AT THE SAME TIME
XAVIER'S PINT OF VIEW:
The arena was filled with deafening applause, but it barely registered in my mind. My eyes were locked on Villiam as he stood, victorious, over the fallen Inferno Wyrm. As the monster's body smouldered and the last remnants of its fiery breath faded, the students and mentors began to move, inching closer to Villiam. I could feel the buzz of excitement as they crowded around him, clearly in awe of his performance.
"That was incredible." One student murmured, his voice shaky with awe.
"How do you move that fast?" Another asked, voice cracking with excitement.
I watched as Villiam's gaze flickered to them, his expression unchanging. He didn't seem pleased with their praise; if anything, he looked… irritated. His eyes quickly scanned the crowd, seeking something or perhaps someone.
"Villliam." Our omegaverse mentor Laura began, her voice cutting through the noise. "You just defeated an A-rank monster with the precision and skill of a seasoned warrior. Where did you learn to fight like that?"
Villiam's gaze hardened, and he turned his head slightly toward her.
"I didn't learned." He replied, quiet but firm. "I was forced to survive."
There was a strange tension in the air. I could feel the weight of his words, and I knew the others sensed it too. Everyone had their own story, but Villiam's… it felt different. Darker. Laura's brow furrowed.
"What do you mean? You clearly have incredible training. Where did you receive it?" She asked.
Villiam hesitated, his eyes moving over the crowd, as though searching for the right words. And then, as if he had made a decision, he sighed deeply, his shoulders slumping slightly.
"I'm from Stoneheart Village." He said, his voice barely above a whisper, yet it carried to every ear. "A village that no longer exists. It's… erased from maps. No one remembers it anymore."
The words hung in the air, the shock evident on every face. Stoneheart Village was not a name most knew, but the ones who did… they had heard whispers of its disappearance. A village lost to time, said to be destroyed by monsters, leaving nothing but ruin behind. It was a ghost story, a myth, something no one truly believed.
"Erased from maps." Laura repeated, her voice trembling. "But that doesn't make sense. If you're from there, then—"She started.
"I was left alone when I turned nine." Villiam continued, cutting her off, his voice growing colder with every word. "My village was… destroyed. By monsters. Everything was wiped out in a single night. I was the only one left. No family, no friends. Just me. And I had to survive."
The silence that followed was deafening. The students exchanged glances, some of them looking visibly disturbed. They had never seen Villiam like this vulnerable, raw, and human. For all his power in the arena, this was a side of him that none had witnessed before.
"Ten years." Villiam's voice shook slightly, but it was still firm, unwavering. "For nearly ten years, I fought in the forests alone. I fought monsters, survived the elements, and learned how to kill. How to live." He clenched his fists tightly, his knuckles going white. "I didn't have anyone. No guidance, no mentors. Just the forest and me."
His eyes flickered, a brief moment of something like pain crossing his face before it vanished, buried beneath the anger that always seemed to linger just below the surface.
"Ten years?" Laura breathed, her voice barely audible. "You were only nine when you were left alone? That's impossible."
"I'm still here, aren't I?" Villiam shot back, his tone harsh. "If you want to know how I'm so good, that's the answer. I had to be."
The students were frozen, absorbing the weight of his revelation. Villiam wasn't just a prodigy, he was a survivor. A person who had faced the harshest of circumstances and emerged from it all with a strength few could ever comprehend.
"I spent those years learning how to stay alive, learning how to fight." Villiam continued, his eyes hardening, a dark resolve in his gaze. "I had to. I didn't have anyone to help me. I was my own mentor."
There was a long pause as the crowd processed what he'd said. Finally, Isabella, my sister, stepped forward, her face softening with understanding.
"So that's why you're… so different. You've seen things… things we can't even imagine."She said.
Villiam didn't respond right away, his eyes narrowing as he turned his gaze back to the empty stands. His past was a shadow that still clung to him, and he wasn't ready to let anyone in.
"I don't need anyone's pity." He muttered, the words seemed bitter on his tongue. "I didn't ask for this life. But I'm not going to apologize for it."
The other students didn't know what to say. The rawness of Villiam's pain left them speechless. Headmaster Celvin, who had been standing quietly in the background, stepped forward, his expression grave. "What Villiam has shown us today, and in his entire journey, is not just power. It is resilience. It is the will to fight, even when there's no one left to fight with you."He said.
The students and mentors stood in stunned silence, their eyes now seeing Villiam in a new light. Villiam finally glanced around the group, his expression softening ever so slightly.
"I'm done talking about it. You wanted to know how I'm so good? There you have it." He said.
He turned and walked away, the crowd parting to let him pass, some students still too stunned to speak. But as he walked, his steps were not filled with the pride of victory. They were heavy, weighted down by a past that he would never be able to escape. A past that, despite everything, still shaped who he was today.
As I watched him disappear into the distance, I couldn't help but wonder how many more thing we are going to learn about him in the future.
"So, what are we going to do now?"Laura asked.
"What are we supposed to do since he stepped in the academy. We keep training him since he is going to become the best recruit we have ever produced."The headmaster said.
As I heard those words, I understood that no matter if I was chosen a hero, I have to work hard to reach Villiam's level. Maybe then I will feel being worthy of getting the hero title.