== Transport Guild, Podgrad / Reception Hall (Afternoon) ==

The five children entered the Transport Guild, gazing around the bustling room filled with people of all sizes and races, engaged in lively conversations and business deals. A young woman in her twenties called out to them, "You were sent by Bishop Kur, correct?" She smiled warmly, motioning for them to come over to the reception counter built directly into the wall at the back of the room.

The children obliged, and Eric responded, "Yes, I am Eric. This is James, Geer, Saria, and Ire."

"My name is Servias Victoria. Nice to meet all of you. I was told by the manager to get you fitted for gear and tested for magic," said Servias, standing no taller than five and a half feet. Her long elf ears prominently showed with her hair pulled back into a tail behind her head.

Servias looked down at the papers on her desk, collecting a small book. She moved to the left, disappearing from view before opening a door next to the reception counter. "Right this way," she said with a smile, holding the door open for the children. Eric, followed by James and the others, formed a single file line and disappeared behind the door.

Servias led the children deeper into the building, passing various workers weighing items, several rooms holding stock, and a few closed doors before stopping at the last door on the right. She knocked, and the words "Come in" were clearly heard. The door opened on its own, revealing a tall, jolly old man standing in the back, bent over a book in one hand and a long stick in the other, his hands moving as scratching sounds on wood filled the air.

Servias looked at the man in surprise for a second before bowing to the children and motioning them to enter. Only Saria found the expression odd as she entered last. All five children lined up just past the threshold of the door, which closed lightly behind them.

== Transport Guild, Podgrad / Fitting Room (Afternoon) ==

The old man looked up from his book with a smile. "Just give me a moment, I'm almost done," he said, continuing to scratch into the floor. The children fidgeted as they looked around the rather plain room, which had only four small chairs on the left side, opposite the old man, and one large chair behind him. A small table against the far back wall near the old man's chair held various tools. There was no window, just the door and the simple wooden plank walls matching the floor, with large wooden trusses supporting the floor above.

"Okay, done," said the old man, falling into the chair behind him. "That is such a pain to do, I tell you," he chuckled. "My name is Nilrem. I am a Magiaesse. I specialize in appraisal and working magic." Nilrem got comfortable in his chair, looking over at the children.

"So, I was told I have to fit you for equipment and evaluate your magical power. Let's start with introductions," Nilrem stated, pulling out a long wooden pipe. He moved it to his lips, taking a gentle puff as a small flame ignited from his thumb.

"My name is Eric, this is..." Eric began, but Nilrem cut him off with a chuckle. "Thank you, Eric, but let everyone introduce themselves."

"My name is Geer," stated Geer.

"My name is Ire," said Ire, looking at the carved symbols on the floor instead of Nilrem.

"My name is Saria," said Saria with a smile.

"My name is... James," said James, with Nilrem saying his name in unison. "Ah yes, I was told about you by the Master of this Branch. The Hero. Everyone is talking about you," Nilrem stated, hitting his pipe again while staring at James.

"It's a great honor to be in the presence of a Hero. I thank you," Nilrem said with a jolly smile, his eyes betraying him for a second. Ire, who had been staring at the symbols on the floor, asked, "What are those?"

Nilrem's gaze shifted from James to Ire and then to the carved symbols on the floor. "This is my trade. I told you I am a working-class wizard. This array allows a hardened clay golem to take your exact dimensions so that a tailor can properly craft your clothes," Nilrem explained matter-of-factly, his voice carrying a wisdom not yet known to the children.

"What are those?" Geer asked, looking at the table next to Nilrem. Nilrem turned to look at the table before taking the last hit from his pipe, tapping it out onto his hand, and standing up.

"Those are the tools needed to determine your magical power and elemental alignment," Nilrem stated, picking up an odd piece of paper and a very unusual quill. He began to craft geometric shapes onto the paper. "We should get started," he said, moving the paper aside and duplicating the designs four more times on four different pieces of paper.

"Okay, can you step onto the array, Eric?" Nilrem asked, moving to stand directly in front of the array. Eric stepped into it.

"Here, hold this for me," Nilrem said. The moment Eric touched the paper, symbols and words of an arcane language started to appear. It only took a few seconds before Nilrem snatched the paper from Eric. "Thank you, Eric. Have a seat. Saria, step onto the array," he repeated the same process for Saria, Geer, and Ire. "Next, James, step onto the array," Nilrem instructed. As soon as James touched the paper, the whole room suddenly disappeared, replaced by a blinding white void.

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== Transport Guild, Podgrad / Void Space ( ∞ ) ==

James looked around, squinting against the brightness. Slowly, a speck of color appeared in his view—a man holding a piece of paper, moving toward James without making any sound. The man appeared to move, but the distance traveled was far greater than his steps. He wore a long grey robe, his hair a pepper-speckled color, and his eyes a shimmering blue. His face was mostly covered by his hair and a beard that reached just below his waist.

"Do you agree to this?" the man asked in a bland, authoritative tone, his voice causing James's head to rattle slightly. James dropped to his knees, and the man raised an eyebrow.

The man repeated the question, this time with a touch more humanity. "Do you agree to this?"

