Adrien blinked the second he opened his eyes. For a moment he simply stared at the ceiling, unable to comprehend what had occurred.

Why was he laying down? Why were there so many people around him? What was going on?

“What did you do?” Nari’s annoying voice echoed in his head, making him wince as pain flashed through his head at the voice.

“Wha-what?” he struggled out, holding his head as his memories came rushing back to him.

“Mother found you lying on the floor from Bloodline Power exhaustion.” Nari answered, sounding smug. “I’m surprised you didn’t blow anything-”

“Nari, get out.” Aunt Veena’s stern voice emerged, making him gulp in fear. Not just because of the pain, but because he could feel the scolding that was sure to be coming his way.

“What? But -”

“Get out, or I will take your horse away.” Aunt Veena threatened, her hands glowing gold and reaching for him, a warm feeling spreading from where she touched him.

“Do not test me today, Nari.” she threatened, and Adrien gulped as his mind caught up with what had happened. Aunt Veena had gone straight to the horse. Nari loved her horse, threatening it was…not something he remembered his aunt doing before.

“I can explain -” he began as Nari left the room.

“Oh, you can?” Aunt Veena turned to him. “Tell me, why didn’t you ask for advice before trying to combine magic and your bloodline ability? Perhaps you thought you knew better than everyone around you? That I, your cousins, even my brother, the King, had been wasting our lives and had no advice to give you? After all, you clearly know better.”

Adrien opened his mouth and then closed it. Saying anything seemed like a bad decision.

Aunt Veena huffed, sitting down on the bed beside him. “This has been tried before, if you didn't know. I doubt you did, considering how you tried it anyway.”

Adrien had no answer to that, he had thought he was the first one.

“I know you are intelligent, but sometimes you need to acknowledge your own arrogance. What you attempted has killed dozens before you, all of whom were intelligent mages who thought they were about to revolutionize magic. Now they’re dead. Just like you would be if I had not found you in time. Do you have any idea how much blood you lost?”

“A liter?” he ventured.

Aunt Veena scoffed. “Forty percent. What you did took all of your prodigious Bloodline Power, your ample mana reserves and forty percent of the blood in your body. If not for sheer luck, you would be dead. Now do you think it was a wise course of action?”

Of course, he didn’t.

But he would probably do it again.

“I didn’t know that could happen.” he said, hoping she would see his attempt at reconciliation.

“Well you would have if you had asked me.” Aunt Veena sighed.

But then she would have just told him no. Not that he was foolish enough to mention that.

“The encounter put you in a short coma before I could heal you.” she continued. “And since you cannot be trusted with your own safety, you will be taking a squad of clan guards with you to the academy.”

Adrien opened his mouth, but Aunt Veena wouldn’t let him.

“Not a word.” Aunt Veena interrupted, her eyes blazing golden as he felt a weight appear around her. The King had conjured something similar before. Adrien wondered what it was. Perhaps something to do with -

“Adrien.” Aunt Veena looked at him.“Would you listen to me for a second?”

“Of course,” he replied, giving her his best smile.

Aunt Veena just glared at him. “The Duchess of Greenfields has called for an Assessment of Worth. Do you understand that?”

“An assessment of whether a project is worth the kingdom’s time and resources?” Adrien raised an eyebrow. “That’s a rather roundabout way to ask for my death.”

“Not just a project, Adrien, but anything that the kingdom may have an interest in, including ideas and people.” Aunt Veena said. “I have told you, the Kingdom will not just put a child to death for no reason.”

“So the Duchess is trying to prove that there is a reason.” Adrien rolled his eyes. “Aunt, she has been wanting me dead since before I remember. I know her argument, and you know it too.”

“The inheritance of Bloodline Power isn’t an exact science, it is just some trends she is basing her case on.”

“Aunt, the trends are pretty consistent. If there is a single member of a Clan that has a large number then the other members of the bloodline will have less because of it. As long as I am alive, the Conjuring Shadows Clan will not produce a worthy heir.” he said.

