Pilgrimage to Sanctum was a learning ritual in itself. For hundreds of years, countless nobles and commoners alike had aspired to awaken their elemental power and risked themselves on that journey.

Sanctum was located at the southernmost point of the Kingdom of Elba, so for most young dreamers, the journey to Sanctum could be fraught with disagreements and conflicts, from caravans being ambushed by beastmen to even natural obstacles such as fighting cold and hunger along the way.

However, for Jin, any personal learning or maturing that could have been gained from this stage, so revered by most of the High Elders, had been wasted. Born in Kambar Village, the village was close enough so that it took about two days from Sanctum, even less than that if you could afford a carriage. Such brief adventures are not worth admiring, especially when no heroic acts are performed, those of which could increase the intrinsic value and bravery of your own being at its core.

In the eyes of the gods, awakening magical affinity in humans has never been seen as an obligation. It was even known by Jin that since the gods stopped wandering among mortals, the faith had been deeply shaken, causing a degradation in the magical sources of the world. These days, for every mortal who was able to awaken elemental powers, there were a hundred more who were drowning in sorrow for not being favored by them.

However, Jin was more than convinced of the potential within him. Growing up in Kaban Village, over the years he was constantly reminded not only by the villagers but by his own father that he had his mother's brown eyes. And, above all, his father's blood running through his veins.

Being the only biological son of the legendary Alaric, The 13th member of The Sacred Brotherhood, there would be no one comparable in the Kingdom of Elba with such a powerful bloodline, more deserving of inheriting the elemental powers than he did. These were Jin's expectations of himself that grew bit with every little comment from neighbors and friends about the genius of his father and brother. Those comments were bound to massage more and more of his ego.

And so they did.

At some point, Jin had realized that it was much easier to look at his own reflection when he started believing into those comments. How easily and simpler things became when he turned that distorted reality into his own conviction. Lowering himself slowly in the corner of the long hall, the boy placed his hands on his head, pondering what moment it was.

At what exact moment had he lost himself, what comment had been the first to misrepresent his view of himself, of who he really was ...

Who was he? What kind of person was he really? The feeling of frustration and pain was so thick but so tense that…

The three young adventurers in the center of the room hugged and laughed, congratulating the blue-eyed girl and sharing her joy.

"Congratulations!"

"You did it!" Said a red-haired boy while patting the slender back of the one chosen by the gods.

"I'm just as surprised as you guys are!" Replied the girl, shaking her hand elegantly.

"So do you feel any different?" The red-haired boy took the opportunity he saw-poking the girl's ass.

“Ouch! Don’t do that, you pervert! I'm still made of flesh and bones! ” She continued while smacking the horny boy in the head.

"Huh… Not really?" For Eliza, the hope of acquiring any elemental power was out of the question.

How could she go back to her family saying that she was now chosen by the gods to be an elemental warrior? She was just taking a gap year for tourism in the Kingdom of Elba! She accepted the invitation to the Trial only because of her great curiosity for the hidden nature of the ritual, which was constantly mentioned in songs and legends in taverns and bars across the continent.

"Close your eyes child." An authoritative voice echoed from above.

On the second floor of the Hall of Trial were two shadows that were watching closely the conclusion of the Trial.

"Close your eyes and take a deep breath."

"Fill your lungs with air and slowly exhale while calming down your mind." Following the instructions of that voice that came from the upper floors of the Trial room, Eliza closed her eyes and began to pay attention to her breathing.

It was possible to feel the expansion of her lungs as oxygen entered her body. A certain flow inside her, an energy that hadn't been noticeable for three, maybe two sighs ago.

But now? Now she could feel it.

"Extend your arm and visualize the energy in the palm of your hand." In Eliza's hand, something was starting to happen. The smooth palm of the blue-eyed girl began to act as an energy catalyst. She could feel her fingertips start to tingle. And as she concentrated more and more, an element began to materialize before her blue eyes that shone with admiration.

In the center of her hand was a concentration of energy flowing in a rotational direction – a whirlwind. It was not big enough to push her hair backwards, but that was the guarantee that she had been deemed worthy by the gods and favored by the one and only Elemental God Genos himself. From the corner of his eye, Jin could see that beautiful girl's eyes sparkle with joy.

