Morning arrived without the sound of servants knocking on a bedroom door.
There were no maids waiting outside.
No noble etiquette lessons.
No steward reminding him about breakfast with the Duke.
Instead, Arin woke to the gentle chirping of birds drifting through the open balcony doors and the warm sunlight spilling across the floor of his room.
For several seconds, he simply lay there, staring at the ceiling.
Then everything from the previous day came rushing back.
His Awakening.
His exile.
Project Elysium.
The Phantom-01.
The hidden city.
EVE.
The hunters from House Valerius.
"...That wasn’t a dream."
A soft chime echoed inside his mind.
«GOOD MORNING, FOUNDER.
DAY 2 INITIALIZED.
DAILY REWARD AVAILABLE.»
Arin sighed.
"I suppose this is my life now."
He accepted the reward.
«DAILY LOGIN BONUS
Universal Credits +15
Basic Repair Kit ×1
Fresh Bread ×2»
"...Bread again?"
Apparently Project Elysium firmly believed that no civilization could exist without an endless supply of bread.
He changed into the clothes that EVE had prepared the previous night.
The strange thing was how perfectly they fit.
The dark coat was comfortable, the boots felt lighter than leather should have, and the fabric seemed to regulate its own temperature.
Even after searching carefully, he couldn’t find a single seam.
"What exactly are these clothes made of?"
«INFORMATION LOCKED.»
"Naturally."
After washing up, Arin left the room.
The mansion was already awake.
Soft lights glowed along the corridors while strange crystal lamps dimmed automatically as he passed.
Somewhere nearby, gentle music echoed through the halls.
The atmosphere was peaceful.
Almost too peaceful.
Three thousand years should have left behind dust, broken furniture, and crumbling walls.
Instead, House Elysium looked as though someone had cleaned it only moments ago.
As he descended the grand staircase, he found Lyra already eating breakfast.
Well...
Half-eating.
The other half was being fed to the enormous stuffed rabbit she had adopted yesterday.
"Lyra."
She looked up.
"Oh! Good morning!"
"Why are you feeding a stuffed rabbit?"
"He looked hungry."
"...He’s made of cloth."
"So?"
Arin looked toward EVE.
The Keeper calmly poured tea.
"I have determined it is best not to interfere."
"A wise decision," Lyra agreed.
Breakfast was surprisingly normal.
Fresh bread.
Eggs.
Fruit.
Warm milk.
After everything that had happened recently, the ordinary meal almost felt strange.
EVE stood quietly beside the table.
"Master."
"Please stop calling me Master."
"What title would you prefer?"
"Arin is fine."
She remained silent for exactly three seconds.
"Request denied."
"...Excuse me?"
"House Protocol requires the Founder to be addressed appropriately."
"So you can deny my requests?"
"Only the unreasonable ones."
Lyra giggled into her glass of milk.
"I like Miss EVE."
Arin was beginning to suspect the two of them would become dangerous allies.
Once breakfast ended, EVE placed a small metallic object on the table.
It resembled a silver bracelet.
"This is your Authority Band."
Arin picked it up.
The metal felt unexpectedly warm.
"What does it do?"
"It serves as your primary access key."
The bracelet immediately wrapped itself around his wrist.
Before he could react, a blue light swept across his arm.
«FOUNDER VERIFIED.
AUTHORITY BAND ACTIVATED.»
The bracelet instantly resized itself until it fit perfectly.
"...I didn’t even press anything."
"It recognized your genetic signature."
"I don’t know what that means."
"You will."
That answer wasn’t encouraging.
A second bracelet appeared.
This one was much smaller.
EVE handed it to Lyra.
"For the Young Lady."
Lyra’s eyes sparkled.
"Is it a present?"
"Yes."
She immediately slipped it onto her wrist.
Nothing happened.
Lyra frowned.
"Mine is broken."
"It requires authorization."
EVE looked toward Arin.
"Founder."
Arin instinctively nodded.
The bracelet flashed.
«SECONDARY FAMILY MEMBER REGISTERED.
LYRA VALERIUS
STATUS:
FAMILY»
The silver bracelet transformed into a delicate white band decorated with tiny blue crystals.
Lyra gasped.
"It’s pretty!"
