Kaito walked up the grand marble podium, the eyes of a thousand aristocrats pressing heavily against his back. As he walked, his passive scanner caught the whispering onlookers in the VIP boxes. Their high-ranking levels hovered like prestigious banners. 

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[VIP BALCONY CLASSIFICATION SPECTRAL]

*   DUKE OF THE WESTERN SECTOR: LEVEL 64 [A-Rank Noble]

*   ROYAL MAGE ACADEMY OVERSEER: LEVEL 71 [A-Rank Grand Sorcerer]

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"Watch closely," a high-level lord murmured. "The child of the original Sword God lineage is stepping up. His baseline potential must be completely off the charts."

Kaito reached the floating crystal matrix. Grand Inquisitor Malakor looked down at him with a dignified, respectful nod. "Are you prepared, child?"

Kaito took a sharp, freezing breath, clamping down on his racing nerves. He clenched his fists, setting his jaw with rigid determination. "Yes. I am ready for this."

Closing his eyes, he held his hand out toward the altar. Please, Kaito prayed silently into the deep void of his mind, grant me a power that will make my family proud.

The High Priest raised the sacred golden statue of the Goddess high into the air. Suddenly, a violent, overwhelming flash of light detonated from the altar. It wasn't the standard glow of a common blessing; it was a searing, blinding cosmic illumination that filled every single corner of the massive cathedral. People in the audience cried out, shielding their eyes from the radiant intensity. 

"By the heavens!" a noble shouted, peering through his fingers. "To shine with such blinding force... he must have pulled a legendary, world-shaking blessing!"

"Hmph, it is always the same," a peasant initiate muttered bitterly from the back row. "The rich and powerful get exactly what they want from the gods."

Kaito covered his eyes from the glare, his heart leaping with a sudden surge of triumphant hope. Through the fading sparks, he glanced back toward his family's balcony. He looked for his father’s proud nod. He looked for his mother’s loving smile. 

But as the blinding light fully cleared, a heavy, suffocating silence dropped over the cathedral. 

The High Priest’s face had gone completely pale. Cold sweat rolled down his temples, his hands shaking violently as he looked at the translucent system tablet. The gold text had completely decayed into a rotten, sluggish charcoal gray. 

"This... this cannot be," Malakor muttered, his voice breaking over the speaker system. 

Kaito blinked, looking up at his materialized status box. The letters didn't shine. They sat flat, gray, and broken.

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[DIVINE REGISTRY TERMINAL LOG: GLOBAL ARCH-FAILURE]

*   NAME: Kaito Shinsei

*   BLESSING ALLOCATION: NONE [REJECTED BY INTERFACE CORE LAW]

*   TOTAL RACIAL LEVEL: HALF-SPONGE (Lv. 1) [NON-COMBAT MATRIX]

*   TOTAL CLASS LEVEL: None (Lv. 0)

*   CURRENT CHARACTER LEVEL: LEVEL 1 [CAPPED STATUS TERMINAL]

[OVERALL CORE ATTRIBUTES — GLITCHED GAUGES]

*   PHYSICAL STRENGTH: 10       *   AGILITY / SPEED: 12

*   MANA CAPACITY: 5            *   PHYSICAL ENDURANCE: 10

*CRITICAL NOTICE: SYSTEM ATTRIBUTE PROGRESSION CAPPED PERMANENTLY.*

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"You are... a Sponge," the Priest stuttered, looking at the Level 1 cap code with sheer bewilderment. "Your attributes and combat skills are completely average... to nothing."

The words felt like a physical blow to Kaito's chest. The air left his lungs. He turned a desperate, trembling gaze toward the family terrace. 

"Father...?" Kaito gasped out, his hands reaching out into the cold air. "What... what does this mean, fath—"

"Do not call me father, trash!" Lord Kazuno’s Level 78 voice boomed across the cathedral hall like an iron hammer, completely cutting him off. The warmth in his father's eyes had vanished, replaced by an ice-cold, monstrous disgust. 

Kaito stood frozen on the marble stage, his soul completely breaking apart inside him. "Father... aren't we... aren't we a family?"