Kayn steeled his mind, focusing on what he knew about this world. He needed to organize all the information he could recall to prepare for whatever lay ahead. This world wasn't as simple as it seemed; it was a complex web of alliances, secrets, and power struggles.
There were three big political powers in the Everhart Kingdom: the Royal Family, the Secret Society, and the Church. Each of these powers held significant influence, and they all operated with their own agendas. Officially, all the noble families were subservient to the Royal Family, but behind closed doors, things were much more complicated. Each noble family had its secret alliances with one of these three powers, using these connections to gain advantages and protect their interests.
His own family, the Ashford family, was a strange case. The founder of the Ashford family was the younger brother of the founding emperor of the Everhart Kingdom, which technically made Kayn royalty. However, instead of embracing the privileges of being a royal, the founder had chosen a different path—one that had puzzled many.
The reason the founder gave up the benefits and responsibilities of being a royal was his love for cooking. He had been a culinary enthusiast who traveled the world for years, learning recipes from different countries and cultures. He was passionate about food to the point that he was willing to renounce his royal status to pursue his true passion. To him, cooking was an art, a form of expression that transcended any title or crown. The founder was indeed a peculiar character, a man who valued the joy of creation over the allure of power.
Staying true to the founder's nature, every head of the Ashford family after him had their own 'unique' quirks. They were all eccentric in some way, driven by passions and curiosities that set them apart from the typical nobility. Currently, Kayn's father was no exception. He was off somewhere at a random archaeological site, searching for clues about a lost civilization. It was a pursuit that most people would consider odd, especially for a man of his status. But for an Ashford, it was entirely normal. His father had always been more interested in ancient history and forgotten knowledge than in the mundane affairs of court life, which he would never have been able to explore if he had remained a member of the royal family due to his numerous responsibilities.
This explained a lot about why Arlene hadn't been surprised by his random mutterings earlier. To her, and to everyone who knew the family, Kayn's behavior was just another example of the Ashford eccentricity. She had simply chalked it up to him being an Ashford, accustomed to the unusual and expecting the unexpected.
Kayn let out a sigh, feeling a mix of amusement and relief. At least in this world, his quirks wouldn't be out of place. He could be as strange as he wanted, and people would just assume it was because he was an Ashford. The thought brought a small smile to his face. Still, he had to be careful. This world was familiar to him because he had created it, but now that he was living in it, everything felt different. More real, more dangerous
In this world, a small percentage of people were blessed with extraordinary abilities known as "Grace." These individuals, known as graced ones ere rare, with only about fifteen known to have emerged in the past ten years. The rarity of these powers made them immensely valuable, and most of these gifted individuals had found themselves aligned with the Secret Society.
The Secret Society was an enigmatic group founded by the very first wielder of Grace. Their primary mission was to study the nature of Grace—what it was, how it came to be, and how it could be harnessed. Over the years, they had amassed a vast amount of knowledge about these powers, making them the foremost authority on all things related to Grace. The Society operated in the shadows, but their influence was undeniable. They were known to be a group that combined research with practical application, always on the lookout for new Grace wielders to recruit and study.
On the other hand, the Church was exactly what one might expect: the official religion of the Everhart Kingdom. They wielded immense influence, not just over the spiritual lives of the kingdom's citizens but over political affairs as well. The Church had always maintained that Grace was a divine gift, bestowed upon the worthy by the gods themselves. The current pope was actually a Grace wielder, a man whose powers allowed him to perform miracles and heal almost any injury. His abilities had solidified the Church's position and brought about a period of great faith and loyalty among the people. For many, his miracles were proof of the gods' presence and favor, and he was revered almost as a living saint.
Currently, Kayn was on his way to the Royal Academy, the kingdom's most prestigious institution for education and training. Normally, the Academy was a place reserved for the elite, the sons and daughters of noble families, and the best of the best. However, recent events had forced the Royal Family and their advisors to reconsider their admissions policy.
For the past few weeks, something unprecedented had been happening: the rate at which people were awakening to their Grace had increased alarmingly. Every day, at least ten people were reported to have awakened Grace, a drastic increase from the norm. This sudden surge in power-wielding individuals could lead to chaos if not properly managed. The kingdom was already on edge, with rumors and speculations spreading like wildfire.
It was at this critical juncture that the Secret Society demonstrated why they were considered one of the three great powers in the Everhart Kingdom. They seemed to have an uncanny ability to appear wherever a new Grace wielder emerged, reaching them before anyone else could. This eerie efficiency not only reaffirmed their status but also raised questions about the extent of their knowledge and influence.
In response to this rapid awakening of Grace, the Royal Family had granted the Secret Society permission to act. They announced that the Royal Academy, once an exclusive institution for the most esteemed nobles, would now be open to the public—specifically to those who had awakened Grace. The decree stated that anyone who discovered they possessed Grace was to enroll in the Academy immediately.
