Being tested all day; physically pushing himself to the limit, straining his mind as much as possible, and focusing intently on his eon had completely exhausted Kael.
That’s why he was in bed, trying to get a good night’s sleep, staring at the ceiling as he waited for it to co. At the sa ti, though, he was thinking...
At this mont, the Empire technically possessed information about everything he could and could not do in his current state. Even though so tests seed strange and not particularly ’asurable’ at first glance, everyone conducting the evaluations was an expert in the field.
In other words, he had provided them with too much information for soone who would eventually stand against the Empire. Even though this information would change and beco outdated over ti, it was still a disadvantage.
However, catching the eye of the Empire was more important than any of that. That’s why he hadn’t backed down; he’d done everything in his power to be evaluated as well as possible.
Still, he wasn’t exactly at ease.
He took a deep breath, trying to clear his mind. Then, sothing else ca to mind.
What exactly was the ’gift’ the Marshal had said he would give him?
He wasn’t sure how difficult it would be to attain the rank of sergeant, but he didn’t think the Marshal was just talking for the sake of it. If it was a rank he believed he could achieve, even if it required so effort, then it shouldn’t be impossible.
For that reason, he was both curious and excited. After all, a man as important as the Marshal wouldn’t give him sothing useless... would he?
He tossed and turned in bed, closing his eyes. This ti, different thoughts filled his mind.
He couldn’t exactly claim to have extensive knowledge about the departnts both Hakon and the Marshal had ntioned. However, he wasn’t entirely clueless based on what he’d heard and learned.
Instead of being an employee of General Loukan, who worked under the Empire, he would now have a position directly under the Empire itself. The departnts determined exactly what ’work’ he would do. That was essentially the crux of the matter.
So, which departnts would be suitable for him?
Most likely, based on what he’d done so far, he’d be assigned to a departnt where he’d act as a scout for units or infiltrate certain places. Though a departnt composed of assassins tasked with secretly killing people might also be suitable for him, and to utilize his curse, this would be the best option for him.
As his mind slowed, he couldn’t help but furrow his brows slightly. He opened his closed eyes and brought one hand to his heart.
Weak as they were, he could still feel his heartbeat. But setting that aside, there was sothing else he felt.
The chains of his curse were calm and distant from his heart. Thanks to General Loukan and Hakon, he had killed so many things over the past months that even if he hadn’t taken a single life for nearly a year, he could still survive right now.
"You will suffer more. You will have to fight for your life all the ti, whether you want to or not."
As the King of Arcanoa’s final words echoed in his mind, he realized once again how different his situation was from what he had expected. The first few months had been a bit tough, yes... but thanks to this curse, which now posed no difficulty to him, he was far stronger than most people at his level.
It seed that even kings had their monts of exaggeration.
Or perhaps he had imagined the curse would be far more grueling than it actually was? He was likely the first person to turn Arcanoa’s Blessing into a curse, so information on it must be scarce.
’Well, whatever...’
He had no complaints about the situation. Therefore, there was no need for him to dwell on it excessively.
So he withdrew his hand from his chest and closed his eyes once more.
This ti, he tried to think as little as possible. And before long, sleep slowly enveloped his body, pulling him into the darkness.
*******
The next day, as the pale sun in the gray sky neared its zenith, Kael and Hakon were side by side once more. Their destination, once again, was Emila’s archive room.
"Are you excited?"
When Hakon asked this, glancing at him out of the corner of his eye, Kael nodded without hesitation.
"A little."
Then, Hakon smiled.
"Good, stay excited. I’ll have a gift for you too if you actually beco a sergeant."
Kael furrowed his brow, looking at the devil-faced man walking right beside him with suspicion.
"Are you trying to compete with the Marshal...?"
Hakon’s smile widened for a mont, almost as if he were about to burst into laughter. But then he shrugged.
"Think whatever you want. I’ve said my piece."
"..."
Kael chose not to comnt further and focused on what was ahead. He didn’t really care what the reason was if he was going to receive a gift. After all, the last gift he’d received from Hakon had been two high-quality daggers. He’d never refuse sothing of that quality.
In this way, they finally reached their destination.
The doors to Emila’s room slowly opened.
