Chapter 5: Awakened!

Chapter 5: Chapter 5: Awakened!

The shopkeeper stared at Xavier for a moment after hearing his decision. "You’re sure?"

Xavier glanced at the small bottle of Bloodline Awakening Water in his hand. "Very sure."

He had already made up his mind. The three Second Tier elixirs cost a combined four hundred thousand crowns, and the Bloodline Awakening Water added another seven hundred and fifty thousand. The total came to 1.15 million crowns.

Perhaps because Xavier had purchased several items at once, the shopkeeper generously rounded the price down.

"Make it 1.1 million," he said. "Call the fifty thousand the discount for being a good customer."

Xavier didn’t bother arguing. After paying, he looked at the money remaining in his account. One hundred thousand crowns.

He stared at the figure for a moment. He had walked into the store with 1.2 million, and now, after one short shopping trip, almost all of it was gone. Still, Xavier didn’t regret the decision.

He collected the three elixirs and the bottle of Bloodline Awakening Water before leaving the store. Behind the counter, the shopkeeper watched him disappear through the doors with an increasingly strange expression.

Something about the entire transaction bothered him. Who sold nine Second Tier elixirs to a shop and then came back shortly afterward to purchase more elixirs of the same grade, spending even more money buying them than he had received from selling the original batch?

For a moment, the shopkeeper genuinely wondered whether Xavier had some sort of serious problem. If he hadn’t personally verified the authenticity of those nine elixirs, he might have suspected that something illegal was going on. Besides his reputation precedes him.

Then again, the shopkeeper’s expression slowly relaxed. Why should he care?

The young man had willingly sold him valuable goods and then willingly spent his money in the same store. It was a perfectly legitimate transaction, and if anything, customers like this were exactly what every merchant wanted.

The shopkeeper smiled. "Come again, kid."

Xavier, completely unaware that he had just been judged a fool by a very happy merchant, headed home.

Fortunately, Valemont had excellent public security. The streets were busy even after sunset, and patrol guards could be seen throughout the commercial district, so Xavier returned without encountering any trouble.

When he finally reached his apartment and opened the door, however, he stopped. He stared inside. For several seconds, he simply stood there. Something was wrong. No, something was very, very different.

Maybe it was Xavier’s feelings but his apartment feels different since his last wife has died.

Although his apartment wasn’t exactly filthy, cleanliness had never been one of his priorities.

There were usually clothes scattered around, dishes might remain in the sink for a day or two, and dust occasionally gathered on furniture because he couldn’t always be bothered to clean it.

He preferred waiting until the mess became impossible to ignore before dealing with it. He invested most of his time wallowing in the sinking feeling of loneliness.

But now, the floor was spotless. The furniture had been wiped clean. The clothes he’d been leaving in a pile for several days had been washed and neatly hung up.

Even the dishes he’d abandoned in the kitchen the previous night had disappeared from the sink.

Xavier looked around in disbelief. If he hadn’t spent more than a decade living here, he might have thought he’d opened the wrong apartment. Is this really my home?

A woman’s voice came from the kitchen. "Xavier, you’re back."

Mira leaned out from behind the doorway. She was standing over the stove, preparing dinner, and when she saw him, a small smile appeared on her face.

Xavier looked from her to the spotless apartment, then back to her. He didn’t need to ask who had done all this.

"Mira," he said.

She blinked. "Yes?"

"Aren’t you angry or sad that you got married to the cursed man of the century? I mean my...my" He couldn’t bring himself to finish the statement.

Her expression changed slightly.

"I don’t care about that, Xavier." She said as Xavier’s jaw almost dropped.

"Re...really?" He asked as Mira nodded.

Mira immediately understood what he meant. A blush spread across her cheeks. "I..." She lowered her head.

"You are the only one that stood by my side when everyone abandoned me so why should I care about what people say?" She asked, her eyes almost glassy with tears.

Her fingers tightened around the edge of her apron. "Can I call you husband?," she asked, the word coming out so softly that Xavier almost didn’t hear it.

Xavier didn’t realize he had been holding his breath. "Ye...yes. You can." His face finally broke into a smile.

Mira’s ears turned bright red. She quickly turned back toward the stove, pretending she was suddenly very busy.

Xavier couldn’t help feeling pleased. He had expected marriage to feel strange. Instead, seeing Mira moving around his home as though she belonged there gave him an unfamiliar sense of satisfaction.

She wasn’t just someone he had invested in anymore. She was his wife. And he swore he was going to protect her with everything he has got.

His gaze moved over her slender figure. "By the way, I didn’t expect you to know how to do all this."

Mira glanced back at him. "What? Cook and clean?"

"You were a direct descendant of the Sinclair family. I assumed you’d never had to worry about housework."

Mira gave him a slightly offended look. "I’m not that helpless."

She straightened proudly. "I may have grown up in the Sinclair household, but that doesn’t mean I was incapable of taking care of myself."

Then she added, with a faint hint of pride, "Besides, I’m still a First Star Foundation level mage."

Xavier paused. "You’re already at the Foundation level?"

Mira nodded. "First Star."

Even after everything she had suffered, she had retained that level of strength.

Xavier couldn’t help being impressed. Six months ago, Mira had been one of Arcadia Academy’s brightest talents.

