《Smoke & Fire (Hiatus)》 Chapter 0 - Prologue 1969. Downtown, New Jersey. Police sirens, indiscriminate shouting, along with the sounds of guns being fired could be heard coming from the western part of downtown Jersey deep into the night. ¡°Boss, bad news, it¡¯s the cops!¡± A door is slammed open, leading into a room situated deep within a large mansion. The DeCavalcante Family were holding a strategy meeting on how to deal with their rapidly expanding ¡°allies¡± in New York. However, seeing the opportunity in the coming conflict, the New England crime family, the Patriacra tipped off the cops to use them as a means to gain favor with the five families of New York. A man sitting in a chair talking to the DeCavalCante head while drinking aglass of bourbon suddenly stood up upon hearing the situation. ¡°What!? The Patriarca sold us out? Those motherfuckers I¡¯m gonna shoot up every one of their god damn clubs!¡± ¡°These god damn cops, they followed our bag man and ambushed our crew, so far we got 7 dead and killed a whole bunch of them but there¡¯s just no end!¡± desperately explainedthe mobster who just stormed into the room. ¡°Ace get the boss outa here we¡¯ll buy you some time, now GO!¡± ¡°Wait, where¡¯s Florian?¡± ¡°Smoke? He¡¯s already securing a back entrance, use the third alley and you¡¯ll see him,¡± themobster continued. ¡°I got it, Uncle please follow my lead until we get to the safe house.¡± ¡°Hmph, that motherfucker Raymond, I¡¯m gonna personally gut one of his kids for every button I lose today. Wanna mess with mi familia? Cavante, clear all the hot goods, I ain''t going to a joint today.¡± ¡°Yes, boss.¡± ¡°Good. Let¡¯s go Ace we¡¯ll meet up with your brother around back.¡± ¡°Yes, Uncle.¡± At that moment, a large explosion resounded throughout the residence. The room shook as if an earthquake was occurring,hinting at the scale of damage caused by the blast. ¡°What the fuck was that!? Boss, Ace, you okay?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine I¡¯m fine, Ace got me.¡± A new mobster came running this time, his face pale and desperate. ¡°Boss! Bad news there¡¯s a Gifted taking out our crew around back!¡± ¡°That explosion¡­ Harvey, is it? So it is the Patriarca after all. Son of a bitch!¡± Snap. A chair was kicked across the room. The middle-aged boss of the DeCavalcante Family, Simone Decavalcante was furious. ¡°Cavante, I don¡¯t care how many it takes, round up all the made men we got. If they want a fucking war that¡¯s what they¡¯ll get.¡± ¡°Yes, boss! But first, let¡¯s get you out of here.¡± ¡°Right, let¡¯s go, lead the way Ace.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll burn them for today Uncle, I promise you.¡± The young 23-year-old followed by the 56-year-old man left the room through a back entrance. As they made their way quickly through the war zone that was originally a beautiful mansion in downtown New Jersey, Ace felt an intense rage burning in his normally calm heart. ¡°Whoa there son, I know you want to burn them but don¡¯t forget, our men is in here too. Calm yourself.¡± Noticing that fire was bursting out from his clenched fist, Ace quickly recovered from his turmoil. ¡°I¡¯m sorry Uncle, Florian¡¯s attitude must be rubbing off on me.¡± ¡°Right, now let¡¯s hurry.¡± *** The two arrive in a back alley where three men awaited them. At the head of them, a 19-year-old youth with gray hair and black eyes. He was indeed Florian Kuklinski, nicknamed ¡°Smoke.¡± Wearing a fitted suit with a magazine pack around his waist, his fierce expression stayed unwavering upon seeing his brother and uncle. His looks rather matched his gift, unlike that of his brother Joshua, who possessed green eyes that contrasted greatly with his flaming red hair, of which provided the only hint towards his ability. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°Uncle! Ace! Finally, you¡¯re here! You two, take care of them.¡± ¡°Wait. Stop! where do you think you¡¯re going?¡± Ace pulled his brother¡¯s arm as he tried to run past him into the mansion. ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious? I¡¯m gonna kill those motherfucking cops, I can¡¯t let a single one of them leave here alive, Johnny and Carlos were both killed at the front, I¡¯m gonna avenge them! You have to let me go Uncle.¡± ¡°Calm down Smoke. Our first priority is to get out of here and regroup, you think those stupid cops are capable of this? The Patriarca sold us out. They even sent Harvey didn¡¯t you hear the earlier explosion?¡± ¡°Harvey? Fine, I¡¯ll kill him too, this¡¯ll be payback for all that money he took from me.¡± ¡°You mean the money you gambled away, you hot-headed idiot.¡± ¡°Hmph. You¡¯re the last one I wanna hear that from.¡± At that moment, a man jumped down from the roof and landed on the car. ¡°Alright that¡¯s ¡®nough, sure is a nice last chat between two brats and an old man. Who woulda thought that the great head of the DeCavalcante Family would face his end in a dirty back alley like this.¡± ¡°Agh it¡¯s Harvey!¡± ¡°You bastard!¡± The two men that stood guard at the car pulled out their pistols and fired on Harvey. However, with his beyond human reflexes, he anticipated the shots and dodged while pumping two bullets into each one of the men¡¯s heads from a pistol by his hip. ¡°Well speak of the devil and he shall appear. If it isn¡¯t a walking dead man. You¡¯re gonna pay for that.¡± ¡°Keep talkin¡¯ Smoke, this time it won¡¯t just be your money I¡¯ll be taking.¡± ¡°Harvey, I¡¯m let¡¯s see how many jokes you can make after I melt your fucking lungs!¡± Smoke opened his magazine pack around his waist and took out one of its contents, an empty 7.63mm bullet canister. He gritted it between his teeth and with a deep inhale, inside the empty shell was formed a bullet made of smoke. He exhaled violently as multiple smoke bullets shot out from the shell. This was his signature move, if the smoke bullets were to pierce a person¡¯s lungs, it would quickly spread with intense heat and render the enemy lacking for oxygen within seconds, dead within minutes. But not before choking to death while the poison of the smoke filled their bloodstream. A simple, but crude attack. ¡°Hmph!¡± Harvey slightly pricked his finger with a hidden needle and pointed it at the incoming smoke bullets. A shockwave then appeared that destroyed the incoming projectiles and left the two brothers and their boss bracing for impact. Harvey was a unique Gifted, he had the power to create combustions with his blood, any amount of blood as long as it was his, he could explode at will. Of course, doing so while his blood was still in his body would be rather foolish,therefore many ''Families'' were hesitant to employ him due to his volatile ability. He was aptly nicknamed, ¡°The Human Bomb.¡± ¡°This is bad. We can¡¯t fight Harvey here while ensuring Uncle¡¯s safety. Florian, we have to retreat.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t fuck with me, I¡¯m gonna kill this guy here and now!¡± ¡°And you expect me to let Uncle die because of your foolish vendetta? Try to grow up for a second. Quickly, now Uncle follow me!¡± ¡°Tsk. Fine!¡± Smoke had annoyed expression on his face as he spat out a large smoke as cover. The three then retreated down the street off to a side alley next to the mansion. ¡°Hmph. Running away? Don¡¯t think so,¡± huffed Harvey. Harvey was slightly surprised that the usual hot-headed Smoke would actually create a smokescreen to try to escape. This led to him being slower in his reaction and gave the three men just enough time to escape his view. The 27 or so year old hitman repeated the same action as before and blew away the smoke. Assessing the situation he wondered if he should just blow up the whole block. His mission was to kill the current head of the DeCavalcante family, however, he was not allowed to kill any cops. The Patriarca Family feared that such casualties would be a roadblock to their negotiations with the Five Families of New York, who treasured their covert style of doing ¡°business.¡± Analyzing his options, he had no choice but to chase on foot. *** In the side alley, the three men escaped into a small pathway that led to the sewer. This whole area was owned by the DeCavalcante Family and of course, that includes the space underneath as well. As they ran they heard shots being fired and men shouting in front of them. Coming round the corner, they spot Cavante and his men fighting off the New Jersey State Police units. Smoke took the initiative and gritted two empty shells between his teeth this time, as he produced a swift and accurate assault on the encroaching police. ¡°Boss! Ace and Smoke, what the hell are you guys doing here!? You were supposed to escape to the safe house by car.