Born In Ashes: The Enigma

Azrael left the mansion for the first time since arriving in this new world and walked toward the backyard, admiring the beautiful flowers, green grass, and lush trees along the way.

For a brief moment, a scene of him taking a walk in the park along with some broken humans flashed through his mind.

'I wonder how No. 1 and the others are doing?' He thought to himself, but soon shook his head to clear his mind.

As Azrael reached the backyard, he saw that Kael, Lia, Rowan (the butler of the Thorne house who had come to check on Azrael along with Lia on the first day), and a few other servants were already there.

Kael was dressed neatly in a black shirt and pants, his silver hair perfectly groomed. Though his outfit was simple, he genuinely looked like someone from a prestigious family.

Rowan, who appeared to be in his mid-forties, had shiny brown hair and a well-trimmed beard. Wearing a formal butler's uniform, he was giving instructions to the other servants to ensure everything was in order.

Lia was still in her maid uniform, her blonde hair tied neatly in a ponytail. Looking at her petite frame and delicate appearance, one might easily mistake her for just a beautiful young girl—if Azrael didn't already know there was a high chance she was an assassin.

'Well… It seems everyone's dressed nicely,' Azrael thought as he glanced down at his own outfit, briefly wondering if he should've put in more effort.

'Considering the excuse I plan to give for my sudden change in personality, I think dressing casually is actually more fitting.'

Hearing footsteps, Kael and the others turned toward Azrael and for a second, their expressions turned strange when they saw him.

He was wearing a red T-shirt with a strange cartoon frog printed on it, paired with grey shorts and slippers. He still had that lazy expression on his face, as if he didn't care much about the people they were about to welcome.

"Brother, are you trying to become a fashion terrorist?" Kael couldn't help but comment upon seeing Azrael's bizarre outfit.

Azrael choked slightly on his breath and gave Kael a blank stare.

Seeing Azrael's reaction, Kael let out an awkward laugh and turned back to feed Coco, who was lying on the ground like a loyal puppy.

"Umm… Young Lord, this…" Rowan quickly walked over and spoke in a slightly nervous voice, "Don't you think it's inappropriate to welcome My Lady and My Lord in such a… unique outfit?"

"Don't worry, Grandpa Rowan," Azrael said with a smile, shaking his head. "I know what I am doing."

"This…" Rowan seemed like he wanted to say more, but just then, the bracelet on his wrist vibrated slightly.

His expression changed, and he immediately decided to push aside his concerns—at this point, there was nothing more he could do about Azrael's appearance.

"Everyone, stand in position. They will be here in one minute."

Azrael glanced at the servants, who now wore serious expressions on their faces, and walked to the front beside Kael.

"Brother, aren't you afraid of showing up in that outfit in front of Mom?" Kael asked in a low voice.

'Afraid…?' Azrael raised an eyebrow, wondering if that woman had strict rules about clothing.

'But if she doesn't allow such clothes, then why are there so many in my wardrobe?'

Azrael glanced sideways at Kael and noticed something odd in his expression.

He didn't look like someone afraid that his mother would be angry—instead, it looked like he was… gloating.

'What's wrong with him?' Azrael wondered but didn't give it too much thought.

He recalled the information he had seen online about his parents in this world.

Being top-level figures with significant influence, there was plenty of content about them on the Internet.

Though, how much of it was accurate and how much was exaggerated nonsense, he couldn't say for sure.

'From what I saw, both of them appear to be Cosmic King-level beings—and are considered among the strongest, even within that realm. Especially that woman… she actually holds one of the five Witch Classes.'

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The power hierarchy of this world was as follows:

Level 1–10: Apprentice Warriors

Level 11–25: Class Warriors

Level 26–50: Epic Warriors

Level 51–100: Legends

Level 101–200: Planetary Beings

Level 201–300: Star Embryo Beings

Level 301–400: Star-Level Beings

Level 401–500: Cosmic-Level Beings

Level 501–600: Cosmic King-Level Beings

—and beyond.

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'Come to think of it…' Azrael's eyes drifted to Coco behind him. 'I didn't expect that this "doggy" is actually a Level 47 Epic-level monster.'

After researching online, Azrael had discovered that Coco was a Griffin—a very rare monster brought back by that woman for Kael during one of her expeditions.

Coco was only three years old, but thanks to the advantages of his race and the abundant resources Kael had given him, he had already reached Level 47.

'Humans have to wait until they turn sixteen before they can properly begin their evolution path. But high-end races like this don't share that disadvantage,' Azrael mused silently, a thoughtful expression crossing his face.

Not only that—even after awakening, humans still carried many disadvantages compared to some other races.

Take the Monster race, which Coco belonged to for example.

Would a Level 1 human and a Level 1 monster have the same strength?

Just imagine a newly awakened level 1 human facing off against a Level 1 Rock Elephant.

Forget about defeating it—a normal Level 1 human wouldn't even be able to break through the monster's defense membrane.

On top of that, the difference in physique between humans and monsters was massive.

In combat, a monster of the same level could easily overpower a human using raw physical power alone.

Of course, humans had their own advantages—ones that gradually revealed themselves as they continued evolving.

There is a reason humans are among one of the strongest races in this world.

But to Azrael, a disadvantage was still a disadvantage, even if it could be compensated for later.

'I don't want to be inferior to anyone this time…'

The helplessness he had once felt—when he lacked the strength to resist flashed in his mind, and a cold glint appeared in his eyes.

Suddenly, Azrael thought about his previous self—the one who had stopped being human due to the many modifications forced upon him in the lab.

'The power I had back then far surpassed that of ordinary humans. Maybe I can find a similar method… something that can help eliminate the weaknesses of being human.'

As this thought settled in his heart, Azrael felt a strange fire ignite deep within him.

Rattle! Rattle!

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, for a brief second, he heard what sounded like chains rattling—as if something deep inside him was struggling to break free, bound tightly by unknown chains.

He looked at Kael and the others but noticed that none of them reacted. Their expressions remained unchanged, as if they hadn't heard anything.

'Was I hallucinating?'

Azrael frowned, but before he could dwell on it further, a spaceship appeared in the sky, flying rapidly toward them from the distance.