Sovereign of Hidden Stars Chapter 2: Welcome to House Silverion
The birthing chamber felt like it held the entire world.
Stone walls carved with intricate patterns glowed softly with embedded essence crystals, casting everything in gentle golden light. The air smelled of herbs and something clean that might have been healing magic. Several people moved about the room with practiced efficiency, but all attention focused on the woman lying on the elevated bed at the center.
Duchess Seraphina Silverion held her newborn son against her chest, exhausted but radiant. Dark hair stuck to her forehead with perspiration, but her eyes shone with pure joy as she looked down at the tiny life in her arms.
"He's perfect," she whispered, voice hoarse from hours of labor. "Look at those eyes, Aldric. They're like molten gold."
Duke Aldric Silverion stood beside the bed, his usually stern expression soft with wonder. The man who commanded the northern territories, who'd faced down armies and monsters without flinching, was completely undone by the sight of his youngest child.
"Golden eyes," he said quietly, one calloused finger gently touching the baby's tiny hand. "Like sunrise over the mountains. A good omen."
The baby—Ashen, though he wouldn't have that name officially until the naming ceremony next week—looked up at his parents with an awareness that seemed too sharp for a newborn. Inside that tiny head, an adult consciousness was still reeling from the impossibility of his situation.
I'm really here. I'm actually alive again, in a different world, with parents who...
Who love me.
It was a foreign concept. His parents in his previous life had cared, of course, but he'd been too busy ignoring their calls to appreciate it. This was different. This was immediate, overwhelming, the kind of unconditional love that existed before he'd done anything to earn or lose it.
Movement at the edge of his vision drew his attention. Four figures approached the bed, ranging from adult to child, all eager to see the new arrival.
"Can we see him now?" The voice belonged to a young woman, maybe mid-twenties, with the same dark hair as their mother but Aldric's sharp features. She moved with the controlled grace of someone trained in combat but carried herself with administrative authority.
"Of course, Elara," Seraphina said, shifting slightly to give her daughter a better view. "Meet your youngest brother."
Elara leaned in, studying the baby with intelligent eyes that missed nothing. "He's smaller than I expected. But those eyes..." She looked up at Aldric. "Father, his gaze is incredibly focused for a newborn."
"All Silverion children are born with strong spirits," Aldric replied. "It runs in the bloodline."
If you only knew how right you are.
A second figure pushed forward—a young woman with lighter hair and an energy that seemed barely contained. She couldn't be more than twenty-five, with the kind of enthusiasm that suggested she found the world endlessly exciting.
"He's so tiny!" Lyra exclaimed, reaching out to touch the baby's hand with one finger. "And he's not crying! Most babies cry constantly, don't they?"
"He cried when he was born," Seraphina laughed softly. "I think he's just taking everything in now. Very observant, this one."
Observant doesn't begin to cover it. I'm cataloguing everything—faces, voices, the layout of the room, the political implications of being born into a ducal house.
But mostly I'm trying to process the fact that these people already care about me.
Two more figures approached—both male, clearly brothers though years apart in age. The older one had Aldric's silver hair and serious demeanor, probably in his early thirties. The younger looked mid-twenties with darker coloring and the build of someone who spent his time training with weapons.
"Reikan," Aldric acknowledged the older one with a slight nod. "Come meet your youngest brother."
Reikan Silverion, the heir to the duchy, approached with measured steps. His examination of the baby was thorough but distant, the assessment of someone who understood that new siblings meant changes to inheritance and family dynamics.
"He seems healthy," Reikan observed clinically. "Good bone structure, strong grip when he holds your finger. He'll grow well if properly trained."
Gee, thanks for the performance review. I'm five minutes old.
The younger brother, Kael, was less formal in his approach. He leaned in with the casual confidence of someone comfortable in his own skin.
"Think he'll be a warrior?" Kael asked, grinning. "He's got the Silverion eyes, that's for sure. Maybe he'll take after me instead of Elara and end up liking swords better than ledgers."
"The world needs scholars as much as it needs warriors," Elara replied coolly. "Look how well administrative efficiency has served our territory."
