Synopsis and Starting Chapter Chapter 1: The Light At The End Of The Tunnel
Chapter 2: The Encyclopedia Of Mana Manipulation
Chapter 3: Head Start
Chapter 4: My Life Now
Chapter 5: Let The Journey Begin
Chapter 6: Up The Mountain
Chapter 7: How I Wished
Chapter 8: Questions
Chapter 9: Ones Held Dear
Chapter 10: Road Ahead
Chapter 11: To And Fro
Chapter 12: Meeting
Chapter 13: Q & A
Chapter 14: What’S To Come
Chapter 15: The Other Side
Chapter 16: Next Step
Chapter 17: Companion
Chapter 18: Family
Chapter 19: Peaceful
Chapter 20: Proclamation
Chapter 21: Everybody Wins
Chapter 22: For Them
Chapter 23: Royalty
Chapter 24: Auction
Chapter 25: Aftermath
Chapter 26: Partners In Crime
Chapter 27: Worth Fighting For
Chapter 28: Examination
Chapter 29: Changes In Dicathen
Chapter 30: Sword And Body
Chapter 31: Last Leg
Chapter 32: Dire Tombs
Chapter 33: Dire Tombs Ii
Chapter 34: Dire Tombs Iii
Chapter 35: Rash Actions And Limits
Chapter 36: Precautions
Chapter 37: A Son, Brother, And Friend
Chapter 38: In The Meantime
Chapter 39: Introspection
Chapter 40: New Winds
Chapter 41: I’M Not That Nice
Chapter 42: A Ball
Chapter 43: A Ball Ii
Chapter 44: Xyrus Academy
Chapter 45: You Dare?
Chapter 46: Not Quite As Planned
Chapter 47: Wiser Than The Wise
Chapter 48: Attention
Chapter 49: Reminisce
Chapter 50: Disciplinary Committee
Chapter 51: Classes And Professors
Chapter 52: Classes And Professors Ii
Chapter 53: Classes And Professors Iii
Chapter 54: It’S A Pleasure
Chapter 55: Match Start
Chapter 56: This Is Going To Hurt
Chapter 57: Family Gathering
Chapter 58: Feelings And Old Memories
Chapter 59: First Day On The Job
Chapter 60: Confrontation
Chapter 61: Romantic Idiot
Chapter 62: My Team
Chapter 63: Baby Steps
Chapter 64: Field Trip
Chapter 65: Widow’S Crypt
Chapter 66: Widow’S Crypt Ii
Chapter 67: Widow’S Crypt Iii
Chapter 68: Widow’S Crypt Iv
Chapter 69: Widow’S Crypt V
Chapter 70: An Unfamiliar Burden
Chapter 71: Evolving
Chapter 72: A Confusing Day
Chapter 73: One Fallen
Chapter 74: A Will’S Last Breath
Chapter 75: Order Of Power
Chapter 76: Manifest Destinies
Chapter 77: Good To See You
Chapter 78: Allies?