Adrien wasn’t eager to die, really, he wasn’t. But he didn’t see the point of lying and acting like reality didn’t exist. As things stood, or at least as they stood before his stunt, he was a burden. A child that should not have been born, that the ancestors demanded be killed to maintain the bloodline.

The Duchess had been right. Adrien had been a burden on humanity. The book though, it changed things. More than one thing.

“I found something.” he said, not really paying attention to what his aunt was saying. “Well, my ability found something. A book.”

Adrien opened his mouth, eager to tell his aunt about it, only to find that he couldn’t. The words just wouldn’t come out. Like his mind was trying to make the words, but his body refused to follow its directions.

“What book?” Aunt Veena asked.

“I- I can’t say.” he replied, more than a touch of fear entering his voice. “I don’t know—why can’t I say it?”

Adrien looked at his aunt, finding her taking a deep, shuddering breath as she closed her eyes. Then she opened them, her eyes glowing gold as she looked at him.

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“Release” she said, the words holding a power just like he had felt the King wield before.

“Is that -”

“Try saying it now.” his aunt interrupted him.

Adrien followed her commands, only to find himself unable to do it. Aunt Veena shook his head, looking at him with such disappointment that it actually made him feel bad.

“What did you do now, Adrien?”

“I just used a spell!” he countered, though the argument sounded weak even to him.

“And was it worth it?”

“I think so.” he replied doubtfully. Now that he thought about it, there was a little more doubt to the book’s usefulness than he would have wanted.

“Well, let us hope you’re right.” Aunt Veena said, getting up. “Cause you have three years.”

“What?”

“Three years, Adrien. That’s how long my brother can hold the Duchess of Greenfields back. Three years and you are eighteen and first in line to inherit the duchy. At that point, there will be a Ducal Council on your status. If you cannot prove your competence to that Council, it may decide to kill you. Do with that what you will.”

“Wait, what? What do you mean -”

“Three years, Adrien. I am sorry, I can’t buy you more.” his aunt said, her lips falling just a bit short of a frown. “The Ducal Council, well, they are set on this path. There are…fears about the Kingdom’s future, and they believe you are their cause.”

“Are they right?”

Aunt Veena just looked at him with that knowing looking of hers. Adrien understood. Of course, he was. The ‘problems’ came because his father ran away with a commoner and decided to give birth to him, inviting the ancestor’s judgment.

There might have been Dukes that had dalliances before, but they had paid the price, in one way or another. The ancestors demanded it. And they had ways to collect their due.

“So, now what?”

“Now you go to the Academy.” his aunt replied.

Adrien blinked in surprise. “But what about -”

“If you are going to find your way to power, it is not going to be here. Go to the capital, see what is left of humanity. Perhaps it will help you.” his aunt said.

“So I just have to do what I wanted to do anyway. Just gotta figure out how Bloodline Abilities work.” Adrien said, giving his aunt a smile. The way his aunt was looking at him right now, he could see that she didn't believe him. And really, why would she? But maybe there was just a chance. There was a book with him, a book written by a Manevorus, and even if it didn’t let him speak about it, it might hold the answers.

“Adrien, just-” his aunt hesitated looking at him and then sighing as she closed her eyes and then opened them again slowly.

“Just don't give up, ok. Can you promise me that?”

Adrien opened his mouth, unsure what he should say. Saying anything felt wrong right now. In the end he could only say two words.

“Of course.”

Aunt Veena smiled. “Then good, because you are getting late. The academy starts in two days.”

“Wait, what?” Adrien startled “The orientation isn’t till -”

“Well, you were the one who decided to experiment and fall unconscious for three days.” Aunt Veena interrupted. “Don’t worry, your bags are already packed, and the guards have been ready since yesterday. .”

Blinking in surprise, he stood up, ready to make a run for it. Not one of his muscles felt like they had been still for three days. In fact, they felt like someone had given them a massage.

