"I still can't believe it, the Prince Kaiser can now assimilate with a Talent Stone." Reginald ran a hand over his forehead, struggling to process the weight of the information before him.
"The heaven's truly are with us." Ethan's mother gently held his forehead, her smile radiant and full of relief. This was the best news she had ever received.
Li Yao was utterly speechless, he was literally at a loss for words. He had no idea what to say or how to process any of this, the idea of a maid being his mother baffled him.
Did that mean his father had made one of those 'mistakes' with a mere maid? The thought spun in his mind, tangled and confusing.
"Did you hear that Ethan? You can now assimilate with a talent stone, isn't that exciting?" She asked her son, a bright smile tugging at the corners of her lips, her eyes filled with warmth and gentle curiosity.
"I'm still trying to wrap my head around it, it still hurts though, that fall really was something else."
"Lady Linda, let's give the prince some time to eat and rest, he's been through a lot, we can celebrate this new development after he's had his dinner and rest." Reginald suggested.
"Alright." She nodded in agreement, slowly withdrawing her hands from his forehead before turning and making her way toward the door.
As Reginald and Linda slipped out and closed the door behind them, Li Yao sprang to his feet, stretching his eyes sideways and cracking his joints with a sharp pop.
"This happened so fast, I don't think I've had time to properly process what's happening. All I understand is I transmigrated into my favorite novel, but I have no idea who this character is."
He was sure this character didn't exist, but from what they've been calling him, one thing was certain.
He was now Ethan Kaiser, the illegitimate first son of the king of the Suzana Empire.
He continued stretching, working to loosen up and adjust to the unfamiliar sensations of his new body.
"Alright, all I can make out from this is that I got transmigrated into another world, and not just another world, a world far different from my world of magic. Fascinating, I never imagined the concept of reincarnation, or rather transmigration, would actually be true. Nonetheless, now that I know where I am."
From his memories, he understood a few things about the settings of this world.
For starters, this world was almost similar to his previous world, but there's only two things that changed.
The first, there were no traces of magic in this world.
It's laws and principles, it was nothing like in his previous world.
To make matters worse, there was nothing ordinary about this world.
Not only was it more technologically advanced than his earth, but now it was far more dangerous.
Centuries ago, a comet most thought to be a gift from the heavens, became humanity's worst nightmare.
No one knew where it came from, and it wasn't even detected by the planet's satellite until it struck the center of the earth and released an energy wave that altered the earth.
For a while, humanity thought it was over.
Until they came along.
Creatures never thought to exist.
Creatures that should have only existed in fantastical settings.
Spirit-Beasts.
They were given this name because of their unique abilities, the ability to grow stronger by devouring human souls.
But that wasn't the only thing the comet brought along, after a prolonged exposure to the energy wave released by the comet, several resources fused with the energy wave and created a new element scientist referred to as Talent stones.
These rare stones became humanity's breakthrough, and now with enough time and money, anyone could harness the power of these stones and become a Spirit Tamer.
Then secondly, talent Stones.
They were the life-changing result of the energy wave that reshaped the Earth centuries ago.
They were extremely rare and difficult to obtain, and even when one was found, it was always an FF-tier stone, but even that was difficult to stumble upon.
These Talent Stones followed a ranking according to their power levels and the amount of energy fused within them.
Their ranks ranged from the weakest — FF-tier, F-tier, E-tier, D-tier, C-tier, up to the most strongest — SSS-tier.
But in this world, being filthy rich was a hax. With the right amount of resources and connections, anyone could purchase a Talent Stone.
But it came with it's risks.
The minimum bid price for a talent stone was one million crystals, and that was just for an F-tier talent stone.
The price shot up ridiculously as the tiers climbed higher, but the problem wasn't in the price of the stones, it was with the assimilation.
To obtain the powers within the stone, it was necessary to assimilate with it, but assimilation wasn't as easy as it sounds.
You had to be accepted by the stone.
It was almost as if the stone itself were alive, choosing to bond only with those it deemed worthy.
The powers granted by the talent stone rested on the entity that resided within it. It was similar to how beast taming contracts worked, but not exactly.
He took off his shirt, and followed it up with a deep breath. The Heavenly divine pearl didn't just heal him completely before fading away, it restored all the abnormalities in his current body.
"Fascinati-"
"Ethan, dinner is almost r-" As Linda burst into the room, her lively expression instantly shifted to one of shock and confusion.
What puzzled her the most was Ethan's body, his slightly well-defined six-pack abs, the sharp V-taper of his frame, his toned muscles, and most surprising of all, he seemed even taller than before.
"Have you been working out Ethan?" No matter what he said, she wasn't sure she could believe it.
After all, the Ethan she had known and raised was skinny, average, and clearly malnourished.
After being rejected and cast aside by the royal family, Linda fled in search of refuge with her son and Reginald, who felt remorse for them. This was solely because the royal family had refused to recognize the bastard Ethan as the rightful heir to the king title.
Talentless or not, it didn't change the truth, he carried the blood of the king in his veins, and he was the firstborn son of the royal family of the Suzana Empire.
"Working out? What do you mean?" He asked, unaware of the rapid changes sweeping through his body.
In his previous world, muscle growth was like cultivation, earned slowly, through months of sweat and muscle tears.
Having just transmigrated and with less than a day passed since his transmigration, it never occurred to him that his once skinny body had transformed.
When he finally glanced down at his midsection, his eyes widened in disbelief at his sudden development.
'Whoa... I'm even more toned than when I was still the god of mana, how is this possible? Wait... Is this also as a result of the Heavenly divine pearl?'
"Dinner is ready, let's eat before the food gets cold, today's a special day."
Linda shrugged it off.
After all, it was the same situation as when his body had suddenly become strong enough to assimilate with a Talent stone. In the end, she simply called it heaven's grace.
As she left his room, he went to take a bath, then changed into a fresh, clean T-shirt and night pants before heading downstairs to the cabin's dining area.
The moment he walked into the dining area, a delicious aroma filled his nose, making his mouth water.
His eyes landed on the table, piled high with an array of tempting dishes, steaming rice, tender pork, savory chicken, and a warm bowl of soup.
All steaming hot, fresh from the pot just moments ago.
"Come join us Ethan! Your mother went through a lot of trouble to cook this dish! Two months of supplies down the drain, HAHAHAHA!"
Reginald wasted no time digging in, devouring each dish like a ravenous beast. His eyes welled with tears of satisfaction as he ate.
"Two months??" Ethan couldn't believe what he was hearing. He understood their situation from the way and place they lived, yet they chose to waste their supplies so carelessly.
"It's like I said, today's a special day, so we have to celebrate."
"Celebrate?" Ethan sat down with a smile stretched across his lips, picked up a piece of chicken, and began to eat.
Despite his confusion, it didn't change the fact that he was hungry, malnutrition had already started to take its toll on his body.
"What are we celebrating?"
Linda and Reginald exchanged a brief glance, a knowing smile passing between them, before turning their eyes back to Ethan.
"Ethan, me and Reginald had a talk, and we decided that the time has finally come for you to enroll into the Spirit Tamers academy, isn't that exciting? You can finally claim what's rightfully yours."
As she spoke, both she and Reginald smiled brightly, their eyes full of hope as they waited for Ethan's response.
Ethan on the other hand, glanced at the two of them, taking in the joy shining in their eyes. He let out a quiet sigh, knowing very well the weight of their expectations settled on his shoulders.
"Enroll in the Spirit Tamers academy? Nah."