Arpious of the Planes

(Tayber POV)

And then I reached out my hand towards the girl who was curled up in a ball. Desperate, she latched onto my hand as I pulled her up. Her flowing tears suddenly burst out as she buried her face into my chest.

Mother made the immediate decision of taking her in for now due to her weak and pitiful state. I handed the crying girl to mother as we wandered the broken streets. Houses, buildings, sheds, everything had crumbled.

We continued to wander down the streets and ignored the cries for help. There could've been lingering monsters, so my mom regretfully ignored the pleas that were directed right at her.

I didn't understand mothers' tears at that time.

We ran until we arrived at the local church. For some reason, it wasn't torn down in the slightest, so we immediately ran inside. What greeted us were hundreds of families huddled together with the king, trying to calm them down.

As we sat down in the crowd, the king left the church to gather more citizens.

The crying of babies. The whining of kids. The hushing of the parents that tried to calm their children. The complaints of the cold and hungry. It was a miserable day. It was a terrible day… I hated that day.

Several days had passed as the horde had retreated but at the cost of many lives. Not just soldiers but citizens, as saving all of them was impossible.

The king then made a speech the day after the horde had retreated. He swore never to let harm come to the kingdom, and he would fight and die with his soldiers on the battlefield… I knew I wanted to be like him.

As we still didn't have a home, we continued to stay in the church, living off the bland meals they gave us. We finally asked for the little girl's name, and she said it was,

"Ester… Ester Rutter,"

The little girl mutters.

Another week passed, and nothing happened. Another week passed, and we were still in our pitiful lifestyle as we had no more money. Father had died during the horde, and the monsters had completely eradicated our house.

Another week had passed.

Another.

And Another.

And Another…

Until one day, when Ester and I had just woken up… a goblin had somehow snuck its way into the church. As mother hadn't established herself within the church, we were forced towards the entrance… meaning we were attacked first by the rouge goblin.

It lunged at me as I had just woken up. Scared, I shuffled away, with Ester shaking in fear. Mother was exhausted from trying to find a job for the 57th time, so she was in a deep sleep, but after one shriek from me, I woke up the entire church, including her.

The soldiers who were still staying in the church quickly picked up their weapons and dashed towards me… but it was too late.

The goblin had opened its mouth and displayed its sharp teeth towards me. It grabbed onto my skinny arm and directed its toothy jaws towards it.

"AHHH!" I shout.

Suddenly, a blast of light radiated from my body, instantly tearing the goblin into shreds. The ugly green thing flopped onto me, and it didn't take long for me to pass out. But, the last thing that I saw was,

[The Overlord Spirit of Light has taken action]

[Gained the following skill]

[Light Control]

[The Overlord Spirit of Light has revealed your secret title… Blessed by the Overlord Spirit of Light]

[The Overlord Spirit of Light has granted you full access to your title]

…

When I woke up, I found myself on a massive bed. It had silk sheets, and the quality of everything was something I could never dream of having.

As I climbed out of bed, a butler walked into the room and said two words,

"Follow me,"

I, of course, followed him down the large hall with a silky red carpet. Maids and butlers were working to attend to the massive building I was in.

As I followed the butler, I glanced at the beautiful view presented to me through the window.

"We're here," The butler says, snapping me out of my daze.

The butler opened a pair of 2 massive wooden doors, and as I walked through it, I saw the king sitting on his throne. Next to him was a beautiful woman but the only thing I could think of at that time was,

"Where is mommy?" I ask the king.

The king laughed out loud and made a gesture towards the guard.

"Tayber!" A familiar voice shouted.

It was my mother. Once I saw her, I remembered what happened with the goblin and immediately burst into tears, holding onto my mother.

Ester was awkwardly standing beside me.

"Miss Eliss," The king says calmly.

"Y-y-y-yes, your highness," my mother says, immediately kneeling on one knee with me tightly held in her arms.

"No need to be scared, I have actually brought this young boy here to grant him an offer,"

"May I inquire about this offer, your highness?" My mother asks, clearly wary of the king.

"As I said before, there is no need to be scared, for I have chosen this boy as the next Light Hero,"

The throne room immediately erupted into an uproar as the nobles had many questions.

"SILENCE!" The king shouts, making me and Ester wince in pain.

My mother pulls in Ester before covering both of our ears with her body.

"Your highness, may I ask why you have chosen my son. Is it related to the golden light from last night?" My mother asks.

"Indeed! I have inspected him and found out that the Overlord Spirit of Light has blessed him,"

The throne room once again erupted into an uproar, but this time the king wasn't having any, so he released his aura, silencing everybody again.

Mother had taken the brunt of the aura, so she coughed up blood while we were shivering in fear.

"Oh, my bad, Miss Eliss… Let me add one more thing, and it is entirely up to you whether you want your son to be the next hero or not. I will not object to any decision you make, but that means you won't be receiving any help from me.

This might sound terrible of me as I have just been informed of your extreme poverty, but if I help out one low-income family, then the rest of the kingdom will be aware, and if I don't help them, their faith in me will take a nosedive," The king says with a warm smile.

"I understand… though my son may be too young to understand, may I ask him if he wants to become a hero?" Mother asks.

"Of course,"

After getting confirmation, mother looked at me with warm eyes.

"Tayber, do you want to be a hero?"

"A hero? Can I be like the king?" I ask, looking up at the king with sparkling eyes.

"HAHAHAHA! Of course! You can be a hero that saves people! It's the greatest job anybody could ask for!" The king laughs after seeing my reaction.

"Then I want to be a hero!" I shout, my eyes beaming with glee at my mother.

"If that's what you want," My mother says, giving me a warm smile back.

Though I didn't notice it at that time, Ester was slightly sad at how little attention she was getting, but coincidentally I said,

"You'll cheer me on, right Ester!"

Easter gives me a slightly embarrassed nod, but it quickly changes into a smile as Mother accepts the king's request.

"I accept,"

"Great! We will give you financial support and even land if you would wish!" The king offers.

"My king, though this may be rude of me, I request for only a small house. Though, I will graciously accept the financial support so I can feed these two children and let them attend school,"

"Of course, the financial support will be provided, and there is no need to pay for schooling as we will let both of the kids attend the highest-ranking school in the kingdom. And don't worry about the segregation and oppression of the poor; I am highly aware of it. That is why I will let them attend Lex Academy, which was created by the current Light Hero who was in a similar situation as you," The king says,

"Thank you, my king! All hail the king!" Mother shouts.

"Okay, we will inform you of the other details later, including when you're new home is ready. Just rest here for now as we prepare everything,"

Mother, not wanting to decline the king's offer, of course, accepted.

"You are dismissed,"

...

My eyes opened. I was floating in a purple liquid with an icy blue aura surrounding me. I saw that my party members were unconscious and had the icy blue aura surrounding them as well.

[The Emperor Spirit of Ice has revealed your secret title… Blessed by the Emperor Spirit of Ice]

[The Emperor Spirit of Ice has granted you full access to your title]

[Ice related skills have been added to your status]

[Gained the following skill]

[Throne World: Heavenly Ice Palace]