A new day had dawned in the bustling city of Aquanus, and a new development was underway. In the early morning, a group of highly skilled workers were busy setting up a new shop in one of the secluded sections of the market district. Among them were a young woman and a teenager, carefully arranging groceries and food items on display with great care and attention. The displays consisted of various exotic fruits and meats, arranged beautifully on arched food stands that showcased their vibrant colors and textures.
"Mom, we need salamander tongue and guro meat in this section. And don't forget to add some lime salt over here," the young teenager said, pointing to different sections of the display.
"Sure, dear. Liana, make a list of the things that will placed and make proper sections for it. I'll clean up this area and be there shortly with all the food and spices," the woman responded, her hands busy tidying up the area.
"Okay, Mom," Liana replied, quickly taking out a notepad and pen to jot down the items they needed.
The woman continued organizing the shelves of food and spices in the spacious shop, which was big enough to house a wide variety of commodities. She worked diligently, taking out the necessary items from the many sacks lined up in the storage room of the shop. As she worked, she cleaned up the area and ensured everything was in order for the shop's opening.
Outside, a man was busy adjusting a sign and a few flyers for the shop's first opening. The sign read "Nature's Pantry and Flavors" in elegant lettering, and it was decorated with colorful images of various fruits and vegetables. The man had also created a few flyers to promote the shop, which he carefully placed in the surrounding area.
"Fui, dear, I'm done with the signs. Let me help you," the man said, joining his wife in the shop.
"Thank you, dear," she responded, grateful for his help.
As they worked together, the shop slowly came to life, filled with the aroma of freshly cut fruits and meats, and the vibrant colors of the exotic spices and herbs that adorned the shelves. It was a beautiful sight, and the couple couldn't wait to share it with the people of Aquanus.
After a while, Liana was almost done organizing the grocery items. As they finished, they looked eagerly towards their new shop and the distant city. It was the first high human business venture in Aquanus, and they hoped to make a mark in the community.
“I have to thank my friend Ivan for helping us set up all this. He did all the paperwork. More than 60% of the products were just handed to us as an investment. I’m always grateful for his support. We will pave the way for our community as well as ourselves,” the man said.
“These are trying times, dear. Let’s do our best,” the mother replied.
Liana overheard their conversation but decided not to say anything. She knew the leader of the high humans, Ivan Tepish Dracule, had helped them a lot. At first, they had simply proposed a business idea to him. Her family had a business-oriented background, even back in the high human empire. Looking at the shop, Liana was not sure what the future would hold.
“Let’s hope for the best,” she whispered to herself.
Allister and Ray were training together, utilizing an empty space near the barricaded area since Ray was not welcome there. This spot remained untouched, allowing them to train uninterrupted. Ray sat on the ground, sweat drenching his body as he breathed heavily. Allister lay beside him, trying to catch his breath. They usually started with cardio, and today they had run a quarter circle of the city, taking them four hours to complete. . They started at dawn at the earliest. Ray had calculated the steps just like before as he it was second nature to him. They ran 120 miles.
As he caught his breath, Ray muttered under his breath,
"The same workout two months ago would have broken me for the day."
His hands clenched into fists as he felt his physical ability reaching new heights. Ray wondered how time seemed to be passing by quickly, with today being nearly the end of the third month in this new world. One more week and it would be 3 months then.
Each month varied by 5 or 6 weeks. The sudden realization made him flinch as he thought about his little sister, barely hanging on. A daunting task was on his shoulders, and he intended to visit his father today, hoping to get close to him by doing some chores.
[I hope I can convince Dad. IT will be hard but I have no choice. In a few weeks I will gain his trust. From what I've seen and experienced, he's just hard on everybody because our circumstances are not that good. Setting and leading by example. The entire estate is struggling a bit, and I will talk to him today,] he thought.
Allister had rested and could now regulate his breathing. "What do you even eat, Rayhein? Your genetics are insane. Even if I consider myself a hybrid, I don't know how you keep up with me, especially when I'm using force and barely able to keep going."
Ray noticed that unlike everyone else, Allister's hair had brownish strands and some parts that were not black. His eyes were blue, which was very different from the standard high human characteristics.
Ray lifted his shoulder in a half shrug, not having a clue as to why he was able to keep up. From his speculation, either his father had great genes, or Orion had messed with his body again. The latter was more believable. Ray recalled an instance where the doctor treated him, saying that Orion was buffing him up.
"I need to thank Orion. At least he's helping me in some form," he thought.
"Do you want to spar with weapons?" Allister asked.
"Really? You said let's concentrate on cardio. You didn't want to have combat drills," Ray said in surprise.