¡± ¡°Harvey found us, we couldn¡¯t risk fighting him near the boss,¡± Ace explained. ¡°Fucking hell, there¡¯s a ton of cops this way but it should be safer than trying to get through Harvey, that lunatic.¡± ¡°Boss, please, put this on,¡± one of Cavante¡¯s men beckoned. The boss was then handed a bullet-resistant vest and a police helmet stolen from one of the dead cops. ¡°That¡¯s right boss we can¡¯t risk you getting hit by a stray, please understand.¡± ¡°Yeah yeah I got it. Now hurry up and let¡¯s leave.¡± ¡°Not so fast, the fun hasn¡¯t even started yet.¡± The men turned around as they saw a figure with bright green hair and deep blue eyes. Almost like a beacon in the middle of the night, his figure could be easily spottable a mile away. ¡°Fuck he caught up.¡± ¡°Son of a bitch, eat lead bitch!¡± Cavante and his men opened fire on Harvey but his inhuman reflexes along with the using a police vest in front of him as a shield, he was quickly closing the gap between the group and himself. ¡°It¡¯s no use, stop wasting your time, Cavante, escort the boss with your men outa here. Florian and I will hold Harvey off.¡± ¡°I got it. Good luck, don¡¯t die kid.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s gonna die? You old fuck,¡± retorted Smoke. At that moment, Smoke and Ace took a deep breath and blew out a storm of smog and fire, encompassing the whole sewer. Harvey, quick to react, slashed his fingers and jumped, slamming his palm on the ceiling of the sewer, and used the force of his combustion to the break through the cement and escaped from the ensuing attack. Similarly, Smoke and Ace jumped through a hole that Ace had melted through to pursue Harvey. ¡°Man, you guys are really starting to piss me off. My target is your boss, if you let me pass, I¡¯ll put in a good word for you with my current employers, what do you say?¡± ¡°Fuck you. We¡¯re gangsters, we¡¯re not rats you fucking prick!¡± Answered Smoke. ¡°Fine. Then I¡¯ll blow you up along with your boss!¡± A fierce battle ensued. Harvey was a powerful Gifted with his ability of combustion however he could not easily beat two of the best young Gifted members in the DeCavalcante Family even with his advantage in age. As the three of them fought flying from roof to roof around the block, finally the scale of battle started to shift. ¡°!!! An opening¡± Forced into an alleyway by Smoke¡¯s storm of bullets, Harvey had unfortunately picked an area that was a dead end. Seeing the opportunity, Ace roared out as much fire as he could to try to completely enflame the area. ¡°! SHIT!¡± Realizing that there was nowhere to escape from the flame, Harvey took drastic measures and slashed his whole left arm to create an explosion large enough to blow back the incoming inferno. The aftermath was clear, although Harvey had protected his life, his left arm was done. He was barely keeping even with both arms intact, at this rate he would surely perish. ¡°Forced back into a corner by a bunch of fucking kids. You gotta be fucking kidding me.¡± ¡°Ha! Don¡¯t estimate the sons of ¡®the one-man army.¡¯ If our dad was here, you would¡¯ve been put in ice and left to suffer hypothermia until you decide to kill yourself!¡± Proudly exclaimed Smoke. ¡°Well aren¡¯t you just a perfect little daddy¡¯s boy." Harvey spat out blood and thenformed a wide and sickening smile on his face. "Well, I may die today, but I¡¯m certainly not gonna do it alone! DIE YOU MOTHERFUCKERS!¡± Harvey suddenly raised both of his arms with a wicked smile on his face. In the next instant- ¡°FLORIAN! GET DOWN!¡± Ace leaped at his brother and then the two of them were covered in a bright light. The next thing they hear- ¡°Your majesty, the summoning has been successful.¡± Chapter 1 - The Summoning Side Joshua ¡°Your majesty, the summoning has been successful.¡± Those were the words I heard after being swallowed up by Harvey¡¯s suicidal blast along with my younger brother. I scan the area for Florian and see that he is on the ground behind me. He doesn¡¯t appear to be injured but he was closer to the blast than I was, looks like he¡¯s just unconscious from the shock. Next, I surveyed the perimeter. We appear to be in a throne room. I don¡¯t recognize the design. The architecture looks European, but I can¡¯t think of any country with a castle throne room this huge. The ceiling is at least 30 meters high, supported by twelve pillars lined up to the left and right of the room. I start assessing our predicament. Right now we¡¯re surrounded by what I can only describe as knights, like from an old fairy tale. They don¡¯t appear to be hostile but with Florian out of commission, I can¡¯t afford to let my guard down nor act recklessly. Up above at the top of the steps, upon a throne sat a middle-aged man. He appears to be rather young to others due to his shaved face but I can tell by the wrinkles that he¡¯s much older, perhaps around 40. He wore a sullen expression and beside him stood a young woman on his left and an old man on his right. As I was sizing him up, he began to speak. ¡°First off, I know you must be very confused, but I pray that you will allow me some time to explain everything in detail. For starters, this is not your world.¡± Not my world?¡­ ¡°You have been summoned here at my behest by our great sage Fludrel. Via a branch of the Tree of life, we were able to successfully bring you here before your deaths.¡± ¡°Wait what do you mean?¡± ¡°I shall explain, this person is an honored seer employed as my vassal, Aqualia Fei. By mere coincidence, as she was peering into the future of our land, she happened upon the battle between you, your brother and the other individual. It seems that at the very moment she started her ritual, the Tree of life on our world became synced with the one on yours, allowing her to see events on your world as well.¡± ¡°I see, however¡± ¡°You want to know why we would go out of our way to save someone on a distant world?¡± ¡°Correct.¡± ¡°I guess goodwill is not an acceptable answer is it. Haha. Well, I will be honest-¡± Suddenly I remembered, I turned to my brother on the ground still and hastily spoke out. ¡°Wait. What comes next seems rather important but I want to make sure my brother is safe first.¡± The king paused with a surprised look, followed by an apologetic smile. ¡°Of course, I apologize. Garan, please escort our guests to the cleric for inspection. We will continue after your brother has been healed.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I picked up my brother, declining assistance from the knight named Garan. He doesn¡¯t seem to be too bothered by my attitude towards their king, rather he seems rather apologetic. There must be something more going on with this summoning. We exited the throne room as I still remain on guard for an ambush. I took a final peek at the king before the door to the throne fully closed, he had a rather tired expression. For now, I need to make sure Florian is safe before I can plan our next move. *** ¡°It seems he suffered a blow to the temple. I cannot detect any internal damage anywhere on his body so be assured that he will be just fine my dear~. I will heal the bruise to ease his rest but he should come around within a couple of hours. ¡° The middle-aged woman we met after entering a room Garan had led me to did a once over on Florian. I was really suspicious about what she was doing, it didn¡¯t seem like any normal medical exam. She merely equipped an eyeglass and lightly touched him where his organs are, at least that¡¯s what it looked like to me. However what I witnessed next was really surprising.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Lesser Healing.¡± The woman placed her hand over the bruise on Florian¡¯s temple and chanted out those words. Then a small light glowed from her hand and the bruise had disappeared. In all of history there had never been a Gifted with the power of healing, just how did she do that. ¡°He will be fine dear. Do you want me to give you a look over as well?¡± ¡°No I¡¯m fine, I will stay here until he wakes up.¡± The woman smiled and said, ¡°very well. Feel free to use the neighboring bed though if you get tired, and if there¡¯s anything you need just let me know okay.