Conclave Of Tyrants: The Smoke That Thunders

Destiny At Work

The awakening ceremony was important because it meant more warriors would join the village, but the village had little to no expectations of Taku being one of the warriors.

After all, how could a child who only knows how to run and dance become a warrior? They would essentially have wasted their lives if he could become one! He was merely a dancer...

Heck, let alone this year's batch of child-dancers: Some of the more experienced dancers in the village, even whilst being in their early twenties, could only stare in disbelief as that child easily left them in the dust after just a few months!

As the children lined up in front of the chief's hut, the awakening began.

Taku had tried to learn as much as he could about the ceremony from other villagers, but his status as a cowardly orphan made it impossible to do so. All he knew was that when one was awakened, he or she would gain an ability.

He was also aware of the fact that there were many types of abilities. Those abilities could make one strong and gain status within the village because, coward or not, in the Gutu Empire, strength was everything. Taku was hoping that the gift he would gain was useful, useful enough to propel him from the depths of poverty to the riches he once had.

Then again, if he ever became some kind of earth-rocking genius, it would be the worst outcome. He had even picked dancing to avoid the gaze of those experienced warriors... If he had the talent to become incredibly powerful, wouldn't he be sent out hunting as well?

He would rather swing his hips and dance, thank you very much!

As the children lined up, the envoy would approach them while holding in his hand what seemed to be a ball made out of ivory. It was an extremely peculiar object, perfectly round, as if it had been crafted by an incredibly skilled smith.

The process of awakening was very simple, so simple in fact that Taku was surprised. He had been expecting some kind of heaven-shattering event, and instead everything was kept so simple that he had been left disappointed.

"No light pillar ascending to the sky? No thunder striking down? No mighty dragon descending from the heavens? No strange voice in my head requesting for my name? What kind of sloppy fantasy land have I been reincarnated to?"

First, the envoy would utter a chant in a strange language, which Taku didn't understand.

Secondly, he would place the ball on top of the child's head. The white ball would then shine and reveal a certain light, which would encase the child before fading away.

Somehow throughout the process, the envoy would suddenly get to know what power the child received and would explain to the crowd gathered around.

Taku decided to pay close attention when the envoy was only two children away from him. He felt his blood pumping as he heard the envoy chanting in that mysterious language: At least the ancient language tag was present!

The ivory ball was placed on top of a child after the chant and suddenly shined red after a few seconds.

The envoy lifted one of his eyebrows in pleasant surprise. It was not enough to make him change his expression though, so he spoke without anything hinting to any change in his attitude:

"Red grade, Healer. Not bad."

When the envoy said that, the chief and the surrounding villagers shouted in elation. Healers were rare, and were in a lot of demand. A healer could reduce the death rate quite a bit. The little girl who had just been revealed to be a healer was guaranteed to have a safe and easy life.