Just before they moved toward the potential crystal, Lucian stopped for a brief second, instantly commanding himself to try using the unique skill Restriction again, more properly this time.
It was slightly difficult to understand the skill, since it was unlike anything else he had, but with his innate talent, he was able to grasp new things much faster than even talented people... at least, briefly.
Lucian immediately attempted to reduce his talent.
[Attempting to reduce talent...]
A translucent screen appeared before his eyes.
But then—
[Error!]
[Error!]
Lucian’s brows twitched.
[Talent cannot be changed!]
[Skill Mastery isn’t high enough to change talent!]
[Warning: Currently, only stats can be changed by the user.]
’Fuck my life. And fuck this stupid skill...!’
The temperature in the room rose by a few degrees as irritation flickered within him, and Lucian had to do his best to hold himself back.
His teeth clenched slightly.
’I just got the skill, and it’s already useless?’
His frustration continued to build.
’Akashaemon...! What kind of rubbish gadget did you give me?!’
[Oi... I’m not some blue robot!] Her voice rang inside his head, carrying obvious annoyance.
[And it’s your fault. You should’ve trained to use this ski—]
’You just gave it to me just now.’
[...]
A brief silence followed.
[Oh...]
Lucian’s eyes twitched.
[...Sorry?]
Despite apologising, there was a strange mixture of amusement within her voice, as if she was genuinely enjoying the show he was giving—not only the expression on his face, but also all the emotions she could feel flowing through their connection.
And Lucian quickly understood that she was having fun.
’You...’
His fingers curled slightly.
But not wanting him to actually explode—which he might actually do with his current temper, along with his vampire nature and Scarlett’s heightened emotions—it was probably better not to push him any further.
Lucian took a slow breath, then instantly tried using the skill once again, while his hand hovered over the crystal before him.
The artifact floated slightly above the table, suspended between four metal supports, soft white light constantly flowing through its transparent surface, moving inside almost as if it were alive.
But he didn’t have the time to admire the beauty of the artifact.
"What happened, lad?" Cedric’s voice came from beside him, noticing Lucian still hadn’t placed his hand upon the crystal.
For a brief moment, Cedric even wondered whether the young man had become paranoid about the Association’s artifacts after breaking one.
[Attempting to reduce talent...]
Lucian once again used the skill, focusing harder as the translucent screen appeared before him.
But again—
[Error!]
[Erro—]
The screen suddenly halted before a familiar chime rang inside his head.
[Ding!~]
[Transferring access to the unique skill to Akasha.]
Lucian’s eyes widened.
[Transfer complete.]
His expression slowly turned blank.
He hadn’t even agreed to it!
[Attempting to reduce the talent of the host... Complete.]
[Note: The talent cannot be changed, since it is a most fundamental part of you, connected to your soul... so the skill can only conceal the real talent and place it under restriction.]
Lucian stared at the translucent screen in disbelief...
Perhaps even horror.
This woman... this fucking system of his had taken control of his skill within a second!
’Wait, the skill was given by her, so she would have control... right?’
The surprise lessened a little, but before he could think any further—
[What rank of talent do you want me to place?]
Akasha’s question softly echoed inside his head, carrying a faint hint of amusement, clearly knowing what kind of thoughts were brewing inside his mind.
But now wasn’t the time.
Everyone around him was looking at him strangely, both the Director and his assistant standing before him with faint frowns on their faces.
Lucian shook those thoughts away, then his gaze briefly shifted toward Leonardo.
Then, a small smirk slowly appeared across Lucian’s lips before he placed his hand over the crystal...
Gently, of course.
’Place my talent as...’
[Oh... fu~ fu~ I can see where you are going with this.]
Hearing her words, he too chuckled lightly, making them even more confused.
The crystal shone, and after a few seconds, glowing letters appeared within the crystal itself, etched with the talent he had.
Both Cedric and Leonardo’s eyes widened in disbelief before the Director’s lips slowly parted.
"SS... rank talent."
His voice shook ever so slightly, realising the weight behind those words before he gradually raised his head, looking at the boy who was staring at the glowing letters with a mildly raised brow.
Yet there wasn’t any real surprise or disbelief in his expression.
Cedric’s eyes briefly drifted toward Leonardo, whose eyes remained fixed upon the letters as well, as if he couldn’t actually believe what he was seeing.
But quickly shaking off his surprise, the Director returned his attention toward Lucian.
"SS rank..." he repeated.
"Lad, aren’t you happy?" he couldn’t help but ask, seeing the lack of arrogance or excitement in his expression.
