He was busy talking to the girls. It looked like he would maintain the same attitude for the next 3 years.
Aurora, without compromising her cheerful demeanor, said, "No problem! Just take care of yourself." The others remained indifferent.
After a few minutes, Aidoneus arrived in the classroom. He told the students to get ready.
Sol said, "Haven't you met the class yet? Are you going to test us without any information about us?"
Aidoneus said, "Sol Leventis. Heir of Helios, the Sun God. Your most prominent features are your ego and your condescending view of normal humans who are not Cosmyth users. You see them as people who shouldn't exist. You've had your Cosmyth since you were 6 years old. Your favorite things are reading Ancient Greek works and going to the theatre. Would you like me to continue?"
Sol looked at the teacher with narrowed eyes. There was no expression of shame or hesitation on his face.
"I thought so. Now follow me." The class followed Aidoneus down to the garden. The school garden was quite large. There was a large building further in the garden. Aidoneus brought them in front of the building.
"Your equipment for training and on the field is inside. Get dressed. I'm waiting for you here," Aidoneus said.
As he was about to enter the hall, something caught Magni's eye. There was movement in a tree opposite them. The swaying of the leaves was not normal. Magni moved away from the others and went to the tree.
Urania said, "I'm coming too," and went to the locker room.
Magni cautiously approached the tree. A snake was perched at the top of the tree. It had emerald green scales. At first, Magni was startled, but he wanted to look closer. As he got closer, the snake fixed its narrow eyes on him.
When it opened its mouth, Magni thought it would attack him, but it didn't. The snake spoke just like a human. "Know that I am watching you, Magni. You cannot find me, but we will be around. I will always be watching you ," it said and climbed onto the higher branches of the tree. Then, a crow took flight from the top of the tree.
It flew away and disappeared into the sky. Before Magni could fully understand what was happening, Aidoneus called him. He told him to change his clothes. Magni told Aidoneus what had just happened. Aidoneus said it might be a shapeshifting creature, but there was a barrier around the school that no low-powered entity could pass. He said he would deal with it, but for now, Magni should focus on his work. As Magni went to change, he heard arguing voices coming from inside.
When he arrived at the locker room, he saw Luna kicking Amor on the floor. Aurora had her head out of the ajar door and was laughing. Magni asked Han, who was silently watching the events on the side, what was going on. Han explained that Luna caught Amor secretly spying on them from the room's door, and then she started hitting him. Magni stopped paying attention to the incident and went to change.
The interior was tremendously organized and filled with at least 50 lockers. It was too spacious for a changing room. On the side, there was a rule board and information about the students. Magni's attention was drawn to the height chart:
Magni: 1.90
Neptune: 1.79
Han: 1.77
Aurora: 1.75
Sol: 1.73
Luna: 1.70
Amor: 1.70
Hecate: 1.65
Urania: 1.63
Diana: 1.60
Some of the lockers had the names of students and teachers on them. Magni opened the locker assigned to him. He took off the clothes he was wearing. Sol glanced at Magni. He had wing-like birthmarks on his back. Most likely, Sol was looking at them. He was well-built; muscular.
They made eye contact while Sol was examining Magni's body. Sol's face turned red, and he looked away. Magni also looked at Sol. His back, arms, stomach... every part of his body was covered in scars. Bruises, cuts, burn marks, and other wounds. He was very curious about the cause of these wounds. He returned to focusing on his uniform. A piece of paper fell out from among the folded clothes.
It read: "Dear student Magni Hyperaspis, your duty uniform is resistant to normal injuries, and when your Cosmyth emerges, it will be replaced with a resistant version. Until then, protect your body as much as possible ." Magni put on the uniform. It was neither too tight nor too loose; it fit him perfectly. To try out the uniform a bit, he went to the gym. But before that, he asked Sol the question that was bothering him.
"Sol, if you don't mind, I want to ask you something."
"You can ask if it's not something ridiculous. Don't take too long, I'm getting dressed."
"Your wounds, what caused them?"
Sol paused for a moment. The conceited expression on his face momentarily vanished, replaced by empty stares. After a few seconds, Magni asked,
"Sol, are you okay?"
"Oh, yes. I zoned out. Were you asking about the wounds?"
"Yes."
