Alaric couldn’t deny that he felt a little embarrassed by all the fuss. He had never experienced such a birthday party even in his previous life and found himself a little unprepared for all the attention.

Fortunately, his father placed a firm hand on his back and ushered him towards the cake. Alaric didn’t allow himself to think too much and simply savored the moment. His father had probably arranged such a lavish birthday party since Alaric would have to leave the estate for a few years.

He sliced the cake to the tune of friendly cheers and a birthday song. Feeding a slice of cake to his father with his own hand felt supremely awkward at first. However, the count deftly took the lead and managed to make it seem natural.

Everything about the moment was perfect, except for one thing. He deeply missed his friends and yearned for Rowan, George, and Garet to be there with him.

When time flew by, he didn’t notice. Alaric was by his father’s side along with Edgar as everybody approached to greet him individually.

Even Captain Aldric and Sir Baldwin carved out some time out of their busy schedule to attend the party and congratulate him, before having dinner and heading back to resume their duty. Just because it was his birthday, they couldn’t ignore the security of the estate. Their jobs were too important.

His face lit up when he spotted Elara. She had been busy coordinating the whole party the entire afternoon, but now that everything was done, Elara finally approached Alaric and gave him a tight hug.

“Young Master, I wish you all the very best and a very Happy Birthday,” she said, wiping tears off her eyes. Alaric felt a tight knot forming in his chest as he acknowledged her appreciation. Elara had never let him feel that he lacked the presence of a mother or that he was a bastard.

Ever since Alaric had been a child, she had tended to his every need. He was deeply grateful for such love and kindness.

Speaking of which, he suddenly noticed the countess slowly nearing him. Alaric was prepared for the worst, but contrary to his expectations, the countess greeted him before taking her leave.

She had a complicated expression on her face, as if she was neither happy nor frustrated to greet him. Truth be told, Alaric felt a little bad. He hadn’t attempted to foster any bond with the countess, content to maintain the status quo.

In hindsight, he hadn’t given much thought to her feelings regarding his status in the family. It must’ve pained her to see Alaric - the mark of her husband’s infidelity - so casually acknowledged by everybody. He couldn’t really blame her for being mad at him.

Alaric scratched his cheek, noticing the complicated gaze of the count on him. He couldn’t really blame the count either. He must’ve had his reason. Besides, I wouldn’t have existed in this world if the count didn’t…

Alaric shook his head when he realized he was trying to subconsciously justify the count’s actions. It was not his responsibility or place to justify his father’s actions.

He pinched his brows, reminding himself why he never thought about such matters. It was more complicated than delving into a rift.

Once the crowd dispersed, Alaric headed to the dinner table with his father and Edgar. The countess had dinner delivered to her room a long time ago.

The dinner was quite the feast, but he especially savored the extra serving of his birthday cake, which just melted in his mouth. The rich blend of vanilla and choco-chips instantly lifted his mood. After dinner, the count invited him to his study.

“This is your gift, Alaric,” the count said with a smile as he presented Alaric a small, purple jewelry box. “Open it.”

“A gift?” he said, pointing to himself. “For me?” Alaric couldn’t deny he was a little surprised. Although it was a birthday party, nobody had offered him any gifts until now. It was definitely odd, but he hadn’t registered that until now, since he really wasn’t expecting any gifts.

Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

“Who else?” the count admonished him lightly. “Now open it.”

“But, I thought,” he tried to argue, but quickly acquiesced when he noticed his father glaring at him. Edgar, as usual, chuckled from the side, not offering any explanation. Alaric eagerly unlatched the jewelry case and glanced at the small, silver ring that was within it.

The moment he slid it on his index finger, he received a system prompt.

New spatial storage item detected. Would you like to bond with this item?

A spatial storage ring? A smile stretched across his face as he accepted the system prompt.

I wonder how large the space inside is. Alaric was not prepared for the real surprise. He expected an empty cube of storage space, but instead found it stuffed with a plethora of items.

