Mike, Spectre, and the rest were talking, catching up on each other’s lives, although some of them were together in pairs, like Donna and Vivian were together, while Spectre and Clement were together in Military Base Alpha-9.

"Sigh... we’ve come so far," Evelyn spoke with a smile as she sat on the grassland beneath her feet, her composure gentle as her golden hair danced to the rhythm of the wind.

"Indeed, we have," Donna replied, as she sat on a throne made of pure, brilliant water, one leg crossed elegantly over the other.

Everyone seemed to stare at the bright blue sky at the same time, a comfortable silence enveloping them at the moment, then the silence shattered as Mike spoke in a calm, inquisitive tone.

"Do you guys ever wonder why he chose us?" Mike asked, his gaze still fixed on the sky.

Everyone stayed silent for a moment before Litt spoke, "I don’t think there is a why or any special reason as to why he chose us, after all, we weren’t some hidden geniuses or anything at the time," his words sounding with the certainty of someone who understood that he was once nothing special.

Mike nodded, it wasn’t that he thought he was anything special or had some hidden Bloodline or Physique ability in the past, he was just curious, after all, out of billions of Humans, Anthony had chosen them.

But Mike was simply overthinking things, Anthony had chosen them as they were the weakest people at the time, and the nearest to him, as they were also students like him.

"You know," Marcus began to speak as he floated, seated in the air, "if we never became Anthony’s subordinates, I wonder what fate we would have met, we might have been adventurers, maybe mercenaries, or even slaves to those top families that rule our Human Domain," his voice calm yet contemplative.

Everyone nodded their heads as they had entertained the same thoughts at one point or another. But ironically, although they called themselves untalented, they were indeed somewhat talented. After all, the Omni Peak Academy only accepted one thousand students per year, and those one thousand students came from over ten million applicants. So, amongst millions of children around their age, they were able to rank within the top one thousand; according to such statistics, they were quite talented. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

But... just because you are the most talented amongst a group of trash doesn’t make you exceptionally talented, it simply makes you a lesser form of trash, a slightly refined fragment within a sea of mediocrity.

"Sigh... I never thought of exploring the world five years ago, you know," Arnold added, "at the time, I just wanted to get to the SSS rank as soon as possible, then also try breaking through to the Master rank. I remember setting the S rank as my goal, after all, at that rank, we gain the ability to fly and also the ability to use aura," a smile appearing on his lips as reaching the S rank was once one of his greatest ambitions back then, but now, he could destroy planets and constellations with utter ease, a thought that still felt surreal even to him.

"Indeed, the allure of flight back then was simply too great to ignore," Vivian intoned as she laughed softly, her voice carrying a faint trace of nostalgia.

Ross turned to Clement as he spoke, "Bruh, we get that you are the silent type, but we haven’t gathered like this in ages, loosen up a little and speak, you haven’t said a single word since we came," he released an exasperated sigh as though wondering to himself what he had expected from Clement, after all, that was simply how the guy was.

Clement, who had been silent, remained still for a moment before he spoke, "I have nothing to add, but I can relate to what everyone is saying," his tone low, although no one saw his lips move, they could hear him loud and clear, as though his voice bypassed the need for physical expression.

Ross stared at Clement for a moment, then shook his head with another sigh, Clement even giving him a reply was a miracle in itself, since the boy had spoken, there was no need to push for more. His eyes then turned to Spectre, who sat on the ground as he polished his katana with utmost concentration, after a moment of staring, he shook his head without speaking, as everyone knew Spectre had been obsessed with the katana since they first met him.

"Hehehehe... so, does any of us have any partners, any girlfriends, or boyfriends?" Marcus spoke with a mischievous, almost sinister chuckle, as though he was eagerly anticipating the discussion on that topic.

All eyes turned to him, but Marcus didn’t mind, he simply turned to Spectre as he spoke, "Mr. Second-in-Command, you go first, tell us about your girlfriend... or boyfriend if you swing that way, I don’t judge," a grin spreading across his face as he was far too eager to know.

Spectre paused in his motion for a moment, his eyes shifting to Marcus as he replied as calmly as possible, "I don’t swing that way, and no, I don’t have any girlfriends at the moment, I don’t have time for one, my duties consume every moment I have," as he finished speaking, he broke eye contact with Marcus and continued polishing his katana with the same unwavering focus.

"Man, you have to be the most boring existence in reality," Ross spoke as he shook his head, "and what duties are you even talking about? Anthony didn’t assign us any duties, we are simply allowed to do as we please, you know."

At his words, Spectre simply remained unconcerned and unbothered, as though nothing could disrupt the steady rhythm of his katana polishing, his mind clearly elsewhere.

"Besides," Litt began to speak, "it seems Mr. Marcus over here has found a lover, if not, he wouldn’t be so curious about our relationships," he smirked as he then turned to Marcus, as though he had struck the center of the matter.

Marcus smirked as he replied, "The best is saved for last, I will tell you all about it when I’m done listening to all your boring relationships," he boasted, his confidence bordering on arrogance.

"With Clement’s silent demeanor, I guess even Spectre would find a woman before him," Arnold joked as he turned to the silent Clement, who didn’t argue or reply. Everyone simply laughed at the remark and moved on, the lighthearted atmosphere persisting.

"Hehehe, let’s start with the women," Ross added with a playful smile, clearly enjoying where the conversation was heading.

At his words, the boys’ eyes turned to Vivian, Donna, and Evelyn, and at their collective gaze, the three women could already feel a headache forming, an unspoken dread settling in as they anticipated the direction of the conversation.

They could only wish that Anthony would arrive quickly to save them from such an interrogation.

But with the time dilation ability of the Divine Realm, would Anthony be able to arrive in time to save them from such an unexpectedly troublesome topic.