The time of summer in the coastal city Carnova had always been one that of sweltering heat. It had a peculiarity that throughout the three months of summer not a single drop of rain would fall from the sky.
This phenomena only seems to be specific for this city as other neighboring cities were doing just fine through the season. A public consensus was that because of the appearance of the Dimensional Gate in the middle of the city square six years ago the climate had permanently changed.
Appearance of a Dimensional Gate in this city was unexpected as there were no prior signs of spatial instability within the region. Thus this matter drew the attention of the Guild Alliance and thus Astral Divination Guild was held accountable for incompetency.
All of this caused quite the commotion six years ago. Local guilds were alarmed and unsure of whether they would be able to handle this matter so they immediately requested for reinforcements from the Alliance.
A subjugation team was dispatched from the capital yet the expected invasion from the other side of the Gate never came, adding more mystery to this case. Players couldn't enter from this side either. Since there was nothing they could do about this matter, the Guild Alliance decided to garrison the players lest the invasion happens at a later time.
However six years had passed with no particular event to note of. Except for the climate change and an increase of patients with mental instability, which was quite common among the unawakened due to prolonged exposure to spatial fluctuations. Everything seems to be business as usual.
The truth of this matter may never unfold.
Or so it seemed until the seemingly ever radiant summer sun of Carnova was covered with dark clouds this morning. The peculiar climate of no rain during the summer seemed to say farewell to the humans.
°°°°
The sky had become cloudy since she left home. It gave the impression that it would be a downpour at any moment yet throughout her journey to the Verdant Orphanage the sky held firm.
Laura walked as she pondered about the reason for such a rare change. She was accompanied by her youngest daughter today. Since today's decision will bring a significant change in their family she wanted all of her childrens to accompany her during the decision making.
Alas, her eldest daughter had gone to the academy two years ago after becoming an awakened and her only son has been working abroad since three years ago. When she thought of her son's reluctance to discuss the reason for not joining his father's guild or the name of the current guild he was part of, she couldn't help but feel vexed.
In recent years he hadn't bothered contacting her at all while also ignoring her calls. She would have been worried sick about his safety if not for the Life Lamp still being well lit throughout the time and the biannual money transfers he sent to her accounts.
Could it be that after becoming an adult her son had started disregarding her?
She sighed heavily as she dispelled those doubts. Though her son had become a bit cold towards her, she understood that he needed his privacy. Ever since she became a widow her only wish was for her childrens to grow up healthily and that they successfully awaken to become a player which she failed to do in her youth.
In this world awakening to be a player in their adulthood was the only path to success. As for all those who couldn't awaken they could only leave their fates to the players.
Among the unawakened population of this world Laura considered herself quite fortunate since she was able to marry her childhood sweetheart who was able to become a player and a prominent guild member of his time.
Majority of the players were known to hold the unawakened humans in disregard and disdain but her husband always treated her fairly. Thus her married life was harmonious. She was able to even witness two of her childs' awakening.
Usually in an unawakened household or half-awakened household, where one of the couple is an unawakened human, it would be considered a fortune if even a single child could awaken. But there always exist miracles.
In Laura's case, two out of the three children were awakened and she had already seen awakening signs which were similar to the previous duo on her youngest daughter. So she is 100% certain that her last child will also become awakened.
Laura glanced at her youngest daughter, Karla. She turned 18 last week and three weeks later she will attend Carnova city's awakening ceremony which is held on the first day of every month.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Karla was reluctant to come with her mother to the orphanage. She, along with her big sister, was shocked when her mother revealed her decision two days ago. Though both of the sisters knew the reason behind such a decision, they were still extremely unwilling about it.
All unawakened individuals were obligated to send four childrens of their family for an awakening ceremony within three decades after reaching adulthood. This was the law that had been set since the establishment of the Guild Alliance. Acknowledged age for adulthood was 18 and the time limit being their 48th year.
Laura being an unawakened was also under the effect of this law. She is 43 years old this year so she only has about five years remaining. She had three children with her late husband. She was already content but alas, the law can't be broken even if her awakened childrens negotiated for her. They were just the bottom of the barrel in the players' society.
After her husband passed away a decade ago he had left behind enough inheritance which enabled her to provide for her childrens. She was well-off and once had a happy married life so she had no intention to be in any relationship in the future.
