On the second day at Crowjun Soul Academy, the new students were randomly gathering inside the Orientation Shrine where Headmaster Zegel and Tengan were supposed to meet them. Some of the students who were already there early were messing around by imitating a far-fetched All-Mother’s persona.

“Hey, check me out. I’m All-Mother.” This particular student hovered 10 feet above ground level and said in a magnetic tone of voice, “Heed my words my fellow crows. From this day onwards you will be the symbol of new beginnings.”

“Hey, that isn’t how it is done.” A fellow student was displeased with his act. “That is the worst All-Mother impression I’ve ever witnessed. Let me show you how it is done.” He flicked his cascading train of wing feathers over his face then spoke impressively, “My fellow crows arise… The time has come for us to dance unceasingly to the rhythm of evolution.”

“That was amazing! You sounded just like her!” The surrounding students who were watching the spectacle praised this particular crow’s performance. Others wanted him to teach them how to do it.

“Ok, I’ll teach you. What you have to do is focus your Krowqui in your throat area here and then go like this… My fellow crows…”

“Those shitheads.” Drazil who was observing from a distance found their display of impersonating All-Mother to be rather foolish and disturbing. “Guzzle a stick or something you, plucking idiots!”

“What the heck is his problem?” They ignored Drazil’s outburst and continued their little game.

On another side of the shrine, Mou was leaning against a wooden column directing his eyes in a peculiar fashion where he could better observe the alluring rear tushies of every female in sight.

“Hmm…” Lyra sensed a piercing perverted gaze brushing roughly against her cloaked buttocks. Turning around she discovered Mou’s intense staring and shouted at him, “Mou quit staring at my ass!”

The other females close by glanced back at Mou also with contempt seething in their gazes. “That guy with the rose is lusting over Lyra’s tush? He’s so creepy.”

“A pervert is what he is. Stay away from him, ladies.” Retorted another female.

Mou overheard the derision being voiced his way and confessed, “Lyra I wasn’t staring at your voluptuous posterior that bounces with such radiance whenever your hips sway. No, I was staring at some fine dust particles that just so happen to be passing by and coincidentally ended up in the same frame as your well-sculpted buttocks that I think would emphasize its attractiveness by showcasing fewer feathers. As this thought came to mind, that was when you caught me staring down there and came to the swift conclusion that I was lusting after your round merchandise but in fact, I wasn’t. I was only observing the trail of dust particles being carried by the wind. Now, do you understand?”

“Yeah, right.” Lyra and the other ladies didn’t believe a word he uttered. They started walking out of his gaze while saying, “Stay away from me, you pervert.”

“Lyra wait!” Mou chased after their charming feathers. He didn’t have far to go because they were all encased inside the limited borders of the wooden Orientation Shrine.

Near the front entrance, Kwaserah just came in and witnessed the current disorderly behaviour of the students. Some were chasing each other’s feathers while others were learning as well as practising All-Mother’s impressions. “What are these crows doing? Don’t they have an ounce of decorum?”

Overhearing what Kwaserah said, a fellow student who was nearby told her, “They are trying to imitate All-Mother.”

“I can see that.”

As Kwaserah entered further into the Orientation Shrine, she joined the others who were watching one of the female students compressing a bit of Krowqui inside her throat to later execute her All-Mother’s imitation.

“Ahem, heed my words my fellow crows.”

“Yes, that was amazing! You did it.” Her imitation talents were applauded by her peers.

“Yeah, I did!” She was very proud of herself, this caused the radiance of her aura to become much brighter.

As the students continued to occupy their wait with time-wasting activities, they failed to witness the swift arrival of Tengan and Headmaster Zegel. It wasn’t until Tengan shouted at them telling them to be quiet that they realized his stubby presence.

Now that he had acquired their attention, Headmaster Zegel stepped forward and commenced speaking, “Greeting young crows. I’m glad to see that you’re all so full of energy in this early morning. I do hope you show the same type of zeal during the imminent Guild Test that all of you will be taking part in. In a minute I’ll be explaining in detail the particulars of the Guild Test so I do hope that all from your group are here because I will not be repeating myself.”

“Huh…?” At this moment, Kwaserah realized something important. “Where is Gnihzur?” Looking around, Kwaserah saw no sign of him inside the Orientation Shrine.

