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Chapter 12 – Appraisal Ceremony ①
It had been five and a half years since Allen came to a different world. It was spring, mid-April. Theresia and Rodan were restless.
Today, Rodan had only filled the water jar, and didn’t go to the fields.
“Make sure that you’re polite to the priest.”
“Okay Mama.”
For the 10th time since yesterday, he answered. His clothes were being dusted with a pat.
“Theresia, Allen is a smart kid. He’ll be good. Let’s go.”
Rodan was taking Allen out to the village center. Theresia had to take care of Mash, so it was only Rodan and Allen.
Today was the day of Allen’s appraisal ceremony.
(My parents are really into this.)
Allen recalled what he had heard these past few days.
The appraisal ceremony discovered a person’s hidden talent. Everyone, from royalty to serfs, must go through an appraisal ceremony when they are 5 years old. Such was the law of the kingdom. If a talent was discovered during the appraisal, that person could possibly become an officer.
(Sounds like one of the few ways a serf can escape serfdom.)
It looked like spring sowing had begun. There were fields that had been cleared of weeds, fields filled with leafy greens, and fallow fields filled with weeds as tall as Allen. As they walked through the fields, they were met with a familiar voice.
“Alleeeeeen!!”
It was a girl with blue eyes, and her pink hair in a single braid. Kurena saw Allen and was waving her arm with entire body. They met almost everyday, but it’d been a while since he’d seen her without a wooden sword.
“Hi Kurena. You’re going to the appraisal ceremony too?”
“Yea! Ima be appraized as a swordsman, and then I’ll be a knight!”
Kurena answered with a smile. Next to her was the ever-muscular Gerda. Kurena also had her appraisal ceremony today. Apparently, the appraisal ceremony was held once a year in April. They didn’t seem to bother with it every single time a serf turned 5.
While listening to Kurena talk about her dream, the same dream she talked about yesterday, and the day before, they passed through the fields and came upon rows of houses. The population of the village grew each year, and the village had become decently sized. Allen hadn’t seen the residential area since he was 1, when he came to see the monster being butchered, but he clearly noticed a difference.
It was just before 9 am, and even though it was before the appointed time, there were already quite a few people in front of a building that looked like a church.
(Wow, commoners and serfs sure are different. Are we all getting appraised together?)
There were nearly 100 people. Allen noticed the differences in their clothes. While everyone wore linen, some people were covered with dirt and stains. The serfs were a mottled brown color, and the commoners weren’t. Although some commoners did also work in the fields, serfs didn’t have access to soap, and could only wash with water.
The bell tolled 9, and the door opened. People dressed like priests came out. They looked completely different from the crowd. Their clothes were made out of a single piece of fabric, without any obviously visible seams. They ushered the crowd into the church.
(It’s my first time inside the church)
Allen entered the church with Rodan. From the outside it looked 2 stories high, but it was actually a one-story building with a very high ceiling. There were no seats. At the far end of the hall was a pure white sculpture of a male god that looked like it came straight out of Greek mythology. There were several other statues of gods and goddesses.
(So, these are the gods of this world. The one holding rice is the harvest god? And the one with the weapon is probably a god of war.)
In the center, at the end of the hall, was a white statue of a man in his late twenties, with long hair that streamed down his back. He had a toned body and face, and both of his eyes were closed. His upper body was naked, and there weren’t any wings or anything like that.
Allen recalled that, when he turned one, Allen got a message from the God of the Other World. He hadn’t heard anything since.
There were several priests in the building, and they asked the crowd to sit on the hardwood floor. When everyone was seated, the oldest priest, standing in front of the white statue, spoke.
“Thank you all for attending today’s appraisal ceremony.”
Since the commoners bowed their heads, the serfs also bowed. Apparently, the commoners came to church regularly. Allen also went with the flow and bowed. The elderly priest continued.
“The God of Creation, Elmere, gives equal opportunity to all. And those who are born as serfs may not know it, but many great heroes of the kingdom were born as serfs.”
The church buzzed. A serf can be a hero? The hall was filled with many parents who brought their first child, so it was their first appraisal ceremony. Many parents and children were hearing, for the first time, that serfs could be heroes.
Ten years ago, the frontier village was established. In the early years, they pulled out tree stumps, removed stones, built houses, and plowed fields. In the first two or three years, the harvest was poor, and it wasn’t possible to have children. But, in the fourth and fifth years, the crop yield had steadily increased.
Therefore, more and more families had children, including Theresia and Rodan. Allen was born during the village’s baby boom. There were about 30 children here who were born during that time.
“Saint Krassis was born a commoner, and Sword Saint Doberg, who still serves the kingdom today, was born a serf.”
The voice of the priest echoed throughout the noisy hall. The crowd was incredulous.
(Ah, I see.)
Meanwhile, only Allen was convinced. He remembered from five years ago, before he had reincarnated. In this world, Heroes and Sword Saints were set to be born in lower ranks. The game settings didn’t allow them to be born as aristocrats or royalty. The difficult jobs with higher growth caps were born in ranks like commoner or serf.
