The ranker facility.
There were more people standing on the line.
Clara was shocked to see so many people came to take a test. It was crowded.
"Woooh! This is my first time seeing so many people." Clara had no idea how many came to get their licenses to be adventures.
The facility looms before them and imposing the structure of dark stone and iron. Inside, candidates waited outside patiently and nervously at the grand hall decorated with banners from the past guild adventurers.
The stern face of the examiner was scanning each type of new face.
"This way... B12 and A1 are available," she guides the new face away to their test room.
From a distance.
Endless holding Clara from behind.
Clara felt his hand on her hips. Her heart was beating drastically while flustered.
Endless wasn't aware of his actions.
He was distracted by how the place filled with so many flags from different guilds. However, he didn't see any chameleon flags on the walls like all others' past, guild adventures.
"Weird, why isn't there a flag of our guild." His mind figuring out why isn't their guild flag is not on the walls.
He scans around, but he has not seen one at all.
"Clara..." He called her.
Clara turns her head and looks behind him.
"Yeah?" She responded back with flustered expression.
Endless slowly looks down on her, "Why isn't the chameleon banner not on one of the walls?" He said with a softly spoken voice.
Clara wasn't surprised about it.
"Well... the chameleon guild banner. Is not anywhere on the wall. Because there is none at all." She said with firm tone.
Humph! (Surprised expression)
He asks, "Why not? Ain't they're on the ranking board." Endless was sure the guild they join must have at least be at the ranking board.
Clara said, "Yes, but that's because we're the weakest guild."
Endless replies back, "So... at least we are on the board list. There should still be a flag."
Clara didn't know what to say.
She stayed silent for a moment and said, "True. However, our guild didn't even compete or attend to the battle royal."
She heard once before that.
Their chameleon guild did not participate in the competition with other famous guild or even attended the battle royal. The guild didn't have enough recruiters at that time, till this day. They still don't have enough people to even go against other powerhouses.
Even if they show up.
They will still be overwhelmed by numerous and overall adventurer, even their best high rankers will be enough to wipe them out. Even if they still try to defend their guild. It will be useless if they lose in the first round.
Clara remember that their guild master that she had not met yet.
She remembered a rumor back then when she was her home land. The villagers murmurs and chatting about how the chameleon master was not able to participate. She eardrop by chance.
She remembered that the master didn't show up at the competition knowing well that he did. They will be embarrassed by crowds.
"Our guild master knew if they participated, they would lose." She said.
Endless said, "Where they that bad? Sure, the guild wasn't that great, but they should at least show a fighting spirit."
Clara said, "It's better not to show up. It's bad enough at it is. The guild master wasn't a fool. He knew the fact that quitting without showing up was the right call."
When they chatting someone was causing a scene. Breaking their conversation and paying attention to the scene was happening right their sight.
"What do you mean! I'm F-rank!" An angry adventure.
The examiner nervous expression.
"S-sir, we already test your energy and even let you go twice without problem. So please... don't make this a big problem." A young man with shaking voice was trying to calm a 5'10" tall man with a long beard.
The tall man was furious of the result he got.
"I'm been an F-rank for 10 years! And I still have not moved up. The magic machine must be broken!" The tall man shouted.
The tall man mad expression looked down at the short examiner. But in the inside. He was showing a sinister grin.
He's been showing lately trying to surpass his previous rank, but it still didn't change at all. Now he's making a scene trying to cause a problem for the association.
Hoping.That they let him move up.
He tried to set a great scene that they didn't have a choice but negotiated with him. And even move his rank above his old one, and if they refused. He will use the crowds as his witnesses. To ruin their reputation for false ranking examination.
The examiner nervous tone, "We already test your energy. It was the same as before, and your skill has not improved at all."
The tall man with sinister grin said,"Oh yeah. Why not test it here."
The tall man spiritual energy radiates from his body and releases a heat steam out of his body.
The examiner got scared.
"S-sir... you can not use magic... in here or else—" His voice filled with shaking and frightened tone.
The tall man cuts him off completely, "Or else what! Augh? You will use your hire examiner to overwhelm me. If so..."
He grabbed his long, heavy axe.
Raise it on top and ready to attack.
The examiner freaks out.
"Eeeehhhkkkkkk!" Screaming in his mind.
The tall man smiled with a smirk on his face.
"Don't blame me for being reasonable."
Swoosh! (Swung)
The tall man swung his axe towards the examiner.
Swiss!
However, someone saved him before the attack landed on him.
THUD! (Hits)
The ground shook and broke.
Dust filled the air but slowly faded.
The tall man felt like he had missed.
"Ugh?" He didn't hit him, but he was sure he did.
The crowds were watching and murmurs.
"Did he get him?" Her voice filled with concern.
"I don't see him."
"It's obvious he got him, but I don't see him at all."
A few crowds were questioning themselves or whether the tall man killed him or not.
The tall man slowly felt something behind him.
Humph!
He quickly looks behind him.
He the examiner frightened state unharmed.
"Did someone interfere?" He muttered to himself.
Endless slowly lowers his fingers. He was the one who teleported the examiner. Without anyone notice.
Soon, a loud multiple footsteps. Swarmed through the grand hall.
A few knights show up.
The tall man panic.
"Shit!" His inner shaking voice.
