"It's big," Oscar said after he stepped into the Inner Hall. From his view, he gauged the Inner Hall to be twice as large as the Outer Hall, but the number of people was significantly less. In the distance were large houses spread out with a lot of space between them and a place that looked like a center of activity. "There's more space for each person."
"Hello there. You must be the newcomer." An elder of the Pavilion smiled as he approached Oscar. "Allow me to see your student badge."...
2022-12-21 16:01:00 +0000 UTC
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Oscar and Celestina read on for some time together. There were more detailed volumes on Elite Exalt beasts and above, as well as tomes about the Prinstyct, which Oscar read with great enthusiasm. Celestina read across from him while humming as her eyes darted across the pages.
"Fred and Emily should be waiting for me at the Sunset Restaurant." Oscar noticed the time and knew it was when he agreed to meet with his friends after the exam. "Do you want to come?"
"Of course. You didn'...
2022-12-21 04:00:02 +0000 UTC
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On top of the mountain was a cozy setup of a clean table with several chairs. Oscar felt the frigid winds of the tundra disappear when he set foot on the platform, looking up at the clear night sky, devoid of the obscure snow clouds, with countless stars adorning it like jewels. The view from the top made Oscar feel a sense of liberation as this was finally the end of these two long weeks.
Great Elder Robert welcomed Oscar, Mary, Serena, and Lucy to the mountaintop and gestured for them...
2022-12-20 16:01:00 +0000 UTC
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"Serena!" Edward got away from Serena's axes and tried to retreat, but a pair of hooves kicked him in the face, breaking his nose. Oscar's deer anima grunted and trotted around Edward, who was struggling on the snowy ground. Edward's Ein exploded out, and his lion anima swiped at Oscar's deer anima.
Oscar wanted to see how his deer anima would match up against the lion, so he sent it to clash against the lion. But as he expected, the claws of the Grade Seven lion anima sparked against t...
2022-12-20 04:00:01 +0000 UTC
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Oscar retrieved his buckler from his back while Mary brandished her spear. The two were prepared for battle and released their Ein with hostile intent, ready for Edward and Adam's retaliation. Oscar stared at the two men and said, "Do you want to fight? I'd rather we don't, but if you're insistent, we'll accompany you."
Edward Calpto raised both his hands. He looked easygoing with a friendly face, sporting short blond hair and green eyes. Everything about him seemed relaxed as if nothin...
2022-12-19 16:00:59 +0000 UTC
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A small evergreen tree grew on top of the ravine; its leaves were dark green, thicker than normal leaves, and looked like tiny needles adorning a deep brown trunk and branches. It stood out from the rest of the ravine, covered in bright white snow, and was isolated from its tree cousins of the forest. But what stood out more than the tree was the bell-shaped fruit that shone a light-green color and was located on the very tip of the evergreen.
The Snowbell Fruit.
The Snowbell frui...
2022-12-19 04:00:02 +0000 UTC
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Atop the mountain, the skies were clear and showed countless stars. Great Elder Robert, his eyes ever closed, reviewed some documents while waiting for the trial to end. It was unknown how exactly he read the documents without opening his eyes, but no one thought to ask because of fear.
Ava Jones ate a delicious stew, courtesy of the Pavilion while watching Oscar and Mary figure out the Snowbell Fruit's location at the ravine where they teleported. Her lips curled slightly. 'You fin...
2022-12-18 16:00:03 +0000 UTC
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Oscar did not relent. His hands continued to tug and pull on the thread, bringing himself closer to the Nixagle and deeper into the icy gales that bombarded him.
'Ripple Shroud'
A shockwave of Reis burst from all the pores of his body and abated the freezing winds. It only lasted a small moment, but that moment was enough for Oscar to feel his fingers liberated from the onslaught. The winds carried a vast amount of physical force to provide plenty of Reis that Oscar didn't need to...
2022-12-18 04:00:02 +0000 UTC
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The large winged Exalt Beast beat its wings, which snapped the air like whips and created gales of cold wind that blew out the snow in the air and ground. Oscar and Mary dodged the tides of snow that sprang up due to these gales.
Oscar looked at the Exalt Beast with cold eyes, recognizing it as the fearsome Nixagle, a large bird that soared in the world's cold places and brought winds of icy chill under its beating wings. Oscar remembered seeing a drawing of it, but it paled compared to...
2022-12-17 16:01:00 +0000 UTC
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Serena smiled brightly at Oscar, staring intently at him with her sharp green eyes, a thin veil of her usual cheekiness hiding the infatuation within them. She skipped ahead with light feet toward Oscar and Mary while covered in her green Ein shroud. Her black fur coat contrasted with Oscar's white fur coat.
'What luck! To meet Oscar on the first day! I wonder if he'll give me a clue?' Flowers and heat filled her thoughts despite the chilly wretched landscape she was in. She co...
