Darian's ears transformed into those of a lynx, and a tail appeared behind him.
He was cornered by Ren and had a hard time defending himself, so he instinctively transformed into his beast form.
"Ren, are you alright?" Elara rushed toward him with a worried face.
"I'm fine." Ren smiled softly.
Elara turned to Darian with an angry expression, but instead of looking scary, she looked incredibly cute.
"My… my bad! I did it instinctively." Darian put on an awkward expression.
Alaric put his hand on Ren's shoulder and grinned. "You are strong, young man. How about sparring with me next?"
Elara instantly turned to Alaric.
"Well, I mean…next time." Alaric changed his mind instantly when he saw her sharp gaze.
"Hehe." Sofia giggled softly. "Elara, don't you realize you're acting like a girlfriend protecting her boyfriend?"
Elara's face instantly turned red like a tomato.
"I… I'm not!" She turned around to hide her shy expression.
"Hehe." Hayden and the others chuckled.
"Hmm?" Aveline noticed some bruises on Ren's hands. "Stay still. I will heal you now."
As she was using healing magic, her presence suddenly exuded an ethereal serenity, and the air around her vibrated with divine energy.
The moment she raised her hand, streams of shimmering light cascaded like a celestial river, flowing toward Ren and enveloping his hands.
The golden light seeped into his wounds, and a miraculous healing began.
His bruises vanished, and the pain disappeared.
Ren looked at the healing process intently because it was his first time seeing magic.
'Amazing!'
There was no such thing as magic in his previous life, so he could not help but praise it.
Once she was done, he thanked her. "Thank you."
Aveline nodded before turning to Darian. "I will heal you now."
Darian transformed back into his human form and replied, "Thank you, village head."
After they chatted for several minutes, Elara took Ren around the village again.
----
The sun set, and the moon rose.
When most people were spending time in their houses, Ren and Elara were chatting under a shady tree.
They wanted to enjoy the beautiful night, so they headed to the front yard and made a campfire.
"Ren, you are eighteen, right?" Elara didn't know exactly how old he was.
"Yes," he replied. "Why are you suddenly asking that?"
"There will be the Awakening Ceremony tomorrow. How about we go there together?" she asked.
Ren didn't answer immediately.
His predecessor had attended the Awakening Ceremony before, and the result was that he was not an awakener.
Even though he was not his predecessor, he was using his body, so he doubted the results would be any different.
"You… don't want to?" he stayed silent, so she thought he refused.
"Sure!" he replied as he smiled.
'Well, there is no harm in trying again.'
He added in mind.
"Great!" she smiled happily.
As the duo was chatting cheerfully, Aveline stepped into the front yard with some biscuits in hand.
She sat beside her daughter before finally placing the plate full of biscuits on the ground. "What are you two talking about? You both seem so happy."
"I'm inviting Ren to go to the Awakening Ceremony with me tomorrow." Elara gave an honest answer.
"Ah, right. You two are already eighteen," Aveline replied. "Elara, do you want to become a mage or a shifter?"
"I'm fine with either." Elara only hoped she could become an awakener.
Aveline shifted her gaze to Ren and asked the same question, "What about you, Ren?"
"Me too. Either one is fine with me." In truth, he didn't place any hope at all because it could disappoint him.
"I hope you two become awakeners tomorrow," Aveline said with a soft smile. "By the way, Ren, what is your dream?"
Elara turned to him because she also wanted to know about it.
"I want to become a powerful awakener so I can protect Silverleaf Orphanage forever." He was startled when she suddenly asked about his dream, but he still gave an honest answer because he respected her.
"Silverleaf Orphanage?" Aveline raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Yes," he nodded slightly. "That is where I grew up."
"Where are your parents? Are they missing? Or have they passed away?" Aveline asked curiously.
"They passed away when I was little." He knew about this from his predecessor's memories. "One of the orphanage caretakers took me in and raised me there."
He then continued, "Now that I've grown up, I want to repay their kindness."
Elara's gaze turned sad as she looked at him because she had previously thought Ren still had parents.
'So, he is an orphan.'
Even though she had lost her father, she still had a mother, so she was not alone like him.
"You have a similar dream to Elara, Ren." His answer reminded Aveline of her daughter's goal.
"Similar?" Ren turned to Elara.
"She also wants to become a powerful awakener so she can protect the village." Aveline knew Elara's dream because Elara told her about it almost every day when she was little.
She was so cute when she was talking about her goal.
Even though she was still cute, she was much more adorable when she was little.
