Chapter 68: Poisoned thoughts

The two spent the next few minutes chatting about how different Genesis City was compared to their original places.

Yasmine talked about her home, called Leontopolis. It was larger than a City, which meant that it was more abundant than Genesis City. But it also meant that competition was fiercer. She talked about how she was trained with the sword as soon she could walk, which was considered quite late in their culture. She was a gladiator whether she liked to or not.

Atlan didn't have much to talk about because all he remembered from that hazy time in the Unclaimed Lands was digging through an endless tunnel underground. All he remembered was that there was a lot of sand, gray hot sand.

"Sounds like you had it rough…sorry, that was an insensitive joke."

Atlan waved off her concern. "Yeah. It was a real battle."

Both of them laughed at their bad attempt at humor. If anyone heard them make jokes about their traumatizing past, they would feel that it was inappropriate. However, for them, it was therapy. It wasn't every day that they could talk with someone that they could relate to.

"Now, I'm considered a genius." Yasmine sighed. "I proved my worth, but at what cost? Everyone who comes up to me talks about how great and talented I am."

Atlan understood that feeling. Even though everyone was nice to him and praised him for his accomplishments, they never really talked about anything else. They put him on a pedestal, separating him from everybody else. He thought he was the only one who felt that way, but he was surprised to know that Yasmine was feeling the same.

"Everyone talks about how great you are—"

"--But not how you are." Atlan finished her thought.

Yasmine looked at Atlan and realized that Atlan was probably the only one who understood her. Every other genius that she met were arrogant young masters who inherited their strength from their family. But now, she met someone else who could share her experiences in coming up from the bottom.

Unlike the others, Yasmine came from a family with no Saviors. But through hard work, she was able to show off her strength in the Draft and earn an S class LifeSkill.

She looked at Atlan and felt her defenses lowering.

It was at that point that she realized that she had been talking with a boy alone for 20 minutes! She didn't even notice the time pass. Never in her life did she think that she would enjoy talking to someone she didn't know at all.

It made her think. Maybe, she could finally have a real friend. Maybe she could finally open up to somebody and have a real connection with them.

She opened her mouth, about to say;

Let's be friends

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But she stopped herself. She moved millions of miles away from her home to become the best Savior this world had ever seen. She promised herself that she'd stop at nothing to achieve that. Her only focus should be on getting strong and defeating her rivals and enemies.

Pull yourself together, she reminded herself.

Yasmine quickly turned to leave without saying anything else.

Atan was surprised to see her suddenly turn cold. They were both enjoying the conversation, so he didn't understand why she would suddenly want to leave.

He grabbed her hand and refused to let her go.

Yasmine stopped in her tracks but she didn't turn to face him.

"I don't have time for friends…for boys…" she muttered.

Atlan kept her grip on her wrist. "If not friends, then how about a companion?" He then grabbed her shoulders and turned her towards him. "How about a playmate? A buddy? A pal?"

Yasmine's face was turned away from Atlan. And if one looked closely, one could see a slight blush on her cheeks.

"Hmph. Smooth talker. I bet you say that to your other friends," she said with a bit of a smile creeping on her face.

Atlan smiled back when he saw that she was starting to warm up to him again.

She noticed that Atlan's hands were warm. It was a cold night, and his grip on her shoulders was warm enough to keep her whole body hot. Hmm? Why is my face feeling hot too?

Suddenly, images of training and swords coming towards her flashed through her mind. It was a wet blanket that forced her whole body to turn cold. The smile disappeared on her face. She turned rigid.

Her training taught her that attachment to anybody was poison. It would spread through her body, making her moves slow and her reactions sluggish. It was killer.

And Atlan seemed like the kind of person that could poison her whole thoughts. He could make her hesitate. She already decided that she would someday leave Genesis City once she advanced to the next power realm. She couldn't get attached to anyone here–not even friends, and especially not Atlan. She was sure that if she became friends with Atlan, it could turn into…

"I'm sorry. But I…I don't know…" She shook off Atlan's grip and turned away. She grabbed the door and quickly left the balcony.

Atlan was stunned. First, she was friendly and nice. Then, she suddenly turned cold without any warning. She turned to warm, cold, hot, and then icy cold the next.

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He walked out of the balcony and back into the party but he couldn't see any sign of her anywhere. She must have already left.

Atlan put his hands on his waist and sighed. I failed to make another friend. Hahh…What am I doing wrong?

The boy was oblivious to everything the girl was feeling. If he didn't charm her so much, then he could have probably been just friends with her. However, Yasmine judged him to be a man who could someday become more than friends. That thought terrified her so much that she quickly left to prevent Atlan from breaking her walls any further.

Atlan was the hunter and she was the prey. And if the prey couldn't find any way to defeat the hunter, then the best way to prevent being hunted was to run away.