10 "What's up with this event?"

The trauma that Azrael had gone through faded. Those dreams haunted before faded. The regret and pain faded. But the lesson had been etched into his heart.

"*4 Months have gone by, my life has calmed down a bit. I have learnt so much. I am so happy I want nothing to ever really change. I had seen how Magnus and Kayla finally became a user, I have watched them train. I have fought Kayla a few times and lost badly; after both of the siblings had awakened, they had become stronger and every way, but I would not say smarter. hahaha*"

Azrael had been sitting on the stoop of his house. He laid back up against the house with the wooden sword lying next to him. He looked up into the sun and took a deep breath in, and blew it out.

Jack came out through the front with one hand behind his back while the other handheld the door open, "Hey, son, I got you a present. I know you have daggers that were given to you by Kayla, but your mother and I decided to give you my short sword. Altho for you it may look like a long sword, we still think you deserve it, keep it safe and don't use it unless needed, and please don't sell it." Jack had brought out a short sword that is black with thin and barely seeable silver lines.

"One day, when you awaken and choose the vigor or Aequalis class, you will see how valuable this sword is…." Jack paused; he watched Azrael's face glow up, stars formed in his eyes as he received the gift. ".... I just hope you enjoy the present. I know we never got you a good present 3 months ago, but I hope you can forgive us, both your mother and me."

Azrael looked at the sword, then at his father, "Dad, It's fine; the months had caused everyone a lot of stress, me too, so I was kinda happy you didn't force a party on me. Thanks for the birthday present. Receiving a present always makes me happy." Azrael smiled at his father, then admired the sword, wondering what could be the surprise when he unlocks as an awakened what will happen.

Jack turned around and walked inside, closing the front door behind him. "Jack, the thing inside the sword. Do you really think Azrael will be able to unlock it? No one in your family since the beginning of time could do it. Our family might be the guardians of the sword, and one day someone in our linage might awaken and form a bond with that creature. But why did you not tell Azrael the full story?" Alana had been sitting at the table, looking down into the glass she had drunk out of. She stirred the liquid inside by swirling the glass slowly on the table and slowly looked up at Jack with a worried face.

"I know, but I could not; I know Azrael can. My family will look for the person with this sword and bow before our son. Because our son will unlock whatever is inside and gain control of it, I know it deep inside my heart." Jack sighed as he said those words.

Alana's tone showed how uneasy and anxious she had been; "Sigh, but what if he does not open what's inside or can control it? What if someone else from the family tries to grab hold of the sword?"Alana could not dispel the feeling.

"If anything does go wrong, we will just have to protect him!" jack said playfully but also seriously.

He took one of the bottles of wine given to them and drank it with Alana. After he and his wife Alana were finishing the bottle of wine, he said, "To our son, our son who we will always protect...,''

As jack spoke, he started to cough out blood. The blood had been cold, ice cold.

"Honey, *cough*, I don't feel so well *cough*" barely able to hold himself up from falling over, jack started to lose consciousness. An unable to hold himself together shouted out in agony as a cold feeling spread throughout his body.

As Jack shouted, Azrael jumped up and rushed inside, "MOM! What's Happening to dad?! Why is dad on the floor?!" Azrael could not stop asking questions until Alana started coughing out blood.

Azrael's mouth had stopped moving, and he started freaking out, wondering what to do with his hands. "*What must I do? What is happening?*."

Lucy came downstairs; she was much calmer but still confused, "big brother, azzy, what happen to mom and dad? Why are they on there? What's this called again?" Lucy was trying to speak as clearly as she could to figure out precisely what Azrael wanted to figure out.

"Lucy, it's a floor, and I don't know what's wrong; I need help!" Azrael was about to rush out of the house when he saw the one person he forgot to ask for help.

"Hey, Azzy? What so in a rush? What is…." She was going to finish that, but what she saw was how Alana and Jack looked unconscious on the floor with blood from their mouths.

"Please, help me. Please, I don't know what's wrong." Azrael was panicking; he was too worried to even think about what could be wrong with his parents, who had just dropped like flies spitting out blood.

"Madam Gilda, please can you come to take a look!" Kayla shouted and pushed Gilda forward. When she saw it, she never even bothered about Kayla's rude act. She rushed and called the guards. Healers came in and started to heal them. She instructed them to call for help.

Alchemists and Doctors were called in, and what happened shocked a house that had just been consoling and healing from previous wounds.

