ALL NOVEL Chapter 32.1 — The Demonic Affinity
"However, I understand that my words alone may not be sufficient to please all of you." Amelia spoke through the silence, her calm demeanor unchanged, "With that in mind, I’ve prepared a small test for the recommended students too."
She remained at the center of attention, her chin turned behind her. She snapped her fingers, and the stage behind her shifted with a low rumble.
The stage moved beneath our feet, sending a wave of surprise through the crowd below. A massive, glowing stone began to rise from the gap in the floor, shimmering with an otherworldly light. Its surface pulsed faintly purple, almost as if it were alive.
The Principal quietly stepped aside, giving the stone space. Amelia glanced over the students, her lips curling into a slight smile.
"This Inspection Device will be the test for the recommended students, as well as," her hand waved toward Nebula, "the top five from the earlier test, who will use this to show off their Level and Mana."
Murmurs spread through the hall as the students exchanged curious glances. I folded my arms, watching the woman curiously. So she wasn’t joking, good thing I am prepared.
With a breath in, Amelia muttered something under her breath, a soft command in Dragon Tongue Magic. A wave of mana surged through the room, washing over the students. Those who had returned from the trial, battered and injured, gasped as their wounds disappeared. The fatigue left their faces as though they had never taken the test at all.
Then, with another murmur, Amelia snapped her fingers once more, and the top five students from the earlier test teleported on the platform beside us in a flash of light. Nebula was among them, looking slightly startled from the sudden teleportation. Her clothes were still stained with blood, but her injuries were healed.
The other top students, including Kael Drakovar, the youngest son of the Black Draconia Duke, all stood next to her. The boy glared at me, and I wondered what that was about. Did we have bad blood in the past? Ah right, the assassination attempt. Father informed me about the suspects at a later date. So it must be true given the way he was acting.
“Let’s start with you five,” Amelia said to Kael Drakovar, her gaze sharp as she gestured toward the massive stone. "You, touch the stone."
Kael stepped forward, his chest puffed out in pride as he wore a smirk. He reached out and placed his hand on the glowing surface of the stone. Instantly, the purple light of the stone turned black, crackling with dark flames that flicked at the air.
The entire hall gasped, watching in awe as the boy’s power flared. First, the black flame affinity was revealed, and then his Level and Mana.
[Level 23]
[Mana: 1,800]
The numbers hovered in the air, glowing above his head. The Drakovar bloodline was infamous for its raw destructive power, and though their Mana reserves were low, their black flames more than made up for it. In fact, it was a feature that their mana was low. It was so that their bodies wouldn’t crumble on their own from the destructive mana.
The smirk on Kael’s face widened at the crowd’s reaction, his arrogance growing as he reveled in the attention. The students murmured, impressed by his numbers, but Amelia remained unfazed, already motioning for the next.
"Sweetheart, you're next."
Nebula stepped forward, her hand trembling slightly as she pressed her palm against the stone. This girl was oddly nervous at times, despite her usual self. She had no reason to worry. The stone's purple light shifted once again, this time turning a deep crimson.
Never mind, she does have a reason to worry about…
Her Mana Affinity wasn’t normal. Blood bubbled from the surface of the stone, swirling around it like a dark mist. It was quite ominous.
Amelia’s eyes gleamed with interest. “Oh, the Blood Affinity? Rare for a… human.” She smiled at Nebula, who looked nervous under the weight of her stare.
Then her Level showed up.
[Level 31]
[Mana: 4,300]
Shock filled the hall. Kael's smirk faltered as he glanced at Nebula’s scores. She had easily surpassed him, her powers clearly something unique. The crowd was stunned as whispers spread like wildfire.
“That’s insane…! Her earlier scores were no luck. Isn’t she the daughter of Baron Carlstein? How lucky,” someone said.
“At this rate, by the time she’d graduate, she’d already be worth more than the Baron title.”
“Wait, wait… Isn’t she engaged to Iskandaar Romani?” someone from the crowd muttered, loud enough to be heard by everyone. Eyes turned to him and then at me.
“Yeah, I think I heard that too,” Professor Amelia confirmed, smiling at me. Uh, that smile felt weird. Did she not know?
The crowd had already erupted after her confirmation. That detail seemed to blow their minds even more than her score. A collective murmur rose from the audience, students turning to each other with disbelief and astonishment. I ignored it, my eyes fixed on the stage, though I could feel the weight of the stares landing on me.
“Anyways~ let’s continue,” Amelia clapped her hands and said. The rest of the top five students took their turns, each stepping forward to place their hands on the stone. Their scores were impressive, but none surpassed Nebula’s.
One student had an affinity for Water. [Level 21], [Mana: 2,300].
Another one had an affinity for Wind. [Level 20], [Mana: 2,100].
The last student’s affinity was Storm. [Level 23], [Mana: 2,500].
