(8 Years Ago)
A young man was meditating on his bed. He had striking raven black hair draping over his shoulder. He was quite young and had a feminine look to him due to his porcelain skin and lack of muscles. In front of him, his hands were clasped in a strange yet relaxed manner. His chest peacefully rose and fell with the rhythm of his breath. Every time he inhaled and exhaled, a white stream of sparkling air darted into the young man's nose and mouth.
The walls surrounding him were painted in pure white and contained paintings of dancing women. The room was tidy, with everything neatly placed in an orderly manner. Particularly the long oak table with countless shining objects would catch anyone's attention. These objects were believed possessions of the young man, and they all had one name engraved onto them ' Phoenix Parker'
After meditating for an hour, the young man opened his palms, revealing specks of sparkling purple dust.
"Huuuu..." The young man slowly let out his breath, opening his eyes. A glowing light flashed across his black pupils. That was the Astral energy.
"Young Master, the Lord, and the Lady have requested your presence in the hall," a cocky voice sounded outside the door.
"I will be with them in a jiffy grandpa," the young man giggled. Then he gracefully walked toward the mirror and pulled open the drawer to reveal various powders, inks, and brushes. He took each item out of the drawer and sat on the chair before the mirror.
The young man was the third son of the Phoenix clan head, Phoenix Parker. The clan head Phoenix Walter had seven children. Phoenix Parker was the fourth child in the family.
He had two elder brothers, one elder sister, one little sister, and two little brothers. One of the elder brothers, Edward Phoenix, was a child of the concubine; hence he had the name Edward Phoenix instead of Phoenix Edward.
However, they all loved Edward dearly without showing any discontent for his birth to a concubine except Phoenix Mary, the lady of the Phoenix clan. Since Edward was born to a concubine, she always treated him cold, unlike the rest.
Edward and Oliver always stayed together since they were the same age, just like Parker's last two brothers, Arthur and Percy.
After adorning himself with makeup, Parker tied his long raven black hair into a neatly braided ponytail. While doing so, he looked gorgeous, like a newly blossomed flower. His smooth porcelain skin and lean body with no muscles gave him a charm many young ladies, including his little sister Phoenix Grace lacked.
"What should I wear?" Parker pouted as he looked at the glowing rings on each finger. It took Parker a couple of minutes to choose the ring decorated with a single round ruby red gem.
"Evicitus," Parker gently uttered the word as the ruby began to glow brighter and brighter. A grandiloquent red robe enveloped his smooth, velvety naked body in a few moments.
Parker did not only look like a pretty young lady but also walked like one with such grace due to his years of Nazzle dancing, which was one of the most elegant yet intricate dance forms in the whole world.
Phoenix Parker ruled the world of Nazzlites as many nobles in Kingdom Midor would die to see his performance on the grand stage every year.
"Young Master," outside his room was a white-haired old man in a crimson red robe. He immediately bowed when he saw Parker.
"How do I look grandpa Hong?" Parker proudly lifted his head, putting his hands on his waist.
"As elegant as ever, Young Master," Grandpa Hong smiled. Among all the seven children, Hong loved Parker the most. Not only Hong but all the servants adored Parker because he was so kind and generous. Ever since Parker was little, he helped everyone in need.
But when Grandpa Hong followed Parker behind, his eyes showed a flash of regret and pity. No matter how kind, generous and talented he was,
Parker had no friends as all youngsters his age avoided him and made fun of him behind his back for his ladylike features and attitude.
"Grandpa Hong, what about the thing I asked you to do?" while walking through the hallway, Parker asked Hong in a gentle, sweet voice,
"I made a blank donation as you said, Young Master,"
"Wonderful. Just don't tell anyone, especially mother. She has been telling me to save money so much recently," Yet again, Parker warmed the old man's heart with his kindness. Once a year, Parker danced in the new year festival on the grandest stage in the capital city of Midor, Stellar City.
Every year, Parker earned hundreds of thousands of Astral coins. Instead of using the coins to cultivate, he donated every single last coin to the orphanages and infirmaries throughout the kingdom under a blank name. Except for Grandpa Hong, only Edward knew about Parker's donations.
Eventually, Grandpa Hong and Parker crossed through the backyard and finally arrived solemnly at the welcoming hall lit with a grandeur golden chandelier. After politely knocking, the two softly went in.
The marble-floored hall was quite spacious and decorated with various statues, antiquities such as a golden bell and a water fountain, and a long oak table with rows of chairs on each side. At that moment, a smart handsome man with wavy black hair calmly sat at the table's end beside a charmingly striking golden-haired woman with cherry lips.
