Descent of a God

Auction House

Arthur POV:

I have been training Lilia and Ellie in mana manipulation. Having both of them sit down and meditate while I guide the surrounding mana they gather so that they both can awaken faster. It would still take a few years before they both awaken, but I did repeatedly tell them to keep this a secret.

Both of them have stopped needing my guidance for the mana manipulation, which is a good sign. I didn't need to remind my parents and the Helstea family that keeping this a secret was important, but it was blatantly obvious that the four of them were excited for the day Lilia and Ellie would awaken.

Sylvie had been sleeping much more these past two months, but some changes became noticeable. For one, her intelligence was rapidly increasing. Her thoughts to me were more intricate and contained complicated emotions that went past just 'hungry' or 'sleepy.' In the few short months after she was born, it felt like she had gained years of emotional intelligence.

One major change had happened recently; she learned how to transform.

Okay, it wasn't something as drastic as transformation, but she was able to manipulate her body a little. It felt like it happened so suddenly. I had been pondering how to hide her appearance in the days to come when she grows larger. She had been beside me when she started whining and scratching herself as if uncomfortable. The next thing I knew, her red spikes began retracting while her horns got smaller. It was a mind-blowing surprise. Now, most of the time, Sylvie just kept her spikes and horns retracted, making her look more like a cute, black scaled fox with little horns.

Throughout this time, both Vincent and Tabitha had insisted on giving me more gifts as thanks. Even if I wasn't able to acquire the cloak or mask, I had been planning on training Lilia. After all, she's part of the family that helped my family, so as far as I was concerned, there was nothing to lose in helping them. After numerous refusals, we had finally settled on something they could get me: a sword.

My body had finally grown big enough to properly handle a small sword without awkwardly toppling over at the slightest mishap. It wouldn't be bigger than an adult-sized dagger, but it finally allowed me to train my swordsmanship with something other than a wooden stick. I still have no idea how Jude wields his sword like it's a part of his body.  

Talking about Jude, I can't help but feel he is obnoxious. He was the least interested when I returned home. He also seems to know almost every secret I have, which is simply frustrating. The most annoying part though is the physical difference between us. He is almost 10 cm taller than me and thus far bigger. Everybody assumes he is my older brother, which I guess he technically is by 15 minutes but still. 

Moving on, we had decided that my family and Vincent's family would go visit the Tenth Anniversary Helstea Auction. Waiting in the living room downstairs for my dad, Vince and Jude to get ready, I heard an obnoxious knock from the front door.

Sheesh, knocking once is plenty.

I let out a slightly annoyed shout that I'd get it since I was close by, anyway. No need to trouble the maids when I was right next to the door.

"Who's there—OOF!"

I was hit with the nostalgic sensation of getting smothered by a pair of foam pillows. A classic way of assassination, but shouldn't it be used while I'm sleeping?

"Oh my goodness! You were alive! Look how big you've gotten! I'm so sorry, Art! I wasn't able to protect you! I'm so glad!" the lady sniffled.

"Mmph! Mmmfph!"

"Angela, I don't think he can breathe..." A comforting voice pointed out.

"Eep! S-Sorry!" Angela squealed.