Two days.
Nagisa woke up with one thought in her mind.
Two days.
She opened her eyes.
Stared at the ceiling.
Then closed them again.
Two days.
Her tail twitched.
She opened her eyes.
“Why am I awake?”
The room remained silent.
Nagisa rolled onto her back.
Two days until her Awakening.
Two days until she finally discovered her spiritual root.
Two days until she could begin properly cultivating Elyra.
Two days until she found out whether all those years of reading about cultivation had actually prepared her for anything.
She stared at the ceiling again.
Then her stomach growled.
Nagisa sighed.
“Of course.”
She climbed out of bed.
Apparently, even life-changing events had to compete with breakfast.
When Nagisa entered the dining room, she immediately noticed something was wrong.
Sato was sitting unusually straight.
Hirata was staring at him.
Ren was trying not to laugh.
Airi was already eating.
Celeste was standing at the table with her arms folded.
Nagisa stopped.
“What happened?”
Sato looked innocent.
“Nothing.”
Celeste looked at Nagisa.
“Your brother decided he was already mature enough to prepare breakfast.”
Nagisa slowly looked at Sato.
“You?”
Sato nodded proudly.
“I wanted to help.”
Nagisa looked at the table.
One plate contained something that appeared to have once been bread.
Another contained eggs that were suspiciously dark.
There was also a bowl of porridge that looked far too thick.
Nagisa stared.
“What happened?”
Sato frowned.
“I cooked.”
Hirata finally laughed.
“You murdered the kitchens integrity.”
“I did not!”
“You put too much salt in the porridge.”
“It needed flavor.”
“You put too too much.”
Sato crossed his arms.
“That’s your opinion.”
Ren picked up a piece of the bread.
It broke apart in his paw.
He stared at it.
“Is this supposed to be bread?”
Sato nodded.
“Yes.”
Ren looked at Nagisa.
“Are you sure?”
Nagisa covered her mouth to stop herself from laughing.
Sato noticed.
“Don’t laugh!”
That only made it worse.
Nagisa burst out laughing.
Celeste shook her head.
“I told you to wait for me.”
Sato lowered his ears.
“I wanted to surprise everyone.”
Celeste’s expression softened.
“I appreciate that.”
Sato looked hopeful.
“Really?”
“Yes.”
She pointed toward the kitchen.
“But you’re banned from cooking alone.”
Sato’s ears dropped.
“That’s not fair.”
“It is extremely fair.”
Hirata laughed.
Nagisa sat down.
“Don’t worry. You’ll survive.”
Sato looked at her.
“You’re supposed to support me.”
“I support your future as someone who doesn’t burn breakfast.”
Ren nearly choked laughing.
Even Airi smiled.
Sato looked betrayed by his entire family.
After breakfast, Seraphine arrived.
She stepped into the courtyard carrying several boxes.
Nagisa looked at them.
“What are those?”
“Supplies.”
“For what?”
“Your Awakening.”
Nagisa immediately became interested.
Seraphine placed the boxes on the ground.
“I’ve been preparing everything you’ll need.”
Hirata looked inside.
“What do we need?”
“Clothes.”
“We have clothes.”
“Formal clothes.”
Hirata’s expression became suspicious.
“Why?”
“Because you’re attending a ceremony.”
Sato looked horrified.
“Do I have to wear something uncomfortable?”
Seraphine smiled.
“Yes.”
“Can I wear armor?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re nine.”
“That’s discrimination.”
Nagisa laughed.
“You don’t even know what discrimination means.”
“I know enough.”
Seraphine looked at him.
“Clearly.”
She began handing out the clothes.
Nagisa received hers first.
It was a formal outfit designed for foxfolk children, made with soft fabric and decorated with subtle clan markings.
She held it up.
“It’s beautiful.”
Seraphine smiled.
“I knew you’d like it.”
Sato looked at his own.
“Why is mine so complicated?”
“Because you keep moving.”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
“Everything.”
Hirata started laughing.
Sato immediately threw a pillow at him.
Hirata ducked.
The pillow hit Ren.
Ren looked at Sato.
Sato froze.
“That was an accident.”
Ren picked up another pillow.
Nagisa’s ears twitched.
“Oh no.”
Ren threw it.
Sato dodged.
The pillow hit Hirata.
Hirata grabbed another.
Within seconds, the courtyard became a battlefield.
Nagisa tried to escape.
A pillow flew past her head.
She stopped.
Slowly turned around.
“Who threw that?”
Nobody answered.
Nagisa narrowed her eyes.
Seraphine quietly stepped away.
“Don’t look at me.”
Nagisa grabbed a pillow.
“Fine.”
Sato’s eyes widened.
“Wait.”
Nagisa threw it.
It hit him directly in the face.
The courtyard erupted into chaos.
The battle lasted nearly ten minutes.
By the end, pillows were scattered everywhere.
Ren was lying on the grass laughing.
Airi had somehow avoided almost every attack.
Hirata was hiding behind a bench.
Sato was trying to recruit Seraphine to his side.
Seraphine refused.
“I am not participating.”
“You have to!”
“No.”
