The next morning, when Karl woke up, he was pletely disoriented for a moment. It was far too warm, or possibly too cold, if he had slept in, and this large soft bed was quite fortable with Dana in his arms. But it took his brain a few seconds to remember that he had rented an apartment, and that he was home right now.
Strangely, it wasn't the fort that had thrown him off, it was the temperature control.
The Divine Beast Nation and Newbon didn't use any of the human technologies, so everywhere just fluctuated with the natural temperatures, unless it was getting cold enough that they had started a fire in the fireplace.
But that felt different, as the heat came from a direction, where the apartment building had vents all through it to keep the perfect room temperature.
The sun was just ing up, but the High Priestesses had a formal testing and advancement ceremony this morning, while everyone else would likely be tested at the Cathedral as well, but without the strict requirement.
He could smell the food, and that was enough to rouse Dana from sleep and send her scurrying to the ensuite bath to get ready for the morning.
Karl followed her into the shower, and ignored the fake cries of protest that he was going to make them late. Two people could shower as fast as one with that massive overhead shower head and the side jets, while teasing Dana could wait until later.
They both dressed in the mander Rank suits and went out to see what had made it here for breakfast.
"Ah, good morning, sleepyhead." Tessa greeted them with a smile.
"Are we, though? I don't see Lotus or Ophelia." Karl retorted.
"In the shower still. I had the kitchen send up some food before our test. We have pancakes, eggs, battered fried toast, an assortment of toppings and meats."
The way she said the last was with great disappointment, and Karl realized that the breakfast meat was just regular sausages and ham slices.
While they were very high-quality meats, they were not the mander and Royal Rank meats that the group had gotten used to. The energy content would be a small fraction of the usual, and mostly it would just be filler.
"Do we have time to cook more? Or should I just have Hawk roast something?" Karl asked.
Hawk's flame control was impeccable, and it wouldn't be hard for him to fry them something to eat.
"We can have a heavier meal later. We need to eat fairly quickly if we're going to make it over to the Cathedral on time. I asked the staff when they brought the food, and there is a shuttle that can bring us there instead of walking. However, it looks like it's just a golf cart, and I'm not sure whether that's faster than going on foot."
The other two came out still wet from the shower and in their best formal clothes, Lotus' High Priestess robes and Ophelia's mander Rank Suit.
"You know, we really should have Rae make us something fancy for future engagements. Fortunately for the three of us, we will be changing to the white visitor robes when we get to the Cathedral." Karl laughed.
"Or we can go shopping. We're in the Capital now, and there are all sorts of high fashion shops around. Even if we each bought an entire wardrobe, it would e to a fraction of what it cost to rent this apartment for the year." Dana reminded him.
Rae's sense of disapproval was strong in Karl's mind. Many of those outfits, especially suits and shirts, were made with someone else's silk.
That was not acceptable.
"Anything that's not silk. Rae wouldn't be happy about that." Karl explained to the others.
"Got it. So, we have an advancement trial, then likely a meeting, and then we can go shopping before they bring over our new Acolytes.
Remind me again why we thought that was a good idea?" Dana asked.
"Because there is a chance that I can teach them skills and help them awaken the System more fully. The Inquisition is intrigued by the possibility that having experienced Elites train Acolytes might help them grow faster, the way that the private tutors in the school do for promising students.
It will help build bonds between generations of Elites, and build the strength of the nation.
But mostly, it's because my skills are so odd, and they already heard from Nacht that my training is exceptionally helpful to young beasts." Karl explained.
Tessa finished a mouthful of pancake. "So, because you can train young beasts and beastkin, they think you might be able to train human children? Do you even have a plan for that?"
Karl smirked. "Of course I do. I believe that I can teach each of them at least one skill that will suit their personality. And then we can test them to see if they really will advance faster right from the start with our help.
There were numerous options when I went to advance. Like nearly a dozen. So, even if they wanted to be bonded to a beast, it might not make them like me. But it could be a ranger, or a beast warrior type class. If they can make friends with a good boy like Thor, think of how highly desired they would be in any young adventuring group. Every team at the Academy would be clamouring for a student who could maintain a Refreshing Lightning barrier. Especially if they trained as a front-line warrior, while their Cerro defended the mages."
Tessa nodded. "I see where you're going with this. If you can teach them a skill book, they will gain the skill and a class, and then you are hoping that at least one will get a class which can bond a beast, who will speed their growth.
They get the power every kid craves, the nation gets another Elite, and they will quickly reach at least Ascended or mander, depending on what beast they got, with a chance to grow further in the future using their class skills."
"Precisely. And if they can't learn to bond a beast, we can teach them other skills and spells to help them gain other classes. It will also be a great test of just how many people can actually gain power, and how many are simply inpatible with the serum."
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