"What do you mean by that..?"
The green-haired man stared at me with an expression that looked like he could kill me at any moment.
"That lightning sound from before."
"Was that your doing?"
"Y-Yes," I stammered.
"So that means you've closed your Soul Rift," he continued. "The wrong way."
This man spoke as if he knew everything... Could he see my curse? And what is it, exactly?
"Let me warn you," he said, raising his Soul Staff and pointing it at me. "Do not, under any circumstances, use your Soul power."
"Or your life could be in danger."
"And you could endanger others in the Soul Order as well."
"Do you understand... number 74?"
"And that sword... it's a magnificent blade."
Number 74? He finished his sentence and vanished in the blink of an eye again, before I could even ask his name or anything else. But he knew so much about me, as if he'd known me before.
But forget about that for now! Almost 30 minutes have passed! I have to hurry!
"No, I don't have to rush that much... because I have the white crystal from that buffalo thing right here," I said to myself, stuffing the final white crystal into my pocket before sprinting back into Stone City.
And yes... I still didn't know the actual location of the exam, and I still had to get my certificate!
Oh... I know why the green-haired guy knew I was taking the Soul Order exam. It must have been because of this mission slip.
Whatever, better run! After I get the certificate, I still have to find the exam site!
Hurry! I have to hurry!
I ran with more panic than ever before in my life and finally reached the Hunter Guild.
I immediately handed the mission slip and all three white crystals to the Guild Master.
"Hurry, please!" I urged him.
"Calm down. The paperwork... will take about 10 minutes."
"What!? 10 minutes? Isn't that too long?!"
"Well, I have to fill out the information and verify it first. Just take it easy..."
"I can't take it easy! The exam is about to start!"
"I can't waste time like this!"
"Hey!!" The Guild Master slammed his fist on the table with a loud bang. "Don't you yell at me! If you can't even wait for this... then don't even dream of getting into the Soul Order!"
Whispers rose from the other hunters in the guild as they all turned to stare at me, before everything returned to normal.
The Guild Master turned back to write something on a document. I had no choice but to shut up and wait at a table, wondering where the exam site could possibly be.
Deep inside the inner city? Or outside the city walls? No... it has to be inside. The outskirts are too dangerous.
I sat thinking for a while before the Guild Master called out.
"Hey, it's ready."
"Huh!? It's ready..?"
"Of course it is. Or do you not want it?"
"I want it! I want it!" I rushed over to grab the certificate he was holding out.
[Name: Rift | Rank: B | Date of Birth: June 10th | Status: Certified] along with the Guild Master's signature.
I couldn't help but smile happily before waving goodbye to him.
"Thank you!"
Then I bolted out and headed straight for the city center.
Halfway there, I thought about the image of the golem carrying the city. What was it, really... the God of Stone? Or just a statue? No... it felt truly alive. Whatever! I'll ask someone inside!
I ran almost all the way to the stone castle in the heart of the city, asking people along the way, but no one knew anything about the exam location.
"Where the hell is it..."
I reached my destination, the towering stone castle, but found nothing that looked like an exam site. Everything here seemed too normal.
"Maybe I should go ask Kylo..."
I stood still for a moment before deciding to sprint back to the abandoned town of Sliver, where Kylo was.
"This is bad! Really bad! Only 10 minutes left!"
I ran with all my might, wanting to use my lightning power to help but terrified of that hellish vision.
Another 5 minutes passed. I finally arrived...
The abandoned town of Sliver. But something was different... there were no workers here. Not even any machinery. Even though Kylo's team should have been working here.
I walked cautiously into Sliver and found something…
Hundreds of people were gathered silently in the large plaza in the center of the town.
And yes... Sliver was the site of this year's Soul Order exam... the 74th…