It has been 2 weeks since Lukas left with Tasha to join the military academy. The registration process was smooth. He was given a card with his details on it. Since he had no last name the name Lukas was the only thing printed on the card. His age was set to 10. After all the necessary procedures Tasha left him; she had her own business to attend to.
Lukas was sitting on a chair in a classroom. There was a male teacher in front of him. There were also four children around the same age as him in the classroom. He was being taught how to read and write. The teacher was easygoing; he cracked jokes here and there to make the kids less tense.
They had to be literates before they joined the main academy. All students in the academy had to be literate. Lukas paid serious attention to what was being taught. It was absolutely necessary for him to be literate. Information about this world was in the library, and he couldn't learn about them if he couldn't read; so he made literacy a priority.
***
It has been 6 months since Lukas started attending classes. It only took 3 months for him to be a basic literate, surpassing his peers by leaps and bounds. He had created a schedule for himself. After being taught something he made sure to practice it in his dormitory over and over again. He needed a solid foundation and he had to create one for himself. The things he had learned were negligible compared to what he needed to learn. He was no longer as clueless as he was 7 months ago. He had learned basic things about this world.
For one there was magic. And mana was the base of all things. Mana was needed to cast the most basic of magic. Not everyone was able to feel, grasp and use mana. Those that were able to use mana were the cream of the crop of this world.
The world was very vast and those who could mana were only a minority. Mana separated the ordinary from the outstanding. He also learned that at the age of 14 most children would be taken to the awakening center. There they will be tested to see if they could use mana or not.
There were also ranks among the mana users. People could climb the ranks and become a God.
Yes, a God.
Once a person awakened the road to ascension begins. They would embark on a challenging journey to become a God.
They were also different types of users among the awakened. An example of such was the healer class. They were highly respected because of their ability to heal the gravest of wounds, chronic illnesses and perfectly join separated limbs. It was a healer that was responsible for healing Lukas during the incident at the forest. They were needed in almost all walks of life in this world.
Other classes were the Berserkers, Knights, Archers, Lancers, Swordsmen and Mages. They were also hidden classes apart from the major classes but as their name suggested, they were hidden. Not much information was known about them, but they were just as powerful as the major classes.
Another thing he noted was the currency. In this world, gold, silver and coppers were the standard currency with gold being the highest. Each gold was equivalent to 100 silvers, while each silver was equivalent to 100 coppers.
That wasn't the only thing peculiar about this world. Despite the fact that this world was very developed they still employed the ruling system of Empires and Kingdoms.
Lukas was currently living in the Aegis Empire founded by a Berseker God. It was a fairly powerful empire but not the strongest. There were five empires that were absurdly powerful that no one questioned their authority. Any enemies of the empires were instantly snuffed out. Their tyranny had been going on for years now that they were dubbed the five great empires.
There were also monsters in this world. Each of the monsters had their own ranking just like the awakened. There were the servant class monster, they were at the bottom of the hierarchy among monsters, but it took a party of novice awakened to take care of 1 servant monster.
Above the servant class monsters were the warrior class monsters. An example of the warrior class monster was the four eyed wolf Lukas encountered in the forest. They were fairly strong and it would take a group of experienced awakened to take them down.
Above the warrior class monster was the colonel class monsters. They were referred to as minor bosses in the wild. They were usually accompanied by a group of warrior and servant class monsters. If left unchecked and entered a town they could massacre every human in the town before aid arrives. Even 2 or 3 groups of experienced awakened might not be enough to take care of such monsters.
Above the colonel class monster was the hazard class monsters. They were devilishly strong and could massacre a whole city by itself. They were periodly hunted down by strong groups of awakened as the slaughter they could cause were undoubtedly tragic.
Above the hazard class monsters were the calamity class monsters. Only extremely powerful awakened could take care of such monsters because as their name suggests, they were the embodiment of calamities. They had enough strength to topple a kingdom. They were several cases of which calamity class monsters erased a kingdom from existence.
Above the calamity class monsters were the disaster ranked monsters. A disaster rank monster could topple several kingdoms by themselves. They were extremely powerful and only armies of powerful awakened could combat them.
Above the disaster ranked monsters were the catastrophe ranked monsters. A catastrophe ranked monster could destroy a whole empire by itself. There had been several cases where weaker empires or newly formed empires had been extinguished by a catastrophe ranked monster before they could make a foothold for themselves. Only demi-gods, awakened half step into becoming a God could combat a catastrophe ranked monster. Even at that, they were still heavy casualties when combating one.
Above the catastrophe ranked monsters were the apocalypse class monsters. They were at the apex of the monster hierarchy. A single apocalypse class monster was enough to permanently erase several empires. That wasn't the only reason why they were greatly feared; as they had the ability to kill Gods. Even a God wasn't safe when combating an apocalypse class monster. When an apocalypse class monster appeared, only utter destruction are left in their wake.
