As soon as Alden walked into the second floor of the building, he noticed a young woman already waiting for him.
The second floor was very quiet, unlike the busy ground floor. There were no much people around this one.
The woman welcomed him kindly with a friendly smile and led Alden down a long hallway.
She stopped in front of a door and said, "I can only take you this far. You can go in now." Then she walked away.
Alden pushed the door open and stepped inside.
A man was sitting behind a table and his eyes immediately locked onto Alden, as if he had been expecting him.
This was Orion placed in charge to overlook the affair of this registration Center.
"Junior greets you, Senior," Alden said respectfully, bowing slightly.
Alden stood near the desk, facing Orion. The man wore a big hat that covered half of his face, but his sharp eyes were clearly visible.
He didn't say a word, just stared at Alden, making him feel uneasy. Orion's presence was so strong that it felt like a heavy weight pressing down on Alden.
'Such a powerful presence,' he thought to himself. Without being told, he already knew the man before him was extraordinarily strong.
Alden wanted to use his ability to scan the man, but as if sensing his intention, Orion raised his eyes and looked directly into Alden's eyes.
Alden quickly stopped, afraid of being caught in the act, which might anger the man.
"Pass it over," Orion finally talk, breaking the silence that felt like an eternity.
Alden tossed the silver token in his hand over to him. Orion caught it and examined it briefly.
"So, you're the boy with the A-rank Talent," Orion said, tossing the token up and down in his hand.
"Yes, I am," Alden replied confidently.
Orion chuckled softly. "You're quite confident. I like that." He pointed to a chair. "Sit down."
Alden sat down facing him.
"Not bad, not bad," Orion said. "An A-rank Talent will really help our city. It seems like luck is finally on our side.
This time, we've had several people awaken high-rank Talents, from C to A. You're the sixth person with an A-rank Talent."
Orion paused and looked at Alden closely. "But there's something I don't understand," he said.
"What is it?" Alden asked, his brow furrowing slightly.
"Sammy, we ran a quick background check on you and found out you failed the potential test at fifteen," Orion said, his tone curious. "How is it that you awakened a Talent? That have never happened before."
Orion's eyes were filled with curiosity. There had never been a case like this before. Once someone failed the first test, they were considered hopeless for life. Yet, here was a young boy who had awakened a Talent despite that, it was suspicious to him.
How would the Talent Registration officials not dig out information about the Talent Awakener? That is why it's called talent registration.
So hearing the question, Alden wasn't surprised about it. Luckily, he already prepared himself for scenario's like this.
Alden remained silent for some time, acting as someone trying to remember.
"I don't actually know how I awakened, but somehow I found myself easily doing things I couldn't normally do."
"Easily able to carry things I struggled with in the past, walking or running without getting tired quickly..."
Alden answered, his voice containing a hint of confusion, as if he was also shocked over his awakening.
Orion sighed, "Oh, I see. You must be lucky then."
Alden was a little taken aback. He was expecting a series of questions but received a simple reply.
He felt like laughing in his heart. Did the man think he could deceive him? He knew within the man's heart that he didn't buy the lies he made up.
This was one of his worries in the first place. He felt joy within his heart that he didn't reveal his real talent from the start.
If not, the Talent Registration officials would go to any length to find out how he awakened such power after failing his potential test, and in the process, he would be in grave danger.
At this point, he also knew that the Talent Registration officials was going to keep a close watch at him and continue some research about his situation.
"That aside," Orion waved it off. "Normally, there is a certain amount we give to Awakeners during their registration, depending on their Talent rank, to support themselves—like to buy weapons or other things that would increase their strength."
Alden nodded in satisfaction.
"For A-rank Talent Awakeners, they will receive 15,000."
Within Alden's heart, he was in shock. Fifteen thousand dollars was still a big amount of money to take care of some stuff.
Orion passed a device to him.
Seeing what was on the page, he quickly typed in his information as needed before passing the device back.
"Alright, you'll be receiving the money in your account later, and also, all the necessary information you need to know will be forwarded to your Tmail."
After done with the registration process, Alden stood up, gave a polite nod to Orion and left the office.
First plan completed, he would be going for the next one.
In the office, Orion reached out for his communication device and place a call to someone. After a few rings, a voice answered on the other end.
"Keep a close eye on Sammy Draven and also get the others to continue to find out more about him." With that he end the call.
Orion's eyes stayed fixed on the empty seat where Alden has been sitting just moments ago. The atmosphere slightly changed as if Alden's presence had left behind a mysterious shadow.
He couldn't shake off the strange feeling in his heart—a mix of curiosity and unease. There was something about Alden that didn't sit right with him, but he couldn't figure out what it was.
He leaned back in his chair, his brow furrowing as he tried to piece it together, there was surely a puzzle missing its key pieces. Orion's fingers tapped lightly on the armrest, his mind on it.
He thought of different possibilities that would make a late bloomer awaken, all the way of a high A-rank Talent. The more he thought about it, the more he wants to know about the way Alden did it but there was no answer popping up in his mind.
"Strange.." he muttered to himself. "There's something about that doesn't add up." He paused, his gaze hardening as he stared at the empty chair.
"Sooner or later, I'll figure it out. We'll get to the root of whatever mystery you're hiding." For now, all he could do was wait and watch.