¡± Then she left the room along with Garan,there seem to be soldiers positioned right outside the room, presumably to guard us. Now that I know my brother is safe, I should put a plan together on what to do next. I think that but I really don¡¯t know what to do next. If what the king was saying is true and this is another world, which to be honest I wasn¡¯t convinced until I saw that woman heal my brother, can we return? With my dad and his team still active, even if we can¡¯t return the Family will be safe no matter what. They don¡¯t need us back. But if we¡¯re stuck here, then what? We¡¯re alone here and Florian loves the Family to death, how will he take this news? I look at Florian laying on the bed. Okay let¡¯s take things one at a time, first I have to figure out a way to secure food, water, and shelter for us, we can think about what comes next after. I should take a rest, I¡¯ll need my strength if things get messy. Fuck, just one thing after another. I want a break. *** Side Florian I wake to find myself laying on a bed in an unknown place. I remember Harvey¡¯s suicidal gambit to kill us but nothing after that. ¡°Fucking psychopath.¡± ¡°Ngh.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s there!?¡± I see Joshua, or rather Ace, sleeping in the corner in a sitting position with one knee up. Come to think of it when was the last time I even saw him sleep? We haven¡¯t had much time to hang out together after I was initiated when I was 15. Maybe it¡¯s a chance to play a prank. I try to sneak up on Ace and¡­ ¡°!!! HA!¡± Ace suddenly opened his eyes and unleashed a breath of fire. I hurriedly dodge but by just a hair. ¡°FUCK, what are you doing asshole!¡± ¡°Just testing you. Looks like you haven¡¯t gotten worse these four years after all.¡± ¡°God, you don¡¯t know how happy I was when I was able to take jobs by myself without your constant torture.¡± ¡°My ¡°torture¡± is the reason you¡¯re still alive, Florian.¡± ¡°Just call me Smoke, Uncle named me himself after my first solo job you know.¡± ¡°Yeah yeah whatever, anyway, let¡¯s get down to business.¡± Ace suddenly had a serious expression. In all the years I¡¯ve known him, there have been only two other times I saw this. It must be really bad, what could possibly have happened- ¡°! Don¡¯t tell me, Uncle!?¡± ¡°No Uncle¡¯s fine, at least, that¡¯s my guess.¡± ¡°Your guess?¡± ¡°Harvey has always been known to work alone. The Patriarca¡¯s wouldn¡¯t send any other soldiers anyway since if they got arrested, they would be linked to this and the Five Families would know.¡± ¡°That makes sense, I guess. Then what are you so serious about? Don¡¯t tell me dad¡¯s mad about Harvey is he? I shoulda just finished him off quickly. Fuck.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not that either. It¡¯s about where we are.¡± ¡°Speaking of that, where are we? Don¡¯t look like Jersey. It¡¯s way too clean, pfft.¡± ¡°Just listen alright.¡± Ace put on his serious expression again. This time I focused up, there must be something going on. ¡°I believe we are in another world.¡± ¡°A what?¡± ¡°Somewhere not on Earth, that is.¡± ¡°What the fuck? You¡¯re fucking me right?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m not. I don¡¯t know all the details yet either. After Harvey¡¯s blast, I found myself and you teleported to this castle. The king of this place tried to explain the situation but I needed to make sure you weren¡¯t dead first.¡± ¡°Hmph, must be some kind of trick, we should just kill this king guy and get the hell outa here.¡± ¡°No, we must gather information, have you forgotten all that I¡¯ve taught you already? Would you like another lesson?¡± ¡°Ugh. Fuck off. Fine, now what.¡± ¡°Now that you¡¯re awake, we can go talk to the king and get some information out of him.¡± ¡°Yeah, and if he owns this place he must be loaded right? We should take everything as a souvenir for dad, maybe he won¡¯t kill us.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Nothing, let¡¯s go.¡± *** Ace knocked on the door and two soldiers came in. They sure got some outdated weapons. He briefly spoke to them and then we started making our way down a wide hallway. Man this place a fucking fancy, I can¡¯t call myself a member of the DeCavalCante Family if I don¡¯t empty this guy¡¯s pockets. After about 10 minutes of walking, we arrive at a room guarded by a bunch of men. The soldiers knock on the door and then after a short while, it opens and we enter. Seems like a small office space, there were only four people inside. For someone who supposedly owns this place, he should have way more guards. I can only guess that they must be strong enough to hold their own. That, or they are severely underestimating us. The man sitting on the chair behind a paper stacked desk stood up and greeted us. ¡°I am glad to see you are doing well.¡± He says to me. ¡°For starters, why don¡¯t I introduce myself first, as previous circumstances left no room for us to make our acquaintances. I am Jarv Alexander Ignarl the second, king of the Magnus Empire. May I have the pleasure of knowing your names?¡± ¡°Joshua ¡®Ace¡¯ Kuklinski, just Ace is fine.¡± ¡°...¡¯Smoke¡¯ Kuklinski.¡± ¡°Ace and Smoke, I am pleased to make your acquaintance. Allow me to ask, are those titles?¡± ¡°Something similar.¡± ¡°You must be rather important to have been bestowed a title. Similarly, this is my Knight, I believe you met him earlier, Garan. He¡¯s been given the title of ¡°The Indomitable¡± for his excellent war efforts.¡± ¡°Your words are wasted on me sire.¡± ¡°Well let¡¯s get down to business, I understand you two must have a lot of questions for me, I will answer them to the best of my ability.¡± ¡°Alright. First of all, how do we know you¡¯re telling the truth that this is another world?¡± ¡°Right. I suppose our magic is not sufficient? I believe you have witnessed it.¡± ¡°We have people with abilities back where we¡¯re from as well. We are proof of that.¡± Ace then effortlessly ignites his hand as a show of force. The first step towards intimidation, cool as always. ¡°Amazing. Such radiant mana and control. You must have claim quite a number of lives to get that strong, sir Ace.¡± I immediately put up my guard and prepare to attack, however Ace stuck his arm out, signaling me to stop. ¡°So you know what we are.¡± ¡°Of course, your abilities may be rare and unstudied on your world but here, we have been living in harmony with the land and learning of its secrets since millennia ago. Also, you can be at ease, I do not judge you for your profession. I myself am steeped in blood as this is turbulent times.¡± ¡°Hmm, is that so.¡± ¡°As for proof of the divide between our two planes...this should suffice.¡± The king opened a box and retrieves an item from inside. It looks like a palm-sized green crystal ball. Is it Emerald? A gem that big has to fetch a lot of money. I start planning my heist as Ace continues conversing with the King. ¡°This is an adamantite orb, imbued with the memory of my ancestor. Within holds the truth of our empire and world, to whom only a select few know of. This might hurt a bit.¡± After saying some cryptic stuff the king clenched his hand on the ball and it glowed. Then suddenly, images started appearing in my mind. Chapter 2 - The First Ignarl What the two brothers saw was a lifetime of events about a man named Maximus Ignarl. He lived in Rome in the year 212. He was a 35-year-old war general with the gift of ''Fissure,'' every swing of his great axe split the earth and leveled armies. However, he would be betrayed by his very own son who sought to steal his glory in war. As he was ambushed, fighting for his life, the ensuing battle left him at death''s door at the bottom of a ravine. Trying to survive, he crawled his way to a strange pond in middle a large opening within a cavern he used to hide. A tree was in the middle of the pond and as he drank its waters, it glowed brightly and literally pulled him in. What he saw when next he opened his eyes, as grasslands as far as the eyes can see, in an unknown land. Collapsing from fatigue, he would then be saved by a local farmer and brought to their village. At first, he wasn¡¯t able to understand the language, nor was he adept at a receiving the farmer¡¯s grace, for all he knew was war and betrayal. However, as time passed and his relationship with the village people grew, tragedy struck as they were attacked by bandits. Maximus who was working the field heard something he wished that he would never hear again, the cries of agony and desperation as the villagers were slaughtered and routed. Enraged, he rushed to the people¡¯s aid, annihilating the majority forces of the bandits including their leader, forcing the rest to escape. However, the damage was done. Fields were left in ruined, many dead and many more injured. Maximus cursed his powerlessness, he cursed his weakness, and most of all, he cursed the fact that