"That's because it's hard to control my skills to match yours. We're going to use Reager stone dolls," Allister explained.
Ray raised his eyebrows with confusion. "The what?"
"Stay here. I will get one from the barracks," Allister said.
Ray waited in place with anticipation. He eagerly wanted to test himself to see how good he was in close-quarter combat. Due to his fucked up past, he had all the knowledge and training of martial arts and combat beaten into him. Broken bones every week and a nigh-impossible training regimen. With his abnormal healing factor they did not hold back anything.
The foundation literally wanted to see just how much he, as a clone, could take, thinking he was disposable for the first year of the super-soldier program. The mood turned extremely sour, and anger boiled within him as he recalled his abused past, but he calmed himself to not let his emotions run wild.
The thing he wanted to learn was this "force" thing Allister kept mentioning. Otherwise, he had the battle experience. These were the only dreadful memories that didn't get jumbled up for some reason.
Allister came back with a few bamboo body-looking figures on his shoulder. He was carrying two of them as he approached Ray. Allister smiled slyly as he got the Reager stone dolls. Ray knew something was up.
"Well, I've got good news and bad news," Allister said, looking at Ray.
"Start with the bad news," Ray replied.
Allister just started with the good news which annoyed ray "The good news is that we got the permission but there's a catch"
"The bad news?" Ray prompted, his curiosity growing.
Allister's smile faded a little. "Well, let's just say you'll have to pass a rigorous training test in the barracks before you're allowed to use them."
Ray's confusion turned to annoyance. "Why? does he think I won't?" he asked, his brows furrowed.
Allister shrugged. "Well, he did say you might chicken out if he told you beforehand. He wanted me to bring them here just to give you a glimpse and give them back. He laughed saiying he didn't think you had the guts."
“He has a weird sense of humor” Allister added
Ray felt like he was being mocked although his usual nature was too much reserved to the point where it felt non-human. He now felt far more emotions than ever before. He thought
“Maybe the mixture of personalities twisted my cold rationality. I’m glad it did. I rather die than be like that again. Also, it's fun to feel things. This rage”
Ray was feeling emotions that he forgot how to feel. His face made a sly smile with his pupils pulsating as he felt exhilarated.
Allister looked at Ray, impressed. "You're a natural. Nothing like a demon from the dark corners of the seferoth forest" he said with a smile.
"Shut it" he replied
“I hope he won’t hate me moping the floor with everyone,” he said with a cold voice.
Rayhein walked with a sense of purpose, his eyes focused on the training grounds ahead. He had no time for idle chatter, especially not from Allister, who was currently laughing at his remark. But Rayhein didn't react. he simply continued walking, his footsteps echoing on the stone path.
Allister felt annoyed that Rayhein didn't tell him to shut up, which was unusual. Allister had just pleaded with the overseer to let Rayhein train there. Although he enjoyed spending time with Rayhein, there was nothing he could teach him. Allister was terrible at instructing and teaching, which made him feel useless.
As they walked toward the training grounds, Allister couldn't help but notice Rayhein's firm posture. He knew that Rayhein was feeling himself for some reason.
Allister thought to himself, "Rayhein is already strong enough to train with others. I hope he won't be discouraged when he reaches his limits. Too much time has been wasted. It's already been nearly 3 months, and in four months, the biggest induction in the school, Rumira, will be held. It's time to let go of our differences and work toward gaining admission to it."
They arrived at the training barracks, a massive building with a roof that towered above them. The sound of metal clashing against metal echoed through the air, and the smell of metal hung heavy in the air. Five students were currently training in the open space of the building. Practicing. Allister watched them with interest, but Rayhein kept his eyes fixed on the overseer.
The overseer of the training area was sitting on a chair backwards, his eyes fixed on the students with a fierce intensity. He was a massive man, easily the largest guy in the entire estate, and his chair was proportionally massive as well; it looked more like a table. When he saw Rayhein approaching him with cold and rage-filled eyes. The overseer-eyed ray was surprised, but he felt a sensation that he hadn’t felt in a while.
For the first time, the overseer saw Rayhein in person. The boy's eyes were like steel held a darkness so profound, it felt like staring into the heart of the abyss itself.. It made him smile with an evil grin on his face. As someone who had lived for more than 350 years, this was a surprise.
"The kid is something else," he thought. "I've seen very few with such a demeanor as his. How can a child feel like he's been staring death in the face for years?"
"Hook, line, and sinker! Aaa ahahahaa! I caught a baby Goliath. How am I so damn lucky?" the overseer exclaimed, still grinning. Rayhein's eyes narrowed, and he took a step closer to the overseer
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