Garrick's cold gaze bore down on the trainees.
"Listen carefully. I won't repeat myself. You'll be split into teams of five. Each team gets an instructor and a mission. The instructor doesn't help you, unless you're about to die. They're there to watch. That's it."
"How you handle pressure, how you carry yourselves, how you complete the mission—all of it gets graded. That's what they'll use to pick the ten Candidates representing this house. Any questions?"
Arms shot up at once, but Garrick sneered.
"I was joking, you dimwits. If you still don't get it after I've simplified it this much, you probably won't survive out there."
The trainees grew pale, many swallowing as they fell silent.
"I'll now announce the groups. If you hear your name, step forward. Bareth…!"
The name calling took some time, but after a while, Zephyrion found himself standing alongside four other trainees.
"Let's do our best, young lord."
