The mansion was huge. The gates were made of thick iron and looked like they needed a crew of 12 people to push them open. It opens with aura-recognition; I completely forgot about that.
My bad! It was the mansion of the Voltaries family. I could recognize the crest of the blue phoenix from miles away. The garden was filled with fragrant flowers and a huge fountain, which had a glass statue of a phoenix.
I never understood all the phoenix figurines that this family had. They are an extremely powerful family in the South, second only to the Rainez family, who were of Ultra-Elite status.
I still remember the showdown between Viktor Voltaries and Elmar Rainez, the second son of the Rainez family. They had an aura showdown to determine superiority and to get a contract to mine blue aura stones from the canyons in the west of Meridon.
This deal pushed the financial power of the Voltaries family to the next level and played a major part in the family's push for Ultra-Elite status. The things I achieved with years of research, this guy got with a single showdown. Sometimes, I question my choices heavily.
This family does have a shady background, though. The patriarch of the family, Dumont Voltaries, started from scratch. He was selling roasted peanuts in the market, and one day plummeted to Elite status.
No one knows what happened in the background. Some believe he sold phenadel, a banned drug that boosts the aura capabilities of a person beyond imagination, which, with continuous consumption, yep! DEATH.
Mirna was panicking next to me, seeing the size of the mansion, and she instinctively moved closer to me and held on to my torn-up shirt.
"Just who are you?" She asked, giving my torn shirt a pull.
"Like I KNOW!," I whispered more to myself than to her.
The mansion was painted ivory with gold accents here and there, and the doors looked like they were made out of sandalwood.
We followed Valeria as she opened the door with her aura. The hallways were covered with paintings from various ages and periods. There were flower vases filled with tulips and orchids.
The hallway led to another room, which I think is the patriarch's study.
Valeria gave the door three consecutive knocks, and the door opened. The room was huge; there were tall shelves which touched the ceiling, filled with books, and at the center of the room was a glass-top wooden table, which had a lot of files on top, and a leather cushion chair that was empty.
We were standing there for five minutes when the glass door that led to the balcony opened, revealing two tall men in suits.
One of them was the patriarch; he looked old but handsome, with his greyish-blue eyes, a face full of wrinkles, and a head full of lush grey hair.
He was followed by a man with jet-black hair and icy blue eyes. I think he was his second son, Tessron, the one who was in line to be the next patriarch of the family.
In my past life, both Tessron and Dumont were assassinated when I was around 15. The Voltaries family had continuous tragedies. First, these two died, which sparked a war between the rest of the family for the patriarchal seat.
The war resulted in various family members targeting each other and plotting assassinations within the family. The bloodbath ended with the last two people standing, Viktor and Valeria, which, believe me, was NOT a coincidence.
"This is the kid, huh? Looks like you, Tessron," The patriarch said with a laugh. He walked close to me and ruffled my hair.
Wait... WHAT???
"He does, doesn't he?" Tessron said with a hand on his chin. He then knelt down to be at my eye level and held both of my hands in his with a glazed look in his eyes.
"Who is the other kid?" the patriarch asked, pointing to a confused and too scared to speak Mirna.
"It's his friend," Valeria gave a short reply as usual.
Tessron rang a bell, and a lanky butler with slightly balding brown hair showed up in a minute.
"Russ, take this kid and show him his room, give him all the food he wants, he looks starved. We will let him get accustomed to this house and start his lessons by next week. Talk to the little friend of his, and take her to her family," He told the butler.
Wait, hold on... Everything is happening too damn fast. Let's REWIND!!!
"Wait, Who am I?" I asked, bracing myself for the reply I was going to get. I am not that dense; a part of me knew, and I know I am NOT going to get an answer I like.
My brain started whirring and putting a lot of puzzle pieces together. My mother looked like a noble, the way I met Mirna, and the fact that Valeria broke me out of a prison-like facility and brought me to this mansion. I DON'T think I'm ready for the full picture yet!
When I asked that question, the patriarch had a sad expression, and so did Tessron. They gave each other a look, trying to contemplate what answer to give a trauma-induced child.
"Come with me," Tessron said, holding my hand.
I followed him out of the study. We walked through the hallway and up a flight of marble stairs. The path led to a corridor that had a family portrait.
It was a picture of Tessron and my mother with a young Valeria standing in front of them. The couple looked young and happy, and Valeria looked like she was around eight years old at that time, with the light still in her eyes.
"That was your mother. I don't think you would remember her. You were a baby when everything happened," Tessron started with a sad expression on his face.
I have the mind of a thirty-year-old; of course, I remember.
"Who am I? What happened?" I asked him again with determination in my eyes.
I am not going to run away anymore. I am going to face it no matter what!
"Your mother and I decided on a name long ago, Viktor Eryndale Voltaries," He said with a smile.