In a hidden place after Master Blacksmith's patriarch announcing the date to the next trial of fire to enter his Society, a boy screamed at a big lump made of shadows. "Why must I compete with that man? What he has of special to be worthy of your attention? Sister, did you become blin-" His tongue got tied when he remembered she was already literally blind and his words won't have the effect he wanted. And she got from trash to where she is now after meeting that man, and the boy himself only had his talent appreciated after she came back.
"Young master from the skies, the man-" A burly man with a red mask full of horns tried to talk.
"Shut up, lower being. Who gave you the right to talk-"
"Little brother." Glazed eyes appeared from the shadow that was acting as a communicator and a soft voice sounded from it, silencing everyone. "If I give you this, is it enough to you become his rival and swear fealty to the Master Blacksmith Society even if I for some reason become their enemies?"
From the shadow appeared two animals, a blackish dog and a parrot with a five-colored plumage.
The boy grinned, feeling happier than ever for descending to the Lower Existence, now he doesn't even care if he has to live all his life here and protect Master Blacksmith Society. "More than enough, Sister. If you want to me compete so much with him, I will. But do I have the permission to kill him if necessary?"
"If you want, it's not me that I will impede you. If he dies there's no problem. After more than one thousand years when I rule over those stupid assholes, I can go to Samsara and take him from there to live eternally with us. His death now, therefore, won't change anything in my plans even if he ends up reincarnating in another person, I will just kill him again and pick his soul for me. It's just a whim of mine to see you competing with him, after all."
***
In an alternate space made by the power of a Superior God, a girl was trembling in fear and crying while she was forced to go to her knees by the power of the ball of light above her.
"This is will be your last warning, you won't meet any other true 'Protagonists' of the World's Fate until you finish your mission. I'm a Superior God of Fertility and Love. You only exist to satisfy my wishes and bring more power to me by doing what I told you to do. If in three months you don't do those things, you will die."
The pressure on the girl increased, even more, her head seemed like it was going to burst. "Don't disappoint me anymore like you disappointed your father and mother with your appearance and intelligence. After all, its all your fault that your father exchanged your mother for 'street girls' and your mother had to sell her body and mind to sustain both of you.
"And yet, I pitied you and offered you another chance despite you having a record of being suicidal. Just do the 'right' things this time.
"Descendant of that accursed land full of sins and Godless."
***
People thought Lakepoint would calm down after the festival, but after it the Master Blacksmith Society's patriarch announced that they are going to recruit earlier than normal, making children, teenagers and adults be filled with determination and hope to enter the Society, changing their lives by receiving their exclusive training techniques.
George wanted to Elizabeth go fetch Roland on the day of the trial of fire, but what happened was that she discovered where Roland stayed beforehand and went there the day after the festival to talk with him about the God Touch and also, of course, about teleportation portals.
Roland tried to explain to her how he did the God Touch, enveloping in Vital Energy, but it was hard to put in words the feeling of him pushing away Essence and perfectly controlling it. So Elizabeth said to them try to mix Roland's training with her training to understand the God Touch.
He used Equipment Formation to make what Lucy said to him, and Elizabeth observed it and gave some hints to improve his work. They did that until Roland got tired or it was time for Elizabeth go back to her restaurant for all the days before the trial of fire.
Roland still can only make High Mortal tier equipment but Elizabeth helped him see the light to the Low Earth tier.
It will still take a while for Elizabeth use God Touch though.
And after discussing with Elizabeth they decided that she won't fetch him to the trial of fire and he by himself will go there to not call too much attention.
Roland differently from people like Shin Tan or Vaen, he doesn't like of attention or being in the spotlight, after all.
A shame his efforts were in vain.
When he reached outside of the red gates from the Society with smelting furnaces inscribed on it, everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at him with a mix of fear, respect, and envy.
Roland doesn't know but his actions of almost barring people from entering the festival, accepting and completing Vaen's challenge, and being scouted by the notorious Elizabeth herself spread through all Lakepoint.
He stood out like a sore thumb on the crowd.
"Why what I want to happen never happens? Is someone besides my masters conspiring against me?" Roland thought and patiently waited to the trial of fire begin while a red-haired youngster stared intently at him. And Roland was surprised to see the youngster also having animals with him, a dog and a weird parrot. "So it isn't that rare to have animals here, after all."
Lucy and August saw the others animals and couldn't understand why they seemed so familiar, and yet so distant. They knew the animals were also specials with the power of World's Fate around them and with Essence of others elements within them, but they couldn't still understand no matter what the reason to the nostalgia filling them.
