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She paused, glancing at Sora. "But not everyone did it willingly. Hidden forces, even known governments, got involved. They experimented on people, trying to harness the power of mana for their own gain. From the leaks that surfaced over time, it became clear—most of the old governments were involved in these projects, trying to hold onto power or for various reasons."

Sora’s eyes narrowed. "So they used people as lab rats?"

"In many cases, yes. Mana was used in ways you can’t even imagine, from trying to force new abilities into people to creating artificial mana mutations." After a pause she added "You’ll meet such modified people eventually."

Sora shook his head. ’Some things haven’t changed, it seems.’

They soon reached the area where about a hundred players from Europe were gathered, clearly waiting for something. Sora scanned the crowd, and to his surprise, he recognized a few familiar faces.

Players in the area were between level 100 and 150, with most people hovering around level 120

’Asami Hito... and the five colonels from the War in Sweden,’ he thought, recalling their names one by one—’Lois Nale, Oliver Evans, Cero Vux, Edward Schwartz, and Aang Li.’

Beside him, Kara observed, "Look at their levels, all around 115. And Asami... She’s level 136 now. Wasn’t she level 132 during the war?"

Sora nodded. "Yeah, they all gained a few levels. Let’s go say hi."

Sora and Kara approached the group, and as they got closer, Asami Hito noticed them first. She was facing their direction, looking at Sora with a slight nod of recognition. Her dark hair was tied, and she radiated the same confidence Sora remembered from the war.

"Ralph, Kara," Asami said, a hint of a smile tugging at her lips. "It’s been a while... You’ve grown."

Sora felt a little embarrassed by the praise and replied, "You all did too. Hello, everyone, it’s been a while indeed. How have you been?"

Before he could finish, Oliver, ignoring Sora’s polite tone, burst into laughter and pulled him into a bear hug. "Ralph! Cut the crap, greet your brothers like a man!"

The rest of the group laughed heartily, stepping forward one by one to greet him and Kara with warm, friendly smiles. It felt like a reunion of old comrades, forged through war. They greeted Emily as well, after a short introduction.

"What is everyone waiting for?" Sora asked, curiosity getting the better of him.

"We’re waiting for Hannah. Word is, she’s going to be the one testing us," Edward replied, crossing his arms.

"Hannah? The guildmaster from Stockholm?" Kara asked, surprised.

"Yeah, but that wasn’t a permanent position," Lois chimed in. "I’ve seen some high-level players treat her with respect. She’s someone... famous it seems."

Sora raised an eyebrow, intrigued by the revelation.

Lois turned to him, continuing, "You’re level 110 now, Ralph. That’s impressive. You almost caught up to us in just a month... And Kara, level 122? Damn! I was feeling good about the few levels I managed to gain, thinking leveling was getting impossible. Comparison really is the thief of joy." She chuckled wryly. "Congrats to both of you, but now I kind of want to cry."

Kara blushed slightly, but smiled, appreciating the praise.

Sora sensed a familiar presence and turned around. His instincts immediately picked up on something strange. It was as if a subtle force was probing his mind, a charming aura that seemed to want to infiltrate his mental space. He turned around and locked eyes on the source—a stunning and familiar woman with long silver hair, dressed in crimson leather armor.

’I remember this feeling... So Hannah was using mental power the whole time. That aura, it’s not even an active skill right now, or it would’ve been restricted in the city... But it’s still so strong, even when passive,’ Sora thought, realizing why he had struggled to think clearly each time they had met.

Kara noticed Sora’s intense focus and, unaware of the mental probing he was feeling, poked his shoulder and whispered, "Look at her level..."

Sora glanced up, his eyes catching the name above her. He almost bit his tongue in shock.

[GODS] [Hannah Stone] - Level ???

Realizing her level was beyond what he could see, Sora’s heart skipped a beat. "I still can’t see it..." he muttered quietly.

