Chapter 124: Valor Ball
Sunny and Hugo were standing beside one another in Sunny's house.
Currently, they were engrossed in the most important conversation of their lives...
"Your business is called... Sunny's Brilliant Emporium?"
"Yes."
"...And you're using the sorcery of weaving, an ancient and powerful art used by the Nightmare Spell itself, to create toiletries and luxury items to sell to rich Awakened?"
Sunny felt sweat appear on his face.
"Yes."
"...Sunny, you're a genius. A weirdo, but definitely a genius nonetheless... It's a shame I can't create something like that myself."
He sighed. The pain of having to work for money instead of receiving waves of it thanks to mystical abilities was profound.
They were currently waiting for Kai to come and pick them up for the big party.
Sunny, Kai, and Hugo had gone out yesterday, picking up the suits Kai had found for the. Safe to say, both Hugo's wallet and Sunny's took a massive hit that day.
They were wearing similar style black suits, with Sunny's being completely dark and black, his dark hair and pale skin seemed much more beautiful when paired with the suit.
Hugo's had a black suit as well, but he had a blue tie and a half cape on the side added to it complementing his azure eyes.
The bespoke attires they were wearing had been made by a luxury establishment that serviced many prominent Legacies and incorporated the most rare and durable materials, many of them coming from the Dream Realm.
The suits were made in the style that many Awakened preferred, existing somewhere between modern fashion and the more antiquated aesthetic that Memories adhered to. It was elegant and fitting, including a stylish half-cape and tall leather boots.
Even though both Sunny and Hugo had said a few strong words to Kai during the fittings, they both couldn't deny that they looked simply fabulous.
More than that, Kai and sunny had even taken him to a barber, specifically a popular barber and hairstylist fit just for Awakened.
Now, Hugo no longer had long black hair reaching down to his back, but instead, he had shorter black hair. Dark, unkempt strands now swept across his forehead in jagged layers, falling just past his brows. The sides were tapered short enough to expose his ears, while the crown remained thick and choppy. It gave him a sharper look, deeply exposing the more handsome part of him.
A car beeping sound was made from outside of the house, signaling that their carriage—in the form of a luxury PTV—had arrived.
"Let's go meet the music, I guess." Sunny said.
"Sounds so stupid, but sure."
***
The six of them sat inside the sleek PTV, watching as the streets of the city flew by.
Sunny and Hugo were not the only ones who had donned an extravagant suit. Kai was wearing an even more stylish attire, radiating so much grace and elegance that the interior of the moving vehicle seemed almost electrified.
'How is this guy so majestic...' Hugo wondered if Kai was actually from a whole other species and not actually a human. He even contemplated if he should scan him to get his DNA...
Cassie had chosen a simple, but flattering gown of soft colors. Her bracelets and jewelry were picked to match the silver half-mask that she wore like a crown. The familiar blue-green cloak was draped around her shoulders. She was holding the Quiet Dancer by the scabbard, as if it was a cane.
Effie wore a white tunic with tasteful gold accents. There was a golden laurel resting on her head, with similar bracelets and anklets accentuating its sheen. With her olive skin and toned physique, she looked like an ancient goddess. The huntress seemed to be enjoying herself as she sipped champagne from a tall glass.
Nephis chose to wear a more practical attire, which was nevertheless equally splendid. Her knightly suit consisted of black trousers, a black doublet with silver embroidery, and a pristine white cape. The simple band of the Crown of Dawn accentuated the steely grey of her striking eyes. Her hands, clad in white gloves, rested calmly on her knees.
Hugo personally did not care about appearances at all, but he had to admit, they all looked like superstars.
'I don't even fit with them...'
Looking at the cohort, Hugo said:
"Have you guys ever gone to events like this?"
"No, not really," Nephis answered his question, while still looking outside the window. "At least, not as a group. It's usually only me and Cassie that go to public events."
Kai smiled at this.
"Me and Effie did go to a few, but they were for our commercials rather than something as big as this."
Effie, completely ignoring the question said:
"You know, just because we're going to a Valor party, we should have a bigger entry!." She turned to Hugo with a smile. "It's not too late! You can still transform into a dragon and let us ride you there!"
"No." Hugo shut her off quickly. "I'd be stabbed to death by the Saints there!"
"Oh come on, you probably won't even die from that~~"
The two spent the entire ride arguing with each other, with Kai trying to stop Effie from forcefully Transforming Hugo using his omnitrix.
