A fifth man entered just as the others exited the room. Unlike the group carrying the heavy contraption, this one moved with deliberate care—both hands supporting a wooden box, polished to a deep sheen. He approached the king’s table, bowed, and set it down with reverence.

  The king nodded his thanks and acknowledgment, the servant bowed low and exited as the king unlatched the lock.

  Inside lay thin golden plates, roughly the size of a smartphone, sleek, gleaming. The sides were carved with delicate runes and filigree that spiraled across its edges. The face of the metal however, was completely blank.

  As the king lifted one, murmurs spread among our group, mostly from the boys.

  “What are those?” someone whispered.

  Celestia stepped forward, almost vibrating with excitement. Jesus Christ girl, go to sleep already.

  “These, are status plates,” she explained. “These artifacts will allow anyone to view their statuses, skills, blessings, attributes, everything. Even those not granted by the god through the summoning!”

  The king turned the plate in his hands. The runes rippled, shifting like liquid light.

  “There is one plate for each of you—” the king began.

  But before he could continue, Celestia, with a combination of a run and a skip she bounded forward, in front of the table, grabbed a plate, and continued the explanation herself.

  “Once you have yours, you must place a single drop of blood on the surface. Once that’s done, the plate binds permanently to you. Only the owner can activate or read it.”

  The king sighed at his mage’s enthusiasm and allowed her to continue. At the same time a faint thrill ran through the boys, their eyes shone with the kind of excitement only fantasy-world mechanics could inspire.

  “For everyone summoned from another world, you all get the gold plate!” Celestia went on, talking like a machine gun who has passed full-auto, “A symbol of status traditionally reserved for nobles! There are multiple plates in use in this continent! Commoners get copper, adventurers use varying ranks. Once you have your plate, it will allow you to visualize your statuses in your mind; just say status, and it appears!

  She barely paused, before rattling off more. I didn’t even think she took a breath.

  “Adventurers ranks, from lowest to highest are, copper, bronze, iron, silver, mithril, orichalcum, and the highest—adamantium. The first two ranks are considered weak, the next two mid-tier, the following two high-tier, and adamantium is reserved only for the truly distinguished. Heroes, however, gold is always the preferred metal.”

  The way she spoke now, there was no trace of calm mage professionalism—she sounded like a fangirl listing her favorite idol groups. Everyone struggled to keep up and were nearly on edge to keep up with how fast she was talking.

  “Did you all know that there is this one adventurer who took down Xilodon with just one blow!”

  Yep, she was fangirling. Also what in the ever living hells is a Xilodon?

  The king stood, gently taking Celestia by both shoulders. She was still talking nonstop about adventurers, but he moved her slightly aside so she wouldn’t block the view. We all waited as she finally, finally took a deep breath and paused.

  The king cleared his throat and coughed lightly.

  “My royal mage can get a bit enthusiastic about such things,” the king said with a wry smile, “Please forgive her.”

  A few murmurs of polite assent passed through the room, but Celestia looked positively unapologetic. The king simply sighed, placing the golden plates gently onto the table.

  “Celestia shall distribute your individual status plates accordingly,” he continued, gesturing toward the arcane evaluator. “Once that is done, and with your permission, we shall view your statuses and powers.”

  Celestia clasped her hands together, smiling brightly. “Please leave it to me,” she said happily thumping her full chest with a clenched fist. “I will also provide some healing when it comes to drawing blood.”

  Reika leaned toward me, practically buzzing. “Ae, we’ll finally know what powers we got!”

  “How thrilling,” I deadpanned. “If mine says ‘Professional Cake Distributor,’ I’m suing someone.”

  “Suing who? A god?” she shot back.

  “Yes,” I said flatly. “Especially him.”

  The king chuckled again, clearly entertained.

  Celestia, still practically bouncing on the balls of her feet, demonstrated first. She brought out her own golden plate. She delicately pricked her finger with a needle. A single drop of blood landed perfectly in the center of the surface of the plate. The runes on the golden plate shimmered and shifted, then the blank surface formed a radiant array of symbols, eventually turning into a horse, holding up a castle.

  Then with a soft voice, she cast heal on the tiny wound, and it vanished as if it had never existed. She beamed at us, proud of her handiwork, though I could see her still buzzing with excitement.

  “It’s as simple as that,” she chirped. “Your turn!”

  A tense silence fell over the group. Several of the adults hesitated, staring at the tiny needles and small knives placed before the plates. The idea of drawing blood, even a drop, was enough to make anyone skittish. The students were no different, although their hesitations were mixed with curiosity and excitement.

  In my case, I paused longer than most. Not because I’m scared, but because my blood carried properties I rarely revealed, even in this world. I couldn’t predict exactly what would happen if it interacted with the plate. I considered stepping back.