Kara nodded. "Neither can I... She’s over level 172."

"Holy shit," Sora blurted out, unintentionally drawing the attention of their group.

Asami, noticing his reaction, added with a knowing look, "Yeah... Last time we saw her, she was level 172. Now she’s level 177. One of the best in the world, no doubt. It is amazing how her level keeps rising. I gained four levels in a month, but she gained five... How do we even compete with someone like that?" Asami sighed, clearly impressed but also frustrated by the gap.

Hannah made her way to a podium, and the room quieted down.

"Hello everyone, I’m Hannah, the representative of the New European Union," she began, her voice serious and commanding. "Ninety-eight of you have been recommended by various powers, and I’m in charge of assessing you. I’ll pick the twenty most talented from this group—we can’t afford to waste spots on boosted players. You know what I mean."

At the end of her sentence, she shot a wink at a man surrounded by bodyguards. His face darkened in anger at the public jab, but he managed to hold himself back from reacting. Sora glanced at his level: 125.

"You probably know the event format from other regions, but I’ll summarize it for everyone," Hannah continued. "Talent is key, but it’s not enough. You need mastery over your mind and skills as well. I’ll test all three, and only the top twenty will qualify. I don’t care about your background, your friends, or your guild. If you have a problem with my assessment, come see me after the qualifiers—if you dare. Show me what players who ignored their region during war are worth." Her expression remained cold, daring anyone to challenge her authority.

Sora cringed at her bluntness. ’Is she trying to provoke a fight or something?No one would provoke a monster like her anyway.’

Hannah continued, "To protect your privacy and ensure fairness, I’ve signed a contract with the guild ensuring that none of your secrets will be revealed by me and that I’ll be as impartial as possible. I’ll be the only witness. The test will take place in a [Secret Space]. Let’s begin..."

Pausing and reading the name of the first candidate, she said "Wow, two ’a’s in the first name? Aang Li, you’re up first. Get up here."

Aang Li, who had been recommended by Hannah herself, headed toward the podium. He was secretly hoping she would favor him and sneak him into the top 20 if he was lacking a little.

Hannah moved her hands and a door materialized in front of the group. Without hesitation, she opened it and disappeared into the dark space behind it. Aang followed her through the door, which closed behind them. Above the entrance, glowing words appeared:

[Test in progress: Aang Li]

After a few minutes, Aang returned, and the text changed:

[Rating: Aang Li: 53]

A new name appeared above the door, and another participant made their way toward it to join Hannah inside.

Lois, curious, leaned over to Aang and asked, "How did it go? What happened in there?"

Aang, looking neither happy nor disappointed, replied, "She gave me a rating of 53. If it’s out of 100, I guess it’s okay... My skill mastery was decent, but I think my talent dragged me down, and my mental defense was just average." He sighed, clearly hoping for a better score given his level, but without knowing how others would perform, it was hard to judge.

"Let’s see how the others do," Asami said, noticing that some of the other participants were subtly listening in, hoping to gain an advantage by hearing about the test.

The next person soon left the room, and their rating appeared: 42. They were only level 103, but the number still weighed heavily on them.

One by one, more players were called. When Asami’s turn came, she entered confidently, but when she returned, her rating was displayed as 48. Her head hung low in shame, and she slowly returned to the group, refraining from talking, clearly embarrassed.

Cero came next, earning a rating of 55, while Edward followed with a score of 45. As more names came and went, with scores ranging between 20 and 60, the group’s mood soured. Any player with a rating above 50 posed a serious threat to their group.

Then, the man Hannah had subtly mocked earlier for being a "boosted" player stepped in. His rating flashed on the door shortly after: 17. One of his bodyguards, however, a level 148 bald warrior received a rating of 71, leaving the room buzzing with surprise.

[Kara Spirine]

Kara’s name lit up above the door, and she stepped forward. Sora gave her an encouraging nod as she disappeared behind the door.