As Aeric returned to the Institution alongside the Speaker and Head Mistress Lysandra, his mind could not stay at a place.
It kept spinning and spinning as he stepped into the corridors, climbed the staircase and approached the lecture room. 'Seven days,' his mind echoed the words of the Divine Priest. 'Just seven days. I have seven days to prove that I am not tampering with the natural order. Seven days for my Class to Declare itself, which it's never going to do.'
Aeric's heart clenched with the gravity of the situation. 'What am I going to do now?'
He wondered what the punishment could be for 'hacking'. The Divine Priest had said he had been added into a list for Suspicious Tampering of the Divine Order. But what would happen to him if he was found guilty?
Would he be banished? Killed? Would his mother have no choice but to give him up? The people of Erothyria revered their Divine Order and gravely punished people who attempted to attain its powers by illegal ways.
Was the Celestial Depravity System an illegal way? It did override the natural order of things and gave him an overhaul of Divinity inside his body, including the God Tyrant Class and the [Claim] Skill.
There was a legit discussion on whether it was illegal or not, and the chances were he was going to lose that battle.
Once again, it was clear. No one had to ever know of his Class and Main Skill. No one ever. He needed it to survive. And for now, he needed to come up with an idea to get out of this mess.
After walking for a short while, Aeric realized that he had entered a room. Looking around, he concluded that this was a lecture room.
It had a blend of scholarly austerity and medieval grandeur. The windows are large stained-glass and rays of multicolored light came through, filling the room in brightness.
There were two massive bookshelves opposite each other, and they had tomes on every subject, from the history of the Divine Orders, to the geography of Erothyria, to complex magical theory.
Above, there was an enchanted chandelier of fine candles floating lazily in the air, though barely needed now as the light from the outside was enough. Seats were arranged, and everywhere seemed to smell of strawberries.
Aeric had been absent-minded that he hadn't noticed when the Divine Speaker had seperated ways with them. Now, he was standing in front of the room with Head Mistress Lysandra.
There were only three of the Daughters present in this class. Looking briefly at them, Aeric was not surprised to see Meira of Dawn and Linnette of Elysium, but he was surprised to see Melina of Moonlight.
It seemed the last daughter of Mother Selene was also around his level, or so it had been before this… situation. They all glanced at him briefly, their expressions ranging from indifferent to amused, with Melina already flashing her irritated, condescending smirk.
The teacher, who introduced herself as Felda, gestured at a free seat and told him to take it. Aeric made his way over to the empty which was right in the center between Linnette and Meira.
Meira of course refused to share eye contact with him, while Linnette gave him a big, friendly smile as he sat down.
Melina, who was directly behind him, scoffed.
Aeric wasn't one to get rattled easily, but after what he had just experienced, his calm exterior was beginning to fray. Settling into the chair, he could feel the tension in his shoulders, his jaw clenched in a desperate attempt to maintain composure.
His mind, however, kept drifting back to the words of the Divine Priest: 'Overflowing with Divinity. Tampering with the system.'
"Regarding the situation with Aeric of Starlight and his inability to produce a Class or a Skill," Head Mistress Lysandra began, "the Divine Priest has confirmed that he does bear the Divinity within him, but he is experiencing a very rare case of Divinity Block. This is not something that happens often, but in the coming week, it should resolve itself, and his Class will be ready for Declaration."
The teacher, Lady Felda asked, "What happens if it doesn't?"
Lysandra's gaze sharpened as she stared deep into Aeric's eyes. "The Priest says it will then be up to him to take extreme measures. I do not know any more beyond that."
Lady Felda nodded.
"This information will be carried on to other Daughters and teachers to make sure there's no confusion, and to avoid rumors from spreading."
Aeric had a look of surprise on his face. Headmistress Lysandra was covering for him! 'Why is she doing that?' he wondered. 'The Priest had also told her about me being a potential 'Hacker' and being added into the list for Suspicious Tampering, but she didn't include any of that? Why?'
