บท 27: Inside the Academy

Facing the giant crimson gates of the Awakened academy Raian took a deep breath while lighting a cigarette to smoke. Telling himself 'One last time'

He was a little behind schedule, exactly 1 day behind schedule.

Smoking, the teenager started to think.

Raian's tardiness should have been preempted well in advance. A full week before the onset of events, upon his affliction by the nightmare spell, a certain plan was created, carefully encompassing every conceivable route from its inception.

Saying every conceivable route was a little misleading, there were only two routes: Raian living and well… not living.

Sounds simple on paper but the outcome of that weighed heavily on many who worked under and alongside him.

He had absolute confidence in returning as an awakened, for him emotions such as fear, and anxiety were meaningless and could be ignored to a certain limit.

Having accurately executed his plan for certain survival, Raian emerged triumphant over the first nightmare. The score was 1-0 currently favoring Raian.

He should be more confident, weathering through that kind of disaster and experiencing the might of what everyone calls the first nightmare he had conquered, so he should be confident, but Raian couldn't drag that confidence out from within.

He had no control during his first nightmare. As a logical person who liked to manipulate the outcome of a battle in his favor before it started, that kind of situation wasn't a pleasant one, to say the least.

Especially when you see a woman cutting a colossal stone Monastery like castle in twain along with the vast expanse of terrain surrounding it and the sky itself, even the cloudy blizzard, raging at the mountain's peak showering everything in snow was cut in half.

The very logic that had forged Raian's current self was cracked, no it was utterly obliterated.

And the unfavorable aspect he had gotten still eluded Raian's comprehension. Finding himself bestowed the highest goddamn ranking aspect possible but all he got was body reinforcement.

Instead of adding on each other, the problems multiplied, triggering Raian to worry needlessly until the present morning.

And the simple words of 'What If?' haunted his mind heavily.

What if he dies in there?

What if the others couldn't hold on until he came back?

What if a meteor dropped on the others after he left?

What if a gate opened right after the winter solstice right next to them?

From a real legitimate logical worry to something entirely out of reality, Raian felt stressed and concerned. That was the reason for his tardiness. Raian teetered on the brink of madness.

Eventually, Raian ignored the things he couldn't control and instead focused on the things he could control. Re-organizing the files, composing deals between other gangs in the slums, double checking everything to make sure things flow smoothly. The strains of management were intense and stressful.

In the end, such acts proved to be insignificant, leaving trust as the sole remaining option.

Raian trusted everything he built with Ro and his family, including the troublemakers among them. Despite daily disagreements and occasional skirmishes resulting in injuries, they exhibited unity when it truly mattered.

Also, Raian believed, one shouldn't try to plan for everything. The only absolute in the world was change. Instead, just plans out a few key moments and tries to weave them together as things go on, in a way Raian could say he was a master weaver. Laughing at his own jokes Raian finished the cigarette.

With a final exhale of smoke, the teenager discarded the remnants into a nearby garbage can before continuing on his way.

Entering the Awakened Academy Raian expected himself to be anxious. The sheer scale of the building rivaled that of the only ancient monastery he knew. Its architecture boasted a resolute toughness, with walls thick and impenetrable, reminiscent of the fortress-like structures of antiquity.

Each part seemed imbued with a sense of enduring strength. Giant guns stationed atop the walls stood like sentinels, ready to unleash destruction upon any potential threat, further emphasizing its capability.

It was a surprise to be sure but not a mind-shattering one.

Yes, the building was giant, and its tone rivaled the impenetrable monastery/castle he entered in the first nightmare but the memory of Gemma cleaving it twain lived rent-free, directly conflicting with the impenetrable impression of the Academy.

Feeling something to be impenetrable is hard when you see something like this cleaved in two equal parts, and expecting everyone with a sword to cut a giant castle in half was stupid.

Shrugging his shoulders and letting a sigh escape, the worry was thrown to the back of his mind.

Now he only looked forward, ignoring the cold weather ushering the winter solstice.

Pulling one of his last strings, Raian was able to enter the academy with no problem. Soul Reaper would have dragged him here yesterday if he hadn't pulled them hard enough. While there was no obvious downside to that meeting with his family, maybe the last time was quite nice for him.

Arriving at the southern part of the academy in a transport vehicle, Raian crossed the bridge alongside one of the workers. They entered a relatively small building surrounded by training fields.

Inside the building, many sleepers seemed to train in their prospective ways to survive what the future welcomes.

Calming his breath and looking ahead, Raian started to blend into the crowd unnoticed. According to his theory, successfully blending into crowds required two checks to be crossed.

Every crowd had its energy determined by its purpose. Raian needed to learn the energy, mimic it, and proceed alongside it. However, this alone wasn't always enough. Sometimes, Raian had to act confidently and nonchalant, making him look like he belonged there.

The big ceremony was held few weeks ago where an awakened or an ascended if one was lucky enough, gave a speech to encourage young sleepers and start the program in full force in its last month.

The sleepers would then select their course for the next four weeks and study, practice, and repeat.

Raian had no plans to study for the next few days, beasts are called beasts because they have no rationality inside them, or their rational state was too irrational for others to understand them but even the fiercest of beasts knew to surrender when their opponent was much stronger than them.

That was the case for Raian and the act of studying.

Raian was a logical person and made many smart decisions based on his logic that saved lives, but that didn't necessarily mean he was intelligent. A few years ago, Raian attempted to improve his lackluster abilities by sneaking into many educational facilities, but he eventually failed after not understanding any of the knowledge presented.

But he wasn't an idiot either. If one wouldn't call Raian intelligent they could call him sensible. Even if he couldn't solve complex mathematical equations or the relative strengths of metals he had an instinct that told him what he should do.

Suddenly realizing how deep in thought he was, Raian checked his surroundings. Unconsciously he had arrived at the lowest level where the dormitory was unstopped. Reading his communication device he entered his room the switch clothes.

The phrase 'When Rome did as Romans did' crosses his mind, Raian didn't know who Romans were or what they did but he understood the essence of the message, following common sense was always a good idea, if a person wearing orange entered a crowd wearing pink he would stand out whether he liked to or not.

Wearing the provided clothes Raian looked at his checklist, next up he needed to enter the office and register his aspect. Before he thought about faking that but decided not to, if he survived the government would update his aspect and he needed to use it as well in other's presence.

Talking with the administrative workers, Raian told them everything he knew about his aspect, which was 1 sentence. " It reinforces my body." seemed to explain everything to the overly friendly administrative worker. Guess you get the gist of aspects when you record so many of them.

The workers informed Raian of their best wishes because he came in right before the solstice started. To their eyes, Raian would be the most vulnerable sleeper since he wouldn't be able to learn much.

Finished with his immediate tasks Raian could finally eat.

The cafeteria was a little crowded, and as expected the classes did not start and end at the same time. Getting a plate and overly filling it, Raian found himself at an empty table to sit and savor the food.

Even if one didn't dislike the synthetic paste there was a limit to the amount a person could eat and be perfectly sane, eating actual food was a pleasant experience for him. Tucking his shirt and letting his mind relax, Rain started to eat.

Halfway through his meal an unknown hand pressed on his right shoulder.