Chapter 79: Meanwhile
Chapter 80: Meanwhile Ii
Chapter 81: Meanwhile Iii
Chapter 82: At Last
Chapter 83: Benefactor
Chapter 84: A Greater Scale
Chapter 85: Lineage
Chapter 86: Elven Kingdom
Chapter 87: Winding Down
Chapter 88: A Will’S Unwillingness
Chapter 89: A Stroll
Chapter 90: A Cursed Blessing
Chapter 91: The Start
Chapter 92: Collapse Of Xyrus
Chapter 92: Bird’S Cage
Chapter 93: Chosen Ones
Chapter 94: Arrival
Chapter 95: The Calm Before
Chapter 96: The Storm
Chapter 97: Outcome
Chapter 98
Chapter 99
Chapter 100
Chapter 101
Chapter 102
Chapter 103
Chapter 104
Chapter 105
Chapter 106
Chapter 107
Chapter 108
Chapter 109
Chapter 110
Chapter 111
Chapter 112
Chapter 113
Chapter 114
Chapter 115
Chapter 116
Chapter 117
Chapter 118
Chapter 119
Chapter 120
Chapter 121
Chapter 122
Chapter 123
Chapter 124
Chapter 125
Chapter 126
Chapter 127
Chapter 128
Chapter 129
Chapter 130
Chapter 131
Chapter 132
Chapter 133
Chapter 134
Chapter 135
Chapter 136
Chapter 137
Chapter 138
Chapter 139
Chapter 140
Chapter 141
Chapter 142
Chapter 143
Chapter 144
Chapter 145
Chapter 146
Chapter 147
Chapter 148
Chapter 149
Chapter 150
Chapter 151
Chapter 152
Chapter 153
Chapter 154
Chapter 155
Chapter 156
Chapter 157
Chapter 158
Chapter 159
Chapter 160
Chapter 161
Chapter 162
Chapter 163
Chapter 164
Chapter 165
Chapter 166
Chapter 167
Chapter 168
Chapter 169
Chapter 170
Chapter 171
Chapter 172
Chapter 173
Chapter 174
Chapter 175
Chapter 176
Chapter 177
Chapter 178
Chapter 179
Chapter 180
Chapter 181
Chapter 182
Chapter 183
Chapter 184
Chapter 185
Chapter 186
Chapter 187
Chapter 188
Chapter 189
Chapter 190
Chapter 191
Chapter 192
Chapter 193
Chapter 194
Chapter 195
Chapter 196
Chapter 197
Chapter 198
Chapter 199
Chapter 200
Chapter 201
Chapter 202
Chapter 203
Chapter 204
Chapter 205
Chapter 206
Chapter 207
Chapter 208
Chapter 209
Chapter 210
Chapter 211
Chapter 212
Chapter 213
Chapter 214
Chapter 215
Chapter 216
Chapter 217
Chapter 218
Chapter 219
Chapter 220
Chapter 221
Chapter 222
Chapter 223
Chapter 224
Chapter 225
Chapter 226
Chapter 227
Chapter 228
Chapter 229
Chapter 230
Chapter 231
Chapter 232
Chapter 233
Chapter 234
Chapter 235
Chapter 236
Chapter 237
Chapter 238
Chapter 239
Chapter 240
Chapter 241
Chapter 242
Chapter 243
Chapter 244
Chapter 245
Chapter 246
Chapter 247
Chapter 248
Chapter 249
Chapter 250
Chapter 251
Chapter 252
Chapter 253
Chapter 254
Chapter 255
Chapter 256
Chapter 257
Chapter 258
Chapter 259
Chapter 260
Chapter 261
Chapter 262
Chapter 263
Chapter 264
Chapter 265
Chapter 266
Chapter 267
Chapter 268
Chapter 269
Chapter 270
Chapter 271
Chapter 272
Chapter 273
Chapter 274
Chapter 275
Chapter 276
Chapter 277
Chapter 278
Chapter 279
Chapter 280
Chapter 281
Chapter 282
Chapter 283
Chapter 284
Chapter 285
Chapter 286
Chapter 287
Chapter 288
Chapter 289
Chapter 290
Chapter 291
Chapter 292
Chapter 293
Chapter 294
Chapter 295
Chapter 296
Chapter 297
Chapter 298
Chapter 299
Chapter 300
Chapter 301
Chapter 302
Chapter 303
Chapter 304
Chapter 305
Chapter 306
Chapter 307
Chapter 308
Chapter 309
Chapter 310
Chapter 311
Chapter 312
Chapter 313
Chapter 314
Chapter 315
Chapter 316
Chapter 317
Chapter 318
Chapter 319
Chapter 320
Chapter 321
Chapter 322: Echoes Of Accusations
Chapter 323
Chapter 324
Chapter 325 Painless
Chapter 326 Backlash
Chapter 327 Enough For Now
Chapter 328 Face To Face
Chapter 329: A Plea For Help
Chapter 330
Chapter 331: The Trial
Chapter 332: Broken Chains
