Chapter 15 - Awakening IV

Chapter 15 - 15 - Awakening IV"Very well. How do I start?" "First, you should take a bath," Lesley said, her tone lightening slightly, her eyebrows raised as her gaze shifted toward the sheet covering Glenn's naked body. "Then, a hearty breakfast," she added, pointing to the spread of food on the table. "After that, we'll move on to the energy pathway analysis protocols. If all goes well, you'll become Awakened today." ** They say life is a box of surprises, and sometimes things really catch us off guard. A single opportunity can turn years of suffering into joy, like a flower blooming in the midst of rubble. But what happens when this opportunity not only turns pain into joy, but changes the very nature of existence? From the suffocating, pitch-black depths of a mine inside a volcano, where the only sound was the pickaxe striking stone and the only smell was sulfur and sweat, I was suddenly catapulted into a world of silk and gold, of sweet scents and breathtaking sights. My feet, once calloused from the cold stone, now sank into plush rugs, and my eyes, accustomed to the dim, found themselves lost in the vastness of an endless blue sky. It felt as if I had emerged from a long, grim winter to find spring at its peak—a spring I never imagined existed. The transition was so abrupt it felt like a dream—or rather, a nightmare disguised as one. You see, while the road ahead was full of thorns, at least for this moment, I could savor a well-deserved luxury. The idea of becoming the "royal consort candidate," once an unthinkable blasphemy, now echoed in my mind like a distant melody—both terrifying and fascinating in equal measure. It was as if fate, in a cosmic moment of irony, had decided to play the most elaborate prank on me, swapping the chains of iron for the chains of desire and power. Not that I had a choice in either, of course. The gap between my past and present was deep and dizzying. From a condemned slave, bound to a life of forced labor and slow death, to a candidate for sharing the bed and power of the most powerful creature in the kingdom. Such a radical shift left me in constant bewilderment, like a traveler lost in a foreign land. Even the worry of familiar faces noticing my personality change was settled, and I could only thank fate for not being cruel enough to force me to study the mannerisms of the old Glenn in order to adapt to this world. With all the familiar faces wiped off the map, I didn't need to pretend to be anyone else. Glenn entered the bathroom and stood speechless at the sight. The room, accessed through a side door, could only be described as colossal. Half of it was a thermal pool, with a gentle cascade of warm water flowing continuously from one end. "I can't believe my bathroom has a thermal bath," he murmured, impressed. "It's huge!" He sank into the warm water, feeling spasms run through his body. The heat, the sound of the waterfall, and the soft light relaxed some of the tension in his muscles. Closing his eyes, he felt like he could fall asleep there for hours. "I can't afford this luxury. Half the world wants me dead," he reminded himself. Rising, he walked over to a nearby section near the entrance, where a set of luxurious wardrobes stood. Each section had a label indicating the type of clothes inside: "training," "rest," "leisure," "ceremonial," and many others. There were so many clothes he didn't bother checking them all. Quickly, he opened the "training" section and grabbed a loose-fitting shirt with a high Mandarin collar, made from a blend of linen and cotton. The pieces were blue and comfortable. He paired it with pants and what looked like the closest thing to boots. "It's a bit like traditional Chinese clothing," he thought. Hurriedly, he returned to the room and found Lesley, who was swinging her legs and tapping her feet impatiently on the polished jade floor. "You took too long," she said curtly. "Next time, change faster." "Yes," he responded flatly. 'Seems like someone else needs a consort too, huh?' Lesley glanced at him as if she could read his thoughts. He felt a chill run down his spine and decided not to provoke her further, sitting down at the table and starting to devour the food. Tea, bread, cheese, a jelly with an unknown flavor, biscuits that resembled Cream Crackers but without the same crunch, and fried eggs. He sampled everything and came to a verdict: 'Everything tastes amazing. I guess it's because I spent two and a half years eating dog food.' No sooner had he finished eating than Lesley stood up and quickly walked toward the door. "Follow me. We have a lot to do today." Glenn followed closely behind, not daring to make another scene. As they left the room, they entered a long hallway. Apparently, his room was the last one on that floor, and from what he could tell, it occupied more than seventy percent of the space. On the left, stained glass windows displayed the beautiful scenery he had seen from the balcony. Soon, they reached a spiral staircase and descended to the lower floor. "How many floors does this tower have?" he asked, curious. "The ground floor is reserved for magical herb gardens, the kitchen, and the dining hall. The first floor is the storage area for weapons, supplies, household items, and everything else that needs to be stored here." "The second floor is divided: half is the library, and the other half is empty for whatever they want to build there." "The third floor has two laboratories: one for alchemy and another for technomagic development." "On the fourth floor, there are two cultivation rooms: one that mimics the fundamental laws of natural energies and another that mimics the laws of anomalous energies." "And on the roof, or fifth floor, are the astral observatory, the royal consort candidate's room, and ten luxury suites." It was a lot of information to process. Even with the memories of the former owner of the body, Glenn had never seen most of the things Lesley had mentioned. 'Technomagic lab, astral observatory, cultivation rooms that mimic the laws of nature? What the hell is this facility? Some kind of headquarters?' Lost in thought, Glenn didn't notice something strange. "Why is there no one on the other floors?" he asked. S~eaʀᴄh the nôvel_Fire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Ah... um..." Lesley stammered. "It's because this facility has never been used. That's why there's no staff here." "Never been used? Does that mean..." Glenn felt like the day had already thrown so many surprises his way that, in a few hours, it would be hard to be shocked by anything. "Yes. You're the first and only royal consort candidate since this tower was built." "Han... What... um..." Glenn stammered, overwhelmed by the questions swirling in his mind. "How many years ago was this tower built?" he asked. Lesley halted her hurried walk, turned around, looked into Glenn's eyes, frowned, thinking for a moment before answering: "I believe it was about a hundred years ago." 'A hundred years! The Queen has been looking for a husband for a hundred years? What kind of madness is this? Don't they have any Lord Baals, Lucifers, Beelzebubs, or Leviathans to marry this woman? What are the demons in this world doing?' The words left Glenn's mouth in silence as he continued following Lesley down to the ground floor. "Ah... before I forget: in the basement, there are two training fields: one for warriors and another for mages. And a special room we're heading to right now."