While walking down the hallway, I still eyed the servants, though I didn't notice anything unusual. Arriving at the dining room entrance, I went inside and saw no one; frowning, I turned around and headed over to my grandparent's cottage house in the backyard that they like to call the retirement home; when I got near the house, I saw grandmother playing with Elaine while sitting on a bench on the patio.
"I heard from Tyler that you were cultivating, so what are you doing over here, dear?" Asked Tiana, who had just teleported Elif, to sit right next to her while she handed over Elaine to him.
Grabbing Elaine, I hold her tightly and look down at her adorable face, which is super chubby and smile while poking her with my finger, eliciting a smile forming on her face as she tries to grab my finger with her tiny hand.
"Why was no one eating at the dining table?" Asked Elif, who had a massive grin while playing with Elaine.
"Marcus and Maria still have work to do, and you were in the middle of cultivating; we didn't wish to interrupt your cultivation. Also, someone told me you've already managed to sense Qi in the atmosphere." Answered Tiana while enjoying the view of her grandchildren happily playing with one another.
"Yeah, it didn't take that long, but it was extremely boring, it took less than ninety minutes to sense Qi, but it felt like I was sitting there for hours." Replied Elif, who sounded dejected even mentioning it, though he didn't stay dejected for long as just Elaine's presence was enough to cheer him up.
"I can't believe you sometimes, Elif, you're complaining, and yet it still took you under two hours to achieve what usually takes the average person several days of meditation." Said Tiana, exasperated at how spoiled Elifs thinking was.
"But haven't you guys said I'm incredibly talented, so comparing me to an average person has no meaning. Since I'm considered a genius, I need to start thinking like a genius, and a genius always wants to be the best, so how can I settle with under two hours?" Replied Elif, looking at Tiana while gaining a little pride at being considered a genius at cultivation. But will that pride one day turn into arrogance? Who knows?
"Hoho, you've got me there, but not just a genius; everyone should strive to be the very best they can be." Said Tiana while nodding at Elif's words.
"Oh, by the way, where is grandfather?"
"He said he was going to visit one of his friends in the Divine Druid Kingdom, and if you're curious about them, they are considered long-time allies dating all the way back to the Primordial Epoch; of course, more information is stored within the Royal Library." Stated Tiana.
'Hmm, Divine Druid Kingdom, I wonder if the term Divine or Immortal in front of a kingdom is a way to categorize their age, or maybe power, considering the same two terms are used to group spirit roots and Physiques?' Thought Elif, who had managed to come up with an outstanding analysis from the small amount of information he had.
"Anyways, the reason why I stopped cultivating was that I didn't know if I had managed to reach the peak of Qi Gathering, as it stated that once your meridians start feeling uncomfortable, then that means you've reached the peak of Qi Gathering, though since I have no meridians, my body started feeling uncomfortable instead." Said Elif.
"Well, it's good that your first action was to seek one of us for help, as making a mistake in cultivation is the last thing you'd want, but to answer your question, you haven't reached the peak of Qi gathering, you're at the late stage of Qi gathering." Replied Tiana, taking her eyes off Elif.
"Umm, I don't understand." Said Elif, feeling confused as what Tiana said contradicts what is stated in the manual.
"The reason you're currently feeling uncomfortable is that you've absorbed a large quantity of Qi very quickly, and while Qi exists inside the body, it is in very tiny amounts compared to what you currently have. You'll be feeling fine once you wake up tomorrow, as your physique is already suited for cultivation, though without your physique, it could've taken days." Said Tiana, taking Elaine, who had fallen asleep while they were talking, out of Elif's arms.
"Alright, Elif, it's getting late, so you should quickly eat and go to sleep; good night." Said Tiana, who kissed Elif's forehead before making her way inside the house, leaving Elif alone outside.
With Elaine and grandmother going inside, I admire the forest surrounding the house, which exhibits a different beauty at night; hopping off the bench, I walk down the pathway and arrive back at the castle. Maneuvering throughout the castle hallways, which I've gotten lost in a few times, I arrive at the dining table and eat some food before reaching my room.
Changing out of my fancy clothes, I wear my pajamas and jump onto my giant bed; once under the covers, I look out the window while wondering about random stuff.
'I wonder who are the servants that are spies, and which factions do they belong to? Will Elaine be as talented as me also since we're siblings? When will I get to leave the Elven Royal grounds, and what does it look like in the city? In the manual, it said that the higher your cultivation base is, the longer a life span, so could I one day become Immortal? How many different levels of cultivation are there? Is there anyone else who is also as talented as me? If so, where would they be? How big actually is our Empire? And why does it seem like each generation of Royal Elfs only has two children?' Thought Elif for a while before slowly drifting off to sleep.
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Groggily opening my eyes before closing them instantly as the sun is directly shining on me; opening my eyes again, I sit up and release a yawn before hopping out of bed and heading to the bathroom to do my morning routine, which consists of taking a bath, putting on some clothes, tying my hair, and admiring myself in the mirror every now and then.
'It's eight-thirteen in the morning. I still have two hours before dinner, might as well cultivate to pass the time.' Thought Elif, who had hoped in his bed and started cultivating once again.
Though what Elif had forgotten was to put the sign back up, so while he was in the middle of cultivating, a knock resounded throughout the room, snapping Elif out of cultivating; luckily, he wasn't at a crucial part in his cultivation; otherwise, it could've been dangerous.
'Who knocked on my door!? It was probably a servant; my parents or grandparents would've just barged in. Maybe it's a servant spy, and they're trying to get information on me; well, they've messed up as I'm not just your average four-year-old!' Thought Elif, annoyed but also excited at the prospect of exposing a servant spy.
Hoping off my bed, I carefully arrive near my door but stop by one of the dressers and pull out a mask; wearing the mask, I get behind the door and quickly swing it open, hopefully surprising the spy. Once the door's fully open, I get a good look of the spy disguising as a servant; she's a beautiful light-skinned Elf with silky blonde hair, green eyes, and a face that looks to have been sculpted, though her breasts seem unnaturally big compared to the rest of her body, which means she could be hiding some weapon in there, while her posture is that of a maid, her attire is of one I've never seen before.
When it comes to servants, there are three different positions, an ordinary servant, which almost everyone is; a head servant, whose job is to perform more important stuff as well as managing a group of servants; and then a chief servant, whose job is similar to a head servant, but they manage a group of Head servants and have even more important work. But their attire is different for each position; ordinary servants have regular maid and butler clothes, a head servant wears the same clothes but have a single shoulder cape of varying color depending on what they manage, and lastly, a chief servant's attire is the same as a head servant, but they also wear a beret of varying colors as well; nonetheless, the servant in front of me is wearing none of those.
"Your Highness, the majesties have requested your presence for breakfast." Said the servant as she bowed before Elif, who looked incredibly suspicious to Elif.
'Hmph, so you resort to lying to me, as expected as a spy; however, I'll play your little game, but once we arrive at the dining room, I'll expose you before mother and father!' Thought Elif, excited at being able to expose a spy by himself.
"Hmm, well then, I shall abide." Said Elif, slightly muffled because of the mask.
Walking past the servant, I make my way to the dining room, and while walking through the hallways, the servant(spy) has been following practically right behind me, and even when I arrive before the dining room entrance, she is still there.
'Hehe, let's see how you'll act once you've been exposed, spy.' Thought Elif evilly.
When I open the doors, I notice everyone is present, which puts a big smile on my face that's hidden by the mask; arriving near the table, once I hear the door close behind me, I quickly hop onto the table from my chair, yank off my mask and point at the women.
"Haha, I've captured a spy, mother, and father!" declared Elif triumphantly.