The Celestial Maiden’s Young Master in Another World - Chapter 20
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 20. The Dormitory Selection Ceremony of Blue
The Holy Flame had doubled in size.
Focusing attention to this degree is something else.
My gaze swept across the Holy Flame and the Vision Stone hovering nearby.
‘My curiosity’s gone through the roof all of a sudden.’
There’s no way children would find it entertaining watching the color of the Holy Flame change.
Perhaps for that reason, the Dormitory Selection Ceremony was progressing rapidly.
Then came an unexpected turn of events!
‘Was it intentional?’
From a god’s perspective, it would be unbearable for the Inquisition, which fought demons, to be ignored.
He would have known I was going to choose the Inquisition.
It felt like he’d deliberately orchestrated this to draw attention.
Shock was only necessary for a moment. Once the stage was set, I had to make use of it.
I immediately poured Holy Power that I’d converted into an attribute into the enlarged Holy Flame.
The white Holy Flame gradually became stained with red from its center.
“Uwaaaah!”
Crash-bang-bang!
Along with an eerie cry, a clamorous sound erupted from the left side of the Grand Hall.
‘What’s going on?’
When I turned my head, my eyes met those of a man staring at me with a dazed expression and eyes that looked ready to pop out of his skull.
‘Did he bite his tongue or something?’
-No, no, Rian. That person’s a professor!
‘A professor?’
-He’s the Zerotil supervisor!
??
The strange man who let out that cry is going to be my assigned professor?
‘…Did I choose the wrong path?’
But the Holy Flame was already blazing red.
“C-Condemnation?”
“Zerotil?”
“Good heavens.”
As the enormous Holy Flame turned entirely red and burned brightly, the murmuring grew even louder.
As I shrugged my shoulders, the priest in charge of the Holy Flame asked somewhat awkwardly from beside me.
“Student Rian Rudersk. The Zerotil dormitory is correct, yes?”
“Yes.”
“…I see. Confirmed.”
Leaving behind the priest, who still wore an bewildered expression,
I returned to my seat.
***
“…….”
“This can’t be happening.”
“Zerotil, really?”
“Wahhh! Lukey! Lukey’s coming to our Zerotil!”
“Yeahhhhh!”
Rahil Runstiaa, the chief professor overseeing the Zerotil dormitory,
threw dignity to the wind and embraced his assistant, leaping about wildly.
‘What use is dignity anyway?’
‘The Inquisition has no dignity to speak of in the first place!’
The mouths of the other dormitory professors fell open.
The shock felt by the children was but a drop in the bucket compared to what the professors experienced!
To lose Lukey to Zerotil of all places!
‘The last time Lukey went to another dormitory was three years ago. And it went to Zerotil, of all places.’
The chief professor overseeing the Beladen dormitory of the Holy Knight Order felt the greatest shock.
For three years, every child selected as Lukey had possessed a talent for Holy Aura, and Beladen had claimed them all!
But this year alone, a Lukey with Holy Aura had rejected Beladen for the first time.
‘What a shame.’
The shock was brief.
Yet he could not help but feel a profound sense of regret.
Rian’s potential felt overwhelmingly compelling.
A potential that made the Lukeys of the past three years seem ordinary!
‘An angel descended.’
Of course, he’d watched the Baptism Ceremony broadcast too.
The sight of an angel descending to bestow blessings during the ceremony had been nothing short of shocking.
Certainly, even the saints had never experienced such a thing.
Moreover, the Holy Flame was now blazing brilliantly, as if welcoming him.
‘A pity. But from third year onward, transfers to other dormitories become possible.’
The first three years after admission are an adjustment period.
A time to give students ample opportunity to consider their future path and determine whether they’re suited to their chosen discipline.
Once you’re actually living it, you sometimes discover your aptitudes lie elsewhere—so they grant a chance to change.
The transfer itself isn’t easy.
Switching to a different department requires passing a rigorous examination.
‘But for that child, it’ll be simple enough.’
Then.
‘In three years’ time, I’ll ensure he has the option to choose Beladen.’
He’d settled on his strategy.
Meanwhile.
“Rian Rudersk chose Zerotil?”
“Zerotil? Where’s Zerotil again?”
“It’s the Inquisition!”
“What—”
“That Lukey from the Baptism Ceremony is going to the Inquisition?”
Those watching the Dormitory Selection Ceremony broadcast at Austen Academy couldn’t hide their bewilderment.
