“Alright, I will make an introduction, since Ray has nothing to add. William, with an Affinity of 75, awoke his Emblem, as well as the System at the moment of his Awakening. He explained it to me the moment I retrieved him from the Accelerator.”
“He was conscious?” Cloud asks with raised brows.
“He was. Ever since then, he had only a small nap.” Mi-Yung answers, while continuing with her previous topic.
“While I am uncertain about the reason why the initiation of the System even started, I made sure the boot-up and the following steps were successful. His familiarity with the System has been... alright I suppose. He also successfully integrated the Emblem and the System in the following hours.”
“He had the System activated ever since the moment you retrieved him from the Accelerator room?” Margaret asks.
“Pretty much. Tom Hough is also aware of his System and Awakening. Other than that, William kept at it since then. Up until around 3 hours ago, when I made him learn the process of stabilizing the Vectors and ceasing the activity of the Emblem. His is a bit strange, and that is a fact of the rather strange Annihilation element. I believe he has a hidden affinity, but I am unsure.” Mi-Yung explains as the dozen or so people listen to her choice of words.
Once again, Ray raises himself, as if he is ready to storm into the conversation with a plethora of words, but an unlike friend to his left smashes his head against the table.
“Excellent! I am offering 700 a month, with the special privilege of Yondu's division leadership. Training under general Yondu, while access to full military department's benefits.” Cloud tells his offer without a speck of politeness, as usual.
“Isn't it a bit excessive, Cloud?” Margaret turns her gaze away, while Cloud glances at her back.
A clash of stares happens in an instant, while both were clear about each other's intentions.
“I don't like being polite, so I am voicing my tries for potential recruits. If you think it is excessive, you can offer something in return. Since Mi-Yung talked about the Academy, and that young man wants to try to access your place. I am sure you have something to say to that, Margaret, but you are simply waiting it out as usual.” Cloud spits these sentences out, which ends in the same smiling Margaret.
“It's so bothersome to try to recruit Walkers when you have a such prestigious organization behind your back. It's sometimes too tiring Cloud. Though, I bet you don't know what I mean.” she replies with obvious mockery in her voice.
“I guess that is true. Laziness can be sometimes overwhelming out there in the middle of the ocean. Maybe you should come to visit the mainland or spend some time in the middle of the desert. That could prove to be better for the skin, or so I heard.” Cloud backfires, without giving Margarets face any chances.
“Look at the dogs barking... It's the same thing everywhere. Seeing the local Walkers so eager, how about more information? My little power that was once known as a formal India is still powerful.” A man with brownish skin speaks for the first time. His accent seemed strong too, but it has a strange sound, that seems well proportionate to the English language.
“Ohhh... Is brother Aakash keen on forcing something out of our hands? You are free to join us at any moment. That's how we are doing things here.”
“Of course. It wouldn't be for the first time, Margaret.” Aakash says with a smile while awaiting a response from down below.
“I fear William is yet to come to any realization. Information about the System and the Skill is as brief as it could be. I insist on that and the belief of this Examination doesn't care for that either. It's just the basic structure of the Emblem, affinity and how is the Walker perceived. That's about it what I see that is important.” Mi-Yung answers Aakash's concern.
“So, with that being said. His affinity of 75, seeming dual type, with a hidden Annihilation element makes about everything that you told so far? Considering the Awakening, and even the appearance of the System, it seems the boy is developing quite fast, like his father.” Schultz says before any of the others have more to say.
“I fear my words are indeed correct.” Mi-Yung puffs her chest in an important manner before the whole group of lofty Walkers.
For once, she doesn't feel smaller than them.
“Training of the Emblems can be done individually, while the organization can only help so much... We don't want to see the continuation of another Gale, so I want the best route for William. I hope all of you are understanding while giving me some slack with my choice of words.” Mi-Yung tells her peace of mind while being done with any choices.
Although there is a last piece of ammunition that is left in the magazine. The secondary page of William's system, but she doesn't want to talk about it for the time being as she is unsure what it even is.
“I am intrigued. I indeed am, but I don't want to bear the responsibility of combat Walker. I would be inclined to share the benefits with the final choice.” Ray mumbles after considering the benefits of researching William's possibilities and getting back on track after Cloud's excitement.
For the most part, Rey is here to provide more insight information, while he only recruited a single Walker so far. Institution of the Emblem doesn't need that many of them, while their needs are less of an issue than remaining organizations.
“I am giving you access to that, Ray.” Schultz agrees with his request, while the remaining Walkers remain thinking.
The topic that has been going on for 5 minutes already has been quite interesting. They expected it since Mi-Yung is the main thing that intrigues them.
None are disappointed with the results, but all are hesitant to drop the good enough offer for a recruit of this potential caliber.
