"Congratulations on making it here!" That's the first thing they heard after crossing the other side of the destroyed bridge.

Faye was standing there with a grin on her face. "You're the first ones to have used the hook and rope to your advantage. I've witnessed everything, and I'm quite impressed. You have shown some great teamwork today."

While she was talking, she was also managing the other portals for the remaining contestants that were still getting soaked by her.

"No matter what the circumstances are, the difference between working together or alone is significant. I hope you've experienced firsthand the merit of having the support of more people, instead of just you. The fact that you all—as a group—made it here as one of the earliest ones proves the value of that."

Working together sure paid off. I would have never discovered my ability to feel other's emotions if I were alone. That hook was pure luck though, many people that work together might still end up doing this round for a long time.

"The Order supports teamwork to the fullest, "Faye said. "The reason that Varyion still exist is all thanks to the full support of all the citizens here. We are the living proof of how teamwork safes the people. Please don't forget that as you continue your career options in the future."

As her speech continued, she eventually took notice of the current time. "Oh, it's getting late now. Without further delay, you can now move on to the last round. This portal will bring you there." With a circular movement with her left arm, a larger portal emerged in front of them. "No random location this time," Faye said smilingly.

"Well, that's reassuring to hear," Eran said. "I like to have my clothes dry for the time being."

"Ah, we did it, everyone! Perhaps an idea for a team victory shout?" Aisha asked.

They all agreed—perhaps except Ryuzo—and decided to shout, "We did it! Yeah," before they all walked through the portal that brought them back near the hallway where they started this round. There was no row of people to be seen now, so they could enter through the door to the fourth round if they wanted it. They decided, however, to chat a little bit with each other since they'll probably separate after this.

Glen volunteered for the Order Patrol, guarding and patrolling the city without much risk to lose your life was what he wanted. Wet man and wet woman—called Gust and Clair—both didn't apply for a specific function and were instead aiming for the recommendation based on their results. Bayne, Vanessa, and Irid were apparently also aiming for the Order Elites. Irid was however still too young to join, so she still has to wait two years before she's eligible to do so. Ayuki already knew the things about Eran and Aisha, but they were, on the other hand, surprisingly quiet in the conversations for some reason. Ryuzo remained silent too, but at least he stayed and didn't go ahead of the rest as he might have done.

Everyone eventually said their goodbyes and wished each other good luck for the results, although they most likely passed the admission. The General Admission acceptance rate is, according to the rumors, known to be relatively high. Only if you had some disabilities would they seriously consider to decline an application.

They were all eventually received by a coordinator, once they entered through the door, and parted their ways into a separate room. The coordinator assigned to Ayuki was a man with short black hair, glasses on, and called himself Seth.

"I'm informed about your intrusive situation, so I'll try to keep things short and clear for you," Seth said. "This round is purely meant to assess your Fes ability and performance; since I've heard that you're new to yours, we'll be focusing on how it works and how you can utilize it. Clear?"

"Yes," she replied. He talks a bit too fast...

"Well then—can you tell me about your experience with your Fes so far?"

Ayuki told him everything that she could think of; the possibility of predicting a person's action and the emotions she felt when looking at someone with her Fes ability activated.

"That's certainly interesting," Seth said. "I'm glad you've noticed the emotions. Hmm... okay, how about this"—his expression changed into a poker face—"What am I feeling now?"

Oh, I see. Ayuki activated her Fes and gazed into his emotionless face. There was a sad atmosphere around him. She almost felt the tears welling in her eyes but didn't understand why. "You're mostly sad. You have a certain regret that resides deep within you. However, there's also something strong that is subduing that sadness; a feeling of hope I guess."

"Impressive. You're accurately correct. Okay, next one." Another poker face as he remained silent, entirely focused on bringing up his next emotion.

There was a positive aura around him this time. "You're proud of something, something important to you. I can't tell what it is though."

"Try again." He threw a TAG into her hands. The sign engraved on the wood piece was different than the Barrier or Call TAG.

With a tight grip on the TAG, Ayuki activated it and felt a stronger sensation bursting within herself. The use of her Fes felt lighter or perhaps smoother; it felt like her senses had sharpened too. Looking at Seth now, his aura felt more accessible. "You're proud of a certain person, a baby perhaps. I feel that it's related to you."

"Very good. Now, there is something else that also piqued my interest. I heard you have a good memory. Can you vividly remember my face when I felt sad?"

