The young woman behind the computer nodded her head slightly in acknowledgnt, and Mr. Malcolm made a small sound of approval as well. However, neither of them seed particularly amazed or excited by the result.
The truth was that they had both worked in talent assessnt for many years and had seen plenty of people with even A-Rank talents pass through this room. A C-Rank frost talent was decent and respectable, certainly good enough for a successful cultivation career, but it wasn’t extraordinarily rare or special in their experience.
Mr. Malcolm cleared his throat and addressed Sean politely.
"It’s your turn now, Young Master Sean, if you’re ready to proceed."
But before Sean could move forward, Vogue spoke up clearly.
"Wait just a minute. I’m not finished yet."
The young woman’s expression changed, showing a flash of barely concealed disdain in her eyes and a slight sneer at the corner of her mouth. Her tone beca noticeably colder when she responded.
"Do you wish to test your talent again?" she asked with obvious skepticism. "I should inform you that requesting repeated asurents won’t change the result. I’ve seen many people who have difficulty accepting their talent grade and hope that sohow testing again will show sothing better. Unfortunately, the machine is extrely precise and never makes mistakes."
Her implication was clear: she thought Vogue was disappointed with his C-Rank result and was foolishly hoping a second test would sohow show a higher grade.
Vogue detected the dismissive tone in her voice but chose to ignore it completely. Getting into an argunt with administrative staff would be pointless and ti-consuming.
Mr. Malcolm’s expression showed a slight frown of annoyance as well.
"Young man, I must emphasize that the talent assessnt machine is calibrated to the highest standards and is extraordinarily accurate. It would never make an error in grading."
He was clearly being patient only because Vogue had arrived with Young Master Sean. If Vogue had been alone, Mr. Malcolm probably would have already asked him to leave for wasting ti. His tone suggested he felt Vogue was taking advantage of Sean’s presence to behave inappropriately.
"I understand the machine is accurate," Vogue said calmly, not showing any irritation. "I’m simply not done with my complete testing yet. I have more to demonstrate."
Before either Mr. Malcolm or the young woman could say anything else or raise further objections, Vogue acted imdiately.
He snapped his fingers sharply, and a fireball suddenly materialized in the air in front of him. The sphere of fla was roughly the size of a baby’s skull, burning with intense orange heat that made the air shimr around it.
With a flick of his finger, Vogue sent the fireball flying forward. It traveled across the room and collided with the steel testing machine in exactly the sa spot where the ice sword had hit monts before.
"WHOOSH!"
Fire spread across the machine’s surface, creating a dramatic contrast with the ice that was still clinging to the tal. Steam rose where the two opposing elents t.
The holographic display flickered again, processing this new information. Then new text appeared, floating in glowing letters:
[Talent Detected: Fire Elent Manipulation]
[Grade: C-Rank]
Vogue lowered his hand and spoke simply.
"Now I’m finished with my demonstration."
The reaction in the room was imdiate and dramatic.
Everyone present was shocked into stunned silence, their eyes going wide with genuine disbelief. Everyone except Sean, that is. He had apparently expected this revelation and simply nodded knowingly with a slight smile on his face.
But Mr. Malcolm and the young woman were absolutely floored. Their mouths literally hung open for several seconds as they struggled to process what they had just witnessed.
"D-dual talent!?" Mr. Malcolm stamred, his usual professional composure completely shattered. "You possess TWO separate awakened talents?"
The young woman’s hands had frozen above her keyboard, her fingers locked in position mid-type as shock paralyzed her movents.
Neither of them had ever personally encountered soone with dual talents before in their entire careers. Dual awakeners were extraordinarily rare. In this outer district of the city, such people simply didn’t exist under normal circumstances.
Only those living in the inner city districts, the wealthy core areas where the most powerful families resided and the best resources were concentrated, had access to the kind of advantages that could produce dual talent awakeners with any regularity.
Mr. Malcolm and the young woman had never expected to actually et soone like this in their lifeti. It was the kind of thing you heard about in news reports or read about in cultivation journals, but never witnessed personally.
Mr. Malcolm recovered his composure much faster than the young woman did. Years of professional experience dealing with important people kicked in, and his entire deanor changed instantly.
His previous slightly annoyed expression was completely replaced by a warm, eager smile. His tone beca notably more respectful and accommodating.
"Young Master Vogue," he said, deliberately using the honorific title he had previously only used for Sean. "This is quite surprising indeed! What an exceptional talent you possess!"
He turned quickly toward the young woman and spoke in a commanding tone that left no room for argunt.
"Go imdiately and bring refreshnts. A cup of high-quality coffee and so wine for Young Master Vogue. Only the best we have available. I will personally proceed with handling his registration from this point forward. You’re dismissed from this particular case."
The young woman was visibly stunned by this sudden change in treatnt and by being essentially removed from her own job duties. But she knew better than to argue with Mr. Malcolm when he used that authoritative tone. She imdiately stood up from her chair and hurried out of the room to fetch the requested refreshnts, her earlier disdain completely replaced by nervous energy.
Sean chuckled at the sudden shift in atmosphere.
"Your future is certainly looking bright, Vogue. Dual talents will open many doors for you."
"Thank you," Vogue responded.
"Well then, I suppose it’s my turn now," Sean said, stepping forward toward the testing machine with relaxed confidence.
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