At the Residential Rekishda Tree, Gnihzur was inside his Nest-Fruit partaking in deep slumber. He was comfortably spread across the bed with his wasted appearance and ragged feathers unduly pronounced.

A white feather suddenly slipped into manifestation by his bedside. It briefly cruised the invisible flow of the air until it landed on his head. He woke up almost instantly.

“I’m up!” Gnihzur flew in an erected position; almost startling himself by his quick response.

“Huh, what time of day is it?” looking out the transparent windows infixed in the walls of his orbital nest, he saw that the morning sun was out sharing its generous rays.

“Darn it, I’m late. I better hurry before they start without me.” Gnihzur dashed into the bathroom where he quickly tended to his ablutions then later flew outside with wet feathers. The wind velocity cruising through his moist plumes was enough to make him completely dry by the time he arrived at the Orientation Shrine’s entrance.

Stepping inside the Orientation Shrine, Gnihzur observed the ongoing event as he sought out Kwaserah’s presence. He found her standing close to the front of the crowd. Settling by her side, he asked her, “Kwaserah, What did I miss?”

“Gnihzur? What took you so long?” Kwaserah was slightly taken aback by Gnihzur’s late arrival. “I thought you wouldn’t be coming.”

Gnihzur admitted while scratching the side of his head, “I overslept.”

“Figures, well, you didn’t miss much. The Headmaster is about to explain to us about the Guild Test that we will be participating in soon.”

“I see.” Gnihzur gave his attentive eyes and ears to the podium before him where he witnessed Tengan whispering something of great importance into Headmaster Zegel’s ear.

“Sir they are about to arrive.” Shortly after Tengan said this, 6 teleportation circles manifested around the podium in front of each chair that was present.

One after the other, 6 important figures appeared out of the tousling of many feathers along with their swift coagulation.

Looking up, many of the students wondered, “Hm, who are those masters? I sense a formidable Krowqui radiating from them.”

Headmaster Zegel perceived their bewildered expression. Once again he commenced speaking to enlighten their puzzled awareness. “These are the 7 Guild Masters of Crowjun Soul Academy.”

“Sir…” Tengan came forward and addressed him. “Anaday didn’t show up. Only the 6 came.”

“Oh?” Headmaster Zegel corrected himself after taking a brief glace behind him at the present Guild Masters; indeed, only 6 alone were present. “It seems one Guild Master couldn’t be with us today, nevertheless, it won’t put a stop to the upcoming Guild Test. Now that these 6 Guild Masters have assembled I shall begin my explanation.”

Taking a short breather, Headmaster Zegel continued his prolix explanation, “Every term we have our new students participate in a custom Guild Test to get a better understanding of what their abilities are and how much they are able to endure. We then determine which guild is more suitable for their future development. Each guild has its own unique characteristics, therefore, the learning process differs in each one. Being in a guild is beneficial for your overall growth process and social experiences. You’ll get to participate in various group assignments; get a lot of practical training experience in the field and several other meritorious achievements that I won’t be discussing. I’ll leave that bit of information to the Guild Masters as they introduced themselves.”

“First Guild Master…” Headmaster Zegel gestured to the beautiful lady standing to his farthest left on the podium. She possessed a moderate humanoid physique that accentuated her mature voluptuousness. She was cloaked in pinkish silver plumage that formed the illusion of a neat oriental style dress that had a slit down the laterals. Moreover, the magnetic hue of her eyes enhanced her seductive elegance.

The feminine beauty stepped forward to introduce herself. “Greetings fledglings. I am called Arehas, the master and instructor of the most famous guild in this academy that excels in information gathering and surveillance. It is known as the Lustful Melody Guild.”

The students were slightly taken aback by the guild's name. “The Lustful Melody Guild, what kind of R-rated name is that? Are they promoting lewdness in that guild?”

Mou became aroused hearing this. He scanned his lascivious eyes all across Arehas’s sexy body and thought internally, ‘With a smoking body like that she could seduce the information out of anyone she wanted to.’

“Hmm…?” Lyra who was abreast of Mou recognized his smutty expression and called him a pervert.

Mou protested, “Lyra I didn’t say anything.”

“I saw how you were eyeing her boobs and knew exactly what you were thinking.” Lyra cut her eyes at him, making Mou feel frustrated.

