The Tygrines

Gelodesh: Northernmost kingdom of the continent.

Ostorth: Capital of Gelodesh.

Ryhor: Smallest of the three cities of Gelodesh.

Samantha Tygrine: Ruler of the Kingdom of Gelodesh.

Suzanne Granada: Sister of Samantha Tygrine. Marshal of the Gelodesh Kingdom.

Miranda Granada: Eldest daughter of Suzanne Granada.

Rose Granada: Younger twin of Miranda Granada.

Lily Tygrine: Daughter of Samantha Tygrine.

Raymond Tygrine: Younger twin of Lily Tygrine.

Shania Mosel: Lover of Raymond.

awaken: When a person connects his/her magic pool to natural magic pool, gaining an attribute elemental or otherwise
…
Glossary is already published. Do take a look. Thank you.
***

Raymond found himself lying in a luxurious bed. He was dressed in extravagant, silk garments that were much different than his usual clothes. Instead, he was dressed akin to something a king would wear to his bed.

He looked around the room in confusion and was bewildered by the unknown and grand scenery. He quickly surveyed the room and could not remember anything about where he was or how he got there.

Where is this? How did I get here?

“Hey, is anyone there? Where am I?”

When no one answered his calls, even after shouting at the top of his voice for three or four times, Raymond decided to go around and see if he could find anyone to get answers about where he was, how he got there, and why he was there.

He followed the light and found himself in a room with a balcony. He looked out of the large, floor to ceiling window and confirmed that he was in some kind of a palace. The palace seemed to be in the middle of a very big and ancient city. He could not remember ever having heard or read about it, and it was clear he was somewhere foreign to him.

"This city seems far bigger than Ryhor. I don't think even Ostorth has buildings this big and majestic. This looks like a palace an emperor would live in,"
Raymond muttered, panicked at the weird situation in which he found himself.

He went around different rooms but could not find a single person in the entire palace.

"Where the hell am I? And why is the whole palace empty!? Where are all the people?"

He decided to raise a commotion in the hope that someone, anyone, would hear him; he started breaking the glass windows and tearing down the paintings. He suddenly stopped when he caught a glimpse of a figure entering the room.

Raymond turned around and was struck dumb by what he saw. There stood a woman dressed in pure white, adorned by jewels and pearls. Her long, shiny black hair fell down to her waist. Her aura was so noble, her skin so fair, her face so beautiful; she looked divine and so familiar…

Mother?!

But not quite…

In his panic, Raymond stepped to the woman and shouted out his questions all at once. “Who are you? Where is this? How did I get here?”

“We don't have much time left. You have to awaken soon or it will be too late.” The woman spoke as if she was talking to an apparition.

Raymond was driven mad by listening to the same few sentences over and over. No matter what he said, the woman repeated the same mantra, again and again.
“STOP! What the hell is wrong with you? Answer my questions or else…”

Suddenly the woman passed by Raymond and peered out the window. She signaled for him to come to her. Raymond grumbled about her attitude but went towards her anyway. The woman was pointing outside the window, imploring him to look where she directed him.

He jumped back in horror when he gazed towards the city. The scene outside scared him like never before. The city was covered in a cloud of black mass. Flames were burning the houses everywhere. Black clouds were gathering, blocking the sunlight from coming down. It looked as though the world was about to end.

Raymond’s face turned pale. He turned towards the woman, wide-eyed.

“Ray!”

“You have to stop it before…”

“Ray. Ray, wake up!”

“... it's too late,” the woman said; her voice sounded faint and distant.

“RAY!”

Raymond woke up with a start. Lily, his twin, was holding his shoulders and looking at him with concerned eyes.
“Are you alright?”

Raymond took a deep breath and hugged Lily tightly. She was caught off guard but hugged him back after a moment. She thumped his back a few times and asked in a concerned voice, “bad dream?”

“Yes.”

“It's alright now. I'm here.”

“Yes.”

Lily brought her face close to his. Touching their foreheads, she stared at his eyes softly.
“Don't practice your magic too much. It will happen on its own. Trust me.”

“Okay.”

“Let's go. Today, the Council is meeting a little earlier. Miranda will get mad if we make her late for that.”
***

Raymond rode on his horse alongside Lily. He thought about the dream once again and the scenes of widespread destruction and darkness played through his mind which made him shiver at the thought of them ever becoming real.

"I have to awaken soon. That dream was too real. He trembled and an uneasy thought crept up in his mind. I wonder who that lady was, she looked eerily similar to mother…" He whispered to himself.

He was frustrated and very downtrodden because he hadn’t been able to pierce that gap to go from a half-awakened warrior to an awakened warrior. It had been nearly three years since he was stuck at that stage.

When he first became able to channel his mana outside his body, he was so glad that he had left behind the masses, those who would forever be magic warriors. Going from a magic warrior to a half-awakened was tougher than the following process of progressing to an awakened warrior. It was like a stigma on his soul, to be the weakest in his family and always have to live through their heroic tales, unable to write his own.

“Hey, do you have to go with Rose today?” Raymond turned to ask Lily as he recalled the upcoming hunt. The hunt, a weekly event during these few months to manage the increased numbers of magical and prime beasts in the vicinity of the city borders, had been a thing of longing for him.

“After lunch,” Lily uttered.
***

Miranda looked out into the yard; a carriage was waiting for her. She felt a little nervous at the fact that it was supposed to be her first day as the Council President, and she was already running late.

"Where are those three? They are always late for lunch..." She let out a sigh at the tardiness of her twin sister and their cousins. Then her thoughts turned to Raymond, who at age of 21, was still not able to awaken his magic.

She was worried and tense about him and thus had made his favourite meal for lunch to cheer him up a little.
“I hope he doesn't get too depressed.”

A moment later, she scoffed at her words. “How depressed can he be? He's dating that fucking bitch. I swear, I will kick her out of the city, her troupe too. Setting her sights on my innocent Ray, that fucking slut.”

Suddenly, Miranda heard footsteps from the corridor, which broke her train of thought.
“Miranda, we are in the dining room.”

Finally, they are here!
...