A young man, about my age, entered with a confident air.
He seed more refined than I was, bowing before the witch with a politeness that made raise an eyebrow slightly.
—Hello, noble mage.
—It is a pleasure to et you, ma’am," he said, his voice filled with respect.
The witch, as expected, rely sighed.
Her attention turned back to , completely ignoring the boy for a few seconds.
She picked up a scroll from the table and handed it to .
—Your examination here is complete.
—You will proceed to another test! I need to attend to other youths."
I thanked her with a brief nod of my head, rose from the chair, and walked toward the next stage.
As I crossed into the next section, I found myself in a new environnt.
It was spacious, almost identical to the first part of the tent, but what stood out the most was the peculiar goblin at the center.
He wore an impeccable suit, a top hat that seed slightly disproportionate to the size of his head, and a monocle fixed over his left eye.
A sight as comical as it was strangely intimidating.
Judging by the layout of this tent, there must be only two tests.
I approached, bowing slightly as I greeted him.
—Hello, Master Mage.
—It is a pleasure to et you.
He smiled, revealing slightly pointed teeth.
—Co, boy, have a seat.
I followed the instructions, sitting in the chair in front of him and placing the scroll with my information on the table.
The goblin, with small green hands, picked up the docunt, bringing it closer to his face as he adjusted his monocle.
—A three-star talent? he murmured, scratching his chin with a thoughtful look.
—With luck, you may beco a mage.
—Now let’s test your elental affinity!"
With a quick gesture, he tapped the table, which cleverly opened to reveal a crystalline, transparent square.
—Eduard, raise your finger forward," the goblin ordered.
I imdiately followed the instructions, extending my arm with my finger pointed out.
Without warning, he pulled a small needle from a drawer and pricked my finger with precision.
—Urghh...
I groaned internally but kept my expression firm.
The goblin collected a drop of my blood and let it fall onto the crystal.
As soon as the liquid touched the surface, the crystal glowed, emitting a faint hum.
—All right, everything is ready to begin.
—Now, focus and stare at the crystal," he ordered in a voice that left no room for doubt.
I obeyed, fixing my eyes on the structure before .
To my surprise, the crystal began to float, slowly spinning in the air.
It changed shape, shifting between a triangle, a square, and a circle.
The sound of the crystal vibrating grew louder, and soon the square began spinning at a dizzying speed.
My mind was pulled elsewhere, as if an invisible force had torn my consciousness from my body.
The environnt around turned completely dark, yet I was still aware.
I could feel my body sitting in the chair, but my eyes were fixed, staring into the void.
Then I heard the goblin’s voice, calm and curious.
—All right, what do you see?"
In the vast dark world, sothing began to erge.
A huge sun appeared before , shining with an intensity that should have been overwhelming, but it was not.
It felt welcoming, as if its glow were made of pure, friendly energy.
I spoke, my voice filled with awe.
—I see a bright sun, but sohow it doesn’t hurt my eyes... as if its light were sothing good and pleasant."
A faint smile ford on the goblin’s face, and he continued.
—Anything else?"
I looked around in that void and soon noticed sothing different.
Beyond the sun, a blue lightning bolt cut through the dark world with incredible speed.
It was so fast that anyone else would probably have missed it, but sohow, my eyes could follow it.
I answered almost instinctively.
—There’s also an imnse blue lightning bolt vibrating around the sun, and it’s moving very fast, but I can see it clearly.
—Is it as large as the sun?" the goblin asked.
I shook my head, my voice now steadier.
—No, it’s a little smaller."
The goblin seed to reflect for a mont before asking again.
—Besides that, can you see anything else?"
I briefly closed my eyes, trying to push my mind even farther.
In the depths of that dark world, I noticed sothing strange.
It was as if space itself were being twisted and folded.
—The environnt at the edge of the dark place is being distorted in a bizarre way," I said, my voice low and hesitant.
The goblin nodded, apparently understanding sothing that was still a mystery to .
He snapped his fingers, and suddenly everything vanished.
I was pulled back, and the real world filled my vision once more.
I swallowed hard, feeling my breathing heavy and cold sweat on my forehead.
—What happened to ?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
The goblin ignored my question with a practical air.
—The test is complete! In terms of elental affinities, you have the greatest affinity with the elents of Light and Radiance.
