17 ~ 28-Day Countdown
“You still intend to compete in the Freshman Crown Tournament? …Do you even have a team?” Baros frowned.
“Mr. Baros, Miss Teresa enrolled at Coleman specifically with the goal of joining a team,” Blaise added.
“Oh? And how is this team? How many members? Is the Divine Child leading them especially gifted?”
“............”
Blaise fell silent at that.
As one of the archivists, she knew very well that the boy Teresa had teamed up with wasn’t some prodigy among Divine Children—he was more like gutter-grade.
In a two-person team with a blind Divine Child and a Divine Maiden who couldn’t even manifest her domain… what kind of bizarre combo was this??
Just looking at them screamed unqualified stand-ins. When they got on the Crown stage, wouldn’t they just be cannon fodder and free XP?
No other students were going to join a team like that, obviously. Most likely, only the two of them would show up on tournament day.
This was Coleman Academy, after all—a place overflowing with talented Divine Children and Divine Maidens. Blaise could already imagine the two of them huddling together, trembling under the gazes of the elites watching the tournament.
“I know I have nothing right now, but… please, I beg you—give me one month,” Teresa said, thick-skinned, bowing her head. Her golden hair, smooth like silk, draped down over her shoulders.
“Baros, Jem, I don’t think we need to be that strict with the rules. Let’s give this child a chance, just one month,” Miss Blaise said with some sympathy.
“Ah, I don’t mind. After all, she hasn’t undergone Divine Awakening yet. Who knows? Maybe there’ll be a surprise afterward,” Baros nodded, then looked at Jem.
“...Don’t look at me. You two decide.” Jem shrugged and turned his head away.
“Very well, it’s settled. Miss Teresa will be admitted into our Academy as a Divine Maiden,” Baros confirmed, then turned serious as he looked at her.
“Miss Teresa, you are now officially registered as a Divine Maiden of our academy. We’ll give you one month. But… if you still can’t deliver during the Freshman Crown Tournament, then the Academy will expel both you and your Divine Child. Do you understand?”
“I truly thank you,” Teresa placed both hands over her chest. Her sweet and delicate voice was almost enough to make one’s ears melt.
Ah, such a pity. No one knew how she got that scar on her face—otherwise, she’d definitely be a campus beauty no less popular or lovely than Silver Moon Astrid.
The evaluation ended, and Teresa was officially rated as a D-rank Divine Maiden—the lowest classification among Divine Maidens.
Teresa didn’t feel the slightest dissatisfaction. Just being allowed to stay at the academy and eat for free was already a great blessing. She dared not hope for anything more.
Unlike Divine Children, who had to pay tuition to enroll, Divine Maidens were admitted free of charge. More than that, those who performed well could even receive subsidies and resource support from the academy.
The four of them left the evaluation hall, but none of them noticed—they weren’t the only ones present in the building.
“Tch. Thought something unexpected might happen. Turns out she’s just a wild Divine Maiden… and one who can’t even use her domain. What a waste of concern.” Frand emerged from the shadows, mocking as he looked in the direction Teresa had left.
“No idea which little backwater family spawned this half-blood stray. Can’t even manifest a domain? What a joke.”
Having witnessed the entire evaluation, Frand scoffed coldly.
I knew it. That blind Divine Child couldn’t possibly attract any decent teammates.
An incompetent Divine Maiden and an incompetent Divine Child—what a perfect match. The two of them could enjoy their glorious defeat together on tournament day.
With that, Frand felt completely at ease. He was now certain that Dylin wouldn’t make any waves.
That boy was like a fish trapped in a shallow puddle. Once the sun evaporated the last bit of water, he’d dry out and die on the sand.
At that thought, Frand left with a sense of satisfaction.
***
Coleman Grand Library
In a corner of the reading room, Dylin sat with one hand in his pocket, now back in human form.
A soft glow flickered in his eyes—an invisible vision unfolded before him.
In this immense library filled with countless books, searching for a specific title would be a nightmare. Even the librarians here would need time and effort to locate particular texts. But Dylin had no such troubles.
With just a glance, the names and general contents of every book on every shelf and row materialized clearly in his field of vision.
Normally, having so much text flooding your vision would overwhelm your eyes.
But this was something Dylin had realized after acquiring the Golden Butterfly Chalice—his Divine Analysis Technique had been enhanced to an almost terrifying degree. His mental faculties had also strengthened, allowing him to capture and process every bit of text in real time.
In his personal status panel, the digestion timer for [Blade of Destruction and Creation: Sacred Oblivion] was steadily counting down with the passage of real-world time.
Now, it has dropped to 28 days.
Dylin stared at that number, knowing full well what it represented.
In a certain sense, it was a countdown to his own death.
With Teresa unable to manifest her Divine Domain, they had no choice but to place all their hope on that final Divine Awakening.