The Duke's Worthless Daughter Awakens an SSS+ Guide Core

The towering doors of the Azure Hall swung open without a single sound. Warm golden light spilled into the corridor, illuminating the polished marble beneath Merianah’s feet. The spacious chamber beyond reflected the immense prestige of House Emperion, designed specifically to project absolute power.

Crystal chandeliers floated silently beneath the vaulted ceiling, casting a brilliant radiance over the entire room. Banners embroidered with the iconic silver phoenix hung proudly between towering columns of dark stone. At the far end of the hall sat four commanding figures, their attention initially divided among various documents and devices.

The moment Merianah stepped across the threshold, every single conversation stopped. An immediate, heavy silence engulfed the room as all movement ground to a halt. The unexpected appearance of the young lady drew every eye toward the entrance.

The eldest brother, Aldric Emperion, slowly lowered the military report he had been reviewing. His seasoned gaze locked onto his sister, his brow furrowing as he registered the sight before him. Beside him, the second brother, Lucien Emperion, looked up from his communicator with a calm expression that froze completely.

The youngest of the three brothers, Cassian Emperion, nearly dropped the delicate porcelain teacup he had been holding. Even Grand Duke Alaric Emperion, seated at the head of the long table, lifted his stern eyes from the documents before him. No one spoke a word as the family processed the sheer impossibility of what they were seeing.

Every gaze remained fixed entirely on Merianah, paralyzed by the shocking transformation. More precisely, their attention was anchored onto the striking color of her hair. It was a brilliant silver, the exact shade that had belonged only to the Grand Duke since the founding of House Emperion.

Their collective attention then shifted down to her eyes. They were a deep crimson, possessing the unmistakable hue of their mother’s ancestral bloodline. This unprecedented combination left every member of the powerful family utterly stunned.

"Merianah?"

Cassian was the first to find his voice, though it was barely more than a breathless whisper. Merianah stopped several paces inside the hall, maintaining a pristine posture. She neither bowed nor shrank beneath their intense scrutiny, refusing to let her internal thoughts show.

Instead, she stood calmly with her hands folded before her, quietly observing each member of the family through her newly composed eyes.

Years of commanding soldiers against impossible odds on a dying Earth had taught her one vital lesson. An experienced commander never reveals uncertainty first, especially when surrounded by potential adversaries.

She anchored her weight and met her father’s gaze without blinking. Grand Duke Alaric slowly rose from his prominent seat at the head of the table. His massive frame cast a long shadow across the polished floor, adding to his intimidating presence.

For a long moment, he simply stared at her in absolute silence. His sharp blue eyes searched every detail of her face, looking for any sign of deception or illness. The patriarch of the family seemed to be recalculating everything he knew about his daughter.

"When did your appearance change?"

He finally asked the question, his voice deep and echoing off the high ceiling. Merianah answered without a single shred of hesitation, keeping her tone entirely neutral.

"I noticed it only after leaving the city."

It was not technically a lie, as she had discovered the full transformation at the mirror near the estate entrance. As for the supernatural mechanism behind how it happened, she intended to keep that secret forever. The less they knew about her true circumstances, the safer her position would be.

The grand hall fell completely silent once more as the brothers digested her words. Lucien adjusted his glasses thoughtfully, his analytical mind clearly trying to find a logical explanation.

"I have never seen a bloodline manifestation like this in our records."

He spoke in a quiet, calculated tone, breaking the tension. Aldric frowned deeply, his military strictness bleeding into his posture.

"Neither have I."

The eldest brother crossed his arms, his eyes still scanning her for any hidden threats or anomalies. Cassian stepped closer to her, openly circling Merianah as if trying to determine whether she was truly his sister. He leaned in slightly, examining the silver locks that now framed her face.

"You look more like Father now."

He paused, a rare seriousness taking over his usually playful demeanor. Merianah merely met his close-range gaze, her expression completely unbothered by his proximity.

"I have been told."

She kept her response short, offering nothing extra for them to analyze. No one in the room noticed how fundamentally different her core demeanor had become.

Their collective attention remained entirely on her transformed physical appearance, blinded by the genetic miracle. They saw the bloodline, but they failed to see the battle-hardened soul inside the vessel. Finally, Grand Duke Alaric broke the heavy silence with an authoritative wave of his hand.

"Summon the family physician immediately."

He ordered, his voice leaving absolutely no room for delay or argument. One of the nearby attendants immediately bowed low.

"At once, Your Grace."

The servant hurried out of the hall through a side door to fetch the medical staff. Merianah remained perfectly still, expecting this exact reaction from the powerful family.

A thorough medical examination was inevitable given the circumstances of a sudden genetic awakening. Fortunately, she knew they would find nothing out of the ordinary. The experimental serum was entirely gone, its physical traces wiped clean from existence.

The shattered glass vial remained hidden in the dark alleyway across the capital. Furthermore, the weak body that had died there no longer existed to tell its tale. There would be absolutely nothing for the family physician to discover during the scans.

She was, for all intents and purposes, a perfectly healthy and newly awakened noblewoman. Just then, the distinct sound of light footsteps echoed from the upper staircase overlooking the hall. Everyone instinctively turned their heads toward the sound, breaking their focus on Merianah.

