Lightbringer System: Orphan to Paragon

System, what do I tell him? I am going to die if he thinks I am lying or hiding something from him!

[As long as you do not reveal the existence of the Lightbringer System, it is allowed.]

That… Is not really helpful, System! You're supposed to help me through a crisis like this!

[Trials and Tribulations will be the path that leads you to becoming the Lightbringer. Think of this conversation being one such Trial.]

Oh, so you're going to generate a Task and reward me for getting through this safely?

[No.]

This fucking System…

"Do not make me repeat myself again, child," Father said to me, making it very clear that there wasn't time to form an answer. 

"Patriarch, are you aware of the conditions your children face in their upbringing here?" 

"That is irrelevant, where has my child's soul gone, and how have you come to possess his body?"

"It IS relevant!" I slammed my fist on the desk, the damn thing not budging an inch. "Abuse, harassment are just the start! You created a system to create powerful monsters, and in the process you destroy the humanity in them!"

I didn't need to tell him this. All I needed to do was explain the circumstances. Why can't I stop?

"Kain suffered every day, for as long as he could remember. His own family, the fucking servants who served and abandoned him, the world itself turned its back on him!"

Tears started flowing down my face, and I do not understand why. I'm not sad, I'm angry at this household. Memories of Kain's were flowing into me, faster than I could understand them.

"Kain worked himself to the bone everyday, being the first to arrive, and the last to leave. Despite that, his results were poor compared to his siblings, so he was treated as less than dirt. Abused by his siblings, and eventually the servants joined in too. He did not have the talent for the killing arts he was being taught and practiced!" As the words kept flowing from my mouth, in an unstoppable torrent, I made a realization. 

"He… Had the talent to go far, but even despite that talent, his soul was not made for a life of violence. In the end, he truly believed he was a failure and a disgrace to the family line, and chose to kill himself before he could dishonor the Duskbane name more at the ceremony. Driven to suicide by the rules of the house that you fucking made, Patriarch!" 

Eyes red but no longer crazy, burning from the outburst of emotion, I glared into the Patriarch's eyes, and almost saw a spark of melancholy in them. 

"So my son chose to kill himself instead of potentially dishonoring the family name… And where does that leave you, who are you?" He firmly said, but no longer letting out the killing intent he had prior. 

"I don't know how I got here. I am just a lousy street orphan who shares a name with Kain, except I never received a family name," sitting back down in the chair, I continued, "We both died at the same age, except I don't know what caused my death. Something sent me here to Kain's body to become a hero called the Lightbringer, and that's the extent that I know".

Father stood up in his chair, and slammed his hands on the desk causing a more visible crack than mine had. Stupid desk.

"The Lightbringer?! You're to become the legendary hero of myth and legend?" 

"I… Was told that I had the potential to do so, and to work hard and get stronger to pursue that goal. Kain's soul core became my second one by his choice to help me accomplish that, and is why I was able to awaken a second element. Whether the Rank 10 Light element was because of me, or the absolute purity of his soul, I do not know for sure," Not sure what this meant to Father, as the System seemed to imply it was unknown to others. 

"So instead of a suicide, it could be viewed that my child's death was a sacrifice for the hero to be born in this world," and I was going to argue back at him about that line of reasoning, but I saw the sadness growing in his eyes once again. "You do not need to know about the creature we saw earlier, and let me take care of it for the time being," He said calmly, deep in thought.

He sat back in his chair, and waved his hands and his power fixed the desk like it was never damaged, to my amazement. 

Taking a minute to think things through, he looked at me and said, "You shall be my youngest going forward, and have the 'right' to call me Father, as you put it prior. I will arrange for a proper tutor to train you. I will say that your personality is better suited to this family than Kain's, so don't lose it if you want to survive. Lightbringer candidate or no, you will not be free of the house rules, so learn to navigate them properly."

Feeling better after letting loose some of the emotions pent up about Kain's death, I stood up and bowed to… My… Father, and said, "Yes, Father! I will do as you command!" 

As I got up to leave the library, I remembered something and looked back to him and said, "Oh, and Father?" He looked to me the melancholy in him rising more, I said, "Kain's last wish was that the family lived a happy life, so please grant him that much at least," and I saw that the knife that physically stabbed Kain's heart was mentally doing it to his… No our Father now. With that, I consider the blood debt he owes Kain settled for now.

With that, I made my way back to my room, after taking a few wrong turns at first. Once I reached my room, I sat at the chair I arrived in this world in, and let the first day wash over me. 

System, where do we begin in this journey to become the Lightbringer?