Jon was sound asleep because of Mara’s spell, so Angor did not wake him. He asked the mute servant to bring him back to his room.
Then everyone else went back to the castle.
Leon told the servants to gather everyone under the age of 50 into the hall and let Mara do his test on them.
Angor wanted to go first, but Leon stopped him and whispered, “Let the servants try this out first.”
Angor already understood even when Leon did not explain why.
As Mara said, there probably would not be a single talent among ten thousand people. Being “untalented” would surely embarrass someone. If he was the last one after all the failed servants, the embarrassment would not be as terrible… as long as none of the servants turned out to be a surprise.
Soon enough, about a hundred servants in the manor who had not yet reached their 50s stood in a line in front of the castle.
They were all called up while they were asleep, but none dared to complain. They were standing straight, quietly.
“All are here then? Let’s begin the test,” said Mara. He added, “… one by one.”
The testing ground was a narrow closet. Leon asked the servants to empty it beforehand, and only left something that Mara required.
Mara sat on the main seat, while Angor, Leon, Eton, and the grandchildren sat on his sides. The space across from Mara was left open—for the testees.
A deep-sea fish oil candle burned in the lamp on the table. The gentle yet strong light illuminated the narrow tiny closet making it bright as day.
Mara took out a red crystal ball from his robe and placed it on the desk.
It looked completely normal, only that it was much darker compared to the floating, transparent one beside Mara.
“The Abelles’ Eye, or the ‘Talent Sphere’, is made from the eyeball of a behemoth called Abelles from the Abyss Plane,” said Mara. He began to explain, “The beast is not really strong, but its soul possesses extraordinary power. The Talent Sphere crafted using its eye can reflect one’s soul and show us that man’s talent.”
The first one to be tested was the maid called Auri, who took care of Angor’s daily life.
Auri was 15, only one year older than Angor. She and Angor shared a close relationship in daily lives like friends rather than master and servant. Auri came in with a serious expression, but she secretly winked at Angor when no one was looking.
Angor gave her a simple explanation about what this was about. Hearing this, Auri’s eyes brightened.
So a talented one could become a legendary wizard? Her heartbeats intensified so much that she could hear them herself.
This was a chance to change her life. Realizing this, Auri’s once relaxed mood immediately tensed up. She bowed to Mara with respect and sat across him while trying to hide her excitement.
Mara pointed to the red Talent Sphere. “The test is simple. Put your hand on this crystal ball and do not let go, then observe your surroundings. If you see any changes, you’re talented.”
Changes? Auri was confused for a moment, so was everyone else.
Mara continued, “Different individuals will see different phenomena. Here’s an example: When I touched the Talent Sphere for the first time, I saw the weak burning flames in the fireplace not far from me becoming bigger. Nobody else could see it. That meant I had the talent,” said Mara. He thought about something else before saying, “The sphere cannot tell the level of one’s talent, but it is said that one can gain a hint about his or her future from the ‘change’. It’s only a rumor though. There has been no proof, so personally, I don’t believe it. I’ve learned fire spells and it wasn’t any easier than doing water spells.
“My granddaughter Aleen heard various noises upon touching the sphere. That, too, is a ‘change’,” said Mara. He then pointed at the chubby boy Alan, “As for him, he saw a piece of brown bread appear in a dish out of nowhere. That’s a change as well.
“If you do not see anything at all after keeping your touch for one minute, then I’m afraid you basically have no talent,” Mara shrugged.
When he finished, Mara went back to being silent and pushed the Talent Sphere towards Auri.
Auri swallowed hard. She then reached out a trembling hand, and placed it on the sphere…
When the small hourglass on the desk made one flip (1 minute) 1 , Auri shook her head in disappointment and left on her own accord.
Mara retained his blank expression. “Next.”
Time passed. Dozens of people had taken the test and none succeeded.
When an honest-looking young man did his test, his expression became sharp.
“I just felt a breeze against myself, as if I’m standing in a sea of winds,” said the young man. He hugged the air in front of him and seemed to be enjoying something.
“There—there it is! A talented one!” Count Eton exclaimed in surprise. He totally did not expect to find one all the way out here, in the countryside, when they found none back at the capital.
Leon became excited as well. He happily asked Head Maid Mana about the young man.
Mana, however, looked at the “honest” young man and curled her lips. The man had quite a bad name in the manor, and someone like him was actually talented? Mana silently cursed Lady Luck for being unjustified and answered Leon in a low voice, “His name is Fawkes, son of the gardener, Glenn.”
Fawkes? Leon never heard of him. It did not matter though. There were lots of servants in the manor.
In a high spirit, Leon ordered Mana, “Take a hundred gold coins from the storage and present them to—”
“Wait.”
Mara’s deep voice suddenly echoed inside the room.
When hearing Leon mentioning “coin”, Fawkes was feeling quite proud. When Mara spoke, however, he slumped down quickly, sweat drops showed on his forehead.
“A sea of winds? Ha… No one dared to lie to me back at the capital. Now someone here actually made up a story in front of my face? Do you really think white wizards have no temper?”
Mara humphed, and a strong storm began circling around Fawkes.
“A sea of winds was it? I’ll grant you that wish. Enjoy this ‘Whisper of Wind’!”
There was screaming before Fawkes was blown out of the window of the third floor by the wind and fell onto the ground, followed by constant screeches and cries.
Leon’s expression went pale as he asked, “Mister Mara, what happened? Was Fawkes lying?”
Mara sneered, “The ‘change’ can only be seen by the testee, true. But once that happens, the Talent Sphere will flash to tell me that talent has appeared.”
Hearing Mara’s words, everyone quickly understood the reason for the incident.
They had been watching. The sphere never gave out anything from the start, which meant Fawkes was truly telling lies.
Leon showed obvious anger and turned to the Head Maid Mana, “Don’t let me see Fawkes’ face in Grue Town, starting from tomorrow.”
Mana made a bow to acknowledge the order before she left the room.
No one thought about what would become of Fawkes. Mara tidied up his robe a bit and lifted his impatience before he proceeded with the test.
Two hourglass hours had passed. All the servants were done, including Head Maid Mana and the guard knights. No one was talented.
Finally, Mara shifted his gaze onto Angor.
This is it.
Angor had made up his mind.
…
“I’ll go first. I’m also interested in wizardry. Mister Mara said that wizards all have a long lifespan and that they can live forever. That’s what I wish for,” said Leon. He stopped Angor and sat in front of Mara himself. He then said, “I can see much more scenery that way. I want to see everything this world has to offer.”
Angor did not move back. Instead, he sat beside Leon.
“You first,” Angor showed a fist to Leon. This was what they would do when encouraging each other during childhood.
Leon rubbed Angor’s soft hair with a smile. Then he reached for the Talent Sphere.
The white sand of time in the hourglass flowed down slowly. Leon looked around the room, trying to spot a “change”.
A minute passed. Leon lifted his hand and grave disappointment was written in his expression.
“It seems… I’m not talented,” Leon spoke helplessly. He could not find any changes during the minute. As Mara said, talent was extremely rare.
“It’s your turn then,” Leon patted Angor’s shoulder.
Angor nodded and slowly put his hand on the smooth surface of the Talent Sphere.