"Did you hear? She walked across the east wing this morning. On her own!"
The teacups clinked softly against porcelain as three maids settled into a quiet corner of the Argyros estate's second kitchen—a space rarely used, save for gossip and stolen breaks.
"You mean the Young Lady Nadia?"
"Who else? She's barely been awake two weeks, and already His Grace is letting her wander without a guard! You think she's really that strong?"
"You tell me. Five years in a coma and she stands up like nothing happened? They say she made a full physical recovery within two days! Not even the doctors know how."
"That's absurd! And to think she still has two years before the blooming ceremony…"
A short pause followed, filled with the bubbling sound of boiling water and the gentle whisper of a breeze through the open archways.
"It's… kind of a relief, isn't it?" One of them murmured. "The family's finally whole again. Well—almost."
Another's voice dropped to a more cautious hush. "You mean Madam Serena?"
"Of course. Poor thing was taken before the twins were even born, wasn't she? And His Grace… I heard he dropped everything. Left the Council. Ignored summons. All to find her and the children."
"They say he was terrifying back then. Unstoppable. Like some wrathful God roaming between dungeons."
"He wasn't terrifying. He was desperate." A gentle sigh escaped the third maid's lips. "Imagine losing your wife… your unborn children. Then finding out both were experimented on. Tortured— For years…"
"But he found them. Or at least the young lady. That must be some kind of closure at least. I heard the young lord—"
"Shh! Don't say it."
A heavy silence stretched on for a few seconds.
"Anyway. His Grace has his heir now. Maybe the estate will finally feel like a home again. And maybe… maybe she'll bring peace and honor back to the Argyros name."
The others nodded with wistful smiles. Suddenly the direction of the wind shifted.
The older maid glanced towards the hallway, frowning slightly. "Did you feel that?"
"What?"
"Like… someone or something passing by..."
The youngest rolled her eyes. "We may not be strong, but we're Guardians too with heightened senses. Who could possibly sneak up on us without our knowledge?"
Upstairs, in the far West Wing—
Sunlight filtered gently through tall, arched windows draped in layers of sheer beige and white silk, casting a soft warm glow across the room. The bedroom was vast, but not cold—the high walls were painted a muted sage, adorned with golden trim and delicate floral reliefs.
Plush cream carpets cushioned the floor, while pale green upholstery covered a set of velvet lounge chairs arranged near a marble hearth.
A canopy bed—tall, graceful—was dressed in soft ivory linens embroidered with curling vines, the posts carved from pale ashwood. Crystal lamps lined the walls, glowing like captured starlight, while faint traces of floral perfume lingered in the air.
A gallery wall displayed unopened gift boxes —sixteen to be exact— all varying in colours and sizes, but still in pristine condition despite the oldest of them being over a decade and a half old.
By the open balcony, Nadia sat in a cushioned window seat, her silver hair shimmering in the afternoon light. Beyond the terrace, the estate stretched endlessly, providing a surreal view of several blooming gardens spread throughout, a stark contrast to the northern mountains a little farther out of the estate, their snowcaps untouched by spring.
The air smelled fresh, rejuvenating.
All of this was so vastly different from what Nadia had seen and known through most of her life that she'd often wonder if she were trapped in another nightmare— this time playing scenes of all that could have been. And that she would wake up to her cruel reality, with fate laughing at her. Mocking her.
"It's your reality. Not a nightmare." A deep and cold voice spoke in her mind, anchoring her sense of self yet again.
She could not tell whether the owner of the voice— the system had a gender or not. It sounded oddly mechanical, yet somehow, the being could clearly express its moods and emotions through it.
"You've said that over a hundred times this past week." Nadia's eyes stayed glued to the sight in front of her. It was so serene, so unlike herself that she couldn't help but be envious.
"I will stop when you stop your thoughts from wandering in that direction." The system responded, mildly amusing her. It always appeared to be awfully concerned with her state of mind.
Since waking up from the coma, her thoughts have been a jumbled mess. It didn't help that her heightened senses finally weren't being restricted with tools anymore. She could see and hear far beyond the limitations of a normal human being.
To compare, if a high-level Guardian could hear and see within a radius of 5 kilometers, Nadia's range extended to 15 kilometers in her current weakened state.
Unsurprisingly, the sheer influx of information overwhelmed her senses so much that she had a constant migraine for the first week.
Only the last few days has she been able to grow accustomed to her superhuman senses while learning to control them to filter out the useless chatters.
