CLEAVER OF SIN

'Finally, time, huh? Let's get this over with,' Asher thought, exhaling slowly. He had been waiting for what felt like hours, the monotony gnawing faintly at his patience.

"Good luck, Tenth Sun," William spoke lightly from the side, watching with calm eyes as Asher rose to his feet.

Asher turned to him with a suspicious gaze and asked, "Is your ability something strange? Perhaps the manipulation of luck… or maybe probability itself?" His tone carried an edge of seriousness, though curiosity lingered beneath it.

William only smiled faintly, a smile that revealed nothing yet hinted at everything. "When the time comes that I can call you by your true name, then you will find out."

Asher studied him for a heartbeat longer, then shook his head slightly and turned away. If William truly did possess such a peculiar ability, then the most sensible use for it would have been gambling.

With an ability like that, a man could win endless riches in the blink of an eye. And though Asher was already wealthy, he could never quite deny the appeal of more. After all, there was no such thing as too much money.

He walked toward the door, steady, unhurried. The gazes of the other candidates pressed on him from behind like invisible weights, filled with both curiosity and expectation.

Asher ignored them all. Without sparing a glance back, he placed his hand against the cold surface of the door, pushed it open, and stepped through.

The air shifted instantly. On the other side lay a quiet chamber, sterile yet suffused with authority. Just as the others had done before him, Asher instinctively turned his head to the left.

There, arranged before him, was a simple wooden chair positioned at the center of the room. Opposite the chair, at a long table, sat five figures, three women and two men, arrayed in silence, their sharp gazes locked upon him.

'An interview?' Asher mused, his mind briefly wandering back to his past life as Ethan. Oral examinations, panel interviews, questions meant to pry into one's character, he had seen this before. The familiarity almost made him chuckle.

Without hesitation, Asher strode forward. His footsteps echoed lightly against the floor until he reached the lone chair. Sitting down, he leaned back with calm, composed eyes, his demeanor betraying neither arrogance nor fear.

He did not greet them, nor did he attempt to fill the silence with empty words. He simply waited.

The first examiner, a stern woman with keen eyes, finally spoke. "Asher Wargrave. Tenth Sun of the Wargrave Ducal Household. Correct?"

"Yes," Asher replied flatly, his tone calm and flat.

"You awakened on your final attempt," said the second examiner, a woman whose voice carried a trace of mockery. A small smile curved her lips as she continued, "And yet, here you are, sitting before us. I wonder… did Duke Azeron cash in a favor? Or perhaps the Principal truly believes you are as talented as she thinks?"

Asher's eyes met hers without wavering. He did not flinch, did not rise to the bait. If she expected a reaction, any reaction, she would be sorely disappointed. His silence itself became an answer, a refusal to play into her provocation.

"Let us begin," said the third examiner, her tone grave, almost heavy.

"As a noble," the fourth examiner explained with a certain authority, "it is expected that you have taken full advantage of your family's libraries. You should be well-read. Thus, we will test you. A series of rapid-fire questions. You will have only two seconds to think, then answer."

The fifth examiner tilted his head slightly. "Any questions?"

"No," Asher said, his voice flat, steady.

The test began.

"What is ten percent of ten times ten?" the first examiner asked.

"Ten," Asher answered without pause.

"If a random baby were in danger, and the only way to save it was to sacrifice yourself, would you choose the baby… or yourself?"

"Myself."

"On what day of the week did the Star Fragment fall from the sky?"

"Wednesday."

"Should the current noble and commoner divide be abolished, so that all may live equally?"

"Everyone can never be equal, whether the divide is erased or not."

"What was the exact number of people who perished when Astra first came into existence, igniting the war between humanity, monsters, and the Emovirae?"

"No exact number exists in any history text. Only estimations, around ninety percent of the world's population."

The first examiner snapped her fingers, and in the air before Asher, a glowing puzzle appeared, lines, dots, and shifting shapes. "Using basic Astra control, solve this."

Asher did not blink. His Astra stirred like a living current, flowing smoothly into the puzzle. In mere seconds, the lines were connected, the pattern resolved with childlike ease.

"What do you think is the true solution to halting the continuous rise of the Emovirae?"

"The only solution would be to sever all human emotions, reducing us to lifeless puppets. So long as emotions exist, the Emovirae will thrive."

"Do you believe in the existence of another world beyond Crymora?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because nothing makes us so unique that we alone must exist in this vast galaxy."

"Which has greater value, minus one or minus one hundred?"

"Minus one."

"How many noble families exist within the Zarethorne Empire today?"

"Thirty."

"What do you believe is the end goal of the Emovirae?"

"An end goal implies leadership. If they indeed have one, then perhaps their aim is to replace humanity entirely."

"Would you sacrifice yourself for Crymora?"

"That depends on what Crymora is at that time."

"Final question. Why did the Star Fragment fall?"

"A star's death."

The examiners exchanged glances. Their expressions shifted subtly, some satisfied, others indifferent. Finally, in perfect unison, they said, "You may return to where you came from."

Asher rose from his chair without a word. He had expected something more profound, something to challenge him. Instead, the questions felt like fragments, designed not to measure knowledge but to probe the inner recesses of his mindset. Random, curious, and ultimately…

'Boring,' he thought with a faint sigh as he stepped back through the door.

William's eyes flicked up as Asher returned.

"How was it?"

"You should have warned me it would be boring," Asher replied dryly.

William chuckled softly. "Well, perhaps. But I suspect the questions are arranged differently for nobles and commoners. Some of what I was asked… commoners would never know."

Asher nodded slowly, his thoughts aligning with William's. He had reached the same conclusion himself.

With another sigh, he muttered, "We should just get to the battle examinations already."

"Agreed," William said with a grin. "All this suspense raised my expectations, only for me to face a handful of old men and women asking whatever they pleased."

The two shared a quiet moment of mutual dissatisfaction. Then Asher leaned back, closing his eyes, boredom settling over him like a heavy blanket.

Hours passed. One by one, candidates continued their turns, entering through the door and returning afterward, or sometimes vanishing altogether. The cycle repeated endlessly, until at last, the final student returned.

The orb above dimmed, the room fell silent, and then, without warning, the same blinding light engulfed them all once more.