2022-12-17 04:00:01 +0000 UTC
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"This can't be for real!" Mary sounded very aggrieved. She had thought of Oscar's wariness based on fictional tales as a weak notion with no evidence. To be stumped by someone who based his actions on fictional notions hurt her pride as one who grew up with manuals of laws and facts.
However, she neglected the thoughts of the Pavilion that reveled in putting more obstacles in the students' way. She decided never to leave anything out of the realm of possibility and think about every pos...
2022-12-16 16:00:04 +0000 UTC
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The Exalt Beast looked similar to George's Sapphire Hedgehog back when it used up all its quills during the battle in the Floating Islands of Edin. Its back was bare of the long icy quills flying all over the room. Instead, little stubs were sticking out and growing gradually; it was regenerating its quills.
The porcupine was large compared to the Sapphire Hedgehog, as tall as Oscar's legs. It was a subspecies of hedgehog that dwelled in icy regions and thrived under cover of snow and i...
2022-12-16 04:00:02 +0000 UTC
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"KYUUUUUUU!"
These Exalt Beasts' cries were familiar to Oscar; he had heard them many times from George Harper's Sapphire Hedgehog. These projectiles flying by were certainly the creatures' quills. With a grim face, Oscar dodged and blocked any incoming quills, but they came from all directions, even from below.
'These quills wouldn't be an issue if I could see where the hedgehogs are. But this white mist provides the perfect cover.' His victory against George during the ...
2022-12-15 16:00:03 +0000 UTC
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The unknown mountain cavern was unlike the usual caverns Oscar had seen. Unlike the normal craggily rock and stone walls, the cavern was made of smooth ice with a blueish-white hue. One look was enough to know that this ice wasn't ordinary.
Oscar stared at the ice with a pensive look and placed his hand on it, shivering from the chill that emanated from it, but the most surprising was the unbreakable feeling he had from it. He suspected this ice would not break under his strongest attac...
2022-12-15 04:00:01 +0000 UTC
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The hungering jaws of the Frost Angarens drew closer to Oscar and Mary. Oscar's face slowly paled at the realization they were at the peak of their great leap, but he kept calm despite the encroaching maws.
Mary, on his back, was holding in her screams. In the back of her mind, she could only think about how reckless Oscar was. Who in their right mind would willingly jump into the ripping teeth of a beast?
The Frost Angarens' springy bodies allowed them to extend far up in a short...
2022-12-14 16:00:05 +0000 UTC
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The shaking reverberated from the ice up through Oscar to his fingertips. Oscar could feel the creatures gnawing, about to burst through the ground below him with tremendous force. However, he saw this as a good opportunity because the force was akin to a wellspring of Reis.
Oscar drew a deep breath and placed his snow-covered shoes firmly on the quaking ice. The muscles in this body reacted to his command and allowed the rampaging Reis of the ice to shoot up, starting from the toes. Os...
2022-12-14 04:00:01 +0000 UTC
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Oscar showed the map to Mary, who held it gently as her brown eyes moved across the contents, stopping at the text in the bottom right corner.
"This is a map of the place we're in. The text says we must collect the Frost Orb, Arctic Feather, and Snowbell Fruit." Oscar rubbed his hands to keep warm. "There is an x mark next to the Frost Orb, meaning the three x marks on the map are the three Frost Orbs on the map."
Mary laid the map down. The three x marks were scattered at an equa...
2022-12-13 16:00:07 +0000 UTC
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The boisterous roar echoed across the ravine and was followed by the fall of the icicles around Oscar and Mary, shattering loudly against the icy ground. In the distance down the ravine, Oscar spotted a large cloud of snow that was getting larger. 'No! It's getting closer!'
Oscar was about to move when Mary held her spear out to stop him. He looked confused and glanced at Mary, who stared ahead with fierce eyes. The silver spear glimmered from the snow-reflected light.
"I...
2022-12-13 04:00:02 +0000 UTC
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Everyone fell silent at Ava Jones's statement. Slowly, they made their way to the small room with heavy steps and a sinking feeling in their stomachs. Most of them, even Oscar, knew that the labyrinth wasn't a breeze to get through, and it was only the first part of the exam.
The second and final part of the exam was sure to be worse than any of the trials they had encountered during the labyrinth.
Oscar strode ahead and sat at the round table with a straight back. The other stude...
2022-12-12 16:00:10 +0000 UTC
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"Do you want to fight?" Oscar smiled and took out his buckler, and pointed at one exit. "If we go out there together, we'll trigger the duel and be teleported. I'll gladly fight you for first place."
Serena's shoulders trembled as she burst into laughter while covering her mouth with her hand. She calmed from the hysterics and wiped a tear from her eye. "No way."
"Why not? I thought you wanted to spend more time together?" Oscar asked rhetorically.
"You already know the answ...