This move served multiple purposes. It allowed the kingdom to centralize and monitor the rising number of Grace wielders, preventing them from becoming rogue elements that could destabilize the current order. It also provided a controlled environment where these individuals could learn to harness their powers safely. Moreover, it strengthened the kingdom's relationship with the Secret Society, who were now seen as the protectors and educators of this new generation of powerful individuals.
As his carriage neared the gates of the Royal Academy, Kayn took a deep breath and smiled he could feel his heat beating faster than its ever before... he was starting to feel excited.
Arriving at the academy gates, Kayn took a moment to stretch his stiff body, drawing the attention of several onlookers. As he adjusted his posture, he couldn't help but notice the murmurs that rippled through the small crowd gathering nearby.
"Oh my god, he's so handsome," one girl whispered, her cheeks flushed.
"His face is a bit emotionless, though," a skeptical boy remarked, frowning slightly.
"Oh my god, he's so handsome," one girl whispered, her eyes wide with admiration.
"His face is a bit emotionless, though," another commented, furrowing her brow.
"You don't know anything," another one retorted. "It's the ones who act cold on the outside that are really the warmest on the inside."
"Hehe, feast your eyes on true beauty…" kayn declared
"wait did I say that out loud"
Suddenly, the surrounding gazes shifted from awe to cynicism, and some students chuckled at the awkward admission.
Kayn, however, remained unfazed. In another life, he might have felt embarrassed or self-conscious, but in this body, emotions were muted. He registered the admiration and judgment with the same detachment, his expression barely changing.
Just then, a sweet aroma wafted through the air, causing his stomach to grumble. He realized he hadn't eaten breakfast or dinner, and hunger gnawed at him. Following the enticing scent, Kayn found himself standing before a quaint little café nestled just beyond the gates.
"Ah, the Mistro Café," he muttered to himself. This was one of the key locations he had designed in his novel, a cozy spot where the main characters would often gather when they weren't embroiled in the academy's challenges.
Stepping inside, Kayn felt a strange mix of nostalgia and anticipation. The café was just as he had envisioned it, with its warm wooden interior, the comforting hum of conversation, and the enticing display of pastries and fresh coffee.
He approached the counter, where a barista with a friendly smile greeted him. "Good morning! What can I get for you?"
Kayn responded to the barista's question with a slight grin and pointed to over twelve different pastries on the menu, one by one. His finger lingered over each choice: a buttery croissant, a delicate mille-feuille, a chocolate éclair, an almond tart, a slice of lemon drizzle cake, and so on, until the barista's polite smile became a bit strained, the corner of his mouth twitching with a mix of amusement and slight panic.
"Quite the appetite," the barista commented, trying to keep his composure. "Give me a few minutes to get all that ready for you."
Kayn nodded, taking a seat at a free table tucked away in the corner of the café. He could feel the gazes of other students on him as he sat, but he ignored them. His mind was entirely focused on the feast that was about to come his way. As he waited, the delicious aromas wafted through the air, a tantalizing blend of sweet, savory, and freshly baked goodness. His stomach growled in anticipation, and for a fleeting moment, he felt a surge of excitement.
fter a few minutes, the barista carefully brought over two trays filled with an assortment of pastries, each one more tempting than the last. Kayn thanked him with a nod, his mouth already watering at the sight. The pastries looked just as good as they smelled, their golden crusts glistening under the warm lights of the café. He wasted no time and grabbed a croissant, shoving it into his mouth with eagerness.
But as he chewed, his excitement quickly turned to confusion.
"Tasteless," he muttered under his breath.
He frowned, glancing down at the croissant in disbelief. This had to be a mistake. He picked up another pastry—a chocolate éclair this time—and took a big bite. But the result was the same: no flavor, no sweetness, just a strange, empty sensation. Panic began to bubble up inside him as he hurriedly sampled the other pastries: the mille-feuille, the almond tart, the lemon drizzle cake. Each one was more disappointing than the last.
Tasteless. All of them.
"Why can't I taste anything?" He muttered, his voice low and almost desperate.
A chilling thought crept into his mind. Was this some sort of side effect of being in this world? Or was it because of his new body, the one that had dulled emotions and couldn't process sensations the way he used to? He realized with growing alarm that, despite the beautiful pastries and the enticing aromas, he felt...nothing. Just as his emotions were muted, so too was his sense of taste.
I don't remember writing that Kayn couldn't taste, I mean I didn't write a single scene where kayn ate but that didn't mean I removed his sense of taste. suddenly Kayn began to panic as his brain went into overdrive, in the last chapter that I wrote the pope was supposed to give a speech about how an important event was coming that could change the entire world.
He never thought of what the event was talkless of writing it down, what if the event was something catastrophic like an alien invasion or even something more cliche like demons. Wait do I even have a Grace, I certainly planned for Kayn to have a Grace but I never wrote it down.
Shit....