"We are honored by your presence, sir," the Adjudicator of the Trials said, bowing his head toward the man in the black coat. The figure stood tall, his wide-brimmed hat shadowing most of his face, but his voice carried calm authority.
"It's nothing," the man replied evenly. "I happened to be in town, so I thought I'd see how our young hunters are shaping up. Besides"—he adjusted his gloves, almost absentmindedly—"as an official, it is my duty."
The murmur that spread across the crowd was immediate. The trials had been forced to a halt for nearly an hour, and yet no one complained. Instead, they pressed closer, eager for a glimpse, a word, or even the faintest acknowledgment. For this was no ordinary visitor.
Jiang Li.
One of the fourteen members of the Hunter Academy High Table. His name alone carried the weight of legend, though few dared use it aloud. To most, he was simply known as "The Farmer," a title as enigmatic as the man himself.
Hunters, young and old, filed past to greet him, their voices hushed, their gestures stiff with respect. Some stared in awe, others whispered among themselves, and a few stood rigid, too nervous to even approach.
Meanwhile, in the waiting yard, the next batch of examinees grew restless. They shifted uneasily on the benches, some muttering under their breath. A full hour of delay before the Trials was enough to test anyone's patience.
But at the beginning all eyes were set on a sword which was new for a Pupil's trials.
From the moment they had entered, that presence had stolen their attention. Their gazes often drifted, curious, cautious, almost reverent toward the sword strapped to Avilio's back. It wasn't just its size or shape, there was something in the way he carried it, something that spoke of experience far beyond the trials they were about to face.
Even Jiang Li's sharp gaze, hidden beneath the brim of his hat, lingered for a moment on the blade before he turned back to the Adjudicator. And in that pause, the restless whispers among the waiting hunters deepened, a quiet storm building long before the first trial even began.
The announcement finally came. "The next batch of participants - step forward!" the Adjudicator called, his voice louder than before, as though trying to shake off the tension that Jiang Li's visit had left behind.
The crowd parted, and Avilio moved along with a handful of other hunters some of his age but mostly a few years older. The air was thick with anticipation. Some of the examinees clenched their weapons too tightly, others whispered encouragement to themselves. The silence of waiting had made their nerves worse.
Avilio, however, walked steadily. His hand brushed against the hilt of his sword, not out of fear but almost absentmindedly, as though the weight on his back was part of him. Still, his mind wasn't fully on the trial. For a fleeting moment, the image of the boy with the bow and arrows from earlier returned, stirring something he couldn't name.
They passed through a tall iron gate and into the trial grounds. The arena stretched vast and circular, enclosed by high walls layered with old markings of battles past. The stands above were already filled with adjudicators and the man Jiang Li.
The Adjudicator raised a hand, silencing the noise.
"This is the First Trial," he declared. "Strength and instinct. You will face creatures drawn from the wilds outside this town. Survive, endure, and prove that you are not simply wielders of weapons but hunters."
The ground beneath them rumbled. Metal doors along the walls began to creak open, one after another, and guttural snarls echoed from within the darkness.
Beside Avilio, a guy grinned, rolling his shoulders as if warming up for a spar. "Looks like we're finally in the game," he muttered.
But Avilio's eyes never left the shadow of the opening gates. Something inside him stirred—not fear, not excitement, but the quiet readiness of someone who had already walked this path once before.
The first beast lunged from the darkness, a hulking wolf-like creature with jagged bone protrusions along its back. Its roar silenced the arena for an instant, echoing off the walls.
Before anyone could react, Avilio moved. A sharp step forward, a single clean draw of his blade, and the monster collapsed mid-stride. Blood sprayed across the dust, its echoing growl dying with a heavy thud. It happened in a blink.
The other examinees froze, weapons half-drawn, their faces pale as they processed what had just unfolded. Even the spectators in the stands gasped before the murmurs spread—first in disbelief, then in awe.
Avilio slid his sword back into its sheath, calm and unshaken, as though nothing of significance had happened. To him, it was only instinct.
Above, Jiang Li leaned forward slightly. His gaze fixed on Avilio, the brim of his black hat shadowing his expression. Not a smile, not a frown—just an unreadable weight that lingered on the boy like judgment.
The trial had only begun, yet the whispers in the crowd had already crowned Avilio as different.
As the time passed, Avilio's swordsmanship continued to astonish Jiang Li. Each strike was sharp yet fluid, every movement measured with a calmness that betrayed no hesitation. It wasn't the wild, desperate swinging of a youth—it was something refined, something learned, something earned.