Lukas frowned as he recalled the monster rankings. Just a single servant class monster was enough to kill him. He didn't like that feeling of being helpless. If Leonard and his group weren't on a quest he could have lost his life.
Lukas looked at the calendar hung on the wall of his dorm room. There was still 2 years and 5 months before he could take the test to see if he could become an awakened.
Strength. He needed strength. Lukas lay back on his bed and closed his eyes. He silently made a vow to become an awakened. He would not let himself feel helpless again. In this unfamiliar world, the only thing he could trust was himself. Lukas drifted to sleep amidst his turbulent thoughts.
It has been 2 years since Lukas joined the academy. His life at the academy had been pretty straightforward. He woke up everyday and did a series of exercises, training his body; then went to school.He had made his way into the main academy after spending a year learning basic knowledge about this world. He was as knowledgeable as one could be at his age.Lukas wasn't a loner. He had made some friends in the academy during his first six months mainly because of his looks and smarts. He had topped the monthly exams as soon as he transferred into the main academy.During his stay here he found out that a lot of people were considering staying in the military for the rest of their lives. He had also figured that they were 3 types of people in the military. The first type included people whose parents had ties to the military or were in the military themselves and wanted their children to be placed in certain positions when they were of age.The second type were people who had suddenly
-Zik Capital City, Aegis Empire-The capital city of the Aegis empire was bustling more than usual. The cars were 10 times the usual number that usually drove the roads. People of different races filled the streets walking in different directions.A middle aged man and his son were among the people walking on the streets. The usually vacant road they took home was filled to the brim. His son, no older than 7 years noticed the unusual bustling of the city and turned to his guardian."Papa, why are there so much people on the streets today?"The middle aged man smiled at his son and replied."It's the awakening test today.""Awakening? What's that?" The boy asked; his face filled with curiosity.The middle aged man frowned. Damn this son of his. Him asking this question meant that his son rarely paid attention in class. This was basic knowledge that should have been drilled into his son's brain. He made a mental note to meet with his teacher the next day."It's the test taken by most ki
"Miss, we're here" the driver said to Ayleen as the car came to a stop. Ayleen and Bella alighted the car and came face to face with a skyscraper. The building was about 100 meters in height, and it had a majestic look to it. It was the Awakening center.The awakening center wasn't just for testing the children, it was the place were awakened gathered for different purposes. It housed everything that the awakened needed in the Aegis empire. It was more of a headquarters for the awakened.Ayleen and Bella made their way into the crowded building, getting looks from the people inside due to her looks and how expensively she dressed. She didn't let it distract her and walked with utmost confidence to the floor designated for awakening with Bella on her tail.At the awakening center they were many kids chattering to themselves, trying to get the nervousness out of their system. As Ayleen and Bella entered the wide room all eyes turned to them and the chattering died down. It was soon repl
As Lukas walked towards the room, he could feel all eyes on him. Lukas paid them no mind and continued on his way to the room. He soon got to the room, disappearing from everyone's sight.Entering the room, Lukas found himself facing three people, 2 men and a woman. There was a table in the middle of the room; a transparent orb on it. One of the people seated broke the silence."Come forward, put your hands on the orb and try to feel the mana in it. The brighter the orb the higher your score. Go on, start."Lukas went and did as he was told, his heart pounding. He put his hand on the orb, closed his eyes and felt for mana.There. He could feel it. There were stars in the vast world he found himself in. Each of the stars were tied to each other by a thin white thread. Lukas started to untie the threads tied to the stars. As he untied one of the stars it let out a light in the space he was. 1 star, 3 stars, 7 stars. Lukas soon found himself lost in a trance as he kept untying the threa
Lukas entered the room for the second time and saw the three judges still seated. The judges signaled him to go to the same table and put his hand on the orb. Lukas did as he was told and soon enough the orb started emitting a pale blue light."That's enough boy." One of the judges said. Lukas removed his hands from the orb and looked at the judges.The three judges looked at each other, discussed for over 2 minutes before nodding their heads. They had come to a conclusion. One of the judges cleared his throat before announcing."Lukas Kerr, you have successfully awakened as a Mage. You may leave now."Lukas nodded his head before exiting the room. His expression was stoic as he walked towards the exit but internally his heart was beating furiously! He was ecstatic. He had successfully awakened! It was taking everything he had not to burst out in joy. He held it in and walked towards the elevator. He wondered what had become of his friends in the military. Out of everyone who came t