"Remember to be respectful in the Institution Grounds," the Headmistress warned. "Words which are abolished are abolished! Any use of them will attract punishment."
After she said that, the air in the room felt like it was being sucked out, leaving a heavy silence in its wake. Aeric stared straight ahead, forcing his breathing to remain steady, though the weight of the situation pressed down on him like an invisible hand squeezing his chest.
Head Mistress Lysandra gave him one last sharp look before carrying her heavyweight ass and tits out of the room with stern steps.
That was when Melina of Moonlight leaned forward, her long silver hair falling over her shoulders like a waterfall of moonlight.
Once she was close enough to Aeric's ear, she whispered something with her voice that was as sharp as it was mocking. "Well, well… looks like you're not Unawakened after all. But you're still a Classless Player, one who doesn't have a role. Who knew that you were a late bloomer, huh? That's if you even bloom at all."
She let out a small, cruel laugh. "It's clear the Divine Order just doesn't want you. Because they can abolish it all they want, but we both know what you are. It starts with an A, and it's not your birth name."
Aeric's hand tightened into a fist beneath the desk.
His nails dug into his palm and his anger quickly — very quickly — began to rise.
'That Moonlight Region whore!' his mind raged. 'Smug, dismissive, insulting! They're all like that. Aryanne... Melina. I'll show those two Moonlight bitches!'
He pondered whether he should respond, but before he could say anything, Lady Felda, their teacher, spoke up. "That's enough, Melina." She appeared to be a stern woman, with her slimmer sharp features and even sharper eyes. "You are in the Institution to study the Divinity, not to belittle our far brother."
'Far brother? Is that their way of saying stepbrother?'
Melina rolled her eyes but said nothing further, leaning back in her seat but still having that smirk that played at her lips.
Aeric forced himself to unclench his fist, taking a slow, deep breath.
"You shouldn't listen to her," he heard a voice say to him. Looking to his left, Aeric raised his brow at Linnette, who was still smiling amicably at him. "I'm happy you're here," she said.
Aeric frowned with curiosity. "You are?"
"Yes," she beamed. "And don't worry about your Affinity and Class. It's going to come eventually. Nothing wrong with being a late bloomer. Besides, it's all just overrated anyway."
Not knowing what to say, Aeric only gazed at her curiously, and she just smiled wider then looked ahead.
'Maybe I've been overthinking this,' he thought. 'Maybe not all the Daughters of Eros hate me.'
'But she is right. The Moonlight Daughters are not not worth it,' he reminded himself, even though every instinct screamed at him to say something, anything, in retaliation. Aeric swallowed his anger, locking it away for another time.
Lady Felda cleared her throat and turned to the front of the room, her fingers tracing the symbols drawn on the board behind her. "Today, we will begin our lecture on the sigils of each Region, their meaning, and their history."
"What do you all know about the sigils? What is your understanding of them?"
Felda turned to them and waited for an answer, but none of them seemed certain of anything. Melina just folded her arms indifferently, unbothered about the lecture.
Aeric glanced at Linnette. She still had that happy-to-be-here look on her face. Then he glanced at Meira and saw that she knew the answer. She was just too shy to say it.
Eventually, Lady Felda noticed this and called her. "Meira? Do you have something to say?"
Meira's eyes shot up in surprise. "No... uhm..."
'What a tiny angelic voice,' Aeric thought. 'Reminds me of kittens.'
"The sigils represent the foundation of each Region's magical categories and the Divinity that flows through it," Meira eventually answered.
Lady Felda smiled, pushing her red hair over her shoulder. "Wonderful answer, Meira.'
The girl barely even smiled, she tried to, but it was so wry and weak. She brought her face immediately after, barely making eye contact with the teacher or with Aeric who was watching her.
Lady Felda went on to explain and describe the sigils of all the regions.
