Zhu Jian, initially suspecting they had used an artifact, was quickly growing frustrated. He was convinced the use of such an item would violate tournant rules. Aurelius, however, held a different opinion. As a demigod, he could easily sense when an artifact was in play, and he was aware that they didn’t use it.
At the sa ti, he had never encountered a situation where one’s Arcana spirit had been used by another person as Arcana spirits are soul-bound and they will never exhibit loyalty to a person other than their host, even if it is a deity. Even the rare quadruplets had never been recorded as exhibiting such a phenonon. His curiosity was piqued naturally. After all, how many things in the world that a demigod couldn’t understand? Such incidents can be counted on one’s fingers.
Rael stepped forward to speak, though not fully disclosing the truth. "On the day of our awakening, we essentially awakened the sa Arcana spirit, one that is in divine grade. It split its powers between Eon and because we share the sa soul," he explained. He glanced over his shoulder at Eon and continued, "Eon and I can summon each other’s Arcana spirit when the other hasn’t called it forth, and we can also share each other’s mories." He purposefully left out the truth about their fusion technique, keeping it hidden for now.
Zhu Jian stared at Rael in disbelief, struggling to process what he was hearing. "So, you... both have the sa soul and the sa Arcana spirit? And it’s the mythical divine-grade one ntioned only in the stories from the apocalyptic period?" he stamred. "You each wield part of its power—one with the death scythe, the other with the hourglass? But you can summon the other at any ti you want?" He paused and turned to the Duke, silently asking if this was so elaborate joke. If this is said by two adults, it would be more believable to hear. But coming from two 8-year-old kids... Zhu Jian couldn’t help but sigh internally.
Duke Aurelius didn’t answer imdiately, instead running his fingers through his beard as he mulled over the implications. "The sa soul... and the sa Arcana spirit. That’s... unprecedented," he mused aloud. "I’ve never seen anything like it. But, it would make a lot of sense." His eyes narrowed as he focused on his children. "But that doesn’t explain why you’ve kept this secret from , your father." His voice turned stern as he continued, "Did you think you kids could hide this from , or worse—keep it a secret from the Kingdom? Both of you aren’t commoners. You two are the heirs of the Garcia House."
Eon offered a nervous smile. "It wasn’t exactly sothing we could explain over dinner, Father." She was clearly uncomfortable, but she kept his composure.
Rael, shrugging his shoulders, quickly added nonchalantly, "It’s complicated."
Zhu Jian let out a long sigh, his skepticism evident. "Complicated doesn’t even begin to describe this. What you’re describing isn’t just so uncommon thing or extrely rare—it’s just unheard of. Arcana spirits don’t share their powers like this. Even divine-grade spirits aren’t supposed to work this way. No historical record supports your reasoning."
Rael shrugged once again, his voice light despite the tension in the room. "Truth is truth, Minister Zhu. You have to accept it."
"But..." Zhu Jian seed unconvinced and it was evident on his face.
The Duke understood Zhu Jian’s thoughts and addressed them directly. "Minister Zhu, how much do you know about human anatomy? Specifically, reproduction?" he asked.
"Human anatomy? Reproduction?" Zhu Jian repeated, blinking in confusion.
The Duke nodded. "Yes, precisely. You see, twins occur when a single zygote splits into two embryos. In cases where the genders differ, it’s because two separate zygotes are fertilized. My wife, too, carried two zygotes during her pregnancy. She was ant to give birth to twins. But sothing unusual happened."
Zhu Jian leaned forward, intrigued.
The Duke continued. "One of those zygotes split into two embryos. The result is not Raphael and Azrael, who are identical twins as you might think. Instead, it is Eon and Azrael who share this unique origin."
"What?" Zhu Jian shot to his feet, staring at the Duke in astonishnt.
Then, a thought struck him, and his eyes widened in realization. "Wait a second... That ans—"
The Duke inclined his head. "Yes. Azrael and Eon are monozygotic twins—an exceptionally rare occurrence. According to our family’s records, it has happened only once since our lineage was founded. It’s a detail we kept hidden from the public—and even from most of our relatives. Sharing this information widely would only lead to confusion and baseless rumors among those who lack the necessary dical understanding and the church would start their conspiracies of abomination." He paused briefly, casting a glance at his children. "But I wasn’t aware until now that they are not rely monozygotic twins—they actually share the sa soul. That revelation clears up everything for ."
"Uhh... so... what are we supposed to tell everyone else who has the sa questions?" Zhu Jian asked, his brow furrowed in concern. Even if he believed the Duke’s explanation, such information couldn’t be made public for obvious reasons. They needed a plausible explanation—a lie, or at least a carefully constructed half-truth.
The Duke fell silent for a mont, deep in thought, before speaking again. "We’ll say it’s a secondary inborn skill. That’s believable enough. My other son, Raphael, was born with two inborn skills, after all. And it’s not uncommon for siblings to possess identical or complentary skills. It’s an explanation that people can accept without raising eyebrows."
Rael and Eon exchanged surprised glances, the sa realization dawning on both of them.
’Why didn’t we think of that?’
Once the matter was cleared up, the two siblings returned to the waiting hall, their steps light but their minds weighed with everything they’d just uncovered. The Proctor, after receiving the nod of approval from Zhu Jian and Duke Aurelius, quickly made the announcent that the tournant would resu.
"Ladies and gentlen, thank you for your patience! Now, without further ado, let’s welco the extraordinary talents you’ve all been waiting for—the rising stars, the future pillars of our kingdom: Raphael Garcia, Eon Garcia, Arjuna, and Azrael Garcia!"
The crowd erupted into a thunderous cheer, the stadium trembling with their excitent. Flags waved high, and enthusiastic chants echoed across the arena.
After all, it wasn’t every day that one witnessed triplets fighting their way into the semifinals of such a prestigious tournant. Even among seasoned spectators, it was a spectacle to behold, a story destined to be talked about for years to co.
Eon glanced at Rael as they stood behind the massive gate to the field, the muffled roar of the crowd just beyond. "Just one battle to go, huh?" she mumbled, her tone light but laced with nerves. She grabbed his hand.
Rael squeezed her hand with a smile and nodded. "Yeah, after this, no one would try to separate us again."
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