A total of nine kids stood in the training field.
When I arrived, every one of them glanced toward me — quick, measuring looks. A few stared a moment too long before pretending to be uninterested, others promptly averted their eyes and went right back to swinging their practice swords.
A couple more boys didn't bother looking at all, just kept talking among themselves like nothing in the world could matter less than my presence.
But one didn't ignore me.
A girl broke from the group and walked right up with a bright, open smile that cut through the chill of the morning air.
She had brown skin that glowed under the rising sun, dark brown hair cut short with a bowl trim, and sharp, golden-yellow eyes that gave her a fierce edge.
She wore the same loose, practical training clothes as the boys — but on her, they looked pleasantly unique, like she was wearing confidence instead of cloth.
"Hey, are you also a trainee?"
she asked, twirling the wooden sword in her hand like it was just part of her body. Her steps were light, her voice sharp and strong — confident, almost fierce, but not arrogant.
"Yeah," I replied with a small nod. "I'm Kael."
Her eyes shone immediately, like she'd been waiting for someone to actually answer her without hesitation.
"Kael, huh? I'm Zara," she said with a proud smile, thumbing her chest. "Ranked number two in my village's youth combat tournament. You better remember it."
The moment she said that, I noticed some of the boys behind her exchange glances — a few slanted their lips into sneers. I also realized something else: Zara was the only girl here. Every other kid on the field was a boy.
She wasn't just ignored — she was isolated.
But she stood tall.
I gave her a warm smile, raising my voice slightly.
"That's awesome!"
Her sharp features softened instantly, her golden eyes practically glowing. Just a little praise — a little recognition — and she radiated pride.
Once I broke the ice, her words flowed like a river. All it took was sincere interest on my part and she readily shared her story — where she was from, what she could do, and why she was here.
She was from Lakegrove Village, located not too far from Veynes County itself. Her father was the village hunter, and the one who encouraged her, trained her, and gave her the push to pursue this path.
Bright. Honest. Earnest.
I figured there was no point hiding it from someone like Zara, so I told her outright that I was an awakened — she lit up at the word alone. She seemed thrilled that I was "one of her own."
She confessed pretty quickly that she was awakened too, but I didn't ask what kind of ability she had — abilities were personal, and asking straight-out was either rude or ignorant. I knew the rule. She knew it too.
She did let slip one more thing though: including the two of us, there was one other awakened in the trainee group.
She pointed subtly with the slightest twitch of her chin.
My eyes followed.
There he was — a 14-year-old boy, black hair neatly combed back, sharp blue eyes that were constantly measuring everything around him, and a practiced, almost princely posture. He was surrounded by the other boys, who were eagerly talking and chasing his attention like ducklings around a swan.
The kid hadn't even said a word, yet everyone was acting like he was already their leader. I almost burst out laughing.
Politics... at this age? Really?
I could only smile wearily.
Three awakeners out of nine trainees — that was a pretty remarkable ratio. People with awakened abilities were considered rare at this point in time.
Even a rate of 3 per 100 was considered a massive windfall for any region. Awakeners — even those with low-tier abilities — were always held in higher regard than regular people, and often heavily courted or recruited.
The wind blew, carrying a sudden authoritative yet slightly irritated voice:
"So, are you the kids I need to train?"
"Mmm?"
Before I could even turn, Zara stiffened lightly, eyes shining with excitement. I looked over and saw the man walking across the field.
The man had lazy half-lidded eyes, a slight stubble along his jaw, and black hair tied back into a low ponytail.
He wore a sword at his hip — not for show, but the kind of blade you knew had been used in real combat.
Physically, he was close to two meters tall — and wore an expression that said he'd rather be in bed than babysitting a bunch of kids.
"Instructor Garron!" Zara whispered almost reverently.
"He really came himself!"
Several of the kids blurted excitedly, breaking the silence in a heartbeat.
Garron narrowed his eyes slowly, sweeping them across all of us like he was counting livestock.
"One, two, three… nine." His voice was flat as he confirmed the headcount. "Alright. You're all here."
He raised a hand — the gesture alone made the field fall completely still.
"Most of you already know who I am, so I won't waste time with titles or stories. And I won't ask for your life's history either. We'll skip the names, skip the nonsense..."
He paused, lifted his chin slightly, and smirked faintly, like a predator greeting its prey.
"Let's go straight to the lesson."
Garron's gaze hardened as he scanned the group. Then he threw out the question, voice deep but sluggish — like he'd asked it too many times already:
"Does anyone know how Essentia works?"
Zara's hand shot up so fast that her wooden sword clattered to the dirt.
"I do!" she blurted out eagerly.
Garron gave her a lazy nod. "Go ahead."
Taking a breath, Zara began in a loud, steady voice:
"Every living and non-living thing has a certain amount of Essentia inside it. The more adapted something is to Essentia, the easier it is for it to harness it. If the Essentia within a human reaches a certain threshold, they may awaken special abilities. Those who do are called awakeners, and they're rare among humans."
She paused briefly, then picked up momentum again:
"Monsters, on the other hand, are born attuned to Essentia. It's part of what makes them dangerous. Humans can't use Essentia naturally — not without a cultivation technique. But with one, any human with even the tiniest trace of Essentia in their body can start cultivating and growing stronger."
I couldn't help but internally roll my eyes as she finished proudly.
"Any human can cultivate Essentia," huh?
Not me.
Every part of that explanation was correct... except the part where everyone had Essentia.
Like me, there are some anomalies in this world.
Garron gave a single nod, looking less bored now — like Zara had at least met the minimum bar of participation.
Then he turned, eyes sweeping across the small audience before landing on the black-haired boy who'd been playing "prince of the yard."
"You there. Why do we cultivate Essentia? And what's its purpose?"
The boy straightened, voice smooth and confident:
"Essentia is the primary power source for all living beings. By absorbing and harnessing it, humans can gain abilities equal to monsters and defend ourselves. With Essentia, we fight the creatures that overrun the wastelands — and survive."
A very textbook answer — but well spoken.
The rest of the kids watched with rapt attention. You could sense their dreams: awakening great power, slaying monsters, rising to fame and rank.
They have no idea...
But still, part of me warmed at their pure ambition.
Garron didn't praise, didn't smile, didn't even blink.
****