《Re: Ascension Rebirth》 Prologue: The angel in devils clothing Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C The angel in devil¡¯s clothing Prologue In front of me was a crying girl. No, calling her a ¡®girl¡¯ wouldn¡¯t be quite accurate. In truth she was a 32 year old woman, but still, her stature was small enough to be mistaken for someone 10 years younger and even without her make up on she looked considerably young for her age. Also, she wasn¡¯t exactly in front of me, but was looking at me through the camera on my tablet. We were in a video conference call when the television in her room interrupted us. ¡°In other news, the CEO of [Mobius Industries] has announced his wedding taking place tomorrow at the Royal Ares Amphitheatre. An estimated 4000 people will be in attendanc-¡° ¡°Geez, they¡¯re broadcasting our wedding like it¡¯s any of their business!¡± Getting up from the sofa she shut of the broadcast in haste; embittered with seeing her beloved fianc¨¦¡¯s face plastered all over the media, or so I would love to think that was the case. Eh, actually it probably was the case. The young woman with short black hair and a baby-like face was my fianc¨¦ [Erin Callahad], or so that would be her new name once she¡¯s married to me [Aran Callahad]. ¡°Just let them be, that¡¯s how the media world works anyway.¡± I responded to her exasperated and cute whining. As the news had aptly put it, I was the CEO of [Mobius industries] a leading tech company that has since evolved into a mega-conglomerate, in fact I don¡¯t even know what we¡¯re making anymore aside from the tech side that I invested my time into most. ¡°But still~ there¡¯s a bunch of women out there who are trying to steal you away from me! Like that oriental woman who¡¯s always with you; she¡¯s definitely suspicious. You¡¯re not having an affair behind my back or anything are you?¡± She glares at me with puppy dog like eyes. How could I even think of cheating on someone like her? I¡¯d be mad to not be satisfied with this amusing- I mean adorable fianc¨¦ of mine. ¡°Oriental woman? Ah, you mean [Kirisaki Yui]? She¡¯s my bodyguard so of course she¡¯s always with me. Besides don¡¯t you think you should at least show her some confidence? She¡¯s the one that has been protecting me for the last 2 years you know?¡± ¡°Kuh~ if it¡¯s only about being a bodyguard why does it have to be a woman? There are plenty of other men that would fit the role right?¡± ¡°Now now, don¡¯t say that, Yui¡¯s a veteran with an impressive resume, she¡¯s just as good if not even better than any man I know. She¡¯s someone I can trust my life with so you should show her some trust as well.¡± ¡°But, but! Fine. Then at least give me a goodbye kiss.¡± As she says, her lips cover the screen. ¡°Huh? How am I supposed to do that through a camera?¡± I know I asked but I can kind of see where this is going, and as much as I love her this is a little embarrassing, with the only saving grace being that no one was in my room right now. ¡°I don¡¯t know, just kiss the camera or something~¡± ¡°Really, can¡¯t win against you huh? Erin¡­¡± Such an unreasonable request but even this side of her is adorable. After much hesitation I decided to go through with it out of sheer love. In an awkward pose I placed my lips on the camera of the tablet I was holding. ¡°Kyah~ we kissed! Alright, I¡¯ll trust you so make to be on time tomorrow~¡± Right, as the news had said before, tomorrow was Erin and my wedding at the Royal Ares Amphitheater. Just thinking about how many people will be in attendance is rather nerve racking, I just hope I don¡¯t screw up or something. ¡°Alright, alright. Then my plane comes shortly so I¡¯ll have to hang up now.¡± ¡°Okay, bye~ darling!¡± ¡°Goodbye Erin.¡± After finally finishing up our hour long conference call, I slumped back into the large leathered chair and loosened up my tie. I breathed a sigh of relief thinking back to how much I¡¯ve managed to accomplished up til now, it¡¯s amazing even when I think about it. There are still some things left but right now wasn¡¯t the time to be thinking about that, the wedding was tomorrow after all. ¡°Really, it¡¯s been a long trip, I guess it¡¯s time to go home.¡± To be honest it would¡¯ve been easier to book a private jet to fly but for some reason I never liked flying too much. So I prefer to fly on a public airline with people to distract me from my dislike of air travel. I don¡¯t even know why I chose a profession which requires so much air travel, maybe I should just quit and retire with Erin. I mean we have enough money to last our and our children¡¯s and their children¡¯s lifetimes. I guess that would be rather disingenuous to my employees though. Since I only became CEO recently I can¡¯t be good for a company to change management that often, and that quickly. I suppose I can grit my teeth for a few more years. Opening the door I was met with a pair of watchful dark brown eyes gazing back at me; [Kirisaki Yui]. She had her jet black hair tied up into a ponytail and her suit didn¡¯t give much away in terms of showing her figure, that was because underneath that suit was protective Kevlar, for emergencies. ¡°I am honored to have been so highly evaluated by you.¡± ¡°Yui, so you were listening to all that? It¡¯s not a nice hobby you know, eavesdropping I mean.¡± She lowers her head to me as she apologizes. I understand it¡¯s a kind of oriental tradition to lower one¡¯s head when apologizing but I wasn¡¯t too accustomed to such traditions myself so it felt a little uncomfortable, but since I was the employer, this too was something I had endure and act the part. Out of habit my hand went up to adjust the glasses on my face, not because it was crooked or anything but it was something that had become a habit of mine whenever I feel disturbed or displeased. ¡°I offer my most sincere apologies.¡± ¡°That¡¯s fine, you were just doing your job so I can¡¯t blame you.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Our plane will be here soon so let¡¯s depart.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± She answers succinctly and follows behind me, watching closely at our surroundings for potential danger. Not trying to pull my own horn here but I guess I was a sort of ¡®VIP¡¯ in this world so the possibility that some people are after my life aren¡¯t nearly as low as I would like. In that regard, Yui is a terrific guard. Maybe I should raise her salaries? * * * A72. That was the seat number indicated on my ticket; business class just as I like it. I do feel a little guilty that some people have to ride in a less comfortable manner but that¡¯s just how the world is. I was feeling a little melancholic after that conference call with Erin but was cheered up as I was given the seat next to the window. Though the view was obstructed by the presence of the plane¡¯s left wing, a fact that slightly sullied my enjoyment but I can live with it. In fact it was impressive to see the miracle of science at work here; I was sitting in a large metal cylinder in the sky. Truth be honest I guess I was just trying to distract myself from thinking about my wedding tomorrow, not because I didn¡¯t want the wedding but because I was a little nervous. Even with all my accomplishments, ¡®marrying¡¯ wasn¡¯t one of them, but now I will taste what it¡¯s like for those married men. I don¡¯t hear a lot of good things about it, but I think with Erin as my wife it will work out just fine. ¡°A73. Sorry for leaving my station.¡± Yui returned from taking care of her ¡®business¡¯ and sat beside me. As she plot herself down next to me the air around her started to smell good¡­ ah, no, no, no. I¡¯m getting married tomorrow I can¡¯t start having these thoughts now. To distract myself further I took out my smartphone started playing around with it. I didn¡¯t have that many apps, only work related ones, perhaps that shows I¡¯m a boring person but whatever. I just kept opening and closing random applications and playing around with my settings. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. Since internet functions had to be shut off during takeoff and landing it was a little boring, perhaps I should¡¯ve installed something to stave off time in situations like this. My lack of foresight in the entertainment department of my life has failed me. Now that I think about it, Yui isn¡¯t married either. I wonder how old she is? She was introduced through the company so I didn¡¯t exactly get to see her resume or anything. From the looks of it she seems to be bordering around her 30s as well, perhaps late 20s? 28? 29? 30? She definitely seems younger than me, when you think about it that way it does seem a little odd that I¡¯m having someone younger to protect me. Like hiding behind a little sister but she definitely does have the talent to protect me so I didn¡¯t voice any objections when she first signed on. ¡°Is something the matter?¡± She asks me. ¡°Ah, no, it¡¯s nothing.¡± I turned back to facing forward and played around with my smartphone once more. You¡¯d think a busy CEO of a mega-conglomerate would have something to do in such times but nope, most of my work was handled by the vice-chairman and secretaries. ¡°Ah.¡± Yui exclaimed. ¡°Hmm? What¡¯s the matter?¡± ¡°Ah, no, I was just thinking that it was a cute strap. I don¡¯t mean to be rude but it¡¯s rather unexpected.¡± She was talking about the strap attached to the phone, it was a small plastic banana. This was supposed to be cute? Erin said the same thing, I just don¡¯t get the aesthetic sensibilities of women. ¡°Thanks, Erin gave it to me as my birthday present last year. She said it was supposed to be some rare end of the line series or something? Sorry, I¡¯m not sure about such things.¡± ¡°Miss Erin has good tastes.¡± Was that supposed to be some sort of pun? I didn¡¯t really take Yui as the kind of person that would joke around with her boss; I pictured her as a kind of no nonsense, safety first kind of person, guess you can¡¯t really tell a person by their external appearances. ¡°I¡¯ve also had one as well, the manufacturers supposedly went bankrupt and these straps have been a sort of collector¡¯s treasures, some even go as far as costing thousands of US dollars.¡± She takes out her smartphone to reveal she also has one, her version is a small plastic strawberry. So these are super rare huh? I hope Erin isn¡¯t spending money on something useless like this just for the sake of it, I¡¯m starting to worry about her future. ¡°We will be taking off shortly, please turn off all electronics until we have reached a stable altitude.¡± Following the flight instructions I turned off my smartphone. Somehow I was feeling rather drowsy, odd considering that I¡¯ve been getting enough sleep. It could be my body is starting to prepare for a change in sleep schedule once we depart for the other side of the world. ¡°Sorry Yui, it seems I¡¯ve become a little tired, I¡¯ll be taking a quick nap.¡± ¡°I understand. I will be keeping watch so please enjoy your sleep.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± * * * ¡°Sir Aran! Please wake up!¡± I was being violently shook from my right. At first I wanted to ignore it but it only got more violent so I had to concede and wake up. To my right should be Yui. ¡°Nngh? What is it Yui? Did something happen?¡± As I turned to Yui I saw a frantic face, one mixed with panic and despair. She was trembling as she clutched onto my shoulder, it hurt but she didn¡¯t let go. This kind of attitude was rather unlike her. ¡°S- sorry, please forgive me.¡± She pointed towards the window. Following her finger I noticed deathly, black smog emitting from the turbines underneath the plane¡¯s wings. ¡°What?!¡± Immediately I stood up to get a closer look but no matter how many times I checked, it was the same scene; the turbines were ablaze. I went around and checked the other windows across the plane and they too were on fire, so far 3 out 4 turbines were ablaze. What kind of horror story is this?! In my panic I dashed to the captain¡¯s cabin, the two pilots were shaking in fear as they were trying to steer the plane, but to no avail. ¡°What the hell is going on?! Tell me this is a joke!¡± ¡°Aah¡­aah... no¡­ it can¡¯t be¡­¡± I shook them but they wouldn¡¯t budge, they had completely lost it; drowning themselves in despair. God dammit, what the hell is going on?! This isn¡¯t a joke¡­ Parachutes! There¡¯s got to be some parachutes here somewhere. ¡°Hey, there should be parachutes in the plane right?! Hey!¡± I shook them but like before they didn¡¯t budge. Shit, they¡¯ve already jumped off the deep end. With the pilots in such a situation this entire scenario was messed up, I decided to go back to my seat and call for Yui. ¡°Sir Aran! What should we do?¡± ¡°There should be parachutes, look for them.¡± ¡°U- Understood!¡± She and I went off into different directions looking through horde of frightened people and into the lockers and cabinets. I couldn¡¯t find any, I thought there would at least be some in case of emergencies, in fact wouldn¡¯t it be weird for airlines to not carry them? They weren¡¯t at the front of the plane so maybe they were at the back? I decided to the regroup with Yui who went to check at the back. ¡°Yui!¡± I called out to her. She was standing at the back of the cargo hold with a stunned expression. ¡°No way¡­¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong?!¡± I moved her to the side and took a look myself. It was a horrible sight, the parachutes were indeed there but they were all torn to pieces. Who the? With this kind of proof we can rule out that this was some sort of airline malfunction, this was at the level of terrorism. What kind of psychotic bell end would do something like this?! Why?! I found myself adjusting the position of my glasses again, out of habit. ¡°I¡¯m¡­ sorry Sir Aran¡­ I¡¯ve failed¡­¡± She fell down to her knees and quietly started sobbing. That¡¯s it then¡­ this is game over¡­ Dammit! It isn¡¯t my death that scares me, what scares me more than anything else is the fact that tomorrow Erin will be waiting at the altar for a man that will never come. I¡¯m so much of a failure. ¡°GOD DAMMIT!¡± In our last moments, Yui clung to me, scared and shivering. All I could do was hold onto her to alleviate even some of the anxiety. ¡°Sorry Yui, I¡¯m a failure of a boss too, to let my cute subordinate die with me like this. I¡¯m truly sorry.¡± Her head that was buried in my chest shook. ¡°No, it¡¯s my fault for not checking out the condition of the plane sooner. Please forgive me.¡± I embraced her as we awaited for our end. ¡°Sorry Erin. Sorry Yui.¡± Sorry. Black¡­ Sorry Erin, could you ever find it in your heart to forgive such a failure of a man? * * * Standing in a large amphitheater with a crowd of thousands was alone woman in a gown as pure as the sky on a midsummer¡¯s day. Waiting for her fianc¨¦ with an exhilarated smile on her face, she tightly clutched the bouquet in her hands. Among the gathered crowd were many of her and her fianc¨¦¡¯s friends, families, business partners and other spectators. At any moment now one of the most powerful and coveted man in the modern era would walk down the rose colored carpet and take her hand in marriage. The mere thought alone of her future with such a man put the woman¡¯s face into a reddened state. Trying to clear her mind until the knot was finally tied she gazed up at the pure blue sky; nothing could go wrong with this day. At any moment now. Their future together. Chapter 1: Resurrection of the devil who had lost everything Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Resurrection of the devil who had lost everything Chapter I PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 981] It was a bright and sunny afternoon in the midst of August when a certain baby boy was born to a pair of inexperienced parents. The mother who had just given birth was laying in bed with sweat dripping from her forehead; with a pale complexion from going through the efforts of childbirth. In the first place her constitution wasn¡¯t too great but with the help of the midwife and doctor she was able to get by safely. This woman¡¯s name was [Rio Fallon]. Normally giving birth in this kind of situation would¡¯ve spelled doom for anyone, however Rio had the comfort of her loving husband who never let go of her hand through the entire ordeal. She gave birth to her husband¡¯s child; a healthy baby boy. As the boy came out of the woman¡¯s womb, he glanced back and stared into his new mother¡¯s eyes. Compounded by the sun¡¯s rays, the baby¡¯s large emerald colored eyes reflected the two parent¡¯s face. Once the baby surveyed the situation it started to cry out loudly. The two parents were rather inexperienced and thought something was off with their new child but the doctor and midwife assured them that this was a normal thing; a sign that the baby was healthy. The two parents looked at each other with a worried expression but if their doctor was saying so it must¡¯ve been true. Confirming that the baby was safely delivered Rio¡¯s eyes grew dull and soon her world turned pitch black. ¡°Rio!¡± The husband called out to her frantically, scared that he might lose the love of his life. Her pulse was quickly dropping and soon she would be dead if nothing was done. The doctor quickly administered some sort of ¡®light¡¯ towards the wife. [Magic], existed in this world, this certain type was [healing] magic; to heal her wounds from the birth and fatigue the doctor slowly applied magic. Slowly as the warm light engulfed her, her pulse returned to a stable state and she was breathing comfortably once more. The doctor told the husband that she should regain consciousness soon. Hearing those words the husband breathed a sigh of relief as he thanked the doctor. He fell down to his knees beside the bedside and gently caressed his wife¡¯s smooth black hair. Rio slowly opened her eyes once more to see her loving husband stare back at her with a worried gaze. As soon as she came to, her husband embraced her. He muttered under his breath, ¡®thank you¡¯. ¡°I¡¯m alright dear. I only lost consciousness for a few seconds. More than that, have you decided a name for our new child?¡± The husband, named [Mardoc Fallon], turned towards his new son who was still crying and held him up. ¡°That''s right, a name, I''ve been so excited to finally have a child that I had completely forgotten about his name." "Haha, that''s very typical of you dear." They met eye to eye; father to son. Rio Fallon and Mardoc Fallon, aged 22 and 23 respectively, though they were very young they had always wanted a child. To see that dream through, they could not ask for any more. The tears that ran down Mardoc¡¯s face reflected his joy. Despite his clumsiness, Mardoc Fallon was one of the top knights of the realm. He had retired once he had learnt that his wife was pregnant with his first child. Everyone had thought it was a pity that such a young and talented knight was retiring so soon. However for Mardoc it was not a sad day, but a day of celebration. "How about [Morgant]? The name of my late master." [Morgant Milis]; his former commander in a coveted sect of the country known as the [Praetorian Knights], even amongst them his master was a monster on a completely different level. In fact he was so powerful that it was rumored that he was able to take down an entire enemy fortress by himself. Wherever Morgant Milis walked there were always praise, often time to the point of worship. He was beloved more than the country''s gods. A figure of pure fortitude; a true paladin. His master who had taught him for over 12 years was gone now but he could not forget the honor of having learned under such a master. Naming his son after him was only a matter of course. "What a wonderful idea." Rio had no objections for she had also worked as one of the country¡¯s [Praetorian Knights], though her specialty was magic. It was during her work that she had also gotten to meet the famed knight and was instantly entranced by his charisma. "Then this child''s name will be [Morgant Fallon]." "I''m happy, thank you for being born. Morgant." It was unknown if the baby understood but it ceased its crying and started to laugh in his father¡¯s embrace. As of this moment, the child was oblivious to everything and merely laughed with glee in his parent¡¯s embrace but soon it will know everything and once it does its fate will be forever changed. PART TWO [Eternum Calendar - Year 988] As the cold night air covered the small village of [Karta], two moons took their place high above the darkened skies. Looming over the horizon the lunar light seeped into the bedroom of a certain young boy; his hair black as night and eyes of jade, sweat dripped past his forehead as he woke up in a sudden burst of fright. He panted heavily as he breathed in the chilly night air that leaked through the open window. For a good while he sat immobile in his bed, contemplating what it was that he saw in that dream, nay, that nightmare. Through the hallway came rushing the sound of frantic footsteps. ¡°Young master Morgant?! Are you okay?!¡± Bursting open the door was a distraught young maid with disheveled nightly, silken gown. Her blonde hair sparkling from the moonlight and her oceanic blue eyes equally reflecting the night light. "Li...na?" The young boy, [Morgant], replied at the sudden appearance of the young maid, [Lina]. She quickly walked closer and embraced him, who was still drenched in cold sweat. She stroke through his hair trying to calm down his rapidly beating heart. ¡°Everything will be okay, young master. It was all just a bad dream right?¡± Morgant returned the embraced as he tears from the corner of his eyes, falling across his cheeks. Even he didn¡¯t understand why he was crying, no, he knew it was because of the nightmare he had, but the contents of the dream was not something that would warrant tears. ¡°There~ there, young master. You said you were going to follow in the master¡¯s footsteps to become a knight correct? Then something like a bad dream mustn¡¯t bring you to tears like this.¡± He nodded while still clinging to the young maid, yet he could not stop the tears. He then start to shake his head in denial. ¡°It just won¡¯t stop. These dreams have been coming for me every night and it¡¯s the same nightmare each time. He began to confess. ¡°If you don¡¯t mind me asking, what kind of dream were they?¡± Burying his head between the slightly underdeveloped bosom of the young maid, Morgant began to recollect his thoughts. ¡°At first it¡¯s a peaceful dream of me flying high up above the clouds. From there I could see everything on the land, the forests, oceans and mountains, even a kind of city, made of tall grey structures.¡± At his words Lina began to wonder what was so scary about such a dream, in fact it sounded very pleasant and mystical. Morgant¡¯s grasp became tighter with the following sentence. ¡°However it always ends up in the same manner. I suddenly lose the ability to soar in the sky and start plummeting to the ground at high speeds.¡± ¡°I see, it must¡¯ve been quite scary then.¡± Lina sympathizes, however that wasn¡¯t quite the case, Morgant shook his head once more to deny it. ¡°No, it isn¡¯t the falling part that¡¯s scary, it¡¯s about what happens afterwards. As I¡¯m falling I see a woman beautifully adorned in an elegant white dress standing alone on an altar. She was waiting for me but because I was falling to my death I would never arrive and she will become saddened. It¡¯s that what scares, the fact that she will be sad and that I won¡¯t be able to see her ever again.¡± ¡°Young master¡­¡± At a loss for words Lina simply embraces tighter and begins to stroke his hair once more. ¡°I know it¡¯s weird to be feeling like this for someone I don¡¯t even know but it still scares me all the same.¡± After confessing tears began to form once more and as it did Lina started to chant ¡®there~ there~¡¯ to calm him down. It took a bit of time but Morgant was finally able to return to normal. At some point Morgant¡¯s parents [Rio Fallon] and [Mardoc Fallon], the butler, [Sebastian] and Lina¡¯s twin sister [Lena] stood at the doorway listening in to Morgant¡¯s story. "Are you okay now, young master?" Lina asked one last time to confirm that everything was alright. "Yes, thanks to you." He replied with an innocent smile then turned his gaze towards the small gallery that formed near his door. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to have caused trouble for mother and father, Sebastian and Lena as well.¡± ¡°Oh, Morgant.¡± His mother came to embrace him as well, rubbing their cheeks together. ¡°I- I¡¯m quite fine now mother, please stop it¡¯s embarrassing.¡± ¡°Haha, why don¡¯t you leave it at that, Rio? It seems everything¡¯s been resolved.¡± His father, Mardoc came to take his mother way, and with a relieved smile, Sebastian and Lena also left the premises. ¡°Thank you, Lina.¡± He thanked her once more. "I- I see well, if- if you don''t mind, I could stay here and- and- and sl-sleep together- ehh~?" Before she could even finish her sentence Morgant had already fallen asleep on her lap. Though it would¡¯ve been easy to take advantage of this situation to sleep together, Lina decided against it and laid the young boy to rest and pulled up his blanket to his head before leaving. ¡°Good night, young master.¡± She said as she closed the door behind her to retire to her room for the night. PART THREE The following morning Morgant sat out at the back porch observing the flowers his mother had dedicated to tending. Off in the distance the sounds of people working about around the village in preparation for a festival could be heard. Though Morgant wanted to go help, there was policy in the village that dictated young children not to be involved with preparations for festivals. The reason for this was most likely that there was some sort of incident in the past involving children and festival preparations but nowadays it had become simply tradition. Seven years had passed since [Morgant Fallon] was born and his seventh birthday was just on the horizon. In fact this festival was that exactly. Due to the economic burdens of having individual celebrations for birthdays, the village decided it would be much more exciting and cost effective to simply have everyone¡¯s birthday on the same day. As such, the entire village was in a festive mood with lots of little decorations being hung up around the houses. ¡°Young master~ how are you doing?¡± Creeping up towards the small boy, was a young maid around the age of 18, her golden hair tied up in a ponytail and her black and white maid dress in an impeccable state of cleanliness, not because she was a dedicated worker but because she had done hardly any work. ¡°Ah, Lina. Nothing, I was just looking at the flower that mother has grown. They are truly wonderful.¡± ¡°Ah, of course but I see an even more beautiful flower right before my eyes. Haah~ haah¡­¡± Starting to pant as she licked the boy over with her eyes, she had the gaze of a predator looking at prey. It gave the boy a slightly uncomfortable atmosphere but since her actions had become so routine he was already used to it and let it slide. ¡°Morgant~! We¡¯re here!¡± Interrupting the perverted maid¡¯s predation, was the appearance of two young children. One was a slightly older boy named [Ian], a fellow villager. He had short spiky brown hair and equally brown eyes with a slightly arrogant face, the other who was the same age as Morgant was Ian¡¯s younger sister, [Ira]. Her hair was a smooth brown color that hung down to her back. Ira, who wasn¡¯t very socially adept hid behind her elder brother as they walked. ¡°Ian! Ira!¡± Morgant got off the porch and went to greet them in an energetic manner, leaving the dangerous maid to her own devices. ¡°Let¡¯s go play!¡± The first line of greeting from Ian was that, but that too was something that Morgant had become accustomed to and thus accepted as it was. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go.¡± Morgant turned back to Lina who was feeling slightly lonely, but as he turned back her expression lightened up thinking that perhaps he would return to her side, but that was not the case. ¡°Ah, Lina tell mother and father that I¡¯ve gone out to play with Ian and Ira, okay thanks!¡± With that the three children left just as fast as they arrived. ¡°Ah¡­ young master¡­ don¡¯t leave me~¡± * * * ¡°So where should we go today?¡± Although he was the one to have invited Morgant, Ian was clueless as to where they would want to go to play. ¡°Hmm~ most of the village has become off-limits for children while the adults are preparing for the festival so our only destination can be our ¡®secret base¡¯, right?¡± ¡°Eh? But that¡¯s boring, there¡¯s nothing to do there as well.¡± Ian complains. ¡°Now now, don¡¯t say that, it has a nice view up there and the wind often feels nice.¡± ¡°Morgant, you¡¯re talking like an old man again. What so fun about sitting around and doing nothing at all?¡± Despite his initial protest the three children decided to play at their ¡®secret base¡¯ located atop of a grassy hill overlooking the small village of [Karta]. As the children reached the top, a cool midday¡¯s breeze brush passed their faces. ¡°Ah, that felt nice. Look we¡¯re almost there!¡± Ira shouted as she ran ahead of the two boys towards the abandoned house. Though the location of the house was magnificent with an even more astonishing view the reason this house was left abandoned was because it served no purpose towards the residents of the village. The village operated on a mostly agricultural and hunting system, so a house on a hill that cannot be used as either a farm or a base for hunters was relatively useless. Thus the three children decided to take over it as their base of operations. Though cobwebs and signs of deterioration started to show on the house, it was still structurally sound and the chance of harm coming to the children playing within was minimal. More than that, most of the furniture were left intact which allowed the children to play many games within, like hide and seek or tag. However for today they decided on simply laying around and hanging out as opposed to active play. They overlooked the festive mood their village was going through. ¡°Ah~ looks like the adults are having fun preparing, you can even see the smile on their faces. I wonder why we can¡¯t help them out?¡± ¡°I heard that there was an accident that took place before so the previous village chief decided to ban children from helping with any sort of festival preparations.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that a little backwards? We can¡¯t enjoy the festival if we haven¡¯t put any effort into help preparing it you know.¡± Morgant thought on that a bit and he couldn¡¯t help but agree. ¡°Well, I suppose you have a point but it was the adults¡¯ decisions so we can¡¯t do anything about it now.¡± ¡°Ah~ how boring!¡± Once again despite his complaints he lays down on the grassy hills and closes his eyes, but bursts back up with a sudden epiphany. ¡°Ah! I know, how about we venture into the forests?! There might be all sorts of treasures that the adults could be hiding in there.¡± Morgant and Ira give each other a rather worried before turning back to Ian who considered it a flash of genius to enter into the forests that the adults had labelled as ¡®dangerous¡¯. Especially, they barred the children from getting anywhere near it as monsters that could instantly kill such children frequently dwelled within. ¡°Big brother, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea, even father said never to go into that forest. There are monster there and we could easily get lost.¡± ¡°What?! Don¡¯t be such a cry baby, they¡¯re just telling us that because they don¡¯t like seeing us leave their sights. If it¡¯s just for a bit it¡¯ll be fine!¡± ¡°Ian, I agree with Ira, it¡¯s too dangerous to go in there without any sort of adult supervision.¡± ¡°What? You too Morgant? I¡¯m disappointed in you. Isn¡¯t your dad supposed to be some sort of high ranking knight?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t see what my father¡¯s occupation has anything to do with this.¡± ¡°Weren¡¯t you receiving training from him? Then it should be fine right? If we combine our strengths we could probably defeat any monsters that get close!¡± Morgant seriously considered that possibility for a short while. It was true that he had been receiving special training from his father in the way of the sword and even went into the forest with his father once. However, following in his father¡¯s example of being righteous he decided to honor his promise with his father about never venturing into the forest without supervision until he was old enough. This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. Thus Morgant shook his head to shoot down Ian¡¯s proposal. ¡°Sorry Ian, I don¡¯t think we should. I promised father I wouldn¡¯t go there without him. Besides, we have a lot to do out here as well.¡± A frown showed up on Ian¡¯s face but their little group had decided with a democratic vote to not go near the forests just north of Karta. ¡°Argh! Fine, whatever.¡± Ian fell back onto the grassy planes and decided to sleep it off. Morgant and Ira exchanged a look of victory and accompanied Ian in their little afternoon nap. ¡°Ah, what are you guys doing? It¡¯s hot!¡± Ira and Morgant snuggled up towards Ian. ¡°A little bit is fine right?¡± Soon the three of them fell into slumber. PART FOUR The next day a terrible incident occurred in the village. ¡°Morgant! Morgant! It¡¯s terrible!¡± Ira came running in tears with a panicked look in her eyes. At first Ira had been slightly afraid of Morgant, always hiding behind her older brother, but after a few weeks she had opened up to him completely. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Since the village was still in festival preparation mode, Morgant decided to stroll around the outskirts of town and perhaps to visit their secret base. During his walk, Ira had come crying to him, without Ian. ¡°It¡¯s¡­ it¡¯s¡­ it¡¯s¡­¡± ¡°Calm down Ira. Take a deep breath and then tell me.¡± Following Morgant¡¯s instructions she took a deep breath and held it in for a few seconds until her face went red. Once she was no longer able to keep it in she let it all out with a soft and cute ¡®pwah~¡¯ sound. ¡°Now, tell me what happened. She nodded and started to explain what was wrong. ¡°It¡¯s big brother! He ran into the forests that our dad said not to go into!¡± ¡°Eh? By himself?¡± She nodded frantically. Morgant himself was starting to panic a little over the news. Their earlier disagreement about entering the forest had gotten to him and decided to venture into the forest to prove to both Ira and Morgant that he was right about the forests not being so dangerous as the adults had put it. Morgant was at a loss on what to do with the situation, ideally it would¡¯ve been best to simply inform the adults and start a search but doing so had negative consequences. The most prominent being that Ian would be mad at him for involving the adults in their little game. On a lesser note, he was taught by his father to always treasure the bonds between friends. ¡°I got it, Ira stay here, I¡¯ll go get your brother, but if I don¡¯t come back in the next two hours I want you to call for help from the adults, okay?¡± She nodded furiously at his request. ¡°Thanks, then I¡¯ll be back soon!¡± Before venturing off to the forests, it was necessary to bring at least some of protection and the best way to do that was being armed. He ran around to the back of his house to take out a small metal sword, being caught by Lina in the process. ¡°Young master? Is something the matter?¡± Morgant shrieked back a bit but decided to keep it a secret from Lina as well. ¡°Ah, no I just wanted to practice with the sword a little since father is busy helping with the preparations.¡± ¡°Oh, I see, then do be careful out there.¡± ¡°Okay, thanks Lina! I¡¯ll be back before dinner!¡± Lina waved back as she saw her young master leave. * * * The forest that loomed above north of Karta was known for three types of monsters. The first was the [Goblins], other than being savage and having sharp claws their strength were no different than that of humans, meaning if Morgant was able to move as his father had taught him then they wouldn¡¯t be too much trouble. The only foreseeable problem was that Goblins tended to move in groups of at least three or more and in such a scenario Morgant could easily be overwhelmed. The second type of monster that lurked within the forests were the [Kobolds]. They were a type of corrupted fairy spirits. While they were mostly individualistic monsters and had a very small frame, around the size of a human head, they were also extremely fast and excelled in mediocre fire magic. While Morgant had no real methods of dealing with fire magic and match the speed of the Kobolds, it was unlikely to appear as their existences were a rarity even within the forest. The last type of monster that frequented this forest was the [Boar Warrior], a distant relative of the [Orc]. They were well known for their large and muscular frames as well as their brute force battling style. Adult Boar Warriors usually stood around 2 meters and used mainly crudely constructed stone or steel axes and clubs as weapons. It would be nearly impossible for Morgant at his current level of expertise to win a fight against such a monster one on one. Thus the best course of action would be to run away and avoid fighting if encountered. Those were the only kinds of monsters, aside from small, harmless animals, that resided in this forest. The only real danger being a group of Goblins and the Boar Warrior. Morgant entered the thick forests with light steps. The canopy wasn¡¯t so thick that it blocked all light, streams of light made it through, providing enough light to easily navigate through the forests. The grounds were covered in bark and dead leaves thus each step made an audible crunching sound. He walked through the forest for a good while and made significant progress but no signs of Ian could be seen or heard. It was a little strange, since Ian went in before him it would not have been weird if he had encountered a monster but if he truly was safe that would be for the best. Coming across a fork in the road Morgant noticed several footsteps into the distance. From the lightness of the sound it most likely belonged to a group of Goblins. He immediately climbed up a tree to scout ahead, and sure enough three Goblins holding stone spears and clubs were wandering about. Their skin was ashen grey and had tribal tattoos drawn on them. Their teeth sharper than a beast¡¯s and their hands also possessed keen claws. The only words that could be used to describe them would be ¡®savage¡¯ and ¡®crude¡¯. They weren¡¯t much bigger than Morgant perhaps only a head taller but at a size in which normal adults could easily overcome them. ¡°Kii~ Ki~ Kiki!¡± ¡°Kii~ Kikiki~ Ki!¡± ¡°Kikikiki.¡± They communicated towards each other using various screeching noises, incomprehensible for human ears. From the looks of it they were scouting out the area for some reason, this wasn¡¯t a good development as Morgant was hoping they would just pass by without conflict. However as time dragged on, Morgant began to get a little desperate, any more time wasted in this area could determine whether or not Ian was in a fatal situation. If he needed help it was Morgant¡¯s duty to come to his aid but that wasn¡¯t possible if he was going to be held up by mere Goblins. Then there was only one course of action; to fight. His weapon, despite being child sized, was still clearly superior to those crude stone constructs made by the Goblins. In a one on one fight it would¡¯ve been simple to use that advantage to overwhelm the Goblins but there were three and they had a size advantage. If he jumped off from the tree it was possible to instantly take down one Goblin, making it a 2v1 instead of 3v1. That would be infinitely more preferable in the current situation, however just as he was about to jump he felt a chilling sensation, like he was being watched. Morgant looked around to see if he could locate the owner of that gaze, but no matter how hard he looked there wasn¡¯t any indications of there being anyone other than the three Goblins and himself. Deciding that it was simply his own imaginations he decided to go through with his plan and jumped off the tree. He used the momentum and the surprise factor to stab the Goblin that was loitering beneath him. ¡°Kii!!!¡± It cried out as blood gushed from its back where Morgant stabbed it. Quickly getting off he got into position to deal with the other two Goblins that had now been alerted to his presence. The two Goblins were on guard and started approach slowly. Life and death was the norm in such forests, and the two Goblins didn¡¯t take the death of their comrade too heavily, though they were still quite unhappy about the matter. The Goblins were not known for their intelligence, in fact they were borderline stupid, even when it came to combat determining their survival. Thus only one of the Goblin lunged at Morgant while the other stayed back to watch, this wasn¡¯t to observe Morgant¡¯s fighting style but simply because it didn¡¯t want to get in the way of its comrade¡¯s attack. Which was a blessing for Morgant, as he easily countered the Goblin¡¯s attack with the techniques he had learnt from his father. The Goblin struck with its stone club but they were easily dodged and Morgant went in for the kill with his sword through the Goblin¡¯s chest. It also screamed out in pain as it fell. Seeing this situation the remaining Goblin instantly lunged itself with its stone spear. This opponent was slightly harder for Morgant as the spear gave a little more reach than his short sword. However this too was an easy victory as the Goblin did not have any sort of mastery and only swung it around wildly in hopes of getting a hit. With the techniques taught by one of the country¡¯s top knights, Morgant quickly dodged the random stabs and closed the gap between the two, ending the Goblin¡¯s life with a stab through the neck. It fell down shortly drowning in a pool of its own blood. He felt rather displeased with having Goblin blood spilled all over his clothing but this couldn¡¯t be helped as the situation was that dire. Suddenly remembering his goals in the forest he continued his search for Ian. The search continued on for a few more minutes until a cry could be heard from a short distance away. Running frantically towards the scream, Morgant came across a desperate situation. Ian was locked in combat with a Boar Warrior, though calling it ¡®combat¡¯ would be rather inaccurate, in truth Ian was struggle to do his best to avoid the fatal swings of the Boar Warrior¡¯s stone club. A great big, pig, towering with its iron like muscles, swung radically away at Ian as he desperately dodged. Ian was clearly tired out and unable to move and taking advantage of the situation the Boar Warrior was about to swing down and end of the life of his childhood friend. ¡°Ian!¡± Morgant ran towards him and pushed him out of the way. While Ian was able to be pushed away in time, Morgant himself received an indirect blow to the chest, breaking several ribs and bones. He coughed out blood and was instantly winded as he was flown back towards a tree. ¡°Morgant?!¡± Ian ran towards his friend who was struggling to breathe. After a brief moment of catching his breath, Morgant was able to regain his posture but the broken bones in his body still ached. However, as the son of the country¡¯s knight he did not want to disgrace his father¡¯s teachings thus allowing him to soldier through the pain, doing so would¡¯ve taken considerable amount of will. Ian could only watch with awe and respect as Morgant got up even after such a hit. ¡°Are you okay Morgant?!¡± ¡°I- I¡¯m fine, more than that, let¡¯s focus on the enemy for now.¡± ¡°O-okay. What should we do?¡± ¡°We should probably run but I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be able to. However you can so go, run.¡± ¡°What?! How can I leave you here to die? I won¡¯t run away, if you¡¯re going to die, we¡¯ll die together!¡± ¡°Ugh¡­ you damned idiot, why couldn¡¯t you just listen for once about what I say?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯ll apologize as much as you want later but we need to both get out alive so I can do that! I promise I¡¯ll listen to whatever you say next time so don¡¯t die!¡± Tired of waiting further for his opponents to make a move, the Boar Warrior took it upon himself to charge towards the two children. Morgant pushed Ian to one side and dodge in the other direction leaving the Boar Warrior to stab his tusks within the trunks of the tree. While the Boar Warrior was stuck Morgant took the opportunity to stab a couple of time into the flesh of the enemy. It started to cry in pain as blood oozed from its wounds to the back of the leg. Managing to free itself the Boar Warrior became many times more furious, it attacked much more faster and harder giving Morgant an even bigger handicap. Ian tried to throw rocks to get its attentions but he was ignored as the Boar Warrior wanted revenge for it sustaining injuries. As the pain of his broken bones finally got to him he fell down, giving the Boar Warrior a clear line of attack and a potentially life ending one. ¡°Morgant!¡± It struck down as hard as it could but before the attack managed to land it was temporarily stopped by an unknown force. Morgant didn¡¯t understand what was going on but he had taken advantage of this bizarre phenomenon to counterattack, managing to deliver the final blow in the enemy¡¯s neck, killing it instantly. A wave of relief overcame Morgant and as he started to relax the pain really started surface and Morgant fell to the floor. ¡°Morgant!¡± Ian ran over to check for injuries. Upon closer inspection of Morgant¡¯s chest, there were severe bruises that were almost dark blue and black in color. If left unchecked it could become infected. ¡°Let¡¯s hurry back to the village, else you¡¯ll really die!¡± ¡°Y- yeah¡­¡± As he answered, the sounds of monsters could be heard from behind them. Not just a few but many, most likely number in the dozens. ¡°O- okay, we really should run.¡± Morgant said as he stood himself up. ¡°Grab onto me, I¡¯ll act as your support.¡± ¡°No, we¡¯ll never make it like that, we¡¯ll have to run as fast as we can if we want to escape.¡± ¡°But your wounds might open and you might really die! Just grab onto me!¡± ¡°No, we¡¯ll both die. You said you¡¯d listen to me right? Then trust me, I¡¯ll follow along behind you closely and run as fast as I can. I¡¯m willing to take the chance of my wounds opening if it means we have a higher chance of survival, so please do as I say.¡± ¡°But¡­ okay, I got it. So then we¡¯ll be running fast right?¡± ¡°Right, and no looking back, that would only slow us down.¡± ¡°¡­ Understood.¡± ¡°Then, let¡¯s run!¡± The two of them started to run straight back to the village but as they did the pain in Morgant¡¯s chest only increased. He eyed Ian who was running with tears in his eyes, he was so distracted by fear that he wouldn¡¯t notice if Morgant had stopped following him. Taking this opportunity, Morgant started to run in the opposite direction, garnering the attention of all of the monsters chasing after them. With one last look at Ian who ran straight without looking back Morgant breathed a sigh of relief. Keenly chasing behind Morgant were various monsters, Boar Warriors, Goblins and even the rare Kobolds. They would chase him down until he was dead. Luckily for them Morgant really was near his end. He came to up to a dead end; a cliff. Between falling to his death and getting mauled and eaten by monsters he preferred the first option. Morgant ran passed the cliff and jumped off. As he did a sense of freedom over came him, as did fear. His last moments were reminiscent of his dreams, falling down to his death, but likewise what scared him most wasn¡¯t the fact that he was dying but the fact that he could never ever see his family again. Shivers ran down his spine as such thoughts overtook his mind. With a great big splash, Morgant hit the lake at the bottom of the cliff. Though it was water, falling towards the water¡¯s surface from such an altitude would make it no better than if it were solid ground. Not to mention the severe injuries to his chest would open at that level. Morgant struggled in pain as he entered the water and consciousness fading from him. At that moment, a single thought came to him apropos of nothing. ¡°Ah¡­ If only I could see Erin one last time¡­¡± With that he finally understood everything that was going on and the true meaning behind the contents of his dreams. He had remembered who he was and what had happened, but it was far too late now, his true personally had surfaced only as he was dying a second time. In a last self mocking move, his right hand moved towards the front of his face and emulated a motion reminiscent of pushing up one¡¯s glasses. ¡°Hah¡­ ha¡­¡± As his eyes were about to close a small slender figure came swimming to him. He could not make out who it was or what it was exactly but that wasn¡¯t necessary to concern himself over now. He closed his eye as he welcomed his eternal sleep. Chapter 2: Here lies the devil and in its place the necromancer Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Here lies the devil and in its place the necromancer Chapter II PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 988] [Starting System Initialization¡­ ] [Initializing¡­ 15%] [Initializing¡­ 45%] [Initializing¡­ 85%] [Booting System¡­] As my consciousness came back to me I stood before a great black void with the only thing to keep me company being incomprehensible, mechanical words that were more suited to be on a computer monitor. In the first place what does this even mean? [Booting System]? Not only that, these words were clearly in front of me and weren¡¯t some sort of imagination on my part. Hologram perhaps? Curious, I tried passing my hands through them and it certainly was incorporeal as my hands were able to pass through them without objection. This only serves to create more questions than it does to actually answer them. Technology shouldn¡¯t be so advanced that we have holograms, no that shouldn¡¯t be the biggest problem right now. My biggest issue is about where I was, it was complete darkness but I don¡¯t think I was blind considering I could see letters. The ground also feels non-existent, like I was floating around in space. Just as my questions were piling on top of each other I felt my body becoming heavier and heavier, like I was being pulled into gravity from space. I was being pulled upwards and there was a light at the end of the tunnel. Could it be? That I¡¯m dying? No, I guess that wouldn¡¯t make much sense, the dark void I was in was more reminiscent of a state of death and this is more similar to that of being pulled back to life. As I reached the bright white light, color started flooding back into me, but it was too fast and I had become temporarily blinded, not only that it freaking hurt. I couldn¡¯t hear anything either, this feeling was horrible. However before any of that I found myself unable to breathe as something was caught in my throat. Cough, cough. Violently coughing I spewed out a mouthful of water. It didn¡¯t taste like salt so it probably wasn¡¯t seawater. That reminds me, I was drowning at the bottom of the lake, it could be water from that. Taking in a breath of fresh air, my lungs started to work as intended and I could even feel the rapid beating of my heart return to a stable pace, at the very least this means that I wasn¡¯t dead. The pain in my body had disappeared, even my chest that should¡¯ve been destroyed beyond repair with medical science had mysteriously been healed. The next of my senses to return to me was my auditory senses. I could hear the chirping of birds, signifying that it was around early morning to late afternoon, though I guess that doesn¡¯t explain much. Soon after the temporary blindness was also starting dissipate and my vision was starting to return to normal as well. Looking around I could see that I was in some sort of cave and outside the cave entrance was a crystal clear, blue lake. The water marks leading me probably denoting that I was dragged out by someone or something. However that wasn¡¯t the only thing that had appeared in my vision. Strange, technical language and holographic User Interface like boxes appeared as well. It read. [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 1 N/A Strength: 5 Dexterity: 5 Magic: 5 Insight: 5 Agility: 5 [Status Points: 10] [Skill List] N/A [Equipment] N/A [Inventory] N/A What¡¯s this? [Status menu]? [Skill List]? [Equipment]? [Inventory]? I tried reaching my hand out to it but it went right through, actually my hand was a strange shape as well¡­ it was smaller¡­ It was then that everything started to come back to me. Who I was, where I was, what had happened. When I finally figured that out tears had overtaken my eyes. I had a strong urge to vomit right this instant but I held back the instincts to do so. However that doesn¡¯t change the fact, I was alive¡­ Why? No it wasn¡¯t as simple as just being alive, I know who I am now, I was no longer [Aran Callahad] but [Morgant Fallon], the son of a lesser noble in another world. Reincarnation. This is a complete joke. ¡°Looks like you¡¯re finally awake.