Chapter 4: Mersa

[Time: 2 days after the 'accident' | T:12:31 / M:10th D:23rd Y:13251]

[Place: Planet Cerra Z1429:2, Orbit, Heran Combat School 5th Academy Ship 'Hades' 12th Girls Dormitory]

Although it was already noon, a young girl was still lying covered inside her blanket. Her eyes were visibly swollen, with bags beneath them, making it clear she hadn’t gotten much sleep.

[Mersa: Vorst...]

A coarse voice whispered the name of the boy who was like a little brother to her. She had already run out of tears and couldn’t cry anymore. An overwhelming sadness washed over her... That’s right—he was no more...

Click.

The door to her room suddenly opened, and several people entered.

[Mersa: Leave me alone...]

A cold voice came from beneath the living blanket.

[???: ...]

[Mersa: ...]

[???: My next words might shock you, but you must remain calm.]

[Mersa: LEAVE. ME. ALONE!]

The young girl raised her voice to its utmost level.

[???: ... He woke up.]

At that moment, it felt as if lightning struck her. With a sudden movement, she threw the blanket away, her body fully charged with nano-photons, and she was already rushing toward the door.

[???: Please calm down.]

One of the people in the room caught her. Despite her incredible potential, she was still too young to pose a threat to these adults.

[Mersa: Is that true? LIES! If it’s true, then let me see him! Principal!]

The Principal of the Heran Combat School was a man who, by Earth standards, looked like he was in his early 30s, but his real age was somewhere close to 700 years. He was also one of the strongest in the Kollos Alliance. Handsome, powerful, rich, and authoritative, he had many secret admirers. However, he had remained single all this time, and no one knew the real reason.

[Principal: Please calm down, young lady. We will let you see him in a while, but first, you should change your clothes. It’s hardly appropriate for you to leave the room in that attire.]

Mersa’s face reddened. Right now, she was only in her colorful nightie with a flowery pattern. After a quick change of clothes, she was walking down the corridor with the Principal.

[Principal: Do you understand? Although he woke up, he seems to be in a serious situation. He hasn’t interacted with anyone at all. There’s no response to anyone. We suspect he’s suffering from amnesia. He must have suffered quite a big blow...]

The doctor walking next to him looked troubled.

[Doctor: "It’s totally strange. He suffered a rank 8 poison, the most lethal type, one that deals a direct blow to the crystal core. And I saw for myself that yesterday his crystal core was completely liquefied—how did he wake up?!"]

The Principal continued.

[Principal: He didn’t recognize me. He might not recognize you either. Also... he underwent a bit of a transformation... please be prepared for that, Mersa-san.]

[Mersa: Yes, Principal-sensei.]

The young girl was now completely different from a short while ago. With a composed attitude, she walked alongside the adults, her voice regaining its usual calm. Finally, they arrived at their destination. She felt nervous as her hand touched the door handle... Behind this door... He was there... With a wildly beating heart, she pressed the handle...

And there he was. A youth sitting on the hospital bed, calmly watching the scenery outside the window.

It was him. His face. His nose. His mouth. His hands. Then he turned his head towards her...

Green eyes.

[Mersa: "So this is what the Principal talked about..."]

The previous Vorst had grey eyes with a slightly muddy quality to them. Although he was older, he behaved like a child, so to her, he was nothing more than a little brother she doted on. However, the Vorst before her was different. Amnesia or not, his eyes had that crystal-clear shine to them. The green spheres were carefully inspecting her, evaluating, analyzing... Before the incident, she had thought of him as a little brother. After the incident, just thinking about him caused her chest to hurt. When she heard he had woken up, she felt relieved. And now... Her vision blurred as tears uncontrollably welled up.

[Time: 2 hours earlier | T:10:13 / M:10th D:23rd Y:13251]

[Place: Planet Cerra Z1429:2, Orbit, Heran Combat School 5th Academy Ship 'Hades' Hospital Ward]

Gibberish. That’s how everything sounded to him. It was completely different from that time inside his soul. Inside his 'domain,' he could easily decipher the thoughts of the other person as well as deliver his own. But outside, it was a completely different matter—he didn’t understand a word.

[Nurse-san: !^@^@#$^&%%@&(@#$!&.]

[Marc/Vorst: ...]

[Nurse-san: @%$!&*&%#^@$$&(!!@#]

[Marc: ...]

[Nurse-san: !@@%$#&(%&&#$^%&@#$]

[Marc: ...]

Then a group of men entered the room.

[Principal: @!#^&%#$%^@#$%&!@#$!^@$]

[Marc: ...]

[Time: 1 hour later]

[Place: Planet Cerra Z1429:2, Orbit, Heran Combat School 5th Academy Ship 'Hades' Hospital Ward]

[Principal: How is he?]

[Doctor: He doesn’t react at all. According to the readings from his Photon Core, he doesn’t recognize anyone—no change in his photon movement, nothing...]

[Principal: And his eyes?]

