1 month since the incident.
With Vida Corp's abolishment, the city was once again safe.
The criminal named Janus is still on the run. But besides that, nothing was out of the ordinary.
Today was unlike every other day. The birds were chirping songs, the flowers outside the courtyard were blooming, and the gentle sun shined on the school fountain's waters.
But on this peaceful day, one boy had a cloud of doom and gloom over his head. It was as if he was dreading something to happen.
"Ugh... I don't like this..."
Aran groaned as he anxiously walked through the halls with his classmates.
Their next lesson was to be taken outside the classroom.
All of them are walking towards the changing rooms to take a physical test.
And what's so wrong about that? Well, here's a little thing to know about Potentia Academy.
For most schools, if students want to pursue Distortion Diving or other occupations that involve combat, they typically have to finish their education and then choose to go down the path of being recruited for training courses, such as military, law enforcement, etc.
Once they rise up the ranks, they can be promoted and become fully fledged Distortion Divers, or can choose to have normal jobs or pursue higher education.
However, for schools like Potentia Academy, the student's talents are cultivated to the extreme to bring out the most of their potential through a specialized curriculum and their state of the art technologies.
One example of this said curriculum being simulated combat scenarios and all out sparring sessions.
Aran was pacing back and forth in his mind because of this.
He clutched pieces of his hair as he debated faking a stomach ache to get out of this situation.
He wasn't afraid of the fight. In fact, he doubts that anything would be scarier than what he faced in Vida Corp's underground floors.
No, it was something else.
Aran, as experienced as he was for his age, was still a teenage boy. And with adolescence, comes a large amount of insecurities.
In other words, he doesn't want to embarrass himself infront of his entire class.
Please, go easy on me...
Aran groaned once more as he thought of the physical tasks that he had to go through in a few minutes.
That attitude remained until his passive skill, eavesdropping, picked up some more gossip on the loose.
Two girls from his class huddled up and started to talk about this said activity.
"Hey, Kris!"
One of them called to get the other's attention.
"Hm? What's up?" a brown—haired girl responded with curiosity in her eyes.
Her name was Kristina Glacia. Despite being a first year, she immediately got the attention of all the boys in school because of her good looks that supposedly rivaled Pheobe's.
Her rich, long brown hair had highlights as white white as snow that made her stand out.
And her extroverted nature had already captured the hearts of many boys in Aran's class in such a short amount of time.
But besides that, her abilities were quite lacking, placing her at the bottom of the hierarchy built by her circle of friends.
"I heard that before the sparring matches begin, we're going to have to draw lots to decide who's going to go up against each other!"
Kristina's friend explained. Matching the tempo of the conversation, Kristina immediately replied with the same amount of enthusiasm.
"Yeah! I heard it from one of the seniors! I hope we get paired up, I'm a little scared if it's someone else!"
"Make sure to lose for me, okay? That's what friends are for!"
A little taken aback, Kristina hesitated to speak before nodding along.
"Y-yeah, sure!"
Well, that's a little unfair... I hope that whoever's going to be my opponent surrenders too...
Aran sighed before Kristina's friend jogged off to join up with the other students.
Being the only one who was close by, Aran heard the faint sound of Kristina's mumblings.
"But I wanted to do my best..."
Aran's eyes widened from surprise he sympathised with Kristina's dissapointment.
Despite not even interacting with each other, Aran felt as if he understood her for just a little bit.
Wanting to challenge yourself is a universal feeling.
Aran slapped himself as punishment for himself.
Get a grip, Aran! A lot of people in this class aren't just here to mess around!
Aran sighs to himself once more.
What the hell am I doing, thinking of an excuse to run away? I gotta take this seriously!
He thought to himself as he entered the boy's locker room.
________________________________________
"Whoa... Check him out."
One of the boys exclaimed.
Everyone in the boys changing room was looking at only one person in the room. It was none other than Pincer.
Now, they weren't staring for strange reasons. They were staring because of how impressive Pincer's physique was.
Despite his ability not necessarily relying on his muscles, Pincer still trains his physical fitness to help with his athleticism. And so, he developed a lean and muscular build.
"Dude, you're so jacked!"
"What's your secret?!"
The boys hounded him with questions and compliments as Aran watched on from the corner of the room.
Looking away, Aran opened his locker to get his gym clothes that were provided by the school before changing.
A few prying eyes looked back at Aran and snickered.
"Pfft! He's probably going to be a thin skeleton when he takes his shirt off..."
One of the boys whispered to his friend.
"Wanna bet that we can play his ribs like a xylophone?"
His friend chuckled back.
But when Aran took his shirt off, the critics were immediately silenced.
His physique wasn't on the same level as Pincer's, but it was nothing to be scoffed at.