Most people dreamed of a moment like that when they are recognized as worthy to become an elemental warrior. It was common for children to play this in childhood, targeting an element as a favorite before they even participated in the ritual. Jin himself had a dream of having an affinity with Aurora, Elemental Goddess of Light, the same one who had blessed his father as a young man. A salty taste washed the corner of his mouth, the disappointment with himself was so great that it leaked from the inside out. How could he come home and look at his father in the eye after such a failure?

What could his brother possibly be thinking of him? Would he be the target of jokes and mockery for the rest of his life?

At that moment, light steps could be heard and a figure approached him. It was very difficult to interpret someone's face on such an occasion. Especially Jin, full of tears, with his vision completely blurred, unable to see a span in front of him.

“You’re making me concerned all by yourself in this dark corner, please let us be acquainted before the initiation commences."A soothing voice made itself known beside Jin. Wiping tears from his eyes with her long-silk sleeves, Jin slowly looked up andֹ—

There it was.

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A pair of blue eyes that sparkled in concern.

Jin grabbed the girl's hand and quickly got up from the floor. Swallowing his ego for the first time, it was time for him to accept that the world did not revolve around him.

"Sorry I got a little carried away ..." said Jin to the blonde girl, her eyes still reflected the same brightness that had appeared when she awoke the elemental power of wind, a joy that was stamped on her soft face.

"It's totally fine don't worry about it! Oh my, I haven't even introduced myself have I?"

"How careless of me. Let's start this over okay?"

"I'm Eliza nice to meet you! "She said happily greeting Jin with both her hands on his.

"I'm a diplomat from the Belkor Theocracy… I hope we can learn to trust each other to get through this Trial together. My mother told me the best approach is to pretend we know each other for years." The blonde girl continued to speak, filling the silence of the hall at every opportunity.

Jin and the other boy looked at each other and shrugged.

"That should be weird but we can try."

"If it improves our chance it is worth a shot," agreed the boy.

"What a crazy experience that was right? I mean those statues looked very scary!" Eliza pointed out.

"I almost fainted when their eyes started to show signs of life but luckily they didn't talk back or even move." The girl sighed with relief as if a weight was lifted off her back after her sudden testimony to the sulky boy in front of her.

Jin had the impression that she had the habit of being a very talkative person with people in general, but this wasn't the moment, not after he was denied by the gods themselves the chance of awakening an elemental power.

Holy shit, this crazy blonde can't read the temperature in the room?

It was hard to believe that he had a posture that regularly invited social interactions. I mean, of course, Jin had many friends in his village, but that happened after many years of living among children of his age, in which he gradually let his guard down to express himself openly. But this girl spoke to him in such a friendly way that anyone looking at it from a distance would have the impression that she had known Jin for years.

Suddenly minutes passed while Jin was unaware of the space around him. The pure disappointment blinding his consciousness. When suddenly Jin hears a loud bang nearby, and looks over. The blonde girl was not there anymore besides the other young man. In her place instead, was another young woman with green eyes. Her pink twintails flowing on her shoulder as she smacked the young man away.

"Ouch, that really hurt Viktoria!" Said the boy with red hair while rubbing his fingers on his own head where it had been hit minutes ago.

"Don't you dare come near me again with those filthy hands Tristan, we literally met minutes ago!" Viktoria warned him.

"I promise it won't happen again, sorry!" He assured the angry girl by showing the palms of his hands as if pleading guilty.

"Humph ... You better mean it," Viktoria replied, crossing her thin arms.

Shifting his focus to Tristan, the black-haired Jin looked at him as if trying to figure out what was going on between the two.

Had they both kissed while he was on the floor distracted? Some chemistry among those two was really in the air, but it was difficult to define what it really was. If he had to make a guess, by the way, the girl spoke to Jin, he was already assuming that the worst had happened.

"Huh… What exactly were you two whispering in this corner by yourselves?" Asked Jin in an attempt to get to the bottom of this.

"What are you even implying ... Have you lost your mind dude?" angrily spoke out Viktoria.

"We were just getting to know each other better, trying to rush a relationship to build trust," smugly said Tristan

"It just happens you did it in the most disgusting way and went for the kiss," interceded Viktoria, staring fiercely at Tristan.

"I'm Jin, nice to meet you all," he said with a genuine smile while scratching his head in confusion.

"And I'm Tristan, Tristan Loriat,"

Jin's eyes popped in surprise at the sound of that name.

"Loriat? You mean from House Loriat?"