The PTV left public streets and entered the road that led to the stronghold of the Valor clan. Although their main seat of power was situated in the Dream Realm, safely protected by the great walls of the legendary Bastion, the family obviously maintained several prominent properties in the waking world, just like Song, the House of Night, and the government did.
This one resembled a hybrid between an embassy and a sprawling fortress. The complex took enough area in the center of the city to be considered a separate district and encompassed a multitude of buildings, most of them just a few storeys high. More floors, of course, were situated underground, where the bulk of activity took place.
The purpose of the buildings ranged from serving as residences for the members of the clan and retainers to training centers for the household troops, research facilities dedicated to various applications of spelltech, and everything in between. A Legacy clan was not just a handful of people united by a bloodline. It was a large organization that, in the case of Clan Valor, included thousands upon thousands of people from all walks of life.
'Agh, joining Valor doesn't seem so bad right now...' but then, he shivered remembering Anvil of Valor existed. 'Nevermind...'
The fortress also housed vaults where the sleeping pods of those Awakened who either belonged to or served the great clan were located, so security measures were nothing short of exaggerated. His Titan consciousness had detected a lot of people, both strong and weak... There were Saints here, as expected, although not a lot.
The complex was fully prepared to face any kind of attack, be it a manifestation of a Nightmare Gate or a sudden assault perpetrated by the forces of rival clans.
Other than that, the aesthetics of the complex were very pleasing to the eye. There were plenty of trees and grass around, with architecture that did a great job of hiding the utilitarian and militaristic design of the sprawling fortress. In fact, if Sunny did not know any better, he would have thought that he was in the middle of a blissful garden district that was meant for people to relax in peace and tranquility.
A few minutes later, their PTV approached the center of the complex, where a grand structure stood, illuminated by bright spotlights. He felt a bit of awe when he noticed that it was built of stone blocks similar to those that Bastion itself consisted of. This hinted at the fact that the stones were brought to the waking world from the Dream Realm.
Considering that only powerful Masters and Saints could transport matter between two worlds, the cost of the great hall was nothing short of astronomical. He could hardly imagine a more impressive and effective proclamation of wealth and power… the great clans really knew how to set the stage.
'Talk about fancy.'
The public events he went to alongside the Dream Merchant were never as lavish as this, further proving how much the great clans overshadowed the government.
The walls of the hall were decorated by vermilion banners that stretched from its roof to the very ground, each bearing the image of an anvil pierced by a sword. A red carpet led from the grand stairs to the road where a row of similarly luxurious PTVs were parked, slowly moving as their distinguished passengers disembarked.
Neat rows of uniformed honor guards stood at the sides of the red carpet, forming a living corridor through which the guests had to walk before they reached the entrance. Everything about them screamed of discipline and power. These soldiers alone were enough to protect people invited to the ball from most dangers.
'Wow, those Awakened would definitely protect the Masters and Saints inside! How brave.'
Although there were a few high-ranking mundane humans among them, most were either promising Awakened or Masters. There were even Saints here, which made Hugo's growing sense of hunger for Transcendance grow even more...
Finally, their PTV reached the vermilion carpet, and its doors opened.
The cohort slowly walked out, meeting the public scene.
'So many people...' Hugo thought.
Their arrival caused a bit of a stir. Many eyes were suddenly directed at the members of the cohort, but it was nothing compared to how many people were staring at Nephis and Hugo... The latter specifically due to how mysterious he was.
Hugo had never showed himself on camera when attending public events alongside Saint Thane, nor did he interact with the people at all. So it was no surprise everyone would be interested in the young man, especially with the nature of his Aspect.
The cohort walked up the stairs and entered the grand hall, where they were led to massive doors that were carved of familiar wood.
As the doors opened into a vast chamber full of exquisitely dressed people, a loud voice announced:
"Ascended Paragon of Purity! Lady Changing Star of the Immortal Flame Clan! Ascended Song of the Fallen! Ascended Raised by Wolves! Ascended Nightingale! Ascended Sunless!"
For a moment, every conversation in the hall paused. Everyone turned to look at the new arrivals.
Hugo shivered. It was as if hundreds of powerful Nightmare Creatures were staring at him, craving the purity of his Ascended soul.
The amount of pressure that crashed into him was enough to even make a Nightmare Creature uncomfortable... It was not that the guests were consciously exerting it, just the side effect of so many powerful people being gathered in one place.
