CHAPTER 20: DOMAIN ARCHETYPES

In the desolate darkness, Hermes stood there, shivering from the cold. Like any desert environment, the shifts in temperature vary between night and day.

It was currently 5:50 AM. The sun had not yet risen. No matter how many layers of clothes he wore, It seemed like the wind would still find a way to slither in between the gaps and seep into his bones.

As he stood there in the frigid shadows impatiently awaiting the opening of the gate, he heard a voice calling for him from his left.

"Hey Hermes! How have you been? I saw what you ranked yesterday, can't say I'm shocked!"

Turning his neck around, Kevin's features reflected in his eyes. Unlike before, his clothes this time did not immediately reflect his financial situation.

Below his captivating mahogany-colored eyes and perfectly sculpted jawline, Kevin wore a simple jacket and cloth long-sleeve shirt underneath. Sheltering his hands inside his pockets to protect them from the cold, the toned young man walked over to where Hermes was waiting.

Seeing someone he knew walk over, Hermes' lips curved upwards into a smile and he greeted him back casually.

"Yo, Kevin. I have been fine, how have you been?"

Walking over, Kevin's long eyelashes fluttered from the cold breeze that blew over the pair as he nodded his head and replied in a casual tone.

"I have been fine as well. It was a pain getting out of the house with all the nagging my siblings were making though."

"Oh, you have siblings? Tsk, How envious. I was an only child my entire life."

"Pfff, It's in fact me who envies you. Do you know how many times that little bastard gets in trouble? I have to keep apologizing for his mess-ups!"

"Haha, It doesn't seem like you hate it though. By the way, I saw that you ranked 5th in the examinations, congrats."

"Oh, that? It's nothing compared to what you scored! I apologize for being afraid or suspicious of you during the Punching Machine exams. I have lived in the streets all my life, I have never seen anyone that strong before."

"Ah, that. Don't mention it, I completely understand. Even I was afraid of what had happened. I don't know where that strength even came from. It's fine, let bygones be bygones."

"... Alright, I won't mention it anymore. Your strength deserves respect and not fear; I will correct myself from now on. By the way..."

Slowly, Kevin looked to his left and right where a crowd of other cadets were waiting around then shifted his eyes back to Hermes. His face warped into a frown and whispered in a worried tone.

"Be careful of Elizabeth Lysange. From the rumors, she is highly competitive. What you did to that machine has probably intrigued her curiosity. Sooner or later, she may even challenge you to a duel."

Looking back directly into his eyes, Hermes nodded his head in understanding.

"Alright, I will."

The conversation continued for a while as everyone waited around for the barrack gates to open. As soon as the clock hit 6, every cadet's wish to escape the cold was finally met as they all gazed directly at the entrance which was slowly being opened.

In a black open navy trench coat and black trousers, a tall and lean man strode forth. Adorning his military uniform were golden shoulder pads, while beneath them, a grey turtle-neck shirt concealed an armpit gun holster.

Behind him were two other officers garnished in similar open military trench coats. However one was white in color while the other was grey.

With black-gloved hands, he gripped the pommel of the sword at his left hip. The man gazed at the crowd and spoke with a calm voice that sent shivers through everyone, freezing them in their tracks.

"Be quiet everyone."

Just like that, no one spoke. Even though he made it sound like an innocent request, hidden beneath the deception was a veil of dominance and authority that no one dared to question.

Gazing at the man in repose, his features were mirrored in Hermes' eyes. The man had slick black short hair, a cleanly shaven face, and a pointy nose. His chin and jawline were symmetrical. His appearance was above average and he looked to be only slightly older than Hermes himself.

His monolid eyes however were different. They were pitch black in color. It was as if hidden beneath was a bottomless abyss. Cold, Indifferent, and filled with Authority. Before he knew it, Hermes had looked down at the ground in fear. He didn't dare to study how the man looked any longer.

Although he wasn't as meek as he was in the past, something about the man in front of him made his hair stand up. He couldn't help but feel afraid of him. This wasn't something only Hermes felt, however.

