Chapter 3 — [Farmer] Mage

“Trainee Cal,” the Overseer greeted, “are you volunteering to go first?”

“Of course! It looks like everyone else is too scared to move. I should lead by example,” Cal made himself sound as pompous as possible. Changing character in front of Oleg was one thing, but doing so when all the Trainees were watching—most of whom disliked him—was unwise.

The Overseer smirked and stepped aside to give him a straight path to the blood-red pillar. “Place your hand on the activation pillar and push as much mana as you can into it.”

Cal nodded with a determined look and glanced at Oleg.

He stepped forward, nodding to the Overseer as he passed, and placed his palm on the rough, uneven pillar. It pulsed red when he pushed his mana out.

Cal ensured his outward expression was tense, showing he was putting in all the effort possible but was truly doing the opposite.

The

It would decide the rest of an individual’s life—mostly. Some exceptions allowed reassignment, and he intended to use that to his advantage today.

He noticed the alarmed look on the Overseer in the corner of his eye when the activation pillar started to pulse rapidly, indicating that it was about to assign a

In truth, Cal had little idea of what other types of

He knew for a fact that they existed on the edges of guild territory since he had heard the higher-ups occasionally deride the ‘others’ as glorified servants.

Cal blinked when the pillar flashed red brightly before becoming inert. A familiar interface appeared before him, with letters and numbers in blood red.

Cal had to admit he had never heard of

“Farmer? Damn it!” The Overseer cursed quietly beside him.

Cal became aware of the barely-held-in snickering from the crowd of Trainees behind him. He turned to see Oleg staring in shock, but the Trainees in line behind him couldn’t hide their joy at his ‘downfall.’

He knew he wasn’t well-liked, but not to this level. However, he didn’t pay it any mind. His goal wasn’t to try and look impressive, just to get himself out of harm’s way.

Cal glanced at the activation pillar to see

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“What happened?” The Overseer moved closer and hissed in his ear. “Did you use all the mana you had?”

“N-No,” Cal shook his head, making himself look nervous. “I wasn’t able to before the connection broke off.”

The Overseer was calmed by the answer, but only a little. He still looked furious. “Then you’re eligible to retry next month. Stand to the side and get out of my sight.”

Cal hurried to the directed spot and met Oleg’s eyes. His friend had gotten over his shock, only to look terrified at the thought of stepping forward.

“Initiate Cal has been inducted to the agricultural division as a farmer! A fine addition to the Celestial Order! Trainee Oleg, step forward.”

Cal smiled weakly when Oleg looked to him for reassurance. It caused his friend to walk toward the activation pillar with shuddering breath.

He still couldn’t help but feel bad when the activation pillar didn’t react at all after Oleg placed his palm on it.

“Unfortunate,” The Overseer didn’t wait long to call it. “Oleg is no longer a Trainee. Vacate the spot for the next Trainee and exit the guild premises before the end of the day.”

Cal winced at the unforgiving, dismissive tone. He tried to catch Oleg’s eyes, but his friend couldn’t bear to look at anyone as he quickly left the training ground.

He waited impatiently for the Selection to finish. Still, one positive was that he learned the different types of

Those Cal was already aware of. It was the others that were new to him.

Cal glanced at the increasingly crowded space around him with confusion.

He ignored how the lucky—or unlucky—few assigned a

Tavia worried her bottom lip as she did her best to hide her nervousness, but Cal’s sharp eyes caught some obvious signs. Her well-manicured fingers twitched toward her body, stopping at the last moment to avoid fiddling with her robes. Her breathing was

Tavia gently placed her palm on the activation pillar, which started to pulse as Cal expected. However, it went on for far too long.

A glance at the Overseen practically confirmed Cal’s guess. The man couldn’t keep the smile off his face as the pulsing stopped.

“Initiate Tavia has been inducted to the elite division as a mage! A true pillar that will support the Celestial Order’s future! To the several trainees left, this should be your aspiration! The next Trainee, step forward!”

The Initiates assigned to

Cal watched a few Trainees completely fail to get a

“What happened?”

The question was whispered, so much so that Cal didn’t respond initially, thinking it must have been directed at someone else.

“Cal,” a soft voice hissed. “What happened during the Selection?”

Cal looked to his side in surprise and stared dumbly at Tavia.

Her closeness put her pale, almost porcelain-like skin in focus as the sun highlighted the soft, ever-present blush that tinged her cheeks. Her most unique trait—eyes a striking shade of violet—were narrowed at him.

“I’m not sure what you mean,” Cal smiled dimly. “You saw what happened.”

“You might be a pain in my side, but there’s no way that result is real,” Tavia insisted.

He raised his eyebrow. “I would have thought you would be the first to be happy about this. Congratulations, by the way. You deserve your assignment.”

Tavia stared at him in suspicion before shaking her head in wonder. “You really mean that.”

“I do,” Cal nodded. “I’ve seen how hard you work.”

“No, I mean you’re not resentful at all,” Tavia said, pushing away his reasoning. “You almost sound happy.”

“You won’t be the only mage for long,” Cal smirked confidently. “I’ll redo the Selection in a month and join you. Don’t be too comfortable, Tavia.” That was a lie.

She rolled her eyes, but her smile wasn’t hidden. “Good, I was worried I wouldn’t have you around to annoy me.”

“Do you really think you have the right to talk to someone like Tavia? Your situation has changed. Learn your new place, Cal.”

He met Tavia’s eyes before facing the man who interrupted them.