Tepo gradually came to himself an hour later. His head hurt terribly. He felt the comfortable bed below him, guessing that his new colleagues had found him passed out.

Taking a deep breath, Tepo slowly opened his eyes.

“You’re awake?”

When a voice suddenly came from the side, Tepo sighed lightly. He heard this sentence a bit too often for his liking those last few days.

“Yes. Thanks for taking care of me.”

“Thank Anvil for that. I would never touch your sweaty body.”

Tepo chuckled faintly, but instantly regretted it as his head complained painfully.

“You managed to awaken. Congratulations!”, spoke Quill with a hint of solemness in his voice.

“Thanks.”

Slowly turning his head towards the source of Quill’s voice, he found the warrior leaning against the wall in a meditative posture.

“Are you training?”

“I was, yes.”

Tepo was full of curiosity as he looked at Quill. Now that he had fully awakened, wasn’t it time for him to train as well?

“Can you tell me about it? I’d also like to start strengthening my core!”

“Don’t be in a hurry. You just awakened and used up your mental strength. Your first priority should be to recover.”

Tepo was a bit annoyed, but he couldn’t force Quill. Still, he was determined to get as much information out of the warrior as possible:

“What do you mean by using up my mental strength?”

“Mental strength or strength of the soul…”, explained Quill patiently. “…Is an important aspect in a warrior’s life. It builds the bridge between your core and you. Your mental strength limits the time you can use your core’s abilities, including the absorption of forces.

Earlier, when you awakened you gained the [scan] ability and used it instinctively. Without precise control you scanned the cores of everything around you, instantly emptying your mental strength. Happens to at least seventy percent of warriors awakening without a guide by their side.”

Tepo rolled his eyes.

“Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

“Why?”, spoke Quill with a teasing tone. “Would you have stopped your awakening? The activation of your ability happens by instinct. There’s no way to prevent it. And I’m not a guide like the priests of Righteous Judgement.”

Thinking back to the moment his core had fully awakened, Tepo had to admit that he had lost control:

“Ok, ok. You’re right this time.”

“You should get used to it.”, chuckled Quill as he slowly got up.

“For now, I’ll let you relax. Make the best out of your time. Now that you have awakened, the test will be tomorrow morning.”

Tepo did his best to remain calm. He had already guessed as much, but the confirmation still put a lot of pressure on him.

Quill didn’t care. The test was a necessity for every member of the organization. It wasn’t impossible to pass. Tepo didn’t know that Quill had used one of his few slots for new recruits.

This proved the warrior’s confidence, even if he didn’t show it outwardly.

While Tepo was starting to prepare mentally, Quill stopped for a second in the door.

“Now that you have awakened, you should be able to connect to your core. You should try it if you feel better.”

“Thanks!”

Quill left the room as Tepo’s eyes lit up. The warrior was right. Tepo remembered the first time he connected to his core, which offered him a lot of information.

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Turning his attention inward, Tepo focused on his core. The golden circle was much brighter now. It felt livelier and full of power. Many runes swam within it.

Tepo slowly tried to reach out. The Core of Time reacted. It radiated desire. Obviously, it was hungering for another artificial core.

Tepo smiled wryly. Artificial cores didn’t grow on trees. What if his core continued to demand them? Where should he find so many cores…? Feeling a headache the young man ignored the topic for the time being. He tried to transmit his intention.

In a great mood, the Core of Time answered happily. Information plopped up in Tepo’s mind.

>>> Core of Time <<<

Real name:

Master of the everflowing, the immortal

Core rank:

common (damaged 100/1000)

Core quality:

one star

Core level:

1

Host level:

aspirant (circleless)

Spells:

none

Core abilities:

[Scan][Projection][Time Dilation: Body]

>>> <<<

Analyzing thoroughly, Tepo drew a sharp breath as his eyes fell on the number behind the core’s rank.

A hundred out of a thousand? I can’t tell if this is good or bad. On one hand I can still upgrade my core, but on the other a thousand runes correspond to ten artificial cores…

Would upgrading to the knight rank consume a hundred thousand cores? Who could stand such expenditure? No wonder everyone admired Ganaph’s knight ranked core. Who knows which abilities it awakened…

Well, for now I should be happy with what I have. Don’t get too greedy.

My core’s quality didn’t change, but I can tell that it only unfolded its effect after the awakening. Before the feedback, my core was too weak, and the ability wasn’t formed yet.

The core’s level reached 1 and I became an aspirant. Those two should correspond to each other. It allowed me to finally enter the path of a warrior. But I’m still circleless, not able to form spells. I have to get stronger soon and learn a few spells. Otherwise, I still don’t have many means to defend myself.

Maybe the abilities might help? But I only have their names. How can I study them? Do I have to figure it out slowly?

Tepo’s thoughts raced as he did his best to draw conclusions. Knowing himself was incredibly important. This might decide over life and death one day.

Most information was pretty straight forward. Only figuring out his abilities stumped him. Did he really have to try them one by one? But right now, it was important to relax and recover.

Tepo was mulling over the problem as he focused on the [Scan] ability. Suddenly his core reacted. More information reached him as his eyes lit up.

[Scan]: The ability to scan other cores and spells. Its effectiveness depends on the discrepancy in core rank, quality, and level between the host and the target. This ability awakened after the Core of Time reached the commoner rank.

Excited about his discovery, Tepo quickly focused on his other abilities as well.

[Projection]: The ability to project your core outside your body. It will fight autonomously, able to absorb more force and rapidly fire spells. CAUTION: Projection is a lifesaving ability. If the projected core gets damaged, repairing it will be difficult. In the worst case the host might be crippled. This ability awakened after the Core of Time reached the commoner rank.

[Time Dilation: Body]: The ability to speed up or slow down time within your body. The multiplier depends on the host’s strength. This ability awakened after the Core of Time reached the one-star quality.

Tepo turned thoughtful. Finally, he got an offensive ability. But it was an all-or-nothing type. And it even synergized with spells. Considering everything, Tepo came to the conclusion that he couldn’t leave the tower until he finally learned a few spells.

On the other hand, [Time Dilation: Body] sounded rather cryptic. He had a few ideas about it, but he would need to try them one by one.

All in all, Tepo was satisfied. He had finally entered the path of a warrior. A lot of work was still before him, but the young man wasn’t discouraged. Rather, he was excited. The abilities he already had sounded fascinating and magical. If the Core of Time strengthened further, what more could it do?

Tepo was lying in bed, looking forward to the future. His body felt stronger than ever. He was enthusiastic about measuring his power with other warriors.

Suddenly, the young man was startled. He hurriedly calmed his mind. What happened? How could he get carried away? He realized that the increase in strength came with an addictive feeling.

Tepo quickly sat in a meditative position. He slowly explored his own mind. Images appeared. His was reminded of his old life. He mustn’t forget his original priority! Confirming the existence of outsiders was his reason for becoming a warrior! It wasn’t to dominate others!

As night slowly set in, Tepo continued to remain in meditation. He continuously honed his mind, keeping it sharp and on track. Only after multiple hours did he finally fall asleep.

Tepo slept deeply. His spent mental strength recovered. Suddenly a loud noise shook him awake. A deep hum spread throughout the tower.

The young man jumped up, confused. He remained vigilant, scanning his surroundings carefully. Suddenly the door to his room opened.

Anvil and Quill slowly entered the room. They wore their masks, their backs strait, their strides solemn. The lighting behind them was dim, casting creepy shadows as they wore long, black robes with a white web out of thin strands drawn on them.

“It is time for your test, newcomer!”