Morning light didn't exist in Freya's capital — only the pale shimmer of the Wai towers reflecting off the clouds. AJ and Neo walked through the crowded central district, where stone roads glimmered faintly from spilled Wai dust.
They had never seen so many people in one place — traders, mercenaries, and cloaked nobles riding in carriages drawn by scaled beasts. Even the air felt heavier here, soaked with ambition and tension.
Neo's eyes darted from one massive banner to another.
Each bore the same sigil — a silver gauntlet gripping a sword, surrounded by three stars.
"The Oath of Rush…" AJ murmured, reading the engraved plaque as they reached the towering guild hall.
A massive gate loomed ahead, flanked by armored guards. Above it, carved in black stone, were the words:
"For the Empire's Glory, For the Adventurer's Oath."
Neo whispered, "So this is where heroes begin?"
AJ nodded slowly. "Or where fools end."
Inside, the guild buzzed with energy — hundreds of adventurers of every rank and type moved between notice boards, counting coins or boasting of kills. The air was filled with clinking armor, laughter, and the sharp scent of Wai-infused oil.
For two boys from the outer slums — or so they feared being recognized as — this was another world.
A clerk noticed them at the desk.
"New applicants?" she asked sharply, eyeing their worn clothes.
"Yes," AJ said. "We've come to register."
She frowned, flipping through papers. "Test begins in an hour. Name?"
"AJ. And this is Neo."
The clerk paused, surprised at the lack of family names — a quiet mark of the poor — but said nothing.
"Wait in the lower hall. If you fail, don't block the entrance on your way out."
Neo forced a grin. "Friendly people."
AJ chuckled softly. "Let's just pass."
They followed a group of other hopefuls down the corridor. The walls were lined with portraits of past heroes — those who'd risen through the ranks to shape empires and legends.
Neo whispered, "One day our faces will be up there."
AJ smiled faintly. "One day… maybe brighter than all of them."
But as he said that, he caught something strange.
An emblem above the final portrait — the Emperor's crest.
A reminder: the guild served not freedom, but power.
And yet, even knowing that, AJ's heart raced. Because for the first time since awakening in this world, he felt the beginning of the grand adventure he'd always dreamed of.
The air inside the guild hall buzzed with tension and noise — laughter, coins clinking, and the smell of sweat and ale.
AJ stood near the quest board, eyes locked on a crimson-marked parchment:
"Griffin Blood Hunt – 30,000 Gold Reward."
His heart thumped. That kind of mission could change everything.
Enough to move out of the lower quarters… enough to finally be seen.
Neo peered over his shoulder. "Thirty thousand? That's insane, AJ. Only Platinum or above can even accept it."
Before AJ could answer, a deep rumbling voice echoed from behind.
"You planning to die early, runt?"
AJ turned.
A towering man — nearly seven feet tall, his body packed with muscles that seemed to strain the steel plates of his armor, loomed over them. His skin was lined with scars, his beard wild and dark.
Pinned to his chest was a gleaming Platinum insignia — shaped like a burning sun.
Around him, even seasoned adventurers made way.
AJ didn't back down. "Just looking."
The man chuckled, a low growl. "Looking? You think these quests are for your kind? Go fetch a rat quest, boy. Don't dream above your wai."
Neo's fists clenched. "Hey, you don't have to—"
But AJ raised a hand, silencing him. His gaze stayed fixed on the giant.
"My kind?" AJ said quietly. "You mean someone without money or name?"
The hall went silent.
The Platinum-class adventurer grinned. "No. I mean someone without worth."
Something snapped inside AJ. He took a step forward — his voice sharp, shaking the air.
"Worth isn't given. It's earned. And when I earn mine, remember my name — AJ."
A ripple went through the crowd. Some laughed, some whispered.
The giant leaned close, his shadow swallowing AJ whole.
"I'll remember it," he said, voice low and dangerous. "So I'll know what name to carve on your tomb."
With a thundering laugh, the man turned away, pushing through the crowd toward the upper floors.
Neo exhaled shakily. "AJ, you're gonna get yourself killed before the test even starts."
AJ smiled faintly. "Maybe. But at least they'll know I'm here."
He looked again at the board — at that crimson parchment fluttering faintly under the draft.
The symbol of the Griffin shimmered like fire.
AJ clenched his fists. "Someday, Neo… even the Platinum will bow."
The guild hall buzzed with life.
Boots struck the marble floor, clerks shouted names, and the smell of oil and parchment mixed with iron from a hundred weapons. The Oath of Rush Guild was less a hall and more a living beast — every heartbeat inside throbbed with ambition.
AJ and Neo slipped in among a crowd of recruits — farmers, hunters, miners, sons of merchants. Compared to them, their worn coats and dust-stained boots drew some curious looks. To the crowd, they were just low-born commoners trying to taste a dream meant for the rich.
AJ could feel the eyes on him.
Not hostile — just amused.
They think I'll break before it begins, he thought.
A horn sounded. The murmurs died.
From the upper stairs descended a man clad in silver-trimmed armor, no weapon at his side, yet every step carried weight. His eyes were cold, focused — the kind that had seen both victory and betrayal and learned to expect both again.