Lukas woke up to the sound of his alarm ringing. He turned over and turned off the alarm before looking at the time on the clock. 7:20 am. Lukas lay on his bed for a while before taking off his nightwear. He put on his bathrobe and entered the bathroom to take his bath.He awakened as a Mage 2 days ago. Today was the day he was leaving the academy. He had been planning for this day since he entered the academy.He studied intensely and took 1st place in every monthly exams held. He had accumulated a total of 3 gold from the exams as he spent his money sparingly. 3 gold was 30,000 coppers. It was a huge sum for him. He had already packed all his clothes the yesterday. There wasn't much to pack though, just a couple of shirts, jeans and his shoes.Lukas exited the shower and dried himself off. He wore a black shirt, black jeans and white sneakers before grabbing his backpack. He took one last room at the dorm. It had been his home for the past 4 years. He felt grateful to the militar
"Thank you for using our services. Here is my card, you can contact us-"Lukas slammed the door before the cab driver could finish advertising his services. Services my foot! Lukas swore never to use their services again. The reason was fairly simple. During the journey, he fell asleep and dozed off for about 2 hours.When he woke up he found out that he had barely moved from the spot he dozed off! As if that wasn't enough, the whole ride was very bumpy and uncomfortable. Lukas regretted not using the train. The train t-fare was 200 copper notes, so he didn't consider boarding one.Needless to say he now understood the ancient proverb 'Penny wise, pound foolish'. Exorbitant prices and bumpy rides, he wasn't using their services ever again!Lukas walked towards the entrance, following the signboards to navigate himself. Soon enough he found himself at the entrance. He didn't move forward again, his mouth gaping wide. The first thing that came to his mind was huge.There was a very hu
Noelle alighted from the cab, paid the cab driver before turning and heading towards the entrance.She could see a lot of people around her age along the way. Some were wishing their parents goodbyes, some were making phone calls, and some were looking around as if waiting for someone while some were heading towards the entrance like her.Noelle could feel a lot of attention on her as she walked, probably because of her looks. There were some boys who came to hit on her but soon left after seeing that she showed no interest in their advances.She walked unhurriedly, as the time for the test was still some hours away. She wondered if she would be able to pass the test.As she was lost in thought she felt someone tap her on the back. She thought it was another boy coming to try his luck again so she ignored it. She kept on walking before she felt another tap on her back. She still ignored it, thinking that if she did the person would lose interest and go away.When she felt the tap agai
Ciel was still shocked at the identity of the masked hunter. Although she had some suspicions, there were merely suspicions. What were the odds of the masked hunter that was her teammate being Lukas himself?From what she could tell, she could see that Lukas was very experienced as a hunter, even more experienced than her. She easily deduced that Lukas had thoughts along the same line as her after the traumatic experience at the Zivel forests, and decided to increase his strength by becoming a hunter.However, she did not account for the speed at which he grew. By some coincidence, they even managed to join the same guild, and were assigned to the same team, which was the only reason she was able to deduce his identity. With tumultous emotions raging wildly in her heart, she joined the village guards and started to help evacuate the helpless villagers while fighting against the saber toothed tigers, taking a passive stance in the heated battle.Lukas who had no idea that his identity
A surprised expression immediately appeared on Chief Keef's face, and the powerful aura that he had kept hidden suddenly skyrocketed. Without even sparing the three guests in his small hut a glance, he exited the hut in a haste. Amanda glanced at Lukas and Ciel briefly before exiting the small hut, leaving both Lukas and Ciel no other choice than to do so. When Lukas and Ciel appeared outside the small hut, the scene before them was one that they did not expect at all. Several huge monsters could be seen charging at the weak villagers. These monsters were incredibly huge, easily towering the villagers at more than 3 meters tall. They bore an uncanny resemblance to the tigers on earth, with few differences. The teeth of these monsters were incredibly sharp, cutting through the weak defenses of the villagers like tofu, and the four front canines were shaped like sabers, hence their name saber toothed tigers. At a single glance they could see more than fifty saber toothed tigers; an
“What do you think you’re doing in my village?”Amanda swung her wand when she heard the voice, pausing the terrified villager’s fall. The villager had his heart in his mouth at that moment, as his face inches away from the ground. If the voice hadn’t interrupted Amanda from her actions, he had no doubt that he would have been face planted on the hard ground and turned into mashed paste.Lukas and Ciel were both shocked and curious that someone was capable of making Amanda cease her actions. They had no doubt in their minds that the villager was a goner when he mocked Amanda’s outfit. They were instead worried about how they would explain the injury of the villager to the Hunter Association when they submitted their quest report for clearing.Amanda slowly turned around to face the owner of the voice. There was shock in her eyes as she gazed at the chief. She was a silver ranked hunter and a Great Mage, which spoke volumes for her physical strength, but she was unable to sense the chi