¡± A voice. A female voice. It sounded like it belonged to some grade schooler. When I turned to see who it was, I wasn¡¯t quite sure how to describe her. The most apt way I could put it was that she was a loli demoness. Around 130cm tall, crimson hair, crimson eyes, she had two protruding horns from both sides of her temple that curved to face the front. She wore a frilly black and white dress. However her most noticeable features were her small bat-like wings and devil-like tail. Cosplay? No, that wasn¡¯t quite right, of course not I hadn¡¯t forgotten where I was. This place wasn¡¯t Earth, from my memories of this body this world is known by its inhabitants as [Eternis]. In this ridiculous fantasy world she really might¡¯ve been a demon. ¡°Who are you?¡± As the words exited my mouth and before she could even have a chance at answering, another opaque interface box appeared before her head, revealing her name, level and title in a fashion reminiscent of old MMORPG games. [Astaroth De Signa. Level 145, Demon Lord]. She stood up and puffed up her non-existent chest. ¡°Huhu~ be amazed, I am [Astaroth De Signa] the [Demon Lord] of the [Vertloch Continent]!¡± The system had already informed me of her name so I couldn¡¯t be as ¡®amazed¡¯ as she wanted me to be. Digging through the memories of this body I recalled that the [Vertloch Continent] which was also known as the [Northern Continent] was located at this world¡¯s most upper part of the northern hemisphere. The Demon Lord, huh? Many RPGs in the olden days used to have such beings coded into them. The player would take the role of the hero to defeat the ultimate evil that was supposed to be the Demon Lord and once they did, peace would be brought back to the world. However seeing someone like this, I just couldn¡¯t envision her as someone that would bring terror to the world. The most she looks like she could do is disrupt the neighbourhood lemonade stand. If I had to actually compare, my old self would be more suited to be the Demon Lord. ¡°I see¡­ so what does the Demon Lord want with someone like me?¡± ¡°Hmm~ what an underwhelming reaction. Well whatever, be grateful as I have revived you from a near death state! How¡¯s that? Are you amazed at my great powers?¡± I see¡­ so she revived me huh. ¡°¡­ Hah¡­ hahaha¡­. Hahahahahaha!! HAHAHAHA! Hahaha¡­ haha¡­ hah¡­¡± ¡°Mm~? Why are you laughing like that?¡± ¡°¡­ Why did you revive me? Why didn¡¯t you just let me die?!¡± ¡°Eh? I- I thought you would be happy that I revived you¡­¡± ¡°¡­ Happy? No¡­ Don¡¯t fuck with me! I didn¡¯t ask for this! I didn¡¯t ask for any of this! Why?! Why was I brought here?! Why couldn¡¯t I have just died back then? Why was I brought back to life to suffer even more¡­ wasn¡¯t just once¡­ enough? I don¡¯t want this anymore¡­ I just want to rest¡­¡± Every time I utter another word images of my past life begin to flood back to me. Images of the life I had with Erin. I couldn¡¯t just stand here, staying here without even trying to get back that life was tearing me apart from the inside. At my sudden outburst the small Demon Lord flinched backwards and kept quiet. I didn¡¯t mean to direct everything onto her. Everything I had kept in had leapt out of me all in an instant. Watching me as I broke down into tears, she placed her small hands over my head and gently started to stroke through my hair to calm me down. ¡°Why¡­? God dammit¡­ I want to see her¡­ I want to see Erin¡­ she was everything to me¡­¡± It was at that moment I made a decision. No matter how long it would take. No matter what I have to do. No matter what¡­ I will return to Erin¡¯s side. With that conviction I tried to calm myself down until I was limited to a silent weep. It was the first time in both my lives that I had completely broken down as I did. I always had control over my emotions so once I completely lost it like this I didn¡¯t know what to do. It was embarrassing and pathetic but at the same time it felt nice to be able to get the weight of my feelings off my shoulders. I don¡¯t know for how long I continued to cry but the small Demon Lord stayed with me the entire time. Without complaint and with her gentle hands she allowed me to calm down. ¡°Are you okay now?¡± Still blurry from my tears I was met with the warm gaze of the large, puppy-like eyes of the Demon Lord. To continue to show her such a disgraceful moment of my life I felt a little disappointed in myself but at the same time I also felt a little happy she was there. ¡°Yes, I apologize to have shown you such an embarrassing side of myself. The stuff I said before, please heed no mind to it, it wasn¡¯t meant to be directed at you. I was simply¡­ overtaken by my emotions¡­¡± I shook my head to banish out the remaining sorrow in my heart and continued. ¡°In any case I am grateful to you for having saved my life and staying with me through this. I will certainly repay this favor back to you somehow.¡± ¡°Huhu~ repay the favor back to me you say, that¡¯s a rather interesting thought. In what way are you able to repay me?¡± Despite her incredibly youthful sounding voice, the way she speaks¡­ it¡¯s like I¡¯m talking to someone with a lot of age in their life. In this fantasy world I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if she was a lot older than she looks but still, I wonder how old she really is. Anyway, ¡®how can I repay back a Demon Lord¡¯ huh? ¡°If you wish, I can deliver the world to you.¡± ¡°Oho~ that¡¯s a tall promise.¡± Certainly that is a rather huge promise but it wasn¡¯t like I haven¡¯t accomplished something similar before, but that¡¯s a story for another time. Besides, I wasn¡¯t saying it for the sake of saying it, there was, of course, my own agenda hidden behind it. She said she was the Demon Lord and this weird interface ability also confirmed that. This means that she probably has some sort of army backing her up, if she were to accept my promise then I could use that to gain access to that army. What do I need an army for? It¡¯s simple, since I don¡¯t plan to stay in this world for much longer than I need to, I will need to find a way back to my old world; a way of getting back to Earth. However right now I have no way of accomplishing that and no information on how to even start. So I need to start by scouring the world for that information and what better way than to make use of the Demon Lord¡¯s army? ¡°Indeed, but it would not be my first time doing so.¡± ¡°Ho~ so you say you¡¯ve already taken over the world at one point? Even though you a just a mere child?¡± At her words reality came back to me. That was right, currently, even if my mind was that of an adult¡¯s my body was still that of a child¡¯s. With this kind of handicap what could I possibly do? ¡°Looks can be quite deceiving, I¡¯m sure you of all people should understand that.¡± It was a little back handed I suppose, I was poking fun of her size as well but that should bring home the message. ¡°Hahaha~ I don¡¯t really need the world but I like you either way. Alright I¡¯ve decided, I¡¯ll make you into one of my [Generals]!¡± Generals? Ah, now that I think about it old RPG games used to have such a system as well. Something like the 4 Heavenly Kings that you have to defeat before getting to battle the Demon Lord. ¡°Incidentally how many Generals are under your command?¡± ¡°Hmm? There are currently 4. You would make a 5th. Is there a problem?¡± I don¡¯t know, for some reason I get the feeling that ¡®The 5 Heavenly Kings¡¯ won¡¯t seem as menacing as if there were only 4. Then again, even if I were to join I doubt I would have to play an active role in their little army so in reality it would actually be ¡®The 4 Heavenly Kings + 1¡¯. At least that¡¯s the feeling I¡¯m getting. ¡°No, there¡¯s no problem. But are you sure you want to give me such a prestigious position? I haven¡¯t done anything for you in fact all that¡¯s happened is that you¡¯ve saved my life.¡± Astaroth stared at me seriously for a moment before returning to her normal, innocent and smiley expression. ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯m sure in the future you will return that favor in one way or another. Besides, you don¡¯t have to sweat the small stuff and just let these things happen as they do.¡± ¡°You¡¯re very kind, almost to the point that I can¡¯t really find myself accepting you truly are the Demon Lord.¡± ¡°Hah? Is that supposed to be a compliment or an insult?¡± I placed my hands on her head, she was a taller than my seven year old body so it was a little awkward to do this but I felt like I wanted to. ¡°It was a compliment.¡± ¡°Well, whatever. Now stand still for a moment.¡± She drew closer to my face and touched her lips with mine. At first I was taken aback but as though I were paralyzed I couldn¡¯t move my body freely and just sat as she continued to kiss me. A small current of air circled around us as a small reddish magic circle appeared beneath us. I could feel her tongue exploring around in my inner mouth. I honestly didn¡¯t know what to make of this situation, should I feel aroused? Should I just stand still? What should I do? I opted to take the second option and just sit still until she was done. ¡°The ritual has been completed, you will now serve me as one of my [Generals].¡± She held up my right hand and when she did a small red magic circle with the symbol of an eye appeared on top; a mark to prove that I was no one of her [Generals]. After a while it had disappeared deep into my skin. To be completely honest I didn¡¯t quite like the fact that I was working for someone else but this was a two way deal. I have no true power of my own but I will be able to borrow hers, in exchange I will offer her my intellect. A fair exchange if I say so myself; yes, I think my intelligence is worth an entire army. ¡°Now then, you do not need to pledge yourself to me but I would like to know a bit of your personal goals. It would help us get along better.¡± She asks. I do suppose she has a point, in order for a proper employee/employer relationship to come to fruition they must understand what kind of person the other is. ¡°My personal goals, is it? Well, I guess there won¡¯t be too much problem in telling you. I am going to find a way to traverse worlds.¡± ¡°Traverse worlds? Can you elaborate?¡± I shook my head, not because I didn¡¯t want to answer but because I didn¡¯t know too much on that topic. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I cannot as I do not know much about it, but I believe there is more than just this world, somewhere out there is another world and I wish to go there¡­ and once I do I will meet her again.¡± ¡°I see. As I thought you are truly mysterious. Well, that¡¯s fine for now. Then do you have any special powers? Perhaps a unique ability that only you could use?¡± Special ability? Well I guess this RPG like User Interface system that¡¯s lurking in my brain can count as one but it¡¯s about as useful as being able to see an extra color, if no one else can experience it, it¡¯s useless to even try describing it. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I have no such-¡° Before I could finish my sentence a certain Holographic UI box appeared before my eyes. [Please select a class] [Magician] [Knight] [Assassin] [Archer] [Cleric] [Necromancer] [Brawler] [Alchemist] [Bard] [Puppeteer] ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Since I suddenly stopped talking, Astaroth got a little worried and looked towards me with nervous eyes. ¡°Ah¡­ it seems I may just have a unique ability after all¡­¡± That being said, being asked to choose from a series of classes right on the spot was a little hard. ¡°Please give me a moment.¡± I asked. ¡°O- Okay.¡± She gives me a nod and stared at me with great anticipation, to be honest it was actually putting me off, but whatever. Let¡¯s sort out the information first. These classes seem like the typical choices given out in old RPGs, while I don¡¯t play too many games myself I do have some knowledge of old pixel RPGs so I should be able to deduce most of these classes. Starting with the [Magician]. If I recall correctly there are three offensive type magic in this world; [Ice], [Fire] and [Lightning]. I think I¡¯m safe to assume that the [Magician] class will be mainly utilizing these three types of magic. While it does sound tempting I¡¯m honestly not the kind of person to be chanting spells and wearing robes so I think I¡¯ll pass on this. Then next we have the [Knight] class. In old games this class would probably be referring to a melee focused, defensive character, i.e. guardian or warrior. Speaking of which, the me before having memories expressed interested in following after my father of this world who was a prestigious knight of some order, the [Praetorian Knights] if I¡¯m correct. Though with my true personality taking surface I don¡¯t think I will fit this role very proficiently, I don¡¯t particularly like front line violence either, if I had to chose I¡¯d rather be the general issuing order from his tent. [Assassins] are those right? Shadowy, ninja-like warriors? Though it does seem to fit my personality a bit more than the [Knight], like I said I prefer not to be on the front lines myself. The [Cleric] is a classic that even I know about. Backline healers and are essential to any party, or so I¡¯ve been lead to believe from those hellish, old dungeon crawlers. The fourth kind of magic that exist in this world is [Holy] type magic which specializes in healing. This class does fit my other pre-requisite of not being a frontline fighter but I¡¯m not too sure on the whole ¡®holy¡¯ thing. If I didn¡¯t know any better, the [Necromancer] class was made solely for me. I don¡¯t think any RPGs I¡¯ve played ever had such a class, actually it was mostly a title reserved for enemy NPCs. Summoning skeletons and siphoning health from the players; a perfect description of the corporate world if you ask me. As was the case with the [Knight] class I would prefer not to be a frontline fighter, which is exactly what a [Brawler] is, in fact that¡¯s not even a class name it¡¯s just a description. Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. [Alchemist]? Unfortunately I don¡¯t have too much knowledge on any [Alchemist] classes, aren¡¯t they just filling in a similar role to the [Magician]? It¡¯d probably be for the best not to choose from a class I know entirely nothing about. [Bard], well I did know how to play the violin and piano back in my old world, though I don¡¯t know if any of that transferred over. Most of it was just muscle memory but since this body is a completely new one I don¡¯t think I retain my ability. Anyway, I¡¯m guessing this is a type of support class that helps buff or debuff opponents with the power of music. As elegant as that sounds I¡¯m not entirely sure if it¡¯s a suitable class to be picking as a main role, it also seems to lack any kind of combat potential. [Puppeteer], oh, another class that seems like it was made for me. Controlling puppets? I assume you¡¯d be summoning puppets to do your bidding, if it¡¯s going to be similar to the [Necromancer] class I¡¯d rather pick that instead. Normally in this situation I would rather go through each class¡¯ stats more carefully to understand their pros and cons but I don¡¯t exactly have the luxury to do that at the moment. Still, the [Necromancer] class is the most appealing to me right now so I guess it doesn¡¯t matter either way. I didn¡¯t quite understand how this UI system was supposed to work so I simply moved according to my intuition and pressed the [Necromancer] tab to select the class on the option list. As I did a bright green light engulfed the area around me. A sudden rush of negative energy started to swirl around me and by that I mean a sort of depressing feeling overcame my emotions. It was the first time that I¡¯ve felt such an impressive amount of negativity, I felt like I was going to be crushed by it. Directionless annulling emotions; compared to this feeling right now everything else bad in my life seemed to be a pleasant memory. However a few moments later this feeling started to dissipate as did the bright green light. ¡°Oho~ that was very bright. So did something happen?¡± I checked my [Status Menu] to see if anything did change. [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 1 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 5 Dexterity: 5 Magic: 5 Insight: 5 Agility: 5 [Status Points: 10] The first thing to be noticed was the addition two extra titles under my name; [Necromancer] and [Demon General]. So that earlier ¡®ritual¡¯ she did really was my coronation to become one of her Generals. ¡°I became a [Necromancer]¡­¡± I answered her question without much conviction; it still didn¡¯t really set in what I had just done to myself. Even if this screen tells me that I had become one without any skills¡­ ah, that¡¯s right skills. I opened my [Skill List] to check if something changed there and as soon as I did new interface boxes appeared, 4 of them no less! [New skill acquired: [Life Force Sensory(Passive)]] [New skill acquired: [Life Drain(Active)]] [New skill acquired: [Wither(Active)]] [New skill acquired: [Decay(Active)]] After closing those boxes I immediately went to check. [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 1 Four new skills had been added to the list and conveniently placed next to the skill icons were small tabs that read [inspect]. Pressing on it in the same manner as I did for when I chose the [Necromancer] option a new opaque interface box opened up with a description. [Life Force Sensory(Passive): Allows the user to sense nearby life force] [Life Drain(Active): Drain HP from organic targets to deal damage and heals the user equal to the damage] [Wither(Active): Drain HP from plant-based targets to deal damage and heals the user a small amount] [Decay(Active): Drain the durability of inorganic targets to deal damage] The descriptions of the skills weren¡¯t too detailed but I got the general gist of it. I closed all of the tabs and tried to concentrate to test out the [life force sensory] skill. As the skill description read, I could definitely ¡®feel¡¯ the ¡®life force¡¯ of living beings nearby, the most prominent being Astaroth¡¯s. ¡°So?! You say you¡¯ve become a [Necromancer] but can you show me some your abilities?!¡± In her eyes was the glow a child would have when asking their parents to buy them a new toy. For some reason I just couldn¡¯t deny her request, well I also kind of wanted to test it for myself anyway. ¡°Alright.¡± I picked up a small rock and ¡®casted¡¯ [decay] on it. After a few seconds it started to crumble and finally it turned to dust. It wasn¡¯t the most intriguing of skill but it was proof of concept that I could use the skills as I thought I could. Though Astaroth had a rather disappointed look I couldn¡¯t simply start summoning skeletons or anything like that, as much as I wanted to. ¡°Sorry, I only just discovered these skills as well so I can¡¯t do too advanced stuff yet, but don¡¯t worry the next time we meet I have a feeling that I will be able to do more eye opening tricks.¡± ¡°I see, well that¡¯s fine. It¡¯s about time I left anyway.¡± When we both stood up I truly felt the difference between our heights. She was about 130cm as I had previously guessed but I was even smaller as a seven year old, it kind of wounded my pride a little. ¡°I¡¯d like to properly thank you for saving my life, twice no less.¡± I lowered my head to show my deep gratitude. It was odd, every time [Yui] did the same thing in my previous life I would feel rather uncomfortable but now I truly understand what it¡¯s like to show gratitude by lowering one¡¯s head. My outlook on life back then was fairly small but I feel like I can start to see a little more from the perspective of other people. ¡°That¡¯s fine but, I¡¯ve only saved you once, from drowning I mean.¡± ¡°Eh? Weren¡¯t you the one that was observing me from before? And you saved me from that [Boar Warrior] too right?¡± She tilted her head in confusion. ¡°I did not, I only saved you from drowning.¡± Wait¡­ that¡¯s odd then who was it that saved me from that Boar Warrior? It¡¯s unlikely to think that it would stop itself from landing a fatal attack on me and wait til I killed it. I know someone else intervened that time, if it wasn¡¯t her then who did that chilling presence I felt belong to? So then there¡¯s someone else that I owe my life to? As much as I¡¯d like to inquire more into this I don¡¯t have any data to go on right now and it doesn¡¯t seem like Astaroth has any idea as well. I¡¯ll have to ponder on it a little later. ¡°Anyway, like I said, I need to return to [Vertloch]. Oh and one last thing.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± She paused to make a sad face but instantly returned back to her normal expression. ¡°Should you ever find yourself in great despair I want you to always keep sight of your true self, otherwise you will be engulfed in eternal darkness.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a bit ominous but I¡¯ll take it as a warning for something.¡± She gave me a firm nod and disappeared in a shadowy effect. More than these skills, I¡¯d rather have that one but perhaps I can get it later. For now it was time to return home¡­ right home¡­ I wonder how my parents and friends of this world will react to my change in personality. My right hand move forward to the front of my face. I was about to push up my glasses but I realized I didn¡¯t have any, ah, even though I shouldn¡¯t have any muscle memories in this world, I guess old habits die hard. This is a little unpleasant. PART TWO The first thing I felt upon arrival back at home was a warm embrace from the woman known as [Rio Fallon], my biological mother of this world. I wasn¡¯t sure what kind of face I was making but I returned her embrace. Due to my special ¡®circumstances¡¯ it was hard for me to claim that I ¡®love¡¯ them as family members should, but I certainly do care for them, after all they are people who have treated the other me quite generously. She, Lina and Lena cried as they held onto my tightly, thankful for my safe return. I could also see several darg rings under ¡®father¡¯s¡¯ eye, he must¡¯ve also been quite worried. Sebastian, our butler, he seemed rather normal but he was only keeping up appearances, I could tell that he was also significantly worried during my absence. [Rio Fallon]. [Mardoc Fallon]. [Lina]. [Lena]. [Sebastian]. They were my family of this world and until the day I find a method to return to my old world I will treat them with the utmost love and care as they too are owed a favor. Not long after, [Ian] and [Ira] along with the head chief of this village [Oren] came over to our estate after hearing that I had returned safely. It was a little unexpected but Ian came crying to me as did Ira. ¡°After hearing what had happened from Ian, I¡¯m quite amazed you were able to make it out alive. We sent a search party but couldn¡¯t find you anywhere.¡± The village chief asked. He was an old man with aging grey hair and a skinny build, but the scars in his face tell a different story. Perhaps at one point he was some sort of adventurer or something. ¡°Yes, actually I while I was escaping I accidently fell down into a deep ditch and lost consciousness for an entire day. Luckily that place was void of monsters and I was able to recover my stamina and safely escape from the forest.¡± Of course that was a lie but I didn¡¯t feel like exposing the fact that I met with the Demon Lord. I¡¯m not entirely sure on the reputation of such a being in this world so it was probably a good idea to keep it a secret; they¡¯re usually seen as the source of all evil in RPGs of my old world. The local doctor came to have a thorough check up on me but he didn¡¯t find anything out of place. The symbol of the Demon Lord that was supposed to be on my right hand had also disappeared and there was nothing to give out that I had received necromantic powers. That night for some reason Lina had snuck into my room had slept close to me. It would¡¯ve been fine if it was the old me but as I was now it was a little uncomfortable. Then again she was only 15 years old so it wasn¡¯t like I had much of an attraction to her. Still, she¡¯s an odd one, she¡¯s very open with her attraction to me, it was creepy but also refreshing in a certain way. Well as I see her now, she¡¯s more like a younger sister to me. PART THREE ¡°Father, I¡¯d like you to train me.¡± The next day after breakfast I had formally requested ¡®father¡¯ to train with me. He looked at me with a puzzled face. Of course we normally trained in the way of the sword but back then I decided against choosing the [Knight] class. So then what was I asking to be trained at? I didn¡¯t want sword training anymore, that was useless to me, what I wanted was combat training. Someday I was going to leave this village to search for a method of going back to my old world but I know very well that out there are beings stronger than simple monsters like the ones I met in that forest. For that purpose it was necessary to know how to defend myself and to know how to use my powers. ¡°Train? Don¡¯t we usually do that anyway?¡± ¡°Yes¡­ no, I would like a different type of training today. You see father, back when I was in that forest something odd had happened to me.¡± Mother, Sebastian, Lina and Lena who were in the vicinity stopped what they were doing and gathered to hear my story. Perhaps they were just worried that something awful had happened and wanted to help. ¡°Something odd? What do you mean, Morgant?¡± I thought about it for a moment. Obviously I wasn¡¯t going to reveal anything about my reincarnation or about my unique interface ability. However after thinking it through I thought it would be a good idea to discuss my powers of necromancy with a trained individual, like father. I know he wasn¡¯t a necromancer but he does have myriad experiences with combat and that was better than nothing. ¡°I¡­ hmm, I¡¯m not entirely sure how to explain this.¡± ¡°That¡¯s okay honey, you can take your time, we¡¯ll listen.¡± ¡®Mother¡¯ came close and sat down next to me. ¡°I guess it would be easier to say that I ¡®awakened¡¯ to a special power.¡± ¡°Awakened to a special power?¡± Father parrots my words. Since [Necromancy] is a type of power usually reserved for enemy NPCs in RPG I was going under the assumption that it also had a bad reputation in this world. Thus I wasn¡¯t going to flat out say that I had gained the ability of [necromancy], just that I had a ¡®special power¡¯. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m not too sure on what kind of power it is and it¡¯s a little hard to explain. So if it¡¯s okay with you I would like to demonstrate it in the field.¡± By ¡®field¡¯ I meant the small open area we use for regular swords practice. Agreeing to my proposal father and I, along with the rest of the family as spectator moved out to the back. Normally we¡¯d bring our swords and mother would prepare drinks after we¡¯re done, though this situation was a little different. ¡°So? What do you want me to do?¡± Father asks. ¡°Well for starters I¡¯d like you to throw rocks at me.¡± He has a puzzled expression, well if your unarmed seven year old son is asking to be thrown at by rocks it would be a little difficult to follow up. ¡°Very well, if you say so then shall we start?¡± I gave a firm nod as I stretched out my right hand. He started to pick up a few rocks; not too big, not too small. ¡°Ready?¡± I nodded once more, as soon as I did the first rock came flying at me with great speeds. At first I flinched but quickly regained my composure and started to concentrate. Just before the rock hit me I closed my palms in a squeezing motion. The rock that had been launched at me exploded, leaving nothing but dust and smoke. It seems that I didn¡¯t need direct contact to use [decay], though I wasn¡¯t too sure on the effective range either. ¡°Ho~ that¡¯s some power. I can see why you were hesitant to call it anything, even I¡¯m not sure how to categorize it.¡± Father said in a impressed tone, but in a sucker punch move he threw a rock when I wasn¡¯t ready, I barely had enough time to execute [decay], however it exploded in my face temporarily blinding me. But father wasn¡¯t done there he continue to throw rocks. Tuning into my ears more keenly I tried to pinpoint the locations of the rocks and proceeded to [decay] them. I was able to destroy about half and the other half was a direct hit on me. While it may have seemed unfair, this is what I wanted. I did want to experiment on my powers a little but I also wanted experience in real life combat scenarios. In real life, the opponent is unlikely to wait for me to get ready, so reacting to those rocks even at my most unprepared state was good practice. After a while father was out of rocks and my side of the field had a bunch of sand piled up. ¡°Whew~ that was good practice. Still, I¡¯m impressed by this new power of yours. Is it magic?¡± I shook my head. ¡°I don¡¯t know really know myself, it doesn¡¯t feel like it¡¯s magic.¡± ¡°I can attest to that as well. I felt no movement of mana during the entire exchange.¡± Mother stepped in to comment. Right, she was a [Magician], so she would be knowledgeable about such things. ¡°Hmm~ I see. Still, it might be best if we look into this power a little more, it could become dangerous.¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s why before that I would like to learn how to control it. Don¡¯t you agree father?¡± ¡°Aha, you have a point there. Then shall we continue?¡± He asked but I shook my head. ¡°I¡¯d like to try something else, if you don¡¯t mind.¡± ¡°Something else?¡± I nodded my head and move my hands towards the flowers in the garden. I haven¡¯t used any of the other skills yet so it would be good to try them as well. I concentrated on the target as I casted [wither] on the flowers. Soon they turned brown and shrivelled up but the more impressive thing was that I felt a little more rejuvenated. I see, this is what it meant by ¡®heals the user a small amount¡¯. Next I turned my sights on father, though I didn¡¯t really want to try this but he should be able to withstand this. ¡°Father, this might hurt a little, are you prepared?¡± He gave me a puzzled look before giving me a thumbs up. Once again, like the flowers I concentrated and casted my last skill, [life drain]. I could feel it the life force of father seeping into me, though it wasn¡¯t as much as I thought it would be, most likely due to the level difference between him and I. Father had a slightly pained expression but nothing too major. After I was done another interface box appeared before me. [You have gained (3) level(s)]. Levels, huh. When I opened my [Status Menu] I noticed the number of extra [Status Points] had increased from 10 to 25 and my level had increased to 4. As much as I wanted to experiment with this a bit more I will wait until I was alone to do that. ¡°That¡¯s was a rather interesting experience, what was it?¡± ¡°I believe it was a spell called [life drain]. I can drain the energy of other living beings to heal myself, at least that¡¯s what I think it does.¡± ¡°Ho~ that¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve ever heard of such a spell. But you might need more than just my energy to prepare for what¡¯s coming next.¡± ¡°What do you¡­¡± ¡°Morgant! What have you done?!¡± I heard mother shouting at me angrily, at first I was perplexed but then I realized what I had just done to my mother¡¯s precious flower garden. ¡°Ah! S-sorry mother! I didn¡¯t mean to!¡± ¡°No dinner for you tonight!¡± END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 4 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 5 Dexterity: 5 Magic: 5 Insight: 5 Agility: 5 [Status Points: 25] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 1 [Equipment] N/A Chapter 3: The eyes of the devil see many different colors Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C The eyes of the devil see many different colors Chapter III PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 988] As the day of the birthday festival drew close, the entire village had become much busier than usual. It was during such a time I was visited by two familiar people, or should say ¡®children¡¯. I just hope this doesn¡¯t become a repeat of Monday¡¯s shenanigans. ¡°Morgant~ we¡¯re here to play!¡± ¡°H- hello~¡± Ian and Ira came to greet me. Ian shouting loudly across a distance that would¡¯ve been perfectly acceptable for him to have spoken with a normal indoor voice. Then again, shouting was the norm for this child so I¡¯m preaching to a brick wall with this. ¡®Here to play¡¯ he says, it¡¯s not that I mind babysitting them, but I would more rather spend my free time continuing my experiments on my power. I don¡¯t know when I will get the chance to leave this village but whenever it is I will have to be fully prepared. It may seem like I was a little impatient but that¡¯s just how much I wish to return to Erin¡¯s side; not a moment to spare. And as much as I have come to enjoy the company of the people I am living with and this village as a whole, I¡¯m afraid that they will never be a replacement for Erin. ¡°What¡¯s wrong Morgant?¡± At some point I had clenched my fists tightly in my determination and noticing that Ian calls out to me with a slightly perplexed expression. ¡°It¡¯s nothing, so where do you wish to go today? Not the forest I hope?¡± ¡°I- I said I was sorry for that! Jeez, you don¡¯t have to drag out old wounds. Anyway, mother sent us on an errand to deliver food for the people at the garrison.¡± He retorts back with a flustered face. Sometimes I really do enjoy poking fun of him. Ira and I laughed at his reddened face. ¡°I see, well I don¡¯t mind coming with you then.¡± ¡°Great!¡± Walking through the town, the view of people hard at work setting up for the festival came to my attention. On a nice warm day like this working outside wasn¡¯t too bad, as evident by their refreshing looks they were genuinely enjoying themselves. I felt both envy and admiration towards these people who worked so hard. Envy, because they could work hard on something they truly believed would bring joy to the village; there really is no greater joy than accomplishing work that you wholeheartedly believe in. This was something I understood perfectly well as I was one of the founding members of [Mobius Industries]. Back when it was a small company we would work around the clock with very little rest, trying to do our best to expand the business. Eventually the company exceeded all of our expectations and became the leading company in that world. The day I took over as CEO was truly bliss¡­ but right now I was in the body of a child in a far, far away land. My views on these villagers can also be summed up as admiration; in this world where everything could be lost in a single instance of random violence, be it a sudden monster raid, bandits or whatever, these people continue to live with a smile on their faces. They¡¯re living with everything they¡¯ve got, and I can¡¯t lose to that. Someday I will find a way back to my own world and give it my best there as well. On the outskirts of the village, two tall watchtowers overlooked the area outside the town. This was the place that the garrison would gather each day and take turns on lookouts. For the most part, the guards, my father included, play cards all day while drinking, since this village was quite peaceful. They would sometimes go out on monster subjugations since the monster population does grow rapidly if unchecked. I had heard that once they left the monsters unchecked and as a result the monsters had grown too much in population and raided the village. As we approached the watchtowers there was a strange gathering, some of the garrison and the village chief were talking with an outsider. From the looks of their clothes and carriage, they appeared to be a trader or merchant but it seems that they¡¯ve gotten into some sort of altercation. ¡°Is something going on chief?¡± I asked as we drew closer. ¡°Oh, Morgant, Ian and Ira too, what are you doing here?¡± He asks. When Ian flashes a basket full of food the chief makes an ¡®Oh¡¯ face. ¡°So is something the matter with our esteemed guests?¡± I asked once more taking a quick gander at the caravan outside the village. ¡°Hmm~ you see the equipment for our garrison has been getting dull recently from overuse. Since the usual merchant comes around this time we thought we would be able to buy a new batch but it seems that merchant had fallen ill and a replacement was sent.¡± From those description of the situation I had gotten the general gist of it. ¡°I see, and there¡¯s been a change in prices from the usual amount so you¡¯ve yet to come to an impasse.¡± ¡°Y- yes, that¡¯s roughly the situation.¡± I took a small glance at the merchant and his caravan. This was the first time I¡¯ve ever thought that someone could represent a stereotype so perfectly; he was a pudgy man with clothes that were slightly higher quality than our commoner ones. I know I¡¯m technically a small time noble but with the way I¡¯m living, I¡¯m basically a commoner too. I have seen our usual merchant once before, I believe he was a scrawny man with bags under his eyes. Though I don¡¯t know much more detail than that, well it was before I regained my memories and that other me wasn¡¯t too keen on details. Concentrating on the merchant for a bit I was able to pull up his name, level and title. After a but the interface box popped up; it was the same as when I got the tiny Demon Lord¡¯s stats. [Alexi Lorenz. Level 16, Merchant Leader] ¡°By the way chief, what¡¯s the name of our usual tradesman that sells us our weapon?¡± ¡°I believe his name was Alexi Lorenz, a small time noble turned merchant.¡± Heh~ I see. So that¡¯s how it was huh? It seems he¡¯s changed his appearance with [illusion] magic or some sort of item. ¡°And he¡¯s not Mr. Alexi Lorenz?¡± I asked just to be sure. The chief shook his head and answered. ¡°No, this merchant said his name was [Zac] a rival merchant to Mr. Alexi, but since he was sick and unable to come he asked Mr. Zac to visit instead.¡± ¡°I see. So how much is he asking for the equipment he¡¯s selling and how much are they usually?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s see, he¡¯s asking for 2 gold and 37 silver coins. Our usual price is 1 gold and 10 silver coins. If it was only a little more than our normal price I wouldn¡¯t have minded too much but this is more than double and it is a little troublesome.¡± To put this into perspective, 100 copper coins = 1 silver coin. 100 silver coins = 1 gold coin. It takes about 60 copper coins to feed a family of 4 for a week, so the price he was asking for a was indeed a little high. ¡°Oi, haven¡¯t you people come up with a decision yet? I can¡¯t stay here forever, I have other villages to visit after this!¡± He lashes out at our garrison with a discordant voice, even his voice is unpleasant to the ear. Now... Arms are crossed, stiff eye contact, elevated heart rate, raising his voice to an unnecessary level, overall body posture facing away from the village. Arms cross - taking a defensive posture; he¡¯s got something to hide. Stiff eye contact - most liars make direct eye contact to avoid suspicion but it¡¯s actually more unnatural to make eye contact for too long and the way he isn¡¯t relenting makes it all the more obvious. Elevated heart rate - with [life force sensory] I was able to feel his heart rate, and it was clearly elevated above normal levels. Today I learnt that I could use [life force sensory] as a lie detector. Raising his voice - most people raise their voice when they¡¯re hiding something, so as to not give the opposition any opportunities to make questions and in this situation he¡¯s acting like he¡¯s in a hurry to give the villagers less time to think. His overall body posture is facing away from the village - he wants to run away, probably because his anger hasn¡¯t dragged the villagers to a hasty decision and he thinks his plan isn¡¯t working, thus he wants to escape. Well I could probably pick out a few more flaws but¡­ I guess I didn¡¯t even need to use cold reading at all; I only did it out of habit and it was already obvious what his plans were from the moment I knew his real name. He¡¯s trying to make a quick profit by changing his appearance and extorting villagers. This way his true face won¡¯t suffer a reputation loss and it also makes the villagers attracted to his business which is ¡®cheaper¡¯. Well, from a business perspective it wasn¡¯t too bad of an idea, but I can only give him a maximum of 3 points out of 10 due to his horrible acting and lack of a poker face. It¡¯s oozing with blatant, subconscious confessions. Anyone with even elementary level cold reading would figure out his true intentions. ¡°Like we said, you¡¯re charging too much! Who would buy these equipment from you for the amount you¡¯re asking for!¡± ¡°W- What did you say?! These equipment are the top tier products! They¡¯re much better than the dull swords you¡¯re using! I should really be charging you 3 gold coins for all of this but I¡¯m giving you a discount! Economy is bound to change and you villagers have to adapt to it!¡± Well, I won¡¯t disagree with that; economy is indeed an ever-changing force and adapting to change is important. However no self respecting businessman would ever say a line like that out aloud, it¡¯s so Neanderthal. ¡°What?! You-!¡± ¡°Hey, hey~ Mr. Zac may I see those weapons?¡± I interrupted their little altercation and asked ¡®Mr. Zac¡¯ the merchant. ¡°Huh? What¡¯s with this kid?¡± He makes a disturbed face. ¡°Pleased to meet you, my name is [Morgant Fallon], my father served as a [Praetorian Knight]. Anyway, since that¡¯s the case I know a little bit about swords, so maybe I can help mediate.¡± A sinister but unsure smile crosses ¡®Mr. Zac¡¯s¡¯ face. He¡¯s probably thinking that dealing with a kid would be easier than dealing with stubborn villagers, that would be true under most cases. ¡°H-huh? Sure, have a look at these weapons and tell these people the truth.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± I took one of the swords from his caravan and closely inspected them, with everyone else watching my actions. Truth be told, even though I¡¯ve trained with a fair amount of swords with father, I haven¡¯t the slightest clue on how to appraise swords. ¡°Can I see one of the swords from the garrison?¡± I asked one of the town guards. ¡°S- sure.¡± He unsheathes his sword and gives it to me. I took both the used garrison sword and the new merchant sword, which was shinier since it was never used, and acted as if I were comparing their weight. ¡°Hmm~¡± I made a sound. Truthfully I was just biding my time for a bit. What am I waiting for, you ask? Unbeknownst to our esteemed merchant guest I was very slowly casting [life drain] on him. It was very controlled and unnoticeable. You may be wondering why I was doing this. It¡¯s simply to wear him down because it¡¯s easier to convince people who have no will to fight back. ¡°Hmm~ the merchant sword is a little lighter than the garrison sword. This means that the materials used are of lesser quality or they used overall less materials, either way this will become a hindrance to the people who are actually using them and may lead to potential danger.¡± ¡°What?!¡± ¡°See? Have a try yourself, Mr. Zac.¡± I gave the two swords to him. Both swords have about the same weight and it¡¯s not like a lighter sword always means it¡¯s bad either, but taking advantage of the fact that at this point he was too tired to think properly I made him more susceptible to my words. Sweat dripped from his face as he compared the two swords. ¡°Hmm?! Hmm¡­ m- maybe you are right¡­? but still, I can only lower the price to 2 gold after this revelation¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s still too high!¡± ¡°I- I can¡¯t lower the price any further than that! A- as I said the economy¡­¡± He yells desperately. Seeing that, it was about time I put the final nail in the coffin. ¡°Mr. Zac, Mr. Zac~¡± I called out to him by pulling the corner of his shirt in a disgustingly cutesy manner. ¡°W- what is it?¡± I beckoned him to draw closer, he was unwilling to at first but he crouches down to my level where I can easily whisper into his ears. ¡°Your mask is slipping, Mr. Alexi Lorenz. But I consider myself a rather venerable person and am willing to let you go without much punishment, if you sell those swords at heavily discounted prices.¡± As soon as he hears his own name he flinches backwards and falls on his backside. Clear terror plastered on his face as he sweats profusely. His mouth open and shut without words coming out, wanting to know how exactly I found out. One more little push then. I crept closer with an intimidating smile and whispered into his ears once more. ¡°I¡¯m sure you have a lot of questions for me but I think you have more important things to worry about. The first being the amount of damage to your reputation if this goes public. As you know, merchantry is a very sensitive business and once your reputation drops you won¡¯t be able to continue. If word of this gets out then the villages in this entire area will probably refuse to do business with you and eventually your infamy will spread to the point you will be looking for a different line of occupation.¡± Shaking in his boots he starts to crawl back a little. I wonder what he¡¯s seeing? Maybe his life is flashing before his eyes. Merchantry and trade is a business that requires a little bit of charisma and intelligence, thus it¡¯d be hard to find a person that would really be this weary of a child¡¯s threat, even if that threat had real ammunition. In most cases even if I revealed his secrets, if he was still rational he could just cover it up by saying that I was playing around, after all I have no real way of proving that he was Alexi Lorenz. However, that¡¯s exactly why I had been steadily draining his health for the past ten minutes; he¡¯s clearly exhausted and now he wasn¡¯t able to think straight. This level of bartering was child¡¯s play, and my skills were much more effective in this world without proper economic laws. Really, you shouldn¡¯t underestimate economic transactions just because it¡¯s laissez faire, you never know if there¡¯s a wolf waiting under that sheep¡¯s clothing. At his wits end he was on the verge of crying, taking pity I backed off a few steps. ¡°So? What do you say¡­ Mister Zac?¡± ¡°I- I got it. I¡¯ll sell this entire batch for 50 silver coins.¡± ¡°Eh?!¡± All the members of the garrison and the chief had their eyes wide open and in disbelief. They stared at me, wanting to know what I said to the stubborn merchant to change his mind and even give an impossible discount. Of course I¡¯m a man of my words¡­ sometimes, well in this case I was going to let him off with that. [New skill acquired: [Enchanting Voice(Augment)]] [You have gained (1) level(s)] Just as I was finished talking to the merchant a new interface box opened up informing me that I¡¯ve acquired a new skill and that I¡¯ve gained a level. It seems that as I¡¯m experiencing new things it will adapt into skills. From the skill name I got a general gist of what kind of skill it is but it was good to make sure. When I opened the [Skill List] I noticed that [life drain] and [life force sensory had leveled up. [Enchanting Voice(Augment): Temporarily places a target of lower level under hypnotic suggestion. Entities with high mental resistances may resist the control] So even if I¡¯m a higher level, if the target has a high mental resistance it can resist, huh¡­ then it¡¯s likely that the opposite is also true, targets with higher level but lower mental resistances may be controlled. As much as I wanted to try out this skill right now, it was kind of impossible as everyone was a higher level than me. For the most part the median level of adults in this village was around 13 ~ 15 and the garrison were around their 20s. I suppose this is also something I¡¯ll have to make time for later. In any case I hope our esteemed merchant friend learnt a valuable lesson in humility. PART TWO ¡°Congratulations everyone!¡± With the bright yellow sun high up above our small village it almost seemed to be smiling down on us, blessing us. Our small village of [Karta] was covered in festive spirits as after several days¡¯ worth of preparation had finally paid off. Tables and tables of food were laid out for everyone to enjoy. Today was a day in which all could play around, embellishing in delicious foods and alcohol from early midday. Many people broke out into song and dance as musicians performed on stage, adding to the merriment. It wasn¡¯t anything too great compared to the kinds of operas that I used to frequent back in my old world but these small performances had their own charm as well. Father was off with the rest of the town garrison, drinking and playing. If you ask me that¡¯s what he normally does anyway but I guess he can have a free pass for today. He¡¯s enjoying himself destroying all of the other members in an arm wrestling competition. Mother, Lina and Lena were also hanging out by the food stalls and chatting up with different people. Actually speaking of mother, her stomach has become really noticeable as of late. The day my sibling is due is probably coming soon, a fact that slightly brought me joy. I did have a young brother back in my old world which does make me worry a bit on how he¡¯s doing. He wasn¡¯t a child anymore so I shouldn¡¯t worry too much, besides there should be enough money that I left behind in inheritance for him to indulge himself for a lifetime, though I hope that doesn¡¯t affect his personality too much. As for me; Sebastian and I were left behind to babysit Ian and Ira. We were walking through the festival, viewing the spectacle that everyone had worked hard on to bring. Ian and Ira ran in front of us grabbing different kinds of food and immersing themselves in the festive atmosphere. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°What wrong, young master? Are you not going to follow your friends to taste the delicious food?¡± Sebastian asks me with a smile, looks like he¡¯s thoroughly enjoying himself as well. ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯m quite enjoying the view.¡± ¡°I see, yes, I too enjoy this scenery.¡± He says, looking off into the distance to see the villagers happily enjoying themselves. My relationship with Sebastian could be summed up as the kind a child would have towards their grandfather, but if you take into consideration my true age I would be the second oldest in the house so I liked to believe that I¡¯m sharing a very professional kind of kinship of age and wisdom with him. We walked a bit further as Ian and Ira ran ahead of us, beckoning at me to come quickly. ¡°Hey, slow down will you?