She explained that the sigils were not just insignias but Bloodline marks. In Erothyria, Regions acted as Bloodlines and everyone's Class and powers are rooted to their Regions.
Immediately after birth, the mark of one's Region appears behind their neck, making them a bound citizen of that Region. For Unawakened Players, their birthmarks had a gray color, for Awakened ones, their birthmarks were thick black.
"Well then, Aeric," Melina said his name with venom. "Let me check your birthmark and see if it's black or gray."
She reached for his hair and lifted it up his neck, catching a glimpse of the mark before Aeric caught her hand and threw it off him. "Don't you touch me ever again," he turned to her and whispered.
Melina seemed to freeze, clearly startled by his reaction.
"That is enough now," Lady Felda called. "Melina? Last warning."
With his eyes darkened, Aeric looked away from the Moonlight Daughter and faced ahead. When the tension settled, Lady Felda continued with her lesson.
Using drawings she made on the board, she began with the Moonlight Region which had a design of a crescent moon cradling a radiant full moon at its center.
Lady Felda explained that the crescent moon represents mystery, serenity, and the eternal night, while the full moon symbolizes wisdom and silver illumination, which was what the Moonlight Region was known for.
Then she described the Starlight Region's. It was — as Aeric knew — a single brilliant star at the center of a swirling nebula, with smaller stars encircling it in a spiral pattern.
The central star represented guidance and eternal hope, while the nebula symbolizes the vastness and interconnectedness of the cosmos. The smaller stars emphasize the unity of the numerous people in Starlight Region.
Dawn Region's sigil was a golden sun half-risen above the horizon, with rays stretching outward in graceful arcs. Below the horizon, there were waves of light gently ripple, representing the birth of a new day.
For this sigil, the rising sun symbolized new beginnings, rebirth, and the promise of hope and power. The horizon and light waves evoke the eternal cycle of dawn, a land where darkness never came.
For the Twilight Region, it was two interlocking circles, one representing the setting sun and the other the rising moon, with a delicate line of fading light where they met. Silhouetted trees or mountains lined the lower edge of the sigil.
It symbolized the balanced existence of day and night, light and shadow, a grayness embodied by the Twilight Region. The overlapping circles signified the union of opposing forces, while the setting sun and rising moon spoke to the power of their combination.
And finally, for the Elysium Plains, it was a sprawling landscape with a great, lone tree at the center, having branches that stretched toward the heavens, and its roots firmly planted in the earth. Around the tree were vast plains with wildflowers swaying in the wind.
This sigil had a clear representation. The tree represented life, growth, and the connection between heaven and earth, while the wide-open plains symbolized freedom, abundance, and peace. The flowers were a sign of prosperity and the natural beauty of the Elysium Plains — the Region with the strongest presence of Divinity.
When the long lecture on Regions, their geographical settings, history and politics was over, Aeric felt himself relieved. He has barely paid enough attention, but somehow he remembered every single thing that had been thought.
Undeniably, what the Divine Priest said was true. His Divinity overflow had augmented his brain functions, causing him to attain knowledge and information at a faster rate.
Nevertheless, Aeric did find the lecture a bit boring. Having the knowledge was good as he knew he could use it in his goal to take over this entire place in the end, but for now, all he wanted was knowledge on how to get stronger.
Everything to do with the Divinity, Classes, Skills and all the challenges needed to complete in order to get more XP so he can climb the Ranks and get stronger.
But even more important...
'Divinity Block… Seven days.' The words echoed in his mind like a drumbeat. He had not forgotten that he had only a week to come up with a way to escape this predicament, or else, his time in this fantasy world would be short lived.
Next lecture; Cultivation Techniques. And in this lecture room, all the daughters were present.
Paragraph comment
Paragraph comment feature is now on the Web! Move mouse over any paragraph and click the icon to add your comment.
Also, you can always turn it off/on in Settings.
GOT IT