Time seemed to slow down for Calian. The crowd around him seemed to drown out into a faint, sickening hum. He stood in the waiting line, about ten children still ahead of him, his heart beating wildly beneath his expensive brocade vest.
He watched the child in front of him, a blonde girl in a silk dress, place her hand on the Grand Resonance Crystal—an object the size of a small cart that pulsed gently on a marble altar base.
The moment the girl touched it, the crystal shone with incredible intensity. An emerald green color burst from its surface.
"High-Grade Diamond! The blessing of the 'Nature Keeper'! Power of Regeneration!" the Head Priest exclaimed, his voice booming with exhilaration.
The girl cried tears of joy, hugging her father. Calian merely stared flatly at the scene.
Good for you, he thought emptily. At least you have a reason to be loved by your family.
The queue continued to shrink. Calian felt like a cow lining up for slaughter, not a child about to receive a blessing. The pressure of the name "Larvin" on his back felt heavier with every passing second.
"Now," called the Head Priest, who looked weary but whose eyes instantly lit up as he read the next name on the list. "Next child! Calian Larvin, the youngest son of Duke Larvin!"
Instantly, the atmosphere in the Temple Hall changed.
Silence descended upon the previously noisy room. It was heavy. Heavier than iron armor. All eyes—hundreds of pairs of eyes—turned to him. Nobles held their breath, commoners stood on their tiptoes to see, even the priests seemed to straighten their backs. The Larvin name always promised a brutal and dazzling display of power.
Calian stepped forward. His legs felt cold, but he forced himself to walk upright. His chin was up, his face expressionless—the perfect mask taught by noble etiquette. However, behind that mask, his hands, hidden in his trouser pockets, were clenched into white-knuckled fists.
Don't tremble. Don't show fear. You are alone here, Calian. No one will help you if you fall.
He reached the altar. The Grand Resonance Crystal glowed softly before him, its surface smooth like still water.
The Head Priest smiled broadly, a smile full of expectation. "Please, Young Master. Place your hand. Let the God display his immense power through the Larvin blood."
Calian nodded stiffly. He took a deep breath, trying to fill his lungs which felt tight.
This was it. The judgment.
He raised his right hand, then placed it slowly on the cold surface of the crystal.
The first second, nothing happened. The second second, Calian felt a strange sensation. Not the warm flow of mana described in books, but a piercing cold sensation, as if his finger was dipped into ice water in the middle of winter.
And that's when he saw it.
In the depth of the crystal, behind the thick glass layer, a faint light flickered. It was not a light that shone outward and blinded others, but a light that seemed to sink inward, visible only to Calian's eyes, who was within touching distance.
The light formed a series of writings. The letters were sharp, curving gracefully yet radiating a horrifying ancient aura. Calian had never seen that form of lettering in any history lessons or foreign languages he had studied in his father's library.
Yet, strangely, the moment his eyes caught the pattern of the letters, his brain translated them automatically. As if the knowledge was forcibly injected into his consciousness.
[ Time Loop ]
Calian froze. His eyes widened slightly.
Time Loop? his inner voice questioned, the sound echoing within his own head. What does this mean?
He wanted to open his mouth. He wanted to ask the priest, "What do these words mean?" But his tongue felt paralyzed. His instinct—a survival instinct he didn't know he possessed—screamed at him to be quiet. Don't say it. Don't let them know.
The writing only flickered for two seconds, then faded, vanishing as if it had never been there.
And then... silence.
Complete silence.
The crystal did not emit the fire-red color, not water-blue, not light-gold, not even stone-grey. The crystal remained clear, silent, and dead. The faint glow that was usually present in the crystal even slowly died out while Calian's hand was still resting on it.
Calian waited. The Head Priest waited. Hundreds of people behind them waited.
One second. Five seconds. Ten seconds passed.
Cold sweat began to drip down the Head Priest's temples. He leaned in, checked the crystal, then looked at Calian's hand, then back at the crystal. He tapped his staff slightly, thinking there was a technical error.
"Young Master..." the Priest's voice sounded doubtful. "Try... try channeling your energy. Focus your mind."
"I did," Calian answered softly. And it was true. He had focused everything. But all he got was that fleeting, ghostly writing.
The Head Priest paled. He checked the mana indicator on the side of the altar. The needle did not move a single millimeter. Zero. Empty. Void.
Slowly, the Head Priest straightened back up. His face, which had been full of enthusiasm, now turned into an expression of intense awkwardness, mixed with a hint of pity and disbelief. He had to deliver the news. News that might make Duke Larvin despise him, but he could not lie in the presence of God.
He cleared his throat loudly, his voice breaking the agonizing silence.
"Ladies and gentlemen..." he began, his voice no longer booming, but flat and formal.
Calian withdrew his hand from the crystal. His hand felt numb. He already knew what the old man was about to say in that room.
"Based on the response of the Grand Resonance Crystal," the Priest continued, avoiding Calian's gaze. "It is declared that Young Master Calian Larvin... possesses neither mana nor aura affinity."
A momentary pause.
"In other words... No blessing."
The words hung in the air like a death sentence.
For a moment, the world seemed to stop spinning for Calian.