Chapter 4 - Thrones (1)
The three stepped out of the car and entered the mansion, finding two lines of maids and butlers on either side of the entryway bowing toward them. Sylvain walked forward, nodding toward the servants waiting on him. Svetlana and Xiu Mei were already used to this scene. Although their families were also among the most powerful in the world, they did not receive this much respect from the servants. Clearly, there was a difference between the House of Grace and the Long and Morrigan Clans. There was also a difference between Svetlana's and Xiu Mei's positions in their own clans compared to their position in the House of Grace. They were treated as potential heirs in their clans, living like princesses. But in the House of Grace, they were treated like queens. Even if the two could not see, they knew there was a dedicated team of servants waiting on them in the shadows. One might wonder how they even have such high positions in a different family entirely when they have yet to even marry Sylvain, but that is mostly due to Sylvain's own status.
He walked ahead until he stopped in front of a beautiful woman with long silver hair that draped down her shoulders as she bowed to Sylvain. She was a few inches shorter than him, wearing a black dress and white shawl. And although she bowed to Sylvain, it was obvious that her status was different from the other servants. First of all, she was not lined up with the rest of them and was instead facing the doorway from the end of the line, right at the aisle. Second, her body bent only slightly rather than in a full bow. Just as Sylvain stopped five feet away from her, the woman and the other servants spoke in unison.
""Welcome back, Master and Mistresses.""
Sylvain sighed at this scene. He had told them over and over again not to do such things, but they were all so stubborn. They insisted on this show of respect as another form of discipline. In the end, Sylvain could only relent. He understood how important it was for them to have such practices. The legacy of the House of Grace is deeply steeped into the origin of the world after all. And for the longest time, to pay respects to this legacy was the greatest honour for the members of the House of Grace, a tradition that they had carried on even now.
Sylvain's mind flashed with the image of a man who plucked the stars and embraced them like his own children, moulding them into living creatures in his very own image. The Astels, a race of living stars whose light once stretched to the vastness of Reality. This was the origin of the House of Grace. With a wry smile, Sylvain waved his hand and the servants dispersed, returning to their duties. Meanwhile, the silver-haired woman before him only stood straight and looked at him, inspecting every inch of his body.
"Mother, I know I say this everyday and I know you wouldn't listen, but… can I implore you to stop calling me 'Master'? And stop acting like a servant. The others I can understand, but you…?"
"You know very well that I can't do that, Master. Speaking casually like this is already too much. And while I may have given birth to you, I am in no way more special than the others. I am forever in the service of the Pillar of Grace."
This was Silvia Grace, the mother of Sylvain Grace. As she spoke, the woman's eyes seemed to glow with a faint silver light mixed with a hint of gold. They were filled with such fanaticism that it was almost impossible to picture her as anything other than a mad cultist, much less a mother speaking to her child. Neither Svetlana nor Xiu Mei understood the hidden meaning behind her words, but Sylvain easily caught on to it. The 'others' that she mentioned did not refer to the servants who just left. Instead, it referred to others just like her in the long history of the House of Grace who have given birth to the Pillar of Grace. It was the greatest honour they could ever have, but it also made them more devoted in their service. There were even times when the mothers died in sacrifice to ensure the growth of the Pillar of Grace. That was how important Sylvain's status was.
"Mother, we need your help!"
Seeing Sylvain fall into another spiral of thoughts, Xiu Mei and Svetlana greeted Silvia with a hug before dragging her away. Sylvain was soon left alone in the hall. With another sigh, he walked deeper into the mansion. Unlike most of the powerful families who keep the great and dark secrets of their leaders under lock and key in fear of the turmoil they might find themselves in both outside and inside the family, the House of Grace has no such worries. All members of the House of Grace know their history by heart. And they worship the Pillar of Grace like a god and a king. Walking down a rather long corridor, Sylvain passed by many murals depicting important events in the history of the House of Grace. One of them depicted a scene of singing angels and mortals, offering their bloody feathers and skin as tribute to a dark silhouette of a man who banished light from existence.
The long corridor soon led to a large and majestic grand hall. The space was perhaps already the size of two auditoriums. It was meant to be big mostly because it served as a throne room. The problem was that, despite the huge space inside, it felt like there was little free room to move around in. The grand hall was filled with about a hundred thrones arranged in a circle. All of them were made of materials unknown to the rest of Earth. These materials were so powerful and durable that even if the entire world collapsed, these thrones would remain perfectly intact. Each throne had its own materials and designs, showcasing different personalities. Each throne emanated its own terrifyingly powerful aura that still seemed muted as though they were sealed.
The moment that Sylvain entered the grand throne room, a certain mechanism activated. An unknown power instantly pervaded the entire hall, taking hold of the Space all around it. It became like an isolated domain where none may enter or exit. Before Sylvain could even take another step forward, a faint glow surrounded him as he disappeared from his position only to reappear in the centre of the encirclement of thrones. Waiting right in front of him was another throne, this one made of a material that seemed very much like that of clear glass. It emanated an aura of timelessness and mystery that seemed to both aid one towards enlightenment while also confounding their minds with an unforgiving madness. This was Sylvain's throne, and he sat upon it just as the lights in the hall dimmed to almost pitch black. The only light remaining was on himself, like a spotlight on the stage. The rest of the thrones were all empty, vacant. However, even if other members of the House of Grace were to enter this room, none would dare claim a throne for themselves. They would sooner kill themselves in the most grotesque ways possible in worship than taint these most sacred and honoured thrones of their god.
From overhead, prismatic light blossomed into existence, condensing into something that barely anyone in the current Earth could fathom. They would not even be able to look at its silhouette without going mad. The sheer amount of Truths that could be seen from just a casual glance at it is enough to perhaps overhaul every natural law of the world. And yet Sylvain stared at it with a loving smile. Its form was that of an orb the size of a human head. Its surface was like a matrix of countless galaxies and quasars, filaments forming an interconnecting network of strings. Around the orb were four rings shining with the same prismatic light as they rotated around the orb in their own axes. Then an imperceptible string of information pervaded the whole room in the form of a feminine mechanical voice, a holographic notification and an intuitive understanding in the depths of one's mind all at the same time.
[The Council of Grace has now convened.]
[Current Officiator is Paradox Throne.]
[Welcome back, Father.]