Chapter 6 – Birthright Mark
'I need to increase my Birthright's capacity.'
Cassius thought, eyes fixed on his reflection in the bathroom mirror. He had just finished bathing, leaving him completely naked as he examined his new body in detail.
Drops of water trickled down his pale skin, running along a lean frame with a moderate amount of muscle.
It was clear the previous Cassius had not been fond of physical activity.
'He only got this body thanks to his bloodline.' Cassius marvelled, his attention settling on the faintly glowing mark on his left chest.
The Mark was identical to the Snake Eating Sigil of his family, but the light it gave off was as faint as a dying photon.
It was his Birthright Mark, awakened in anyone at the age of eighteen. And the near-invisible light told him everything about its pitiful Capacity.
Cassius sighed, running a hand through his wet hair in quiet exasperation as he began turning over everything he knew about the power system of Sunu Gaal.
It was actually quite strange.
'I never truly understood it fully.' He admitted, pacing restlessly through the bathroom. 'People begin their path of power at eighteen, after awakening their Birthright Mark. The nature of the Mark is exactly what the name implies…'
He stopped.
'…it all depends on bloodline.'
Yes. Sunu Gaal was a world where bloodline reigned above everything; it was the root of all power.
Each bloodline had something called an Origin Pool, and it was through that pool that people gained their Aspect, and with it their skill, stepping into the first rank of power:
The Mortal Self Rank.
The Desdemona bloodline was among the strongest, holding not one but two Origin Pools: Shadow and Blood.
Cassius had drawn his Aspect from the Blood Pool.
'However,' he recalled, 'my Birthright Mark — the very thing responsible for regulating and controlling the essence needed to use skills and evolve — has a pitifully low Capacity.'
Which made him unable to even use his Aspect properly. Because his was different from anyone else's.
It hadn't come with a skill. It had come with a Slot. A slot waiting to be filled.
At that thought, Cassius climbed back into the empty bathtub and sat down. No water this time.
He closed his eyes briefly, gathered his thoughts, then willed the System to open his profile.
A purple light flashed, accompanied by a soft ding. A notification panel appeared.
[Name: Cassius Desdemona]
[Age: 18]
[Title: Last Born of Desdemona]
[Blessed: —]
[Aspect: Legacy – Blood Type]
[Slot: 0/1]
[STR: 14; AGL: 15; CONS: 20; PER: 15; CHA: 35; Essence: 2]
Cassius studied his status carefully, most of his attention fixed on his Aspect. He pressed his lips into a thin, bloodless line and willed a deeper description.
[Aspect: Legacy — Blood Type]
[Description: All power has a price.
You have the ability to reach back through the Desdemona's entire lineage and reclaim a skill belonging to your ancestors.]
[Warning: The cost to activate this Aspect requires at least 50 points in Essence for the first usage.]
Every time he read this, in the game and now in his actual reality, Cassius couldn't help but wonder how such a broken Aspect even existed.
And yet the irony was sharp. This Aspect had been handed to someone sitting at 2 Essence. By the time Cassius could realistically reach 50, it would be far too late.
'Only one solution remains.' He mused, cracking and twisting his neck in every direction. 'Increase my Birthright's Capacity. Once I manage that, I'll finally have a way to grow stronger on my own terms just like anyone else.'
And he needed to do it before meeting Isolde. In other words, he had one week.
'I love dangerous women. But only when I can at least keep myself alive around them.' He specified to himself as he stepped out of the bathtub and left the bathroom.
Outside, his clothes had already been laid out by Océane, folded neatly on the bed. A modern white suit with purple stripes tracing the Snake Eating Sigil across the left chest.
Matching white gloves in the same design sat beside it.
His personal attire. No one else in the Desdemona Household wore purple but him.
He took a moment to appreciate it, then approached and began to dress himself, his mind already landing on his next move.
'Enter the Fractured Land and draw the Goddess's attention to me.'
As for how exactly he would pull that off…
Cassius smiled, now fully clothed and ready. He picked up the gloves and put them on.
'Gods love the unhinged, the mad, the ones with a few screws loose. I just need to be one.'
And what a coincidence.
'I was born for exactly this.'
He walked out. Océane fell into step behind him the moment he cleared the doorway.
"Everything ready, Océane?"
"Yes, Young Master." She answered, holding a space ring in her hand. "I have the materials you requested. And Heiress Morgan has prepared everything."
Cassius nodded, picking up his pace. "Then let's go."
Time was ticking.
—End of Chapter 6—