It was late afternoon, when Charles finished his training. After defeating the initial ten warriors, he had kept on increasing the number of archers and spearmen by five, until they had reached fifty each and Charles had finally been hit by an arrow. It wasn't that he hadn't seen the arrow coming, 'Sixth Sense' helped him see each and every attack; it was just that he hadn't been able to react quick enough. He studied war tactics for an hour after that, before entering the simulation room again. This was his average training routine every day. Different people used the simulation room in different ways, based on their skill and fighting styles.
He took a quick shower and ordered something to eat. There was a dedicated canteen for the first-year students in THAMA, but top rankers, specifically the top hundred, could order food directly to their dorms. It was one of the privileges given to them. He was also given a quota of beast meat each month. He could use this meat for himself or feed his soul bound beast. Beast meat was richer in nutrients and protein. Eating beast meat over a long period of time would have a lot of benefits.
Soon Charles' meal arrived, and he dug in. Eaglis was still away, he wouldn't return until tomorrow morning. So, Charles ate in silence. He didn't mind it though; the coming days were going to be hectic. This silence was probably the last one he would have for a long time. After finishing the food, he went to his living room, picked a book and started reading. It was a book written during the olden times, not the actual copy but re-written, as the old book wouldn't survive this long.
Many people thought of olden humans as backward and undeveloped. A lot of sources claimed that they hadn't even been able to develop hover cars, let alone the teleportation portal. But Charles thought of them otherwise, they were actually the more advanced and technologically adept human species. All the advanced technological inventions today were because of the resources available in the Eternal Realm. Each of these materials had special properties and they only had to be shaped and assembled together to be used as required. No one knew how they got these mysterious properties.
However, the olden humans had studied their world. There were records of subjects such as science, which aimed to understand how the world worked. Based on their understanding of the world, they had created their own technology. Today's science was more or less, just experimentation of putting stones and minerals together and understanding their effect.
They were the actual geniuses. Those people had long since eradicated the idea of empires and kingdoms. Instead, they used to have elections, similar to the one that was conducted in the Eternal Territory. The human population was in billions then, Charles couldn't imagine a way in which an election could be conducted for so many people.
Musing he opened the book in his hand, the book had only numbers in its title '1-9-8-4', Charles didn't know what it signified. But the book was excellent, it portrayed how the people in power could easily control and sway the opinions of masses. It was a book no ordinary noble would ever read, but Charles wasn't an ordinary noble, he was far from it. Dipping his head back, he became engrossed in reading.
Charles spent his whole afternoon and evening reading, it was the last day of peace he would have, he didn't want to waste it. When he got hungry, he called in for another meal. At night, before going to bed he made a few calls through his earshell. He wanted to make sure everything was prepared for tomorrow, as tomorrow was going to be a big day.
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Charles woke up early as usual. Splashing cold water on his face, he began his training. His morning routine did not consist of combat training but included physical exercise and meditation. Keeping a calm mind during a fight was an important aspect, especially for him whose fighting style relied upon high mental strain and quick decision making.
Three hours later, after a quick shower he started wearing his Warammar uniform. The uniform was a thing that Charles liked and hated the most. Instead of having ten different dresses for different occasions, the Warammar's had only one dress code; their family uniform. He liked it because it made Charles' life easier. He hated it because it signified that he was from the Warammar family.
At about nine thirty, there was a guest at his door. He opened it to reveal Princess Alexia in her ceremonial gown. It consisted of a rich blue bodice with golden patterns and laces, creating a sophisticated and noble appearance along with long sleeves showcasing a blue and golden combination. Her long blonde hair complimented her appearance. A crown was sitting on her head, signifying her royal status.
"You are the only awakener, who will make his lord come to his door."
"You are the only lord that will come to their subordinate's door." Charles rebutted.
Closing the door behind him, they both started making their way towards the lift.
There were about five thousand first year students in THAMA, a thousand from each of the great empires and kingdoms. However, only the top hundred would receive their dorms according to their rank in the first-year building. The building had seventy-five floors, the bottom twenty-five floors had two students each, the top fifty had one student on each floor. The lower your rank was, higher and bigger would be your dorm. Thus, the sixteenth ranked Charles Warammar, had his dorms on the sixteenth floor from the top. The rest of the four thousand nine hundred students were randomly distributed in dorms of the same sizes all over the campus. They didn't have any special benefits or facilities, having to opt for public gyms and simulation machines. That's why the top hundred ranks were coveted by everyone.
There was a grand lobby outside of Charles' dorm, Charles never understood why it was so big as only one person would be using it.
"Have you prepared your speech?" Alexia asked from ahead.
"Yes, more or less"
"How much trouble is it going to cause?" Alexia asked as she pressed the lift's button.
"Why would it cause any trouble? What do you think of me?" Charles asked with fake incredulousness.
Alexia just turned around and stared at him.
"Ahh okay, the other heirs may become a little pissed."
"A little?" Alexia raised an eyebrow.
"A lot actually, but I assure you it's the best way for us to ensure the loyalty of the masses and their loyalty is way more important than those privileged brats'." Charles said seriously. He suddenly smiled and added, "And believe me, in the coming days they'll be far far more pissed than today."
"What are you going to do?"
"That thing I told you a couple months ago…"
Alexia frowned for a second, then suddenly both of her eyebrows rose. Sighing in resignation, she said, "Sometimes I really wonder if you are on my side, or not?"
"I'll always work for you, you know that, Alex." Charles said, staring deeply in her eyes.
Ding.
Alexia stared back at him, "And the most frightening thing is…I believe it." she said, turning around and entering the lift.
Charles chuckled at that, "Imagine the fire princess being paranoid of a lowly rat…", he said following behind her.