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Chapter – 08
It was clear that Burnie was far stronger than that person.
Burnie, who had absolutely no idea that Salame Yudia was a saint known as the pinnacle of divine power, lifted her nose proudly and straightened her shoulders even more.
“Hmph.”
Burnie stepped away from Roden Heiner’s leg, gave him a confident smile for a moment, then looked forward again.
“Now, we will begin the summoning ritual. Please come forward and place your hand inside this transparent orb when your name is called. First, Andrew young master.”
Thus, the summoning ritual began amid completely different thoughts from everyone present.
“Next… ah… this time, Alan young master, please come forward.”
At the priest’s reluctant voice, Burnie tilted her head and watched while bouncing slightly in place.
For some reason, the moment Alan’s name was called, the entire hall became quiet. After a brief silence, a wave of murmurs spread through the crowd.
Whispers like “beast,” “dirty,” and “disgrace” slipped into Burnie’s ears here and there.
‘Are they planning to summon some super shameful beast? And it’s dirty?!’
Burnie’s rival?!
Tap, tap.
Hearing footsteps, she turned her head.
A boy standing alone a little distance away from Burnie was walking toward the table with the orb.
He looked about ten years old, with gray hair and striking cat-like golden eyes.
The boy, with a stiff expression, walked up, frowned deeply, and glared at the orb before putting his hand inside.
Strangely, the glass orb allowed hands to pass through as if it were empty.
Once their hands entered, the children immediately fell asleep in place, standing still like statues with their eyes closed.
After a few minutes—sometimes up to 10 or 15—the children would open their eyes again and pull their arms out.
In their hands, they held something glowing. When they opened their palms, the light floated up like magic and transformed into something, then dropped into their arms.
Some children summoned glowing creatures such as cats, birds like hawks, or baby deer.
Of course, not everything was alive. Some summoned daggers, others bracelets.
Anyway, after a long and boring wait, it was already the fifth turn.
Burnie was sixth, so after that boy, it would be her turn.
‘Next is Burnie!’
Trying to calm her excitement, she looked at the boy who was clearly her rival.
“……”
“……”
“……”
Ten minutes passed. Twenty minutes passed.
Still no movement.
Eventually, Burnie’s legs gave out.
She plopped down on the floor like laying out a mat and stretched her legs.
“Oh my, are you alright, young lady?”
“Yes…”
Roden Heiner quickly came over and lifted Burnie up when she didn’t look fine at all. Jesse nearby brought a chair.
Only after they seated Burnie did Alan finally open his eyes.
He slowly pulled his hand out of the orb, and a gray glow—matching his hair—sparkled in his palm.
When Alan opened his hand, the gray light floated up, growing larger and larger.
Then it moved to his side, stretched out, and wrapped around his body.
When the light finally faded and took form, Burnie’s mouth dropped open.
A giant snake!
It was so long it looked even bigger than Alan himself. It coiled around the boy and placed its triangular head on Alan’s shoulder.
Its tongue flicked out—it looked extremely strong.
‘As expected of a rival!’
But Burnie would summon a giant dragon, so this round was clearly her victory.
“A snake… how ominous.”
“As expected, a half-blood is just a half-blood…”
“Should something like that even be allowed in the ducal house…?”
“Ah! Exactly. That beast should just be kept in a cage…”
BANG!
A sharp sound cut through the noisy voices echoing through the hall.
Burnie flinched and looked up.
A frighteningly stern old man spoke sharply.
“I am right here, yet you all dare to make such noise.”
‘Scary grandpa.’
Ah, humans don’t like noisy things!
Despite the chaos, Alan calmly returned to his seat beside Burnie.
Burnie hopped down from her chair, tiptoed carefully, and approached Alan.
Alan, leaning against a wall with crossed arms, noticed her and paused.
‘This kid is…’
He remembered her.
Recently, this child had caused quite a disturbance in the Testing Mansion.
‘The illegitimate child who just entered…’
Alan frowned.
“What?”
“Can I touch the giant snake?”
Burnie’s eyes sparkled as she reached out her hand.
Alan blinked, then slightly nodded.
“…Whatever.”
He bent down a little, and Burnie gently touched the snake’s head.
Its cold skin made her shiver.
The snake wrapped around him looked incredibly cool. Burnie suppressed her desire and calmly pulled her hand back.
“Hmph.”
“…?”
Alan looked confused as Burnie suddenly smiled confidently.
“It’s okay. Number 2 is cool too.”
But number 1 would be Burnie.
Because Burnie would summon a dragon!
Burnie proudly rubbed her nose and patted Alan’s shoulder.
Alan’s eyebrow twitched slightly at her smug look.
“It’s okay. Number 2 isn’t embarrassing either!”
“What are you even talking about?”
“I’m going to summon a giant dragon!”
“Drag… what?”
Alan muttered in disbelief, but Burnie had already turned away and looked at the priest.
The priest coughed awkwardly and spoke:
“Lastly… Lady Burnie, please come forward.”
“Yes!”
Burnie raised her hand high and stood in front of the table.
The small bear doll on her back dangled as she moved.
“Please place your hand inside…”
Burnie reached up—but paused.
The table was too high.
It was at chest height for the other children, but for Burnie it reached her forehead.
“We will bring a chair.”
The priest muttered awkwardly.
Jesse quickly brought the chair, lifted Burnie up, and even fixed her dangling doll into her arms.
Finally, after a bit of rustling, Burnie placed her hand inside the orb.
She did not open her eyes for a long time.
10 minutes.
20 minutes.
30 minutes.
Nearly an hour passed.
Soon, murmurs spread across the hall.
“This has never happened before…”
“An hour… even direct descendants usually take 30–40 minutes…”
“Even the current Duke and Prince Kiriel never exceeded an hour…”
There was a saying in the House of Yudia:
The longer the summoning takes, the greater the summoned being.
Long summoning times meant legendary beasts or relics.
And now, the ducal house of Yudia was at a peak where talented individuals were being born more than ever.
At this point, even a branch family child appearing with something impressive would not be surprising.
Even if that child was an illegitimate child with unknown parents or origin.
