YooJin gazed at the alphas before them, five in total, three of them were wrinkled and two still smooth. Each of them wore extravagant garbs of different colors embroidered with delicate gold designs that YooJin could only assume were also from the Silla period.

Not a single one smiled as they stared down at him atop their high podiums.

“An omega wizard, you say,” said the alpha in blue who sat in the middle of the group. His hair was gray but the wrinkles upon his face were still minimal and not a single laugh line could be seen.

“Impossible,” said another, a portly man who wore yellow robes and whose angular face stood in direct contrast to his soft body. “That is a privilege bestowed only upon alphas.”

“Now, now,” said the man beside him, whose robes were orange and whose expression, though smiling, seemed to hint at an underlying disgust. “There have been many cases that humanity believed to be true only to be proven wrong with new evidence. An omega being a Saerim may not be within the reach of improbability.”

“Rut minded fools, mana would be useless in their hands.”

“Why don’t we let TaeHyun speak before we start questioning those claims,” said the man who spoke first.

“Why not simply have him as your omega, TaeHyun?” said the man in yellow garbs. “You have still to pair with one from what I hear. If what you say is true then an omega like this will probably be valuable in your attempts at re-controlling your mana.”

“Whether or not he becomes my omega has nothing to do with this request that I brought before you,” he replied in a cold tone.

“No?” said the man in orange. “If it is simply that he wishes to become a hunter, why go through the hardships of training and the examination when he can join you as your omega or even a healer? Omegas make excellent healers.”

“His manifestation is significant. If you’ve read the report Doctor Yoon sent—”

“Yes, yes, we have the document here,” said the alpha in yellow as he carelessly waved about a piece of paper. “It said he punched—” he then paused and placed the paper back down, peering at it carefully. “It says that this omega punched a hole in a foot of concrete and the doctor even ventures to say that he may be the one responsible for the breach in a dungeon wall.” He looked around at his fellow councilmen. “What kind of nonsense is this?”

“Hmm,” said the alpha who sat immediately to the left of the man in blue. He wore red robes. “It is simply speculation, is it not?”

“Is the Council doubting Doctor Yoon’s assessment?” said TaeHyun coldly.

“Of course not,” he replied, his voice silky smooth. “I am simply saying that since there is no definitive proof, we cannot be certain if this omega’s mana burst, if it was in fact his, was the cause of that hole or the wall break.”

“Enter him into the Academy to assess his potential,” said TaeHyun.

“An omega attend the Academy?” said the man in yellow with a loud, boisterous laugh.

“Enough, Jo,” said the man in blue. He then turned back to TaeHyun. “On what basis are you suggesting we admit him? Having an omega become a student is unprecedented, breaking with tradition, and who knows just what type of liability it may pose on the existing students.”

It?

“Tradition has nothing to do with it. If an omega Saerim is unprecedented then that means we have no tradition to go by. It is pointless to argue that.”

“Watch how you speak to a Councilman,” the alpha in red said calmly, coldly.

“TaeHyun, we cannot outright reject your request—” the blue councilman continued.

“Because of your family’s influence,” the alpha in red added quietly.

YooJin turned to look at the man. His thin bearded face was full of unhidden contempt. Despite what Dr. Yoon had said, it seemed as though not everyone respected TaeHyun for the wizard that he was.

He turned his gaze to TaeHyun and saw that he was unfazed. 

“Then let him attend as a trial student, the mana—”

“Enough!” said the alpha in orange loudly. “An omega Saerim is a ridiculous concept and we shouldn't even be entertaining such a request.”

“What do you think, Chief Tak?” interrupted the alpha in blue suddenly and it was then that YooJin noticed an immense energy in the room.

Surprised, he turned around to see the old woman standing a few feet from the closed door. She hobbled forward, her hands clasped behind her back. As she passed, her eyes briefly met his and YooJin was startled at the clarity within them.

“An omega Saerim,” said Chief Tak slowly as she stopped in front of their podiums. “It is certainly an unusual case.”

She looked at all the individual council members in turn and YooJin couldn’t help but notice the discomfort some of them seem to exhibit upon meeting her gaze.

“Wouldn’t it be prudent to confirm for yourselves if he is in fact a mana wielder?” she said, measuring her words with a slow pace but no one dared to interrupt her. “And if the claim holds true, I would think it would be imperative to study him further. After all, an impossible becoming true is a case worth investigating.”

“But” said the councilman in orange “letting an omega attend the Academy could cause strife among students, many of whom are stressed enough with their training. To add an unpaired omega—”

“Think of the prestige of the Academy!” Councilman Jo yelled. “We are known as an alpha only institution if word got out to the others—”

“You asked me for my opinion,” Chief Tak said, her soft words immediately cutting theirs short.

“You think it might mean something?” asked the alpha in blue. “An omega emerging as a Saerim… But omegas are weak. even if they do have mana control, their power will likely reflect that.”

Chief Tak’s reply was slow as she turned and met YooJin’s gaze again. “As of now, we know nothing.”

“Then what do you propose we do? Enter him into the Academy and throw everything into disarray?” replied Jo, recovering quickly from his previous silencing.

“If we insist on going this route,” said the red councilman and others all turned their eyes to him, “why not just have him enter the examination? If he survives then we will accept him into the Academy.”

“What?” said TaeHyun. “Students have a year’s worth of training before entering and you plan to send him in without so much as knowing how to wield his mana?”

The councilman shrugged. “I agree with Master Jo, simply accepting him into the Academy is inadvisable. If this omega survives then we can at least use that to justify our decision to the stakeholders.”

