Raelith gasped awake, sitting up immediately, eyes wide.
His hands patted his chest, searching for any sign of the injury that should have been there, but there was nothing.
Relief flooded him immediately, and he sank back onto his bed, lying flat. He wasn't dead. He hadn't been stabbed. He stared at the ceiling, a small smile appearing on his face.
That was when something occurred to him.
'Wait a minute. Wasn't I just on the battlefield?'
That was the moment his soul fused together, the past and future merging to become one.
Raelith felt as if his skin was experiencing hotness and coldness at the same time, the sensation extremely uncomfortable. His vision wavered, before going white, a high pitched ringing voice filling his ears.
He sat up, this time in pain, clutching his head with a loud groan.
A few seconds later, the sensations faded away, leaving him breathing hard. His eyes fluttered open, and he finally took in his surroundings.
This was... his room. His room in Veynar Hold, where he'd spent the first sixteen years of his life!
He'd been reborn back to the time when he was sixteen!
He threw off the blanket covering his lower half, before jumping off his bed and heading to the mirror in the room.
At the sight of what was waiting for him, an incredulous laugh bubbled out of his chest. His youthful face, shoulder length black hair, and beautiful green eyes stared back at him. And judging from his memories, he'd been reborn on the day of his awakening!
Laughter forced its way out of his mouth and before he could control himself, Raelith began laughing uncontrollably.
This was incredible! The Tyrant of Ashenfall had another chance! Another chance to make things right. Another chance to stand at the pinnacle of the world.
A wild grin appeared on his face as his laughter tapered off. Now that he had another chance, he wouldn't live like he had before.
He will not live as a tyrant surrounded by traitors. Instead, he will become unrivaled, leaving no one who can rise against him.
At that moment, the door to his room swung open.
Raelith turned towards it, a frown on his face as anger erupted within him, the emperor within him flaring up at the disrespect. But when his eyes landed on who had opened the door, his anger evaporated immediately.
His maid, Aurora, walked in, a bright smile on her face. "Good morning, Raelith."
Raelith stared at her, eyes wide. His last memory of her surfaced in his mind. Of her bleeding out, having taken an attack to protect him. An unawakened human, protecting an injured Tier 1 boy with her life.
Noticing the look he was giving her, Aurora glanced down at her dress in confusion. "Did I spill something on my dress?"
Raelith immediately composed himself, clearing his throat. "It's nothing," he said, turning away.
"I see." Aurora nodded. "You must be nervous. After all, today is your awakening day!" She squealed, more excited at the prospect of awakening than he was.
He couldn't help but chuckle at the sight, a sad smile appearing on his face. Now that he'd been granted a new life, he'd make sure she doesn't die this time. She deserved a long and fruitful life. But before that, there was something he had to do.
"Aurora?"
"Yeah?" She looked up from where she'd been picking out his outfit for the day.
"Can I give you a hug?"
Aurora paused, having not expected the question. Then she laughed, turning to him and spreading out her hands. "Of course, silly."
He strode towards her, almost breaking into a run, then enveloped her in a hug. Her hands encircled his torso, patting his back slowly.
Raelith smiled as he realized he was already taller than her, even at sixteen. In his memories, she'd always been steady and mature, even though she was only two years older than he was.
"Don't worry, Raelith." She whispered. "You'll definitely awaken a blessing."
He chuckled at her words, realizing that she'd thought he was nervous about his awakening.
There was nothing to fear about that. While he couldn't feel the familiar flames of his Blessing within him right now, he'd awakened once before, and it won't be any different this time.
A few seconds later, he stepped back, smiling at her. "Thank you, Aurora." He said with sincerity.
She simply chuckled before turning back to his wardrobe to select his outfit.
Raelith turned back to the mirror, staring at his reflection within it. He had a lot of things to do, but before all that, he needed to awaken.
And with that, he headed to his adjoining bathroom to prepare for the day.
Thirty minutes later, Raelith walked out of his room, Aurora behind him. He quickly made his way to the dining room, the tables already loaded with food.
"And who do we have here?" A voice he'd long forgotten reached his ears. "If it isn't the bastard himself."
Raelith glanced at his half-sister, before ignoring her entirely and taking his seat at the table.
"What have I told you about manners, Elowen?" His elder half-brother, and heir to the Veynar Barony, Seren Veynar, spoke from where he sat at the right hand side of the throne-like chair at the head of the table. "Raelith is your elder brother. He is to be treated with the same respect as me."
Seren turned to Raelith with a kind smile. "Good morning, Raelith. Are you excited about your awakening?"
He sat with the same black silky hair that was the defining characteristic of House Veynar, but with softly glowing golden eyes. Anyone who saw him would say he was the splitting image of their father.
Draped around his neck was his spirit beast, Coral. Coral was a young imoogi, a serpent-like creature that was also known as the lesser dragon. It slithered around Seren, its beautiful blue scales shimmering slightly.
"I don't know why you keep being nice to the stain on our mother's honor." Elowen said, glaring at Raelith. "And now, he'll be getting his own awakening ceremony."
Elowen was dressed in a yellow gown, just a shade lighter than her blonde hair. She was just a year younger than he was, at fifteen years old. Her golden eyes moved back to her brother. "Aren't you worried that he'll—"
"Elowen." Seren cut her off, his voice holding a hint of steel. "That's enough."
Raelith didn't bother to say anything, digging into his meal.
The old Raelith had been angry and hurt by Elowen's words, after all, he truly was the bastard son of Lord Veynar. But now, he didn't care what Elowen thought of him.
He had his sights set on something greater than their minds could conceive. What they thought of him didn't matter at all. But if Elowen kept running her mouth, he might just be tempted to shut her up.
Thankfully, Elowen simply shot him a glare before standing and leaving the dining room.
Now, it was only Seren and Raelith remaining, every other member of the Veynar family having breakfast in private. Well, except their father. He never ate breakfast.
"Don't take Elowen's words to heart, Raelith." Seren said, his voice apologetic. "She simply thinks she's fighting for my mother."
His imoogi hissed, as if in agreement.
"Thank you, Seren." Raelith nodded.
And with that, they ate, each one saying nothing, preoccupied with their thoughts.
As for Raelith, he couldn't help but wonder if he'd get the same Blessing he'd gotten at his first awakening. His trusted flames. There was no precedent for this, so he'd have to wait and see.
When he was done with breakfast, one of the guards who had been standing against the wall stepped forward, just like he had in his previous life.
"Lord Raelith. It is time."