By the time Jake returned home, it was almost evening.
His mother didn't awaken and is considered a commoner. She can only work in low-end jobs. When she was young she did that but after Jake was born she opened a small shop.
The shop sells only common goods. Though at first she wanted to sell some low-end goods usable by hunters but was fastly dissuaded by her friend.
If some big shop that is supported by awakened eyes such shop, there is only loss. The extent of loss depends on the people who wanted the shop. There are many examples of such things happening.
Though law and order are maintained, if there is no clue of the crime, the guards can't do anything.
So instead of being the target of such people, she chose a stable way of income with low risk.
The building where Jake lived has two floors with the shop being on the lower floor and the upper floor as the place of residence.
One cannot reach the top floor except through the shop.
When Jake arrived, the shop was closed. His mother told him in the morning that she will be going out and would arrive later in the evening.
It is not a hassle as he had the spare key with him. He entered the shop floor and locked the door. He went upstairs as he has nothing to do in the shop.
The shop and his home are divided by stairs and a separate door. His mother got it installed for extra protection, though it can be said that there would be no need for another door as there is already a door for the shop.
Jake went on with his routine for the evening. He basically does few light exercises, as his body can't sustain the strain of work for long.
He then took a bath and waited for his mother's arrival.
After half an hour of waiting his mother finally returned. When he saw her, he could see that she was tired but had a smile on her face for him.
He quickly gave a hug and iterated what happening during the ceremony.
His mother listened to him silently but Jake could see that she wasn't disappointed or anything. If anything it looked as if she expected this outcome.
'Did mom know that this would happen or was she satisfied with my awakening being a success, even if it is considered the lowest of mages?'
'If she expected this outcome, she might know something about father. I should ask her more but I'm wrong it won't look good if I ask outright. I should slowly ask her about him.'
Jake decided that asking her away at this time would look suspicious, so he postponed this matter until tomorrow. He needed a way to drag the information about his dad is important for him.
They had a nice quiet dinner and Jake went back to his room to sleep. Tomorrow is important for him as he would for the first time enter Crossworld and he needed to be in the right mental state for the best outcomes.
---
Jake kept tossing in his sleep. It became a routine for him for years.
It started when a weird dream started to appear in his sleep. It was three years ago when he had this weird dream for the first time.
In this dream, he was sitting on what looked like a throne, surrounded by nine beautiful ladies. Though he couldn't see their faces clearly, he always felt that they were powerful.
Even he looked powerful, beyond his recognition.
The dream always ended with the death of the nine ladies in the hands of some unknown enemy. Unlike those ladies whose faces are blurred, this enemy would always appear shrouded in shadows.
They would fight this enemy for a while but eventually, this enemy would successfully proceed to kill all the ladies.
Jake tried many times to stop this but he failed to do so. Jake cried over their deaths every time but this didn't change the outcome.
The only survivor would be him and the nightmare ends when he wakes up.
There are a few details he didn't pay attention to. This changed after his awakening.
Though he never understood the dream, there was always a feeling that the dream could come true. He wanted to stop the last part when it happened. Awakening a strong element was his only way to free himself from the nightmare.
In the dream during the fight, he used mostly Water spells and Ice spells a few times. He couldn't get the reason for this.
If he was sitting on a throne, then he should have been strong. He should have excellent combat abilities. The water element isn't considered one. Even for Ice, unless weather or the environment helps these elements can't make huge contributions in a battle.
Yet he was using only those elements. There are a few other elemental spells but they don't count to one percent combined.
He always wondered why that was. How can he be the strongest to be able to sit on a throne, could only use those spells?
Now it is clear to him.
He awakened the water element.
Moreover, he is a demi-god. Though his strength is low for now, he could become the man in his dream.
Though one question was answered, a new one arose. Why did he lose to that shadow? Isn't a demi-god, not enough? Is the shadow a god?
Tonight the nightmare was the same but the end changed a bit.
After their deaths, instead of crying as he always did, this time he became determined never to let that happen. One day he would be powerful to not only be able to sit on that throne but also protect the people he cherishes. He would fight back and defeat even if it was a god who tried to harm the people he cared for.
Unlike previous nights when he would wake up sweating and gasping, the situation changed this time.
Though this was an abrupt waking from sleep, his eyes told a different story. Tonight would be the time when the world saw the start of a story, the start of his-story.