Chapter 333: Attention
Chapter 334: Last Mercy
Chapter 335: Haunting Peace
Chapter 336: Protection
Chapter 337: Layers
Chapter 338 A Weapon Against Him
Chapter 339 The Central Dominion
Chapter 340 Burden And Stakes
Chapter 341 Ashes And Dust
Chapter 342 Duality
Chapter 343 Professor Princess
Chapter 344 Eyes Locked
Chapter 345 Socialite
Chapter 346 A Dim Spark
Chapter 347 A Stroll With Gods
Chapter 348 Melee Enhancement Tactics
Chapter 349: Hope And Lies
Chapter 350: Colleagues
Chapter 351: Minimally Catastrophic
Chapter 352: Relic, Revived
Chapter 353: Paradigm Shift
Chapter 354: Somewhat Teaching
Chapter 355: Just His Name
Chapter 356: Closure
Chapter 357: Blood Relic
Chapter 358
Chapter 359
Chapter 360
Chapter 361: The Second Ruin
Chapter 362: Fate Intertwined
Chapter 363
Chapter 364
Chapter 365
Chapter 366
Chapter 367
Chapter 368
Chapter 369
Chapter 370
Chapter 371
Chapter 372
Chapter 373
Chapter 374
Chapter 374.5
Chapter 375
Chapter 376
Chapter 377
Chapter 378
Chapter 379
Chapter 380
Chapter 381
Chapter 382
Chapter 383
Chapter 384
Chapter 385
Chapter 386
Chapter 387
Chapter 388
Chapter 389
Chapter 390
Chapter 391
Chapter 392
Chapter 393
Chapter 394
Chapter 395
Chapter 396
Chapter 397
Chapter 398
Chapter 399
Chapter 400
Chapter 401
Chapter 402
Chapter 403
Chapter 404
Chapter 405
Chapter 406
Chapter 407
Chapter 408
Chapter 409
Chapter 410
Chapter 411
Chapter 412
Chapter 413
Chapter 414
Chapter 415
Chapter 416
Chapter 417
Chapter 418
Chapter 419: One Of Mine
Chapter 420: Shackles
Chapter 421: Black Doors
Chapter 422: Black Doors Ii
Chapter 423: One Last Ruin
Chapter 424: Through The Djinn’S Eyes
Chapter 425: Unexpected Visitor
Chapter 426: Changing The Narrative
Chapter 427: Amends
Chapter 428: Hoping
Chapter 429: A Dream Yet To Happen
Chapter 430 Opposition
Chapter 431 Time
Chapter 432 Overdue
Chapter 433 Respect And Regards
Chapter 434 Fellowship Forged
Chapter 435 Entourage
Chapter 436 Obscured
Chapter 437 Scales Of Understanding
Chapter 438 A Broken Path
Chapter 439 Holding Ground
Chapter 440 A Loose Idea
Chapter 441 The Message
Chapter 442 A Snapped Thread
Chapter 443 Horns Of Exeges
Chapter 444 A Sword Struck
Chapter 445 The Truth Of Power
Chapter 446 Scarred
Chapter 447 A Certain State In Time
Chapter 448
Chapter 449
Chapter 450
Chapter 451
Chapter 452
Chapter 453
Chapter 454
Chapter 455
Chapter 456
Chapter 458
Chapter 457: Equivalent Exchange
Chapter 459
Chapter 460
Chapter 461
Chapter 462
Chapter 463
Chapter 464
Chapter 465
Chapter 466
Chapter 467
Chapter 468
Chapter 469
Chapter 470
Chapter 471
Chapter 472
Chapter 473
Chapter 474
Chapter 475
Chapter 476
Chapter 477
Chapter 478
Chapter 479
Chapter 480
Chapter 481
Chapter 482
Categories Genre: All, Fantasy, Martial, Ongoing Status: Ongoing ______
Total Chapters in book: 485
Estimated words: 1771831 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 8859(@200wpm)___ 7087(@250wpm)___ 5906(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 1771831 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 8859(@200wpm)___ 7087(@250wpm)___ 5906(@300wpm)
______
LIST OF LAST 10 CHAPTERS:
Page No. 485 Page No. 484 Page No. 483 Page No. 482 Page No. 481 Page No. 480 Page No. 479 Page No. 478 Page No. 477 Page No. 476 Page No. 475 Chapter 284
Chapter 284
Chapter 284: Blending In
“This is the fifth outfit already. Is all of this necessary?” I groaned, stepping out of my changing room and into the viewing area.