¡± I shouted back at them through the crowds, but they had no intention of following my suggestions and decided to bolt full speed ahead. Honestly, I thought he said he would listen to me after that incident in the forest. This is what it must feel like for parents who have unruly children. ¡°Geez, those guys are just doing whatever they want.¡± ¡°It is normal for children to act as such, they are free beings after all.¡± ¡®Free¡¯ huh? I can see where he¡¯s coming from, once you start to get older you get more and more responsibilities until it feels like you¡¯re being tied down by them. It¡¯s really only when you¡¯re a child you get to be ¡®free¡¯. ¡°Here please accept this, young master.¡± Sebastian gives me a small wrapped box. A birthday present; most of the time only young children receive them so there was no real obligation for me to return the favor, even if it was everyone¡¯s birthday. ¡°Thank you very much, Sebastian. May I open it?¡± ¡°Yes, of course.¡± I slowly and neatly opened the package to find a golden pocket watch. Elegant in its round design, I opened the top and was met with a soft ticking noise as the mechanism rolled behind it. It was a little big for me since I was small, about the size of my hand. ¡°Thank you Sebastian! A pocket watch will definitely come in handy, but are you sure it looks really expensive.¡± ¡°I¡¯m glad you¡¯re liking it and yes, that pocket watch has served me a great deal and now it will fall to you, please take care of it for me.¡± I gave him a hearty nod. I wonder if this counts as an [item] or a piece of [equipment]? I haven¡¯t really tried it but I concentrated towards the pocket watch in the same manner I do with people to bring up their titles. I actually didn¡¯t think it would come up but an opaque interface box did appear. [Sebastian¡¯s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] Oh, just like RPGs, it gives minor status boosts. In a quick experiment, I placed the pocket watch into my [inventory], which I access through my pocket to be discrete, to see if I could still benefit from the extra stat boosts. After opening my [status menu] to take a look, it was indeed still effective. Convenient for me. * * * After surveying different kinds of cuisines made by the villagers we decided to gather up the family. At the end of the festival they were going to let off fireworks to celebrate the day that we all gained another year to our age. After Ian and Ira went along with their family, Sebastian and I decided to go visit father and see how he was doing. ¡°Oh~ Morgant you¡¯re here?¡± He greets me with a refreshing smile, exhausted bodies piled up on the side after having lost the arm wrestle with him. That was really a given considering that he used to be a former [Praetorian Knight], even his level is leagues above the average garrison. [Mardoc Fallon. Level 57, Knight] Actually the only person that even comes close to father¡¯s combat potential is oddly Sebastian. I don¡¯t know what kind of history he has but he¡¯s fairly high leveled as well. [Sebastian. Level 52, Butler] I guess I can ask him later. ¡°Father, you should take it easy with your games, not everyone is as strong as you.¡± ¡°Haha! Non sense! The village garrisons are plenty strong, they just don¡¯t know it yet! But enough about that, I heard you talked a merchant down this morning and even made him give a huge discount.¡± ¡°Ah, I didn¡¯t do anything too impressive, I may have used your name to back me up a little. Besides I only acted as you taught me, to help those in need right? And it appeared to me that the garrison were having a little problem.¡± Of course I didn¡¯t really do that, but it was more believable if I said that. ¡°Haha! You little brat, that¡¯s right! Always helps those in need!¡± He says as he takes another sip of his alcohol. That reminds me, how long has it been since I ever tasted alcohol? During the last few years of my life I was getting busy with work that I didn¡¯t have a chance to indulge myself. I was going to after the wedding¡­ but that¡¯s become a little out of reach for now. ¡°What¡¯s wrong Morgant? You want a sip too?¡± He shakes the jug full of alcohol in my face. ¡°N- no, I¡¯m quite fine thank you.¡± ¡°I guess you¡¯re too young to understand the magnificence of alcohol.¡± He tells with a slightly depressed tone. Come on, just what exactly are you trying to get your seven year old son into? As much as I was fond of alcohol in my previous life, I¡¯ve no interest in turning into an alcoholic from a young age. ¡°Father¡­¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right. Before I forget, here¡¯s your present.¡± ¡°Ah, thank you¡­?¡± The present that father gave me was a metal rod. To be more precise it was a sword hilt, just a hilt, deathly black in color. There was no blade to it, just the sword hilt; I wasn¡¯t exactly sure where he was going with this. ¡°Father, this is?¡± I asked with a puzzled face. ¡°A long time ago, when I was younger my master also gave me the same present. Like you, I was baffled, but do you know what he said to me when I asked?¡± Hmm, well I could hazard a guess. ¡°¡¯I have given you the base, now it is your time to forge your own blade¡¯¡­ or something to that effect? After teaching father all that he knew he wanted you to learn and experience for yourself and create your own style from your own battles?¡± Seemingly sobering up from my answer father stared at me a for a good while. Even Sebastian silently looked at me in awe. ¡°Aha, as expected of Morgant, it¡¯s no fun if you actually guess the answer. But you¡¯re right, as my master had given taught me, I have taught you. Of course there are still many things I want to teach you but when you asked me to train you the other day I finally felt it was time that you received this.¡± ¡°I see. Thank you father, I¡¯m truly grateful.¡± As I did with the pocket watch Sebastian gave me, I also checked the stats on the sword handle, it wasn¡¯t very useful without a blade but as a miscellaneous equipment it might be worth something. [Father¡¯s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] This too, I placed within my inventory. Even though I haven¡¯t formally assigned any [status points] into any stat I feel like I¡¯m becoming a little more powerful just from the extra stats from these items. ¡°Ah, there you are.¡± Just as we were done talking, Mother, Lina and Lena came to get us. As the sun was setting, the sky became darker signaling that it was almost time for the fireworks. ¡°Mother, welcome back.¡± Mother crouched down to meet me at eye level. ¡°Did you have fun today Morgant?¡± She asks as she strokes my hair. ¡°Yes, all of the food was delicious and I enjoyed myself thoroughly along with Ian and Ira.¡± ¡°That¡¯s great. The fireworks are about to start, shall we go?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± * * * As the birthday festival was coming to a close, the final event was about to take place. The sun had already set behind the hill and clear dark skies had enveloped the skies above our small town. The air became a little chilly but with so many people outside it wasn¡¯t a bad feeling, in fact being given a piggyback by father, which was a little embarrassing, it was fairly warm. The large crowd of villagers gathered before the town square where the fireworks were about to be set off. Two amateur magicians took the stage and set off the fuse with very elementary fire magic. The first batch was flown to the skies emitting a whistling noise as it flew. After a few seconds it exploded into a cavalcade of colored explosions. It lit up and painted the darkened canvas of the night sky in pretty colors. Red, green, blue, yellow. I spent most of the time thinking about how they even managed to create these fireworks in such a feudal era, but soon gave up on thinking and moved onto enjoying the vibrant display. Lina and even Lena, who liked to show little expressions, had a wondrous smile on their faces as their face was dyed in awe. Father was still a little drunk but he seemed to be happy as well. Mother clung onto father¡¯s arms and watched with a smile. And Sebastian stood with us with a silent smile. It was the first time in my life, in both my lives that I had seen such a miraculous display. Of course I had seen fireworks before, countless times in my old world but never as warm as this. I was always far too busy to enjoy the simply things in life, so standing here and enjoying the time with a ¡®family¡¯ really put into perspective a lot of things. I made a silent vow in my heart, that when I return to my old world I will focus less on work and dedicate myself sole to my family, friends and most of all, to Erin. I felt someone tug on the side of my sleeves. Since I was on father¡¯s back I was a little taller than I was normally. When I turned to my left I saw Lina and Lena smiling back at me. ¡°Happy birthday, young master. We didn¡¯t know what to give you so we decided to go with this. Please accept this as a gift from both of us.¡± Lina handed to me a small box. Opening it I saw a small dark colored jewel, glowing with a hint of red. It definitely looked pretty, if not a little ominous. ¡°Thank you¡­ but what is it?¡± I asked. ¡°We don¡¯t really know ourselves, it was an heirloom that our¡­ mother gave us when we were younger. We kept it all this time but I believe you may have more use for it so please treasure it in our stead.¡± ¡°¡­ I see, thank you very much. Lina. Lena.¡± They both returned a satisfied nod. Likewise I checked the contents. [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] ¡®Shard of Tyrving¡¯? Tyrving as in the magical sword? Though I was curious, but with no real way to find out more information now I decided to put it on hold. PART THREE A few weeks had passed since the end of the festival and our family has been doing relatively fine. I still had sword practice with father, Lina was always trying to find ways to sexually harass me. All was right with the world. Actually since then I had a few more chances to experiment with my stats and skills. Thus I shall now reveal the results! Drum roll please~ tadadadadadada~ ¡­ Cough, cough I had gained 6 more levels from my daily training with father, putting up my current level from 5 to 11. With 60 spare [status points] I decided to distribute my stats accordingly. Actually I felt as though I was a little na?ve back then when I said I didn¡¯t want to fight on the front lines, after a little more deliberation I figured that it would be inevitable. Thus I decided to add the bulk of my stats; 50 into [Strength]. [Strength] directly correlates to physical strength and I¡¯m sure it will be a massive help sooner or later. As for the remaining 10 stats I was torn between whether I should add it to [Dexterity] or [Insight]. For the most part the difference between the two of them was reaction vs. detection. [Dexterity] will improve my accuracy and reaction speed. In close combat this is something that will no doubt be of great help. Whereas [Insight] will improve the detection of enemy movements thus allowing me to react and plan before they even move. Basically the difference was that [dexterity] will help me deal with the enemy¡¯s attack once it has been launched while [insight] will help me deal with the enemy¡¯s attack before it has been launched. Considering I was more the type to think and plan out my attacks I thought [insight] would help me a little better. Now, onto the improvements made to my skills. [Life Force Sensory] was now level 10 [Enchanting Voice] was now level 3 [Life Drain] was now level 8 [Wither] was now level 4 [Decay] was now level 7 Although I do think that these improvements are satisfactory given the time and information I had, I can¡¯t help but feel a little disappointed that this was all I could do. Without any real information about the passage of time between this world and my old world I figured that I couldn¡¯t afford to waste time needlessly. So I was feel a little impatient with my results. As I was thinking to myself, something unexpected happened within the Fallon household. ¡°I¡¯m going!¡± ¡°No! we have to stay here and fulfill our duties to our masters!¡± Lina and Lena who usually shared a very close and friendly relationship was having some kind of argument. It was the first time I¡¯ve seen them acting like this, thus it was slightly worrying. So what were they fighting about exactly? A few days ago a letter arrived to our residence addressed to Lina and Lena. The contents of the letter was about how their mother had contracted a terminal illness and wished to see them both at her last moments; such a tragic letter! I thought that they would both immediately ask for a leave to follow the letter but unexpectedly Lena doesn¡¯t wish to reunite with her long lost mother. She kept using us as an excuse not to go; about how they have a ¡®duty to serve us¡¯. I don¡¯t think mother and father were that strict to restrict them from leaving though. Personally I think they should go regardless of what kind of feelings they have towards their estranged mother. Even if Lend wasn¡¯t particularly fond of her mother, I believe she should at least see her. It was the same for me after all. My mother from my old world passed away when I was still in college. She had developed cancer and we found out too late, but while she was suffering on the hospital bed I wasn¡¯t able to see her too often due to work. When she finally passed away I wasn¡¯t even there to see her, a fact that I deeply regret even into this second life of mine. ¡°How can you refuse to go see her?! She¡¯s our mother!¡± Lina shouted in a trembling voice. ¡°That woman¡­ that woman isn¡¯t my mother!¡± Lena retorted, tears falling from her eyes as she shouted back louder. Slap Lina slapped Lena. Her face was bright red, however it wasn¡¯t Lena, but Lina who ended up crying. ¡°She¡¯s¡­ she¡¯s my mother! I won¡¯t let you deny that!¡± ¡°You! How can you say that after what she¡¯s done to you¡­ to us!¡± After watching this scene for too long, my mother tried to interject. However while they were struggling Lina accidently knocked my mother over. ¡°?!¡± ¡°Mother!¡± ¡°Madam!¡± ¡°Rio!¡± Sebastian, father and I ran over to support her. I placed my hands on her stomach and focused through [life force sensory] and made sure that there was no miscarriage. Thankfully I could still feel the faint but definite signs of life. I wiped my forehead of sweat with a relieved expression, but Lina had a grave, pale complexion. ¡°What did you do?!¡± Lena shouted as she ran towards mother. ¡°I¡­ I¡­ I didn¡¯t mean to¡­ no!¡± She was trembling and on the verge of a mental breakdown. Before I could even tell her that everything was fine she bolted out of the house. Father wanted to chase after her but I stopped her. ¡°Father, I¡¯ll go after Lina so please stay with mother!¡± He gave me a firm nod. ¡°I got it. Bring her back safely.¡± With that I chased after her. Still, I have to admit that she was incredibly fast for someone wearing a maid outfit. Those frilly dresses should really hinder one¡¯s movements but she ran like a professional athlete. I mean, I couldn¡¯t even see her anymore despite the fact that she only ran out a few minutes ago. I had to run past the garrison watch towers before I caught up to Lina. ¡°Lina!¡± When I called out to her she was visibly startled. Shaking violently as she hugged herself and stumbled backwards. ¡°Please¡­ no, stay back¡­ or I¡¯ll hurt you as well.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay Lina. Mother and the baby are alright. You don¡¯t have anything to be afraid of. So let¡¯s go back and apologize together, alright?¡± ¡°No¡­ no¡­¡± She shook her head violently. Caught up in her fear she couldn¡¯t even listen to me anymore. She dropped down onto the dirt floor as tears rolled down her face. I moved closer to her and hugged her head. ¡°It¡¯s okay Lina.¡± I gently stroke her hair as she silently sobbed. ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­ please forgive me¡­¡± END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 11 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 68 (55 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 9 (5 + 4) Insight: 26 (15 + 11) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 0] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 10 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 3 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 8 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 4 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 7 [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian¡¯s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father¡¯s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] Chapter 4: The mistakes made will become the stage for the devil Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C The mistakes made will become the stage for the devil Chapter IV PART ONE -A few days earlier- [Eternum Calendar - Year 988] It was midnight. Two bright orbs subtly shun in the darkened sky; the brisk night air combined with the gentle brightness of the moons just after reaching their apex completed the nightly experience. On the outskirts of the human city known as the [Northern Capital] stood a single woman basking in the rays of the red and blue moons. Her shoulder length white hair reflected the lunar light and her azure eyes almost seemed to glow in the dark. Almost holy in her appearance was the sight of her ivory armor with a matching white tower shield slung on her back and a silver claymore to her waist; she was a [Paladin] class adventurer. She had mostly operated solo for various reasons and because of this she had gained considerable combat experience over the years. With every breath, small white fog appeared; the sign of winter approaching. However she was wearing considerably warm clothing under her metal armor thus the chilliness of the air did not faze her. As she stood there in wait, she gazed up at the magnificence that were the two moons of this world. The red moon aptly named [Pandemonium] for its almost hypnotic and insanity inducing color and the blue moon named [Akashia] for its metaphysical appearance. After waiting a while, the sounds of footsteps could be heard drawing closer, yet she was not weary of them. Of course there was a reason why she came out all the way outside the city when she could easily have been sleeping on a warm bed within it. She was to meet someone at this specific spot, however the number of footsteps approaching did not match up to the expected number of people she was waiting for. There should¡¯ve only been one person coming to greet her yet she had heard at least 4 different people carelessly encroaching upon her. She turned towards the origin of the footsteps. Four men approached her with weapons drawn. They all wore masks to prevent identification and were dressed in rather shabby armor. People who operate during such ungodly hour were usually not ones with honest intentions. Though the woman herself couldn¡¯t say she was honest either. She knew what sort of people these men were, most likely they were bandits coming to murder and rob a lone adventurer. "Look missy, we don''t want this to go on any longer than necessary so just give up." The man gave her a warning. The woman did not respond and only stared blankly at the men. Their weapons were simple daggers and the one that looked like the leader had a buckler. Compared to the well equipped woman these men were outclassed. It was a mystery why these men were so confident in their victory. They difference in strength between a man and a woman could easily be mitigated through training and magic. Was it because they thought they could win through sheer numbers? ¡®Foolish¡¯, thought the woman. If they truly thought that way then there was only one thing she could do for these men; put them out of their misery. Seeing the woman just stand there the men mistook her silence as compliance. The leader of the bandits ran up at her and stabbed her chest, through the gaps in her army and piercing her heart directly. The woman did not resist, in fact she didn¡¯t even flinch at her own wound. She simply stared back at the man. "Heh~" The bandit leader scoffed. It wasn¡¯t as though the woman was immune to pain, a sharp feeling coursed through her chest but it wasn¡¯t anything she couldn¡¯t easily handle. As miraculous as it was, the woman did not die from the direct puncture to her heart, even as blood oozed through her white armor. Right, she was not human, but belonged to a race of undead known as [Homunculus]. By nature they were already dead thus a simple stab to the heart wouldn¡¯t kill her. There was no true way to kill a Homunculus other than to destroy her body completely or damage it beyond repair. She grabbed the bandit leader¡¯s head with her right arm. "What the f- Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Stop!" The man squirmed. The man let go of the dagger that still stuck on the woman¡¯s heart and tried to pry her hands away from his head. However, no matter how much the man tried to struggle pulling her hand she would not relent. Instead, with each squirm the woman squeezed even harder. ¡­ And pop. The man''s head had exploded revealing the inner contents. The body was thrown to the floor like a rag doll. The remaining three accomplices to the bandit leader lost their nerves and started to back away slowly. However the woman could not find it in her to forgive these men who had ruined the near perfect nightly experience. Ruining her midnight scenery warranted death. Besides, even if they were to disappear they would most likely never be missed. Like scared rats, the bandits made a decision to retreat yet the woman did not let them; contrary to her prior slow and emotionless movements, she charged towards them at breakneck speeds. Near instantly appearing behind one of the bandits she slashed him down with her claymore. In a single slash the man¡¯s upper torso was separated from his lower, killing him instantly. Witnessing this cruel and horrible scene the other two men started to run in opposite directions knowing it would all be fruitless, and fruitless it was as the woman easily decapitated another bandit. The final bandit¡¯s body was full of adrenaline, making his legs run faster than the others but that too wasn¡¯t enough, the woman threw her claymore, perfectly stabbing through the final bandit¡¯s neck. He struggled for a few seconds but words could not escape his mouth. Gargling on his own blood he died on the spot. This entire scene took place in less than 30 seconds. Her white armor now painted red, it was an uncomfortable feeling, though the woman. Using the lowest rank [ice] magic, she created a small amount of water to wash herself. Since the night air was cold it only accentuated the frigid night. ¡°It¡¯s good to see that your skills haven¡¯t dulled, Chrom.¡± Another man¡¯s voice came from behind her. As she wasn¡¯t even able to detect his presence it sort of came as a surprise to her. However this voice was different from the crass bandits that tried to attack her, this voice was more commanding, charismatic even. He had spoken her name; [Chrom]. At once she ceased what she was doing and lowered her head to the man. The one who knew her name, this was the person that she had been waiting through the bitter cold to greet. His face was hidden behind a laughing mask, but his expressions could easily be guessed through the tone of his voice. This man was her superior as a demon and the one she directly served as her ¡®master¡¯. ¡°Master! Please forgive me, I did not notice you were there.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, if even you could notice my presence then I would lose my worth as the [Vampire Lord].¡± Chrom stayed silent and let the words of her superior sink in. Unlike Chrom who was a comparatively low rank demon, her superior the Lord of Vampires wasn¡¯t able to move freely around the human city; he would no doubt stand out. Of course it was possible to hypnotize the people around him to forget about his existence as soon as they were out of his view but that would require a lot of effort thus it was easier to just call Chrom to the outskirts of the city. "Now then, I have a small task for you." "I shall obey your every command." Still bowing to her master she listened in to his orders. ¡°There¡¯s a certain someone that will be arriving in this city soon to do negotiations on behalf of [Vertloch]. I want you to protect him at all costs during his stay.¡± ¡°Is this person a member of the demon race?¡± ¡°No, he¡¯s an interesting human, you¡¯ll know when you see him.¡± ¡°By your will. Lord [Kyrios].¡± ¡°Good, that¡¯s all.¡± Once the vampire lord [Kyrios] had spoken his piece he had disappeared in a mass of shadows. Chrom was once again left alone in the middle of the breezy night on the outskirts of the Northern Capital. PART TWO Eating breakfast alone at her usual tavern in her iconic paladin armor was Chrom. Three days had passed since she received her orders from her master, but the person he specified had not shown himself. Thus Chrom was following her usual routines in order to blend in with the crowd, though as a homunculus it was not necessary for her to eat in order to survive. In actuality she only did so for pleasure and to blend in. The various races of this world were not opposed to the demon race, but the demons were quite rare thus if she was revealed it would only make her job harder; her line of work was one that preferred to stay out of people¡¯s attentions after all. Chrom herself had been lodging within this city for a little under a year and has gotten rather familiar with the people who were also there. Many of them were adventurers that came and went thus did not truly pay attention to her, in addition Chrom preferred to solo most of the quests she received from the [Adventurer¡¯s guild] thus most people did not know much about her other than that she was quite capable. After completing her breakfast she checked out of her tavern which also doubled as an inn, to her designated area. As her mastered had told her, a special emissary of the demon race was visiting to do negotiations. The fact that it was a human working on behalf of the demon race did pique her interest but nothing more. It didn¡¯t bother her much, her only job was the protect the emissary and nothing more. As she has memorized most of the areas of the city in her mental map she was perfect for the job. Structural vulnerabilities, good vantage points, short cuts. There were many points in the city, especially within the slum areas to be weary of. ¡°Good afternoon, Miss Chrom. You must be the one that Mister Kyrios had informed me about.¡± Waiting within the town square in her iconic armor she was easily spotted by the client. To her surprise it was a rather slender man. Medium length brown hair that dropped passed his shoulders in a pony tail and a face that perfectly outlined his bone structure but in a healthy way. His dark colored eyes seemed to pierce through her armor and reveal her true identity. ¡°You are the one that Master has spoken of? Then I will do best as your vanguard.¡± ¡°I appreciate your assistance. I am known as [Enrich]. Please refer to me by that name when you speak.¡± "Understood, I am Chrom, a soldier under the command of Lord Kyrios." "Pleasure to make your acquaintance." PART THREE A few more days had passed since Chrom began to guard Enrich. They had been going around talking to various nobles about engaging in trade and further diplomatic negotiations between [North Ariadyne] and [Vertloch]. Historically, North Ariadyne which was mostly inhabited by humans and Vertloch which were populated by demons did not share too close of a relationship. It was true that they were never hostile but despite their geographical proximity they largely went respecting each other¡¯s boundaries. It was Enrich¡¯s job to break past that point and begin trading commodities and building alliances, for that was the will of the Demon Lord that resided in Vertloch. Normally she would be negligent of politics, but for some reason the Demon Lord had changed her way of thinking and wanted to expand relationships a little more, especially with humans. Of course there were small pockets of anti- demon factions from the humans, believing that all demons were barbaric monsters that killed for sport. This view could not be further from the truth, however these people were convinced, thus the negotiations weren¡¯t moving as great as expected. Though most of the results were projected beforehand thus it wasn¡¯t too surprising that nothing concrete was formed. So far there were talks of opening small trade routes and exchanging less valuable commodities. They would need to build ports in order to facilitate the trade between North Ariadyne and Vertloch as they were separated by a large expanse of water. On the security front, there were no presence of enemies that Chrom could detect. It was entirely possible that her master was over thinking these things and that there were never any enemies to begin with, however Chrom could not rest yet, she still had a job to do. The final noble that they were going to see was a duke by the name of [Ciel Noire]. He currently served as North Ariadyne¡¯s [Minister of external affairs], which means that he was the big boss that Enrich needed to secure as an ally to tie all the loose ends. It was around noon when Enrich and Chrom reached Duke Noire¡¯s manor. It was excellently decorated various sculptures and shaped hedges. A a large flowery arch met them at the entrance and following the path that lead from it, they would arrive to be met with another gracefully sculpted fountain. Just beyond that was the door to the manor itself. The manor was large, almost 3 or 4 stories tall with tens or rooms on each floor. Most of the guards and servants of this manor lived in another separate building which was equally as big as the main manor. In this house there were only two official residents, the duke himself and his only daughter named [Elise Noire]. Even so, the relationship between the master and servants of this house was unusually good. The servants seemed to generally like working here and the guards were friendly with the master as well often even training with him and his daughter. The duke himself was a relatively free spirited and merciful man. Of course he had moments where he was serious, usually during his work hours. The man had charisma, popularity, charm, and the support of all his subordinates. Such a man would be indispensible as an ally. Walking through the front entrance Chrom and Enrich arrived at the front door of the manor. After knocking a few times a maid came out to greet them. The maids of this house all wore the standard frilly maid uniform and the butlers their own butler suits. "Good evening Sir Enrich. Master Noire has been expecting your arrival." After greeting them with a soft voice, the maid then led them to the duke¡¯s study. The interior of the house did not lose to the exterior decorations. Everything in this house was placed with great care and in an elegant form that expressed only the richest taste in art. It would not be an exaggeration to call the house itself art. Arriving upon a smooth dark brown door seemingly made from mahogany, the maid lightly knocked. ¡°Master Noire, Sir Enrich has arrived.¡± "Oh! Please come in~" The maid opened the door but did not go in. "Thank you." Enrich replied with a smile as he and Chrom entered the room. The room was large and covered from wall to wall with books. Sitting behind a desk was a relatively young looking man with light brown hair and grayish white eyes. Standing next to him was a small girl aged about 6 or 7 with similar colored hair and eyes. She was smiling and holding a book. "Thank you for coming. Sir Enrich, I''ve heard about how much you''ve accomplished over these past few years." "No, you flatter me too much, most of it was accomplished through sheer luck." Within only seconds of meeting the two delved into deep conversation. They talked about various issues concerning politics, trade, economics. Topics too hard for Chrom and the young mistress of the house to understand. Chrom simply had no interest in topics she did not understand and therefore sat by the sofa drinking the tea that was served. The young mistress came up to her since her father was occupied. "Hello. My name is Elise Noire, how do you do?" The girl gave an elegant bow befitting of a noble''s daughter. Chrom''s expression didn''t change much; her expression never changes much. "Chrom." She gave a one word reply. It wasn''t that Chrom was particularly trying to be rude or looking down at her because she was a child. Chrom by her very nature was bad at conversations. "Chrom~ have you read this?" Elise showed her a book titled [Eternis¡¯ true form], written by a small time noble/scholar named [Lucius Rosenberg]. The world was flat and everything revolved around [Eternis] that was the majority held belief of this world. However this book came to challenge that very idea; an idea that could shake the implications of the world. For the most part the book was largely seen as a ¡®fantasy¡¯ story and generally ignored, though some say that the words in the book are the words of the devil and thus it is heresy. As a general story it was fairly entertaining but nothing that would truly pique the interest of the general masses. Chrom herself had not given much thought about the ¡®true¡¯ form of the world she lived in; all she knew and cared about was her immediate surroundings and the orders given to her by her superiors. Chrom shook her head to Elise¡¯s prior question about having read the book. Chrom truly had no interests in the book but Elise took her actions as a tacit approval for her to read it to her. Though a little troubled, there was nothing that Chrom could do while Enrich and Duke Noire were discussing business. "Be sure not to trouble our guest too much, Elise." The duke interjected when he saw her daughter talking with their guest. To him it may have looked like Chrom was babysitting. * * * By the time both parties had finished with their business it was already dark. "Why don''t you stay here for the night? We have a lot of guest rooms after all." Chrom and Enrich had been staying at a nearby inn so the offer to sleep in a comfortable bed was something to rejoice. Enrich accepted the offer right away. This was a good thing as it meant that the duke was satisfied with his time with Enrich and that negotiations would likely succeed. At first Enrich and Chrom were placed in different rooms but Chrom objected to it, saying that she needed to be close to Enrich. After much deliberation Chrom was finally persuaded to stay in the room just across Enrich''s. While it wasn''t instant, if there was any sort of problem Chrom could immediately get to his position. Luckily there was no such problems during the night. The Duke''s estate was relatively well maintained and guarded. Of course skilled assassins and the like may be able to bypass their security but fortunately such a thing did not occur. However, something did happen in the dead of night. The doors to Chrom''s room opened slowly with and audible creek. Chrom who was pretending to sleep slowly reached for her sword. The person was standing just over her bed and Chrom had her sword ready to strike if the person were to attack. The person slowly reached out and that''s when Chrom made her move. She leapt up from her bed and swung down with her sword. Only just a few millimeters from decapitating the intruder Chrom stopped. The one standing over her bed with teary eyes was the duke''s daughter; Elise Noire. "I can''t?" She asked still with teary eyes. Chrom was at a loss. She knew that Elise was asking if she could sleep in the same bed, but if she did that it would only delay her from getting out of the bed when the need arises. Elise gazed up at her with a look of pure innocence and cuteness. "Ugh~" Chrom was taken aback, she was no good with opponents she could not cut down. "Mmm~?" Chrom could not find an opening to this situation. "It''s fine..." In the end she gave up and spent a night with the duke''s daughter. Even Chrom''s heart of metal couldn''t withstand the full brunt force of cuteness that is Elise Noire. Morning arose but Chrom did not get a wince of sleep due to her predicament. That and the fact that she needed to stay awake to ensure that there were no real intruders. Despite this Chrom had no real need for sleep since she was a homunculus. There were many advantages of being a homunculus, not requiring sleep was one of them. The next morning, Chrom slowly got out of the bed without waking up Elise. After confirming that nothing had happened to Enrich she walked down to the toilet to wash her face. When she looked at herself in the mirror she saw bags forming under her eyes While homunculi won''t die from sleep deprivation they will tire out, it was just that they had much greater stamina than humans. The only reason bags appeared under her eyes were because she hadn''t had a single night of sleep since she was tasked with protecting Enrich. "You look awful, didn''t you get any sleep?" The duke that happened to pass by the toilet peered into the toilet since the door was left open. Usually Chrom makes the bags under her eyes disappear by massaging it but she was caught off guard. "Ah, because I had to keep watch for Master Enrich." "Sounds tough. Wish I could do something for you but keep up the good work." "Thank you." "That reminds me, have you seen Elise? When I woke up she wasn''t in her bed." "She came into my bed last night. She wasn''t harmed." The duke closed his eyes and wiped away the tears that seemingly came from nowhere. Unbeknownst to Chrom they were tears of happiness for a father to see his daughter safely married away. "I see. Then I hope you will make her happy." "?!" Chrom took a step back at the sudden comment. "It''s a joke." It was Enrich who interjected and explained to the socially inept Chrom. He was a little disorganized but that was why he was going to the toilet in the first place. "Ah, I see." "Hahaha, Chrom you''re too easy to tease." Chrom''s flustered and she averted her gaze. ¡°Say, I was planning to meet up with a certain noble to have lunch, would you like to join in Sir Enrich? It may be of some help with your work, of course you are free to decline.¡± ¡°Oh? That sounds wonderful, I am thankful for the opportunity.¡± With that their activities for the day had been decided. PART FOUR As noon arrived, the sun took its place high above the sky¡¯s peak. The streets became busy with the noise of daily life with many different kinds of people wondering about their business. The town square especially was a place which could be called the epicenter of trade an information. Adventurers, merchants, nobles and commoners all frequented this place. Trading, requesting, establishing parties, selling goods and services. Inns, restaurants, taverns, weapon shops, armor shops. It was the perfect scene out of an RPG. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. The duke, his daughter and his guests, Enrich and Chrom were travelling via coach thus their path was not impeded. ¡°If you don¡¯t mind me asking, to who¡¯s residences are we heading to?¡± Enrich was the first to break the silence, to which duke Noire gave a rather amused smile. ¡°Some people call him heretic, others call him mad, though I prefer to call him an ¡®interesting man¡¯. His name is [Lucius Rosenberg] an Earl. He¡¯s also the author who wrote the book [The true form of Eternis], a work that has received rather harsh feedback from the majority of scholars. Though because of his standing there weren¡¯t any physical feedback from those who disagreed with his work.¡± ¡°Ah, that book. Yes, I¡¯ve also had the pleasure of reading that work, it was, how you put it ¡®interesting¡¯. The world is round and we revolved around the sun, truly an amusing observation, do you perhaps also hold the same views as the esteemed scholar?¡± Duke Noire replied with a professional smile. ¡°If there is enough scientific proof, then I might just be inclined to believe so.¡± ¡°Of course, I¡¯m in agreement. One must not throw out a thesis simply because it sounds absurd.¡± The two men continued to chatter about as they arrived at the count¡¯s manor. It was on a smaller scale than the duke¡¯s house but this house too held a veritable amount of art. As they approached the entrance of the house, two maids wearing the standard maid uniform lead them in. They were guided through to the back yard where young scholar count was reading through various medical sources, mostly having to do with the infamous [Ivan¡¯s magic disease]. The count¡¯s golden hair reflected the sun¡¯s rays as it glowed brightly. His stern green eyes hidden behind elegant glasses revealed the gaze of a scholar. He was slender man, almost womanly in his figure, even his semi-long hair enforced that idea but his clean golden beard made it unmistakable that he was a man. ¡°Master Lucius, your guests have arrived.¡± The maid guiding them informed with a stern voice. ¡°Ah, thank you. Please prepare them some beverages and set up for lunch.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± At once the maid left without another word. ¡°Welcome Duke Ciel Noire, I see you¡¯ve also brought more guests as always.¡± ¡°Haha~ the more the merrier right?¡± Without a hint of remorse the duke laughed it off. ¡°I apologize for intruding, my name is Enrich and she is my guard, Chrom.¡± Enrich introduced themselves with a bow. ¡°It¡¯s no problem, as the duke put it aptly, the more the merrier. I¡¯m more than happy to have people who visit me despite my recent¡­ works.¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve read your work, they are most interesting.¡± ¡°I see, I¡¯m glad you found it as such.¡± The maid returned with a tray of cups with cool beverages. Most of them were tea or coffee but for the young girl, Elise was orange juice. After serving them the maid left the scene once more, she had perfectly blended in with the environment that she transitioned in and out seamlessly. ¡°Before we start, you have my condolences about what happened to your wife, count Lucius.¡± The count made a sad face as he heard but went back to his normal expression quickly. He knew that the duke did not mean any insult as he said it and that he truly was offering him comfort. ¡°Yes, I have been searching for a cure all this time but it¡¯s truly as they say. There is no cure for the [Ivan¡¯s magic disease]. As her last wish I have sent out a call for her estranged daughters, but whether they will come or not is a different matter entirely.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll come. After all there is no child who does not wish to return to their parents.¡± The duke said as he gently stroke through his daughter¡¯s hair. ¡°I truly hope so too.¡± After the heavy conversation, lunch was served at the count¡¯s manor. A small feast for his guests, consisting of high quality foods. Throughout their meal the discussed various topics including about the book that the count had written. Like before, Chrom and Elise were unable to follow, thus they separately enjoyed their meals on the end of the table. The duke turned over to see his daughter segregating some of the vegetables. ¡°That¡¯s no good Elise, you have to be sure to eat your vegetables you know? You won¡¯t grow up to be healthy otherwise.¡± Hearing such words from her father, Elise made a sour face. ¡°Mmm~ but I don¡¯t like it.¡± ¡°Hmm~ what to do? Chrom do you have any ideas?¡± At a loss on what to do the duke turned to Chrom for the solution, after all his daughter and Chrom had become rather friendly. ¡°Eh?¡± ¡°Elise seems rather attached to you so maybe you could give her some words of wisdom?¡± "Hmm, if you don''t eat vegetables then your bones will become soft and it would be fatal when fighting." "Really?!" Elise jumped up from her seat. Though to be perfectly fair, in Chrom¡¯s case whether she ate anything didn¡¯t really affect her constitution much. Food was merely for pleasure for a homunculus. However after hearing Chrom¡¯s words Elise started to eat her vegetables whilst still making a sour face. "Thank you." The duke replied, happy to see that his daughter was eating healthy. "It''s nothing." * * * ¡°Once again, thank you for inviting us for lunch.¡± After lunch was served the time for Enrich and duke Noire to leave had come. Though it was only a short while the three men had come to respect one another¡¯s ideals. Though on surface it was simply a meal between friends the implications of it was a lot deeper. Getting friendly and talking about political policies regarding various subjects was also part of the job, for both Enrich and Lucius who had their own ideals and agendas, and the one who was capable of bringing about that ideal was the man named Ciel Noire. PART FIVE On their way back to the duke¡¯s manor a strange situation was brewed in the center of town. ¡°How dare you?! Who do you think I am, you insolent little worm!¡± A loud and obnoxious voice could be heard echoing through the streets. People had gathered in observation of the situation, though the gallery¡¯s faces weren¡¯t exactly happy, rather they were filled with disgust. Curious, the duke and Enrich turned to see who it was. Standing in the middle of town and shouting down at a young woman and her child was a pudgy man. With ornate and lavishing clothes he flaunted them at the commoners and peasantry. He was no doubt a noble, in fact, in an ironic twist of fate he was one of the highest ranking ¡®nobility¡¯. ¡°Duke Vista.¡± Duke Noire muttered under his breath, but not enough that it wouldn¡¯t catch Enrich¡¯s attention. ¡°Is he someone you know?¡± Enrich asked out of curiosity. At first the duke was rather puzzled as to why Enrich did not know the name of such an infamous man but then he realized it was because Enrich had only just arrived at the city a few days ago. ¡°[Duke Vista Calros]; the minister of [internal affairs]. He¡¯s notorious for his obnoxious behavior and the way he treats people of lower status¡­ and unfortunately my rival, of sorts.¡± ¡°Sounds dangerous, why is such a man serving as the [internal affairs minister]?¡± Duke Lucius shook his head in contempt. ¡°Money, power, connections, status. He used all sorts of despicable means to get to where he is today.¡± Even though Duke Vista had the same position as Duke Noire in title and office he held none of the charm or charisma. In the end he was a stereotypical mob villain kind of character; if berating a woman who was kneeling down with tears wasn¡¯t such a perfect display of his personality. ¡°Please stop the coach.¡± The duke asked the driver. ¡°Papa?¡± Tilting her head in confusion, Elise called out to her father who had a rather stern expression. Rarely did she get to see her father become mad or angry. "Stay here Elise, I''ll be right back." "Do you plan to go stop him? It looks like he''s even brought strong guards." "Yes, but even he can''t lay his hands on me that easily." "Hmm, still, I know, Chrom why don''t you go along with the duke?" Chrom looked back at Enrich. She wanted to refuse that request since her job was to protect Enrich at all costs. Noticing her weary gaze Enrich added on. ¡°I can tell what you¡¯re thinking Chrom, but don¡¯t worry. What mister Kyrios really wants to protect isn¡¯t my life but my work. If duke Noire is hurt by this it will be much worse than if I were to be killed. It would make everything null.¡± With that Chrom was successfully persuaded. She gave a nod and followed through with Enrich''s request. At the request of Enrich, Chrom accompanied Duke Noire to confront Duke Vista. At close distance the pudgy duke gave and even more unpleasant aura. He had the face befitting of a villain and the personality of one too. At first Duke Vista did not recognize Duke Noire and lashed out at the man who stood in front to confront him. "I do not think you should be treating people like this Duke Vista. It''s unsightly." "Who the hell are you to tell me such things?!" "Does it matter who I am? I''m sure everyone here agrees that your actions reflect badly on other nobles. Throwing a tantrum like a child is very unpleasant." Duke Noire stretched out his arms to suggest that everyone was in agreement with him. Of course they were but simply did not have the courage to say it out aloud. "Gh! You bastard! Guards execute him!" The guards were about to comply with the duke''s orders but stopped after removing the hood that Duke Noire was wearing. "He is-!" The guards backed away without touching him. "What''s wrong?! Why did you back away?" "But he is Duke Noire!" Duke Vista squinted his eyes and finally realized who the man that confronted him was. "What-?!" "Were you not going to execute me?" "But that is-!" Duke Vista was left speechless. The crowd was starting to cheer on Duke Noire. Unlike duke Vista, among the people Duke Noire was fairly popular so he had many supporters. The crowd breathed a sigh of relief when the duke appeared. After a moment or two Duke Vista regained his composure. Even though he was like scum he was still a noble who had some inclination to act like one, only when it was convenient to him though. "My, Duke Noire, I think it is you who should not get involved in my affairs, this woman right here committed the ultimate sin of consorting with the demon folk. As such I was taking precautions to ensure that she does not do so anymore." Duke Vista was notorious for being a member of the anti-demon faction of Ariadyne. It was still a small minority of people who were in that party, most of them were nobles thus they held considerable power despite their numbers. Amongst them Duke Vista held relatively large amount of power. For now consorting with demons were not prohibited by Ariadyne law so there was no real problem with what the woman kneeling down was doing, it was only that if it got to the ear of the duke it would become a problem. "I do not believe that Ariadyne has an anti-demon policy. As such whatever the woman here has done she bears no sin." "Hmph, of course you''d say that you''re part of the pro-demon agenda. You''d be fine even if you sold out your own country." Duke Noire shook his head. The man in front of him only practiced intolerance which is why he was viewed in such a negative light. "Why do you shake your head so? Very well, why don''t we duel for the woman''s freedom? If your guard over there could best all of my elite guards then I will retract whatever judgment I made to this woman." Dueling for judgment was an old tradition within Ariadyne, however it was mostly never used since it was seen as barbaric. Duke Noire turned towards Chrom who was expressionless. Chrom was not his guard so he had no real right to ask her to fight on his behalf. "I just have to beat them?" Chrom asked, still with her expressionless face. "Are you sure?" Chrom nodded. "I understand, Duke Vista I accept your challenge and the people gathered here will be our witness." "Hmph, you fool, you think you can best my soldiers with a single woman?" "It is not good to underestimate your foes." Hence the battle between three elite soldiers and the semi adventurer Chrom was engaged. At first the soldiers didn''t know what to do, even they did not truly like Vista, but they also had their pride as soldiers of the realm. They would not want to be seen as weak so they did not pull any punches. The first to make a move was one of the soldiers. They charged in with their swords but the attack was easily defended by Chrom''s iconic white shield. Chrom pushed the soldier still locked in with her shield and sent him flying. The other two soldiers seeing that scene made weary face and decided to attack in unison. All of their attacks were dodged or blocked by Chrom. However she was being pushed back. Feeling that anymore would be unsightly for a servant of Kyrios she clenched her fist and attacked the soldiers with her sword. It did not kill them but left them with minor injuries nonetheless. The second soldier was cut through his armor along his chest and fell. The third soldier moved back to avoid the sword but was then charged at by Chrom''s shield and sent flying backwards. It was a completely one sided duel in favor of Chrom. "Wha-?!" Duke Vista could not believe what he was seeing. His most elite guards had just lost to one female warrior. Chrom turned back towards Duke Noire. "Thank you Chrom, you''ve been a great help." Chrom nodded. "Now, Duke Vista as you said please free the woman." "Grr-! Fine! Whatever! I will remember this!" With those parting words Duke Vista had left. When he did there was a loud cheer in the middle of the square. "Thank you so much!" The woman who was being berated came up to express her gratitude. "Please, thank Chrom here, not me." The town square became much livelier that day. PART SIX Nightfall had come once again. Chrom and Enrich were asked to stay another night within the Duke''s manor. Enrich did not have an allotted time to work within and he had no reason to reject the offer, so he accepted. Elise was also overjoyed that Chrom could stay with her. As usual Enrich and the Duke discussed matters too advanced for either Elise or Chrom to understand. They seemed to enjoy talking which made Chrom wonder whatever was fun about talking about politics or economics. Chrom and Elise thus spent another evening reading more books together. * * * Just as yesterday Elise had decided to stay with Chrom for the night. After confirming that Elise was asleep Chrom got up and sat on one of the spare chairs in her room. She simply sat down gazing out at the moon. She wasn''t able to sleep anyway since her duty was to protect Enrich. She heard strange creaking noises coming from the hallway. Leaving the room she checked up on Enrich and found him fast asleep. Curious Chrom decided to do a little investigation. She checked most of the rooms on the floor and found nothing amiss. While on her way back to her room she noticed something outside her window, a shadow of a person. "Who''s there?!" Chrom shouted. However the shadow that was supposed be outside the window was now behind her. "I''m impressed you could find me." "Assassin?!" "No, I¡¯m the candy-man who comes in at the dead of night to deliver candy to all the good boys and girls. Really, who else do you think would sneak into another person¡¯s estate carrying a knife?