Chapter 95: Chapter 95 : Potential Evaluation

After casually rejecting not one, not two, but three princesses from powerful empires—each with diplomatic influence and personal charm potent enough to start or stop a war—Alex Dragonheart strolled down the sleek white steps leading toward Nexus Core.

The air shimmered faintly with mana pulses from the security barriers, and a pair of sentry bots scanned him silently before allowing him entry.

Despite what others might think, Alex wore that smug, victorious smile not because he was arrogant—okay, maybe slightly—but because he knew exactly what he wanted. Power. Purpose. And maybe a little peace. Getting tangled with royal drama? Yeah, hard pass.

As the gates slid open with a soft whoosh, a familiar presence awaited him at the entrance.

“Good morning, Ms. Vega,” Alex said, instantly straightening up like a soldier caught slacking by a general.

Selena Vega stood tall and confident, arms folded beneath a sleek black blazer that hugged her curves perfectly. Underneath, she wore a crisp, sleeveless high-collar white shirt tucked into a form-fitting pair of tech-fabric trousers. Her heeled boots clicked sharply against the marble floor.

But what truly made her striking were her raven-black hair, cascading in straight locks down to her mid-back, and her piercing black eyes, sharp enough to cut through excuses like a blade through paper.

Elegant. Intimidating. Sexy.

“Follow me,” she said, voice cool and businesslike.

Alex obediently fell in line behind her, trying not to look too impressed—but failing.

As they walked deeper into the Nexus Core Facility, he found his jaw slowly slackening. Transparent walls showed glimpses of advanced research chambers—holographic displays hovered mid-air, robots whirred efficiently, and mana-reactive surfaces pulsed with calculated precision. Even the floor glowed faintly with coded pathways, guiding authorized personnel.

“…Damn,” Alex muttered to himself, eyes scanning the ceiling lined with floating data modules and flickering light panels.

’I keep forgetting that Etheron’s technology is leagues above Earth… This place really is amazing.’

They passed through several security doors until finally reaching a lab-like facility—white, spotless, and humming with arcane energy and tech synergy.

A woman with glasses looked up from a floating tablet and gave a half-smile as they entered.

“Chloe, everything’s ready, right?” Ms. Vega asked.

Chloe glanced at Selena before her eyes landed on Alex. She blinked.

“So this is the guy who ghosted the previous potential test?” Her lips curled into a smirk. “Gotta say, he’s pretty handsome.”

Alex barely had time to process that before she practically teleported to his side, eyeing him playfully.

“You don’t mind older women, do you?”

Caught off guard, Alex stumbled, blinked, and then grinned with impressive recovery. “Not at all,” he said smoothly. “As long as they’re hot.”

Ms. Vega pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed.

“Chloe, do you want to be suspended again?”

Then, shifting her dark gaze to Alex, she added sharply, “Mr. Dragonheart, would you kindly keep your preferences to yourself?”

Alex snapped back to attention like a soldier under review. “Of course, ma’am.”

Chloe, pouting, shot Selena a teasing glare. “This is why you don’t have a boyfriend, Selena. At least let me try to find someone.”

A vein twitched visibly on Selena’s temple.

“What did you just say?” she asked, voice like ice dipped in lava.

Chloe immediately looked away, whistling. “N-Nothing. Just… mumbling to myself. You know, typical lab tech muttering.”

Selena sighed, exasperated. “Mourn your loneliness some other time. For now, do the work you were supposed to do.”

Chloe stood straight like a scolded intern. “Okay, okay. No need to embarrass me in front of the kid.”

Alex, still standing casually between the two, smirked.

’Looks like they’ve known each other.’

Chloe turned to him with an impish grin. “Alright, handsome. Time to get to work.”

She pointed toward a crystalline device mounted on a pedestal, glowing faintly. The clear crystal sat atop a triangular metal base, surrounded by rings etched with glowing runes.

“You see that crystal over there? Just place your hand on it and channel your mana through.”

Alex raised a brow. “That’s it? Seems… simple.”

Chloe nodded. “It analyzes your core’s resonance signature. Based on your innate potential, the crystal changes color.”

She pointed to a holographic chart beside the device.

“White means Novice-rank potential.

Orange – Intermediate.

Yellow – Advanced.

Green – Master.

Red – Grandmaster.

Blue – Transcendent.

And if by some miracle, it turns Silver—well, that’s Monarch-level potential.”

Alex crossed his arms, nodding. “So, the brighter the color, the more amazing I am?”

“Exactly,” Chloe chuckled. “Did you expect to fight a monster or something?”

“Honestly?” Alex scratched his chin. “Expected something more Adavanced.”

Selena rolled her eyes. “Too bad we can’t fulfill your fantasy, Cadet. Now place your hand on it.”

Smirking, Alex walked up to the pedestal. He inhaled, steadied his mana, and placed his hand on the smooth surface.

The crystal flickered.

Then began to glow white.

A moment later, the white deepened to yellow, flashing brightly.

Alex felt the energy sync with his core. His mana flowed smoothly, and suddenly—

FLASH — the crystal turned RED.

The air around the pedestal vibrated. Holograms above the pedestal started adjusting rapidly, scanning lines flickering across Alex’s body.

Chloe’s eyes widened, her playful expression turning serious. Selena’s fingers twitched subtly, ready to act if needed.

