The Broken Halo

Chapter 166: DAMN IT!

’Intermediate C grade shadow affinity... Not bad I guess.’ Simon thought with a slight nod of his head.

Although, compared to Sunless’ S grade shadow affinity, his C grade affinity was miles away from touching the tipof the power of a S grade affinity.

A C grade affinity was an average grade, but the expressions of some of Simon’s classmates who had a grudge against him or looked down at him were ugly behind their masks.

One could see the disgust, envy, and anger in their eyes.

And the reason for this is because the Shadowgrave Clan valued those who awakened a natural shadow affinity during their Coming of Age Rite.

Obviously, if one had a F grade shadow affinity, the clan would value the individual, but not by so much.

A C grade shadow affinity was not something the clan could ignore even though it was an average grade.

The clan had natural resources that could increase the shadow affinity grade of an individual, and if one had enough merits and achievements, one could purchase these resources.

Though they were rather... very expensive.

If one’s merits were not enough to purchase the natural treasures of the clan, one could choose to purchase the artificial methods of the clan since they were cheaper.

Though, the difference between the effects of a natural treasure and the artificial methods of the clan would show.

Meanwhile, despite the fact that Simon had a C grade shadow affinity, Instructor Valdin’s expression in the darkness of his hoodie was rather... complicated.

When Simon looked at him, he could not see his face, but he could perceive that their class instructor seemed to be in a dilemma.

And he understood why.

His mind drifted as Researcher Mahan carefully examined his body to see if he was okay.

’I’m a slave, and the system of the clan makes it extraordinarily difficult for a slave to rise and become powerful.’

’But now... I’m a slave who has a natural shadow affinity, and my shadow affinity is not F grade, E grade, or D grade... but C grade.’

’And the fact that my affinity is C grade is a problem.’

’A C grade affinity is an average affinity, and the sub-grade of my affinity is also at the Intermediate grade. These two factors are going to put not only the class instructor but the head of the academy, and those Grave Lords in a slight dilemma.’

’I’m a slave who should not be given the opportunity to rise especially after all that they did to me, but they also cannot ignore the fact that I have a C grade shadow affinity.’

’If my shadow affinity grade was lower, they could choose to ignore me and not value me any higher. But the problem is that my shadow affinity grade is just C grade. It’s a grade they cannot completely ignore and a grade they can choose to ignore, but at a cost.’

’If I had a B grade shadow affinity, the clan would have no choice but to value me more or maybe even place more suppression on me in a multitude of ways.’

’My C grade shadow affinity is just at the middle line, and if they say they should ignore me, they would be losing out on a potential talented and elite assassin. They know that very well.’

’A C grade affinity might be average, but the shadow element is an extremely rare and unique affinity, so finding people, whether humans or demons with shadow affinity is very difficult and rare.’

’They cannot completely ignore my shadow affinity grade, but it’s not enough for them to value me to the point that they’ll ignore the slave status they gave me.’

’Oh wait... hahaha... I just realized that if I had a S grade shadow affinity like Sunless and quite possibly, Thorgan... I might have been killed or the clan would have tried several methods to extract my S grade shadow affinity and give it to a true member of the clan. Or maybe even a Velari.’

’Hahaha... I guess I’m lucky and should be grateful that I have a C grade shadow affinity.’

’Even if they decide not to value me more because of my status, they wouldn’t choose to suppress me. Or maybe they’ll increase the suppression a little bit.’

’Having an Intermediate C grade shadow affinity is the best for my current situation. I can find ways to grow and get stronger on my own.’

After having these thoughts which lasted for approximately five seconds, Researcher Mahan finally finished examining his body, then he spoke.

”Alright. Your body is all good. Now, we’ll test to see what your shadow affinity potential is.”

Simon raised a brow.

”Hmm? Do you still need to do that? I don’t think you tested what Sunless’ affinity potential was.”

”That’s because there was no point in doing that. Our artificial methods cannot increase one’s affinity to S grade. For her, she needs extremely rare resources to increase her affinity sub-grade, and maybe even attain a higher affinity.”

”But for you who has a C grade shadow affinity, we need to see what your affinity potential is.”

Researcher Mahan explained, but Simon frowned behind his mask.

’The only reason why you’ll want to know what my affinity potential is because of your artificial methods. In the likelihood that the clan wants me to increase my shadow affinity grade, they want to know by how much I can increase it to.’

’If it reaches up to A grade or S grade, I would have more value in their eyes. But I don’t plan on using the clan’s artificial methods at all.’

’The right natural treasures can increase my shadow affinity, and I believe that with Devour, I can increase my shadow affinity grade.’

’Affinity potential only matters for the artificial methods of the clan and other organizations. But when it comes to the appropriate natural treasures, affinity potential does not matter.’

Despite the thoughts Simon had, he obviously did not stop the researcher from injecting Formula X-V into his blood stream.

But the moment the formula entered his body, Simon’s pupils constricted into pinholes, and his body instantly jumped up, nearly snapping the thick belt in two.

”DAMN IT!” He roared in pain.