at; Rank 3, Hypernova; Rank 2, Supernova; Rank 1, True Supernova."
"Is there anyone who has awakened before the age of 16?" Adrian asked with a curious tone. He had clenched his hands and was listening very attentively to Eric. This all was still feeling like a dream to him. He couldn't believe there had been such a wonderful world out there.
Eric nodded his head. "Yes. There have been many individuals who have awakened their Auras naturally way before the age of 16. These people are usually very talented, always growing up to be powerful Aura users who lead the masses. The recent example of this is Sasaki Alberich from Lumenia. He is a very talented and powerful Aura user in Lumenia who naturally awakened his Aura when he was just 4. In the present, he is 17 years old and has already reached the rank of Supernova. He is the most respected and terrifying opponent anyone can face at the present. He has already defeated every single Supernova that is living right now. If some supernova had died, it was because he killed them. He can even fight against true supernovas for a few minutes or so I have heard. He can be said to be on par with the 11 Meditation Masters of Lumenia. No matter where you go, you will always hear rumors about him."
Adrian gulped the saliva that had formed in his mouth. His heart was beating as fast as a train. He couldn't believe that such a talent lived while he is alive. Respect and fear for this Sasaki naturally formed in his heart. He hoped to never meet him, though.
Eric continued, "At every rank, you have to control your Aura—it is also known as the 'rate of control.' Every Aura has its own sub-consciousness. Its one and ultimate goal is to take over your sub-consciousness, controlling your body and mind, turning you into a mindless monster who just kills. This is a fate that every Aura user fears, The more you advance, The more you will understand it. This is why you should never be under too much stress or have too many negative emotions for long. All these things make you vulnerable to the attacks of your Aura. At every rank, there is a different 'method of control.' You have to follow the steps of these methods to gradually control your Aura and keep it under control. Once your rate of control reaches one hundred percent, you will be given the name of the resources and ritual needed to advance by the sub-consciousness of your Aura."
"Rituals?" Adrian asked with a confused look on his face.
"Rituals are things you need to do while absorbing the resources while advancing. You don't need to worry about rituals at this point. Till Hypernova, an Aura user can advance by only absorbing resources."
"From which pathway do you belong to? And what is your Aura's name and ability? You gotta tell me this much."
Eric smiled gently as he put his hands on the table, "Of course, I am an Aura user of the Energy Pathway, I have the power of the Gravitation Aura, It allows me to control gravity."
Adrian was about to ask another question just when Eric suddenly felt a chill in his spine. His intuition was triggered—someone was looking at them from a distance. He acted normal and didn't show any expression on his face, making sure the one looking at them wouldn't notice anything out of place. Several people had looked at them while they talked, but if his intuition was triggered by someone's gaze, that person must be an Aura user—and that is the first thing one must confirm before moving on to any other factor.
Adrian noticed the vibe around Eric suddenly changed. He also felt a chill in his spine. It wasn't goosebumps. It was as if his body was screaming to him He couldn't understand what this feeling was, but he knew he was in danger.
Eric stood up and looked at him with a smile. "Perhaps we should go to a safer place to talk." Adrian nodded and stood up. Eric paid the waitress the bill for the cup of coffee, and they both started walking down the footpath.