’A hundred percent Magia in my Central Path...’
Derek felt deep gratitude at that moment.
He knew just how incredible such an accomplishment would be considered, and how rare such talent was in the Magus world.
Such a thing was practically out of reach for a former Inept like him.
It was all thanks to the Magus Codex.
In the Magus world, talent was very important—only behind experience and skill.
There were six Talent Grades: A+, A-, B, C, D, and E.
F Grade basically meant ’Inept.’
These Talent Grades were determined during Confirmation Rituals usually held when children were ten years old.
At that age, the Magia Circuits would have developed to a visible extent, but Magia couldn’t be used yet.
Thus, these children could not actively absorb Magia to influence their Central Path.
The test would perfectly judge the natural passive absorption rate that a child possessed and would use that information to estimate their potential in the Magus world.
That was the whole point.
A person who had E Grade Talent would only have ten percent or less Magia stored in their Central Path at the time of the test.
D Grade capped at below 50 percent.
C Grade was anything between 50 and 69 percent.
B Grade was higher, but it capped at 89 percent.
A Minus held Magia in their Central Path from 90 to 99 percent, while A Plus held a complete accumulation of 100 percent.
It boasted the highest level of attainment.
That was the precipice at which Derek stood at this moment.
He wasn’t just a valued asset of the Lewis Family, someone who could become a Magus.
He stood at the pinnacle in terms of potential.
—An absolute genius!
’It’s all because of you, Max...’ Derek was close to tears as he thanked the entity residing within him.
[There’s no need. Congratulations, Host. You should be protected from future attempts on your life after achieving such a result.]
’That’s what should happen...’ Derek cast an unsure look at his oldest sister, who had a blank look on her face.
’But I’m unsure of how it’ll play out in reality.’
Silence pervaded the hall for several seconds. It felt suffocating, and it didn’t help that Derek was feeling intense exhaustion weighing him down.
He could barely stand, not to mention walk.
’I may need to relinquish control to Max. Maybe he can lead me back to my room so I can have that rest. No, wait... I still don’t know why Melanie is here.’
Derek was about to say something to his sister when she spoke.
"Klein and Emma just returned. I sent servants to your premises, but you weren’t around, so I personally sought you out here."
"Ah... I’m sorry for the inconvenience—"
"No need for that," Melanie turned away from Derek and gracefully walked out of the room. "Just come with me. We’ll go greet them together."
"O-okay..."
Despite the splitting headache that he had, he could not ignore his sister’s words.
This was family tradition.
It held the same weight as the mandatory weekly family breakfast.
These were rules that were set in stone, and no matter how much they despised one another, or how talented any of them were, all core members of the Lewis Family had to abide by them.
Thus, even though he felt like he could pass out at any moment, Derek walked right behind his sister as they exited the Confirmation Ritual Building and left the Internal Affairs Hall.
During their time together, none of them said a word to each other.
As they neared the Estate’s entrance, Melanie cast her gaze on him and noticed his state. She opened her mouth to say something, but before she could speak, a loud voice pierced the air. Follow the newest chapters on novelping dot com.
"They’re finally herreeeee!"
Melanie quickly returned her focus to the gate and spotted her younger siblings standing outside their carriage.
Emma had her arms folded as she kept a noticeable frown on her face while Klein kept both hands in his pockets and looked a lot calmer.
"What took you so long?" Emma shouted yet again. "We’ve been waiting for ages!"
Melanie heard this and sighed.
"Don’t overreact. It hasn’t even been five minutes since your arrival. Besides, you could have waited in the carriage..."
"That was boring! Besides—"
Emma was about to say something else when she noticed Derek, whose figure had remained hidden behind Melanie until the latter called him to her side.
Once he appeared, he bowed respectfully to his siblings and forced an amiable smile.
"Welcome back, dear brother... dear sister."
The gentle manner by which he spoke, coupled with his effeminate appearance and the way his white hair danced with the wind, made him seem less like a person and more like a drifting ghost.
The paleness of his face and the accumulating exhaustion he felt weren’t helping matters either.
Klein immediately revealed an arrogant smirk once he saw Derek, while Emma seemed far more shaken.
Her eyes bulged, partly in anger and also almost in disbelief.
