The big news

Deep in the darkest part of a slum in a remote village, there is a young adult named Opal. She is dressed in soiled clothes and wears an art make-up that covers her face. She works in a small tavern where they serve alcohol, and spicy food, and bedrooms where people can rest for some time via a tavern. The tavern is called The King's Lute. While she was serving a guest she overhears some customers talking about an entrance test that will be carried out in three months.

"I heard that there will be a test for new knights for the empire…" said the First customer "but you must be of age to enter the test. The appropriate age is sixteen-to-twenty-two years."

"And I also heard that it is only those with wealth and power that can only be considered acceptable as candidates." Said the second customer.

"Really? Well, this time they said that commoners like us will be accepted this time around. But I hardly doubt that anyone like us will make it there."

After Opal's shift is over, she heads out and goes to a bar. There she goes to play a bet which she wins for the first time. She goes home in joy. On her way home she sees flyers for the so-called entrance test which is going around like wildfire. She takes one from one of the vendors. As she makes her way up to her apartment building, a group of whores are drunk and smoking outside in front of their doors. One of them smiles at Opal as she walks towards them who goes by the name Buttercup.

"HEY!!!" exclaimed Buttercup. "How have your day been… and why are you dressed in that AWFUL outfit?"

"All is well and most of my clothes got ruined by those thugs again."

"Hmm… If they try to do you any harm just call me. Okay?"

"…Of course I will."

The conversation ends with a smile as Opal heads into her home. She gets her frozen food from the freezer and sets it to warm up in the microwave while she takes a soak in the bathtub. Her apartment room is self-contained. She can watch her television while having a bath. Her television was set to a station where they talked about the latest news on celebrities before she changed it to the news. 

"Today we bring you the breaking news around the empire." Said the news broadcaster. 

The broadcaster starts the news from hard news to soft news. Then just as the news was about to finish. Opal had stepped out of the bath to eat and get dressed. While she was doing that the news broadcaster was announcing the most popular news that was going around. 

"Just recently the Emperor of Lombok had passed a message to his nation. Commoners can be allowed to join the Elite Knights. They already have over one hundred candidates. They have sent all their recruiters to other places like remote areas and soon the underground hometowns. Before becoming a member of the Elite Knights or a Guardian Knight you must start as a trainee for over six weeks in other to know how to fight for the country, serve the kingdom and improve your powers as well as become a Knight that will serve the nation before you are promoted to the main capital but before you are accepted, you will go throw a power test. To be sure you were gifted naturally, a mutation or you cheated by using magic. Anyone found with magic will surely be 'punished'. As we all know witches us magic and have brought disaster to us all once before."

Just as the news comes to an end, her doorbell rings. She goes to see who it is. She pecks through the peephole; a tall and rough-looking man holding a metal baseball bat while smoking stands at her door. She doesn't answer the door knowing fully well that he could be a killer.

"W-who are you?" she asked the man through the doorbell speaker.

"Hey, Opal!" said the man. "I am here to get my money. The money you are meant to pay to your low-life landlord here. That bastard owes me and he is right here with me or should I keep giving him a good beating?" Said the man as he lifted her injured landlord from the ground as proof that he was not lying.

Opal gets the money she was meant to pay to her landlord and hands it over to the man waiting outside. The man takes it and leaves.

Opal helps her landlord with his injuries and later takes him back to his house. When she returns she lays down on her bed. As she tries to clear her mind of too many thoughts she looks at the flyer she had collected she then looks at her work garment and back at the flyer.

'What will happen if I change my choice of work?' She says to herself in thought. 'Should I become an Elite Knight or should I keep living in this filthy and 'bloody' world where I call a 'work'? I mean it won't hurt, will it? You never know unless you try… But what if I go there and they don't treat me well? Even if they do…what should I do? Should I fake my life till I make it or I should just be myself? OPAL!!! JUST GO FOR IT! YOU CAN BE WHATEVER YOU WANT AS LONG AS YOU PRAY AND DECLARE POSITIVE THINGS IN YOUR LIFE! Just… don't worry. Even if you fall get back up, even if it is on your own. And if you don't get in then it is not your destiny.' She cries herself to sleep.