Chapter 5: The Day the Lazy Heir Awakened 1
Three months had passed since my conversation with Penelope, the longest I had ever shared with anyone since I was born.
My step-siblings rarely gave me more than a passing glance, my stepmother only ever barked orders, and my father was hardly ever home.
But today was different. Today was special.
The estate was alive with preparation. Many honoured guests were expected to arrive, including my elusive father.
The air thrummed with anticipation, for this was no ordinary gathering, this was my Awakening Day, the day my short, peaceful life would come to an end.
Servants bustled through the grand halls, their hurried footsteps echoing off marble floors as they carried trays of crystal goblets and fragrant flowers.
Every corner of the estate hummed with the energy of expectation, yet a heavy knot coiled in my stomach. I could almost feel the weight of the eyes that would soon fall upon me, guests I barely knew and family who scarcely acknowledged me.
This day, once a distant inevitability, had finally arrived, and with it, the quiet of my life would be forever shattered.
***
"Are you nervous?" my first friend asked as she settled beside me. We sat within the same sun-dappled garden where we last met, the soft scent of blooming roses mingling with the faint hum of distant activity.
As my betrothed, she alone was permitted to arrive before any of the other guests, and her presence brought an unexpected comfort I didn’t know I needed.
"Yeah, a little," I told her, my voice barely louder than the whisper of the wind through the rose bushes.
Her eyes softened as she leaned closer, she reached out, her fingers brushing mine. "It won’t be as bad as you think, I’m sure you will awaken a high potential." she said gently, but the uncertainty in her own voice betrayed her words.
I already knew I would awaken the highest potential; it was what would come after that which made me nervous. Of course, I couldn’t tell her that, so I simply offered a warm smile in return.
"Though, did you hear that the first princess awakened an SSS potential?" She whispered, leaning towards me. "The first in twenty years! And the second son of Duke Vellaroux also awakened an SSS potential. My mother said it was impossible for two people to awaken the highest potential in the same year... but it actually happened."
"I heard rumours," I admitted, my voice low, "Two SSS potentials in one year... it feels like something big is coming."
If only she knew that this year would see not just two SSS potentials but five. The world would be whispering, shouting, and speculating in the days to come, yet she sat here, blissfully unaware that one of those fated five was seated right across from her, me. I smiled faintly, letting her words hang in the air, knowing the truth would soon shake our quiet world to its core.
"I also heard a rumour that the first princess and the second son of Duke Vellaroux got engaged shortly after their awakening," I said.
"Really? That’s cool," she replied, unable to hide her curiosity.
Our conversation was cut short when my maid came to tell me that the guests would soon arrive and that I should wait in my room until the awakening began.
"Good luck," Penelope waved at me, her small hand fluttering like a pale ribbon in the sunlight.
I laughed internally, realizing that it had only taken a single conversation to make the noble girl abandon her rigid etiquette when speaking to me.
For someone raised in the structured poise of aristocracy, the way her formality melted away in my presence was oddly satisfying. The air of the room felt lighter for it, and the corners of my lips curved in silent amusement.
All I could do now was wait, wait for the moment that would shatter the quiet rhythm of my life, wait for the world to see me not as a shadow drifting through the halls, but as the heir destined to awaken.
***
"System, what is the probability that Penelope also has the Akashic key within her?" I asked curiously.
[She doesn’t. Even though you aren’t awakened yet, if someone with the Akashic key is close to you, I would have immediately sensed it.]
"Ohh, never mind then." I felt a faint ripple of disappointment, but the emotion slipped away as quickly as it came. In the end, it hardly mattered.
Now that there were still a few hours left before my awakening, there seemed no better way to spend them than in quiet repose. I nestled into the soft embrace of my bed, the silken sheets cool against my skin and the faint hum of the estate drifting through the walls like a lullaby. For a fleeting moment, I allowed myself to forget the weight of expectation, the whispers of fate, and the inevitability of change.
Peace. Gentle, unbroken, and fleeting.
In this cocoon of stillness, I let my thoughts drift like leaves upon a calm river. The soft rhythm of my breath matched the slow turning of the world beyond the window. For these last few hours, I was neither heir nor vessel, neither celestial nor mortal. I was simply... me.
Soon, the world would demand my attention. The corridors would echo with the footsteps of guests, the air would thrum with anticipation, and every eye would turn to judge the moment of my awakening. But until that tide washed over me, I would cling to this island of serenity, a final rest before the storm.
In the warmth of that stillness, I closed my eyes, knowing that the life I had known, quiet, lazy, and my own, was already slipping into memory.
***
While Alash was drifting into a world of his own, several important guests began to appear within the grand halls of the Vortex estate. Despite the tarnish upon his name, carefully sown by his stepmother’s persistent manipulation, he remained the undeniable heir to one of the highest noble houses in the kingdom, second only to the royal family itself.
The corridors echoed with the faint rustle of luxurious fabrics and the measured steps of dignitaries, their presence heralded by the hushed reverence of servants. Carriages gleamed under the midday sun outside, while within, the air grew thick with the mingled scents of polished wood, blooming flowers, and the subtle perfume of visiting aristocracy.
Penelope was already in the hall with her parents and siblings, the grand chamber alive with murmured anticipation. Their collective gaze was fixed upon the first row of seats, where three men sat with an air that seemed to bend the world toward them. Their dominating presence weighed upon the hall, suffocating anyone who tried to approach them.
None of the three so much as acknowledged the other nobles filling the chamber. They sat apart, like peaks rising above a sea of lesser mountains, silent, immovable, and sovereign.
Duke Trohan.
Duke Relawear.
Duke Spinster.
Three of the Five Dukes of the kingdom, and already the hall felt too small to contain their authority. Their very stillness commanded the attention of all present, as if the course of the gathering, and perhaps the kingdom itself, revolved around them.
At the end of the hall, two low nobles exchanged hushed whispers, their voices barely rising above the soft echo of footsteps on the polished stone floor.
"As the heir of Duke Vortex, his potential should be either S or SS, right?" The first noble, a rotund man with flushed cheeks and an eager glint in his eyes, leaned closer as he spoke.
"You haven’t heard the rumours, have you?" The second, a thin man with round spectacles perched on the tip of his nose, adjusted them slightly, his tone carrying the weight of scandal.
"Rumours?" The first noble blinked, curiosity overtaking his ignorance.
"It’s said he’s a disgrace," the man with glasses murmured, glancing around the hall as if the walls themselves had ears. "He spends most of his days sleeping in his room. He never trains, never studies, never does anything at all."
"Oh... is that why I have never seen him in any gatherings?"
"That’s right. Even his own family doesn’t celebrate his birthday because he skips even his siblings’ birthday banquets."
"Still, he is the son of Duke Vortex. He should still be able to awaken an A potential, or at worst, a B."
"Don’t be surprised if his potential is even lower than that," the bespectacled noble muttered, his voice dropping to nearly a whisper.
The words carried a note of derision that drew a faint smirk from his companion. Around them, the lavish hall seemed to hush in anticipation, the murmurs of other guests blending.
All eyes lingered upon the empty dais where the young heir would soon stand, waiting for the moment that would unveil the truth of his potential.