Kyoji stared at Ethan as he walked up to the altar with a strict, emotionless face.
As Ethan reached the altar, just like everyone else, he slashed his palm with the jade knife on the altar and squeezed his blood into the basin.
[Blood of candidate detected. Initiating Divinity Alignment Protocol. Please wait…]
As the basin absorbed the blood, Ethan froze, staring at the tall nine statues before him.
He was very nervous. What if he didn't receive any talent? Would he fail his grandpa? Would he let his little brother down? These thoughts, and many more, swirled in his mind as he imagined the worst-case scenario if he failed his blessing ritual.
Just then, the ground beneath him began to shake a bit, snapping him back to reality. He stared ahead to see three of the nine statues shaking.
His eyes widened with shock as he took in the sight before him.
After a while, the shaking stopped. The three statues opened their eyes, and divine light shone from them onto Ethan.
The light coming from the three statues was so bright it obscured Ethan from everyone's vision.
After a while, the light finally died down, revealing Ethan.
Ethan's eyes were fixated on the chromatic sphere, which was now glowing a brilliant golden color.
[Congratulations, Candidate 620 – Ethan Callahan, you have received an A-tier talent] the female metallic voice announced.
Ethan stood there frozen, staring at the glowing chromatic sphere. It seemed like he couldn't believe the results the mechanical voice had just announced.
But after staring at the sphere for a while, his eyes widened with happiness.
"I did it. I am now a chosen one, and I have an A-tier talent," he murmured to himself happily.
The military man congratulated him again as Miss Anna made an attempt to entice him.
After that, Ethan returned to Kyoji with a bright and happy smile.
"See, I told you there was nothing to worry about," Kyoji said in a steady voice.
Ethan returned his words with a bright smile.
Kyoji already knew the outcome of the ritual, so he wasn't surprised when Ethan got an A-tier talent.
After Ethan's blessing ritual, many others walked the altar for their own ritual.
[Next, Candidate 1002 – Frederick Gilles] the metallic voice called out, causing the whole crowd to murmur.
From their reaction, one could tell Frederick was popular.
Yes, because he was. Frederick's surname showed he was from the Gilles family and related to Tristan.
The Gilles family had many decades of heritage and many people born into their bloodline, making their number huge.
Among the younger generation, Frederick was the most popular.
Even though one's talent doesn't guarantee receiving a high tier talent from the gods, many people had high hopes for Frederick.
As his name resounded, a very handsome young man walked out from the Gryphon High School group and began walking up the stage.
He wore a casual shirt that wasn't buttoned all the way, revealing his well-built chest. He also wore simple trousers and sneakers.
The young man had blue eyes and silver hair.
As he appeared, the crowd was thrown into an uproar, mostly among the women. Frederick was very popular with them.
Frederick gave the crowd a bright smile, revealing a perfect white set of teeth that increased his charm.
"Here goes Mr. Perfect," a jealous voice murmured from behind them.
Kyoji, without even turning, already knew who it was. It was Tristan.
With Frederick Gilles's brilliance shining so brightly, no other person among the younger generation of the Gilles family was allowed to shine. Their brilliance would be overshadowed by Frederick Gilles.
Kyoji wasn't fond of Frederick or people like him.
These are people with a perfect public image but who do the worst things.
Kyoji hadn't had any direct encounters with him, but many with low status in Coliseum City who crossed paths with Frederick had died of "natural causes." Well, not so natural if you know what I mean.
Frederick is the kind of person who smiles even when offended, earning him the name 'a man with no enemies,' but Kyoji knows better.
As Frederick arrived at the altar, Miss Anna greeted him with a smile and gestured for him to go up the stage.
Frederick walked up and offered a brief bow to the gods while mumbling to himself, probably offering a prayer.
He then lifted the jade knife, made a cut in his hand, and squeezed some of his blood into the basin.
As the basin absorbed the blood, most people held their breath, staring at the nine statues.
Even Frederick, who always appeared confident, seemed nervous at that moment.
He was the most talented among the younger generation of the Gilles family, earning him fame, respect, and status. He knew what happened next would determine if he could keep this reputation, climb higher, or fail and lose everything.
Moments passed with nothing happening. Everyone stared at the statues, their eyes completely focused and full of anticipation—everyone except Kyoji, who already knew what would happen next.
Just as Kyoji expected, a few moments later, three of the statues began to shake violently.
Soon, the three statues opened their eyes and shone their divine light on Frederick.
The light lingered for a few moments before disappearing.
After that, the chromatic sphere began to glow with a brilliant white light.
[Congratulations, Candidate 1002 – Frederick Gilles, you have received an S-tier talent] the metallic voice announced.
Immediately, the whole temple erupted in an uproar.
An S-tier talent was incredibly rare.
An A-tier talent has a one-in-a-thousand rarity, and an S-tier talent has a one-in-a-million rarity.
Among the Chosen in the whole world, those with S-tier talents are extremely rare and hard to come by.
Frederick stared at the chromatic sphere, excitement filling his eyes. An S-tier talent would elevate his current status within the Gilles family.
Currently, there were just three people with S-tier talents in the Gilles family, all with high status and respected by everyone.
"Congratulations, Candidate 1002, on receiving your talent and becoming an official Chosen" the military man's voice pierced through the excited crowd, snapping Frederick out of his thoughts.
"Thank you, sir," Frederick greeted with a bright smile as he walked down the altar back to his seat.
Kyoji remembered that in his previous life, Frederick didn't use his talents in public battles, so many people didn't know what they were.
However, during Kyoji's last year of life in his previous life, Frederick faced trouble during a beast horde and was forced to use his talent. Its effect was strange.
The talent had something to do with space. When Frederick used it, it allowed him to swap bodies with a mutant, causing the mutant to suffer the brunt of the attack instead of him.
After Frederick returned to his seat, the blessing ritual continued.
After a couple of hours, the four thousand people undergoing their rituals were finally done.
Among them, only two thousand eight hundred managed to receive a talent; the rest were branded untalented.