***
Five years later.
Byrone City.
Kingdom of Arcanis.
The bell rang in the city center, a sign that the big day was about to arrive. Aiden had prepared everything, both physically and mentally. He would not waste this opportunity.
Leonora stepped up carrying a black cloak for Aiden, Aiden smiled and accepted it, which he immediately put on without hesitation.
"Remember what your dad taught you. Although there isn't much swordsmanship you can learn, but your physique is enough to pass the first test," Leonora replied.
"Mom, don't worry, I won't let you and Dad down," Aiden explained, full of enthusiasm.
Leonora nodded with a smile, then hugged Aiden's body tightly, which Aiden responded in kind. The two separated from each other, Jack already waiting outside the house to take his son to the Arcanis Sword Institute.
After everything was ready, Jack and Aiden said goodbye to Leonora. Leonora smiled and waved goodbye, wishing them a safe journey.
Although the Magical Astralis Academy was more prestigious than the Arcanis Sword Institute, but for a commoner like Aiden, the Arcanis Sword Institute was a better choice. He wouldn't be bullied or disrespected by the nobles who mostly chose the Magical Astralis Academy.
"If you manage to join them, then you will get a great chance to change your life, Aiden," Jack explained, Aiden nodded and fully understood what Jack was telling him.
From a distance, Jack saw the long queue to join the Arcanis Sword Institute, far more than the applicants at the Astralis Magical Academy. It was natural in Aiden's opinion, because there were fewer nobles than commoners.
"Looks like we're going to take a long time here," Jack replied, still sitting on the horse-drawn cart he was using.
"I'll go get the drawing numbers. You wait here," Jack told Aiden, and Aiden nodded in agreement.
Jack stepped off the horse-drawn cart towards the participant registration booth, leaving Aiden alone in the cart. Every now and then, he looked back and saw that there were many boys who wanted to become knights.
"It turns out that many of them want to be a knight," Aiden said.
Seeing their enthusiasm to become knights made Aiden sad. He thought about Nathan, who was killed five years ago by a pack of White Horned Wolves in the Fog Hills.
After that incident, Aiden felt regret and always wished that time could be turned back. But, what's done is done, there's no need to dwell in regret too deeply.
Just as Aiden was waiting for his father in the middle of the day, the city square bell rang so loudly that everyone, including Aiden, could hear it.
When that happened, Aiden's ears were buzzing strongly, making his head spin. His whole body shook and convulsed, falling to the ground beside Jack's cart.
Several people saw what happened to Aiden. They rushed over and helped calm Aiden down, the incident attracting quite a lot of attention.
'W-What happened?' Aiden asked.
Flashbacks of memories flashed through Aiden's mind, completely unknown to Aiden. From those flashbacks, Aiden saw the memory of a man who lived inside a black skyscraper and worked with a mysterious device that emitted blue light.
Not only that, Aiden saw a woman in a red dress in the flashback. In the image, the woman was talking to the man Aiden had seen earlier. They said something like the Essence of the Fire Dragon Beast Chronos and the Eye of the Beast King.
In the end, Aiden's capability to directly absorb all those memories made his body weak. He fainted after the convulsions and trembling in his body disappeared, and Jack rushed over to Aiden after someone told him.
Jack was shocked to see Aiden fall unconscious on the ground, even though he had previously seen Aiden very fit and ready to take his exam this time.
As a result, he put Aiden back on the cart and took the cart away back home.
Leonora looked startled. She stopped cleaning the house and walked out, picking up Jack who had arrived with the fainted Aiden.
"What happened? Did he get hurt during the exam?" Leonora asked.
"He fainted for no reason. He hasn't started the exam yet," Jack replied, carrying Aiden's body so that he could lie down comfortably in his room.
Leonora came in with a bucket of water, to wipe some of Aiden's dirty body parts while lying on the ground. Jack was really confused about Aiden, Aiden's physique was already very good and fit, it wouldn't be easy for Aiden to faint like that.
"What then? If he doesn't wake up soon, he'll fail the exam for good," Leonora replied.
"I know. I'm thinking of other ways for him to wake up quickly, but we can't force him either," Jack said.
The middle-aged woman looked very sad, occasionally responding by shaking her head. She felt sorry and saddened by what Aiden had suddenly experienced, something that had never even happened to him.
"Let's hope he can wake up before nightfall so he has a chance to take the exam," Jack said, Leonora nodding in agreement to what Jack said.
The two stepped out of the room to let Aiden rest. However, in Aiden's head, he continued to absorb all the mysterious memories that appeared to him.
Even so, for some reason Aiden felt very familiar with these memories, as if they were an inseparable part of him.
In Aiden's subconscious, he appeared to be in a black place with sparkling stars in the sky. The floor of the place seemed to be flooded with water that didn't soak his feet.
"Where am I?" asked Aiden, confused.
"It seems my time has come," someone replied from behind Aiden, Aiden reflexively looked back and saw the mysterious man in his memories appear in front of him.
"You? Aren't you the man from the mysterious memories?" Aiden asked.
"That's right," Liu Feng replied.
"Then what happened? Why did those memories just appear to me?"
Liu Feng explained the situation to Aiden, starting with telling him about his identity, his relationship with Aetherna, and the reason for Liu Feng's appearance in Aiden's subconscious after 12 years.
Aiden listened, he had no idea that he was an integral part of another person, let alone that person was an emissary of one of the great goddesses. Still, there were some things Aiden didn't understand.
"You've probably felt your eyesight turn red and you behave strangely. That's a hidden ability you have," Liu Feng replied.
"Your eyes are the Eyes of the Beast King. With those eyes, you can tame all the beasts in the entire universe with ease," Liu Feng emphasized.
"If that's the case, I should probably join the Astralis Magical Academy," Aiden replied.
Liu Feng smiles, he steps forward as he lifts his leg, each step accompanied by a wave of water in the puddle. Now, Liu Feng is completely in front of Aiden.
"Thank you for taking care of my body for 12 years. Now, it's my turn to do the rest," Liu Feng replied.
The man touches Aiden's forehead and Aiden doesn't rebel at all. Slowly, Liu Feng begins to absorb all of Aiden's memories, about who his parents are, what their family relationship is like, what they do for a living, and so on.
Right when Liu Feng absorbs all of Aiden's memories, Aiden's figure disappears completely along with his memories being fully absorbed.
Liu Feng's eyes opened, seeing that he had completely controlled Aiden's body.
"Thank you, Aiden. Now, it's time for me to find my way home."