A woman dressed in an elegant black gown descended the stairs slowly, supported on either side by two attentive maids. Her raven-black hair flowed over her pale shoulders like pure silk, contrasting sharply with her dark dress. Her crimson eyes, though slightly weary from a long slumber, retained an unmistakable maternal dignity.

The moment her eyes landed on Merianah standing in the center of the hall, she froze completely. Her trembling fingers tightened around the polished wooden banister until her knuckles turned white. Tears instantly filled her eyes, spilling over her cheeks in silent streams.

"My daughter..."

The quiet whisper echoed throughout the vast space of the Azure Hall. For the first time in many long years, Grand Duchess Celestine Emperion had fully awakened from her mysterious comatose state. The entire room seemed to hold its breath as the matriarch took a fragile step forward.

Yet, the very first person she looked for among her family was Merianah. Celestine took another unsteady step down the wide marble staircase. The two maids supporting her exchanged deeply worried glances, but neither dared to stop her determined descent.

After spending years trapped in an inexplicable coma, her physical body remained incredibly frail despite the advanced medical treatment she had received. Yet, her intense crimson eyes never once wavered or left Merianah’s form. She looked at her daughter as if she were the only person left in the entire universe.

Merianah instinctively stiffened as the older woman approached her position. In Lyrina’s previous life on a ravaged Earth, such emotional reunions belonged exclusively to other people. She had witnessed those moments countless times from a distance while keeping guard, but she had never been a part of one herself.

Celestine slowly descended the final few steps of the staircase before stopping only an arm’s length away from her daughter. For several long, agonizing seconds, she simply stared into the young woman’s transformed features. Her trembling hand rose cautiously toward Merianah’s face before stopping halfway in the air.

"You have grown so much."

The words were barely louder than a fragile whisper, carrying a profound sense of grief for the lost years. Merianah remained completely silent, her expression guarded as she observed the weeping woman. She quickly searched the inherited memories stored within her brain, expecting to find warmth or deep affection.

Instead, there was almost nothing but a vast, hollow emptiness regarding their relationship. The original Merianah barely remembered her mother as a living, breathing presence in her life. Most of her childhood memories consisted of visiting a cold, quiet room where complex machinery constantly monitored the Grand Duchess.

A heavy tear rolled down Celestine’s pale cheek, catching the light as it fell.

"I am so sorry..."

The unexpected apology echoed clearly throughout the vast space, catching everyone off guard. The entire room froze instantly upon hearing the broken matriarch’s words.

"I was not there to watch you grow into a young woman."

"I was not there to celebrate your birthdays with you."

"I was not there when you truly needed your mother’s guidance."

Her voice cracked with emotion, unable to contain the immense sorrow of a mother who had lost time.

"I remember closing my eyes for what felt like a brief moment..."

"...and now you are already eighteen years old."

The grand hall fell into a complete, suffocating silence as the heavy emotional weight of her words settled over the family. Merianah looked intently at the weeping woman standing directly before her.

Those bitter tears streaming down her face were undeniably genuine, filled with a raw pain that could not be faked. This woman truly believed she had missed her daughter’s entire childhood because of her illness. Suddenly, Lyrina felt an unfamiliar, tightening sensation bloom deep within her chest.

It was not her own hardened emotion causing the ache, but rather a residual echo left behind by the body’s previous owner. The lingering attachment buried deep within this physical vessel stirred quietly, carrying years of suppressed longing. She slowly exhaled the breath she had been holding.

"It was not your fault."

The simple, comforting sentence left her lips before she even fully realized she was speaking. Celestine’s shoulders trembled violently upon hearing her daughter’s forgiveness. Fresh tears streamed down her face, washing away the years of isolation in an instant.

Without any further warning, she stepped forward and gently embraced Merianah, pulling her into a fragile hug. The movement was hesitant and almost fearful, as if she fully expected to be pushed away. Merianah’s physical body instinctively tensed up the moment the woman’s arms wrapped around her.

Physical affection of any kind was entirely foreign to Lyrina’s battle-hardened soul. Years spent on the brutal battlefields of Earth had taught her to treat any sudden, unannounced contact as an immediate danger. Her highly trained muscles almost reacted on survival instinct to throw the woman off.

Fortunately, she managed to stop her dangerous reflexes just in time. Slowly and awkwardly, she raised one hand from her side. She lightly rested her palm against Celestine’s shaking back, offering what little comfort she could muster.

The Grand Duchess quietly sobbed into her daughter’s shoulder, releasing years of pent-up grief. Around them, no one in the powerful family spoke a single word to interrupt the private moment. Cassian discreetly looked away toward the far window, unable to watch the emotional display any longer.

Lucien removed his glasses, silently cleaning the lenses with a cloth even though they were no longer dirty. Even Aldric’s traditionally stern military expression softened ever so slightly as he watched his mother and sister. Only Grand Duke Alaric remained perfectly motionless at the head of the table.

"The family physician can wait until tomorrow morning."

His deep, resonant voice carried clearly through the vast hall, brooking no argument from his sons.

"Tonight..."

He paused, looking directly toward Celestine with a look that hinted at a hidden complexity.

"...our entire family will have dinner together."

The sudden declaration stunned every single person present in the room. According to Merianah’s inherited memories, it had been many long years since the entire Emperion family had shared a meal under the same roof. This unexpected reunion was changing the very dynamic of the household.