  I sighed. Come what may. Ultimately, I chose a fine needle, steadying my hand over the surface of my golden plate. A tiny prick later, a drop of blood touched the metal. Immediately, the plate seemed to awaken. Symbols shimmered, then solidified into a vision of my abilities as the surface of my plate danced.

  From the looks of it, everyone chose to use a needle instead of the knife. I glanced at the closest to me. Much the same as mine, each plate took on a distinct form, reflecting the person that it belonged to.

  Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  William, my brother, saw a spear and shield etched into his plate, gleaming with a steady, disciplined light. Arthur’s plate formed a sword and shield crossed at the center, the steel seeming to hum faintly with latent energy.

  Trayn’s plate blossomed into the image of a castle, walls and towers coiling with magical runes as if ready to spring to life. Takashi’s formed a drawn bow with an arrow nocked, taut and poised to release, the string shimmering with potential energy.

  Reika’s plate transformed into a flourish of delicate flowers, colorful and whimsical—so decorative it looked more like a phone case than an artifact. Shizuku’s took the form of a sheathed katana with an orchid spiraling around it, elegance and lethality packaged into one.

  My father’s plate formed a katana with a dragon coiling into a figure-eight around it, eyes and scales gleaming with life, projecting a sense of authority and skill. My mother’s displayed flowers of a different variety than Reika’s, more subtle, graceful, with petals curling as if in a gentle breeze, yet radiating resilience.

  Nana baa-san’s plate manifested a hand, fingers ready close, coiled in flame, almost ominous in its intensity.

  The rest of the group definitely had similarly personalized manifestations because of how quiet everyone became. A telling sign.

  I glanced at my own plate again, intrigued. My blood reacting as it did cause the runes to flare in unusual ways, faintly echoing patterns I had never seen before. It wasn’t just a visualization—it seemed aware of me, a mirror of what I was capable of, and perhaps, what I could become.

  The process had begun, and there was no turning back.

  Everyone else shifted nervously, marveling and whispering as their own plates revealed their gifts. A few had already said status and were eyeing their statuses with awe and reverence. Even the adults, initially hesitant, couldn’t hide the awe creeping into their expressions. The room was alive with soft glows and shimmering symbols, as each plate became unique, each reflecting its owner’s soul.

  I caught the king observing us quietly, a faint smile on his face. Even he seemed impressed, though careful to remain composed.

  Eventually, mine finished.

  I felt a small smile tug at my lips.

  Huh.

  I honestly didn’t think the plates were going to be that good. It was a symbol that is known to me, my own sigil. If anything, I was looking forward to a top hat, maybe a cane.

  “Hey, Vi,” Arthur asked, practically vibrating. “What d’you get?”

  He and the boys were leaning forward, eyes practically sparkling like they were waiting for a loot box to drop.

  “Thankfully, not a hero. But it’s something,” I replied, stretching and stifling a yawn. “And you people?”

  “Guess,” Arthur said with the smuggest grin imaginable. The other three idiots—Wills, Trayn, and Taka, were all lined up with matching stupidly proud expressions on their faces.

  “Bitch please, I can already feel your tits vibrating from here,” I retorted. “Obviously, I already know what you people got.” Trayn and the rest snickered at my comments while Arthur gave me a victory sign.

  Before any more nonsense could start, Celestia’s bright voice cut in:

  “Is everyone finished?” she asked, sounding like she was five seconds from clapping her hands like a kindergarten teacher. “Remember! You can also examine your own statuses by simply saying ‘status.’”

  Ten full minutes passed before everyone finally calmed down enough to sit still. The plates were admired, compared, poked, and in Reika’s case, held up to different lighting angles to see how the flowers shimmered.

  Celestia coughed once—mostly for dramatic effect—then straightened.

  “Alright, everyone! As I said earlier,” she began, practically giddy with excitement, “this machine shows everything. It is far more advanced than the standard guild-type evaluators, which display only the first half of a status.”

  She lifted her chin proudly. “This model reveals the complete, full, absolute readout of a person’s potential!”

  The adults visibly tensed at the word “everything.”

  Celestia, oblivious—or too excited to care—continued with a bright smile.

  “I will demonstrate first! After that, we will proceed in any order you decide.”

  The way she walked toward the machine was, honestly? She was skipping. A royal mage was skipping, which is not a sight you see every day. Then again, how often do you even see a royal mage out in the open?

  She began pressing buttons on the control panel, fingers dancing across the runes with confidence that betrayed just how familiar she was with this relic. Then she slid her golden plate into the crystal-lined slot.

  Energies rippled, swirling into the heart of the machine. Then the next second, the screen, an enormous crystal slab flared to life. Lines of text began to form, expanding and reorganizing into a full display.

  And with a final soft chime, the screen finished loading—

  —revealing Celestia’s complete status.

  Everyone looked at her status, considering and possibly comparing it to their own. Some even stood up and others like Suzu, came to the front for a better look.

