Axel was ecstatic that he had finally learned magic. That's when the system notifications came up.

{Attention. Water magic detected}

{Water magic skill generated}

“I can’t wait to practice more magic but… I better get to my father's office before he gets mad again”, said Axel as he got up from his bed.

Axel opened his door where he saw a sad Yohan waiting for him.

“My lord… good evening”, said Yohan, avoiding eye contact.

Axel had never seen Yohan like this before. “Did something bad happen Yohan, why do you look sad so suddenly?”.

“I apologize my lord, it’s just that… I couldn’t protect you when Neveen attacked. I’m supposed to be your guard and I couldn’t do anything–” said Yohan as he sniffled.

“Yohan that wasn’t really an attack”, Axel injected. “Yes he did launch a skill at me but the feedback that you saw was my skill negating his skill. I was never in danger… If you feel bad, try harder next time and know that I don’t think any less of you”.

“Really!, ok my lord I’ll make sure that I always try my best”, said Yohan. “Let me escort you to his Grace”.

Axel smiled and followed Yohan to his father’s office.

When they arrived Odeus was in conversation with his father but he stops when he notices Axel.

“Ah, you’re here, well done. I thought you would have been late”, said Odeus.

“Axelleus, I have high expectations of you. Don’t feel pressured though. I know not why I feel this way but… I simply do. Your father will fill you in some more on the ways of our family”, said Elder Ernis as he left the room. “Until next time little one”.

Axel looked towards his father and listened keenly to what he would say next.

“Axel, now you are about to go on a journey. One where you will discover much about yourself and the world”, said Odeus as he got up from his desk. “Let me tell you some more things about the family you were born in''.

Axel walked closer and took a seat in the chair in front of the desk.

“Our founder, Malikade, was an orphan boy who lived in the capital centuries ago. He grew up and sought power to make a name for himself. He did not have things to protect or people he cared for but he sought power anyway. It was during the time of the singularity… but I’ll tell you more about that later”. Odeus reaches for a key on a chain hidden in his clothes. He opens a locked drawer at his desk and pulls out a scroll. The scroll had a faint glow.

“Our founder fought many monsters and became powerful. He gained many enemies along the way, people who were jealous of his speedy growth and nobles who detested a commoner having so much power. Sometime after he gained great strength, he disappeared and wasn’t seen for years. Then disaster struck the world one day. Dragons who were thought to have gone extinct long before then appeared, 5 of them at the same time all over. They were not like the dragons from the records who were peaceful and avoided conflict. These dragons were dangerous, they burned cities and killed many people”.

I’m guessing the founder helped to stop them… but why is he telling me all this so suddenly? And is that a skill scroll, for me? Hehehe, I’ll listen to the story, at least it’s kinda interesting, Axel thought

“The strongest people at that time had managed to kill 4 of the dragons but the largest and most ferocious of the dragons, the Black and gold dragon stood tall. They couldn’t even scratch him. That’s when the heroes saw something in the distance approaching. It was a large winged creature that grew bigger the closer it got. They feared the worst, that it was another dragon coming to the battlefield. As it flew above them they saw something peculiar, the dragon wasn't really a dragon, it was a wyvern as big as a dragon and a man stood on its back”.

Whoa, that’s awesome, really awesome. It’s like an action/ fantasy movie, Thought Axel as he tried to remain calm on the outside.

“Then they heard roars behind them. They saw huge and fast monsters that rushed past them and engaged the dragon. The man jumped off the wyvern and punched the dragon forcing it to land. They came to realize that the man was the commoner they hated. He had a fierce battle that day and killed the final dragon with his party of monsters. At the end of the battle, he announced himself as Malikade Blackstone ruler of monsters”.

“That’s so cool”, said Axel out loud.

“I have to agree with you there hahaha”, Odeus laughed. “It doesn’t end there though. The emperor at the time didn’t want conflict with the most powerful man in the empire and gave him the highest status among the nobles. He made him a Grand Duke. Our founder had no interest in violence toward people nor the title but he took the title anyway. It was proof of his achievements and no one would dare look down on him ever again”, said Odeus sounding proud.

Axel laughs.

“Ok this is where it begins involving us”, said Odeus getting serious. “Our founder had developed a powerful skill that he passed on to his descendants. A skill stronger than all others of its kind, a skill that binds monsters to a person’s soul. The skill created a contract that made monsters obey without fail, granted you can get them to sign it. Whether through force or negotiations once a monster is contracted they serve you completely. This is a skill that I now must pass on to you”.

“Great”, said Axel as he moves to take the scroll from Odeus. Odeus pulls the scroll out of his reach before he could touch it.

“Impatient I see… but there is still more”, said Odeus.

“More!!, o-ok I’m listening”, said Axel as he sank into his seat.

“This skill is great but it is not the main reason why the Blackstones are still among the most powerful people today”

Axel sat up as he knew that his father was about to say something very important.

“After the battle with the dragons, the heroes who took the dragon’s life went through a sort of metamorphosis. Their eyes changed and they gained a portion of the dragon's powers. 5 families including ours. This power was passed on to every child of their bloodline. Our family has Golden eyes, we inherited the power of true sight or you may call it dragon sight and a body as strong as a dragon. If developed enough our eyes can see everything that exists in this world and beyond… at least that’s what father says I focused more on developing my body, though my eyes can still see more than most”. 

“I understand what you’re trying to say. If I am to stand a chance in the tournament, I must use everything at my disposal and not solely rely on magic which is what I would be weakest in”, said Axel.

“Yes, exactly. Ah… you should probably know that your mother was also a descendant of 1 of the heroes. Her ancestor defeated the crimson dragon of fire and rage. I think it’s the reason why you don’t have light golden eyes but an amber color, it’s like a mix between mine and your mother’s eyes you may have also inherited her family’s legacy”.

“I see… I think I would like that”, said Axel with a smile.

“Here, this is the skill of our family. It is called Star contract”, said Odeus as he hands over the scroll.

Axel takes the scroll from his father. He is excited, so much has happened in such a short time. He opens the scroll slowly. A light flickers and the scroll bursts into flames.

{Attention. Skill scroll used}

{Integrating external skill…}

{Special skill [Star Contract] acquired}

“I successfully learned the skill, father”, said Axel.

“Good, good. There was a high possibility that you wouldn’t be able to learn it but I’m glad that you did. You must be tired, I still have some work to do but you can go have dinner”.

“Ok”, said Axel as he got up to leave.

“In the morning you come straight here after breakfast, there are some things you have to do starting tomorrow”, said Odeus.

“Understood”, replied Axel.

That evening Axel had dinner with his younger siblings Mariana and Aeric. Axel made them eat their vegetables and washed up; he told them bedtime stories before tucking them into bed, this was something he did every day. He made sure to spend quality time with them as much as possible because he knew he would have to go traveling soon. 

Axel wanted to practice his magic and get familiar with all his skills but he decided to go to bed early instead. He did not know what his father had in store for him so he thought that it would be wise to get as much sleep as possible. Axel had much on his mind and he thought sleep would be impossible but he fell asleep a few minutes after he climbed into bed.