Affinity:Chaos

Grey walked back to his seat, and Klaus moved close to him with a smile. 

"You know I was the one who let you win." He said. 

"Huh?" Grey raised a brow curiously. 

"What did they give to you?" Klaus asked curiously. 

Grey paused and sent his spiritual senses into his storage ring, before replying, "Elemental techniques." 

"All?" Klaus asked. 

"Yeah, all are elemental techniques." Grey nodded. 

"How generous." Alice said. She never thought these people would give Grey so many gifts. 

"Truly generous indeed." Kyle commented. 

"So, what now?" Reynolds asked. 

"We're still here, let's have some fun. It's not like we're following them back to the Faction." Klaus said. 

"Actually, you are. Since you friends will be splitting up, you have two days to catch up." A beautiful lady who looked to be in her late twenties walked up to them. 

The group turned their attention to the lady. She was someone from the Moonlight Faction. By her side, two men in their early thirties walked beside her. 

They were from the Raiden and Asterope Faction. They also came to inform Alice and Reynolds that they would be leaving in two days. 

"So quick?" Klaus asked with a sigh. 

"Normally, we would've left tomorrow, but in consideration of you four, we decided to wait another day." The lady said. 

She didn't hide the fact that they only agreed to extend their stay because of Grey and his friends. It was quite shocking when Kyle heard of it. These Factions were part of the top Factions in this Region, even in the Western Continent, they were respected. Doing this showed how highly they regarded their new proteges. Grey's influence could not be neglected as well. 

'Being a terrifying genius has its perks.' Kyle sighed to himself. 

The other Factions would be leaving the next day, only three Factions would be staying longer.

"Thank you for giving us this chance, we'll make good use of it." Grey thanked the lady and the two men. 

They nodded their heads before inviting the geniuses from their Factions. A few of them wanted to test out their strength against Grey. 

Grey, however, rejected the challenge. The geniuses felt a little disappointed, but they didn't take it to heart. They knew Grey wasn't proud from the small contact they've had with him. 

The group left the arena, and headed for the Inn they were staying in. Klaus suggested that they went out to celebrate their success in the competition, Grey wanted to stay in his room, but after Klaus, Reynolds, and Alice joined hands in convincing him, he finally agreed begrudgingly. 

Klaus plotted that they beat him up, they were almost successful, but having the space element meant Grey could easily escape from their encirclement. 

'I miss the days when we could beat him.' 

The group went out and started reminiscing about the first time they met. Kyle sat by and listened to their stories. 

Grey's story was particularly captivating. In the space of five years, he went from a normal person to a genius respected by even the top Factions in the Western Continent. 

Overhearing how they grew, Kyle wished he was with them at that time. Watching Grey grow in strength was something that was amazing. He was sure that if he was with Grey, he would've grown stronger than his current strength. 

Grey's growth was motivational, helping those close to him grow stronger. 

They stayed out almost all through the night. On their way back, they encountered some familiar faces. 

It was the trio who fought against Grey and Klaus in the final battle. They still found their defeat shocking, but they knew there was nothing they could do about it. 

"Hello." The young man amongst the trio walked up to them and looked at Klaus in particular. 

He heard Klaus was the one who eliminated them from the arena. All he wanted to know was why Klaus eliminated him first. He was stronger than the ladies, so he should've gotten the third position, but Klaus didn't give him that chance. 

"Hey, you look very familiar." Klaus said with a thoughtful expression. 

The young man was about to lose it when Klaus smiled. 

"I'm just messing with you. How are you?" Klaus said with a soft laugh. 

The young man who came with the intent of arguing with Klaus was a little taken aback. Klaus was very carefree and didn't act as if they were strangers. 

"I'm okay, I guess." The young man replied after a short silence. 

"Good to know. We're heading back home now, is anything wrong?" Klaus asked with a casual smile. 

"No, nothing. I only wanted to congratulate you two." The young man shook his head. 

He decided to let the matter go since asking wouldn't do him any good. 

"Oh, thank you. Congratulations on joining a good Faction." Klaus shook the young man's hand before the group continued their journey. 

The young man looked at Klaus, and seeing the contrast between the current Klaus and the evil Klaus they fought against, he shook his head. 

"How come he's so friendly?" One of the young ladies asked. 

"Honestly, I don't know." The young man replied with a wry smile. 

They expected Klaus to talk in the same manner he did back in the competition. That way they would have a conflict with them, then in the process, one of their Sage Plane Elementalists who was hiding in the cover of the darkness would come out and attack Grey and his friends. 

But Klaus was able to speak to them in such a manner that they couldn't do anything. 

"I guess it's best if we let this matter go. I don't think clashing with them will be good for us." The last young lady said. 

The young man and the young lady looked at her before nodding their heads. 

When they walked back to where their Sage Plane Elementalists were hiding, they were stunned to see all of them lying on the ground out cold. 

"What happened?" The young man panicked. 

"You're lucky you didn't continue with your plan. Next time, I won't be so lenient." 

A cold voice came from the shadows, sending chills down the spines of the trio.