Looking over at his friend Kevin, Hermes could see the glint of dread in his eyes. Similar expressions were seen all over the faces of the other cadets.

Ignoring their apprehension, the man spoke calmly once more.

"Form three lines. Auxiliary Regiment cadets to the left, Medic Regiment cadets to the right. Guardian Regiment cadets at the center."

No one hesitated. The voice of the authoritative man before them still rang deeply in their hearts as they raced to form the lines quickly. His voice held dominion over their actions. As soon as they finished, the other two officers spoke in tandem. The first to speak was the one wearing the white military uniform.

"I am Jonathan Lister, 3rd Battalion Commander of the Medic Regiments. Medic Regiment cadets, follow after me."

Following that, the officer adorned in a grey version of the military uniform spoke.

"You may call me Taylor Brown, 1st Battalion Commander of the Auxilary Regiments. Follow behind me in a single file line."

Soon, both officers turned around with the cadets under their regiment in tow. Seeing this, the man in a black open navy trench coat nodded to himself as he looked at the crowd indifferently.

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"My name is Ming Xue, 2nd Battalion Commander of the Guardian Regiments. I welcome you all to our ranks. Soon, you will all embark on a harsh training regime that will bring your hidden potential out for the world to see."

'Someone of Chinese descent? This is the first time I've seen someone in Sanctuary City of an ethnicity that isn't European. Well now that I think about it, It seems Kevin might be of Hispanic descent too...'

'Sigh, if only the Xenophobia wasn't so bad, I would have already explored the city. I'm still too ignorant...' The man continued his lecture, oblivious to Hermes' lampooning.

"From this day forth, you are Guardians. However, do not misuse this title and relish in the glory it brings you. We are the protectors of this city. Those in the other regiments look to you as pillars of support; without us being at the front lines, our history would not have been this long. Look around you and memorize the faces of your comrades, for one day, many of them will no longer be amongst us."

"This is the burden and fate we Guardians must shoulder. Remember that death is always around the corner. Do not tolerate complicitness and recklessness for they are weaknesses that may one day spell your doom."

Pausing for a moment while staring at the cold and desolate ground, Ming looked back at the crowd, his pitch-black irises which were previously filled with indifference had a tint of melancholy in them. He then spoke in a calm and solace voice.

"There is a saying that all Guardians live by. We don't know who said it first or when it first started, but it has been carried from generation to generation. It goes like this."

"We stand at the edge of an abyss, knowing one day we may fall inside, however, we must still shield the coming dawn."

Looking at the crowd, Ming's voice reverberated amongst them. No one dared to say anything, but they all understood what the quote meant. Some decided to memorize it in their hearts while others stood there with bored expressions, probably due to hearing it from someone else before.

Hermes however was the only one reacting differently. While the others were busy either memorizing or ignoring his words entirely, he was struck with confusion. Upon hearing Ming's words, his heart ached for some reason.

'Why... Do I feel like I have heard this saying before... Wh-what is this feeling... It's like I have forgotten something important...'

Snapping him out of his nostalgia was Ming's somber voice. For some reason, Hermes had the urge to cry, but he did not know why. He tried to suppress his emotions but every time he tried, his heart would ache in sadness even more.

"Remember this mantra and live by it. One must understand themselves and their duty before stepping inside these barracks."

Turning around, Ming Xue's navy black trench coat fluttered in the wind as the gilded symbol etched into its back twinkled slightly from the incoming light. It was a symbol characterized by a castle wall struck vertically by a sword. This was the emblem of the Guardian Regiments.

Stepping into the army courtyard that Hermes had grown familiar with by now, Ming's voice echoed inside each cadet's ears.

"Alright, follow me."

Walking in tangent with the others in the line, Hermes braced himself as the wind brushed upon his face. Unlike before however, his mind wasn't preoccupied with fighting the cold. He was left wondering why he felt nostalgic after hearing the quote. It left him wondering where he had heard of it in the past.

'We stand at the edge of an abyss, knowing one day we may fall inside, however, we must still shield the coming dawn... Where have I heard this before...'

