RE: LORD OF TIME

The Silver Wing Kingdom conducted the Aether Affinity Test throughout its territory once every six months.

In fact, it wasn’t just the Silver Wing Kingdom. Most of the kingdoms under the rule of the Eastern Empire did the same.

The reason behind this was to discover more talented individuals as without fresh blood, it was impossible for a kingdom to develop.

The purpose of establishing different academies throughout the kingdom was also to nurture fresh talent so they could increase the kingdom’s overall strength.

In every kingdom, the majority of the population consisted of commoners. If a kingdom failed to utilize them properly, its overall strength would gradually fall behind that of the other kingdoms, causing its status within the Eastern Empire to decline.

Because the Aether Affinity Test was conducted every six months, the number of participants from the five surrounding villages and the main town wasn’t very large.

When William reached the central square of the town, he estimated that around a thousand people had already gathered there.

Even among those thousand people, many were parents accompanying their children for the Aether Affinity Test, while others had simply come to watch the excitement.

Judging from the number of people present and recalling his memories from the original timeline, William estimated that the number of participants taking the test wouldn’t exceed one hundred.

The crowd surrounded the central square, where a high platform stood in the middle.

Two luxurious chairs had been placed on the platform, and at its center rested a round, white crystal atop a one-meter-high cylindrical stone pedestal.

The white crystal was called the Energy Crystal and was extremely sensitive to Aether Energy.

It was used to determine a person’s Aether Affinity.

After placing one’s hand on the crystal, if it glowed gray, it meant the person possessed Low-Grade Aether Affinity.

Green represented Middle Grade, blue represented High Grade, purple represented Excellent Grade, red represented Perfect Grade, and golden represented Transcendent Grade.

Just as William was beginning to grow bored while looking around, a slight commotion spread through the crowd, causing everyone to turn toward the same direction.

William followed their gaze and saw two carriages approaching, each bearing flags embroidered with a growing tree.

’That’s the insignia of Baron Xing’s family...’

William recognized the insignia immediately and understood that the ruler of Rosco Barony, Baron Xing, was inside one of those carriages.

William narrowed his eyes as he watched the two carriages approach.

’That bastard must be inside one of those carriages as well...’

The carriages soon arrived at the central square and came to a halt.

The coachman of the first carriage immediately climbed down and walked to the back before opening the carriage door.

As the door opened, a dignified-looking middle-aged man stepped out. He wore an emerald-green coat embroidered with silver vines. A white fur mantle rested over his shoulders, while a golden signet ring gleamed on his right hand.

His neatly combed black hair and well-trimmed beard gave him the appearance of a refined gentleman.

The man was Baron Xing, the ruler of Rosco Barony.

William had quite a favorable impression of Baron Xing because, unlike most nobles, he didn’t treat commoners badly.

Moreover, he was also a Star Lord-level warrior. Whenever a powerful monster appeared near the barony, he personally led a team to hunt it down, ensuring the safety of the people.

Once Baron Xing stepped out, another man emerged from the carriage.

Unlike Baron Xing, this man wore a dark leather coat reinforced with steel plates beneath a wolf-fur cloak. A sword hung at his waist, showing clear signs of frequent use, while a scar stretching across his jaw made him resemble a seasoned commander more than an aristocrat.

The man’s name was Richard, and he would be overseeing the Aether Affinity Test.

People like Richard worked directly under the royal family because many regions of the kingdom were quite remote, making it difficult to conduct the Aether Affinity Test there.

Even if the test was somehow conducted, it was extremely difficult for talented individuals from those remote areas to travel to the academy on their own as the outside world was dangerous, filled with powerful beasts and monsters.

To solve this problem, Overseers like Richard came into existence.

Their duty was to conduct the Aether Affinity Test and safely escort talented individuals to the academy of their choice.

During the period of the Aether Affinity Test, the academies also issued missions related to it, such as assisting Overseers in safely escorting newly discovered talents back to the academy.

Lucas, who was said to be accompanying Richard, must have accepted one of those missions and come here to escort the talented individuals discovered in Rosco Barony to the academy.

While William was lost in thought, the door of the second carriage opened as well, and a young man who looked around seventeen years old stepped out.

The young man wore a long white coat with black cuffs, matching trousers, and polished boots.

A finely embroidered sun-and-moon crest adorned the chest of his coat, while a narrow silver trim ran along the edges without any unnecessary decorations.

It was the official uniform of the Sun and Moon Academy, indicating that the young man was one of its students.

Although William’s memories of the Aether Affinity Test weren’t perfectly clear, he vaguely felt that he had seen this young man during the previous test as well.

While he was looking at the young man, the other door of the carriage also opened, and another youth wearing the same Sun and Moon Academy uniform stepped out.

Unlike the previous student, however, this one possessed a far more refined temperament.

His neatly combed dark brown hair and matching brown eyes gave him the appearance of a noble gentleman.

As he glanced over the gathered crowd, a trace of undisguised contempt appeared in his eyes, as though he were looking at people beneath him.

Even though he had mentally prepared himself, William’s eyes couldn’t help but turn cold the moment he saw Lucas.

A trace of murderous intent flashed through them before he forcefully suppressed it and looked away as it wasn’t the right time yet.

"Long live, My Lord!"

"Long live, My Lord!"

As Baron Xing walked onto the central platform alongside Richard, the crowd enthusiastically shouted their customary words of praise.

William also joined in so as not to stand out, though the expression on his face remained completely unenthusiastic.

Baron Xing took one of the chairs on the platform while Richard sat on the other.

Lucas and the second academy student stood behind them, calmly observing the overly enthusiastic crowd.

After taking his seat, Baron Xing raised his hand, signaling for the crowd to quiet down before immediately ordering the Aether Affinity Test to begin.

Since the same event was held twice every year, everything had already been prepared beforehand.

The moment Baron Xing gave the signal, the academy student who had arrived with Lucas stepped forward and stood beside the Energy Crystal.

"Those who are eligible to participate in the Aether Affinity Test, come forward one by one."

As soon as he spoke, the young men and women, all around William’s age, began walking toward the platform.

"Here is your token. Just do your best and leave the rest to fate."

Karl handed William the wooden token he had received after registering for the Aether Affinity Test.

William nodded at his father’s words and followed the other participants as he walked toward the platform.