Staring at the mask in my hand, it felt warm to the touch. It was a simple but elegant white piece of equipment. It had no kind of artistic design, just a basic mask, which made it appeal more to me.
With the mask secured safely in my storage ring, I pondered my next steps. The first thing I wanted to do was explore the city of Luminara in greater depth. I had casually passed through it when heading toward the forest, but I hadn't been focused on observing my surroundings then.
Now, I wanted to truly see it.
The author had left readers like me with what we called a "white background", with no real sense of how the city functioned, how it looked, or how it felt to actually live there.
I left my room and headed outside, nodding to the guards as I passed through the estate gates.
Walking through the city of Luminara whilst focusing on the details for the first time, I couldn't help but feel impressed. Towering structures reached toward the sky, not quite skyscrapers in the modern sense, but buildings that stretched impossibly high.
The Kingdom of Eldrathia wasn't ruled by a single absolute power. In the novel, the multiple great houses vied for influence and control, creating a complex web of political agendas.
I observed the various family crests and banners displayed throughout the city as I walked.
At the very apex of this hierarchy sat the Royal House. King Aldric himself possessed the legendary Tiger bloodline, which granted him immense power and the rare ability to shapeshift between human and tiger forms. He had reached the highest rank I've seen stated in the novel, the king rank itself.
Kin Aldric was a very powerful character, and a noble one too.
The royal banners displayed throughout the city bore the golden tiger rampant, and I could see why, even in the novel, no one had dared challenge the king's authority directly. His bloodline was simply too powerful, too intimidating for open rebellion.
Below the crown, four Great Ducal Houses controlled the kingdom's major regions and forces.
My own family, House Blackwood, held considerable sway through our Knight bloodline. The black sword and silver shield on our family crest could be seen on some adventurer uniforms and official buildings throughout this quarter of the city.
According to the original timeline, Adrian should have awakened an Uncommon Knight bloodline, essentially a diluted version of Duke Marcus's Rare-rank abilities, which would have made him a decently influential character had he not been used as a stepping stone for Kyle by the author.
The system's intervention had completely altered that reality, blessing me instead with the Supreme Vampire bloodline.
My cover story about enhanced physical capabilities wasn't fabricated out of thin air. I had chosen it for a very specific reason - I wanted my awakening to appear identical to what the original Adrian should have experienced.
Had I revealed my Blood Control trait, it would have launched me down a completely different path. The other Great Houses would react with suspicion and wariness to my awakening a bloodline so drastically different from my father's Knight heritage. While bloodline anomalies weren't unheard of in this world, they always drew unwanted attention and political complications.
More importantly, my awakening was a controllable variable. I had the power to manage what information spread about my abilities and how others perceived my potential. It would be foolish to willingly alter the timeline so dramatically when I could avoid it entirely.
By keeping my public awakening identical to the original Adrian's expected Knight variant, the timeline should remain relatively stable and predictable. The future events I remembered from the novel should still unfold roughly as expected, giving me the crucial advantage of foreknowledge that I desperately needed.
As I walked through the market district, I passed beneath all the banners of all the ducal houses.
Blackwood House.
Seraphina's Rosewood house.
Ironhide House.
Stormwind House.
Each one of these ducal houses represented the second most powerful factions in the city. Of course, smaller factions existed in the city, but they were mostly either under our ducal houses or were too weak to make any significant changes.
Walking through a busy commercial street, I observed how the different houses' influences shaped even basic aspects of city life.
For example, our Blackwood House were known for its exceptional guard services. Many businesses and malls hired our guards to protect their businesses from theft.
The other houses also had their own services that they provided, which added to the city.
The common smaller clans and citizens seemed largely content with this arrangement. Each great house provided specific services and protections, creating a system where competition between noble families actually benefited the general population. It was more sophisticated than the typical "evil nobles oppressing peasants" dynamic you'd expect from a web novel setting.
I paused near a fountain in the central plaza, watching children play. The normalcy of it struck me; these people had no idea that within a few months, their peaceful city would become a battleground for protagonist-level conflicts involving evil, political conspiracies, and bloodline awakeners capable of levelling entire districts.
For now, though, Luminara thrived as a centre of innovation and stability. The Great Houses maintained their careful balance, trade flowed freely through enchanted marketplaces, and citizens lived their lives without fear of the catastrophes that Kyle's presence would eventually attract.
I needed to remember this peaceful moment, because I knew it wouldn't last.