"Some are from the day my Cosmyth emerged. Others happened in a traffic accident. If you have nothing else to ask, I'm going to continue getting dressed."
"No. I'm sorry to hear that. About the accident ."
Magni mumbled, unsure of what to say as he spoke his last sentence.
He took a basketball from the ball rack. He started playing. He was passing time while waiting for the other members of the class to arrive. The uniform did not restrict his movements as much as he thought.
In order, Luna, Sol, and Aurora came out. Their uniforms were different from his. Sol's uniform was made of a mirror-like material that only reflected light. Luna's was made of a substance that made her look blurry. A few minutes after they left, Urania arrived. Magni continued to play basketball during this time.
Urania's uniform was revealing. It had a not-too-deep chest cleavage. The bottom resembled leggings. Seeing Magni playing basketball, Urania advised him to join Cosmyth Basketball. Aidoneus, who overheard their conversation, said he would agree if Magni could learn and control his Cosmyth.
Magni, delighted by this, said that he was also on the basketball team in his hometown and was the best in his school. However, he explained that he had an unfortunate knee injury in his last game and could no longer play properly. Aidoneus told him to go to the infirmary after class, as the infirmary could fix his knee. Magni said he would go immediately after class.
The two of them followed Aidoneus out to the garden where the rest of the class was. Everyone was wearing their uniforms. Everyone's uniform was completely different. These uniforms had to be compatible with the User's Cosmyth. Aidoneus lined everyone up by height.
Then, starting with Magni, the class began to follow Aidoneus. After 15 minutes, they arrived at a ruined area. Everyone was discussing what this area was.
"This place you see is the training ground where you will receive your education. Now you will be divided into two teams: Blue and Red. Both teams will try to take the armbands I will give you. The team that captures all members of the opposing team will win. Is there anything that is not understood?"
The class shouted in unison, "No, sir!"
"The teams will be determined by drawing lots. The two captains I choose will draw papers in order ."
Aidoneus took out a closed box. He put his hand into the box. He selected two papers.
"The captain of the Red team, Sol Leventis! The captain of the Blue Team, Magni Hyperaspis! Come to me and determine your teams."
Magni was chosen as captain. Stress spread through his body. Magni and Sol went to Aidoneus and started drawing lots. Sol's team was Luna, Neptune, Amor, and Diana. Magni's team was Urania, Aurora, Han, and Hecate.
The teams were given 15 minutes to prepare their strategies. Magni's team did not know what kind of strategy to follow. The good thing about the team was that they accepted Magni as captain despite him not having a Cosmyth. They made a plan as best as they could. Aurora and Han would take the front lines. Magni would be the brains of the team. Aurora would protect them while Han would attack. Urania's abilities were not suitable for a physically demanding training like this. Still, instead of seeing this as a disadvantage, they would try to turn it into an advantage by trying to catch the opposing team members in a one-on-one position.
With 5 minutes left until the test started, Aidoneus called Magni over.
"Yes, sir !"
"Look, I know you don't have a Cosmyth. If you want, you can leave now. The moment you enter the test, you will have a risk of death. Are you ready to take that risk? Will you really risk your life?"
"Yes, sir! I am aware of the risks, but I still want to fight and stay here."
"Alright, so be it." "Thank you, sir!"
Magni rejoined his team. The teams descended onto the battlefield. They took their places. The teams were at different ends of the area. It was very wide , at least 1 kilometer long. The excitement was at its peak on both sides. They were startled by the announcement coming from the loudspeakers. Aidoneus had given the signal for them to start. There was no turning back. The Blue Team cautiously began to move toward the center of the area. They were talking among themselves at the same time.
Hecate: "So, what's the plan?"
Magni: "I can't say we have an exact plan. We'll do as we discussed earlier. Aurora will protect us, and Han will catch them at their weak moments and take the armbands."
Hecate: "It looks like we're going to fail..."
Aurora: "Don't be so hopeless! Even though the opposing team looks scary, I think we can succeed if we are careful and planned."
Han: "Aurora is right. Don't lose hope. Also, don't expect everything to go according to plan. Maybe things will turn in our favor."
Urania: "Let's stay as close to each other as possible. Be careful not to separate so that it will be easier for us to react if there is a problem."
Magni: "If I'm not mistaken, we should be starting to approach the center of the area."