¡± Chrom could not distinguish on whether this shadow was a man or a woman, all of the important figures were hidden away by shadow and even the voice wasn''t very clear. Since the assassin answered her question there was no need for hesitation. Chrom charged at the assassin even without a weapon. She threw many punches but all of them were easily avoided. "You''re skills are nothing too spectacular. What a shame, none of the guards put up any resistance either." "Bastard." It was uncharacteristic of Chrom to swear but she had grown somewhat attached to the people here. The assassin took out a knife and disappeared in a shadowy effect and reappeared behind her. It was a little late to notice as the dagger had already sunk into her back. She was temporarily paralyzed and fell to the floor. The blow wasn''t fatal, it may have been if she were an ordinary human but she was a homunculus. This kind of attack only stunned her temporarily but it was enough for the shadow to run ahead before her. This was bad, she thought. If Enrich dies her mission would be a failure, she could not bring shame to her master at any cost. She found the will to get up and ran towards Enrich''s room. When she opened the door he was still comfortably sleeping as though nothing had happened. Chrom was a little confused as to what was going on but that thought was immediately thrown to the back of her mind. Something odd could be seen from the window. It was smoke. Smoke was rising up from one of the rooms below. Most likely there was a fire raging downstairs. Chrom woke up Enrich and Elise to warn them of the fire. They hastily got dressed and went outside to see what was going on. One of the rooms on the lower floors were on fire. Soon the fire started spreading. Amidst their confusion Duke Vista who happened to live nearby also came to see what all the commotion was about. "What in literal blazes is going on here?!" "Fire!" Someone shouted and soon there was a massive panic. Their top priority was to put out the fire. With Duke Vista''s help they were able to gather many ice magicians to water out the fire. Chrom wasn''t too proficient in magic but did what she could. Soon half the house was left charred. "So will someone explain to me what''s going on?" Duke Vista demanded an answer. "Where''s papa?!" Elise shouted in panic. When there was no answer she immediately ran into the mansion. Chrom and Enrich ran after her. On the end of the hallway next to the study room was the master bedroom. In it laid Duke Noire with his bed soaked in blood. He did not move. Dead. Presumably his throat was slit using some sort of knife. When Elise found the scene she cried and ran towards her now deceased father. Chrom tried to go over to her but was stopped by Enrich. He had a grave expression on his face, one that he had not shown the entire time he was here. "We''re leaving." "?!" Chrom tried to reject that but was shut up by the next words Enrich spoke. "Listen Chrom, as I said, our lives are not important, my work is what mister Kyrios wants. The duke was likely assassinated, we can''t have anything tying me down to this crime at all, otherwise my entire work will be all for naught. I understand, I want to help her out to but this is more important to mister Kyrios." Chrom felt she could not refuse this. Her master was the one who gave her the mission after all. As Enrich said, his entire work would be thrown into chaos if he were found in the home of an assassinated Duke. Since no one, other than a few maids who didn''t even really know them were the only witnesses to their stay here it was likely that they could escape with no one knowing. "But-" "Chrom, I know. It''s hard for me too." Enrich averted his gaze. "I... Understand." "Thank you." With those bitter words the two left the manor leaving the crying child. PART SEVEN A few days after the incident Chrom was once again in the middle of nowhere outside the Northern Capital. Enrich had returned to the north continent to continue on with his work and Chrom was now just waiting for her master once more. She gazed up once more at the large, bright moons. It was cold. Not the weather. Her heart. She felt a sense of death within her, ironic as she was part of the undead family. It was the death of her heart that gave her such a melancholic feeling. She wanted to cry but undead cannot do such a thing. Anguish. Sorrow. Apathy. She didn''t know which emotion was correct in such a situation. "You did what was right." A charismatic voice came from behind her. It was the masked vampire; her master. "Lord Kyrios. I have accomplished your given task." "Good job." "..." "Do you hate me?" Kyrios asked. When he did Chrom looked up, startled at the question. There was no way she could hate her master, her creator. "How could I-?" "I made you do something that you did not want to, all for my benefit. I made you abandon your heart." "...No, I did what was necessary." "It''s fine you know. To speak out about these things. I can''t have my cute servant become depressed like this, it may cause a problem later." "... I, I wanted to save her." A day after the death of Duke Noire was announced her daughter was framed for the murder. It was clearly the work of the assassin she had met on that day, if she had testified against that accusation then she could have saved the daughter from being framed. "Is that your wish?" Kyrios asked once again startling Chrom. "Is that still possible?" "Who knows, I do not wish to meddle in the affairs of humans, but there may be someone who would be willing to help. Help you absolve your guilty conscience." ''Someone like that couldn''t possibly exist.'' Chrom wanted to say but she held it in. "Is there such a person?" "There is, I hear our lord Astaroth has taken quite an interest in that certain person, but whether that person will help you or not will be his decision. On your behalf I shall ask." "You will do such a thing for me, milord?" "Of course, my cute subordinate is depressed even I can''t stay quiet about this since it was half my fault." "Thank you, Milord." Chapter 5: Towards the stage that is the Northern Capital Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Toward the stage that is the Northern Capital Chapter V PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 988] Having calmed Lina down we decided to go straight for the Northern Capital where her mother was waiting. While it would¡¯ve been better to go back home and apologize to mother before leaving, we didn¡¯t know how much time Lina¡¯s mother had left. The letter had specified that she was suffering from some illness and that it was terminal, thus we didn¡¯t want to take any chances. Besides we¡¯ll definitely come back and give a proper apology to my mother of this world. Though in all honesty I think this may have just been my attempt at absolving my own guilt for not being there as my mother was passing away from my old world. That¡¯s probably why I was trying desperately to help Lina, it would¡¯ve been nice if Lena could come too. My father, as in [Mardoc Fallon], is pretty perceptive so if he notices that we don¡¯t return it¡¯s likely he¡¯ll understand the situation and bring Lena along. It might be a little terrible to think in such a manner but, helping Lina reunite with her mother was a secondary objective to me, if I really had to say, my true motive lied elsewhere. What I really wanted to do was take advantage of this situation to do a little more research on how to return to my previous world. Sources were extremely limited in such a small town and the place we were heading to was the capital of [North Ariadyne] after all. ¡°Sorry young master, for you to have to accompany me like this.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. I can¡¯t exactly leave you to go by yourself.¡± I replied, feeling a little guilty. ¡°Ugh~ I get the feeling I¡¯m being treated like a child.¡± Lina says dejectedly. ¡°If you don¡¯t mind can you tell me why you and Lena fought? I¡¯ve never seen Lena get so emotional like that.¡± Her expression darkens a bit before deciding to reveal her secrets to me. It may have been a little unfair of me to ask her this while she was emotionally vulnerable but I don¡¯t think she¡¯ll easily expose herself if I didn¡¯t take it this far. ¡°Our mother¡­ she worked as a courtesan for many of the wealthy nobles, because of that we don¡¯t know who our real father is but we were told it was one of mother¡¯s¡­ customers.¡± While tearing up she continued to tell me her story. About how her mother was never really there to see them when they were children. That she was always off ¡®working¡¯. That there was always another man even at home after work. It was to the point where her mother tried to abandoned many times but she never could. Eventually when they were truly abandoned at the age of 6, it was at the worst possible time. Lina had fallen ill due to a plague that was sweeping the city and when her mother couldn¡¯t bear the sight she just left them, never to return. Because of this Lena had never forgiven her mother, which is why she was so adamant about not acknowledging her mother. It was all pretty heavy. Stress, neglect, poverty, illness and an unhealthy upbringing. Though they were all terrible stuff I couldn¡¯t help but think that many of the peasantry live in such conditions. In that aspect I suppose I was very lucky to have been born from two loving parents and a small amount of wealth. In the end, as much as I wanted to, it wasn¡¯t like I could go back in time to help correct her life. All I could do for her now was to stay close as she cried to her heart¡¯s content. ¡°Young master, please keep this a secret. Even I don¡¯t want people to know what kind of life I¡¯ve had.¡± I don¡¯t think anyone would judge her for that kind of life but I understood that even she wanted to keep up appearances even if it was a little vain. Behind that easy-going persona that she carries herself with all the time there is a sad and lonely girl. I just hope our home was accompanying enough for her to substitute for her actual home. Understanding her intentions I gave her a nod. ¡°Thank you.¡± She replied with a cute smile, one that I had never seen from her. * * * After much deliberation we decided to walk to the capital and hitchhike rides if we came across such a chance. Thinking about it now it was my first time stepping outside of that small town, unless of course, if I include my little excursion into that forest a month ago. In any case, although a little immature of me, but I couldn¡¯t really hide my excitement about exploring new places. Human beings by nature were curious beings so it should be forgiven even if I¡¯m a tad out of character, right? ¡°Huhu~ are you actually getting excited that we¡¯re going to such a big city, young master?¡± Noticing my quiet anticipation Lina asked, catching me off guard. ¡°Ah¡­ no, not really.¡± To think that I let her get a glimpse at my true thoughts, how shameful of me. She didn¡¯t reply but she had an obvious arrogant smile on her face that seemed to scream out that she was looking right through me. Like this our journey on foot continued for a little longer before we were able to hitch a ride on one of the cargo carriages that passed by. It was stiff and uncomfortable but it beat walking on foot any day. Luckily Lina had prepared a small amount of money for travel in case such a scenario like this ever arose. I don¡¯t know if she was crazily over prepared or just got by with sheer luck. Luckily for us, since this path was one that was frequently traveled by merchants and such there were no threat of monster attacks. A fact that slightly relieved me but at the same time I couldn¡¯t help pondering the advantages of running into monsters being good experience. * * * Since there wasn¡¯t much to do while hitching a ride, though it may be a little abrupt, I¡¯ll explain how this continent operates. This continent is known as the [Ariadyne Tetrarchy] or better known as the [Center Continent] for the layman. As the name implied there were four allied states in this continent. An interesting concept, however it had been done in my original world as well, during the third to fourth century Rome. The basic gist of it was that there were four co-dependent feudal lords that oversaw the government of their own states and often met up to discuss the government of the entire continent as a whole as well. That being said, there is actually five governmental powers on this continent and not four. I¡¯ll explain. Four families control each of their own territories; north, west, east and south. As such the four corresponding Tetrarch houses were: The [Mil Avon Ariadyne] who ruled the northern territories, otherwise known as [North Ariadyne]. The [Crow Xix Ariadyne] who ruled the western territories; [West Ariadyne]. The [Gladestone Lux Ariadyne] who ruled the east; [East Ariadyne]. The [Ra Lue Ariadyne] who ruled the south; [South Ariadyne]. Now as I said before there are actually five governmental powers in this land. Though not as large in size as the other territories there is a fifth country on this continent known as the [Grand Capital] which is located at the center of this continent. It was akin to the Vatican in my original world, just on a completely different and much larger scale. Due to how the governmental structure is set up in this continent there is actually no family that¡¯s directly in charge of the [Grand Capital]. Thus the one who is actually in charge is the head of the [Adventurer¡¯s Guild]. The Guild is arguably stronger than any of the four continents despite the fact that it has no direct soldiers. They do, however, have considerable wealth and with it also control the [Merchant¡¯s Guild] which has become a subsidiary company. Because of this, through their massive wealth, they are able to move adventurers by offering them rewards. If I had to say, they currently have a similar position that [Mobius Industries] had, they¡¯re the epicenter of all economy and military power. As for who¡¯s the head of the guild, well no one actually knows. They haven¡¯t made a public appearance in the last 30 years. Whether they¡¯re a man, a woman, or group. Various investigations have gone into it but no direct confirmation has been made. Which brings me to my next problem. I know I¡¯m going to the Northern Capital in search of sources that may help me get back to my original world but my hopes of actually finding an actual source isn¡¯t high. That means, at some point I¡¯m going to have to get access to the Guild¡¯s resources, but without knowing who¡¯s leading them it could prove to be quite troublesome. If all goes well in the Northern Capital I have nothing to worry about but¡­ For now my focus will be on what I can do. My father worked as a [Praetorian Knight] for North Ariadyne so using his name I should be able to gain access to a few resources. That is if nothing troublesome arises¡­ I just can¡¯t help but get the feeling that something is looming on the horizon. From carriage we should be able to arrive within three days, six or seven if we had to walk. Realistically I¡¯m looking at a four day¡¯s worth of travel time with a combination of both. While I admit that the first time riding behind a carriage was a little exciting, usually the feeling of experiencing something foreign can stimulate a person but the uncomfortable nature of the ride really wore me out. Sitting next to me was Lina who had a deep contemplative expression as she peered out beside the carriage and onto the landscape. ¡°¡­¡± As I stared at her she noticed my glance and returned a cute smile. I could feel my face heating up so I quickly averted my gaze. ¡°Huhu~ young master is cute.¡± She says as she rests her head on my lap. I was taken aback at first but I didn¡¯t exactly hate this feeling. The slow movement of the carriage plus the serene environment, it was an otherworldly experience; bliss, of sorts. I gently stroke through her hair gently. How nostalgic I thought to myself, this is what she would usually do for that other me, before I regained my memories. Having the positions reversed like this, I think she realized it herself as she turned her face away from my view, but I could see a glimpse of the red that appeared on her face. Ah, no good, I never knew stroking a girl¡¯s smooth hair would feel this good, I might develop some sort of weird fetish if I continue. I should restrain myself but¡­ this feeling¡­ Ah¡­ I guess just a bit won¡¯t hurt. Right? PART TWO When we arrived at the nearest village it was a lot bigger than Karta. For starters this place had a functional inn, which also doubled as a tavern and makeshift [Adventurer¡¯s guild] branch. When we entered, my eyes started to dart all over the place. It was like something out of an RPG game. Several strong looking adventurers equipped with professional looking armor and weaponry. Most of them were human but there were also some elves as well. One of the tavern maid was a fairy as well! A FAIRY! This place was noisy and smelled of alcohol but it was undoubtedly full of life. I think I had a big, dumb, blank expression on my face from the sheer closeness it was to my mental picture of such a place. ¡°Because you¡¯ve lived in a peaceful village all your life, a place like this with lots of different people really stimulates your adventurous spirit, doesn¡¯t it young master?¡± No, what really surprises me is the sheer amount of people carrying around weapons and armor. This scene would never happen in my previous world, you¡¯d be breaking some sort of weapons law if you gathered so many people all with their own weapon. Heck you¡¯d probably arrested for attempted instigation of terrorism or something. But I should play along. ¡°Ah, I can¡¯t deny that. How should I say this¡­ adventurer¡¯s are cool, huh?¡± ¡°Aha, that¡¯s right. I think so too¡­ they always seem¡­ free.¡± Lina replied with a somewhat solemn voice. Growl That wasn¡¯t me. I think. It was probably Lina, yeah it was definitely her. ¡°Aha~ we should buy something to eat.¡± She tried to cover it up with an uneasy smile. Well I wasn¡¯t the one with the money so that was her decision, but I couldn¡¯t deny that I was somewhat hungry myself. Thus I gave a nod to her suggestion. Even though this tavern reeked of alcohol and smoke, surprisingly they had normal food, in fact I daresay that I was edible food. Lina ordered something that resembled and smelt like hamburger steak. How cute. The sight of her happily eating that steak was rather cute, she really reminded me of my own younger siblings back in my original world. "Ahnt oou ooing oo order anyfing, ooung mashtah?" Aren¡¯t you going to order anything, young master? Is it? ¡°Don¡¯t speak with your mouth full, it¡¯s inelegant. ¡°Sowwie.¡± I turned to the counter where the tavern keep was conversing with some people. I lightly interrupted him to order something. ¡°Excuse me, could I have some of that fruit?¡± I pointed towards the fruit that closely resembled grapes, but they were a little more reddish than I remembered. ¡°Here you go.¡± He gave me a small bowl¡¯s worth. ¡°Could I also have a cup?¡± ¡°Is that all you¡¯re going to have young master?¡± ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t feel all that hungry anyway.¡± Well that wasn¡¯t really true but I¡¯m just worried about the amount of funds she brought along. I know she wants to put up a front and act like a responsible adult in my presence by taking care of my meals but I took a glance at her funds when she was doing transaction before and I could tell that she didn¡¯t have all that much. If we manage it properly it should be enough to last us until we get to the capital but we should also consider the possibility of an emergency arising, thus I was being a little more conservative. ¡°That¡¯s no good, you have to eat a lot since you¡¯re a growing boy.¡± She retorts but as my gaze slowly lowers to her chest area I feel like I should be returning those sentiments in full. She¡¯s only 16 and I don¡¯t need such a child to care for me to that extent; I¡¯m a grown man, I can take care of myself. I lightly tapped her shoulders then pointed towards her steak to urge her to continue eating without argument. Though she seemed slightly interested in what I was going to do with the fruit. I did have some doubts as to whether this would actually work, while they look and smell like grapes, it doesn¡¯t mean that they were. I took one and popped it into my mouth. Hmm¡­ yep, definitely tastes like grapes too. I lightly cast [wither] on the grapes causing it to rot and the juice contents slowly filling up the small cup. Lina tilted her head to the side in confusion since she didn¡¯t understand what I was doing. ¡°That¡¯s amazing young master. What kind of magic is that?¡± ¡°Mmm? It¡¯s [wither]. Remember I accidently destroyed mother¡¯s flowerbed with this?¡± ¡°Ahaha~ ah¡­ that time was pretty interesting.¡± She forced herself to laugh. I guess I shouldn¡¯t have brought up my mother since she was still feeling guilty. That was my mistake. Squeezing all the ¡®grape¡¯s¡¯ juices into the small glass cup I lightly stirred it. I placed it near my mouth and took a small whiff. Certainly smelt like wine. Then I took a small sip. Yep. Shitty, cheap wine. The best kind there is. While wine might not be too good for a child¡¯s developing body¡­ eh it¡¯s only one glass it probably won¡¯t affect me all that much. As I was thinking that something happened. Something most horrible that almost prompted me lose faith in this life. Something so terrible that I thought I couldn''t live on with this. A small interface box appeared before me with the words: [New skill acquired: [Toxin Resistance(Passive)]] I felt my world shaking apart as I closed the interface box and pulled up the skill description menu. [Toxin Resistance(Passive): Regulates toxin within the user¡¯s body and reduces the effect of harmful ailments] What this basically means is that I will never ever get drunk. Oh, how horrible! Truly there is no god in this world, for such evil to exist and be flaunted in my face so! ¡°Y- young master? Are you okay? You¡¯re shaking¡­¡± Lina lightly tapped my shaking shoulders. ¡°Ah¡­ it¡¯s nothing, I think a part of me died just now. Perhaps it was the best part.¡± I can¡¯t deny that this skill will be useful but to prevent becoming drunk¡­ that¡¯s just too cruel. The worst part is that I don¡¯t even know if I¡¯m going to regain my old body when I return to my original world, but if I still have to live with this body that means I will never achieve that drunken haven ever again. ¡°Mmh!¡± In my self-pity I heard an odd sound. When I turned to see what it was I saw Lina choking on a piece of her steak. Quickly and hesitantly I offered her some of the wine. ¡°Keh! Cough! Cough! What¡¯s this?! So bitter!¡± While we never had anything like wine in our house, father often drank beer with the garrison. That being said I don¡¯t think Lina or Lena ever had tasted alcohol before. This was probably a bad idea as she likely had low alcohol tolerance. ¡°Are you feeling okay, Lina?¡± ¡°Mmmmmm~? What¡¯s thish? Young mashtah, you care abowt mwe so moch?¡± So fast! Eh? She was drunk already? ¡°Ah, wait here Lina, I¡¯ll go get you some water.¡± ¡°Okaaaaayyy~ hve a safe twip~¡± After briefly leaving my seat and getting a glass of waterm when I returned she wasn¡¯t even there. I literally only left my post for thirty seconds! ¡°What was that you bitch?! Say it again!¡± ¡°Ahahaha! I said you¡¯re a whimp!¡± ¡°Gh! OH you¡¯ve done it now!¡± She was provoking a man twice her stature! What a terrible drunk! The man was bald but wore a fully metal suit and had a two handed sledge hammer strapped to his back. I don¡¯t know how much experience he has but he seemed quite strong. Taking precautions I checked out his stats. [Neil. Level 26, Warrior] So slightly stronger than our garrison. ¡°Ahh! Please stop!¡± I ran in to intervene. ¡°Young master~ oh right. Look ¡®ere this young mashtah can beat you up! Real easy! Ahaha~!¡± ¡°Hahahahaa! This puny little child? Beating me up?¡± On a one on one fight I¡¯d probably lose so it¡¯s best if we just stop this charade and went to our rooms and sleep it off. ¡°Sorry, she¡¯s a little drunk, please forgive her.¡± I said as I slowly pushed Lina away, leading her to her room. ¡°Heh, you little brat. Do you think I¡¯d let her just walk away with mocking me?¡± ¡°Pahaaha! What¡¯s there to mock? You¡¯re weak!¡± She just wouldn¡¯t shut up. ¡°Gah! Hah~ whatever, since you have a nice body I¡¯ll forgive you for everything you just said. But you¡¯re going to have to sleep with me tonight. Hehehe.¡± I¡¯ve never actually encountered a villain, well I guess you could say I fit that role moderately back in my original world, but I would never have guessed that it was possible to see witness someone play that archetype so perfectly. That being said I couldn¡¯t give up Lina¡¯s chastity for a few insults. I thought Lina would probably lash out so I was bracing myself for that but she unexpectedly didn¡¯t. When I turned to face her she was in tears, that man¡¯s word probably reminded her about the kind of life she lived before when she was living with her mother. ¡°N- nooo~¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong? You getting cold feet now? After all those words? Well I ain¡¯t about to give up now.¡± The man slowly reached forward, particularly in the direction of her breasts. ¡°No!¡± She slapped the man¡¯s hand out of the way and dashed out of the tavern. That wasn¡¯t good she was drunk as well. I immediately followed after her. I thought this was going to be a repeat of what happened earlier today but it doesn¡¯t look like that was going to be the case. She was just crouching down near a tree, sobbing away. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.¡°Lina.¡± ¡°No!¡± I lightly placed my hands on her head again, gently stroking her hair. She then embraced me from that crouching position and continued to cry on my small, unreliable chest. ¡°Hehehe~ what¡¯s this? You didn¡¯t even run that far. Well you saved me a lot of trouble so I¡¯m thankful for that. Now why don¡¯t we continue on with what we were doing?¡± The large man came following after us. I instinctively felt my hands drawn to the center of my eyes. Even though I didn¡¯t wear glasses anymore this habit still persisted. ¡°Please leave.¡± I told him in a firm voice. I don¡¯t think at this point I can mediate this any further, if it devolves into a brawl it will be troublesome. His only advantages were that he had bigger muscles and experience as an adventurer, though I can¡¯t say that I had any major advantages myself, I had the experience of training with a [Praetorian Knight] every single day and access to [Necromancy] which is something that he probably isn¡¯t expecting. ¡°Get out of the way brat. I¡¯m not letting that woman go.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think you understand, you gorilla. I said leave.¡± ¡°You insolent! I¡¯m giving you one last chance here, boy. Don¡¯t tempt me any further, even I don¡¯t like harming children but my honor has been damaged and retribution needs to be paid in full.¡± I sense clear bloodlust coming from his eyes. Certainly, it¡¯s not like I don¡¯t understand that man¡¯s anger. He has been insulted and to save face he think he needs to do something rash, or I assume that¡¯s how the minds of these barbaric kinds work. That being said, I don¡¯t plan on standing idly by and let Lina¡¯s purity be tainted by this man. ¡°That¡¯s fine, please, by all means. Come at me.¡± ¡°Guh!¡± The man raise his hammer at me, ready to swing but I am unable to dodge because Lina is clearly too tired to move away and if I left she would be the one in danger. Then there¡¯s only one thing I can do. ¡°I see, so that¡¯s how it¡¯s going to be. You barbaric beasts only know how to use violence huh? I should¡¯ve known from the start that you creatures from low birth are all like that. Honestly from where did your life go so wrong that you¡¯ve arrived at this point?¡± I started to provoke him. Immediately his face becomes redder and redder, I swear I could see steam rising from his ears. So then, why was I provoking him? Why that¡¯s easy, I was trying to lower his mental defences so I could use my [Enchanting Voice]. They say anger dulls the blade after all. At the same time I was also casting [life drain] directly at him and [decay] towards his large hammer. Unable to endure my mental taunts the man charges at me. Just before he begins to unwind his attack I throw out an order with my [enchanting voice]. ¡°Cease your barbaric actions. It¡¯s unsightly.¡± Of course I wasn¡¯t expecting it to fully take effect, just stopping his attack halfway is enough. Since he was swinging around his giant hammer like an amateur he had a large opening towards his front so I decided to attack from there. I dashed towards him and tackled him down; normally such an action wouldn¡¯t really affect such a muscle bound man. However there were a few things on my side that helped me. First was that his hammer was behind him as he was winding up his attacks and I was applying [life drain], thus his balance was thrown off. To be honest all of my actions were fairly vain, all I wanted to do was buy time for [life drain] and [decay] to show real effect. From his groggy stance it appeared that he was being worn down by my skills. He lifted his hammer once more but this time I knew it was all in vain, because even in the eye of an amateur I could tell that his hammer¡¯s durability was all spent. He swung down as hard as he could but I simply replied with a backhanded slap causing his hammer to shatter into tiny pieces. His eyes widened with surprise but even at this point I was continuing the [life drain]. After a while he just couldn¡¯t keep focus anymore and fell unconscious. Before I knew it a gallery had formed around us. People were whispering things but I was too tired myself to acknowledge any of them. As the fight ended a familiar interface box appeared before me. [You have gained (4) level(s)] When I opened my [skill list] I noticed that [life drain], [decay], [enchanting voice] and [life force sensory] had all leveled up a few. It¡¯s useful to know that it¡¯s possible to gain levels even without specifically killing the opponent. Even if it is a different world I¡¯ve no intentions on giving up my human heart and start to mercilessly kill people, though of course that begs to ask; how much of a human was I in my previous life to begin with? Nonetheless, now wasn¡¯t the time to be thinking about such things. Dismissing the interface box and my macabre thoughts I turned back to Lina. I crouched down to the weeping girl that I took for as a younger sister type and tenderly placed my hands on her head once more. Since she was fairly intoxicated I don¡¯t think she registered any of what just went on. ¡°Lina, you¡¯re tired. It¡¯s time to head to sleep.¡± ¡°¡­ Yes.¡± PART THREE I guided Lina back to the tavern and rented a room. We didn¡¯t really have too much money so we could only afford a room with a single bed. As I laid her on the bed she mumbled something in her drunken sleep. ¡°You¡­ you can¡¯t young master¡­ you¡­ changed.¡± ¡®Changed¡¯ huh? If we¡¯re comparing personalities from before and after regaining my memories then I suppose there is some merit to that. So even to Lina it was obvious. Though I don¡¯t believe that this change in my personality is a bad one, but I can¡¯t deny I¡¯m a little more cynical thanks to that. I laid her down and come back downstairs to get some fresh air. Everyone stared at me and was whispering things. The contents of it were fairly trivial; about how I beat ¡®Neil¡¯. I decided to take a walk outside in the cold night¡¯s air. It was the first time that I fought with another human, at least if you don¡¯t include my daily training with father. I won¡¯t say anything like it was a ¡®piece of cake¡¯ or other such arrogant things, because in truth it really wasn¡¯t. It was unexpected, that real fights could be so mentally exhausting. Perhaps it was simply because I was in the body of a seven year old that this was the case or it could be that for most people first fights are always like this. I understood that real fights were different from training; real fights required, skill, tactics and instincts. I don¡¯t quite have many of such talents, after all, things like battle senses were unnecessary in my previous life. However if it¡¯s about strategizing and planning ahead several moves then that was something that I could do well enough. Thinking that way it was obvious I should raise my [status points] in a manner that reflected this. I pulled up my [status menu] and dumped all my free stats into [insight]. Closing the interface box I stopped to gaze up at the brightly colored moons high above orbit. This world had two moons, one red and one blue; like rubies and sapphires that seemed to be embedded into the sky, they hung elegantly. ¡°Dual full moons are often quite the sight.¡± A man¡¯s voice came from my right; a voice filled with charisma and allure. Turning to my right the figure of a tall, slender man entered my sight. Presumably in his mid 20s, he wore a long white overcoat and an eerie white, laughing mask. His hair was a clear blonde and through the eye slits I could tell that behind that mask were sinister red eyes. From my instincts alone I could tell that this man was probably not human. Dangerous, cunning, elegant, those were the words that popped straight into my mind as I observed him as he did me. His demeanor carried an air of nobility but also an aura of subtle maliciousness that were not unlike a serial murderer¡¯s. Taking this opportunity I squinted my eyes to pull up his stats. [Kyrios. Level 139, Vampire Lord]. ¡­ I subconsciously took a few steps back in awe. My previous assumptions that he wasn¡¯t a normal person was right on the money; a level 139 [Vampire Lord]. I¡¯ve met some high level entity right off the bat huh? I get the feeling that I¡¯m standing before someone who should be classified as the final boss of an RPG. No wait, I guess that honor should really go to the [Demon Lord] who was a higher level than him. Hmm? Oh, could it be that he¡¯s also part of the Demon Lord¡¯s army? I guess it couldn¡¯t hurt to find out. ¡°As expected of someone chosen by Lord Astaroth. It seems that you¡¯ve already figured out who I am.¡± Well, that answers that question. Did he say I was ¡®chosen¡¯ by Astaroth? What was that supposed to imply? I mean in these kinds of stories isn¡¯t it supposed to be a god who chooses a hero, and not the Demon Lord? Actually taking a closer look there¡¯s a small icon below his [status]. Curious I reached out and tapped on it to inspect what it was. [Aura of the Vampire Lord; periodically deals damage to enemies and heals allies] Wait what? That seems like a super useful ability; I definitely want that. So I guess that was a passive skill equivalent to my [life force sensory]? I feel like my one¡¯s a lot less useful than that but I guess I¡¯ll live. From the fact that his passive ability isn¡¯t dealing damage to mean would probably mean that I¡¯m not considered to be his enemy. That¡¯s good, a level 26 warrior I could take on but a level 139 Vampire Lord is a different story. ¡°Vampire Lord. Kyrios.¡± I casually revealed his title and name in the most dramatic manner I could. Though I must admit that that mask and large overcoat really makes it hard to read his body language and hinder my ability to cold read. Perhaps I should also start wearing a mask to defend myself against other potential cold readers. ¡°Most impressive, Morgant Fallon. You were able to figure out who I was from a single sentence.¡± ¡°It comes with the job.¡± I replied, though he seemed confused by that statement. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, but for someone of your caliber to have come to greet me personally, I¡¯m safe to assume that you have something that you want to ask of me right?¡± ¡°Oh? You could tell?¡± ¡°Yeah, sort of.¡± ¡°I see. Yes you are right, I came to you for a small favor. Whether you decide to accept it or not is entirely up to you.¡± ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll bite. I¡¯ll hear you out.¡± ¡°Much appreciated. Now then, a subordinate of mine was in the Northern Capital for a mission, but during her stay there a young girl was captured and framed for a mistake made by my subordinate.¡± So he¡¯s asking me to clean up his mess? As much as I would rather not it does provide a good opportunity for me. I wouldn¡¯t mind someone as powerful as Kyrios owing me one and meeting someone more familiar with the Northern Capital might be beneficial. ¡°So then, you¡¯re asking me to save that girl?¡± ¡°You catch on fast. Yes, that¡¯s the basic gist of it.¡± I wonder, there¡¯s probably a hidden motive in his request, I just can¡¯t see someone like him asking to really clean up a mistake just for the sake of making his subordinate feel better. Unfortunately as I said before his body language is mostly covered by his clothes so it¡¯s a little hard to get any conclusive evidence. For now I don¡¯t mind playing along though. ¡°I¡¯ll at least hear out the details of this ¡®small favor¡¯ of yours.¡± He gives me a nod. ¡°The girl¡¯s name is [Elise Noire], while my subordinate was on a protection mission a certain situation arose leading to an assassination of an important duke. However instead of my subordinate, that girl was framed for the murder, it seems my subordinate and that girl had a rather close relationship.¡± Seriously, what kind of missions do you guys do that results in the death of a human duke? I thought demons stayed out of the affairs of other races. ¡°It was necessary to expand our society and to integrate with other races. That was the basis of the mission.¡± As if to read my mind he further comments. ¡°She¡¯s just a normal human girl right? Why do you want to help her?¡± He paused briefly before giving me a completely made up answer. One that was obviously a front. ¡°It seems you think we demons are heartless creatures. That¡¯s not entirely true, we make mistakes as well, and when we do we wish to fix the problem. That¡¯s all.¡± He probably knows that I know he¡¯s just giving me an excuse. Yet he still says that to me, he has some guts. I was about to place my hands near the center of my eyes again but stopped short, things like this should be taken care of professionally. ¡°Hmph. Very well then. I¡¯ll see what I can do but I also have my own business to do there as well so don¡¯t expect too much from me.¡± ¡°I appreciate your assistance. I¡¯ll transfer control of my subordinate over to you when you get there.¡± Not even going to acknowledge the possibility that I¡¯ll ignore your favor huh? ¡°How old is the girl?¡± I asked. ¡°She¡¯ll be 6 this year.¡± Hmm, still young but to framed for murder, I do feel a certain amount of pity for her. Although I¡¯m not exactly the type to prod into other people¡¯s business without reason after hearing something so tragic I don¡¯t think I could easily stand idly by. ¡°In any event, I hope to hear good news from you soon.¡± He says as he disappears in a shadowy effect similar to Astaroth¡¯s. PART FOUR According to the watch that I received from Sebastian for my birthday, I slept at 3AM yesterday, or early today. I didn¡¯t think I spent so much time talking to Kyrios. After waking up I checked the time; it was 7AM. I only slept for four hours. Actually recently I¡¯ve discovered that sleeping for about 4 hours is really only all I need, most likely due to my RPG like ability. Lina on the other hand¡­ ¡°Ugh~ why does my body feel so heavy?" She had a terrible face. A hangover from the alcohol yesterday. To be honest it wasn¡¯t even that much, about a small cup¡¯s worth but she didn¡¯t have any tolerance to alcohol so I guess that¡¯s to be expected. As for me, it¡¯s a little sad but since I attained the [Toxin Resistance] passive skill I was feeling fairly refreshed. ¡°Are you okay?¡± I know it was a stupid question but I asked anyway. I would feel rather annoyed if someone asked me that question while I was in a groggy state, but Lina tried to smile and answer my question, albeit she had sickly face so it came out looking horrible. ¡°Sorry young master. I don¡¯t feel too well.¡± ¡°I see, here have a drink.¡± Knowing that this would happen I prepared a glass of cool water from downstairs. ¡°Thank you.¡± The most effective way to recover from a hangover is to have a heavy breakfast. ¡°You should eat breakfast, you¡¯ll probably feel much better if you do that.¡± ¡°Is, is that so? Then I¡¯ll do as you say.¡± For breakfast I had a toast and some kind of strawberry jam, that was orange. It was a bad taste, though if I had to I could actually get used to it through routine. I made sure Lina had some heavy breakfast; some toast, eggs, bacon, sausage or at least I assumed those were the corresponding food I recommended to her. She was a little taken aback seeing how little I was eating compared to her portion, but I told her not to mind. ¡°Huu~ I think I¡¯m feeling much better. You were totally right, young master~¡± She says with a hearty, cute smile. ¡°That¡¯s right, I know everything.¡± ¡°Aha~ is that so? You really have changed young master¡­¡± She muttered that last part under her breath but I could hear it, though I decided to ignore it. ¡°Ah!¡± She suddenly let out. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Are you feeling sick again?¡± I asked in a slight panic. ¡°I get it now! Huhu~ how mischievous of you young master. Your intentions were to make me fat right?!¡± ¡­ ¡°Yes, you¡¯re totally correct. Oh, you have seen through my ruse, whatever will I do now that you have found out the truth?¡± ¡°Ugh¡­ I get the feeling you¡¯re mocking me.¡± I lightly tapped her on the head. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± After breakfast we packed up the little things we had and left the tavern. It was just a straight walk towards the capital and the roads were open so there wasn¡¯t too much to worry about in terms of safety. PART FIVE Four days had passed since the initial journey began. We were able to hitch various rides along the road, thus we were able to make it here quite faster than scheduled. We were just on the outskirts of the Northern Capital. Already I could see high, defensible walls surrounding the city. Things like that was a fairly common sight among highly populated areas, or so I¡¯ve heard from father and mother¡¯s stories. I just hope nothing bad happens when we reach there. Since the Mil Avon family was supposed to be close with my family I might be able to gain their aid if things turn a little dicey. ¡°Look! Look! Young master it¡¯s the Northern Capital!¡± She jumped for joy as we were approaching. I wonder who was supposed to be the child here? ¡°Yes, yes. Calm down, we¡¯ll be there soon.¡± ¡°Boooorrinnnggg~ young master¡¯s reaction is boring! You should show some more excitement, you know?¡± The structure of the city was a circular shape with lots of buildings inside, the exact diameter of the city wasn¡¯t known to me and I have no real way of finding out right now. Next to the city was the clear blue ocean, so naturally there was a busy port as well. The structure of the buildings were vaguely western, castle-like structures were protruding over the 10 meter high walls surrounding the city. I could sense a great deal of culture from this place. I was starting to now get a little excited, but I did my best to not let it show as it would only make Lina more annoying than usual. I hear a lot of adventurers frequent this town because of its boastful market. Blacksmiths, armor smiths, alchemists, merchants, inns, taverns. Everything was there. I''m looking forward to it. But before I forget I have three objectives to complete there. The first is to make sure Lina is reunited with her mother. The second is to rescue Elise Noire. I still don''t have a solid plan regarding her rescue. I can''t just simply break into the prison and escape with her, that itself would be a criminal act and I don''t want to interfere too much with the legal system here. I don''t really understand it all that well so it would not be a good idea. The third being given access to any kind of archive about other world transportation, though admittedly the chances of finding such source material was close to none. My intentions were meeting with the Tetrarch of this city. I heard it from father but the Tetrarch of this city was someone named [Rodric Mil Avon Ariadyne]. If I can get an audience with them I might just be able to do something concerning Elise Noire''s case. Well, first things first. It''s time to reunite a parent and child. END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 15 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 68 (55 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 9 (5 + 4) Insight: 46 (35 + 11) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 0] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 12 (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 1 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 6 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 11 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 4 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 9 [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian¡¯s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father¡¯s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] Chapter 6 - The heartfelt truth and the boy who made it possible Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C The heartfelt truth and the boy who made it possible Chapter VI PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 988] A gallery had formed in the middle of the town; the town square. This was the place where important news were announced and special events were taken place. However most of the news and event that took place here were generally for low ranking nobles and commoners. Anything truly of note are directly reported to the Tetrarch; the ¡®ruler¡¯ of [North Ariadyne]. Nonetheless, today an important news would be announced. Soldiers adorned in full body metal armor were standing in wait for instructions from their superior. ¡°Drag in the girl.¡± A rather unsightly, plump man in a lavishing brown coat ordered. On his fingers were several different kinds of rings which stood out magnificently as he twirled around his moustache like some sort of cartoon villain. All you needed to do was add in a monocle, a top hat and have him laugh maniacally to make him the perfect stereotype. The way he treated the people of lower class as he walked past them were nothing short of arrogant. Like Moses parted the seas, he parted the crowd but in a manner that wasn¡¯t as elegant and the people who avoided him clearly had disdain for this man. He walked past the soldiers and onto the wooden stage set in the town¡¯s square. He gave howling looks towards the people gathered and stared them down as if they were mere insects. Mistakenly thinking that the power of his trained soldier were his own, he abused the authority given to him. It was clear that the soldiers did not like following the man¡¯s orders but they were forced to since he was their direct superior. A small, skinny girl dressed in rags were dragged in towards the stage on which the fat man stood. The girl was dirty and clearly hadn¡¯t been properly fed in days. Only a few days ago she was wearing a full set of lavishing clothes just like the man in front of her, but now she was treated lower than a slave. The cuts and bruises on her skin revealed how horribly she had been treated thus far and the exposure of her rib cage told of how malnourished she had become. ¡°Please¡­ don¡¯t. it wasn¡¯t¡­ me¡­¡± The girl, barely having any energy to announce her innocence whispered to the best of her ability. At the orders of fat noble the soldiers violently dragged her by the arms and threw her out into the open where the passer bys could see her while she was in such a shameful state. This wasn¡¯t what the soldiers wanted to do but the man on the stage had instructed them to treat her in such a manner. ¡°Elise Noire. Do you know why you are here?¡± As the fat man spoke and ugly smirk flashed across his face. This was all an act, he knew it, the soldiers knew it and the audience knew it, but the man couldn¡¯t help himself with all the feelings of superiority that he was projecting. ¡°I don¡¯t¡­ please¡­ it wasn¡¯t me...¡± She pleaded her innocence once more in a desperate tone. However the man on the stage, [Duke Vista Calros], was infamous for being a cruel and abusive man. Aside from his ugly personal traits he was also known to be power-hungry. He pointed an accusatory finger at the defenseless girl and continued his overly dramatic display. ¡°You dare?! You were found in the mansion of your father atop of his corpse! You were caught red handed, yet you still plead not guilty?! Have you no shame?! The death sentence is too good for you!¡± He continued to berate the young girl of only 6 years of age. Charged with the murder of her own father she could only silently weep as she was being unfairly accused and charged without even the chance of proving her own innocence. It was not uncommon for those who murder members of nobility to be charged with death but the way she had been treated thus far was a little overboard. ¡°It¡­ It wasn¡¯t¡­ me¡­ please believe¡­ me¡­¡± ¡°Enough! You are to be executed in a week. Take her away, her sight offends me.¡± ¡°No! Please! No!¡± The girl started to scream as she struggled against the soldiers who were tasked with taking her away. She was to be sent to the duke¡¯s private dungeon until ¡®justice¡¯ was swiftly dealt by a dirty and corrupt hand. After the girl was taken away the man addressed the crowd that had gathered to see what was happening. ¡°This is the fate of all those who oppose the nobility! If you do not wish to suffer the same fate then lower your heads and know your place!