Waiting for me outside was a plethora of employees working at the high-end clothing boutique as well as customers.
“Kid, do you know how many named bloods seek me out only to be put on my waiting list? I’m only doing this because the old coot asked me for a favor,” the bespectacled old woman that Alaric had introduced as Odile snapped.
Her heels clacked on the tile floors as she strode behind me, tying my hair with a thin string.
“Although...” Odile turned her sharp gaze to the ‘audience’ watching us excitedly. “It seems like I’m not enough since my employees also found the need to offer their professional advice.”
The uniformed employees scattered within the crowd of about twenty or so began chuckling nervously before a blonde-haired clerk spoke up. “All the guests are here as well, Madam Odile. We’re just watching out for them.”
The woman leading me toward the set of mirrors snorted derisively but said nothing as she pushed me onto the platform.
‘A once quadra-elemental Lance, now with the physique and abilities of an asura, has become...a dress-up doll,’ Regis lamented mockingly. ‘Oh, how the mighty have fallen.’
Keep that up and I’ll get you a nice flower barrette that really highlights your purple mane.
Regis let out a cackle. ‘I’d rock it.’
“Your shoulders look narrower when you’re tense like that! We’re going for confidence!” Odile huffed as she combed her short white hair back with her fingers. “Great Vritra, I don’t see what you have to be ashamed about with your face and body.”
There was a disturbing chorus of agreement from the crowd, and while I hated drawing attention to myself, I had to agree that Odile had quite a sense of style that I wasn’t opposed to.
I looked at myself in the tri-fold mirror. In contrast to the tight-fitting armor I had picked up from the Relictombs, Odile had fitted me in a white dress shirt tucked into a pair of black slacks. Rather than wearing a tie or vest, she had me put on a black sweater underneath a dark blue coat. As the final touch, Odile put on what she called a collar bar that accented my suit to give that ‘classy noble look’ she kept going on about.
I liked it. It was a bit more...modern than I had expected—this outfit could easily be something I could see in my old world. But I wasn’t a walking rainbow goose like some of the other denizens here. Honestly, as long as it allowed me to blend in, there wasn’t really more I could ask for.
“He’s a rather whiny boy, but I knew you’d want to get your hands on him,” Alaric chimed. The old drunk had also washed up, trimmed his hair and beard and changed into a completely black suit. He was currently closing the curtains to block out the audience that had formed, much to their displeasure.
“I just wish you would’ve told me in advance so I could procure an image capture artifact,” Odile said with a sigh. She snapped out of her daze and stuck a finger at Alaric. “That doesn’t change the fact that I did you a favor, you old drunk! Don’t you dare try to change that.”
Alaric raised his hands—one of which was still holding onto a bottle of rum—placatingly. “I meant to do nothing of the sort, my beloved crone.”
“You’re still drinking?” I asked, exasperated. “How’re you going to handle the hangover after all of the alcohol you’ve drunk so far?”
“You can’t get a hangover if you’re always drunk,” he said sagely, tapping his temple with a finger.
I opened my mouth to say something while Alaric stared at me as if daring me to refute his point. My words just came out as an unintelligible grumble.
After gathering the literal pile of clothes that Odile had chosen for me and taking it to the front counter to pay, I was met with a confused clerk.
“Your clothes have already been paid for by Madam Odile,” she said while bagging my clothes.
