Chapter 925 - Lady Anya
Leonel's hair wafted beneath the wind. He could tell that if it wasn't for his innate Fire Elemental affinity, this breath alone might have been enough to scorch his skin.
He turned back, an indifferent look lighting his eyes. It was as though he couldn't see the fear in the guards nor the surrounding experts.
When Leonel's gaze met the steed's, the latter trembled slightly, its nostrils flaring and its body tensing. For some reason, this steed felt a large amount of pressure from Leonel. It wasn't the kind of pressure that said Leonel was stronger than it, but rather just the kind of pressure that said it should be afraid… It was a very subtle difference, almost like it was looking at what Leonel might become rather than what he was.
There were many races of people in the Dimensional verse, humans and the Oryx being just two that Leonel had met to this point. However, there was a large dividing line between species and this dividing line was humanoid versus bestial.
Humanoid races of people like humans and Oryx evolve more to rely on their active abilities and their talent was more malleable. But, the consequence of this is that there are more untalented humans that there are talented ones.
Bestial races evolve to rely on their innate abilities and their talent is far less malleable. However, this likewise means that there are more talented beasts than there are humanoids.
This major dividing line of knowing how to take and accepting what is given is maybe the most fundamental diverging path of evolution the Dimensional Verse had to offer, from which there were a myriad of differences that could be deduced.
One such difference was that the instinct of bestial races happened to be far sharper than humanoid races. As such, this steed of the Blood Mercury race was very much in tune with how much fear it should have for Leonel and was thus far more prepared to act on it compared to humans.
Leonel, who had been indifferent, suddenly smiled and reached out a hand. Under the stunned gazes of those watching, Leonel stroked the horse's jaw.
At first, the steed trembled as though afraid that Leonel would harm it. But, when it sensed that Leonel had no ill intent, it neighed lightly, nudging at Leonel's hand.
Xander and Rio were frozen in shock. Was this a horse of the Blood Mercury race? Weren't they known for their fiery tempers? Weren't they able to stomp a mountain to rubble with a single hoof and disperse the clouds with a single neigh? What the hell was going on here?
"Little White? Is something the matter?"
At that moment, a sudden voice rang out. It was so melodious and sweet that silence almost fell, the only thing gracing their ears being the flute-like whistling of the wind as though it too wanted to show its appreciation.
Leonel couldn't help but look up and toward the carriage. In his life, he had only heard one other voice comparable. Suddenly hearing such a thing now caught him somewhat off guard.
This voice didn't carry the same innate coercion, but something told Leonel that this was only because she was able to control it better. And, even without this coercion, even without seeing her face, one could already feel the innate want and need to protect her.
Just from this voice alone, Leonel could tell that this woman within the carriage was powerful.
It had to be said that the carriage itself didn't have a driver, nor were there any windows. Clearly, this Blood Mercury steed had more than enough intelligence of its own to find its destination on its own. But, it was exactly because of this that the sudden and abrupt stop was out of the young woman's expectations.
The guards suddenly snapped out of their shock and remembered their duty. However, by the time they wanted to figure out a path to take out of this so that they could avoid blame, the clicking sound of the carriage's doors opened… and then they all witnessed the descent of a Goddess.
The first thing any of them saw was the hem of her long, white dress, so long in fact that it completely masked her feet, leaving it all to their imagination. The dress itself was quite plane and wasn't overly embroidered, but despite how loose it was around her legs, it still couldn't' help but cling slightly to her hips.
When the young woman's head dipped out of the carriage, it was like a refreshing breeze whistled through the world. The sun seemed dimmer, the skies more somber, even the beautiful streets of the Guild paled, unable to match up… And this was all despite the fact this young woman wore a veil.
Her long white hair fluttered, disappearing into the folds of her dress. A pair of golden eyes looked around curiously, an innocent twinkling within their depths that made one hope no harm would ever come to her. The only patches of her soft, fair skin one could see were upon her forehead and her slender, swan-like neck, and yet it was still enough to entice the masses.
The young woman blinked when she saw Leonel petting her horse. She knew well the kind of temper her Little White had. It didn't even allow others to get close, let alone touch her. This was a shocking scene, indeed.
"Ah! Lady Anya! I'm sorry for failing to greet you!"
At that moment, several powerful auras surged out from the Guild, each wearing aggrieved expressions as the large gates were finally opened wide. This Lady Anya was really too difficult to get a read on. She had just informed them minutes ago that she wanted to take her exam now, yet she was already here. She didn't give them time to prepare much of anything.
All this time, though, Lady Anya, who was still part descended and part not from her carriage, continued to look at Leonel with an almost child-like curiosity in her eyes.
"Who are you?! Why are you in Lady Anya's way?!"
One of the elders immediately snapped upon seeing Leonel's back, her aura bearing down with the pressure of a Tier 7 existence as though she had every intention of slaughtering him where he stood.