Chapter 10: Chapter 10 – Hope Amongst Misfortune

In a well-lit spacious office, sat a man with a fierce face. He had sharp thin eyebrows and a slender nose, his skin was pearly white and he donned a white robe with indigo accents.

The room was clean and tiled with grey marble, the air was crisp and had a scent of freshness. There was no furniture or clutter, the office was illuminated by white lights.

There was a single painting of an old man placed on the right wall of the office. The subject looked like an ancient being yet it was as if he was alive, he had a long grey beard and the same fierce look as the man.

The only furniture in the room was a table with cyan Lights incorporated into its design, it was a clear frosty white with a matte finish. Seated at the table, on a high-tech chair floating above the ground, was a man focused on a hologram.

On the other end of the hologram was a person in all black, with only his eyes visible. His eyes were sharp like the man at the table but they were more youthful in appearance. He wore loose-fitted clothing that was tied at the waist by an indigo belt.

“High Elder,” the youth called out. “We’ve had reports that Guillaume was defeated in battle, we need a replacement.”

“Have the reports been confirmed?” The man questioned.

“Yes elder, we are currently investigating the individuals involved. However, we found a body and it has been confirmed to be our man.” The youth reported.

“Find out all you can about the events that transpired and report back as soon as possible, you have 24 hours.” The man ordered.

“Yes Elder… There’s also another matter.” The youth hesitated.

“Out with it!”

“The body was drained of all its blood. We found two more bodies of his guards and they too were drained of their blood.”

‘Hmm,’ the man pondered. “Get back to me after you have more details.” He closed the hologram without waiting for a response.

‘I’m surprised that buffoon managed to get killed, even after all the help I provided. I helped raise his F grade talent to E grade and even taught him some elementary spells. I don’t understand what could have killed him in the slums,’ he mused. ‘Drained blood usually means there are Vampires lurking, I have to treat this matter seriously.’

Declan Hocus, also known as the high elder, was the leader of the Hocus family. Guillaume was his son, conceived from a female servant. A bastard child he didn’t want but cared for due to the love he had for his mother. However, he had no love for the boy.

When she was executed by his hands, Declan felt responsible and mourned for a month. As the elder, he had to set an example. When the family council found out about their affair he was the one to rule the judgment.

The Elder was truly devastated as he had a deep affection for her, even more than his wife. Her name was Erica and she was a gentle soul, a beautiful woman whose smile could light up any room.

Declan faked the death of their child together and executed her in front of the council, he had to show he was a strong leader before the family lost faith in him. A heart demon had formed inside him that day and he hadn’t been able to progress from Rank B for over 25 years.

The Elder had been obsessed with increasing the rank of his family. The rank of a family was determined by their strongest elder. Declan knew he would always be B grade due to his heart demon, so he was desperately looking for a strong heir.

As a favor to his dear Erica, he let the child live and even helped him in the shadows. He had to keep his distance however so he never publically aided him. Only through his confidants.

Guillaume disgusted him, he was unmotivated and talentless. If not for his mother, Declan would have executed him long ago.

Even with all the aid Guillaume had received, he had no talent for magic and was stuck at rank E for the last 15 years. Declan had given up on him after seeing his progress.

He let him work in the slums as an overseer for his smuggling business, Declan smuggled rare minerals and magic cores to avoid taxes, growing a B-class family was not cheap.

Guillaume was happy with his placement since being a king amongst slaves was better than being an ant amongst gods.

The inner city was no place for weak individuals. Anyone who was found to have a weak aptitude for magic would be cast out into the slums or put to work as servants. Some families even executed their children to hide their shame.

This mentality was bred from years of conflict with monsters and Vampires.

The high-class families lived in a cut-throat environment where they had to eat or be eaten. Families shifted power regularly as small families were raided by bigger families for resources and manpower.

However, there hadn’t been a civil war in the city for over 10 years, peace had reigned ever since the smaller families got together and formed an alliance.

10 years ago there was a wave of monsters that almost wiped out the city, the families were in conflict and unprepared. After that incident, they all got together and vowed they would never take over another family as an aggressor, and that they would police each other by forming a council.

There were 2 C-Class families, 5 B-Class families, and 3 A-Class families in Seinfeld. The B and C-Class families were all in an open treaty but the A-Class families were in direct competition. The politics were more complex however, as the smaller families all had hidden allegiances with the A-Class families and skirmishes were common.

Instead of war, the families competed through competitions amongst their youths. There were 3 magic schools in Seinfeld. Phoenix Academy, Angel Academy, and Grand Academy. They held annual competitions against each other and the elders got to vent while watching their prodigies best the other families.

Declan was the leader of a B-Class family that was among the stronger ones, he was very proud and was looking to take his family to A class with the next generation.