the kind and gentle villagers had to be exposed to the horrors of war. How foolish he was that he believed his bliss could be granted so freely. He then made a decision that would set his course in life, he rallied the remaining population, training their men in the arts of war using the spoils left behind by the attackers. To secure a path of survival through the winter with all their crops destroyed, he led them to a neighboring village and told them of the horrors the bandits had committed. He negotiated the merger between the two peoples in order to strengthen them as a whole to repel any future attacks. Maximus¡¯s suspicions were right, a year later the bandits would come again, with more forces seeking revenge for their previous losses. But this time, he was ready. Leading the men and woman of the village, they destroyed the bandits¡¯ forces once and for all. Losses were many but alas, they were victorious. From there, hearing of Maximus¡¯s exploits from wandering traders and the like, many people began to migrate to his village seeking protection and safe haven. The village population grew exponentially within months and within the next five years when he was 42 years old, his territory had grown to that of a large city with a population of 10,000. He became aware that this was not his world when scholars started to make residence in his domain. He learned ofa world scarred by monsters and demons blessed with the power of mana, born able to use them as tools to hunt humans. Where they are located, far West on the vast continent known as Yggdrasil, home to the Tree of Life. The northern peak of the continent contained a divide to a different continent. Niflheim, the land of demons. Maximuslearned that once in the past the two continents were connected, however as the demon¡¯s lust for the consumption of mana grew, they invaded southward towards the Tree of Life, wishing to claim its blessed grounds for themselves. The gods could not allow their massacre and disregard for life continue, so they pushed them back and split the lands apart. However, the human population who had been living in peace until that point became devastated. The tainted mana left behind by the demons killed thousands and infected animals, turning them into monsters. They gathered in big forests whose roots were said to be connected to the Tree, thus filling the land with rich mana. Growing in population and equipped the natural born instincts to use mana as their weapons, they pushed humans to the brink of destruction, forcing them to live in desolate planes where the lands are not blessed by the richness of the Tree of Life¡¯s mana. So continued for hundreds and hundreds of years until now. Maximus was shocked to learn of this tale. However, he would soon discover something that would spread hope to the entire human species. Curious as to the effects of mana are and to examine the threats of monsters, he led an advance force towards one of the great forests on the continent, Wayland Woods. As he made his way through the forest, slaying goblins, ogres, and greater dire wolves with his gift, he found a small village in the forest. They were filled with people of the race known as elves. Maximus found that they spoke the same language as humans and after trading and befriending them, he learned of their origins as passed down by word of mouth for generations. The originators of the elves were actually human. After living in harmony with the mana-rich forest for thousands of years, their bodies slowly became changed by the power of the mana. One person, in particular, was blessed with huge life force and was said to have lived for hundreds of years before receiving a blessing from the Tree of Life, and ascending to godhood, the Elven god Corellon Larethian. Though whether this is true remains is actually unknown, many believe it to be fact and live their lives holding onto that faith. Normal elves only live slightly longer lives than humans, about 1.5x as much. The most important fact to Maximus was the fact that humans can also absorb and use mana. From what he understood about human history, people have always been powerless prey to the monsters and demons that commanded mana as their weapons. However, if what the elves say is true, humans also should be able to use mana as well, Maximus thought. Along with this he also had another realization, that he was living proof of this. He could feel his power grow as he slew monsters and lived on the mana-rich lands. He concluded that his gifts as the people from Earth called them are actually made possible due to mana, that Earth had its own Tree of Life that had affected certain people, bestowing them with these ¡°gifts.¡±This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. Maximus would spend the next ten years studying mana and establishing a trade route between his city and the village of the elves. The elves could command mana to affect their surroundings, creating fire, wind, moving earth and water, he named this phenomenon ¡°Magic.¡± Empowered with human capital and farming technology, the elves grew in population and territory. Copulation between elves and humans curiously resulted in either just normal elves rather or ordinary humans than a mixed race. Conception rate between elves was low but humans were fertile which solved their problem. Maximus himself took a female elven warrior as his partner in life. Maximus also found that like the elves, he began to age slower as he lived off the bountiful land and researched magic and mana, rather than aging he felt as if he was getting younger as the years grew. By the timeMaximus was 55 years old he held the appearance of when was 35, the same as when he first arrived in this world. However, no matter how much he tried, he could not learn to use the magic of the elves, to this he was deeply disheartened. But his work was enjoyed by his people, as more and more humans became able to use magic. A few were born able to wield special abilities like Maximus, the children with ¡°gifts.¡± He finally dawned on the truth, he was able to figure out the secrets of his own body through the birth of these children, who he called a ¡°Child of the Tree.¡± These special children, himself included, were born with something he called a magic core. Normal people do not have such a thing but through consuming mana filled produce, living off the land, they would developed something Maximus called the ¡°Mana Vein.¡± People who develop the mana vein could learn to use magic and command mana. The reason Maximus himself could not use magic, or rather, the magic of the elves that is, is because all of the mana he absorbs are taken into his magic core, so he could not develop a mana vein. In return, his own fissure ability grew and his body is strengthened as he absorbed mana. At this point, Maximus¡¯s domain grown into a large kingdom with a population of a million. He spread his influence far and wide and invited all the join him, promising safe haven and a good life. Maximus made due on those promises, along with his trusted comrades that he made throughout the years, they built the largest kingdom humans had ever seen until this point. As Maximus was an accomplished magical scholar and known for his prolific spreading of magical know-how, the country was named the Magnus Kingdom. Glory and power were given based on meritorious service to the kingdom and its people, which held order and gave rise to powerful and righteous leaders. Policies were put in place to prevent monopoly of power and people, power was passed down to family members, however, if they do not prove themselves to be righteous and conduct meritorious services like their predecessors, their power could be stripped and given to someone the king designates as deserving. This peace, however, would not last forever. The Second Great War. The first great war was the invasion of the demons tens of millennia ago. The demons found a way to make their way to Yggdrasil from Niflheim, the method unknown but they sent an army of one hundred thousand to assault the continent. At this point, Maximus discovered a shocking fact. Demons had a similar body structure to humans, although their skin was hardened and purple, with distinct features such as horns and wings, they looked human. A hard fought war ensued for many years, casualties in the hundreds of thousands until the demons retreated. Maximus never did get a chance to communicate with any member of the demons, as they spoke an unknown language, was hyper-aggressive, and uncompromising. Maximus despaired the horrors of war however