Book 7: Chapter 10: Ceremony IV

Thomen stood frozen before the crystal, bathed in its flickering light. The glow had shifted from soft orange to a deep, vibrant red—a color that danced like embers across his awestruck face. For a moment, no one spoke. Even the windless void surrounding the pavilion seemed to hush, as if straining to witness the outcome.

Then, with a final surge of brilliance, the crystal pulsed.

A wave of heat rushed outward.

Maya gasped. It didn’t burn, not truly, but it tingled against her skin like the first breath of summer after a long winter.

A single rune hovered above the dragon’s skull, glowing crimson and unmistakable in shape. Fire.

Gasps rippled through the group, and Thomen staggered back, blinking in disbelief. His hands hovered in the air for a moment before he looked down at them, flexing his fingers as if unsure they were still his.

"Intermediate Fire Affinity," Ezekiel announced.

There was a pause, not of disappointment, but of disbelief.

Then, cheers erupted.

Lue clapped excitedly. Kallen and Keiren, even with their usually stoic expressions, gave a small nod. Maya blinked, equally stunned by the result.

Thomen turned to face them, eyes wide. "I... I actually did it."

The words came out like a question, as if he needed someone else to confirm it for him.

"You did," Maya whispered, smiling.

For all his complaining and sarcasm, the boy had worked hard. She remembered the early days of their training, when he could barely sit still, when he said meditation was "just sitting around pretending to think." But he had stuck with it. Showed up. Tried. And now—

He had awakened.

Her brother stepped forward, placing a hand on Thomen’s shoulder. “You have done well. And more than that, you have proven something important today.”

Thomen looked up.

“You are the first in your family,” Ezekiel said. “A line with no recorded Mages. No resources. No noble blood. And you began late, with only one year left before your fourteenth birthday.”

He gestured toward the crystal.

“And yet... You awakened,” Ezekiel said, sweeping his arms to indicate the ephemeral fire rune still glowing atop the Dragon’s skull. “If we were still in the Empire, you would be attending the Elementium again. This time, not as a servant, but as a student. Take pride in that.”

A hush fell again. But this time, it was reverent.

Maya felt her heart clench. This was what it was all for. The long days, the doubts, the endless stillness of sitting with eyes closed, searching for something you weren’t sure was even there. This was proof that it hadn’t all been for nothing.

“Next,” Ezekiel called.

The line began to form.

One by one, the others stepped forward.

Marzell went next. His results were not as dazzling: Lesser Water and Wind affinities. But even he, who had always looked uncertain during practice, now stood a little taller.

Then came Gisel, awakening an Intermediate Mind affinity. The result didn’t surprise Maya in the slightest. She had always been among the brightest of them, her head usually buried in a book. Even today, she clutched a hefty tome under one arm, likely intending to read if the ceremony dragged on too long.

Each time a child placed their hands on the horns, the crystal responded. Sometimes the light was weak, barely more than a spark. Other times it flared brilliantly, flooding the pavilion with its radiance.

Maya watched them, one by one.

Watched and thought.

The results weren’t random. She could see the pattern now, clear as day. The more someone had truly immersed themselves in the technique, the stronger their affinity appeared to be.

Yet there were exceptions.

Two of the girls she had spoken to—both of whom had spent just as much time meditating as anyone else—received only the faintest flicker of magic. Barely enough to register.

She remembered what they had said during quiet evening conversations.

“I don’t feel anything.”

“It just… doesn’t work for me.”

Maya frowned.

It hadn’t been laziness that had held them back. It wasn’t a lack of effort. It was something else. Something deeper.

Not everyone could sense it. Not everyone could connect to the same degree.

But those who did…

She turned her gaze back to the crystal.

It pulsed, dimmed, then pulsed again. Another affinity revealed. Another smile. Another quiet triumph.

Eventually, the younger of the twins, Kallen, stepped forward to approach the crystal, drawing many curious gazes. Her long black hair flowed behind her, and she moved with the quiet grace of a fairy.

The eyes of every boy followed her, as they always did.