She gritted her teeth and was about to say something when Melanie clapped her hands and formally addressed the group.
"Has time in the Academy caused the two of you to forget your manners?"
Emma and Klein glanced at each other, and with gritted teeth, they slowly bowed and greeted Melanie and Derek.
Finally, as the oldest, Melanie greeted them last.
Only after the mandatory salutations were done did Melanie address the reason why they were so late.
"We’re just returning from Derek’s second Confirmation Ritual."
"Eh?"
Klein and Emma were visibly shocked by the news.
"What does an Inept need a Confirmation Ritual for? Did you really think you’d be special enough to be among the rare cases that awakened later in life?" Klein sneered while meeting his younger brother’s gaze with a condescending stare.
"Right?" Emma added while giggling aloud. "Even if things were to change, what would be the use? You’d still be a talentless weakling!"
Despite the haughty words that assailed him, Derek said nothing.
It was partly because he had grown so used to their constant belittling that he felt almost nothing from these petty words.
However, the main reason was due to his exhaustion.
Derek was very tired.
He just wanted to get this ceremony over with so he could return to his room and sleep for the whole day.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t meant to happen.
"He actually passed the Confirmation Ritual." Melanie smiled while glancing at the motionless boy beside her.
"Seriously? I guess he has considerable luck, then." Klein chuckled aloud before looking away from Derek.
As for Emma, she kept staring at Derek while whispering through her teeth.
"Yeah. He is one lucky bastard..."
"Why don’t you tell them your results, Derek?" Melanie prompted while maintaining her calm smile.
Derek saw this and immediately felt wary.
"I’d rather not..." He quietly muttered while avoiding the gaze on him. "Our siblings just arrived after valiantly representing our family in the Academy. I believe it would be rude to make this about myself."
"Hmm... Is that so?"
Nodding slowly, Derek gulped and hoped that would be the end of it.
’Klein and Emma already assume my talent grade will be poor because I was Inept. I better keep it that way for now, at least until I have enough rest and can defend myself.’
"Why don’t you tell us?"
"Ah..."
"Come on... You won’t answer a simple question? Even after your older sister and brother are asking so politely?"
Klein faked a frown while sneering inside.
He already had his guesses regarding Derek’s Talent Grade, and the latter’s hesitance to say it confirmed that it had to be something grave.
The only reason he openly wanted it said was because he wanted to humiliate his younger brother.
Seeing that he could no longer avoid the topic, Derek finally caved in.
"A Plus Grade Talent."
"...."
Klein and Emma were quiet for some time, simply blinking a few times as though waiting for a punchline.
However, none came.
At that moment, they had two options.
—Believe Derek was telling the truth or simply assume he was lying.
The choice was easy to make.
"Hey, if you want to make a joke, you should know when to do so. We’re asking you a serious question here, and you dare make such a bold-faced lie? Don’t you have any shame?" Klein gritted his teeth, genuinely annoyed at this point.
"B-but it’s the truth..."
"There you go again with that ridiculous lie. Do you take us for fools? Huh? Is that it? Are you looking down on us?"
Derek looked at Melanie, hoping she would rescue him from his predicament.
After all, she was there.
She had seen it with her own eyes!
However, as soon as he looked at her, Klein flared up and charged at him with visible rage.
"How dare you look away when I’m talking to you?!"
He was like a blur.
Within seconds, he had closed the distance and reached Derek.
His hand was stretched forward, ready to grab him by the throat and slam him into the ground—just like he used to do.
However, at the last second, something happened.
Derek grabbed the incoming hand and tightly squeezed it. The exerted force he used, and the fact that the blow was so abruptly intercepted, caused Klein’s wrist to twist.
"Gahh!"
Klein was still recoiling from the pain when Derek pushed him away, not saying a word and simply looking blank.
His eyes seemed empty.
—Cold.
Even though Derek was looking at him, his gaze appeared detached.
For a moment, this scared Klein.
Then, he quickly recovered and converted the momentary terror he felt into pure indignation.
"You insolent—!"
He clenched his fist and prepared to land a devastating blow on Derek’s exposed face.
However, another shocking thing happened.
Derek leaned backwards and narrowly escaped the blow, only to plop gently on the floor and pass out right there.
His body had already reached its limits.