Sitting behind a large desk was a man with an imposing aura. He had platinum blond hair, striking red eyes, and a face that looked to be sculpted by God himself. Although he wore a button-up shirt covered by a classy maroon blazer, his muscled figure could still be traced and outlined.
The handsome man flipped through various documents scattered across his desk and every now and then, he would glance up to look at his computer screen. His rough hands, which displayed years of training and hardship, brushed against the edges of a document as he read through it with a focused gaze.
A knock on his office door sounded prompting him to pause.
"Who is it?"
The voice of his attendant responded.
"Sir, Miss Sarah and Young Master Dylan have just returned from the hospital and would like to greet you."
Hearing this, the man's expression didn't change. Without showing any sort of emotion, he replied, "No need. Send them to the child's room."
There was a slight pause before the attendant said, "...I understand."
After that, it was back to silence.
The man didn't show much of an interest in his newborn son. He already had six other kids, all from different mothers, so what was one more? There were more important things to worry about such as the guild and the businesses.
The man was rather cold-hearted in this aspect. Despite being hailed a hero by the nation and world for defeating the Great Demonic Cthulu, the SSS-ranked monster, he was a hard-hearted human. Power and wealth were in his grasp and his strength was unrivalled. He had relations with many beautiful women; seven ended in him having children.
As a hero with immeasurable strength, he demanded that his children live up to it.
He monitored their growth from the moment they awakened their mana cores and so far, all have awakened mana cores at acceptable levels save for his fourth child that awakened a B-rank mana core.
This seventh child of his, however, is yet to be judged.
The man did not have an interest in his children's development until they reached the age of five when their mana cores would form. As such, he cared very little for his newborn son and the woman who had birthed him.
In five years, the man will see whether or not the seventh child is worthy to be his son.
-
Meanwhile...
Sarah carried young Dylan to the furthest end of the manor's west wing where his room was. Although she kept a neutral expression on her face, inwardly she was filled with anger and frustration.
'That horrible man. Hero? What hero! He can't even take a look at his child and he didn't even bother to visit the hospital even once! What did women even see in that terrible man? Sure, he was handsome, powerful, wealthy, and carried the title of a 'Hero' but so what? At the end of the day, he's just a cold-hearted bastard that only cares about power and reputation.'
After reaching Dylan's room, she entered it and closed the door behind her before releasing a shaky sigh. For a chatterbox like her who tended to forget to filter her words, it took a whole lot of self-control to not burst into her boss's room and demand him to look at his child.
Despite working for the family for almost seven years, it was still difficult for her to understand the dynamics of the people in this place.
Everyone here was obsessed with strength and abilities. It was something the Master of the Manor and ingrained in everyone's head, especially his children who were, in short, utter maniacs and psychopaths in the making. Every day, Sarah feared for her life as did the rest of the manor's staff because if any of the family got angry, their power would leak out and affect everyone around them. While no one has actually died, some have come close.
Those whose mana cores are below C-rank were found to be affected the worst so it became a requirement that any new staff that were hired had to have a mana core at C-rank or above. Preferably above.
Sarah herself awakened a B-rank mana core and her ability was hydrokinesis - that is, the ability to manipulate water particles. After arriving at the manor, she was trained by the older staff to use her power to its highest potential. When Dylan's mother fell pregnant, Sarah was immediately assigned to be the child's caretaker which entailed a combination of being his babysitter and his bodyguard.
Upon receiving her new assignment, Sarah swore to dedicate herself to her role - something she would have done anyway unofficially since she absolutely adored Dylan's mother who was her close friend. Unfortunately, the Young Lady passed away and now, Sarah would have to bring up Dylan alone.
She was well aware of the troubles he would face in this household. No doubt, he would be neglected by his father until he awakened his core and his siblings would most likely bully him. Unlike the rest of his siblings whose mothers were either powerful awakeners or members of wealthy families belonging to the upper class, Dylan's mother was a civilian. A beautiful civilian woman who happened to capture the eye of the strongest awakener in the world.
She was all Dylan had left. Therefore, in order to shield him from the dangers of the world, she would dedicate her life to him and protect him as long as she was able to.
-
It was late afternoon.
Lying in his crib wide awake, Dylan, who had been listening to Sarah's rants, was able to grasp a lot of new information. From the words 'awakener', 'hero', and 'mana core', that she had let slip out during her mumblings, it was safe to say that Dylan put two and two together and realized that this world was not as simple as he had imagined.
Considering that his reincarnation/rebirth happened, it wouldn't be a stretch to say that he had entered a fantasy-like world. Whatever this world was, it was definitely not a normal one and his father, from what he had heard, was apparently a powerful person.
But...
'It seems he doesn't care much about me.'
Dylan wasn't sure what to feel about that revelation. He was awake when Sarah carried him to greet his father and after they were turned away coldly, Dylan realized that he probably wouldn't be getting the father he wished for.
His heart clenched at that but eventually, he accepted it.
'I have a roof over my head, clothes on my body, food to eat, and a babysitter that cares about me. That's more than enough.'
It was more than enough.
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Word Count: 1128