The next morning, I woke up to the sound of knocking.

Before I could even properly open my eyes, several maids entered the room carrying neatly folded formal clothing.

"...Why are there so many of you?" I asked tiredly.

"Lady Lilith gave strict instructions that you were to be properly prepared for today’s ceremony," one of the maids replied politely.

That somehow sounded more threatening than reassuring.

Over the next hour or so, I was aggressively dressed against my will.

By the time they finally finished, I barely recognized myself.

The black formal outfit they prepared was far more extravagant than anything I normally wore, though it still carried the Nightbane family’s dark gothic style. Silver embroidery lined the sleeves, while a dark cloak rested over my shoulders.

When I looked into the mirror, I almost looked like a young noble from the Nightbane family itself.

That was terrifying.

Eventually, one of the servants escorted me toward the main ceremonial hall.

The closer we got, the louder the surrounding noise became.

Voices.

Music.

Footsteps.

The ceremony had already begun.

The giant doors slowly opened before me, and the moment I stepped inside, I nearly froze.

The hall was enormous.

Hundreds of nobles filled the room, each dressed in extravagant clothing decorated with the crests of their respective families. Crystal chandeliers illuminated the entire hall while musicians played softly in the background.

And the mana radiating from some of the guests was suffocating.

There were powerful people everywhere.

I immediately recognized several high-ranking military officers from their uniforms, while others wore noble insignias I vaguely remembered from the original story.

This was practically a gathering of monsters.

The moment I entered, several nearby nobles glanced toward me.

"...Who’s that?"

"Isn’t he from the Aldric family?"

"Why is Lady Lilith’s guest so young?"

I ignored the whispers and quietly moved further inside.

Then suddenly—

"Leon!"

A familiar voice echoed across the hall.

Every nearby noble immediately turned toward the source.

Lilith walked toward me from the opposite side of the room.

And for a brief moment—

The entire hall went silent.

Honestly...

I almost understood why.

Lilith looked completely different from usual.

Her long black hair flowed elegantly behind her, while her dark purple-black dress carried intricate silver designs resembling roses and thorns. Combined with her deep purple eyes and naturally regal aura, she looked less like a child and more like a young princess from a fantasy painting.

Several nobles openly stared in awe as she approached.

Meanwhile, Lilith ignored everyone else entirely.

Her eyes focused only on me.

"You came," she said softly once she reached me.

"...You invited me."

Lilith smiled faintly.

"You look nice."

"You look terrifyingly expensive."

She blinked.

"...That’s your compliment?"

"It’s a very good compliment."

Lilith let out a small laugh before grabbing my arm. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Almost instantly, I felt dozens of noble gazes sharpen around us.

Right.

To everyone else here, the duke’s daughter was publicly clinging to some random noble boy from a minor border territory.

That probably looked insane politically.

I could practically hear future headaches forming.

"You seem nervous," Lilith whispered.

"That’s because there are enough important people here to overthrow several kingdoms."

"You worry too much."

Easy for her to say.

This was her home territory.

Meanwhile, I felt like a stray cat that accidentally wandered into a room full of dragons.

Suddenly, the loud sound of a staff striking the floor echoed throughout the hall.

The musicians immediately stopped playing.

Everyone turned toward the massive staircase at the front of the room.

Duke Rosthwall Nightbane stood there overlooking the crowd.

The sheer pressure radiating from him instantly silenced the hall.

"Thank you all for attending my daughter’s awakening ceremony," the duke said calmly.

Despite not raising his voice, every single person in the room heard him clearly.

"Today marks an important moment not only for the Nightbane family, but for the future of this kingdom."

The nobles listened attentively.

Meanwhile, I felt my stomach tighten.

Because unlike everyone else here—

I already knew what was about to happen.

At the center of the hall, servants began preparing the awakening altar.

A white marble collum stood, on top of it lay ball, the size of a bowling ball that seemed to be made of glass resting upon a cushion.

The atmosphere grew tense.

For most noble families, awakening ceremonies were important.

Mana capacity determined everything in this world.

Status.

Military value.

Political influence.

A weak heir could damage an entire bloodline’s future.

But for the daughter of Duke Rosthwall?

Expectations were absurdly high.

I glanced toward Lilith beside me.

Surprisingly, she looked calm.

Almost too calm.

"You’re not nervous?" I asked quietly.

Lilith tilted her head.

"Should I be?"

"...Fair enough."

A servant eventually approached and bowed respectfully.

"My lady. It is time."

Lilith nodded before finally letting go of my arm.

As she walked toward the center of the hall, countless eyes followed her movements.

Whispers spread throughout the crowd.

"They say she’s cursed."

"I heard she used magic as a child."

"The Nightbane bloodline is powerful, but surely not enough for those rumors to be true..."

Lilith ignored every whisper surrounding her.

She calmly stepped onto the center of the awakening circle beneath the massive chandelier overhead.

For a brief moment, the entire hall fell completely silent.

I remembered the original account of Lilith’s awakening from the novel.

It had been described as pure chaos.

The moment Lilith touched the awakening crystal, dark purple mana had supposedly erupted violently throughout the hall. The crystal shattered instantly, the ceiling cracked apart, and the storm of mana split the clouds hanging above the Nightbane capital itself.

That event alone had become one of the first signs to the world that the future Void Witch had appeared.

And now—

I was about to witness it in person.

Lilith slowly placed her hand onto the crystal.

The instant she touched it, I immediately stepped backward and shut my eyes tightly, preparing for the catastrophic explosion I knew was coming.

But...

Several seconds passed.

And nothing happened.

Confused, I slowly opened my eyes again.

The first thing I saw was light.

Not the violent dark-purple storm I remembered from the novel—

But an overwhelmingly bright, almost angelic glow that illuminated the entire hall.

Several nearby nobles instinctively flinched and shielded their eyes from the radiance.

The crystal itself shone brilliantly while soft streams of pale violet mana swirled gently around Lilith’s body.

The atmosphere felt calm.

Beautiful, even.

The entire hall remained deathly quiet.

Then finally, one of the royal mages standing beside the altar spoke in a trembling voice.

"A rank..."

The silence shattered instantly.

"What?!"

"An A-rank?!"

"The NightBane genes are truly amazing !"

The nobles erupted into complete chaos.

Several influential families immediately surged forward, practically trampling one another in their desperation to approach Lilith first.

"Young Lady Lilith! My son is close to your age—"

"The Rosenvail family would be honored to form ties with the Nightbanes!"

"Please consider an engagement between our houses!"

The sudden flood of marriage proposals and political offers was so overwhelming that the guards had to physically stop some nobles from approaching the altar further.

Meanwhile—

I simply stood there in confusion.

’...What?’

Something was wrong.

Very wrong.

Lilith was supposed to awaken as an S-rank.

I was absolutely certain of it.

Mana capacity was determined at birth and could not be changed. That was one of the fundamental laws of this world.

So why—

Why was the crystal only showing A-rank?

I stared through the crowd toward Lilith.

And then—

Our eyes met.

For a brief moment, the noise of the hall seemed to disappear.

Lilith looked directly at me.

Then slowly—

A sly, mischievous smile spread across her face.

My stomach dropped instantly.

That smile practically screamed one thing.

She did something.