Freya watched Bree walk forward and place her hand on the Lotus.
Lights flashed.
The image of a white tiger appeared and roared at the audience.
The curly-haired woman clapped her hands in excitement. "Well done! Well done!"
Bree bowed her head.
"Bree Carls of Fort's Square. You are assigned to Madam Selone, the Combat Specialist as her Substitute Teacher."
Bree smiled in self-satisfaction.
Freya clapped. She wasn't surprised that Bree got the job. A person with a deep understanding of Space magic would get the job if it wasn't rigged against her.
Freya watched her walk away.
The woman turned to the crowd. "Twenty more to go."
The number of names on the list kept decreasing. 15...10...7...4...
Finally, there was only one name left.
Freya looked at the number of people in front of her. 10 people.
The chances of all ten of them not conjuring an image was difficult enough...she couldn't be sure if there was anyone with a recommendation or not...
[Host! Don't worry! Luck is on your side!]
'Bad luck always is.'
A man in a deep purple tunic came forward and pressed his hand against the Lotus.
Light flashed.
A golden Monkey appeared above them and danced around.
The man let out a self-satisfied smile.
The curly-haired woman clapped and cheered.
She was the only one.
Everyone started to murmur.
The woman assigned the man his job and bid him farewell.
She turned to the job seekers who did not even get a chance to try out their luck, her face barely holding back her glee, indifferent to the lost opportunity of others.
"Thank you all for attending the meeting today," she said in a monotone. "There will be refreshments and lunch served to you soon so please stay for it. Those who don't want to can leave."
The woman left with the hooded figure in a flash of light.
Freya looked around her in a daze. Now what?
"Hmph!" a woman in a short white dress said. "The only reason why I didn't get the chance is because of those damned recommended ones!"
"My actualized magic is a bat!" a young woman said. "I would have done well in the music department but I didn't get the chance."
"Mine is a red rose!"
"Mine is a white rose!"
"Mine is a cat!"
"If only I had the opportunity! I would have outdone Royce!"
The people looked around for the brave man who said those words.
It was a man with a potbelly.
"Outdo Royce?" the woman in the short white dress asked. "Even I wouldn't say that. And people say I'm narcissistic."
The man rolled his eyes.
"So who is staying to eat the food?" a young man in a grey shirt asked. He looked barely past 16 and had blue hair and blue eyes.
"Not me!" the man with the potbelly said.
"Me neither," the white-dressed woman echoed.
Others nodded in agreement.
The man puffed out his chest on seeing how many agreed with him.
"Besides, the butler of my house makes better food."
The man left in a huff.
The rest of them followed.
Freya sat slumped against the wall, her mind elsewhere, flooded with thoughts she had tried not to think about since waking up that morning.
She had to pay her mother's bills, pay her brother's tuition, and feed them both...and feed herself.
She was jobless and whatever meagre jobs she found would just be enough to get by.
She felt her heart sink by just the thought of it.
The System decided to give its Host a quest to help her.
[Ding!]
[Quest 1: Make friends with one person with Actualised Magic.
Rank: G
Reward: 100 Credits.]
'You give money?!'
[Barely. The more you advance,the more you get.]
'I need 1000 Credits to settle this week's bill.'
[Complete 10 G Rank missions then.]
'Okay!'