Before the end of lunch, the five students who were interested sealed their mission.
They were Ayn, Ramsey, Bowan, Jakob, and Darien. By an hour before night's end, they agreed they would descend into the Underbelly, past the academy's curfew, and into the maze below.
Darien was ready to wake up when the time came.
At the end of lunch, all five waved each other goodbye and returned to their various rooms to have a good siesta.
Darien, who had fixed plans, strode in the direction of the dojo, ready to be a Mortal.
Tutor Endor was waiting at the back wall of the dojo, arranging the wooden dummies in an orderly array, with the drums to the side and mirrors also set in place.
He slowly turned the moment he felt another presence in the vicinity.
"Young student, you're here. Come in, and prep yourself."
Darien humbly obeyed, stepped in barefoot, and walked across to wash his face, hands, and legs.
Before taking his place, he smoothed his uniform and took a few deep breaths to settle his mind.
'I can do this.'
Sitting across from his tutor, Darien noticed the old man's eyes were shut and focused. He immediately mirrored his pose, closing his eyes too, to feel whatever Endor was feeling.
"The Primordial Flow is the strangest phenomenon there is, Darien. Do you know that?
It is even stranger than the Energy itself. It is the unseen pathway, the deep current, the timeless rhythm that both your body and the world abide by.
Only the Flow determines the direction at which the Energy travels, and without it, everything else would be unreachable, untappable… nothing more than an idea."
Darien nodded with understanding, though he already knew this after educating himself using the General Library.
"Another word I personally employ is 'Meridian.'
Since the mages too can claim control of the Flow and their Life Cores, then we knights ought to differentiate ourselves.
In this case, I like to refer to our Flow as such."
"The Meridian is so powerful in refining us knights that even though the Energy itself is mightier, it cannot be harnessed without it.
Think of the Energy as the roaring waters of the River Elivienne in Rosevale—a great, ceaseless torrent.
The Meridian is the river's course, the unseen dam shaping its movement, and we knights are those who harness the force born from its surge."
As Endor spoke, he lifted both hands decorously, placing his right on his student's forehead and his left on the chest.
Even though he hadn't seen the greatest waterbody in Valurion, Darien envisioned River Elivienne and its great current, which they say provided electricity to the Rosevale dukedom.
"I, a Transcendent, possess the skill
Darien felt the man's fingers grasp his temples a bit firmer, but his touch on his chest was calm and soothing.
Out of anxiety, his heart began to throb, but he steadied it. Soon enough, Endor activated his art to begin, ready to Ascend the first knight student of this set.
But as the Transcendent knight activated
The boy's sea of Flow was almost complete, nearly perfect, and this was impossible for a starting student to achieve. The potential was unbelievable!
If Endor Ascended this child, he would outstrip the growth of his peers and even his seniors. He could even connect to both worlds with a depth that Endor himself might not be able to achieve.
'This is incredulous! No child can be this sculpted to perfection. Could this be a peculiarity? An oddity? Who is this child?'
Endor opened an eye to take a scrutinizing look at Darien, who was focused, eyes shut, and awaiting the process to be complete.
Seeing his student once more, the tutor instantly realized what he had been missing.
The strange cast of the child's features now aligned with other clues like his great Meridian.
As a Warrior with seasoned experience, Endor knew only creatures, beasts, and influences of the Primordial World could possess such Flow without any training or improvement.
Darien's was only smaller in comparison because of his size; it would surely grow exponentially as he developed.
'A Cursed Born in this province is a death sentence. What are you doing here, boy?'
Endor inquired within himself, his gaze lingering on his student with a mixture of pity and guarded caution.
The boy's steady composure seemed at odds with the weight of what he was. Endor thought he must be oblivious to the noose fate had tied around his neck.
At the thought of fate, Endor's thoughts took another turn as he remembered all he had read in compendia over the years, and the doctrines he had so diligently learned.
Within them were teachings, creeds, dogmas, omens, and prophecies.
Recalling a certain omen about beings like Darien, Endor began second-guessing the boy's Ascension.
As his mind delved deeper, Endor decided he would proceed after all, for the omen was double-edged.
It was dangerous to do this because the good and bad of the realm could rely on it.
Muttering a quiet plea to the old gods and to the Queen to grant him mercy, Endor sighed with resignation and acted upon his student.
A sudden rush of Flow blasted through Darien, drawing a sharp gasp from him. Pain he had never felt before intensely tore through his veins to the tips of his fingers and toes.
Within a few seconds, it was too much to bear even with his above-average strength.
The young student lost consciousness and fainted backwards, everything fading into black.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations on Ascending!]
[Congratulations, host. You are now Rank 1 Mortal Novice]
[All Attributes would be increased by 10 each]
[You can now gain EXP per kill in place of Attribute Points]
[All active skills evolved to the next rank!]
[Stealth (2-star) → Perfect Stealth (3-star), Elite Swordsmanship (4-star)→ Transcendent Swordsmanship (5-star), Hitmark (4-star)→ Critical Expose (5-star), Glideframe (3-atar) → Gravion Control (4-star), Ice Spear (3-star)→ Frostfang Javelin (4-star), Solar Scour (3-star) → Solar Purge (4-star), Instant Comprehension (5-star) → Instant Assimilation (6-star)]