William found this question almost shocking, but again, what was wrong with it? This guy came here for a reason, so...

  “I thought it was rather high and lofty, Walker's organization. Is it not hard for fools to join it? It sounds like the utmost elites come in and nobody else. Sounds hard.”

  “So you know at least this much about the Academy,” Richards gazed at William, who faked his innocence by looking at his notebook, which had just scribbles and no words about the Academy whatsoever. What he read was his opinion of his heart, knowledge he had heard, and it seemed to be correct. Perhaps Richards knew it, or not. Not that it was important.

  “You piece of cake, do you think the involvement of your surname is simple?! Kaufman is nobody simple! I know how much it grinds my nerves, and you are deafening! Never mind that. Since he is interested, why should I be polite when I am working for the Academy itself? I am not his partner. I am part of the great Academy!”

  William clapped. “Good for you, sir, but I know very little about your reasons. Maybe it isn't a good fit for me because of my past, and I'm rather dumb, aren't I? I've learned the basics, and I'm just seventeen years old. Oh wait... I was sixteen yesterday, did you know? That is rather weird, if I get it right.”

  “But I set my invitation!” Richards demanded.

  “Really? I'm not sure if this is a demand or not, but I can refuse, right? I like to think about every choice, and your words sound doubtful. Why would that place want me if it killed my mother?”

  “Do... No. Nononononono... You have no idea about what that even means!” Richards said, full of volume and tones of a senior Walker. William guessed it from his appearance, but his Rank should be at least on the same level as Mi-Yung, but his temperament and aura were very different.

  Even though he couldn't see his Emblem, something was observable, shaking, and changing the air around him. The ground, table, and chair were still there, and emotions played yet another role in this, or Richards' complex Arcana.

  There was no Emblem in sight, so the reasons and words changed this conversation, and William should take care of it. Obviously, Richards was a semi-important member of the Academy. He was part of the Butlers, a full-fledged supporting group that worked for the entire Academy, and became world-renowned enough for the word "Butler" to spread far and wide.

  “There are four flanks of the Academy, boy. South, West, East, and North.”

  “You mean the compass?”

  “No. The Academy has no divisions. Its politics and members come from these four sides called Parties.”

  “Why not make them more distinct? Like... isn't a Division a great name already? Also, it has other names. Yondu, Cloud, and so on. Sounds good, simple.”

  “I am not denying that...” Richards gave up and nodded.

  Butlers, as a whole, were a supporting group comprised of unique Walkers who handled informal tasks for the Academy's leadership, ensuring everything was immaculate and doing what many others couldn't. Every Party had them, and like the core vision of the word butler, they supported countless specific reasons, or pure ideals of their masters.

  Of course, many lands had their own personal and private Butlers, while the Academy was there first, and created this entire enforced pact alone. As a whole, every Butler knew that, and how the Academy had the most dedicated ones available.

  It wasn't as if those Parties pushed boundaries or fought one another in wars. They had to respect the Principal, and if they did, they were free to do whatever they wanted as long as it didn't piss of the entire Parties, or powerful leaderships that each maintained. Of course, there were competitions, as it promoted healthy progress and advancement that Alan Fain never feared.

  Richards was at Rank 5, which was lower than Mi-Yung's. That alone wasn't too much, but similar to many cases in militaries, even Butlers had their tiers and statuses. His were quite major, for he was a Mutant. Those were unique, creating nefarious, various, or great implications. It might be a weakness, an advantage, or a very specific scenario.

  Richards had few offensive skills and possibilities, but held one very crucial power that was rare in this world. He appeared in this room because of his power to influence Reality and truly disappear from it. Where? How? It was a mere step, yet to where? Few would dare to call it right.

  “That... that doesn't answer anything. Why are you looking for me before even knowing if I'm good? For all I know, I could end up with shitty Emblem and reasons that Academy might dislike,” William stated his doubts and realized his status was even more confusing.

  He never expected a direct invitation or such an individual. It came off as strange when he disassembled his past outbursts, or his disappearing Emblem. For everything he stood for, his Emblem never harmed him like an unleashed, raging dog. It hurt for different reasons, or simply because he was weak.

  Objectives of Emblems were one of the prominent goals William paid attention to. He read over restrictions and layers of locks without a care, and it wasn't about Darks, so he didn't give a shit. It caused no problems for him since he learned what was helpful or more curious over time.

  An example of this was the detailed rundown of the Examination and Forced Awakening. Both events occurred within the Federation and affected most parts of the surviving world. He learned this Awakening could or should reveal flaws, create new ones, or widen them all, but in a sense, it was all about pushing one boundary forward. That would be the System... or so notes stated.

  A certain amount of force and affinity could add perils, crack the Emblem out of misery or properties, or unleash what should've remained calm. Overall, this Awakening was a gamble that could hurt bodies because of Arcana charges, and a much powerful and unstable flow within the Emblems and bodies of Walkers.

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  That was why care and rest were given, and every fresh case wouldn't get out and fight.

  Affinity described the stability in percentages and how much of this forceful flow was perfected and fused. There was also mention of efficiency and how the Emblem took this flow as immediate power. Affinity was a general flow, while efficiency was a good method of symbolizing potential.

  All of these could lead to answers, numbers, and show aptitude for Walker's path. Benefits were often less obvious because they could hide in an insufficient flow, or the focus was on the rate of future growth.

  William figured that a lot of it was very physical science, related to the Emblem Association, and the work of many decades.

  Even worse... this matter was hideous. The Emblem was the core problem that could manifest properly. It was about the first Face. A crack. An opening. Why punish it with such malice, and wonder why kids weren't ready?

  It was also a fact that none could breach the Emblem itself. Any human means failed. Drill, nail, saw. Nothing could break the Emblems. Not even other Walkers.