“Oh.” I looked at the amount of outfits that were strewn across the counter. “This is a lot of clothes. I’d feel more comfortable paying.”
“Don’t take it the wrong way. It’s an investment on my part,” Odile’s husky voice rang from behind. I turned to see her walking beside Alaric, toward me. “It seems like the old coot found someone interesting and I wanted to be a part of it.”
“Let’s go, Grey. Before she tries to rip me off even more,” Alaric muttered grumpily.
Alaric and I were back out on the busy streets where the sun was beginning to set. A courier would be delivering our new clothes to the inn, which only left us with one last stop for the day.
“Listen up, my lovely nephew,” Alaric began, sauntering beside me as we made our way out of the shopping district. “If we’re going to get you an ascender’s badge as soon as possible without having you affiliated with any sort of institution, here’s what we have to do...”
The old drunk proceeded to explain his plan. Basically, Alaric would pose as my uncle who had been teaching me to hone my magic and survival skills ever since my bestowment since I had no intention of being a merchant like my father. Now that I was of age and had been thoroughly trained, he would be the one to vouch for me in order to take the assessment.
I raised a brow. “So anyone can just vouch for you in order to take the assessment?”
“Don’t be silly. It’s because your uncle is a retired ascender himself that he’s qualified to vouch for you,” Alaric said with a cheeky grin. “Unfortunately, passing the assessment won’t be enough.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ll have to participate in—and survive—one ascent by tagging along with an experienced party,” he explained. “Only then will you get an ascender’s badge. Thankfully there’s an Ascension Chamber right here in Aramoor, which I assumed you were planning to visit since you’re here.”
I shook my head. “I had no intention of going to the Relictombs in this city.”
Sylvia’s message had given me memories of the four ruins within the Relictombs that I needed to get to. I had already visited one of them, and while I didn’t have an exact map of where the rest of these ruins were, I knew they weren’t in Aramoor City.
“As both your uncle and your partner in crime, may this one ask where it was you were planning on going?” he questioned, staring at me with that glassy gaze of his. While he still looked drunk, Alaric looked much more reliable now that he’d cleaned himself up.
“I’m looking for ruins within the Relictombs. They weren’t in the Relictombs here.”
“You really aren’t from around here, are you?” he sighed before leaning closer as we walked. “I’m sure you’ve noticed this by now from the last time you were inside, but the Relictombs don’t have a conventional structure that you can travel through. You’ve heard of simulets, right?”
“I have,” I replied, the memory of Daria offering one to me still fresh in my mind.
“Most of the deaths within the Relictombs happened before the development of the simulets. Before then, even if you crossed an entrance together at the same time holding hands, you would most likely be transported to different zones.” Alaric let out a sigh before continuing. “You say you’re looking for these ‘ruins’ within a specific zone, but the truth is, it doesn’t really matter where you enter the Relictombs, since you never know where you’ll end up.”
I had a feeling this was the case but I had hoped that entrances in different areas would lead to different parts of the Relictombs.
“So I just have to blindly wander around the Relictombs before I stumble across what I’m looking for by chance?”
Alaric took another sip of his rum, letting out a loud burp before answering. “Some say that the Relictombs has a will of its own, left behind by the ancient mages.”
Ancient mages, or ‘djinn’, as the entity that had left me with the keystone referred to himself. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Relictombs did have a mind of its own, but it still didn’t help me in my case. I hated how so much was still outside of my control.
I rubbed my temples. “Fine. It doesn’t seem like I have much of a choice.”
“Good.” Alaric patted my back. “I have no idea how strong you are, but remember that, while trained, you definitely should try and at least act like you’re having a hard time. Once you’ve gotten your ascender’s badge, it might not be a bad idea to accumulate experience with other parties if you really don’t want to draw attention to yourself.”
‘You should just ‘summon me’ and let me take the test,’ Regis chimed in.
“Are solo ascenders that rare?” I asked, ignoring my companion. Trider’s surprise when I mentioned it came to mind.
