Seeing the displayed talent, Leo Ray immediately appeared beside Grag, his eyes sparkled, but he could still maintain his serious face.
"Congrats on your Awakening! As expected from an Ashron! I could write a recommendation to the Flame Tower Guild for you! Would you like to join?"
"Are you really going to recommend me to Flame Tower? Does the district leader think I could get admitted?" Grag's eyes got wider as his voice grew louder, clearly excited and in disbelief at the offer.
One had to know Flame Tower Guild is one of the strongest elemental guilds, consisting of the strongest flame-element-controlling individuals.
And receiving a recommendation letter from them was equal to being judged by the Elders of the academy. One could only recommend three people in their lifetime. Because of this, not even the Ashron family—who could be considered slightly wealthy among Awakened families—could avoid spending a huge sum for one recommendation letter.
"I see potential in you from our school. That's the reason I recommend you," Leo replied bluntly.
"That's it! With my talent, I could definitely get a chance."
Leo smiled a little. 'Young people and their overconfidence,' he thought. After all, there were over five thousand schools like Athkar School under the Ares Interdimensional Imperial Academy of Military, and talents like Grag were not rare.
"You can go back to your dorm, but if you want, you could stay here."
"Next!"
Leo flew up to his seat, closing his eyes after ordering something to the instructor.
"How unfair this world is... the bully gets powerful while we weak ones stay weak forever..."
"We should transfer from this school and move to another district. The bullying will be even worse now that he awakened!"
"Shh, keep it down. He's awakened now—he might hear you!"
"Don't worry. I heard he will be moved to the Main Academy now that he awakened."
"Those are only rumors."
Roman, hearing the talk of those who had been bullied, started thinking about how cruel this world could be.
Soon, his roll number and ID were called.
"Roman Maximus | Roll No: 0156 | ID-027832-578!"
Roman's heart raced as he stepped up, a sudden sense of pressure falling upon him as if everyone's eyes were on him.
Following the instructor's instructions, he proceeded with the procedure.
The moment his hand touched the Source Cube, a sudden cold energy flowed through his body, later becoming warm as the seconds passed.
Unlike Grag, whose Source Cube lit up immediately upon contact, Roman's did not.
"Is it a failure?" Roman thought. "Well, maybe it's better to live off my parents."
The instructor, looking at the machine, already thought of him as a failure.
"This year's Athkar School performance is worse than all the previous years. Maybe after the birth of Captain Leo, this district's luck burned out," the instructor thought.
"Looks like I am not meant to be this world's protagonist," Roman thought. Though he had prepared himself, a sense of emptiness still grasped him.
As thirty seconds passed, something changed.
The quiet Source Cube started to vibrate. At first, it was subtle, but soon, even the ground began to shake. Suddenly, lights of various colors started emitting from it.
"What's going on?"
"An earthquake now?"
"W-Wait, look! The Source Cube is shaking! It's starting to act like a disco ball!"
"Huh?" Even the instructor was surprised. But before the prideful Leo Ray could give a command, an energy burst occurred, sending both the instructor and Roman flying, crashing into benches and chairs in the auditorium.
"So that's how heroes of web novels feel after an energy burst," Roman thought while cursing. At least several of his bones were fractured, if not outright broken—and all that without gaining any reward.
Thankfully, the students in the front rows had moved away, or the casualties would have been far worse than just him.
"What the hell happened?" students discussed in uncertainty. If some of them hadn't run from their seats, more students would have been injured.
"As far as I know, something like this has never happened before. Why is today different?" Leo thought. But with lightning speed—not caring about the injured instructor or the unfortunate student—he rushed toward the Source Cube. Even under ten times the pressure, he ran, broke a component of the Source Cube, and pulled out a half-fried, injured person.
"Isn't that Instructor David?! How come he is inside the Source Cube?"
"From one of Instructor David's lectures about the Source Cube, he said one needed a path to connect with the Origin World. Don't tell me the connection needed to be established with a human?"
"Would he even be alive after this incident?"
Students murmured through the hall, some with fear and others with curiosity. Some students even came forward to help him and the injured Instructor Alcie to stand, while other instructors called for emergency medical support.
Looking around, Roman saw chaos. "Maybe my chance of awakening will end with this," he thought.
Leo's face was completely dark. Something like this had happened under his watch, which meant a loss of merit.
How could he accept it?
After years of hard work and battle, he had finally managed to find peace. The last thing he wanted was for the Awakening Ceremony to be stopped and postponed.
No, he couldn't let anyone question his ability. He feared that if he did not maintain a good image and authority over this matter, he would be deployed for battle again. Unlike most Awakened who retired after injuries, he had taken a break to become District Governor. He didn't want to lose that, and on top of that, the youngsters' sudden burst of noise was starting to irritate him.
"Silence."
With a single word, he took control of the situation.
"It was just an Energy Storm in the Origin World, nothing more!" Leo added.
Looking at the students, he asked the Awakened instructors, "Anyone here who is not linked to the East of the Origin World?"
"If anyone comes forward now, the government will compensate you handsomely," he reassured.
Truth be told, he didn't even know what had happened, but he had seen Energy Storms in the Origin World—each more dangerous than the last. Covering it up as some mysterious phenomenon, nobody—even the Awakened—would question it.
The instructors were tempted by Leo's persuasion. Still, they hesitated, until an old instructor finally answered.
"I am Rank-E, connected with the Southern Desert Citadel. Would that be okay?" Instructor Kamael spoke.
Leo nodded with respect.
"Roman Maximus! Would you like to try your luck again?" Leo questioned the injured student.
"Sure, I guess," Roman replied.
Unlike last time, the moment Roman touched the Source Cube, it lit up just like Grag's.
Soon, Roman felt like he was soaking in a hot spring as the light seeped into his body!
[Congratulations to the Host on Awakening Origin Power! Talent Awakened]
[C Rank- Origin Mana Enhancement!]
[SSS Rank - 10,000x EXP Converter!]
Talent Details:
Origin Mana Enhancement – Increases the total value of Origin Power by 30%. [Host could use any mana signature.]
10,000x EXP Converter – Receives ten thousand times the experience points upon killing lifeforms. Experience points can be converted into different subjects.
SSS Rank Talent Skill Options:
Upgrade to Next Level
Upgrade Skills Quality
Upgrade Skills Proficiency
Upgrade Items Quality