Malcolm sat in a cozy part of the library, reading a book that had caught his interest.
A cup of hot tea sat on the small table next to him, brought in by a polite maid that wasn't quite polite enough to refrain from profusely warning him not to spill it. After reassuring her that he would be careful, she had left him to his own devices.
The book he was reading was one on the topic of Ascended, more specifically on Crimson Fire, and was how he learned that he could now be counted amongst the former's ranks.
Every living thing had Crimson Fire within its veins, the book told him, but only those with Affinities could make use of it. It was something that there was both a large amount of information on and yet something that little was known of.
That seemed contradictory, but that was just how it is. There were dozens of books within this library that speculated on the nature of Crimson Fire, everything from where it came from to what it truly was, but the proven facts were so barebones that if put in print, it would only fill two or three pages.
One of these facts was the aforementioned presence of it within every living thing, and another was that the strength of one's Crimson Fire dictated one's realm.
This book only had information on the first six realms, collectively known as the "Flicker realms" by his system. Truthfully, if it weren't for his Husband System, Malcolm wouldn't even know that there were other realms besides these, as none of the books here had anything on them.
These first six realms were nothing special, from what he could tell. Each one denoted a strength of one's Crimson Fire, and each one was roughly ten times stronger than the last.
Other than that, the only thing they seemed to do was allow one to use stronger Techniques and Spells.
He was about to delve into these two topics when Serena appeared, catching his attention by calling his name.
"Yes?" he asked, looking up from the book.
"I just finished with the doctor. Our first attempt has failed."
Malcolm nodded. He had expected that.
He and Leila had tried for months with no results. When they had approached a city official about this and gone through some tests, they had been told that there was nothing wrong with either of them, but they still couldn't conceive no matter how hard they tried.
A wave of depression washed over him when he remembered Leila, and he took a sip of his tea. The stinging heat on his tongue was enough to distract him from those thoughts, and he set it back on the table as he asked "So when do you want to try again?"
"Tomorrow night," Serena replied. "We'll do it every day until it works."
He nodded. After waiting to see if she had anything else to say, he returned to his book. Serena grabbed one off the shelves and took a seat nearby, and the two started reading.
'Spells and Techniques are methods of using one's Crimson Fire,' he read.
Techniques were usually focused inward, augmenting one's strength or rearranging organs or other such things. Spells were typically external, and both made use of Affinities.
Affinities grew as one's Crimson Fire did, and there were two categories. The first was Martial Affinities, which the book listed as Yin and Yang. These two Affinities could be made use of through Techniques, and having one or both would make one a "Martial" Ascended.
The second was Magic Affinities: Fire, Water, Air, Earth, and Wood. These five could be made use of through Spells, and having one or more would make one a "Magic" Ascended.
Finally, having one or more of both Magic and Martial Affinities, such as Yang and Fire, made one a "Mingled" Ascended.
It was also said that Cultivation Techniques were classified as Techniques, but could be designed for any Affinity, and that Affinities were determined at birth.
That last one made Malcolm hum to himself. That was something even a simple farmer like him had known, a separation between the powerful and the weak that no amount of hard work could cross.
But then, he had gained the Husband System, and that unquestionable fact had become something he could now only doubt.
At some point, Serena stood, shelving her book and glancing at Malcolm. "I'm going to bed. Don't stay up too late; I need you for a meeting with some city officials tomorrow morning."
[New quest unlocked!
Side Quest: "Bunk with the Flame Princess."
Description: Convince Serena to let you sleep in her bed tonight.
Rewards: 5 CF, 1 Stat Point]
"Serena, wait," he called out.
She paused, glancing at him over her shoulder. "Yes?"
"Can I come with you?"
Instantly, her gaze turned frosty, a warning to tread carefully, and she asked in an icy tone:
"Why?"
'Damn it,' he scolded himself. He had acted too hastily. He had little time to think of a way out of this, as her fiery red eyes became colder by the second, so he just said the first thing he could think of.
"We're husband and wife now," he said, nearly tripping over his own words with how fast he blurted them out. "Don't you think your father will find it odd that we aren't sharing a room?"
"Father would never pry into either of our rooms," she told him, turning around and crossing her arms. "And the servants know better than to talk."
"All right, you got me," Malcolm sighed, thinking quickly. "Your bed just looks so much more comfortable than mine."
Serena's eyes narrowed, and Malcolm had to fight to keep himself still as her gaze bored into him.
A lifetime of inferiority and subservience gnawed at the back of his mind. Who was he to demand things from an Ascended, a chosen of the Gods? He was but a lowly farm-
No. He was her husband, and now an Ascended himself. While their footing could not be said to be equal, it was much more even than it had been when they had met.
He straightened at this thought, returning her gaze with a placid one of his own.