2022-12-12 04:00:02 +0000 UTC
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"Go to the opposite side. I'll charge ahead and draw its attack," Oscar gripped his buckler and moved ahead; his eyes met against the indifferent crystal eye of the Crystal Guardian as if it were goading him to give it a try. His feet stomped as though Oscar was carrying a mountain.
"Are you going to be alright?" Serena's hands were trembling while gripping her axes and her eyes reflected her worry. "We can face it together. I'm sure it can work."
Oscar stopped and turned to Seren...
2022-12-11 16:00:06 +0000 UTC
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Oscar's face darkened at the sight of the gigantic hands of the Crystal Guardian; they were two or three times larger than before and easily grabbed around the pillar like it was grabbing a stick. 'What the hell is this sudden spike in difficulty? Its range is also twice as long as before.'
As more doubts and distracting thoughts invaded Oscar's mind, he bit his lip, using pain to clear away his mind. He took several breaths and looked at the imposing Crystal Guardian, moving h...
2022-12-11 04:00:02 +0000 UTC
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The Crystal Guardian lurched and swayed like a bumbling toddler; the large crystal protrusions on the knees of its first right leg and last left leg caved in from Oscar and Serena's coordinated blitz. It started with small cracks that spread and enlarged all across the crystals before they burst apart and fell to the white marble floor in pieces. Once the crystals shattered, the inflicted legs could no longer stand on its spiky feet and lagged behind the others.
Oscar retreated with a b...
2022-12-10 16:00:07 +0000 UTC
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Ava Jones choked on her tea and took out a handkerchief to cover her coughs. Her breathing was erratic as she stared with blushed cheeks at Serena in the image. She knew Serena was bold from their earlier interactions but didn't expect this bombshell move.
Elder Dustin was also shocked at the two students in the image. His eyes were near bulging out of their sockets. He tried to say something, but his lips could only stay open in shock.
"This is quite unusual," Ava Jones's blush s...
2022-12-10 04:00:04 +0000 UTC
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The fist came crashing in with the presence of impending doom. Oscar could see the air being torn and forced away in powerful winds from its knuckles. With nothing else he could do, Oscar held his buckler and put all his Ein into it along with using 'Edureisclad' and 'Steel Scales'
Suddenly, water wrapped around him and pulled him out of the destructive path of the Crystal Guardian's fist. Oscar canceled his abilities and stared at Serena, who was breathing in relief and smiling at him....
2022-12-09 13:00:11 +0000 UTC
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"He's finally made it!" Elder Dustin was laughing off his rockers; every one of his wrinkles flapped and creased with delight, forming an unpleasant appearance of a withered old man. He pointed his wrinkled finger at Oscar and Serena, who entered the great hall of the cavern, housing the large spherical monstrosity. "Brat! It's time for you to get your just desserts."
All the frustration and stress built up from Oscar's mindless destruction of the precious artificial cores and from bein...
2022-12-09 01:00:04 +0000 UTC
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Oscar didn't speak. He didn't move. He only stared blankly with wide eyes.
Serena's full confession had blown a fuse in his mind, and he was currently like a construct that was not powered on. His cheek that she pinched felt like a hot chisel had stamped itself on it. He received such acts from his mother but never from a girl his age.
As a young teenager, he was still inexperienced and unsure about love and attraction.
"Oscar?" Serena leaned closer to Oscar with a smile; th...
2022-12-08 13:00:06 +0000 UTC
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"What's going on?! Oscar!" Serena shouted, but Oscar couldn't hear her. She stared at the inhibitor in her hand and pondered. "It all started when I pulled this thing out; Maybe I have to put it back in."
Meanwhile, Oscar felt like he was being torn apart. Due to befuddlement from being forcibly woken and the weak feeling in his core and heart, Oscar was losing control. His mind was in shambles, and he couldn't produce a rational thought, lashing around like a beast.
'What is ...
2022-12-08 01:00:03 +0000 UTC
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"I might have a way," Oscar uttered. His words rang clear, distinct from the bubbling lava and the hisses of the hot vents of steam and ash. However, despite the clarity of his voice, his face was dark, and his frown did little to help ease the tension.
Serena perked up and glanced at Oscar, only to be met with his grave demeanor and hesitated momentarily. Whatever Oscar was planning, she knew it had to be risky and a potential ticket to losing this trial. Her red lips fell into a frown...
2022-12-07 13:00:07 +0000 UTC
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"Combine our Eins?" Oscar felt the pressure continue boring down on him. It was not as bad as the pressure from his training in the dark waters in the Abyss Prison. However, the issue was he had to consistently hop between platforms rather than last a certain amount of time.
He looked behind him to see Serena had gotten up. Her wavy red hair was messy, and sweat flowed down her neck. "Are you alright?"
Serena licked her dry lips. "I can handle. But what does this mean to combine o...
2022-12-07 01:00:02 +0000 UTC
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