His muscles were lean and solid, and he looked quite athletic in contrast to his gloomy appearance. All of this is thanks to Brok's physical training.
"What the hell...?"
"There's no way, right...?"
One of the boys rubbed his eyes in disbelief.
________________________________________
A few minutes have passed and the students were led towards another building for their physical tests.
At first glance, the building seemed akin to most gymnasiums you'd find in any school. Well, if you ignore the strange looking platform in the middle of the area.
With a clap from Professor Stein's hands, the entire space suddenly became a white void that seemed familiar to Aran.
Wait...
I thought to himself as he made eye contact with the teacher, Viktor Stein.
"This is just one of those fighting game stages that appear on practice modes!"
Aran said out loud, surprising Professor Stein.
"N-no it isn't!"
Professor Stein nervously replied.
He could deny as much as he wants, but in truth, Aran hit a bullseye with his observation.
Trying to change the topic, Professor Stein cleared his throat before telling the students to draw lots to decide who they will be sparring with.
Piece of folded paper are mixed around inside a box that Professor Stein brought with him.
They were folded closed as to not reveal what was written inside.
"Don't peek, okay? You might ruin the surprise!"
"Yes sir!"
The students replied in unison.
One by one, everyone took a piece and were told to stand on a platform.
But to the students confusion, there wasn't a platform in sight. Everything was still a flat white void in their eyes.
That was until Professor Stein snapped his fingers, revealing a sight that amazed all of the students.
The white void which they were standing on suddenly became a fighting arena. Which for Aran, looked like another stage from the fighting game he plays.
"Professor Stein, don't tell me you're a huge gamer-"
"AAAANYYWAYYYYSSS!!!"
Before Aran could say another word, Stein immediately shifted the topic as if he was trying to hide something.
"Is there anyone who'd like to explain what we're seeing right now?"
Despite the entire class being amazed at what they were looking at, only one student opted to raise his hand.
It was none other than Aran.
"Yes, Aranea?"
"It's AR, right? Augmented Reality."
His answer was a quick one that left no room for doubt.
"Correct!"
Stein exclaimed to the whole class.
"Before this room became a white void, did any one of you notice anything odd in the room?"
The whole class started to brain storm and arrived on one single conclusion.
All of them thought of the strange looking platform in the middle of the room earlier.
"Yes! Correct again, class! This entire gymnasium is an Augmented reality training facility! Those platforms over there will scan not only your physical abilities, but your perks too."
"Huh? Why would we need to do that?"
Ed asked from the group of students.
"It's for safety during the sparring session. For example, Pincer's abilities here can cause major injuries if he's not careful. So to prevent any real danger from happening, scanning your abilities will help the AR Room simulate them as holograms and have an accurate measurement of your limits."
Feeling curious, Aran asks another question.
"Then if we're fighting with holograms, wouldn't that just mean attacks will go through our bodies? Doesn't that essentially make perks that rely on projectile attacks have no added benefit?"
It was a good question. Some abilities don't necessarily mix well with the AR training room.
But without any hesitation, Mr. Stein immediately replied with an answer.
"That's why the school gave you those gym clothes!"
"Huh?"
Aran tilted his head, puzzled.
"Those gym clothes you're wearing have sensors that are connected to the AR program. For example, when a hologram projectile touches a part of your outfit, it'll simulate the pain of getting hit by it, but in a way less painful way."
Stein said to the class, making some of the students feel a little nervous.
The pain is simulated and dulled down. But that doesn't necessarily mean it's completely painless.
"Don't worry, although you might feel the pain, there won't be any lasting injuries that will remain! Now, without further ado, reveal your opponent!"
Following the teacher's words, everyone opened their piece of paper to see what was written inside.
On each paper, a different number was written on it.
"Alright class, look for someone who got the same number as you. They will be your opponent!"
Stein explained.
"Yes! I don't have to go against Pincer!"
"You have the same number as me?! High five!!!"
"Yeah!"
Two of the boys in class class celebrated as they exchanged a high five. Despite being opponents, they're just happy they won't go against someone like Pincer who'd take them down without much effort.
"Aw... It looks like we're not up against each other, Kris. I got a 9..."
Kristina's friend told her as she looked at the paper in dissapointment.
"It's going to be okay... Do your best, girl!"
The reactions from the class seem mostly positive enough. Except for two other boys in class.
One of them was outraged, and the other was in disbelief and had already given up.
"You've gotta be kidding me..."
Aran said as he looked at his paper which had a number seven written on it.
The only other person who got a number seven is...
He felt a piercing glare from his left side as he tried to avoid eye contact.
It was Pincer looking at him with blood shot eyes. Crumpling his paper which also had a number seven written on it.
If there's a god out there... Why'd you make him my opponent...?
Aran chuckled, looking at the sky as a single tear fell from his eye.
"Hehe... I'm in danger."