They were Parker's father and mother, Walter and Mary. The elders filled the rest of the table except for the six chairs allocated for the six of Mary's children while Edward held no seat at the table.
On the right-hand side of Walter remained three emotionless elders. They were the clan elders and had equal importance to the Clan leader. On the contrary, the four elders on the left didn't hold as much power as the clan elders but nevertheless, they had quite a bit of say and weren't pushovers. Besides these elders, Parker noticed a few strange faces. Among the strangers was an elder wearing a moon white outfit. Although the elder was all smiles, his tiny eyes were full of energy, restlessly scanning the room. Parker's sight dipped lower, stopping at the elder's chest, where he saw a sword-shaped pendant attached to the silver chain hanging around his neck.
Beside the elder was a young couple. They were also wearing the same moon-white robes. The young man seemed to be in his early twenties. His golden hair, muscular build, and dashing handsome face would make any girl's heart skip a beat.
The young man's eyes were currently locked onto the young girl in her late teens. She was exceptionally beautiful with her perfect jaw structure, hazel eyes, and slender figure. Yet, every time the young man looked at her, she revealed a shy smile and curled her hair, avoiding his gaze.
When the young man's gaze fell on Parker, he was quite surprised for a moment. Then, his eyes showed ridicule, making the young girl a little embarrassed because she was Parker's elder sister, Phoenix Sasha.
In the main hall, Walter and the three clan elders were talking excitedly with the strange elder. However, the guest seemed to have something weighing on his mind as he just nodded and smiled without speaking much.
"Parker," Walter called out for Parker as Maria greeted him with a motherly smile.
"Take your seat,"
"Yes, father," Parker bowed obediently before taking his seat beside Sasha.
"Who are they?" After listening to the conversation that didn't include him for a while, Parker leaned toward her sister. His question temporarily broke Sasha's eye contact with the youngster,
"Did you see sword pendants on their necks?" Sasha asked in a husky voice.
"Yeah," Parker once again looked at the pendants on their necks before turning his gaze back to Sasha,
"They are from Tamaria, the school of swordmasters,"
"Really?" Parker asked in bewilderment.
Even though Parker had never gone out of Midor, he learned about the world outside through books and stories from Edward, who often embarked on adventures. The Phoenix clan ruled Midtown along with Duke Vernon. Midtown was one of the four dukedoms in Midor, a part of the Veridian Empire.
Midtown was the largest dukedom among the four dukedoms in Midor yet compared to the size of the Veridian empire, it was only a tiny dot on the map despite having the largest mountain range behind it.
Now Parker understood why his father was leaning and looking flustered, unlike his usual domineering self. If the Phoenix clan was one of the strongest in Midor, Tamaria was the strongest in the entire Veridian empire.
The difference between the Phoenix Clan and Tamaria was enormous, to the point where the emperor himself wouldn't dare to be disrespectful towards the elders of Tamaria.
"Why are they here?" Parker whispered.
"They are here to talk about your marriage, my dear little brother,"
Parker's cheeks went red as soon as he heard Sasha. If it weren't for the elders and new faces in the hall, Sasha would have pinched her little brother's cute face and made fun of him. But, since it wasn't the case, she controlled the urge to do either.
"But…but…I'm engaged to Miss Bronson," Parker stuttered,
"Who do you think that is?" Sasha quickly threw a glance at the handsome young man on the other side,
"That's her brother, Roman Bronson,"
Parker's body went rigid as his heart began to beat so fast.
"Is…is she here?" Parker stuttered and talked in such a low voice that Sasha could barely hear him,
"What? Do you want to meet your fiance? Wait, let me ask mother,"
"NO!" Parker almost shouted but luckily, he silenced his voice at the last second, making Sasha chuckle.
Ever since he was little, his mother told him that one day he would marry his fiance Lydia Bronson. A long time ago, Walter's late father and Chester Bronson fought together against the orcs. During the peak of the war, Chester Bronson was ambushed by a group of orcs and would have lost his life that day if it wasn't for Walter's father. But unfortunately, Walter's father died saving Chester. So when Walter's father was on the verge of dying, Chester made him a promise that he would marry his granddaughter to Parker and protect the Phoenix clan in his stead.
Although Chester had entered into seclusion and didn't come out for fifteen years, he valued his promise. Hence, despite Parker's reputation as an Effeminate throughout Midor, the Bronson family didn't back down from their pledge until today…