And the crystal wasn’t done yet…

The air shimmered faintly as the crystal flared bright red, then pulsed again—its hue deepening into an electric blue.

A faint hum resonated through the lab as if the very energy around them recognized the magnitude of what was unfolding.

Chloe gasped softly, stepping closer with her mouth slightly open.

“Selena… that’s blue,” she said in disbelief. “That’s transcendent-rank potential.”

Selena’s curious smirk only widened. Her obsidian eyes reflected the light from the crystal, her mind already racing. Transcendent was rare.

Extremely rare. But even that wasn’t the end.

Alex, sensing something unnatural, felt a strange pull from the crystal—as though it wasn’t done with him yet. It was hungry. It wanted more.

So, he fed it.

He allowed his mana to flow freely, and the crystal responded like a starving beast. The blue hue began to swirl, deepen… and then shift once more.

Silver.

Inside the core of the crystal, a single glowing word appeared, etched in elegant runes: Monarch.

Chloe’s jaw dropped. Selena’s eyes gleamed with sudden intensity.

“Monarch…” Chloe whispered. “That’s unbelievable. Only 14 students at the academy have ever shown Monarch-rank potential.”

And every single one of them was either a royal heir or bore a divine bloodline. Monarchs weren’t just talented—they were destined for greatness.

Every professor in the academy would fight to have someone like that in their class.

Alex blinked, slightly confused but calm on the outside. “Hey, Ms. Chloe, is it normal for the crystal to keep absorbing mana? I mean, it feels like it’s sucking it in… more and more… like a hungry puppy.”

Chloe blinked at him, her head slowly turning. “What are you talking about? It’s only supposed to absorb a fixed amount—right at the start.”

“Then why is it still pulling mine like it’s addicted?”

Before she could respond, the crystal pulsed violently.

The silver light flickered, then shattered—visually, not physically—as it turned a radiant gold. Strange, flickering question marks (???) appeared where “Monarch” had been.

Chloe’s breath caught. Selena’s expression finally cracked into something bordering shock.

Gold. With question marks.

This had only happened once before. During Ethan’s evaluation.

And that had made sense. Ethan Williams—the golden boy, the Chosen One, the Avatar of the Goddess of Light. Of course he’d break the rules. Of course the crystal would glitch.

But this? Alex Dragonheart? Not a noble, not an avatar of some god. Not a bloodline heir. Not even on the radar until recently. No prophecies, no divine backing.

How?

Before they could collect themselves, the golden light flickered again—this time fracturing into every color imaginable. Crimson, sapphire, emerald, violet, ivory—each hue danced like a kaleidoscope, forming a mesmerizing rainbow of mana light that filled the lab in a spectacle unlike anything they’d ever seen.

Selena’s breath hitched.

“What… what the hell is this?” she whispered.

Chloe looked completely lost, for once without a flirty comment or snide remark. “This is—this is not supposed to be possible,” she mumbled. “What kind of anomaly is this guy?”

Meanwhile, Alex just stared at the crystal with wide eyes, blinking slowly. Inside, he was grinning like an idiot.

’Did I just replace the protagonist?’

Just as the colors reached their most brilliant peak, the crystal’s glow began to dim. One by one, the hues collapsed—gold to silver, silver to blue, blue to red—and finally settled on a glowing green.

The rune inside now read: Master.

Silence followed.

Selena and Chloe both stared, trying to comprehend what they had just witnessed. It had been a spectacle—an impossible peak that suddenly, without warning, dropped to a very ordinary-seeming result.

Selena’s eyes narrowed. “Chloe. You did check the equipment beforehand like I told you to, right?”

“I checked it twice,” Chloe said quickly, raising her hands in defense. “This isn’t a malfunction. It’s like the crystal—reset itself. I don’t even understand what just happened.”

They stared as the crystal remained static, pulsing calmly with the green hue of a Master-ranked potential.

Both women sighed.

Chloe leaned back against the table, arms crossed. “Well, looks like our handsome guy here’s only got Master-rank potential after all. Too bad—I really thought we just witnessed history.”

Selena said nothing, her gaze locked on Alex with an unreadable expression. She was thinking—no, calculating. Her instincts told her something wasn’t right. In all her years at Zenith, nothing like this had ever happened.

She snapped out of her thoughts as Chloe nudged her.

“Hey, what are you spacing out for?” Chloe asked. “It’s over. Let’s go.”

They approached Alex. Chloe gave him a sympathetic smile, though it still carried that teasing edge. “Too bad, handsome. Master-rank potential isn’t bad—you can still become a famous hunter. But that show you put on… whew, got my hopes up.”

Selena said nothing. She simply watched Alex. Observed. Studied him.

And Chloe noticed something else, too.

“You know…” she murmured, narrowing her eyes. “You don’t look disappointed. Most kids pout when they don’t get at least Grandmaster or higher. You? You look like you expected this.”

Alex chuckled lightly. “Well, I’m used to weird stuff. Besides, expectations can be misleading.”

But inside, his thoughts were spinning.

’That was definitely not normal.’

Moments later, Selena finally spoke. “Your evaluation is complete. You may leave, Cadet Dragonheart.”

No words of sympathy. No congratulations. Just a long, unreadable stare that made Alex’s instincts itch.

He nodded and turned around, walking away with calm steps. Once out of the room, he muttered under his breath with a smirk,

“Okay, Useless. Tell me what the hell just happened back there.”

———

A/N:-

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