Doir quickly waved his hand.
"Alright. Guides to the left, Espers to the right. Each group will train under different instructors since your jobs aren't the same. We'll start introductions by checking what abilities the Espers have awakened."
Hearing him, the five newcomers quickly separated—two Guides and three Espers.
Doir gestured to the youngest Esper, who looked barely twenty, to introduce herself and demonstrate the ability or abilities she had awakened, his voice casual and calm.
"Hurry up. Channel your mana and release the abilities you can sense within yourself. Using them should come naturally to you."
The woman stepped forward, stating her name and that she was a D-rank Esper.
She conjured a big fireball above her hand, followed by a protective fire shield around herself, then admitted that these were the only skills she had awakened. Her abilities faded when she stopped channeling mana.
Doir nodded in acknowledgment. He knew that lower-rank Espers typically awakened only one or two skills. The higher the rank, the more skills they tended to have, though all the skills of a single Esper were typically variations of the same core attribute—such as this young woman, who had shown two skills, but both forms of fire manipulation.
There were, of course, exceptions—some higher ranks Espers had skills of different attributes, though this was extremely rare.
Regardless, Espers couldn't awaken new skills beyond those they first manifested. Such a thing hadn't been heard of so far.
The combat strength of an Esper's skills usually matched their awakened rank. For instance, an S-rank fire Esper could easily overpower numerous A-rank opponents.
Naturally, Espers could choose to hide certain abilities if they wished. After all, there was no way to determine exactly which powers they had awakened—only their awakened rank could be tested.
Still, cases like that were rare.
Absentmindedly, Doir gestured to the second Esper to demonstrate his skills.
The short man, dressed in fancy clothes, stepped forward, conjuring floating earth spikes all around and mentioning that his second skill was enhanced perception, as he could now sense even the faintest sounds and movements around him.
Doir made a thoughtful sound. Enhanced perception was one of those passive skills that weren't very useful in direct combat but didn't consume much mana or strain one's wavelengths, making it a highly practical ability that could be used indefinitely.
Finally, it was Zephyr's turn.
The last Esper among the newcomers.
All eyes turned to the tall, handsome man who had been standing quietly to the side, exuding a distant, unapproachable aura.
Everyone, including Doir, was curious to know what powerful abilities this blind man had that led the Association to accept him.
Yet, before Zephyr could even introduce himself, two young instructors—who had been teaching Guides in the distance while keeping watch on the five newcomers—suddenly joined them. Nana greeted Doir with her guide friend. They were both quite famous, so Doir smiled at the two girls.
His smile widened when he heard that the two girls wanted to help, more than willing to share his work with the younger people.
Although Doir was puzzled by their sudden offer, knowing they already had their hands full, their reputation within the Association left him with no reason to doubt them. Just like that, two new instructors joined Doir to share the responsibility for the newcomers.
The newcomers were thrilled to see Nana—everyone knew who Nana Parker was! The famous S-rank Guide, who had often been seen alongside the Association's strongest S-rank Esper in many reports, was an idol to numerous Guides. Both Erick and she were figures admired and looked up to by many!
Nana's beautiful pink eyes narrowed for a brief moment before she smiled sweetly, a sight that quickly captivated those around her. Her gaze settled on the blind man.
"What a coincidence, Zephyr."
Her words drew surprise from everyone, who wondered how she knew this man.
While the newcomers thought resentfully, 'Oh, so that's how this blind could enter the Association,' disdaining him for using back doors, Zephyr only felt uneasy, sensing the hidden malice beneath her cheerful tone.
He narrowed his eyes.
"Who?"
The voice did feel a bit familiar, but he couldn't recall where he had heard it.
Nana's eyebrow twitched as she barely managed to keep her smile. Inwardly, she gritted her teeth, shouting, how dare this blind criminal not even recognize her!
"Oh, my mistake. Back at the hospital, I didn't introduce myself. I'm Nana Parker, Erick's... 'guide' partner."
She was reluctant to add 'guide' before partner, but knowing that they weren't together yet, she didn't dare to say it.
Zephyr's gray eyes finally flickered with a hint of recognition. Still, had Nana been able to hear his thoughts in that moment, she would have lunged to strangle him.
'It's that loud woman.'
He nodded, showing no enthusiasm.
"I see."
His apathetic response made the Guides watching bristle, wondering how he could speak so disrespectfully to their goddess!
Nana's smile, however, didn't waver.
"Alright, enough talking."
She clapped her hands lightly.
"Step forward and show us your skills."
The people around him waited for something impressive—anything.
But their high expectations were dashed when, after a full minute, he just raised his hand and conjured a tiny wisp of darkness that flickered like candlelight, as if it could vanish at any moment. And it really died as a gust of wind passed by, leaving everyone around dumbfounded and speechless.
Doir was the first to snap out of his daze, looking at Zephyr with a weird expression.
"That's it?"