That said, she couldn't deny the usefulness of such powers. Having lived 11 years imprisoned in a laboratory, and then 5 years of real world time in coma while several centuries trapped in her own nightmares, Nadia had absolutely zero knowledge about herself and the world surrounding her.
While the system first introduced her to the kind of world she was born into and who she was, it's her hypersensitive senses that filled out the rest of the blanks. Information is key to everything. The more of it she has, the better.
"Status Window."
Nadia Argyros.
Daughter of Overlord Caelum Argyros.
Species: Human - Overlord
Age: 16
Active Chrome: 1,704 En
Potential Chrome: 349,825 ~ Infinity
Level: 5 (396 En to Level 6)
Talent: System of a Forgotten Dimension
Current Objective:
1. Strengthen your body with muscle mass and increase your stamina by two fold.
Time Limit: 60 Days
Rewards: 500 En
Progress: 29%
"Do all Guardians and Overlords have talents?"
"Yes. Every Chrome being awakens with a talent. That include the monsters in the dungeons as well. However, there are some differences between them."
"What's that?"
"The talents of the Chrome born monsters only vary depending on their species. Each species has their own unique talent. Whereas Guardians— despite being the same human species, may or may not have the same talent."
"Are Overlords different?"
"Yes. Each Overlord bloodline has their own unique talent. This talent is manually reawakened on their blooming ceremony."
Nadia has heard about the blooming ceremony. It was sort of a coming of age ritual. Humans awaken as Guardians depending on several factors. Age, circumstances, trauma, etc are just to name a few.
However, Overlords are different. They are already born awakened with a massive amount of chrome energy within their body.
In order to prevent that energy from running out of control and causing harm to the infants and those around them, the Overlords seal their newborns' powers.
These powers are later unsealed on their 18th birthday— an age deemed to be the safest to do so for both males and females. That is called the blooming ceremony.
While Nadia's father never had a chance to seal her powers himself, the people that had kidnapped her did.
"Then does that mean I happened to reawaken way earlier, and my father also has a system?"
"Yes, you did. And no, he doesn't. There is only one of me, and I am bound to you."
"…What?"
"Every Chrome being — born or mutated may only have one talent. As it's the culmination of their unique life experiences tied to their soul. Each living being only has one soul, thus, they can only awaken one talent."
"Then if my talent is you, the System, I can't awaken the Argyros bloodline's talent?"
That… would be a complicated situation to be in. Nadia has been planning on using Argyros to reach her goals. She needs the connections and authority in order to find her perpetrators and put them through their own living hell— orchestrated by herself.
However, if she could not awaken as the next Argyros heir, she would not be recognized as an Overlord, which would throw a massive wrench in her plans.
"Should I just throw away the system before the blooming ceremony?" Nadia wondered out loud.
"You can not do that as I have now assimilated with your very soul." It understandably sounded offended at her cold suggestion.
"…"
"However, no one said you could have just one talent." There was a hint of amusement in its voice.
Nadia frowned in confusion, but before she could ask what it meant, the System continued on its own.
"You are truly a special case. It should have been impossible otherwise, but your soul has the capacity of holding two talents at once."
"What?" Nadia's eyes widened in surprise.
"I could not find any precedence to such a miraculous happenstance, but it is true. It's also the only reason I could bind with you at the first place. Otherwise, even I do not have the ability to break the bond of an Overlord's soul with their bloodline."
While it was a lot to take in, and anyone else would have been agitated by such a crucial information about themselves, Nadia felt calm after her initial surprise passed. It doesn't matter whether she could have one talent or more. As long as it helps her accomplish her goals.
As she thought so, her gaze hovered over the progress bar under the objective command.
"What happens if I fail to complete the objective within the time limit?"
"The objective will reset, and any progress you made towards it will be deleted, including the physical changes in your constitution."
"So I have to start over after wasting all that time."
"Yes, and a few specific future objectives will be generated with tighter deadlines as a sort of penalty."
"Hmm.."
"But you don't have to worry about that now. Just focus on your current objective. Eat well, rest well, take a walk when you can, and let your body recover to its base health."
"What comes after?"
"More objectives, some easier while some really difficult ones with actual penalties— all with the goal to make you stronger."
It was simple to understand and easy to follow through. Although she doesn't doubt she'd face challenges in her path, she plans to make full use of them to push her own self to the limit until the next breakthrough.
"Do you have any other questions?"
Nadia pondered for a moment. She is indeed curious about something. Although it should probably have been the first ever question to ask, she hadn't thought of it as significant enough, as it doesn't matter to her either way.
"What is it?" The system asked again.
"What… No— Who are you?"