"Uh, yes." The same poker face as you have now...

"Great. While holding that TAG, can you still feel something based on just your visual memory of that moment?"

Use my ability on a visual memory instead of what I see now; I never even considered that idea. Let's see... he held his hands together and his elbows rested on the table.

That sadness feeling instantly returned. "Ah, you lost someone dear to you. There's a certain promise you couldn't fulfill?"

He briefly closed his eyes and stared downwards. "Correct." He made eye contact again. "Highly impressive. You can combine your Fes ability with your good memory. That's bound to be useful."

"Wauw, that's good to know. What kind of TAG is this?" Ayuki asked.

"A Fes supplier. It is highly used on occasions when one is running out of Fes or temporarily needs to improve his or her ability. Since you have a rather low Fes output, this TAG will help you to have a better control of your ability."

They continued with a couple of more tests to explore her Fes limitations. Without the supplier TAG, she was still able to use her Fes for two minutes. With the TAG it was five minutes; using it significantly improved her ability and the results as well. Getting to know the emotion of a person had a big impact on guessing that person's actions. The predictions were mostly accurate when the feelings were powerful. A mindset with a clear goal was easier to predict than one without a goal.

The fourth round ended quicker than Ayuki expected. It was surprisingly simple compared to the tedious round before. In the end, she was shown the door and ended up back at the training ground area from the second round. Many people were still standing there, having a conversation with each other.

The Call TAG from Dedroy started to ring. It makes beeping sounds and it even vibrates too. Ayuki answered the call and listened to his message, "Hey Ayuki, how did it go? Mind notifying your favorite trainer about your admission?"

"Hah-hah, yeah, you're my only trainer. Uhm... it went well. The results will be given in a day or two. By the way, I discovered a bunch of things. I'm sure you would like to hear it."

After hearing Ayuki's experience and sharing some small talk, Dedroy notified her about the following day.

The Fortification—a monthly happening to strengthen the Varyion Wall—most likely by Ravendell himself; this was about to happen soon in the Centurion Square, the center point of the city.

Ayuki just arrived there, thirty minutes before it started. It already looked crowded. The Centuriom Square was divided in two, all the people of the Order were in front, and the citizens had to stand in the back. In the center stood a small tower, protected by many guards that surrounded it. Just then, the people started cheering loudly; the enthusiasm filled the whole area. Was something happening now?

"The Order Elites! They're here!" That's what Ayuki mostly heard from the lively crowd. In the distance, she saw a group of people approaching the front side of the square. They seemed to be wearing similar equipment and gears.

After eavesdropping a conversation, Ayuki learned that these people were the Order Elites squads that returned from their missions outside the city. They came back here just to attend the Fortification. With their arrival, the place became flooded with people in no time.

As scheduled, a person appeared on the balcony of that small tower. "Hyo Ravendell!" People screamed as he gently waved at them. He didn't utter any word, but with that much support, his appearance did feel very kinglike.

He's an interesting man. No longer a king, but people still treat him like one. So far, I only know his kind and humble side when I spoke to him. He didn't act like a king at least

All the people started to either hold each other's hands or put their hands on each other's shoulders. The whole city seemed to be in complete oneness, unified together with one goal in mind. Ayuki did the same as the rest. Ravendell showed both his hands as everyone, except for Ayuki, counted down starting from ten.

"ZERO," were the last screamed words before it became completely silent. The glowing white Fes enveloped around everyone as multiple waves of light radiated and traveled itself in the air into the direction of the barrier, the Varyion Walls. The view of the outside world vanished as the transparent walls became utterly bright. This lasted for about ten minutes before the Fes started to fade away. There was one last cheer that followed afterward before the crowd slowly began to diminish.

So this the Fortification? I've never seen the atmosphere this positive before. The walls must be the most significant victory this city has achieved. The fact that they have to strengthen the walls every month is a bit worrisome though. It proves that it can break, that it won't last forever.

I'm grateful to have witnessed the Fortification, but my resolution remains unchanged. A better solution is needed, but I have to start with myself first. I need to train myself to be independent, to know my limits, to learn who I am. Only then can I be ready to help others, to go outside the walls.

I have to say; yesterday was quite a discovery. It seems like this Fes ability of mine can be most useful in the search for my answer. There's a new idea I have in mind now. If it works, it might, in fact, provide answers that everyone is looking for.