Light reflecting from the Ivory Tower stopped Liam’s reminiscing. He looked out at the stream of the crowds, flowing in the same direction towards the tower. It would soon be time for the annual Revelations Day event to begin.
This year Liam was 16 and officially an adult. As an adult, he was now allowed to take the tower’s first trial to obtain his first summon.
Turning around, Liam looked at the book on his makeshift bed, holding the knowledge of the breathing technique given to him by the Lazar Institute. Liam’s face warped with mixed emotions.
To his poor and naive self six years ago, the technique was a gift from the gods of the tower. To the currently still poor him now, it was the lowest breathing technique given as a ruse to quell the lower class of the chosen.
However, those not chosen by the tower wouldn’t even get the chance of being a summoner. They would never see, let alone touch, the low level breathing technique.
Liam let out a conflicted sigh. He exhaled and surrendered to his fate.
He moved downstairs and finished having breakfast with his parents.
“Liam! We’re leaving! Thanks for cleaning up! We’re sorry we can’t be there when you get your summon today! We’ll celebrate when you get home darling!”
Kanna shouted as she and her husband were about to exit their home.
“Take care buddy! I know you’ll get something good! You worked hard all these years!” Leon gave some last encouragement to his son.
The married couple looked at each other, somewhat helpless.
“No matter what happens kiddo, you’ll always have us. Don’t worry and do what you can. Everything will be okay… No matter what happens.”
Liam ran to the door and gave his parents a hug. He knew they were semi-aware of his troubles.
“Thanks. I’ll try to do my best.”
His parents patted his back and left for their daily excursion outside the walls of the kingdom. Their little foraging barely paid their expenditures. They could not afford a day off as their unstable income could cause them to lose their half paid house.
Liam sat down at their small dining table. He let out another deep sigh from the troubling thoughts in his mind.
Over the last 6 years, it had become apparent to him that the size of one’s soul palace was very important. Larger was better. The larger one’s soul palace, the larger one’s primal soul house. That and also being rich. And he didn’t have either.
Liam wanted the best, but he was born with an average soul palace that he couldn’t change or do anything about. So Liam focused all his time and energy on building a larger and better second soul house. There was nothing he could do for the first soul house, the primal, that came along in his soul palace, but he could do something about the second.
However, the breathing technique provided by the academy was truly basic. The lowest of the low. Money could get a better technique, but he couldn’t afford that. He could buy harvested origin energy to help him grow his soul houses, but that too required money.
It was a slow grind for 6 years without bearing much fruit. Six strenuous years of countless hours were dedicated to absorbing more origin energy. Six years wasted, as they did not amount to much.
His endeavor to build his second soul house was still incomplete. He built the soul house to around 80% of the size that he wanted. He was trying to build a larger 2nd soul house for his second summon. Many already long completed their second soul houses, and were already working on their next.
His dreams for a better place and a better life for his parents did not have a good outlook. The thought of failure put pressure and stress on him. He kept his problems to himself, not to burden his parents. They already had too many issues on their hands.
His parents felt his moodiness, but they didn’t fully understand why. They tried to be supportive as best they could.
Liam’s hopes and dreams had become an obsession. The last few weeks prior to this important day, Liam had been using much of his waking, and partially some of his sleeping time, absorbing origin energy to build his second soul house.
He knew it was pointless for the first trial as he already had the primal soul house. However, his average Soul palace meant his primal soul house was average as well. He could only contract an average being at best, if not something less.
He studied diligently and was a regular at the academy’s library, but his lack of progress combined with his medium innate soul capacity over the years gave him chronic anxiety. Doing something made him feel less anxious.
However, he was not the only student with anxiety. His friend Luke was under pressure as well. But at least he hid it better than Liam.
“Liam! You ready to go?! We should get to the Ivory Tower early. There’s probably going to be a large number of people coming today.” A pounding came at his door.
“Coming! Don’t break our door like last time Luke!”
Liam reprimanded his friend from behind the shaking door. “Hey! I’ll make you help me forage for herbs if anything breaks, you musclehead!” Liam hurriedly opened the door.
The scrawny malnourished youth, who cowered from Ms. Maribell’s pointed remarks on the first day of class years ago, was no longer there. He was now confident and a strapping young adult. However, beneath it all he too was just like Liam, anxious about his future. Many of the poor first generation chosen students were.
Luke was the size of Liam’s muscular father. He was half a head taller than Liam and had a robust and brawny wide build. His manly face already had thick facial hair growing that he annoyingly had to shave everyday. His large nose and square chin drew plenty of pretty admirers.
Liam was not bad looking, but he could never grow any facial hair. Knowing his insecurity, Luke loved to tease and show off his stubs that grew back later on during the day. Liam looked jealousy at the neatly trimmed beard his friend purposely left on his face today.
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“I don’t know how you grew to be a bear when we eat the same food.”
“Beats me. I don’t know why you can’t grow a beard when your dad is hairier than me and my dad.”
“…” Luke loved to hit Liam where it hurts. Liam went quiet being jabbed at his insecurity.
“Hahaha! Let’s get going Liam! It’s going to be an exciting but busy day today! There’s going to be lots of people!”
Liam gave his friend a death glare and locked his parents house.
“Just you wait Luke! My face will be packed with so much hair your little stubbles will never be able to compare!”
Luke laughed at the impossible, and they made their way joking and chatting.
However, their jokes and laughter stopped at the sounds of weeping and wailing.
Revelations Day was a joyous day many citizens looked forward to. However, it was also the anniversary of the deaths of many who died to the terrorist attacks by the Dungeon Heathens 6 years ago.