"Guildmaster Ervyn Rush," someone whispered.
"The Emperor's shadow," another muttered.
Ervyn stopped at the dais, scanning the sea of faces.
"Welcome to the Oath of Rush," he said. His tone was calm, but the silence it commanded was absolute. "Some of you seek glory. Some seek coin. A few… think you'll change the world. You won't."
A few chuckles. AJ's jaw tightened.
Ervyn's eyes moved across the crowd — then paused.
Right on AJ.
It lasted a heartbeat, maybe less, but AJ felt it like a blade pressing against his spirit. The Guildmaster's gaze wasn't cruel — it was measuring, dissecting.
"You," Ervyn said suddenly.
AJ straightened. "Sir."
"What's your name?"
"AJ."
"From?"
He hesitated. "South district."
"Ah," Ervyn murmured, and the crowd caught the faint trace of disdain in his tone. To them, "South district" meant poverty, filth, sweat.
"Remember this, AJ from the South," Ervyn said, voice low but clear. "A poor man's courage burns fast — like straw in flame. Learn to make it last."
He turned, cape brushing the marble.
"The Oath of Rush stands for the Empire's peace. Those who stand with it will rise; those who don't will fade."
The veterans struck their boots in salute.
The new recruits echoed half-heartedly.
AJ just stared at Ervyn's retreating form.
Neo nudged him, whispering, "He doesn't even know us and still got under your skin, huh?"
AJ smiled faintly. "Good. I want him to remember me next time."
The horns blew again — signaling the start of the Adventurer Trial.
And AJ felt it — the first spark of his real adventure igniting.
The receptionist's voice cut through the guild's noise like a blade.
"All applicants for the Adventurer Test — form a line and follow me!"
The bustling hall quieted just a little as recruits shuffled into order. Armor clinked, boots thudded.
AJ and Neo stepped forward, joining the back of the line — but then froze.
Ahead of them, the crimon-haired girl — Ruth — silently moved into the women's line. She didn't look back, didn't say a word.
Neo blinked. "Wait… she's taking the test too?"
AJ could only nod, speechless, as the line began to move.
They descended together, the recruits following the receptionist through the massive iron doors and down a spiraling stone stairway. The deeper they went, the louder the distant hum of machinery and Wai-energy became.
From above, drunk adventurers leaned over the railings, shouting down with mocking laughter.
"Don't die too fast, weaklings!"
"Hope you packed a coffin!"
"Buy some rabbit traps, commoners!"
The echoes followed them into the dark.
Neo clenched his fists, muttering, "Idiots."
AJ just smirked. "Let them laugh. They'll remember us later."
The staircase opened into a vast underground chamber — a coliseum-like space lit by hundreds of pale-blue Wai crystals set into the walls. The air thrummed with energy.
At the far end, a shimmering field projected a sprawling artificial forest — the "Trial Zone."
Dozens of armored examiners stood in lines, clipboards ready. A tall instructor with a scar across his cheek stepped forward.
"Welcome, applicants," he said. "This is your first test — survival and skill. You'll be working in pairs."
Murmurs rippled through the crowd.
"Your goal: hunt and retrieve proof of ten Wai-rabbits within the time limit. Return alive, and you pass. Fail…" He paused, letting the word linger. "…and you don't belong here."
A few recruits laughed nervously.
"Rabbits? That's it?" one whispered.
"Easy money," said another.
AJ grinned. "Ten rabbits? That's nothing, Neo! Piece of cake!"
His voice echoed through the chamber. Dozens turned to look.
Neo's eyes widened. "AJ—"
But it was too late.
The receptionist gave him a side glance, clearly unimpressed.
"Pair up!" she barked.
Names were called.
Neo was matched with a tall boy in sleek armor — smirking, gold rings glinting on his fingers.
"Try not to slow me down," the boy said.
Neo gritted his teeth. "Right back at you."
Then came AJ's turn.
He was paired with a quiet girl from the outer line — not Ruth, but someone small and hesitant, clutching her short blade nervously.
When AJ volunteered to go first into the gate, she froze.
"I-I've never hunted before…" she stammered.
AJ gave her a reassuring nod. "Then stay close. I'll handle it."
The horn sounded.
The massive gates creaked open, revealing a glowing forest of mist and mechanical birds. The light from the crystals shimmered like sunlight trying to be reborn.
"BEGIN!"
The recruits surged forward, scattering into the artificial wilds.
AJ tightened his grip on his knife, eyes sharp with excitement.
For the first time, this didn't feel like a test. It felt like the beginning of something greater — his story truly starting.
---
Meanwhile…
Far above the trial chambers, in a quiet office lined with banners and steel, Guildmaster Ervyn Rush stood before a panoramic window. The faint hum of the Wai reactors below trembled through the floor.
He clasped his hands behind his back, watching the test through a projection orb.
A faint smirk touched his face.
"Many interesting newbies this year…" he murmured. "Let's hope they live up to expectations."
The orb flickered, showing flashes —
AJ's determined eyes, Ruth's calm smile, Neo clashing words with his arrogant partner.
Ervyn's expression hardened.
"Or die trying."