2. Goals

The Journey to the Myriad Temple was fast, mostly because The City of Lem wasn't that far from the Temple.

Ahmed, Kane and Peter talked throughout the journey as they got acquainted, they had somewhat similar backgrounds with all of them being from the same city.

Kane was the son of a Blacksmith a highly coveted path, filled with riches but was equally daunting in terms of competition. He was hoping to make it big after his awakening after all talent wasn't everything.

Awakening was a perilous journey, for the talented they would be able to awaken without any issue so long as they survived that is, for the untalented they would have to work hard, extremely hard to bridge the gap that was talent inorder to awaken.

But this wasn't enough, to say the future was in their hands wasn't an understatement, everything that they did during their awakening would dictate their future after all even their potential is written in their awakening.

"I just hope I'll get into an academy, most guilds these days only hire people with academic certificates." A flash of hope glowed within Kane's eyes as he could already imagine his future.

"Me too, I don't want to follow the merchant path of my family, it's just not me." Peter flashed a helpless smile as he thought of home, he shook his head riding himself of such thoughts before turning to Ahmed.

"What about you, what do you want?"

"Me? The basics really, I want to earn lots of money and be plenty strong. I haven't thought of anything outside that." He shrugged leaning into his seat.

"Are you for real? I mean everyone wants money and everyone want to be strong that's a given, isn't there anything else you'd want?" Kane couldn't help but ask, he had never crossed paths with someone who's ambitions were so tame and mundane.

"That's me, just because a goal sounds mundane doesn't mean it's easy you know." He responded after a bit of thought.

Kane's eyes lit up in understanding, 'indeed being too ambitious may do more harm than good.'

"Enough of the serious talk, what do you guys want to awaken?" Peters eyes sparkled as he asked.

"Me, a strong Body and preferably an affinity to Earth and Fire, those are the lifeblood of all great smiths." Kane replied without hesitation, he had already mapped out his path he was mearly waiting to walk it.

"Same, a strong body will do as for the path, I'm not sure, I'll decide when I enroll into the Academy hopefully it's one of the big four." Ahmed lazily replied.

"Hmm, I see. I for one would like to follow the mage path, as long as it has magic I'm in." Peter shared.

The big four were the top most academies in the Mortal Haven, these were institutions acknowledged by several Worlds as the peak of Academia and nurturing seedlings.

The Clover Academy, The Spade Academy, The Diamond Academy and The Club Academy.

They were highly sought after and for more than two hundreds years have maintained the lead as the best Academies, there wasn't a gap between the three per say, what differentiated them was the who that sponsored their foundation.

But the Academy was only relevant to those who awakened, those who didn't were forced back to the mortal realm after all the academies didn't need mundane people.

"So do you have alliances?" Ahmed asked after a momentary silence.

"Isn't thay risky? After all everyone is your competitor trust during the awakening is a fickle thing, at least that's what my father told me." Kane replied obviously following his father's advise.

"True, even I'm somewhat reluctant to partner up with anyone. What if we get a fruitful encounter that's suited for both of us? We'd obviously have to fight it out, at best one of us will be injured and walk away at worst one of us will die.

Honestly I don't want to kill anyone during ny awakening, it feels wrong to." Peter added with a hesitant gaze, death wasn't something many wanted to experience let alone execute but not everyone thinks or feels the same.

"Isn't it just killing? Just like we hunt beasts back at home, is there really a difference when it comes to humans?" Ahmed asked with a curious glint in his eye.

"You are a hunter?!" Kane exclaimed drawing the attention of the other kids who all turned their gazes at the group.

"Sorry." Peter stood up and apologized while giving Kane a stern stare.

"My bad, I didn't mean to expose you." Kane apologized after realizing what he had just done.

Most kids were well kids, they were formerly just young children who have yet to experience a lot, those with combat experience were however greatly sought out for when those brave and confident ones wanted to form alliances.

"It's alright, yes I'm a hunter at least was right until my father got too busy to train me." He waved off, he was confident enough to not be forced to do anything he didn't want to.

"Still, your lucky to have some experience. I'm honestly revolted at thw sight of blood, have you killed before?" Peter asked timidly scratching his chic.

"Yes I have, I hunted a deer once, some rabbits, ahh there was a time we went to the Western Nation, there I hunted a wolf for the first time, it was soo exciting!" Ahmeds eye's sparkled as he retold of his many trips.

"But my dad got a job and had to leave, mom was too worried to let me hunt alone so, I've been rusty."

"Bows or daggers? Your weapon of choice?" Kane asked after some thought.

"I have no preference really, as long as it can take down the prey I'm using." Ahmes then scratched his head embarrassedly, "my elder brother usually scolded me for trying to hunt a boar with a hammer just because I couldn't kill it with a bow."

"Your pretty stupid aren't you?" Peter couldn't help but ask, who in their right mind hunts a boar with a hammer.

"Well it was frustrating, the pig wouldn't stop and my fingers were sore from pulling the bow string, I kinda just had enough." He chuckled in nostalgia.

"I think I get you, one time during a sword repair, I poured molten metal on the sword in order to fill the gap, I was bannes from entering the smithy for a month." Kane shared with a small laugh.

"Gods help me, I've met idiots." Peter groaned while the boys laughed.

[Welcome to the Myriad Peaks.]

The train driver announced, they had finally arrived at the Myriad Temple.