Maya wouldn’t have been surprised to learn that every single one of them had a crush on her. Kallen’s presence was simply that captivating. Her usual stoic expression only made her rare smiles more dazzling. When she smiled, she could light up an entire room.

As with everyone before her, her brother offered a few words of encouragement.

Maya had no idea how he remembered every child, especially some he hadn’t spoken to in years. Yet he recalled their names, their families, even small personal details. She wasn’t the only one impressed—she saw the way each face lit up when he greeted them with such familiarity.

She envied that. But perhaps that was why he had received a Mind affinity. Knowledge had always come easily to him.

“Kallen, daughter of Konrad and Sybilla,” he said, meeting her eyes. “Are you prepared to face your destiny?”

“I am, Lord Ezekiel.”

Her voice was steadier than Maya imagined her own would have been in the same situation.

With a nod, he stepped aside, granting her access to the crystal. Without hesitation, she placed her hands on the horns—not in a death grip like Thomen’s, but with calm, measured confidence.

The light began to glow almost immediately.

However, it wasn’t the brilliant radiance many had expected. It wasn’t even middling. Instead, a pale gray shimmer pulsed gently, low in intensity, before flickering out. The sensation it left on the skin was strange, like a brush of static or a shift in the air.

“Low Time affinity,” Ezekiel announced after a moment of silence.

Kallen’s face remained composed, but Maya knew her well enough to spot the subtle signs of disappointment. The corners of her mouth twitched downward for a moment, the light in her eyes dimmed, and a faint redness gathered around their edges.

Poor girl.

Though a Time affinity sounded impressive, a low-grade one clearly wasn’t what she had hoped for. It was an awkward result—one where most reputable schools would discourage her from pursuing the path of magic.

The investment in time and resources simply wasn’t worth it.

With swift, quiet steps, Kallen turned and walked to the back of the line, not waiting for Ezekiel to speak. He didn’t stop her. As she passed by, Maya caught a glimpse of the first shimmering traces of tears forming in her eyes.

The room fell silent. Though not a single aspirant had failed to awaken an affinity, Kallen’s outcome had soured the jubilant atmosphere.

It was a testament to how much influence she held over the group.

But Ezekiel paid it no mind. He simply pointed toward the next in line, Kieran, who stood watching his sister with a forlorn expression.

“Are you going after her,” he asked, “or are you coming?”

Kieran stepped forward, and the entire group fell silent. Even those who had just received their results and were still basking in celebration quieted at his approach.

Maya leaned in slightly, eager to witness the outcome.

Out of everyone present, she considered Kieran the most promising.

Countless times, he had lost himself in meditation, remaining in a trance for days. Not even she could match that level of focus.

“Kieran, son of Konrad and Sybilla,” Ezekiel said again. “Are you prepared to face your destiny?”

“I am, Lord Ezekiel.”

Same question, same answer. The twins were alike in more ways than one.

Maya only hoped Kieran wouldn’t follow in his sister’s footsteps when it came to the outcome, leaving the ceremony with quiet disappointment.

Once again, the crystal began to glow the moment he placed his hands upon it.

This time, the light took on a color they had not yet seen: a rich, regal purple.

The hue radiated dignity, but even that was overshadowed by the brilliance of the glow. After only a few seconds, Maya had to squint—unable to look at the crystal directly anymore.

Then, with a final pulse, it released a strange aura that made her feel as though her entire body had become weightless. The sensation lingered for a few breaths before gently fading away.

All eyes turned to Ezekiel, who stood silent, his gaze locked on Kieran with an unreadable expression.

The boy stared back calmly, with neither impatience nor fear.

It was a bearing unique to the twins, who had always seemed a step ahead of their peers.

At last, after what felt like an eternity, Ezekiel spoke.

“Perfect Space affinity. Congratulations.”

Maya’s jaw dropped.

Around her, the entire group broke into excited chatter.

A perfect affinity.

This wasn’t just a good result—it was monumental. Wars had been fought to secure talents like this, houses extinguished, bloodlines ended.