Thus to solve this issue there's an alternative available for her. She waited for her youngest daughter to turn 18 first and after she was certain that Karla would also be awakened and later be sent to the academy she called her daughters and talked for a long time about her decision.
This was the very reason why she was standing before the entrance of the orphanage today. Indeed, if an unawakened individual cannot send four childrens of their family due to various complications then they are allowed to adopt orphans to fulfill the conditions. However only Guild Alliance designated orphanages were allowed to be the adoption center and any sort of foul play would be punished severely.
Laura would adopt an orphan today and raise that kid herself to fulfill the quota. Though such a procedure would surely leave behind an impact towards the relationship of the new member of her family, she was determined to form a genuine bond with that child. That's also the reason why she insisted on bringing Karla with her so she could provide her opinions during the choosing period.
The mother and daughter duo entered the Verdant Orphanage after showing the appointment card to the guard. At the main doors of the building they were greeted by the director of the orphanage who was surprisingly waiting for them for a while it seemed. After exchanging some pleasantries the duo were led to the waiting room and the director brought five teenagers into the room. He brought three early teens who were all girls and two late teens who were boys.
Laura and Karla looked behind from their seats as the director brought them in one by one. When the fifth teenage boy entered the room both of their breath caught on their throat. Their eyes went wide slightly and their mouth made an "O" shape.
This mother-daughter duo didn't even spare a single glance at other occupants but stared fixedly at that boy. Others would have thought that they were staring a bit too intently for comfort but the rest of the teenagers as well as the director wore an expression that said "this is how it should be."
Among the duo, Karla's expression was most exaggerated as she still hadn't blinked since that teenager walked in. Her eyes had started becoming a bit red and moist by now but she didn't care. She wanted to burn this image in her memory for a very long time. Laura had a faint feeling that her life would drastically change from now on. She felt excitement, anticipation and a bit of…. apprehension?
The teenager in front of her, who seemed to be close to Karla's age, was dressed in all-black. He wore a black leather jacket which seemed off-season considering the heat outside and black jeans with dark combat boots, gloves and his ears pierced with small silver earrings that had an upside down pyramid symbol on it.
He was fair-skinned with a bit of tan as if he had a pleasant sunbath by the Carnova beach. His height was appropriate for his age. His hair was at waist height. It looked silky smooth even from a distance as it had a gloss which gave a natural feeling. His hair was jet-black styled with two braids either side of his head as the rest of the hair fell gently on his back. He was neither bulky nor thin but with adequate muscles.
His eyes were crimson which gave the illusion as if they were shimmering rubies. His eyelashes are long, eyebrows sword-like, his nose sharp, lips thin and cherry red. He also had a chiseled jawline. Just one look at his face would instantly soothe the heart of even a middle aged woman at her menopause crisis.
In one word, he radiated an otherworldly allure.
Laura was thus confused as to why she felt a sense of foreboding from such a person. Not to mention this was her first time meeting such a handsome man. As she thought of the reasons in her mind, all of a sudden her daughter Karla abruptly stood up from her seat and asked in a loud voice that gradually turned meek that seemed close to a whisper,
"You! U-umm… What's your name?"
Laura looked at her daughter strangely as it was her first time seeing her prideful daughter so flustered. Well, it's not like she's doing any better, not that she would admit it.
The teenager raised his eyebrows slightly, seemingly a bit troubled to be singled out just after entering the room, but he still replied with a polite smile on his face with a voice serene enough to instantly debut as a viral singer,
"It's a pleasure to meet you. My name is—"
Laura seemed to sense something within the depths of her heart when she heard the teenager utter his name. She couldn't quite put a finger on it as all of her uneasiness since earlier was instinctual which at this moment seemed… baseless.
After learning his name Karla nodded her head as she looked downwards from shyness that seemed to well up out of nowhere. She then looked at her mother who was also looking at her with an expression that said "well, what now?"
Karla then gathered her courage to dispel the shyness as she looked at the handsome teenager and said with a decisiveness that belied her age,
"Mother, I have decided."
Laura then saw her daughter having the most blissful smile on her face as she spoke of her decision which she had already guessed.
Though she couldn't help but feel if they were a bit too hasty to conclude the matter.