He turned to YooJin and smiled an affectionless smile. It was the first time any of the councilmen spoke to him directly. “Otherwise, you can always become a healer or… what’s better suited to an omega than becoming an alpha’s pair?”

YooJin met the Councilman's eyes. After a long moment, he spoke. “I’ll take the exam.”

The man blinked and gazed at him, lids lowered into a menacing stare, before turning away without acknowledging his words.

“When is it?” asked TaeHyun.

For a while not a single one of the council members answered him. 

“In three days time,” Chief Tak responded and TaeHyun turned to her.

“That’s hardly enough.”

“Nor will there be enough time to prepare weapons for him. He’ll have to go barehanded.”

“Then it is pointless. Its entire purpose is to determine his class.”

Chief Tak did not respond and neither did any of the other councilmen. 

“Then I propose we wait for the next cycle,” TaeHyun said.

“I’m afraid the teachers and students will all object,” said the alpha in red. “It is either now and he uses this opportunity to prove himself or forgo it all.”

YooJin briefly wondered if that was true. How would the other students even know of his presence?

TaeHyun opened his mouth to respond when YooJin placed a hand on his shoulder, stopping his words. “I’ll do it,” he said.

TaeHyun looked at him for a moment and it looked as though he would argue before closing his mouth. YooJin returned his gaze to the others and was surprised to find Chief Tak again looking at him with startling clarity.

“It is incredibly dangerous, a few have even lost their lives in there. And you, an omega, still wish to participate?” said the councilman in blue. It was the first time he had addressed or even acknowledged his presence.

“I…” He blinked. “Yeah.”

The imposing man looked at him for a moment in silence. “Brave or stupid, I do not know which.”

“And what of an accidental heat?” said the councilman in red to TaeHyun.

“I’m not easily affected by alpha pheromones.”

But he did not turn to him and instead continued to look at TaeHyun for an answer. 

TaeHyun met his eyes. “Did you not hear him?”

The councilman looked at TaeHyun with what YooJin swore was hatred before turning to face him. “You said you are not easily affected but that does not mean you are wholly unaffected. Are you willing to take the consequences of being surrounded by alphas?”

YooJin met his eyes straightforwardly. “I can handle it.”

“He is much older than the other students. He may pose as a liability.”

“Considering that you are sending him in without training,” said TaeHyun, “I suppose he will.”

The councilman glared at him but did not protest his words. Suddenly, his face broke out into a slow smile. “Are you then willing to take the consequences of what may happen to him and happen because of him inside the dungeon? Would you be willing to give up your own future seat upon this council?”

YooJin turned to TaeHyun who had grown silent. This wasn’t part of their agreement. He was supposed to simply get YooJin into the Academy and trained as a hunter. YooJin had thought it was a simple enough task. After all, if omegas from good families could go to top prestigious universities, founded by and for alphas, why couldn’t YooJin, an omega with the ability to wield mana, the one requirement for a wizard, backed by a son of the Mirae Group not attend a school meant for wizards who just happened to be all alphas?

YooJin felt uneasy. TaeHyun wasn’t supposed to sacrifice anything, there should have been no true risk for him. They hardly knew each other so why would he…

“For what reason would he have to give up his seat?” asked Chief Tak and surprised, YooJin turned to face her.

The councilman in red shrugged. “We’re willingly risking the lives of the other test takers and the reputation of the Academy because of a request from TaeHyun Moon, the son of the Mirae Group. The least he can do is put his own chips into the pile.”

If it hadn’t been clear before, it now struck YooJin that these councilmen were setting him up for failure. They didn’t want him at the Academy, weren’t curious at all about an omega wizard, didn’t think that much would come out of it simply because he was an omega. The conditions they were placing were superficial, the supposed danger they claimed YooJin would pose could have been avoided by simply training him.

He pressed his arm against TaeHyun’s until the alpha turned to look at him.

“Don’t do it,” YooJin whispered. It wasn’t worth it. Hell, he may even end up losing his life or getting someone else killed. That certainly wasn’t worth it, not when he had EunHa to take care of, and now to also force TaeHyun to risk his seat on the council but then again… Liam.

“I agree to the terms,” said TaeHyun suddenly.

“Are you nuts?” YooJin whispered.

“But in return,” he continued, ignoring YooJin’s words “if he does succeed, I want him to be immediately entered into the Academy and into my party, not as my omega but as a full fledged hunter.”

YooJin’s eyes narrowed. What was this alpha trying to do? How could he agree to those conditions when all he would get out of it was some stabilization of his hormones which any omega could give him? Was YooJin missing something? Why would he risk something seemingly important to get him into the Academy… 

Master Jo laughed. “What is wrong with you, TaeHyun?” he said as though his words were merely a joke. “An omega, a hunter in the elite group? That is the funniest thing I think I’ve ever heard.”

TaeHyun did not respond. “He has three days to prepare, I’d like an instructor to assist me.”

“Impossible —”

“I will prepare him,” said Chief Tak and all pairs of eyes immediately turned to look at her.

“But Chief Tak, your responsibilities and the meetings with stakeholdersall ” said the councilman in green. It was the first time he spoke and YooJin turned to look at him. He was bespectacled and undeniably the oldest in the council, his head entirely covered with white hair and his face covered in wrinkles.

“I will manage my own responsibilities. If I have no objections, I do not see why the council should.”

Silence.

YooJin looked around at the men sitting atop their podium. A few of them were staring down at Tak with expressions that couldn’t quite hide their dislike. He peered curiously at them and then at her and then back at them.

The tension in the air felt dangerous.