Jung took the first step. He remained beside Walt, waiting for the teens. Ronan was the second one, followed by the twins and Mira who stood behind them, her eyes glued to the tower.
As they stood in front of the door, the overseer snapped his fingers.
Seconds ticked, but nothing happened.
The delay didn't end easily, and they lingered in silence, anticipating something to occur.
After about two minutes, the ground trembled beneath them. It felt like an earthquake, but a persistent one.
One more minute later, the door abruptly opened, yet there was nothing in it. No darkness, no colour could be seen. It was more of a colour mixture, as if the stains united to say or show something.
Appearing like a living organism, the abyss stared back at them. This brought Jung a shivering, chilly feeling. However, he liked uneasiness. The sensation that he was always on edge made him realize he was alive.
"Come with me," Walt said and reached into the nothingness. "One at a time."
Jung was first in line, but before proceeding, he looked back at Leora and said, "You know that chivalry is overrated, right?"
He had no desire to wait for a reaction and leapt behind Walt. His senses were immediately cut off, leaving Jung with only vision, which couldn't even function properly.
[This is a fascinating place,] The system said out of nowhere.
"What do you mean?" Jung asked as he tried to find the overseer's shadow.
[This is like an artificial dimension, forged by a mortal,] she revealed, marvel transparent in her voice.
"I thought only gods or higher beings could create it." It was Nero's moment to shine.
'They are talking in unison.' Jung presumed and said, still following wavering shadows. "Reminds me of dungeons."
[You are correct,] Vex, as Nero named her, agreed. [The same principles operate here, albeit more unstable, resulting in losing senses.]
"So that's why," Jung declared and located Walt, who appeared more clearly, standing near another entry.
"This is the real passage," he announced and opened the door again.
Now, a room containing countless youngsters appeared. Overseer, Jung, and others quickly went in and found themselves in a completely new environment.
The surrounding space was outside of that abyss. It was a vast hall, with enormous pillars holding it and creating a lavish, extravagant mood.
Silver and gold dominated the lobby, and students were everywhere. Like Jung, they were waiting for the examination to start.
"We are going to live in this place?" Nero asked, clearly excited.
"Yep," Jung answered and added. "But with snobbish, annoying, and ugly brats."
"What's up with your loathing for academies?" Nero questioned. She was curious regarding his reasons.
"Ask Vex. She has everything on me," Jung answered, acting like an upset child as he watched the teens close to him.
[You are almost correct,] the system said. [But I know nothing about your first life; I never had access to that information.]
"Really?" Jung asked in surprise. He wasn't expecting that.
As he wanted to say more, Jung realized Walt had disappeared, completely leaving his radar. "Where is he?" he asked but got no answer from his companions.
Suddenly, a commotion erupted, drawing attention to one particular corner. There stood a man or a woman.
It was hard to tell based on their appearance.
Covering with a white mask and armour, a soft voice was uttered from hidden lips. "Welcome to the Arcane Academy."
Even though the hall was big, and chatter filled the room, her words were easily heard.
The voice belonged to a woman. She revealed her face and caused quite a stir among the crowd. There were two reasons for their reactions.
Jung was quick to catch on to youngsters muttering. All in all, the woman was famous in Arcane City. Carrying unusual beauty, young age, strength, and status, she had it all. Yet if that wasn't enough, she was a recognized hero who saved countless people.
Her name was unknown. She was just called Snowshade by many, as her hero archetype abilities were related to snow.
Jung listened carefully, smiling to himself. 'Hero, they say. Then why do I see a ruler mark on her head?' There was something fishy going on, and Jung hooked on to that.
'This is interesting,' he thought and listened to the so-called hero.
"Please make lines and wait for your turn." Her voice was always soft and loud. "Supervisors should have explained, but we are going to test your tiers and aptitude."
The mask she displayed earlier vanished, yet her lustrous body and face drew the gaze of boys and girls alike.
She had long, unkempt blonde hair, which made her even more attractive. With a scar on her lips and tattoos on her fingers, she had an intimidating aura around her.
Jung settled in a line. Ronan was on his left, Mira on his right, the twins behind him, meaning, the entire cohort was in place.
Students barely talked. Only whispers filled the room, as no one dared to speak aloud. 'This is a great audience.' Jung thought. 'Wish I had a crowd like this back in my days.'
He arrived at the academy for various purposes. His primary goal of saving Elara would never shake.
However, he had to develop, primarily due to what was going on in the world. The Chosen One was an important chess piece to protect the world, but not in his grand schemes.
Therefore he wanted to draw all the attention to himself. Before the whole Maskera found out who the Archeons chose.
So he acted.
No hesitancy, with no lingering thoughts.
Jung left the line and strolled towards Snowshade, not caring about her previous warning to wait for his turn.
"What are you doing?" The woman asked. Her voice was no longer soft, but demanding.
Jung ignored her question, maintaining his pace.
"Don't make me repeat myself!" Snowshade, the proud hero of this generation, roared; she respected order above everything and despised when someone didn't follow it.
Regardless of her demands, Jung walked with no reluctance. Fear didn't exist in his heart; all he felt was excitement.
His companions were too stunned to stop him. They couldn't even utter a sound.
Eventually, Jung arrived before the woman, smiling the entire time.
She was watching him with disdain but interest. "You have the balls to act this way in my presence," she said in a cold tone, causing youngsters to tremble in dread.
Jung smirked at her comment. Observing her for a moment, he said with a mischievous face, silencing the crowd.
"Do you want to see a magic trick?"