The Beginning

"The tower has about 100 floors not including secret zones"

"All life inside the tower is maintained by the essence it emits. Mana is the lifeline that you and everyone inside the tower depend on to survive."

"It's also the thing that makes it possible to activate spells."

The boy raised his hand and a faint red glow emitted from his palm, soon after a small flame took form.

"But whether you take the route of a mage or not is up to you I guess."

"There are other ways to use mana?"

"Course' mana is more than just an energy source, it's life itself." The boy explained gleefully.

"Life energy used by the gods, you should be thankful you even get to be in its presence." The boy said somewhat condescendingly.

"If you're going to waste my time I'll leave now."

I had no time to waste, I wanted to leave desperately if it meant I could get to the top quicker. Although he was pretty bratty his information was invaluable to me.

"I don't think I've ever met someone as impatient as you." The boy sighed.

"Humans like you that enter the tower aren't used to the essence of the tower, so it changes your body a good bit."

He was right, ever since I entered the tower I felt stronger and all my wounds disappeared instantly.

"You don't say"

"You can go now."

The boy waved his hand and a giant white door appeared behind him. He gestured to it and looked at me begrudgingly.

"I usually don't do this..."

"What?"

"If anyone asks say you're lookin' for Dreus."

At this point I couldn't be bothered to ask any more questions, it was clear this kid wasn't planning on explaining any further.

"I'll be there soon" I whispered quietly to myself.

No matter how long it took I would reach the top and make everything right. I approached the door, which opened widely, revealing a black void.

"Don't die early, otherwise it'd be no fun." The boy puffed his cheeks out playfully, it would've been cute if he wasn't mentioning my death.

"I'm off."

I blinked a few times and took in my surroundings, I was in the middle of a road surrounded by giant unfamiliar buildings. I looked around and saw a giant castle in the distance which reminded me of the empire, it was the first time I had ever seen a foreign structure.

"Guess I better get going."

While I walked through the door, I decided to sort out everything the golden-haired boy had told me earlier. It was now that I realised that I was more clueless than I really thought.

Sure I knew what mana was but I had no idea how to use it, it really feels like that kid skipped a few important points...

Thinking about my situation more deeply, I was in a foreign place with no place to stay and no food to eat. The first thing I had to do was find a way to get my hands on some money.

I exited the door and wound up in a completely unfamiliar city, not similar to the empire in the slightest. Buildings were higher and more extravagant and it looked more futuristic than anything I had ever seen.

All I can do now is walk I guess.

I reached the bottom of a long stairway leading up to a library like struvture.

"You must be nervous huh?" A blue hair girl nudged me on the shoulder happily.

"Who are you?"

"You're taking the examination aren't you, I was so nervous I didn't get any sleep..." The girl took on a sulky face but quickly returned to her former excited demeanour.

"But as soon as I get my licence ill be sure to become a ranker."

"Listen I'm not here to take an ex-"

"Ah! I wasn't expecting to make a new friend so quickly, my name is Eva! Yours?" Eva wrapped her arm around me as she talked excitedly.

"Johan..."

This girl dragged me around like a dog and gave me no room to speak but she knew a lot more about this new world so going along with her whims couldn't be that bad.

We continued up the staircase and made it to the top, the building I saw from far away no longer looked like a castle. Now that I was closer it resembled the manor more than anything.

"Lucky us! We got here early so we'll have time to get to know each other."

"...Sure."

-----

"So you're telling me you've lost your memories and have no idea where you are?"

"Yes, pretty much."

Eva crossed her arms for a moment and squinted her eyes cautiously. We both entered the building and sat down inside the main hall where a small number of other people were already sitting.

"Well we're friends so you have no reason to lie." Eva laughed happily.

This girl was too trusting for her own good...

I explained to Eva about everything that had happened to me excluding me entering the tower. Eva told me a lot of new things about the examination and how the tower worked.

"First off you should check your status and see whether or not you're made for this examination."

"Status?"

"It's basically a physical manifestation of the mana in the tower, showing the capabilities of a human in a more understandable format."

"Ah, well how do I check my status..."

"Of course, you say it out loud! Just like you would in a game." Eva teased me while chuckling to herself quietly.

Game? Ever since I first saw the tower I've been encountering new things I've never seen and about topics I've never heard about. It was possible that the tower and everything within might've been from a different country, maybe a different era.

"Status."

Suddenly a flash of light appeared in my face as a rectangle that mimicked the 'screen' that the golden-haired boy had shown me started to take shape.

[STATUS]

Health - F

Strength - F

Mana - F

Authority - Point B

All F... maybe they would've been higher if I worked out more in the past.

That golden-haired boy didn't leave me with much but now was the best time to ask.

"Where can I find Dreus?"

"You already have."

Suddenly, the lights in the auditorium dimmed and the stage was illuminated. A huge long-haired man walked up to the podium and scanned the room briefly.

"Welcome to the 120th centennial tower exam."