~Moniht Village~

The two suns rose for the dawn, shining brightly over the fields of grains. The horses in the stables started to trot around happily after a good long sleep.

"Hum." A young boy, wearing a simple brown tunic and pants, was joyfully humming while reading a book on his back. The book was worn, and the pages were yellow from age, but the boy handled each page carefully as he read.

"Mother should be trying to find me by now." The lad stumbled, trying to get on his feet which were numb from laying down for a while, before finally getting on his feet.

His black hair blew backward as he ran on the road towards his home until his deep black eyes caught sight of a woman inside.

"Oscar!" A middle-aged woman impatiently called out for her son. She had rough brown hair, brown eyes, and a rosy complexion. She wore a simple dress with a brown vest.

"I'm here, Mother!" The boy, Oscar, peeked his head into his home from the front door. Truthfully, he had woken up earlier than his parents.

"Heavens, you scared me! You were already awake?"

Oscar's mother, Gwen Terr, was worried her son would miss today's enrollment. Hastily, she tidied up Oscar's clothes which were covered in grass and dirt from lying down. She pinched Oscar's cheek without remorse.

"Mother! That hurts!"

Oscar knew his mother did not like him ruining his best clothes, but he could not help himself from feeling the touch of the grass and soil while he read.

"Little tyke, you do this on such an important day! You know the Blue Ocean Pavilion is taking in students. You need to make a good impression."

"But would they care about how I look when they're only going to be checking my Exolsia?"

Oscar rubbed his cheeks which were now bulging red. Exolsia was the inner core that was in all living things. Having good Exolsia meant having the potential to become a powerful Exalt. Oscar did not care too much about it. His mother and father had no Exolsia and remained behind, so he did not have high expectations.

"I'll probably just be like mother and father."

"Don't say that. You never know if a child can have talent. You're fifteen now, so it's finally time to find out."

Gwen handed Oscar a parcel filled with bread and cheese. They had to get to the town center as fast as possible.

"Let's get on our way." A vibrant man stepped into the house. It was Oscar's father, Henry Terr. He had tanned skin from working outside for years, a frazzled bed of black hair, well-toned muscles, and obsidian black eyes like Oscar.

"Come on, Oscar, let's go!" Gwen dragged her son outside to the cart pulled by one donkey.

"Ah, wait! I forgot my books!" Oscar loved to read, so he usually brought a book or two anywhere he went.

"No time for that; let's go." Henry snapped the reins to get going.

As they departed, Oscar took in the scenery before him. The wide fields of grain he loved to roam around, the horses eating their breakfast in the stables and the vast forests that stretched to the ends of the horizon.

"If I do go, I'll miss this place."

Half an hour passed, and Oscar was still in the cart with his family. Henry and Gwen were still talking until another cart caught up to them.

"Hey, Terrs! Fine morning, isn't it?" The man looked similar to Henry but with amber hair. Inside the man's cart was a young girl.

"Carlson, I thought you'd still be sleeping and miss this. Isabella looks pretty as always."

The pair was Carlson and Isabella Thorn. They were the farm next to the Terr's, so the two families were well acquainted. Since childhood, Isabella had been Oscar's friend; the two often played together in the forests and fields.

Oscar took a glance at Isabella. Her reputation as the most beautiful flower in the town was not a joke. She had a lively expression, bright red hair, and amber eyes. Though she was only wearing a simple dress, it did not fail to accent her body's curvaceous figure.

Unlike Isabella, Oscar had an average look. He wasn't tall or handsome, but he was also not short and ugly. His face gave an ordinary impression. Most folks often said there was a huge difference when he and Isabella were side by side.

"Hey Oscar, how are you doing?" As the parents were occupied with each other, Isabella made small talk with Oscar.

"Woke up pretty early today. I just want to get back to reading."

"You're not nervous about the test today?"

"Not really. I don't think I'll get through, so what's the point?"

Isabella pulled closer to Oscar, "It's our chance to become a true Exalt! We could become nobles or kings!"