he knew it was necessary to secure the future of humans and elves. For the rest of his life, Maximus worked towards rebuilding the land, reclaiming territory from monsters and developing the races. More settlements of elves were found in the four other great forests and Maximus himself served as an ambassador of peace. One settlement of elves, in particular, residing in the Gwydyr Forest to the south introduced him to a new race of people, the Dwarves. Their history wasn¡¯t as conclusive as of the elves but Maximus theorized that their evolutionary base was also from humans, living in the mountain caves, absorbing mana from the ore that existed there adapted their bodies to be strong, although stout. The story continues uneventfully for decades as Maximus spent most of his time after his travels in bureaucracy and peacebuilding policies. He would father seven kids, three of which were born as elves from his Queen Celestel, and the other four, humans. His oldest human son grew to be a kind and strong leader, he was a child of the tree wielding the magic ability of sound, specifically, he could immensely increase the sound of his voice, a powerful ability for a general. He retired as the king when he was a century old, handing it over to his oldest human son who was at the tender age of 28. He spent the remaining decades of his life studying magic, specifically the magic that brought him to this world. He developed a ritual using a branch of the Tree of Life to summon people from Earth to this land he named Runegard. However, he could not figure out how to return. Because of the powerful mana in the land of Runegard due to its vibrant and large Tree of Life, it had the power to affect other worlds, but the Tree of Life on earth was comparatively small and weak. It would be impossible to open a way back, the ritual proved so. It involves opening a hole in the fabric between spaces using the power of the branch, which begins a power struggle between the two connected Tree of Life. The large force would start siphoning out mana which is how someone from Earth can be brought to Runegard, they become ensnared in the pulling force and appear on the other side. For the weak Tree on Earth, it could never pull someone back. In his final moments, he created an adamantite orb and started recording specific memories for his successors and for anyone else that would be in his situation, "a gift from a man born on Earth who wandered ontoan amazing world." *** Back in the real world, the two brothers held their head in pain as they finished viewing the memories of the first king of Magnus. Shocked by the sudden revelations, they stood silently until one of the brothers started to speak. Chapter 3 - Exploring Florian scowled in anger from the sudden revelations shown to him by the adamantite orb. ¡°Fucking hell. You assholes better tell me what¡¯s really going on before I melt your lungs!¡± Florian reached for his magazine pack and removed a single bullet canister. Noticing the sudden bloodlust exuding from the younger Kuklinski, Garan moved in front of Jarv while putting up a defensive guard. ¡°Tch. Last chance.¡± ¡°Stop.¡± ¡°Haah?¡± Joshua grabbed hold of Florian¡¯s shoulder, worry in his eyes. ¡°What are you stopping me for?! I¡¯m gonna kill these fuckers here and now and go back to Jersey.¡± ¡°That¡¯s enough.¡± ¡°Hmph. Fuck you, you¡¯re not in charge of me anymore!¡± Florian raised his left hand to remove Joshua¡¯s hold from his shoulder. However, in that instant, Joshua swiftly restrained him, constricting his right arm behind his back. ¡°Ow ow ow, Fuck! Let go!¡± ¡°Cool your head.¡± ¡°!!! Agh!¡± Joshua squeezed a pressure point on Florian¡¯s wrist while kicking his left knee from behind, forcing him to kneel down. ¡°Now, now there¡¯s no need for all of this!¡± This time, it was Jarv that stepped in. ¡°I understand that was a lot to take in. I plan to have dinner in about two hours from now, how about we use that time then to answer the rest of your questions? ¡°We will accept that invitation.¡± ¡°What? No! Let me go! Ow ouch, Fuck!¡± ¡°Could we use the previous room?¡± ¡°Of course, Garan,¡± ¡°No need, I know the way.¡± Joshua easily lifted Florian onto his shoulder and started exiting the room. ¡°Don¡¯t struggle, or unless you want to be knocked out twice in one day?¡± ¡°Ugh, fine. Just put me the fuck down. I can walk by myself.¡± The two brothers then left, tracing their way back to the previous room Florian was resting in. *** ¡°Why did you stop me.¡± Florian had calmed down during their trek. Although he is hot-headed, he is also a professional. ¡°You know why. That was real, it wasn¡¯t some trick. Gifted¡¯s don¡¯t have this kind of power, that was real magic. Which means, this is a different world.¡± Florian then suddenly crushed the bed he was standing next to with a downward axe kick. ¡°FUCK! I know. I know but still.¡± ¡°That means here, we have no allies, no resources, no safe houses. If we start making enemies out of powerful people, it¡¯ll be the end.¡± ¡°I KNOW! I just...need some time okay, leave me alone.¡± Joshua sighs, ¡°don¡¯t do anything stupid. I¡¯m going to check out the area.¡± Florian doesn¡¯t respond as he stands by the window, staring off into space. *** After Joshua exited the room, Garan was standing outside waiting for him. The large battle scar across his eyebrow contrasted his large hearty smile that accompanied his soft green eyes and short brown hair. His large thick forearms show that he is a trained soldier rather than an ordinary person. Age-wise, he looks about middle-aged. Garan was now wearing a casual looking cloth outfit rather than his previous armor from earlier. ¡°Sir Ace, allow me to guide you.¡± ¡°Oh? So you know what I wanted to do.¡± ¡°His Majesty thought that you might do something like this.¡± Joshua casually responds, ¡°Is that so.¡± while making a mental note of the king. (He¡¯s not a simple one, is he¡­Well then,) ¡°Where would you like to go?¡± ¡°Show me your military force.¡± Garan was startled by Joshua¡¯s straightforward answer that fully displayed his intentions. ¡°No problem,¡± Garan say¡¯s while chuckling. ¡°Follow me.¡± The two made their way back to the area leading to the throne room, however this time, they descended down a flight of stairs into a large main hall with several soldiers standing guard. A couple of maids are also going about their day, some can be seen carrying various plates and utensils to prepare for tonight¡¯s feast.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. After another couple of minutes of walking, they reach the main gate to the castle. Two soldiers who were standing guard noticed Garan and saluted. ¡°Sir!¡± ¡°Mm. Good work. Could you open the gate for us?¡± ¡°Yes, sir!¡± Exiting through the main gate, Joshua saw the city below, looking even further back, there was a wall that led into a much larger surrounding city. The castle was located in the middle of all of it with large stone walls surrounding the area. He could see various soldiers running in a uniform manner. ¡°The area between the castle and the castle wall is the designated training area for soldiers. The main ground is located to the east side of the castle for combat and weapon training. To the west is a resting area and mess hall for our men, and to the south, our barracks.¡± ¡°What about your mages? Those are what you¡¯re known for right?¡± ¡°Hahaha.¡± Garan laughs heartily. ¡°Sir Ace. If you look to the northeast, as well as the northwest, you see those large pillars don¡¯t you?¡± Joshua noticed them earlier but was unsure of their purpose. Both towers reached into the heavens, roughly three-quarters the size of the world trade center he previously saw in New York. ¡°There are six towers total, these two located in the northeast and northwest, another two directly to the east and west, and the final two in the southeast and southwest. These six towers together make up the ¡®Six Pillars of Magic.¡¯ The whole area outside the castle until the dividing town wall is the place designated for magical research and training.¡± Joshua blinked in amazement. (Astonishing. This whole area that could pass as a small town is a military base?) ¡°This whole area is your military base?¡± ¡°Yes and no. Although our court mages do live there, it is open to all mages within our kingdom to live, train, and do research.¡± ¡°I see, I have to say I¡¯m impressed.¡± ¡°Thank you for your kind words.¡± ¡°Since we only have two hours, how about you show me your main ground for training.¡± ¡°No problem, follow me.