"Agree to what?" James asked. The man held out the paper. "This."

James took the paper and looked it over. "I don't know what it says," he admitted. The man waved his hand over James, and the words appeared in his mind.

**Appraisal Learned**

James blinked as his head hurt for a split second before returning to normal. He looked up at the old man, then back at the document. "I don't understand," James said again, bewildered.

"Do you want to keep my power?" the old man asked.

James hesitated before replying, "Yes."

The old man took the paper from James and held it up. Another hand appeared out of nowhere—a younger man by the old man's standards, who appeared on the opposite side of James. The younger man pulled out four more pieces of paper. "What about these? Are they valid?" he asked the old man.

The old man looked down at James before turning back to the younger man. "No, they are not."

The younger man combined all five papers, the symbols and shapes shifting slightly before he threw them into the air, causing them to disappear. "It is done," he said, bowing his head before vanishing.

== Transport Guild, Podgrad / Fitting Room (Afternoon) ==

Nilrem plucked the paper from James's hand after but a second. James blinked, looking around, his heart racing. "Go have a seat," Nilrem instructed, snapping James back to reality. He moved to his seat, and the other four children looked at him with odd expressions. Eric mouthed, 'What happened?' to James, who shrugged and sat down, looking at Nilrem.

Nilrem examined all five pieces of paper, a frown appearing on his face before setting the stack down. "Wonderful, that is finished. Let us continue with the magic and element tests," he said, picking up a crystal with three large holes. "Now come here, Eric." Nilrem placed the crystal device on Eric's hand like a ring. The crystal glowed pale blue, then dark blue, radiating outward to cover his entire body.

Nilrem stepped back in shock before stepping forward to remove the crystal from Eric's hand. "Amazing. You may be one of the most powerful Magiaesse in a thousand years," Nilrem said in amazement. He composed himself and placed the device in Ire's small hands. The light grew dark green. "You are a Naturaesse," Nilrem noted, removing the crystal and moving to Geer, but nothing happened.

"Sorry, your magic isn't detectable outside of your body," Nilrem said with disappointment before moving to Saria. The crystal produced a dark red light, then yellow, then orange before Nilrem removed it. "You are an Elementumest," he said, moving to James. "Now then, let's find out what you are." He forcefully placed the crystal on James's hand, causing a blinding white light to engulf the room. Nilrem quickly removed the crystal, stumbling backward and rubbing his eyes. "Oh my god, never do that again," he laughed, surprised and shocked.

"James, you could be the next Grand Archbishop," Nilrem exclaimed with pure astonishment.

"What do you mean?" Saria

asked, as James was still rubbing his eyes.

"He is a Curate, like the Bishop or the High Priest," Nilrem explained. Slowly, Nilrem regained his composure, smoothing out his clothes and standing up straight. "Let's continue," he said, setting down the crystal and picking up a small wand. "Now let's do this." He moved to stand in front of James first. "Grab the wand, James." James obliged.

"Ah, Grade A, of course. You're a Hero, after all," Nilrem said, moving to Ire and repeating the process. "Grade B, amazing," he noted. He moved to Saria. "Grade B, wonderful," he remarked. Finally, he got to Eric. "Grade E..." Nilrem sighed slightly disappointedly. "So much work," he muttered, setting down the wand.

"What do you mean, Mr. Nilrem?" James asked, as he and Eric looked at Nilrem bewildered.

"It will take a lot of work for you to grow. Separating yourself, dividing your focus, and merging with magic. It's going to be a lot of work," Nilrem said with a solemn but creepy tone, writing a few things on a piece of paper. "I'll be back in a moment. I'm going to report my findings to the receptionist." Nilrem collected the papers, the crystal device, and the wand before walking across the room and out the door, closing it swiftly behind him.

"Does anyone feel something is off with that guy?" Ire asked, looking at the others.

"Servias didn't seem to like him when she saw him," Saria chimed in.

"How do you know that?" Geer asked.

"Women's intuition," Saria replied with a smile.

"Did anyone here see a white room?" James asked, looking down at the ground, processing what had happened.

"What do you mean?" Eric asked, puzzled.

"Did anyone see an old man in a white room?" James repeated.

"Well, yeah, the old man just left," Geer said, looking puzzled.

"No, a different old man, a tall old man in a solid white room," James clarified, his eyes showing confusion and fear.

"No," Saria said, staring at James.

"Nope," Geer added.

"No," Ire said.

James looked at Eric for a moment. "Eric?" he asked, noticing the long pause in answering.

"I saw an old man in a white room when we were in the church," Eric confessed, looking down before looking at the team. Ire, Saria, and Geer stared at Eric before shifting their gaze to James.

"What happened?" James asked, standing up.

"He told me to protect you from others. I am to be your weapon, and my sacrifice will lead to saving the world," Eric replied emotionally before looking down. Regaining his composure, Eric asked, "What did he say to you?"

"He asked me if I agreed to this," James replied.

"Agree to what?" Saria asked, tilting her head.

"I don't know. Then he asked if I wanted his power," James said, staring at the floor.

"What did you say?" Geer asked, the tension in the room increasing.

"I said yes," James admitted. Everyone froze for a moment as the door started to creak open.