Kael was prepared to see the room, filled with files on every surface, as usual, for the third ti when...
He paused.
’Huh?’
Emila was at her usual desk. Countless docunts, their contents unclear, were scattered here and there. But there was another difference as well...
Just to the left of Emila’s desk, three people were scanning him with their eyes, as if they had been waiting for him. When he first entered the room, they had been talking to each other—almost arguing—but they had quickly stopped and focused on him.
Two of them were n in their thirties, while the third was a woman who looked relatively younger.
The atmosphere in the room felt heavier than usual, solely because of these people.
However, Hakon paid no mind to either this intense atmosphere or the three people watching them. He approached Emila’s desk with slow steps. And although Kael wasn’t quite as indifferent, he followed suit.
"Finally!"
When Emila’s almost grateful voice seed to echo through the room, Kael realized he hadn’t been paying her any attention at all because of the other three people in the room.
The young woman, it seed, wasn’t as unbothered by the presence of the figures behind her as Hakon was. Rather, she had an expression as if she were thinking they should finish their business and leave imdiately.
And Kael wasn’t entirely sure what to make of that.
"Co closer, we have a lot to take care of!"
He nodded obediently and approached the table. Emila, anwhile, pulled a piece of paper from the corner of her desk and quickly scanned the text as if checking it. Then she picked up a pen and spoke.
"Kael, no surna. Based on the Empire’s evaluations and your past performance, it has been deed appropriate for you to join the Official Army and attain a military rank. Your starting rank, due to your exceptional performance in the evaluations and your contributions in your last mission, has been set as Sergeant. Do you have any objections?"
Kael shook his head. What he’d heard would normally make him quite happy. After all, he’d be receiving a gift from both the Marshal and Hakon. However, the atmosphere in the room left him unsure of what he should do or how he should react.
Of course, this didn’t bother Emila at all. She picked up a pen and scribbled sothing in the corner of a few papers in front of her. Then she handed the papers and the pen to Kael.
"There are blank spaces next to the places I’ve signed. You need to sign those."
After doing as instructed, he placed the papers back in front of Emila. She then pulled out more papers from her desk and scribbled on them as well.
About half a minute later...
"Your registration in the Imperial Archives will be processed shortly. From the mont it’s completed, you’ll be an officially employed, salaried official working on behalf of the Empire. However, you’ll need to be assigned to a departnt to learn the details of your work and determine the amount of your salary. The Empire has identified three departnts suitable for you to join. And you’ll choose one of these departnts."
’Oh...’
With those words, Kael finally got an idea of who the three figures standing silently behind Emila were. However, he didn’t let anything show; he remained silent and rely nodded.
"Behind are people sent by the three departnts you can join—they’ll answer your questions and introduce you to their departnts. Please move to the empty table in the other corner of the room for the interviews. What you discuss will remain confidential."
When he looked for the empty table Emila had ntioned, he found it quickly. It was at a distance that could be considered relatively far from Emila’s desk. Moreover, it was a table free from the general chaos of the room; it seed to have been set up specifically for comfort.
Kael turned his gaze briefly towards the three figures watching him, then made eye contact with each of them. There was likely a competition related to him in each of their eyes. Each of them seed to want him.
Apparently, the evaluation results were truly excellent.
So he looked at Hakon.
When Hakon did nothing but widen his smile and raise his thumbs, Kael let out a tiny sigh that no one would notice. He turned back to Emila.
"Should I start the interviews right away?"
"Yes. You can go straight to the table I ntioned."
Kael bowed his head slightly with a calm expression
"I understand. Thank you for your explanations and help."
After that, he walked slowly towards the empty table. Passing through piles of docunts, who knows what important or trivial information they contained, he reached it and sat down in one of the chairs.
He stretched, as if preparing himself, before shifting his focus. Then he turned his eyes back to the spot he had just left.
That’s when he saw the first figure approaching him.
This person was one of the n who appeared to be in his thirties. He had a slender build and was shorter than average. All his clothes were in shades of gray, and his steps were asured. There were no scars on his face, and he had a faint smile. His blond hair was neatly styled and his beardless face looked confident, while his brown eyes looked determined to recruit him.
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