Aeron Pov
I would have to wait until the academy to absorb the dragon essence. Cultivating it would require time, and vast amounts of energy would be released in the process. Depending on my affinity with the elements within the essence, perhaps I could obtain some draconic abilities. However, this would make me a target for them.
'Power demands risks.'
There was a week until the academy started, and training would be a pointless endeavour, as my rank cap would hinder my growth. Talent was everything in Ashyn. Anyone with a low cap would either need to be insanely wealthy or lucky to even consider increasing their cap. Anything under {B} would be considered worthless and looked down upon.
'ZZzzzt' 'ZZzzzt' My watch buzzed.
It read, 'Araxys bitch is calling you.'
I had family here? A pulse of disgust shot through me, making me grimace. Family… the very word that doomed me in my past life. The very people you should trust, love and share joy with turned me into a slave, that fueled their ego and reputation. The disgust transformed to rage, but I couldn't let these emotions affect my judgment. I knew that but I couldn't simply shake away the past so easily. 'Sigh.'
I picked up.
.
.
.
???? POV
I was worried. There had been no response from him for 20 hours and 33 minutes. My eyebags had swollen slightly, revealing a faint red hue across my eyes. This was my 19th call. Did he get hurt? Kidnapped? Or did he offend someone? The academy was too restrictive. Leaves had to be requested and took up to 48 hours to process, as we were 'the future', especially those with higher talents.
"Hello?" A boyish voice sounded. Waves of relief washed over me but I didnt let out any sounds. I paused, contemplating how I would respond to this.
"...19 calls, Aeron. Did I not spank you hard enough 2 years ago?"
Silence answered me.
"Turn on your video. What are you doing right now?"
Black hair as dark as the deepest nights and grey eyes that glowed with a bored intensity filled the screen. His snow-white skin seemed to glow in the room he was in.
"Who are you? What have you done to Aeron?" He would never turn on his camera, and the way he stared was not the same shy boy I knew. His eyes glowed with an experience beyond our years, eyes carrying an endless depth, eyes that had a goal. It didn't fit his voice nor the slight chub on his face.
A faint smile played across his crimson lips, accompanied by a teasing arch of his eyes. He tilted his head slightly, swishing his messy bangs in the process.
"What's wrong, sis? You've always said I should grow up? Was it sooner than you expected?"
I didn't answer. No, I couldn't find a reply. The gears in my brain were grinding in confusion and wariness. I kept my face expressionless, but I was truly stunned.
He was stuttering over a call just three days ago. Growing up, Aeron had always been treated different. He was left in front of the guild with a note as a baby, helplessly wailing in the small casket. My parents ran facial recognition across the system but it came up blank. They were the sympathetic type of parents, kind to family, merciless to outsiders. So we took him in. My parents were always busy with guild matters unable to fully demonstrate their affection but they tried. Aeron didn't notice these rare cues, only focusing on the scorn and the bullying from the rest of the family. This resulted in a reserved boy, who was insecure, scared to meet expectations, scared to act, even worried when speaking with me or mom and dad. Therefore, we kept him out of family matters and sent him to a school in a more remote city. It was easy to disguise him. The Araxys had white hair, a special trait passed down through the generations. His 'differences' made him stand out in our family. But that wasn't all.
I was born with an {A-} cap, which was pushed to {A+} by spending a fortune. I was considered the hope and future for the Araxys, while he had a {C-} cap, which caused him to be further disregarded by the rest of the family. I too would have tossed away such low talent, but something about him drew me in internally. Maybe because he was adopted, I showed pity, took care of him secretly and even traded a reward to get him in this academy, away from the family burdens and scorns. In hopes he would find something worth living for in this cruel world, where talent mattered most.
So, the sudden change was welcome, but the adjustment was too sudden…too strange.
'Perhaps he is under a spell or influenced by demons. This can't be happening. The academy starts next week; I will check personally then. I am {C-}, so whichever demon he contracted with should be within my reach.'
"Cat got your tongue, sis?" There was a strange feeling I received from his words. A slithering sensation.
'An incubus?'
"I will find you when I am free in the academy. If you claim to know me, you will face the consequences. Do I make myself clear, Aeron?"
I hung up instantly. I really hoped my suspicions were wrong.
If my Aery truly wasn't a demon and this was the 'new' him, there would be more problems. I grabbed my teddy and held it tight.
"Anything for my little Aery."
.
.
Aeron POV
'Amusing.' I had assumed the wrong personality. It would have to be how I acted from now on.
She hadn't turned on her camera, but it was clear she was suspicious. Perhaps she thought I had made contact with demons or was even under a spell. It was a minor mistake, but I would need to find out about my past.
'I will leave it for now. First, I need to increase my personal funds. A membership at the Lunar auction would be a place to start. Money isn't enough to grab their deluxe membership due to their limited slots. Maybe the whereabouts of—'
A platinum droplet materialised between my eyebrows. It split itself into 20 pieces, eight golden, with the rest still glowing in a silvery white.
'Twelve primary meridians and eight…?' I didn't move. No, I couldn't move.
My heart sank. There was no exhilaration now. It would be the second time that something would be placed upon my body.
I wouldn't allow it.
Not again.
Faint white links formed between the droplets and each organ they were connected to. The eight droplets remained levitating behind the silver droplets. I had only 200 fate points from taking the dragon essence. Seething frustration gnawed at me. My helplessness was clear. I had nothing.
Truly nothing.
No arts.
No mana.
No abilities.
