Two weeks passed by in a flash. Kai spent that time helping around in the house and on the farm, catching up with his friends, and also meditating.
The caravan, led by High General Rudolf, finally arrived in their town. The townspeople hurriedly set up their fanciest inn to house the soldiers of the army. Rudolf requested a meeting with the head of the town to discuss the date of the Selection.
"High General Rudolf, I welcome you to our humble town. It is an honor to be in your presence." The town head slightly bowed his head, paying his respects to General Rudolf.
Rudolf waved him off, focusing on what he did instead. "We have come to recruit more mages and martial artists from your backwater town. I was told that there may be talents this time around so I came to see it for myself." During the journey here, Rudolf had finally cracked and spilled the beans to Eren. Because of how important this matter was, Eren knew he couldn't let the matter leak out to untrustworthy ears. He had come up with a plan to use as a cover story for Rudolf to use.
The village head nodded hastily as he replied, "Of course, we will try our best to help you find these talents! Please, stay in our best inn until you're ready to begin the Selection." He offered.
"No need, even the bed in my wagon is more comfortable than your personal bed." Rudolf did not mince words and directly insulted the village head and the village. The old man had no choice but to take it lying down as he gritted his teeth behind a smile.
Although the Imperial Army was the undisputed ruler of this era, that didn't mean that all the citizens of the explored universe followed them blindly. There were rebellions everywhere. None of them had grown to the point of being able to uproot the Imperial Army. It was just too difficult to find mages to fight for their cause. Most people they could find were mostly cowards who wouldn't dare challenge the Imperial Army's rule.
"Set the Selection to be done in three days' time. I'll personally supervise it. Make sure all the villagers, within the ages of fourteen to forty, attend. Filter out all the disabled and present the sick to the army's troops. We have healers that will heal them before the due date. We must leave no stone unturned." With those last words, Rudolf stood up from the chair, wiping his buttocks as he strolled out of the room, pride rolling off his shoulders in waves.
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As time passed, they informed the villagers of the date of the Selection. Coincidentally, that day was also Kai's birthday.
[Scanning database... According to the research and experience that Kasuyi has carried out, the path to ascending in classes can be considerably shortened for you with my guidance].
Kai was sitting on one of the top branches of a tree at the edge of town. He had just returned from a hunt and was wondering how he could increase his class ranking.
'Okay, so how do I do that?'
[You can absorb the essence of a beast on the same level as you, or of a higher class than you. I can scale the progress bar at hundred progress points. Beasts of the same class as you will only provide one to five points, while beasts on a higher tier will provide more points. Note that the growth stage of the beasts will be factored in the refinement of their essence].
"Hmm..." Kai absentmindedly hummed as he swung his leg. "Sounds like a lot of work." He rolled his eyes before jumping down from the tree. He trekked back home, whistling on a low note while looking around the town.
'The Imperial Army... Their leaders should be Kasuyi's former three disciples... They must be strong.' He instinctually spoke to the Divine Mage System. It had become a common thing for him to converse with the System, as it had a mind of its own.
[Indeed. All three of Lord Kasuyi's former disciples are at the level of Pseudo-Demigod class. They already have a foot in the realm of the Demigods. All they need now is a catalyst that will spur on their growth. Unfortunately for you, as your fate has been entwined with Lord Kasuyi's, you have become exactly what they need].
Kai's brows furrowed. 'What do you mean by that?'
[Kasuyi left behind an inheritance before he died. Everyone wants the Inheritance of one of the very few Demigod class beings for themselves. What they seek in me. With me, progressing up the ranks will be a thousand times more simplified than before... What they are doing now is akin to grasping around in the dark, but I can act as a torch in a dark cave, pointing the way forward].