There are a few things that are making them hesitate. The biggest is the base affinity of 75, which is excellent, but Cloud stands above the rest of the offers. Second is the early view from the Awakening and 2nd briefing, which doesn't show abnormal results. It could mean there could be an issue down the road in his path. Though, it is common for almost every Walker to consider such a possibility.
They see the view of a brand new Walker in front of them with more skepticism, and a gamble if it's worth striking with a good enough offer or not. While it may be an exciting prospect that his System is active so soon, they are uncertain about such benefits.
William, on the other hand, seems much more active than normal. That goes a bit strange, considering his base affinity, but such cases happened in the past, so they don't pay it as much attention as they should have.
For all they knew, this boy could become special, but recruitment must be done across the base values across the board of the 9 tables.
That means the economic decisions and offers of others. It is almost like haggling in the barter trades, and William is the goods that are up for sale. There are benefits and losses to consider, so no amount of great affinity could save a young Walker.
It is in a sense, a true appearance of the Examination, that is an excuse to get recruits after the Awakening.
“No one is hesitant enough? You want me to come first or what?” Schultz speaks up as a core of this discussion, as time is important. They still have hundreds of more Walkers to haggle over each other.
“Well, sirs and the lady are fine with anything. I may speak my mind.” Margaret of the Emblem Academy says while straightening her posture to pay more attention to herself. Looking forward and down, an intriguing enough aspect of everything is here.
The boy is named Gale. While his father was never important to her, she knows certain things that went behind the scenes. Such as the mother of William, who comes from the Academy.
It isn't a known issue, as Luke learned it from Mi-Yung before, but it is a not well-known topic for certain reasons. For example, this issue is known to few in the academy, while calling it an issue, is... difficult for all kinds of reasons.
“The wish for the testing according to the Academy Rules states nothing to not agree with it. The boy has 70 or more, so the degree of the Trial will be applied to him. That in itself is fine with me, but there are still a few things on my mind. While I am fine with direct recruitment, it is not in my power. The Academy has rules, and the Trial of all the people who want to join isn't anything easy. It is that simple. If he will fail, there is nothing but failure on his part. Be it the promises or not, he won't be gaining access to the Academy at all.”
“I am aware of the rules of the Academy, Miss Margaret. William is also a firm believer in tries, while the secondary form of some offers acts as his second plan. He never intended for direct recruitment.” Mi-Yung explains.
“Waaaait a second Mi-Yung. You haven't even batted an eye at my offer!” Cloud remembers at last, as many people speak this time around.
“It's an excellent choice, but the burden of the military is something William doesn't want to sacrifice his life over. If there won't be some form of a lessened version of that, I guess it shouldn't be a problem to go with the military. If he ends up failing in the Trials for the Academy, that is.” Mi-Yung quickly finds the correct words, while Cloud frowns in thought.
Her words seem a bit forced, as the Military is known to have restrictions. If not, it would be a gang or something of that kind.
Rules are set to make a nation, while the military is a protection piece within the rules. For them to become looser for someone? It could happen, but it would need more thought.
“My offer still stands. Additional offers could come, depending on the later results. I am done.” Cloud states at last, while Ray finally gets a hold of himself after being in limbo for a minute or two. Glaring back at Cloud, he is rubbing his head in displeasure.
“Offer of Cloud stands clear, while miss Margaret of the Emblem Academy also states her choice. Rules stand, so William Gale will go with the Academy's Trial. Be it the failure, all present organizations could offer additional offers through the motion of miss Song being a proxy of William Gale. They will be done in private, outside of this place.” Schultz announces while any one of the people isn't voicing any offers.
It already goes beyond the means of a new recruit, while Cloud's offer was too much for them. For that, it seems excessive since his price for Rank 1 was a bit too much. After all, the prices and additional benefits are rising within the Rank-ups, so the basic of 700 credits can go quite higher than that. In a few years, a 1000+ is no issue, but it's questionable for other organizations.
While his potential is there, variables always occur with strange things. They won't gamble with any choice, so that leaves Cloud's offer to become the highest. It was no longer lucrative to offer the same, or bigger offer, as Cloud, has more things to give. He is the military leader of the Federation which has a lot of military power in this region and has many benefits. Although, it comes with the disadvantage of placing one's life in the military.
Holding his hand and listening to everything, William sighs in relief. He pushes his right hand forward, clutching his fist to close the System, and deactivates the Emblem away.
A few individuals still glare at him with unknown thoughts. One particular person behind Margaret is looking much more fierce than the rest. With a small notebook in her hands, she writes down some stuff that Margaret tells her to. This is a Butler of the Academy that came with her. Other than Richards, that is. Her name is Rave.