A few minutes before Prince Varchaswa underwent his awakening process, a crowd had gathered outside the Royal Ganpati Temple located in the midst of Shree Krishna Palace Grounds of the Dwaarakaa Royal Palace Compound.
An A few minutes before Prince Varchaswa underwent his awakening process, a crowd had gathered outside the Royal Ganpati Temple located in the midst of Shree Krishna Palace Grounds of the Dwaarakaa Royal Palace Compound.
An old man and a young lady were amongst the spectators of the procession which was being carried out by the general public. The young lady was a teenager of around 14. She was very curious by nature and hence could not help but ask several questions to her Grand teacher, "Grand teacher, what is going on?"
Grand teacher Shukra replied, "Princess Vaibhavee, as you know, we are currently in the Dwaarakaa Royal Palace Compound of Gokula, the Capital city of Dwaarakaa Kingdom. You see that Young Man in Red Clothes? He is the Second Prince of the Dwaarakaa Kingdom. His father Paartha is the reigning King and his mother Subhadraa is the Queen of the Dwaarakaa Kingdom. His elder brother Prataapa is the Crown Prince.
Prince Varchaswa is considered a child prodigy with excellent Martial Arts and Weaponry Skills. He has been trained by the Generals Nakula and Drona in the art of warfare, and in Strategy and Administration by his maternal Grandfather & current Prime Minister Vidura.
As per the ancient traditions of the Dwaarakaa kingdom, once the young members of noble lineage enter the age of 16, a coming-of-age ceremony is organized. And today, that coming-of-age ceremony is being organized for the Second Prince Varchaswa."
"But isn't this a bit too much for a coming-of-age ceremony?" Vaibhavee was curious.
"That is because unlike our Sinhaalaa Kingdom, some Kingdoms like Dwaarakaa combine the coming-of-age ceremony and the awakening ceremony." Grand teacher Shukra replied.
"Grand teacher Shukra, do you mean the awakening in which many youngsters expect to receive a divine blessing and awaken special powers?" a curious but ignorant Vaibhavee asked.
"Yes. By receiving the blessings, one can gain special abilities or Elemental powers akin to Demi-Gods. Depending on the level of awakening, they get to influence the domain of the said element and control it to varying degrees. Naturally, the higher the awakening, the better.
Because of their ancient lineage and access to ancient Knowledge, Royals and Nobles have higher chances of receiving blessings from the mythological deities and awaken an Element, thus becoming Elementalists." Grand Teacher Shukra explained.
"So there are different levels of Elementalists?"
"Yes. The same element can be awakened with varying degrees of strength. The Elemental Awakenings are primarily classified into different levels - Deficient, Plebeian, Monarch, Saint, and Divine. The Divine level is further sub-divided into Legendary and Mythical.
Mythical Elemental awakening levels are only found in Ancient Texts. They are wielded by the Celestials, Gods and Immortals. To my knowledge, currently, there is no human in the entirety of the Maanasa Continent, who has awakened a Mythical Element in the last couple of millennia.
As for the Legendary Elemental Awakening, it is quite rare. Only about 60 people in the entire Maanasa Continent are known to possess it, of which about 20 are from our Bhaarata sub-continent. There might be a few others hiding their strength and a few others practising in seclusion. Even so, the number of such people is not expected to surpass 50.
Most Royal family members and High Nobles awaken the Monarch and Saint Level Elements. Common people may or may not awaken any element, and when they do it is almost always the Plebeian Level. It's the most basic level which can be used for the most basic of Magical tasks. Most of the Infantry is comprised of the soldiers who have awakened the Plebeian Level Element.
Some unfortunate souls end up obtaining Deficient Level of awakening and most of them do not live much long. Their bodies are unable to handle the power of the elements. It is said to be result of their Past-Life Karma. The Karma Law is said to dispense justice on behalf of the World.
Inversely, when a commoner awakens a Saint Level Element their status might get elevated to that of a Noble based on their contributions to the society. While a Legendary Awakening is by default awarded a Noble Status. In fact, the founders of many Noble families were Commoners when they were born."
With that, Grand teacher Shukra ended his explanation.