Even Cedric would’ve reacted a bit differently if he had possessed such a high-rank talent himself, since that alone would’ve guaranteed his entire life just from those two letters.
Yet Lucian merely looked at both of their reactions before giving a slight nod.
"Hmm."
He hummed dismissively, not really caring about their opinions.
Leonardo’s eyes twitched wildly upon hearing the dismissal in his tone, as though obtaining such a high-rank talent wasn’t even enough to impress him.
"You are too arrogant," he muttered in a low voice, but still loud enough for everyone to hear.
Lucian turned toward him, and a faint smirk appeared on his lips before he slowly tilted his head.
"I’m not like someone else who is satisfied with an SS-rank talent."
Silence.
The expressions of both men immediately stilled, and after a few seconds, Leonardo’s expression darkened almost instantly.
’He knows that too...’
The same thought surfaced within both of them.
Cedric’s faint smile faded almost imperceptibly, while Leonardo’s fingers clenched into a tight fist, making his knuckles turn white.
The boy standing before them was becoming increasingly difficult to understand.
Lucian had purposefully displayed his talent as SS rank—the exact same as Leonardo’s talent... almost as if he were mocking him.
"..."
Seraphina silently stared at the internal chaos unfolding between the three men, and...
She didn’t even have a good grasp of what was happening anymore.
After a few seconds passed, Cedric finally reached over and patted his assistant on the shoulder, telling him to calm down before turning his head toward Lucian.
"Anyways... congratulations."
His expression relaxed, and a wide smile appeared across his slightly wrinkled face.
"You were just one rank below reaching the same talent as the Saintess."
"Saintess?" Lucian repeated, his curiosity increasing as he heard about this person once again.
This was already the second time he had mentioned her, and judging from Lucian’s reaction, Cedric looked slightly surprised by his obliviousness.
"Yes, you don’t know about her?"
He paused briefly before continuing.
"She has an SSS-rank talent, the highest ever recorded."
Lucian raised his brows slightly, surprised.
’Though there’s also the Chosen One, who simply broke the crystal into pieces.’
Cedric thought silently.
He couldn’t say that aloud, however, as it was classified information—something completely restricted from the public.
The Church itself had gone to great lengths to keep him hidden from the world, and although there were still some people who knew about his existence, he was still far less famous than the Saintess, who had almost become the centre of the entire world right now.
"Barely less than one percent of people get an S rank..." Cedric continued, explaining the rarity to the two of them.
"And even less than a percent of that percentage get SS rank."
Lucian quietly nodded before asking,
"So... is the examination over?"
"Almost. We’ll have to test your combat powers now."
He turned around, gesturing for them to follow.
"People who awaken eventually enter dungeons, so we have to make sure you don’t kill yourself the moment you enter one. But don’t worry, you’ll only have to pass the combat test."
Cedric led all of them toward the centre of the large basement, where several training spots had been prepared.
Upon reaching one of the designated training grounds, he finally stopped.
"But lad... are you sure you want to keep your identity in the open?"
Lucian glanced toward him, tilting his head in confusion.
"What do you mean?"
Cedric sighed quietly.
"As I told you just now, having an SS-rank talent is something too precious for anyone to have, and..."
He paused for a few seconds, but before he could speak further—
"The major Guilds might be after me...?" Lucian asked, guessing.
But Cedric shook his head.
"Not exactly."
He folded his arms across his chest.
"Yes, they will certainly do their best to recruit you. Someone with your talent would be extremely valuable to them."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"But there is also a chance that they might try wiping you out if you are deemed too dangerous."
The words immediately caused Seraphina’s brows to furrow behind her mask.
"Just because of talent?"
Even though she had already learned about how much strength was valued within Bloodveil, she hadn’t thought humans would be the same.
Cedric looked at her.
"You might not know, but someone having talent above A rank is way too extraordinary, especially for normal people who aren’t already a part of any faction."
He spoke calmly, though there was seriousness behind his words.
"People become afraid of things they cannot control."
Seraphina remained silent, and her fingers curled slightly beneath her clothes as her eyes drifted toward her son.
"The same as having too much money and status without any protection," she mumbled to herself.
"You could say that."
Cedric’s gaze then shifted toward Lucian once again, who seemed to be thinking about something.
"So, what did you decide, lad?"
He paused briefly, then, noticing Lucian was paying attention, continued.
"If you want..." His expression became slightly more serious, his voice growing heavier.
"You can even work for the Association. I’ll make sure you are nurtured well."
He spoke directly, making Lucian raise a brow.
He had been expecting some play with words, perhaps a complicated offer with hidden agendas meant to control him.
But...
It seemed the Director was simply being direct with his words.
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