Reynold Archduke was standing at the front of the hall listening to the Patriarch's speech, but he didn't understand the old man's words in the first place.
His brain couldn't comprehend them, the words just went in through one ear and came out through the other, leaving no trace in between.
Sometimes he wondered whether everyone who got older would like to talk about many boring things at length. That also happened to his parents at home too.
He was often lectured about various things, especially his mother. And because it was so frequent, he could be said to be quite experienced in dealing with situations like this, just kept your mouth shut. Acted as submissive and be quiet as possible when older people spoke, whether you paid attention or not was another matter.
He noticed that the hair, mustache, and beard of the old man in front of him, who was also none other than his grandfather, had turned completely white as snow.
In his imagination, he compared him to his father, who would also become the same old preacher. The thought made him shudder, he took a step back as a reflex and bumped into whoever was behind him.
“Ah, sorry!”
Reynold immediately turned around. However, because his position was too close and he also didn't take up enough space to make a maneuver, his forehead almost hit the person's chin. He almost had to apologize a second time to this person.
"Don't worry."
Reynold lifted his eyes and took a step back for a wider view. From there he was surprised because his first impression was this person in front of him was much taller, bigger, and thicker. He was clearly older than him.
Although a friendly smile now was plastered on this big guy's face, Reynold's defensive instincts as a smaller person here were triggered. He could only reply with a smile as well, but it was much stiffer.
Then, Reynold stood to the side, following the other kids pretending to pay attention to the preacher. Sometimes, he occasionally glanced at the big guy beside him.
He still had a question in his mind. He was sure he didn't know this guy, and yet he felt something familiar about him. He just couldn't figure out how.
“Hey, big brother,” Reynold approached while whispered.
“Why do you only attend the ceremony this year? Were you sick in previous years?”
“What do you mean 'previous years'? I've only been able to attend this year."
Seeing Reynold still clueless, the big guy continued, "I'm only six years old, so this is my first time."
Reynold snorted in disbelief at his answer, “No way, you are definitely the oldest among us here."
“It's up to you to believe me or not.”
The big guy just shrugged his shoulders helplessly.
“Then, what's your…”
Reynold had not finished his words when the call from the front was heard.
"Aria Archduke.”
“That's my cue, I'll go first, shorty.”
Aria patted the shoulder of the guy beside him who he didn't know his name and stepped out of the crowd.
His movement triggered whispers from the kids around him. They thought that the one who came forward this time was someone who was the oldest among them, like Reynold just now.
"Aria? He is that Aria?! Rosalind's brother from three years ago?!”
Reynold mumbled in a daze, then his eyes widened in disbelief.
“How can that anti-social meatball become such a muscular giant?! What happened to him these three years, why did he age like that?!”
…..
“Put your hand on the crystal ball, close your eyes and try to concentrate.”
First Elder gave the same instructions as three years ago while giving the first participant a strange look.
He would have thought that this child had skipped his participation in previous years if he had not known that he was only six years old.
Aria had already done so before the instructions came after the crystal ball was within his reach.
What did he see and feel? Dark, black, nothing. Of course, he would see nothing cause his head was still light. The old man's hand was still not there.
Shortly after, he felt a touch on his head, as he began to feel a minuscule change in his head. Feeling something foreign seeped through his crown.
He also felt the same way in both palms, but this time it was more vibrant. The comparison between the two was like a leaking water seepage and a shower of water through a fully opened faucet valve. Totally different sensation.
'Oh, this is how it feels, huh?'
Aria tried to track out every change he felt, but his vision was still dark. There had not been any visible indication of spiritual space, considering the changes he had witnessed in the other kids.
He was sure significant changes would happen sooner or later and could be detected easily.
But the changes to the system caught his attention first.
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New Energy Source Detected!
Identify… Success!
Detecting Changes… Success!
New Feature Activation...
Feature [Soul Map] Activated!
Start Accumulating…
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'Huh?!'
Aria was quite startled by the row of notifications. It turned out that the changes to his system preceded his spiritual space, which he didn't expect.
He paid close attention to those notifications. What caught his attention the most was the appearance of a new source of energy.
The difference this time, it was a new source of energy for his new feature, but it still amounted to zero, while his old energy accumulation had more than nine hundred points now.
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A little bit more, he could complete his modification for his ventriculus to unlock his first limit ability.
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Physique
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Ventriculus
Limit Modification: 952/1000 Energy Required
Effect:
- Highly improves the overall performance of the digestive system
- YOU CAN EAT MORE WITH LESS CHOKING
Limit Ability: Locked (4/5)
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Damn, that kind of explanation really irritated him. But it’s okay, he could tolerate it, as long as it worked. The result? This big and strong body, as well the aging he got, damn it.
The [Soul Map] feature sounded strange. He thought the feature would sound like [Spiritual Space], [Spiritual World], or something alike.
When he wanted to check it, it's not responding. Unlike the [Physique], which he immediately had direct access to. Probably this was because the enlightenment process was still going on, he thought so.
Then, he could only wait.
.....
"Why hasn't anything changed after so long?"
Unbeknownst to Aria, the onlookers started whispering amongst themselves, confused.
Why?
Because several minutes had passed, but the distortion of light around his body did not show any significant changes.
The majority of people would show their spiritual projection's form within that time interval. So, what happened to Aria was something normal? Yes, but not in a clan like them.
