“What?” Nina’s mouth dropped open as she stared at Daniel in shock.
“Headmaster, did you say…you want me to compete in some contest?”
“It’s called the Trial of Gods,” Daniel explained briefly, even outlining the rewards.
As expected, Nina’s eyes sparkled with interest when she heard about Bear Prime’s blessings and the opportunity to enter the god realm.
The god realm! Just hearing the name made it sound fun!
“Headmaster, how strong are the people here? What if I run into someone really powerful and can’t beat them?” Nina wondered.
“If you can’t win? Then just surrender—it’s just a contest,” Daniel replied.
“No way! I want to win!” Nina said determinedly, glancing at Sif with an apologetic look.
“Sorry, Sif. I probably won’t be able to hang out with you for a while. I need to study magic seriously!”
Seeing Nina’s rarely serious expression, Daniel was slightly surprised. It seemed signing her up for this trial was a positive move!
“By the way, if you’re worried about the competition, there’s a gathering tonight at Dragonscale Bank. Many of your opponents will be there. You can check out what they’re like,” Daniel suggested.
“A gathering?” Nina’s eyes lit up at the mention of the event.
Seeing her expression, Daniel knew she was more excited about the gathering itself than observing her opponents.
“Perfect! I’ll definitely attend seriously.”
“Don’t mess around. I want you to observe the strength of your opponents tonight, understand?” Daniel warned, sensing she might not be taking things too seriously.
“Remember, if you place high enough, you’ll have a chance to explore the god realm! Who knows, that deity might be powerful enough that even I wouldn’t be able to enter the god realm…” Daniel muttered.
The more Nina listened, the more her eyes sparkled.
What? If her headmaster couldn’t enter the god realm, then if she managed to get there, no one could stop her from doing whatever she wanted!
This was too good to pass up.
In that moment, Nina made one of the most important decisions of her life.
“Remember, Winterrealm isn’t like our Riverside City. There are many powerful figures here,” Daniel cautioned as he noticed Nina’s excitement.
“Got it! I won’t forget. I’m already a mature fourteen-year-old girl now, long past the days of naive childhood,” Nina replied confidently, standing tall.
Daniel said no more.
This was her chance to experience something new—some challenges were necessary for growth.
After speaking with Nina, Daniel returned to his room, took a book from his storage crystal, and began reading.
…
At Dragonscale Bank.
“What? Why? Why was Lev’s spot taken away? Wasn’t that decided a month ago?” a boy exclaimed angrily.
“Kiril, sit down,” an older person among them snapped.
“But…that spot belonged to Lev! He’s done a lot for Dragonscale Bank over the years. How could they just strip him of it?” Kiril protested, still upset.
“Ronan has the final say on these matters. Besides, Ronan said there would be compensation for Lev,” the older man replied, his face showing some impatience.
His tolerance for Kiril’s behavior had reached its limit; if Kiril continued causing a scene, he wouldn’t hesitate to take action.
Seeing the shift in his expression, Kiril mumbled, “Compensation? What could be more valuable than Bear Prime’s essence drop? And…what if he was chosen to enter the god realm…”
“Hmph,” someone nearby scoffed. “The god realm? Keep dreaming. You’re not concerned about Lev’s spot—you’re worried that without it, you won’t get any essence drops yourself, right?”
No one had much affection for Kiril, especially since he frequently hung around with Lev, the one who had lost his spot.
Although Lev considered Kiril his best friend, Kiril saw Lev as nothing more than a useful fool. Over the years, he had often exploited Lev’s resources in the name of friendship.
If Lev had managed his own resources, he’d likely be much stronger now.
Everyone knew about Kiril’s behavior.
They’d tried advising Lev before, but he was a straightforward, honest person who never took their warnings seriously.
“If this newcomer has real strength, then I have no objections,” a girl playing with a dagger commented. She seemed intrigued by whoever had replaced Lev and had no fondness for Kiril’s cocky attitude.
“Yeah, right. I heard the new kid only got in through Ronan’s backdoor connections…” Kiril muttered, repeating rumors he’d overheard.
Just then, a knock sounded on the door. A girl entered and looked around at everyone.
“This…is the gathering place for Dragonscale Bank, right? Sorry if I’m late.”
“No worries. We just got here early. Take a seat and rest,” the older man said to Nina, his face expressionless.
The others turned their gaze toward Nina, their expressions ranging from suspicion and indifference to disdain.
Nina calmly found a seat, sitting next to the girl playing with the dagger.
“Oh, right. Here’s my token. Ronan said to show this to you,” Nina said, handing over her token.
The older man took a deep breath, his face looking even more strained, and replied, “Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Kolman, the team leader for Dragonscale Bank in this Trial of Gods.”
“Hello, I’m Nina,” she responded, slightly nervous as she formally spoke to strangers.
“If I may ask, how old are you?” Kolman inquired, noting how young Nina looked, which made him question her combat abilities.
“I…thirteen…no, fourteen,” Nina corrected, adding a year to boost her confidence.
However, to the others, this only made her seem less capable.
A fourteen-year-old transcendent?
They couldn’t help but think back to themselves at that age, barely capable and easily overpowered by their current selves.
Their initial judgment of Nina was that she must be here just to fill a spot. Your adventure continues at freewebnovel
“I knew it…she must have used a backdoor to get in! Why should we sacrifice our achievements to let this young lady play around? That spot was Lev’s chance to get an essence drop from Bear Prime!” Kiril sneered under his breath.
“To replace Lev with someone like her…all I can see is us forfeiting.”