In a passage leading to the director's of the academy meeting room, the door of the meeting room was pushed open and a tall, slender woman stepped into the room.
There was a rectangular long table, with seven people sitting around the table, and the instant the seven of them saw the woman walk into the meeting room, they stood from their seats and gave her a slight bow.
"I apologize for my tardiness, now let's begin." The woman said, and the seven of them sat on the chairs.
In the academy, there were seven divisions, and in these seven divisions existed seven directors who headed each division. Wyatt Reynolds, Grayson Forest, Layla Rose, Nicholas Silas, Iris Waldorf, Vermont Lance, and lastly, Kai London.
These seven figures were the ones heading the divisions in the academy.
As the seven directors sat in their seats, the slender blonde woman sat in the front chair. "Nicholas, I believe there's something you have to tell us." The woman said.
Nicholas nodded his head when he heard the woman, and without any delay, he stood from his seats. He walked to the front of the screen in the meeting room, and after getting everyone focused on him, his voice rang out.
"We have a problem!"
"Three out of the distribution channels which we use to export our goods into the market are being under attack. In the past few days, we have not only lost more than a hundred B-rank metahumans, but we have also lost twenty a-rank metahumans. As well as the goods which were to be sent to the city."
Nicholas's words already brought a deep frown to the faces of the people who were in the meeting room, and when they heard the rest of his words, the frown on each one of their faces deepened.
"Our stocks in the black market have diminished very greatly, and I'm afraid if we don't act on this problem very soon, we would be losing a huge portion of the commission which we receive from the black market," Nicholas said.
"It is disastrous because we are unable to bring in goods into the black market, and at the same time we can't take anything out of the market."
Nicholas then allowed them to assimilate that information before he continued. "We own about 15 percent of shares in the black market, but because of the problem we are encountering, there aren't a lot of people who are striking deals with us anymore, and so we have only about thirteen percent."
"What the hell!!!!!!" Wyatt exclaimed.
The black market was one of the sources of revenue for the academy. And losing two percent of the shares, as well as control they had over one of the biggest economic activities that emerged after the occurrence of the supernatural, was a huge blow for the academy.
After Wyatt's voice rang out, he was greeted by the glare of the slender woman seating in front, and he immediately became quiet.
"Two percent is not a small amount, what about the other distribution channels, why haven't we tried those yet," Wyatt asked.
Nicholas heaved a deep breath when he heard Wyatt, he then said, "They are doing quite well, but I suggest we do not pass the trades into those channels, as those other channels have businesses to tend to."
"If we are to involve those other channels, just to satisfy the demands of the black market, then I'm afraid we would be losing ten times what we have lost in the black market from the other stocks we have."
This time around, Nicholas sent the people in the meeting room into a pondering state. They didn't doubt Nicholas's assessment and ability for a second, as being able to head over the research and support division, he was a man of both power and experience.
After the six of them thought about it for a while, they turned and stared at the woman who was seating at the front.
The woman, however, ignored the gazes of the six of them, and stared at Nicholas, "Have you figured out who is the cause of those attacks on our channels." She asked, and Nicholas shook his head, the instant, he had her question.
"I do not have the specific name of people involved, but we were able to narrow the list of suspects to three," Nicholas said, he then waved his hand at the screen, and an image popped in front of everyone.
"The William family, the Trafford cooperation, and the sisters of mercy."
The image which was being displayed on the screen was split into three portions, on the right side was a goatee man standing in front of an estate, with several people behind him, all of which were putting on a blue cloth.
In the middle was a twelve-story building, then writing at the top of the building was the letter T boldly written on it. And on the right side were six women who were all putting on black habits, white neckerchief, and a black veil.
The six women were holding on to a book and a rather sacred look could be seen on their faces.
"The strongest metahuman in the William family and Trafford cooperation are S-rank metahumans. As for the sisters of mercy, their leader is an A- rank metahuman." Nicholas's voice rang out, a few seconds after the image was displayed.
"If an S-rank force such as the William family and Trafford cooperation is the major suspect, then it is to say that the hero league has a part to play in it." It was Iris Waldorf, the woman overseeing the tech division, that spoke.
The people in the meeting room nodded their heads when they heard Iris because they had dealt with the hero league several times, and they knew how the league operated.
Meanwhile, the woman who was seating in front of everyone, turned towards the gold-haired youth who seemingly had a bored expression on his face, and asked, "How do you think we should handle this issue?"
Kai raised an eyebrow, he stared at the blonde woman, for a moment, he was about to speak when a voice sounded.
"I say we kill them all!!!"
With his hands placed behind his head, Grayson crossed his legs, which were now on the table, and exclaimed. There wasn't a bit of emotion on his face, as he stated his suggestion, which was to kill thousands of people from the three suspects they had.
However, none of the people in the room were shocked by what Grayson said, as that was the sort of thing they expected from him. They instead had eyes on the blonde woman, wondering what decision she would take.