“You’re our aunt!”
“Exactly.”
Nagisa was standing in the center of the courtyard, breathing heavily.
Celeste appeared at the doorway.
She looked at the mess.
Then at the children.
Then at Seraphine.
Seraphine pointed immediately toward Sato.
“He started it.”
Sato’s mouth dropped open.
“Traitor!”
Celeste sighed.
“I leave you alone for five minutes.”
Nagisa looked around.
“Technically, it was longer than five minutes.”
Celeste looked at her.
“You’re not helping.”
Nagisa smiled.
“Sorry.”
Later that afternoon, Celeste decided the children needed something more productive to do.
Training.
The five siblings stood in the training yard.
Celeste watched them carefully.
“Your Awakening is two days away.”
Everyone became serious.
“Until then, you don’t need to push yourselves too hard.”
Sato raised his paw.
“How hard can we push ourselves?”
“Enough to improve your body.”
“How much?”
“Enough.”
Sato lowered his paw.
“Everyone keeps saying that.”
Nagisa laughed.
Celeste walked between them.
“Your spiritual roots will determine how naturally you can interact with Elyra after Awakening. But your physical bodies still matter.”
She demonstrated several simple movements.
“Balance.”
The children copied her.
“Breathing.”
They followed.
“Control.”
They concentrated.
Nagisa felt her body respond more naturally than it had when she was younger.
Years of training had changed her.
She wasn’t strong enough to fight experienced cultivators.
Not even close.
But she had developed a foundation.
She could run faster.
Jump higher.
React quicker.
And her senses had become sharper.
Celeste nodded approvingly.
“Good.”
Sato smiled.
“Am I good?”
“You’re improving.”
“That’s basically the same thing.”
Sato sighed.
Nagisa laughed.
After training, they rested beneath the large tree.
The five siblings sat together.
Seraphine brought them drinks.
For several minutes, everyone remained quiet.
Then Sato spoke.
“What do you think your spiritual roots will be?”
Hirata answered immediately.
“Lightning.”
Nagisa looked at him.
“You’re confident.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because lightning is awesome.”
Ren shook his head.
“That’s not how spiritual roots work.”
“I know.”
“Do you?”
“No.”
Everyone laughed.
Airi looked toward Nagisa.
“What about you?”
Nagisa paused.
She had thought about that question many times.
“I don’t know.”
“You’ve read more books than all of us combined.”
“Books can’t tell me what I’ll awaken.”
Sato leaned toward her.
“What if you awaken something weird?”
Nagisa raised an eyebrow.
“Like what?”
“I don’t know.”
“Then why ask?”
Sato shrugged.
“Maybe you’ll grow wings.”
Hirata joined in.
“Or become a giant.”
Ren smiled.
“Or turn into a frog.”
Nagisa stared at them.
“A frog?”
Sato nodded seriously.
“An extremely powerful frog.”
Nagisa burst out laughing.
“You’re all idiots.”
Airi smiled.
“Maybe.”
Nagisa looked at the four of them.
She couldn’t help smiling.
Whatever happened during the Awakening, at least she wouldn’t experience it alone.
That evening, Celeste prepared dinner.
Nagisa helped her.
As they worked, Nagisa noticed her mother seemed quieter than usual.
“Mother?”
“Hm?”
“Are you thinking about Father?”
Celeste paused.
“A little.”
“Do you think he’ll make it back?”
“I hope so.”
Nagisa looked at her.
“You really don’t know?”
Celeste shook her head.
“He sent another message this morning. The Frontline is still active.”
Nagisa nodded.
She didn’t want to make her mother more worried.
Instead, she continued helping.
After a moment, Celeste smiled.
“You’re growing up.”
Nagisa looked at her.
“Am I?”
“Yes.”
“When did that happen?”
Celeste laughed.
“While I wasn’t looking.”
Nagisa smiled.
“I’ll still be your daughter.”
“Always.”
Celeste pulled her into a brief hug.
Nagisa rested against her.
For a few seconds, she forgot about Awakening.
Forgot about the Frontline.
Forgot about everything.
She was simply with her mother.
And that was enough.
That night, Nagisa returned to her room.
She looked out the window.
Two days.
The thought no longer made her nervous.
It made her excited.
She wondered what her spiritual root would look like.
What kind of affinity would she possess?
What would happen when she finally touched Elyra properly?
She climbed into bed.
Her tail curled around her.
Nagisa closed her eyes.
Tomorrow would be the final day.
Then came Awakening Day.
She smiled.
“Two days.”
And somewhere far beyond the mortal world, Bai Yuexian watched.
The goddess sat upon her throne, resting her cheek against one hand.
She had seen Nagisa laugh.
She had seen her train.
She had seen her family grow closer.
And she knew something Nagisa didn’t.
The Awakening Ceremony would be far more interesting than anyone in the Kiyotaka estate expected.
Bai Yuexian smiled.
“Just two more days.”
Her eyes narrowed playfully.
“Try not to disappoint me, little fox.”
The celestial image disappeared.
Bai leaned back against her throne.
For the first time in years, she looked genuinely excited.
“Finally.”