I opened my eyes.
Back at the dining table.
Exactly where I had been.
---
The chair beneath me was still warm.
The plates before me—half-stacked, half-empty—still carried the fading scent of food.
Nothing had changed.
And yet—
Everything felt different.
---
My parents sat across from me, speaking in low voices.
Careful.
Measured.
As if afraid their words might disturb something fragile.
Something unseen.
---
Cough—cough—
My father's voice cut through the quiet like a blade wrapped in calm.
Their conversation stopped instantly.
Both of them turned.
Their eyes met mine.
---
He spoke first.
"We're going to see the Patriarch."
---
I blinked.
"…Now?"
---
He nodded.
No hesitation.
No explanation.
---
Something in his tone settled it.
This wasn't a suggestion.
---
It was a summons.
---
I exhaled slowly, pushing back the lingering echoes clawing at my mind.
---
You are not becoming…
You are remembering…
---
"…Alright."
---
I stood.
Followed him.
---
As we stepped outside, the morning air brushed against my skin—cool, quiet, almost too normal.
Too grounded.
---
"Do you know why we're being summoned?" I asked, trying to keep my tone light.
---
He didn't answer immediately.
For a moment, he simply walked.
Thinking.
---
"…It's about your awakening."
---
He paused mid-step.
Then—
BOOM—
He shot into the air.
---
I followed instantly.
---
The wind tore past us as we soared across the sky, the clan stretching beneath like a living organism.
But my mind wasn't here.
---
Awakening…
---
Not just power.
Not just growth.
---
Something deeper.
Something… wrong.
---
The Nameless Sovereign.
The sea of consciousness.
That presence.
---
I clenched my jaw.
Focus.
---
Soon—
We arrived.
---
The Patriarch's residence stood tall and silent, radiating a quiet authority that dwarfed everything around it.
---
We landed.
Feet touching the ground with controlled ease.
---
I stepped forward.
Knock—knock.
---
Without waiting long, I pushed the door open.
---
And stepped inside.
---
This place…
Was familiar.
---
Not just the Patriarch's residence.
---
My grandfather's home.
---
I had been here countless times as a child.
With my brother.
With laughter.
With warmth.
---
Now—
It felt different.
---
Still grand.
Still elegant.
But heavier.
Like the walls themselves were watching.
---
We walked toward the dining hall.
---
The massive space opened before us.
A table large enough for a gathering of elders stretched across the room.
---
At its head—
He sat.
---
The Patriarch.
My grandfather.
---
Beside him—
Ancient Elder Solryn.
---
Both of them turned the moment we entered.
---
My father stepped forward and bowed slightly.
"Good morning, Father."
"Elder Solryn."
---
"Morning," my grandfather replied calmly.
Solryn gave a small nod.
---
I stepped forward.
And bowed.
---
"Good morning, Grandfather. Elder."
---
Silence.
---
I felt it immediately.
Their eyes.
Locked on me.
---
Not just looking—
Searching.
---
Shock flickered across their faces.
---
Yesterday—
I had stood before them like something untouchable.
Cold.
Unyielding.
Dominant.
---
A presence that made even elders hesitate.
---
And now—
I stood here.
Calm.
Respectful.
Controlled.
---
Human.
---
I could feel their confusion.
---
The contrast was too sharp.
Too unnatural.
---
My father glanced between us briefly, sensing the shift—
But said nothing.
---
Then—
My grandfather laughed.
---
Solryn followed.
---
The tension cracked.
---
"So," my grandfather said, a faint smile forming, "the storm has settled."
---
I didn't respond.
---
Because even I wasn't sure that was true.
---
We took our seats.
---
The air changed.
---
The warmth faded.
---
Seriousness replaced it.
---
My grandfather leaned forward slightly.
His gaze sharp now.
Focused.
---
"I summoned you here for something important."
---
He glanced at me.
Then back at my father.
---
"…Your son's awakening."
---
A pause.
---
"…and something else."
---
The room grew colder.
---
"…his manifestation of Demon God energy."
---
Silence.
---
Heavy.
Crushing.
---
My father froze.
---
"…Demon God energy?"
---
The words came out slowly.
Carefully.
As if saying them wrong might make them real.
---
My grandfather didn't respond immediately.
---
Because he didn't need to.
---
The truth was already settling in the room.
---
I leaned back slightly.
Thinking.
---
Fragments surfaced.
---
> [System Notice]
Naming Protocol: Suspended
Fate Anchor: Unassigned
Existential Status: Anomalous
---
My name.
Never completed.
---
My fate.
Never anchored.
---
From the beginning—
Something had been wrong.
---
Or…
Different.
---
"…This isn't new," my grandfather continued quietly.
---
His voice carried something deeper now.
Not fear.
Not doubt.
---
Memory.
---
"There was once… a calamity."
---
The word landed heavily.
---
"A scar in reality itself."
---
Solryn's smile faded slightly.
---
"A being that carried both divine purity… and forbidden corruption."
---
My father's expression hardened.
---
"…That's impossible."
---
"Is it?" Solryn finally spoke.
Calm.
Knowing.
---
His eyes shifted to me.
---
"Yesterday, what we felt from you…"
"…was not just divine."
---
A pause.
---
"It was layered."
---
The room seemed to shrink.
---
"…Like something ancient was watching through you."
---
Silence.
---
I didn't speak.
---
Because I knew.
---
They weren't wrong.
---
The sea.
The Sovereign.
The voice.
---
You are remembering…
---
My father looked at me.
Really looked this time.
---
Not as a son.
---
But as something he didn't fully understand anymore.
---
"…Explain."
---
One word.
---
Heavy.
---
Demanding truth.
---
I met his gaze.
Calm.
Steady.
---
But inside—
Everything was shifting.
---
Because for the first time—
I understood something clearly.
---
This wasn't just about power.
---
This wasn't just about awakening.
---
This—
Was the beginning of something far bigger.
---
Something that had already started moving.
---
Something that had been waiting…
For me.
---
And now—
It was no longer hidden.
---
The calamity they feared…
---
Might not be coming.
---
It might already be here.
---
And it might be—
Me.