Oscar remembered some stories he heard about powerful Exalts who could split mountains, tear through the skies in flight, and reshape rivers. Of course, Oscar was attracted to the prospect of being able to do all these things. But the chances of him having Exolsia was slim.

"Let's find out later."

Isabella was annoyed at Oscar's lackadaisical attitude but knew it was how Oscar was. She knew Oscar was only proactive in things he was interested in. Perhaps he'd be more responsive if he passed.

Her thoughts then turned to the enrollment, making her anxious.

Oscar sensed Isabella was nervous and gave her some of his breakfast to calm her down. The two shared the meal along the way with happy faces, but Isabella still had a hint of worry.

"We're here!"

The group finally arrived at the town center, where they saw a crowd gathered around a platform. It wasn't just their town, but several different villages gathered over.

"Ah, I remember when I was tested, there were just as many people back then." Carlson remembered when he took the test.

Back then, it was determined that he had no inherent Exolsia and was left depressed. But his family comforted him, and he moved on from those dreams.

He looked affectionately at his daughter. He hoped she could pass. Even if she failed, he would make sure she lived a good life and married a good man.

'Speaking of a good man.'

Carlson turned his attention to Oscar, who was looking around in wonder.

'Oscar would surely take care of Isabella.'

He had watched the two grow up. If nothing else, they would have each other.

"Oscar, what are you doing?" Isabella noticed Oscar mouthing off silently.

"I'm trying to count everyone here. It's incredible!"

Isabella chuckled at Oscar's silliness. She felt more at ease due to his antics.

The crowd was full of chatter as if today was a great festival. Some were excited, while others were nervous and terrified. After all, this was an event that could decide the futures of all teenagers.

All of a sudden, a loud thunderous noise deafened all other noise. Everyone looked in awe as a figure descended from the sky onto the platform.

"An Exalt!" Everyone's face flushed with excitement. In this rural area of theirs, they barely interacted with Exalts.

"I am the proctor for the enrollment, Lewis Walsh. Let all the youths of age fifteen step forward."

Lewis Walsh was clad in the Blue Ocean Pavilion's spectacular blue linen clothes. His eyes were sharp and his chin broad. He radiated an intimidating aura that made the crowd step several feet away from the platform.

Their parents urged Oscar and Isabella to get up there. Isabella was quite nervous, but Oscar walked briskly to the platform.

Other youths came out of the crowd and stepped onto the platform. Some had pale faces at all the attention they were receiving. A few even vomited over the platform.

"Now, I shall explain the test to you all." Lewis scanned the children in front of him.

"As you know, Exolsia is the core that allows us to gather the Ein around us. It allows us to break apart the shackles of our bodies to become Exalts."

"Exolsia is split into different grades from one to nine. Grade Nine means you are a true genius among tens of thousands while Grade One is barely discernible."

Oscar's ears perked up at Lewis's explanation. He never found this information about Exolsia in any books.

"Some people do not have any Exolsia and can never become Exalts no matter what they try."

This part made several of the youths nervous. If they did not have any Exolsia, then they could never become anything more than mere farmers and peasants. Their hopes and aspirations depended on Exolsia.

"Our Blue Ocean Pavilion will only be accepting students who have Grades Four or more."

This statement shocked the crowd who questioned this change. This wasn't the rule in the past. Anyone with an Exolsia was taken in as a prospect before.

"Silence! The higher-ups determined this change after the high number of deaths of lower grade students. They shouldn't try rather than waste their lives."

Many in the crowd were unwilling to accept this, but one look at Lewis made them quiver in fear and give up on trying to contest.

Now that the crowd had calmed down, Lewis began the enrollment.

"You! Step forward." Lewis pointed at a boy on the platform. The boy shuddered and froze like ice, but Lewis's threatening eyes prompted him to move.

The boy nervously stepped forward, not daring to look Lewis in the eye. Lewis took out a crystal and set it on a podium.

"Touch the crystal with your hand, and it will show what your Exolsia is."

The boy gripped the crystal with a pleading look as if he was praying. The crystal began to shine in yellow color.

"Yellow, that means you have Grade 1 Exolsia. Rejected. Next." Lewis coldly waved the boy off the platform. The boy could not resist as the air locked around him, forcing him into the crowd.