[Doctor: That change... I don’t know... I’m sorry... Maybe he’s experiencing a sub-trans, but I’m not sure. Maybe it was because of the poison? Maybe because his crystal core reformed itself? But how could it reform? I... I don’t know.]

The elder man only shook his head. The Principal also shook his head.

[Principal: This is the first time in history. We have to keep this confidential, and we need to treat that girl with care. As she matures, she will become one of the strongest. The Kollos Alliance needs her. The Crimson Empire is preparing for war...]

[Doctor: Understood. Apart from me, only you and ‘she’ know that his core dissolved last night. But that information...]

[Principal: Although the possibility of reforming the crystal core might offer us unimaginable possibilities, the risks are too high. According to our intel, the Crimson Empire has found and is cultivating two Elves. And you have to remember that she is a hybrid elf!]

Sub-race classification is divided into three tiers: Low, Medium, and High. Low accounts for roughly 70% of the population, Medium for 25%, and High for 4%, leaving 1% for hybrid Tier. These three levels are then divided into three classes: Bottom, Normal, and Upper, with Normal being 90% of the tier, leaving 5% for both Bottom and Upper classes. Neo-Aris belong to Bottom Low (BLow), while Elves are Upper High (UHigh) level.

Just for comparison, a Hybrid sub-race of two Low-ranking sub-races is generally equal in power to a normal Medium-ranking sub-race. The Principal is also a hybrid—a Med/Med Tiger/Lion Hybrid—and he is already considered one of the top in power. But Mersa? She is a UHigh/Med hybrid. The first ever. She is also an Elf, one of the rarest High subs. Any Elf is known to show incredible Psychic powers capable of turning the tide of an entire battle. The Principal knows that once she grows up, the Crimson Empire will seriously have to think before lifting a finger against Kollos.

[Principal: Also, we were late. If not for that child, she would be gone. There is no amount of service we can do to repay him for that. That child put his life on the line for her.]

Both men sighed. The Black Scorpion incident was definitely aimed at the 'Wolf Princess,' and they had let it happen right under their noses.

Mersa lay on her bed, thinking about the past. Six years ago, she found herself in the orphanage. She couldn’t remember her parents at all, and no one knew what had happened. All she knew was that there was a war, and many other children were in the same predicament as her.

As months passed by, she realized she was a bit different from the other children. She loved nature, and while the other children were playing, she would rather sit down and watch the clouds or flowers. It wasn’t that she didn’t like the other children; it was more that nature fascinated her—far more than dolls or playing house. Gradually, she became isolated from her peers, which led to bullying. That day, several girls had joined together to pressure her and throw offensive remarks. She couldn’t handle it anymore and ran away. She ran and ran, until she couldn’t run anymore. She tripped. Well, running blindly while crying wasn’t the smartest choice. As she lay on the ground sobbing, he approached her to help. It was the first time they met.

Orphanage’s ‘Loser.’ He belonged to the ‘powerless’ race; in fact, any sub-race was stronger than Neo-Aris. In the Photon world, they were truly the weakest of them all. He endured bullies every day. He endured verbal abuse every day. If she told the adults, they would scold her bullies, but he... They turned a blind eye to him... He was even forced to live outside the orphanage... He definitely had it way worse than her.

In the evening, the adults came to bring her back to the orphanage. The boy, on the other hand, was ignored... However, after this event, she continued to visit him, and they quickly became friends. In fact, little Mersa would visit him every day. One day, the boy confessed that his dream was to become a ‘Swordsman.’

She was stunned. Becoming a Swordsman required reaching at least 10th HST. Only 1 out of 1,000 people would attain that level, and it was common knowledge that even for Upper Low sub-races, the limit was 5th HST. And the ‘powerless’ one before her was aiming to become a ‘Swordsman’!

For Vorst, life wasn’t easy. In the morning, he would go around the forest to gather food in the wilderness, but in the evening, he would enjoy time with Mersa, who had finished her duties at the orphanage. Most of the time, she would just sit and watch him swing his wooden stick.

Days, months, and years passed by peacefully...

Then one day, everything changed. That evening, as usual, she was watching the boy make some awkward swings when a sharp pain ran through her forehead. Hearing her scream, Vorst immediately rushed to her side...

There are two major Elvish characteristics. One of them is long, pointy ears. Mersa had those; in fact, all of the Wolf sub-race did, which is how it was hidden so well. The second is the ‘Elvish gem’ that appears on the elf’s forehead when their first Psychic powers manifest. And that’s what happened to Mersa.

After that, everything happened in a flash. The next morning, several women arrived in front of the orphanage...

“I’m not leaving Vorst!” Her childish tantrum was quickly resolved by, “Then you two can come together.” Though the escorts’ faces froze when they saw the ‘powerless’ one, they didn’t openly show their dissatisfaction. They were professionals, after all. That’s how they both joined one of the most elite academies in the Kollos Alliance. Mersa, as an ‘elf,’ received VIP treatment, along with Vorst, who was with her.

Once again, she recalled the image of Vorst and his green eyes... doki doki Her heartbeat quickened...