Over the past few months, Ash and I have been training in secret. She's taught me all sorts of things about magic, making me feel as if I've truly leveled up. Today is finally the day of my divination ceremony. After this, I'll finally be able to start training for real.
But what the hell is that!
A giant yellow bird-like thing stood before me. The feathered creature had four wings, razor sharp teeth, and electrically charged horns protruding from where its eyes should have been. It also towered over me, standing at least 8 feet tall.
"Father": [That, Adam, is a Thunderbird. Kinda scary right? Don't worry – he doesn't bite. Humans I mean... He doesn't bite humans. Isn't that right Hendall?]
Hendall: [Sorry my Lord, but Muffin here will be biting anyone that tries to attack you or the Young Master.]
"Father": [Haha. You're right, but that doesn't help calm Adam's nerves at this moment...]
The two continued chatting about nothing while we waited for my new biological mother to arrive. Sorry, I mean Adam's mother. Anyways, it seemed we were going to take an airship to the Western Holy City, Istellia, where I would have my divination ceremony. I hadn't known that this would be such a big deal, but I guess that these sorts of ceremonies are important for networking or something.
This airship is damn impressive though. It's as big as the blimps that I'd seen in my old world, and it's powered by 10 skilled mages. I had no idea where they had been storing this thing.
In that moment, Adam's mother arrived. After she apologized politely, we all boarded the airship and started our trip to Istellia.
- - - - - - -
Unsurprisingly, the interior of the airship was rather lavish. The view was amazing too.
Staring out the window, I could see sprawling farming fields and tiny houses in the distance. We must have been at least 10,000 feet in the air.
???: [Are you nervous Adam?]
Turning around, it was my "mother", Martha, who was asking.
Adam: [No... should I be?]
Martha: [Of course not… Well, maybe a little. The main point of this ceremony is to introduce yourself to the rest of high society. The actual divination doesn't matter much, just make sure to mind your manners.]
Got it, so the other nobles will be sizing me up during this event. I didn't plan on doing anything stupid, but I couldn't help but wonder if showing off how strong I was would be beneficial or not.
Adam: [Yes, Mother.]
It seemed like she was satisfied with that answer because she nodded and sat down next to me afterwards. The two of us just stared out the window and enjoyed the view. I couldn't remember the last time we spent time together like this, but it felt nice.
Martha: [How are your studies with Ash going? She's not doing anything strange is she?]
Adam: [Fine, she is a good teacher. It's a lot of fun.]
She nodded her head as if pleased with my response. Then it was silence again.
???: [Would you like some tea?]
Martha: [Holy shi– Ash... I didn't see you there.]
Ash really came out of nowhere there. A damn jumpscare, that maid is.
Adam: […Yes, that would be nice.]
After thinking about it for a moment, I realized that I didn't really know how their relationship worked. How did a maid that openly disliked me when I was a newborn end up taking care of me?
The two women stared at each other for a moment. The feeling in the air was strangely tense. Then Martha took a sip of her tea without breaking eye contact.
Martha: [mmmm, this tea is quite delicious. You have gotten good at your job, Ash.]
Ash: [Thank you Madam, I take pride in my work.]
Ash then gave a short curtsy and positioned herself behind me.
Martha: [How has Adam been doing in his studies recently?]
Ash: [Good, he is an extremely intelligent boy and picks up everything quickly. However, I fear that having him spend so much time studying could lead to him becoming underdeveloped in other areas. Because of his high proficiency in arithmetic and writing, he could allocate some more time to other activities and still be well above the average.]
Ash's words were like a splash of cold water to my face. Wasn't it cruel to be forcing a 5-year-old to be studying this much? I hadn't noticed because I already knew everything I had been taught, but a normal 5-year-old probably couldn't handle this workload.
Martha: [Hmm. You think so?... Alright, I'll let you do just that. You have full authority over Adam's education. But in a year or two, we'll get some more specialized tutors.]
Ash: [Thank you Madam.]
Woah, did Ash just win me some more free time?