The leader of the Lustful Melody Guild continued her introductory speech. “We offer the general studies of theoretical comprehension in both aspects of metaphysical studies and classical mundane lectures. We also offer an S-class program where you’ll learn numerous methods to increase your Krowqui evolvement super doper fast and also develop your own techniques. I’m looking forward to having you join my guild.”

After her speech ended, Arehas sat gracefully in her designated chair. When she crossed her thick thighs, it further accentuated her seductive vibrations that stirred something deep within the male participants of the crowd below.

“Damn, she’s so hot!”

“Yeah, she’s smoking hot!”

“If I join her guild then I’ll be able to stare at that luscious body all day long.” The licentious fledglings continued to whisper lewd thoughts among themselves.

The Guild Master who was next in line after Arehas commenced his introduction. He was lean built with a slender appearance to his mien that highlighted his intelligence. “Good morning newcomers. I’m known as Ubis, master of the Six Laved Guild.”

Hearing this, Mou thought out loudly, “Did he just say Sex Slave Guild? That’s what he said right?” He looked at Lyra for answers.

“No, you perv. He said, Six Laved Guild. But of course, you would hear sex with that smutty mind of yours.”

Mou didn’t like her scolding tone. “Lyra, why do you keep picking on me like that?”

“It’s because she likes you.” Answered a female student standing directly behind them.

Lyra protested, “No, I don’t. How could someone like a pervert such as him?”

“Hey, cool it with the dis, Lyra. I’m a very likeable fellow.”

Drazil who was just a step ahead of them couldn’t tolerate their annoying bickering anymore. He turned his beak to face them and said to Lyra specifically, “Shut your plucking beak, bitch. I’m trying to listen here.”

“What did you just call me?” Lyra felt offended, she was getting ready to open a can of whup-ass on Drazil’s disrespectful beak but Mou stepped ahead of her, placed a hand on his shoulder and said to him in a serious tone:

“Hey, man that’s no way to talk to a pretty lady. Why don’t you apologize to her?”

Drazil glared back at Mou with flames burning in his eyes. “You better get that filthy hand off my shoulder, otherwise, you won’t have it to ever wank off with again.”

“Woah, am I sensing some malice here? I think these 2 are about to fight.” The surrounding students completely drifted from Ubis’s prolix introduction and gave all of it to Mou and Drazil as they fiercely stared at each other.

Perceiving what was going on below him, Headmaster Zegel stomped his cane on the hard wood to acquire their attention. “Silence!” He looked to the Guild Master who had the floor. “Ubis please continue.”

“Ahem, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted.” He glared specifically at Drazil. “My Six Laved Guild is one that accommodates advanced Alchemy and also specialized in mixing Nuquo Essences. For those of you who aren’t aware, Nuquo Essence is the basis of all of nature’s ingredients. In other words, the intelligent nucleus beyond the atomic principle. Those who perform the mixing of these essences are called Alchemists. They are 3 major branch titles of Alchemy. These are; Essence Mixers, the one I’ve just referred to; Spell Casters and Relic Makers. I am a 6th stage Alchemist well versed in all specific fields. My Six Laved Guild is responsible for the production of many high ranked pills. Most of you here are probably familiar with the Lush Instant Recovery Pill.”

The students were amazed. “The Lush Instant Recovery Pill? I heard the Alchemist who concocted that magnificent pill received the generous reward of millions of Gold Feathers each day. So this is him, the Six Laved Guild master.”

Ubis continued, “Like all the other Guilds we do have the course of general study which include Krowqui strengthening, self-thought analysis, body strengthening, Mental Quanta enchantment, etc. Group assignments will also be given along with spirit formations, induced selective meditations and many other interesting courses. I look forward to having you on my team of progressive development.”

“You sound just like a salesman.” Said the unintroduced 3rd Guild Masters mockingly. He had more of a ragged, unscrupulous thug look. His chest feathers were partially shaved to expose his mesomorphic attributes. He was the tallest among the Guild Masters if not one of the tallest crows occupying space in Crowjun Soul Academy; also he was the most disrespectful among his peers. With an unreserved and arrogant attitude, he placed his foot onto the wooden balcony then looked condescendingly at the students below him.

“Yo, newbies. You’re looking at the strongest crow in this academy and master of the strongest guild. My underlings call me Ragieff. My Death Bringer Guild specializes in hunting wild and powerful beasts! We are all well versed in the art of slaughtering our enemies. Only the strongest crows can enter my guild. I don’t accept weaklings… like you!” He pointed at the person who had the lowest level of Krowqui.