“He looked so delicate too. Will he even survive there?”
“Who knows. He must be confident, otherwise why would he go?”
“But did you see him take down those creatures in the labyrinth during the ceremony? The kid’s got guts.”
Among those watching the live broadcast were also senior students from Zerotil dormitory.
“Yes! Yes! Our first junior!”
“Besides, we need to fill the quota anyway.”
“That doesn’t count as a real junior! Only someone who chooses Zerotil first is a real junior!”
Was this finally their chance to receive proper recognition as seniors?
The older students in Zerotil’s dormitory shouted and hollered, watching the broadcast from their residence.
Opinions varied widely, but there was one common thread.
“He must’ve chosen it because of his mother.”
“It’s because of Liliad Rudersk.”
“Thank you so much for coming to us, great senior!”
No one considered that Rian had chosen Zerotil of his own accord.
***
“He really did choose Zerotil.”
“Kheh-heh-heh. Rian’s never changed his mind once he’s decided.”
“Why are you so happy about it?”
“Look at Lumiel. You can see the shock on all the other kids’ faces.”
That was it.
Everyone was bewildered that Rian, despite possessing the exceptional talent of Holy Aura, had refused to choose Beladen.
“If he’s not going to use a talent like that, give it to me!”
“And Condemnation too? Is this real?”
“They said it was the first proper top-choice talent to manifest in almost seven years.”
The surrounding students spilled forth complaints and jeers.
“Booooo!”
Zerotil’s unpopularity had exceeded all imagination.
They were actually booing.
“Ouch, that reaction was pretty vicious.”
As I returned to my seat, I shook my head slowly.
But this did raise Zerotil dormitory’s standing a little.
‘After all, we’ve only ever had one Lukey enroll until now.’
“Okay, I’m heading up!”
“Go on! Do great!”
Now it was Corin’s turn.
Corin would be choosing Zerotil too, so the atmosphere should improve somewhat.
As Corin took the stage and set the Holy Flame burning crimson, another uproar erupted.
After some time had passed, the selection ceremony drew to a close.
What caught me off guard was that besides me and Corin, two more people had chosen Zerotil.
‘And they were the 2nd and 3rd place finishers from the Baptism Ceremony.’
Lionel Londoa in 2nd place and Viera Trivell in 3rd.
I had no idea who 3rd place was, but 2nd place was unmistakable.
‘Wasn’t he the son of the Holy Knight Order’s Commander-in-Chief?’
The Londoa line—a distinguished family of the Holy Knight Order that had produced exceptional knights generation after generation.
At first, I thought it was madness.
‘Losing the spotlight like this.’
Tch.
There’s no doubt about it—the Commander-in-Chief’s son choosing Zerotil made far bigger waves than some Baptism Ceremony prodigy selecting it.
‘I saw what looked like the Beladen dormitory supervisor collapse earlier.’
That’s how shocking the choice was.
“We will now proceed with the Individual Aptitude Test.”
The Individual Aptitude Test.
A procedure to measure each person’s abilities and confirm whether they qualified to enter their chosen dormitory.
Test results were converted into scores, and dormitory admission was determined from the top scorers down.
“Each test will proceed in the field where you’re most confident.”
For Holy Magic, they’d assess your spell mastery.
For combat, the depth of your martial technique.
For healing, your life force output.
The deciding factor was how effectively you channeled Holy Power within each domain.
Tension rippled through the students, but two of them remained completely at ease.
“Corin, we could phone it in and still pass.”
“Y-yeah!”
The total number of applicants to Zerotil was only four, after all.
“Rian. What are you going to take the test in?”
“Well, I should go with what I’m best at, so this.”
I turned slightly and showed them my beloved Iron Pipe hanging across my back.
“What about Lumiel and Adrian?”
“I’m doing Holy Magic.”
“I’m taking Shield!”
Lumiel had continued refining Holy Magic, and Adrian had taken up the Shield on my recommendation.
‘But is that guy going to be all right?’
I asked carefully, my concern slipping through.
“Hey Lumiel. Are you really going with Ice Magic?”
“Of course. It’s what I’m best at, isn’t it?”
‘No, it’s not.’
She just kept insisting, convinced only of her own opinion.
Whether it was because she thought ice looked cool, or for some other reason, she stuck with it stubbornly.
‘The affinity’s all wrong.’
That’s what I could see.
