For the first half hour or so, Daneel was mesmerized by the sheer beauty of the scenes in front of him. With his improved eyesight, he could see each part of the wood that was set alight with clarity. Even more than the wood, the incredible patterns that formed in the ice when the water froze were even more dazzling.
Slowly, he started to see tiny particles. There were different kinds of particles in the water and the wood, with different colors. As the red particles of the spark came into contact with the myriad ones in the wood, some reaction seemed to occur as all of the particles turned into red, which was the fire.
Something similar happened with the water-light blue particles came into contact with deep blue ones and became deep blue themselves.
It was as if he was gazing into a different dimension. As he looked around, he noticed that the whole world seemed to be made up of these particles. Myriad colors of myriad shades greeted him, and his brain seemed to be overloaded with all of the information. Suddenly, he felt a stabbing, excruciating pain in his forehead which made him close his eyes.
As he opened them again, his gaze was back to normal.
[*DING*
Elementary Sight Tool Obtained.
System congratulates host on obtaining a tool by himself!
Elementary Sight: The world is made up of many countless particles. Although they are called 'Elementary' particles, they are not tied to the elements. The Elementary Sight allows one to gaze at these particles. The amount of particles that can be seen at a time without overloading the brain grows with the mage's level.]
"So what is my comprehension level? I saw that the interaction between the particles was the cause for the transformation.", he asked apprehensively.
[Host's Comprehension Level: Crimson. Prolonged decalcification and expansion of Host's pineal gland has allowed host to reach the legendary level of comprehension for new mages.
Crimson Potential corresponds to noticing the particles and their interactions.
Gold Potential corresponds to noticing a possible underlying reason for said conversion of state, namely, change in the vibrations of the particles. Such an observation was possible due to Phenomena Analysis Module-2. It would be almost impossible for a mage to notice this. Host's comprehension itself is already considered legendary.]
Yes! Legendary comprehension! And he had achieved it himself without the help of the system!
Of course, without the system, there was no way his peneal gland could have been decalcified in the first place. Yet, such legendary comrehension was his alone.
"System, can you make any grade I wish appear during the test?"
[Affirmative. Violet to Gold, any grade of comprehension can be simulated for the result of the test]
It was just as he thought. Daneel now had a tough choice to make.
Should he choose the legendary level and obtain all the resources possible? Or should he choose a lesser grade and be low-key?
Daneel did not like either of the options. The first meant that he would be under the purview of the government at all times. They would take an active role in his development potentially supervising everything he did. Like the man had said, it had not been seen in decades and they would definitely show this much care for one who could be the backbone of the kingdom.
Choosing a low level was also not what Daneel wanted. If he was being frank with himself, he would say that it was because he had had enough. Enough of being in the bottom. Enough of being looked down upon.
As for resources, he had the incredible treasure that was the Natural Training Chamber.
Before he made his choice, Daneel asked one last question.
"Is it possible for a mage's comprehension to change?"
[Yes, in very rare cases. Typically, the comprehension is linked to the size and decalcification level of the pineal gland. It is possible for the human body to unconsciously apply Ether in the same way the system did, albeit for a short time and in very, very rare situations. As the information regarding the glands has still not been discovered in this world, it is assumed that this is due to being blessed by the heavens.]
A plan started to form in Daneel's mind after hearing this.
Taking everything into purview, Daneel made his choice.
The 2 hours gradually came to a close and kids started walking up to the statue one by one.
The first seemed to be a rich merchant's daughter, wearing an expensive gold-trimmed dress that reached her ankles. Unlike the spoiled brats Daneel had seen in the training, she had a kind expression on her face and gave a small smile at the crowd before placing her hand on the statue.
The vertical part of the statue flashed a brilliant white before turning into 9 layers of dim colors: each color corresponding to each grade.
A white wave of color started ascending from the bottom soon after. As it passed each color, it lit up that bar/grade into a dazzling hue that almost blinded the spectators.
Violet, Indigo, Blue, Green and Yellow were lit up brilliantly before the white wave finally slowed down.
It settled down into Orange, making many kids gasp as the vivid color almost seemed to assault their eyes.
"High grade comprehension! Well done! Welcome to the academy! Would you like to take me as a master?", asked the blue robed man, startling the girl who was now smiling wide after taking her hand off the statue.
"Ahem". A cough was suddenly heard in front of the statue which made the blue robed man's face turn pale.
"Never mind about the master. You can pick one later. Come stand behind me. With high grade potential, you will definitely go far in the path of the mage. I believe you can directly enter the top class which has the best teachers and resources, other than the legendary class which has been empty for decades."