Level Up Family

When Grevlin entered the compound, he had walked along with the congregation of student candidates heading towards the Academy Trials. Curiously though, a few among them who were roughly 13 years of age gave him dark looks as if they had some grudge with him.

Others also noticed this and couldn't help but start questioning his identity and the actual situation.

"Hey, I heard that two days ago, that kid's father had provoked Head Guard Lawrence." A tall kid said.

"What? Are you sure? That fat belly uncle, what's so special about him?" A skinny kid asked with surprise.

The tall kid looked around before placing his mouth closer to his ear and whispering, "Well, you see, it's not he that's special, but his connections; my mother said that those from the Wiggin's have roots with the Superior Instructor Ilan."

"Ehhh? That means faced uncle, no wonder I didn't like him, father always said that head Guard Lawrence is dirty." The small kid said back with a look of disgust on his face.

"Shhh, you can't keep saying such things, you'd get into trouble, now come along, we have to hurry ahead, do remember not to provoke just anyone, as you can see that kid is more likely going to have a tough time in the trials now that Lawrence has him marked."

The tall kid said as he pulled the other kid forward; the small kid had no choice but to follow along, hoping no one heard his earlier shouts.

Not too far ahead, Melson also heard the words from the others. He gave Grevlin a competitive look before turning away, keeping his focus ahead of them.

Naturally, behind Grevlin by a reasonable distance, Jae also stared at him, but unlike Melson, who showed rivalry, Jae showed a look far different from other children, a look of pure hatred.

'Father, I will break his dreams and rise above him; only then can I prove that I am the worthy successor to the family name.'

Jae thought as he stared at Nero's back for a while before looking away.

With regards to everyone's attention, Grevlin didn't even spare them a glance; his eyes wandered about as he looked for the instructors. Soon, their group had arrived at a wide-open field, joining a larger audience.

Grevlin looked at the scene with surprise as he spoke, "So many..."

"Yes... t-t-today, t-there's a lot, cough..." A timid voice said from nearby, followed by a succession of coughing.

Grevlin glanced to his side with curiosity only to notice a well-dressed petite girl who seemed roughly his age; her skin was pale, hair was a dull pink, as were her large rounded shaped eyes with long eyelashes.

It was clear that she was a growing beauty, and if one ignored her skin's paleness and sickly appearance, giving her a few years, she would mature into a wonder.

As the little girl notice Grevlin's curious stare, her face turned red with embarrassment as she shrank back slightly.

Grevlin felt a tinge of familiarity with this girl, the very way she showed fear for others around her, bringing him back to a much earlier time in his childhood. He thought for a moment before firmed up his resolve and spoke with a slightly friendly tone.

"Hello, my name is Grevlin; what's yours?"

The girl showed a hesitant look; she coughed a few times before wiping her mouth with a cute pink cloth as she replied, "It's Anna..."

Grevlin made a friendly smile as he spoke, "Nice to meet you, Anna. Are you here for the Academy Trails?"

Anna shook her head at this; she was about to reply, but there was a disturbance before that could happen.

"Hey, you there, the freak without arms, I have something to say to you." A rough but youthful voice said in an aggressive tone as if mocking the fact that Grevlin's arms were sealed within his jacket.

Grevlin frowned at the disturbance, he typically wouldn't pay anyone of this nature attention, but for some reason, he felt a bit annoyed when he was interrupted.

Standing behind him, were three boys who were more than a head taller than himself. They each looked at him as if looking at a toy and showed mocking gazes as they saw him look at them.

Anna showed a worried look as she saw this scene, she wanted to do something, but Grevlin shook his head and spoke, "What do you want?"

This group's leader was a robust teenager with a single patch of hair on his shaved head. He clapped his fist into his palm and spoke threateningly, "Ha, it's nothing; I only wanted to warn you. You'd better watch out during the trials because we'll be coming to teach you a lesson. Let's go, guys."

After saying his piece, he left with his cronies, who made intimating noises as they passed Grevlin.

Watching as the boys left, Grevlin looked at them with indifferent eyes, as if he hadn't paid their words any mind, he didn't even flinch in front of a grown-up like Barkan, so it would be something incredible for a teenager to startle his spirits.

"Hey, A-a-are you okay? Do you need help?" Anna asked with a worried voice, her eyes showing concern to this new potential friend.

Grevlin shook his head and replied, "I'm fine; they were only insects."

"Huh? Hehe, you're pretty arrogant you know," Anna said with a light laugh, showing a bright smile on her face, her look now seeming a tinge prettier from the usual state.

Grevlin felt that it was cute, but that's all; he said nothing more on the matter as he shifted his eyes around and spoke, "Where are the instructors?"

"Oh, they should be co---" Anna was about to say something, but it seemed that her words wouldn't be necessary.

Following the sound of a loud horn, all students turned their attention towards a certain direction. There, a few instructors had appeared, including the famous Juliana.

When these instructors arrived, the scene grew quiet as all students looked on with focus, not to miss any details. 

____

NB: "Hey guys, I will be doing special contests every month from now, from them you can win an Amazon gift card along with a copy of one of my Amazon book series. There will be two competitions this month, one for Valentines and one for the end date of Chinese New Year. Keep an eye on my Twitter and Facebook page for more details to come in the coming week."

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ShadowsFingers 

Twitter - https://twitter.com/ShadowsFinger