The sun beat down on Chrome’s head, and his sweat poured.
“Ugh, it’s so hot out. Why did they have to have the awakening ceremony at noon?”
Chrome was currently standing in front of the church waiting for his turn to receive his life direction from the Heavens. More specifically, today was his 15th birthday, and at this time, he would receive a revelation from the Heavens about his innate talents and future destinies. He wasn’t religious by any means, his orphan upbringing ensured that he was not one who experienced the Gods’ benevolence by any means, but the concrete proof the gods give of their existence is pretty hard to argue against. As such, here Chrome is now, waiting outside in the sweltering heat of noon in the middle of summer, all while hoping for a miracle.
Chrome glances to the left where a small tent is set up. Noble children dressed in their linen garments with their following butlers and maids went in and out of the tent while waiting for their turns. Not going to lie, Chrome is envious of them and the comfort that the shelter brings. Just imagining hiding in the cool shade while sipping on an ice-cold beverage brings a thirst to him. Just then, a young man walks out of the tent with said drink in his hand, and Chrome’s eyes are instantly drawn to it. The ice bobbing up and down in the liquid. The immediate condensation on the surface of the glass due to the heat. A drop of water was sliding down the glass, as Chrome fantasized about how good the cold beverage would taste right now.
“Hey Chrome! What are you looking at, ya loser?!”
A fist painfully abruptly broke through Chrome’s daydreams. Chrome quickly hunched over in pain while holding the back of the head. He then looked up to see who his attacker was although he already knew. Before him, stood the person that made his life miserable in the past year after he transferred to a new orphanage due to the old one being closed down. Aldo, the boy who hit him, stood aggressively with a cruel smile on his face.
Chrome sighed before standing up again much to his adversary’s amusement. Chrome wasn’t sure why Aldo picked on him. It might be because he was so used to bullying the other kids at the orphanage, that Chrome seemed like a new, refreshing victim. It might be because whenever it happens, Chrome fights back, and Aldo refuses to have someone who doesn’t curb to his fist. In the end, it didn’t matter, and even when during the most important day of their life, even when in front of the entire crowd, Aldo would act as he always did. Worst of all, no one would come to stop it, because in the current era of war and death, strength is number one and being weak was frowned upon. As always, Chrome tried to reason first.
“Hey Aldo, thanks for that” Chrome started sarcastically. “I’m not expecting it, but can you let me off for now considering it’s the Awakening Day?” At the same time, Chrome got into a ready stance in case Aldo refused.
Aldo just laughed and lunged. Inwardly, Chrome sighed. Honestly, Chrome wasn’t a match for Aldo who got the best resources in the orphanage due to his size, and everyone’s hopes for him. Everytime they fought, he would get beaten black and blue. There was even an instance where he had to stay in bed for an entire week! The resulting week was the most peaceful, and Aldo curbed his violence for a little bit, but obviously, his violent tendencies couldn’t be curbed. Chrome just hoped that he wouldn’t go overboard today.
“Stop!” An unfamiliar voice sounded.
Aldo halted just as he was in the process of swinging. Chrome, not missing a chance, quickly turned and began to run towards the voice of his helper. However, he didn’t even take a single step before he froze. That was because the originator of the voice was the same noble who he was looking at earlier! Sure, nobles wouldn’t easily kill, because every man counted during the war, but there are no shortages of stories of commoners who messed with the wrong person, got placed into a bad position, and returned home in a body bag. Yep, Chrome would pick fighting with Aldo any day than interacting with a noble. Aldo, as muscle-brained as he was, also realized the issue and stopped. The pair slowly turned to the third party and respectfully waited as the noble walked towards them.
The noble stopped in front of them. He first talked to Aldo. “I saw what you did.”
Surprisingly, the short sentence was effective, as Aldo actually looked a little embarrassed. Aldo of all people! Chrome was just dazed as the noble continued.
Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
“I think you should leave.” Aldo’s face immediately contorted, and even Chrome was a little shocked. To leave would be to miss the Awakening and miss an entire year of growth! Although mandatory military training would take 3 years anyways, it would still be humiliating to be the only 16 year old among a bunch of 15 year olds. And most importantly, Aldo’s potential might not be as good in a year, so he would awaken to a worse class! This would have life long impacts!
Aldo clenched his fists and was clearly internally conflicted. Chrome was also conflicted, because although they were enemies, the punishment of missing the Awakening was too large to miss. Of course, if Aldo had beaten Chrome to a state that he had to miss his Awakening, things might have been different, but since it hasn’t happened yet, Chrome was magnanimous. The next sentence from the noble thankfully resolved their concerns.
