A determined glint shone in Jasmin's eyes as she said, "Let's go inside the house and meet our son then…"
Inside the Hut
Vedik was astonished as he stepped into the hut through the doorway. The unassuming exterior had given no hint of the vastness within.
To his surprise, the interior was surprisingly spacious, filled with bookshelves and artifacts. He could also smell the scent of herbs hanging from the ceiling.
From the outside, no one could guess that a hut could be this big. Vedik guessed that this must be due to magic.
He then sat on the sofa and waited for William and Jasmin as he checked the Godhood System.
One day, while using the Godhood System, Vedik thought about the Attribute panel, and it suddenly materialized before his sight.
Due to this Vedik realized that he could operate the Godhood System with his thoughts only.
He felt good knowing this; otherwise, he would have to click the panels, which he couldn't do in public without looking foolish or crazy.
So he thought about the Mortal Connection panel, and the system responded:
1. Raj - Your loyal friend and a very
talented magician
Favorability → 5 Stars
2. William - Your teacher and adopted
father; he is a very strong Martial artist.
Favorability → 5 Stars
3. Jasmin - Your adopted mother and a
very strong magician.
Favorability → 4 Stars
4. Miss Nuwa - The head caretaker of
the orphanage who has always
looked out for you.
Favorability → 2 Stars
5. Rony - A former bully who has shown
signs of change but still harbors
resentment.
Hatred → 1 Star
After checking the panel and seeing Jasmin's name, Vedik felt happy that his new mother had accepted him as part of her family.
Fifteen minutes later, William and Jasmin walked into the hut together.
Jasmin, with a gentle smile, asked Vedik a question: "William told me that you can use both Martial arts and Arcane magic. Can you show me?"
Eager to impress his new parent, Vedik readily agreed. He still remembered the basic fire spell and focused his energy.
Slowly a spark erupted from his fingertips, quickly blossoming into a small flame.
Jasmin rubbed her eyes in disbelief as she watched the scene unfold before her. How can a child who has not even awakened for more than a week use arcane magic?
Magicians' and nobles' children could do so because they were taught about mana from birth, but how can this child use a spell without any prior knowledge?
Looking towards William, Jasmin finally conceded, "Alright, I believe you."
With a hint of pride in his voice, William said, "I told you so, Jasmin. Now you may want to sit down for this."
Jasmin, still reeling from the initial surprise, scoffed. "What else could possibly be more unbelievable than what I just witnessed?" she asked.
William blurted out in a low voice, "I think Vedik also possesses... all Elemental Affinity."
Jasmin started laughing as she said, "Stop teasing me, William! It is already a miracle that he can use fire without any prior training or knowledge; what you're saying is a stretch.
How can he possess all Elemental Affinity? All Elemental Affinity is just a silly rumor !"
William stood there with seriousness on his face as he said, "I am not joking. You can check his affinities yourself with your artifact."
Despite her skepticism, Jasmin retrieved a crystal ball—an artifact crafted by her own master.
According to its properties, it could detect a person's elemental affinities by channeling a small amount of mana into it.
The tension in the room was thick enough to choke on. Vedik fidgeted on the sofa; his initial excitement was dampened by the adults' serious expressions.
He watched with wide eyes as Jasmin brought out the crystal ball, which looked like a delicate orb radiating an otherworldly glow.
"Vedik," Jasmin instructed gently, "inject a little mana into the crystal ball and focus on the warmth in your hand while remembering a happy memory."
Hesitantly, Vedik reached out and touched the crystal ball. He thought about his time with Raj and William before concentrating on the mana like Jasmin said.
A jolt of energy ran through him; he felt a tingling sensation spreading through his fingertips.
The crystal ball pulsed once, then twice, and suddenly emitted a red light.
A collective breath escaped both William's and Jasmin's lips.
The red light represented fire—the most basic element and easiest to control.
It was expected yet somehow unsettling. But then, to their astonishment, the red color slowly turned into a cool blue, signifying water.
This caused Jasmin's eyebrows to rise in surprise; two elements were rare but not unheard of.
The light continued its transformation, cycling through brilliant white (wind), comforting brown (earth), inky black (darkness), and finally taking on a diamond shape (space and time).
This change drew gasps from Jasmin; what was happening before her didn't look like a miracle—it felt much more like a bad omen.
Finally, the crystal flared with blinding golden light—representing the divine element—the rarest and most powerful of all.
Seeing this caused Jasmin to lose her calm completely. The divine element meant that a person could use divinity; as far as anyone knew, it could only be bestowed by a god.
Even gods only granted this power to their most powerful believers. What did this mean? Jasmin was lost in thought trying to decipher what had just happened.
The room fell silent.
Suddenly, however, the crystal became overloaded with the sheer number of elements resonating within it and began to tremble violently.
A loud noise filled the air that sent shivers down everyone's spines.
"Something's wrong!" Jasmin cried, her voice tinged with panic. "Get away from the crystal ball, Vedik!"
Before Vedik could react, the loud noise escalated into a deafening whine.
The crystal ball pulsed with unbearable light and started cracking. The room was filled with chaotic magic.
William reacted instantly. With a harsh yell, his body erupted in golden aura as he lunged toward the crystal ball and grabbed it mid-air with bare hands.
The chaotic energy surrounded him, threatening to consume him whole.
"Jasmin!" he roared over the chaos. "Teleport it out of here! Now!"
Without hesitation, Jasmin focused on her magic. Her eyes glowed vibrant blue as she channeled her power toward the fragmented crystal ball.
Then a portal appeared in the hut leading to an unknown location.
William threw the crystal ball into the portal with all his strength.
There was a blinding flash of light followed by a deafening boom as the portal slammed shut behind it—leaving silence in its wake.
Exhausted, William stumbled back; his golden aura faded as he collapsed onto the floor gasping for breath. Jasmin rushed to his side, her face pale with worry.
"Are you alright?" she asked while checking for injuries.
William coughed weakly. "I… I think so," he managed to say before adding with concern: "But what was that? Why did the crystal ball…?" His words trailed off as his eyes flicked toward Vedik.
Vedik sat frozen on the sofa; his face reflected shock and fear. He didn't understand what had happened but sensed that it wasn't good based on Jasmin's expression.
Feeling guilty for causing such chaos he said softly: "I'm sorry I destroyed your master's gift... Mother."
Jasmin took a deep breath to compose herself before saying gently: "Don't worry Vedik; it seems that the crystal ball reacted... unexpectedly." She paused thoughtfully before adding: "It wasn't designed to handle such rare... talent."
Although she tried to hide her horror from Vedik's view , her expression couldn't mask it entirely.
A flicker of relief washed over Vedik after listening to Jasmin; he realized he wasn't responsible for destroying anything—he was merely a catalyst for an artifact's malfunction.
He looked up at Jasmin with hopeful eyes.
"So it's okay? I didn't break anything?"
Jasmin forced a smile through her concern. "No dear; it's just... a setback. We'll need to find another way to test your affinities."
William sensed the change in Jasmin's tone and cleared his throat before suggesting: "Perhaps later would be best." He turned serious again: "Right now what's most important is that everyone is alright."
Jasmin nodded in agreement but added: "Let's eat dinner first and then get some rest."