—After that, with Thunder and Lightning.
—And, surprisingly, you also have a touch of affinity with the Space elent!
As he spoke, he quickly filled out the form, sealing it with a fingerprint before handing it back to .
—Let give you so advice! he said seriously.
—Elental affinity is the future path of a Mage, you know. So Mages can manipulate lightning, so can manipulate fire, and others can even control ice! All of these are chosen paths.
—Although, in theory, a Mage can use any type of elental magic, those with greater affinity not only allow faster casting, but also contain more energy.
—If a Fire Elent Mage wants to cast a water-based spell, he will not only consu more spiritual energy, but the spell’s power will also be weaker.
I thanked him with a respectful bow, took the form, and left through the back entrance as he had indicated.
When I stepped outside, a ray of sunlight cut through the surrounding tents and shone directly on .
I paused for a mont, feeling its gentle warmth on my skin.
I smiled, and a short laugh escaped .
—Who would have imagined, huh?" I thought, looking up at the sky.
—I thought my destiny was to walk in the shadows as a dark mage... but it seems I will be the brightest light of all. As bright as the sun.
I was admiring the open sky, still processing the results of the aptitude test, when a familiar voice sounded very close to my ears.
—Hey! Eduard!
Emily, with her blonde curls and blue eyes, appeared.
—Did you also finish your aptitude test?"
I nodded, holding the yellow scroll in my hands.
—I just finished a little while ago.
Emily laughed loudly, her exaggerated and smug expression already irritating even before she said more.
—I finished too, hehe! I, this master, am a four-star genius.
I rolled my eyes.
Before I could respond, Emily continued after noticing my reaction and assuming she had greater talent than .
—Hahaha! Do I have better talent than you?"
I sighed deeply, feeling my patience beginning to wear thin.
A vein throbbed on my forehead, but I managed to stay calm for a mont before replying.
—Emily... it’s only a one-star difference.
—HAHAHAhahaha~~
She laughed even louder, ignoring my attempt to end the matter. Then, in a playful tone, she added.
—The less talented always say things like that.
I raised my hand, restraining the urge to smack Emily’s backside, but in the end I only gave her a light hug and tried to kiss her.
—Hey!!
—Damn it, what are you doing? Emily groaned, trying to free herself from my arms.
—Hey, co on! I was just joking, no need to get mad.
I smiled at her and soon released her, crossing my arms without hiding my irritation.
—Let’s choose our academies.
Internally, my ego was a little bruised, but I knew it wasn’t sothing that mattered in the grand sche of things.
This world did not care about pride, only about strength and survival.
Emily, still annoyed and pretending to be angry, soon returned to speaking with that lively tone.
—My father has already chosen for .
—I’m going to Blutil Tower.
—My family has a relationship with one of the Senior Mages there...
—Why don’t you co with too?
The offer was tempting.
Emily was a good ally, despite rejecting all my romantic advances.
But I shook my head, politely refusing.
—My supre attribute is Light... which does not align with the central attribute of Blutil Tower.
—It’s better if I look for another academy."
—All right then.
She shrugged and waved as she disappeared into the crowd.
—I’ll take care of the procedures.
—If you change your mind, co find in the Blutil Tower area!"
I stood still for a mont, pondering her words.
Her path had been laid out by her family, but for , everything was open.
—Where should I go? I muttered to myself.
I shook my head, casting aside the indecision.
It doesn’t matter... let’s take a look at the academies first.
I wandered aimlessly through the camp, observing the surrounding tents.
Each one seed stranger than the last.
So resembled circuses, with a small fan-shaped door in the center, as if they were ant to entertain and intimidate at the sa ti.
Others were unsettling, built with decorations that looked as though they had co straight out of nightmares.
One in particular caught my attention.
It looked as if it had been made from the skull of a giant demon, with curved horns and a gaping mouth serving as the entrance.
I watched people pass through the devil’s mouth as if they were entering a haunted house.
...
1677 Words
Power Stones Campaign.
300 Power Stones = 1 extra Chapter that day.
600 Power Stones = 2 extra Chapters that day.
1000 Power Stones = 3 extra Chapters that day.
2000 Power Stones = 5 extra Chapters that day.
3000 Power Stones = 8 extra Chapters that day.
Reviews
All reviews (0)