MARKED BY DRACONIC OVERLORD

Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Unexpected Miracle

"Kael, you're awake, and you look great," Bradon said, beaming at the sight of him.

"As you can see, I'm in great shape," Kael said with a smile.

"Bro, you were in a coma for three days. I honestly thought you might not wake up," Bradon said, his expression turning somber at the memory.

"Well, here I am, up, strong, and against all odds," Kael said, flexing to prove the point.

"It's a relief you and Elisa both made it out of that rift break alive," Bradon said, glancing between them.

"Yeah. Feels like a miracle, honestly, last thing I remember is getting turned into a bloody mess by an orc," Kael said, his expression darkening.

"Huh?" Bradon looked confused.

"What do you mean, bloody mess? When my master found you three, you were all passed out but completely unscratched, right in the middle of a field of corpses," Bradon finished.

"Your master? And three of us?" Kael frowned, confused.

"Yeah, the third was an elf girl," Bradon said, assuming Kael was just messing with him.

"I don't remember any of that. Elisa, do you?" Kael turned to her, and her expression shifted instantly, the color draining from her face as the memory of that day surged back, her classmates, the brutal way they'd died.

She began to shake, the memory pulling her under, and she couldn't manage a single word.

Kael caught the change in her immediately.

"Elisa, what's wrong?" he asked, moving toward her just as she broke down in tears.

"Elisa?" Kael was startled by how suddenly it hit her, and their mother looked just as confused. Bradon froze too. Kael pulled her into his arms, realizing he'd probably just dragged her straight back into that day.

"They were my classmates. All of them died horribly. Shelly was killed right in front of us, it was just me and Zoe left," Elisa said through tears.

"I thought we were next. And then you showed up, even after they'd nearly killed you, you still saved us," she said, holding onto him tightly as she recounted it.

"Wait?! I saved you and your friend?" Kael stared at her, completely lost.

"You don't remember?" Elisa looked at him in disbelief.

"You were lying in a pool of your own blood, and then this crimson light wrapped around you and shot up into the sky like a beam. Then it turned gold, brighter, more intense than the red had been," Elisa said, then hesitated, glancing at Bradon, unsure whether to continue.

"It's fine, Elisa. He's not a stranger, he's practically my brother," Kael said gently, understanding she was about to share something private.

So, she told the whole story, taking nearly ten minutes to get through it all.

"You've got to be kidding me," Kael said, stunned, and Bradon's jaw dropped listening to her account.

"But if I really turned into... that, and fought them off, why can't I remember any of it?" Kael felt lost, if he'd really transformed and tapped into some unknown power, surely, he'd have some memory of it. But there was nothing.

"Even in the moment, the aura you gave off, it didn't feel like you at all. It felt like someone else entirely," Elisa said quietly, twisting the hem of her dress, the memory clearly still raw.

Kael looked down at his hand and leg, the ones that had been severed and a realization struck him.

"That must be why they healed," he said, still barely able to process it.

"So does that mean your talent's actually SSS-rank?" Bradon said, shock written across his face, before another thought hit him. "Wait! that means that huge pillar of golden light came from you?"

Kael's eyes went wide.

"But how? I clearly awakened an F-rank talent," he said, unable to accept it.

"Anything's possible, my dear," their mother finally spoke, having stayed quiet until now. She stood and walked over to him.

"Give me your hand," she said, and Kael extended it. Her hand glowed with a soft blue light that spread across his entire body.

A cool sensation washed over him as the light enveloped him.

Then, like a sudden gust of wind, a golden and red aura burst from his body visible, tangible, undeniable.

Bradon stared in shock as the aura kept growing.

"What the hell," Kael muttered, startled by his own reaction.

Red draconic scales began forming across his hands, his arms, parts of his face.

"Holy shit," Bradon breathed, jaw hanging open at the sight.

"I can't believe it. It's actually true," Kael said, equally stunned, this clearly wasn't the power type he'd awakened with.

"So, he was right, after all," their mother said, tears sliding silently down her cheeks, the image of a smiling man flashing through her mind.

"Right about what?" Kael asked, confused.

"Judging by your aura, your power type is Draconic Overlord, and your talent is SSS-rank" she said, tears of joy in her eyes as she pulled him into a tight hug.

"He was always right," she sobbed.

Bradon and Elisa stood frozen, barely able to process it. Bradon looked like he might collapse under the weight of the news.

"He's got an SSS-rank talent? Then how the hell did the crystal read it as F-rank?" Bradon demanded.

"He re-awakened," she said simply, and the room fell into stunned silence. Everyone knew how rare that was one in a billion, less than a fraction of a percent, practically unheard of.

"So, I don't have a F-rank talent anymore," Kael said, emotion welling in his eyes as his mother nodded, the scales fading, his aura settling back into him.

"So, all that effort wasn't wasted after all," he said, tears finally spilling down his cheeks, overwhelmed.

"Kael, this is a lot to take in but an SSS-rank talent? That's insane," Bradon said, practically celebrating.

"Oh, almost forgot. My master asked me to give you this," Bradon said, pulling a letter from his pocket and handing it over.

The moment Kael saw the seal, his eyes went wide, his hands trembling as he held it.

"This... this seal belongs to Silver Star Academy," he said, voice unsteady.

"Yeah. I got admitted too, since my master's part of the academy," Bradon said with a smile.

Kael opened the letter, and his expression shifted the moment he started reading, eyes locked on the page, silent.

"What does it say, brother?" Elisa asked, curious.

"This is unbelievable," Kael murmured, eyes still wide.

"Come on, what does it say?" Bradon pressed, impatient.

"I've been admitted to Silver Star Academy!" Kael shouted, throwing his hands in the air. One miracle apparently hadn't been enough.

Everyone stared at him, stunned, Bradon most of all.

"But how? Everyone saw exactly what talent I awakened at the ceremony, or—" A realization hit him mid-sentence.

"I'm guessing my master had something to do with this," Bradon said, putting the pieces together.

"But how would he even know?" Kael asked.

"He's the one who found the three of you and got you to safety. He probably saw the golden light and traced it back," Bradon said, connecting it with Elisa's account.

"Your master's name is Charles Valborg, right?" Kael's mother asked, and Bradon nodded.

"The Sword King. At his level, he'd have sensed your aura easily," she said, settling back into her seat.

"So just from sensing my aura, he figured out I'd awakened?"

"That's right, dear," his mother confirmed.

"So, bro looks like we're headed to the same academy," Bradon said with a smirk.

"Guess so," Kael said.

"This is incredible. I can't wait to see the look on those bastards' faces when they find out you got into Silver Star," Bradon grinned.

"So, you're both going to the capital?" Elisa asked.

"Yep," they said in unison.

The three of them celebrated together, what had started as a curse had somehow turned into a blessing, and grief had given way to something worth smiling about.

"What an unexpected miracle," their mother said, smiling warmly.