Chapter 101 The Devil’s Trial

"Wiston." Xavier closed the front window.

The carriage jerked to a start. The rays of the sun which just surfaced from the Eastern horizon glinted on the carriage window. The tower bell struck six times not so long ago.

Xavier and Eulene were en route to their test venue. According to Xavier, Wiston was at the furthest corner of Aramon. Hence, the early departure.

The beginning of the journey was smooth, as the roads were devoid of any traffic. But as soon as it struck seven, the whole scene changed. It took a whole hour to reach their destination—Wiston Central High School—widely known as Wiston High.

As soon as they reached the school entrance, the gates opened, allowing entry to the extravagant carriage. In front of the main building, the duo exited the coach. Xavier paid the coachman in silver and sent it away.

The main building of the school was large—with the capacity to hold at least three hundred students. The fact that there was a constant influx of uniformed teenagers only added to the claim.

In front of the building, there was a huge playing field with some amenities. Other than that, there were a few other buildings.

The duo were holding back their presence. Hence, the incoming students ignored them. But soon, two gazes fixed on them.

Xavier and Eulene turned to the direction of the entrance. Two beings came out. Both of them were impeccably dressed males—with black suits, pants, shoes and hats. Both of them were well built and they carried an aura of authority.

The nearby students bowed with due respect and walked past maintaining some distance and with hastened steps.

"Greetings," one of the men took off his hat and bowed. He had thick beard covering his chin and cheeks. "I am Philip Kotlin the principal of this humble institution."

The other man, who looked younger and fairer, did not bother to bow nor greet. "I am Noris Zeon. The vice headmaster and administrative officer of Eldorian."

Eulene did not care about the man's arrogant attitude. She could sense that he had the strength to back his arrogance.

"Xavier Godwin," Xavier said, with the same attitude as that of the vice headmaster.

"Yue Lin," Eulene followed.

"Please come with us to the office," the bearded principal gave way and gestured to the entrance.

Xavier and Eulene followed the two men to the second floor's office.

It was large and extravagant, befitting the principal of an institution teaching three hundred students.

Xavier and Eulene sat at one side of the tea table, while the two men sat opposite the duo.

The principal was the one to speak first. "In case you are wondering, I am also an official of the education department of the Thirteenth. Although most of the young kinetics are picked from the more renowned institutions, I am entrusted with the duty to scout out meta-cerebrum from here. After all, Wiston High is a big organisation. And sure enough, I find one or two kinetics every year."

"It's tough," Xavier said, "leading two lives at once."

"Indeed." Principal Kotlin nodded. "Special abilities only beget more responsibilities."

Xavier sighed. The sigh did not escape Eulene's senses.

Even she inwardly sighed. She suddenly remembered her home world. Was everything fine? She was sure that her disappearance tipped the balance of power in her world even by a bit.

When she remembered the grand elders' attitude towards her, she inwardly snorted. The sect could go to hell as far as she cared. As long as the ones close to her was okay, everything was fine.

"I heard that you rejected to join the Thirteenth and opting to join the College," the bearded man continued. "If you don't mind, may I know the reason?"

"I am not a fan of administrative work," Xavier replied. "I would rather teach the future of this country."

Principal Kotlin was taken aback. What followed was laughter. "I wish I had the talent and determination to have such an ideology." He composed himself. "Even though I am a student of Eldorian myself, my grades were not enough to apply to be a professor. And I did not have the courage to go through 'the test'—the one they called 'the devil's trial'."

Eulene, who was listening closely, felt the nervousness hit again. But this time, another emotion was mixed with it—excitement. The Devil's trial? How khool!

After listening to Xavier's reason, even the egotistic vice headmaster nodded.

Xavier and principal Kotlin spoke for another few minutes before the bearded official brought out his pocket watch.

"It's about time." The principal closed the watch lid and stood up. "Please follow me, I will take you to the room that will be your workplace for the next few weeks."

He led Xavier, Eulene and the vice headmaster out of the room, and soon—the building.

The man led the trio to a corner of the campus, filled with giant trees. It almost looked like a small forest. Under the shade of the dozens of trees, there was a small building made of bricks—a shed to be exact, topped by a tin roof.

As soon as the four got close to the, din of children shouting and gossiping hit their ears. Smell of blood and burnt tobacco sieved through their nose.

The principal looked back at Xavier and Eulene, and showed them a wry smile. He soundlessly mouthed some words.

I am sorry, he signalled.

Before Xavier or Eulene could say anything, the principal rushed into the room. Some drumming beats sounded out, followed by silence.

Xavier and Eulene entered the room. As they expected it was a classroom. The principal was hectically erasing the chalkboard—one that portrayed obscene words and figures.

The duo turned to the classroom. It was dirty—the floor, the walls, the benches…the students. There were seventeen students—each looking worse than the other. All of them were wearing uniforms, but none of them portrayed the tidiness depicted by the students the duo saw earlier.

A few of the students had their heads down on the bench. Eulene could smell blood and tears from them. As for the others—the majority of the students, they were eyeing Xavier and Eulene akin to hunters looking at their prey.

"Class 2-E," the principal finished erasing the blackboard before turning to the class. "Greet Mister Xavier Godwin and Miss Eulene—your new teachers."

Fuck.