He had a son who would turn 8 tomorrow. After children turned 8 they were able to take the aptitude test to find out how smooth their magic journey would be.

Declan was feeling extremely nervous and couldn’t sleep. If the results were bad he could lose his position as the head of the family.

….

Soon the sun had risen and Declan hadn’t slept a wink, he got out of his office groggily and made his way to the magic hall in the estate. It was time for the test, he knew his son would be waiting there alongside the family teacher.

As Declan approached he saw a young boy running toward him with a large smile. ”Father!” the boy called out to him

You are reading story Omniarch at novel35.com

“Yes Dylan, how are you? Have you already had your test?” His father smiled at him warmly.

“No father I was waiting for you, I wanted us to see my results together.”

“Alright son, let’s go into the hall together. Is your teacher already inside?”

“Yup, Master Angelo has been waiting for us,” Dylan replied.

“Alright, that’s good,” Declan said calmly before opening the hall doors and entering. His son couldn’t see the look on his face but Declan donned an extremely dark expression. The future of his family and himself rested on this moment, he was already calculating how he could save face if things went wrong.

“High Elder, it’s good to see you. Today is the beginning of a new age, I feel honored to be a part of it.” Angelo proclaimed.

He was standing behind an altar with two crystal balls in each hand. Declan and his son approached him in silence until they came face to face.

“Let us begin,” Declan stated, he was in no mood for premature flattery.

“My child, place your hand on this ball first.” Angelo gestured to the boy.

“Ok!” Dylan replied joyfully, he placed his hand on the crystal ball with confidence.

For a few seconds nothing happened, then a dim light began to shine from the ball. The light source was less than 1cm in diameter. As soon as Declan and Angelo had seen the result, their faces fell grim.

The crystal ball tested the magic talent of individuals. Depending on the intensity of light produced, one would be able to gauge their magic talent. The grades ranged from F to A. Failing to produce a glow meant the results were grade F, and if the ball shined an intense brightness it was determined to be grade A.

Through Dylan’s results, it was clear that he was just an E grade magic talent.

‘Just my luck.’ Declan was in disarray, maybe I can still cover things up if he has a good magic affinity. I can look for a replacement slowly before the truth is uncovered.’

Angelo didn’t say a single word, any reassuring comment could trigger Declan’s temper.

“Uhum. Ok Dylan, put your hand on this ball instead.” He coughed and swiftly moved on to the next test. The next crystal ball was designed to test magic affinity, it glowed various colors depending on the compatible element.

Without a word, Dylan placed his hand on the other crystal ball in a timid manner. He could sense from the mood in the room that his previous result was less than satisfactory.

A minute of silence went by as no change occurred within the crystal ball. After the first 20 seconds, Angelo knew any further wait would be pointless, however, he stayed silent for fear of upsetting Declan.

The High Elder looked dead into Angelo’s eyes and activated his spiritual energy.

Angelo found it hard to breathe. The boy fell unconscious instantly from the pressure and he collapsed to the ground. Declan didn’t show a hint of concern.

“High Elder, please!” the teacher pleaded.

“Not. A. Word,” Declan whispered slowly, stopping at every word. He made sure the threat was clear.

“Understood Elder. However, the council… will want answers. What… should I tell them?” The teacher responded, pushing out every word with difficulty.

“Tell them the boy was ill and that the official test will begin tomorrow.”

“Yes, Elder… I’ll be on my way.” Angelo quickly rushed out of the room as soon as the pressure was released. He sighed with relief as he left past the doors. He couldn’t understand what the High Elder was thinking.

Declan turned toward the boy, he grabbed him by his hair and picked him up before teleporting to a private room. Now that he was useless, he didn’t deserve love.

…

*Ring Ring*

Back at his office, Declan’s pad was ringing, he accepted the call and a hologram emerged. It was of the same youth in black.

“High Elder, we confirmed that the culprit was a boy, numerous witnesses confirmed his age to be between 8 and 10.” The youth reported.

“How was a child able to best Guillaume?” Declan retorted.

“We’re not sure, no one saw the fight in its entirety. There were some reports of a monster being present, and all the staff who were at the scene fled. However, we conferred with numerous eyewitnesses who were present at the end of the fight. They all confirmed the murderer to be a small boy.”

“Could the monster and the boy be the same entity?” The elder interrogated.

“No. The description of the monster did not match the boys. We believe the monster was in the vicinity at the time of the fight.” Replied the youth.

“Hmm, find that boy and bring him to me. Make sure that he is unharmed, I want it done before the sun sets!” Declan ordered with a new light in his eye.

‘I may have just found the solution to my problem.’

You can find story with these keywords: Omniarch, Read Omniarch, Omniarch novel, Omniarch book, Omniarch story, Omniarch full, Omniarch Latest Chapter