“Very,” Alaric answered as he weaved deftly through the crowded street filled with pedestrians. “The Relictombs are much too unpredictable even today, when we have so many records of different zones. It’s why experienced sentries are as important as—if not more than—battle mages.”
“What sort of mage were you then?” I questioned, looking at the old drunk. He looked about fifty at least, and although he sported a large beer belly, it couldn’t mask the warrior’s build that he once had.
Alaric turned to face me, cocking a brow. “I thought our deal here was that we don’t pry and ask questions that are unnecessary.”
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I shrugged. It would be a lie to say I wasn’t curious about the old drunk, but it seemed like he had about as much reason to keep me at a distance as I did for him. It was probably why he never specifically confirmed whether I was from Dicathen, even though it was probably pretty obvious to him by now.
We continued our way through the streets of Aramoor in relative silence until we arrived at the gates of a large rhombus-shaped building that stood by itself, surrounded by a lush grass lawn. A single paved road, lined on both sides with statues of battle mages, led to the building.
“This is it, dearest nephew,” Alaric said casually while handing me a small metal card with ‘Grey’ written on it along with a series of numbers and a birth date signifying me as twenty-two. While I was a bit younger than that, physically, I didn’t say anything.
I stored the card safely in the inside pocket of my coat. “When did you have the time to get this?”
“During the time Odile was having fun dressing you up,” he replied, walking up toward the guard stationed inside the booth next to the front gate.
After Alaric gave the guard his identification card along with a piece of paper, the gate soon opened.
The old drunkard slid his hand over one of the statues. “Impressive, isn’t it?”
‘These look like toys compared to the statue hallway we first ended up in,’ Regis mused.
I agreed with a smile, reminiscing how many times I had almost died in that zone alone. Good times.
Despite how quiet it was outside, when we walked through the doors of the rather flat building, a cacophony of noises erupted from inside.
Alaric cackled in pleasure, noticing my surprise. “Busy, right? There are teleportation gates inside every ascender building restricted only to ascenders and a platform where they can use their own tempus warps.”
My eyes scanned the various groups of mages gathered in their own circles, busy either talking to clerks or amongst themselves. “So the gates are purely for candidates testing to become ascenders?”
“It’s actually really just for normal civilians to gaze upon the majesty of us ascenders,” Alaric said with a wink. “Come on. The testing area is this way.”
Walking through the marble-floored building reminded me of some of the nicer Adventurers Guild Halls back in Dicathen, except it was much larger and had a much wider array of accommodations. From weapon and armor polishing services, glass meeting rooms for strategizing, resting pods filled with high concentrations of mana for faster healing, to even large training rooms that teams could rent out. It was an all-inclusive facility that you could spend days in.
Alaric took his time going through the different sorts of facilities that every ascender building offered...for a fee, of course. This was, once again, a cold reminder of how much more developed Alacrya was compared to Dicathen.
“How are these training rooms able to take the strain of mages fighting inside?” I asked, watching a team of ascenders leaving one of the private training rooms dripping in sweat.
Alaric knocked on the solid metal wall of the training room. “The instillers that work on the ascender buildings are top class, and the metal making up these rooms are special alloys only found in the northern mountains of Truacia.”
‘Instillers are basically enchanters specializing in enhancing objects with their mana,’ Regis clarified after sensing my confusion.
Finally, we arrived in the area designated for helping ascender candidates. Unlike the other areas within the facility, the large circular waiting area was filled with mages.
Aside from a few nervous applicants that wore regular clothing, most of the mages present in this area looked around my age and were all wearing different militaristic uniforms. Strewn throughout were several older mages, garbed in more traditional robes that walked around, talking to some of the uniformed mages.
“Most applicants come from academies, hence the reason why they look like they have a stick up their ass,” Alaric whispered distastefully. “Unfortunately for you, most ascenders look down on the ‘unschooled,’ as they say. It might be hard for you to attract a party so do decently well—but not too well.”
I frowned. “What is ‘decently well’ supposed to be?”