Her strength had begun declining only after something went wrong with her body, yet even after losing her Celestial Core and suffering such severe injuries, she had remained a First Star Foundation level mage.

That alone was enough to show just how extraordinary her original talent had been.

Xavier smiled. "My wife really is impressive."

Mira’s expression softened. She didn’t answer, but the blush spreading across her ears betrayed how much his words affected her.

Xavier suddenly felt a strange sense of determination.

If Mira was this talented even after losing her Celestial Core, then what would happen once she recovered?

And if he could help awaken the dormant Frost Phoenix Bloodline, the thought alone made him look forward to the future.

"Wife...." he said.

Mira looked at him.

"Since you’re so capable, I can’t afford to become the one holding you back."

Xavier reached into his storage pouch. He brought out the three elixirs and the small bottle of Bloodline Awakening Water he’d purchased, and placed them in her hands.

"Use these," he said.

Mira stared at the items. Her expression slowly changed as she recognized them: a Vitality Elixir, a Restoration Elixir, a Spirit Elixir, and, her eyes settling on the final bottle, "Bloodline Awakening Water?"

She looked at Xavier in disbelief. "Where did you get all of this?"

Xavier had expected the question. He simply waved his hand. "That’s not important."

"But..."

"What matters is whether you can use them."

Mira looked down at the resources in her hands. She had already been stunned when Xavier gave her the first Restoration Elixir.

Then he produced another one after they returned home. Now there were three more Second Tier elixirs in front of her, along with something as rare as Bloodline Awakening Water. The total value was enormous.

"Xavier..." she hesitated. "You don’t have to worry about that."

"I want you to use them," Xavier interrupted before she could continue.

Mira looked at him. There was no hesitation in his eyes.

"I like them," she finally admitted.

"Good."

"But..."

"No buts." Xavier gave her a dismissive wave. "You’re my wife. If I give you something, use it. You don’t need to feel guilty every time I spend money on you."

Mira stared at him. He spoke so naturally that she almost didn’t know how to respond.

Xavier continued, "And trust me, these aren’t going to be the last resources you see from me."

He wasn’t lying. If the system worked the way he expected, opportunities like this would only become more frequent.

As for where his money and resources came from, that was something he would deal with when he had to. For now, there was no reason to explain everything.

"Go ahead and start recovering," Xavier said. "I’ll take care of dinner."

Mira opened her mouth, clearly intending to ask another question.

Xavier pointed toward the bedroom. "Go."

She reluctantly nodded. "Alright."

Then, after taking a few steps, she stopped, turned around, and gave him a shy look. "Thank you, hu... husband."

Xavier smiled. "You’re welcome."

Mira hurried into the bedroom before he could see how red her face had become. Once inside, she closed the door and leaned against it, her eyes slowly becoming wet.

She hadn’t realized how much she had missed this feeling. Warmth. Security. The simple knowledge that someone was waiting for her.

Since her parents had been declared dead and her family had taken her Celestial Core, every day had felt like another step toward the end of her life.

But now she had someone. Someone who hadn’t cared about her ruined reputation or looked at her as a burden.

Someone who had simply given her a chance to live.

Mira wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes. "I’ll get stronger," she said, her voice trembling.

"I’ll recover." She clenched her hands. "And when I do, I’ll protect you too, Husband."

She knew Xavier had no magical talent. As far as she understood, he was destined to remain an ordinary person.

That was why she made the promise so seriously. She wanted to become strong enough that no one would ever be able to hurt him because of her.

But Mira didn’t know that Xavier was thinking something very similar at that exact moment.

Because the instant she accepted the resources he had purchased for her, the system reacted. The familiar notifications appeared before his eyes.

[Investment successful.]

[Second Tier Vitality Elixir investment has triggered a 10x multiplier.]

[Reward: Third Tier Frostveil Elixir.]

[Investment successful.]

[Second Tier Spirit Elixir investment has triggered a 10x multiplier.]

[Reward: Third Tier Limit Breaking Elixir.]

[Investment successful.]

[Second Tier Restoration Elixir investment has triggered a 20x multiplier.]

[Rewards: Third Tier Vitality Elixir ×1.]

[Third Tier Foundation Elixir ×1.]

[Investment successful.]

[Bloodline Awakening Water investment has triggered a 100x multiplier.]

[Reward: One vial of Primal Constitution Essence.]

[All rewards have been transferred to System Storage.]

Xavier stared at the notifications. His breathing stopped for a moment, then his eyes widened. It worked.

His earlier idea had been correct. The system didn’t care that he had used the money from selling his previous rewards to purchase new resources. As far as it was concerned, these were completely new investments.

A grin slowly spread across Xavier’s face. "So I really can keep this going."

The rewards alone were enough to make his heart race.

The Third Tier elixirs were extraordinarily valuable, with each one worth at least several hundred thousand crowns. But the final reward caught his attention more than anything else.

Primal Constitution Essence.

Xavier didn’t know exactly how powerful it was, and he didn’t intend to waste time finding out. He immediately retrieved the vial from System Storage.

The container was barely larger than his thumb, and a strange, translucent substance swirled inside. Xavier uncorked it, then, without hesitation, drank it.