Angel Monarch

The sun's warmth illuminated Europe as a new day began. Vicky followed her daily routine, which became quite monotone in the past two years.

She woke up next to Henry, who was already wide awake and getting ready for school. While she was still groggily looking around, he was already assisting the maids in preparing breakfast.

They always tried sending him away, but he was adamant about helping, and since they couldn't order a prince around, they awkwardly accepted.

The others woke up after him and gradually trickled into the dining hall for breakfast. Henry woke first, followed close by Lydia. Max, Glenn, Dan, and Jamie's orders always change, but Vicky's late arrival is permanent.

Their parents also attend breakfast most times, since they all live in the same house now.

Not long after The War of Three Alliances, Henry had a falling out with his mother, and together all their families moved to New Athens.

Now, the parents worked in the city, or just simply enjoyed living carefree lives, while the kids attended one of the best schools in New Athens.

While everyone was beginning to eat, Vicky only just climbed out of bed. She yawned the sleepiness out of herself, then walked into the bathroom, where she spent a good half-hour getting ready.

When she stepped out, her nightgown was gone, replaced by a magnificent midnight black dress, which was seemingly woven from the night sky.

She kept her shoulder-length white hair in a neat ponytail. Her fierce, joyful white eyes held dark blue spots inside them, making their presence even more magnificent.

Vicky also applied a bit of makeup around her eyes. She also used a tasteful amount of fake blush on her cheeks and a light pink lipstick on her mouth.

Her heavenly features appeared even more divine with makeup on. While wearing the makeup and dress, she looked like a night-goddess. Even more so because of her delicate pale skin.

Her girlish body held no inadequacies, almost. A long scar running from the middle of Vicky's eyebrows to the left side of her jawline was her only imperfection, and even though she used makeup, the scar stayed visible.

Initially, there may have been some odd looks directed at her, but when Sera's scarred face was revealed to the public, it set off a new trend.

At first, people self-harmed to give themselves scars, but that soon got outlawed, and Evolved always healed their facial injuries. Following that came the tattoos. Vicky and others deemed it strange, but had to accept the compromise.

Now thousands sported Sera's facial scar as a mark of their goddess and for dedication to their faith.

While continuing to yawn occasionally, Vicky made her way downstairs and into the dining hall. The children had already finished eating, except for Henry. He always waited for Vicky to arrive so they could eat together.

Everyone smiled and greeted each other, but Vicky had eyes for only one person. In a raised chair sat a one-year-old with brownish-gold hair. His golden-hazel eyes angrily glared at one of Glenn's fathers as he tried shoving food into his mouth.

The baby didn't cry or do anything bad in particular. He just continued glaring, while keeping his mouth closed.

Glenn's father tried forcing his mouth open, but even with his Evolved strength, he couldn't.

While struggling, adamantly denying to eat, the baby scanned the room. His judgmental eyes scanned the room, only brightening, when Vicky appeared.

Upon stepping inside the room, she could barely greet everyone before the child was flying through the air. His pristine white wings held a few black feathers, making them a bit mysterious and truly breathtaking.

With one strong wing stroke, he flew straight into her sister's arms. His chubby face lit up with pure joy, while staring into Vicky's eyes.

"Nick! I already told you! No flying before breakfast!"

While Vicky berated her brother, he made a grumpy expression and tried grabbing her ponytail. She just giggled and placed him back in his chair.

She then took the plate of food and spoon away from Ben—Glenn's father. Every morning, he tried feeding little Nicholas, but he only accepted food from Vicky.

Surprisingly, this occurred only in the morning. He ate and drank whatever offered later on during the day, but Vicky alone could feed him breakfast.

Nobody really minded this. It made Vicky felt special, which made everyone happy.

They never talked to her about it, but everyone, especially the adults, worried about her mental health. After Sera's disappearance, she became depressed for a while, only returning to normal when Nick appeared in her life.

It also didn't help that Bea rarely visited. It was close to two months since her last visit, and even though they communicate regularly, Vicky always seemed happier when her mother was nearby.

While Vicky fed her brother, Henry stood up and stopped next to her. She turned to him with a smile and stood on her tippy-toes to reach him. Still, he had to bend down to kiss his girlfriend.