"I said next!" Lewis directed another youth to step forward. But the crystal did not shine for her at all.

"No color. You don't have Exolsia. Rejected. Next."

The girl was also carried off. She looked as if she was going to start crying. The other youths slowly backed off, trying to avoid getting Lewis's attention unsuccessfully.

More and more people were brought up but rejected. There were some Grade One's, Grade Two's, and even one Grade Three.

The Grade Three examinee pleaded with Lewis that it was just one grade. He claimed he could make up the difference by himself. But his cries fell on deaf ears as Lewis blew him back to the crowd.

'Seems this batch is not any good.'

Lewis was one of many proctors deployed all over the Brilliant Drake Empire. Of course, as an Exalt, it was beneath him to do menial tasks. But, the better-talented students a proctor could bring back, the more rewards they would receive.

He was frustrated that he drew this backwater place. The reasoning was the slim chance a mutation could occur where a person could have powerful Exolsia without any pedigree or background.

'Why was I so unlucky. Why couldn't I have drawn a city?' Lewis pointed at a certain amber-haired girl, Isabella.

Isabella nervously stepped forward and reached out for the crystal. Lewis looked bored, not expecting much.

The crystal shone a bright silver that startled the crowd and Isabella. Lewis's eyes went as wide as saucers with his jaw hanging down. His previous majesty and sharpness seemed like a lie compared to his improper demeanor now.

"G-Grade Eight! You have Grade Eight Exolsia! You're a prodigy!" Lewis was still in shock until elation poured all over his face. He never expected such a gem here. Bringing such a talent would be a great boon to him.

Carlson, Henry, and Gwen were ecstatic as they cheered for Isabella. The people around them looked on in jealousy, thinking why it wasn't their child who had such talent.

Isabella broke out in a wide smile that enchanted several young boys there. But they knew there was no chance for them now. This girl would surely climb to the top as an Exalt.

Oscar was also dumbfounded by what had occurred. He never imagined that Isabella would have such talent.

'Good for you, Isabella!' He gave a thumbs up.

"Stand by me until the tests are finished." Lewis regained his composure and moved on to the other candidates.

One by one, the other candidates were written off until only Oscar was left.

"You're the last one."

Oscar stepped forward. Lewis observed this boy was the only one who did not step up as a nervous wreck. He also saw this girl and boy come together.

'Is it possible that he also has talent?' Lewis looked expectantly at Oscar.

Oscar looked at the crystal. It was a beautiful transparent formation of rocks. He read about different kinds of stones and their formations in certain conditions.

'How did this crystal form?' He wondered.

"Hurry up!" Lewis urged Oscar, who was absentmindedly staring at the crystal.

Embarrassed, Oscar quickly gripped the crystal. It immediately shone a scarlet red. The crowd never saw this color, so it had to be at least above Grade Three.

Henry hugged his wife as their son definitely had talented Exolsia. Carlson patted them in congratulations.

Lewis, however, did not put on an excited face that died down their celebrations. They were worried. Why hasn't the Exalt announced the result?

"Sir? What Grade do I have?" Oscar was eagerly waiting for Lewis to speak but realized the Exalt looked slightly disappointed.

"O-oh! Yes. You have Grade Four Exolsia. You've just met the cutoff."

Lewis had his hopes too high and accidentally let his disappointment show. He was embarrassed to have made such a mistake. Grade Four was just mediocre, nothing too special.

"You've passed. Congratulations."

Oscar stepped up next to Isabella. He was a bit down that he did not have Exolsia like Isabella.

"Congrats, Oscar!" Isabella smiled at Oscar. Her consoling lifted Oscar's mood as his lips formed a smile back.

Lewis clapped his hands together and addressed the crowd.

"These two children are the only ones to pass the requirements. I will take them over to the Blue Ocean Pavilion tomorrow morning."

Oscar looked at his parents, who were weeping with joy. Although he didn't think it'd happen, it did. The previous disinterest faded and was replaced by excitement. He was going to be an Exalt.