Village Square
A lot of people gathered for tonight's celebration.
In small villages like Creso Village, such occasions are rare, and because of that, villagers always make the most of it.
Since it is a merry occasion, people gathered in groups and chatted with one another.
Discussion about the village flew without stop. And tonight's hottest topic is none other than Josh's Seed Awakening.
"Haa… that kid, Josh, he really lucked out this time!"
"Hahaha, since that kid was young, I already knew that he'll make something out of himself someday!"
"Hehe, what kind of nonsense are you talking about? Everyone knows that you always get mad at those kids in the past."
"T-that…"
"But well… Seed of Swordsmanship, a lot of us probably dreamed of something like that in the past, too."
"..."
Talking about Seed awakening, the thoughts of older people inevitably drifted back to their younger days.
Melancholy can't help but appear within the chattering groups from time to time.
But since this is a rare occasion, they didn't dwell on that for long and continued chatting.
"It seems everyone is having fun, huh!"
Lukas and his family arrived and saw the joyful mood of everyone, immediately putting a smile on his face.
As soon as they appeared, a young man with glasses approached them excitedly.
"Brother Lukas! Sister Bela! You're here!"
Seeing him, Lukas smiled happily and said, "Hahaha, kid, you made it big!"
On his face, a proud expression couldn't be hidden.
This young man in front of them is Josh, the protagonist of tonight's celebration.
Josh possesses a handsome face. With sharp eyebrows, clear eyes, and a sleek nose, he is really popular with girls.
On a corner under his right eye, a beauty mark could be seen, appearing really flattering.
Hearing Lukas' words, the handsome Josh appeared shy, bowing down and scratching the back of his head.
"That, I just got lucky, Brother."
Lukas smirked hearing his response. Stretching out his hand, he patted him in the shoulder and said,
"Kid, always remember that luck is also part of your strength. Because without luck, no matter how hard you work, it'll be hard to rise up."
Saying such words, the light in Lukas' eyes can't help but dim a little.
'Just like me and all the other unawakened…'
Shaking off those thoughts, Lukas quickly regained his smile.
"Anyway, now that you have awakened, you need to learn to be confident!"
Josh kept silent, but listened carefully to his words.
Seeing that the time is just about right, Lukas held out the hand holding the rectangular box and said,
"Since today is your birthday, and also for the fact that you successfully awakened… Here, take this gift from us."
The sudden appearance of a gift made Josh paused in surprise.
He immediately looked up to Lukas, only to see him nod.
"Come on, take it. Congratulations on your awakening, Josh."
"Congratulations, Josh!"
"Uncle Josh, is today your birthday? Happy birthday!"
On the side, Bela and the innocent Chloe also offered their own words.
Hearing their words, a bright smile surfaced from Josh's face.
"Thank you!"
No longer hesitating, he received the gift box from Lukas.
Holding it in his hand, curiosity took over him and he asked, "Can I open this, Brother Lukas?"
"Of course, it's yours now. Do whatever you want to do with it."
At those words, Josh directly opened up the rectangular box.
Inside it, an exquisite wooden sword and a token with the words "Future Swordmaster Josh" written on it revealed itself.
Just as Josh was looking at it, Lukas opened his mouth and said,
"Although it's nothing much, that's something I made myself. I hope you don't dislike it."
Josh hurriedly shook his head, "No, Brother Lukas! I like this. Thank you!"
Picking up the wooden sword, Josh held it in his hand, feeling it.
Even though it was just made of wood, Lukas put quite some effort into making this sword, obvious from the exquisite craftsmanship of it.
As soon as Josh grabs the sword, he can feel that this sword was made just for him. Like a sword customized just for his own use.
Thinking of this, a happy smile beamed on his face.
Looking at his expression, Lukas was also glad that Josh liked it.
After giving the gift, they chatted a bit more before Josh was called by Uncle Wang.
Left with just the three of them, the family went ahead to socialize with others.
Chloe played with the other kids while Lukas and Bela shared fun conversations with the neighbors.
The night was spent mostly by eating, drinking, and chatting.
And just like that, another night ended in the village of Creso.
As the party ended, the villagers started heading back to their own places, still with lingering smiles on their lips.
…
Lukas' house.
Inside the bedroom, Lukas and Bela are lying down together.
Chloe is already in her own room, sleeping.
Bela's head rests on Lukas' chest and her hand hugging him.
The rhythmic breathing of Lukas indicates that he's already fast asleep.
Although Lukas doesn't usually drink alcohol, he chugged down a lot tonight in celebration of Josh's awakening.
In the eyes of others, Lukas seems to be having fun and was just drinking to celebrate.
However, in the eyes of Bela, what she saw was the sadness and Lukas succumbing to reality.
As for what's the cause of those?
Bela knows well that it was because of awakening.
Despite it having been a long time ago, Lukas still can't help but feel depressed that he didn't awaken.
And now that a fellow villager, much more a younger brother of his, successfully awakened, he can feel that reality more.
Turning her eyes to look at her sleeping husband, Bela's heart aches.
Touching his nose, she whispered, "It doesn't matter whether you awakened or not, Husband. Through thick and thin, I promise that I will not leave you."
Giving him a light kiss on the cheek, Bela silently touched her own seed and used her ability.
'Blessing!'
Specks of warm golden lights appeared in the air and slowly headed to Lukas.
Like an illusion, the moment they touched his skin, they disappeared, nowhere to be seen.
Bela watched that for a while then smiled.
'I hope that someday, the blessings that I've been giving you from the day we got married can help you in all your endeavors.'
Holding on to that quiet prayer, Bela closed her eyes and went to sleep.
Unbeknownst to her, a sight that can only be called a miracle is already happening right beside her.