Chapter 17: Class Trial
Approximately eight million people dwelt within the reinforced walls of Seynhold, with a good part of the population being ascendants. Being a Tier-5 city, Seynhold sported a vast expanse of land, all crammed with magnificent columns and edifices, akin to the pre-Victorian era, though with a more brutalist touch to the more grand structures.
At least, the area Ember and his family lived in was proportionally vacant.
Well, Blackstone was a prestigious clan of Knights. They could not be compared to the three Bloodline Clans of Oberon, Renin, or Killjoy, but over the years, House Blackstone had completed various meritorious deeds, granting them a rich plot of land on which to build their clan. There were definitely busier and more crammed streets only blocks away from the main house.
Now, eight million might seem a lot for a single city, but when one considered all the other people who lived just outside the walls in various towns and outposts, their number could very well be ten times higher. Give or take, there were about 100 million people whose lives were dependent on the city.
Every year, there were hundreds of thousands of people who went through their class ascension, be it inside or outside the walls. Among those hundreds of thousands, only a mere six hundred got to enter the Trial. Of that number, about 500 of those spots were distributed to the bloodline and noble clans. The rest were selected from the common folk.
It was how the rich stayed richer, and the powerful clans maintained the status quo. Ember wanted to complain, though he did not know how to feel about that when his own family was benefiting from it.
House Blackstone had received eight slots this year, four from House Oberon and four they received through serving Seynhold. Rain got one of those slots, and rightly so, given her standing in the younger generation of the clan.
These class trials were essential for anyone who had any hopes of gaining the more prestigious classes. Of course, there were chances of getting a good class outside the trial if one’s race and mana foundation were adequate, but distinguishing oneself in the trials would always provide a better result.
His mother did not get the chance in her time, only getting the Cook class once she turned fourteen. His father, on the other hand, had been one of the champions of his trial. Now it was time for his sister.