Gazing at Kael's battered body, Atticus acted immediately. With a thought, air enveloped Kael, lifting him up and away from the lodged wall and setting him down gently.
Atticus approached and instantly fed him a high grade healing potion. Then, shifting his concentration, a bubble of water enveloped Kael and immediately started healing him.
'Did I go too far?' Atticus wondered briefly, but he dismissed the thought immediately. After a year spent with Kael, he knew that not using his full power would only be an insult to the boy.
Seconds passed quickly, and as though a switch had been flipped, Kael's eyes snapped open within the bubble of water.
Seeing this, Atticus released his control, allowing Kael to gradually sit upright.
Kael placed his hands on his stomach where Atticus had punched him, an overwhelming pain racking his senses. However, despite the pain, there was not a single ripple of discomfort on his face.
Compared to the training he had undergone with his father and grandfather, this much was nothing.
Kael's still expressionless gaze turned and met Atticus's, maintaining his stare for a few seconds.
Then, without uttering a word, he simply stood up, dusting the debris and dirt from his body, his figure reverting to normal. Kael still held his weapon tightly despite having been unconscious.
Afterwards, Kael approached Atticus and offered him a handshake, followed by another action that shocked Atticus greatly—a smile.
Atticus's gaze shifted constantly between Kael's outstretched hand and the unusual smile marring his face, completely speechless.
'Isn't this the first time I've seen him smile?' During their one year at the academy, Atticus could say with complete certainty that he had never seen Kael smile.
A smile unknowingly found its way to Atticus's face as well, and he accepted the handshake with a firm grip.
"Thank you," Kael said.
Atticus couldn't help but chuckle at this. All he did was beat him, and he was being thanked for it?
Observing Kael, Atticus noticed that his aura was noticeably more peaceful, as though his fighting intent had been quenched.
"It's nothing. I should be apologizing instead; I think I went too far," Atticus responded with a wry smile.
Kael shook his head firmly. "When you have strength, you use it. Holding back is a grave insult to your opponent."
Meeting Kael's intense gaze, Atticus couldn't help but shake his head slightly, unable to formulate a response.
He wasn't really the warrior type. If revealing his full power would do him more harm than good, then he'd probably not do it. Why should he care about his opponent's feelings?
They both let go of the handshake at the same time, turning back toward the camp to witness the devastation.
A large trail traced down the earth from the training grounds to their current position.
"Luckily there were no buildings in the way," Atticus remarked.
Kael nodded at Atticus's words, glad that no buildings were destroyed.
They both started walking back toward the training grounds.
"You're leaving tomorrow?" Kael asked abruptly.
Without turning to face him, Atticus responded immediately, "Yeah."
Kael went silent for a few seconds, not saying anything.
"You're coming back?" he asked.
Atticus shook his head. "No."
"I see," Kael muttered under his breath. "Okay. I'll see you after two years," he added succinctly.
Atticus couldn't help but turn towards his friend as soon as he spoke. Apart from the fact that Kael didn't seem bothered by his departure, why wasn't he asking questions?
Atticus was literally leaving the academy in his first year, something that had never been done before in the history of the human domain. Every child was required to spend three years in the academy. Yet, Kael didn't even wonder how it was possible or, at the very least, what Atticus was going to do.
"Aren't you curious? About how I get to leave and what I'm going to do?" Atticus couldn't help himself and asked. He was far too curious about what was going on in this boy's head.
Kael shook his head once more before speaking. "It doesn't matter. You'll still be gone, and we'd still meet in two years." Kael's answer was as simple as his usual ones, but this one held more weight.
Kael believed that a warrior's journey should be his to face alone. Finding out about what Atticus was going to do would be completely useless at this point. He would still be gone, and they would be separated.
To him, what was important was finding out when next they would reunite.
In a weird turn of events, Atticus understood what Kael meant to convey. A small smile appeared on his face.
He decided that he was not going to say anything about his departure. At this point, if he did, it would seem like he was bragging.
"What about your woman?" Kael suddenly asked, causing Atticus's expression to change slightly before reverting back to normal. But it didn't escape Kael's gaze; his eyes narrowed slightly.
Atticus didn't say anything for a few moments, causing the walk to descend into silence. 'I should tell him,' Atticus decided.
Kael was the person who helped him with Zoey in the first place, and he actually wanted to talk about it with someone.
Atticus narrated everything that happened, from him asking her out to their meeting at her division. After a few seconds, he finished.
"So what do you think her reason was?" Atticus asked.
"Her reason doesn't matter. You make your intentions known, and if she's not interested, you move on."
Deep down, Atticus agreed with what Kael had just said, but it was easier said than done. Matters of the heart were far from logical.
He pondered the issue throughout the walk. The duo reached the training ground after a minute, with Atticus immediately apologizing to Kael for the academy points he lost when his division members "died."
As expected, Kael took no offense. After some small talk and goodbyes, a golden glow enveloped Atticus, and he abruptly disappeared.