(So the settings from the reincarnation are still active. So they have to appraise everyone for hidden talents, including serfs.)
The priest then gave a brief explanation about the appraisal ceremony. An appraisal crystal sat in front of him. If someone put their hand on it, their appraisal result would be displayed on the human-sized black metal plate next to the priest.
“When you hold your hand over this crystal, your talents and abilities will be displayed.”
(Hmm, the color of the crystal doesn’t change, and there’s no light. And the appraisal result comes out as writing. So it’s public information. There’s no way to hide it with so many people around.)
The appraisal ceremony proceeded, ignorant of Allen’s thoughts.
“First, we have Peromus, Deboji’s son. Please place your hand over the crystal.”
The elderly priest gave out instructions while looking at a piece of parchment. Apparently, he had a ledger of the 30 children present. Led by Mayor Deboji, Peromus advanced to the crystal at the front of the hall.
Guided by the mayor, Peromus held his hand over the crystal. The crystal shined faintly, and the light transferred over to the black metal plate next to it. Silver letters appeared on the metal.
(Puh?! It’s just like the grimoire!! Maybe the grimoire does the same thing as the appraisal ceremony?)
“Ooh!! You have the talent of a Merchant. Congratulations!”
【 NAM 】 Peromus
【 H P 】 C
【 M P 】 D
【 ATK 】 D
【 DEF 】 C
【 AGL 】 D
【 INT 】 B
【 LCK 】 B
【TALNT】 Merchant
There was a column showing the appraisal results. Since it showed that the boy had talent as a Merchant, there was a shout of joy. Mayor Deboji hugged Peromus, whose face showed a mixture of joy and pain.
(Oh? Any talent is a cause for celebration, huh? And stats are displayed as ranks.)
Allen opened his grimoire and took notes about Peromus’ appraisal results. Next, a commoner boy was called. He went up to the crystal with his parents, and, just like before, he held his hand over it.
The appraisal results appeared on the black metal plate.
The family was disappointed. The talent was displayed as 『None』. Whether or not the church’s appraisal was the final say, they didn’t say anything and made room for the next person.
(Hoho, so not everyone is talented?)
The appraisal continued on and on. After Peromus, most of the statuses were E to C, with no talent. The commoners probably had priority, because they hadn’t called any serfs yet. It seemed that after your appraisal was over, you could go home. There were some who went home, and some who waited to see the appraisals of the other children.
“Y-yeah! Papa, I did it! I did it!”
The seventh child is a well-built one, who had a talent for the axe. The parents and child hugged one another, celebrating the appraisal results.
【 NAM 】 Dogora
【 H P 】 B
【 M P 】 D
【 ATK 】 A
【 DEF 】 B
【 AGL 】 C
【 INT 】 D
【 LCK 】 C
【TALNT】 Axeman
(Oohh! This is the first time we’ve seen an A-rank stat. So, without a talent, it’s hard to get even a B?)
While noting everything down in the grimoire, Allen analyzed the stats of the Axeman class.
It looked like all the commoners were done. Children dressed like serfs were being called. Most serfs, like the commoners, weren’t talented.
There was one child who had talent as a Priest. The priest told the father and son that he also had talent as a Priest, and would explain it to them later.
(I’m almost last, huh? Well, it gives me more time to analyze others.)
Only Allen and Kurena were left.
“Next, Kurena, daughter of Gerda. Please place your hand over the crystal.”
“Okay!!!”
Kurena advanced to the crystal along with Gerda. She held her hand out with a smile on her face. Since she was near the end, there were less people around, but there were still some parents and kids watching.
As Kurena held up her hands, the crystal emitted a light stronger than ever before. When the light subsided, the appraisal results were displayed on the black plate.
” ” ” ” “What the!!!!!” ” ” ” “
The parents and kids, the priests, and even Gerda, all expressed their surprise, covering their eyes.
“Hah?! W-well, then, this is…”
The elderly priest looked lost.
“Hah?! Eh? Mr. Priest, what does it say?!”
Gerda could’t read the words on the metal plate. Few serfs could read more than their family’s names, so he didn’t know what was written on it other than “Kurena”.
“A-a Sword Saint. Kurena has the talent of a Sword Saint!”
【 NAM 】 Kurena
【 H P 】 S
【 M P 】 C
【 ATK 】 S
【 DEF 】 A
【 AGL 】 A
【 INT 】C
【 LCK 】 B
【TALNT】 Sword Saint
“A-a Sword Saint?!!?”
“A Sword Saint is born!”
The church hall was filled with noise. Everyone looked back and forth between the black metal plate, and Kurena.
“Eh? What’s a sword saynt?”
Kurena, with her hand on the back of her head, didn’t get what was happening.
Displayed on the black metal plate was the title of “Sword Saint”. With it, were stats that completely surpassed that of the 30 previous kids.
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