¡± Neither soldiers, serfs, servants or anyone else; there was none in the crowd that even remotely sympathized with this man¡¯s ideals, however having no way to reject them they were forced to acknowledge them. Those that did tried to rebel against the corrupt noble would be unduly sentenced to death. PART TWO -Morgant Fallon¡¯s PoV- ¡°A week.¡± The girl was being charged with the murder of her own father; patricide. Almost immediately after entering the city I was conveniently able to locate Elise Noire. She looked as young as Kyrios described, around 6 or so. In my previous world even if she were truly guilty of patricide, at that age, due to the law, she would¡¯ve been able to get away with it with light psychological therapy. There¡¯s no due process in this world; it really pulls no punches, once again solidifying the difference between this world and the world I was familiar with. The pudgy man, [Duke Vista Calros] was it? He acts sad for the death of [Duke Ciel Noire]; his act is all too obvious, no that¡¯s probably just it, he already knows everyone realizes that he¡¯s acting but is just rubbing it in their faces since no one can speak out against him. Just from that scene alone it was obvious to everyone that the girl was innocent. In fact this entire charade was just a display of power from duke Vista to show that he can silence any opposition. Really¡­ he¡¯s the kind of person that no one would miss if he disappeared. Though if I continued to follow that line of thought it would become dangerous in a lot of ways. Anyway, I don¡¯t think I can just barge in and take Elise Noire with me, that¡¯d be too risky plus it would become even more troublesome later if I don¡¯t do it the ¡®legitimate¡¯ way. Most likely the one truly responsible for the duke Ciel Noire¡¯s death is duke Vista Calros. However the problem is that there¡¯s no real way to prove it; no evidence to show. ¡­ No wait, what am I even doing? Why do I need to find any evidence to prove Elise Noire¡¯s innocence? The entire legal system in this world is honest-to-god retarded so why should I have to follow the fair legal processes of my previous world? That¡¯s right I don¡¯t need evidence, I just need to condemn that pudgy man and Elise Noire¡¯s freedom will just be a mere afterthought. Right, everything will solve itself once the unruly duke is silenced. Anyway this works out perfectly. Though it may be painful for the girl I still have a week¡¯s deadline which gives me plenty of time to accomplish my first priority; reuniting Lina with her estranged mother. Once that¡¯s completed I can focus my full attention to the problem of Elise Noire. Condemning a duke level nobility won¡¯t be an easy task, at the very least I need the power of someone of an even higher position and the only one higher than him is the Northern Tetrarch. I need to establish contact with the North Tetrarch, the only problem was ¡®how¡¯ to actually go about accomplishing that. Since father worked as a [Praetorian Knight] for North Ariadyne it should be possible to use his name to at least pique the Tetrarch¡¯s interests. Of course I can¡¯t go about doing that, no one would let a seven year old gain audience with the Tetrarch, then what should I do? Actually now that I think about it the person Lina¡¯s mother was married to was some form of noble. I believe he was an Earl? It was only a step down from dukedom so it should have enough authority to gain an audience if used with my father¡¯s name. once those conditions are met all I need to do is think of a method to take down a duke and bring him before the Tetrarch. Perhaps then he¡¯ll learn a valuable lesson in how deep the rabbit hole of evil can truly go. Once I manage to out maneuver the duke politically, it should impress the Tetrarch enough to allow me access to information. That being said, as much as I wish for it, I know I¡¯ll probably not find anything solid in relation to a way back to Earth but it should be enough to start me on the right track. ¡°To be charged with murdering her own father. How gruesome.¡± Breaking my train of thought Lina muttered as she looked at the display that taken place. We were coincidentally shown that scene while we were waiting for our pick up. Lina then turns towards me with the same pitiful eyes. Why are you looking at me like that? I have no intentions of committing patricide. ¡°Do you think she did it as well?¡± I asked out of curiosity. ¡°Eh? Um¡­ I don¡¯t¡­ know. You can never tell with these things, you know young master? She looks innocent enough now but maybe she turns really evil at night?¡± Is she supposed to be some kind of Dracula? That being said I¡¯ve had the honor of meeting the real thing and using ¡®evil¡¯ to describe would be an understatement, ¡®manipulative¡¯ would be more apt. That freaky mask especially, I really need to get my hands on one of those, they¡¯re really effective. ¡°To kill her own parent¡­ huh¡­¡± Lina looked away at the distance as she muttered those words under her breath. Was she thinking of her own parents? Given her past history I¡¯m sure there was a time when even Lina would¡¯ve contemplated such a thing, but the fact that she hasn¡¯t despite all those hardships is really what makes her admirable. Speaking of Lina¡¯s mother, according to the letter we received we were told an escort would meet us near the town¡¯s square, thus we were patiently waiting for them. However even though nearly 2 hours had past there was no signs of such a person. Honestly, how inconvenient this world without proper telecommunications technology is. News travels so slowly in this world, I mean I thought there would be magic to remedy such a handicap but that didn¡¯t seem like the case. Everything was so archaic that it started to hurt my brain just thinking how people manage information in this world. I guess it¡¯s sort of like residue emotions from my past life but I¡¯m a very meticulous and efficient person so things like these really get on my nerves. I understand the subtle differences in this world; power was centralized around large cities and powerful people. That meant information which was also a form of power was also bound to such practices, that being the case, something like instant telecommunication technology which would spread information was detrimental to the practices of hoarding knowledge. Though oddly enough, the printing press actually existed in this world. Though if I had to hazard a guess as to who invented it, it would probably be the [adventurer¡¯s guild] since they need to distribute information to the adventurers about certain quests or dangerous monsters. From that we have the members of the upper nobility in cities like these that turn it into a propaganda machine to further their agendas. Well, I guess that¡¯s how power works in relation to communication¡¯s technology in every world. ¡°Ah, you must be Ms. Lina.¡± A man who looked to be in his late 20s greeted us. His face was a refreshing one, almost too refreshing if you ask me. His face would be the type that would put at least 7 out 10 girls to fluster almost instantly, his combed brown hair and jewel like green eyes. That smile of his was also quite a powerful weapon. He was dressed in an elegant brown suit, from the looks of it, it was a butler¡¯s uniform or some sort of variation to it. He was probably the escort that we were supposed to meet. Well, that much was obvious from the moment he called Lina¡¯s name. ¡°Eh? Um¡­ hello.¡± Lina bowed, her face becoming red from his dashing looks. It somewhat pissed me off but I¡¯m mature enough to let such things slide. I mean, Lina¡¯s that you know; going through her puberty so she¡¯s bound to have some interest in the opposite sex, well besides the unhealthy amount of affection she shows me. The man returned a smile to her stuttered greeting. It was a fake smile, I knew because I would use the same kind myself. Though if I really had to say my fake smile with my old body was much more profound and intimidating than this sparkling boy band idol. ¡°Greetings, my name is [Dian], I am a servant of earl Lucius Rosenberg. I am here to escort you to the earl¡¯s manor.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ is that so? N- Nice to meet you, I am L-Lina, and this is the young master I serve, Morgant Fallon.¡± She introduces herself and me while at it. Really, her constant stuttering in his presence is getting plenty annoying for some reason. ¡°I see, it is an honor to meet you.¡± He turns towards me and greets. That being said I could hear Lina quietly panting on the side as she ¡®admires¡¯ the Rosenberg butler. Annoying. This. One. ¡°As is mine.¡± I replied back with a fake smile of my own. ¡°By the way, I do not see Ms. Lena, is she not coming?¡± Hearing that question Lina¡¯s expression goes dim for a second. ¡°She¡¯s¡­ she¡¯ll be here later.¡± ¡°Very well, I shall arrange for another escort when she arrives. Then let us proceed back to the Rosenberg Manor.¡± With that, Dian lead us to the stage coach. To be honest it was my first time riding an actual coach; all we¡¯ve been riding on were storage carts. I admit that the quality and comfort of the two forms of transport were different, for starters this coach was much more comfortable, but in the end if I compare it to a car this is nothing. Though I guess that can¡¯t be helped, that¡¯s just how this world was. PART THREE The place that we were taken to was a magnificently decorated mansion; much bigger than our small rural one. The culture and artistry was on a different level than the plebeian houses that we passed on our way here, it was like entering into a different world, and you can trust my word because I¡¯ve had experiences with world transferring. The manor was about 3 storey high with even the windows marvelously decorated. Seriously, what sort of crimes do you have to commit to get a manor like this? I mean well, I know what sort of crimes you have to commit to get a manor like this in my previous world but in this world I can only shiver to think. As our wooden box, I mean coach approached the front, before us laid a large arching metallic gate. Dian waved at the diligent gate guards as they opened the door to let us through. This was the first time I have entered the estate of a real upper noble. Once again, it is a different world than the rest of the city, it kind of makes me shiver on what kind of house that pudgy duke lives in. Arriving at the front entrance of the building we exited the coach and lead towards the front door. When the doors opened we were met with a congregation of maids, like we were some sort of religious figures, they lined up and lowered their heads. ¡°Welcome Madam Lina and her guest.¡± Wow, I was treated as just a ¡®guest¡¯. I guess they only credited me as such since they didn¡¯t know my name or status, it was a little bitter but I could swallow it. ¡°Before we meet the master and madam we should change your attire, madam Lina.¡± One of the maids came to tell us. She looked strict, she had pure black hair and sleek glasses; she looked like the kind of person that would hit you with a stick if you did something ¡®improper¡¯. ¡°Eh. Ah okay.¡± Lina was still wearing our maid uniform after all, quite unbefitting of a guest of this house, more-so if she¡¯s a daughter of the wife of this house. She¡¯s practically nobility herself. At some point Dian had already disappeared so Lina was feeling a little sad. A fact that displeases me for some reason. We were lead to the changing room with a few maids following. They laid out a variety of clothes for Lina to pick to change into. When they tried to take off her clothes in order to help her change, mind you I was still in the room as well, she stopped them. ¡°Ah, I can do this myself so please don¡¯t mind me.¡± ¡°But we were instructed to help you, madam.¡± The maids tried to retort back but to no avail. ¡°Sorry, it just feels a little uncomfortable undressing while people are there. I¡®ve been working as a maid too so I know how you feel but please leave this to me.¡± "... I understand, then please take your time madam." Somehow striking a chord with the other maids they gave a small defeated smile and honor her wish and leave the room. Leaving Lina and myself alone. Together. Well I¡¯m not really having any dirty thoughts towards a 16 year old. Once they left Lina sighed and turned towards me. ¡°Haa~ w- what should I do young master?¡± ¡°Eh? What¡¯s wrong? You just need to pick an attire right?¡± ¡°N-no, not about that. I think. I think that I¡¯m in love!¡± ¡­ I felt my right hand caress the area between my eyes. ¡°I- is that so? Isn¡¯t that good for you? You can graduate from your unhealthy affection towards me now.¡± I see, so this is how fathers feel when their daughter brings home a man. I sympathized with you fathers! It was a little daunting to be honest, that clingy Lina finding someone she finds an attraction towards, I can only hope this isn¡¯t just some teenage romance born from bodily needs. Though I¡¯ll give credit where credit is due, the children of this world are slightly more mature than the ones back in my previous world. That¡¯s most likely because actual danger like monsters exists and people have to adjust to their medieval style lives. ¡°What should I do young master?¡± She looks at me with eyes full of expectation. I know I can give her some advice because I¡¯m me, but does she really think a seven year old could offer any sort of romance advice? Though I¡¯m a little reluctant, if this is what Lina truly wishes for then perhaps I wouldn¡¯t mind so much, that Dian kid doesn¡¯t seem like a bad person either. To be honest, even her mother, though sickly, lives in this house as a wife of the earl, it could be possible for Lina to be adopted into the house and relationship between Dian and Lina is possible. Though the problem is with Lena, I don¡¯t think Lina would want to be separated from her sister for too long and I¡¯m sure Lina would give up her chance at romance if it¡¯s to live with her sister. More headaches. ¡°Calm down Lina. First we have something more important to do right?¡± I remind her of the reason why we¡¯re here in the first place. Once she understood that her expression becomes more serious. ¡°Y- yes, you¡¯re right.¡± Lina immediately strips down to her underwear and takes her time picking out what attire to wear. She really has no defense in front of me huh? Whether that¡¯s because she doesn¡¯t see me as a threat or if it¡¯s because she trusts me is unknown. Probably the latter if I had to choose. No but seriously what is that? Striped panties? Those exist in this world? No I guess the better question is why she¡¯s even still wearing those at her age. ¡°We should hurry, they¡¯re waiting for us after all.¡± I cough and remind her. ¡°Geez, young master lacks delicacy. A nubile young woman is prancing around you in her underwear you know? Can¡¯t you show some more excitement?¡± That reminds me, I guess they let me enter with her because they thought I was just a child. Foolish, if they knew any better, well it doesn¡¯t really make a difference in the end because my mind won¡¯t bend from amateurish seduction techniques of a 16 year old with no sexual experience. Besides, Erin is much prettier than her, it¡¯s true. ¡°Stop speaking nonsense and quickly choose.¡± Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. There were a variety of clothes laid before us to choose from. She kept pestering with the same questions; ¡®Young master what do you think of this?¡¯ as she tried them all on. It was exhausting me just to look at her changing clothes over and over. This behavior wasn¡¯t even unique to her, Erin used to do the same thing as we prepared for events. Of course my immediate reply was a half-hearted ¡®I think it¡¯s good.¡¯ "Mmm, I feel like you''re just saying that so I choose my clothes quicker. I see if that''s how you''re going to play it then I have my own plans." Instantly on her face was a creepy and dangerous expression. She had a perverted smile as she drooled creeping closer towards me. She¡¯s really just an old man inside isn¡¯t she? Perhaps she¡¯s also a reincarnated individual who was actually just a dirty old man. She then proceeded to jump on me, or would it be more apt to say she pushed me down? Either way she was now on top of me in a very romantic comedy-esque manner; on her fours while I was laying down on my back below her. All I could do was give a sympathetic smile and stroke her hair as she tried very hard. Sorry to say I have someone waiting for me so I can¡¯t lose to a child¡¯s amateurish seduction. She puffs up as she sees it has no effect. Well, even if I wasn¡¯t myself I don¡¯t think it really would have much of an effect since this body is that of a seven year old¡¯s. ¡°Uuu~ young master¡­ could it be that you swing that way?¡± I froze. It was actually the first time in my life that someone had ever question my sexuality. I mean I was with Erin practically my entire life so of course no one would question me. After some deliberation I came to the conclusion that no matter what, I¡¯ll always love Erin. ¡°No.¡± That was my final answer. ¡°Ehem¡­¡± Standing on the doorway was Dian. Though he had his back turned to avoid the sight I¡¯m pretty sure he saw it as he entered the room. In fact it was a little scary that he could get past my senses, then again I was a little distracted. ¡°Kyah!¡± Lina crouched down to cover herself. ¡°I apologize, but you were taking a little too much time so I came to see if there was any problem.¡± ¡°Uuu¡­¡± Lina began to tear up. ¡°Aha~ sorry for worrying you, we were just playing around a tad. We will get dressed and come to you immediately.¡± I responded in her stead. ¡°Very well.¡± Dian responds as he leaves. ¡°W- what should I do, young master? He definitely thinks I¡¯m some weirdo now!¡± No, that assessment would actually be accurate. ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯m sure he understands.¡± ¡°B- but I showed him such a shameful side of me!¡± She embraces me as she cries, still in her underwear mind you. I have to admit this one was a little powerful for stimulation, having a half naked woman cling onto you while crying. Perhaps I was a little sadistic if this was what got to me. Eventually she decided to go with a moderate white dress. Good choice, I thought it was fairly cute too. Though for someone whose mind was filled with nothing but dangerous thoughts it was a funny contrast with her pure white dress. PART FOUR We were lead to a room on the top floor. In front of the room stood a man, elegant in his appearance; tall, slender and scholarly. His hair were like small strings of gold and his emerald eyes with his scholarly gaze would be able to study anyone¡¯s true character. Everything from the way he stood to the way he breathed screamed out nobility. From looks alone he appeared to be around his mid 30s. [Lucius Rosenberg. Level 18, Earl] It was him. ¡°It is good to finally be able to see you, Lina. I welcome you to my humble abode.¡± Lina was a little flustered and confused as to how she should react. To help her out I took the lead. ¡°It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, earl Rosenberg. I had heard you were quite the scholar.¡± Well, that wasn¡¯t true, I didn¡¯t hear anything. In fact I knew nothing of them until I arrived at this manor only a few minutes ago. However, I could tell that he was a serious scholar from the way his house was arranged and the way he carried himself. The rows of books that I could often see as we passed through the house was also a clue. From the clues in the decoration in this house it¡¯s most probable his field of studies has something to do with the natural world, perhaps nature? The world? Well that wasn¡¯t too important. ¡°Morgant Fallon. Yes, I too have heard much about your family when I was searching for Lina and Lena. Your father was a [Praetorian Knight] for the Tetrarch, a most prestigious position. Of course you too are welcome in this house.¡± ¡°I am grateful.¡± I then turned to Lina to nudge her a little, telling her indirectly that it was her turn to introduce herself. ¡°A- ah, th- thank you for inviting me today. I am Lina, I¡¯ve come as requested by your letter. Umm¡­ about my mother, how is she?¡± The earl¡¯s face went a little dark as he heard her question. The letter did mention that Lina¡¯s mother had contracted some sort of magical illness that was terminal. I was actually slightly worried; after all these years of separation, was it really alright for them to reunite under such circumstances? However I banished such thoughts from my mind immediately. Whatever the situation or state, the reunion of a parent and child should be met. Whether it is sad, happy or terrifying, some things need to be said face to face only then can they move on, that¡¯s just how human relationships work. Of course I knew such things, after all, I was the son who failed to see his mother¡¯s face even on her deathbed because it was too painful. I won¡¯t let Lina make the same mistake. ¡°Before I let you meet her, I want to clear up any misunderstandings. My wife, your mother has deeply regret what she has done to you and your sister and to atone for it she has spent the bulk of her life trying to find you and your sister. I believe that being able to at least see you will bring her happiness at the end of her life, so please speak with her.¡± The earl bowed his head towards Lina. ¡°I understand¡­ I¡¯ll meet with mother now.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± The earl opened the door for us. What I saw was a doll like woman lying in her bed. Her hair was a similar shade of blonde to Lina¡¯s, no it was a little more faded from age. Her skin was a pale white from her sickness but it did not detract any from her beauty. She was supposed to be in her mid 30s but she looked relatively young. She noticed us coming in and slowly opened her eyes and turned her head. I think she wanted to get up completely but was unable to due to her sickness. It instantly reminded me of my own mother¡¯s sickly state. Though a little rude, I couldn¡¯t help myself but avert my gaze because of it. Before anyone else in the room, I was the first to tear up remembering my own past. The sight of a once beautiful woman without hair or power in her arms as she was attached to a machine was painful. My mother from my previous life; cancer as I recalled it, lived the majority of her later years on a bed in the hospital, even still she wished for my happiness until the very end. I tried to limit the amount of times I visited her because it was painful to watch; I used work as an excuse every time. The words ¡®walk past my corpse and smile¡¯ were her last words to me. I have never forgotten that, even as I live my second life. At the very least my younger brother kept her company during her last moments, I was thankful to him for that. ¡°Mother¡­ I¡¯m here.¡± Lina grasped her mother¡¯s weakened hand gently. ¡°Li¡­ na? you¡¯re here¡­ finally here¡­¡± Tears trickled down Lina¡¯s face. I wasn¡¯t sure of what kind of disease it was she was suffering from. [Ivan¡¯s magic disease] as it was known but I had no information on that. It wasn¡¯t even a real illness in my world. I used [life force sensory] to monitor her life signals. Her life force was extremely weak and was constantly being weakened as she stayed awake. The cause of the disease seemed to coming from her cranial region. Perhaps it was a type of brain tumor of this world? I wanted to at least introduce myself but right now I don¡¯t think I can interrupt their heartfelt reunion. ¡°Sorry, I¡¯m be going out for a bit.¡± I whispered to Dian. ¡°We shall arrange a bodyguard-¡° ¡°No, it¡¯s quite fine thank you. I wish to be alone for a bit is all. I¡¯ll be back in an hour so please don¡¯t worry about me. Please take care of Lina for me.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± Turning once more I beheld the sight of a reunion between a mother and her daughter. It was pure. I could only give a solemn smile and wish for their happiness as I left the manor. PART FOUR -Lina¡¯s PoV- [Leona], that was the name of my mother. I had heard that she used to be some sort of noble but she lost all power during a period of political strife and was forced to live like a slave afterwards. The only thing I remember of my mother was that she was always busy. Always working to support both my sister and myself, despite that she never let fatigue show on her face in front of us. She was a powerful and kind hearted woman. I truly do believe. Even if it was only an act, to me she was a strong willed woman who didn¡¯t let anything bend her. She was my mother after all, the one person other than my sister that I loved dearly. However her line of work was rather questionable. She did many things that were hidden away from the light, but that also means that anything done to her was also hidden away. It was a particular man that took advantage of this fact. I only ever met him once on accident. I don¡¯t even remember his name at this point but I remember his features. He was a ghastly man, a towering figure; pure evil. From what I saw and understood as a six year old was that he frequently harassed mother both in and out of work. He would visit her unannounced and become violent with her. Such cases weren¡¯t all that rare among courtesans but mother¡¯s treatment particularly was horrible, far beyond anyone else. Certain days my mother would return more tired than usual and with injuries. During such days I could see the soulless expression from her eyes; devoid of the will to live but she endured nonetheless for our sake. It pained me that I could not help my mother when she was going through such a thing. It would only be later, when it was already too late that I learnt that the man who had been frequently harassing mother was a noble, a powerful one at that. Because of this it was impossible for anyone at mother¡¯s work to help her, it was more beneficial for them to throw away my mother. Near destitution, the man still did not cease his harassment. He even visited our little run down home and did horrible acts towards our mother, in broad view. The things they did was not out of love, but lust. Pure and evil, lust. As mother could not find any work she became more and more depressed. It was during such a time I had fallen gravely ill, but there was no medicine in our poor run down house. Out of desperation my mother went to the man for help, since he was the only one she could turn to who had power to help me. He told her, knowing that we were only getting in his way. ¡®Cast out your daughters and I shall save them.¡¯ Having no other choice, mother could only follow his instructions with tear in her eyes. She cast us out in the guise of depression and hatred, hoping that at least if we hated her it would give us the courage to move forward. It would give us a goal to not become like her, that was what she had thought as she threw us out. However, in the end the man never helped us. I was left, thrown out onto the streets with my sister desperately trying to help me. At that time I did not know. I was so angry and disappointed at mother. ¡®Why?! Why would she trust that evil man?!¡¯ I wanted to shout at her but I was too weakened. ¡®Do you love that man more than your own daughters?!¡¯ I wanted to ask her. Anger and despair overwhelmed me but I was unable to voice them due to my sickness. Eventually we were taken in by the son of the North Tetrarch, he was a gentleman. Our first lord; Lord [Rian Mil Avon Ariadyne]. I survived only thanks to his kindness. From that day on I decided to dedicate myself to any task I was given, I wanted to live solely to serve others, to support others, to help others, save others, just like Lord Rian had saved me. Like that my days only continued on with happiness as we served as maids to the realm. Eventually Lord Rian gave us an important job. To live happily with his friend who¡¯s wife was about to bear a child. That was how we came to be with our current masters. At first we were a little disheartened to be leaving the capital realm but it was also a good opportunity for us to see more of the world. We quickly got accustomed to our new masters, they didn¡¯t treat us like servants but like true family. In this country servants do not dine with their masters but our masters gave us the excuse that it was uncomfortable for them to eat while being watched, thus we were forced to eat together, as a family. It was the first time I understood what it meant to be a true family, I would not trade this feeling for anything in the world. It was the one thing that I found to be true happiness, overwhelmed with such emotions, both my sister and I decided to live solely for their sake. When the young master was born, it was a joyous day for both my sister and I. it was like we had gotten a new younger brother. After he was born all of my emotions from the time before had flooded back to me, I was scared that the same fate that I had suffered might befall the young master. I wanted to protect him, I wanted him to have a life filled with happiness as I did. Perhaps because of that I may have come off as a little creepy in my over protectiveness of him. For the next seven years I had been with him closely. He started to resemble the master; the way he always wanted to uphold justice, help the weak, become a knight of the realm. I thought that someday if he were to follow that dream he would leave me to become a knight, it was a little sad to think that but if it was his decision I would support that. Perhaps I might even follow him. However a little before his seventh birthday he had been having lots of nightmares. About how he was soaring the skies but falling to his death. About an unknown woman that he could never see. So many things didn¡¯t make sense but in the end they were only a dream and dreams solemn have any concrete meaning to them. It was soon after those dreams started that an incident arose. When a boy named [Ian] went missing in the forest the young master immediately ran after him. A forest filled with monsters and he was just a child. Without regard for his safety, it was reckless but it was really noble of him. If it were me, I would¡¯ve been much too scared to act. When we learnt of the news, we rushed to the entrance of the forest. I could only wait there until the young master and the missing boy returned. However it was only the missing boy that had returned, he told us how the young mastered saved him and they were running from a mass of monsters. From what I could tell of the situation, it was that the young master used himself as bait while saving the boy. That¡¯s when I finally realized it. How precious the young master was to me. It was through his actions he taught me a valuable lesson; he became a sacrifice for another. When I thought back, my mother tried to do the same thing by going to the man. She tried to sacrifice herself and her own happiness in order to save me from my illness. It was just unfortunate that the man was such a terrible scum that my life turned out the way it had. But I finally understood my mother¡¯s intentions by the young master¡¯s bravery. That day when the young master didn¡¯t return from the forest I truly cried. I didn¡¯t even cry for my mother when she was sacrificing herself every day for us, but I cried for my precious young master. In a miraculous twist of fate, the young master was able to return to us. However when he did he had changed, I don¡¯t think I was the only one who noticed it, the master and mistress, Sebastian and even my sister noticed that the young master was different. He was much colder than before, almost domineering, but not intimidating. His personality was that of a more charismatic, older man¡¯s but his love for his family was still the same. Still, he truly was something special for all that to happen and still return. It made me realize how pathetic I was trying to hold onto mother¡¯s hand still at the age of six. It was then I truly decided to forgive mother. I was a little scared that this young master might be a fake, but when he chased after me in panic as I ran from the Fallon manor, I truly understood it was the same young master I had come to love. He was cold, but he knew how to be gentle. He was domineering but he knew how to comfort those close to him. In fact if I had to compare, his attitude was a little similar to how Sebastian conducts himself. It was a little vexing to see a child who was much younger than me act much more maturely. I continued my heartfelt assaults on him only to have him return with sympathetic eyes; the eyes an older brother would give to his younger sister. ¡®How cheek for a little brat¡¯, I thought. When the letter arrived after young master¡¯s seventh birthday, another problem arose. It was from my mother, about how she was able to escape from the clutches of the evil man and marry with a good person. However she had recently fallen terminally ill and wished to see my sister and I for the last time. At this time I had already forgiven mother but my sister had not. It was the first time that Lena and I had such a disagreement like that. I didn''t know how to handle the situation so I just fought. I fought with her but when the mistress who was pregnant tried to stop us I accidentally knocked her over. Feeling terrified and ashamed at what I had just done I ran away. Instead of apologizing I ran away. I thought I had grown stronger but that wasn''t it at all. I only thought I did; I was still the same. It was the young master who chased after me. He told me that everything was okay. But I couldn''t stop crying I was so ashamed of what I did. The young master comforted me. Gave me a chest to cry on. Even though his chest was small it felt big at the same time. ''Ah I really can''t win against the young master'' I thought. He was an existence much bigger than someone petty like me. The young master did not ask me to return home but decided to come with me on the journey to the Northern capital. Even though it was a journey that a child shouldn''t be able to take he was very adamant. Even now, I cannot thank the young master enough for reuniting me with my mother. Someday, definitely I will repay his kindness, until then I will tenderly love him and protect him. END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 15 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 68 (55 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 9 (5 + 4) Insight: 46 (35 + 11) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 0] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 12 (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 1 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 6 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 11 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 4 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 9 [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian¡¯s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father¡¯s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] Chapter 7: It is necessary to prepare before a big celebration Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C It is necessary to prepare before a big celebration Chapter VII PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 988] Giving Lina and her mother some time for their reunion, I decided to leave. Of course that wasn¡¯t the only reason, I had another important mission to accomplish in this city; rescue Elise Noire. In an attempt to refresh my mind and think of possible solution I wandered around the city. The sights of many different landmarks and culture was exhilarating, it was also good to know your surroundings in case of emergencies, for example if I were to be chased after rescuing Elise. As I was standing in a cool, shady area observing the city, I soaked in the culture of this world. It really was like I had just been thrown into an RPG world, heck I might not even be that far off from the truth, after all I have this [interface] ability. That being said, this place had many different facilities that you would find most prevalently from games; blacksmiths, weaponsmiths, merchants, vendors, unique cuisine restaurants, inns, taverns, town squares, adventurer guilds. The streets were busy and filled to the brim with many different kinds of people and races. The most predominant being [Humans] followed by [Elves] then a minimal amount of those from different races; [Therianthropes], [Titans], [Spirits] and [Faeries]. Incidentally the median level range was from 20 ~ 30 depending on the individual¡¯s race and job. It was amusing to see adventurers adorned with different kinds of equipment walking about and talking about their plans. The entire city was loudly going about their business, but for some reason I didn¡¯t hate it, it was quite relaxing; I felt like I could just drown in the noise and lose consciousness. It reminds me of my old world. Everyone was always up to something, always so quick to go about their business. In this world, it¡¯s similar but it looks like everyone is enjoying themselves. If I could I would rather bring [Erin] to this world rather than going back myself. I solemn smile etched across myself as I closed my eyes, calming myself in the noise of the busy masses. It soothed me; it distracted me from my problems. I breathed in the city¡¯s scent and sat myself down against a wall in meditation. * * * I don¡¯t know how long I had been closing my eyes for. I had been shifting in and out of consciousness, perhaps it was due to all the traveling I did in the past 4 days, or maybe it was simply that my seven year old body wasn¡¯t accustomed to the change in environment and was fatigued. However, I had fully regained consciousness as I noticed that someone was standing in front of me. I still had my eyes closed but I could feel their presence through my passive skill [life force sensory]. I pretended to be asleep for a bit more to scout out what their actions would be but they had simply just stood in wait for me to wake up. Seeing as how continuing my actions wouldn¡¯t accomplish anything if that was their response, I decided to initiate the first dialogue. I slowly opened my eyes and was met with a blinding silver figure.. Decked in ivory armor, down to her tower shield and claymore was a woman; a paladin, or so it seemed. Her hair was a null color, pure white. Her azure eyes were sharp and were full of determination. She did not say a word and simply waited for me to talk. At this point many different hypothesis went through my head as to who she was and what she wanted from me. She hasn¡¯t attacked so I can probably rule out that she¡¯s a hostile target. She was waiting for me perhaps indicating that she has a level of respect for my actions. Unbreaking eye contact, so she probably wanted something of me. I concentrated my gaze to hone in on her title. [Chrom. Level 45, Homunculus Warrior] Homunculus. Demon. Ah, I see, one of [Kyrios¡¯] minion then. ¡°You are, Chrom?¡± I spoke out, and as I did she looked back with a surprised expression. After a few moments she regained her composure and started to speak in a soft but determined voice. ¡°I apologize for interrupting your mediation, Lord Morgant. As you have revealed I am indeed known as [Chrom], I serve under Lord Kyrios but he has transferred over my ownership to you for a temporary duration. Please command me as you see fit.¡± ¡®Lord Morgant¡¯? ¡®Transferred over ownership¡¯? I felt a little guilty that I merely accepted Kyrios¡¯ request on a whim when she was taking it so seriously. I guess I should play the role of the boss then and take it more earnestly. If I recall correctly Kyrios said that his minion failed a mission in this city and wanted to correct things. I guess this would be her. She had a rather distant look on her face, I felt that there was some sort of personal attachment to this mission for her. However, unless it affected the mission directly, it was none of my concern, she¡¯ll have to sort out her own emotions on her own. A level 45 huh? And a [Homunculus] at that. I mean homunculi are those right? Immortal undead created through alchemy. Either way, she was at least 20 levels higher than the average person in this city, of course that¡¯s if we exclude [Praetorian Knights] who border around level 50. Still¡­ this girl: Chrom, her life force was rather unique amongst everyone that I had scanned with my [life force sensory]. Was it because she was a homunculus? It wasn¡¯t exactly none existent but it was, how should I say it; if normal life signals were positive, her life signal would be a negative. ¡°Eh?¡± Since I was on a slightly elevated surface we were standing face to face. Unconsciously my hand went to her face, she was a little unprepared for my sudden actions but she did not resist. Was it because I was now her superior? Well, that works out for me, because usually when I touch something I get a slightly better reading from my [life force sensory]. ¡°Sorry, I just wanted to examine your life force a little. Please stay still.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± She stood there like a statue as I continued to scan and survey her life force. This sensation that I could feel from observing her life force, it seemed oddly malleable¡­ tangible. ¡°Just a second.¡± I closed my eyes and concentrated even further. By closing out my environment I could focus much more deeply into her. If I had to compare, ordinary life signals would be like a gentle breeze, but her life signals was like a gentle breeze from a fan; an artificial construct, then it stands to reason that I may be able to recreate it. Right, if I use some of my own life force as a medium¡­ infuse it with necromancy¡­ shape it into a human figure¡­ It should be possible to¡­ Suddenly green lightning hit the ground in front of me. It started to shake a little and suddenly a metal gauntlet burst out of the ground. It then pulled up its entire body out of the floor, like it was some sort of horror movie. What dug itself out of the floor was a 2.3 meter tall [Skeleton Knight]. Adorned with colors opposite Chrom¡¯s, deathly black metal covered its body. It¡¯s helmet with a Y shape cut out for the eyes, revealing behind it was clearly a skull and in its socket where eyes should be was a crimson glow. Helmet, chest plate, gauntlet, greaves, as though the armor was made of death and not metal, it gave off a ghastly appearance, haunting anyone whose eyes befell upon it. The center of the chest plate was slightly exposed, revealing a series of menacing rib cages and in the center was a red light; its artificial soul. In its right hand was a black sword, in its left hand was a black tower shield. Suffice it to say, it was the complete opposite of Chrom¡¯s divine white figure. [New skill acquired: [Summon - Skeleton Knight(Active)]] [New skill acquired: [Anti-Life Gambit(Sub Skill)]] [New skill acquired: [Intimidating Roar(Sub Skill)]] [New skill acquired: [Shield Charge(Sub Skill)]] [New skill acquired: [Fortification(Sub Skill)]] This was my first necromancer-like skill that I had acquired. I would be lying if I said I wasn¡¯t enjoying this situation a little. When the skeleton knight appeared the town square was in disarray. People were panicking and running away, thinking that a monster had appeared in the middle of the city. In hindsight I think it would¡¯ve been better to experiment on this someplace else but I let curiosity get the better of me. The city¡¯s guards and adventurers lined up in preparation to battle, which gave me an idea. I didn¡¯t really like using people as guinea pigs but the Skeleton Knight took its level from me so it shouldn¡¯t be powerful enough to defeat the opposing fighters. ¡°Lord Morgant, did you-?¡± ¡°Chrom, we¡¯re backing up a bit. It would be troublesome if they linked that skeleton with us.¡± Following my orders she and I blended into the crowd and watched. For now since I didn¡¯t issue any orders to the skeleton the guards were all just standing guard and waiting, giving me an opportunity to read up on the skill description. [Summon - Skeleton Knight: Summons a defensive knight to aid the summoner. It¡¯s attack power and defensive capabilities are derived from the summoner¡¯s [Strength] stat.] [Anti-Life Gambit: Order the Skeleton Knight to explode causing massive damage in the area around it. Can only be used when Skeleton Knight has been summoned.] [Intimidating Roar: Order the Skeleton Knight to shout out, lowering the defense, attack and speed rate of the enemy who are lower leveled or have low mental resistances. Can only be used when Skeleton Knight has been summoned.] [Shield Charge: Order the Skeleton Knight to charge with its shield in front causing massive blunt force damage. Can only be used when Skeleton Knight has been summoned.] [Fortification: Order the Skeleton Knight to drop its offensive stats and double its defensive stats. Can only be used when Skeleton Knight has been summoned.] Hmm~ I see. Well it¡¯s convenient that I invested quite a bit into my [strength] stat then. Alright, let¡¯s see how it goes. I tried sending orders telepathically to the skeleton and as I had expected it moved accordingly to my whims. It took a small step forward putting the guards into a defensive posture. ¡°KWAHHHH!!¡± It unleashed an ungodly roar across the city. Since the skeleton and I were only level 15 and the guards were around level 25, it didn¡¯t have as much of an effect, although some of the people standing in the gallery became scared and ran away. I felt a little guilty¡­ well can¡¯t be helped. ¡°Stand your ground men!¡± One of the adventurers, a warrior, called out. It looked like he was the leader of the group fighting my skeleton. He looked fairly tough, though his level was only 29. The other members of his party, an archer, a mage and a cleric, along with the rest of the city guards fell into his command. Actually there was a small icon under his title that read [Commander Aura]. After inspecting the icon I found out that it was a leadership type passive ability that provides a small stat boost to those who follow under his command. It was a [Knight/Warrior] oriented passive ability. ¡°Attack! Quickly!¡± The warrior ordered. Two sword wielding fighters got close and started to hack away at my skeleton but unexpectedly, even though there was a bit of level difference, their attacks did no real damage. Not even a single scratch was on my skeleton¡­ what monstrous defensive stats, well I guess it wasn¡¯t called a ¡®defensive knight¡¯ for no reason huh? The skeleton moved accordingly even without being issued any orders, to defend itself with its large tower shield. It seems that if I don¡¯t issue a direct order it will move according to self preservation, of course if I ordered it to stand still it would do so and receive the hits without resistance. Truly a convenient wall type summon. ¡°Uwa! We can¡¯t get through its defenses!¡± The two fighters screamed. ¡°Stay calm! Archer, ready your bow. Mage provide the Archer with elemental boosts to his weapon. Cleric, you too, further enhance his weapon with [holy] attribute].¡± The three underlings of the Warrior gave a hearty nod and did as he said. With me being the curious type I wanted to test out the Skeleton Knight¡¯s maximum potential so I was planning on letting it receive the full brunt of the attack. I gave them time to prepare and once they finished even I could feel a subtle power emanating from that Archer¡¯s bow. This was going to be a power shot, I thought to myself. The skeleton knight slowly raised its shield and prepared itself. When the Archer let go of the arrow it flew with a myriad of particle affects trailing behind it. As the arrow came into contact with the shield it exploded causing a huge smoke, temporarily blinding the fight. As the smoke cleared I turned to look back. I was thoroughly impressed, the shield as half broken but my skeleton was still standing there, ready to retaliate anytime. Even against an opponent that was 10 levels higher and with additional buffs it was able to take that hit. Confirming its defensive side I also wanted to test out its offensive capabilities but I wasn¡¯t going to start attacking innocent guards. For now I had to be happy with the results of the experiment. When I undid the summon on the skeleton its armor and skeletal body disappeared into dust and its red soul ascended to the sky and dissipated. Everyone in the town square was cheering on the adventurer party that ¡®defeated¡¯ the monster. [You have gained (2) level(s)] Without missing a beat an interface box popped up to inform me I have leveled up. Taking this opportunity I placed the 10 [status points] into [strength] since that powered up my Skeleton Knight¡¯s attack and defense. ¡°Was that summon, perhaps milord¡¯s?¡± ¡°Yeah, it was created using your life signal as a base. Sorry for that, it kind of feels like I¡¯m violating your copyright.¡± ¡°Copy¡­ right?¡± Chrom tilted her head in confusion. ¡°It¡¯s nothing, don¡¯t worry. Now then, onto the main topic, but has Kyrios told you about the mission?¡± She gave me a determined nod. ¡°Yes, in fact I was the one who requested it. So I am thankful that Lord Morgant has decided to accept it.¡± ¡°Well it¡¯s no problem but about the way you address me. It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t mind but it will be troublesome when other people hear it so when we¡¯re in the presence of other I want you to refer to me as simply ¡®Morgant¡¯.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± She nods. ¡°Now then, about that girl: Elise Noire. How to go about rescuing her...¡± I tried brainstorming ideas, but none of them were really that great of a plan. Actually they weren¡¯t bad plans but just a little troublesome to set up. It¡¯s obvious that no one likes the duke, perhaps I could use that to my advantage. ¡°Chrom, I¡¯ll give you your orders now.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that hard, just a little annoying but I want you to find out some detailed information on duke [Vista Calros]. Specifically things like how he treats his servants, what kind of reputation he has, what his connections are, things like that. It shouldn¡¯t be too hard to find out if you ask around.¡± ¡°I understand, I will not fail you.¡± ¡°Alright, then I¡¯ll meet you later tonight.¡± She gave me a firm nod and left to conduct her task. I can¡¯t only rely on my cold reading abilities, I have to conduct some hot reading as well if I want all this to go through smoothly. PART TWO After walking around for a bit more to finalize the plan in my head I returned to the earl¡¯s estate. ¡®Young master, are you alright?!¡± The first thing I was met by was Lina¡¯s warm bosoms against my face. She spoke in a frantic and worried voice, I guess it was a little cruel of me to leave without telling her but there was no way I could¡¯ve interrupted her reunion. ¡°Ah yeah, I¡¯m fine Lina.¡± ¡°Thank goodness you¡¯re fine. I heard there was a monster attack in the middle of the city so I was getting worried.¡± Already? Information traveled faster than I thought. ¡°Yeah, but the adventurers and the city guards took care of it; they were cool!¡± ¡°Geez, young master¡­ please tell me the next time you are going out, I was so worried.¡± ¡°Aha~ sorry Lina.¡± ¡°So? Where did you go young master?¡± ¡°Just¡­ some places. Actually there¡¯s something I have to tell you about.¡± ¡°Something?¡± * * * ¡°Eh?! You want to rescue [Elise Noire]?!¡± Lina yelled. After having gathered the key players, Lina, Dian and the earl, though I only needed the earl for now, I began to explain some of my plan in detail. I gave them a botched and ¡®altered¡¯ explanation of what really happened to duke [Ciel Noire] and who it was that was really responsible. The parts I took out were about the Chrom¡¯s relation to the demon army, because that would make it a diplomatic incident and that would be troublesome. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. ¡°Even if she really is innocent¡­ young master is only a seven year old, and that pudgy duke is a high ranking noble.¡± I can see worry in her expression; it¡¯s not a face that I wanted her to make but it was inevitable. ¡°It is as Lina says, what can a mere seven year old, no that doesn¡¯t even matter, what can anyone really do against that man? He¡¯s vile and corrupt; evil incarnate, but that makes him all the more powerful.¡± ¡°Yes, that is something I know very well, but that is also all the more reason why he should be taken down. At this point, in his hubris he isn¡¯t even hiding his corruption but flaunting it on the masses. It is at this time when his guard is the lowest that we should strike.¡± ¡°Boy¡­ I cannot stand to let a child throw away his life for some delusions of grandeur and fantasies of upholding ¡®justice¡¯¡­¡± Earl Lucius who was standing on the side, listening, interjected and supported Lina¡¯s argument. Even though they may see me as a slightly smarter seven year old, I was still in this kind of body in the first place. An unnecessary handicap but I guess I¡¯ll have to find some other way to convince the earl since his power is necessary. I stood up and took a look around the study room we were in. the shelves were stack with old, dusty books and the smell of paper caught my nose. Then a particular book fell onto my attention. ¡°Earl¡­ don¡¯t you have a dream as well? Something that you want everyone to see?¡± [Eternis¡¯ true form] it read, written by the earl himself. I took a flip through some of the pages and instantly recognized what the contents were about. Since I was living in the country side I had not even considered what the general level of scientific knowledge the people of this world had, but I had a grasp of it. ¡°Of course I do, everyone has something like that, but what does this have to do with the current conversation?¡± ¡°It has everything to do with the conversation. Though I can¡¯t really say it¡¯s my dream but it is something that I was taught from a young age, granted I¡¯m still very young but it was something taught to me by father. ¡®Always uphold justice even if it means to take on suffering¡¯. I¡¯ve always lived with such sentiments and plan to continue to do so. What about you, earl? You believe this world is spherical yet no one believes you, will you submit and join the deluded masses or will you push forward with your ideals even if it means to be rejected?¡± The earl paused to think about my words, no it wasn¡¯t only the earl but Lina and Dian as well. To be honest even I couldn¡¯t believe the words that were coming out of my own mouth; if the me from my previous world heard me spout such sentimental thoughts he would¡¯ve scoffed at me, mocked me, even ridicule me for having such na?ve thoughts. But right now I can say it with my head held high; being the good guy¡­ might not actually be too bad. ¡°¡­ Still, we don¡¯t have any evidence that Elise Noire is innocent, all such materials would¡¯ve been destroyed by now.¡± At his question I answered with a smirk. ¡°Why do we have to prove Elise Noire¡¯s innocence?¡± They all looked at me with widened eyes. ¡°Eh? Didn¡¯t young master say he wanted to rescue Elise Noire? Then that means we have to prove her innocence right?¡± I shook my head. ¡°No, we don¡¯t need to do such a thing, all we need to do is prove the duke¡¯s corruption. Elise¡¯s freedom can just be an afterthought, the main thing we need to concentrate on is to convict the duke¡¯s felony.¡± ¡°Just how do you plan on doing that?¡± The earl asks with an uneasy voice. ¡°It¡¯s simple, we just need a demonstration.¡± The demonstration I was referring to wasn¡¯t the act of showing the truth, but a public protest. A large one at that, we need everyone¡¯s help, the entire city¡¯s help. The duke¡¯s voice may be loud and may extinguish individual voices, but when the voices are multiplied by many thousands then even the duke cannot silence them, ¡°Demonstration you say¡­¡± I turned my gaze towards the earl. ¡°Yes, for this I need your help, in fact I need to borrow a lot of your power because I do not possess any of my own. Of course I cannot promise any sort of reward or compensation for your efforts and in the worst case scenario it will all be for naught, even still I can only beg for you help.¡± I lowered my head towards the earl. ¡°Boy¡­¡± Then something unexpected happened. Lina also lowered her head with my towards t he earl. ¡°Earl Lucius, please I also beg of your aid for the young master.¡± ¡°Lina¡­?¡± The earl became troubled but we did not relent. ¡°All my life, I¡¯ve never really been smart, to be honest I¡¯m only here because of the good will of others. But the young master is different from the pathetic me, he was always able to get through with his own will and strength. Compared to me even now he is much more smarter and mature. If it wasn¡¯t for the young master I would never have gotten over my depression and I would never have been able to reunite with my mother. The young master would never request for something unreasonable, the fact that he is asking for something beyond his power simply means that he believes that with your help it is possible. So please, help the young master.¡± The earl gave out a defeated sigh as he listened to Lina¡¯s heartfelt speech. Even I was shock at the kind of things she was saying; to think that that¡¯s how she¡¯s been seeing me all along, it¡¯s rather embarrassing, but it¡¯s also nice. ¡°I¡¯ll at least hear out your plan.¡± The earl told me. ¡°You have my gratitude.¡± I replied with a smile. PART THREE After I had explained my plans to the earl I left for the duke¡¯s manor. It wasn¡¯t too far from here and walking there cooled my head and helped me think much more clearly in terms of what needed to be done. The first was what I told the earl. His job, the job that I assigned to him was to stage a demonstration by tomorrow morning. He would use his servants to go around rallying people to gather up in front of the Tetrarch¡¯s castle. Even if the Tetrarch has been turning a blind eye towards the duke¡¯s action for whatever reason, he will not be able to deny this massive gathering. Once the Tetrarch catches wind of what was going on, all the earl had to do was request a trial for the duke using my father¡¯s name as a guarantor. It was a simple plan but those plans are usually the one that works the best. As for me, my plan was to head into the duke¡¯s manor and get into contact with Elise Noire and the other servants of the duke¡¯s. They will be my main firepower when the trial comes, they will testify against the duke and with a huge crowd of angry commoners banging at the doorsteps of the Tetrarchy it would be next to impossible to let the duke get away. Indeed, pressure was a scary presence. Aside from the duke¡¯s corruption the main point of the trial will be the murder of duke [Ciel Noire] and in such a case duke Vista¡¯s main case was built around framing Elise Noire, however that won¡¯t work so well because I¡¯m going to have Chrom testify against that. Once that¡¯s over with it should be easy pickings. * * * Standing in front of the Vista estate, it was a little daunting, the obnoxious amounts of decorations posted around the place it was like he was flaunting his money. It wasn¡¯t even set up in an elegant and welcoming manner like it was in earl Lucius¡¯ manor. This was disgusting. Not surprising for such a corrupt man to be so uncultured. As I loitered around, one of the guards came up to me. ¡°What is it child? You should not be here.¡± Through the darkness I could see the lone guard¡¯s weary expression. Bags formed under his eyes and his overall body posture was bad. Who could blame him? After working so long under an oppressive and obnoxious employer anyone would be mentally and physically worn down. It wasn¡¯t just him either, the other guards also had the same tired look, however this was an opportunity for me. [Eliot. Level 21, gate guard] Despite his level being higher than mine his mental resistances have been lowered greatly through the stress of the job. Not only that, I picked this time, night time because it was when most people are at their most vulnerable. ¡°Yes, of course¡­ Mr. Eliot, but I must get in there at once. Won¡¯t you let me?¡± I asked him with the [Enchanting Voice] effect active. As I had thought he had easily come under my control and paved the way in. Since I was accompanied by a guard none of the guards seemed to find anything odd about the situation. At most they asked who I was but I made the guard tell them I was an important guest of the duke¡¯s. Like that I was easily able to gain entry into the duke¡¯s manor. I was lead straight to the duke¡¯s study. When we entered he had a puzzled and surprised look on his face. His study was filled with paintings of himself and expensive looking decorations, but oddly there wasn¡¯t even a trace of literature. ¡°What is this? Why have you entered without permission?¡± ¡°I apologize for suddenly barging in like this, duke [Vista Calros] but there was a matter that I found that I must discuss with you so I came as quickly as I could.¡± I answered him vaguely. Confused? Yeah of course he was. He sent out the guard that had been accompanying me and told me to spit out everything I knew. ¡°What is it child? I have no patience or mercy even to children so make it worth my while.¡± I offered him a fake smile, just because I felt more comfortable with it. ¡°Yes, well you see my father was once a [Praetorian Knight] of the realm and I had always been taught to uphold truth, and that¡¯s why I came, because I had come across a certain source of information that linked the death of duke [Ciel Noire] not to his daughters but to you. I wanted to verify it and make sure there was no inconsistencies thus I came here.¡± To be fair none of that was a lie. They said the best lie is a distorted truth after all. ¡°What? It can¡¯t be¡­ I¡¯ve made sure that I¡­¡± He starts mumbling to himself in a decibel too loud to be called a whisper. I could clearly hear him say those words but he seemed to not care, just what is with this man? He can¡¯t be this stupid and have made it up to the position of [internal affairs minister]. I was starting to feel that something was amiss with this entire situation but I had to place that thought on hold for now. ¡°Is something the matter duke Calros? Don¡¯t tell me that information was correct?¡± ¡°Hmm? No, no of course that can¡¯t be true. That girl was caught on top of her father¡¯s corpse literally red handed. But, er, where did you hear that it was actually me who was the one who killed duke Noire? I mean it wasn¡¯t me but such slander can¡¯t go unpunished right? And you want to uphold the truth right? So tell me child.¡± And the shark has taken the bait. ¡°It was rumor amongst the remnants of duke Noire¡¯s servants. Of course as they¡¯re of lower status they have no real power in their words and at best can only be rumor. So as the son of a former praetorian knight I am the only one with the power to make sure that information was accurate.¡± I could see a sinister smile flash across the pudgy man¡¯s face. ¡°I... I see, so you¡¯re the only one with the power to make those words come true.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, like I said, the truth must be upheld so I came to check. I will continue to do a bit more investigation so thank you for letting me have a bit of your time. Then I will see myself out.¡± As I stood up from the sofa I was sitting on I was stopped by the duke from leaving. ¡°W- wait. Before you go, aren¡¯t you thirsty? Here let me offer you a drink.¡± ¡°Hmm? Oh, I wouldn¡¯t mind if you offered any, thank you.¡± The duke walked over to a little table and he started to prepare some tea. Actually it was blatantly obvious he was pouring some sort of powder into his drink, most likely sleep inducing drugs. It¡¯s unlikely that he¡¯ll kill me off since I¡¯ve mentioned my father was a former praetorian knight, it would be troublesome for him if I died here. At best he¡¯ll probably lock me up along with Elise until he figures out a plan to deal with me. He placed a small cup before me. I smiled back at him as I thanked him and drank from the cup. As I did a small interface box popped up. [Harmful substance has been detected within user¡¯s body. [Toxin Resistance] now in effect¡­ lowering harmful effects by 90%]. Well, 90% that¡¯s a pretty huge mitigation rate. I guess the duke was using a cheap brand of sleep medicine. In any case, because of [toxin resistance] the sleep medicine had almost no effect on me, at best I felt a small amount of drowsiness but nothing I couldn¡¯t power through easily. However, my plan was to get into the place that Elise was being kept at. For that I guess I should act the part and pretend to fall asleep. If I need to I can retaliate at any given moment since I wasn¡¯t really asleep. I pretended to get drowsy and swayed my head from side to side, slowly. ¡°Oh? Are you tired? If you are I don¡¯t mind if you rest up in my manor.¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m quite fine, I can¡¯t trouble such a venerable man like yourself. I will not be a hindrance to you any further than I have been already.¡± ¡°Haha~ nonsense, children shouldn¡¯t worry about such things. Don¡¯t worry you are not a hindrance, in fact I¡¯m amazed that someone so young has the heart to uphold justice. So please rest your small head in my manor for the night and tomorrow morning you shall be returned to your father¡¯s side.¡± He was sounding a little desperate. ¡°Well¡­ if you say so then I shall take up on your offer.¡± I pretended to close my eyes and fall asleep on his sofa. As I did he called in one of the guards and gave the order to take me down into the dungeon to have me locked up with Elise Noire. Seriously, this man is too easy to read. There really must be a third party behind all of this, I just can¡¯t see him rise to power on his own. I know this world didn¡¯t really run on a democratic system but this man was too dumb to top all of the other nobles who was gunning for his position. I guess I¡¯ll have a nice long think about it down in the dungeon. * * * When I was brought down into the dungeon I was immediately bound by my wrists. The dungeon was barely even lit, the sound of trickling water could be heard in the distance and because of the acoustics of this place it echoed through creating an ominous aura. I didn¡¯t look like any other prisoners were here, just me and Elise¡­ somewhere around here. As I was thinking a chilly night breeze entered through the open window and because of the stone floor it only accentuated the cold. I didn¡¯t have any sort of cold or temperature resistance so this was really a pain. I was starting to feel sorry for the girl who had been locked down here for so long. Speaking of Elise where is she? I couldn¡¯t see too far into the distance but she should be in here. I concentrated through my [life force sensory] to check and found a life signature coming from behind me. ¡°W- who¡¯s¡­ is someone¡­ there?¡± I heard the voice of a girl coming from behind me. Bingo. END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 17 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 78 (65 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 9 (5 + 4) Insight: 46 (35 + 11) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 0] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 12 (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 1 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 6 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 11 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 4 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 9 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 1 (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 1 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 1 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 1 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 1 [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian¡¯s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father¡¯s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] Chapter 8: Festival of the lesser evil and greater evil Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Festival of the lesser evil and greater evil Chapter VIII PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 988] ¡°W- who¡¯s¡­ is someone¡­ there?¡± A feeble voice came from behind me, no power, no energy; the voice that belonged to someone who was on the verge of giving up on life. [Elise Noire], the child that I came here to look for, so conveniently placed in my direct proximity. I have to thank that dunce duke for making my life so much easier. ¡°Elise Noire?¡± ¡°Y- yes¡­ just who is¡­?¡± ¡°You may call me [Ulysses]. I¡¯m here to save you.¡± I gave her a false name just in case we get caught I didn¡¯t want to tie my existence to my family. It was actually quite amusing how I was able to be taken to gaol and still the duke didn¡¯t even ask for my name. ¡°S- save¡­? But¡­ why?¡± ¡°I was asked to by a certain client. We¡¯ll discuss more on that after we get out, for now just give me a second to deal with these shackles.¡± Now then, currently my arms and leg were bound by metal chains and shackles but that was of no object to me. Activating [decay] on them they started to corrode and soon their durability was low enough for me to power through them with brute force. With a clank sound both shackles that bounded my arms and leg were thoroughly broken. Due to the darkness I wasn¡¯t able to see too well but since I had my [life force sensory] active I was at least able to sense where Elise was. Thus I stumbled my way over to her. Through the small windows of the dungeon, the moonlights made their way in, revealing the small trembling figure of a girl before me. She was horrible bruised in many areas and her tattered clothing revealed her rib cage; malnourished. A young girl with faded blonde hair and a unmotivated expression, almost as though she had given up on the prospect of getting out of this alive. I couldn¡¯t exactly blame her for having such thoughts, she was merely a 9 year old against a monster. As I did for mine, I undid her shackles with [decay]. Without the shackles supporting her she fell down and planted her face onto the stone floor. I tried to help her up but she was too lifeless. Hunger? Mourning? Pain? Anxiety? I couldn¡¯t know which of these emotions were going through her head right now, it could be all of them and it could be more. Unfortunately I did not have any sort of healing spells thus I couldn¡¯t erase these injuries from her skin. It pained me to see such a beautiful white skin defaced with such abhorrent scars. I laid her head on my lap and let her rest a while, that was the only thing I could do for her at the current moment; show her some kindness. We sat there for an hour or so before Elise finally spoke again towards me. ¡°Why¡­ why¡­? Father¡­ Uuu¡­¡± Tears streamed down her face as she moved her hands to cover her face. She was finally able to cry, and as she did I gently stroke through her hair. She lost her father, not only that she was charged with murdering him as well, poor thing. I knew very well what it was like to lose people close to you, thus I understood her pain. After she had calmed down a little bit of life returned to her eyes. ¡°Are you feeling a bit better now?¡± ¡°¡­ Yes, thank you for being here with me¡­ Mr. Ulysses.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. But first let¡¯s get out of here.¡± She tightly grabbed onto my clothes as I went to work with the bars of the gaol cell. The bars were a bit more durable than simple shackles so it took a bit more time to get through to them but I was able to nonetheless. I checked to see but my [decay] leveled up a few more times simply trying to destroy some metal bars. I didn¡¯t go through the walls to the outside because we were underground, if I opened the walls only sand would come in. There was a small opening at the top but that was too far up for either of us to reach, conversely it was possible to use [skeleton knight] as a kind of ladder but that would cause too much noise. ¡°Okay, we¡¯re through lets go.¡± She gave returned a nod as she held on tightly. * * * Well¡­ what can I say? Mission failure¡­ We were able to sneak past some guards due to my [life force sensory] but in the end there were too many and got caught. I contemplated in trying to use [enchanting voice] but the level of these soldiers were far higher than me and for some reason they still had quite a bit of morale despite working here. I also did think about trying to taunt them into lowering their mental resistance but that would¡¯ve made too much of a scene in this dungeon and the sound would¡¯ve echoed through, alerting everyone else. Thus we were caught and brought to the interrogation room. Though, interestingly enough they didn¡¯t treat us badly, in fact they even offered us a warm drink and some food. Sat on a small table with a single, dim light source above us, Elise sat next to me tightly holding onto my clothes and opposite us was metal clad knight. [Eric Bahal. Level 33, Knight of the Realm]. ¡®Knight of the Realm¡¯ simply referred to people who worked as soldiers to the country, unlike mercenaries or adventurers. They were most often employed as security guards for nobles or other VIPs, otherwise they were sent to far outposts to deal with monsters. He had bags under his eyes but his gaze was still strong, his overall body posture was oozing with proper discipline, even his facial hair was neatly trimmed. I can see that stress is indeed sinking into his psyche but he¡¯s enduring it, most probably for the men under his command. The two men standing guard at the door in leather armor had a relatively decent appearance, and I figure they were able to do that because their captain was someone so charismatic. ¡°To start off, I am [Eric Bahal], the knight captain of duke Vista¡¯s security division. I had heard a new prisoner was moved to the dungeon but to think it was a small child. Tch, that bastard of duke. In any case what is your name?¡± ¡°You can call me Ulysses.¡± ¡°Ulysses¡­ that¡¯s fine. Now then¡­ can you tell me how you escaped from your cell?¡± ¡°The metallic bars on the cell were damaged so I easily pried them open.¡± I retorted. ¡°Even if they were damaged, that isn¡¯t something a seven year old should be able to do.¡± ¡°Of course, but clearly we are out of our cells correct? Then I don¡¯t think you have much of a choice but to believe that¡¯s how it happened.¡± I was keeping how we got out a secret because in the case that they throw us back into our cells I would be able to escape again using [decay]. At my answer the knight captain, Eric gave a sigh. ¡°Ordinarily I would have to report this incident but that would only complicate the situation, I¡¯ll let you escape from here but you¡¯ll have to leave the girl.¡± He gives me an ultimatum, I could tell he was already taking a huge risk by allowing myself to escape but that would defeat the purpose of me coming here in the first place. I guess I¡¯ll just have to extend the mission parameters to include these gentlemen. ¡°Sir Eric Bahal, how about if I told you that there is a third option. One that can satisfy all of us.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± I decided to let the captain in on my plan. PART TWO When the captain heard of my plans he wasn¡¯t really convinced but the soldiers under his command were. With their help we were able to successfully lure the captain to our side, meaning that he would help testify against the duke tomorrow. Since it was pitiful that only the soldiers were getting such a deal I extended it towards the servants of this household as well and they swiftly accepted. The duke is incredibly unpopular huh? ¡°It is here.¡± I was guided to the duke¡¯s study by one of the maids. Realistically I could¡¯ve just left the manor after securing the guards¡¯ and servants¡¯ cooperation but I wanted a bit more dirt on the duke. That and I was a little curious about something; about how the duke even arose to power with that pea-sized intellect of his. I started to dig around his file cabinets in the midst of the darkness, only the light of the two bright moons providing support. I wasn¡¯t able to find anything especially significant other than some proof of tax evasion, merchant fraud, bribery reports. They would hold up if presented but nothing too worthwhile. I wanted to see if I could find anything more significant but as I was searching I felt the life force of someone else coming from within the room. When I turned to look there was a shadowy figure sitting on one of the sofa, calming contemplating by itself. ¡°Looking for this?¡± The shadow held up a file with documents inside, though the exact details of what they are were hidden to me. I couldn¡¯t tell if it was a man or a woman due to its rather loose clothing and hooded head, even the voice was ambiguous at most. [Orion Valteare. Level 50, Assassin] The name didn¡¯t really expose much about the person either, but a level 50 assassin is quite troublesome. I wouldn¡¯t be able to beat him in a straight up fight so my only option was to talk him down. For now it didn¡¯t look like he was going to attack. If I had to hazard a guess he¡¯s the actual killer of duke [Ciel Noire]; a hired assassin. I fell down to the duke¡¯s large desk chair and stared back up at the two moons from the office window. As I did the shadow seemed confused by my actions but continued to monitor me. I swiveled the chair away from the window and towards the shadowy figure on the sofa. Crossed arms, refusing to reveal himself, maintaining distance, he called out to me first. Crossed arms - defensive posture. Refusing to reveal himself - he¡¯s standing within the shadows just barely on the edge of the moon¡¯s light. He¡¯s taking cautions not to reveal himself, probably meaning that it would be a detriment if I found out who he was. Unfortunately for him I had an ability that rendered those actions useless. Maintaining distance - he¡¯s cautious of me; he doesn¡¯t know who I am or how much power I possess. Even though I¡¯m in the body of a seven year old? That¡¯s pretty professional, to be cautious of all unknown elements even if the opponent is a child. He called out to me first - watching me search through the duke¡¯s cabinets must¡¯ve made him feel threatened that I might link him to the assassination of duke Ciel. So he called out to me, possibly to distract me or to find out my true intentions. Well, I guess it¡¯s time for a little magic trick. ¡°I¡¯ve been expecting you, Mr. Orion Valteare.¡± He flinches through the shadow as I reveal his name. I can feel it, he¡¯s panicking but he isn¡¯t letting it show. ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°You may call me Ulysses. But that¡¯s not what you want to know right? You want to know how I knew your name, the name of the assassin that took the life of duke Ciel Noire.¡± ¡°¡­ what?¡± He¡¯s quite composed on the surface but I could feel his life force fluctuating rapidly, his heart beats quickly. ¡°It¡¯s elementary, Mr. Assassin. I know a lot of things that many people shouldn¡¯t, however even if you¡¯re curious, a magician never reveals his secrets. Now don¡¯t worry I won¡¯t reveal you away but I do want to cut a deal with you.¡± ¡°¡­ I¡¯m listening.¡± ¡°In your hands is something I want and you want me to not reveal you away, right? I¡¯m willing to take your secret to the grave if you simply hand over those files.¡± ¡°I could just kill you here.¡± I shook my head. ¡°No, no you won¡¯t.¡± ¡°¡­ What?¡± ¡°I¡¯m an unknown element to you. You don¡¯t know what would happen if I were killed here; you¡¯re a professional assassin right? You wouldn¡¯t do such a sloppy job of killing me here on impulse.¡± I was playing on his professionalism, of course one mistake and my head would probably be removed from my shoulders. He silently contemplated for a bit until he opened his mouth. ¡°¡­ You don¡¯t know me.¡± I sense bloodlust oozing from his very being, he wants to kill me right here. Normal people would¡¯ve lost it in such clear cut malicious intentions but I was different. I was the one who spent every day with a ten tonne sword of Damocles above my head as I worked as the CEO of Mobius Industries. That kind of bloodlust I feel on a daily basis just from the people I worked with so it didn¡¯t faze me a single bit. ¡°No, but I know your kind. Allow me to enlighten you then, what will happen if I die. You see the duke of this house is a very unpopular figure, so at the behest of a certain client I was ordered to take him down. As you can see a mere child like myself has no real power of my own so I thought of something else.¡± ¡°Something else?¡± ¡°Yes~ a large celebration! Right outside the Tetrarch¡¯s gate, thousands and thousands of people will gather tomorrow in protest of the duke. The Tetrarch will not be able to ignore this event thus the duke will be called to a trial. At that trial I will reveal everything, the duke¡¯s corruptions, the duke¡¯s assassination plot, everything. I¡¯ve even secured the testimonies of the guards and servants of this household to speak against the duke. Depending on your next reply your name may or may not be included with those testimonies.¡± ¡°¡­ I could just kill you here.¡± ¡°No, you won¡¯t because I¡¯m not the only one who knows about this information. Should you agree to my deal your name will be censored from tomorrow¡¯s protest, if you disagree then¡­ it¡¯s free game.¡± ¡°I could simply run away.¡± ¡°Yes, but you¡¯ll become a fugitive of the country. Soon your infamy will spread towards the other Tetrarchy and soon a bounty will be placed on your head. You won¡¯t even be able to find work due to your tarnished reputation of working with such a corrupt duke. Everyday¡­ until you die you will live fleeing from the law. If that is how you wish to live¡­ then by all means.¡± He stood there, frozen as if he had seen the devil. In the end he gave up his charade and walked closer to the moon¡¯s light, revealing¡­ a slender hourglass figure¡­ a woman? He¡­ her face was covered by a mask from the nose down but her clear blue eyes reflected my image. ¡°It is my loss, but I¡¯ll have you uphold your side of the bargain about not revealing me to anybody. If you don¡¯t honor your words¡­ I¡¯ll come for you then.¡± ¡°Of course, I always keep promises to friends.¡± ¡°¡­ Friends?¡± ¡°Of course, putting aside our rather grim meeting, I wish to not be your enemy, instead your friend. Perhaps in the future we may even cooperate.¡± ¡°Hahaha¡­ Very well then.¡± She leaves the file and disappears in a shadowy effect. I really wished that I could someday master that ability as well. * * * I took a look through the files and the one that caught my attention most was that the duke was financially supporting a group known as the [Crimson Knights]; an activist group against the demon race. It wasn¡¯t a large group, it only had a few thousand members but most of those members held power so they were troublesome. The best thing I could compare them to would probably be a group like the [Illuminati]. With that I was convinced that it was most likely this group that helped the duke get to his position. It was probably them that ordered duke Vista to get rid of duke Ciel because Ciel was a proponent of coexisting with demons. Since it wasn¡¯t a good place to be reading too deeply into this file I decided to move remove myself from the scene. I decided to go out through the back door when I was attacked! By¡­ zombies? I was able to dodge their sudden attack thanks to my [insight] stat. if it was always this useful I should¡¯ve added more, but then again the [strength] stat improves my summons too. [Zombie. Level 12, undead soldier]. There were about 12 of them but they were lower level than me so I didn¡¯t really feel too endangered. The slowly inched their bodies closer to me, they only moved slowly out of caution not because they couldn¡¯t run. Well since I was already outside and a little bit of noise seemed acceptable I used my skill [Summon - Skeleton Knight]. As I did, just like in the afternoon a green lightning hit the ground before me and out came a large skeleton knight. I ordered it to go and destroy the zombies and within only 20 seconds all of the zombies were subdued. [You have gained (2) level(s)] The interface box appeared before me. It was amazing that I even gained so much experience from mere zombies at level 12, but that begs to question, who was it that summoned these zombies to attack me. I can¡¯t think of anyone at the top of my head. Couldn¡¯t have been anyone I know or met today¡­ an outsider? Then were my actions all compromised? No¡­ from the lack of interference it doesn¡¯t seem like that was the case. This is another headache but I¡¯ll have to deal with that at a later date. * * * After rendezvousing with Chrom at her inn she gave me a report on everything she found out about the duke. Most of it was information that I already knew, including that he was working with the [Crimson Knights]. To be honest I only sent Chrom out to investigate to distract her, because this was a delicate operation, brute strength was unnecessary and if I simply told her to stand by she wouldn¡¯t be satisfied. So I gave her the illusion of help. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it ¡°That¡¯s great. Now I have one more task for you, I need you to testify against duke Vista Calros at tomorrow¡¯s hearing. That¡¯s fine right?¡± ¡°Yes, if it is to prove Elise Noire¡¯s innocence then I will comply with Lord Morgant¡¯s decisions.¡± Speaking of Elise Noire, she was sent with the knight captain, and they were sent to the earl¡¯s manor to rendezvous with everyone. Tomorrow was going to be a big day after all, and all of the party preparations were complete. Time to set off some fireworks. PART THREE -Vista Calros¡¯ PoV- Feeling a little more sluggish than usual I woke up way past when I normally do, however this was weird, because it is the job of the servants to wake me up after a certain period of time, but they have yet to show themselves. In fact I don¡¯t even hear anything going on in this house. ¡°Just what the hell are those slackers up to?¡± I mumbled to myself. Getting off the bed I could feel terrible noises coming out of my aging joints, this wasn¡¯t good, perhaps I should start exercising a bit more. Powering through the joint pains I manage to get off my bed but I had to stand still for a few seconds to catch my breath. As I did I could hear small footsteps running through the corridor. Good, I can finally start getting some answers. When I left the room I was met with a woman in her mid 20s. her light blue hair was tied up into a ponytail and despite her frail looks she¡¯s actually pretty muscular under her clothing. However the most noticeable point was her ears; she was an elf. I think her name was [Latrica] or [Latricia] or something, I don¡¯t know, these peasants all have the same name to me. I only barely remember this one because she used to be a former adventurer until I managed to coerce her into becoming my maid. ¡°You there, woman. Stop.¡± I called out to her and she obeys like she should. She should¡¯ve been wearing her maid uniform but not only was she not she was dressed up in a manner like she was going to leave, with a large pack slung over her shoulders. She turns her head and gives me a dirty look. ¡°Don¡¯t give me that look. Tell me, what¡¯s going on here?¡± I asked her with an intimidating tone, once these peasants get scolded at in that kind of tone they shiver in their boots and turn meek. It¡¯s one of my many talents as a leader of this putrid country. Oddly, she wasn¡¯t like that, she did not shiver or cower but simply stood staring back at me intently. What¡¯s up with this bitch¡¯s attitude? ¡°Umm¡­ what was your name again? Windows? Oh, right Vista. Anyway yeah, so I quit and that¡¯s that. So like¡­ bye.¡± With that she tries to leave¡­ what? Quit? She can¡¯t just do that! I own her! ¡°Wait!¡± I shout out to her but she ignores me and continues to leave. I run up and take a hold of her arm, then she finally stops to listen. ¡°What?¡± What¡¯s with the attitude? Doesn¡¯t she realize who I am and what I am capable of?! ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going? I own you!¡± ¡°Own me? That¡¯s funny, I just said I was quitting now get out of my way you scumbag.¡± ¡®Scumbag¡¯ she says?! Who does she think she is?! ¡°You take one step out of that door and I will have my guards execute you on the spot! You hear?! On the spot!¡± She stops moving and turn back with a smug smile. My blood starts to boil at that arrogant smile, I will have her executed regardless of if she steps out or not. Before I get the chance to order my guards she speaks up. ¡°Good luck with that, bastard.¡± She leaves through the front door, I don¡¯t know if she was brave or stupid! That¡¯s why I don¡¯t hire former adventurers all that much, their all muscle and no brain. ¡°Guards! Execute that wench!¡± ¡­ The guards don¡¯t come, in fact no one comes. I can¡¯t even hear anyone. It was almost as though this entire estate had been emptied. I took a look around the house and true enough all of my servants and guards had vacated the entire manor; I was left alone in this large house. Just what in god¡¯s name is going on here?! Since searching the mansion was of no avail I tried to go down to the dungeon, at least those two brats should¡¯ve been there. When I go down none of the guards that should be there were there, no in fact it was just them, the two brats have also gone missing! Feeling a sense of confusion I return back to the mansion only to have people knock on my door. Who could it be at such an important time?! When I open the door I see two armored knights waiting for me. They weren¡¯t my estate¡¯s guards¡­ no they were more, they were the Tetrarch¡¯s personal guards! But why are they here?! Just what in blazes went on around here?! ¡°C- can I help you?¡± My voice sounds extremely pathetic right now but that couldn¡¯t be helped, the [Praetorian Knights] aren¡¯t so easily mobilized and when they are it means something serious had just happened. There are only very few instances they are called upon for menial jobs like visiting a person¡¯s estate. ¡°Tetrarch Rodric has summoned for you. You are to appear in 3 hours and no more.¡± The knights give me a piece of paper with an official seal. This wasn¡¯t a joke, halfway through I was expecting someone to come out and say ¡®just kidding¡¯ but no, this was really happening. The Tetrarch wants to see me personally? Why? When I inquire about the reason why I was summoned, the knights give me a dirty and arrogant look while saying that it¡¯s none of their problem so they don¡¯t care to know. These bastard¡­ just because they work under that stupid Tetrarch they think they can be so insolent?! Tch, I¡¯ll have to deal with them once this entire charade is over. But for some reason I¡¯m getting chills. Am I getting nervous? * * * After getting prepared I arrived at the Tetrarch¡¯s castle. Every time I see it I want to throw up at how obnoxiously large it is. Does he think he¡¯s better than me? And for some reason a large crowd has gathered outside. Just what is this pathetic gallery gathered up for? When I get close they split and make way for me, hmph, at least these plebs know their place; even ants will know their place if you squash them enough, though their giving me hostile looks that¡¯s not different from always. Great men are always feared, that is the rule as a leader. Walking through the great architecture that is the Tetrarch¡¯s castle I made my way into the throne room. As I arrived a large group of people lined up along the side as though some sort of entertainment was going to happen. Sitting atop his throne and looking down on everyone else is the old bastard, the Tetrarch. His hair is grayed from age and his once blue eyes have faded into a deep grey color also. Though he is lavishly dressed it was impossible to hide his decaying corpse of a body, he really should stand down from that throne if he was getting to that point. And next to him was his son, [Rian Mil Avon Ariadyne], the so called ¡®next-in-line¡¯, I just hope he will be more useful that this old geezer. I walk forward to the middle of the room and kneel before him, not because I want to but because I have to. ¡°I have arrived as you commanded, Lord Rodric, why have you summoned me?¡± I asked, but all I get is a bored response from him as he sighs. He then shakes his head at me. What? Why is he acting like this? Is he a spoilt brat? Well, he did grow up in such an environment, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if he was just a child inside. Well, whatever. ¡°Come in.¡± The Tetrarch commands, at first I was confused but the door to the throne room open. When I see who enters my eyes widen¡­ No! it can¡¯t be¡­ that boy¡­ Standing next to him is a small and feeble girl¡­ duke Ciel¡¯s daughter! What?! She looks¡­ better, much healthier than before. The light in her eyes that I had so painstakingly tried to get rid of has returned and she is giving me an awful glare as she clings onto the shirt of a young boy. The boy and the duke¡¯s daughter walk forward and kneel before the Tetrarch. ¡°I am honored that you have decided to act for the sake of justice, Lord Rodric.¡± ¡®Justice¡¯? just what is he talking about? ¡°I will hear your case. You may speak.¡± The Tetrarch says. ¡°I am grateful. Then I shall get right to the point, the [Minister of internal affairs], duke [Vista Calros] is the one behind the murder of duke [Ciel Noire], [Elise Noire¡¯s] father. He had framed this poor girl and even sentenced her to death on the count of patricide. If that was not proof of his corruption there are many more cases. These are documents that I have procured from the duke¡¯s own home.¡± The boy reveals a folder filled with documents. [Bribery reports] [Human trafficking] [Insurgency plots] [Scandals] [Corruption investigation reports] They were all reports hidden away safely in my cabinet. Just when did he have time to take them out?! One of the guards takes the paper and hands it over to the Tetrarch and as he reads it I could feel my body shaking in fear. If he reads those then I¡¯m finished! After he finishes reading them he turns to give me an intimidating stare. ¡°What do you have to save for yourself, duke?¡± ¡°I- I don¡¯t know anything about them!¡± ¡°Really? But those reports were all found in your cabinet in your study. Actually I¡¯m quite amazed you kept such incriminating evidence in your study, out in the open like that. But I¡¯m more amazed that you were even able to have any sort of political success with such idiotic decisions.¡± The boy questions me. A seven year old! This is definitely weird! Why isn¡¯t no one questioning this scene?! A god damned seven year old! ¡°Y- you¡¯re lying! I¡¯ve never seen them before! Those were forged!¡± The boy gives a sigh and looks at me with disappointed eyes. ¡°Raising your voice, hugging your own body, hysterical and impulsive body movement, hyperventilation. They are all signs of your own admission of guilt¡­ duke.¡± The boy lists my body language one by one. ¡°Explain.¡± The Tetrarch asks the boy. ¡°Of course, it¡¯s a little known ability known as [cold reading], with practice anyone could do it, essentially it is the reading of body language to gain insight into what a person is thinking. We all give off subconscious actions when we do certain actions. For example, the duke raising his voice means that he wants to validate his own words through sheer volume, but that¡¯s just like admitting that he¡¯s lying and he doesn¡¯t want to acknowledge anyone else¡¯s words. Hugging his own body is a defensive mechanism, he realizes that he¡¯s been caught out and he¡¯s holding his body in a defensive posture for whatever may happen. His hysterical twitching is also a trait reveal that he has an elevated level of adrenaline, such things only occur when we feel threatened, and he is truly feeling threatened because his entire livelihood is at stake with his lies.¡± The Tetrarch nods as he understands the boy¡¯s words! ¡°Still, at most with these reports all that I can do with them is imprison him. To be quite honest this entire thing has been a waste of my time.¡± Imprison?! Me?! ¡°Quite so, but allow me to finish up with the formalities, your opinions may change once he hear them.¡± The boy suggests. ¡°I will allow it.¡± You will?! You¡¯re the Tetrarch but you¡¯re listening the whims of a seven year old?! One by one various people come to testify against me. My servants, my guards, a certain white headed warrior, the peasants, other nobles. They all defame me and drag down my name even further. Those plebs are lying! They don¡¯t understand their own words! ¡°Hmm¡­¡± The Tetrarch grabs his chin in contemplation. ¡°Lord Rodric, it may not be my place to say this but allow me to say so regardless. Countless thousands of people have gathered today before this place in protest of this corrupt duke. It is a clear indication that they do not agree with his method of going about things, he is nothing short of arrogant and selfish. He has done nothing to aid this country, in fact he actively inhibits it¡¯s growth, clearly seen with his assassination of duke Ciel Noire, one of our country¡¯s most beloved nobles, I honestly cannot believe he has even risen to the position he has now. Lord Rodric, if you have any respect for your countrymen I suggest nothing short of the death penalty for this treacherous cur.¡± The boy looks at me with disgust. ¡°What?!¡± I scream out pathetically. You¡¯ve got to be shitting me, the death penalty?! For what?! ¡°Any last words in your own defense¡­ duke?¡± The Tetrarch asks with clear disgust and that look in his eyes, it¡¯s like he¡¯s already made a decision but wants to toy with me further. Are you joking? ¡®Any last words¡¯ you say? I have plenty of last words! ¡°Lord Rodric you honestly can¡¯t be saying that you¡¯re going to go along with the whims of a seven year old. That¡¯s just absurd. I have served this country for many decades I at least deserve a second chance do I not?¡± ¡°¡¯Going along with the whims of a seven year old¡¯? Perhaps I may be, but at any point has his words been wrong? Was it not true that you have shown yourself to be a villainous cur to this country? I see now what this boy means, you are not good for this country, your entire existence I reject it! You will be sentenced to death in a year¡¯s time! Guards! Take him away!¡± ¡°What?! No! You can¡¯t do this to me! I have friends you know?! Powerful friends! They will lay ruin to this country! Stop! Take your hands off me! I said stop!¡± PART FOUR -Morgant Fallon¡¯s PoV- The duke was dragged out screaming. To be honest this entire trial was a farce, I had already won once I had secured the aid of the earl and when people gathered at the Tetrarch¡¯s castle early in the morning. The only reason why I went along with this trouble trial was to show my political superiority to impress the Tetrarch. Because I wanted to gain access to his library. As the trial came to a close everyone was slowly leaving the throne room. As I had assumed before, father brought along Lena and was standing in the crowd before, but they too had left and were waiting for me along with everyone else. In the end the only people remaining were the Tetrarch, his son and myself. ¡°Quite the display you put up there. For a seven year old child, it is uncanny, almost disturbing.¡± The Tetrarch says to me in a candid manner. He had dropped his ¡®Lord¡¯ act and was talking normally. Well I sympathise with him, if a real seven year old talked like I did then it might be a little scary. ¡°Nothing of the sort, Lord Rodric, I have had a good education from my father and mother who have both served as this nation¡¯s [praetorian knights].¡± ¡°Of course, I know that very well. Still, you are something different. How should I say this? I don¡¯t get the feeling you truly are a child, but something more. I can only shiver to think what you will become in the future.¡± ¡°I will accept the compliment.¡± ¡°Then, what is it that you wish for?¡± Interrupting our little conversation was the Tetrarch¡¯s son, [Rian Mil Avon Ariadyne], the next in line for the throne. He asked what I wished for, meaning that he had caught onto my act already. ¡°It seems I¡¯ve been found out.¡± ¡°Of course, this entire trial was a farce right? You just wanted to show father your skills.¡± He reads me like a book, a bit vexing but he has the right skill and mindset if he was to become the next Tetrarch. ¡°Yes, if you will grant me this wish. I would like to visit the personal library of the Tetrarch, for study and research purposes.¡± The Tetrarch and his son turn towards each other. ¡°I see, well normally that would not be permitted unless you have become a [praetorian knight] but perhaps this once we may be able to bend the rules.¡± The Tetrarch tells me. ¡°Thank you very much.¡± After waiting a brief moment, a maid comes to greet me and with that I was taken to the great library of the North country. END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 19 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 78 (65 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 9 (5 + 4) Insight: 46 (35 + 11) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 10] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 12 (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 1 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 6 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 11 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 4 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 9 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 3 (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 1 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 1 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 1 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 1 [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian¡¯s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father¡¯s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] Chapter 9 - The secret final boss, just which one is it? Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C The secret final boss, just which one is it? Chapter IX PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 988] ¡°Welcome to the [Grand Library] of the Northern Tetrarchy, please view any material in here to your heart¡¯s content.¡± Says [Rian Mil Avon Ariadyne] after guiding me to this place. As he says this place was enormous, far stretching to the point I couldn¡¯t see where it ended. Rows and rows of shelves all stacked with books, it was a little daunting to think I had to go through all of this. I don¡¯t even know how much time I have. The smell of aging paper filled the air, booklovers would think this as paradise, for me I wasn¡¯t as thrilled as it only meant I had to go through all of them to get the information I specifically wanted. ¡°If you need anything, please rely on me.¡± Says the maid that also accompanied us. ¡°Ah, okay, well if you have any materials on [parallel worlds] or [teleportation] I¡¯d like to view them.¡± I asked bluntly, at first both the maid and Rian were intrigued by my suggestion, but I managed to smile and dodge any potential questions as to why I¡¯m searching for them. * * * I was slowly getting to my wit¡¯s end due to the seemingly endless lines of books in this place. I¡¯m grateful they let me view their library but still, this was way too much and my impatient heart couldn¡¯t take much more of this. I must¡¯ve skimmed through at least 400 different books but none of them were the ones I was looking for. I won¡¯t deny that I¡¯ve learnt quite a bit about this world but none of that matters to me, perhaps this is just going to be a dead end? No, for now I won¡¯t give up and search a bit more. It was two hours later that I found an odd bookshelf; it was entirely empty except for one book. Curious I asked the maid about it but she just tiled her head and responded with ¡®what book?