Dragon System: Red Dragon Legacy-Chapter 44: A Talent Like No Other

Inside one of the main buildings of the academy, in a spacious office, four figures had gathered.

One was the scar-faced teacher from Orion’s evaluation, Bordock. Another was a man with long hair in a red robe—the head of the Magic Department. The other two were women: one wore revealing clothes and a large, extravagant hat; she was the head of Alchemy, often called a witch. The last was the headmistress of the academy, who was not only breathtakingly beautiful but also radiated power and authority. She was also the queen of the country, though she disliked being called that while at the academy.

"Bordock, what’s this emergency you spoke of? And it better be serious. These are the busiest days of the academy, and I won’t take kindly to wasted time," the queen/headmistress said sharply.

Bordock gulped. "Yes, Headmistress, I understand. But this situation really is an emergency. Earlier today, during the evaluation of the commoner students, everything went smoothly... until it was a student named Orion’s turn. The evaluation device started behaving strangely," he paused, wary of their reactions.

"Hoooh... are you saying the devices finally failed?" the head of the Magic Department asked.

"Mr. Pirelli, if the devices failed, that would be much simpler than what actually happened," Bordock replied.

Everyone in the room leaned forward, curious.

Bordock continued, explaining how Orion’s talent evaluation had produced a golden color, but the device returned to normal for the other students. When he finished, the room went silent, and everyone was shocked.

"Orion... Orion," the queen muttered, trying to recall the name. Then her eyes lit up. "Wait—Orion? Is that the same Orion who beat Ryan and always hangs around our hero candidate?"

"I’m sorry, headmistress, but I don’t know about the Orion you speak of. I can’t confirm," Bordock said.

The queen didn’t dwell on it. She turned to her confidants. "What do you think, Rachel? What could have caused this?" she asked the Alchemy head.

Rachel thought for a while but eventually gave up. "I... don’t know. Is it possible he has so much potential that the device just broke?"

Pirelli shook his head. "I don’t think so. Throughout history, every device has accurately evaluated even the strongest individuals and heroes on this continent, so I don’t think that theory holds up."

Debate continued, but the queen remained silent, her mind elsewhere. Then she commanded,

"Silence." Instantly, the room went quiet.

"Pirelli, Rachel, have you heard of the boy in Macroonwho produced a unique color of bluish dark in the evaluation device?" she asked.

They both tried to recall, and Pirelli spoke first. "You mean the boy who went on to invent the Tarin?"

Rachel’s eyes widened in recognition.

"Exactly," said the headmistress. "He went on to create perhaps the most revolutionary invention of the century. Perhaps... It’s because of talent?"

Both Pirelli and Rachel seemed satisfied with the explanation.

"But Headmistress," Bordock objected, "that person’s evaluation was still bluish-dark. As far as I can recall, I know of two other people who had that color in their evaluation—like the first batch of heroes."

After his argument, the room fell back into uncertainty.

"Headmistress," Rachel said, "I think we should call Silver. If anyone can explain this, it’s him."

The headmistress sighed. "Very well. Call Silver. And for the time being, rank the boy based on the next two tests." The queen let out a sigh. "This day is going from bad to worse. Everyone except Rachel, leave," she commanded.

Bordock and Pirelli bowed and left, leaving only the queen and Rachel in the room.

"What’s the matter, Evelyn? It’s not just this boy troubling you, is it?" she asked, dropping the formalities as they were best friends.

Rachel could feel Evelyn’s pain. "I know things are hard right now, but let’s focus on one thing at a time. First, we deal with the latest problem with the boy. Also, the hero candidates from other countries will be joining us soon, so we need to focus on that too."

Evelyn smiled. "Yeah... we’re going to be quite busy."

Back to Orion and Estaban.

"By the way, Estaban," Orion said, struggling with the pronunciation, "can I call you East? Your name’s a mouthful."

"What? Absolutely not! I will not let you butcher my beautiful name!" Esteban protested.

"But ’East’ sounds cool... it’s like a codename spies use," Orion said, knowing perfectly well how to flatter this kind of person.

Estaban’s expression softened. "Hmmm... alright. You may call me East from now on."

"Yeah, thanks," Orion replied dryly.

"Anyway, do you know what our third test will be?" Estaban asked.

"Of course. The final test is the most important for combat students. You’ll be paired with five others and sent into a remote forest for a battle royale. Your score depends on how long you survive." He paused, thinking. "Oh, and the area is surrounded by an ancient array, so death there isn’t permanent."

’An array that prevents death?" Orion thought. "How much of a genius do you have to be to even think of something like that?’

"Do you want to pair up for tomorrow’s test?" Estaban asked.

Orion hesitated. "We’ll see tomorrow."

Seeing Orion’s hesitation, Esteban quickly changed the subject. "By the way... do you have a girlfriend?"

Orion’s mind immediately pictured Lilian and Ember, but he quickly shook it off.

"No, not currently. You?"

"I do... but it’s complicated," Estaban said.

"Oh? How so?" Orion asked.

"I don’t think she even knows who I am," Estaban said, lowering his gaze.

"Huh? What nonsense is that? How can your girlfriend not know you?" Orion exclaimed.

"I never really told her how I feel," Estaban said.

"Oh lord... so you mean you have a crush, not a girlfriend," Orion pointed out, his face falling.

"What’s the difference?" Estaban asked innocently.

"Oh, for God’s sake... You seriously don’t know the difference between them, do you?" Orion muttered. He didn’t have the strength to explain it to Esteban.

’Who cares if he thinks a girl he’s never even talked to is his girlfriend?’ he thought.’ It’s not like it’s hurting anyone.’

Meanwhile, Lilian had finished her exam and approached Orion.

"Hey, ready to head back?" she asked.

Esteban was completely speechless the moment he saw Lilian.

"Wait... you know the hero candidate?" he asked Orion, his excitement obvious. Lilian finally noticed Esteban.

"Oh, you made a friend. It’s good to see you finally spreading your wings a little bit," she said to Orion, then turned to Estaban.

"Thanks for taking care of my friend," she said.

"Thanks... my name is Estaban Askari, and I’m a huge fan of yours!" he said, his eyes lighting up.

"Wait... you’re Estaban Askari? Sofia’s brother?"

"Yes!" Estaban shouted.

What?