"Child, you possess D-rank talent for the path of both Knight and Mage, with low to medium affinity for the dual elements of Darkness and Lightning."

Vlad’s eyebrows knitted together in both surprise and confusion.

"Is there something wrong with the evaluation?" Vlad asked. "I have never heard of someone having affinity for more than one element."

"It is rare but not something unheard of," the priest replied. "There are some mages who can use dual elements."

Vlad did not respond. His mind was occupied by a single thought.

’I-I’m only D-ranked?’

Just as he was about to leave the altar, a loud laugh echoed through the church.

"Hahaha, he is just a pathetic D-rank and he arrogantly announced that he would become the Legendary Knight," a young man from the upper floor laughed.

"Legendary Knight?" the people gasped before breaking into laughter.

"Not even someone who awakened as S-rank would dare make such a claim."

"Hahaha, you can’t blame him. He is just a kid with big dreams."

"Still, one must be aware of how much nonsense they spout. I would have believed it if that S+ ranked girl had claimed to become the Legendary Knight."

In just a few seconds, the church filled with the mocking laughter of hundreds of people, their fingers pointing at Vlad.

Vlad’s fists tightened until his knuckles turned white. Just as he was about to move—

"Stop, everyone!" Another loud voice echoed, drawing everyone’s attention.

It belonged to Armin, who stood with arms crossed on the upper floor. He walked down the stairs and continued until he stood before Vlad.

"He is just a young man with great ambitions. You cannot mock him for having dreams."

"My offer from before still stands, Mr. Vlad," Armin said in a polite tone. "Though now I have one more condition. You must bring Miss Chloe along with you."

Vlad was lost in his own thoughts. It took him a couple of seconds to respond.

"My answer is the same as before, Mayor," Vlad replied. "I will not join the House Beaumont."

Even though Vlad was shaken and confused in that moment, he remained observant of his surroundings. The young man who had ridiculed him from the upper floor was Armin’s subordinate. He had been only a few steps away from Armin when Armin had approached Vlad earlier, and even on the upper floor, the two had been together. Vlad was already aware of the scheme Armin had orchestrated.

This time, however, Armin did not take the rejection gracefully.

"Damn you, arrogant commoner," Armin muttered, his demeanor shifting entirely. "You should be licking my boots for the generosity I have shown a wretch like you, yet you keep disrespecting me."

Before Vlad could say anything, a suffocating pressure descended upon Armin.

"I have overlooked your disrespect on quite a few occasions out of regard for your title, Lord Armin," the priest said, his tone cold, the bead around his finger glowing. "Do not embarrass yourself any further."

Armin went completely still, his teeth gritting in both anger and frustration. He knew better than to offend anyone from the Holy Church.

Pivoting on his heel, he left the church with heavy stomps.

"All of this happened because information was leaked from within the church," the priest said, turning to Vlad. "Please accept this as compensation."

He handed a golden coin to Vlad, engraved with the emblem of a blind woman holding a set of scales. It was different from the currency of Argentum, whose coins bore the emblem of a rising sun on the horizon.

"Thank you," Vlad answered, his eyes unfocused as he walked down the stairs.

As he moved through the crowd, someone shoved his shoulder and sneered.

"Fucking trash."

"You think you are someone special," another added, walking past him. "The Mayor only offered you a place in his house because of your friend."

Vlad understood that they were Armin’s subordinates, deliberately provoking him for rejecting the offer. If he were to react to their taunts and strike one of them, they would have all the justification they needed to have him arrested.

Besides, he had far too much on his mind to bother responding to petty taunts.

"Let’s go, Vlad," a familiar voice reached his ear, and a hand grabbed him by the arm.

The voice belonged to Chloe. The moment she appeared, the people who had been harassing and shoving Vlad stepped back.

"When did you wake up?" Vlad asked, forcing a smile as his eyes shifted to her.

"Just a moment ago," she replied. "There are a lot of annoying people here. Let’s go outside."

The instant she appeared, every gaze in the room gravitated toward her, as though they were looking at something otherworldly and untouchable.

Vlad nodded and left the church with Chloe.

---

"Want some chocolate?" Chloe asked, pointing at a confectionery shop.

Vlad shook his head.

"How about ice cream?" she asked, her finger now pointing at an ice cream stall.

"I’m not hungry."

"Then let’s have cotton candy," she said, dragging him toward a man selling colorful cotton candies sculpted into different shapes: bears, lions, hearts, and rabbits.

She bought two heart-shaped ones in red, brushing off Vlad’s protests. Her hand gripped his arm firmly again as she pulled him toward a metallic bench set along the side of the street.

"Why are you being so generous today?" Vlad asked with a faint smile.

"When I feel sad, I eat sweets," Chloe answered in a low tone. "Eat the cotton candy and stop being sad."

’Was I being that obvious? Even Chloe noticed,’ Vlad sighed inwardly.

He put on a bright smile, ruffled her hair, and said in a teasing tone, "Idiot. Not everyone cheers up just by eating sweets like you do."

"So you are still sad?" she asked, locking her eyes with his.

"Of course not," Vlad chuckled. "How could I be sad when the great glutton Chloe herself bought me something to eat?"

Chloe silently looked at Vlad’s smiling face before quickly dropping her gaze. She decided not to look up and focused on the cotton candy instead.

After spending half an hour on the bench watching the busy street, they rose and began making their way toward the other end of the city, a destination already in mind.

It was then that something unexpected unfolded before them.

A strange figure draped in a black cloak came bolting toward them from ahead. Just as he drew close, he snatched a child from her mother’s grasp in front of Vlad and darted into the narrow passage between two buildings.

"A k-kidnapper!!" the child’s mother screamed in horror. "Someone save my child!"

Vlad didn’t waste another second. He sprinted into the narrow passage after the kidnapper while Chloe followed silently behind him.

The kidnapper was strangely fast. Within seconds they had already reached the end of the passage, where it bent sharply to the right.

When Vlad and Chloe rounded the corner, four tall, broad men stood blocking their path. From their bearing alone and the scars they carried, Vlad could tell they were dangerous. He turned his head and found three more thugs sealing the way they had come.

"Finally, I’ve caught the rats," the man beneath the black cloak snickered. He set the child he had been carrying down on the ground.

The child flashed an amused smirk at Vlad and Chloe before scampering away.

Vlad’s eyes narrowed.

"It was a trap," he muttered.