John and Ronald had done all sorts of tests concerning John's new.... condition.
For starters, John had showed Ronald where the cave had collapsed and where he was sure the thing that was responsible for his new ability had fused with him. Ronald found it hard to believe, but John himself was proof, so he had no choice but to go with it.
After that, they had spent many days experimenting with his transformations, and very quickly realized that after that first time, John had a much harder time transforming.
Despite that though, tye boy had become noticeably stronger, being able to lift things that a grown man would struggle to even move. Moreover, Ronald had a theory that John's transformation was closely linked with his emotions.
When he had said that, John was skeptical, however, when they were walking back and Ronald suddenly pulled down John's pants, John exploded, literally.
His eyes changed to become slitted and hus fangs grew, and blue fire blew from his nose.
When he calmed down, the draconian traits disappeared to his amazement.
This discovery proved Ronald's theory which also explained what had happened the time John stopped that commoner girl from getting taken away.
However, this discovery also let them realize that John absolutely could not let his emotions get the better of him. Both for his sake and the sake of others.
The were young, but they weren't stupid. If it was known that a boy could turn into a dragon, the implications would be disastrous. And for the fact that John had absolutely no background, it would take minimal effort for the kingdom to capture him.
So John had been doing everything in his power to reign in his emotions. However, uch a thing was becoming increasingly difficult, because as the day to test his Affinity grew closer and closer, his emotions became more and more volatile despite his best efforts. And there had been some very close calls.
For example, John had been going down tye stairs and rounded a corner, but he accidentally tripped on one of the younger kids who was crawling and hit his head on the floor.
Luckily, Ronald had been nearby and swooped the kid away before he got burnt by the blue flames.
Another time, John had slept in so some of the other kids decided to play a prank on him and poured a bowl of water over his head before running away.
And it was a good thing that they ran as the heat that began to emit from John's body instantly evaporated the steam.
There were a few other cases, but Ronald had managed to come in clutch for all of them.
Luckily, they managed to get to John's Birthday without a hitch.
"The day is here!" John said excitedly as he put on the best clothes he had and Ronald nodded while he also got dressed.
It wasn't like they were born on the same day. But to be frank, none of them knew their actual birthdays, so everyone who was assumed to have turned thirteen since they had arrived at the orphanage at the same year was to go and get their Affinity tested today.
Along with John and Ronald, there were 9 of them.
"Okay children. Let's start going." The aged but soft voice of Mama Loreen sounded and John and Ronald rushed downstairs to meet the remaining children along with the rest of the orphanage.
The younger kids seemed jealous while the older kids were mostly indifferent.
In their kingdom, it was custom for everyone who had reached the age of 13 to come and test if they had a magical affinity.
"Good luck you guys." Some of the older kids said.
"Hey John you better become that great mage you keep talking about." Some of the younger ones looked at John and he grinned.
"You guys can count on it." He grinned.
"Alright alright. Enough wasting time. Let's go before the town square becomes too crowded." She said and filtered all the children out of the orphanage.
Outside, there was a large wagon being pulled by two horses with a man who looked to be of a similar age of Mama Loreen being the coachman.
"Loreen." The man removed his hat and nodded respectfully and Mama Loreen nodded back at him.
All the kids along with her got into the wagon, and with a slight shout, the coachman git it moving.
As the carriage moved, John couldn't stop looking around, his excitement growing by the second.
He couldn't help it. After dreaming for so long, his dream would finally become a reality.
"Hey, remember to stay calm." Ronald whispered into John's ear seeing as the boy was moving like he was sitting on fire.
"Yeah. Okay." John nodded, but only a moment passed before he continued and everyone in the wagon sighed. The boy was such a handful.
"I don't think I need to say it. But you all better be on your best behavior. The place we're going will be filled with rich and influential people. Even if you didn't do anything wrong, if they are angry at you, apologize. Is that clear?" Mama Loreen seemed to be speaking to John directly and the boy's mood soured causing him to simmer down.
"Am I clear?" She repeated and everyone said yes, though John barely mumbled it out.
Soon, the passed the gates that divided the outer ring from the middle ring and John's excitement bloomed again.
The group noticed all sorts if carriages and wagons moving in a certain direction, and when their destination came into view, all the kids were awed.
A massive black and white building that resembled a cathedral could be seen. The architecture was both ancient and beautiful and it held to it an awe inspiring Aura.