¡¯ At first I was confused and tried to point it out that there was a leathered book but she told me to stop joking around. After a bit more deliberation I found out she wasn¡¯t able to see the book, I even asked Rian but he didn¡¯t know what I was talking about either. Was it an invisible book? No, that makes no sense, if it was invisible I shouldn¡¯t have been able to see it either. I stepped a bit closer to the shelf but as I did a sensation of boundless regret and despair overcame me. Every second in that state felt like my entire world was being crushed and I was at the center of it all. Another step in and the feelings changed, maliciousness swirled around as if to taunt me into reading it. Truthfully it may have been better to avoid this one book as the obvious signs of danger was obvious, but humans are awfully curious creatures after all. As I placed my hands on the cover of the book my entire body started to chill, my spine snapped into place as thought it had been frozen. As a necromancer I could feel my own soul being ripped apart but at the same time I felt something else; nostalgia. As my vision became disoriented and my breathing hoarse the only thing stopping me from dropping this book was my own will and curiosity. Enduring the pain I grabbed onto the leathery cover of the book and once I did my entire world went dark. My surroundings disappeared into a pit of void and the only thing here was this book and myself, a warm feeling of sanctuary filled my heart this time, a feeling of safety. Of course I knew better, this book was dangerous, but as I looked at the cover two things caught my attention immediately. I froze for a couple of seconds as I let the information sink in. The first thing was that the title of the book was [Necronomicon], the book of evil. It finally made sense why I was receiving such chilling feelings as my laid my hands on it. I could feel the boundless evil emanating from the pages. Immediately my mind made the decision to purge the book as the correct course of action but my rationale thought otherwise. That was to read the book, despite having somewhat rudimentary on the background of such a book, I thought to myself those were just works of fiction in my old world, there was no way such things could be real. However my mistake was that this wasn¡¯t just any world I was living in, this was a fantasy world where everything was free game. But even before that there was an even more uncanny thing about this book. Something that needed to be addressed and that was that this book was in English. Right, this world doesn¡¯t use english but an entirely different language that I had forced myself to learn but here was this book, an ancient relic into my previous world and english was my one true connection to that world. That is why I rationalized that I shouldn¡¯t be destroying it but reading it. I¡¯ve searched this entirely library and I don¡¯t think I would get any other clue if I let this one go. I had confidence in my own will and rationale to be able to resist the temptations of this book, but I needed to know the contents. ¡®The successor of the old world gazes upon our soul.¡¯ I started to hear whispers in my head but I ignored it as best as I could as I flipped through the pages. As I read the book I noticed that I couldn¡¯t retain the information of what I had just read. It was like letting your mind slip as you read and you find out that you¡¯ve read a few pages but don¡¯t know what it was you read. Right, it was that feeling but I know I was concentrating so why wasn¡¯t it that I couldn¡¯t retain the contents? I even tried reading it out aloud but it was to no avail. This book was driving me crazy, perhaps that was the point but still. ¡®It is futile, without the permission of the [Lord of Chaos] you will not be able to read us.¡¯ The voices continue. ¡®Lord of Chaos¡¯? The only one that fits that Lovecraftian theme is [Nyarlathotep] the crawling chaos¡­ or so I figure. Hmm¡­ this might actually prove to be useful insight, though Nyarlathotep wasn¡¯t ever depicted as a useful fellow in my old world¡¯s literature he was identified as a powerful figure. The fact that this book was written in english and the that he has some references to my old world may be a clue. Perhaps he could even help me return. For now I decided to take this book. Since neither the maid or Rian was able to see this book I don¡¯t think it would cause too much of a problem if I removed it from the library. I wonder if this book counted as an item as well. I checked. [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight] There was even had an inscription on the interface box that wasn¡¯t written on the book itself. [The book emanates evil aura, as long as the user holds onto this item they will be allowed access to the skill [Evil Eye].] [New skill acquired:[Evil Eye(Temporary)]] [Evil Eye: gain the temporary ability to instil fear into an opponent¡¯s mind causing them to lower physical/magical/mental defenses for a brief moment. Can only be used on enemies up to a maximum of 10 level above the user] Oh~? Interesting, so using this I may be able to lower the mental defenses of those at most 10 level higher than me and use it in conjunction with [Enchanting Voice]. Though it¡¯s a little disappointing that it only works on enemies up to 10 levels higher but the number of times I¡¯ve met people who were too high for [enchanting voice] was a little annoying. I can also use it in battle or to avoid battle. It even gives me a nice boost to my stats. With that I decided to put it away into my inventory. I checked out the skill and it¡¯s already at maximum level of 50, which is good to know that skills had a maximum level. It does say (temporary) so I guess if I lose the book it will disappear. Figuring that I wouldn¡¯t be able to find any more relevant sources I decided to end my search here. When I returned father gave me a pat on the back for a job well done, though Lena was feeling a little moody for having been brought here against her will, still she didn¡¯t directly speak out. PART TWO After my spectacular triumph over the duke the earl was quickly promoted to dukedom at my suggestion and he had replaced [Vista Calros] and [Ciel Noire] as the minister of both internal and external affair, meaning he had a lot of work to cover, he even hired the guards and servants left over from both of the duke¡¯s residence and it was getting a little crowded in this manor, thought this place was getting an upgrade soon so it shouldn¡¯t be too much of a problem. In any case the new duke wanted to throw a celebration for this occasion and preparations for a big party were being made. I decided to take this opportunity to relax a bit but before I could do that there was one person I wanted to visit. Ex-duke [Vista Calros] was being held up at the official prison dungeon of this nation and while it was normally off-limits for visitation I was granted permission. Thus I decided to see the ex-duke one last time. I was guided into a dimly lit place, not unlike the place under the ex-duke¡¯s house. It was cold and desolate in here but my pity for the ex-duke was limited. In the deepest part of the dungeon there was a single cell separated from all the others, this place was reserved for only the most hardened criminals, fitting for a treacherous cur like this man. I told the guards I wanted to talk in private and they let me. ¡°It¡¯s been¡­ 3 days I believe, ex--duke Vista Calros. How have you been holding up?¡± I asked through the metal bars. He immediately jumped towards me and clutched onto them as he shouted. ¡°You! You insolent little brat! I will kill you! I will break you! GET ME OUT OF HERE! I DON¡¯T DESERVE THIS TREATMENT!¡± Shouting at me like that won¡¯t help your case much, ex-duke. I pulled my head closer to him and activated [evil eye] and as soon as I did clear horror and fear filled his face. He dashed back against the wall trying to claw his way out of the dungeon just to get away from me. Watching this scene put a smile on my face, even I could tell that the smile was a most evil one. ¡°Now, now, Mr. Vista Calros, you shouldn¡¯t act like that. It¡¯s unsightly.¡± ¡°Y- you! Who are you?! What are you?!¡± He asked as he continued to claw through the stone walls, even as his fingernails broke off and he started bleeding from his fingers. It was a horrible sight but one that somewhat filled me with satisfaction. ¡°Come now, I¡¯m just like you. A fellow human being, the one you so boast that they are the ¡®superior race¡¯. We share a kinship¡­ you and I.¡± ¡°Why¡­? Why did you do this to me?¡± ¡°Why? Well I would like to say that it was for justice or for the good of the city but we both know that isn¡¯t quite true. If I had to state my real intentions¡­ it was that I did it because it amused me¡­ because I could.¡± ¡°B- because you could? Just¡­ just for that reason?!¡± I shook my head. ¡°No, not just for that reason. It¡¯s because I know it was you¡­ who ruined my dear friend¡¯s life. A long time ago you became obsessed with a certain person; a woman named [Leona]. She had two daughters; twins, but you didn¡¯t care, you went for the woman nonetheless and even went as far as trying to get rid of her daughters. For that reason I wanted you to suffer like they did. Slowly¡­ in this cage like a beast¡­ await for your death that will come in a year.¡± ¡°A- a- a beast¡­?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. After I¡¯m gone, you will continue to rot in this cell until your execution. And that¡¯s how it¡¯s going to be.¡± The ex-duke started to shake violently as tears poured from his eyes and snot running down his nose. It was an extremely unpleasant look. ¡°You¡­! You¡¯re evil!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, but cultivated evil is unlike your morose, lusty evil. Even evil has standards but you are just pathetic, I can¡¯t even acknowledge you as a human being, right, you¡¯re nothing but a beast in a cage awaiting the day the guillotine removes your head.¡± ¡°You¡­! I¡¯ll see you in hell!¡± ¡°Hell¡­ Hahaha~ I see, then when you get to hell¡­ tell them that [Aran Callahad] sent you.¡± With those last words I left the frightened beast, trembling in its cage. PART THREE It was now about a week after ex-duke Vista¡¯s trial. We were all invited to the after-party celebrations and I was the guest of honor. Since then Elise Noire had become free, though because of all the events that had transpired she really didn¡¯t get proper time to mourn her father¡¯s death so she did so during our free time. She even came to me and cried on my chest, also she still calls me [Ulysses]. She had been adopted by the new duke, Lucius Rosenberg so her lifestyle shouldn¡¯t have been changed all that much. And with most of duke Ciel¡¯s wealth going to duke Lucius he¡¯s going to be able to become a much more effective minister due to all that wealth and political position. Interestingly Elise has expressed interest in politics and is studying under duke Lucius. Chrom was also hired to be her personal guard, of course her allegiance is definitely under Kyrios but from what I¡¯ve seen so far he gives his subordinates a lot of freedom, I also think Chrom¡¯s just going along with the flow for now, but we¡¯ll see. Also, recently whenever I see Elise she blushes and hides her face. I¡¯m not dense enough to not notice this but she¡¯s far too young for me so I¡¯ll have to pass on her. Besides I don¡¯t know how much longer I¡¯ll be staying in this world so it¡¯s better if she quits while she¡¯s ahead. Maybe I¡¯ll have to talk to her later if she¡¯s still harboring such feelings after a few years. Other than that, Lena was also able to meet her mother, she was feeling a bit sour before but as soon as she met her she broke down in tears. I guess it turned out to be a worthwhile trip in the end for her, though her mother fell asleep soon after, apparently while she¡¯s sleeping the disease doesn¡¯t spread. Moving on, the Tetrarch¡¯s son, [Rian Mil Avon Ariadyne] also offered me a fairly lucrative deal, which was marrying into his family. Since my father was his childhood friend the Tetrarch himself also backed up the decision, it seems that they¡¯ve taken a liking to me, even to the point where I¡¯ll be the next-in-line for North Tetrarch after Rian. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. When I first met her she was just a seven year old child but still had her act together. She gave me a bow. ¡°Hello.¡± I guess her she still needs a little lesson on formal speech but for a seven year old her actions were pretty acceptable in the world of high rollers. ¡°Hi.¡± I answered back. For better or worse I declined their offer. Rian¡¯s daughter was the same age as I but I don¡¯t really want to take away someone¡¯s future in an arranged marriage. With that the party began! There was food, drinks, fun, lots of people, activities, etc. it really was quite a night, until a certain someone decided to talk to me in private. PART FOUR ¡°What is it Lina?¡± Lina was the one who called me out to the veranda. As night had fallen the air became chilly but the sight of the moon and the land from the duke¡¯s manor was amazing. This situation really did get my heart pounding, and if I was any more na?ve I would¡¯ve thought that Lina brought me out to confess her love for me or something. Though that will never happen, I mean because I can¡¯t accept her feelings even if she did do that. ¡°I just wanted to thank you, young master. For everything you¡¯ve done for me up til now. If it wasn¡¯t for you I would¡¯ve still been feeling enmity towards my mother and I never would¡¯ve had a satisfying conclusion. Not only that but you¡¯ve also helped me a lot these past few years, so I just wanted to tell you how grateful I was.¡± ¡°Lina¡­ You don¡¯t have to thank me for anything, all I did was go along with you. It was you who pulled out the courage to talk to your mother and it was you who forgave her from the bottom of your heart. If anything you should be proud of yourself for getting this far.¡± ¡°Young master¡­ thank you.¡± Tears trickled down her face, but not sad ones, tears of happiness. She smiled as she turned back to cover her face as she became embarrassed with me watching her. Still, her figure that shun elegantly in the moons¡¯ light was oddly charming. Holding back I decided to return to the party. ¡°Well, then I¡¯ll accept your feelings of gratitude, Lina. Shall we return to the-¡° ¡°Sorry, Sir Morgant, if I may have a word?¡± Stopping me from returning was the butler of this house, [Dian]. With his trademark false smile and pleasing looks he holds his gaze towards me, not even batting an eye towards Lina who was blushing brightly. ¡°Uh, no problem.¡± ¡°T- then I¡¯ll return first. Please excuse me.¡± Lina says as she skips inside. I¡¯m going to have to have a word with her about not making her emotions so blatant, especially in front of me as it is displeasing for some reason. ¡°So? Is there anything you need?¡± I asked, half-heartedly. ¡°I was just a little curious.¡± ¡°About what?¡± ¡°That power of yours.¡± At that moment I snapped back to reality and met his gaze head on. What did he just say? About my power? No, impossible I haven¡¯t ever used my power in public or at least I made sure to be out of sight so no one aside from my family should know about it. Then why is he asking about my powers so suddenly? Actually from the moment I met him there was something certainly strange with him. I just couldn¡¯t quite put my finger on it, it was like he was too perfect, that false persona of his. I knew he was hiding something but just what? Just who is he? Just as I was about to think further into this he exhibits a great aura. It¡¯s like I¡¯m drowning in his presence, just who is this guy? I just realized I hadn¡¯t checked his name or title yet. It must¡¯ve slipped my mind since Lina was practically bouncing about when she met. As I concentrated something extraordinary popped up. Something that I would never have guessed in my life. [Erendel De Signa. Level 165, Demon Lord]. At that revelation I weakly took a few steps back. The¡­ Demon Lord? But I thought Astaroth was the¡­ could it be, that higher level, her father? ¡°Who are you?¡± I asked, I wanted confirmation. ¡°It seems that you have somewhat caught onto my true identity. As expected of the one being that caught my daughter¡¯s attention, you really are a cut above the rest of these mortals.¡± ¡°Daughter? So you really are the demon lord?¡± He shakes his head. ¡°I was the former Demon Lord, for reasons I cannot disclose right now I have ceased to be. As far as my daughter knows, I¡¯ve left everything up to her and disappeared.¡± He just left? I¡¯m not entirely sure on Astaroth¡¯s age, and even supposing she really was as old as she looked she still has a lot of people around her so she shouldn¡¯t be feeling lonely. Besides applying human emotions to demons don¡¯t seem to be a wise decision, but still, for a parent to simply leave. Something must¡¯ve happened. ¡°How much do you know about me?¡± I asked. ¡°Not too terribly much I¡¯m afraid. Only that my charm spell hadn¡¯t worked on you the moment we met. Granted that it was only meant for low level beings but still, for someone to resist, that¡¯s when I first got curious. Later I found one of my daughter¡¯s minions prowling around in the city which lead connected me to you.¡± Chrom, huh? Wait did he just say charm spell? Don¡¯t tell me that¡¯s why Lina¡¯s been so infatuated with him? Well, if he¡¯s not using it with malicious intents and is only using it to integrate into society I can¡¯t really say much but it¡¯s still in poor taste. ¡°Let me ask you something. Were you the one who summoned those zombies that night when I was escaping from the duke¡¯s manor?¡± I asked. He gave me a smirk as he nodded. ¡°That¡¯s right, I felt it necessary to test you a little.¡± ¡°Test me for what?¡± ¡°Like I said, your powers.¡± ¡°My [Necromancy]?¡± ¡°Ho~ so that power is called necromancy? An interesting power indeed, one I have not seen before.¡± Wait didn¡¯t he summon zombies? ¡°Didn¡¯t you summon those undead to attack me? Then you should at least be capable of rudimentary necromancy right?¡± But he shook his head. ¡°No, those lower class undead were simply minions I had under my command, they were not summoned like you had summoned your minion.¡± I honestly don¡¯t know what to think about this guy, he¡¯s incredibly hard to read and his body language is so stern that it¡¯s actually confusing me. He doesn¡¯t seem like he¡¯s going to turn hostile any time soon, though I get the feeling he isn¡¯t especially an ally since he did say he ran away from being the Demon Lord. I realize it¡¯s odd to say that the Demon Lord is my ally but that was truly the case in my situation. Still, there must¡¯ve been a greater purpose if he was going to reveal himself to me so easily. Maybe he¡¯s still underestimating me since he never revealed his name? ¡°[Erendel De Signa], what is the purpose in this meeting?¡± As I revealed his name he was taken aback a little. That really does work wonders on all sorts of opponents. ¡°Ho~ you already know my name, and you¡¯ve already seen through me it seems. It is true that there was a greater purpose in calling for you, as my daughter¡¯s trusted comrade I wished to give you a warning.¡± ¡°Warning? What, don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re going to say something clich¨¦d like ¡®stay away from my daughter¡¯, or anything right?¡± ¡°No, no, of course nothing of the sort. Perhaps you had already guessed but each generation of Demon Lords have a unique power that even those of the same species don¡¯t have. For my daughter, her power is [Foresight], she is briefly able to see glimpses into the future.¡± Foresight? Clairvoyance? No, that isn¡¯t quite right, so future sight. Wait¡­ that means her prior warning about something happening to me and me needing to keep track of myself has a lot of weight. Dammit, she didn¡¯t tell me any of the details before she left. ¡°Then what¡¯s your ability?¡± ¡°My ability is known as [Clairvoyance], I am able to connect with the realm of the dead, it isn¡¯t too terribly useful of a power but there are situations where it certainly helps. In fact during my reign as the Demon Lord I was able to secure subordination from the [Ghost King] due to my powers, but that¡¯s for another time.¡± He closes his eyes in reminiscence. ¡°Right. So you had a warning for me?¡± ¡°Of course, recently there has been a bit of a disturbance in the realm of the dead.¡± ¡°Of what variety?¡± ¡°It isn¡¯t all of them, but a few of the dead souls have ceased entering the realm of the dead. They¡¯ve been made to forever walk the lands of this world, bound by some kind of force, and it isn¡¯t just a couple hundred, but thousands. An extremely troubling omen, which is why I wish to warn you. Unlike my daughter I cannot see what changes this will bring but whatever it is, it probably won¡¯t be good.¡± ¡°I see.¡± From the information given, my conclusion is that someone is gathering a massive force of undead. While on surface it may be a little hypocritical since the demon army also employs a lot of undead this situation is a little different. I know this because I¡¯m a necromancer. Firstly it¡¯s that normal undead do not have souls and are basically just walking puppets. However the undead being created by this unknown phenomenon is unnatural because they are undead with souls. I¡¯m not entirely sure on the benefits of having undead with souls, but if it is any indication from my [skeleton knight] who possesses an artificial soul, then they are likely many times stronger than ordinary undead. ¡°What about you? What do you plan on doing about this?¡± I asked Erendel, he gives me a contemplative look before answering. ¡°I do not know. Depending on the situation I may have to move my hands but I would prefer for it to not have to come to that¡­ for a variety of reasons.¡± Well figured as much, there was probably a reason why he ceased being the Demon Lord, must be related to that somehow. ¡°Though it is an odd feeling for me to have to ask a human, but please treat my daughter well.¡± ¡°¡­ Eh?¡± That line completely blanked my mind. That kind of line is usually reserved for parents who are sending their children off to marriage. No, no, no, I¡¯m not going to be staying here for much longer than I need to so that kind of promise will only become a burden. He even lowers his head! A Demon Lord is lowering his head to me! ¡°I¡­ will try my best.¡± Eh? What did I just say?! ¡°Thank you. Then I shall be returning to the party.¡± As he says that the prior heavy aura dissipates as he returns, leaving me standing outside, tired from that encounter. It was later I learnt that [Dian] stopped working as a butler for Lucius and had disappeared to someplace else. I had a feeling that this would happen since his location was compromised to me, still I don¡¯t really know if he¡¯s a friend or foe. I just get an ominous feeling just by thinking about him. PART FIVE After everything was said and done we were finally able to return home safely to mother and Sebastian. It felt like some much time had passed since I last saw them. ¡°Mistress I am so sorry!¡± The first thing that Lina says upon meeting was apologize to mother, of mother being the kind lady that she was replied with a smile. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, there was no harm done. I¡¯m just glad that everything turned out well for you and your sister.¡± ¡®What an angel¡¯, I thought to myself. She really is a keeper, well done father. With that everything came to a satisfying conclusion, but I still couldn¡¯t shake off this impending doom feeling I was I getting due to Astaroth¡¯s predictions, I didn¡¯t even know what was going to happen or where it was going to happen. I had absolutely no detail on it, and these are the worst kinds because I can¡¯t actively plan ahead. PART SIX Today mother went into labor. It was a very tense situation but everything turned out fine with the help of Lina, Lena, the town doctor and myself. Well it wasn¡¯t their first time doing this so they were rather confident. [Ada Fallon] That was the name of the second child born to the Fallon house, a healthy baby girl. She had similar shades of black hair as me and her eyes were of the same emerald color. I feel like she¡¯ll no doubt grow into a beauty like mother. However it was a little sad because if everything goes according to my plans I should be returning to Earth soon so I¡¯m not sure if I will ever be able to see her grow up. Still, while it lasts, I¡¯m glad I have a sibling. END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 19 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 78 (65 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 59 (35 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 10] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 12 (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 1 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 6 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 11 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 4 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 9 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 3 (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 1 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 1 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 1 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 1 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian¡¯s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father¡¯s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight] Prologue #2 - The devil in angels clothing Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C The devil in angel¡¯s clothing Prologue 2 [Eternum Calendar - Year 989] Other than some racial traits like having longer ears, or being naturally gifted at magic, or that their features were much ¡®lighter¡¯, there were not substantial differences from [Elves] and [Humans]. Though most pop culture likes to portray them to have longer life spans this was not the case in [Eternis], they were equivalent to the human life span, and it is for this reasons the human and elven races have shared a sort of kinship and have been co existing for a long time. The entirety of the center continent of Ariadyne were predominantly populated with elves and humans, of course that¡¯s not to say other races didn¡¯t live there. Most of the living styles between human and elves were not much different other than what kind of garrison they had, for the humans they were mostly comprised of [knights] and [fighters] while the elves mainly had [mages] and [archers]. [Aramelle Village], only a few days worth of walk from the Northern capital was a small elven village. It was a peaceful if not a little reclusive village, however the once luscious town covered in green was now painted red with the villagers¡¯ blood. ¡°W- why?! Why did you attacked us?¡± With his dying breath, the village elder dragged his body towards the culprits responsible, demanding an answer to the slaughter of the town. The person that the elder grabbed onto was a mere eight year old boy with an evil grin on his face. His black hair hallowing death and his piercing blue eyes drilled holes into the elder¡¯s confidence. The boy crouched down into the face of the dying elder and answered with a voice that sent chills to his spine. ¡°You¡¯re joking right? You must¡¯ve already seen this coming the moment you decided to give those monsters refuge.¡± ¡°T- the¡­ orcs? They were injured and¡­ they were not monsters¡­ we¡­ we have had a working alliance with them¡­ for generations¡­¡± ¡°That sounds like it¡¯s not my problem but have you forgotten? This village was claimed under the name of his eminence. The moment those brutes stepped into this village was the moment you were deemed traitors.¡± ¡°Elder!¡± A female voice interrupted their conversation. Coming to the elder¡¯s aid were several elven archers and magicians, they all drew their weapons towards the boy knowing he was the culprit. The boy sighed as he backed off from the dying elder. ¡°Seriously¡­ these people have no consideration when their elders are talking. Looks like you need a little bit of punishment then. How about this [Puppet Theater - control doll].¡± The boy moved his fingers around and pointed towards one of the garrison elves. Suddenly their expression went blank and drew their arrow towards their own comrade and shot a single arrow, killing one of them instantly. ¡°What the hell?!¡± The other elves exclaimed but while they were distracted by the sudden movement of their comrade mind controlled elf went on a killing spree against their own team. In a mere 30 seconds all of the garrison members were dead except one. A woman with long blonde hair and green eyes, she held a staff towards her comrade in tears. The mind controlled elf was about to shoot the last arrow into the last garrison but was stopped when her body was pierced by shards of ice; fired from the magician elf. As her final moment came the mind control on the elf undid itself, but that would be the worst course of action as she immediately regretted what she had done. ¡°So- rry, Tytania¡­¡± With the mind control undone but bleeding out from the ice shard attack, the final garrison elf fell leaving only one female elf remaining; [Tytania].¡± ¡°You¡­ you heartless monster!¡± Tytania shouted out, but upon hearing that insult the boy was taken aback, then for an unknown reason decided to laugh. ¡°Pfftt¡­ Hahahahahahaha! Me? A ¡®heartless monster¡¯? I¡¯ll be honest with you, that one really got to me.¡± ¡°What¡¯s so funny?! You¡¯ve killed all of my friends and family! You think I¡¯ll forgive you?!¡± ¡°No, no it¡¯s not that, it¡¯s just¡­ oh man. Really, I know a man much more cruel than myself, compared to him I¡¯m practically a saint. Did you know? That guy bankrupted an entire city because they didn¡¯t agree with his views? And besides, your ¡®friends and family¡¯, they were all executed for treason, and it¡¯s my job; the hero¡¯s job to erase trash.¡± ¡°You¡­ bastard! I¡¯ll kill you!¡± Tytania prepared her staff to activate some sort of magical attack. Several magic circles appeared around her staff as she charged her attack, even then the boy merely stood still waiting for her to finish with a near psychotic smile on his face. ¡°Now die! [ice cannon]!¡± Shouting out the name of her attack needlessly a large ball of ice shot from her staff and sped towards the boy at literal breakneck speeds. However the boy simply slapped the large ice ball away from himself, altering the trajectory and causing it to veer off course before exploding several meters past the boy. ¡°W- what?¡± Tytania could not believe what had just happened. ¡°You seem surprised, so let me explain it to you. You see, everyone has ¡®levels¡¯, think of them as an indication of one¡¯s power. Your level is at 32 right now, a little higher than the average elf, however my level is quite a bit above yours thus meaning I was much stronger than you are. QED, you will never be able to defeat me so long as you are that weak.¡± ¡°Im¡­ impossible¡­ that was my strongest attack¡­¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s cute. Then let me show you my strongest attack. [Puppet Theater - Colossus doll].¡± Also needlessly chanting out the name of his attack, a giant piece of metal fell from the sky and landed in front of the boy. A large earthquake coursed through the area from the sheer impact, and what stood at the epicenter of the shake was a 3 meter metal clad knight. It held no visible weapons but a single punch from it looked as though it could easily remove one¡¯s head. ¡°What¡­ is that?¡± Tytania had to lift her neck just to see the entire body. ¡°What you are looking at now, is your own demise. Then, as you so aptly put it, ¡®Now die¡¯.¡± The colossus doll started to move and with each step the ground trembled. Tytania was frozen in place due to sheer fear and was just awaiting her own death. Taking that opportunity the colossus doll threw a punch, however before landing it, it was intercepted by a another interloper. A large grey skinned man; an Orc with grey hair. Standing just over two meters tall the orc stopped the colossus doll¡¯s punch but only barely, the orc¡¯s muscles bulged and his veins seemed to almost pop out from the pressure. ¡°Mr. Raak?!¡± Tytania called out to the grey skinned orc. ¡°What are you doing?! Why are you just standing there?!¡± Raak, the orc shouted out as he was still having a tug of war with the colossus doll. ¡°I¡­ I just¡­ all of my villagers are dead¡­ so I¡­¡± ¡°You what?! You want to die?! Don¡¯t fuck with me! You of all people need to live!¡± Tytania knew the meaning behind Raak¡¯s words. It wasn¡¯t that her life was any more valuable than the villagers that had died around her, it was that within her was a special treasure of the elves, that alone must be kept safe. Ending the stalemate by redirecting the colossus doll¡¯s punch the orc then picked up Tytania and a bridal position and started to run. Noticing this the colossus doll chased after them and as it did the shaking ground from its footsteps made it harder for Raak to run. Soon Raak and Tytania found themselves wedged between a cliff facing off into the ocean and a colossus death. Having no other choice Raak let down Tytania and dashed towards the colossus doll in hopes that maybe Tytania herself would be able to escape, but that was not the case, the doll acted much smarter and punched Raak in a way that would also throw him into Tytania. They were both flung off the cliff and fell several meters into the ocean below. ¡°Hmm~ level 47, that entire village only gave me a single level, how disappointing.¡± The boy walked towards the edge of the cliff and looked down. He tried to check if they were dead, but he figured that kind of fall would¡¯ve killed even himself so of course they couldn¡¯t possibly have survived. ¡°It is time to return, his eminence calls for you.¡± Appearing behind the boy was a woman, maid with dark brown hair and stiff looking glasses. She was neither an elf nor an orc, she was human. ¡°Ah, is it that time already? Guess I have no choice, oh but before we return to [Tara] there¡¯s one more place I want to visit first. It won¡¯t take too long, so it should be fine right?¡± The maid looked at him in contemplation before answering. ¡°If that is your will¡­ Lord Odysseus.¡± * * * The place that the boy, [Odysseus] wanted to visit was the official dungeon of the Northern Capital. Specifically there was one person that Odysseus wanted to meet, at that was none of than the ex-duke [Vista Calros] who was to be scheduled to execution in a few days. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. The boy made it past the guards by activating his skill [puppet theater - control doll] a mind manipulation skill and controlling the guards to let him in. As Odysseus drew closer the ex-duke felt a wave of cold death pass by him. ¡°Y- you are! Odysseus!¡± ¡°Yo~ hello duke, or should I say, ex-duke? How have you been holding up?¡± ¡°G- get me out of here! They¡¯re going to execute me in a few days! I don¡¯t want to die!¡± ¡°Of course you don¡¯t, and that¡¯s why I¡¯m here silly. So you don¡¯t have to die by the state¡¯s hand like some pathetic dog, but die with dignity by my hands.¡± Odysseus spoke those last line in a dark, mellow voice. ¡°W- what?! B- but I¡¯m part of the [Crimson Knight] organization! I¡¯ve been investing a lot of money into them. You can¡¯t just kill me off! I¡¯ll be more useful, I promise! So get me out of here!¡± The ex-duke clung onto the bars and pleaded with teary eyes. However Odysseus felt no pity, only disgust at seeing the pudgy man¡¯s face. ¡°I don¡¯t think you get it. No one cares about your money, do you think his eminence needs money? The reason why I¡¯m here to kill is simply because I pitied you that you were dying to the state you served. I heard you were bested by a child in politics and you lost all credibility, just what kind of retard are you?¡± ¡°N- no! You¡¯re wrong! That boy¡­ it¡¯s that boy! He¡¯s the one who should die! He¡¯s a monster!¡± Odysseus shook his head. ¡°Still yapping on about that huh? Through the metal bars, Odysseus reached from the ex-duke¡¯s head and as he did his hand glowed in a red hue. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll put you out of your misery soon enough. [Puppet theater - Killer doll]-¡° ¡°Wait! It wasn¡¯t me! It was that brat! That [Aran Callahad] brat!¡± Hearing that name a chill shook down Odysseus¡¯ spine. Goosebumps formed on his arms as he let go of the ex-duke¡¯s head. The name [Aran Callahad] reverberated multiple times through his head. ¡°What¡­ did you just say?¡± Odysseus asked calmly. ¡°It wasn¡¯t me! It was that brat!¡± ¡°That isn¡¯t what I asked for. What was that brat¡¯s name?¡± ¡°[A- Aran Callahad]¡­ he said.¡± With that confirmation, the corner of Odysseus¡¯ mouth flipped upwards into an evil grin. He couldn¡¯t contain the trembling in his body as he heard the name. his heart felt like it was being torn apart and stitched back together; life, he was feeling alive for the first time. ¡°Hehe¡­ hehehahahaha! HAHAHAHAH!! Are you serious?¡± Odysseus asked, but the ex-duke simply stared back in confusion. ¡°Amazing! A- FUCKING MAZING! You actually survived after confronting him?! That¡¯s amazing! No, wait I guess you really didn¡¯t if you are here rotting in your cell awaiting your execution. Yeah¡­ that sounds more like what he would do.¡± ¡°D- do you know him?¡± The ex-duke asked out of curiosity. ¡°Do I know him? Of course I do! He¡¯s a LEGEND! No, he¡¯s even beyond that, he¡¯s name should be idolized all around the world! He is quite literally the only reason I even get up in the morning!¡± ¡°W- what¡­ are you?¡± ¡°To think that he would be here¡­ even death could not keep us apart huh? Oh my god I can feel my entire existence tremble in excitement¡­ this is¡­ ecstasy¡­¡± ¡°Lord¡­ Odysseus?¡± The ex-duke called out meekly from his cage. Odysseus turned towards him with a smile and threw a knife towards him. The ex-duke was confused as to what this meant but still picked it up, perhaps thinking that it was maybe for escape purposes. ¡°[Puppet theater - control doll]. Die.¡± The ex-duke¡¯s expression went blank and without even a moment¡¯s hesitation slit his own throat. He fell down into a pool of his own blood making gargling noises as the mind manipulation wore off and realized that he was dying. With his last few seconds of like the ex-duke reached out for Odysseus but Odysseus simply smiled and turned his back, leaving the cell. ¡°[Aran Callahad] is here¡­¡± * * * After a few more days, Odysseus and his maid had finally returned to their home base, [Tara], also known as the city of light. It took them a portal to reach this place and as they exited the portal a young girl with red hair and two large white wings on her back came running towards them. ¡°Odysseus! You¡¯re back!¡± The girl was no older than he was, also around eight, but that was not her true age. She only manipulated her body size to fit in with Odysseus¡¯, in truth her actual age hovered in the four digits. Her eyes were of golden color, a trait shared by all members of divinity. ¡°Goddess Macha, you shouldn¡¯t be down here. His eminence wished for you to stay in the castle.¡± ¡°Oh~ don¡¯t worry about father, he¡¯s in a rather good mood today. So why are you smiling like that did something good happen?¡± ¡°Oh, yes. Something truly amazing has happened. Something that shook my very existence, so much so that I¡¯m having troubles even trying to contain it.¡± ¡°Really? What is it?¡± Odysseus placed his hands on the girl¡¯s head and gently stroke it. ¡°I apologize but I will tell you afterwards, his eminence has called for me so I need to go.¡± ¡°I see, well then tell father I said hi.¡± ¡°Of course, I¡¯ll see you later, Goddess Macha.¡± ¡°Yep~¡± * * * Entering a room that seemed to be made of gold was the throne room of [Tara]. It was an incredibly large hall with a single red carpet leading up to the throne. Sitting atop of the golden chair was the supreme being. His hair dyed golden as were his eyes, his body oozed charisma and strength, it was as though his pressure alone could crush a man. Two large white wings elegantly displayed themselves behind his back. There was one thing about him that always caught people¡¯s attention and that was the silver prosthetic right arm. It was unknown how such an incredibly powerful being was able to lose an arm but the fact that he was standing even with that arm meant that whatever foe he fought was now long dead. His name was [Nodens], the supreme god of [Tara]. Standing next to Nodens was another man, slender and tall but not any less menacing. As though he was wrapped around darkness and maliciousness he wore a black robe that covered everything. His face was covered by a white plague doctor¡¯s mask, denoting his medical background. It was said that it was this man that gave Nodens his silver arm. This man was too had two large white wings behind his back. His name was [Dian Cecht]. There was one more person in the room, to the right of Nodens was a bulk warrior type man. His hair was a messy grey but his body was beefed up to extraordinary levels. He too had golden eyes and large white wings, this man who could probably punch a down a mountain was known as [Dagda] the god of war. In the presence of such powerful beings, Odysseus couldn¡¯t help but feel powerless. He walked through the red carpet and knelt before Nodens. ¡°I have returned your eminence.¡± ¡°Mmm, and what is the situation with the elves?¡± ¡°The traitors have all been annihilated.¡± Nodens¡¯ usual frown turned into a menacing grin. ¡°You have done well. I am impressed by the work you have done for only a child.¡¯ ¡°Not at all, it is all by your guidance that I could become this strong. It is only natural that I use my powers for you, your eminence.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s fine. Now the reason I have called you out here today was to congratulate you.¡± Odysseus looked up at Nodens with confusion. ¡°For your efforts I have decided to reward you. Anything you want, I shall give you, be it women, wealth, land. Name it and it shall be yours.¡± At those words Odysseus couldn¡¯t help contain his laughter. The situation was almost going too perfectly for him, the day could not get any better for him. ¡°I- if you present to me such an opportunity. I will gladly accept. There is one thing that I wish for beyond anything in this world.¡± Nodens raised his eyes brows as his interest was piqued. ¡°And that is?¡± ¡°The truth is there is one person I want, a legendary figure, I wish to see him suffer¡­ like I did. This person, he is truly evil, more cruel and demonic than any devil I¡¯ve faced. I feel that such a being deserves retribution. His entire village that has been sheltering him is also guilty.¡± Nodens stared down at the kneeling boy. ¡°Is it revenge?¡± However Odysseus shook his head. ¡°No, more than anything. What I want him to acknowledge me.¡± Even to Odysseus it was obvious that Nodens didn¡¯t really understand what he was wishing for. However that too was fine for Odysseus, because he knew that no god could truly understand his obsession with Aran Callahad. As long as his wish is granted in any way possible it was fine either way. ¡°Very well then. I will grant to you this wish.¡± Chapter 10 - Resurrection of the guard dog princess Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Resurrection of the guard dog princess Chapter X PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 981] It was a bright, sunny day in the middle of August when a certain baby girl was born. She had black hair and red eyes, not a surprise since the father had black hair and the mother had ruby eyes. This girl was the second child of [Aidus Crow Xix Ariadyne] the Tetrarch of West Ariadyne and his wife [Lorna Crow Xix Ariadyne], before her was an older sister of 4 years: [Lyssa Crow Xix Ariadyne]. When the girl was born she did not cry much, instead she almost looked like she had given up on life upon birth. It was as though she had been stillborn, of course that was not the case as her heart beat normally. It was a mystery even for Lorna and the doctors, however aside from that fact everything else about her was normal. Lorna felt a mixed rush of emotions as she gave birth, she felt exhilarated that she was able to safely give birth to another child of her beloved husband¡¯s, but at the same time she also knew that what he wanted more was a male heir. Still, that didn¡¯t mean that Aidus would love his daughter less, it was simply just a missed opportunity. [Lyssa Crow Xix Ariadyne], the first child and Liliana¡¯s older sister was known as a prodigy amongst her peers for her superior intellect and unmatched talent in combat. It was everyone¡¯s opinion that she would grow to become an extremely influential military commander. Not wanting to hinder that line of progression, Aidus wanted to bear another heir so Lyssa could continue on. However the result was Liliana, another female. As she was born, Aidus stared deeply at his new baby girl. He felt an odd sort of empathy for her, for he too often had such eyes. That being said, Aidus was not such a cold man that he would disregard the efforts his wife had put into bearing him another child. He gave the baby girl a stiff smile. ¡°What shall we name our new daughter, honey?¡± Lorna asked with a weakened face due to childbirth. ¡°This child will be named [Liliana Crow Xix Ariadyne]. A name similar to yours.¡± He proclaimed, there were no objections from the people present. ¡°I see, what a wonderful name, thank you honey.¡± Aidus made a satisfied face as he left the room. As the Tetrarch of the entire Western part of the continent, he was understandably a very busy man. It was doubtful that he could spend much time with his family after his new daughter was born either, but he was thankful that they understood that his job was important and supported him from behind even if he was rarely there. Although their marriage was a political one, over time they had come to love each other, it was the best ending that both parties could¡¯ve hoped for. She gave birth to healthy heirs and supported her husband to the best of her abilities. ¡°Welcome to our life, Liliana.¡± Lorna called out as she held her daughter in her arms. The baby did not respond but looked up to her as if it had understood what she was saying; she had reacted to the word ¡®life¡¯. Lorna gave her a soft smile as she hummed her a song. PART TWO -Liliana Crow Xix Ariadyne¡¯s PoV- [Eternum Calendar - Year 988] ¡°Are you sure about this Liliana?¡± A girl 4 years older than me asks. This is my sister, she has a similar shade of black for hair and ruby eyes like mine. Today too she is wearing her custom armor, well it was mostly just a dress with pieces of protection stuck on the skirt, chest, shoulder and arm area. To her waist is a small one handed blade, even though it¡¯s for children it¡¯s still sharp enough to cut through wood. My sister, Lyssa asks with a worried tone, her face is clearly filled with a troubled expression but I couldn¡¯t give up just because I¡¯m troubling her a little. I mean this is completely fair! My sister gets to go out and play all day so she doesn¡¯t understand my suffering, so if I want to sneak out and stretch my legs for just one day, it¡¯s worth all the trouble. ¡°Lady Liliana, I don¡¯t think we should-¡° Trying to stop me is an adult woman, around the age of 20¡­ I think. Her name is [Soumee], she has a beautiful white hair and ruby eyes like mine. She is known as something called a [Praetorian Guard], basically it means she¡¯s my bodyguard. From what I have been told from father she was a powerful person that was revered as the [Goddess of the battlefield], but to me she just looks like a slow idiot. But she is kind of cute I give her that. Although that scar that runs down her left eye is a little convincing, but she probably just fell down or something. ¡°We¡¯re going now, Soumee!¡± Disregarding her protest I decided to go out with my older sister to have a little sparring match, they were against it at first but due to my constant plea they finally let me. We walked down the long hallways of this castle, which is really long in my opinion, too long, and finally arrived at the backyard where there were several soldiers also training. The way that they moved in unison was so cool! It beats what I have been doing all along, which is studying every day, without rest! I was starting to worry that I wasn¡¯t ever going to be allowed to do anything fun; father is never around and mother has been oddly sick lately so I only had the tutor to keep me company. But that man doesn¡¯t know how to play so today I¡¯m running out on him. Grabbing one of the swords off the walls of the armory, which was next to the training field, I tried to quickly get into position. However it proved too heavy for me and I ended up falling down. ¡°Lady Liliana!¡± Soumee comes running to me in panic. Geez, she really worries too much, I only scraped my knee a little, there wasn¡¯t even that much blood. However she immediately applied [healing] magic to heal my wounds. Right after I was healed I ran to get a smaller sword this time. Finding one right for my size I moved onto the field in order to test them out on some dummies, but unlike the other soldiers I couldn¡¯t even leave a mark on the wood. My hands probably suffered more damage than the piece of wood did as it received my attack. I dropped the sword and took a look at my hands. They were glowing red just from a few swings. This was a lot harder than I thought. ¡°No, no, you can¡¯t hold a sword like that Liliana. Here this is how you hold them.¡± My sister came to correct how I was holding my sword. When I changed my grip and posture and tried again, I really saw an improve done to the wooden dummy. ¡°Lyssa! Lyssa! Look! I did it!¡± ¡°That¡¯s great. Why don¡¯t you try again?¡± ¡°Eh~ but I already did it, and I¡¯m bored of this. When can I start the real fight?¡± She gave me a complicated expression as she tried to tell me that I needed to practice before I could have a real spar. However this was probably the only day that I would get to actually run around in the field, no doubt the tutor will double his guard so I won¡¯t be able to escape. Thus I tried to fake my tears a little. ¡°B- but¡­ if I don¡¯t get to fight today I never will¡­ I¡¯ll have to start studying again¡­ alone in that room¡­¡± Seeing my ¡®crying¡¯ figure my sister came to console me. Giving in to my demand she let me be her sparring partner, but I had to wear a lot more protection than she did. Sister only wore her armor dress, gauntlets and greaves, whereas I had to wear all that plush a few extra padding and a helmet. ¡°Okay Liliana, whenever you¡¯re reading come at me!¡± She says from the edge of the field. Some of the soldiers ceased their training to overlook our little match. It was finally getting interesting and my heart was pounding for real. Soumee was going to be our referee and she will step in if things looked like it was going to get too dangerous. At my sister¡¯s remark I decided to get in the first strike. I dashed forward with my sword and gave a perfect straight cut but it was easily dodged by my sister, having lost balance I flew forward and planted my face into the wall. However due to the helmet I was wearing there wasn¡¯t too much damage, although the sound rang through my head. I shook my head and stood up once more to face my sister. I ran faster than before and tried to get in another perfect straight cut but once again it was easily dodged. Right about now I was feeling a little sour because I couldn¡¯t hit her but my facial expressions were covered by the helmet. Having missed all of my attacks I was a little out of breaths but that didn¡¯t mean I was going to give up anytime soon. This time I wanted to try something a little different and instead of a straight cut I decided to go with a side cut. My having thought I was going to do another straight cut dodge to her left only to be met with my side swing. However even that wasn¡¯t enough as my sister reacted to it quickly and blocked with her sword. Unfair! I was just about to hit her! ¡°You almost got me there, Liliana.