Their affinities were decent, and the last one’s were quite impressive too. Their levels were nothing to scoff at either, but they paled in comparison to Nebula’s. That fact once again left the audience in awe. In that case, couldn’t she be the most powerful student here?
“Maybe she’s stronger than the recommended students too…” Someone said, and as if prompted by that, Amelia turned to us.
"Now, the recommended students," Amelia said, pointing at Alaric. "You first, Prince."
Prince Alaric Roshmar stepped forward confidently, his face calm and composed as he placed his hand on the stone. The purple glow shifted to a deep, verdant green as faint mana vines wrapped around it. A soft, earthy light radiated from the stone.
[Level 25]
[Mana: 2,700]
"That’s the forest Affinity," someone whispered from the crowd. Alaric didn’t even acknowledge the murmurs, simply stepping back after his display.
The next to walk up to the stone was Solara Fenixia, the girl with fiery red-orange wings sprouting from her back. She approached the stone with a similar calm demeanor to Alaric, but her eyes were darker. I watched her carefully.
When she touched the stone, the air exploded into brilliant, roaring flames.
[Level 26]
[Mana: 3,200]
The Phoenix lineage in her blood was evident, and the hall gasped as the flames danced around her wings. She turned and stepped back without a word, leaving behind a trace of smoldering embers. I followed her movements, my mind busy.
Episode 2’s Boss Villain was indeed as powerful as ever.
Following her was the Naga princess. Sathari Nezehra slithered forward, her serpentine lower body gleaming in the light of the hall as she touched the stone. The purple stone turned a sickly green, hissing with a toxic mist.
[Level 24]
[Mana: 3,000]
“Poison Affinity…” someone muttered. The Naga’s gaze remained cold and indifferent as she stepped back into place, her tongue flickering out for just a moment.
Finally, it was the turn of Orion, the Crown Prince of Ethenia.
He strode forward with the confidence of a ruler, reaching out a hand. His hand touched the stone, and immediately, a brilliant golden light burst from the surface. The light radiated with the warmth of the sun itself.
[Level 35]
[Mana: 4,000]
“W-whoa! That’s crazy!” The crowd erupted in cheers.
His presence was undeniable, and his affinity—The Sun—was considered one of the rarest and most powerful. He basked in the applause, a faint smirk on his lips as he bowed a little and stepped back. The girls from earlier shouted even weirder stuff, making me shake my head.
“Now,” Amelia looked at me. “Come forward, Iskandaar.”
It was my turn.
My Demonic Qi swirled within me as I rubbed the back of my head, feeling the weight of the entire hall’s eyes on me. The whispers grew louder as I stepped toward the stone, but I blocked them out. Focus. It’ll be troublesome otherwise.
My hand touched the stone.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then, sparkles of light, heat, and fire danced across the surface. It glinted as if small explosions were happening. Like the stars in the distant sky.
“No way…”
“The Star? The Star Affinity?”
The stone glittered with a brilliant light, sparkling like stars against a velvet night sky. A dozen gasps rang out from the crowd, filled with shock but more confusion. I didn’t pay them any attention.
Of course. This… wasn’t truly my affinity.
This show was what I’d been preparing for months. It was the thing that I barely completed in time on my day of departure when Lilian came to look for me.
In the letter from Amelia, she asked me if she could pull something like this. She gave me the option that I could reject it if I wanted to, but I agreed. I had to deal with the Demonic Qi sooner rather than later, so I took upon that task. Since leveling was impossible with the six-month Experience Points restriction, I focused on this instead.
I was “separating” my Demonic Qi, my true affinity—the Chaos Affinity—into smaller parts. It was a trick, but it wasn’t an illusion. Ice Affinity people could separate it into Earth and Water using this breathing style, and I too could do the same by separating Chaos Affinity into Star and Destruction. I was choosing to show Star here.
It was an ancient Qi Transformation technique from Murim, I didn’t know the details of it but the Heavenly Demon’s general martial arts knowledge helped me recreate it. So I forcefully split the chaotic elements of my power through a certain breathing pattern, which gave it the appearance of Star Affinity.
It felt like I was carrying the weight of a mountain on my shoulders to keep it active, but it worked.
All these thoughts passed through me in a second, and by then, some numbers appeared above my head.
[Level 33]
[Mana: 6,666]
“....” A heavy silence followed for a beat before the crowd erupted.
The noise was deafening, students losing their minds over the absurd mana count, even if my Level was lower than the Crown Prince’s.
I stepped back, my expression neutral. I could feel the eyes on my back, the weight of immense attention. It didn’t matter to me, I was rather unhappy that I couldn’t level up more. I wasn’t the only unhappy one, of course.
Kael’s jaw hung low as he looked at me as if I were an oasis in a desert. More than him, however, one pair of eyes, in particular, caught my attention.
…The Crown Prince’s icy blue eyes were glaring at me.