Vaibhavee asked, "Understood. But Grand teacher Shukra, why don't we have such a grand ceremony in our Kingdom? We also get awakenings."
"There are a few reasons. First, even in prosperous kingdoms like Dwaarakaa, these types of grand awakening ceremonies are done only for prominent Nobles and direct Royal Family members.
Second, our Sinhaalaa Kingdom is comparatively small and not that luxurious unlike the past. It was a great Kingdom once, called the Golden Kingdom. But now, we are just managing ourselves.
Third and perhaps the most important of all, it is said that our ancestors had mated with the demon race and a trace of that bloodline remains. Hence our Sinhaalaa Kingdom keeps a low profile to avoid any sort of trouble; just in case the awakening has a demonic nature or element." Grand teacher Shukra replied.
Vaibhavee further inquired, "Does this mean our Kingdom is surrounded by enemies?"
Shukra continued with his explanation, "There are many other kingdoms and a few empires in the Central Continent of Maanasa. They all have their own ancient lineage and heritage, some of which are non-human in nature. A couple of them have Demonic Heritage as well.
Although, Demons are despised, demon heritage is not. Unless we openly promote it, people are not bothered by it. It has been accepted as part of Nature.
Additionally, we have some allies and friends formed by political marriages and other treaties, so it is not that we are surrounded by enemies, but we just can't openly celebrate awakenings since there are chances that someone might awaken a demonic element or special ability related to demons and be misunderstood by commoners to be a Demon."
Vaibhavee said, "Hmm. I understand things a lot better now. Thank you for the explanation Grand teacher Shukra. I did not know these."
Shukra was puzzled, "This is something that puzzles me, Princess Vaibhavee. Although you are just 14, but still, this much should be basic information taught to a Princess since the age of 10."
Vaibhavee explained, "As you know, my mother was a commoner who rose through the ranks of a Commander in the Army, thanks to the training you provided her in her younger days. However, after you left the kingdom, my father, the King married my mother as a concubine.
Since she was of a Non-Noble Birth, she was not given full privileges. It was only recently that she got promoted to the rank of a General in the Military, and hence, I got the title of Princess very recently.
I was raised by my mother in Military Camps who was always busy subduing the rebels. Hence most of the education that I received were about Martial Arts and military tactics. There were no other teachers to teach me Political Theories or Royal Manners."
Shukra responded, "Hmm. To conclude, since you are the daughter of a Non-noble born concubine, you weren't raised as a Princess and given Royal Education. Seems like the class discrimination still exists in the Sinhaalaa Kingdom just like any other, may be a bit more."
Princess Vaibhavee said, "Personally for me, I feel it has been a blessing in disguise. For example, I can travel with Grand teacher and nobody cares. If I was a regular Princess, I wouldn't be allowed to go outside the Kingdom and will have to spend most of the time shut in the Palace."
Shukra said, "That may be so, but this did degrade your education."
Princess Vaibhavee was quick to add, "But teacher Shukra, there was another reason for the lack of my education. Mother was awaiting your return. She wanted me to become your disciple."
Shukra responded, "Hmm. I taught your mother a long time ago. Now, I have aged a lot and not in a position to take any new disciples. I have some obligations of my own as well. That is what I told your mother too.
It was then she used her ability of foresight and asked me to bring you to Dwaarakaa Kingdom and let you meet Prince Varchaswa. Although I don't know why she believes that coming to Dwaarakaa Kingdom will be benefit you and accelerate your growth, I still agreed to bring you here safely and to look after you.
She took care of my 'Aashrama' when I was out exploring the North-Western Continent, so this is the least I can do for my former student."
Vaibhavee asked "Grand teacher, what kind of place is the South-Western Continent?"
Shukra replied, "That is not something for you to learn just yet. Anyway, let us focus on the awakening ceremony."
After saying that, he led Princess Vaibhavee into the Dwaarakaa Royal Palace Compound.
Soon they witnessed the Purple Lightning that struck the Royal Ganapati Temple. This was followed by the commotion caused by the withdrawal of the Royal Family from the Temple Premises to their Residential Palace.
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Chapter End.