In the past two years, Henry went through a rapid growth for multiple reasons.

First, he inherited both her mother's genes, and since both were gigantic woman, his growth was already unnatural. Second, in the past two years, through lots of struggles and obstacles, he managed to evolve, becoming an Ascended.

Henry was only fifteen-years-old, but his height already reached 1,9 meters, which made him over 30 centimeters taller than Vicky.

He was also muscular. If one ignored his adolescent face, he could easily be mistaken as a grown man. It also didn't help that his mannerism stayed princely, and he always wore elegant, expensive suits.

They chatted while feeding Nick, then when he ate everything, the small winged baby took to the air and began flying around the mansion. One maid ran after him, cursing under her breath.

It wasn't necessary, since Nick was smart enough to stay in the mansion's proximity, but he still was only a one-year-old baby, so someone needed to be with him at all times.

They weren't worried about his well-being. The actual issue rose from the public. Nick's existence and origin was the biggest secret only known by the few individuals living with him, plus Lilith and Adam.

Even the maids who cared for him daily remained unaware of his background. Lilith also regularly checked their memories and even changed a few when necessary.

The maids knowingly accepted the job's implications, even if it involved some privacy infringement. Also, all of them were trusted members of the Angelic Order, so they wouldn't snitch about Nick's origin, even if tortured.

When Nick finally finished eating, Vicky and Henry began as well, while the others packed for school.

After everyone was ready, all seven of them went outside with their bags. They walked a few steps along the road, then stopped.

Vicky glanced up into the sky. There she saw a bird flying, but something was strange about it. The bird stayed still in the air, as if frozen, but somehow it didn't fall.

She continued staring at the frozen bird while Henry raised his hand and swiped through the air.

A sudden blast of warm air hit everyone in the face, as if a barrier kept it away from them. Above, the bird burst into action, continuing flying like nothing happened.

They let the influx of air settle, then everyone turned towards Vicky. She took a deep breath of the fresh, salty sea breeze, snapped her fingers, teleporting all seven of them into an empty classroom.

Teachers and students were absent from most of the school, since it was still quite early. But, despite two hours of preparation at the mansion, the seven of them arrived sooner than any faculty member.

This was thanks to Henry's Ascended ability. Upon waking, he encircles the mansion with a temporary time barrier, allowing preparation. Every hour spent inside the bubble equates to a single second outside.

Henry, of course, kept his powers a secret. Even his mother was unaware of the power he possessed.

It wasn't easy to gain this ability, alone it wouldn't have been possible. Luckily, Vicky wasn't the only person who had help with Evolution.

After arriving in the classroom, Lydia walked up to Vicky, who sighed in annoyance.

Why must we do this every time? I don't care if the others recognize me!"

Lydia just smirked and gently placed her palm on Vicky's left jawline.

"We already talked about this, my Lady! It would inconvenience everybody if they figured out either yours or Henry's identity! Now don't be a baby and stay still… Or you want me to accidentally turn you ugly?"

Vicky grumbled a bit more, but she stopped moving when Lydia began working on her face.

In the past two years, she became an Ascended too, but her powers were considerably less impressive than either Henry's or Vicky's.

She could change materials to a certain degree. With inanimate objects, it was very strong, but for flesh, bones, skin, and any living tissue wasn't easy to manipulate.

Lydia used her powers mostly to change both Henry's and Vicky's facial structures, making them uglier. Even using all her power, both of them kept their amazing features, but at least they weren't Evolved level beautiful.

Vicky also kept her scar, and when Lydia tried removing it once, she teleported her friend above the school's pool. She had to spend the entire day dripping wet, and it also ruined her leather jacket.

Lydia learned a valuable lesson that day: good intentions don't justify overstepping boundaries, especially when it comes to her friends.

Other than changing their facial features, Lydia also changed their hair color, turning Vicky's light brown and Henry's black. Vicky's eye color also needed changing, so Lydia turned them dark green.

With their disguises finished, Vicky turned towards her boyfriend with a smile. He giggled at her expectant expression, then bent down and kissed her.

While occupied with one another, their classmates began arriving as the school day was about to begin.