‘Hywel? That same Hywel who is said to be the most invulnerable hunter that every man made weapons are useless against?’ Alice observes him again from head to toe, yet her evaluation of him, basing on his build, did not change. ‘For someone who’s invulnerable and more importantly, the strongest guild’s frontliner, his build leans more on the thinner side. The fact that he’s not also wearing armor does not make any sense of him being a tank. Nevertheless…[Grim Fate]...is always full of surprises.’

The group of white hooded individuals takes a quick glance at each other. As they nodded in synchrony, they started their attack with pure coordination. Hywel, on the other hand, bumps his fist in his palm and lowly bows. With a smile, he remarked:

“Goddess Navea, I thank you for this training.”

“...!!!”

— — —

Telmaris has been quite lively in the past few days. Everyday, there have been a handful of events and fun occurrences happening in each and every corner of the capital. Today, however, aside from the Gathering of Guilds, a very special event will transpire that will leave a mark in the history of Navea.

A huge crowd was gathered around the central area of Telmaris. The said area was meant to hold such a crowd due to how spacious it is, and more importantly, it is where the grand statue of the Goddess of Equilibrium, Navea, stands. It is believed that the statue is a symbol of the cycle of life where the fate of humanity is an inevitable sequence of conflict and resolution, hence, the equilibrium of life.

There are seven guilds present in the crowd by which three of them are aligned as these guilds have pledged their conformity to join a clan where the legendary leader of [Grim Fate], {Fate Threader}, will be the Clan Leader.

[Shadow Core]

“As expected. The place has become too crowded, we can’t even fully move due to how little space we have even though we’re the ones who should be rightfully here.” David murmurs as he tries to widen his space.

“I’m very glad you’ve got here in time, leader. It could have been more nerve wrecking if it’s only the three of us attending in the place of [Shadow Core].” Fiona, with Erika by her side, seems to be happy as she talks with who seems to be their Guild Leader. The said Guild Leader is a Blood-ranked assassin type hunter. Hanging on her belt are various types of daggers, differing from metalworks and sharpness. She’s as tall as Fiona and as bright and cheerful as Erika, though more logical minded. She also brought at least five more members with her to attend the establishment ceremony.

“Haha, I’m sorry I haven’t gone on the first day as planned. Anyway, I’m so proud of you three. I can’t believe we will be having an opportunity to land a connection with the strongest guild in Navea and most of all, become an ally with them.”

David seems smug for some reason. He taps their leader’s shoulder and tells her about Zephyr.

“You won’t believe this Jaina but, {Fate Threader} is not who we thought he was–.”

Erika then interjected: “Yeah! He’s so friendly and humble despite being so powerful! He even lets us call him by his name only, what a cool man!”

“We even saw firsthand his powers too. Though I should say he’s obviously still holding back.” Fiona added.

“Wha–!? I want to befriend him too! You all are just making me envious aren’t you? Hmp, I’ll talk to him after this and make him appreciate my presence!” All of them clapped towards their guild leader.

[Crow’s Nest]

“Fuhahahaha! This is it my comrades! This marks the day we enter the strongest allegiance the world has ever created!” King Crow raises a tall wooden pitcher of strong mead as his guild members also do the same. He chugs it down afterwards like drinking a cup of water, followed by Darius, his right hand man.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“My liege, to be honest, I kind of envy you. Seeing the {Witch of Frost and Dark} and {Fate Threader} in action personally, that’s surely an amazing tale to tell.”

King Crow punches a hole in a mead barrel and pours himself another round.

“Truly a spectacle. The frightening magic of the witch aside, {Fate Threader}’s power is otherworldly. I haven’t seen anyone fight with that kind of spell before.”

“Oho? So he’s mainly a sorcerer?”

“No Darius, he’s still a mystery. If you’re there you could tell that he’s still hiding a lot of things. One thing’s for sure, whatever kind of power he’s still hiding, it will surely be another hell of a surprise.”

[Diamond Trading & Co.]

