Awakening Denied
Dark ash-gray hair and piercing green eyes. The boy, who looked about twelve, stared ahead with a tense expression. Ludenberg Lavante's big day had finally arrived.
For any citizen of the Solemnute Empire, this was the moment of awakening—a power that allowed humans to battle the monstrous erosion beasts invading from another world. Divine power. It was the gift bestowed upon the people by the six gods: the sun god Solem, the moon god Lanur, the star god Setra, the sea god Mare, the earth god Terra, and the sky god Celioum.
Every boy or girl in the Solemnute Empire who turned twelve underwent a baptismal rite at the temples of five of the gods, excluding Solem. They would then join the temple of the god who chose them.
Today was Ludenberg's twelfth birthday—the day he would receive his baptism and awaken his divine power.
Before him stood the high priests of the six temples, along with the sacred relics of the five temples excluding Solem.
The priests gazed at Ludenberg and began chanting their blessings.
"Solem shall guide you along the path of glory."
"Lanur shall grant you peace."
"Terra shall bestow upon you an unbreakable will."
Next came the blessing from Setra's temple, whispering of fate; from Mare's, promising abundant life; and from Celioum's, offering freedom.
Each priest uttered their single line of blessing, and those excluding Solem's high priest placed their sacred relics before their respective caskets.
Then, Solem's high priest, Eldora Solenute, took Ludenberg's hand and led him to each relic.
As Ludenberg stood rigid with tension, Eldora gently chided him.
"No need to be so nervous, child."
"...Yes, ma'am."
Ludenberg relaxed at her words and stepped before the relics. Eldora then explained the rite's procedure.
"You know how the baptism works, don't you? Well, of course you do—you're a Lavante heir."
"Yes."
"Good. Touch each relic and call to mind what you desire from that god. The one who favors you will grant you divine power. Ready?"
"Yes."
"Then begin."
Ludenberg first placed his hand on Terra's relic, the earth god's. He yearned deeply in his heart: to become a steadfast knight of Terra and guard the empire's eastern border from the Eastern Erosion Zone.
But no solid power settled into his body. His father had described it as steel fusing with his flesh when he received Terra's divine power. Nothing like that happened.
A dreadful thought struck Ludenberg. Could Terra have rejected me?
Unable to accept it, he refused to remove his hand, even without awakening.
Terra's high priest watched and spoke. "Regrettably, Terra has not chosen you. But don't despair—other paths remain."
"...Yes."
Ludenberg tried Celioum, Mare, and Setra next, but no divine power awakened. Despite his earnest pleas, the gods offered no response.
Murmurs rippled through the chamber. Anxiety gnawed at Ludenberg as he touched the final relic—Lanur's.
Please. Please, Lanur.
Nothing.
The world spun before his eyes. What? What's happening?
Eldora and the five priests hid their confusion poorly. Ludenberg's father, Duke Leonard Lavante, and mother, Duchess Asha Lavante, looked stunned.
"What is this? Rejected by all five gods...?"
"Impossible. Only Solem remains, but Solem's power awakens only in the imperial bloodline. Does this mean... the Lavante heir has no divine power?"
Sensing the growing chaos, Eldora steadied herself and told Ludenberg, "Just a moment, dear."
She hurried off—why, he couldn't fathom. Ludenberg clung to his fading senses. Is this real? No divine power? Even street beggars awaken it in the Solemnute Empire.
But dread consumed him.
Soon Eldora returned, holding Solem's relic in her hands. Solem's power had been exclusive to those bearing the Solenute name since the empire's founding.
Yet in this unprecedented crisis, Eldora spared no effort. To her, divine grace was every empire-born soul's right—even if Solem's was said to choose only imperial direct descendants.
Under normal circumstances, handing Solem's relic to Ludenberg would be unthinkable, but his situation was equally impossible.
Eldora placed the sunstone-like relic in his hand. "Wish with all your heart. I'll pray to Solem for you too."
Ludenberg poured his soul into the plea.
And... nothing happened.
Silence fell over everyone gathered for the rite. Eldora, his parents, the Lavante retainers—their faces drained of color.
An unprecedented scandal.
In the heavy quiet, Ludenberg wore no expression. He simply realized one crushing truth amid the haze of despair.
The gods had forsaken him.
Ludenberg Lavante had been born the proud heir of House Lavante amid universal blessings. Wherever he went in the duchy, prayers followed him, all hoping he would grow righteously to lead like his father, Leonard Lavante.
Fortunately, he lived up to those hopes, developing with integrity.
Always watching his father's noble defense of the east, young Ludenberg dreamed of becoming a knight who protected people just like him.
At eight, when he first gripped a sword, Leonard was stunned watching his son flawlessly mimic his demonstrations—even the basic imperial swordsmanship, performed by the empire's greatest knight.
It wasn't mere imitation. The power distribution, the blade's path—Ludenberg replicated it all perfectly. Leonard shivered.
Swordplay was just the start. Spear arts, hand-to-hand—every martial form was child's play to him. He could mimic any move after one glance and instinctively corrected his own flaws.
In everything Leonard taught, Ludenberg grasped more. He intuitively understood principles of force and body mechanics without explanation.
And it wasn't just talent; his body matched it. At eight, he swung a real longsword freely. By ten, he surpassed most adults in strength.
The incarnation of genius. That was Ludenberg Lavante.
Far from slacking, he trained relentlessly. At eleven, the entire house recognized him as the official heir.
Thus, all anticipated his baptism. With divine power, he would forge new Lavante history. Even Leonard, hailed as the most talented since founder Parrel Lavante, paled beside him.
Rumors of Ludenberg spread empire-wide. House Lavante guarded the Eastern Erosion Zone under imperial patronage, always in the spotlight.
As their heir, his fame was inevitable.
But he failed to awaken at the rite... and the rumors twisted overnight.
He became the "cursed Lavante." Blessings soured to suspicion and fear; praise flipped to scorn and loathing.
In Solemnute, divine power—however weak—was proof of faith and imperial belonging. Without it, even a ducal heir was worthless, a heretic.
None dared say it to his face, but behind his back, hatred and fearful curses spread.
His noble peers abandoned him, slandering freely. A few gold-diggers offered false flattery for his status and wealth, but their motives were transparent. Repeated betrayals disillusioned him with humanity.
From then on, Ludenberg shed expectations of others. Except his parents, he deemed everyone untrustworthy, avoiding contact rigorously.
Yet avoidance proved impossible. Word reached the ducal household; retainers fretted over their "cursed" heir and the house's future. Even servants began fearing and despising the changed boy.