Martin had sensed a strange fluctuation of mana in the area and hadn't wasted a second coming to check it out. Yet when he arrived, all he found was this scene, and not a trace of mana anywhere.
That naturally irritated him, and he got straight to the point.
"What's going on here? Who dares cause all this commotion?"
His voice was measured, but his tone carried an authority that instinctively pressed down on everyone around him, one that left no room for disobedience. He was an E-Rank awakened, after all. Even without releasing his power, his presence alone was enough to make ordinary people uneasy.
Everyone fell silent under his voice and that invisible weight.
Tom, who was closest and had already shaken off the daze from before, smiled inwardly at the sight of who had arrived.
'Hahaha, I couldn't have asked for anything better,' he thought as he opened his mouth and spoke first.
He didn't waste a second.
"Sir, I was passing through when I heard something fall. I came to check what had happened and found the vase broken with him standing here.
I asked him what happened, but instead of admitting his fault he denied everything and tried to make excuses, even when the facts are obvious.
Everyone knows this zone was his to clean today, and yet he has the nerve to deny it, without even a hint of remorse," he said, not missing the chance to paint Evan in the worst light, while being careful not to say too much and trip himself up.
Hearing this, the butler looked at the scene and immediately understood what had happened.
Under different circumstances he might have taken the time to sort the matter out properly, but not now.
That trace of energy from before had put him on edge, and seeing that none of the people present was an awakened, or even remotely connected to that energy, only made him more irritated.
'Could I have been mistaken?' he wondered, uncertain about what to do.
In the end he decided to set the matter aside and deal with what was in front of him.
He looked over everyone present, then turned to Evan.
"Since you caused the damage, you'll be punished accordingly," he said, and before Evan could get a word in, he continued.
"On top of this corridor, you'll clean every other one in this section of the manor. You won't eat today, and from tomorrow you'll have one meal a day until the cost of the vase has been paid off. Any objections?"
His expression was indifferent as he delivered his verdict.
Evan had plenty to say. But it was clear the butler had already made up his mind and had no interest in revisiting the matter. Arguing would only make things worse for him. So he held his tongue and nodded.
Seeing him nod, the butler paid no more attention to him or the others and left.
The servants who had stopped to watch slowly returned to their work. No one dared approach Evan to comfort him or say anything.
They avoided him like the plague, as they always had, and today was no different.
Tom, on the other hand, stayed where he was, a smug smile on his face.
He stepped forward, kicking aside a few pieces of the broken vase on the floor, and approached Evan, who looked straight into his eyes.
That seemed to annoy Tom, but he simply snorted and said,
"You should be more careful."
His voice was low, quiet enough not to attract the attention of the others.
"Percival will be leaving for the academy soon."
The smile on his face widened.
"And when that happens… I'll be the one taking care of you."
Evan didn't reply.
He simply watched him as the boy walked away down the corridor.
Now alone in the corridor, Evan let out a quiet sigh, his eyes cold like those of a predator.
He had already mentally decided who he would kill on the day of his escape, but when it came to torturing someone, that list had contained only Percival.
It seemed he now had to add another name to it.
***
This world, unlike Earth, was not only behind in many aspects, but more importantly, it had fallen into ruin.
Not because of mankind.
Not because of nature.
But because of something terrifying, mana.
A miraculous source of energy that had appeared out of nowhere over ten thousand years ago, fundamentally reshaping the very foundations of this world.
Some species thrived. Others suffered. And as fate would have it, one of those pushed to the brink was the dominant species of the time, humanity.
The arrival of mana had triggered an unprecedented wave of evolution across all living beings, and in no time at all, creatures of terrifying power began appearing everywhere.
Humans resisted at first, and for a while, they held their own. But it didn't last, the beasts didn't fall behind in this race for evolution either. They grew, they evolved, giving rise to entirely new species, and within a few centuries a large part of the continent had fallen into their hands.
Humanity's most powerful, fighting desperately, managed to secure a corner of the continent, a place where they could guarantee their survival and maintain some degree of defensive advantage against the beasts.
That advantage was thin and fragile, but more than enough to keep humanity alive for millennia, right up to the present day.
Those powerful beings who had protected humanity were the awakened, humans randomly chosen by mana, who had walked the path of evolution, developing supernatural powers and growing ever stronger.
Needless to say, this also greatly changed the social structure of society.
Status was no longer determined by inherited wealth or noble titles, but by the talents and strength possessed by each faction or family.
The Langhton barony had secured its stable position within the Kingdom of Solren after their ancestor reached a level of power high enough to earn such prestige from the previous ruler of the kingdom.
The current human territory was divided into six kingdoms, and each kingdom had its own institutions to train the future protectors of the realm, and in times of disaster, the protectors of humanity as well.
One of those institutions was the Awakened Academy.
A place where every awakened individual who reached adulthood was sent to be trained, so they could grow stronger and learn to use their abilities to the fullest.
Percival, who had naturally awakened at the age of fourteen, had been preparing to join the academy for some time.
Now that he was sixteen and had reached adulthood, the moment had come for him to leave and go to the academy.
The new school year was beginning, and in order to arrive on time, Percival would depart a month earlier.
And his day of departure had finally arrived.