And just like that, things had begun to look good for Kion.
Immediately the ritual was concluded, King Aurelius had declared that he would be given equal status and access to resources as it demanded for a royal.
And of course, he'd abolished name-calling within the castle walls, as no one was permitted to ever call Kion a bastard anymore.
It was a crime that was as bad as treason, and as such, demanded the death penalty.
The courtroom seemed somber from the declaration, but of course, could not do anything concerning the King's decision.
In addition to his previous declaration, Aurelius announced a celebratory feast for his two sons.
It would happen after two moons, and would be the biggest celebration the kingdom had ever known.
Gina beamed with pride from her perch within the courtroom.
Aurelius had seen her, but instead of chasing her away as her presence was banished there, he'd allowed her to linger further.
He'd even looked at her with something that she hadn't seen from him in almost two decades.
Love.
Finally, after the King's address, the courtroom was dismissed, and Gina went to find her son.
This wasn't an outcome she had expected in a thousand years. It was almost as if the blessings of the Old Gods themselves had found her.
She walked up to Kion's room door, giving it a slight rattle with her right knuckle.
"Sonny? You there?"
"Just a minute, mother." She heard his muffled voice from within, and couldn't help but smile.
Meanwhile, Kion who'd been served a banquet feast, was just finishing up with roasted spit chicken when he got out to the door.
"Congratulations, sonny." Gina said as she extended both arms for a hug.
"Thank you, mother." Lion said as he met her in the middle, embracing her.
"I see you've got a mini-feast in there." She said as she peeked over his shoulders to the massive banquet tray that lay on his bedside table.
"A maid dropped that earlier for me to recover energy after the awakening." Kai replied. "Why don't you come join me?" He offered.
"No that's fine. This is your big moment, not mine." Gina said with a breathless laugh.
"I'm so proud of you." She said after a moment, her hands instinctively cupping his cheeks.
"Now don't do anything stupid, dear." She said with newfound seriousness.
"You and your brother are regarded at the same level now. The king declared it." She continued as Kion's eyes widened in shock, not quite believing his ears.
He'd imagined that his newfound abilities would make waves, but certainly not to this level.
For a while, he'd expected to deal with the inferior treatment, but this changed things completely.
It seemed he wouldn't have to deal with anybody's bullshit no longer.
"It's a good thing that we're on equal footing now, but that would also mean that the number of eyes watching you will double." She added.
"Make appearances where necessary. Put yourself out there with your brother. The kingdom needs to see their newly awakened prince as someone that's just as caps bale and efficient as his brother. This doesn't just lie with your talent, sonny. It lies with you."
Without a moment's hesitation, her finger stuck at his chest.
"Only you can decide where things go from here. I trust you'll make the right decisions."
Kion had never seen her so serious. He knew that he couldn't let her down.
"I won't let you down, mother." He replied with an equally serious tone. "I promise, I'll do everything it takes to rise to the top."
"That's my sonny." Gina said as she tapped his cheek lightly with her right palm.
"Whenever you're done here, the priest himself beseeches your presence at the workshop. Don't keep him waiting too long. Appearance, remember?"
"Mother, you just gave me this advice and now you're scolding me? I can't believe you." Kion said, making Gina laugh as she retreated down the hallway, possibly heading down to her own quarters which were in a separate part of the castle.
Kion quickly finished up with what he could make of the large meal that lay before him, as he pushed a button under his table to summon a maid to come do away with the remnants.
"You summoned me, my lord?" The young maid said as she respectfully knocked at Kion's room door.
It hadn't even taken two minutes.
Kion knew that initially, no maid was ever consigned to serve him. But it seemed that things had changed after the awakening.
He opened the door to one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen.
Her face was white as snow, with soft features and perfect pink lips. Height wise, she was petite at best, her maid uniform smoothing over her curves in a seductive fashion.
She looked as though she hadn't worked a day in her life. The only giveaway being her rough, calloused hands.
It took Kion a moment to remember his reason for calling her in the first place.
"Do away with these, will you?" He said, gesturing to the food tray in his room. It was leftover with fruits, half eaten chicken, and some half-finished broth.
It was almost like Kion hadn't even bothered with the meal at all. Sadly, the main issue was that it was just too much.
"Okay, my lord." The young maid said as she made her way into the large room and picked up the food tray. Kion wondered how she would manage with something so large with her small hands, but she seemed to be doing just fine.
"My lord, if I may…" the maid said at the door, turning around to seek approval from Kion to speak.
"Go on." Kion continued.
"I've been consigned to you as your personal maid should you need anything. And I mean, anything, my lord."
Kion felt his heart flutter at her last few words.
It wasn't unheard of for the maids within the castle to attend to your every need, even the very personal ones.
"I'll keep that in mind." Kion said.
"Thank you, my lord." The maid curtsied and exited the room.
"What a shame." Kion thought to himself, as the mere thought of a beautiful maid like her being used just for sexual gratification made him cringe.
She was beautiful, and didn't deserve that kind of treatment from him, or anybody, and besides, Kion hadn't planned to do anything of the sort for now, as his main focus was on his progression.
Those were distractions he couldn't afford to indulge.
"Now, about that meeting with the priest." Kion thought as he put on some royal clothes for his visit to the castle workshop.
…
The workshop was stationed at a different section of the castle. It was a tower perched at the far end of the castle wall just across the front courtyard.
The wizard seemed to have been expecting Kion, as the door at the top of the spiral staircase was already open.
Only for Kion to walk in and find out why.
A thick white mist blew past him, the choking smell invading its way into his lungs and making him cough uncontrollably.
"Oh dear." Kion heard a muffled voice, and then some footsteps, as a person in an iron mask emerged from the cleared mist to support his coughing form.
"Forgive me. I didn't see you there, my prince." The wizard said as he twirled his fingers, drawing the thick mist from Kion's lungs and out through his nose.
"What was that?" Kion said as he quickly recovered and rose back up to his feet.
"One of my corrosive potions was heated to a gas, but an accident made the beaker break and caused the gas to spread all over the place." The wizard said, gesturing wildly.
"I had just cast a wind spell to drive the foul stench out of here. That was why I left the doors and windows open. Didn't know you'd be coming in at the exact moment I finished the spell."
"It's fine." Kion muttered in between breaths.
"No it's not." The wizard reponded almost immediately, as his old fingers scrambled for something within his robe pockets.
"Take this." He shoved a vial into Kion's hand.
"It's a vitality brew. It'd help circulate your mana to your lungs and cleanse the effects of that gas." He added.
Kion gulped down the vitality brew quickly. He didn't want to wait around for the effects of that corrosive gas on his lungs.
"You should be all good now." The wizard said after he'd taken everything down to the last drop.
Kion cleared his throat. The vitality brew was sweet, but it left a slight sting on his gut.
"Now, about why I summoned you, Master Kion. Please have a seat." The wizard waved a hand, moving a chair with telekinesis for Kion to sit.
When Kion sat and was relaxed, the wizard studied him with a keen eye.
"Let's explore the primal power that sits within you."