The Awakening of Legendary Power

Michael ran into the right room. There were a lot of people."Hah! Hah! Did I make it?" thought Michael.

And as if right after Michael came here, lights suddenly turned off, and someone said, "Quiet, friends, quiet!"

Then, suddenly, on the stage where a silhouette stood, the light appeared, and the one standing there was an old man, bald-headed with a long beard, wearing a red wizard's outfit, a huge wizard's hat, and a long red cloak.

"That's better!" he said, smiling.

"Huh? The village elder?" Michael said in surprise. "You're the one conducting the test?"

"Well, everyone is here! That means I can begin my speech," said the old man. "Friends! I'll start with what you already know—the levels of magical power you possess, by which we determine how strong you are. There are first, second, and third levels of magical power. However, besides that, there are also ranks, and your power level greatly influences how strong you become at different ranks. For example, let's compare the lowest ranks of different levels of magical power. How many first-rank mages with level one of magical power does it take to defeat a first-rank mage with level three of magical power? Right! Eight! And that's only if they work as team. But we're not talking about ranks now! Ranks are not relevant for you today. Now, I will give each of you a sphere that will assess your power."

Spheres flew to each person, evaluating their magical power level.

Many announced their magical power level out loud.

"Looks like there's no one this year who can exceed me either," the old man thought.

At this moment, something brightly lit up on the opposite side. No one understood what it was—except for the old man, who was a little bit surprised.

When the bright light faded, one of the evaluation spheres displayed the number four.

"Huh? Wha—WHAT?!" the old man shouted.

"Huh? What? Why is everyone looking at me?" Michael asked.

"Uh, look at your sphere," said one of the participants—let's call him Boy 1 for now.

"Uh... Well, level four of magical power, what's so special about that?" Michael said, looking at his evaluation sphere. "Wait… WHAT!? Fourth level!?"

"You just realized that now?" Boy 1 said quietly.

For several minutes, no one could believe it and tried to argue that it must be an system error. But the old man interrupted them.

"Calm down, friends! This is not an error," the old man tried to calm them dawn.

"But the sphere shows number four! That's impossible—there are only three levels!" someone said.

"I though that I told you to be quiet, not to keep talking, didn't I?" the old man said, still smiling.

"Ah, sorry, I interrupted you," the same person responded.

The old man decided to tell them a story.

"Now, let me tell you a tale about me," the old man began. "Back when I was young, I was full of energy and didn't know what to do with it. Then one day, an idea struck me—why not travel around the world? I went through forests, deserts, snowfields, mountain. And one day, I stumbled upon an ancient structure built by people long time ago. There, I found a scroll that revealed that, beyond the first three levels of magical power, a fourth level exists. It also said that only those who has this level of magical power could reach rank 200 and obtain the God's Title. Those who achieve it can enter a land reserved for people of rank 200 or higher. For those below that rank, it remains closed."'

"Rank 200? God's Title? A land for those who reached rank 200? Wouldn't it be easier to call it the 'Land of Gods'?" Michael though, astonished by what he had just heard.

"And it also said that those who reach this rank gain partial immortality," the old man finished.

"Excuse me, but what is your rank and level of magical power?" someone asked.

"Huh? Uh…" The old man's face twisted slightly—he hadn't expected this question.

"Yeah, we want to know," another person added.

"Well, my level of magical power is third, but my rank…" the old man started to thinking what he will say to all.

Silence filled the room as he took a full minute to remember his rank.

"I forgot. I haven't raised it in a long time," he finally said.

I'd be lying if I said many weren't surprised—this was the most important thing they wanted to know from him.

"Land of Gods, rank 200. I think I've decided what is my goal," Michael said with excitement.

"Maybe I've come to the right place," said Boy 1 with a cheerful smile.

"Hmm… Interesting! I need to tell him everything," someone thought, smirking—let's call him Boy 2.

"Looks like I've found my rival…" said another participant—let's call him Boy 3. "…And my blade's too."'

"Heh! Things are getting more and more exciting! I can't wait, I want to fight him next week! You are my target! Give me an unforgettable taste of battle!" thought another guy with a terrifying, almost insane smile—let's call him Boy 4 for now.