"I'm going to have to agree with Grayson," As the woman continued to stare at Kai, he spoke. "The fact that they made a move against us, and made us lose greatly in the black market, is an absolute disrespect."
"Today it was our channels, who knows what it could be tomorrow. I suggest we send a message back to the world! Let them remember that even if we haven't made a big move in past months, we are still an existence they don't want to cross-part with."
There were several head nods from the people in the meeting, as they all agreed with what Kai said.
"Okay then. However, it is the year three and four who are to handle this matter. Have them dig up all the dirt those three have, seize up all their assets, and make a good scene. This will be a very good experience for them."
Suddenly, the woman stood from her seat and began walking towards the screen, "I would have handed the black market problem to you since it would be faster, but the black market is the least of the problems we are currently facing."
A stern look appeared on everyone's faces when they heard the woman. They could sense the change in her, and knew that there was something that greatly disturbed her.
"It's Ultraman…" The woman said.
...
Meanwhile, in the elite division training ground, Raphael stood in front of the teachers who were on the stage. And even though he was standing in front of them, his eyes were glued to the person who was beside him.
The girl who was referred to as Sylvia was of average height, with long blue-tinted silver hair that was styled into two braids, one that covered half of her face, and the other hung behind her head down past her shoulders.
And apart from her hair, there wasn't any other part of her body that could be seen, not even her face as she wrapped her entire body in bandages. She was then putting on a black kimono robe and in her hand was a katana.
"Limitless swordsmanship!" She said in a low voice.
"40,089, Limitless swordsmanship!" Sylvia said.
There was complete silence in the training ground after she had spoken, as everyone, including Raphael, was staring at her.
After a few seconds, the voice of the silver-haired woman on the stage rang out. "Why don't you show us what it means to be limitless in the sword path." The woman said.
Sylvia tightened her grip on the katana when she heard the woman, she then unsheathed the katana from its scabbard, only to put it back in afterward.
"Sayonara…" With that said, Sylvia began walking toward the other side.
It all happened so fast that no one could process what exactly she had done, but the moment they moved their eyes past Sylvia and stared back at the silver-haired woman who was on the stage, their mouth opened slightly.
"Y-You…"
One of the students exclaimed as he stared at the silver-haired woman who was on the stage.
The woman's eyes twitched, and her eyebrows furrowed, when she saw how the students were staring at her, even her colleagues who were beside her were staring at her with shock evident in their eyes.
"Is something on my face?" She couldn't help but ask.
And in response to her, the muscular man shook his head, he then gulped before saying, "It's… Your hair." The man stammered because he knew that if the woman were to realize what happened to her hair, she was going to freak out.
The woman raised an eyebrow when she heard the muscular man, "What happened to my…" As she spoke, she rubbed her hand across her hair and discerning that her hair which formerly reached down to the middle of her back, was now shortened into a hime-cut her body shook violently.
"Ahhhhh!!!!" The woman yelled at the top of her voice, and it didn't take much longer until she realized that it was Sylvia who must have cut her hair when she unsheathed the katana.
"Y-You…" She stuttered, pointing her finger at Sylvia, who, however, had her hands placed behind her back.
"To be quite fair, it's your fault, You shouldn't have told her to demonstrate what she was capable of when you knew her.
The woman glared at the muscular man, if looks could kill them without a single doubt, the man would have died over and over again, from the way the woman was glaring at him.
"Ah-Ahem… Raphael, it's your turn." Seeing the deathly stare the woman was staring at him with, the man quickly averted his eyes from the woman and turned toward Raphael.
Raphael had been staring at Sylvia when he heard the man. "30, 400, Absolute decay," Raphael said.
There was a bit of shock from the students when they heard Raphael, as they had assumed his rank would be quite higher than that. However, they chose not to think too much about it, because of the powers which he possessed.
"Hmm, I suggest you work on your defense more, even though your powers are appalling, against a metahuman with long-range powers, you would be rendered shitless." The lean man on the stage said decisively.
"The battle against Adrian for instance, if Adrian was much smarter, he should have been able to defeat you in the first battle. His biggest mistake was allowing you to move close to him, which is why I say close range, there would hardly be anyone who would want to fight you, but at a long-range, you wouldn't be all that great."
"While the strongest attack is indeed the best defense, it doesn't mean one shouldn't raise his guard."
Raphael listened attentively when he heard the lean man, though he was well aware of his flaws, it wasn't a terrible thing hearing others tutor him about it.
After all, no one is above learning.
When the lean man went quiet, the voice of the muscular man rang out. "It's just like he said, focus more on your defense, if both attack and defense are top notches, then I see you going into higher places, kid." The muscular man said.
Raphael nodded his head, he then walked over to the other side. He had to admit that what the two of them said was indeed true, he would dominate any close-range attack, so a meta-human who is aware of what power he possessed wouldn't choose to engage in that sort of battle with him.
Except if, there were very confident in defeating him in a close-range battle, the majority, however, would choose to engage in a long-range battle with him.
"What do you think?" Devon mumbled a few seconds after Raphael arrived close to him.
