Status (2)

Brother tapped his back. "Now you can warp like the rest of us."

Sorin stood there in silence for a solid second. "Warp? Like, teleportation...?"

"It's quite different," Aunt said as she pushed the big muscular body out of her way. "Our Niece and Nephew will explain it to you, so we will take our leave."

"What? I can explain it myself! Are you trying to mock me as muscle head again?!" Uncle snapped.

"Are you not? And I'm not trying to mock you. You promised to help me mark the Amazon rainforest, right?! Don't run away!" Aunt snapped back.

"You plant fucker!"

"You octopus fucker!"

"Don't mind them. They've always been like that," Elara said. "Why can't they learn from Papa and Mama..."

"Pfft—" Brother just snorted as he tried to suppress his laugh. "I think they're better than Papa and Mama."

Then, he turned to Sorin and Elara. "After this, how about we walk around the village and enjoy the good weather?"

"Right, we have many to discuss," Elara said.

Sorin nodded, but then he glanced toward Grandpa Henry and said, "Can you wait for me? I... want to speak with Grandpa Henry for a moment."

Elara raised her eyebrows. "Oh! Take your time, then. Meanwhile, I will take a bath."

"Alright, it seems there's time for me to get breakfast too. We should meet here again before noon, so we can catch lunchtime as we walk around the village," Brother suggested.

Sorin nodded. He let Elara and Brother leave him alone with Grandpa Henry.

Suddenly, complete silence invaded the space.

Sorin looked at Grandpa Henry, who stared back at him. The atmosphere had changed from before as Sorin realized how quiet he was compared to the others.

The man looked defeated and unsure, but Sorin tried to smile at him.

"Gosh, what are the odds..." Sorin said.

Grandpa Henry shook his head. "Could it be... because of my words... you got trapped in this situation?"

Sorin was taken aback by Grandpa Henry's direct and blunt question. He was speechless for a moment before slowly opening his mouth.

"No, Grandpa," Sorin tapped his shoulder gently. "I believe I got into this all myself."

***

Sorin spent his time talking with Grandpa Henry about his life. From their conversation, Sorin was able to learn about heavenly restrictions.

It was true that they had access to a lot of money, but they also had none with them simultaneously. Sorin found out that the jet, the helicopter, and the building were available, not under any of their names.

Under the eccentric support of the very people they once aided, who possessed considerable wealth and influence, they had themselves in rather peculiar management.

The sovereigns spread across the world with their own objectives and quests, like agents deployed by the heavens. Their individual reigns were tailored to match their unique specialties.

Aside from the talk about the sovereigns, Sorin also mentioned how he got out of his neighborhood and how he graduated from university.

Grandpa Henry smiled at him, looking genuinely proud. He sighed in contentment.

"I actually knew, even though you didn't help me directly, you talked to a lot of people that helped me here and there to go out of my situation," Sorin said.

"Exactly. I only talked, and I did nothing else," Grandpa Henry said.

Sorin knew he wasn't only talking. The man in front of him convinced people to help him and thousands of other children like him.

And even though it was his unique reign, it was still very impressive.

They ended their talk when Grandpa Henry said he had to go. He had a lot of things to do on the other side of the world.

Sorin walked with him for a bit, having a small chat on the way.

"I can learn your true name, but not others... was it part of your unique reign that was different from the others?" Sorin asked.

"Yes. I can also learn all of the Sovereign's names. But you have no idea what authorities I had to give up on just to be able to be remembered by my own name by humans," Grandpa said. "And for me to be able to speak."

"Becoming a sovereign... that's why I want you to choose properly."

Name.

One's identity.

One's name would connect them with others. Establishing relationships, family, and status.

"But it's true that we need new talent right now. These days... the demons are so dead set on disturbing the balance. You might be the result of that," Grandpa Henry sighed.

Sorin didn't say anything to that. He just smiled and nodded when Grandpa Henry warped away.

It was quite a surreal experience, seeing an old man disappear as if the space bent and swallowed him whole.

Time passed so quickly before he realized the sun had risen up near the peak of the sky.

He came back to the building to find Elara standing there with a fresh set of clothes. She looked a bit more casual with her hair tied up.

And then, Brother appeared.

"Ah, before we start talking, first, let's decide what we should call each other in front of other people," Elara said.

"Can't I call you Sister?" Sorin asked. "Brother calls you Sister too."

Elara seemed unimpressed. No, she seemed against the idea so much that she showed her beautiful frown.

Sorin had no idea how a human's face could still be attractive, whether smiling or frowning. But maybe that was the perk of having a good-looking face.

"I don't want you to call me Sister," Elara turned her face away unhappily.

"But you insisted on me calling the leader... your father, Papa. Even though I just met him today," Sorin reminded her.

"Exactly!" Elara snapped. "That's the point of introduction. You call people by what name they prefer."

"And what should I call you?" Sorin asked.

"Anything but Sister. Please," Elara insisted.

"But what?"

Brother walked behind them, smiling all the time and enjoying the show. They were supposed strangers that had just met yesterday, yet they got close very quickly...

"Alright. I heard in the past, before any other sovereigns were born, Papa and Mama called each other by code names," Brother pushed himself between them, grasping their shoulders to keep them close.

"Code names?" Sorin inquired.

"Ah, you mean that?" Elara remembered. "Honey, Sugar, Caramel, Candy, or flower names?"

"Sometimes cute animal names, too. Like Bear, Rabbit, Kitty..." Brother added.

Sorin narrowed his eyes. Wasn't that just their lovers' pet names?

"My favorite is Honey and Bear!" Elara said excitedly.

"My favorite is Candy and Cigarettes," Brother chirped.

"Oh, that's a good one," Elara smiled at her brother.

Sorin raised his eyebrows. So it WAS code names.

He hummed for a bit and then suggested;

"Then, how about Sugar and Smoke?"