“Just follow their instructions,” the drunkard dismissed, picking his ear. “They’ll tell you what you need to do to pass.”
The two of us took a seat near the far end of the circular waiting area after Alaric signed me up for a practical skill assessment.
“Damn, I really need a flask,” Alaric muttered beside me, struggling to drink alcohol while hiding it within his suit jacket.
“What you need is help,” I retorted with a scoff.
“Thank you for caring so much about your uncle’s health, dearest nephew,” Alaric said with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.
We continued waiting, and with nothing better to do, I closed my eyes and visualized the realm within the keystone. By now, I had accessed the relic so many times that I could imagine the kaleidoscopic space clearly enough to simulate previous attempts and try learning from them.
‘Check it out. Some of the girls are checking you out,’ Regis commented with a giggle.
Are you twelve? I shot back, not bothering to open my eyes.
‘Technically, I’m not even one,’ my companion argued. ‘But that’s not the point. Some of them are pretty cute.’
How do you even know what cute is? I asked.
‘I’m made from you, remember?’ Regis reminded me. ‘So technically, my interpretation of cute is actually your interpretation of cute.’
Curiosity getting the best of me, I cracked a peek to see a trio of girls a few rows in front of me quickly turn back while giggling amongst themselves. That’s when I also noticed a powerfully built student, whose uniform was having a hard time containing his muscles, glaring at me not far away.
“Are you trying to drill a hole with your gaze?” Alaric snapped. “Come on. You’re up next.”
I followed the old man down the aisle of seats until a thin male clerk guided us through a narrow hallway leading to a circular room.
“Your assessment will be through portal five,” he said, motioning us toward the shimmering gate. “Guardians will be led to the viewing room where they can watch from there. Any questions?”
Alaric went ahead through the portal marked with a ‘five’ without a word and I followed after him.
The jarring sensation of teleportation gates in Dicathen had been largely muted as I stepped through, leaving only a dull sense of vertigo that quickly faded. Studying my new surroundings, I took in the brightly lit tunnel we seemed to be in.
Runes flashed on the immaculate white walls, illuminating our way. Aside from the main path that stretched out in front of us, there was a set of stairs to our right, a metal sign indicating that it led to the viewing room.
“Break a leg.” Alaric smacked my back before heading up the stairs. “It’ll be interesting to see you fight.”
With a deep breath, I made my way through the marble pathway, this entire area reminding me of some sort of underground lab rather than any sort of testing area.
The room that I had entered was a small changing room with some kind of tight suit neatly folded on a bench as well as a locker for me to hang my current clothes.
“For your own safety, please wear the protective suit,” a prerecorded voice repeated every few minutes as I changed.
After putting on the foamy skin-tight suit covered in runes, I walked over to the entrance clearly labeled ‘assessment hall’. I had to admit that it was impressive when the runes on the suit flashed brightly as I neared the entrance and the doors slid open as if the suit itself was required to go through.
‘Wow...fancy,’ Regis commented.
Despite such differences in experience, my mind still expected to see an arena of some sort, but walking through the automatic sliding metal doors, I was greeted with the sight of a huge chamber.
The enormous room was a perfect cube that was around fifty yards in width, height, and length with rows of intricate runes pulsating throughout the walls. Both the floor and walls were divided into smaller square tiles but devoid of anything else aside from a glass pane near the ceiling which several shadowed figures stood behind.
“Candidate Grey, striker,” a voice boomed from high above. “Your first assessment will now begin.”
That was it. No guidance, no instructions of any sort. Instead, a row of lower square tiles receded from the wall and out crawled a trio of giant armored spiders...each of which were at least twice my height.
Regis let out a groan. ‘Again...how come all of the monsters we fight are so damn ugly?’
Total Chapters in book: 485
Estimated words: 1771831 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 8859(@200wpm)___ 7087(@250wpm)___ 5906(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 1771831 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 8859(@200wpm)___ 7087(@250wpm)___ 5906(@300wpm)
______