The group of people mourning in front of a monument were people who lost a loved one during those times. The names of those lost onto the monument by the guilds of the kingdom.
Liam and Luke walked past the area silently. A woman with heavy dark circles under her eyes noticed the two friends and stopped them in their tracks.
“Are you two going to the Ivory Tower?! Are you two future climbers of the tower?!”
Her hand gripped onto the two friends' wrists. The strong hold from the frail looking woman surprised Liam and Luke, but they nodded as she had a pleading look with tears streaming down her face. The sorrow of her face warped into a deep bloodthirsty hatred once they acknowledged they were chosen by the tower.
“Please! Take revenge for me! Take revenge for my poor little girl! Kill all those heathen bastards! Wipe them out! Every single last one of them! They killed her! They killed my little girl!”
Her husband tried to calm her down and bring her away. But she violently struggled, wriggling around begging the two to take vengeance. Her husband could not stop her, and let her go.
The man apologized.
“I’m sorry to bother you two young men. Forgive my wife. We are unchosen and cannot get revenge. If you two can, please grant our request. Vengeance will give us some respite.”
The two friends walked away with a heavy feeling the rest of the way to the Ivory Tower.
Luke was right.
A long line of carriages parked off the side of the cobblestone road. Liam hurried the both of them, not wanting to entangle with anyone inside of them.
Moving through, they realized the carriages were tightly parked all the way down the ornate stone road to the steps leading to the Ivory Tower. Led by Liam, they quickly walked towards the large shimmering white structure, extending past the clouds in the sky.
A haughty voice brought annoyance to Luke’s and Liam’s face.
They had hoped to avoid anyone related to the guilds. Most of them, especially the chosen of the institute, were pompous asshats that rode off the coattails of the true climbers of the tower.
“Well, well, well. If it isn’t “poor” and “broke.”
Sarcastic laughter broke beside Liam and Luke as a group of young men dressed in gaudy clothing, walked from behind a carriage. Their parents were climbers and because of that fact they felt superior. The group laughed at the two friends’ plain attire. But Luke was not one to back down from a fight.
“Ah. I thought I smelled something funny today. The stink of entitlement.” Luke responded, clenching his nose.
“Shut up Luke! You poor nobody! My dad is a climber on the 19th floor!”
“Oh yea? Good for your dad. I might be a nobody right now, but you know what! So are you Darrel!”
“I’m nothing like you! Both of your parents are pathetic Tacks! Forsaken by the tower! Feeding off the climbers!”
Liam got angry. Darrel brought his parents into the argument. “Don’t be calling my parents Tacks! Your dad uses the herb we collect risking our lives in the Wild!”
Darrel snorted. “Herbs?! My dad uses potions bought from Fortuna! Not some measly herbs found by peasants. He’d never buy something from the likes of you!”
“Children! Children! I think it’s best if you all go your own ways.” An old man in refined clothes stopped the escalating argument.
“But they started it! Did you just hear what that entitled smelly brat said, Headmaster Randall!” Luke demanded justice, however, he didn’t receive it.
“Though they may have started it, but what they said wasn’t wrong.”
Luke scowled angrily at the old man, who was the headmaster of the Lazar Institute.
“Ha! Poor and broke will always be poor and broke!” The group snickered and laughed as they walked away.
“My parents are not Tacks! Take it back!” Liam shouted but the group only laughed harder as they went towards the Ivory Tower. Liam glared at the headmaster.
“You said they weren’t wrong, but you're wrong about my parents! They don’t feed off the climbers! They’re not Tacks! You’ve bought our herbs yourself!”
“Don’t get your feathers ruffled yet you two. Tacks are any of those who are not chosen by the tower. Its original meaning is not that they feed off of the climbers.”
“But it means that now!”
“To some, but not all. You two best hurry. Time is getting close for your sole chance to make a contract, else you’ll both have to wait until next year.”
“Che. Old man, you’re just saying whatever to float your boat. Let’s go Liam, we’ll show them!”
The headmaster definitely favored those who could return his favors and investments.
Currently, Liam and Luke were worth less than the group whose parents were climbers. To the headmaster, the group had certainty rising through the floors of the tower. Whereas Liam and Luke were uncertainties, who had no backing.
The young men walked off, more determined than ever to contract a good summoning.
Today they were to meet with their teacher, Ms. Maribell, outside on the grounds before the tower’s entrance.
Stepping up on the plaza before the Ivory Tower, the two friends once again met the group of stuck-ups early who harassed them. The group, however, only gave mocking faces as they feared their strict teacher.
“Alright, I think that’s everyone. I’ll be giving you your origin energy crystals and your token to enter the tower now.”
Ms. Maribell went around and handed 10 low grade energy stones and a round metallic badge, engraved with the image of the Ivory Tower.
“The academy provides 10 low grade origin energy crystals from first stage beasts to all the chosen taking on the first trial for the basic payment of a contract.”
The first trial is the safest and the most important. You will be sent to a room to see what entities you resonate with. If you have any additional origin energy crystals or items you can sacrifice, make sure you prepare them now and have them ready when you interact with the entities.”
She looked at her students, uncertain if they would all find a summon to help them on their journey. She made one last statement before she let them go.
“I will warn you all now. From this point on you all are on your own. BE RESPECTFUL AND CAREFUL. You are dealing with powerful entities. Though they might not be able to do anything to you directly, there are plenty of other ways they can handle new climbers such as yourselves. Heed my warning!”
With their teacher’s last piece of advice, all the chosen students made their way to the humongous iron gates of the Ivory Tower.