  Besides this, William also learned the sheer scale of the Emblems. Gem appearance was the most common thanks to their glossy-like prison and layers. They possess a magnificent energy named Arcana, which has been known by that name for a century.

  Vectors were byproducts of Arcana and often charged the Emblems alone; Mi-Yung discussed them on several occasions, and William couldn't guess what was so good about them.

  Vectors were made of the same kind of energy. Arcana was just pure and broad, like the wind, while the Vectors were denser and much more focused on particular motions, patterns, and flows. Arcana was like a sea. Vectors were like rivers. Both moved under Walker's vision, each containing advantages and disadvantages.

  Regarding different kinds of Emblems, their appearance might indicate effects similar to how effective their Localization was. First would be the most obvious one: colors. They were visions of elements, and it was quite a magical and sensible idea.

  Red might involve red lighting, annihilation, blood, and crimson flames, or wilder, destructive, and harder-to-tame variants of natural elements. It was also true that elements varied and showed that things could be of different colors and exhibit varying properties.

  For example, Red Lighting was a savage type of lighting that was incomparably sharp and searing. White Light was stable, more fitting to be used as a symbol of empowerment, martial skills, or to create weapons. Red one would be like a savage storm; that Walker could only point in a direction and hope it wouldn't go too wild.

  Flames were known as savage across the board in their primary states, and there was a big variety of them, almost more than any other element.

  Aside from the norm, there were also unique and hard-to-figure-out elements. Things such as Annihilation and Void sounded like no element at all, yet Walkers and System alike deemed it as such. Space was the same. Time was even weirder. Air had its molecules and layers, such as sound, quivers, tremors, speed, and weight.

  As for the Arcana and Vectors, they would have any form of element at their core, or they would be rich without one. That would be Pure Element, which had no inherent flaws, advantages, setbacks, or wild powers that others might have. In both cases, the effects would lead to yet more differences and strengths. On a side note, lacking an element might be a disadvantage to some people.

  William didn't discover what his Emblem hid. Those snake-like patterns, or flickering visions in an outburst, sounded like nothing. His color was crimson, however, which was a variant of blander redness. For some people, red was red, yet his wasn't a typical red, if that made sense.

  His color might hide a variant of a certain substance, which William couldn't find in any well-written documents. As for the other means of looking, he never asked Mi-Yung about this because she was busy, and he often forgot to ask her about things he had discovered.

  So, what about Richards?

  Richards nodded to himself again and felt William's answer was satisfactory, but his manners were not. Unfortunately, he had more topics and questions to ask.

  “Do you know about your father?”

  “My father?” William frowned and slammed the notebook shut. “It is my private issue, sir. Asking about him isn't fine, because I don't know what to tell you. You might know much more than I because he was a person of the Federation, while I am not. However, I know about my father from the responses of people who care for me. Maybe you should ask them... or... ask others, or forget it. He is dead.” William answered.

  Richards turned cold. He didn't want to joke around with this kid, whose face had turned serious thanks to very specific reminders that he knew would spark something. It did, but not in a way that had been foretold. Besides leaking redness, that is.

  “Hmp! Tsch... Luke... Alright. As you know, a primary reason for my visit is to see your point. Secondary is your father. He reached Rank 6 in his twenties, which was something not many deemed as possible back in the day. Even in today's age, there are a handful of such cases. You might have his talent, so I'm forcing myself to be... no. I am doing my part as a medium for the Academy and for my leadership. They want you, even if it means questionable possibilities that not everyone agrees with, because, hell, why care about the past? Many do that or this, so consider my offer a starting point for your reputation and a first step towards the Academy. Of course, the second knock would happen after your Awakening, and what will happen when you face the Examination. This is not a door, boy. Our place has rules and tests, and the best judgments are up to the Judge!”

  William hummed in wonder. “Why my father, though? I don't like to hear much about him. Everyone sounds impressive when they talk about him, yet... he got lost outside at a terrible time and never returned.”

  “Unfortunate, but it is how it goes for Walkers. Some die at their peak, or not even there.”

  William couldn't refute that and returned to what mattered. “What about those Parties of the Academy? Is it true that one cares about me right now? Why are you saying it when there are things that matter more?”

  Richards relaxed a little and knew what to say. “You... clever boy. You are nothing. When you first came here, that was true. Alright. I want you to be part of our Party and not go to others. Consider it as told obligations if you choose to work with the North, because the North remembers.”

  “North?” William definitely took a big note of this.

  “There are four choices within the Academy that have roughly the same powers. Party Leaders are all at Rank 8, and a lot of Rank 7s are under them. It is a simple hierarchy that makes the Academy the most powerful place in the world. I serve the North Party, while my job is to guide anyone for our causes.”

  William fell silent for a couple of moments and wondered what causes they had. Those words surprised him even more than his face showed. It seemed the Academy was not that distant from the Federation since it had its Assembly with plenty of Rank 8 Walkers.

  In short, wasn't this basically the same thing?

  What made the Academy so much stronger?

  *Those are like political parties in there... What in the actual hell are they thinking? Isn't it better to be a singular and powerful organization with a single reason of getting rid of all of those shitty mosnters?* William thought and did not understand the nature of those parties and problems.

  Walkers were the leading cause, but in turn, they were still bloodied humans in this world, and they had their differences, ambitions, and distinct focuses.

  Then, there were Darks with their unhinged nature and near impossibility of getting rid of them. What could force the change? Could a more spread-out force stop the inescapable truth? Was one coherent force much better against a wide range of foes scattered around the world? The answer hurt. Darks were everything, while Walkers were not.

  Ego and power were sides of the same coin, reflecting the history of humanity. William had yet to understand much about Walkers, the pinnacle of human existence, with powers that none had ever imagined.

  “So?” Richards asked. “What is your answer?!”