'Wait, I'm Supposed to Become a Goddess?! But I'm a Guy!'

Mize walked toward the orb, each step light, slow, almost hesitant, though not from fear.

The act was second nature by now.

Soft, fluttering movements, delicate expressions, an air of innocent uncertainty.

He’d perfected it.

And from the way the room quieted, from the way eyes lingered just a second too long, he knew it was working.

'Farming points, farming points... '

'I am such a hardworking farmer' he sighed within.

'It's hard to be a farmer nowadays'

His gaze flickered to the City Lord for a brief moment before he gave a small nod, just enough to seem respectful but not overly stiff.

Then, he stepped beneath the glowing orb, letting the light wash over him.

Just to make it more seem believable and staying true to his acting, he began to act timid.

And then, something completely unexpected happened.

"It’s okay, child. Do not be afraid."

Mize nearly flinched. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

?

Not from fear, but because, since when did the City Lord reassure people?

That hadn’t happened for anyone else.

'It's totally a dude right?'

Mize briefly opened the panel just to see the points increasing for a short moment, and then turned his gaze back towards the cloaked figure before him.

'Yep, a dude... Totally a dude'

The reaction in the hall was immediate.

A few students whispered to each other, others looked on with a mix of envy and curiosity.

Even the recruiters sitting at the back of the hall seemed to pay a little more attention.

And, of course, Mize didn’t let the moment go to waste.

'Mimi beam! Pitiful attack!'

He lowered his gaze slightly, pinched the hem of his dress, and let his lips curve in a small, uncertain smile.

His eyes shimmered, not quite crying, but just enough to make people’s hearts ache a little.

"Mhmm…" A soft, obedient hum.

It was almost funny, really.

He could practically hear some of the onlookers sighing, probably thinking something like, Poor, fragile thing. She must be so scared.

The City Lord, after waiting for Mize to settle, extended a hand toward the orb, guiding the energy himself.

A slow, careful release.

It felt different from what he had seen with the others.

The wisps of energy descended, curling around him like threads of light, slipping into his skin.

It didn’t hurt and why would it in the first place?

He doesn't know, It was just… strange. Cool at first, then warm, then almost weightless.

Like it was testing him.

[Relax your body host, whatever happened after this, stay calm Host]

'Mmm'

Mize didn’t react much, simply closing his eyes and clasping his hands in front of him.

His knees bent slightly, his shoulders tensed, just enough to maintain the illusion of unease.

As expected, the crowd wasn’t anticipating much.

A white-grade profession, maybe.

Green, if he was lucky.

That was the best they thought he could get.

But then.

The energy inside him shifted.

Twisted.

Warped.

The soft glow surrounding him deepened, darkened, then burst outward.

Not into white.

Not into green.

Not into any color that people had seen before.

Deep blue.

Shimmering violet.

Blinding, iridescent white.

The room went dead silent.

Then.

"What the?"

"What grade is that?!"

"What’s happening?!"

The reaction was instant.

Chairs scraped against the floor as recruiters shot up from their seats.

Even the figures from powerful forces, people who had spent the ceremony barely paying attention, were now focused entirely on Mize.

This wasn’t normal.

This wasn’t supposed to happen.

Someone in the crowd sucked in a sharp breath.

"That color… could it be…?"

And then, someone else, louder this time, shouted.

"Special grade!"

"Gradeless profession!"

"Unknown profession!!"

"In this city?"

The entire hall exploded in chaos.

Mize, meanwhile, stood completely still.

His mind raced.

He wasn’t sure what he expected, but it definitely wasn’t this.

And just as the noise reached its peak, the City Lord finally spoke.

One simple word.

Carrying a weight that made the entire room fall silent again and it cut through the air.

"Special grade... "

"Incredible"

Mize felt it before he even registered what was happening.

A sharp, uncomfortable pressure pressing against his skull, his thoughts growing hazy, his vision unfocused.

His body swayed slightly, knees nearly giving out beneath him.

Such a sudden shift of changes were caught by the City Lord's eyes.

"Child? Are you okay?"

The City Lord’s voice cut through the murkiness, clear and laced with a rare trace of concern.

Heavy footsteps approached.

But before he could reach.

Mize stopped.

His body stilled unnaturally, his head lowered, strands of dark hair slipping over his face.

Such a strange occurrence, everyone waited for what would happen next. After all, the profession type is still a mystery.

This was the revelation moment but what's with this sudden action?

The City Lord halted mid-step.

"…Child?"

No answer.

Then, he began to rise.

Gasps filled the hall as Mize’s feet lifted off the ground, his entire form slowly ascending into the air.

A ripple of waves spread outward, brushing against the walls, the floor, the people.

An eerie, palpable shift swept through the room.

One that sent a shiver racing down every spine.

A deep oppression, an abyss like sense of wrongness. The kind that clawed into instincts, screamed at them from the depth of their soul.

"What's… what's this feeling?"

"Strange… "

"I feel… suffocated…"

"Fear? From her?"

"Just from an awakener that had just began learning to walk?"

It wasn’t just pressure.

It was something else.

And whatever it was, they had to wait first before making further actions.

The powerful figures in the VIP seats, those who had remained composed throughout the ceremony, shot to their feet.

