Two days had already passed since Albaer left and a whole week since Ethan fell unconscious. He still hadn't woken up even after a week. This was probably the most amount of time an Ancestral Awakening had taken in the entire history of Akarxia.
Alier had lost a lot of his Elemental Essense while trying to kill Ethan and not to mention the strange attack that suddenly happened on his consciousness. This had taken a toll on him and so he needed to recover.
A noteworthy thing was that news of Ethan's early Ancestral Awakening had spread in the city of Adenberd like wildfire.
The commoners feared Nobility in the world of Akarxia but the case with Whitesburg Duchy was a bit different. Of course, the commoners did fear the Duke and the White Family but they also respected and admired them.
White Family was one of the most powerful in the kingdom and besides that, they had been treating the commoners well so far; at least better than a lot of other Noble Houses that is.
So when the news broke out that Young Master Ethan's life was in danger; people in the city lit candles in front of the city square and prayed to their respective Gods for his safety.
The news was also spreading to nearby territories mouth-to-mouth which created big waves throughout the Kingdom and beyond.
The hype was real this time, and to understand why—one must know what the significance of an Early Awakening was.
People who underwent their Ancestral Awakening earlier than the expected age always had unimaginable power and natural talent to grasp their Blessings quickly. These people were as rare as they could get and they were valuable to the utmost degree.
Small Kingdoms even offered such individuals the hand of their princesses so that they would be able to have a powerful ally. These individuals were respected and feared wherever they went.
The average age for any Ancestral Awakening was after 12 years of age and the exceptional ones were Awakened after the age of ten. But anything before that was the mark of a genius.
The longer the Ancestral Awakening lasted, the more prospects and potential an individual had. For normal cases; it only took 1 day. For exceptional ones, it took 1-3 days and for the geniuses, it took 2-4 days at max.
It was said that the body, soul, and mind of the individual change while they're inside the cocoon. The body's true potential and affinity towards the Ancestral Blessings of the Gods is awakened after this process.
So it was very absurd for Ethan to be inside the cocoon for seven days and counting. Many nearby Lords were observing the situation to see if Ethan would make it or not.
It was very evident that when the news is spread throughout Akarxia and the Atrana Kingdom it would create even more of a commotion—whether Ethan manage to survive or not.
It was the eighth day of Ethan being inside the cocoon—and what everyone was waiting for finally happened.
Albaer and Hooch landed on the mansion's lawn. But he was not alone, in front of him on Hooch's back was the twelve-year-old Anicia Stout.
No time was wasted and Anicia was brought straight inside Ethan's room. The huge king-sized bed was half occupied by the golden-colored cocoon in which Ethan was.
Aisha was looking a lot better than when Albaer left her. Instead, Alier was the one looking worse off.
"What happened to you?" Albaer asked with concern, "Nothing much, I have just been worried about Ethan's safety." Alier lied through his teeth, he truly was a shameless hypocrite.
"Don't worry, Ethan will be fine I'm sure. And now he will not get any weaker inside that cocoon as I have brought some help for him." Albaer said with a smile as he tapped Alier's shoulder.
Aisha was beside him and looked at Anicia suspiciously, she was skeptical as to how a little girl was going to do anything.
"Don't worry honey, she is Blessed," Albaer whispered in Aisha's ear and her eyes brightened.
Anicia looked around the new environment and place with curiosity, "Wooh! This place is so lavish!" She thought and her gaze stopped at the cocoon finally. She was very nervous but gathered up all her courage and mentally prepared herself for the long Ritual.
Anicia turned around and faced the entire White Family, it would be a lie to say that she wasn't scared; she was only a child after all. But that did not stop her from doing her best.
"Um, Please everyone leave. And while I'm doing this ritual do not let anyone in." Anicia said.
"But-" Aisha was about to speak up but Albaer placed his hand on her shoulder with a firm grip and shook his head sideways.
"Let's leave, no one is allowed to approach this room until she says so. Albert! Keep guard day and night." Albaer said and turned back toward the door as he moved to leave the room. Everyone nodded and left as well.
The room was silent and only the fluttering of embroidered white curtains sounded while the gentle, mild sunlight fluctuated creating a play of shadows.
Anicia looked at the cocoon curiously wondering what kind of person was inside it. Was he handsome? Was he clever? What did he look like? What was his personality like? Etc.
Such questions flooded her mind but not for long as she shook her head vigorously clearing away the unnecessary thoughts.
She sat on the bed just beside the cocoon and clasped her hands together before her chest in a praying pose as she closed her eyes.
"Oh Holy Father, You who created All... You who lies in everything and everything that lies within you. You are the Creator and Destroyer of Worlds—I beg for you to show mercy on your children. I implore you to Channel the power you have blessed me. Safeguard his soul from Evil, Protect him from Harm, And Give him My Life-Force so that he may live on to another day! RITUAL OF VITALITY GIVING!"
Anicia prayed devoutly and a Golden Holy Aura enveloped the room. Everyone in the mansion felt its effects as they all felt something deep in their blood and soul resonating with the Holy Atmosphere.
It was a weird feeling as if one wanted to cry their regrets out and laugh their happiness out loud at the same time.
Inside Ethan's room, it was like celestial angels swaying with the heavenly choir. Two circles in which there were patterns of pentagrams, triangles and other complex diagrams along with the unidentified letters of Lost Language of Gods inside the outer narrow circle manifested—one around Anicia and the other around the cocoon.
Slowly threads of Golden energy left Anicia's body and gathered around the cocoon slowly entering it.
This time though, nothing like what happened with Alier repeated. The life force entered the cocoon and then Ethan's body. While Anicia was sitting there on the bed beside Ethan like a statue as she constantly muttered the prayers in a loop without any rest.
Meanwhile, in some sort of dark surroundings and a surreal environment, Ethan opened his eyes.