The Path 042

"I thought this previously, but you're really tall, Will..." said Alessandra, walking a little too close to Will as he led their group to the Nebula Nexus Arena.

"I have good genes," responded Will, his expression and tone relaxed as he skimmed the crowd assembled on the promenade. There were even more people than the previous day, and the closer they got to the arena, the denser the crowd became. 

Feeling a gentle tug on his sleeve, Will blinked in surprise before looking to his left to find Madeen pinching the fabric. 

"I'm not good with crowds..." muttered Madeen, her voice apologetic as she moved closer and tentatively linked her hand around Will's forearm, implicitly asking him to serve as her guide and escort.

"Oh? I'm also not good with crowds~" hummed Alessandra, but when she grabbed Will's arm and attempted to nestle her head against his bicep, he plainly remarked, "You're overstepping..."

"Aw, phooey," replied Alessandra, releasing Will's arm and turning to look back at Ohta, following behind them with his hands in his pockets and a deadpan expression on his face.

"What about you, Ohta?" asked Alessandra, extending her left hand and adding, "Shall we hold hands to avoid getting separated?"

"I'm not a child..." replied Ohta, his expression and tone flat.

"What a curious thing to say," mused Alessandra, grinning playfully as she appended, "After all, I'm fairly certain I'm the oldest in our group. I'm still a child, so what does that make you~?"

"Annoyed..." responded Ohta, causing Alessandra to narrow her eyes and giggle as she walked backward through the crowd...

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As Dueling was one of the most popular pastimes, predating the Astralis Kingdom itself, Will was unsurprised to find the arena's stands filled with several thousand spectators. There was a lot of fanfare and speculation surrounding who would apply and be accepted each semester, so state-sponsored news crews and representatives from various businesses and organizations were present, each eager to reach out and sink their fangs into any who made the cut.

"My friends! Over here...!"

Drawing Will's attention from the stands to the field, filled with people in branded jerseys, shorts, and form-fitting armor that made them look more like superheroes than proper Warriors or Mages, the unmissable figure of Ahmad could be seen waving his massive hand amid a group of presumed First-Years.

'Thank the Gods...' thought Will, his smile relaxing as he led his group to Ahmad's, consisting almost entirely of boys. He was starting to worry that all of his 'associates' at the Academy would be promiscuous girls or traps, so he was genuinely relieved to see not just Ahmad but Ishyll and several other First-Year boys gathered to try out for the Duelist League.

"It's good to see you again," said Ishyll, taking a chance by extending his right hand as Will approached. He had the 'misfortune' of being placed in the Tuaisceart Commons, so if he failed to gain Will's backing, his life at the Academy would be difficult after he so publically declared his support of House Oirthear during the practical.

"Yeah. It's a shame you didn't make it into the Elite Class," replied Will, accepting Ishyll's handshake as he added, "But you still have plenty of time to transition into it. Just let me know if you need anything."

"Of course! I'll be sure to work hard!" responded Ishyll, beaming as he internally sighed in relief. Those from his class drilled into him with disparaging looks, but as a commoner without backing, Ishyll would rather join hands with someone of high standing with honor than lower himself to begging for scraps from people who hated him for things none of them had control over.

"Brother Will is very popular..." remarked Ahmad, inserting himself into the exchange while passing his gaze over Madeen and Alessandra. The latter returned a smile and waved, but Madeen, having little interest in mingling, snorted through her nose, crossed her arms, and looked away.

"Unfortunately," Will responded jokingly. Then, changing topics, he asked, "So, what's going on here? Have they said when the tryouts are going to begin?"

"Well, as you're no doubt aware, the First-Year Class is broken down into two groups," explained Ishyll. "The current First-Year team is comprised of those who enrolled six months prior. We must challenge and defeat an existing member if we want to secure a spot for ourselves."

"Okay? So, what's the hold-up...?" asked Will, directing his gaze to where a hundred or so students, ranging from First to Fifth-Years, were gathered in their sponsor-adorned armor and jerseys.

"Isn't it obvious?" responded a short boy with unkempt, pure white hair and pale, pastel blue eyes, drawing the attention of Will and his group as he added, "There are only fifteen positions available, and each can only be contested once. If they initiated the challenges before you, a known Practitioner, were to arrive, it would cause a fiasco if you couldn't contend for a position on the team..."

"And you are...?" asked Will, his brows perking as he sensed how much Mana was lurking in the diminutive youth. It wasn't quite at the level of Ohta's suppressed power, but it was a league above even a Princess like Lyra.

"Pheist..." responded the youth, closing his eyes, placing his hand on his chest, and offering a polite bow as he affirmed, "Just Pheist..." in a calm, composed tone.

'This one is odd...' noted Will, feeling a sense of incongruency as he was unable to ascertain whether Pheist was a boy or a girl. It wasn't that he had a perception-altering illusion superimposed onto him like Ohta, but, similar to a golem or a magic puppet, Mana permeated his body at a fixed rate rather than pulsing naturally...