He placed his hand on Elara's shoulder and smiled softly. "Let's do our best to make our dreams come true, Elara."
Elara looked at his hand before finally nodding in shyness. "Y-Yes… Let's do our best."
"Hehe." Aveline giggled softly as she saw her daughter's shy face. "Let's eat the biscuits."
Elara and Ren nodded before finally picking one up and eating it.
At 10:00 pm, they went to their rooms to sleep.
----
The following morning, all villagers gathered in the Village Square to see the Awakening Ceremony for the younger generation.
Twenty-one teenagers were lining up under Instructor Darian's guidance to step into the Awakening Platform.
At this moment, a red-haired girl with blue eyes was in the process of awakening.
Shortly after she placed her hand on the Awakening Orb, a three-meter-tall projection of a white cat appeared.
Its eyes were sharp, and its body was strong.
The moment the projection vanished, the girl's ears transformed into those of a cat, and a white tail appeared behind her.
"Lucy Wintervale has awakened the Beast Transformation Path. Her beast form is a White Cat," Sofia announced.
The air was instantly filled with chatter and applause. The villagers were thrilled because one more awakener had appeared in their village.
The next person stepped onto the Awakening Platform and put his hand on the orb.
"Julian Carter has awakened the Beast Transformation Path. His beast form is a Black Lynx."
Another clapping sound reverberated in the entire area.
"Aron Harper has awakened the Elemental Path. His element is fire."
"Lilia Hillcrest has awakened the Beast Transformation Path. Her beast form is a white eagle."
"Vera Brightwell has awakened the Elemental Path. Her element is water."
One after another, the joyful announcements echoed across the area.
But not everyone was fortunate enough to become an awakener because the next person failed to awaken any power.
"Nathan, unfortunately, failed to awaken." Sofia's voice was filled with sadness as she gave an announcement.
The villagers instantly stopped talking.
'Poor Nathan…'
A few of them sighed softly, some shook their heads in pity, while the rest looked at Nathan with sorrowful expressions.
Nathan, who was standing on the Awakening Platform, could not control his emotions.
Tears welled up in his eyes, and his body trembled slightly.
Even though some of the villagers had tried to cheer him up, he still could not stop himself from crying.
He also wanted to become an awakener so he could protect his village and those he cared about, but now that dream had been shattered.
His parents rushed to the Awakening Platform to calm him, but he cried louder instead because at that moment, he felt like his world had broken into pieces.
"Sob…Sob…Sob…" Nathan cried in his mother's arms.
His mother caressed his hair softly to calm him down.
"Nathan, don't drown in sadness. Although you failed to become an awakener, that doesn't mean you can't achieve your dream. You just need to work harder to make up for what you lack." His father didn't want him to give up because he could still become strong by training martial arts.
Of course, his father knew that his strength would never be on par with an awakener, but at least it could help him survive.
"Your father is right!" Aveline stepped onto the Awakening Platform. "Failing to awaken doesn't mean the end of everything. You can still become a powerful martial artist."
Nathan turned to Aveline and tried to stop crying. "Village head…"
"Don't worry. We won't treat you any differently because everyone in this village is family." Aveline said with a soft smile.
"That's right, Nathan! As long as you are alive, there is always hope!"
"I'm also a non-awakener, but I can kill a wild boar easily!"
"Don't give up, Nathan! Your journey is far from over!"
One by one, the villagers shouted to lift his spirits.
Nathan wiped away his tears and nodded. "Un. I won't give up!"
Aveline's lips curled up into a smile as she leaned in slightly. "I believe you will become a powerful person in the future."
"I will!" Determination flashed through his eyes.
After Nathan was no longer sad, his parents took him down from the Awakening Platform.
Aveline turned to Sofia and said, "You can continue now."
"Alright," Sofia replied.
The awakening ceremony continued.
A few minutes later, it was Elara's turn.
As she was walking toward the Awakening Platform, everyone looked at her intently.
She was Aveline's daughter and the strongest among the younger generation, so they were curious whether she would become an awakener or not.
Shortly after Elara placed her hand on the Awakening Orb, a massive swan with a crescent moon on its forehead appeared.
The moment the projection disappeared, white feathers appeared on Elara's shoulders, and a pair of elegant white wings emerged behind her back, making her look as graceful as a swan.
Even though she awakened a defensive-type beast, she still smiled happily.
"Elara Moonvile has awakened the Beast Transformation Path. Her beast form is a Moon Swan." Sofia announced.
Darian turned to Ren and said, "Ren, it's your turn now."
Ren nodded slightly before finally walking toward the Awakening Platform.