Fenix had returned home that night with his legs still trembling from exhaustion, but his heart hammering with wild exhilaration that made sleep impossible. The mysterious man - the enigmatic stranger who had guided him through his awakening - had said only one thing before vanishing into the still night air like he'd never existed at all:
"Come back here in two days. Time to sharpen you into something dangerous."
At the time, Fenix had almost rolled his eyes, unsure whether the words were meant as dark humor or a direct command. But when the man disappeared without leaving so much as a footprint in the soft earth, the shock hit him so hard he forgot his excitement completely and bolted down the hill like a frightened animal.
He had bathed away the sweat and dirt. He had eaten what little food they could spare. But nothing - absolutely nothing - could diminish the pure joy surging through his veins like liquid lightning. His Aura Core had finally awakened after weeks of desperate struggle. The fire within his chest still pulsed with that wild, crimson light that felt more alive than his own heartbeat.
Then he remembered something crucial.
His status screen.
With a calm breath and focused intent, he summoned it.
The familiar translucent interface materialized in the air before him, its pale blue glow and precise text appeared line by line, displaying information that felt both completely alien and deeply personal at the same time.
---
Character Profile
Name: Fenix Ackerman
Age: 14
Gender: Male
Race: Human
Aura Core: Awakened
Rank: Novice
Attributes:
- Strength: 5 → 10
- Agility: 7 → 12
- Endurance: 7 → 12
- Intelligence: 10 → 15
- Will: 10 (New!)
- Vigor: 10 (New!)
Abilities:
Innate Skills:
[Black Star] - Locked: A unique Ackerman family trait that manifests as a collapsing black aura. It passively devours aura, mana, and spirit energy on contact, feeding the user's power. The trait activates instinctively in combat, enhancing speed, strength, and survival drive.
---
A wave of pure elation washed over him like warm sunlight after a terrible storm.
Just two weeks ago, all his attributes had been pathetic single digits that marked him as barely above a normal civilian. Now? He had achieved what felt like an impossible breakthrough that changed everything about his potential.
His previous statistics had nearly doubled across the board. His Aura Core was no longer listed as "Dormant" - it was fully awakened and functional. Most importantly, he could now be officially categorized as a legitimate fighter, even if only at the Novice rank. It was a real beginning, a concrete step above worthless, a measurable advance toward true strength.
His eyes moved to examine the two newly added attributes, each marked with an exciting "New!" tag.
Initially, he hadn't understood what they represented, but if it was like anything in the games in the past life then he could relate it this way:
Strength quantified raw physical power: lifting capacity, striking force, and brute combat effectiveness.
Agility measured speed, reflexes, dodging ability, and overall movement precision.
Endurance handled stamina reserves, fatigue resistance, and sustained performance.
Intelligence represented energy capacity, tactical knowledge, and calculation speed.
And the new additions...
Vigor quantified vital energy and physical resilience, likely affecting recovery rate, damage resistance, and overall staying power in extended conflicts.
Will quantified the raw output of willpower itself - the rarest and most precious energy source of the three, and the absolute backbone of all Aura-based combat techniques.
Right now, Fenix understood he wasn't truly strong yet. But he definitely wasn't weak anymore either.
That transformation alone was worth celebrating.
With nothing else requiring his attention, he dismissed the glowing status window with a thought. It dissolved into sparkling motes like morning mist.
He pulled his thin blanket up to his chin, feeling warmth spreading outward from his chest where his new core pulsed steadily.
Tonight, for the first time in longer than he could remember, he would dream genuinely happy dreams.
---
Morning arrived with brilliant sunlight blazing over the Ackerman estate's broken grandeur. The sky stretched pale blue and cloudless above them, birds called loudly from the surviving trees, and the crumbling ruins of former nobility cast long, dramatic shadows across cracked stone pathways.
Everyone else had already finished their assigned morning chores and duties.
Today, Fenix had made a firm decision - he wasn't going to train or push himself toward new limits.
He had made a sacred promise to Abigail that he refused to break.
Four days earlier, he had told her they would spend a full afternoon together, just the two of them enjoying each other's company. But that very day, he had become so locked into his frustrating cycle of failed attempts at awakening that he pushed himself until he literally passed out during meditation, missing their planned time completely.
When he saw her the next morning, she had smiled at him with devastating sweetness - but with both eyes squeezed tightly shut in a way that made his blood run cold - and said in a voice like poisoned honey, "That's perfectly alright, big brother. I completely understand."
Fenix had felt genuine dread crawl down his spine like ice water.
Ever since that moment, he had sworn a binding oath to himself that he would never, ever break another promise to Abigail again.
---
Now he stood waiting patiently outside the estate's main entrance, having taken extra care with his appearance.
He wore stylish black pants that fit him perfectly, a crisp white collared shirt that emphasized his lean build, and polished black shoes that actually looked expensive. His distinctive white hair hung loose around his face instead of being tied back, and dark sunglasses concealed his striking red eyes from casual observation.
Anyone who encountered him now would never believe he had once been dismissed as the family's greatest failure and embarrassment. They would probably propose marriage on the spot, or at minimum ask for his family connections.
His hands rested casually in his pockets as he stood with effortless confidence, radiating calm patience.
Several minutes passed in comfortable silence.
Then - she appeared.
A vision of beauty in a flowing black dress that moved like liquid shadow, her flat shoes clicking rhythmically against the stone pathway. Her raven-black hair had been styled into adorable pigtails that swayed gently with each step she took.
Abigail looked absolutely radiant.
She smiled brilliantly the moment their eyes met across the courtyard.
"Good morning, Abby," Fenix said warmly.
"You're actually early for once," she replied with playful surprise.
"I told you," he smirked with confidence. "Completely new me."
