"Fletchlings are not allowed in here," The Warlock Centaur facing Michael said.
His voice was neither cold nor was he condescending toward Michael. Nonetheless, Michael was confused.
"Fletchlings are not allowed…in the library?" He asked.
"You want our knowledge, don't you?" The Warlock Centaur responded.
Michael nodded in affirmation.
"In that case, you've to gain our respect and trust. We only tolerate the presence of Fletchlings in Piloq, but that's it."
Listening to the Warlock Centaur explained why the participants of the Battle Exchange arrived in Piloq a week prior to the official start.
If they wanted to use any facility in Piloq to improve their strength or knowledge, they would have to work hard to elevate their status beyond that of Fletchlings.
"I won't even be able to purchase anything in Piloq with my current status, right?" Michael asked, which was affirmed with a simple nod.
Michael was a little disappointed but could not find fault with their reasoning, 'Berserkers and Warlock Centaurs have different spawn points in the Origin Expanse. They should have an easier time with most goods that are hard to come by for human Lords.'
Michael was pretty sure that the Olympus would want to trade Agriculture-type Blueprints with the Berserkers and Warlock Centaurs. Kraft Viton told him a few things, including that Oliver Zeus and Killian Zeus had been sent to Meku to gain the utmost respect from the Berserkers and Warlock Centaurs for various reasons.
The reasons included establishing a long-term business contract between the Tritan Alliance and the Olympus, and heavy investment in several projects, including the Agriculture Project.
'It shouldn't be too easy to do business with the Berserkers given that the Bartholomew Corporation was willing to give up 18% of their revenue share to make a deal with me…' Michael thought, looking behind him where Kraft Viton was standing.
The Warlock Centaur hadn't even noticed the old man until Michael looked behind. He subconsciously stepped back and almost instinctively manifested his Artifacts to prepare for battle. Fortunately, he held back upon sensing that he couldn't perceive anything about the old man.
Kraft Viton concealed himself perfectly. It was almost as if the old man didn't exist. To achieve something like that, the old man was either in possession of an extremely powerful camouflage Soultrait, his concealment technique was of the highest quality and mastered to perfection, or he was several times stronger than the Warlock Centaur.
The Warlock Centaur didn't require a second glance to confirm that the old man could overpower him without moving a finger if he desired to do so.
"I hope you can acknowledge our customs. Even if you don't want to do so, you'll have to if you want to stay in Piloq," The Warlock Centaur said, trying to calm his nerves. He often faced powerhouses, but they usually respected their customs. They knew what would happen if they were to disobey their sacred rules. However, the human powerhouse might not be inclined to do so.
"Don't bother about me. I'm just following him," Kraft Viton said, gesturing to Michael, who smiled somewhat forcibly.
"I'll have to change my status as well to enter the library, right?" The old man added, which was reaffirmed after the Warlock Centaur sighed in relief subconsciously.
Michael observed the exchange between the Warlock Centaur and the old man before he pulled the focus of the conversation back to himself, "In that case, how can I change my status? I know that the Warlock Centaurs and Berserkers divide their status into Plerus, Warriors, Champions, Combat Lords, Sacred Diviners, and War Gods, but what exactly do I have to do to become a Plerus, and what are the benefits of becoming a Warrior?"
Michael read that Plerus were mostly citizens, who hadn't manifested a War Rune. Most Awakened were Warriors, but that was already everything Michael knew.
"You cannot become a Plerus since you're not one of us. However, since you're a Lord with a Tier-2 War Rune, you can become a Warrior by getting acknowledged by five fellow Warriors. As long as a Champion vouches for you, you'll become a Warrior as well.
To become a Champion, you need to achieve something in the Origin Expanse, or earn merit points. Merit points can be procured in various ways, including winning combat tournaments, betting in the arena, completing missions set up by Combat Lords, and so on. Other than that, you also need to cross a certain threshold in your combat strength to become a Champion," The Warlock Centaur seated behind the reception of Piloq's Library answered before he added, "The rest…you don't need to know. You won't become a Combat Lord, either way."
'Why do I feel like he doesn't think I will ever become a Champion in the first place? Does being a Tier-2 Lord mean nothing, or does he think that I'm weak? Or…does he have a prejudice against all humans?'
