A day had passed since Zion learned he no longer had a chance to become an Elite Knight.
The receptionist's words echoed in his mind.
"You're only thirty percent."
Thirty percent wasn't enough to qualify, and it hit him harder than any blow.
But despair wouldn't bring him closer to Myr.
If he couldn't join the Elite Knights, he'd carve out another path—no matter how difficult it was.
He sat near the storage area for horse feed, the sharp scent of hay and grain filling the place.
'I'll become stronger,' Zion muttered, gripping his hands into fists.
"Stronger than any Elite Knight. I'll make a name for myself as an adventurer and rise above them all. Then, I'll find you, Myr."
He stood with newfound resolve burning in his chest, brushing off the dust from his clothes.
His first goal was clear: rise through the ranks of the Adventurer's Guild.
Each step forward was a step closer to Myr.
Without another moment of hesitation, he marched toward the guild's entrance.
---
The Adventurer's Guild.
When Zion arrived at the guild early in the morning.
"Did you hear what happened last night?" one adventurer asked, leaning against the wall with crossed arms. "It's about the Affinity Sphere. It's total chaos."
"What happened?" another adventurer replied, tilting his head with curiosity.
"They heard noises coming from the awakening room. When the staff checked, the sphere had cracks all over it—and then it just shattered!" the first adventurer explained, his eyes wide with disbelief.
"Why did it break?" the second adventurer asked.
"No one knows for sure," the first one replied, lowering his voice like he was sharing a secret. "But they saw black clouds and said the sphere was filled with a dark red color—not like the red of Fire affinity. It was something else."
"Dark affinity?" a hooded woman muttered, her voice low and cautious. "But there is no Dark Affinity."
"Yeah, never heard that." the first adventurer added, glancing around like he was afraid someone might overhear. "But some are saying it's a sign. You know, a curse from the gods. The abyssal did open a hundred years ago, after all."
Zion's eyes widened as he listened. His mind flashed back to when he touched the sphere.
'Could it be related to that?' He thought about what happened to him at the clearing.
No, he shook his head.
It was probably just a coincidence since there were a lot of people yesterday who awakened their Affinity.
With the sphere broken, no one can awaken their affinity until a new one is brought from the capital.
And those aren't easy to make.
Zion stayed quiet, pushing the thoughts aside.
He had his own mission.
He needed to rise in rank.
Heading to the reception desk, he handed over his ID.
"I'd like to register to be Adventurer," he said firmly.
"Really? I'm glad," he said happily as he eagerly took the ID. Moments later, the ID's appearance changed, turning silver. "This ID changes color depending on your job. The previous plain white color means you're jobless," she explained.
She then pointed to a chart on her right showing the Rank E quests. "You can pick anything you want."
"Rank E quests are for beginners and involve non-combat tasks. But if you're a fighter, start with a Rank E quest and complete it. Once you submit the quest to us, you can rank up to Rank D, which allows you to take on monster hunts," she explained further.
Zion nodded and immediately picked a quest without even reading it.
Zion slid a parchment across the desk.
"Gathering herbs. You'll need to collect five bundles of Helvia Grass from the west side forest outskirts."
The receptionist stamped his quest form and handed him a permit to leave the city.
"Don't lose that permit," she warned. "If you failed that in two days, you will be penalized."
Zion nodded, slipping the permit into his pouch. With that, he left the guild and headed toward the forest on the west side.
A little while later, Zion stepped out.
"Helga, have you removed the quests I told you to take off from Rank F?" a man asked inside the receptionist area while busily signing the papers.
Helga, who was just now taking down the quests, replied nervously, "Yes, sir. They've been removed."
"Good. No one has taken the quests yet to hunt the monster spotted there."
'He looks strong. It seems like he can handle it,' Helga thought to herself, praying for Zion. "He's strong!" she muttered under her breath, more on to reassure herself.
---
The Forest's west side of Nepil City.
The familiar scent of leaves and damp earth surrounded him as he stepped into the forest.
Zion's heart felt at ease here. It reminded him of his home, where Tata had taught him how to survive in the wild.
But suddenly, his thoughts shifted as he remembered the terrifying encounter he had with the wolves and the bear.
He shook his head to clear his mind. "I don't have time for this," he muttered.
This forest is just outside Nepil City and is safe for everyone.
Finding Helvia Grass wasn't difficult. Its distinct silver-tipped leaves made it easy to spot.
Zion crouched down, carefully plucking the herb and placing it in his satchel.
Zion knew these herbs were a remedy for stomach pain. He had extensive knowledge of herbs, especially healing ones.
Since Myr was a reckless fighter who often got injured, it was always Zion who patched her up.
As he moved deeper into the forest, his mind wandered to his new affinity—Earth Affinity.
'I'll have to learn how to use it,' he muttered, glancing at his hands. "But where do I even start?"
Suddenly, the sound of rustling caught his attention.
He froze, eyes darting toward the source.
It came from behind the bushes.
A small green-skinned figure emerged—a goblin, standing at half his height. Its beady red eyes locked onto Zion, and it bared its jagged teeth.
Among the goblin race, it was one of the weakest, but that didn't make it any less dangerous.
Despite it being his first time fighting a monster alone, Zion remained unfazed.
The memory of facing the wolves and the bear had hardened him.
"Time to test my power," he whispered, narrowing his eyes.
As Zion remembers from what Tata taught them, the maximum area we can manipulate with 30% Earth magic is 30 meters.
'However, the only parts of the earth I can use are soil, stone, and roots.'
'Even if it's just 30%, it still takes more than a year to reach that 30% and the mastery for just one type of earth.' he muttered.
The goblin hissed and lunged at him with a crude dagger.
Zion dodged to the side.
The goblin's attack was slow and predictable.
Zion summoned a small stone and shaped it into a sharp point.
The goblin charged again toward him.
As Zion threw the stone, his hand recoiled from the impact.
The stone pierced the goblin's chest and it collapsed with a thud.
"The force wasn't enough," he muttered.
Zion felt his attack lacked power because the standard force should be a maximum of one hundred percent, capable of piercing through a mountain at both ends.
All the knowledge he had was taught to him by Tata.
As he was thinking, a rustling sound came from the grass.
Seven small goblins appeared, making low growling sounds.
"Grrrk! Grrrk!"
A smirk appeared on Zion's face.
"Thanks for the training."