I looked up to Ash in awe and gratitude, but she looked down upon me with a sinister smile. For some reason, I saw no kindness in those eyes of hers.
Ah, I don't know what I expected from Ash. I'm going to be put through the wringer aren't I?
While I was moping over my pitiful fate, a guard walked in.
Guard: [We will be arriving shortly. Please ready yourselves.]
- - - - - - -
And so we arrived at the Western Holy City, Istellia.
My parents and I were taking a carriage to the church where the Divination ceremony would be taking place. Ash had stayed on the airship because only nobles were allowed at the ceremony. Looking out the window, I couldn't help but stare in awe at the view.
Istellia truly did live up to its name. Gigantic purple and blue crystals as tall as buildings protruded from the ground and pristine white buildings lined the roads. The streets were clean and the people seemed happy.
When we finally arrived, I ended up getting separated from my parents and getting put in a waiting room with a bunch of other five-year-olds. It was quiet because they were all nervous, but some of them looked like they were about to cry.
What a bunch of losers.
I just waited in a corner and talked to no one. At this point I still hadn't talked to anyone "my age" since coming to this world. The very idea of it felt strange to me, but I knew I'd have to get used to it.
When it was finally time, we were lined up according to our age and walked out into the hall.
This hall was also quite impressive. The ceiling must have been several hundred feet tall and was bigger than any cathedral I'd seen in my past life. There was a large statue of a baddie goddess at the other end of the hall, completing the holy look that they were probably going for.
Some priest said some words, but I didn't really care to pay attention to them. Each child would take their turn to place their hand on the statue one at a time. The statue would then shine red for augmentation, blue for manipulation, or yellow for creation.
Nothing particularly interesting happened until it came my turn.
Priest guy: […Now place your hand upon our goddess and she shall divine your Familia.]
I placed my hand gracefully upon the statue... I guess it was kinda cold?
Though I already knew which Familia I belonged to, I still looked up in anticipation.
Huh? Purple?
Priest guy: [Magnificent, Adam Witherton, you belong to both the Augmenter and Manipulator Familias!]
Oh, is that how it works? Neat!
There were some murmurs in the crowd of adults watching, but nothing too crazy.
The ceremony ended without a hitch and I regrouped with the rest of my family. Soon enough, we departed to go to the afterparty. This is the important part of the night.
After walking into the mansion where the gathering would take place, we were ushered into a ballroom.
It had the classic ballroom aesthetic. Beautiful tapestry, gentle music, food in the corner, and plenty of people chatting about. There were beautiful mosaics on the walls depicting several historical scenes as well.
I honestly didn't care much for it. I was planning to just go pig out at the dessert section, but for some reason people were giving my family strange looks. I decided to hold out on that for now while subconsciously moving slightly closer to my father. My mother nodded to my father and went off to somewhere else, leaving just my father and I alone.
???: [Good evening Marquess Witherton, it is good to see you again. Is this your son?]
Hector: [Good evening to you too, Duke Lagrimas. Yes, this is my son, Adam, who just had his divination ceremony.]
My father seemed on edge. His voice was curt and his hand was balled into a fist behind his back. Of course, this much is natural when being ambushed by one of the most powerful people in the kingdom.
A bit of geography:
Artenia was split in two by an ocean, leading to the two halves being unofficially called New Artenia (in the West) and Old Artenia (in the East). Because the royal family lives in Old Artenia, they have significantly less influence over New Artenia, which happened to be where we lived. In New Artenia there are currently two Dukedoms, those being House Lagrimas and House Drogo. These two houses basically rule New Artenia. Thus, Duke Lagrimas is much more powerful than your average Duke. I knew all this at the time. What I didn't know was why Duke Lagrimas would want to speak to my father.
Duke Lagrimas: [I heard your son has affinity for two Familias. That's good. I'm sure you're well aware, but these are troubling times and we will need strong members in the aristocracy to secure our futures.]
Hector: [I couldn't agree more. Civil unrest has become more common with the recent tax increases, and monster attacks have become more frequent.]
