To be fair, she had every right to be confused.

With the number of questions piling up in her mind, she had to decide what to address first before she actually exploded.

So she started with the most immediate issue.

The Duchess reached out and pried her husband’s hands off the poor Count’s collar, then made sure he offered a proper apology.

In the form of a crate of freshly caught fish.

"!!!"

A vein nearly popped as she heard the scandalized gasps, but she held on like a trooper.

The Duke, of course, followed through, though he looked just as gray as the man he had been holding hostage moments ago.

But for a brief second, he even seemed to regain some color because of the kind and wise words of the Count.

"Your Grace, there’s really no need for apologies," Alexander said politely. "We rushed because my ability seemed to be time-sensitive. I believe Duke Leander was simply being... efficient."

Leander perked up immediately, looking like a hopeful dog waiting to be forgiven.

But the Duchess only stared at him before letting out a slow sigh.

"You’re too kind, Count Taylor," she said. "If you’re not interested in fish, at least make him do some chores. I insist. Consider it thanks for your help instead of an apology."

The onlookers could only watch in silence.

It was an odd sight.

Everyone knew that it was the Duke and their son who wielded fire.

And yet—

For some reason, it was the Duchess who looked as if she were surrounded by flames every time she glanced at her husband.

They were invisible, but they were definitely burning brightly.

Then, in what could only be described as a desperate act of self-preservation, the Duke shifted positions and wrapped his arms around her from behind.

And just like that, the tension eased.

The flames died down.

The Duchess sighed again and reached up to flick his forehead.

"Ow! Liaaaa~!" Leander whined pitifully.

Everyone else pretended not to see.

Except for Luca Soren Kyros. The spawn of those two.

Said heir was watching with wide eyes, clearly fascinated by the sweet exchange that, unfortunately, the others couldn’t see in a similar light.

Because to everyone else?

They were simply doing their best to ignore the scene entirely.

What were they supposed to do with this stomach-churning lovey-dovey moment that no one wanted to witness?

Thankfully, the heavens took pity on the poor creatures and offered temporary relief.

"Duchess Amelia," Elder Feng spoke up, cutting through the moment.

"We came as soon as we were called by this balding Wei. For now, all we can confirm is that it is true."

"Count Alexander appears to have the ability to see a person’s affinity, or at least detect when one is being used nearby."

As expected, murmurs spread through the crowd.

That was not just useful.

That was extremely useful.

"But," Elder Feng continued, "he is still learning and at the early stages. At the moment, he can only detect it while the spiritual energy signature remains fresh. That is why we rushed here."

Duchess Amelia listened carefully.

Stunned.

But hopeful.

"Then my bloodline ability?" she asked. "What does a gray affinity signify?"

The Elders exchanged looks.

Elder Wei, still checking his head as if making sure his hair had not actually fallen out, finally spoke.

"Esoteric abilities."

The way he said it made it sound important.

Significant.

But the word itself—

It did not land.

From the youngest child to the oldest servant, including Butler Henry, people simply blinked.

Duchess Amelia repeated it under her breath.

"Esoteric..."

But unlike fire, water, ice, or wind, it did not give her anything to grasp.

No clear image.

No particular direction.

Seeing this, Elder Pao Xi stepped forward with a sigh.

"It’s basically a classification," he explained. "One that usually involves the manipulation of concepts rather than elements."

"You can think of them as rather difficult to discover, even... elsewhere," Elder Pao Xi said, stopping himself just short of revealing too much.

"It normally requires chancing upon the right conditions to activate unless one has some sort of basis to work from, like in this case, inheritance."

He continued, "Spatial abilities, for example, fall under that category. They’re not easy to guess, coax, or practice. One might not even realize they’ve triggered something until they open a void that’s difficult to return from."

At that, everyone instinctively turned to look at Marshal Julian, who was still trying to figure things out.

A few of them felt a bit sorry for him.

What if he accidentally got sucked away?

"Hey!"

Elder Pao Xi cleared his throat and brought everyone’s attention back.

"Those dealing with fate, spirits, blood-related abilities, or other obscure manifestations generally fall under this category because they’re just in their own league."

"Moreover, the rules could be anything, and the growth could be limitless depending on the user’s creativity and resources. But also because of this, it’s definitely not ideal to confine someone to a fixed interpretation."

He turned to the Duchess.

"Safe to say, Duchess Amelia, your affinity may not actually be related to plants."

"Then if it’s not plants...?" she asked, her brows furrowing.

"About that," Elder Pao Xi said as he shifted his attention. "Lord Luca, for testing purposes, would it be possible to obtain different types of essence?"

Obviously, many weren’t sure what this essence was.

They had to hear the explanation from Theo, who’d been asked to recite what he’d learned as part of his lessons.

His words sounded bewildering, but when they were asked to take a look at the ground they were all familiar with, only to realize he’d managed to make an enchantment potion that resulted in this, it got everyone gasping.

Then came applause.

They congratulated the flustered pharmacist, impressed that he had gone through all of that and emerged successful.

With a unique ability too!

Hearing such great news, Luca was motivated and stepped forward with determination.

"I’ll go look for what we need," he said. "Are we only gathering different kinds of essence?"

The golden-eyed cadet looked surprisingly resolute.

Even though, in the end, this would cost CP.

But this was for his cherished mother.

For learning.

For progress.

So the money-grubber was willing.

Then again, a big part of this resoluteness was largely because of something else.

The little system, upon seeing the pages and pages of things based on what the Elders rattled off, made an executive decision and didn’t immediately announce its findings to its Host.

Because what if he fainted from sheer shock?

But why?

Well, the Elders really weren’t kidding when they said that growth was dependent on one’s creativity and resources...

And what do you know? That was especially true for a refined Duchess who could apparently copy a little bit of this and that... and her filial son, who may or may not have an ability that could break the bank.

Given such cases, wouldn’t it be better to prioritize survival?