When I’d tentatively asked about Fire Magic, she’d flatly refused.
‘The fire spirits actually like Lumiel quite a bit.’
Playing tricks is part of a spirit’s nature.
The fact that they played tricks on Lumiel especially often meant they’d taken a liking to her.
Lumiel had a high affinity with fire.
‘Ice has low affinity. I’m not sure how well it’ll work out.’
She keeps pushing it probably because she knows deep down it isn’t working well.
‘But surely she won’t actually fail?’
She’s a Rudersk, after all.
Lumiel had decent latent potential.
Adrian, by contrast, was average.
He hadn’t yet mastered Holy Power Attribute Conversion, so the reinforcement on his Shield kept flickering on and off.
‘Adrian’s chances are probably fifty-fifty.’
He’s only succeeded half the time in practice anyway.
“Lumiel. If you fail, you’re in Zerotil. Got it?”
“Ugh…”
This girl’s face just cursed at me.
‘She’s fun to tease.’
There’s a certain satisfaction in needling her.
Various instruments for measuring individual aptitudes were being arranged ahead of us.
We lined up at our designated stations and waited for our turns.
Adrian and I both used weapons, so we went to the same area.
Corin, who specialized in healing, and Lumiel, in Holy Magic, were separated to their respective stations.
Scores were revealed almost immediately after each test.
Once the children had been measured to a certain degree, the points could determine who passed and who failed.
“Nooo! I’ve ruined it!”
Lumiel had failed.
The spear of ice she’d manifested through Holy Magic came out lumpy and distorted—and that was only the beginning of her troubles.
She couldn’t even maintain its form; it shattered into fragments almost instantly.
The devastation was plain enough without even looking at the score!
‘I didn’t think she’d bomb it quite this badly.’
Her Holy Power Attribute Conversion had worked, but the stability was far too weak.
She’d probably done worse because of the nerves.
“Don’t worry. You can just come to Zerotil instead.”
“Are you seriously pouring oil on the fire right now?”
“Who told you to try Ice Magic anyway?”
“I did! I’m the best at ice!”
No, you’re not.
Adrian, meanwhile, succeeded exactly as expected—hitting the halfway mark.
“Ha ha ha! Just like practice!”
He’d brought his shield down and blocked the incoming objects, but protective light had lingered on the shield only half the time.
Even so, Adrian had done better than Lumiel.
At least he’d given it his all, shown what he was capable of.
‘Well, you reap what you sow.’
I shrugged and gripped the Iron Pipe in my hand.
It was my turn.
‘I’ve already learned Attribute Conversion.’
I converted the Holy Power I was channeling into Condemnation.
The characters engraved on the Iron Pipe began to glow crimson.
‘Let’s begin.’
A low hum resonated through the air.
I swung the staff horizontally toward the dummy.
The impact cracked through the space.
I struck its chest, then drew the staff behind my back and crouched.
Crack! Smack!
I immediately struck at its legs,
Whoosh—thud!
Sliding backward, I struck its ribs.
Smack! Crack! Rapid-fire strikes!
I seized the position behind it and then hammered it like I was thrashing grain.
Every movement flowed like water.
Combat techniques no seven-year-old should have been capable of!
“Whoa…”
“Are those movements even possible?”
“How is he even doing that?”
The waiting children stared slack-jawed.
Naturally, this was no joke.
‘I’ve put in enough effort optimizing my body for a seven-year-old.’
Though I couldn’t compare to my time as Seo Woo-tak, I was far beyond anything my age group could manage.
The dummy fell to pieces in moments.
Ding!
The displayed score was at the top tier!
‘105 points? That’s twice the average.’
I was satisfied.
***
“Haaaagh!”
Rahil Runstiaa felt like he was about to lose consciousness.
The abilities of the Baptism Ceremony Lukey who had chosen Zerotil far exceeded all expectations!
‘This, this kind of fortune falling to the Inquisition!’
Perhaps if that child were properly nurtured, the order might reclaim its former glory.
“Hah—!”
Tears spilled unbidden from her eyes.
‘But what is that?’
Rahil’s gaze fixed on the markings etched into the iron pipe Rian held.
The symbols glowed crimson with the power of Condemnation, then faded with a soft, hissing whisper.
They were strange—neither quite a scrawl nor quite a drawing.
“!!”
His eyes widened as realization struck him.
‘Those are… Angelic Script…!’
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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