Kaelen's Perspective
I woke up at my usual time. Today was the day. The final, unavoidable moment.
My heart was a tight knot of controlled anxiety, but my face was the image of a focused, well-behaved child. I woke Aisha—she was already a quick riser now, thanks to our training—and we went through our morning routine.
At the breakfast table, I began the final stage of my plan.
"Zenith," I piped up, my voice bright and insistent. "I want to see your adventure card."
Everyone laughed slightly, thinking it was a child's sudden obsession. Paul immediately offered, "You can look at mine, Kaelen! See how strong your old man is!"
"No," I whined, pouting slightly. "Only Zenith's! I want to see hers!"
I was insistent enough that it delayed the breakfast, but not so much that it caused real alarm. Lilia looked at me with a strange, searching gaze—the look that confirmed she knew last night was not an illusion. I knew she was confused but trusted me. Zenith eventually promised to show it to me after we ate, and I quieted down, carefully consuming my food.
As soon as everyone finished, Zenith headed upstairs to retrieve her card. Paul scooped up Norn and wandered into the lounge area, distracting her with some silly game.
Now was the time.
"Mama," I whispered, pulling on Lilia's apron. "Please bring all the money you've saved. Quickly, please."
Lilia's eyes widened, the last vestiges of doubt from the night before vanishing. This was no longer a game. Without a word, trusting the strange, quiet authority in my voice, she hurried downstairs to her room.
Aisha watched me, her small face confused, but silent. She knew something momentous was happening.
Lilia returned quickly, her hand trembling slightly as she placed a small leather pouch on the table. Her room was downstairs, giving us precious seconds. From the pouch, she pulled a small velvet-lined box—the gift for Rudeus.
I counted the funds: about seven Gold Coins and a collection of silver and copper. A substantial emergency fund for a servant. I quickly took two Gold Coins and put them in my own pocket. I returned the pouch to Lilia.
"Keep this on you all day, Mama," I instructed, my eyes meeting hers, a serious look passing between us. "And remember: think about your own children first, before anyone else's." I didn't need to name Rudeus; she understood the subtle command to prioritize me, Aisha, and Norn.
I then turned to Aisha, picked her up, and whispered into her ear, "Remember everything I told you last night, little sister." I gently passed her into Lilia's arms.
"Lilia," I commanded, my voice firm. "Do not leave Aisha alone. Keep her tightly in your arms, right here, for the next hour."
Lilia was visibly scared and confused, but she tightened her embrace around Aisha, clutching her like a lifeline.
Just then, Zenith reappeared, descending the stairs with her Adventure Card in hand. I quickly slipped the two Gold Coins into my pocket.
I ran to Zenith. She chuckled and picked me up, showing me the card. It was blank.
"See, Kaelen?" she said lightly. "It's all blank. The magic faded because I haven't updated it in years."
As she walked to the dining table, Paul came in with Norn, teasing me about being eager to join the Adventurer's Guild.
The front door opened. Sylphiette walked in, cheerful and ready for a morning visit.
The moment was upon us.
I scanned the room: Norn was safely in Paul's big hands in the center of the lounge. Aisha was clutched tight in Lilia's fearful embrace near the dining table. Sylphiette was walking past the doorway.
Zenith began to put me down on the floor. I reacted instantly. I threw my arms around her neck and clung tight, screaming a wordless noise, forcing her backward. I was slightly bigger than Aisha, and my sudden movement unbalanced her.
I heard the sound of Zenith's startled gasp as we began to fall, my grip impossibly strong.
Then, it happened.
A blinding flash of white light filled every corner of the house. It was a searing, impossible brightness that drove all other thoughts from my mind.
It was followed by an instant, sickening silence. The roar of the event was too loud for my ears to process. I felt a tremendous, violent surge of energy rip through my body, a pain beyond anything I'd ever experienced in either life. My consciousness fractured.
The last thing I registered was the terrible, wrenching sensation of displacement, and then... nothing.
I fell into a coma.
Rudeus's Perspective
I woke up feeling fantastic. Today was the day I'd show Ghislaine and Eris just how powerful a Saint-level mage I really was. I had promised a demonstration, and I was going to deliver.
We met at the usual spot: the flat, open grassland behind the local mountain near the Boreas estate.
I was focused, channeling a powerful Cumulonimbus spell, when a booming shout cut through the air.
"Couch down!, Rudeus!" Ghislaine bellowed.
My training immediately took over. I dropped to the ground, instinctively covering my head.
A sudden whoosh of compressed air passed directly over my ear, followed by the terrifying clang of two metal blades clashing behind me.
I spun around to see a man in strange, white armor facing Ghislaine.
"I am Almanfi, familiar of Perugius," the armored man announced, his voice carrying an unnerving calm. "I am here to stop the cause of that Occurance before it consumes the surrounding area."
Ghislaine stood firm, her sword ready. "My ward and I have nothing to do with any strange occurrences! I swear on my tribe's pride and my blade!"
The man, Almanfi, paid her no mind. His head lifted, staring intensely into the sky. "It's too late. The confluence is complete."
Then, a massive, blinding light erupted in the distant sky—a pillar of impossible, chaotic energy.
Almanfi glanced at the pillar, muttered something I couldn't hear, and then, with a flash of light, wisked away—leaving the immediate problem unsolved.
Ghislaine turned, her eyes wide with urgency. "Rudeus! Protect Eris!" she screamed, grabbing the girl and running toward her.
I activated my Stone Wall spell, trying to create a quick defense, but the light was faster. It washed over Ghislaine first, enveloping her in a searing, oppressive white. She vanished without a sound.
A split second later, the chaotic energy reached us. I threw my body over Eris, trying to shield her with my own small frame.
The light engulfed us both. The world dissolved into a cacophony of white, and I lost all sensation of up, down, or gravity.
The journey had begun.
To be Continued