Chapter 71 - The General is 11 Years Old
It’s been three years since I started my training to become an Evenhart Legacy, but what I’m most excited about is finally being able to reach some high places thanks to my growth spurt. I can even... steal sweets. Martha hides everything on the top shelves of the castle’s pantry, but luckily, I’ve been getting better at mastering my faulty wind element. I can generate a gust of wind that knocks the jars down, and I’d grab a few treats for myself. The hard part is putting the jar back, but I managed by tossing it up and creating a current of air to push it back into place. Don’t judge me... those sweets are really delicious, and even that crazy Athena encouraged me as long as I shared some with her. The wretch can create a ghostly copy of anything I touch, and she was thrilled to be able to eat again... not that she ever goes hungry, she just enjoys the flavors. Now I have a goddess encouraging me to steal sweets... I deserve this.
I’ve improved my use of the wind element to an acceptable level, but there’s been a small side effect as I’ve gradually increased my control over it. Sometimes, my eyes would bleed. Occasionally, I’d involuntarily shed tears of blood, and my aunt and mother warned me that my eyes were probably close to awakening.
It’s no longer just a suspicion; it’s a certainty...
The Grand Duke visited us again a year ago, took our photos, and checked our eyes. He asked if we felt anything strange or any pain in our eyes, and I had to lie.
Obviously, the Grand Duke didn’t go from house to house checking on the children. His job involved more of the nobles from the two duchies he managed, acting as a liaison with the royal family, and he needed to update the records of noble children with noble titles every five years. He also checked our eyes because if the awakening of Special Eyes were to occur, it would happen in a noble family with a long history of mages.
For Special Eyes to emerge, a potent magical bloodline is necessary, which means that if it were to happen, it would be in a noble family with a long lineage of mages.
The awakening of Special Eyes is unique, and only a few in each generation achieve it; sometimes, decades would pass without a child being born with these eyes. In my case, fortunately or unfortunately, I, who didn’t want to draw attention, had the perfect scenario to possess Special Eyes.
On my father’s side, there’s a lineage of noble mages who almost always married other mages, so my family had a powerful lineage to the point where my father had potent magical blood, which allowed him to be born with an Uncommon Element. My mother’s side is still a mystery, but I discovered that I’m a descendant of a High Elf, and my mother told me that it wasn’t just any High Elf but from a pure lineage of High Elves who held some sort of special position or something like that for generations in the Elven Kingdom. My mother was born as a special person who awakened a high concentration of elven magical blood, causing her to awaken an uncommon element exclusive to elves. This meant that her magic had broken an elemental restriction by awakening the uncommon element in someone of another race.
My teacher told us that my mother was special because she was also born with the physical characteristics of the High Elves, which is why she was considered ‘beautiful’ and ‘young’ by human standards.
Professor Adrihna would visit occasionally, staying with us for a month before returning to her travels. I discovered that there was an underground transportation system accessible from Evenhart city that connected to other parts of the kingdom. This allowed her to stay closer to Apsalon and continue giving us occasional mana control lessons. Chloe, Kinue, and I grew up together, and the fox girl even started training to become a servant in the castle. The three of us became much closer as we grew up, sharing secrets like Carnellian and Cylla with her. After all, we couldn’t keep the spoiled phoenix locked away forever. Once, we even took Kinue to scare Carnellian, and when she saw the giant panther in the garden, she turned pale and refused to walk around the castle after learning there was a deadly beast roaming the halls. It took some convincing to assure her that Carnellian wouldn’t harm her, but in the end, it all worked out.
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As my Mana Gem developed, Professor Adrihna regularly examined me, as this caused a mess in my mana channels. She wanted to understand whether I was more human or High Elf. When I showed her that I was crying blood, she asked me to keep it a secret from the kingdom. Although she had never dared to do this, given her diplomatic position, she insisted that I keep this between us and my family.
I think that was when she realized that I would indeed awaken Special Eyes.
I never intended to tell anyone if I did, but there's a law that requires anyone with Special Eyes to immediately notify the kingdom. All my professor said after diagnosing me was that I was likely more High Elf than human and that what would happen to me was unknown, as no one had ever awakened Special Eyes while being of mixed race. Not even normal elves could awaken those eyes.
It's highly likely that my High Elf ancestor came from a powerful magical lineage. Could they have been a baron or viscount?
My professor's theory is that my father’s magical concentration, which was strong enough to awaken the thunder element, combined with the awakened elven blood from my mother, made me an even more unpredictable anomaly.
I’m just a magnet for trouble… to think I originally wanted to live a quiet life in that village.
I stood in front of the mirror, checking how I looked in my “little suit.”
“At least my face is handsome, I guess,” I said, fiddling with my hair.
As I grew older, my skin became paler than usual, and I started letting my hair grow out to the point where I had to tie it back. For this event we were attending, I had to trim it a bit, thanks to my mother’s insistence.
‘Slam!’ The door to the room burst open with a loud crash.
“Nate! Are you ready?” a very excited Chloe burst into the room and flopped onto the bed.
I looked at her and stared at my cousin.
“Do you not know how to knock?”
“Nope. Why would I knock? Let’s go! You take forever getting ready,” she said, getting up and pulling me along.
“I think that’s supposed to be my line…”
We weren’t at home in the castle. We were in the Royal Capital, staying in a massive mansion for a special event—the 12th birthday of the king’s son from the Kingdom of Teresia. In this world, people celebrate a special birthday when they turn 12. There had been a huge celebration for three whole days in the Capital, and this was the fourth day, where a private party for the nobles was being held. Of course, my family had to attend.
“Nate, how do I look? Am I pretty?” Chloe asked, turning her head to the side.
“You look very pretty for a girl your age.”
It’s okay to compliment her like that, right? Even though I’m still a kid, I don’t really know how to act…
Chloe looked at me, blushing deeply.
“What does that mean? Am I pretty or not? Would I lose to a girl of a different age? What do you mean by that? I don’t get if that was a compliment.”
Gods… she’s just making this more complicated.
I scratched my head, trying to come up with a response that would get me out of this mess.
I sighed internally.
"You’re so pretty that I get nervous complimenting you. Satisfied?”
I wasn’t lying… I really was nervous.
“Whatever,” she said, turning her face away, but I could see the smile she was trying to hide.
She grabbed my hand and started pulling me along.
“Come on, we have to go to my mom’s room. Aunt Katie is waiting for us there.”
Chloe Evenhart:
I was dragging Nate by the arm as we headed toward my mother’s room. I had to hide my nerves while holding his hand.
I did it! I got him to compliment me again!
Nate always got flustered when I teased him like this. I’d seen him train with swords for years, always calm and composed, but I could provoke him to the point of stuttering.
Only I can make him react like this, hehe.
My mother noticed that I… maybe… liked him just a little bit, and she called me in for a long talk. That’s when I found out the secret about our future.
I glanced back at him, catching a glimpse of his face, and sighed.
I’m engaged… I still can’t believe it.
I found out that my mother had arranged an engagement between me and Nathan. I was furious when she first told me I was betrothed to someone, but when she revealed who it was… I didn’t know how to feel. I was torn between being angry at my mother or… happy with what she did.
I promised myself that if I were going to be engaged to him, it would be on my terms!
I don’t want to trap Nate in the mess of my past, but I’m not complaining about what’s happening between us either. I told my mother I would find a way to make that electrified idiot fall in love with me. There’s no point in being engaged if he doesn’t feel anything for me. So, I’ve made it my mission.
I'm going to make this electrified idiot spark some love for me!
I glanced back at him again, sneaking a look.
He makes such a cute face when he doesn’t know how to react when I pull him along, hehe.