They exchanged light, teasing banter the way siblings do when they're genuinely happy to see each other, before heading together toward the estate's inner courtyard.
---
Their first stop was an impromptu tea ceremony.
They settled together on a half-crumbled stone veranda that had somehow retained its charm despite the decay surrounding it. The morning breeze was perfectly gentle, carrying the sound of birds singing somewhere high above them. Abigail insisted on handling all the pouring herself, waving away Fenix's offers to help with practiced stubbornness.
Their delicate teacups clinked together in a small toast.
"You still have absolutely no idea how to make proper tea, big brother," she teased with affectionate mockery.
"And yet here you are, drinking every drop anyway," he countered smoothly.
"Purely out of pity for your wounded pride."
They both dissolved into genuine laughter that echoed off the broken walls.
The tea itself wasn't perfect by any objective standard, but the moment they shared was absolutely flawless.
---
Next, they explored the estate's greenhouse - a place that seemed touched by forgotten magic.
Somehow, this single building had remained completely untouched while everything else around it crumbled into romantic ruin. Inside, impossible flowers bloomed in every conceivable color: luminous blue lilies that seemed to glow from within, radiant marigolds that rivaled the sun itself, and roses so dark they looked like they'd been dipped in liquid midnight.
The air inside was warm, sweet, and vibrantly alive with growing things.
"It's like the past decided to hold on here," Abigail whispered in wonder, running her fingertips along a glowing vine that pulsed with soft light. "Like this place remembered what we used to be and refused to let it die."
Fenix remained silent, simply watching her face light up with genuine happiness. For these precious moments, the entire world felt completely at peace.
---
But peace, as always, proved tragically temporary.
As they walked back along the familiar stone pathway toward the main building, a figure approached them with obvious purpose. One of Khan's personal guards, his face set in rigid lines and his tone sharp with barely concealed disrespect.
He didn't bow or show any of the courtesy their bloodline technically still deserved.
"Young master. Young mistress." The words carried no warmth whatsoever. "Lord Khan demands your immediate presence in his private chambers."
Fenix's eyes narrowed dangerously at the man's deliberately discourteous tone and choice of words.
He glanced quickly at Abigail, catching the flicker of genuine worry that crossed her expressive features. He gave her the smallest possible nod of reassurance.
"It's going to be alright. I'm here with you."
---
They walked together into Khan's private audience chamber, a room that felt like a throne room carved directly into decay and rot. The stone walls were spider-webbed with cracks, and the air hung heavy with the oppressive weight of faded power and bitter disappointment.
Khan sat rigidly on his elevated seat, his massive frame still intimidating despite his advancing age. A visible storm of energy coiled around him - his personal aura, cold and oppressive as winter fog, pressing down on everything in the room.
And standing beside him in their customary positions, wearing identical expressions of predatory anticipation -
Kai and Abel. The twins. Fenix's own cousins by blood.
They wore matching grins that reminded him of hyenas circling wounded prey, ready to tear into fresh meat.
Fenix and Abigail stopped at the appropriate distance and bowed low with practiced formality.
"We greet you with respect, Uncle," they said in unison.
Khan acknowledged them with a single, curt nod that carried no warmth.
When he spoke, his voice filled the chamber like rolling thunder. "Nephew. Niece. I have summoned you both here to inform you of an important new development that will affect our family's future."
Both Fenix and Abigail raised their eyebrows slightly, waiting for clarification.
Khan let the silence stretch uncomfortably before delivering his pronouncement like a judge reading a death sentence.
"Abigail will be married to the youngest son of the Richter family."
The words hit Fenix like a lightning bolt directly to his chest.
He had suspected this might be coming - had overheard whispered conversations - but hearing it stated so bluntly still felt like being stabbed with a red-hot blade.
Khan continued speaking as if he were discussing the weather rather than destroying a young girl's future. "The Richters are a respectable Tier Three family with growing influence. This strategic alliance will serve as a crucial stepping stone in our efforts toward eventual revival and restoration."
Abigail's head slowly lowered until her chin nearly touched her chest.
When she finally spoke, her voice came out barely above a whisper, broken and defeated.
"As you wish it, Uncle. I will obey."
Fenix felt his hands clench into fists so tight that his fingernails drew blood from his palms. Every muscle in his body screamed at him to do something, anything, to stop this travesty.
He absolutely could not allow this to happen to her.
Rage began climbing up his spine like molten metal, building toward an explosion.
But then - making everything infinitely worse - Kai decided to speak.
His voice dripped with cruel amusement and barely concealed malice.
"That's absolutely right, you useless little bitch. You should be grateful for such an honor, considering how worthless you and that idiot have become."
That single sentence shattered Fenix's last thread of self-control.
Blood trickled down his chin where he had bitten his own lip hard enough to split the flesh open.
He turned toward his cousin with fury blazing in his eyes like the fires of hell itself.
"I dare you," he said in a voice so low and dangerous it seemed to come from somewhere deeper than his throat, "to repeat those exact words."
A profound hush fell over the entire chamber.
Then, like a dam bursting under impossible pressure -
Crimson aura exploded outward from Fenix's body.
It erupted from him like a living flame made of pure rage and willpower, surrounding his entire form in a cocoon of raw, devastating energy. The air itself seemed to warp and twist around him. The ancient stone floor cracked under the pressure.
Kai staggered backward, his face going pale with shock and sudden fear.
Abel froze completely, his arrogant smirk melting away like ice in summer heat.
Even Khan leaned forward in his throne, his eyes gleaming with something that looked suspiciously like satisfied anticipation.
Fenix stood there in the center of the chamber, blazing with crimson aura that painted everything around him in shades of blood and war.
The family's "useless failure" had finally awakened.
Khan replied with his expression, he allowed himself a small, victorious grin as he thought inwardly.
'Finally, The missing piece has revealed itself.'