Chapter 5 Double techniques

Alec waited for the system to open, and he wasn't disappointed, because after an hour later, it finally came back online, displaying a status panel with his picture at the side-just like the game interfaces he was familiar with in his past life.

--

[Status Tab]

Name: Alec Gordons

Race: Human

Level: 0

Tier: 0

Exp to Next Level: 0.00% / 100

[Attributes]

Strength: 5+

Agility: 5+

Endurance: 4+

Mana: 0+

Affinity: Earth (High)+, Fire (High)+

Available Points: 5 (bonus)

System Points: 0

[Shop]

Weapons

Rare Materials

Crystals

Refinements

[Other options are currently locked due to user's low level]

--

Thanks to its familiar, game-like layout, Alec immediately grasped how the system worked easily.

"Alec, the Grand Elder said you should report to the Training Hall," someone called out from outside his door.

"I'll be there soon," Alec replied.

He heard the messenger's footsteps retreating, then stood and straightened himself up, the status tab was still hovering in front of him, distracting him and partially blocking his view.

'I wish this thing would just close for a bit...' he thought.

To his surprise, the interface vanished instantly. Curious, he willed it back-and just like that, it reappeared.

"Fuck, it can be controlled with my mind... and I've been poking the air like an idiot in front of Gramps," Alec groaned, face palming himself in embarrassment. It annoyed him that it took him this long to figure it out.

When he arrived at the gathering hall, he noticed all the younger generation had been summoned, most had already grouped into cliques, chatting in their usual circles.

Alec, uninterested, quietly took a seat in a corner as usual.

Then someone sat beside him.

"Errrm... I don't think I'm the kind of person you want to sit with right now," Alec said without looking up.

"I'm pretty much the guy everyone avoids."

"Who cares? I'm someone like you anyway. I'm not exactly accepted in the family either that fondly, like you, I'm called a bastard in child fights when they can't win-it's all because I have lost both of my parents in the Blood moon war, my name's Arthur by the way," he said, extending a hand toward Alec.

Alec took it without hesitation. "I'm Alec," he replied.

"Who doesn't know Alec-the next Prince of the Gordon Clan? Well, you already know my name. I've got an affinity for both earth and metal elements," Arthur said.

"Wow, that's impressive! But I don't remember seeing anyone with that kind of dual affinity when I was at the assessment grounds," Alec said, genuinely surprised.

"That's because I awakened after you left, my two elements come from my parents-earth from my father and metal from my mother," Arthur explained.

"Oh, that makes sense. Either way, I think you're going to achieve great things," Alec encouraged.

"So, which path are you taking? There've been rumours that you might follow your grandfather path and become a Golem Mage," Arthur asked curiously.

"Yeah, I am. I'm going to walk in his footsteps, someone has to prove that our Golem Path isn't weak-no matter how overlooked it's become," Alec replied with conviction.

"Well then, you're going to need a bodyguard. How about I be your partner?" Arthur offered with a grin.

Alec's face lit up with gratitude.

"That would be amazing. I'd be glad to have you by my side, Arthur."

They shook hands again, sealing their newfound partnership with a smile, it was clear they clicked naturally and shared a strong mutual understanding.

Just then, the Grand Elder entered the hall, staff in hand, his tall hat resting atop his head, as he made his way to the center platform and sat down with solemn grace

"First of all, I want to congratulate all of you who have awakened and are now ready to begin your journey as mages," the Grand Elder began, his voice carrying quiet power and authority.

"Secondly, I want to remind you all not to get cocky just because you think you have a higher affinity than others in this room, what truly matters is the effort you put into your training, also, let me make this clear-you have not yet stepped into the realm of becoming official mages of the Gordon Clan," the Grand Elder stated firmly.

He then planted his staff into the ground, and five large stones slowly rose from the earth-each containing a unique mana circulation technique passed down within the Gordon family.

"The real reason I've gathered you here today is to grant you access to these techniques, you're allowed to pick one and begin learning it only after you've accumulated enough mana in your body to break into the Lower Tier 1 Mage realm, only then will you officially be recognized as mages disciple of the Gordons Clan," he declared.

As soon as the Grand Elder finished, the younger generation swarmed the stones, eager to begin.

They soon realized that while each technique was easy to memorize on its own, trying to memorize a second caused them to instantly forget the first.

But Alec noticed something different, each time he read a technique, a system notification popped up:

[Learned basic mana circulation technique – Spiral Force]

[Learned basic mana circulation technique – Mini Hole]

Realizing the advantage the system gave him, Alec stopped after learning two, not wanting to push his luck-especially since the Grand Elder had instructed them to learn only one.

The Grand Elder chuckled as he noticed the confused expressions around the room.

"I figured some of you would try that, there's a reason I said you're allowed only one. It's nearly impossible to master more than one mana circulation technique at the same time, however, those rare individuals who can... they're what we call monster-class geniuses. With each cultivation session, they grow twice as fast," he explained.

Upon hearing this, most of the younger clan members returned to the stones with renewed focus, carefully selecting the one technique that suited them best, meanwhile, Alec blinked in surprise, realizing that he had unintentionally crossed that line.

With a quiet resolve, he decided to keep his secret hidden-and use it as his hidden card as these basic techniques would only give him a edge in the Low Ranks.