Atticus continued his training on the superior races' art. As time passed, his progress steadily increased.
He focused on learning the basics of each technique in the art rather than mastering a single one. His approach was simple: as soon as he grasped the fundamentals and understood the underlying principles of a technique, he moved on to the next.
There were exactly nine techniques in the art, each representing a superior race, and Atticus had successfully learned five of them so far: the Dimensari, Vampyros, Obliteri, Evolari, and Regenerari techniques, in that order.
Each technique had presented its own unique challenges. As he learned them, he experienced profound changes, not just in his abilities but deep within himself.
It was as though his understanding of the world expanded with each new technique. He couldn't fully explain it, but he could feel it, an inexplicable shift in perspective.
Out of the five, the Dimensari technique had been the easiest to learn. With his solid grasp of the space element already, the rest of the technique came naturally. The others, however, had been far more challenging, requiring him to start from scratch.
After an extended period of training, for the first time, Atticus decided to pause and take a break.
"Is something wrong?" Magnus asked as he returned to the training room, noticing Atticus standing. It was unusual to see the boy voluntarily stop training.
Atticus shook his head. "Nothing. I just thought I should take a break."
Magnus's eyes narrowed. "Are you hurt? Did the art injure you in any way?" He appeared in front of Atticus almost instantly, scrutinizing him thoroughly with a worried expression.
Atticus felt a surge of embarrassment. 'I know I like training, but really?'
He rolled his eyes with a small smile. "I'm fine, Grandpa. I just thought I'd take a walk. Nothing is wrong with me."
But Magnus wasn't convinced. His intense gaze remained fixed on Atticus, searching for any signs of injury or distress.
With a sigh, Atticus spent the next few minutes reassuring Magnus that he was perfectly fine. Eventually, though reluctantly, Magnus backed off, allowing him to leave the training room.
It was nighttime, and the moon bathed the entire estate in its serene silver glow.
Atticus stepped outside, feeling a rare sense of calm. He was relieved that the group of ladies who had been waiting for him earlier wasn't around now.
What Atticus didn't realize was that the real reason for their absence wasn't a lack of desperation. Instead, the long hours they spent waiting for him during the day often ruined their outfits and makeup, leaving them no choice but to retreat for the night to refresh themselves, only to return looking even better the next day.
For now, though, the quiet night belonged to him.
Atticus decided to remain cautious. Camouflaging himself and the incubator behind him, he walked quietly through the estate.
As he reached one of the larger buildings, he suddenly stopped and released his camouflage. Turning his gaze to the roof, he narrowed his eyes.
'Who?'
He had felt a presence up there. Without hesitation, his body shot upwards, landing on the roof in an instant. Killing his own presence, he carefully approached the figure he had sensed.
At the highest edge of the roof sat a girl, bathed in the moon's silvery glow. The light outlined her figure perfectly as she sat, seemingly meditating. She wore a form-fitting, battle-hardened attire that reminded Atticus of Earth's Amazon warriors.
For a moment, he was mesmerized.
Her back was to him, but Atticus could sense that she was alert despite her meditative state.
'The Aquilora family,' he recognized.
Just as he was about to turn and head back down, she suddenly turned and looked straight at him. Her glowing silver eyes met his intense blue, and both froze in surprise.
They were shocked, but for different reasons.
For Atticus, the question was clear: 'How had she detected me?'
He wasn't using camouflage, but he had completely suppressed his presence. He was certain he was far more powerful than her, so how had she sensed him?
For Yesmin, the shock was entirely different: 'What is he doing here!?'
She had spent weeks trying to meet this same boy, waiting outside the training room for hours, only for him to appear out of nowhere like this.
Realizing she hadn't offered her greetings, Yesmin shot up and gave a slight bow.
"Apex Atticus. What—"
"You're Yesmin, right?" Atticus interrupted, his words calm and direct.
Yesmin froze. 'He actually remembered my name?'
Their interaction during the ball had been brief, and she hadn't expected him to remember her at all. Yet, that small acknowledgment made her heart swell, a shy smile forming on her lips.
"Yes," she replied softly.
"I see. How did you detect me?" Atticus's tone was steady, but his curiosity was evident. He truly wanted to know. Was there a method he didn't yet understand? He was certain it wasn't just perception, he would have sensed that.
Yesmin blinked, caught off guard by the unexpected question, but she quickly answered.
"It's our family's bloodline, young master. Much like how the Stellaris receive power from the sun, we're empowered by the moon. Within a certain radius, I can sense everything the moonlight touches. I felt a disturbance the moment you stepped onto the roof."
Atticus was intrigued. 'Does that mean this is how the Stellaris bloodline works too?' He theorized that it might be a similar principle, akin to how he connected with elemental molecules in the air.
"Your bloodline is very impressive," he complimented.
Yesmin smiled brightly. "Thank you, young master."
A brief silence followed as neither seemed to know what to say next.
"Alright, I guess I'll take my lea—"
"H-how was your day?" Yesmin suddenly blurted out, her face flushing a deep shade of red as she turned her gaze downward, mortified. 'Why is my heart beating so fast?'
She clenched her fists and forced herself to look back at him. She refused to let herself back down now.
"Hmm, it was fine, I guess. I just trained all day," Atticus replied casually.
"You love training," she said without thinking, her frustration at waiting for him every day spilling out unconsciously.
Before she could apologize, she heard something unexpected: Atticus laughing.
"I've been told that by a lot of people," he said, amused. "But is it really that bad?"
Caught off guard, Yesmin nodded instinctively, prompting Atticus's mouth to twitch.
Her heart calmed as she saw him laughing, and a smile crept onto her face, until it strained the very next second.
"What about you, though? At least you don't see me sitting on a roof in the middle of the night, training," Atticus teased.