"About what?" Raphael asked.
"You know, the students and all"
As Devon spoke to Raphael, Raphael could see three girls staring at him, but when he turned towards them, they quickly moved their eyes away. His eyebrows furrowed, before he then towards Devon, and said. "Good, good, good, good!" Raphael replied.
"It's Aiden, Martha, and Bane's turn!"
Raphael stared at the trio who were in front of the teachers. Raphael had already seen what Aiden and Bane's powers were, so he wasn't all that surprised, but what brought an astonishing look to his face was the girl who was beside them.
The ability to foresee the possible future and observe what might occur.
As the trio displayed what their power was capable of, and they moved to the other side, Raphael's eyes followed the girl, and even when she stood a few meters away, he still kept staring at her.
It was only after when Devon tapped him on the shoulder that he stopped looking at her. "Martha Silas. Her power makes her the most astounding and precious student in the elite division." Devon said.
Devon didn't find anything weird in how Raphael had been staring at her, as even he was surprised when he first learned about her powers.
"I agree to that," Raphael muttered.
With the power which Martha possessed, there was no doubt that the academy was going to treat her very differently. To Raphael that power was worth praise, as it could extend to the length to perceive who was going to die or when their death would occur.
There were so many things.
Suddenly, Raphael began looking at the students in the training ground, before he then said, "There are 19 students here including me, I thought you said they are 21 students in the year-1 elite division, so where are the remaining two."
"Oh, you mean Dwayne and Aliyah," Devon responded. He was about to speak when two figures walked into the training ground. "Speak of the devil!!" Devon exclaimed when he saw the duo that just arrived.
The two figures who had just entered the training ground were none other than Dwayne and Aliyah.
Dwayne was a teenager of average height, lean build with messy blue hair. He has a small black eye, long lower eyelashes, small eyebrows, and a simply remarkable face.
Staring at a teenager who was holding on to a black bow and a quiver which was filled with arrows at his back, Raphael's eyebrows furrowed. "He is strong," Raphael mumbled in a voice.
"Very strong," It was Aiden that spoke. "In the entrance exam, Dwayne came out second in the whole academy," Aiden said.
"Who came first?!" Raphael said.
"Aliyah," Devon replied.
Walking behind Dwayne was a woman of voluptuous build, gold eyes, and long wavy white hair. She was putting on a sleeveless, black-less, short white dress.
"She's beautiful right?" Devon said, then frowned deeply, "Raphael, do not make the mistake of ever going to that woman." Devon paused, as he saw the odd look on Raphael's face, and he said. "She is a monster!" Devon exclaimed.
Raphael turned toward Aiden and Bane, and he was just as surprised to see that they had horrified expressions on their face when they saw that girl. It was like she was someone that they dreaded the most.
"It's good that the both of you have finally returned," The silver-haired woman who had a deep frown on her face the whole time smiled when she saw the duo in front of her.
Dwayne and Aliyah, however, had a neutral expression on their faces, as they stood in front of the teachers.
Suddenly, about seven tennis balls appeared in the hand of the lean man. He threw the balls forward, then said, "Let's see how much you have improved so far, Dwayne."
PEW! PEW! PEW! PEW! PEW! PEW! PEW!
It was barely up to ten seconds after the lean man spoke, and Dwayne pierced through the seven tennis balls he threw, with the arrows on his back. After the seven of them were embedded by his arrows and stuck at the wall, Dwayne lowered the black bow in his hand.
"Astounding isn't it," Devon said, and in response, Raphael slightly nodded his head. "That's just half of it, it isn't done yet."
BOOM!
A second after Devon spoke, and the tennis balls which were stuck on the wall exploded. The balls were scattered into several pieces. However, the arrows remained there.
"Apart from having an extraordinary proficiency with bow and arrow than what it is necessarily possible, he can create and manipulate explosion, making every shot he fires with his arrows to be explosive," Devon said.
Raphael raised an eyebrow as he then stared at Dwayne. He soon flashed a light smile, and then said, "What about her?!"
"Trust me, Raphael, her power is something you do not want to know," Devon replied the instant he heard Raphael. "So, don't move close to her, or even have anything to do with her."
"Hmm"
On the stage, after Dwayne's performance, the three teachers only said a couple of words to him, before they turned toward Aliyah. It came as much surprise to Raphael that after Aliyah stated her power rank, she moved to the other side, and the three teachers didn't question her.
They simply let her go, which even made Raphael more curious about what her power was, that even the teachers who were on the stage chose to act that way.
"I think that's going to be all! Have a wonderful week, and I do hope you do not get killed. We will meet in the next class." It was the muscular man that spoke.
With that said, the students walked out of the training ground.
A few seconds after they had left, the voice of the lean man sounded, "Aliyah, isn't it?"
"Yes, that girl gives me the creep." The muscular man responded, then heaved a deep breath.
While the silver-haired woman's attention was on her hair, she still nodded her head, when the muscular man spoke.
"A power like that shouldn't exist"
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