They were in the underground levels of the Adventurer's Guild. It was spacious, as if nearby buildings all gave up their underground space.
The underground room stretched like a rectangular box. Hospital white, artificially lit, and sectioned into trial zones. Each segment seemed to have a specific test for them to go through.
Alexander and Fae were right before the elevator, within a group of about fifteen people who also needed to go through the same process.
"It seems everyone is here. I'm Jake. Used to be a sergeant in the army, once I awakened an archetype, I was re-assigned into a special division here, at the Adventurer's Guild."
Jake was standing rigidly upright on a small stool in front of the group. He wore casual clothes that betrayed his past as a sergeant, with camo cargo pants and a dark green shirt.
He must've been around his forties, thought Alexander.
"What I have beside me is a crystal. Before going to the next test, everyone here will have to lay a hand on it. The color coming out of the crystal will help us identify the amount of magical energy you have, or 'mana'."
Some whispers overtook the crowd, understandably. They had all undergone their inner path with no knowledge of how much mana they had.
One by one, Jake pointed at someone in the crowd who walked up toward the crystal.
It looked like a diamond that was the size of an acorn. A woman in a suit held it right next to Jake, who watched the crystal shift color as each person touched it.
He nodded once in a while with flicker of approval in his eyes, while other times a clear disappointment could be read on his face.
"Alright, you," said Jake.
Alexander glanced at Fae, and approached.
Jake's face, with the other officials next to him, showed clear contempt at every step he took that brought him closer.
"Alright. Hand on the crystal."
Alexander hesitated. "Who?"
Jake looked up from the pad he held again, gazing at the both of them.
"Beasts don't need to be tested. Just their owners."
Alexander's face darkened, he was about to raise his hand when he felt Fae's tight grip on his sleeve.
"Where is the beast you speak of?" asked Alexander, his tone cold and dry.
Jake's head was tilted back, looking down on Alexander and Fae before him.
"Let's just get the test going, yes?" said the woman holding the crystal.
Alexander finally broke eye contact, shifting his gaze to the crystal held by the lady.
In one stiff move, he grabbed the crystal.
Light shone through it. It was a dark red with an even darker pigmentation in it. It was mixed with an abyssal black, those colors simply couldn't mix. It looked like waves inside the crystal kept crashing against its edges, a perpetual fight between red and black.
"Hmm… unpure red… and black…" slowly said Jake as he wrote on the pad.
Alexander turned around, throwing the crystal back at the lady while heading toward the next part of the test by following the lines on the ground.
Once everyone arrived, Jake took place in front of the group accompanied by the other officials.
"Next test's simple, hit hard. Mannequins at the back. Spells, fists, I don't care. Three tries. We'll judge your damage after that."
The area had a few corridors traced on the ground with paint, at the end of each was a mannequin against the wall. They were further ahead, giving enough space for spells to travel.
"Yes?" said Jake.
A man who had raised his hand spoke up.
"I don't use ranged attacks, sir," he said.
"Just walk to the mannequin and hit it with your best shots."
The man nodded, and lowered his hand.
Jake grinned, raising his pad to his face as he read the names of those he wanted to start.
"… And Veil."
Veil was the name given to him when he received his class. Some people chose to keep their real names as their Dungeon Runner name, while others used the one they received.
Midas, Sunder, Titan… Everyone knew them by their Dungeon Runner name, and not their real name. It created a sort of distance that Alexander craved.
Alexander walked up to the nearest corridor with Fae, right in the middle.
What's my strongest attack?
His gaze went down to Fae.
She nodded, as if she already knew.
"Alright, whenever you're ready," said Jake to the group that lined up.
Alexander closed his eyes a moment, then reopened them with a large cross across them.
The air soured. It felt as if the room had become darker. Like the room was colder, dryer. As if the joy had been sucked out, and something else tried taking its place.
Dark pressure was building up, emanating from Alexander.
A feeling Sunder described as tendrils reaching and slithering around the surfaces, trying to poke through people's eyes or enter through their mouths.
"Go," said Alexander, looking at Fae.
She turned around, and started walking toward the mannequin.
Crosses appeared in her eyes while she walked up, sharing Alexander's Gift.
She could see every detail, every flutter.
She just needs to strike the weakened spots, it shouldn't be too hard for her.
Mid-way through, she got into her stance, close to the ground with a hand holding onto the floor.
She ran, graciously flowing forward. She swayed left and right like a river with an unstoppable current, a mesmerizing sight for anyone laying eyes on her.
Nobody else attacked their dummy, watching her elegantly reach her target. Nobody even noticed her hitting it. It looked as if she only grazed it, yet her strikes ran deep.
The mannequin broke in three places where her strikes landed, splintered fragments falling to the floor.
Everyone stood silently.
She then stood upright, turning around, searching for Alexander's gaze.
"What are you all waiting for?!" yelled Jake.
Snapping back to reality, everyone got in stance, preparing themselves to launch attacks.
A flurry of projectiles was sent flying toward the dummies, a mix of magic and arrows whistling through the air as it went toward the targets.
Alexander's gaze could see each of them, where they came from, their path, the amount of times the arrows turned in the air. Nothing escaped his gaze.
The same way he noticed the arrow aimed at Fae.