Before Will could ask why the peculiar youth wasn't in the Elite Class, one of the presumed Coaches of the Duelist team, a rugged-looking man with spiky, combed-back brown hair, fierce green eyes, and a neatly groomed goatee, shouted, "Alright, you lot! Gather 'round! We're about to begin the challenge phase of the tryouts!"

Having briefly diverted his attention to the Coach, Will was moderately surprised when he looked back and found Pheist missing. He then noticed that Ohta had disappeared, but when he expanded his senses, he sensed both on the opposite side of the crowd, moving toward the platform from where the Coach had shouted.

'What a strange kid...' thought Will, simultaneously finding it amusing that Pheist had pulled a Batman on him. The mysterious youth seemed to take being enigmatic seriously. If he didn't, disappearing after going out of his way to make himself known was just silly.

Deciding to leave Pheist's observation to Ohta, Will moved along with the other aspiring Duelists at the rear, largely for Madeen's sake. He could tell she hadn't been lying about not being good with crowds, so hanging back to avoid having her surrounded was not only the most considerate course of action for her but everyone else present. After all, he and Ahmad were quite a bit taller than the average First Year.

"Okay, pay close attention," said the Coach, raising what looked like a remote and pressing a button on its front, causing a large, holographic display with pictures, names, and statistics to appear in the air behind him.

"These are the names, grades, and performance ratings of each First-Year Duelist," explained the man. "For those who can't count or perform basic math, there are only fifteen positions to contend for and a total of thirty-six applicants. Fifty-six is bigger than fifteen, so to make things fair, each of you will come forward to have your Mana, Aura, and maximum striking power evaluated-"

Nearly as soon as the man was finished speaking, a colossal black obelisk fell from the sky, impacting the arena's center and causing an ear-piercing explosion that knocked several unprepared First-Years off their feet.

'It's a good thing we hung back...' thought Will, stepping back and pulling Madeen's and Alessandra's arms to help them avoid the human dominos that threatened to knock them over. Alessandra seized the opportunity to cling to him, but as she let go almost immediately after, Will didn't bother to chastise or warn her.

"We'll start with those of you who are still standing," said the stern-faced Coach, locking gazes with Will as he added, "William Aladfar Oirthear. As one of the only Practitioners in the Academy, why don't you step forward to show these Fledglings how it's done?"

"Sounds like fun," replied Will, maintaining a casual, relaxed smile even as the crowd and spectators began to buzz with speculation. It was rare for even Fifth Years to reach the Grade of Practitioner before graduating, so many harbored hopes that Will would either shake up the League, driving others to surpass their limits, or dominate it completely.

Waiting until Will was right in front of the obelisk, the stern-faced Coach explained, "First, place your hand against the evaluation stone's surface. It will display a value for your Mana and Aura based on the development of your pathways and connatal crystal. Afterward, you will strike it with your most powerful attack. Whether that attack be physical or magical is for you to decide, but no weapons, artifacts, or other empowering items are permitted."

Understanding that the Coach was referring to his gauntlet, Will smiled and replied, "No worries. Once I have my Mana and Aura scored, I'll just give it a little kick."

"Then, whenever you're ready..." said the Coach, nodding in affirmation before crossing his arms to observe. It was well known, at least among the Academy's staff, that Will's Mana and Aura were subpar. However, as the Warrior's College didn't issue its identifying badges without cause, he was curious to see what an eleventh-cycle Practitioner could do.

Surprising all but a few people present, Will placed his left hand against the obelisk, prompting the value '698' to appear in large white characters. The average, even for an untrained noble, was around 1000, but what was even odder was that Will's value was represented in pure white, indicating he had no elemental affinity to speak of.

Just as people were beginning to wonder if the evaluation stone, or Will himself, was broken, the latter made it clear why he was regarded as a Practitioner by raising his left foot with his hands in his pockets, placing it against the obelisk's glossy black surface. Then, instead of striking it, he released a powerful pulse of Aura directly into it, causing both the obelisk and the arena around him to shudder as the value 9,660 appeared in dark red characters.

Noticing the stunned silence his actions had induced, Will turned to face the Coach and jokingly inquired, "So, how'd I do...?" while thinking he had definitely overdone it. The value that appeared on the obelisk was in kilos, so 9,660 was equivalent to nearly ten tons of force. The Academy record was more than seventeen thousand, but that was set by a Fifth Year who became a Brave even before graduation.

Recovering from his momentary stupor, the bewildered-looking Coach closed his slackjawed mouth and coughed into his fist a few times before responding, "If nothing else, you're at the top of this year's applicants. At least so far..."

"Well, here's hoping I don't place too low," joked Will, turning away from the Coach and making his way off the stage to let the next applicant have a turn. However, while many were confident they could beat his Mana and Aura score, not even Ohta was sure he could exert ten tons of force using raw power. He could 'completely annihilate' the obelisk if he really wanted to, but that would draw even more unwanted attention to himself...

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