"We are all here today to celebrate the healthy growth of children and their future service for the good of the Empire."
I am currently sitting at one of the many cathedrals of the empire, and not just any cathedral. This place is the biggest cathedral of all.
Though only nobles are present, ordinary civilians can participate during this time, although in smaller groups. As for the nobles, they would either hog a whole church for themselves at this time of the year, forcing others to wait until the dead of night or move to another city or village.
While here in the capital, there are tons of cathedrals. But most nobles would come here for connections, so it would not also be possible to use a whole church for themselves, well, mostly.
And it would not be surprising that it is occupied by the noble children of the empire. So in contrast to its huge size, there are only a small number of attendees, mostly parents of the noble children.
Although my father, the emperor, and mother, the empress, can't come today, Lady Leticia and my baby sister are here.
I don't know how someone would feel about having a sister, but she is definitely cute. No wait, now that I think about it, I think I did have a sister before, but we don't seem close.
Anyway, she is an angel, and her name is also one. Her name is Serafina, which comes from the word seraph.
"So with the blessings of the great god Nova, we shall bestow these children with the gods' blessings."
Oh, I almost forgot about the ceremony after having a glimpse of my sister. This is really bad, and though I wasn't a siscon in my previous life, I definitely will become one if I am not careful.
Or did I already become one?
"Now, step forward. Edward Green."
As I was being conflicted over whether I was a siscon or not, a child was called up. And placed his hand on the tablet that was placed at the pedestrian's feet.
Then the tablet shone, and as the light subsided, words formed, floating like holograms.
It was there, like a game status.
_________________________
Mana capacity - C
Mana purity - C
Mana absorption - D
Mana release - C
Root rank - C
Affinity - fire
_________________________
It really is like a status window. I heard from Kiara how the ceremony would be held, and this is quite interesting.
Maybe something like a status window will activate when I use that tablet. It would be fun if I got a cheat out of it.
I mean, it doesn't just scan our roots; it also helps us have our roots grow completely. There is a reason it is placed at the beginning of spring.
Not all of the children would have the chance to reach the age of seven during this year, and this includes me.
So this tablet has to give power to nature to give to the children during the ceremony. With the nature of the power, people will think it is divine power. And this tablet was a form of worship for many.
But funny enough, there are tons of these being distributed around the continent. And this was also being placed in corporations like the merchant guild and the adventurer guild.
And this world really gives off a fantasy feel since it has an adventurer guild.
However, with its convenience comes a set of constraints.It could be used daily, but it wouldn't give power to those who already received it. This also includes those above the age of seven years old.
And as for the church, many believe that it was powered by the faith of people or that their stones were just special.
There are many speculations, but it is still believed that the stone tablet was powered by faith, increasing belief in the gods' existence.
Like in the stories, we came from the god of beginnings, Root, but we are not demigods or other such beings. Which contradicts the story of the history of our existence but is still there.
As for us having a main god, it is more like a patron one, which symbolizes our country. Though there are tons of beliefs in these gods, it is still clear that their existence is what creates a stable country.
"Next-"
"A rank C root; pitiful."
"Well, it is better than most peasants."
"But that is not good enough, for there are peasants who also have that kind of rank."
"Well, what can you expect from a knight's family? Their talents are just like that."
"You are right—better than talented peasants at most, hahahah."
"That is why they are not even considered nobles. Really, why are they even included in this prestigious ceremony with our children?"
"You can say that again."
As the next participant was called, they began to ridicule the child of a knightly family. But even if their words are harsh, they are kind of true in their own way.
It is well known that having a rank B is common for nobles. After my great-grandfather held the record for the highest rank in the empire, SS+, having a rank below B is a huge ridicule to a noble family.
But here's the thing: he is from a knight's family, which is on the borderline of becoming a noble. So it is understandable to have such a rank, so it really is just pushing it, which is really pathetic of them.
As I thought of that, many names had already been called out. Many names have been called, but one stood out the most.
"Next, Lidvin Lanchest de Saillon."
And what was shown surprised everyone.
_________________________
Mana capacity - S
Mana purity - A
Mana absorption - A
Mana release - A
Root rank - S-
Affinity - fire & wind
_________________________
"Wonderful! As expected from Duke Sallion's child, having a rank S- talent is something to be proud of."
Many were surprised, and I was too. Such talent comes from the Duke family and from that uncle of mine, who has given me a bad impression since then.
"Such excellent talent."
"The Duke did a great job raising him."
"True there would also be someone who should follow his example."
"Or they should have just holed up in their mansion, am I right?"
"Hahahahaha. "
As the peanut gallery talked and laughed, the ceremony continued. And as the names were called out, it was soon my turn.
"Next, his highness, prince Dustin Felix de Sagallion."
As my name was called, murmurs started to cover the place.
And as I stood up, many thoughts were currently in my head. I'm not sure how this will turn out, but I have a plan in place for this day.
I modified my clothes in a lot of ways, but I still have to time things perfectly, depending on the order.
And now I am in front of the huge tablet, and it got me thinking. That the tablet is really huge, and this might also be the reason it helps a lot of children grow. Plus, only the church has access to something this big. While small, they really are disposable.
Erasing those unnecessary thoughts, I put my hand on the tablet.
At the same time, I activated mana absorption.
This wasn't really part of what should be done during the ceremony. It will naturally be absorbed in a person's body.
But here I am trying something that I need to do to manipulate my results.
I mean, as much as my family helped me, I still can't fully trust them. Because I would be in danger if their enemies discovered that my situation was not what they expected it to be.
I will just do what I can to survive without their help.
So as I absorbed the mana into my body, the power root that I had thinly made suddenly erupted and broke.
Within me, I feel a strong stinging bite.It is like being bitten by a thousand ants inside. But I still remember the pain I had before, though it was not similar. This is still bearable compared to what I had experienced.
And the result was something that put a smile on my face.
_________________________
Mana capacity - ??
Mana purity - S
Mana absorption - F
Mana release - F
Root rank - C
Affinity - lightning
_________________________
When they saw my status, they were all shocked and speechless.
Until someone spoke up.
"My, how the royal family has fallen to not being able to produce an untalented child."
The person who spoke was the duchess, the mother of the person who ranked very high previously, and the wife of the Duke of Sallion.
"Truly, how unfortunate."
"Indeed."
"It is truly unexpected."
"How could this happen?"
There were a lot of negative opinions about what happened today.
And for that, the event ended on a bad note for me.
Which they would think, but for me, this reaction was what I needed as camouflage to keep myself safe.
But still, there is still regret for me about having done this.
I thought so as I looked at my little sister. Sorry, Fina, I let you see the bad side of your big brother.