It was as if there were multiple holes in their memory.
After thirty minutes the gates opened, everyone slowed entered the Society and felt as if being dislocated from their own bodies.
Roland knew this sensation, it was similar to what he felt when using Elizabeth's teleportation portal.
It means the actual Society isn't in Lakepoint but in another location hidden from their enemies.
"Welcome, ones that want to enter our family. I will be the one to supervise this trial of fire." Vaen, the middle-aged man with imperial clothes, appeared from thin air at the crowd's front. "Since you aren't part yet of the Society, we teleported you directly to the trial of fire. Do you know what this means? It means the trial already started."
People looked startled and began to search around the place they are to understand better about the trial.
They were currently surrounded by massive grey stones and walls with vines growing around them, it looked as if they were at an open area of an antique castle.
"The the main principal rule is that you can't kill your fellow competitors, we are watching every step of you, so no think you can fool us." Vaen let out a little of his Essence and pressure to intimidate them. "The first stage is simple.
"We will only test your talents, even if you don't have the talent for training, if you show a little of talent to any of the four Great Arts, you will be acknowledged to go to the next stage. And before I forget, even if you fail in this stage, there is still a chance of you entering so don't be too disheartened if your talents are too low."
This gave more hope to the ones that live in slums or lower parts of Lakepoint, and also was the reason they decided to come to Master Blacksmith Society, although the Society has a system of castes, the discrimination is rare and everyone is treated like family.
Some say it's because they focus more on the Great Arts than on personal power, but nobody really knows the reason for the feeling of 'family' exists on the Society.
"Let's begin with the talent for training speed and comprehension about the energies we use to dilute and mutate Essence." Vaen clapped and several strange devices with faded out names appeared at the ends of the large open area of the supposed antique castle. "Make rows to the devices and put your hands there, and you will naturally understand the test."
Time passed as everyone went to the correct places and began their tests.
After two hours it was finally Roland's turn and he observed the weird black device, it was black and tall as himself with several demarcations in each faded names, at his front while remembering what happened to the people that touched the device before him.
Anyone that touched it made the light shine on one of the faded names that were respectively Low Grade, Common, Soldier, Baron, Marquess, Duke, King, Emperor, and Demigod. The better the talent of someone, more it shines and advances on ranking until Demigod. And the talent in the Great Arts also helps to increase the ranking by what the others competitors were saying.
Until now only appeared the first three rankings and some special people at the fourth rank. Vaen said that anyone at and beyond the third ranking will go to the second stage. Meaning that more than half of the competitors were already eliminated, though Vaen said they still have a chance of entering the Society.
Roland took a deep breath and touched the weird device.
And there it came the familiar sensation of being teleported, Elizabeth said to him people normally don't like about it, but he enjoyed it. It was a sensation wonderful and this just proved more how teleportation portals are amazing.
"Comprehend and Control Fate." A booming voice sounded and Roland found himself floating in a black space without anything besides of faded white stars.
Roland as if being manipulated by the strange voice, looked deeply into the stars and saw sinister images, poses, and texts about simple things like how the Energies interact with Essence.
He felt at ease when seeing them and he automatically moved in accord to the images and said aloud answers to questions he never saw in his life or even in the stars.
Surprisingly his head felt clearer and he was capable of thinking more deeply about the questions on the Eternal Water Spirit Incantation. "Why is the technique so sure about things like 'there is water on the air' or that blood and ice are just water? For a technique so profound, it wouldn't commit such mistakes that are against common sense."
One star light up and hovered at his front.
"And another strange thing. Vibrations together with solidification and condensation points. Why do I feel they are related? When I think about vibrations, I can only think of tremors and how they go from stillness to full movement… wait, doesn't water also vibrates from stillness to full movement when I mess with it and make waves? That count as 'vibrations' too?"
Another star light up but this time the color was beige.
"Could be it isn't wrong and that my common sense is entering the way I train in the technique? I must make experiments to discover the truth, one of them, for example, would be what happens if I put more blood from me in the Soul Spirit and vibrate it? Would it spread the blood through the Soul Spirit or would it disappear since there's already blood on there? I am curious since I saw the Soul Spirit shine red on my tribulation."
Now there were three stars hovering at his front, with the new one being bright green.
"And would the effects of experiments on water be different from the ones at the Soul Spirit? And… and what? I don't know more what to think. My head seems it will explode." Roland grabbed his head in pain.
A fourth star tried to shine but failed, only having a faint blue glow.
"These stars, does it mean my talent is Soldier Rank?" Roland wondered before the previous voice interrupted him.