“Are you sure you’re all healed up Chief Meiren? Is there anything sore in your body? I’m great at massages!”

Meiren lets out a brief chuckle as she faces her guild member.

“Don’t worry, I didn't even fight to begin with. I just laid out some support while staying in the safety of the back line.”

“Hehe that’s not true” A voice of a little girl then interjected. It was Athy who seems to be hanging out with them for the time being.

“Miss Meiren sure is a brave hunter, stepping up despite facing greater odds. Her boldness and courage keeps the spirit of the party alive!”

“UWOOOOOOH!!”

The members of her guild were thrilled about what Athy just said. SHe might be teasing her a bit, but there’s some truth in her words.

“A-Athy what are you talking–”

“I knew it, Chief Meiren! You are destined not only to be a wise and successful merchant, but also a fearless hunter!” Everyone claps in unison with Athy leading them. Meiren on the other hand covers her face as it turns reddish due to embarrassment.

The other four guilds who have decided to attend and watch was [Sharp Steps] as well as [Ash Market], who have attended the gathering of guilds, and then there are those who have available time to observe: the guilds namely [Vivanne] and [Denzel Cluster]. Gringar, along with the whole GEO members residing within Telmaris are also watching in the backlines.

After waiting for a while, the most important person of the ceremony has finally arrived. Donning his guild master’s robe which was weaved and enchanted by none other than Sophia Horenstein herself.

“Oh, the person of the day is finally here. Put down the alcohol for now my comrades! Line up straight and firm!”

As Zephyr slowly takes on the center stage, he takes a quick glance at Anastasia who seems to be doing well despite not being comfortable with crowds. Well, the same applies with Zephyr anyway.

‘Not even a minute in this place, I feel like throwing up already. I mean, what’s with this huge crowd, I was only expecting the three guilds who have pledged with us!’

“Master Zep, please don’t worry about me. I can still handle this, as long as I’m with you.” Anastasia interprets his uneasiness as being worried about her.

“Err…okay.” Zephyr clears his throat and finally makes it to the center stage. In his experience with being surrounded by crowds (enemies), it is best to keep a composed expression despite dying inside in order to fool the said crowd. Which is, as expected, quite effective, due to the fact that his presence and identity is already widely known in Telmaris after the gathering of guilds.

He takes a deep breath and clasps his hand. The nervousness he’s feeling has dialed down due to a certain relic he possesses.

“Before I start, I would like to take this opportunity to give my gratitude to all the involved individuals who are monitoring and keeping the outside perimeters safe. I hope it will always stay that way.”

‘Hah! How’s that for starters!’ Zephyr proudly exclaims internally.

Gringar then thinks to himself.

‘Oh? Looks like the message is for us. Rather, a striking message for the GEO…it seems like he also has some suspicions about the confiscation of [The Unforeseen]’s research. He’s making it known to them that he’s keeping an eye.’

The present members of the GEO research department squinted after hearing his words. The man who said such words, however, has no idea what’s happening in their minds.

“I’m really not the type to do long speeches. Further, I'm not even sure I am capable of doing such things efficiently.”

“Oh his humble attitude strikes again.”

David commented, followed by Fiona and Erika’s nodding.

“Though with that said, I will give it my all to meet everyone's expectations. After all, this is a statement for all of us here, that we can all be united as one despite being in a different region and culture.”

Zephyr slightly raises his hand, the back of his palm facing the direction of the audience. There is one sole ring that is currently equipped in his middle index finger. It was the ring that signifies [Grim Fate], out of the six rings crafted, Zephyr’s ring is definitely the most vibrant. Anastasia followed suit, also raising her hand to the level of her chest.

“In the name of our guild, in the name of my trusted members. I, Zephyr Gersche, leader of [Grim Fate], am hereby accepting the position of Clan Leader.

The gemstone in the ring shines. Looking at it, it seems like it burns to the touch.

“May this insignia be the evidence of my conformity and establishment of this Clan: [Genesis].”