She admired it from every angle before proudly showing it to Mr. Buttons.
"You don’t get one."
Arin smiled despite himself.
Seeing Lyra this happy made everything else feel worthwhile.
Then another notification appeared.
«FAMILY AUTHORITY LEVEL 1 ACHIEVED.
NEW FUNCTION UNLOCKED:
SAFE ZONE.»
Arin blinked.
"What’s a Safe Zone?"
EVE answered immediately.
"As long as Lady Lyra remains inside House Elysium’s territory, she cannot be harmed by hostile creatures."
Arin stared.
"...What?"
"It is a standard family protection protocol."
"Standard?"
"Yes."
"What kind of family builds cities where children literally can’t be attacked?"
EVE tilted her head.
"A responsible one."
He honestly couldn’t argue with that.
After breakfast, EVE led them outside.
For the first time since arriving, Arin had a chance to truly appreciate the scale of the mansion.
Massive fountains decorated the front courtyard.
Ancient statues stood proudly among flowering trees.
Wide stone roads stretched toward the distant districts.
The city was breathtaking.
And almost completely empty.
The silence reminded Arin that House Elysium had no people.
No laughter.
No merchants.
No children running through the streets.
Just machines quietly maintaining a city that no one lived in.
"How many people once lived here?" he asked.
EVE’s expression softened.
"At its peak..."
She paused.
"...several hundred thousand."
Arin stopped walking.
"...Hundreds of thousands?"
"Yes."
"And now?"
"...Three."
Lyra immediately raised her hand.
"I’m one!"
"You are."
"Mr. Buttons counts too."
"I shall update the census."
"EVE."
"Yes?"
"Don’t encourage her."
The Keeper looked genuinely confused.
"I believed that was the correct response."
Arin sighed.
She was learning.
Unfortunately, Lyra was apparently her teacher.
As they walked through the city, small maintenance machines occasionally emerged from hidden compartments.
Some rolled on tiny wheels.
Others floated through the air.
Whenever they noticed Arin, they stopped whatever they were doing.
One by one, they bowed.
"Good morning, Founder."
"Welcome home, Founder."
"We wish you a productive day."
Arin awkwardly nodded at each one.
"I don’t think I’ll ever get used to this."
"That is normal," EVE replied.
"The previous—"
She suddenly stopped speaking.
Arin immediately caught it.
"The previous what?"
"...Statement canceled."
"You keep doing that."
"My memory restrictions remain active."
"Can they be removed?"
"They can."
"When?"
"When you are ready."
That mysterious answer only increased his curiosity.
They eventually reached a large stone building located a short distance from the mansion.
Unlike the elegant architecture of the palace, this structure looked practical.
Massive chimneys rose into the sky.
Metal doors several meters tall protected the entrance.
Strange tracks disappeared beneath the building.
A familiar notification appeared.
«LOCATION DISCOVERED.
CENTRAL WORKSHOP.
STATUS:
OFFLINE.»
"This," EVE said, "is where House Elysium once created everything."
"Everything?"
"Weapons."
"Armor."
"Vehicles."
"Construction units."
"Medical equipment."
"Civilian tools."
She calmly listed item after item while Arin’s eyes grew wider.
"This entire city was supplied from one workshop?"
"The Central Workshop coordinated thousands of smaller production facilities."
Thousands.
The scale was almost impossible to imagine.
EVE approached the enormous entrance.
A circular device emerged from the wall.
It emitted a soft blue glow.
"Founder."
Arin stepped forward.
"What now?"
"Place your hand here."
He hesitated only briefly before following her instructions.
The moment his palm touched the scanner, the entire valley trembled.
Deep beneath the earth, ancient machinery began moving for the first time in over three millennia.
Dust drifted from distant rooftops.
Massive gears slowly turned.
Somewhere far below, an engine awakened with a low, powerful rumble.
The blue scanner brightened until it almost blinded him.
Then the voice of Project Elysium echoed throughout the valley.
«FOUNDER AUTHORIZATION ACCEPTED.
CENTRAL WORKSHOP REACTIVATION...
1%»
The enormous metal doors slowly began to open.
Warm golden light poured out from within.
Arin took a slow breath.
He had no idea what waited inside.
But somehow...
He felt that crossing this threshold would change everything.