The journey to Gien village was a smooth one, albeit a long one. It took seven hours for them to get to their destination, one hour longer than the usual time needed. Throughout the duration of the journey, both Lukas and Ciel maintained complete silence. Lukas instead spent the whole time looking outside the window of the van. He found himself missing Eipi all of a sudden. At least, the journey would not have been this boring.When they arrived at Gien village, the van dropped the three of them off before driving off speedily.Lukas and Ciel looked around the village as soon as they alighted from the van. As the name suggested, Gien village was truly a village. At a single glance both Lukas and Ciel could tell that it was very underdeveloped.The van had dropped them at Gien village, but they still had to walk a short distance before they got to the gate to the village.As the trio walked towards the gate, they ran their eyes around their surroundings. Lukas in particular was very al
The night passed quickly with Lukas following his daily routines which were his usual meditation and exercises.The next morning Lukas woke up early as usual. Amanda had informed them to arrive on time to the Guild building so that they could leave early and get to Gien village on time.Lukas dressed up in his usual hunting outfit, which were his stylish combat clothes, his jacket and most importantly his mask, before exiting the dorm.The dorm was still empty as usual, as the backlash from the attack had yet to die down. Lukas however wasn’t bothered about that. He would use this period to increase his personal strength. That had always been his goal.He took the cab as usual and got to the Guild building early. The meeting room was empty meaning that he was the first to arrive.Only a few minutes passed before the door to the room opened and a beautiful lady with blue hair stepped inside the room.It was of course Ciel. She was also dressed in her combat suit, which was blue in colo
“Denied.” Amanda said authoritatively, twirling her wand as she spoke.Ciel let out a light groan when she heard Amanda’s response. This was the fourth quest she had suggested to Amanda but she had denied it just like the other three she submitted to Amanda.Lukas stood up and handed over a document to Amanda. He didn’t read it this time because Amanda told them not to read out loud anymore. Their voices were sickening and would give her endless nightmares according to her.“Denied.” Amanda said again, still twirling her wand as she spoke.Lukas didn’t groan like Ciel. Instead he just turned and went back to searching for a new quest. After having his quests rejected eight times, twice that of Ciel, he gave up on complaining about the rejection. The time he used to complain was better spent on searching for new quests. He had learned from numerous rejections that his complaints meant nothing to Amanda.And just like that, two hours of their time were spent searching for new quests. Af
The reason for their shock was obvious and understandable. At their level as Basic Mages the feat that their team leader performed was completely shocking to them. Casting a magic spell without the use of a magic circle was something they couldn’t comprehend.They had been taught that it was impossible to cast a magic spell without a medium which was why magic circles were required for casting spells so seeing Amanda cast a magic spell without a magic circle was utterly shocking to them.Amanda paid them no heed. She could clearly see their confused gazes and shock at her method of casting magic but made no plans to explain it to them. Not only was it stressful to do so there was absolutely no need for her to do so. She saw no reason to explain the mystery to them.“These documents contain several quests issued by the Hunter Association. Completing the quests will give us contribution points which in turn can be used to level you both to the silver rank.”Lukas and Ciel leaned forward
A beautiful lady with light blue hair and very curvy body walked in. She was dressed in a fitting hunter’s outfit and at a single glance Lukas could tell that her outfit was enchanted.Her blue eyes that were just as beautiful as her hair scanned the room and came to rest on Lukas. However, her incredibly beautiful face scrunched up into a light frown of confusion when she saw Lukas.For one, Lukas face was as usual covered up with a mask, so she was unable to see his face. His silver hair was now long enough to be packed in a small ponytail, which was what he did.She looked at him for a few seconds before removing her gaze. Hunters were eccentric people anyways. It wasn’t abnormal to see someone wearing a mask.Meanwhile, Lukas was extremely glad that he had decided to wear a mask. The lady wasn’t able to recognize him because of the mask, but he was able to recognize her the instant she walked in.She was none other his senior at Aegis Imperial High School who followed them to the
The new rule passed by the Chairman of the Hunter Alliance created a buzz among the Hunters. As expected, the hunters and Guilds were not welcoming of such rule. They had reported to the Hunter Alliance in hopes of them providing a reasonable solution, but instead all they got was a ban telling bronze ranked hunters not to participate in dungeon runs. Of course they were several bronze ranked hunters or Guilds who disregarded this rule and went ahead on dungeon runs. However their ending was far from ideal. The bronze ranked hunters all had their hunter’s license revoked permanently while the Guilds involved were given a 12 month ban on participating in dungeon runs. A 12 month ban was similar to crippling the Guild’s flow of profit because they couldn’t rely on expeditions alone, needless to say that dungeon runs were twice as profitable as expedition. When several hunters heard the harsh punishment passed on the hunters and Guilds that violated the rule, several bronze ranked hunt