The more he thought about it, the more clueless he became. However, his feelings towards the quote were quite warm and so he decided to cherish them. He had no idea why he was feeling this way, but his entire body told him it was important. And so he decided it was best not to ignore it and try to seek out the quote's origins in hopes of finding out where he had heard of it before.

The new Guardians were assembled into a square formation. If one were to count, the total number of new Guardian cadets averaged about 100 at most, a far cry from the numbers he had seen when he was taking the test.

He was unable to discern where the cadets in the other regiments had gone since they were the only ones occupying the courtyard.

Compared to the other units from the Medic and Auxiliary Regiments that had entered the courtyard ahead of them, their contingent was way smaller in number. Glancing around, he managed to spot Charles' figure, standing upright with his arms crossed behind him in the formation.

He couldn't identify Elizabeth, as he had no prior knowledge of her appearance. The same held true for the other well-known cadets in the enlisted rankings list.

Standing in front of the group was Ming Xue himself with his usual indifferent eyes.

"Before the official training begins, I must brief you on subjects relating to your Domain Affinity as future Celestials."

"All of you have potential in the Knowledge and Technology domain, however not everyone will have the same Archetypes."

Ming Xue's words snapped Hermes out of his trance-like state. He knew that whatever was going to be said would be important.

"Let's start with Knowledge for example. People tend to misunderstand that the Knowledge domain specializes mainly in spellcasting, however, that isn't true. The Knowledge domain is all-encompassing, so it allows Celestials to specialize in many different fighting styles."

"It is however a fact that the Knowledge Domain is special in that it isn't limited to one or two elements. Knowledge domain users can have affinities with any of the world's elements. This does not mean that they will have all of the elements at their disposal, but they have the opportunity to be talented in any element."

'Elements... How come I have never heard of this before? Angelica should have told me about this beforehand...'

"Going back to the topic of Archetypes, the Knowledge Domain has been repeatedly used and mastered over the past few thousand years. From the records we have established, we were able to recognize a pattern. All Knowledge Domain users usually split off into three different types."

"The first Archetype is Martial Master. Knowledge Domain users of this type have heightened senses and brain functions, as well as the ability to learn martial arts quickly. They can become masters of any weapon much quicker compared to others. They can then coat their attacks directly in Cosmic Force to enhance their martial arts techniques."

'Hm? Does this mean this is my specialty? My enhanced cognitive abilities seem to fall under this category. The same can be said for my eyesight which has improved a lot.'

"The second Archetype is Mystic. This is what people commonly associate with the Knowledge domain."

"Mystics have abilities that allow them to learn many spells quickly like enhanced memory and in some rare cases, even the ability to learn languages quickly. This power can be used to read, decipher, and understand magical engravings swiftly during battle."

'Huh?! Don't I have that too? I can learn languages quickly as well... I seem to have powers from both Archetypes... Is that normal?...'

Not noticing the confusion in Hermes' eyes, Ming continued his lecture.

"The last of the three is called Artificer. This Archetype is that of forging and creation. Stellar Artifacts are all created by Celestials who specialize in this Archetype. Those who fall into this category have heightened cosmic force control that allows them to accurately and precisely craft objects imbued with it."

'Now that I think about it, could it be that my ability to wield Elgacia effectively during the Kel'thus fight was due to me having the abilities of a Martial Master, so using the weapon effectively came to me naturally? That could also explain how I was able to use Viktor's rifle during the time I killed the Mutant Devil Wolf.'

'Then could my ability to cast Elgacia's spells using Solari have anything to do with my abilities in the Mystic Archetype? It could also be that Elgacia herself was casting the spells while I was merely chanting the correct things to say...'

As he finished contemplating, he looked around at the other cadets. While they were listening to Ming's lecture, every single one of them was shivering as the sound of their teeth chattering in the cold air echoed throughout the open courtyard.

Seeing this, Hermes who was also freezing to death smiled and shook his head.

"I really believed we would escape this freezing chill when the gates opened..."

END OF CHAPTER