"Yeah, but administration doesn't stop monsters at the border," Kael countered.
"Children," Seraphina said mildly, but there was amusement in her voice. "Let's let your brother settle into the world before we plan his entire future."
Smart woman. Though if she knew what I was actually planning...
Ashen let himself be passed around carefully, each family member taking a moment to hold him and welcome him to House Silverion. It was strange, being helpless in the arms of people who were essentially strangers, yet feeling safer than he'd ever felt in his previous life.
When he was finally returned to Seraphina's arms, she looked down at him with that same expression of pure love.
"What should we call him?" she asked Aldric. "I know we discussed names, but seeing him now..."
Aldric considered, his gaze thoughtful. "Something that reflects his nature. Those eyes suggest depth, mystery. Something noble but not ostentatious."
"Ashen," Seraphina said suddenly. "Like the soft gray of dawn before sunrise. Quiet but beautiful, with hidden depths."
"Ashen Silverion," Aldric repeated slowly, testing how it sounded. "I like it. It suits him."
Ashen Silverion. My new identity. My new life.
Not just any life—the youngest son of a ducal house in a cultivation world where power and politics shape everything.
Perfect starting position.
The system pulsed in his consciousness, as if responding to his thoughts.
[PRIMORDIAL AMPLIFICATION SYSTEM]
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Name Assignment Confirmed: Ashen Silverion
Current Status:
Age: 0 years, 0 days, 3 hours
Location: House Silverion Estate, Northern Territories, Asterian Empire
Family Position: Fifth child, youngest son
Bloodline Amplification: 47% complete
Social Standing Assessment:
House Silverion: One of five Great Ducal families
Territory: Strategic northern border regions
Military Strength: Significant (Duke Aldric, B-Rank Advanced)
Economic Status: Wealthy (trade routes, mining rights)
Political Influence: High (direct advisors to Emperor)
Survival Assessment: Excellent
Growth Potential: Optimal
Strategic Positioning: Ideal
Estimated time to Awakening Ceremony: 5 years
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Five years before the awakening ceremony. That's when children in this world discover their affinities and begin formal cultivation.
Five years to observe, learn, and prepare.
And according to the system, I'm in an ideal position to do it.
Over the next few hours, as word spread through the estate, more people came to pay their respects to the new Silverion heir. Servants, guards, administrators, minor nobles from nearby estates—all wanting to see the youngest son of one of the most powerful families in the empire.
Ashen found himself the center of attention in a way he'd never experienced. In his previous life, he'd been invisible, just another corporate drone grinding away in obscurity. Here, his mere existence was noteworthy, his future a subject of speculation and interest.
It should have been overwhelming, but instead it was... educational.
He listened to conversations, catalogued faces and names, began building a mental map of the political and social structure surrounding his new family. His infant body couldn't do much, but his adult mind could process everything he heard and saw.
"The timing is auspicious," one elderly advisor was saying to Aldric. "Born just as the northern trade agreements were finalized. A good sign for the territory's future."
"Indeed," Aldric replied. "Though I hope he grows to serve the realm in whatever capacity suits him best. Not every Silverion needs to be a soldier."
"True. Young Elara has proven that administrative talent runs as strongly in the bloodline as martial prowess."
Interesting. So this family produces both warriors and administrators. That gives me options for how to develop my public persona.
Seraphina eventually shooed most of the visitors away, citing the need for rest. As the room emptied and quiet settled over the birthing chamber, she looked down at her son with tired but happy eyes.
"Just us now," she murmured, adjusting him in her arms. "What do you think of your new family, little Ashen? Are we what you expected?"
I expected nothing. I died alone on an office floor and somehow ended up here.
But this... this is better than anything I could have imagined.
Parents who love me before I've done anything to earn it.
Siblings who welcome me even though I represent change to their established dynamic.
A family that's wealthy enough to provide opportunities but not so prominent as to invite immediate danger.
And a world where personal power is achievable through cultivation rather than just circumstance and luck.