The storage space extended about 10 feet on all sides, and it was almost filled to the brim. He discovered a neat collection of pressed garments for almost every occasion, matching gears and shoes, new swords, an assortment of healing potions, plenty of food, barrels of water, and so much more.

“What is all this?” he exclaimed in surprise.

“See, I told you he would be astonished,” Edgar chuckled.

“Those are all the gifts that everybody had prepared for your journey, my son.” The count said with a grin. “You didn’t expect any gifts, did you?”

That revelation made his heart swell with joy. Not because he received so many gifts, but because it reflected how much everybody cared for him.

“Ahem, Alaric,” Edgar cleared his throat, sneaking a glance at the count, who regarded him with suspicion in his eyes. “Come with me for a second.”

“Where are you taking my child?” questioned his father, crossing his arms over his chest.

“What?” Edgar replied. “Can’t I have a few moments with my disciple, alone?”

What is happening now? Alaric saw the count’s face twist into a scowl, but he chose to remain quiet. Before he could process what was happening, Edgar steered him outside with a hand on his back.

***

Alaric and Edgar were on the terrace, soaking in the cold breeze of the night. Apparently, the head butler wanted to present Alaric a long overdue gift, but was reluctant to do it in the count’s presence.

“Do you remember that I once had to leave town on important business for a whole week?” said Edgar. “And I said that I had procured a gift for you on my trip?”

At first, Alaric couldn’t recall anything like that, but after some thinking, he did remember something. Edgar had mentioned something about a gift right after he had reforged his skin for the first time.

Frankly, it had been such a long time that he had completely forgotten about it. But he wondered why he withheld the gift for such a long time and why all the secrecy, even from the count.

As if understanding the question in his eyes, Edgar handed over a large package after scanning his surroundings for one last time.

Inside the package, Alaric spotted a weird, featureless mask, along with a small token. He picked up the small token with a questioning glance at his mentor. “What is this?”

“This is a token for an underground competition. I will explain everything, but you have to promise that you won’t reveal anything to your father. He will kill me if -” Edgar was rudely interrupted before he could finish his sentence.

“I knew it!” the count came storming in. Edgar visibly flinched, realizing his ploy had failed. Alaric could only chuckle at their antics. He still didn’t fully grasp what was happening, but one thing was sure - the count wasn’t really angry and Edgar wasn’t in any real danger.

Everything is fine. Or so he thought until he heard a loud commotion coming from the front gate.

All of them sprinted towards the gate to witness the gathering of guards. Captain Aldric and Sir Baldwin were arguing with somebody on the other side, clutching their swords.

The whole atmosphere had suddenly turned too tense. When he approached closer, he discovered the reason. The Inquisitor from long ago had come to visit them again, flanked by a squad of Black Flame Hunters.

An unassuming man with greasy, brown hair stood by the Inquisitor’s side, but Alaric sensed that the person shouldn’t be taken lightly.

“Lord Inquisitor, is there any important reason for you to have graced us with your presence at this late hour?” the count said gravely. It seemed he really didn’t appreciate these uninvited visits any longer.

“What? Are we not invited to young Alaric’s birthday party?” the Inquisitor teased, before glancing at the person by his side. “Raviel, it is young Alaric’s birthday today, is it not?”

“It is indeed as you say, my lord,” the man beside him confirmed.

“I really don’t appreciate your unannounced visits,” the count almost growled with rage. Edgar positioned himself to guard Alaric since he was pretty vulnerable at the moment.

“Relax. I came on a friendly visit. There is a lot to discuss,” the Inquisitor said, locking eyes with Alaric. “Besides, I come bearing gifts.”

Alaric really didn’t like the sound of that. He couldn’t place his trust in these guys. Nobody in the estate did.

And here I thought everything was going almost too well. As if the situation wasn’t bad enough, he suddenly detected the presence of three figures too close to the estate. It didn’t take him more than a moment to identify the energy signatures of these new presences.

You’ve got to be kidding me right now. He mentally cursed his fate while clenching his teeth. Where there were witches and inquisitors present, there was bound to be a war. And he was caught within it in his most vulnerable moment.