NOVEL NEXT Side Quest
Sylvia stood at the front of the class, her gaze serious as she began the lesson. "Today, we'll be talking about something crucial: Aura and Stealth. These two are closely related, and understanding them could be the difference between life and death on the battlefield."
"When a person first awakens their powers," Sylvia started, "a strange thing happens. A blue, fog-like aura surrounds them for about fifteen minutes. During that time, anyone, even normal people, can see this aura without any trouble. It's as if the air around them is alive. But after that... things change. After those fifteen minutes, that same aura becomes invisible to regular people. Only those who have awakened—people with magic or special abilities—can see it after that."
She took a step forward, gesturing with her hands as she explained further. "When you start using your mana and mix it with your killing intent, it creates a visible effect. A smoke-like aura forms around your body, visible only to other awakened individuals. This is what we call your true aura. And let me tell you, each aura is unique. Some people will have an aura that looks righteous, glowing with pure colors like golden, Yellow, blue, green, or pink. Others might have a more sinister aura, like black or blood-red. That's what we call a death aura."
The students leaned in, intrigued. Esdeath, sitting quietly near the back, was already started falling asleep.
Sylvia continued, her voice taking on a more intense tone. "To use aura, you first need killing intent. Now, don't misunderstand me. Killing intent doesn't mean you need to be a murderer. It's more about your spirit, your will to fight. And it's not just the strong who have it—sometimes weaker people can have a stronger killing intent than someone who's physically stronger. It's all about your heart and mind."
A few students glanced at each other, clearly wondering how strong their own killing intent was. Esdeath, however, already fallen asleep without anyone noticing.
"When you combine your killing intent with your mana, you can give it form, making it appear as a thick, smoky aura that wraps around your body. This aura can create immense pressure on your opponent. A weak person's aura might only affect a small space, but as you get stronger, so does your aura's range and impact."
Sylvia's expression grew more serious as she explained the power differences. "For example, a D-ranked awakened individual's aura might cover something as small as a garden, while a C-ranked person can affect an entire district. B-ranked individuals can release an aura so powerful that normal people might faint or even die just from being near it. Their aura can spread across a whole city!"
"Now, let me tell you about the higher ranks. A-ranked individuals have a terrifying aura. Their aura can crush mountains and affect large cities, creating a pressure so strong it can bring entire buildings down. But," she paused, her voice dropping, "the gap between A-rank and S-rank is even greater. An S-rank's aura can affect an entire region. And their aura is so overwhelming that normal people would be turned into nothing more than... meat paste. They wouldn't even know what hit them. Even C-rank awakened individuals can die if they're caught in the aura of someone at S-rank."
Sylvia stood at the front of the class, her expression calm but serious. "If any of you are thinking that aura is something you can control to just appear or disappear when you want it to, you're wrong."
"This is where *stealth* comes into play," she explained, pacing slowly. "Every awakened individual has a thin or sometimes large layer of aura surrounding their body *at all times*. It doesn't just vanish when you're not using it—it's always there, like a protective barrier. Some people who are skilled at detecting aura flow can sense anyone around them without even needing to see them. But, there are times when they can't. That's when stealth becomes important."
Sylvia paused to make sure everyone was following. "A small layer of aura surrounds you constantly, whether you're aware of it or not. The only exception to this is when you're asleep."
One of the students raised a hand. "Why when we're asleep?"
Sylvia smiled slightly. "Good question. When you fall asleep, the mana in your body stops flowing around and starts gathering in your heart. That's why, when you're asleep, you automatically go into what we call *stealth mode*. Your aura is hidden, and no one can detect you unless they have touch sleeping person's body and try to detect mana inside that person's heart.
"But," Sylvia continued, "you can't just go around falling asleep whenever you need to hide, can you? That's why *stealth magic* was invented. By mastering stealth, you can gather all your mana into your heart while awake, just like when you're asleep, and hide your aura. This makes it difficult—though not impossible—for other awakened individuals to sense you."
She raised a finger to emphasize her next point. "However, the effectiveness of your stealth depends on how good you are at it. If your opponent is more skilled at detecting aura, they may still find you, even if you're trying to hide. But falling asleep is the best, automatic stealth mode—"Even other awakened individuals can't always tell if the person sleeping in front of them is awakened or not. Unless they pour their own mana into your body to check whether or not you have mana gathered in your heart, you could pass as an ordinary person."
Also this was the reason when lortell that night came to esdeath's room but couldn't able to find out that esdeath is an awakend person, Esdeath by falling asleep, Was already in automatic stealth mode.
Lortell had assumed Esdeath wasn't awakened because she never bothered to check by pouring mana into her. Esdeath's stealth had worked perfectly, hiding her true nature from even someone like Lortell, who was usually sharp and hard to deceive.
"Ahem… Ahem… But there are species like dragons. They have dragon eyes that can tell if a person is awakened or not with just a glance, whether they're asleep or awake," Sylvia had explained during the lesson.
A few students groaned in frustration. "Damn... Dragons sure are formidable!" one of them exclaimed.
"Yeah, I wish I was a dragon!" another student added, their voice filled with envy.
After teaching about how to use stealth and aura, the lesson had flown by, and before anyone realized it, the class was over. Three more teachers came and went, and by the time the lectures ended, it was already afternoon.
Esdeath walked down the academy halls, her mind drifting. "If I'm right," she thought, "the semi-first act should happen in an hour or two." She was ready to head back to her dorm room to prepare, but before she could take another step, a group of boys surrounded her.
The boys had smug, arrogant looks on their faces, their eyes filled with lust and mischief. Their cocky, spoiled attitudes made it clear they were trouble. They formed a tight circle around Esdeath, blocking her path.
Esdeath's eyes narrowed slightly as she observed them. "Now, what kind of side quest is this?" she thought, unimpressed by their presence. Despite being tall herself, the boys were still taller, looming over her with dirty grins.
One of the boys, with a sneer on his face, stepped forward. "Hehehe... nice hips, long legs, and pretty face," he said arrogantly, his voice dripping with lust. "Now that I'm looking closely, you're not bad at all."
The other boys snickered, feeding off his words.
"But let's get to the point," the boy continued, puffing his chest out as if he had something important to say. "We're second years. Of course, we have to welcome some chosen first years, and guess what? You should feel honored. You're one of them! Hahaha..."