Chapter 13: Sleeper’s Vial
"But we talked about this. When we get here, pretend you don’t know me. We’re in front of my people, remember." Jairah’s voice was soft, strained, as she lowered her head slightly, avoiding the judging gazes of the nearby elves.
"Yeah, yeah. Onee-chan," Auren grinned playfully, brushing the dust from his clothes and legs as though they weren’t standing in one of the most politically dangerous places for a human in the entire Runewood.
An hour ago, before the entire Aetherthorn plaza had filled with the excited murmurs of thousands of elves, Auren and Jairah had come early to scout the ceremonial grounds. Using a disguise he crafted himself — prosthetic ears, tinted skin, and makeup — Auren had masqueraded as an elf with surprising effectiveness. Despite being only seven years old, he carried himself like someone far older — which, technically, he was.
Even Robert and Marissa, his adoptive parents, often found themselves stunned by Auren’s abnormal intellect. He’d spoken his first words at ten months — slurred but understandable — walked confidently by three months, and by a year and a half, was already reading and writing fluently. Sometimes he’d even mutter strange gibberish words neither of them recognized.
When asked how he knew so much at such a young age, Auren always replied with the same rehearsed line, accompanied by a mischievous grin:
"It’s a gift from the Golden Phoenix."
It was, of course, a lie—a convenient cover to hide his reincarnated soul from Earth.
Robert and Marissa believed it wholeheartedly. They saw it as a divine blessing and wasted no time providing him with every resource to maximize his talents. Under Robert’s tutelage, Auren trained daily in swordsmanship, martial arts, magic theory, languages, geography, herbalism, and even mechanical invention. Books, scrolls, and rare manuscripts became his toys.
By the age of three, Auren could already channel basic aura into a sword. His daily routine was grueling: morning sword drills, afternoon magic practice, evening studies in alchemy, survival, engineering, and military tactics. His memory was nothing short of photographic, his curiosity insatiable.
At six years old, Auren could spar evenly with Robert, at least for a short time. Though Robert’s physical strength and battle experience always overpowered him in the end, it was clear that Auren was destined to become something far beyond normal. His homemade inventions — crude but functional firearms he called "guns" and primitive "grenades" — were effective enough to give even experienced warriors pause.
Thanks to his "Golden Phoenix blessing," Auren had also developed a partial immunity to fire, able to walk through flames that would scorch others, though not yet fully impervious.