…..

"Azrael, Azrael, Azrael!" Kayla called for the boy who had been lost in his own mind. His thoughts and emotions were overwhelming him internally. "*What?, Why?, How?, When? Who?*" Azrael's mind tried to figure out but had nowhere to start from.

Kayla hit Azrael on the back of his head. He jolted at the sudden action and had come back to his senses.

"Huh, what?" Azrael looked at Kayla; there had been bags under his eyes from crying for the past few hours. "Why did you hit me? That hurt, you know!" He was irritated by her childish and rude act.

"Well, good, it should hurt. You were running around like a headless chicken. You scream like a girl and look worse than those who beg by the village or city streets. Get yourself together and go wash up. You can't be like this. What happened to be better, stronger?" Kayla threw a lot at Azrael. The words had taken time to register.

But while they were taking time to register his replied with "Sorry, I know…." Kayla looked at him, and her eyelids came slightly down as she could see he was still last and confused.

"Good, then go up and go clean yourself up!" Kayla had picked up Azrael and got him to stand.

"Fine, okay, let go!" Azrael made a fuss. He was annoyed and just left and did as he was told. He had no desire to listen to her complain, but he also didn't have the energy to fret about being told what to do.

Azrael had gone to the upstairs bathroom of his house. He had to walk through the lounge where his parents are being checked on. The doctors didn't seem to have an answer yet, which made him a little bit more uneasy about his parents.

He splashed cold water on his face. He looked into the mirror, took to deep breathes in and out. He did nothing but sit and look into the mirror.

"Yurika, We know what's wrong!" one of the doctors shouted it out loud by accident, and Azrael rushes downstairs faster than a bullet once the news reached his ears.

"Oh, sir, you arrived downstairs quite fast. But we have the cause. It is a cold poison; it came from a bottle of wine. But this was no ordinary posion; it is a very high-graded posion called the devil's snow. This has been the poison that has circulated the kingdom of Cerulean. It is dangerous. You need a special pill named the holy fire pill; it will have to be made by some at level 150 and above. Unfortunately, all our level 150 and above alchemists are busy." The doctor was not happy to explain this to a boy who you could clearly see had been crying and is in pain.

"Wait, so how am I supposed to get it?! Where can I get them?!" Azrael sprung on questions the moment the doctor stopped speaking for more than 2seconds.

"My boy, please calm down. If you go to a village a couple of 100 kilometers from here, you can find 1 alchemist who is willing to be paid to make it, and he is at level 162, so he will be able to make it." the doctor then explained further on about how to travel there and where to go.

After the doctor was done explaining, Kayla came and asked, "Azrael, do you need money? If so, I am happy to give you. I would just have to ask my family first. I know it cost nintylin bedrock coins. Yes, it may be much, but we need to save your parents. What do you say?" Kayla offered something generous.

She had her arms behind her back as she swayed side to side.

"Kayla, thank you, but I think. No, I know my parents wouldn't let me take so much money from you. It would put me in so much debt, so, please. Can you just look after my parents? I want to save them with my own hard work" Azrael knew what he said was was not sensible. But he was in a moral dilemma, and he just chose any choice that came to mind. He had not been thinking straight, and he knew it. He just wanted to leave, get some fresh air in the world, and work for the money instead of spoon-fed.

"Fine, I will look after them, just be careful" Kayla hugged Azrael suddenly; for a split second, he hesitated but hugged back.

"Don't forget about Lucy as well; I can't let her come with me, and doctor, how long do my parents have to live?" Azrael and Kayla stopped hugging each other, and Azrael felt a bit more empowered all over in his body.

The doctor could see that the boy suddenly had a spark of hope and fight. He smiled at that hope but felt bitter about what he was about to tell him, "they have 5 - 6 months to live. That is only because we are going to prolong your parent life. People usually die in 1 - 2months. So come back as soon as possible with the pill!"

Azrael, stunned by the information, released he had no time to waste. He started packing, and in about 2 days, he was ready to set out on his first quest. He had to leave his sister behind. He asked that no one tell her about their parents dying till the 5th month. He will try and be back before then.

"*I need to, not cry, okay! I need to be strong! I chose to save them myself! I will save them!*" he hugged everyone except the doctors. He hugged Kayla, Magnus, Lucy, and even miss Gilda.

He left with a bag on his back, a Holoinv on his arm, and with the daggers and sword in his inventory.