Brad and Chip felt relieved as they saw the familiar face of their leader. Aric had been away for a long time without any contact with them, so they ran amok in the classroom.

Although it was chaos, there was one thing that they all agreed on; Aric was the top dog. They would follow his orders and fly under his wings.

Now that Aric was back, Brad and Chip felt like their pride was restored. Their previous slumped postures turned into a straight and prideful look.

Although having professor Kain appear in the classroom would be great, Aric appearing was better. With Aric here, they did not have to worry about their current problem, Hugh.

Aric had fought against Hugh and beat him up black and blue. There was no debate against who was stronger, and everyone knew that.

Although Hugh displayed tremendous strength in his fight against Tanner, everyone still believed that Aric would win in a fight.

Everyone held their breaths as they waited for a rematch against Hugh and Aric. With Tanner’s condition in a pitiful state, there was no doubt in their mind that Aric would want to take revenge.

They looked at Aric and saw that he had his head staring at the ground. His eyes were hidden underneath the partings of his disheveled hair. His clothes were dirty and creased, a complete opposite of the clean and sharp hygiene he usually possessed.

Aric did not look like the person he was before. There was a sort of gloomy aura around him that was out of character. Aric would usually have the charisma of a god, but now, he looked nothing more than a bum.

Aric walked step by step into the classroom. He did not look up at his surroundings. Usually, he would greet his friends and maybe even Serena, but now, he ignored everybody.

He walked towards his chair and he passed by Tanner. Tanner’s vomit was pooling on the ground, and it was clear that Aric noticed his friend’s sorry state.

Despite the miserable state of Tanner, Aric continued to walk as if he did not see anything. Everyone was confused until they saw that Aric would pass by Hugh.

They all assumed that Aric’s fury was hidden underneath his gloomy demeanor and he would vent it all out on Hugh.

“Ooooh, Hugh’s done now that Aric is here.”

“Yeah, Aric’s pride is on the line so there is no way that he will let Hugh go.”

“Do you want to make a bet on how long Hugh lasts this time?”

“I’ll take that chance. I bet 1,000 points that Hugh won’t last a minute.”

They braved themselves for the incoming rematch fight against Hugh and Aric. Guesses and predictions were thrown as a way to entertain the spectators of the upcoming fight.

Hugh kept his eagle eyes locked into Aric. He was confident in his ability to stay alive, but he did not know if he could easily beat Aric as he did with Tanner.

He pre-activated his armor on his fist and his leg to make sure that he could react in time. Aric’s body language indicated no intent to fight, but Hugh would not be tricked by it.

Aric looked like he was as defenseless as a newborn baby without any care in the world. There was no anger, no fury in Aric’s eyes, just emptiness.

Hugh was confused for a second, but he reminded himself that Aric was an enemy. He guessed that Aric’s demeanor was a trap, so he should not act rashly.

The best course of action at this time was to react towards Aric’s movements with the use of his eagle eyes.

He planted his feet firmly in the ground and assumed a defensive position with his fists. He watched as Aric walked towards him, with footsteps echoing in the dead silent classroom.

The tension was building up in the air and everyone waited for the explosion of strength. Six steps...five steps...two steps and one step until Aric reaches Hugh.

Aric took the last step and reached Hugh. Everyone braced themselves for collision, but nothing happened. Aric continued to walk in the same direction, ignoring Hugh’s presence.

Hugh was left speechless as Aric passed by him. There was no reaction from Aric, not even a flinch. It was as if Aric was a dead man walking.

Everyone could not believe their eyes. Aric ignored Hugh. There was no big fight, just silence, and footsteps. Aric continued to walk until he reached his chair, then sat down.

Brad and Chip had conflicted anger and frustration over Aric’s indifference. They thought that Aric would restore their pride and defend them from Hugh, but he did not even give Hugh a look.

They both rushed towards Aric to try and convince him to fight Hugh. They put their hands on Aric’s shoulders and they felt something weird.

Aric felt cold. This was weird because Aric would always be warm due to his Desire working on his body. They shrugged this piece of fact and tried to shake Aric’s shoulder.

As they tried to wake Aric up from his stupor, they felt a hand slap their hands away. Aric had shrugged them off.