Nothing happened.
The hall had fallen silent when Aeric placed his hand on the crystal, but it remained the same. Aeric frowned slightly. He had expected some kind of reaction — a glow, a flicker, anything — but there was nothing. Not a spark. The ball remained cold and silent beneath his touch.
He blinked. 'Is this? Is this what's going to happen? Just nothing?'
Murmurs began to spread like wildfire through the crowd of Daughters. They were all shocked and in disbelief, and this rippled through the room, louder and louder with each passing second.
"Why doesn't he have a single glow? He didn't even light the crystal at all?"
"Is he even Awakened?"
"I'm not surprised," a particular voice hissed. "What would you expect from an anomaly like him? No Divinity. Not even a spark. He's cursed."
Aeric could hear them all, but his expression didn't change. With his palms still resting on the surface of the ball, his thoughts were elsewhere. Right before him, he could now see the reason why the Divine Crystal was not glowing. A sudden flash of information that appeared before his eyes.
[Breach identified]
[Outside force attempting to collect information about host]
[Information is being Secured]
[Information has been secured]
[Information can not be withdrawn from outside source]
'Well, well,' Aeric thought, feeling a slight smirk form in the corners of his lips, and some relief. 'The system has done its job perfectly. Looks like I won't have to worry about my Class or Skill being exposed after all.'
Even though he felt extremely relieved after seeing that, he did well to maintain his calm, detached demeanor. This sudden blackout from the crystal was likely going to bring more trouble his way, but at least it kept his powers hidden.
He had to act as clueless as everyone else.
The Divine Speaker's voice cracked as he stared at the crystal ball with a lot of worry on his face. "Calm down, everyone. Perhaps… there has been a mistake," he said, clearing his throat, eyes darting from the crystal to Aeric. "Remove your hands and place them on the Divine Crystal again. Do not rush. Let's try once more."
Aeric obliged, though inwardly he knew what would happen. He pressed his palm against the crystal's surface once again, and just as before, there was nothing. Silence. No light, no reaction. The murmurs increased to a cacophony of voices, and they all began to throw accusations and spread their disbelief like venom.
The Divine Speaker was very perplexed, his brow furrowed as he lifted his head and gazed at Aeric. "You said you performed your Coming of Age ritual, yes?"
Aeric raised an eyebrow, his voice smooth and unbothered. "Yes."
The Speaker frowned as his confused eyes searched for an explanation. "And the courtesan who performed it with you… can she confirm this?"
That was a problem. Aeric lifted his hand and scratched his head as he let out a soft, almost dismissive chuckle. "Well… Uhm… she's dead."
More gasps erupted from the assembly, and more whispers surged from every corner of the room.
"Who the hell kills their royal courtesan?"
"I heard she was a spy assassin that's why they killed her."
"No, she's dead because he's a demon here to kill us all, think!"
While this went on, the Speaker seemed at a loss for words, and the air grew even heavier with tension.
"You are certain you awakened your Soul Core, boy?"
Aeric nodded his head. "Yes, I am."
"Hmm," the Divine Speaker raised his hand to his chin in thought. "One's Affinity for Divinity can not be that low, especially if you're a child of Eros. Your connection to your father has to be stronger than ordinary Awakened Players."
'He's not a true child of Eros! Mother Guinevere is a whore who let a man impregnate her and then she gave birth to this... maggot!'
That was the thoughts of Aryanne of Moonlight, who Aeric gave a sharp glance at. How dare she speak of his mother that way!
She then scoffed loud enough for everyone to hear this time. "Talk about low affinity… What about no affinity?"
Everyone laughed out loud, cruel and biting laughter, including some teachers.
"The Divinity hates him so much it refuses to let him control it!" someone shouted. "He truly is an abomination!"
More laughter, the jeers sharp and cutting. Aeric remained still, watching all of them as his calm face betrayed no emotion. Let them laugh. He knew the truth, and the truth was far more dangerous than they could ever imagine.
"Silence!" The Divine Speaker's voice boomed across the room, cutting through the laughter like a whip. "You were all warned prior. No one is to use that word here!" His face had gone pale, and he exchanged a quick glance with the Head Mistress.
Miss Lysandra, standing tall and regal beside the Speaker, added with a steely tone, "There will be no such disrespect in this Institution. Nyssa of Twilight, meet me in my office after the Assembly for your punishment."
"But ma—"
"You heard me, young lady!"
In the crowd, Rosette was sitting with her arms folded as she watched all of this with an unreadable expression, her usual aloofness masking whatever thoughts she harbored. Misty, on the other hand, seemed nervous, her gaze moved continuously between Aeric and the murmuring crowd.
"It is quite strange that even his Class can't be revealed," the Divine Speaker said, possibly to himself in thought. "And it is against the Divine Law to speak of your Class before it is announced publicly in the Declaration of Divinity. This is a most unique situation."
He turned to Aeric. "Come now, boy."
"So, he's a Classless Player with no Divinity at all!" someone shouted from the back as Aeric turned to leave.
More laughter.
But Aeric paid them no mind. He walked out of the hall while the Daughters watched, some with disdainful faces of laughter, others such as Celestia and Melina with curiosity, while others like Meira did not care at all.
'Some see me as a joke, some as an eyesore, others as a mystery,' Aeric thought. 'Well that's just perfect. The less they know, the better. They'll never see it coming, and by the time they do, their powers would already be mine.'
He remained composed and made his way down the stairs with measured steps. The Divine Speaker walked on one side of him, the Head Mistress on the other, both of their faces clouded with worry.
Such a thing had never happened before. Not in years and years of numerous Declarations.
They moved swiftly and once they got down on the hallway, they headed outside the Institution. Aeric glanced at the Speaker, then at the Head Mistress, noticing their concerned expressions. His curiosity flickered.
"Where are you taking me?" Aeric asked.
"We're taking you to the Institution's Divine Priest," the Speaker answered curtly. "To verify if you've truly awakened your Core."
'Of course,' Aeric thought with a subtle sigh. 'They weren't going to let this go easily.' The fact that the crystal hadn't reacted had stirred up more trouble than he anticipated. But still… he wasn't worried. In fact, there was a dark satisfaction in knowing his secret was still safe.
As they ascended the stone staircases, the heavy wooden doors of the Assembly closing behind them, Aeric allowed himself a small smile. Everything was all going according to plan.