Just at first glance, he identified nearly a hundred Masters and a handful of Saints in the crowd, with each of the latter basically glowing like a beacon of power in the sea of people, surrounded by a small island of empty space. A very large chunk of humanity's defensive capabilities were gathered in this hall.
A wave of whispers rose, barely audible in the harmonious hum of relaxing music.
"It's him."
"What? The Paragon of Purity is here?"
"He must've come with his cohort..."
Even among the absolute elites, Hugo's appearance was immense enough to create a commotion. The other five members got a lot of attention, too, as the brightest stars of the younger generation of Awakened. Both their SS designations and the rapid speed of their Ascension made them noteworthy people.
Nephis specifically was considered the most prominent Prodigy of this generation, so the attention she got was just as much as Hugo's, if not more among certain people.
Walking to their table, Hugo crashed into his seat and suddenly felt like a trapped animal.
"Holy spell, this sucks. I'd rather fight a Corrupted Titan than this..."
"Man, you're just like Doofus, a total introvert." Effie said, already grabbing a piece of the food.
Sunny looked at her with an offended expression on his face.
"For your information, I'm not scared by the attention... I'm scared of the people giving us that attention, specifically the Saints..."
Noticing that those two won't be helping, Hugo turned to the more sensible members of the cohort.
"So, uh… what do we do now?" Hugo said, not sure of what he needed to do.
Kai simply smiled.
"We don't have to do anything, really, before the host arrives and commences the ball. Usually we would use this time to walk around and socialize, but in this case, there is no need. Everyone will come to us. So, just enjoy yourself, smile, and answer politely if someone addresses you."
"...Kai, I haven't talked much to anyone besides you five and the people I work with... I might accidentally murder someone if they talk to me."
The handsome archer's smile grew a bit forced.
"Let's just hope it doesn't come to that..."
Socializing was truly the bane of all existence.
Very soon, a stream of people started to approach them, with their attention targeted towards Hugo and Nephis.
"Master Paragon of Purity, it is an honor to finally meet you!"
"You made us all proud, young man! Even death cannot hold the human spirit!"
"Truly young man, you are the Broken Sword of this generation! I see the same ferocity in your eyes!"
The speech Nephis got was less about her and more about glorifying her clan in order to appeal to Changing Star herself.
"I once fought a battle side by side with your parents. The memory of their valiance was forever etched into my heart…"
"Your father was truly the greatest saint of humanity... Ah, what a shame that he is gone now..."
Everyone wanted to if not become friends, then to at least establish a connection with the most prominent champions of this generation.
Nephis remained calm, conversing with the great and powerful people that approached her in a neutral, but slightly stifled tone.
Hugo, on the other hand, was acting like a machine, nodding and barely acknowledging the guests.
Most took it as the youth's arrogance, or perhaps his trauma making him unsocial, but the truth was that he simply did not have much to add to the conversation.
Under normal circumstances, Hugo would have felt bad about ignoring such people, but now he didn't feel anything but annoyance... Infact, even if he wasn't uncomfortable, he most likely wouldn't converse with those people anyway.
All of those people were fake, attempting to socialize and make connections with him for their own personal gain. They were the scum of the Awakened society in Hugo's eyes, as they focused more on their political powers rather than their actual rank and abilities. To him, they were not fulfilling their duties to humanity as they should, not in the slightest.
Their smiles and pretty words were worthless. Their friendship was worthless.
This was all just a big charade.
Hugo observed the elites with a mixture of bewilderment and disgust. Were they all such shameless liars, or did they actually believe their own lies? In any case, this banquette of lies was nothing short of nauseating. If only it were not so transparent...
After a while, Hugo noticed a familiar face among the guests.
An exquisitely beautiful woman in a dazzling dress the color of red wine was approaching them. She was graceful and elegant, with a supple figure and full, scarlet lips. Her most striking feature, however, was her skin… it was grey like stormy clouds, smooth like silk, and devoid of any imperfections.
The woman smiled, revealing perfectly even, pearly teeth.
"Paragon of Purity... It's good to see you again, after so long."
Hugo lingered on her for a moment.
He remembered her well—Seishan. She was only a honorary member of the cohort, but was still a teammate nonetheless. After his return to the waking world, Hugo found out she was a part of Clan Song, and not just any member at that, she was a part of the Song Sisters making her nobility, just like Nephis.
"Seishan. I am… glad to see you, as well."