"Forgive me for asking this, Your Majesty, but may I know why you graced us with your presence today?" Velc inquired, nervously rubbing his hands as he addressed the Empress.

A piercing gaze from the Empress met him, and she asked calmly, "Am I not allowed to come here?" then her eyes were fixed on a peculiar object within the temple.

In the middle of the temple, intricate symbols and patterns were meticulously etched onto sinuous roots that burst forth from the polished ground. These roots, resembling ancient hands, gracefully stretched in an upward direction, each finger elongated as the palm-like design formed a captivating spectacle.

"O-Of course not, Your Majesty. It's just that if you had informed us earlier, we would have welcomed you with grandeur!" Velc said with a forced smile, inwardly sweating and questioning the purpose of her unexpected visit.

"Hehe..." Her laughter resonated melodiously in everyone's ears as she added, "I just came here to see what kind of man my daughter is going to marry!"

Velc stared blankly stared at the Empress, who was smiling but to Velc what the smile meant...

'She just wants to see for herself whether my son is the chosen one or not, right?' Velc speculated, outwardly responding, "Of course, Your Majesty. You have every right to see the man who is going to marry your daughter... ahahaha."

"...." The Empress glanced at the man who forced a laugh.

"W-Where is my future daughter-in-law, Your Majesty?" Velc inquired with little hesitation.

Instead of answering, she asked, "Who is he?"

"... Wh--" Velc attempted to feign ignorance, but a single indifferent glance from the Empress made him stutter in fear. Gulpingly, he truthfully admitted,

"H-He is a slave that my father brought for Kai."

"Hmm..." The Empress hummed thoughtfully before posing another question, "He doesn't know me?"

"W-Well, recently he had amnesia, so he forgot everything."

"...." The Empress scrutinized Velc as if checking the truthfulness of his words, her thoughts mulling over the peculiar circumstances, 'Why would that old man go out of his way to pick a slave?' she wondered, contemplating the deeper implications of the situation

"Your Majesty, shall we commence the baptism?" Lucius intervened at the opportune moment. Velc turned to him with a thankful smile, and Lucius reciprocated with a slight nod.

"You can carry on, no need mind me!" the Empress declared, waving her hand dismissively.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Lucius acknowledged before turning his attention to his siblings, who were sitting a little distance away.

"Come on, cuties, it's your time to shine!"

The siblings nodded with joy, making their way toward their father.

"Don't worry, my children; you will do fine," Velc reassured them with a paternal blessing.

"First, Kai Frostblade, come forward," Lucius instructed as the nuns gathered around the roots, kneeling in a praying position.

Kai approached the massive root hands with a beaming smile.

"Now, pray to God and then place your hand on the root palm," Lucius directed, his expression now serious.

Kai gulped with excitement before joining his hands in prayer and then placing his hand on the palm-like structure.

"Now, Say Log In!"

Kai nodded and uttered, "Log In!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, a massive black transparent display appeared, hovering on the fingers of the hand-like roots.

It was viewed by everyone. All eyes were fixed on the display, with the Empress paying particularly close attention.

Then, the following words appeared.

[Request: Logging In]

[....]

[Affirmative]

/

Name: Kai Frostblade

Sex: Male

Race: Human

Level: 1

Title: The Chosen One [The Arcane King], Next Heir of Frosblade Household, Master of Ether.

Attributes:

Strength: 8

Agility: 7

Intelligence: 8

Magic Affinity: 9

Charm: 8

Blessed by Arcane Energy

/

As the display revealed Kai's attributes, Velc sighed in relief, and the Empress observed the blessing..... with a subtle smile on her lips.

Lucius nodded approvingly at Kai and motioned to continue the rest of the process.

Kai, acknowledging the blessing, intertwined his fingers with the root's fingers and chanted,

"By sacred words and fervent plea, heed my words and grace with your touch, Summon forth.....

The Arcane card"

"SSSHHHHHHHIIIIIIIIINNNNNNGGGGGGGG!!!!"

"Woo, Wee...." Aether whistled as a brilliant light emanated from the temple.

"MC awakening?" Aether mused in an amusing tone, glancing at his Log before letting out a sigh.

"I should be happy at least I got another chance to live.... Though it is a fucking life." Aether's words dripped with a mix of anger and mockery.

Curious, he stood up and silently walked into the temple..... with a figure following closely behind him.

Inside the temple,

Everyone had their mouth wide opened....

The sight of the rainbow-coloured card had everyone gaping in awe. Even the Empress, who had been observing with interest, stood up from her comfortable chair, drawn in by the mesmerizing display.

The vibrant hues of the card reflected not only within the temple but also throughout the surroundings, prompting people to kneel on the ground and chant in unison,

"Arcane King!"

"Arcane King!"

"Arcane King!"

Aether, who just sneakily entered the temple, found himself utterly dumbfounded. With a speechless expression, he muttered, "A Cult...?"

His attention shifted to the peculiar roots protruding from the ground, forming an intricate hand-like structure, 'It's really beautiful!' he thought, appreciating the artistic display.

His focus then shifted to the rainbow-coloured card floating delicately on the fingers of the roots.

It looked just like the Playing card size....

Yet, it was different. The view was undeniably mesmerizing. Upon closer inspection, Aether discerned four transparent star symbols in the corners and a prominent big star symbol at the centre.

"Kai, now imagine the weapon you desire and pull the root," Lucius issued the command with a serious expression.

Breaking free from his trance, Kai nodded with an exuberant smile, stepping forward to pull the hand-like root.

'ttrrr...trrr...trrr'

The root disintegrated like paper, accompanied by a hissing sound.

"sssshhhh!!"

A dazzling light once again blinded everyone in the temple.

A golden sword manifested in Kai's hands before vanishing from his tight grip.

Subsequently, a sword-like figure materialized at the centre of the card, nestled within the big transparent star. The card slowly descended toward Kai.

The broken roots regrew, forming the same hand-like structure.

'... What the fuck happening?' Aether screamed inwardly.