SSS Rank Sword Mage: Awakening Starts with Weakest Mana Affinity

I mustered all the courage I had as the green eyes glared at me. "I'm an Ashborn of the side branch family."

"I see, so Horus it is," the voice boomed.

Horus. So that's who the side branch family is tied to.

Then Azazel asked the biggest question on each and every one of his disciples' minds. "Master, why are you awake? I thought you had ordered not to be disturbed until the set time. The Season of Nostalgia hasn't arrived yet."

The Season of Nostalgia? What did Azazel mean by that?

Galahad, and especially Isoldrick, chimed in. "Yes, Master, this is a massive surprise. Welcome back, my lord, the king of seals," Isoldrick said, tightening his bowing posture.

Then Galahad added, "Do not worry yourself with this little matter, my lord. I will personally make sure the child gets home safely."

Definitely not. Of all the people or whatever they were Galahad was the last person I would let escort me home. If it was anyone, it would definitely be Isoldrick, I thought. As if to confirm my thoughts, Derrick Ashborn replied to Galahad's request, "I should leave him in the hands of someone who wanted to send him to the Shadow Realm?"

Galahad stammered, "Ah, no, no, my lord, that was before I knew who he was..."

Then Isoldrick volunteered, "May my lord then allow me to accomplish that, as I had no hostile retaliation toward the child?"

Yes, the right person had spoken, I thought. But he was rather in the middle; I couldn't tell his intentions, unlike the rest.

Again, they pushed the question. "Is something of great magnitude coming that awakens my lord? Isn't my lord supposed to wake until another epoch? May we know why you have shortened your rest?"

As Derrick Ashborn grew tired of the question, a voice with the magnitude of a giant said, "Enough!" and the whole place went silent. But one truth remained: they all wanted to know, as if his awakening always signaled something important was about to happen.

Then, with a thunderous voice, Derrick Ashborn said, "The boy... I was awoken by him."

The sudden gasps and shocked sounds escaped his disciples' mouths, showing their disbelief. What could be so special about waking him up? Wasn't it just a typical 'hello, my lord, wake up?' Joking aside, what kind of waking up did that blue light from my pendant do?

Azazel, the most intrigued out of the three, said, "He is responsible? Impossible! A side branch, at that?" Everyone looked toward me in disbelief.

"That boy, Master? I can't sense any trace of mana, and he also has no talent for seals, as I can sense an incomplete casting."

"I see, so you are the master now. Do tell me what else is impossible that I do not know," Derrick replied in a mocking tone.

Realizing his impudence, Azazel immediately corrected himself, as the man who gave off an aura of confidence was now nothing but error-filled. "But I know my lord is never wrong. Then it must be true." He then whispered, "How could this be...?"

Derrick immediately corrected him. "That boy has a name, Azazel."

"Sorry, my lord," he said, correcting himself immediately, "Astraga."

Knowing I had no single clue what Derrick was talking about, I was just going to tell them the truth, just as Azazel had assessed. "What? It wasn't me! Mr. Ashborn... Lord... Sir..."

As he removed the formalities and requested I call him "Greatest-grandfather," I would have called him anything he wanted, as I was grateful he had saved my life. "You may call me Greatest-grandfather," he said.

"Greatest-grandfather," I said, my voice full of honesty. "Please believe me when I say I have no clue! He's right, Azazel; I don't have a single ounce of mana in me. It was my tampering to get mana that got me into this mess in the first place, so how could I have the knowledge to accomplish such a feat as awakening you, Greatest-grandfather?"

Then it clicked: the pendant! Of course. I thought, staring at my pendant and remembering the blue light that had passed through the cracks of the opened gate.

"It must be this pendant, Grandfather," I said, shaking it while gripping it, displaying it to the colossal eyes of Derrick.

The eyes to which Derrick's voice belonged then added, "To be more exact, the spirit within that pendant woke me," he clarified.

"A spirit? There has been a spirit residing in this pendant?" I was completely shocked, as were the rest.

Azazel, especially, said, "In all my years as a veteran mage serving under my lord, I had never come across a pendant with protection magic of this level. I have never seen power like this before; it's truly remarkable. Upon using my Khetemu, it hindered me from using a Khetemu of Revelation. To think that a high-level seal casting at which I am most proficient in was hindered... it's incredible."

Trying to fuel his curiosity, he asked, "Astraga, who gave you such a powerful protection magic?"

Even the father of seals, Derrick Ashborn, hadn't seen this type of magic before, as it felt completely foreign.

In an attempt to answer their questions, I replied, "I've always had it since birth. My mother is the one who knows more about it. She says it was given to me by the Grand Midwife who assisted in my birth to protect me and my sister from a mysterious evil mage's authority, Drogan. He wants nothing more than our destruction."

I held on to the pendant with my left hand. "It is a gift."

"May I know her name?" he asked.

"I may not know her full name, but her name is Anaya," I said, as the eyes seemed to search, just as Derrick Ashborn's did, calling it light multiple times.

Azazel then replied, "So the Shadow was after you since birth?"

"Kind of," I answered. "But my mom has been shielding me and my sister from the demons' attacks."

"This would be the very first time I would encounter it since birth, as I found myself here."

"I see. Someone placed a taboo spell on the birth of twins?" Derrick's thunderous voice realized. "That must be the case. It appears the world I had left for my sons was still the same, as the abuse of power always becomes the main issue," he said as he sounded like he was reminiscing on past battles and all.

"The magic from that pendant, yes, I remember now! It must definitely be from the legendary Conca region, the mythical birthplace of dragons, the original homes of dragons."

What the heck was the Conca region? I touched my necklace. What could be the untapped powers that resided there? He immediately shut down the thought, saying, "It could be a myth," as even Derrick Ashborn wasn't sure if the legends were true. Could my pendant have some sort of dragon spirit trapped inside? Or residing as well?

Then, before I could ask if he could explain further, he said, "I have heard enough. I will need to see the pendant in person." The colossal eyes said, "Astraga, tell me more inside."

The massive gates opened.

"Consider this a great honor," Galahad said. "Those who go inside this gate come out ten times stronger than they were."

"Come on now! lets go in." Azazel said, walking inside majestically as the knights stood at alert. The gate had a greenish, barrier-like wall we had to walk through. A few steps behind, Azazel replied, "Faster! You're about to be graced by the Master's presence. Be steadfast."

"Coming!" I yelled, rushing in toward what lay beyond the gate.