¡± Descending onto the castle outer grounds, the two men made their way to the main training ground of the Magnus royal forces. As they walk, various soldiers briefly paused their running to salute to Garan. ¡°You sure are popular.¡± ¡°Haha, it comes with the title. I am undeserving of all the lavish praise.¡± ¡°Speaking of which, how did you get your title, ¡®The Indomitable.¡¯¡± ¡°An embarrassing story, haha. Ten years ago, during a defense of an invading advance force of the Demon King¡¯s army, our allied forces were ensnared in a trap by the demons after they intentionally retreated in two separate directions. Feeling confident, we split up in order to route the enemy forces, however suddenly our army who were in pursuit of the westward fleeing enemies were flanked. The enemy left additional forces in hiding to ambush us and we fell for it completely.¡± Garan sighed as he retold his tale, a hint of sadness could be seen in his eyes. ¡°In order to pave way for retreat, mymen and I volunteered to be the shield for our fleeing forces. We barely lasted long enough for previously splitarmy to regroup and repel the enemy. After that, I was personally bestowed the title of ¡®The Indomitable¡¯ by our king and knighted as his majesty¡¯s personal knight.¡± ¡°Ten years ago huh? You did that when you were...thirty?¡± ¡°Hahaha, do I like forty? I¡¯m sorry to disappoint but this year I am turning 58 years old.¡± ¡°Then is the king also?¡± ¡°This year I believe he is turning 60¡± ¡°Does everyone in this world age so slowly?¡± ¡°No, of course not. I believe you saw the reason for this in the Great King Ignarl¡¯s memories, didn¡¯t you? I was born with a magic core which strengthens my body and grants me longer youth.¡± ¡°A Gifted huh.¡± ¡°Is that what you call us on your world? Here, we are known as Specialists.¡± ¡°What is your ability?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll tell you if you tell me yours. Though I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll find out eventually anyway.¡± ¡°Hmhm.¡± Joshua slightly chuckled as he gave up on getting Garan to reveal his ability for now. *** Finally, they arrive at the main grounds. Noticing Garan¡¯s arrival, a man yelled out. ¡°Everyone, fifteen-minute break!¡± And then he walked up to the two. He had a fierce expression, but with a hint of delight behind it. ¡°Garan, has the paperwork driven you crazy yet?¡± ¡°Haha, Michael, this is Sir Ace, he is a guest of our king.¡± The man named Michael scanned Joshua from head to toe and stuck out his hand. ¡°Nice to meet you, I am Michael, Head Captain, and trainer of the Magnus Royal Army.¡± ¡°I am Ace, it is my pleasure.¡± The two shook hands as they exchanged their greetings. Michael wore a tight-fitting simple cloth-leather hybrid vest with long pants and leather boots. A sash with a symbol of the Magnus army hung around his right arm. He had short brown hair like Garan with deep, sharp, blue eyes. ¡°So, what brings you here today? Need a workout?¡± ¡°Actually that might be a good idea. Sir Ace here wishes to see how our men train, this might be a good opportunity to stretch my muscles for once. Is that okay, Sir Ace?¡± ¡°Of course, feel free to do as you like.¡± ¡°Hmm, is that so?¡± Michael softly said while peering at Joshua. ¡°Well, I hope you haven¡¯t gotten rusty. It wouldn¡¯t be good for the Empire¡¯s number one warrior to lose, even in a spar, would it?¡± Michael said mischievously. Michael then smiled creepily and turned to the men resting on the grounds. ¡°Break¡¯s over, get up!¡± ¡°Whaaat? It hasn¡¯t even been five minutes, you said fifteen!¡± Several men groaned. ¡°Oh did I? Oh well. Get up. Today we have a special occasion. The Head Knight Garan is going to be training with us! Anyone who can beat him in a duel will get one day of break. Lose and I¡¯ll double your training for the next week. Participation is mandatory.¡± ¡°NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!¡± Screamed the men while holding their heads in defeat. Michael then turned back to Garan. ¡°I hope you warm up quickly.¡± ¡°Damn it, Michael, you¡¯re still mad about that aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± Joshua watched as Garan moved into a shed and retrieved the same kind of vest worn by Michael, along with a wooden sword. He then started to do some stretches in the middle of the grounds while waiting for his opponent. Michael carried over a bench towards Joshua on his shoulder with a smile. ¡°Have a seat.¡± ¡°You¡¯re tough on your men aren¡¯t you? I like that. Builds character.¡± ¡°So you understand! Everyone here always moans and groans like a little girl but without my training, they¡¯d surely die in battle. Let¡¯s see how they do.¡± ¡°Do you think any of them will win?¡± ¡°Honestly? Probably not. However, getting to spar with the best warrior in the empire is sure to give them more motivation. Many of the young ones grew up hearing of his exploits, after all. The training afterward is guaranteed to be fruitful.¡± ¡°Quite crafty aren¡¯t you? I¡¯d love to talk some more about your training tactics sometime.¡± ¡°Oh? Are you a trainer as well?¡± ¡°Something like that.¡± ¡°Looks like my men are ready, enjoy the show.¡± Michael smiles creepily again and makes his way towards the middle of the grounds after one brave soldier volunteered himself to be first. ¡°Ooh, well if it isn¡¯t Luke. You¡¯ve been annoying me lately with your complaints so if you lose, you¡¯re getting a little extra along with double the training.¡± ¡°Bring it on! I¡¯ll show you!¡± ¡°Hmm. Alright then. Here are the rules, the winner will be decided if either party surrenders. No magic will be allowed but bar that, everything else is fair play. The time limit is five minutes, if no one wins by then, it¡¯ll be Garan¡¯s automatic victory.¡± ¡°Oi oi, isn¡¯t that too harsh Michael?¡± Garan says with a crooked frown. ¡°Hmph, don¡¯t worry, even against the Empire¡¯s hero I won¡¯t back down!¡± Luke exclaims with confidence. ¡°Alright, let''s get to it then, the starting point will be ten meters apart.¡± Garan and the young Luke put ten meters between each other and take up a stance. ¡°Ready...Fight!¡± Luke launches himself at Garan right as the signal was given, he attacked using the momentum of his leap while swinging his sword diagonally upward with his right hand. Garan easily parried the blow with his wooden sword, holding it with only his left hand. Meanwhile, he punched forward with his right fist, aiming for Luke¡¯s stomach. Twisting his body, Luke narrowly dodges and puts some distance between the two, breathing hard all the while. ¡°Oh! Not bad young man.¡± Luke seems pleased by the compliment but readies himself once more. ¡°I¡¯m not done yet, here I come, Sir Garan!¡± This time, Luke took it slow, inching forward while holding his sword in front of him with both hands. Garan maintained a neutral stance, still wielding his weapon with only his left hand. Once their swords were only about a meter apart, Luke suddenly lunged again, thrusting his sword forward in a stabbing motion, aiming for Garan¡¯s throat. Garan easily dodges the attack by a hair, shifting his body and neck slightly to the right. All the while, he quickly grabbed Luke¡¯s hand with his free right and squeezes, forcing Luke to drop his sword. He swiftly positions his own sword against Luke¡¯s neck and asks, ¡°Do you surrender?¡± ¡°Urgh, I lost.¡± ¡°Haha, don¡¯t be disheartened young man, you did really well. Work on balancing your sword arms, you favor your right too much which will make it easy for your opponent to read your attacks.¡± ¡°! Yes, sir! Thank you for the spar!¡± Luke answered energetically and bows deeply, leaving behind any trace of his previously shown cockiness, and then walked back to the other soldiers. They welcomed him with cheer and congratulated him on his spar, even though he lost he received a warm reception. Several more spars continued while Joshua quietly watched on the sidelines. (Florian would love this kind of thing, he always ran off to do underground fighting in his free time. I should get back soon. I hope he¡¯s cheered up.) Florian drifted in thoughts as he observed the duels. Needless to say, Garan easily won every single one and then gave advice to each individual person. After the last spar resolved, almost an hour and a half had passed. Shaking hands with the last contender, Garan received a towel from Michael, the two had a brief chat and then Garan made his way over to Joshua. ¡°Ah, that was a great workout. I want to thank you for indulging in my selfishness.¡± ¡°Not at all, it was very enlightening.¡± ¡°Haha, is that so? Well, what do you think?