The next few moments were frantic.
My parents stared at me dumbfounded for a few moments before rushing me into our home and sitting me by the table.
Usually, they would like me asleep by that time. They said I needed it to keep growing.
Sitting across from me, my parents stared deep into my eyes, whilst I looked at them with a smile.
"Son, you understand that you cannot awaken before turning sixteen?" My Father said in a slow tone, emphasising his point. "It is the requirement for opening the first seal."
My mother nodded her head in agreement.
"I know," I responded genuinely. "I was surprised too. I think it's because I skipped past the first tier, completing the second seals trial."
...
Silence hung in the air for a while as the blood drained from my parent's faces.
"I-it can't be," Father said, his expression filling with worry. "You don't mean..."
I nodded my head again.
"Yes. I ran into a Blight-cursed man lurking through the forest. He was of the fire pathway, and I killed him."
...
More silence.
Then, my mother rose to her seat and leaned over, pulling me into another hug.
For the next ten minutes, my parents showed me affection. Despite having awakened prematurely, in their eyes, I was still their little boy.
They battered me with questions. About how I managed to win, and how I felt after awakening. Which techniques I had earned and if I had sustained any injuries.
I answered all the questions, but after a while, I grew tired. It seemed that the battle had taken more out of me than I thought.
So, my parents allowed me to retire to my chambers and sleep. But first, I lingered at the top of the staircase, listening to their conversation.
"Can you believe it?" My father's voice whispered. "Our son has awakened before the age of sixteen. It shouldn't be possible."
"But it's not unheard of." My mother responded. "They say that King Sky awakened even earlier. Although it's only rumours. The Ordenian's claim that King Rose was born awakened, but we can brush that off as Elven lies"
...
"It doesn't matter. More importantly, what do we do next? The Zalethi knights will come on the day he turns sixteen to witness his awakening. What will happen when they find out that he has already awakened? Not only that, but he's second tier."
My father remained silent for a few moments before continuing.
"He will be a prodigy." He said solemnly, the joy slowly fading from his voice. "They will want him to join the war immediately..."
After that, my parent's conversation ended, and I retired to my chambers.
After changing into my clothes and watching my body, I sat down on my bed, going over the new information I had been granted after awakening.
There were a few things that stood out to me most.
First was the current Saint.
Elanis Lionheart.
The Saint of a pathway was the closest one could get to becoming a living God.
Per pathway, there could only be one Saint. A man who had reached the tenth tier, and awakened 100% of their core.
When one becomes a ninth tier in their pathway, they can enter into a battle with the current Saint, earning themselves a chance to take their position.
If the Saint loses, he would lose his core completely, or worse, he would lose his life.
I dove deep into the depths of my mind, trying to place a finger on the man's name. But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't recall ever hearing of an Elanis Lionheart.
He must be a part of the Ordenian Empire. Perhaps a man who currently fights in the war...
But if he was fighting in the war, would his name not be more known?
Pushing the thought aside for the time being, my attention turned towards my manifestation.
Manifestions were techniques that an awakened could use, which resonated with their paths.
For example, someone on the fire path could manifest his blight into flames, and erupt them from his palms.
Or a summoner could manifest his blight into conjurations, summoning beasts or creatures to aid him in battles.
There were infinite ways to use blight, and few ways to learn manifestations.
Scrolls. Analysis. Combat. Rituals. Lessons.
To awaken was only the start of one's journey towards becoming a skilled magician or fighter; it only truly began once one started on the path to becoming stronger.
I would need to figure out a way to learn some manifestations before being visited by the knights.
And finally, my attention fell on my seal itself
Here, I was able to feel my progression towards the next seal tier.
It was like a whisper, granting me information I had didn't have before.
Infact... it felt like it had always been there, but I had only gained access to it now.
To defeat a blight-formed echo of myself...
That was how I was supposed to awaken the third seal. Or atleast what my mind was telling me.
It wasn't something I had ever heard of, but I guessed at what it was.
Shouldn't such a task be easy? If it was only a Blightcursed version of myself that I had to defeat, then how was I supposed to lose?
It would just be a creature that had gone crazy. It would have my powers, but no mind to use them efficiently.
I pushed that thought away for now too, assuming that it wasn't something that I would be able to complete by myself. After all, how could one even create an echo of themselves?
Laying on my back, staring up at my ceiling, thousands of thoughts ran through my mind. In just an hour, my life had completely changed.
And to no surprise, I was happy about It.
My entire life had been dedicated to training. Making sure that I awakened the Sword Pathway. For it to come early was like a blessing.
And so, I lay my head on my pillow and went to sleep, preparing for the next day.
For there was a lot that needed to be done.