Monster Hunters

Chapter Five

Awakening Test

"Kid, what were you doing in Shimmering Woods this morning??";

Hearing that, Jacob was stunned, thinking quickly, he thought of what to say.

"He's a kid, Kayden, maybe he just tried to get revenge for his parent's death by killing some monsters, right Jacob??", Nikita asked, looking at Jacob in the eyes.

"I went there to train", Jacob replied.

"See, I told you", Nikita said, supporting Jacob

"Hmph, train??, even though it's a controlled hunting ground with the lowest of Monsters, it's still not something an Unawakened like you can train in", Kayden said derisively, "Even if we accept the fact that you went to train, why did you sneak in??";

"I sneaked in because I knew that I wouldn't be allowed entry without an Awakened's badge"; an Awakened's badge was a symbol of honour given to every Awakened. It also has the Awakened's rank on it. The higher the rank, the more privileges an Awakened would enjoy.

"The fact that you sneaked in is enough to brand you a spy, and since your parents worked under us, you could also be said to be under our jurisdiction. You could also be called a traitor.", Kayden said, adding more pressure to the already tense Jacob.

"Alright Kayden, it's enough, he is just a kid who just lost his parents, he's allowed to be mischievous a little", Nikita said, trying to appease her brother and also winking at Jacob when she mentioned the word "Mischievous".

"Kid, we will let you go this time, but if you ever try to sneak in again, then you WILL be treated as a spy", Kayden said, emphasising the word "will".

Jacob didn't know what annoyed him more, either the fact that they were both playing "Good Cop, Bad Cop", with him, or the fact that they kept calling him Kid, even though they looked to be only a few years older than him.

"Thanks, I understand", Jacob replied. Since Strength determined everything in this world, Jacob decided to swallow the humiliation and wait till he gets stronger before paying the Twins back in their own coin.

"Okay, we will get going now, don't forget, we will be here to pick you up, same time tomorrow", Nikita reminded Jacob.

"I will be waiting, thanks", Jacob said and walked them to the gate.

Watching them get into a luxurious car and zoom off, Jacob's expression turned cold.

'I thought you were able to detect all detection mechanisms, how were they able to find me??', Jacob asked the system

**The range of the detection ability of the system depends on host's strength**, the system replied succinctly.

'That means, whatever was used to detect me is far higher than my current level. I have to quickly get stronger'.

'Is there any Awakened within my vicinity', Jacob asked the system again;

** No Awakened within host's immediate vicinity**

Walking back inside, Jacob plopped down on the sofa.

'I wonder if I have any talent for magic', Jacob thought.

Rubbing his eyes and stifling a yawn, Jacob came to the realization that, due to hunting tirelessly overnight in the Shimmering Woods, he was not able to sleep.

Getting comfortable on the sofa, Jacob fell into a dreamless slumber.

In a random corner of the city, a luxurious car was moving along with furious speed on the asphalt. Inside the car, Kayden said to Nikita; "He is hiding something"

Still with a friendly smile on her face, Nikita replied, "Of course he is, but, he is just a random Unawakened, what could he possibly be hiding??"

"Did you see how he only struggled with my pressure for a second, and how he was able to resist your charm spell??", Not convinced, Kayden argued.

Rolling her eyes, Nikita laughed and said "His parents knew that they were biting off more than they could chew, so it should not be surprising if they took some precautions to protect their only son. It might just be a talisman made to resist some attacks", Nikita said, evidently not putting Jacob in her eyes.

"I guess that is true, since he was able to survive and did not get eaten by the Monsters in Shimmering Woods, then he could have a life-saving talisman with him"

"Do you think he will have talent for magic??", Kayden asked;

"It's quite difficult to predict that, since some parents might not have magical talent, but their children would."

"He better have some talent, if he doesn't, then he would have to go through what his parents did", Kayden said, a hint of remorse apparent in his voice.

"Don't beat yourself over it, you did what you could", Nikita said. Sighing, Kayden peered outside the window, as the trees and houses whizzed past.

The next morning, Jacob ate a hurried breakfast and dressed casually. He was both excited and nervous at once.

He did not know whether he had the talent for magic, since magic originates from the soul, and his soul was not of this world. If he happened to not have the talent, then he would look for ways to go back to earth, since he knew he could not survive in this world if he was not strong enough.

He was beginning to wonder whether the Twins had forgotten about him when;

**Ding

Presence of strong Awakeneds detected around host's vicinity

Number of Awakeneds: 3**

___________________________

A few moments later, he heard the honk of a car in front of the gate. Taking a deep breath, he steeled himself and stepped outside.

"Hey, come on in", Nikita waved him inside the car.

Peering inside the car, he could only see a middle-aged man in front of the wheel, it seemed like he was the driver, but there was no sign of Kayden anywhere.

" He's busy with something, so he couldn't come", Nikita said, guessing what Jacob was thinking.

Hopping into the car, Jacob thought;'The system said that there were three Awakeneds outside, but there's only two here, is there another Awakened hiding nearby??'.

"Are you nervous??", Nikita's charming voice drifted into Jacob's ear. Noticing how close they were sitting, Jacob got a little uncomfortable, but he still replied;"A little nervous"

"It's normal, I remember when I also took the Awakening test, it was quite scary", Nikita said, giggling.

"Hmmmn", Jacob nodded and kept quiet.

The ride to the White Hunters guild was considerably peaceful. Contrary to his thoughts, Nikita did not force any conversations on him. Noticing that the car was slowing down, Jacob looked up and saw the White Hunters guild building. Since his parents worked there, the old Jacob had come here countless times, and he had seen it through his memories. But seeing it for himself left him in awe.

The building was gigantic, shaped like an oval, on it's left and right were trees formed in the shape of an eagle.

Countless people were going in and out of the building. Taking a huge breath, Jacob stepped out of the car.

"Are you ready to get awakened??", Nikita's voice resounded through his mind.