Aunt Veena raised an eyebrow at him. “I am considered one of the best healers in the kingdom, you know. Don’t discount me just because I am your aunt. I was able to heal you right up.”

Adrien gave her another smile though his mind was still elsewhere. Aunt Veena wasn’t known for her skill as a healer because she made some of the most effective bioweapons used in the war effort, and that kind of thing overwhelmed her reputation as a healer. But it was probably wise to not mention that to her.

Getting up as gently as he could manage, he started walking towards the door, breaking into a run when he realized it would not tax him. Aunt Veena had really done a great job.

“Not going to give your aunt a hug in goodbye?” she called from behind him.

“Oh, of course.” Adrien walked back to her, awkwardly hugged her. Then he took off for the carriage, his heart still thumping in his chest.

Thankfully, no one was waiting for him outside the ducal palace, allowing him to slip through almost unnoticed. Tedri, Aunt Veena’s youngest’s nanny was apparently taking the baby for a stroll through the garden, but honestly the boy did not count.

The three guards that stood around the carriage were the only thing stopping him from conjuring the book at this very moment. Adrien ground to a halt right in front of them, suddenly self-conscious. What was he supposed to do again?

“If you would prefer, we can conduct the introductions on the way, my lord. The Duchess Regent has already informed me that you are in a hurry.” one of them said, his blond hair swaying with the wind, nearly covering his blue eyes. Adrien wondered if he was related to the King. The Golden Shield clan was usually the one with blond hair after all.

The ducal guards were often nobility themselves, descendants of second and third children that were no longer relevant to the line of succession. But they still had Bloodline Abilities, even if they tended to be quite a bit weaker than that of a direct descendant. The guard could very well be related to the King.

“Of course,” he replied, stepping towards the carriage. The carriage itself bore the colors of the Conjuring Shadows clan, but had none of the finery that a Duke’s carriage, or even one used by their direct family would sport.

The carriage looked like it belonged to a respectable member of the branch clans that wanted to show off. A disguise? Why? Did Aunt Veena did something or someone was going to target him? But who? Just who was Aunt Veena trying to fool?

Adrien looked out of the window, watching as a number of carriages left with him, all heading in different directions. Aunt Veena was really putting on a show. Adrien had not seen any other guests in the palace, though they could have arrived while he was…in a coma. That part still didn’t feel real for some reason. A coma. Perhaps it was the healing, but he simply wasn’t feeling the effects of it.

But he did remember what put him there. The book. Adrien called on his power, prompting the book to appear in his vision. A simple off-white cover, with black words on the top speaking to its title.

The Questing Book

And at the bottom were the words that had put him in the coma in the first place.

By Prince Verlinaus, of the House Manevorus

Adrien opened the book gingerly, even though he knew it wasn’t really there. The action just felt right. After all, this was something he had literally risked his life for. The first page was very short, with only a couple of lines written on it in red.

This is my attempt at forming a path that humanity may follow. To bridge the gaps formed between us from our natural lack of a common magic. I hope that one day, my efforts may bring about a lasting peace and understanding, grounded in our shared humanity. Just as the Iridor once shared-

Adrien blinked, his gaze sliding over the words and then ignoring them after reading the first line. Turning the page, he smiled, ready to read the secrets of magic.

The page was blank. So was the one next to it. And the one after that. Adrien flipped through the book, finding every page blank. There were no words in the book after the first page. Just as he was about to conclude that he had messed up somehow, that perhaps his ability had nearly killed him getting a blank book, a notification appeared before his eyes.

Looking nearly the same as a normal notification, it sported black background and golden lettering instead of the usual blue and white. Not to mention the words that Adrien doubted anyone else had seen on a System notification before.

The Questing Book has been activated.

Generating First Quest…

Journey Mode detected…

Quest generated.

Quest: reach the first city

Reward: page 1

Difficulty: insufficient data to calculate (expected: minimal)