He couldn't express any of that, of course. Instead, he made the soft sounds that newborns make and wrapped his tiny fingers around her thumb.
Seraphina smiled, interpreting the gesture as she chose. "You're going to be special, I can tell. Not just because you're ours, but because there's something different about you. Those eyes see too much for a newborn."
If you only knew.
"Your father is already planning your education," she continued softly. "Combat training, of course—all Silverion children learn to defend themselves. But also literature, mathematics, history, languages. He wants you to have every advantage."
Every advantage. That's exactly what I need.
Knowledge is power, and power is freedom.
"And I'll make sure you never forget that you're loved," she added, pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead. "Whatever path you choose, whatever you become, that won't change."
Something warm settled in Ashen's chest at those words. In his previous life, love had been conditional, based on performance and achievement. His mother had loved him, but he'd been too busy to accept it. His few relationships had been transactional, based on convenience and mutual benefit.
This was different. This was pure, unconditional acceptance from people who asked nothing in return except the chance to care for him.
It was also dangerous, in its own way. Love created vulnerability. People you cared about could be used against you, or could suffer because of your actions.
But it also created motivation.
I'll get strong enough to protect this. To protect them.
In the novel, cosmic threats eventually arrive that challenge entire empires. Beings from other dimensions, corrupted cultivators who've transcended mortal concerns, forces that view entire worlds as expendable.
When that happens, B-Rank cultivation won't be enough to keep anyone safe.
But if I can reach the heights I'm planning... if I can gain enough power while staying hidden...
I can make sure none of that touches them.
They'll never know how close they came to danger because I'll eliminate the threats before they become threats.
That's worth any amount of deception. Any sacrifice.
That's love too, in its way.
As the night deepened, the castle settled into quieter rhythms. Seraphina dozed fitfully, still holding Ashen close. Aldric had retired to his study to handle the administrative details of registering the birth with the imperial bureaucracy.
The other siblings had returned to their own quarters, though Ashen suspected at least one of them—probably Elara—was updating family records and calculating how his birth might affect everything from inheritance law to marriage negotiations.
In the peaceful darkness, Ashen had time to process what had happened to him.
Dead. Reborn. Given impossible power. Placed in an ideal position to grow that power without interference.
It was like something from the novels he'd read during lunch breaks, too convenient to be believable. Yet here he was, living it.
Why me? What cosmic force decided that Takeshi Yamamoto, of all people, deserved a second chance?
Was it really just because I wished for it in my final moments? Or is there something else at play here?
Does it matter?
I have this opportunity. This family. This power. This knowledge of what's coming.
The 'why' is less important than the 'what now.'
And what now is simple: grow stronger. Learn everything. Prepare for threats that won't manifest for decades.
Build enough power to protect everything I care about without anyone realizing I'm doing it.
Live the life I never had the chance to live before.
Free. Completely, utterly free.
The system pulsed once more, a gentle reminder of its presence.
[PRIMORDIAL AMPLIFICATION SYSTEM]
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First Day Complete
Development Progress:
Bloodline Amplification: 52% complete
Physique Enhancement: 48% complete
Ocular Evolution: 41% complete
Essence Capacity Expansion: 55% complete
Current Status: Healthy and developing normally
Concealment Status: Active - all enhanced attributes masked
Family Integration: Successful
Time remaining until full amplification: 4 years, 11 months, 3 weeks
Next milestone: First words (estimated 8-12 months)
All systems optimal.
Welcome to your new life, Ashen Silverion.
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Ashen closed his eyes, letting the warmth and safety of his mother's arms lull him toward sleep.
Tomorrow would begin the real work—learning this world, understanding its power structures, building relationships with his family while carefully concealing his true nature.
Tonight, though, he was content to simply exist. To be held and loved and welcomed into a family that wanted him.
In his previous life, he'd died alone and unmourned.
This time, he was surrounded by people who celebrated his very existence.
That alone made the second chance worthwhile.
Everything else—the power, the plans, the cosmic threats still decades away—could wait.
For now, he was home.
For now, that was enough.