NOVEL NEXT Chapter 34: 34. True Dusk
Two people were walking side by side, engrossed in a heated discussion about the recent events on the training ground.
"I'm telling you, man, it wasn't just an accident. The young man was really a trainee," one of them said, his voice filled with conviction.
The friend walking beside him shook his head in disbelief. "Who are you trying to fool? We just got our divine techniques today. How could a trainee cause such destruction? Humph! If it really was a trainee, then I'll eat my own shoe—"
"Fuck! It really was a trainee!"
The doubter, now standing among the crowd, looked at Aiden with a mix of awe and fear , as if he were some kind of monster.
Aiden, who was the center of attention, remained motionless.
He stood there with his eyes closed, deliberately ignoring the crowd's gaze. His calm demeanor was in stark contrast to the chaos around him. Many onlookers were whispering amongst themselves, speculating that Aiden had experienced a sudden burst of enlightenment and made significant progress with his visualization technique.
This speculation only led them to sigh, reflecting on the obvious disparity in talent between themselves and Aiden.
Unfortunately, Aiden's situation was far from enviable. The reason he stood still wasn't due to any divine blessing or newfound enlightenment.
In reality, he was quite literally unable to move!
The shot he had fired from his bow had been so powerful that it drained all the divine energy from his body. The sheer magnitude of the shot left him completely exhausted.
It required every ounce of his willpower just to remain standing; even the simple act of moving was beyond his reach.
As Aiden struggled with these thoughts, he took a cautious glance at the training ground.
The sight of the wreckage made him break into a cold sweat. He began to worry about the potential consequences. Would he have to pay a hefty fine for the damage? In this place, where the laws were unfamiliar to him, he feared that if he couldn't cover the costs, they might resort to selling him into slavery to settle the debt.
Aiden's mind raced with anxiety. He shook his head, trying to dismiss these thoughts. After the huge commotion he had caused, even the other trainees were visibly alarmed. He couldn't believe that such a dramatic scene had gone unnoticed by the instructors. They hadn't emerged to confront him or to assess the damage, which led him to relax.
Obviously, the situation wasn't as dire as he feared, no there was only one problem left on Aiden's mind.
'How on earth am I supposed to leave this situation when I can not walk!'
So as the group of trainee was watching Aiden in both awe and amazement they never noticed the slight tear, that was forming in the corner of the poor boy's eyes,
....
Away from the group, a figure stood in front of a path of cracked and torn earth. A terrifying burst of murderous intent swept around his blade in a horrifying storm.
His deep crimson eyes, cold and calculating, swept over the crowd with intense focus. When his gaze landed on Aiden, a cruel, bloodthirsty smile slowly spread across his lips.
"Interesting..." he murmured, his voice tinged with dark amusement.
The smile on his face was one of malicious pleasure, as if he derived satisfaction from Aiden's situation and the destruction he had caused.
"They didn't lie after all. This academy will be quite fun," he muttered.
…
Time passed, and several days went by.
Aiden had spent these days cultivating his divine energy and mastering his divine techniques. Now, he stood in a clearing on the training ground, some distance away from Oliver, his bow raised and ready.
"Are you ready, Aiden?" Oliver asked, his voice steady.
"Yes, you can begin," Aiden replied, his eyes sharp with focus.
"Alright then," Oliver said, drawing his bow as his auburn hair flickered with divinity.
With a deep breath, Oliver released his arrows one after another, sending them shooting into the sky before they rained down on Aiden like a deadly shower.
Aiden had been watching carefully. As soon as the arrows hit the air, golden divinity began to radiate from his body, flickering like a dazzling light ray. With a simple step forward, Aiden's body blurred, dodging through the falling arrows with ease.
Seeing Aiden handling the challenge well, Oliver smiled and decided to increase the difficulty. Now, each arrow was channeled with divinity, streaking toward Aiden like a rain of light-infused missiles.
Aiden could only concentrate on maintaining his semi-light state while narrowly evading the vicious arrows pouring down toward him. His every move was calculated, his body reacting instinctively to the escalating danger.
Watching from the side, Raelia smiled and spoke, "He managed to pass the first two levels we set up. Let's see if he can finally pass level three."
Raelia drew her bow, her wolf-like eyes locking onto Aiden with predatory intent. Divinity flowed out from her body, feeding into her arrow. Unlike Aiden and Oliver's reddish-gold divinity, Raelia's was a deep silvery blue, like the cold light of a moon overlooking an endless wilderness.
She exhaled a breath of misty, cold air as she spoke,
[Artemis's Archery – True Dusk.]
As soon as Raelia spoke, Aiden's body shivered, sensing the deadly precision of a vicious predator locking onto its prey. Quickly, he phased out of his semi-light energy state and drew his bow, but by then, Raelia's attack had already finished charging.
Unlike Aiden's True Dawn, which heralded the birth of a new sun with dazzling, blinding light, Raelia's was the complete opposite. The silvery light transformed into a vicious beast that devoured all nearby light, turning it into an even more menacing silver attack.
The arrow flew forward with terrifying speed.
But just before it smashed into Aiden, an arrow left his bow, trailing a brilliant streak of silver-cold energy.
[Apollo's Archery – True Dawn.]
"Boom!"
The surrounding area was engulfed in a shockwave as the ball of silvery and golden divinity clashed, blinding everyone with its aftermath. As the dust cleared, Aiden stood slightly embarrassed but still relatively unharmed.