The Duke and my "father" began politely debating the economic situation of Artenia, which I was failing to keep up with. Eventually, I gave up and snuck out to the dessert station like I had originally planned.
As I wondered whether the chocolate or vanilla cake would taste better, I was approached by a small boy with cat ears.
Boy: [These ceremonies sure are a pain, huh?]
I mean, I couldn't agree more kiddo but it ain't wise to just say that...
Adam: [Well, it's important, you know? Meeting and talking with future nobles ensures that the country is more united. I'm Adam Witherton, by the way.]
I extended my hand out to offer a handshake, just out of general courtesy.
Boy: [Oh, I forgot to introduce myself! My name is Oliver Nanburry. Also, I recommend the chocolate cake.]
Oliver said that with a smile on his face and hurriedly shook my hand. My guess is that his parents told him to get networking or something. He didn't seem like a bad kid.
I then took a bite of the chocolate cake. Turns out he had good taste as well.
???: [Oi, cat-boy, that's human food you're eating. You dummy.]
I turned around to see that it was a little boy and his entourage who made that comment. For now I'll call them Idiots 1, 2, and 3.
Oliver just looked down in shame in response to the idiot's remark. His ears drooped and he seemed to shrink a few sizes.
Is this for real?
I didn't know racism was that bad here. And I didn't know classic schoolyard bullying events like this happened in real life.
Idiot 1: [And you, why are you eating with a stupid cat?]
Damn it, I really don't feel like dealing with this.
Pax: [Calm down shitheads. No need to throw a tantrum over something so trivial is there?]
Sadly, my attempt to deescalate fell flat on its face before even truly materializing. I swear that I didn't mean to call them shitheads, it just slipped out.
Idiot 2: [Who do you think you're talking to? This is the son of Marquess Chamberlain!]
Idiot 1 began closing in. Things looked like they were going to escalate if I didn't do something.
Pax: [Don't care! Catch us if you can, losers.]
I grabbed Oliver's hand and dashed towards the crowd. The plan was to lose them or at least get some adult to fix this situation.
Naturally, Idiots 1, 2, and 3 came after us. After I entered the crowd, I slowed the pace down to a speed walk (so that we didn't look like fools) and weaved around the people there.
At this rate, the three Idiots would eventually catch up because they were actually running. For some reason, none of the adults felt like doing anything and just chuckled or watched.
Hold on, did I make the wrong choice? Perhaps this is actually escalating the situation because now the Idiots actually look like they are gonna throw hands. Dammit, where are my parents when I need them!?
Idiot 3 threw a punch at me (still in the middle of a crowd), which I dodged.
This is fine, the situation is still salvageable. I'll handle this gracefully.
Putting Oliver behind me, I faced the three Idiots.
Adam: [There is no need for us to do this. Let's calm down now...]
Idiot 1: [GET HIM!]
2 and 3 instantly rushed in. I wanted to handle this as quickly as possible so I put mana into my leg muscles and did a sweeping kick, knocking both of them to the floor at once.
Seeing his two comrades instantly fall to me, Idiot 1 decided that he too should rush in now. They don't call him Idiot 1 for nothing, after all. He threw an obvious right hook, which I just caught with my hand. Then, I twisted his arm and put him on the ground.
Pax: [sigh. Why did you make me do this?]
At this point, the adults could no longer ignore us.
"Mother": [Adam! What in the bloody hell are you doing!]
Thanks for coming after all the action is over, "mother".
Pax: [Yes, this is going to be a hassle isn't it?]
…hassle in progress…
Well, it wasn't as bad as I had thought it would be. Everyone just apologized to one another. Because there had been so many witnesses, the three idiots couldn't just pin the blame on me. My "parents" were still mad at me though, and the parents of the three Idiots glared at me like crazy.
Hah, imagine beefing with a five=year-old...
Turns out Ash was pretty amused by the situation. She liked the fact that I had completely destroyed those clowns.
It was a silent ride home though.