"Mr. Augustus!" Professor Aris called out, her voice cutting through the lingering unease left by Kaelen's turn.
Gus, who had been fidgeting with excitement, puffed out his chest and strutted forward with an air of almost exaggerated confidence.
He reached the desk, placing his hand over the orb with a flourish, his grin wide. He closed his eyes, straining visibly, his face contorting with effort. Seconds ticked by.
The orb remained inert. Gus's grin faltered, replaced by a desperate grimace. He pushed harder, almost willing the light to appear. Still nothing. The silence in the room grew heavy.
Professor Aris's gaze remained impassive, her hand hovering over her slate, ready to record a blank.
Just as Miss Elara opened her mouth, perhaps to offer another reassuring
"It's okay," a sudden, faint flicker of white light pulsed from the orb, barely visible.
It was dim, nowhere near Finn's brilliant display, and less consistent than even Alaric's initial gleam, but it was there.
Gus's eyes snapped open, a look of triumphant disbelief on his face as the light held for a moment longer before slowly fading back to black.
"Miss Lilianna," Professor Aris announced, her voice as crisp as ever, seemingly unaffected by the unique outcomes.
Lila moved with a quiet grace, her expression a mix of gentle anticipation and quiet determination.
She reached the desk, her hand extending instinctively over the orb, her palm settling a few inches above its surface. She hadn't even closed her eyes yet, hadn't taken the deep breath to focus or relax as others had.
But the moment her hand was in position, before her conscious mind could even begin to exert control, the obsidian orb pulsed with an immediate, soft, and remarkably warm white glow.
It wasn't as piercingly bright as Finn's, but it was incredibly steady and welcoming, radiating a gentle light that filled the space around it without effort. It seemed to simply be, a natural extension of her presence.
A murmur of surprise ran through the students. This was different. This wasn't strained effort or shocking anomaly; it was... fluid.
Even Professor Aris's brow quirked slightly, and Miss Elara watched Lila with a profound, unblinking interest.
"Mr. Zakius," Professor Aris's voice resonated through the hushed hall.
Zak took a slow, measured breath. He'd been watching each student, observing their varying levels of concentration and the orb's diverse reactions.
Gus gave him an encouraging nod as he passed, while Finn and Lila both turned, their eyes fixed on him with a mixture of curiosity and excitement.
He could feel their unspoken questions, their anticipation of what his connection would reveal. Zak rose, the familiar blandness of routine settling over him.
Another test. He just wanted to get it over with. It didn't matter what this orb revealed; his life was already carved out for him, and frankly, he was quite content with that.
He walked towards the demonstration desk, his gaze unwavering on the dark, awaiting orb. Zak approached the orb, his hand extending, palm flat and hovering just above its surface.
There was no internal struggle for focus, no eager anticipation. He simply held his hand there, waiting for whatever was supposed to happen, eager for the assessment to simply be done.
The obsidian orb, however, remained stubbornly dark. Not a flicker, not a gleam, nothing. Seconds stretched, and the silence in the room became taut with anticipation.
Just as Miss Elara seemed poised to speak, perhaps to signal the end of his turn, Miss Elara noticed it. A faint, hair-thin line began to spider across the orb's surface, on the side facing away from the from everyone, where no one else could easily see.
It was a minuscule crack, deepening almost imperceptibly with each passing moment. Without waiting for a verbal cue, Zak abruptly pulled his hand away. The subtle cracking ceased.
He then looked directly at Professor Aris, his expression earnest.
"Is this sufficient, Professor?" he asked, his voice low but clear.
"Further effort doesn't seem to change anything with the orb."
Miss Elara, who had been studying the orb with a keen, discerning eye, met Zak's gaze. A faint, knowing flicker passed through her expression.
"You may sit now, Mr. Zakius," she said, her voice calm and even.
Professor Aris simply nodded, seemingly unaware of the faint knowing flicker that had just passed through Elara's expression. Instead, she continued making a note on her slate that, to Zak, looked just like the others.
As Zak turned to walk back to his bench, a sneering voice from just outside the classroom door sliced through the receding tension.
"Couldn't even make it glow, could you, Zak?" Lucian's voice, laced with its usual mockery, was clear, despite being muffled by the door.
"What a disappointment!"
Before Zak could even process the insult,
Gus shot up from his seat.
"Lucian!" he bellowed, his face reddening with indignation as he started towards the door.
But Miss Elara's voice, sharp and decisive, cut him off.
"That's enough," she commanded, her gaze pinning Gus in place. She then shifted her attention to the doorway, her eyes narrowing slightly.
"You there! What are you doing lingering outside this classroom at this hour? You should be in your designated area."
A smirk played on Lucian's lips as he leaned casually against the doorframe, still visible.
"Oh, my apologies,"
he drawled, feigning innocence.
Our class finished early. I was just heading to the bathroom, that's all. Can't a guy take a quick break?"
Miss Elara's eyes held Lucian's, a silent warning passing between them. The smirk on his face wavered slightly before he pushed off the doorframe.
"Fine," he muttered, rolling his eyes as he disappeared down the hallway.
With Lucian gone, Miss Elara turned back to the class, her expression softening.
"Alright, everyone," she announced, her voice carrying through the now quiet room.
"That concludes our mana sensing assessment for today. I must say, this class has shown a remarkable range of talent and potential."
She swept her gaze across the students, pausing briefly on Zak, Finn, and Lila,
Professor Aris stepped forward, her authoritative voice cutting through the rising murmurs of the students.
"Indeed. Pay close attention to what Miss Elara said, students. While today was a baseline, the Ascension Trial is where your paths truly begin to diverge. Focus on understanding yourselves.This period, from now until the Trial, will be a crucial turning point in your lives."
She paused, her gaze sweeping over them, more serious than before.
"And know this: two days after the Ascension Trial, we will hold your graduation ceremony. Your time as apprentices culminates then."
With her final words echoing in the now quiet hall, Professor Aris nodded sharply to Miss Elara. Together, the two instructors turned and, with a synchronized movement, stepped out of the classroom, leaving the students to process the day's revelations and the looming future.