  “Look, look, majesty!” Celestia said, excitedly pointing at the screen. “I got another title!”

  The king nodded, a pleased and proud smile on his face. “Well done. Even with the title, the evidence is already before our eyes—”

  Then the king saw the rest of her status and frowned. After a few seconds, we all did.

  ==================

  Name: Celestia Auranelle de Montecelli

  Level: 39

  Experience: 17,656/2,043,699

  Master Class: [Mage]

  Job Class: [Scholar Mage]

  Subclass: [None]

  ATTRIBUTES

  HP: 2426

  MP: 4882

  Stamina: 224

  Movement: -22

  Stat Rating: 277

  STATS

  Strength: -10

  Agility: -55

  Endurance: 10

  Intelligence: 126

  Will: 76

  Arcana: 130

  SKILLS (ACTIVE)

  [Common] Water Bolt (4) ??????????

  [Common] Wind Curtain (5) ??????????

  [Common] Firebolt (3) ??????????

  [Common] Frostbolt (4) ??????????

  [Common] Fire wall (4) ??????????

  [Common] Earth wall (4) ??????????

  [Common] Barrier (4) ??????????

  [Rare] Heal (2) ??????????

  [Rare] Wind Blade (5) ??????????

  [Rare] Fire ball (6) ??????????

  [Rare] Lightning bolt (5) ??????????

  [Rare] Energy Coat (6) ??????????

  SKILLS (PASSIVE)

  [Common] MP Regen (5) ??????????

  [Common] Mage Training (6) ??????????

  [Common] Staff Mastery (5) ??????????

  [Rare] Rapid Casting (6) ??????????

  [Rare] Rapid Calculations (5) ??????????

  [Rare] Quickened Spells (3) ??????????

  BONUS

  [RARE][Fire Wyrm Garment][Resistance to fire, 15%, END+40]

  [RARE][Ring of Adamant Resolve][END+20, WILL+20]

  [EPIC][Amulet of Beran Favonius de Montecelli][END+60, WIL+10, ARC+60]

  DEBUFFS

  Exhausted [Stamina regen -50%, Stamina drain 100 per level(5), STR-50, AGI-50]

  Sleep deprived [Stamina regen -50%, Stamina drain 100 per level(5), AGI-50, END-50, WIL-50]

  Onset of Delirium [15%, WIL-20]

  TITLE

  [Royal Mage]

  [Summoner of Heroes]

  Celestia on the other hand looked over the moon.

  “Um, lady Celestia, I have a question,” Taka said as he raised a hand. “Oh, and before that, you can just call me Takashi.”

  “Yes, of course, lord Takashi,” Celestia replied primly. “As for dropping the honorifics, I cannot do that. Not yet, anyway. We still must determine which of you are the chosen heroes. But aside from that, what is your question?

  Takashi visibly deflated a bit. He sighed and instead, continued. “Well, we don’t have any stats or levels in our world, so how will we compare your stats to ours?”

  “That is a good question lord Takashi,” she beamed. And the way she inhaled before speaking—it felt like she was about to launch into one of her non-stop, rapid-fire, lecture/rabblings again.

  “Here’s a question for you, why haven’t you slept yet?” I cut in, crossing my legs and resting my chin on my hand and proceeded to stare at the near delirious mage.

  “Lord Vi, wha—!?” she began, a look of outrage painted across her face. But the king cut her off.

  “That is an even better question, lord Vi,” the king said, turning a tired gaze to his mage. “The royal mage, will return to her chambers and rest immediately, after witnessing the heroes’ statuses. She can give a lecture for the heroes, once she is properly, well rested. Maybe in a two or three-days’ time.”

  It was said in a gentle manner, but it was a firm command all the same.

  “Yes, your majesty. By your will.” she bowed low but shot me a, ‘I am going to kill you’ face, before she straightened.

  Yeah, one of the things I’ve learned in my long nights of staying up, you don’t argue with someone who hasn’t gotten any sleep. It usually doesn’t end well. If anything, that’s how people die.

  Celestia marched back to us like the exchange had never happened and declared, with way too much energy for someone running on fumes, and boldly proclaimed, “So, who’s going to go first!?”

  And suddenly my companions stiffened like schoolkids about to be called for a surprise presentation.

  Is this how kids feel about show and tell? I don’t know because in my country we’ve never had that kind of activity.

  Nana baa-san discreetly gave me her plate with a quiet whisper.

  “Make it inconspicuous.”

  I took it without a word. Oh, I am going to have so much fun with this.

  Now, then what should I do? Maybe I should go over mine first.

  I muttered, “Status,” and a blue and gold colored screen appeared in my vision like a H.U.D, or Heads-Up Display for all of you non gamers out there. I looked through my status.

  Oh.

  Well shit.

  That’s not something you see every day.