"Wait, p-partner?" Seraphina mumbled in a low voice, her words carrying a clear trace of disbelief.
"Hm?"
Lucian tilted his head slightly, seemingly confused by her sudden reaction.
His reaction made it seem as though he had absolutely no idea what was so strange about what he had just said...
And perhaps he truly didn’t.
"What? Is there a problem?"
Seraphina stared at him with blank eyes, her lips parting slightly as if she wanted to say something, only for her to close them again.
Her son...
Sometimes, he really did say things that could startle people without even realising it.
Though she could understand that he hadn’t meant it in that way.
Once again...
She was overthinking it.
Cedric and Leonardo, meanwhile, exchanged amused glances, quietly observing the pair bicker with each other.
The director had almost begun to think that the woman might actually be mute, considering her complete lack of responses since entering the office.
Cedric coughed lightly, bringing both of their attention back to the matter at hand.
"Let’s get started with the test then. Selene Frost first."
He gestured toward the first artifact positioned beside him, causing both of them to turn their heads in its direction.
It was a transparent crystal sphere, roughly the size of a basketball, resting securely upon a circular metallic pedestal.
Upon closer inspection, countless engravings could be seen across the surface of the pedestal. They resembled tiny, glowing circuits, though they were unlike anything produced by modern technology.
"This artifact is used to measure your mana capacity," Cedric explained, noticing their curious gazes, though Seraphina’s expression remained hidden beneath her mask.
The Director couldn’t help but notice that neither of them was reacting all that strongly despite looking at such a strange gadget.
After all, most of the population didn’t even have a proper understanding of artifacts yet.
For most ordinary awakened who had only recently discovered the supernatural world, seeing an artifact for the first time was enough to leave them completely stunned...
And many of them couldn’t even believe that such things actually existed.
"I see," Lucian muttered, his voice remaining calm and indifferent.
In truth, he was genuinely curious about the artifact.
He even wanted to examine it more closely...
But he did his best to hide that interest, not wanting to make himself look like some country bumpkin who had never seen an artifact before.
As for his mother...
She simply didn’t show much emotion in front of others, so her lack of reaction wasn’t particularly surprising.
Seraphina quietly looked toward Cedric, almost as though asking what she was supposed to do next.
Cedric immediately understood.
"Place your hand on the crystal, and it will measure your mana capacity and display the result as a numerical value."
Seraphina glanced at the crystal for a long second before silently nodding and stepping forward.
She walked calmly, though there was a slight nervousness beneath her otherwise composed demeanour.
Slowly, she removed the glove from her hand, revealing her pale skin beneath...
Along with the faint scars scattered across her fingertips and the back of her hand.
Cedric noticed them, but didn’t say anything.
’Though there was no real need to remove the glove.’
He thought, but kept the thought to himself.
Seraphina placed her bare hand against the crystal.
For a few seconds, nothing happened.
Then—
The blue circuits engraved across the metallic pedestal began to glow faintly, while the previously lifeless crystal slowly illuminated with a soft blue radiance.
Cedric watched as numbers began appearing across the plate, slowly increasing as the artifact measured and calculated her mana capacity.
’Hey, Akasha.’
Lucian suddenly spoke internally, his eyes remaining fixed upon the crystal as it slowly absorbed a small amount of his mother’s mana.
[Hm? What is it?] Her voice came through, sounding slightly confused by his sudden call.
’Didn’t you tell me that you would help me hide my powers?
How will you do that exactly?’
Akasha had already told him that she had some way to help him keep his real strength hidden from the world.
However, she hadn’t told him anything about it even until now, remaining silent the entire time, to the point that for a moment, it almost seemed as though she had forgo—
[Oh! I almost forgot!]
Lucian’s lips twitched... violently.
’You forgot?’
For a brief moment, complete silence filled his mind.
Lucian could almost feel the embarrassment travelling through their connection, even though Akasha didn’t say a single word.
[Anyways... umm... here...! I’ll give it to you right now!]
She paused briefly, and as if she hadn’t just been on the verge of making a major blunder, her voice suddenly became serious.
[You remember how you got a skill every time you increased your rank, right?]
’...Hm? Yes, what about it?’
[Well, did you forget? You haven’t gotten any skill after reaching C Rank.]
’...Oh.’
That was when Lucian suddenly realised.
She was right.
He really hadn’t gotten anything after reaching his current C Rank.
When he had reached E Rank, he had obtained the unique skill Inventory, and without a doubt, it was one of the skills he liked the most.
Then, after reaching D Rank, he had obtained another skill.
Tracking.
It was a useful skill, though Lucian still hadn’t been able to use it properly...
Or perhaps he simply hadn’t needed it yet.
But after reaching C Rank...
Nothing.
And he had even forgotten about it because of his training arc, which had taken up most of his attention and had been extremely important for his character development.
’Did you simply wait for this moment? Or did you already know something?’
Lucian asked internally, his eyes narrowing slightly.
But instead of giving him an answer—
[Ding~!]
A very familiar chime suddenly rang inside his head, and a familiar system notification appeared before his eyes.
[Due to maximising all your stats and reaching C Rank...]
[You have obtained a unique skill: Restriction.]
Lucian’s eyes widened.
’Another unique skill...!’ He exclaimed internally, immediately shifting his attention toward the newly acquired skill as he began reading its description.
[Restriction]
– Allows the user to impose self-made limitations upon their own body, mana, and bloodline, sealing any desired portion of their true power.
– Freely adjusts the user’s apparent combat rank by suppressing physical attributes, mana output, and presence.
– Most appraisal skills and ordinary measuring artifacts will perceive the user’s suppressed state as their true strength.
– All imposed restrictions can be released instantly, restoring the user’s sealed power in a single moment.
[Note: The effectiveness of concealing the user’s true strength depends on the detection abilities of the observer or artifact.]
[Note: The skill can also be controlled by Akasha, meaning she has the power to make you powerless... fu~ fu~]
For a moment, Lucian’s eyes brightened as a wave of excitement rushed through him.
This skill...
It would be ridiculously useful for bluffing his way through countless situations.
The perfect skill for deception...!
But the moment his eyes reached the final line of the description—
All of that excitement instantly vanished.
Completely.
For a moment... Lucian’s expression went utterly blank.
Then—
’WHAT KIND OF NOTE IS THAT?!!!’
His voice exploded inside his own mind, and his eyes widened unnaturally behind his glasses.
She...
His system had control over his skill.
Which meant...
Which meant that if she ever became his enemy, then she could simply seal his strength and make him weak enough for anyone to easily kill him!
Lucian’s face twitched.
It wasn’t just a note... it was a fucking warning!
A warning with multiple alarms ringing inside his head!
Leonardo suddenly turned his head toward Lucian, feeling a strange chill just from looking at those crimson eyes behind his glasses.
He nervously gulped, not understanding why he suddenly felt that something was wrong with the man before him.
Meanwhile, inside Lucian’s mind...
[Fu~ Fu~ Fu~]
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