It was only common for ordinary people, where more than 70% of the population would experience the same thing, a failure to form a spiritual projection.
Although everyone could still access spiritual energy upon activation, most people could only use it in an amount almost negligible.
Failure to form a spiritual projection showed that the person had no affinity, which also showed his perception in a very dire condition too. Circumstances like this also caused most people to just stay ordinary as long as they lived.
Clans like the Archduke Clan possessed a certain heritage. It was in their bloodline. An extreme case like this was rare, not even one in the last twenty years.
That's why what happened right now astounded them, certainly in the opposite connotation.
The First Elder looked at the crowd that was starting to get noisy, then turned to the big boy in front of him.
He shook his head, feeling sorry for this poor child. He glanced sideways at the Patriarch that looked deep in thought with his brow furrowed as he watched his own grandson.
'This doesn't look right,' the Patriarch was stuck in his thoughts.
He did not expect that Aria would experience such a thing. He thought that his grandson had a special physique like his sister because he was the one who looked totally different in stature.
Unfortunately, the crystal ball couldn't possibly make a mistake. But such was a fate, turning at the most unexpected time.
'It's just that I don't know how that kid will react? I hope he will take it well.'
He couldn't wipe the worry off his face. He glanced at his brother, who had been waiting for a sign from him. Letting out a turbid air in his chest, he nodded.
"That's enough! Aria Archduke… No affinity. Perception… very low. Next!"
Aria was awakened by those words. After digesting what he heard for quite a while, he slightly bowed to the First Elder. He turned back to the position he had stood earlier.
“Unfortunately, the first person actually had a very bad result. I got quite worried with my result as well!”
"Well, that's a rare case. Unlike ordinary people, my parents said such a thing is almost impossible to happen in our clan."
"Oh, I guess he's just unlucky."
"You bet! Too bad he's not like his sister, Rosalind."
“Oh, he's the younger brother of that genius? Wow, I didn't expect that."
"Yeah, even though they're brother and sister, their fate was so far apart."
Along the way, the talk and whispers of the kids entered his ears. He didn't show any reactions to it, be it sad, angry, or disappointed.
He had expected it all along when he managed to unlock the [Soul Map] feature before he was asked to return.
Aria, who had seen and experienced many kinds of struggles, did not feel that this was worth lamenting.
He managed to activate his spiritual space successfully, although the result was not ideal. But he still could make a struggle with it, couldn't he?
He would only be one of many ordinary people in the world with the same starting point. And it was not considered a failure, but a challenge.
From zero to hero, that's what life taught him. The struggle was to be enjoyed, surely the result will be much sweeter. Moreover…
'It isn't as if I came back with an empty hand.'
Aria smiled confidently. He had the tools to fight back, and it was far more useful than a mere affinity and perception.
“Why are you grinning like a fool?”
Reynold was dumbfounded when he saw this big brother of him who turned out to be a little brother.
Aria was only a month younger than him. And from the lineage, Aria was considered his younger cousin, because his father, James Archduke, was the first brother of Alisa, Aria's mother.
“Oh, you have no idea.”
Aria replied curtly. His eyes didn't dim a bit. Instead, they grew brighter and sparkling with anticipation.
…..
In a running carriage, a mother and a son were staring at each other. Only they both had different expressions.
The son felt tired of convincing his mother that he was okay, while the woman with her motherly nature felt guilty, thinking what happened this morning was her failure as a mother.
"Mom, I'm fine. Did you see me cry? Angry, perhaps? Look, it's not like I became a waste…”
“Don't say such a word!” His mother's eyes glared at him sharply.
“Look, you didn't agree with that, and I thought so too. I just have to put in more effort. I'll still have my own life and everything will be fine, okay?”
"I just wanted to make sure it didn't spoil your spirits, son?"
"Of course, mother. Definitely!"
"But I still haven't seen my usual son."
"Huh? What do you mean, mother? I don't feel anything different."
"It's already noon but your mother still didn't hear you asking for food."
She made Aria speechless. Well, it's not wrong if his mother said that because that's the image he built for himself in the eyes of people.
But wait! That's not his fault!
Who had dragged him from his grandfather's residence all of a sudden without waiting for lunchtime?
Otherwise, he would have buried his face in the pile of delicious meat. The thought of the meat that should have been sitting in his stomach flew away, made him gloomy along the way.
“See,” her mother said, “You're CLEARLY not okay.”
"That's not it, mom. Besides, why did you have to rush me out of grandpa's place?" Aria replied depressedly.
"Urgh, that..."
It was Alisa's turn to feel awkward. Her actions were just spontaneous. Seeing her beloved son being toyed with by fate, her emotions overflowed uncontrollably.
Not finding a channel to vent, she could only vent her emotion to her poor father who approached them at the wrong timing.
Neville just stared at her dumbfounded. He didn't understand why his daughter threw a tantrum and gave him such a hateful look.
And, voila, a mother and a son were trapped in their own carriage on their way back to their residence.
Aria, who had guessed behind his mother's actions just now, could only sit limply in his seat. He looked down at his poor belly, having to wait a little longer to get its share of meat.
“Alright, alright. Don't put such a sad face like that."
"In exchange, I will cook you a special meal. You can request for anything."
"Really? Then I'd like grilled meat from a spiritual beast for lunch.”
Aria's eyes lit up, impatiently wanting to taste his first spiritual beast. His plan to delve deeper into the new feature of the system got thrashed all the way to the seventh heaven.