The tall man didn't expect the association to hire the knights. Especially a high D-rank knight. They wear a high level equipments and lightweight armor. The tall man noticed a rank plate on their right chest. Showing their rank.
They silver armor gleaming with a deadly aura. His plate ranks show he was D-rank.
The tall man knew he messed up big time. He could tell by a glance they were skill.
He immediately bowed his head with respect. Not wanting to cause even more useless scene or he might end up losing not just an eye.
A knight step forward.
"Who's causing a ruckus around here?" His tone filled with seriousness but showing a cold expression.
The examiner on the floor pointed at the tall man.
"It's him! He's the one who's causing the destruction in our hall. He even uses magic as well!" He shouted out loud.
The tall man panic.
"Hehe... this was a misunderstanding." He deliberately drops the tough guy act and sweet talks his way out.
The tall man was nervous more when he saw the knight before him.
The knight slowly walks towards him.
"Oh, you use your magic. Tsk, it seems like you like to be disciplined." His threatening tone with cold expression.
The tall man freaks out, "No no, No. I'm learned now it was my fault! Let's talk things out—"He raised his both hands up for surrender.
Before he could say another word.
SWOOOSH!
SLASH!
The knight speeds through him and cuts his right arm off.
The tall man didn't see his fast movement.
Hmph!
The tall man felt a wind past through for a moment. Then he heard his surroundings.
"Oh my god!"
"His arm is bleeding!"
The tall man heard it but he didn't know what had happened. They were all staring at him in horror expression. Then he slowly felt lightheaded like he was about to pass out.
"Why do I feel dizzy... mmm..." He murmurs to himself. He slightly looks down on his right side and notices that his arm is gone while bleeding.
Then he immediately screams.
Ahhhhhhhhhhh!
He shouted in horror.
He now know why they were looking at him in that horror expression. The tall man looks behind him.
The knight cuts his hand off.
Slowly, he looks back at him with a serious gaze.
"You like to use magic. So do I..." His cold voice filled with seriousness.
The knight helmet gaze pierces through him. The tall man felt that dreadful ominous atmosphere. He made terrible mistakes.
"P-please... I won't cause a problem anymore. Just please... let me go. " The tall man beg for his life.
The cold knight said, "Alright." His serious tone.
The tall man finally shows joyful expression. He thought the knight would let him go, but to his unaware. The knight, instantly, disappeared right in front of everyone once again.
The tall man said.
"Thank you—" The tall man lasts words.
SLICE! (Silent)
"I'll let you go in the afterlife." His serious dreadful cold tone.
The knight speeds through the tall man instant without making a sound or being seen. His quick steps were too fast for anyone to see.
The knight cuts his head clean while holding it and walking towards his fellow knights.
"Let's head back..." His casual cold tone.
The Knights praise him.
"Sir. The sword swing was cool."
"Yeah. You didn't have to use it."
They walk away.
Everyone couldn't see what just happened. It happened so fast.
"That's it..."
"That was quick."
"Yeah, I guess it was quick but without a sound. That was too skillful and precise."
Many crowds were chatting with one another.
Clara didn't even know how it ended.
"That was too fast for me to see." She said.
Endless can see it clearly.
"He didn't even use the sword at all." He said.
Clara said, "Really?"
He saw the knight grip a sword, but it was just a distraction for his knight. He deliberately grips his sword, but when he speeds through the tall man in a flash. He uses his two fingers to slice his arm and his head.
That's what he saw.
His knight didn't even see it right. The knight leader must use the sword to trick them.
Clara noticed the blue feather on the knight helmet.
"Wait... that's danny!" She was sure of it.
Endless asks, "You know who he is?"
She nods, "Do I... he's the rookie knight that was able to surpass other D-rankers. He even left his rivals alive to come back and fight him whenever they lost. He so happened to be a knight that got awakened a year ago. He was F-rank, but he jumped straight to D-rank."
She heard in the newspaper that an F-rank that got awakening and got his rank changed. His class was Swordsmanship. He was able to climb on a higher position later on. And able to get rewarded and scout out by other big guilds.
Endless remembered his knight armor, but he couldn't see his face cover by the helmet.
Then he started to remember something.
Endless looks at clara and says, "Hey... do you have any ability?"
Clara shook her head, "No... I'm a regular." She looks down. Worried, that he might look down on her and probably leave her.
However, she didn't expect what he was going to say next.
"Ok..." His casual tone.
Humph (surprised expression)
She said, "Whaa! Are you not mad?"
Endless said, "Why should I..."
She said, "I thought you'll leave me. Because I don't have any ability whatsoever."
Endless chuckles.
"Oh, that... don't worry. I'll just give one instead." He said.
Clara was taken aback.
"What do mean by that?" She was unsure of what he said.
Endless didn't have to explain but to show it instead.
He slowly raised his hand and pointed his finger towards her forehead.
BZZZ.
a static spiritual wave went through her body.
Causing a change in her body.
Endless said, "Shhh... don't make a scene. " He quietly lowers his tone towards her.
Clara went through phenomenon change.
She saw the universe right before her very own eyes. She saw the planet's form together in a straight line. Casting a shadow over her.
"What is this!" Her stunning reaction.
The things she saw were too real and unbelievable.
She felt something in her stomach.
It was glowing brightly and instantly blonds her. She screamed in horror.
Endless snaps her back to reality.
"Hey... are you ok?" He asks with a concern.
________________________________________
Next chapter...