Chapter3-Dispute at the Awakening Square

At this moment, the village square was filled with villagers.

The awakening of the "mana core" was the most grand event in the town, so everyone came to join in the excitement.

In the square, many children looked either hopeful, fearful, or confident as they stared at the huge stone monument in the center.

This monument was the key to unlocking the "mana core."

It also decided their future.

As long as they could awaken a "mana core" of C-level or above, they would be selected by the 'important figures' who came to observe.

Then they could escape this poor village and enter a larger world.

"Wow, Owen, look at all the people!"

Ella, lively and cheerful, excitedly tugged on Owen's arm, hopping around.

"Be careful."

Owen said somewhat helplessly.

After all, with so many people, one could easily trip.

"Well, if it isn't the one with ambitions higher than the sky, but a fate as thin as paper."

"What are you doing here today to embarrass yourself?"

A cocky voice rang out.

Then, a brash boy, followed by a group of 'lackeys,' swaggered over.

The boy was Ryder, a well-known troublemaker in the town.

He often bullied his peers.

He had been eyeing Ella for a long time.

But Ella showed him no interest and always hovered around Owen.

Thus, Ryder bore a grudge against Owen.

"Ryder!"

"The one to be embarrassed will definitely be you!"

Hearing Ryder mock Owen, Ella was instantly furious, her pretty eyes filled with anger.

"Ella, sticking with this poor boy will get you nowhere."

Instead of getting angry at Ella's outburst, Ryder smirked and said, "Master Valen has already said that after this evaluation, I'll be joining House Valen."

"That's the most powerful family in our village."

"They even have connections in the city!"

Ryder's lackeys chimed in, as if they were the ones joining House Valen, "Yeah, from now on, Ryder will be part of House Valen!"

"We'll be living the good life with Ryder!"

"House Valen is the top family in our town, and only someone with Ryder's potential can join them."

"Exactly, some people couldn't get in even if they wanted to."

Ella, far from calming down, grew even more furious and retorted, "Joining House Valen? To be their dog?"

Ella's words struck a nerve with Ryder, whose face darkened as he pointed at Owen and shouted, "So what if I become their dog?"

"Being a dog for House Valen is better than sticking with this loser!"

"House Valen are the original inhabitants of this world, their power is something Owen could never compare to!"

"If House Valen wanted to crush Owen, it would be as easy as crushing an ant!"

Hearing Ryder belittle Owen like this, Ella's face flushed red with anger, and she began to tremble.

Owen patted Ella's shoulder, signaling her to calm down, and then stepped forward.

An invisible aura of authority emanated from Owen.

He didn't intentionally release his pressure, but his years as a leader gave him a natural aura that these 'kids' could not withstand.

Ryder and his lackeys felt their knees go weak and nearly fell to the ground.

"You're in the way,"

Owen said calmly, looking at Ryder and his group.

Having faced much greater challenges, Owen had little interest in these kids.

However, if they went too far, Owen wouldn't hesitate to give them a thorough 'lesson.'

Reacting instinctively to Owen's words, Ryder and his lackeys moved aside, clearing the path.

Ella couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Some people aren't even as good as ants."

"Isn't that right, Owen?"

Ella said, laughing as she clung to Owen's arm.

Owen smiled and shook his head, then led Ella towards the center of the square.

Ryder, meanwhile, glared at Owen's back with a venomous expression.

If looks could kill, Ryder would have stabbed Owen a thousand times over.

"You worthless fools!"

With no other outlet for his anger, Ryder turned to his lackeys and shouted, "What good are you? Scared off by just a look?"

"Ryder, didn't you back off too?"

A scrawny lackey muttered weakly.

Hearing this, Ryder kicked him to the ground.

"Shut your mouth!"

Ryder snapped angrily.

The other lackeys, terrified, trembled and didn't dare make a sound.

"Once I awaken my mana core, Ella will see who is truly the best choice for her!"

Ryder said, glaring darkly at Owen's back.

His eyes revealed a clear, lecherous desire whenever he looked at Ella.

Owen led Ella to the front of the square.

In front of the stone monument was a row of tables, where the village chief, the chief of House Valen, Lord Gale, Chief of Ares, and other notable figures of the village were seated.

Everyone of any repute in the village had come.

The central seat was empty, its intended occupant unknown.

"Valentine Valen, I heard your son was noticed by an important figure from the provincial capital right after he was born."

Lord Gale said, stroking the beard on his chin, "Once this test is over, he'll be able to go to the provincial capital."

"When that happens, you must look out for us folks back in the village."

"That's right, Valentine."

"We've been good friends for so many years, remember to lend us a hand when the time comes!"

The Chief of House Ares echoed.

"We've been neighbors for so many years, there's no need to talk about lending a hand or not."

Valentine enjoyed the flattery from the two chiefs.

Gale and Ares, satisfied with Valentine's response, smiled even more broadly.

The three then continued their animated conversation.

"Look, what's that?"

At that moment, a voice called out from the crowd.

Everyone looked up to see a black dot rapidly approaching the village.

As the dot grew larger, the head of House Valen stood up abruptly, his face changing dramatically as he said, "Damn! It's a flamehawk!"

"What? The 4-tier spellbeast flamehawk?"

The village chief's face also changed upon hearing this, and he shouted, "Quick, activate the village's protective array!"

The flamehawk was one of the fiercest spellbeasts in this world.

It was known for its ferocity and bloodthirstiness!

Thus, when the village chief and others saw it, their faces turned pale.

If this spellbeast managed to break into the village, even if they eventually killed it, many people would likely die or be injured!

Especially since the square was filled with fifteen and sixteen-year-old children, the future of the village.

Though some villagers rushed to activate the protective array,

the flamehawk moved like lightning and was already above them in the blink of an eye.

The flamehawk's jet-like body cast a shadow over the entire square.

With a flap of its wings, it stirred up a violent gust of wind.

Some of the weaker villagers struggled to stay on their feet and fell to the ground.

Owen stood protectively in front of Ella.

A pale-faced Ella clung tightly to Owen's arm.

Unlike the others, Owen's expression remained unusually calm.

At this moment, the village chief drew a giant sword, and the head of House Valen and the others brandished their staffs, watching the flamehawk in the sky with tense vigilance.

Yet, none of them dared to make a move.

They feared that provoking the flamehawk would lead it to slaughter everyone in the square.

"Does your village have no sense of precaution?"

As everyone stood ready, a haughty voice came from above.

Then a figure descended from the sky.

Magical elements swirled around, forming whirlwinds under his feet.

With each step, a whirlwind formed, making many onlookers see stars!

When the figure landed, everyone saw he wore a white uniform trimmed with gold, with an 'L' emblem on his chest.

He was from Lorlt Academy!

Lorlt Academy was the highest institution in the region, and each year during the testing, students from the academy traveled to various places to recruit talent.

Seeing that the young man was from the academy, the village chief and the others breathed a sigh of relief.

At the same time, they were also deeply shocked.

They hadn't expected a Lorlt Academy student to be able to subdue a flamehawk, and their respect for the academy's power grew even more.

"My name is Beckett."

"I'm in charge of this mana core awakening. Let's get started!"

Beckett spoke without waiting for a reply, his arrogant attitude evident to all.