"The Tools to Control, The Life to Bend, The Fire to Manipulate and The Death to Dominate. All of them are necessary for the Journey to Destroy The One living on the Immortal Existence."
Now the Soul Spirit suddenly appeared and Roland screamed in pain as his mind got flooded with thoughts not belonging to him.
He saw people using Equipment Formation to create what appeared to be a sharp onyx weapon, he saw how they used all kinds of techniques to create only one weapon to rule all over the other weapons and learned from them.
Roland's body against his wishes got enveloped by Azure Energy and he instinctively followed the movements and techniques from the people in his mind.
The fourth star shone in an azure light brighter than any other star.
"Now is Essence Reinforcement? Is this the test to see the latent for the four Great Arts?"
The sharp onyx weapon was then submerged on an ocean of lights that looking closely, Roland perceived they were actually runes of meanings he never saw in his life but felt like he could easily mimic them if necessary without understanding them.
The fifth star glew even brighter than its sister star, making the other stars lack in comparison to its powerful purple light.
"Yes, I'm not wrong. Why show the competitors how to make such powerful weapon that probably will in some way be used by all Great Arts?"
Roland felt fear seeing a golden fire being used to refine some kind of liquid that was dumped on the onyx weapon, making its edge flare in a mystical fire capable of severing any connection it cuts thanks to the venomous medicine used on it.
The sixth red star faintly glittered on a red light, its luster was even fainter than the first star but it was shining nonetheless.
"How's that possible? Why this weapon exist?"
Roland saw innumerable people suiciding and someone near the weapon made a grasping motion to make several balls of lights that Roland for some reason knew it were souls come from the dead bodies. The souls were put on the weapon and it began to float by itself as if alive, Roland could faintly see an avatar behind the weapon.
The weapon was complete and it was alive!
A seventh star shone in a color Roland thought it was impossible to exist, it was a black glow.
And it wasn't the end of it, a eighth star tried to shine but failed, only being possible to see faint glows of a brown light.
"Age: 22. Name: Roland. Surname: Not worthy of having one. Best Talent: Soul Tampering's Darkness and Essence Reinforcement's Space. Rank: Quasi Emperor." The voice shouted and Roland felt being take away to the place he was before.
"Verdict: You aren't worthy! Begone, Copy! You aren't our Savior, The All-Powerful Destroyer!"
Those were the last words Roland heard from the voice, his mind was full of questions about the weapon and the words about what the voice called of its savior.
But it won't be now that his questions will be answered because the last words of the voice disappeared from his mind on the moment his feet touched the place he was before.
"Am I forgetting something? Probably not…" He thought and looked around to see that people weren't surprised with his result with the name 'Emperor' shining and fading of his device.
Everyone was instead staring with their mouths hanging open and wide eyed to the young boy with a dog and a five-colored parrot Roland saw earlier, his ranking was actually, "Quasi-Demigod!"
They knew that until know only the notorious Elizabeth Eden had a perfect Demigod ranking and now appeared someone with a ranking tailing right behind her, how could not the people be astounded by that? It was the rise of another peerless genius to the Master Blacksmith Society.
In contrast to that, what was Roland's ranking of Quasi-Emperor?
It was nothing in their opinions, although some higher ups of the Society would disagree with that because George, Vaen and others old elders were looking more passionately to Roland because they knew now what were his talents, how the fourth star shone brightly, and they knew Roland's true high age.
Making him reach Quasi-Emperor being already adult more impressive than anything.
A genius like the young boy will, of course, be appreciated but they already have Elizabeth as a comparison so their enthusiasm to him is not that big. His talent for Equipment Formation is low and Elizabeth's training speed was more than ten times his.
Meanwhile, they were certain because the mayor, a renowned seer, used her powers without anyone noticing to perfectly discern that Roland really only began to train some weeks ago and was moreover, able to use God Touch with great talents for their prefered Great Arts, Equipment Formation and Essence Reinforcement. And Roland had another function of being the first Follower of Elizabeth, making him the only chance they have of forcing Elizabeth to train again.
So to them, Roland was more valuable and important than the young boy despite that the public opinion will focus in him more than Roland.
And that made Roland happy. "Thank you World's Fate. I was worrying people would never let me in peace if my result was the highest. And also thank you, young boy. You are my savior, you are really a nice guy for taking all the attention to you. Your sacrifice won't be in vain, I will be certain to live in peace in your stead." Roland felt like bowing to the selfless sacrifice of the soon to be his new friend, the red-haired young boy.