¡± ¡°You are very strong, Sir Garan.¡± ¡°Oh you don¡¯t have to use any formality, just Garan is fine.¡± ¡°Alright, also, the people you sparred with had rather acceptable skills. Is this the average ability of soldiers in this world?¡± ¡°Hm, not at all, these men are personally trained by Michael. He¡¯s famous for producing the best soldiers in our Empire. Each one here probably easily equals about ten regular soldiers.¡± ¡°Is that so.¡± ¡°Well, let us return. We only have half an hour left until your rendezvous with the king and I need a shower.¡± ¡°I can go back by myself, I remember the way.¡± ¡°That¡¯s an impressive memory you have, Sir Ace. However, unfortunately, I have to request to accompany you, many here don¡¯t know of your existence, you might get hindered on the way back.¡± ¡°Alright, then lead the way.¡± ¡°Thank you for understanding.¡± Garan and Joshua said their farewells to Michael, who was focused on writing a new training regimen for his men and only responded halfheartedly. The two then started making their return. Chapter 4 - Decision and Dinner Part One Garan led Joshua as they made their way back to Florian¡¯s room. The two soon arrive near the entrance to the throne room once again. ¡°Well then, Sir Ace, I need to go make myself presentable before the feast.¡± ¡°Alright, see you again soon, Garan.¡± After separating from Garan, Joshua found himself sighing outside of Florian¡¯s room. (Here goes nothing.) Entering the room, Joshua finds Florian laying on the floor staring at the ceiling lifelessly. ¡°Oi. Florian.¡± ¡°...huh?¡± Florian answered weakly. ¡°It¡¯s almost time for dinner.¡± ¡°Oh, you¡¯re back.¡± ¡°Yeah, I checked out some of their military power, let¡¯s go over what I learned before meeting the king again.¡± ¡°Yeah alright.¡± As Joshua explained what he learned to Florian, life started to come back into his eyes. ¡°The average soldier is definitely stronger compared to ours back home. So we can assume that there are easily hundreds of people that are stronger than us...¡± Joshua paused closing his eyes. ¡°However, that just means we can¡¯t fight them head to head.¡± He then continued. ¡°So how strong do you think that Garan guy really is?¡± Florian asks semi-interested. ¡°Physically, I¡¯d say he¡¯s on par with dad.¡± ¡°What? No way. How are we gonna beat that?¡± Florian questions while holding his head. ¡°We don¡¯t. Or rather, we hopefully won¡¯t have to. From what I can gather from the way they¡¯re treating us, they must need us for something. They definitely didn¡¯t just save us out of good will. When I asked Garan to show me their military force, I was testing him to see how he¡¯d react. He didn¡¯t hesitate at all. That means one of two things. Either they think that even if we know, we¡¯d be powerless to do anything, or that they plan to try to make us their allies.¡± ¡°Why would they wanna do that?¡± ¡°Honestly, I am suspicious about the coincidence that led to them finding out about us in the first place. I¡¯m at least half convinced that it¡¯s a lie to try to calm my nerves. Whatever the reason is, I¡¯ll force it out of him soon.¡± After saying so, Joshua went deep into thought. However, it was soon interrupted by Florian¡¯s sudden change of tone. ¡°...Hey, Ace.¡± ¡°Hm?¡± ¡°How are you so calm in all of this?¡± Florian asks earnestly. ¡°...How am I so calm huh? Simple, because I know my priorities.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t the Family your priority?¡± ¡°Although I do care about the Family, they are not my number one priority.¡± ¡°What is your number one priority then?¡± ¡°Hmph, figure that out for yourself,¡± Joshua says flatly, avoiding eye contact. ¡°You know, you remember the first time I led a job in Italy?¡± Florian says reminiscently. ¡°Of course. I remember everything. ¡°Show off. Anyway, it was the first time I had people under me that I had to protect. Before then I would just rampage around and kill any and everyone that got in my way until the mission was done, but I couldn¡¯t do it that time.¡± ¡°You were with...Johnny and Getty right?¡± ¡°Yeah. At first, I really dreaded having to work with others, I thought they¡¯d just drag me down. But after getting to know them, sharing our stories in the Family, and having them teach me about the underground in Italy, I couldn¡¯t just see them as expendable soldiers anymore.¡± ¡°So, you were slacking even on one of the biggest jobs that year huh?¡± ¡°Geh, come on, I got it done didn¡¯t I?! Anyway stop interrupting. After that, I started taking more Jobs with Johnny and Getty, as well as many others too.¡± Florian paused, thinking back on his experiences. After a long silence, Florian finally said, ¡°I truly, loved our Family.¡± Tears fell as Florian could no longer hold them back. He did not make a sound as the flow of water simply streamlined down his face. Joshua could only painfully watch as his brother¡¯s pressure valve of emotion finally gave up. ¡°Florian...¡± ¡°AGGHH, it¡¯s so uncool to cry!¡± Seemingly suddenly re-energized, Florian picked himself up and wiped his tears. ¡°Anyway, I¡¯m over it now! I was unsure before but now I know. Moping around all day will dishonor their memory. I¡¯ve decided, Ace, I¡¯m going to create a new Family here!¡± ¡°You want to start a mafia family in a different world?¡± ¡°Damn right! Thinking back on all my memories in the Family, I just know, there¡¯s no other place I¡¯d call home. I¡¯m gonna create a place where misfits like us can live freely without fear of anyone!¡± As Florian ranted on, Joshua simply cracked a slight smile, he truly was glad that his brother had cheered up. Florian then suddenly pointed at Joshua near the end of the rant. ¡°And you, Ace, you¡¯re gonna help me! You have no choice in the matter, it¡¯s your obligation as my brother!¡±A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°Hmph, spoiled as always. Very well, but on the condition that I want to be the Consigliere, not the underboss. Also, I¡¯m gonna train my own squad, I won¡¯t take no for an answer.¡± ¡°Geh, you as the Consigliere? Why? Wouldn¡¯t being the underboss give you more power?¡± ¡°Seriously Florian, you want to start a mafia family without even understanding the power structure? Although the underboss does usually run the day-to-day of the Family and has the most power within the family outside of the boss, the Consigliere has the most freedom and influence.¡± ¡°What? Uncle Riggi always bragged that he held more power over Francesco Majuri.¡± Florian blurted out in surprise. ¡°Giovanni Riggi¡¯s job was to control the flow of money coming into our family and run the business to ensure everyone gets paid. In a sense, he does hold a lot of power, since money is power. However, Frank Majuri, our Family¡¯s Consigliere, was the one responsible for settling disputes with our rival families and he took care of all the threats to our Family from the outside.¡± ¡°Is that how it is?¡± ¡°By the way, our dad works directly for Frank.¡± ¡°WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!¡± Florian exclaimed at the top of his lungs. ¡°You¡¯re kidding, I thought he only answered to Uncle himself!¡± ¡°Yep, although on paper, usually, I work with Cavante to guard the boss. In reality, most of my missions were given by Frank and our dad.¡± ¡°Y-y-you worked with dad? H-how was it?¡± ¡°Oh come on, he¡¯s not that scary. Though I say that, anyone other than me would probably die if they tried to work along side him.¡± Joshua says with a crooked smile. ¡°YEAH, NO KIDDING! Do you remember when I accidentally let my mark in Long Island escape? He dragged me from Jersey to New York to show me how it¡¯s done! I thought I was gonna fucking freeze to death.¡± Florian shakily responds. ¡°Since I can heat myself up internally with my gift, it allows me to work along side dad without too much trouble but, I don¡¯t think I could survive if he was serious.¡± ¡°Suddenly, I respect you a lot more now, Ace,¡± Florian says with sparkling eyes. ¡°As you should, little brother.¡± Joshua smugly answers. ¡°Hmph, ok fine, you can be Consigliere. What do you plan to do though? It''s not like we have rival Families here in a different world.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, you just handle growing our Family, and I¡¯ll do my job to protect it.¡± ¡°Is that right.¡± After a couple of more miscellaneous conversations, a knock was heard on their door, followed by the voice of a middle-aged woman. ¡°Good evening, Sir Ace, Sir Smoke. Dinner preparations have been completed. The king would like you to join him soon.¡± Hearing the word dinner, Florian¡¯s stomach growled as he hasn¡¯t had anything to eat in a long time. ¡°Ah fuck, finally!