Simon Voss had single-handedly set the bar really high.
After his assessment, most of the students fell short.
Nothing seemed impressive anymore.
A few came close.
An A- here. A B+ there.
It was quite impressive. But still short of the level of power that the scion of House Voss had showcased.
The instructor continued down the list.
After a while, the names blurred together.
"—Affinity: Earth. Grade: C-
"—Afinnity: Wind. Grade: B-
"—Affinity: Fire. Grade: C+
And then— another pause.
A longer one this time.
The instructor looked up. A subtle smile appeared on his lips before disappearing almost instantly.
"Seraphine Valehart."
The name landed like a shockwave.
Even those who hadn't been paying attention before went still.
Elijah's eyes widened slightly.
"So the rumours were true…"
A Valehart was attending the Selection this year.
Valehart.
They were one of the oldest bloodlines and one of the most dangerous since the founding of the Aetherion Kingdom.
The Valeharts were part of the oldest nobility, the stewards of the King of Beginnings when he'd first set out to unify the region of Aetherion into the kingdom it is today.
Some of the most powerful sword saints and Archmages to walk the continent were Valeharts.
Their reputation preceded them.
"Well, this is certainly turning out to be quite the show," Elijah thought, with a nervous smile.
"Damn, they're truly going all out this year. First a Voss, now a Valehart, how are the rest of us supposed to even…"
He closed his eyes, focusing on cutting off the trickle of tumultuous thoughts churning through his mind in that moment.
From the front of the lines, a figure stepped forward.
She moved with a delicate grace and elegance that only contributed to her allure.
Every step was measured and controlled. She moved with quite confidence exuding a silent authority that was in no way inferior to Simon Voss' arrogance.
Elijah felt his breath catch in his throat when he saw her.
A brilliant heat rushed to his cheeks. His eyes widened slightly, his lips parting in surprise.
Suddenly, he could hear his heart pounding thunderously in his eardrums.
"The hell…"
He quietly bit the inside of his cheek until he felt the tangy taste of blood.
" What is this feeling…"
For some reason, he was getting quite annoyed.
" This—"
He couldn't find the words to describe the bubbly, uncomfortable feeling in his heart.
"This day truly just keeps on getting worse."
Seraphine's uniform was immaculate, but understated compared to the nobles around her.
Her long dark hair fell neatly over her shoulders, framing a face that was calm to the point of being unreadable.
And her eyes—
Elijah pursed his lips, putting on what he imagined was his best poker face.
Her dazzling violet eyes heightened her already ethereal beauty.
Despite that, within their depths, Elijah recognized the same sharpness he'd seen in Simon's.
" How are they raising these monsters… They're all monsters…"
Meanwhile, several whispers echoed all around him.
"—my goddess!"
" —No, she's mine!"
"—a goddess sent from the heavens to shine her divine light on us, mere mortals—"
Elijah rolled his eyes, sparing the yammering students a sidelong glance.
"What a bunch of idiots…and we're supposed to be the same age…"
Seraphine walked to the platform without acknowledging the whispers.
Without acknowledging anyone.
As Elijah watched her approach, he felt his chest tighten once more.
"She's definitely different. But why…what is it…"
His eyes narrowed in contemplation.
Deep within him, something resonated deeply with him.
Seraphine stopped before the Arcane Core.
For a moment, she simply looked at it.
As if considering something.
Then she placed her hand against the crystal.
Then, there was a still silence.
For a moment, everyone in attendance seemed to hold their breath.
Then— the light appeared. It wasn't golden like Simon's.
The light wasn't explosive or violent.
It was simply, mesmerizing.
It spread slowly, almost deliberately, inking through the crystal.
A deep crimson glow, threaded with darker lines that pulsed like a heartbeat.
The air in the courtyard grew heavier then subtly began vibrating with power.
The air thrummed gently at first then reached a crescendo, humming with a fever pitch.
A few of the students shifted uncomfortably as the phenomenon continued.
Even the faculty leaned forward now.
The patterns on the Core twisted erratically, becoming more complex than before around her.
Then—the result formed.
Affinity: Blood
Grade: S-
Mana Capacity: Exceptional
Trait: Binding Authority Detected
For a moment, no one reacted.
An eerie silence filled the courtyard.
Then—it was almost as though the entire crowd took a collective intake of breath.
S-rank.
"She's S-Rank."
Elijah stared at the result in shock.
"She's S-Rank. What the hell?"
It was almost unheard of, extremely rare…
And blood affinity—
"Of all the things that could have happened…"
As far as he was concerned, there was no other person with a blood affinity in the Aetherion Kingdom.
Seraphine didn't react.
She removed her hand and in the next moment, the crimson glow faded as if it had never been there.
Then she turned, staring impassively at the crowd below.
As she stepped down from the platform, her gaze drifted—just once—across the crowd.
And stopped, lingering on someone in the crowd.
Elijah stared at her in confusion.
He resisted the impulse to turn around and check but he was quite sure.
In that brief moment, their eyes had met and in their depths, there was recognition.
" I'm definitely imagining things, right?"
It hadn't been for long but he was quite sure. He was rarely wrong about these things
It had been barely a second but it was enough.
She looked away and returned to her place.
The ceremony continued.
But the tension had peaked.
A+.
S-.
The bar had just been set even higher.
Everything else felt… much smaller and quite insignificant.
The instructor's voice cut through again.
Name after name.
Result after result.
And then—
"Elijah Crowe."
The world seemed to narrow.
The murmurs were quieter this time.
There was no recognition. But suddenly he could feel every gaze now.
The faculty. The nobles. Simon.
And Seraphine.
"Oh damn."