"We dedicate our sixth cycle to the god of fire and war! During that cycle, we saw our village disappear into the flames. We implore Ardentes to have mercy on us and give us strength to defeat our enemies!"

Those words, which did not seem like those of seven-year-old children, were the prayer of the twins who had advanced together toward the center of the lake, given the nature of their birth.

The oracle glared at the couple next to her, who lowered their heads in apology. She was most surely reproaching them for having exposed their children to such feelings of revenge at such a young age. But from the parents' attitude, it could be seen that it had not been their intention.

"Something is happening!"

The elf's voice alerted the parents and the oracle, who returned their attention to the twins. The rest of us were also surprised when we saw how the lake transformed into a sea of flames, and whirlwinds of fire began to emerge from it.

"Everyone calm down!" The oracle shouted to calm those present. Some parents had already taken their children in their arms and were preparing to escape. "The god Ardentes has heard the prayer and is showing his favor…"

Once the fires disappeared from the surface of the water, the twins returned to the shore with broad smiles on their faces, where their parents and the oracle congratulated them. However, the latter also told them that this was a stage in their life where they should only worry about growing up and leave all that stuff about enemies for when they were older.

I don't know how seriously they took the oracle's words, but seeing the twins' cocky smiles as they passed by my side left me with no doubt that they wanted to test the extent of their blessing as soon as possible.

After Liselotte and the twins, it was my turn. I honestly think they set the bar too high for me...

And how come only the children of our village had received such high blessings? If I did not receive at least a minor one, I would not know with what face to return to my parents and Sefie's side.

"Don't worry, brat! No one is going to blame you for not receiving a blessing!"

It seemed that the oracle had read the expression on my face, and as I approached, she gave me those words along with some strong pats on the shoulder that really did not fit her delicate figure.

"Oracle, I hope these alilas are to your liking."

"Telize! I saw you in the crowd! As soon as the ceremony is over, I would love to talk to you." After receiving the sweets with a smile from ear to ear, the oracle handed them to the elf (who received them very reluctantly) and proceeded to take Telize from the hands and greet her enthusiastically.

"Do you remember me?" Telize asked, surprised.

"Of course, you have the same eyes as me; don't you find that curious? I don't think there is a visiare among your ancestors. That means someone in your family received one of the same blood blessings as us. That is very interesting, so I always check on your clan at the ceremonies."

"Visiare?" I asked; this was the first time anyone other than me had emphasized the strange genetic traits in this fantasy world.

"Let me explain it to you, brat... mmm, how curious, you don't seem as young as you look... It doesn't matter; everyone is a brat to me."

The oracle's words made my heart skip a beat, but fortunately, she did not delve into the topic and continued with her explanation.

"In our stories, it is said that we, visiare, are a race created by the goddess Eferida from the reflection of the moon in the water. That's why our eyes are gold, and our hair is navy blue."

I was about to object that the water was transparent but decided to stay silent. After all, I don't understand much of the world of magic; I wouldn't be surprised if there were more power (or energy?) on someone's perception of something rather than the science behind it.

"Our eyes represent the moon that sees everything from above, even what is hidden in the darkness, and have an inherent magic that allows us to see beyond what you normally could with the naked eye. It's one of the strongest kinds of blessings, the so-called "blood blessings," because it can be inherited with your blood to your descendants. That means you may also awaken that talent in the future."

Judging by how Telize rested her cheek on her hand in confusion, I imagine that no one in her family has awakened a similar ability or even knows it exists.

"But hey, it's already getting late. The important thing now is to finish the ceremony; then we can talk more," the oracle continued. "Brat, since you are also a carrier of our ancestral blood, I will do you the honor of remembering your name. Muahaha! What are you waiting for? Tell me!"

"Rendal Dibelos…"

"Very well, Rendal! It's your turn to advance through the stones of truth!"

After finally being freed by the oracle, I began walking along the stones that formed the path to the platform at the lake's center. Frankly, it was not complicated, and it was understandable that no child had any problems.

Upon reaching the platform, I kneeled and recited from memory the dedications I had prepared. I had decided to abandon my worries; the oracle was right after all; even if I didn't receive any blessing, there was nothing wrong, and neither was there something I could do about it. Hence, the only thing I can do is to behave like the adult I am and simply be happy for the children of my village who did receive some.

However, even though I was prepared for nothing, as soon as I finished the first dedication to Eferida, as was customary, the lake was illuminated with a light so bright that, for a moment, it made me believe that I was actually on my back looking at the sun in the sky instead of at the water.

"Mmm curious… there was a reaction, but I didn't see any blessing being bestowed from the manifestation of power."

After the flash of light ended and everything returned to normal, the oracle said those words while rubbing her golden eyes.

It's a shame; it seems that I was close, but nothing happened at the end... Usually, it would be a reason to get depressed, but if I think about it, the water does nothing in the absolute majority of children's cases. With this, I can already say I was not a complete failure!

The second god to whom I dedicated a year was Ardentes; that was because my second year was when I had my altercation with the batenka.

To my surprise, the waves produced by the magical movement of the lake were no longer water but fire. It was not a terrifying sight as in the case of the twins but rather a much more serene one; the lake had taken the form of the calm fire of a campfire.

Of course, although small, it was still a lake, not a campfire, so being in the middle didn't make me feel very calm at all...

When the fire finally turned back into the water, I heard the oracle again say there was no blessing.

What was happening? Was this some kind of bullying that the gods used to torture me by giving me false hope?

In the case of my dedication to Amitera, I did not even receive the "green touch," though the lake's waters took the shape of a meadow moving with the wind.

To my surprise, all the gods made an appearance: Tronos, the lord of lightning; Guilliem, the navigator of the winds; and Pirdis, the will of the ocean, reacted to my words. Upon reaching the seventh goddess, Liliefer, the entire lake was covered by the deepest darkness, and I felt a caress on my cheek that made my blood run cold...

But from none of them did I receive any blessing.

When I finished my part in the ceremony, I returned to the shore with my head down. How could I not have received even a tiny blessing when the lake reacted every single time? I didn't know if this was worse than the lake not reacting at all. Maybe there is something wrong with me...

Upon my return and unlike what had happened with the rest of the children who had failed, the oracle greeted me with a severe expression instead of a smile. Her golden eyes seemed to want to see into the depths of my soul, but after a while, she closed them to meditate.

"Hmm, as I imagined, there is something about you that I cannot discern, not even with my eyes... Anyway, Rendal, all the gods have celebrated your existence."

"They celebrated my existence? I don't remember doing anything to be celebrated for; in fact, I didn't receive even a single blessing."

"That's the strange part... Let's see, give me your hand."