The Warlock Centaur working in the Library might answer all of his questions, but Michael wasn't sure why the Centaur's eyes revealed traces of dislike and discontent.
'Or he just had a bad experience with other humans before.'
"How different is the treatment given to a Warrior compared to a Champion?" Michael asked. However, he quickly noticed that the Warlock Centaur narrowed his eyes. He even sighed in frustration, loudly enough for Michael to hear.
The sigh was enough for Michael to raise his eyebrow as he added a little annoyed, "The etiquette guides didn't tell me the difference in status between Warriors and Champions. Do you want me to treat a Champion with disrespect?"
Now it was the Warlock Centaur's turn to raise an eyebrow. Before he could say anything, Michael added, "If so, I will gladly tell everyone whom I accidentally mistreat that it was you who told me it's fine, Mister…Klerus Makal"
Michael read the name tag written on the Warlock Centaur's uniform and continued to stare intently at him.
The Warlock Centaur's expression changed and a subtle smile appeared on his lips, "Looks like our fletchling has some backbone."
"Alright. You want to know the difference in status, right?"
Klerus Makal had a sudden change in attitude. He noticed that Michael didn't allow anyone to look down at him, and pointed out his issue without losing his temper. That was a lot more than one could expect from Berserkers, or most human prodigies, who came to Piloq during the last few years.
Michael was a little surprised but he waited patiently until Klerus Makal continued speaking.
"To put it simply, all Awakened become Warriors. The difference between Unawakened and Awakened is similar everywhere. You receive special benefits, funding from the government, and several years of training in the military to grow stronger. Talented Combatants will be sent to different cities to train with their stronger brethren and hone each other's skills. The strongest Awakened will receive advanced training in Piloq where most Ancient Structures for all types of training were relocated over the years.
Warriors are allowed to use one Ancient Structure every week free of charge. Additional training sessions have to be requested and paid for via merit points, and other means," Klerus Makal explained calmly while analyzing Michael's response.
Michael merely nodded his head. He thought that it was a pretty good idea to train all Awakened and send the rest of the talent pool to other places where they could gather and grind each other to unravel their hidden potential. Those capable of unleashing their full potential would then be sent to the advanced training course where the most talented would be trained with advanced means such as Ancient Structures.
A little bit of research was enough to determine that a few particular Ancient training Structures were situated in Piloq. For example, one of them could be used to examine the energy veins within their body, and research ways to strengthen the weaker parts while also fully utilizing the advantages of having strong energy veins in certain areas. That way, specialized martial arts techniques could be unleashed with much higher destructive force and effectiveness.
Michael was also interested in the Ancient Structures, so he listened intently as Klerus continued, "Warriors have a much higher status than Plerus. They're essential for the protection of our races, and provide resources from the Origin Expanse. They're allowed to enter the second floor of the library and utilize most facilities with a special discount. But Champions are on a whole different level. Most facilities are free of charge for them, and they're allowed to the second and third floors of the library in Piroq. Disrespecting them is something you should avoid if you're not confident of surviving a Challenge of Honor. Champions are powerful, bring honor to their people, and provide essential support to the economy for both Berserkers and Warlock Centaurs."
Klerus stopped to take a breath following the lengthy explanation. Michael was just about to say something but Klerus lifted his hand to stop him.
"Wait a moment. You should also listen to this. It's quite important since you're human – and this is about you," Klerus said, taking another deep breath before he added, "Human Warriors have restricted rights compared to Berserkers or Warlock Centaurs. This includes the rights to enter the library, use our Ancient Structures, and the purchase quota."
A frown appeared on Michael's face when he heard that. He didn't expect Berserkers and Warlock Centaurs to be racists.
Klerus noticed his reaction and smiled wryly as he added, "This is something we did to ensure that humans won't try to exploit our economy. You shouldn't frown at me. Your kind is at fault for this. If your companies wouldn't have tried to force some of our Champions to sell all of their goods to them that issue wouldn't exist. One of your companies even tried to kidnap our Champions, forcing the Sacred Diviner to step in."
"Ohh…" Michael added, having no difficulties imagining the greedy human Lords trying to kidnap Champions to exploit them and force them to work for the human Lords.
For the next ten minutes, Michael continued listening to Klerus. The information he obtained was very helpful. Every piece of information was stored in his mind, and a plan soon began to take shape.
'Let's start with becoming a Warrior first!"
