As the goddess of the hearth, she is the guardian and overseer of the fire of creation located at the heart of Mount Olympus. Aiden had heard that while her combat power may not be high, in terms of influence, none of the gods dared to underestimate her.
As it stands now, the fire of creation was at the heart of essential functions in Olympus. Things as majestic as Feats of Renown, or even something as trivial as travel between worlds, all relied on the fire of creation.
Divine Descendants of Hestia would naturally inherit some of her divine authority and be able to manipulate the fire of creation to a lesser extent. One could not underestimate how vital this was to the daily upkeep of Olympus and her vassal worlds.
Aiden heard that they don't even have to pass any combat-related assessment to enter Olympus Academy. As long as their affinity with the fire of creation was up to par, their entry was basically guaranteed. Divine Descendants of House Hestia were not valued for their combat prowess but their utility.
A perfect example of this would be the mysterious lady Aiden had seen open the Gate of Fire for the giant voidships Aiden was riding to Olympus Academy. Only Divine Descendants of House Hestia are capable of opening the Gate of Fire.
"I'd like to redeem these two divine techniques," Aiden said as he put the books for both [Sunlight Shuttle] and [Apollo's Archery—True Dawn] on the counter for the exchange.
The receptionist brought out a red gem which shot out a red light and scanned the books. Before Aiden knew what was happening, the red light shot out towards the back and after a short while returned with two new books floating along with it.
Aiden's eyes widened with shock at the display of these strange supernatural means. The receptionist just smiled. She had seen several similar reactions from the new trainees already today.
The receptionist put the two incomplete books to the side and handed Aiden the complete manuals. Aiden didn't hesitate and quickly took them, but as he was looking through the manuals, the receptionist suddenly called out to him.
"Your token."
Aiden, realizing what she was asking for, reached into his pocket and found the identification token he had been given when he registered at the training camp. He then passed it to the receptionist.
She took Aiden's token and reached to the side, bringing out a crystal ball that seemed to have a small crimson flame flickering inside of it.
As Aiden gazed into the crystal ball, the crimson flame inside captivated him. The flawless glass amplified the flame's fluid, hypnotic dance, casting a warm glow as it swirled with graceful energy.
Aiden watched carefully as the receptionist brought his token to the crystal ball, causing the flame to shake and shoot out a crimson light that merged with the token.
Aiden saw his token emit a warm white flash before quickly returning to normal. The receptionist took one last look at the token before nodding and passing it back to Aiden.
When Aiden received the token, he instantly realized that the token in his hand was obviously different. Now, instead of just being a cold, lifeless token, it carried a warm, soothing feeling—almost as if holding a warm mug. The receptionist knew what Aiden's confusion was about.
"I have recorded your redeemed divine techniques and passed the information onto your token. With this token, you can gain one-time access to the Visualization rooms that contain the visualization scrolls for your chosen technique. It should be noted that while the first-time use for the visualization scroll is free, subsequent uses will require points to redeem, so try to make the best of the free chance you get."
Hearing this, Aiden nodded and thanked the receptionist before walking away and letting the person behind him redeem their techniques.
Aiden walked through the library—well, technically it couldn't be considered the library any longer as it was instead a building attached to the library, the Visualization Hall. Walking through the hallway was highly confusing.
Aiden didn't even need anyone to tell him before he realized that some sort of space magic had been applied to the entire building, allowing for the inside to be far larger than the outside would make you believe. It was large enough that an unguided person could easily get lost. Fortunately, the facility was well-built enough that there were proper signs placed around that could accurately guide anybody to their desired destination.
Because of this, Aiden rather easily navigated the hallways. As he was doing so, Aiden was looking through his newly received divine techniques. Unlike the introductory manuals, these ones were complete with tips and tricks to help one get started. They included circulation pathways that would be best for one to use to pass through divinity and stimulate the power of the god in their veins.
Aiden was slowly becoming absorbed in the mysteries of the book, but soon had to stop reading—that was because he had arrived at something more important than the manual, the visualization scroll.
Aiden stopped before a door, and a room hanging above the door was a simple plaque that stated what technique the visualization scroll inside was for. Aiden looked up and smiled.
"[Sunlight Shuttle]"
Aiden knew that he had arrived at his destination. Bringing out his identification token, Aiden walked towards the door. The door was strange. It was plain and simple, composed of a strange type of golden bronze, but even stranger still was that the door was completely bare.
By that, I mean there was nothing on it—no door handle, no doorknob, no bars to pull, or even buttons to press. Aiden looked around and the only thing he could see was a strange small crystalline hemisphere poking out of the wall to the right of the door. Aiden looked at it and hesitated before bringing his token and placing it over the hemisphere.