Before Nero could look around for a chair, the sound of a door opening alerted him that someone was coming in his room so he immediately deactivated Luminalink. That was when he realised that, despite standing in the vision, he was actually sitting in real life. He had nearly been tricked by his father again. He clicked his teeth and looked up, just in time to see an exhausted Gabriel coming in.
"What happened to you?" Nero couldn't help but ask. It was not common to see him so spent.
"Field survival class. We were unexpectedly targeted by several back-to-back curses, but since the level was low, the teachers let us take care of it ourselves. In the end, it turned out that it's hard to remember everything you learnt in class when you're fighting for your life."
Although Gabriel did not elaborate further, Nero could conclude that the class had not gone well.
"Well, get some rest. When you're feeling better, we have some things we need to discuss. I heard a rumour that the KMA recruitment exam might be held in Aetherpeak. We need to look into it."
"That rumour has been going around for a week," Gabriel said dismissively. "Until there's a shred of proof, such as exam site preparations or the arrival of staff members, it's best to ignore it."
"I heard it from Ms. Zim."
That gave Gabriel pause, and then he groaned.
"I'm going to go take a shower. I'll look into these things in the morning."
After grabbing some clean clothes, Gabriel exited the room. Nero could not help but notice that his roommate was limping. It seems that the class had gone much worse than he made it sound.
As soon as he left the room, Nero pulled out the letter and activated the card once more. Although he trusted Gabriel, certain things were best not revealed to anyone. The fact that his father had produced an innate card was not something he could share with anyone. The seriousness of breaking Whisper Guard rules could not be underestimated.
He was relieved to discover that, upon using the card once again, the message began to replay from the beginning. He was not certain how exactly this recording had been attached to the paper, but that was something he could experiment with later on. For now, he was curious to learn why his father was being so secretive.
"Sit down kid, we have much to talk about," he said, and paused, as if waiting for Nero to actually try. A moment later, he could not help but chuckle.
"Did you actually try to sit? This is a recording, not a projection. Here, you can only observe and do nothing else. Sheesh. But nevertheless, take a metaphorical seat, kid, because now it's time you learned a few things. Since you're an adult now, it's time you learnt a few family secrets - at least the ones that might harm you if you don't know.
Let's start with your matters related to your mom. Do you know your moms maiden name?"
Since his father had mentioned learning about secrets, he was expecting to learn about things related to Whisper Guard. Even though it was supposed to be a secret, being a member of Whisper Guard made it all too easy for Nero to imagine countless fantastical stories about his father and his background.
When they were kids, he and Patrick used to imagine that their father was secretly a Sage in disguise, and that they were being raised below their families means as a way to 'build character'.
But the thing he was absolutely not expecting was to hear about his mother. What secrets did she have? She was a prodigy before she was injured, but how was that a secret? But then he remembered that, only a few weeks ago, his father for the first time mentioned his uncle who he didn't even know he had. That should have been a hint that maybe there were more things about his mother he didn't know.
As he began to think about it, he realised that he did not, in fact, know his mothers name. As a matter of fact, he knew very little about his mothers life before she got married.
"Her maiden name was Soren. Does it ring a bell? I'd be genuinely surprised if it did. I will not reveal the history behind that name - I'll leave it as a little side project for you to discover on your own. What I will tell you, however, is that the Soren family is an old family, with very strong traditions. Sometimes, that can be a good thing, and sometimes, it can be bad.
In your mothers case, it is a bad thing.
"Right now, she is in Lorilem getting treated by an Orchardist, but I can tell you in advance that the result of that treatment is going to be a failure. It's not surprising, since Orchardists don't specialise in healing the way Ayurvedists do. At least, that's what the official story is going to be.
No matter what, news of your mothers recovery cannot be made public knowledge, at least until she breaks through to the Mystic realm. Preferably, even then, it's best to keep it a secret.
"That's because the Soren family has many enemies, and many people who do not want to see it rise. Your mother strongly suspects that… that the incident with Patrick is also a result of her background. Although there's no proof of it yet, if it's true, then chances are you are also going to be targeted.
The same way her brother was forced to escape Kolar, the same way her cultivation path was crippled."
By this point, Edwards' charismatic smile had faded completely, and he could not help but let out a deep sigh. But he did not stay silent for long, and continued speaking.
"But, while you should stay vigilant, you should also know that I have also learnt from my mistakes. I have arranged for protection for you, in case you are targeted. I will tell you their identities, but you cannot reveal that you know their purpose, since they're also from the Whisper Guard. One of them is called Harvey, and the other is called Zim.
I believe, by now, you should already be familiar with them."