“I think,” the noble gestured to a nearby tree, “you should go there and patiently AND peacefully wait your turn for awakening.” In other words, Aldo was still allowed to go. In fear of the noble changing his mind, Aldo quickly turned tail and did as instructed. However, before he did so, he shot a hateful look at Chrome which made the latter know that he was in for a beating later that day.
Then Chrome realized that he was still in the presence of the noble, and he gulped at the thought of it being his turn next to receive the noble’s wrath. However, to his surprise, the noble just laughed. He turned to Chrome with a conspiratorial smile.
“The idiot probably believed that I would make him skip his awakening.” Chrome didn’t say anything, because that was exactly what he was thinking. Thankfully, the noble continued to explain. “It’s illegal to prevent someone from attending the Awakening. To do so would deprive the state of its rightful manpower and is punished by immediate execution.”
“Anyways, where was I? Oh yeah, I noticed that you were looking at my beverage earlier. Do you want to come into the tent and have some?”
Chrome couldn’t believe his luck! Not only did the friendly noble deal with his bully problem, but he even offered an escape from the heat! Chrome saw the visage of an angel behind the noble boy. He quickly agreed, and the two entered the tent. However, the moment they entered the tent, Chrome quickly realized how out of place he was with his orphan rags. Fortunately, people didn’t really mind. Or more specifically, Chrome noticed that they would look at him with disgust, look at the accompanying noble, open their eyes wide, and promptly ignore the two of them. It would have been funny how universal the reaction was if Chrome wasn’t the party receiving it. The two strode deeper into the large tent, and Chrome couldn’t help but notice that the furnishings got fancier and fancier as they proceeded. Eventually, they arrived at the very end of the tent where one more person was waiting for them: a girl that had a striking resemblance to the boy that was leading him was there sipping a cold beverage. Upon noticing their arrival, the girl raised a questioning eyebrow to the boy.
“Brother, is this another poor soul that you helped? Haven’t you got over the altruistic phase of yours? When are you going to actually start acting like a prince?”
“Haha, I’ll never get over this phase - who knows if one of the people I helped turns out to have a 7* class? Don’t mind my sister and feel bad, I’m simply extending a helping hand on a whim.” The latter half of the sentence was directed towards Chrome, but Chrome was too caught up in the second half of the sister’s statement.
“...prince?”
“Ah, where are my manners? I’m Riernel Galeforce, the second prince of this country. This here is my twin sister, the third princess, Celene Galeforce. What’s your name?”
----------------------------------------
“Chrome! Come and receive your awakening!”
As much as Chrome enjoyed the shade, he was happy to get out of the tent. He was in front of a bona-fide prince and princess! Although they seemed like nice people, who knew if he would say something wrong and then get thrown into prison - the feeling was like having a sword hanging by a thread over his head. Nevertheless, he still did feel grateful for the prince’s help, and he mentally promised that he would repay the favor if he got the chance. From afar. Yeah, probably from afar.
Chrome arrived in front of the altar where the priest, a kind-looking old man was waiting. The elder gently smiled, which helped to alleviate Chrome’s nerves, before starting the ritual.
“Here now stands Chrome, son of Emperor Galeforce. He will now receive his class that will tell him his talents and destiny. Fear not if the class you have is common - every man matters to his almighty, and you will receive appropriate training in the army. Now, may the Gods grant you your class!”
Inwardly, Chrome chuckled a little at the irony. All orphans are said to be the son of the emperor in order to make them feel loyal to the country. Little does the priest know, he actually met the son of the emperor less than a minute ago! Chrome’s musings were cut off as he was covered in a bath of light.
Class received! You have received Necromancer (7*) and Dark Paladin (7*).
Chrome was confused at the second class, but before he could think about it too hard, the light disappeared, and the original room reappeared. And to his surprise, the smiling old man from previous was now beaming and ecstatic.
“Amazing! A 7 star class has appeared! And it’s even the Necromancer class that rules the battlefield! The heavens have blessed this country!” The elder gestured to the side, presumably signaling someone. “Make sure the best arrangements are prepared.” Turning back his attention to Chrome, the elder said, “Congratulations boy! You have a great destiny ahead of you. Now, please follow the person that will be arriving soon to a second room. Given your potential, operatives from other countries may target you, so this is for your own safety.”
Chrome didn’t mind, all that was waiting for him back at the orphanage was a beating. And if anything, his mind was still preoccupied with the idea that he got a 7 star class. An actual 7 star class!