The Novel's Sidekick

Since Elinor performed so well, I accepted her apology, nodding slowly.

She let out a whimper of relief, perhaps to let me know she was nervous. You can't really get away with anything from the presence of nobles.

"So, what are you curious about?"

"You probably do not know the answer, either," I said and saw there was no one before us. I turned to see the instructor looking at me with stiff eyes, calling my name, as if I wasted their time again.

Don't worry man, I will compensate well with my talent. I knew the theory behind how this orb works, and I did not need any help from the instructor to do it. It was a simple process. All I have to do was: put my palm against the glass surface and emitted spirit force into it. Rosalyn was looking at me along with dozen others as I put my palm on the orb. With a little effort, I emitted a few strands of spirit force into it.

The orb lit up in crimson colours, to nobody's surprise. The crimson colour represented House Emberheart's affinity for fire, while the shining colour represented House Emberheart's affinity for Spirit force.

"Flame element affinity," the instructor took the reading as his eyes widened. "Grade nine Affinity towards Spirit Force. Spirit force purity: Grade six."

'That went well,' I muttered under my breath, hearing some whispers in the crowd. So nothing changed in the transmigration. Grade nine could be called the highest level of affinity the orb could count. It was used to measure the calibre of one's talent. It showed what a person could achieve if they only worked hard.

With this score, I could get into the magic department no-question-asked. Yes, it was that rare. Of all the students in the academy, there might not even be five people with this level of spirit force affinity.

While the purity of the spirit force is equally important, sadly, grade-six is the lowest level while grade-one is considered as the highest. As the purity of the spirit force is raised, the same spells or attacks will have more effect as well. I should have a better score than this. Then again, Scar wasted over a year on alcohol and other things, so not much surprise here.

I stepped back and waited for Elinor to take her test with my curiosity raised. Was I just thinking too much about this kid, or she's really would be a singularity? All will be proven in the test.

I watched the thin girl go to take the test, but before she did, her and all the other people's attentions were moved towards another table where another boy had completed his test.

Now the orb was showing a staggering golden light that caused even more astonishment compared to what happened during my test. The orb seemed to cannot contain the light within itself, flickering all over with its beaming reverence.

"Grade-nine Spirit affinity." the instructor at the table announced. "Light attribute, Spirit force purity: Grade-five."

The boy who astonished everyone in here was not uncomfortable from the gazes. He seemed to believe he was born for greatness and this small test meant nothing to him, but I knew better than that. Huh! I actually forgot about this fellow. But shouldn't he appear in the same test as Edward? where is our protagonist now?

The person before me who wore a hood and common clothing was none other than the prince of the Mahener empire, Dareth Sholinar. With the background of the empire, Dareth never needed to take the test, yet he still did it, impersonating a commoner. What does that tell?

No, he was not here to get into the academy by his own means. He just liked to show off and watch others fawn over him. Like now, he unveiled his hood and let everyone see.

I waited for a couple of seconds for someone to recognise the prince and just as I thought; it did not take more than a couple of seconds. Someone shouted in the hall that it was their prince (Technically, he was my prince too, as the state of Emberheart is a prominent part of the Mahenar Empire, and I am a prince myself. Though the identity of the son of the emperor and the identity of the son of a Highprince held a substantial difference.). The others started gossiping among themselves, looking at the prince.

"What did I tell you? None stands a chance against Prince Dareth!" One said, just a couple strides away from me.

"I even heard His Highness had already reached the level of a magus before coming to the academy. This really is a monstrous-level genius." I was even considering whether they were being paid to give this performance. Then again, there is no shortage of these types of snobs.

"I admit defeat willingly. There was no shame in losing to our prince." This one really overdid it.

Dareth was enjoying this inside, though he presented the noble aura a prince should present. Even though he was wearing normal clothing, his golden hair and handsome, aloof face radiated a noble aura that could not be faked. I could not help but snort at those snobs.

"Do you have a problem?" Dareth asked me. How in the hell did he hear that? It did not take him long to find my lineage, seeing the red hair and pupil. "Son of Emberheart?"

"Yes, my throat is sore," I admitted, snorting once more. Was my personality changing or did I become too engrossed in acting?

It was not that the person before me was evil; it was just that I do not like his power-hungry personality. Moreover, he had agitated Edward many times during the academic years and even afterwards. That should be enough of a reason for me to be annoyed with him as a reader.

Talking about Edward, where is that guy exactly? He was supposed to take the test with Dareth, but so far I have not even gotten wind of the guy. Did the timeline change or something? But it could not be just because of my appearance, can it? I seriously did nothing other than preparing myself.

Dareth did not seem to like my answer, but with his image, he did not fall low enough to argue with me. Great, I was saved from a useless argument. My eyes drifted towards the girl, Elinor, who was taking the test. She was an anomaly here, and I would like to know how much talent she has.

It appeared the girl did not need the help offered by the instructor to elevate one’s spirit energy. She could do it herself, unlike most of the people here. Just like the showoff prince, the light flickered out from the orb and it was a blinding light. It was not golden like the prince of Mahenar, but entirely white with a silvery radiance.

The silver-white light flickered on Elinor's exterior as she gave a bright smile that could brighten even the darkest night. Pure and innocent.

A deep frown appeared on my brows at once. 'What the hell?!' I yelled inwardly, No, no, no, that cannot be right.'

While the instructor announced the news, "Light Element affinity, Grade nine Spirit affinity, Spirit force Purity: Grade-Six."

Yes, the result was the same as mine, but the impact she had was greater and there was a reason for that. But I cared about none of it. My mind raced, and I fought the will to run straight to the girl and interrogate her.

"By the luck of Ishar," Rosalyn said, bringing her free hand to her heart. "We have four people with the highest spirit affinity in this batch. There had never been such a case in the last thousand-year history of Starlight Academy."

I know who the other person she was talking about was. It was that attractive chick I got insulted by a couple of days before, but I was not worried about Ciara. Instead, it was the thin girl before me.

Rosalyn came before Elinor and gave her another head-to-toe scan. She had previously done that when her nephew. I, brought that girl, but now it was more thorough.

"What is your name?" she asked.

"Elinor." the thin girl answered. "Elinor Eastwood."

My face tensed further as I calculated the possibility.

"Well, Elinor, it appears you have a bright future ahead of you," Rosalyn added. "Do your best in the next two tests."

While I was still staring at her blankly, Elinor came back towards me. Eastwood, Professor Ranyan, Silver Hair, Light Element, everything makes sense now, but the girl in front of me did not. Who the hell is she? Where is Edward?

"I did alright," she said, taking a stand beside me.

I could not contain the question anymore. "Who are you?" I asked, trying hard not to shout in the room with a couple of hundred people.

Elinor tilted her head to look at me. She did not understand the question and bit her lips with an expression that hid something. Guilt? Remorse?

"Where did you come from?" I asked again.

"You are weird," she said, hiding her fearful quivers, but then my arms held her shoulders and seeing my eyes staring through her, she could guess that I really wanted an answer from her. "Colarn, it is a town in the southern outskirts of Mahenar, but I don't see why you would be interested."

Lightning flashed in my head. This cannot be it. "Do you have an older brother?" I asked again, trying to be sure. "Any family?"

"Had. A twin brother, a loving mother and a caring father," she said as her eyes turned moist, though she was not crying. Her body was still quivering, biting her lower lip. Her watery eyes gazed at me for a couple of seconds.

She threw away my arms and left me to take a stand against the wall alone. Perhaps my question freaked her out or reminded her of the death of her family. She needed an empty space now to clear her mind to take the next test, and so did I.

'Why? Author? Why?'

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Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.