01.27 - Present Day... Present Time!

Midsummer night had come and gone, and Luc had awoken back home in his room in the late afternoon. The last hours before he fell asleep had flown by in a haze. He barely remembered returning home with his mother. Before that… there was a long blank void, the taste of chocolate cake, and the memory of excited Cuddle-Fish asking him to repeat his firework show in the years to come.

Hours later, with the birthday cake eaten, the regular presents opened, his wired account created, and the sun about to set, Luc found himself outside on the central plaza, surrounded by his family, friends, and their parents.

His mother had yet to reveal the special present she had promised him. Luc was no closer to guessing it—not a Core, nor equipment, nor anything else he could think of.

Now, as if to mock him, Mary presented him with a white fox mask with red markings.

The mother of all letdowns.

Luc’s excitement vanished, and disappointment was painted all across his face. “I am pretty sure that counts as equipment.”

“The mask is not the present,” Mary said. “It’s part of my conditions for you to accept the present.”

“Huh?”

That didn’t make much sense.

“Try it on first,” Mary said. “Then I’ll explain it. The same goes for the rest of you.”

Luc’s father, Aurelius, and his comrades handed eight similar-looking masks to the other kids, who seemed to be as surprised and confused as Luc, who turned the mask around to inspect its inside.

There was a strange Core embedded on the inner forehead part of the mask.

He put it on.

Luc immediately noticed it siphoning off a very small amount of his Aura—less than what he could regenerate at the same time, but a constant depletion nevertheless. Passive Aura consumption was not to be joked with, and decreasing his rate of Aura regeneration, even by a small amount, could be a huge disadvantage in a drawn-out battle.

Then his vision changed, and his body felt… off.

He seemed to grow taller.

Looking down, his body was wrapped in a black miasma shaped like a cloak. The same happened to the other kids around him. He was now surrounded by eight ghost-like dark specters with shining white fox masks.

“What the!?”

He almost stumbled backward.

“What is this all about?”

“Just relax,” said Mary with a smile on her face. “It might feel strange now, but you will get used to it after a while. Or rather, you’ll have to get used to fighting while wearing those if you want to accept what I am about to offer you.”

An offer requiring a disguise. Not only for him, but for all nine of them…

It dawned on him.

“Is it the hunter exam?” Luc asked.

Mary’s smile widened to a grin. “Seems like you finally caught on.”

“But isn’t it regularly taken by adults?”

“True. The regular age for participants is nineteen and up, although some prodigies were allowed to take it earlier.”

“But I just turned thirteen, and we have to reveal our identity to register, and…”

“Let’s just say I have made use of my connections. This is going to be a secret to all but the guild master of the Hunters’ Guild, the intermediaries of the various rulers, and the heads of House Stellaris. And it has to stay this way. Hence the masks.”

“What if I want to register without a disguise?”

“Out of the question.”

“But why?”

“Do you have any idea about the fuss it would make for a young teen to take the exam and pass? Let alone nine?”

“I… No. Not really.”

“There will be enough of a spotlight on you all if you go along with my plan. Any more, and we could draw more unwanted attention than we could handle, even with the support of House Stellaris. It is one thing for a great House to enter nine outstanding candidates, but for them all to be kids is just too much. There would be many jealous eyes at best. At worst, someone might want to kidnap or kill you to prevent potential future trouble.”

“Aren’t you exaggerating?” asked Luc. “My Core is still stuck at the Rare Blue stage, and Hannah’s hasn’t passed the Exotic Green stage either.”

Mary shook her head. “I guess it is our own fault. You’ve spent too much time in your little bubble. The Stellaris kids are extraordinary as is. Your sister is at least a prodigy, and the rest of you are not too far behind either. Many people train half their life before reaching that stage. Many more never get anywhere near that level. You either stick to my plan, or the whole thing is off.”

“But…”

“No ifs or buts.”

“Fine,” said Luc, while dragging the word out. “What are the other conditions?”

“You’ll enter the exam under my guidance. If I am not around, the command will fall to Hannah. You will not take off the masks for the entire duration of the exam. If you run low on Aura, the mask's spell takes priority as long as your life is not on the line. You won’t register under your own name, but aliases assigned by House Stellaris. You are not allowed to disclose your real identity to any third party, neither during nor after the exam, at least not without our direct permission. No bragging rights. No fame. At least not yet.”

“That’s it?”

“That’s it. Keep the masks on during training for the next few weeks to get used to them. The exam is in a little more than a month. There’s some special training waiting for you. You’ll get your official moment in the limelight under your own name one day. But that time ain’t now.”