"Of course, the one and only. All high nobles have a House Name and an Emblem." Replied Tristan, pointing to the symbol stamped on the shoulder of his armor. A yellow eagle surrounded by a shield was the insignia of the Loriat family, a source of pride for Tristan and his ancestors alike.

"Guys? You need to see this." Said the second female voice who was not close to them anymore, coming from the back of the Hall of Trial.

The three looked at each other doubtfully for a moment. The air in the Hall of Trial was very dense, and for some reason, the anxiety inside Jin was slowly growing irrationally. Something did feel off…

He could feel his throat going dry until Viktoria pulled him out of a hypnotic trance then broke the silence.

"That must have been the other girl who took the Trial with us, Eliza," said Viktoria.

Jin nodded in agreement, "We should go meet up with her." Uttered Tristan.

Then the trio started walking towards the voice of the girl who called them from a distance. It was possible to see on all sides stone statues practically aligned at the feet of each column in the hall. Each statue was built for a different person…Hundreds of names of heroes from the past, who would have long been forgotten if not for the existence of these monuments in Sanctum.

"Blake Silverfang, Wielder of Earthshaker ..." It read below the statue of a muscular man holding a war hammer. The amount of detail in his abdominal armor was impressive and really made Jin wonder what kind of brave elemental warrior Blake would have been back then.

"This place is huge!" Jin exclaimed to the other two who accompanied him. His eyes shone with curiosity.

"The High Elders have a special appreciation for the heroes from the past, especially the humans who protected the Kingdom of Elba by putting their lives at risk for the greater good." Tristan had memorized the name of each Elemental Hero in the hall from listening to the adventures told by his mother's mouth.

"It seems like most of these names and heroes would have been forgotten and lost in time had they not built this place close to a thousand years ago as a place of worship for The Nine and awakening of the Elemental Powers," Tristan stated as they approached the girl who called them.

In front of them was an iron door that must have been at least five meters high. It was the same door that Jin had used to enter the Hall of Trial.

"Guys something is odd about this door." Said Eliza, with a serious expression as she passed her hand as if looking for a button, or some sort of mechanism to open the huge door in front of them.

"We must find a way to open it somehow," Jin whispered.

"It's locked… Why is it locked?" She insisted.

"Excuse me M'Lady, but aren't you going to introduce yourself first to us?" The red-haired boy held out his arms, disappointed that they were being called here for such a petty reason. Had she given him a kiss or something before the trial started instead of outright rejecting him, he would be glad to be of help.

"Is it kinda rude making demands this soon in our relationship you know?" Uttered Tristan, his sexual excitement showing through once more.

But now that she mentioned it, Jin's intuition really made him feel that something was strange. Since the four had participated in the Trial, he had seen no sign of his older brother Vendrick. This was not very characteristic of his brother, who has always been present in all situations until now. When Jin couldn't count on his father's presence, his brother was the first partner that came to mind. Always there willing to help, smiling even in the worst moments.

The blue-eyed blonde girl started looking around, trying to remember which direction the voice came from, which instructed her to awaken the elemental power of the wind. She was sure that two figures were watching her at that moment, from a balcony upstairs in the Hall of Trial. However, there was no sign coming from the upper area as before. Those two individuals seemed to have left the moment Eliza demonstrated the swirl in the palm of her hands.

And it was at that moment that Eliza noticed. Coming from the other side of the hall, the place they were just coming from brought forward a weird noise in the shadows between the pillars of old. Grunts of pain grew louder and louder, slowly approaching at an alarming rate.

Jin suddenly felt his throat go dry again, and the noise he heard from the opposite direction of the hall were unusual—nothing like he had ever heard before. The sound resembling a cursed abomination screeching in horror.

The group of youths ambiguously looked at each other, a mixture of fear and anxiety steadily rising within each of them.

"Maybe we should shout for help…Someone seems to be in pain."

"Shush! Listen closely." Viktoria had been the first to put a finger over her mouth and ask for silence from her partners.

Whispers could be heard among the shuffling of steps in hurried motion. Heads had been raised in alert.

"It's coming!" Eliza clutched an arrow from her quiver. Her trembling gaze set on the darkness ahead of them. At last Jin made sense of what was being said by that feeble and weak voice approaching them. And it clearly whispered.

"Centuries answered with tribute…blessed once more with a youthful herd of four."