Even the City Lord stiffened, his posture turning rigid.

Beneath his hood, the faint glisten of sweat trailed down his cheek.

'What is this? Troublesome awakening'

'She's haven't went to the warp, and yet her aura is almost comparable to mine? And still climbing?'

'Could it be... That profession?'

The orb, dimmed abruptly, as if something had forcefully drained its brilliance. The room went dark as a swirling of brilliance energy pusled around him.

And then.

Mize raised his head.

Slowly, almost as dramatic as it gets.

The moment his gaze swept across the hall, the world seemed to hold its breath.

Deep, crimson eyes gleamed with an unnatural glow, pure, luminous ruby, as if they had been cut from divine gemstones.

His expression was eerily blank, devoid of anything remotely human.

Indifferent.

Untouched.

Distant.

And an ancient saying crossed their mind.

'Why would the human lives freely? If not for the god's mercy that allowed them?'

It was only a glance.

Yet, it crushed them.

Boom!

!!!

A silent, invisible weight pressed down upon every soul present.

A sensation unlike anything they had ever experienced.

This wasn’t just fear.

It was incomprehensible.

The overwhelming feeling of being seen by something vastly superior, something that should not exist in the same plane as them.

Boom!

The weak collapsed, knees buckling under an unseen force.

The strong remained standing, but only barely. Faces pale, bodies stiff, cold sweat dripping down their necks.

"What the hell?"

"It seems to be apart of her awakening process, endure... "

The City Lord’s hands clenched into tight fists, his hand waved, gesturing to the crowds.

Mize’s lips parted.

And then, in a voice that wasn’t entirely his own, he spoke.

"Mortals"

The word rang through the hall like a divine decree.

Chilling.

A delicate, slender hand slowly lifted, fingers extending, pointing downward.

"Why aren’t you kneeling before this goddess?"

?

"Wha-?"

Boom!

The entire hall shook.

The moment Mize’s words rang through the hall, bodies dropped like marionettes with cut strings.

Thud.

Thud.

Thud.

One after another, knees hit the floor with a resounding impact.

It wasn’t voluntary.

It wasn’t a choice.

It was as if an unseen force had slammed down upon them, an unbearable weight pressing into their very existence.

A mountain came...

Why would the mortals live if not because the divine pardoned them?

Bones creaked, muscles trembled, and sweat drenched their backs.

Even the City Lord was not spared.

In fact, he felt it the worst.

'Damn it!'

Boom!

Being the closest, the pressure was like a mountain collapsing onto him, dense, suffocating.

His cloak billowed as he struggled, his boots grinding against the cracked floor beneath him.

"Humph!"

"Infinitely close to tier 3? And these traits... There's no doubt about it"

A guttural sound tore from his throat as he fought back, his foot stamping down with sheer force.

The stone beneath him shattered, web-like cracks spreading across the floor. His face, hidden beneath his hood, flushed.

This level of suppression, 'It's a transformation state, trouble. I will need to get her snap out of it before she injured anyone and worse, overdrawing herself'

His fingers trembled as they slowly lifted, forcing themselves into a hand seal.

A diagram ignited in the air before him, layers upon layers of intricate symbols woven together in an instant.

"Order... "

"Clear…"

"Control..."

His voice was strained, but his will was unshaken.

The air around him crackled, space distorting as the diagram spun.

"Awake."

Boom!

The oppressive force vanished.

Like a dam breaking, the weight pressing down on the hall snapped away, leaving behind an eerie silence.

Mize’s eyes lost focus, his floating body gently descending like a feather caught in the wind.

And as if nothing had happened just now, the room then again returned to it's prior state.

No one moved.

No one spoke.

For a brief moment, they were all frozen trapped in the lingering remnants of whatever that had just been.

Then, realization set in.

Fear.

Terror.

An undeniable horror gripped their hearts as they pieced together what had just happened.

"I am alive? Still alive?"

"Thank God, what the hell was that?"

"It should be her awakening process, showcasing the type of her profession"

"Type of her profession? I felt like that wasn't a human at all!"

"It looks like a transformation ability... "

Some were still trembling, hands gripping at their chests, gasping for breath.

Some collapsed entirely, too weak to even lift their heads.

Some had gone unconscious, their minds unable to handle.

And yet

As the seconds ticked by, the horror slowly morphed into something else.

Awe.

Stunned, breathless, reverent awe.

They had never seen anything like this. Never in their lives had they felt something so beyond human comprehension.

The City Lord, still breathing heavily, stared at Mize’s unconscious figure with an expression unreadable beneath his hood.

Then, he finally spoke, his voice low, but carrying through the silent hall with clarity.

"Incredible. A special, gradeless profession…"

The words sent another ripple through the crowd.

Some students, still on their knees, looked at Mize with expressions mixed between respect and outright fear.

The recruiters from the powerful forces were shaken to their core.

Some of them had already been considering extending an offer to the girl just based on her appearance alone, but now?

She was no longer just a beauty.

She was something terrifying.

And then, the words that left the City Lord’s mouth next shattered whatever fragile composure they had left.

"The Path of a Goddess…"

A pause.

And then.

"Unknown Divinity. I am unsure what divinity she is walking on, after all there's too few of these type of awakener in our human side"

The hall erupted.