Regnum Aetern: Dual Rebirth

A small wooden hut stood in the middle of a vast green land filled entirely with crops. The wooden hut was the only building that could be seen no matter where one looked. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

The blue sky above was clear of clouds as the warm morning sunlight illuminated the vast land.

Just then, the door of the hut suddenly opened, and a young boy stepped outside, carrying a harrow on his shoulder. The boy’s glass-like clear green eyes scanned the fields as his golden hair shone like real gold in the sunlight.

Elias closed his eyes and breathed the fresh air of his farmland again. The chirping of birds and crickets felt like music to his ears, a music he would never get bored with.

It was the start of another refreshing day of his life.

’Time to get to work.’

He put down the harrow and sighed.

The field was too big for him to tend to within a single day. Still, he would probably be able to do it since he had been doing it every day ever since these lands were passed down to him from his father.

But just as he was about to step into the fields, his feet paused.

’Now that I think about it... what exactly am I supposed to do here?’

He scratched the back of his head.

Just then, he felt a pull on his clothes from behind. As he turned around, he saw a sheep with thick, fluffy wool covering its body standing right behind him.

Tears were streaming down from the sheep’s eyes, and it looked out of breath. Its wool was covered in dirt in some places.

Catching its breath, the sheep hurriedly opened its mouth.

"It’s horrible! The goats have waged a war on us, and we sheep are dying left and right! O Chosen Hero, please slay the goat king and save the sheep kind."

Elias tilted his head.

’Chosen Hero? Wasn’t I a farmer?’

But as he looked at himself, he was not wearing the shabby clothes of a farmer. Instead, his entire body was covered in ‌shining silver armour.

His gaze turned to where he had put down the harrow, but a golden sword was lying there on the ground instead.

Suddenly, Elias remembered everything.

’Right! I was chosen by the God of Wool to be the hero who will save the sheep kind by slaying the Goat King.’

He put his hand on the sheep’s head, patting it gently.

"No need to worry, I, the chosen hero, will save you all."

Saying that, he picked up the golden sword from the ground and held it firmly as his eyes burned with determination.

From there, things happened quickly. Elias broke through all obstacles in his path and reached the castle of the sheep king. It was all thanks to his sheep companions who had helped him in this journey.

"Hero, we don’t have the strength to accompany you beyond this point."

"You must slay the goat king, Hero. For all of us."

"Hero, go forward, we all believe in you."

Wiping away a tear that threatened to roll down his cheek, Elias moved forward and entered the castle. Several enemies blocked his path, baring their fangs at him. But they all fell after a few swings from his golden sword.

Bruised and out of breath, he finally reached the throne room. It was dark and his surroundings were barely visible. All he could make out was a large dark hall supported by thick pillars, creating a road-like path forward.

And at the end of that path stood a giant throne. He could vaguely see the silhouette of someone sitting on that throne, looking down at him.

Elias gripped his sword tightly with both hands, raising it high above.

’This is it!’

Without wasting a single moment, he swung the sword down with everything he had, as he released all his mana in a single burst.

The mana formed an arc as the blade came down. The arc shot forward at incredible speed, straight toward the throne. It seemed as though the sword energy would destroy the one sitting on the throne before they could even react.

But the entire world suddenly shook, and everything changed.

Elias was suddenly pinned against the wall as a tall goat wearing a dark crown gripped both his shoulders tightly.

Before Elias could even come to his senses, the goat king began shaking him violently, slamming him against the wall time after time.

Still shaking him, the goat king suddenly opened its mouth wide and roared in a hideous voice.

"YOUNG MASTER ELIAS!!! WAKE UP!!!"

"...What?"

Elias suddenly opened his eyes but squinted due to the bright sunlight streaming in from the window. He felt someone grabbing his shoulders and shaking him lightly.

Rubbing his eyes, he slowly opened them and saw his personal maid in front of him.

"Young master Elias, it’s getting late, so please wake up."

Feeling somewhat confused and disoriented, Elias looked around. After all, he was battling against the Goat King moments ago. But now he was lying on a bed.

Suddenly, his eyes fell on a book lying beside his pillow. He focused on the book’s title.

{Advent of the Goat King}

His mind cleared instantly the moment he read the title. This was the book he had read before going to sleep. Which meant...

’It was all a dream...’

Well, it was a fun one, probably one of his most fun dreams.

Letting out a sigh, Elias got out of‌ bed.

This was the start of another day.

***

Several hours had passed since he woke up. After having breakfast, he was in his room, reading books about etiquette and mannerisms. The books his mother had told him to read during breakfast.

But after a while, he closed the book with a yawn.

’Can’t understand half of it. I wonder how brother makes it all sound so easy. Well, he is a genius, so maybe it’s not a big deal for him.’

Leaning back in his chair, the young boy looked at the ceiling.

’If I were a genius like him, things would’ve been so much easier for me as well.’

Just then, the door opened, and his personal maid entered his room.

"Young Master Elias, the Duchess is calling for you. She is asking for your presence in her chamber."

Hearing those words, Elias got off his chair and dashed out of the room excitedly. There was a bright smile on his face.

Soon, he reached his mother’s chamber, feeling somewhat out of breath from running in the hallway to reach here. The maid standing by the door offered him a kind smile, opening the door and gesturing for him to enter.

Giving her a nod in return, Elias entered his mother’s chamber.

His mother was sitting on a sofa, quietly sipping tea. But she was not the only one present in the room.

On the sofa beside hers, a boy looking around his own age sat silently. As he entered, his mother’s gaze turned to him as she put down her teacup. His brother, meanwhile, only glanced at him before turning away.

Elias smiled brightly.

"Mother! I heard that you called me. I’m here!"

Perhaps feeling pleased with his enthusiasm, she smiled back softly.

"Indeed, El, I did call you. We were actually waiting for you. Though your arrival was quicker than expected."

He smiled bashfully.

"Hehe."

Well, he had run here as soon as the maid told him, so it was obvious that he would arrive here quickly. His mind was messed up from reading those books, so the timing of her call was near perfect.

"Anyways, El, you should sit down."

At his mother’s command, Elias walked forward and sat on her lap. She seemed slightly startled by his sudden action, but soon adapted as she gently placed her hand on his head.

"Hehe."

A giggle escaped him as he enjoyed her hand softly patting his head.

’Sitting on mother’s lap is so much fun, I wonder why brother doesn’t do it.’

Just then, his older brother’s dry voice came from the side.

"Mother, now that Elias is also here, would you please tell us why you called us here?"

’Right, what did she call us here for?’

Usually, their mother only called them individually whenever she had something she wished to talk about. It wasn’t often that she called them together. And usually it was an important matter.

"Adi," she turned to his brother. "Have you ever experienced an event or festival in this mansion?"

His brother shook his head after a small pause. Elias, too, didn’t remember ever experiencing a festival in all these years.

"That is because your father is out there at the border, fighting in the war. He is the only one capable of holding back powerful enemies and protecting the imperial borders. It would reflect poorly on House Ravenshade’s prestige if we were to hold banquets and celebrate during his absence."

Elias’ bright smile dimmed.

’She’s right. I would feel bad celebrating while he is out there fighting.’

Even though he could remember his father vaguely due to not having seen him for years, Elias didn’t like the thought of celebrating without him.

She removed her hand from his forehead and smiled.

"But this time, that isn’t going to be the case. House Ravenshade will celebrate the upcoming festival this time."