My fists shook. Only a day had passed since my arrival, but the burden had only increased. The links were starting to thicken. Each link had transformed into a ring, now interconnecting to form long chains with each organ. I watched as each bead gravitated towards them. I could feel my stats rising. Unfiltered energy flowed into me in gushes. A wonderful feeling. It wouldn't come without a price.
This I knew.
My clenched fist turned lax. These emotions were useless; I had to store them for the future. Only more bonds would be placed on me.
'Freedom is not so cheap.'
I couldn't see my expression right now, but I am sure Noah would have laughed. It was the first time I had been so helpless. After the influx of mana, I stared at the eight golden beads levitating in front of me, as if mocking my weak struggle. I stayed motionless, staring at them, expressionless. Time passed.
But I stared.
Morning had arrived; radiant beams of sunlight emerged into the once dark room. Finally the beads acted. Each is linked with each other, forming the Primordial Bagua*. It floated flat above my head and then bathed in a ray of liquid gold. Anyone who saw it would be blinded, not due to its vibrance, but the raw primal vitality it exuded. There was no commotion. Perhaps the area had been sealed. I couldn't feel anything within me change, but my eyes had dimmed a shade.
Another heavy mantle had been placed.
I stayed, kneeling on the cold wooden floor after it was all completed.
The black status screen hung ominously in front of me. I released a slight exhale before my eyes met it.
.
.
.
Multiple places on Ashyn…
.
"Here comes another."
"Hhmm.. who could it be now?"
"I feel it close… unseen, unbound."
"Fuck's sake. Not again…"
"…"
Countless voices sounded across Ashyn.
.
.
.
Vexham
His perfect eyebrow arched. Time slowed. Billows of miasma convulsed around him.
And a deep voice resounded across the realm.
"Make haste."
.
.
.
Aeron POV
I was back on the train to a different place located north of Kony. The journey would take a day. My rank cap had increased to {EX}. There was little joy in finding out but there was nothing I could do.
'For now'
'Status'
Aeron Araxys
𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘
Status
Bloodline: ??? [SEALED]
Description: A yearning for freedom…
==========
Rank cap: {EX}
Rank: {F+}
==========
Strength: 8 (3)
Stamina: 7 (2)
Agility: 9 (4)
Mana cap: 11 (6)
Perception: 9 (4)
Dexterity: 10 (5)
Charm: 40 (20)
Luck: 30 (0)
==========
Talents: A Gambler's Reality — Ashyn's Ichor
Skills: Pain Resistance {SSS} (Max) ---All Languages {S} (Max)
Arts:
==========
Fate Points: 8700 (+200+10000-1500)
Fate Shop
Ashyn's Death: 3 years 74 days… (4 years 75 days)
==========
End
𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘𝄘
The Ichor forced into me raised my fate points but increased the speed of Cain's arrival by a whole year. That was the year it took the MC to rise from {C} to {B}. There was a lot of work to be done.
'I will focus on myself for the time being.'
==========
Poker Face {B}←{C} (4%)
Description: an unreadable straight face to keep you folding under pressure and applies a pressure based on your emotions before activating the skill.
>Mana cap, Stamina<
==========
Poker Face seemed like a good investment but 1500FP was a steep price.
==========
Talent: Ashyn's Ichor
Description: 'Learn to love me, in turn my world'
A strand of her divinity rests within you.Your presence is harder to notice. Always lingering just out of reach. Great rewards bear consequences. 8 rewards 8 consequences.
+{EX} cap
+100% hostility from foreign races
-100% hostility from Ashyn's inhabitants
+1 full reset if soul undamaged every century
Unable to harm Ashyn and inhabitants
+Astreal affinity
-Bloodline sealed
-Soul sealed
-Watched by Ashyn
+30 Luck
-80% emotional control
Life linked to Ashyn
>All stats shown are half of what they are<
Leaving Ashyn will remove talent; {EX} cap unaffected.
Skills: A Celestial's Stare {SS} —Imperius Excidio {SS} —Seal{A} —The First Light {SSS}
==========
The ichor increased my stat point, but my bloodline was now sealed, not that it had changed anything. The main concern was the emotional instability. It would definitely change the way I acted. If I upgraded the skills, I was sure I would be able to keep them, but they weren't my priority now. I wouldn't have the stats to wield them anyways.
Only Celestials could use Astreals. What did this make me? Incurring their wrath would be hundreds of times worse than dragons. I stopped pondering things beyond me for now and enjoyed the passing scenery.
.
.
.
Finally, I had arrived at the base of the mountain. The hero would come here eventually after his mother's death to bury her, only for the owner of the mountain to see his talent and open up the monastery curtain of illusion that shielded the outside world from looking in. Only {S+}-ranked could perceive it, but breaking in would take {SS}, even though this person was {S+}. To enter I had to wander aimlessly for five hours at the base of this mountain; you would blink and find yourself in his territory. The objective was to get a certain meditation manual and train here if he made me his disciple.
.
.
If there was a Mount Hua Sect on Ashyn, this would be the one. Fragrant cherry blossoms littered the sky, falling slowly, each glowing with a rosy shimmer. The soothing scent of fresh sweet plum filled the air, creating a sense of serenity I couldn't quite describe. It was fully empty. It had been uninhabited ever since the true owner died. And now he stayed here in his memory. Their memory. Despite the grand display, a sombre and lonely feel was evoked within me.
"It's sad, isn't it? No amount of blossoms can replace the children who used to roam these streets."
I didn't react to his presence, but I replied.
"Their souls have already moved on."
.
"So why haven't you?"