"That is the Grand Cathedral. It is used whenever there's a big event going on in the kingdom. And this year's Affinity test has been deemed big enough for it to be used." Mama Loreen explained.
"It's amazing." Ronald said and everyone nodded in agreement.
The wagon got near the Cathedral which seemed even larger in person. And John notice that there were two large open areas.
The one their wagon went to was a place with similar looking crude wagons, while the other open space was filled with luxurious looking carriages that belonged to wealthy individuals.
Seeing this, John frowned.
"Of course, they separate the rich from the poor. And yet they expect things to change." His sudden comment caught everyone off guard while Mama Loreen sighed.
"Boy, why do you only make smart comments on things you can't change? Don't bother yourself with them and focus on yourself." She said sternly and John grumbled something.
Regardless, the wagon was able to get a place to park and everyone disembarked as per Mama Loreen's order.
She tossed the coachman a coin before leading all of the children inside.
John tool deep breaths to steady himself. He could feel his body growing warm which usually meant that he might transform at any given moment.
When they got inside, they were awed by the massive and beautiful interior of the cathedral.
Wonderful chandeliers at the ceiling, all sorts of magnificent decorations, and so many other things that made John feel small.
"Follow me children." Mama Loreen led all of then to a place that was at the upper middle part of the cathedral among the insane number of seats.
When they all got their seats, Mama Loreen closed her eyes while the children discussed excitedly.
"It's finally here." John's foot constantly tapped.
"Can you calm down? There are thousands of people here." Ronald said sternly while gesturing to the thousands of people in the huge cathedral that was still filling with people. It was also then that they noticed that there was a clear divide between the influential and the masses.
"... yeah." John saw this and immediately felt annoyed and his excitement simmered.
Seeing this, Ronald sighed. But, he didn't say anything.
Eventually, the cathedral became full and the huge doors closed and everyone slowly went quite.
Then, at the very front, several robed figures appeared, and at their forefront, an old man could be seen.
"I welcome all of you to this year's Affinity test." His voice was calm, yet everyone amazingly could hear him as if he were right next to them.
"I'm sure many of you have awaited this day eagerly. But I will not be cruel enough to say that you will all have an elemental Affinity. And even if you do, I won't guarantee that it will be strong." Hearing this, a wave of nervousness suddenly hit a large number of the children.
Only those who had been given all sorts of pills and potions to bolster their magical talent were confident, and they were mostly the children of the rich and influential.
"But regardless of the result. I implore all of you to work hard and do you best afterwards. Now, we shall begin." The robed man said before calling loudly.
"Adam Levi!" The place was silent, and then a nervous boy who was wearing commoner clothes stood up.
"Come on. Don't be shy." The man said gently and the boy walked over.
"Place your hands on this crystal." He instructed and Adam nodded before gently putting his hands on the crystal.
At first nothing happened. But then, a soft green light began to emanate from the crystal.
Seeing this, the old man nodded slightly.
"Mid grade Nature Affinity. Not bad." Hearing this, there were some murmurs in the cathedral while the boy Adam seemed ecstatic.
"You've done well young one. Now go back to your family." The old man smiled kindly.
"Th-Thank you!" The biw bowed before going back to his parents who had ecstatic looks on their faces. And it wasn't surprising as mages were renowned everywhere, so it wasn't an exaggeration to say that their status would shoot upwards now that their son had the capacity to use magic.
"Awesome. Mama Loreen, what grade is your wind magic?" John asked and Mama Loreen who's eyes had been closed this whole time, opened one and looked at him.
"Don't worry about useless things child." She said simply.
John pursed his and decided not to disturb her anymore. Instead, he turned his attention back to the Affinity test.
Quickly, he realised two things. For starters, the children were being called in alphabetical order. He had no idea how they got their names but Ronald said they most likely just got all the records of people around their age.
The second thing he realised, was that the Adam boy, was incredibly lucky.
Because almost every child after him was talentless.
Either the ball didn't even glow at all, or the glow was so miniscule that it virtually had no point to it. And as such, many children could be seen crying as their parents comforted them.
Meanwhile, John noticed that almost all the children from the rich families had some form of Affinity or the other. And he felt frustrated because he knew they were buying all sorts of things to forcefully give their child talent.
'I'll be the one to crush them.' He thought with a determined gaze.