The Farmer narrowed his eyes. Being a swordsman himself, he caught nuances others missed—the subtle shift of Avilio's feet, the clean arcs of his blade, the way his breathing never faltered.
A faint smile tugged at his lips. "How delightful," Jiang Li murmured under his breath, his voice almost lost beneath the noise of the stands. "These movements… they make me recall something else."
The adjudicators beside him glanced his way but dared not ask what he meant.
Down in the arena, another wave of beasts poured in through the gates—fangs glinting, claws ripping at the dirt. The other participants readied themselves, some trembling, some determined, while Avilio simply adjusted his stance, blade gleaming in the sunlight.
And Jiang Li leaned forward in his seat, curiosity now burning in his dark eyes. "This boy… who taught him to wield a sword like that?"
The trial dragged on for nearly ten minutes before the final horn was blown. The arena was littered with broken weapons, groaning beasts, and exhausted hunters. The crowd in the stands cheered half-heartedly, some impressed, others simply relieved it was over.
But Avilio stood apart. His blade dripped clean, not with desperation but with precision. He hadn't wasted a single movement.
As the participants regrouped, the adjudicator began preparing the announcements for the next stage. Yet before he could speak, Jiang Li raised a hand.
"Hold." His voice carried easily, silencing the noise in the stands. The adjudicator turned, startled, as Jiang Li stepped forward, his black coat swaying with each deliberate step.
"This one," he said, his gaze fixed squarely on Avilio. "There is no need for him to continue."
Murmurs rippled through the crowd. Hunters exchanged confused glances. The adjudicator stammered, "B-but sir, the trials—"
"The trials exist to prove one's worth," Jiang Li interrupted, calm but absolute. "His worth has already been proven."
The adjudicator bowed quickly, not daring to defy a High Table member. From within his robes, he pulled out a polished token, a circular emblem etched with the green insignia of the Hunter Academy. The Green Marker.
He walked to Avilio and handed it over with reverence. "By decree of the High Table… you are now an official pupil."
Gasps filled the hall. Many of the participants looked on in envy, some in disbelief. Avilio accepted the marker silently, his expression unreadable.
While the others were ushered toward the next stage of the trial, Jiang Li gestured subtly, and Avilio followed him into the shaded corridor beneath the stands.
For a long moment, neither spoke. The only sounds were the fading cheers above and the distant clamor of weapons being readied for the next wave of tests. Finally, Jiang Li broke the silence.
"You remind me of someone," he said, his tone quiet but laced with curiosity. His sharp eyes studied Avilio, searching for something beneath the boy's calm demeanor. "Your sword—where did you learn to wield it?"
Avilio's grip tightened on the marker, his gaze steady. "From no one you'd know."
The faint smile returned to Jiang Li's lips. "A secretive one, are you? Interesting. Secrets are often heavier than swords." He leaned closer, lowering his voice. "Your style… it's not the kind one stumbles upon. It belongs to someone. A ghost of the past."
Avilio's jaw clenched but he said nothing. Jiang Li chuckled softly. "Very well. Keep your silence. But remember this: the Green Marker is not just a pass, it is an invitation. You've stepped onto a path where eyes will always be watching you. Mine included."
He straightened, pulling his hat lower over his eyes. "Do not disappoint me, Avilio."
With that, The Farmer turned and walked away, his long coat brushing the floor like a shadow.
Avilio stood there, the weight of the Green Marker in his hand, feeling both the burden and the beginning of something far larger than the trial itself. Before the Farmer's shadow completely disappeared into the corridor, Avilio's voice cut through the silence.
"It was my father," he called out, his tone firm yet carrying something heavier beneath. "He taught me swordsmanship."
Jiang Li paused mid-step. For a heartbeat, the air seemed to still. Then, slowly, he raised one hand in a lazy wave over his shoulder, part farewell, part acknowledgment.
"I already knew," the Farmer replied without turning back. His voice carried easily through the hall, low but certain, like the strike of a blade that never missed.
And with that, he vanished around the corner, leaving only the echo of his words lingering in the corridor.
Avilio stood frozen, gripping the Green Marker tighter in his hand. His chest rose and fell as though the admission had cost him something, yet in the same breath, it felt freeing.
By the time he returned to the waiting area, Tora was already leaning against a pillar, smirking faintly.
"So," Tora said, glancing at the green emblem Avilio held. "Looks like you finished early, pupil."
Avilio didn't answer right away. He just wanted to get back to the rest house quickly. He just wished the kid with the arrow was still there.