“Me?” Gnihzur felt briefly embarrassed to be pointed out like that for everyone’s ridicule.

This caused Drazil to chortle. “Ha-ha-ha!”

After pointing out the weak presence that stained his eyes, Ragieff sat down in his chair. That was the end of his introductory speech; short, threatening and humiliating.

“That big oaf. Is he trying to scare the fledglings?” Thought the Lustful Melody Guild Master upon witnessing Ragieff’s preamble speech.

The Guild Master next in line who wore clear glasses along with the adornment of many shining ornaments tried to placate the animosity that Ragieff stirred up. “Please don’t be alarmed by the Death Bringer Guild Master’s previous outburst. He has what we call an uncouth character. On the behalf of the 7 guilds, I sincerely apologized.”

Ragieff felt offended hearing this. “Oi, Heera, you want me to knock your ass down? Don’t apologize for me.”

Ragieff was utterly ignored by the 4th Guild Master who continued his preamble speech. “My name is Heera and I am...”

“Oi, bastard! Are you ignoring me?” Ragieff became livid. His bane was being entirely ignored.

Seeing this act of enmity between Guild Masters made the students thought, “I guess they don’t all get along with each other.”

“So it may seem.”

Heera continued, “I’m the head of the Summair Tactician Guild. As the name states, we specialized in creating tactics and strategies to manipulate certain situational flows. We combine metaphysical and analytical statistics to better formulate circumstantial results for an individualized and generalised predicament. We believe in the motto, ‘Fate and knowledge are complete with wisdom.’ Adhering to this principle we have formulated 1,022 training regimes that have greatly benefited myriads of our students in their specialized Krowqui development. We provide that program for you to improve fast and efficiently by stimulating the DNA itself. That is why out of the 7 guilds we have the highest guild members. Not that I’m bragging or anything but it is the truth according to statistical data.”

“You’re totally bragging.” Said Ragieff in his sudden outburst.

“Fhm.” Heera tipped the frame of his monocles as he ignored Ragieff and sat down.

“It’s my turn now.” After Heera rested his bottom, the 5th Guild Master flew into the air for all to properly adorn her petite, moreover, humble appearance. The colourful radiant strands of her feathers made her resemble a goddess.

“It’s nice to make your acquaintance students. My name is Berrel-kitiary the master of the Orium Guild. We have no one speciality. We are well versed in many given aspects of your evolution. We do a little bit of everything. It would be a pleasure to have you join my guild.” Finished speaking, she landed in front of her chair and sat down.

“That was brief.” Said the 6th Guild Master. He was more mature than any of the other Guild Masters and had a dark aura about him. “Greeting younglings. I’m the current master of the Dark Viper Guild. You may call me Gairo. My guild specialized in teaching forbidden arts that feed off the souls of nature’s bodies. ”

“That sounds terrifying.” Said one of the students.

Gairo continued, “We provide an alternative to building Krowqui stability. By learning the forbidden arts you’ll be able to execute high-level skills even if your Krowqui is at a mediocre level. But the learning process is very harsh. Many students have already passed on into the afterlife while undergoing our training. Some who couldn’t take the pressure switched guilds because they feared death. That is all.”

Gairo sat down. His introductory speech left a sour taste in the students' mouths, more so than Ragieff’s earlier intimidation.

“There’s no way I’m joining that Dark Viper Guild.”

“Me neither.”

“Where is the other Guild Master? I thought they were supposed to be 7.”

“The Headmaster said before that, that specific Guild Master didn’t show up.”

“But couldn’t they have sent a representative?”

Hearing the content of the students' conversation, Headmaster Zegel garnered their attention and told them, “They are indeed 7 guilds residing in this academy. The missing Guild Master is called Anaday. Her guild is known as the Shadow Guild which is considered to be the strongest in my opinion. They maintain an elusive presence throughout this academy. I won’t speculate further, I’m sure you’ll get to meet her in the near future. Now I believe it is time for the Guild Test to commence.”

Saying this, Headmaster Zegel raised his modified staff which projected a 3D holographic image of a giant nest encasing a mysterious dark forest. “This place is Vultures Byte. It’s the arena where your Guild Test will be taking place. You will all be teleported here after I’ve finished explaining the rules and conditions of your Guild Test.”