Kingdom of Sylvanus,
Capital city of Sylvane.
A beautiful city, with tall skyscrapers as high as the trees of the Sylvaran woods, rising far into the sky. The whole capital city is surrounded by natural lakes formed by the ever-present shower of water called the Azure Waterfall.
But along with this serenity, the capital city is still as noisy as ever—bustling with the happy chatter of the crowd, loud voices of vendors selling their goods, and children running around the streets, orchestrating their usual mess.
In one corner of the city stands Duke Vaeloreth's castle.
One would expect the same serenity the kingdom of Sylvanus embodies.
But it is anything but that.
The whole castle has been turned upside down because of one baby..
Yes, it is our Azrael.
"Ahh.. why you.. woman, why!" Azrael screams.
But the maid in front of him can only hear,
"Waaaahh naaahh waaahh." — a baby's cry.
"I just had my fill three hours ago, I don't need milk again," Azrael remarks.
The maid is oblivious to all of this, and still feeds him the milk.
After drinking the last drop:
"Maybe I was hungry. sorry for the tantrum, lady," says Azrael.
And this has been the daily scene in Duke Vaeloreth's castle for the last five months.
The maids rush from one room to another, taking care of baby Azrael's food, his daily bath, and his frequent disposal of waste.
And Azrael has been no help to them, one would expect calmness and intelligence from a twenty-three-year-old reincarnated man, but all he has been is one moody bit*h..
"I never thought being a baby would be so hard."
"You can't eat by yourself, you can't walk, can't talk."
"And this baby shell of mine... why does it need to sleep all day?" Azrael is frustrated for not being able to do anything. He was so ready for the action when he stepped into the portal.
But nobody warned him of a buffer period as a baby.
"Ahh.. I'm feeling sleepy again."
With that, Azrael dozes off to dreamland.
Eightyears later,
Azrael is seen lying on his bed covered in books, he is skimming through the pages, trying to register as much of the knowledge as he can in one go.
He is eight years old now, and is over his moody phase.
He has become reserved and silent.
A maid knocks on his door and enters.
"Young master, you have to get ready. The Duke and Duchess are going to be here any moment now."
"It's your first time meeting them. you must be in your best condition," the maid urges Azrael.
"Okay then, prepare a bath for me, and take out the ceremonial clothes," Azrael says calmly.
"Alright young master."
The maid bows and exits.
"So I am finally going to meet them, huh.."
"I have an older brother too. No idea when I'm going to meet him."
"Well, let's get ready first to meet my parents of this world."
"After meeting them, let's judge whether they are of importance of not."
It sounds harsh to classify the relationship between mother and child to importance, but that is just who Azrael is.
Azrael of Earth was born an orphan, so he is not familiar with the dynamics of a parent and child.
If the Duke and Duchess are good to him in this world, he will be good to them. Other than that, there is no established affection between them yet.
This is the first time in eight years that he is going to meet his father and mother.
The period of bonding they should have shared in those eight years was neglected—not that he is blaming them.
Even if they were present, Azrael doubts he would have opened up to them.
He is twenty-three mentally, and has spent all his life living alone.
He doesn't understand what a family is.
For him, it has always been him alone vs the world.
The maid returns to inform him the bath is ready.
Azrael gets off his bed, moves towards the bath, and after he is done, returns to his room and gets ready.
He walks out of his room wearing a clean linen shirt tucked into deep navy trousers, the fabric moving with elegance beneath a night-black scholar's robe.
He is usually seen as a very cute boy, with messy golden hair, red fluffy cheeks, and emerald-green eyes symbolizing the Vaeloreth lineage.
But today, when the maids and soldiers see him walk out of the house — with neatly combed hair and the black robe draped over him, they are amazed.
Azrael exudes an air of elegance and grandeur far beyond his
Eight-year-old self.
At the gate, all servants and soldiers of Vaeloreth Castle are standing in order to welcome the master of the estate.
The head butler, standing at the front, sees him and bows. Azrael walks towards him and stands beside him.
"You look amazing, young master," the head butler comments.
"Thanks for the compliment, head butler." Azrael replies.
After the exchange, they stand still and wait for the Duke's carriage to arrive.
A few minutes later—
A carriage arrives, drawn to the castle, with House Vaeloreth's symbol embossed on it.
All the soldiers straighten up.
The carriage halts, and Duke Ragnar and Lady Elyndra step out.
Azrael is stunned by what he sees.
No.. not by the arrival of his mother and father.
But because— a ripple flashes before his eyes, and a golden panel shimmers into existence...
[System initializing....]