Her brother, even after establishing a strong foothold for himself, was still being approached by powerful families offering alliances if he agreed to join them.

And that was with mixed affinities.

A pure, perfect Space affinity was among the rarest results imaginable. After today, Kieran’s name would spread through Tradespire, spoken alongside her brother’s and the other prodigies of their generation.

And yet, there wasn’t even a flicker of excitement on Kieran’s face. Instead, his brow was furrowed, his expression one of deep focus, as if he were in the midst of making an important decision.

Then, without warning or prompting, he sank down… into a kneel.

A posture of submission. Of servitude. Directed at her brother.

Maya couldn’t stop herself from exhaling sharply, alongside most of the others.

What was the meaning of this?

Ezekiel studied Kieran with his sharp, golden eyes. He didn’t speak, didn’t question the gesture. He simply observed, a flicker of intrigue passing through his gaze.

“I offer my service to House von Hohenheim and to you, Lord Ezekiel,” Kieran said without pause or hesitation.

The silence that followed was absolute.

Every gaze turned to Ezekiel, waiting for his response. Naturally, no one expected him to decline. After all, with Kieran’s talents revealed, it should have been Ezekiel pleading for him to stay, not the other way around.

Yet the lord of Hohenheim did not answer right away.

Instead, he smiled.

It was the kind of smile one wears upon hearing an inside joke no one else is privy to—a quiet, smug expression of satisfaction, as though he held a secret the rest of the world had yet to uncover.

“…I would hear your conditions first,” he said, a knowing glint in his eyes.

Kieran stiffened, a rare reaction from the usually composed, taciturn boy. It was clear the exchange had not unfolded as he had anticipated. Still, the surprise did not rattle him for long.

“I ask only a single boon,” Kieran said, his calm already returning.

Ezekiel gave a nod, signaling him to name it.

“I want you to ensure my sister reaches the rank of Grandmage before her twentieth year.”

Before Ezekiel could respond, a sharp cry rang out from behind them. “Brother! No!”

But both Ezekiel and Kieran ignored Kallen’s outburst. Their gazes remained locked, an unspoken battle of will stretching between them for nearly a full minute before Ezekiel finally broke the silence.

“Two questions,” he said. “First, why would you make such a request, knowing it goes against what your sister wants?”

Kieran didn’t hesitate. “I’ve heard how Mana slows the deterioration of the body. Sir David, despite being in his late nineties, looks younger than my own father.”

Ezekiel gave a small nod in acknowledgment.

“…How could I bear to see my sister fade in decades while I remain young for centuries? How could I let her face, so like mine, wither with lines and wrinkles while I continue to enjoy the blessings of youth?”

His voice began calm but grew more impassioned with each word.

“We were one from the moment we were born. I refuse to bury her with the body of a young man still standing.”

That final line came quietly, but the conviction behind it was unmistakable.

Maya heard a quiet sob behind her, followed by the rustle of fabric as someone collapsed to their knees.

But she couldn’t bring herself to turn and look. Her entire focus was consumed by the scene unfolding before her.

Ezekiel gave no indication of his thoughts, his expression as still as the surface of a lake.

“Second question,” he said calmly. “Why bring your request to me? With your affinity, you could have your pick of houses and titles, eager to welcome you with open arms. I assure you, many of them possess far more resources than I could hope to command.”

This time, Kieran took a bit longer to answer.

“They…” he said at last, lifting his gaze to meet Ezekiel’s directly, “are not the youngest Mages to reach the level of Grandmage. You are. Whatever resources they may possess are clearly inferior to what you wield, Lord Ezekiel. If anyone can help my sister improve, it is you.”

Ezekiel’s stoic expression slowly gave way to a smile as he let his true thoughts surface.

“Impressive. Truly impressive,” her brother said, and Maya, knowing him well, could tell he meant every word.

“From your temperament, to your character, to your reasoning, I find myself liking everything you’ve shown me.”

Kieran’s face brightened, clearly expecting his wish to be granted. Until—

“…Unfortunately, I cannot accept your offer.”