¡± Florian says with a flushed expression. ¡°Hmhm, well, let¡¯s go. We¡¯ll continue planning after we gather more information about this world.¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fucking starved.¡± *** Florian and Joshua exited the room to find a pair of maids. The one that called out was named Delia and the other one was named Carlene. Delia seemed roughly forty years of age and was the Head Maid. Carlene was her daughter, roughly fifteen years of age and was a maid in training. They wore brown and white maid outfits, Delia had long black hair tied up in a bun and blue eyes. Carlene looked like a younger version of Delia, with the exception of her hairstyle, which was a short-style. Florian and Joshua followed the maids as they made their way through the castle. Florian was scanning around as per usual for anything interesting that would catch his eye, while Joshua was deep in thought, organizing information in his mind. From time to time, Joshua could notice Carlene taking peeks at him, but he was too focused on figuring out how to get information out of the king to care. Soon enough, the group arrived at a private dinning hall used only by the king and his guests. King Jarv Ignarl promptly stood up from his seat at the end of a long table upon seeing Florian and Joshua, while Garan stood behind him off to the side, acting as his guard. ¡°Welcome! I¡¯m glad you agreed to come. I have asked my chefs to prepare the best feast they can, it also includes one of our kingdom¡¯s specialties, Rainbow Fish!¡± Jarv states energetically. ¡°Thank you for your hospitality, we look forward to it.¡± Joshua politely answers. ¡°Well, before we begin, let''s take the time now to answer some of the lingering questions you two have. Feel free to ask me anything you like.¡± Jarv says with a smile. Joshua was about to speak up when Florian suddenly posed a straightforward question. ¡°Okay then, what¡¯s the real reason why you brought us here?¡± ¡°Mm. I figured you might¡¯ve seen through my lie. Well, allow me to be honest. The truth is, our goal was not to summon you here. It was the act of opening the gate between worlds to use as a catalyst.¡± Jarv answered. ¡°A catalyst? For what?¡± Joshua asks. ¡°As you might remember from my ancestor¡¯s memories, once a portal between world gets opened, it starts a power struggle between the two Tree of Life¡¯s that exists in their respective worlds. The stronger tree will start siphoning mana from the weaker one, and we plan to use the mana that we harvested from your Tree of Life to perform a certain spell.¡± Joshua looks over to Florian to gauge his reaction, but he looks satisfied enough with the answer. Joshua thought that he might be enraged by getting pulled into their plot but since Florian resolved himself on building a mafia family here, he was fine as long as he got the truth. This time, Joshua posed a question. ¡°Are there any consequences against the Tree on our world? Not that I really care, just curious.¡± ¡°Worry not, a Tree of Life does not grow nor wilt from the moment it is born. The mana we siphoned will be recovered with time.¡± Jarv answered. ¡°However, allow me to add something on to before. Although our goal was the mana, we truly did not wish to inconvenience the people we would have to end up summoning. Therefore, although I lied about Aqualia''s happening upon you perchance, we truly wanted to make something good out of a grim situation. That¡¯s why we chose you two, who were moments away from death by your enemy¡¯s attack.¡± Jarv continued. ¡°I see. I fully understand now, thank you for explaining.¡± Joshua was content with his answer. He did not think someone who holds such high power would so willingly give away so many secrets; therefore he evaluated Jarv simply, he was a good man. Florian, on the other hand, was totally disinterested after getting his question answered. He was more focused on where to begin building his Family. It was then that he remembered what Joshua told him, they needed more information. What kind of information? Everything. If he wants a strong foundation, Florian would need powerful and loyal originating members that can protect the Family, as well as draw in new members. He needed to know more about the people in this world. Florian decided the best way to do that, would be to ask the most powerful man in this world that he knows, the king. ¡°Jarv, I got another question for ya.¡± The king was taken a-back by Florian¡¯s sudden casual attitude compared to his earlier bloodlust but was pleased all the while. ¡°Of course, anything.¡± ¡°Who are the strongest people in this world?¡± ¡°A tough question indeed, may I ask why you wish to know?¡± Jarv asks blankly. ¡°I¡¯m gonna make a mafia family and recruit the strongest people in this world as my underlings.¡± Florian plainly states. Jarv was dumbfounded. For the first time in his life, he did not know how to respond. For starters, what is a ¡®mafia family?¡¯ he wondered. With nothing coming to mind, he had no choice but to request more information. ¡°I apologize for my ignorance but, what is a ¡®mafia family?¡¯¡± ¡°It¡¯s simple. It¡¯s an organization where I¡¯m the boss and everyone works for me. In turn, I protect everyone who¡¯s in my Family. This is the principle that binds our members together, as long as someone joins the Family, they will be protected by all other members of the Family.¡± Florian proudly states. ¡°I see...like one big family is it? What sort of goal does your Family intend to have? I ask this not as a king, but as a friend.¡± Jarv emphasizes. ¡°It¡¯s simple. Our goal is the prosperity of the Family. Wealth, power, fame, we want it all. We work in plain sight, we take what we want and we kill those who oppose us.¡± ¡°Sir Smoke¡­you¡¯re serious aren¡¯t you?¡± Jarv asks with a fierce expression. ¡°Of course. I won¡¯t stop or back down no matter what the obstacle might be, even if it¡¯s you, Jarv.¡± Florian retorts back. After a brief silence from Florian¡¯s sudden exclamation, the one to break it was Jarv himself. ¡°Fu...hahahaha! I like you, Sir Smoke. Very well, I will allow it, under one condition. As long as you do not steal from or kill the innocent, I will allow you full autonomy within my Empire!¡± Jarv strongly states. ¡°Your majesty! Are you sure that is a good idea?!¡± Garan says while cutting in. ¡°Of course! Sir Smoke, Sir Ace, I¡¯ll be honest with you once more. Although I as king am blessed with many subjects who are righteous and mighty, but as one¡¯s power grows, so does the temptation for corruption. If you¡¯ll remember from my ancestor¡¯s founding principles, only those who show meritorious service to the Empire and it¡¯s people will be allowed in power. But as time passed, there would be many who abused loopholes within these principles. Corruption quietly grows and although it is not in plain sight, I know it is there. In my position, I am powerless to stop them as on the surface, they are doing their due diligence. I¡¯ve been waiting for a third party such as yourself to come and shake up those who would use my ancestor¡¯s pure intentions for their evil deeds!¡± Florian and Joshua look at each other after the unexpected response. Florian then flashed a wide smile after Joshua gives him a slight nod. Florian then laughs heartily and says, ¡°Hahaha! You¡¯re more interesting than I thought! Alright, I swear on it. I, Florian Kuklinski, will not steal from orkill those who are innocent and do not pose a threat to my Family. Although I will warn you, for anyone that would threaten any of our members, I shall show no mercy.¡± ¡°Of course, that is what I expect.¡± Jarv answers with a smile. ¡°Now then, for your previous question, ¡®who are the strongest people in this world?¡¯ I believe. Although I know quite a many numbers of powerful individuals, I do not know the extent to all of their strengths nor their character. So I must regretfully say that I am unable to completely answer your question. That being said, I believe I have a few candidates in mind that might interest you.¡± Jarv states while pondering. He then finishes with, ¡°But first, let us feast. Since we got the heavier topics out of the way, let us relax and enjoy our evening as we discuss things further.¡± ¡°Sounds good to me,¡± Florian responds. After clapping three times, the Head Maid Delia, who stood silently to the side, opened a door situated to the east side of the room and exited. Within minutes, multiple maids came in carrying all sorts of fare to the table. The time for dinning has begun.