Chapter 1: The Heaven’s Blessing Ceremony

“Next in line, please come forward.”

In the hallowed church hall, an elderly priest dressed in holy vestments called me forward. Before him stood a pulpit engraved with a cross, and resting atop it was a large, blue crystal. The priest picked the crystal up with both hands, holding it above his head.

It was my turn to participate in the Heaven’s Blessing Ceremony, a mandatory rite of passage for every subject in the Meldrake Kingdom the year they turned sixteen.

The ceremony revealed in each participant a latent class affinity and special skill. Just as the name suggested, it was an opportunity to receive a blessing from heaven.

There were several different types of classes that each participant could manifest, including your standard combat classes, such as fighter, mage, and knight; noncombat classes like merchant, blacksmith, and farmer; and even specialized classes like sorcerer, paladin, and spellsword.

Special skills were generally closely related to your class, and regardless of your socioeconomic status, it was possible for the ceremony to reveal an advanced class affinity that would reward you with celebration and support from the kingdom. No matter who you were, the ceremony offered the opportunity to turn your entire life around. It was hardly an overstatement to say that it was the most significant milestone in a person’s life.

Most people looked forward to receiving their blessing and eagerly awaited their moment in the ceremony...but not me.

My name was Chris Sparring, and I was born into an esteemed family lineage of sword fighters. The Heaven’s Blessing Ceremony had bestowed sword-wielding classes upon generation after generation of Sparrings, and the affinity held by the hea