Sezel stood at the classroom's threshold, his red eyes scanning the rows of newbie Slayers—young and old, rich and poor. There was no guarantee when a human will awaken, may they be at the age of sixty or sixteen, doesn't matter.
But there was just one observed notion that no child below the age of twelve had ever awakened, so it was considered the threshold.
Sezel scanned the class, so students wore tailored coats, their polished boots gleaming with wealth, while others, like Sezel, made up with the facility's stark white shirt and trousers.
'Ok, so now I have to sit with them.'
Sezel's heart pounded hard, his nervousness making his legs shake. These were the symptoms of a person with non-existent social skills. Sezel was not to be blad for this, he never thought, living in slums, that he would go to a classroom.
Sezel exhaled, closing his eyes, 'Well it is what it is. I need to get going.'
With that thought, he stepped inside the classroom. Most students ignored him, returning to their chatter or notes, bored by yet another Awakened stumbling in, it was not sothing rare, they saw a newly awakened getting in from ti to ti.
Murmurs of the students filled the room, Sezel quietly slipped to the back, claiming a seat. Captain Raelion still stood at the gate, his face annoyed, his sunglasses hiding his eyes. 'What is he annoyed about?' Sezel wondered.
Sezel glanced around at the whole classroom, so students shot sly glances, so laughed and prayed in groups.
'What is this place, doesn't look like a classroom.' He pondered for a second, 'Well maybe this is how classes are, I just heard about them.'
At that mont, a commotion at the door drew every gaze. Raelion's voice, sharp and commanding, cut through the noise, scolding soone unseen. Not long after, a towering figure stepped in—a muscular man, clutching a book, his face flushed.
Sezel blinked, stunned, 'How is Raelion able to scold this guy.' Ironically enough, the man was about twice as large as Captain Raelion. 'Guess if you have power, you can do anything.'
Everyone in the class shot to their feet, except Sezel who looked around in confusion. He too shot up from his seat and greeted the man with everyone else. A wave of respect to the man.
"Good afternoon," the man greeted, his deep voice rumbling as he set the book on the teacher's desk. His smile was warm.
'So he is the teacher here.'
Everyone sat down, the teacher's gaze sharpened at Sezel, he felt a creep run down his spine.
"You're all newbies," the teacher began, his voice carrying to the room's corners. "This is your first lesson as Awakened. Here, you'll learn the basics of being a Slayer."
'Yeah this is what I needed.' Sezel cheered in his mind.
He could feel the teacher's gaze drifting to him again and again, because he looked the odd one out among the swarm of identical-looking humans.
"Do you know what it ans to be a Slayer?" the teacher asked, his voice deep, carrying a challenge.
No one among the 200ish people answered, the teacher broke the damp silence, answering his question with a dark expression, "To save what's left of humanity. It's your responsibility."
Sezel listened, the words sinking deep.
The teacher paced, his boots echoing on the tiled floor, "Around ten decades ago the first Gate tore our world apart, turning humanity upside down, shaping the world as we know it today. The Gate released nightmarish creatures and in no ti the continent of Australia beca a wasteland, overrun by creatures from the Spirit Realm. It was the biggest shock to humanity up until now. The Spirit Beasts that ca out of the Gate were nothing short of devastation itself, immune to death from the weapons humanity had."
He paused, eyes sweeping the room. "But humanity was given a gift. Humans started awakening as the Spirit energy flowed and leaked to our world. We have yet to deduce what it is or where did it co from, the only thing we know is that it has a mind of its own."
Gasps rippled through the class, eyes widening. Sezel's breath caught. 'A mind of its own?'
The teacher turned, his voice lowering. "Spirit Energy is alive, sentient. It shapes our fate, whether we want it or not." This was no public tale, it was a secret guarded only for the Awakened.
"Only a chosen few are awakened, only five percent to be exact. With the newfound abilities we found a stand against the horrors of the Spirit Realm. As Slayers, you all will be tasked to go inside the Spirit Realm and stop the horrifying beasts from coming out in this world."
"On that note," he smiled, a grim curve, "As an Awakened, it's not mandatory. You can choose other paths on Earth, like being a teacher, rescue teams, researchers." He stopped and exhaled deeply, his expression turning dark.
In a grim voice he said, "As an Awakened, no matter where you run, you will always find yourself entangled with the Spirit Realm. It's our fate, decided by Spirit Energy."
A chill coiled down Sezel's spine, 'What does he an by that?'
Sezel, he'd already decided, his Rank 0 status left him no choice but to pursue being an instructor, a role far from the Spirit Realm's jaws. But the teacher's words gnawed at him. Escape fate? Sezel would never be able to do that.
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