¡± ¡°You cheated!¡± I shouted at her but she had a coy look to her face as she taunted me with her ¡®superior¡¯ skills. So while her guard was down I decided to get in another hit! I quickly stepped into her range and went for a stab this time. I was successful in catching my sister off her guard but what I didn¡¯t know was that even though my sister was hailed a s prodigy she was still an amateur as well. Not knowing how to completely counter a surprise attack she went for a serious one, sending me flying back a few meters. ¡°Liliana?!¡± ¡°Lady Liliana!¡± I landed on my head, though the impact was mostly received by the helmet I could still feel the shock. Slowly¡­ I felt my consciousness fading to black. Ah¡­ not good if I don¡¯t wake up now the day will be over and I¡¯ll be forced to study¡­ Such mundane thoughts came to me but something else came as well. A deep, piercing sensation within the depths of my heart. I felt desperate and sad, like there was something I wanted to say but I didn¡¯t know what. I wanted to scream out. I wanted to¡­ apologize¡­ To who? I don¡¯t know myself¡­ but the words came out of my mouth as the darkness completely overtook me. ¡°Forgive¡­ Sir Aran¡­¡± PART THREE [Starting System Initialization¡­ ] [Initializing¡­ 15%] [Initializing¡­ 45%] [Initializing¡­ 85%] [Booting System¡­] As my consciousness came back to me I stood before a great black void with the only thing to keep me company being incomprehensible, mechanical words that were more suited to be on a computer monitor. ¡°Liliana!¡± ¡°Lady Liliana!¡± I could feel my body being shook by someone violently, and it was at the worst possible time too as I was having a heavy migraine. As the shaking became more frequent I found it harder to rest so I decided to open my eyes. Streams of sunlight poured directly into my eyes prompting me to close them once more and this time slowly as my pupils adapted to the light I opened my eyes. The first thing I saw was the sight of a little girl with black hair and clear red eyes. She didn¡¯t look oriental, perhaps Caucasian? She was shouting at me with a worried expression in a language I had never heard before, but for some reason I understood perfectly what she was saying. She was calling out¡­ my name. ¡°Liliana! Are you alright?¡± She had tears in her eyes as she embraced me with her full strength, it hurt but it wasn¡¯t to the point I couldn¡¯t endure. ¡°Are you okay, Lady Liliana?!¡± Another woman came to ask. She had long white hair, ruby eyes as well and a large scar down the side of her left eye. From a glance she looked rather slow and timid but I could feel it, the power and strength swirling around her body, it was incredible. So much so, to the point where I would have no confidence to win against her in a straight up fight. I wanted to ask, what kind of martial arts or fighting style she used to get so strong but now wasn¡¯t the time. Actually, this woman was huge, or so I thought but it turns out that it was myself that had shrunk. ¡°M- mirror. Do you have a mirror?¡± I asked, at first the two were confused but the white haired lady went and brought me a mirror. When I took a look at myself, what I saw in the reflection shocked me even more. This wasn¡¯t me¡­ it was a child! No¡­ even I wasn¡¯t that stupid, I knew this was the real me because I had all sorts of memories of this body too. However those memories didn¡¯t feel personal, it was like for the past seven years my body was on auto-pilot and those memories were just like random images flying straight past me. Not good, I was starting to get another migraine. Still, before I decide to do anything else it would be better to survey the situation and get my memories straight. After confirming that there were no hostile threats in the immediate vicinity I decided to think a bit deeper and search my memories of both this body and my real one. The last thing I remember was that I died, along with Sir Aran, during that plane incident. Then right after that I was reborn into this body as a baby¡­ reincarnation? Though I wasn¡¯t really the superstitious type I did hear about many religions that proclaimed reincarnation, to think those might¡¯ve been actually true¡­ no let¡¯s thing about that a bit later. So then, I was reincarnated into this body. [Liliana Crow Xix Ariadyne]¡­ I am the second daughter to the West Tetrarchy, second-in-line for the throne. Age seven. No notable accomplishments so far. I turned to my right and the older girl, my ¡®sister¡¯ continued to inspect me with a worried face. [Lyssa Crow Xix Ariadyne]. Age twelve. Some latent combat potential. Though I can only remember it in a distant way I still knew how she moved just prior to when I was knocked out, her movements were solid and her footwork was elegant. A good fighter. Then towards my left was the white haired woman. [Soumee]¡­ age 21? She¡¯s a warrior with the nick name [Goddess of the battlefield] and just from her aura alone I can believe that. She¡¯s something akin to my bodyguard¡­ how odd for a bodyguard to have a bodyguard. I tried expanding my search parameters of my memories to something a bit broader. Let¡¯s see¡­ I think¡­ seven years. Seven years had passed since I came to this world, no perhaps it would be more apt to say I was ¡®reborn¡¯ into this world when I died in my old world. Right now so many emotions swelled inside me but I too was a warrior. I didn¡¯t let these kinds of emotions dictate my life before and I wasn¡¯t going to start, at least not until I have a firm grasp of my situation. I am in a country known as [West Ariadyne], and my father is a kind of ruler of these lands. Other than that I only have information about studying rudimentary mathematics and language. Unnecessary, I already knew them all. As I tried to get up I noticed a small sword in my hand. This is¡­ that¡¯s right we were sparring before I was knocked unconscious. I stared at the sword a little more because in my previous life I never really got to swing around a sword all that much, most of the time I used guns. When I stared at them something amazing popped out. 4 holographic boxes appeared, when I tried putting my hands on them I just phased through as though they didn¡¯t really exist outside of my vision. They read. [Status Menu] Liliana Crow Xix Ariadyne. Level 1 N/A Strength: 5 Dexterity: 5 Magic: 5 Insight: 5 Agility: 5 [Status Points: 10] [Skill List] N/A [Equipment] N/A [Inventory] N/A [Status Menu]. [Skill List]. [Equipment]. [Inventory]. Similar to those net games. Eh? Is this real? It has my name on it. Since on the status menu it had a small [+] and [-] symbol on it I figured that meant I could assign those [status] points into the above categories. Though if this really is mine I don¡¯t want to recklessly add points but it was more important to test the waters. When I pressed on the [+] button next to the [strength] category another interface box came to interrupt me. [Status points cannot be distributed until a class has been selected]. As I was wondering what it was talking about, another interface box popped up to answer my question. [Please select a class] [Magician] [Knight] [Assassin] [Archer] [Cleric] [Necromancer] [Brawler] [Alchemist] [Bard] [Puppeteer] ¡°Liliana? Are you really okay? You seem oddly vacant.¡± Lyssa waved her hand in front of my face to see if I was paying attention. ¡°Ah, I¡¯m okay¡­ just feeling a little tired, please give me a moment.¡± She gave me a nod and sat next to me, waiting for me to ¡®recover¡¯. Right now the one question I want to ask is if choosing a class is permanent, if so then I don¡¯t want to make that decision so easily. Though I wasn¡¯t in too much of a rush to select a class spending more time than necessary deciding seemed vain to me. If I¡¯m to go with this then choosing a class I can relate to was probably the better option. [Knight], [Assassin], [Brawler]. Those were probably the most optimal choices for me since I had a quite a reasonable amount of knowledge when it came to close quarter combat. Usually in RPGs when you choose a class you can¡¯t use weapons of another class, that point is fairly important, all the more so if this decision was permanent. However this feels like real life, so I just can¡¯t see the system rejecting whatever weapon I use. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. Between the three choices, [Assassin] would probably be the most optimal choice. The [knight class] seems like it would wear heavy armor, which would be cumbersome in real battle, at the very least it won¡¯t be compatible with the self defense techniques I use. [Brawler] does seem like a decent decision, but then again the point of a fight is to beat your opponent as quickly as possible. In that regard I think [Assassin] would be the best. A quick stealthy kill is always better than a drawn out slog. Very well, then I¡¯ll go with [Assassin] then. As I pressed the [Assassin] button a rush of wind surrounded us, because of this, Lyssa and Soumee were in confusion as to what was going on. However I knew, I could feel it within me, a power starting to form. The sensation of sharp daggers sinking into my skin could be felt at the deepest part of my soul; it hurt but I could endure it. The pain only lasted for a few seconds but during that time I felt as though it would last forever. As the pain ended I felt myself break into a cold sweat and along with it the wind that was surrounding us snapped away. ¡°Eh? What was that just now?¡± Lyssa asks as she surveys the area around us. The soldiers that were lined up also seemed to be equally confused as they muttered amongst themselves about what that just was. However, Soumee was different, she didn¡¯t break into a panic or confusion but she stared right at me, perhaps she knew it was my doing? Or that something had happened to me? Regardless, I felt stronger now. I decided to check my [status menu] to see if anything had changed. [Status Menu] Liliana Crow Xix Ariadyne. Level 1 ASSASSIN Strength: 5 Dexterity: 5 Magic: 5 Insight: Agility: 5 [Status Points: 10] As expected, I gained the class [Assassin] under my name. then perhaps I also got some new skills? In a similar fashion I opened up the [skill list]. As I did four interface boxes appeared right in front of my face without warning. [New skill acquired: [Instincts of the Assassin(Passive)]] [New skill acquired: [Shadow Dash(Active)]] [New skill acquired: [Shadow Cloak(Active)]] [New skill acquired: [Assassinate(Active)]] Closing the four interface boxes that appeared I inspected the [skill list] and like I had assumed the skills were definitely there. [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Instincts of the Assassin]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Dash]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Cloak]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Assassinate]: Level 1 On closer inspection there was an [inspect] button next to those skills. Click on each of them brought to me a small description box on each of the skills. [Instincts of the Assassin: Detect nearby presence, detect enemy¡¯s vulnerability, detect hostile threats and attacks] [Shadow Dash: Allows the user to quickly dash forward a small distance] [Shadow Cloak: Allows the user to become invisible, duration and effectiveness depends on level] [Assassinate: A powerful strike that ignore opponent¡¯s defense rate] These skills¡­ I¡¯m not entirely sure on how they work or activate but I assume that they¡¯ve been intuitively designed. In my experiences from my past life, during such situations where one cannot gain any more useful info it is better to go with one¡¯s gut feeling. ¡°Lys- sister, mind if we continue the sparring session?¡± When I asked I was met with dubious eyes, figures since I was just sent flying and lost unconscious, it would be dangerous to continue with strenuous activities right after getting up, however I wanted to test it out. I also wanted to know how much of my martial prowess I have retained. Considering this is a completely new body I don¡¯t think I have my former body¡¯s muscle memories, which is a bit of a pain but that can easily be mitigated with continuous training. Actually it works out better because I can train from a younger age, I might end up becoming more powerful than my previous life. ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea, Liliana. You just lost consciousness and-¡° ¡°Please!¡± Lyssa became flustered as I lowered my head. I hope my seriousness was successfully portrayed. ¡°O- okay, but we¡¯ll have to take it slowly.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± I agreed and split away from Lyssa and Soumee. We were now facing each other again on the opposite side of the field. While Lyssa still had an uneasy expression, Soumee¡¯s gaze was a little different, more intensely focused, as if to unravel some sort of mystery surrounding me. ¡°You can start first Liliana!¡± Lyssa gave way for the first strike. I went into a striking stance and positioned myself for a dash. I wanted to try out my new skills and I thought it would all go well until this point. I really had no idea on how to use those skills, at this rate I¡¯ll have to go with plan B, which was to shout out the name of the skill before using it, but that was embarrassing. No choice then. ¡°[S- Shadow Dash]!¡± I felt my entire body accelerate forward at breakneck speed; I was already in range for a perfect hit. I know I only took a single step but I must¡¯ve covered at least 3 meters. It wasn¡¯t instant but it was fast enough that it caught Lyssa and even Soumee off guard at what I had just done. ¡°Wha- no.¡± Reacting appropriately towards my movements, Lyssa snapped back to posture and made some distance between us using a small horizontal swing. Yes, that was certainly the correct course of action a fighter should take, though it was a little too delayed, if I had committed towards my attack I would¡¯ve already cut her down 3 or 4 times in that period. Currently my only goal was to test out my abilities, whether I won this sparring session or not wasn¡¯t really important. Taking me a bit more seriously, Lyssa moved her sword forward into a defensive stance. For a twelve year old she has impressive discipline, instead of asking me what I just did or what happened she went straight for a defensive pose and decided to continue the battle. Seeing that, it got my blood boiling a little. I couldn¡¯t help but smirk as I saw her serious expression. It wasn¡¯t like I was naturally a bloodthirsty or battle born person but the sight of a fight did rekindle a sort of flame in my heart. Holding this small sword I could feel it, this was real, everything around me was real; I had died but also have been reborn, I couldn¡¯t amend the mistakes I made in that life but I can try again in this one. And the one true link between this life and that life; the proof that I was me and not just some random princess, was the feeling of battle. I can live as [Liliana Crow Xix Ariadyne], but my soul was undoubtedly that of [Yui Kirisaki]. It was that single thought that gave me comfort, please watch me Sir Aran. ¡°Sister, are you ready?¡± ¡°Y- yeah, come.¡± ¡°[Shadow Dash].¡± I used the skill once more and close the gap between us, this time I didn¡¯t dawdle around and went for a straight downwards slash. Of course I tried to make the attack as projected as possible since if I fought with my full skill it would be too one sided. Easily blocking my downwards slash, Lyssa parried and pushed me back, then decided to go for a swift stab. ¡°[Shadow Cloak].¡± I moved just a few inches to the left and activated my second skills. Everyone¡¯s jaw dropped as I became transparent. As much I wanted it to, I wasn¡¯t fully invisible, if one concentrated hard enough it was possible to see the refractions of light and a small outline of my body. I noticed that the skills had levels so perhaps as I increase those levels this skill may become more akin to true invisibility later on. For now this would have to do. I took a step in and threw in another downwards swing, this time getting a direct hit on Lyssa¡¯s shoulders. There was a bit of damage but thanks to her armor, as well as the fact that this was a blunt sword, she was fine after a brief moment of recuperation. Gritting her teeth Lyssa went in for a succession of swings and stabs but I was able to dodge them all easily. I thought my muscle memories would be entirely gone but that didn¡¯t seem to be the case, I still had some residue memories and acting on those I could move the way I did. I guess it was about time this sparring session ended, but after displaying my skills and dominance it was a little awkward to deliberately lose the fight. I don¡¯t think Lyssa is the type of person to hold a grudge if she lost a match but it might hurt her pride a little, considering from their perspective I was a complete amateur in fights. She swung her sword in a horizontal slash but taking advantage of that I used my skill. ¡°[Shadow Dash].¡± But I used it in an upwards direction, completely evading her attack and as I landed I struck down with my sword and delivered an unguarded blow to her torso. Lyssa flew back a few meters and the fight was over. [You have gained (3) level(s)]. PART FOUR After the spar with Lyssa I tested out [Assassinate] on one of the practice dummies and I fell apart instantly, and to think I was debating on whether or not I wanted to use it in that fight. I decided against it since the description said it would ¡®ignore enemy defense rate¡¯. At any rate, I decided to take Lyssa to the infirmary since she was a little wounded. ¡°Where did all that strength come from?¡± She asked as she walked with me as her support, Soumee wanted to help but she was much too tall. ¡°I don¡¯t¡­ know. I just felt it from deep inside.¡± I answered vaguely, I could explain the truth but that in itself is a little troublesome. It was probably for the best if I kept it to myself for the time being. ¡°Deep inside? What do you mean?¡± I shook my head and pretend to act like I didn¡¯t know. ¡°I don¡¯t know, it was an¡­ intrinsic thing.¡± ¡°¡­ I see. It¡¯s a little sad that I was beat by my own younger sister who never trained a day. I guess this is what you call true talent.¡± Even though she said it herself she was getting a little depressed. I couldn¡¯t help but feel a little guilty, though I don¡¯t think she will let it get to heart it was my duty to make her feel better, as an adult. ¡°No, you don¡¯t have to worry about that, sister. What I have¡­ you can¡¯t really call it talent, it¡¯s more of a¡­ cheat.¡± ¡°A¡­ cheat?¡± ¡°Yeah, this strength isn¡¯t something innate. I didn¡¯t earn it nor was I born with it, just something that I suddenly got. I wish I could explain to you what happened when you knocked me out, but I don¡¯t remember much of it. Sorry.¡± Lyssa put her hand on my head and gently stroke. ¡°Fufu~ you don¡¯t have to worry Liliana. I¡¯m not upset. But I see, something you got suddenly. Should we have [Nicholai] look at you too then? Maybe we could get a little more detail on what happened.¡± ¡°O- okay.¡± I couldn¡¯t reject it since it was a reasonable suggestion, but I was a little nervous that something might actually turn up in an inspection. * * * ¡°Hmm~ there isn¡¯t anything specifically different. Lady Liliana¡¯s bio is all the same and her muscles haven¡¯t gotten any bigger either. You say that she suddenly gained some strength but there are no indications of that, at least it isn¡¯t a physical thing.¡± After we arrived at the infirmary, Nicholai, our resident cleric inspected me. He was a little old, perhaps around his late 40s? But he was a trusted doctor and once even worked as a [Praetorian Knight] in the castle. I wonder how strong he is- As I was contemplating his strength something else popped up above the doctor¡¯s head. [Nicholai. Level 49, High Cleric]. What the-? I rubbed my eyes and it was gone and when I tried to concentrate the interface box popped up above his head once more. I see, so this is like those things you see in MMORPG, other people¡¯s name, level and class. I tried look at Lyssa¡¯s and Soumee¡¯s as well. [Lyssa Crow Xix Ariadyne. Level 12, Apprentice Knight] [Soumee. Level 111, Praetorian Knight Commander] Huh? Level 111? That doesn¡¯t seem right. Once again I rubbed my eyes and tried again but I was getting the same thing. No, this definitely wasn¡¯t wrong, the pressure and feeling I get from watching her definitely syncs up. Back then, she was the first to notice that I had gained an odd strength and the way she moves is definitely extremely well disciplined. ¡°Is something the matter, Lady Liliana?¡± Noticing my stare, Soumee asks me with a piercing gaze. Behind that easy going, clumsy persona she¡¯s wearing right now, I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s her true personality but I can only shudder to think what she¡¯s like when she¡¯s serious. ¡°No, don¡¯t worry about it.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± It probably wouldn¡¯t take a genius to figure out the shift in personality from the me before I regained my memories and the me after, I guess that¡¯s why she¡¯s a little cautious of me. ¡°So then, there¡¯s nothing wrong with me right?¡± I asked Nicholai and he gives me a nod. ¡°Right, as far as I can see, there are no irregularities with your body, and I don¡¯t sense any presence of foreign mana, so I don¡¯t think you¡¯ve been affected by some strange magic either. It¡¯s really an oddity as to why you¡¯ve gained such a strength, Lady Liliana.¡± He reports. ¡°If that¡¯s the case then I don¡¯t think there¡¯s much to worry about then.¡± I reassure everyone. ¡°Well, if you say so.¡± Lyssa concedes. ¡°Then I shall retire to my room for the day.¡± I waved goodbye towards everyone and returned to my room. There was a lot to think about and I needed some time to adjust. PART FIVE ¡°Eh? A mission? But I am sworn to protect Lady Liliana.¡± ¡°We can temporarily assign a different praetorian knight as her guard for a few days. It just means this mission requires someone of your expertise on the scene.¡± Passing by the Tetrarch¡¯s study I heard Soumee¡¯s voice leak through. It seems that she¡¯s talking to my father of this world, the West Tetrarch, [Aidus Crow Xix Ariadyne]. From the sounds of it some situation has arisen that requires Soumee¡¯s presence. Speaking of which, I wonder if father knows about Soumee¡¯s true strength, I mean, from the past few days I¡¯ve measured the median level of most praetorian knights at they usually float around 45 ~ 55. I guess if he¡¯s trusting her enough to assign a special mission he at least has some knowledge that she¡¯s stronger than the normal knights. ¡°But¡­¡± Soumee wants to protest but if it is father¡¯s orders, the Tetrarch¡¯s orders there was no way to outright reject it. ¡°Is there some reason you don¡¯t want to go on this mission?¡± ¡°No¡­ well I¡­ actually I wish to observe Lady Liliana for a bit longer.¡± There is a brief silence in the room. ¡°Hmm, I did hear that a few days ago she gained some sort unusual strength. Is that the reason behind this?¡± ¡°There is that but, I feel that the lady has somewhat changed¡­ in terms of her personality, almost like she¡¯s a different person now.¡± ¡°And the possibility that she¡¯s been possessed by some force?¡± I get where he¡¯s coming from but I¡¯m still your daughter you know? I¡¯m still the same Liliana, I just have a few more memories tacked on. I guess in a land of swords and sorcery it isn¡¯t whole outlandish to suspect foul play or ghostly possession, so I can¡¯t really complain about him going through that possibility. ¡°No, I¡¯ve checked everything and even Nicholai agrees that it isn¡¯t some kind of possession. Actually it¡¯s kind of the opposite.¡± ¡°Opposite? What do you mean?¡± ¡°It¡¯s almost as if this personality of Lady Liliana is the true personality and the one we always knew was some kind of alter ego.¡± ¡°Hmm. Quite troubling, you may have some point about observing her for a bit longer. Then how about this? She will accompany you along with your mission, that way we can fulfill both our objectives.¡± ¡°Are you sure? Wouldn¡¯t that be too dangerous?¡± ¡°Perhaps, but I trust you enough to leave my daughter¡¯s life in. Besides, you said she got stronger right? It might be wise to test out how much stronger she has gotten.¡± There was another brief pause in the room before Soumee answers. ¡°I understand then, we shall do that.¡± END REPORT [Status Menu] Liliana Crow Xix Ariadyne. Level 4 ASSASSIN Strength: 5 Dexterity: 5 Magic: 5 Insight: 5 Agility: 5 [Status Points: 25] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Instinct of the Assassin]: Level 2 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Dash]: Level 3 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Cloak]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Assassinate]: Level 1 [Equipment] N/A Chapter 11 - The guard dog princess inauguration into the big league Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C The guard dog princess¡¯ inauguration into the big league Chapter XI PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 988] ¡°[Shadow Dash]!¡± I dashed towards [Soumee] and tried to flank her from her blind spot but as expected, she easily countered my blow by merely shifting the position of the shield. Following that course of action I was blown away by a blunt force attack by said shield. She¡¯s a tough one, even if my body is like this right now my skills should be equivalent to a veteran knight. Guess that level 111 wasn¡¯t a lie. No, I guess the bigger problem was that I shout out my skills before using them, so it¡¯s way too obvious, still I don¡¯t know how to activate my skills without doing that. Probably better that I practice speechless skill activation earlier on than to regret not doing it later. Now then, what were we doing? Since I was to be accompanying Soumee on her mission she thought it would be a good idea for me to train up and get accustomed to fighting. Mind you that in everyone else¡¯s perspective I was just a lazy princess who had only been staying indoors for the first seven years of my life and thus had no combat experience. We were about to leave for the mission tomorrow and we had 6 days to train so far. Thanks to that I had a lot of improvements towards me skills and levels, so far it looks like this. [Status Menu] Liliana Crow Xix Ariadyne. Level 23 ASSASSIN Strength: 5 Dexterity: 5 Magic: 5 Insight: 5 Agility: 5 [Status Points: 110] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Instinct of the Assassin]: Level 14 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Dash]: Level 23 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Cloak]: Level 17 (ACTIVE) [Assassinate]: Level 21 Perhaps it was due to the fact that I already had plenty of combat and training experience in my previous life that I was able to easily level up and gain a lot of skill levels. At the very least most of my muscle memories were intact from my previous life, albeit they were a bit wane since I didn¡¯t train for the first seven years. So while the past 6 days were extremely grueling it was plenty worth it. You probably also noticed that I didn¡¯t assign any [status points], that¡¯s because it¡¯s still undecided on what I want to prioritize. Besides, whether I had a [strength] stat of 1 or 100 it wouldn¡¯t make a difference when fighting with Soumee. In any case, if I am was going to go down the [Assassin] path then prioritizing [Dexterity] and [Agility] was probably a good idea. [Dexterity] to enhance my attack damage and accuracy and [Agility] to increase my evasion and movement speed. The problem was how I was going to distribute them; whether it was a good idea to balance the two stats or if I should add more into one stat. ¡°Is something the matter, Lady Liliana?¡± Soumee asked. I was thinking too deeply about how I should distribute my stats that I almost forgot we were in the middle of a sparring session. ¡°Ahahaha! How lame Liliana!¡± From the sideline came a slightly annoying laughter. That insensitive and informal tone, it could only belong to one person. I turned around to see a girl about the same age as myself wearing a fabulously decorated dress, her pink hair resembled the coloration of flowers and her innocent blue eyes seemed to view everything in optimism. My childhood friend of sorts, actually she was my cousin on my mother¡¯s side. Her name was- [Lucina Zeph. Level 6, Apprentice Magician]. ¡°Lucina¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s right~ I¡¯m here now, we can fight togethe-¡° ¡°Ah, Lucina you can¡¯t interfere with their training.¡± Coming to save the day from the small pink blob was my older sister, [Lyssa]. She was also watching from the sidelines until Lucina interrupted. Trying to give Soumee and myself more space she dragged Lucina off the field and had a small sparring session of their own. ¡°Now then¡­ ¡° To be honest I should¡¯ve done this earlier but I guess it¡¯s not too late to try now. Since I¡¯m fairly well acquainted with how [Shadow Dash] I should be able to activate it without shouting it out. Gathering all the strength towards my legs and pushing my center of gravity forward I sprinted towards Soumee with my short sword in hand. She was waiting for me to shout but this time I kept my mouth closed. I felt an accelerating force push me forward to quickly close the gap between her and I. Taking this opportunity I decided to start with a stab, of course she isn¡¯t even phased by my surprise and appropriately moves her shield forward to block my attack. However I wasn¡¯t done yet, I quickly followed up with [Shadow Cloak]. Even at level 17 it didn¡¯t make me completely invisible, you could still see a slight distortion at my position but I could easily mitigate that but kicking the dirt and causing a smokescreen of sorts. Then while my distortion became covered in the dust I once again activated [Shadow Dash], this time upwards. While I was airborne Soumee quickly tried to search for my position but I wasn¡¯t anywhere to be found. Thinking that I finally found her blind spot I activated my [Assassinate] and dashed downwards with my entire body weight. However, to my surprise Soumee almost instantly detected my presence as I prepared for the attack and moved her shield above her head. Despite my [Assassinate] skill ¡®ignoring defense rate¡¯ of the enemy it didn¡¯t have the power to go through a solid metal shield. Thus I landed on the shield, possibly even denting it a little. Unable to balance anymore due to my odd position I fell off the shield and landed on the floor besides Soumee. ¡°Oww¡­¡± ¡°Are you okay, Lady Liliana?¡± ¡°Yeah, you don¡¯t have to worry about me every time. Still, I thought I got you with that last one but you managed to block. It¡¯s like you have superhuman reaction. Just what was that?¡± I didn¡¯t really expect an answer but she gave me one. ¡°I felt your presence.¡± ¡°What? You sensed my presence, like you could feel my position?¡± ¡°Yes, although your tactic was effective until the point you decided to go for an attack, once you activated your skill I could feel the hostility.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ I see.¡± That¡¯s crazy, it¡¯s like those old kung fu movies where the protagonist feels the enemy¡¯s presence by sheer intuition. Don¡¯t tell me that¡¯s what she¡¯s doing? It might be necessary to learn a skill that hides my presence and hostility. ¡°I think we should end training here, Lady Liliana. What do you say?¡± ¡°Yeah, I want to take a bath and rest too. Thanks for training me.¡± ¡°It is no problem.¡± As soon as our sparring session ended I got another notification in the form of an interface box. [You have gained 2 level(s)] I guess I should start distributing my stats, they¡¯ve piled up. For now I decided to split it half and half between [dexterity] and [agility]. PART TWO ¡°I¡¯m lost¡­¡± Okay, facing reality, no matter how you look at it, I have no idea as to where I am right now. All alone in the wood filled with monsters that could maul off my face at any given moment¡­ or not, since I could probably outrun them with my skills. Either way though, this isn¡¯t exactly a favorable situation for me. Just how exactly did I end up in such a compromising position? Thinking back it all happened 3 hours ago¡­ PART THREE It¡¯d been about half a day since we entered the forest. What forest you ask? And what was I doing here in the first place? This place was a forest close to a village known as [Cherm Village]. Our mission; Soumee¡¯s mission was to investigate the strange phenomenon that has been appearing right in this forest. According to the local reports, there were sightings of strange monsters lurking about, monsters that were many times stronger than normal monsters. Due to the potential dangers of this unknown threat, sending in normal knights for investigation were quickly dismissed and instead an all-stars team of [Praetorian Knights] were formed for the sake of this mission, though that being said there were only three. Assigned as the leader was of course, [Soumee]. The next two are known as a pair. [Eins. Level 43, Blademaster] [Zwei. Level 44, Unarmed fighting specialist] They both wore a black military-esque uniform complete with those golden shoulder pad things that high ranking generals in my previous world had. Their overall age seemed to only be around 16 ~ 17, but they were already serving as Praetorian Knights. The man, Zwei, had a rather easy-going atmosphere about him, dishevelled brown hair and a relaxing smile. It was almost as though if you stared directly at him for too long your heart will also wane and become lazy. Just from a glimpse he had no immediately weaponry ready, but I had heard he was a master of a technique called [unarmed combat]. The woman, or young girl, Eins was a lot more serious looking and had an air of a stern noble. Her silky brown hair dropped down past her waist, she had an icy glare that could even stun the hearts of even the most hardened war veterans. To her waist was a long orient sword, I¡¯d describe it as a Japanese style Katana, but that country doesn¡¯t exist in this world. To be honest it was a little odd to find something like that in this world, especially since this country uses the standard double edged long swords as a base weapon. In any case, their levels were definitely up to the average standard of Praetorian knights but they were incredibly young. I suppose by that logic I would also be a special case as I was at level 25 at age seven but I have a rather cheat like ability so I don¡¯t think it should be counted. Still, I have to commend their parents to name them so perfectly, especially when the German language doesn¡¯t even exist in this world, heck I don¡¯t even think they¡¯re related which makes this an even more amazing coincidence. In any case this was our party, the three praetorian knights, myself and my older sister [Lyssa]. A party of 5. ¡°Soumee, don¡¯t you think it¡¯s time we took a small break, sister looks like she¡¯s about to pass out.¡± Perhaps it was because of my level, or my discipline from my previous world but I didn¡¯t feel all that tired in the least. Though Lyssa was covered in sweat. Turning to check Lyssa¡¯s condition, Soumee concluded that it was indeed a decent time to rest up. ¡°Very well, we¡¯ll have a 10 minute break.¡± ¡°T- thank you.¡± Lyssa says as she immediately drops down on a nearby boulder and breathes a sigh of relief. I know she¡¯s a well-trained, well-disciplined fighter but she was still a child, besides that armor dress doesn¡¯t look like it¡¯s easy to move around in, as for me since I mostly wore leather-mail there was no problem with weight or movement. We took out some food and replenished ourselves. As for me I also brought out something to eat, however I wasn¡¯t physically carrying it, I had a special skill for that, [Inventory]. It really is mysterious as to how it works. Basically I can create a little pocket dimension to store items in. I¡¯m not sure if there is a limit to how much I can store but I can even put an entire dinner table in there and it would still be fine. As I was eating, I noticed to presence of two small enemies, most likely they were goblins, they were the most common type of monsters that lurked in forests. For the most part they weren¡¯t really strong, insanely weak actually. They had sharp teeth and claws but not the strength needed to utilize them to the fullest. From the looks of it there weren¡¯t any other monsters in the vicinity either, so I had the bright idea of thinking that this was perfect opportunity to get in some actual combat experience. It was a 2v1 but they were goblins so it shouldn¡¯t be too much of a problem. ¡°I¡¯m going to check something, I¡¯ll be right back in a minute.¡± I told everyone. ¡°I¡¯ll go with you.¡± Soumee interjected as she stood up, since she¡¯s my bodyguard it wasn¡¯t too odd but I wanted to do this alone. There¡¯s no point if Soumee comes along. Really, this was just my pride as a fighter, but this small task I could do with my eyes closed so I don¡¯t need backup. ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯m just going to pick the flowers.¡± ¡°Pick the flowers?¡± ¡°Leave it at that Soumee.¡± To my aid was Lyssa who stopped Soumee. She understood what I was trying to say, of course that in itself was a lie but this was the only way they would let me go alone. Soumee still didn¡¯t understand what I was talking about so Lyssa whispered into her ears. ¡°Ah¡­ I see. Then at least please take this.¡± Soumee handed to me a small stone like object. It was white and round with a magic symbol in carved into it. I inspected the object carefully to see what it was. When I did a small interface box opened up to reveal the details. [Magic stone. Contains one spell: [Heaven¡¯s shield]]. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± I asked to confirm. ¡°It contains a onetime use magic spell. It will shield you from any attack for a short period of time and since that magic stone was created by me, once activated I will sense my own mana and know to come to you.¡± Oh, smart. ¡°Thanks.¡± I reply with a cute smile as I excuse myself from the area. PART FOUR After walking for a bit I was now alone and noticing my presence the two goblins revealed themselves to me. Paled skin, slightly taller than me, ragged clothes and stone weaponry. They looked rather vicious with their sharp teeth and jagged nails but when I checked their levels all of my anxiety was alleviated. [Goblin. Level 8, fighter] [Goblin. Level 7, fighter] From the looks of things they wouldn¡¯t really pose a threat to Lyssa, much less me. I also checked the surroundings with my [Instincts of the assassin] to see if there were any others waiting in ambush, there were none. Though I shouldn¡¯t really underestimate my opponents or overestimate my own abilities, but so far all victory conditions have been met. From my [inventory] I pulled out a small dagger. This was given to me by our resident blacksmith. [Steel Dagger] +6 [Strength] +6 [Dexterity] +6 [Agility] As far as weapons go this was actually pretty good and sturdy. Deciding that if more goblins show up it would be trouble I decided to go for first blood. ¡°Ki¡­¡± ¡°Kii, Kii.¡± They were whispering amongst themselves in some weird language, perhaps they communicated in frequencies? They didn¡¯t look like they were going to back off, perhaps they¡¯re planning some sort of strategy? I¡¯m not entirely sure on the intelligence level of goblins in this world but they¡¯re usually depicted as dumb in my previous world. Taking this opportunity I [shadow dashed] towards them. Catching them off guard I immediately stuck the blade into the heart of one of the goblins and immediately the other one backed off in panic. Just to make sure I [shadow dashed] once more to behind the stabbed goblin and stabbed once more into its neck, and made sure it was really dead. [New skill acquired: [Back Stab(Passive)]] Back stab? [Back stab: attacking an enemy from the back will apply bonus damage] Oh. If I use [Back stab] along with [Assassinate] I can probably dish out a massive amount of damage. The other goblin became enraged and charged at me with an extremely telegraphed attack. It was going to swing down with its stone club but I easily dodged it, even without using any skills this level of foot work was child¡¯s play. Evading all of its attack I drew closer and stabbed this one in the neck too. I thought it would die quickly but to my surprise it had enough strength to get in one more hit. I slightly panicked and [shadow dashed] out of there, but this was a little different than my usual [shadow dash], I traveled a further range and it was instant. [New skill acquired: [Blink(Active)]] Blink? Since the goblin was dead by lack of oxygen I took this time to inspect what this new [blink] skill did. [Blink: allows the user to instantly teleport a moderate distance, if used while in [shadow dash] the user is able to gain longer range] Oho~ this is quite useful; a teleportation ability. Feeling triumphant at my victory against two measly goblins I thought it was time to head back to the camp since they were no doubt waiting for me. However, it was then that it happened. ¡°Gii!¡± ¡°Gii! Gigigigi!¡± Strange cries were coming from the dead corpses of the goblins. Turning to see what it was I saw something extremely disturbing. Like a parasite had latched itself onto their deceased bodies, the goblins had pieces of yellow crystal growing through their skin in a disgusting manner. As the sun light touched their bodies it yellow gems started to glow which only amplified how gross this looked. However the strangest part of this was that I couldn¡¯t sense their presence with the [instincts of the assassin] skill, even now I couldn¡¯t feel their presence. It was like they were invisible to detection, are they zombies? Rather than the vicious expressions they had before, it was now replaced by a vacant stare. [Crystalline Goblin. Level 21, Cursed unit] [Crystalline Goblin. Level 20, Cursed unit] When I checked their levels again, they were a lot higher and their names and class had changed into something else. What¡¯s this? Crystalline? In any case, even though their levels were lower than mine they look a lot stronger and resistant to damage than before. My mind was telling me that running away from them was the smarter choice. I get it now, this is probably that ¡®strange phenomenon¡¯ that had been sighted in this forest. I turned around to escape the vicinity but as I did there were new monsters here to block my exit. I couldn¡¯t even detect their movement or their presence, dammit, the situation was looking fairly grim. [Crystalline Dire Wolf. Level 24] x 6 I was captured by complete surprise, but this was also a good place for a little test. The Crystalline monsters stood at bay waiting for me to make a move, using this opportunity I activated [shadow dash] and in the midst of it I activated [blink] on top, causing me to teleport at least 30 meters forward. Immediately following up on that I activated [shadow cloak] to further aid my escape. The Crystalline monsters were thrown in to disarray as I had completely disappeared. However I was too distracted by how those monsters were reacting that I lost track of my environment and fell down a nearby cliff. It was fairly steep fall of about 50 meters but using my acrobatic skills I was able to avoid the worst. PART FIVE Thus I ended up wandering around for the past three hours trying to find my way back to the main camp. How did it all end up like this? I was just having lunch a few hours ago¡­ I guess I already explained that. Though it was a little worrisome because those crystalline monsters were close the main camp. I don¡¯t think Soumee would have too much trouble being able to dispose of them, but those monsters whose presence couldn¡¯t be detected, if they were to spread out of this area it could spell trouble for a lot of reasons. Wondering around aimlessly I heard a voice all out to me. ¡°Liliana?!¡± ¡°Sister?!¡± I looked around to see Lyssa all by herself, her clothes were visibly tattered and she was staggering about. I immediately ran to her and supported her from falling over. She looked at me. She was visibly fatigued, or at least that¡¯s what it appeared to be. The left side of her forehead was scratched and blood was dripping from her legs. ¡°Just what happened?¡± I asked. ¡°Monsters appeared, strange monsters with crystals attached to them.¡± ¡°I see.¡± It must¡¯ve been the group that was attacking me, but where are the others? Where is Eins and Zwei? And even Soumee separated from her? That doesn¡¯t seem like something they would do. It could be that more monsters appeared and overwhelmed them, still¡­ something was amiss here. I just couldn¡¯t put my¡­ finger¡­ on it¡­ [Noel. Level 32, Illusionist] What¡­ the? That wasn¡¯t Lyssa¡­ I took out my knife and stabbed her right through the stomach. ¡°Ugh?!¡± I then used [shadow dash] to back off. She¡¯s a higher level than me and I have no idea what an ¡®illusionist¡¯ is capable of. I made distance to prepare for what kind of attacks she had for me. ¡°Why¡­?¡± She was grabbing her stomach in pain, blood started to pour out but she applied pressure to stop it. ¡°Why? Because you¡¯re not my sister. Don¡¯t think you can fool me that easily, illusionist.¡± I¡¯ve no clue why she would pose as my sister but it was probably not a good reason. She also knew my name, just how much were we compromised? ¡°Where¡¯s my sister?¡± ¡°H- how did you?¡± At the very least the damage that I dealt to her was real. As an expert I made sure to stab a place on her body where she wouldn¡¯t immediately bleed out. Don¡¯t underestimate a veteran. Still, I must¡¯ve been the worst match for an illusion, as long as I can see their names and titles I won¡¯t have a problem of being fooled. The illusionist, noel, transformed back into her original form, or at least I assumed that¡¯s what it was. She had purpose hair tied up into a side tail and wore a half-mask, just enough to cover the left side of her face. Her eyes were blood red and they were glaring at me with intense anger. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Scary. She wore and odd red robe which contrasted extremely poorly with the green of the forest. The extent some people would go through just for their own fashion was astounding. Still, I couldn¡¯t relent or relax in this situation, as an expert, it was better to have the enemy fear you than you fear the enemy. In other words intimidation and asserting dominance. ¡°Noel the illusion, I will ask you again. Where is my sister? Comply and I may spare your miserable life.¡± She found it shocking that I revealed her name. ¡°What are you?¡± ¡°That¡¯s none of your business, now tell me where she is.¡± ¡°I refus-¡° Before she could even finish that sentence I [blinked] behind her and placed the steel dagger up to her neck. She was fairly short so even for me I was able to reach up and threaten her life. ¡°What the hell¡­ aren¡¯t you just supposed to be a na?ve princess?¡± ¡°It seems you aren¡¯t taking this seriously enough.¡± I slide the dagger just a few centimeters and blood started to trickle from her neck and noticing that she was about to die she started to tremble. ¡°I¡¯d rather not kill people if I could help it, but if I have to then I will do it with a smile. Now I will not asking you any more after this so I suggest you start talking, where is my sister?¡± ¡°F- follow me.¡± * * * I was taken to a small camp on the edge of the forest and next to a high cliff. It was pretty well-concealed, there was a small tent and campfire, but the one thing that caught my interest the most was the sight of a large floating yellow crystal. It slowly rotated as it emitted a strange light. From it I could feel some sort of energy emanating, it didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out that this was what was causing the appearance of those strange crystalline monsters. If I had to hazard a guess, anything, that dies within its vicinity will turn into those crystalline monsters. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± I asked. ¡°Why should I tell you?¡± ¡°Because I have a knife.¡± ¡°It¡¯s¡­ it¡¯s a [monolith]. I¡¯ve been experimenting with it in this forest.¡± ¡°For what purpose.¡± She hesitated the answer the question and instead opted to change the topic. ¡°Didn¡¯t you want to find your sister? Well she¡¯s in that tent.¡¯ She pointed towards the only tent in the camp. I [shadow dashed] to the tent and as she said my sister was there, tied up and gagged. How horrible. I undid her binds and Lyssa leapt into my and embraced me. ¡°Liliana!¡± I checked to make sure but she was the real Lyssa. ¡°Sister, what happened? Where¡¯s Soumee, Eins and Zwei?¡± We were overran by those strange crystal monsters, there were hundreds so even they couldn¡¯t help me. I decided it was for the best if I ran and left them to fight without distractions but I got caught instead.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± ¡°Are you done with your little reunion? Because I think it¡¯s time I repaid the favor.¡± Noel stated and as she did dozens of crystalline monsters appeared to her command. They were all waiting in line for her orders, no doubt about it that she was using this giant yellow crystal to control these monsters. My guess is that if I can destroy it, she will either lose control of the monsters or the monsters will simply die. Still, the monsters gathered were all over my level. Guess it can¡¯t be helped then; I had to fight. But first Lyssa who was injured was in no state to fight and she would only become a burden if she was factored into this battle. I took out a small stone from my [inventory], the [magic stone] that Soumee gave me earlier. If I recall correctly this stone should provide a temporary barrier and will alert Soumee to our presence. I activated the stone and cast the [heaven shield] skill around Lyssa. ¡°What? Liliana, why did you do that! You should¡¯ve saved yourself!¡± I gave her a small smile and replied. ¡°More than myself, I¡¯m more scared of losing those closest to me. I¡­ I don¡¯t ever want to experience that feeling again. I will not fail a second time.¡± It was odd, during such a time I was reminiscing about my time with Sir Aran. I wonder what he would say if he could see me now? I guess he¡¯d probably laugh at me and call me ¡®na?ve¡¯ but then would tell me I did a good job. He was¡­ an odd person like that. Scary but once you got to know him he would open up to you, it was for that reason I could do my best as his guard¡­ but that¡¯s a moot point now. I failed him, but I won¡¯t fail again. Tired of waiting for me to make my move, Noel commanded her monsters to attack me. This battle was obviously one that I could never win, even if I applied myself the best as I could. Those monsters are already dead so even with conventional weapons they won¡¯t die. That means that this was a battle of attrition, I just need to conserve my stamina until Soumee and the others arrived. The monsters started to dash towards me but in return I managed to [shadow dash] away. I would go immediately for Noel if I had the chance but she was smart enough to leave a few guard monsters so I couldn¡¯t really get close. Still, I was extremely lucky that I decided to go with the [assassin] class. If I had chosen [knight] or [brawler] I probably wouldn¡¯t be able to move like this and would be mauled to death in a matter of moments. Actually this was going better than I expected. With the combination of [shadow dash], [blink] and [shadow cloak] I was able to hold up for a lot longer than I thought. However that was simply my mistake, eventually I got tired and started to drop my speed, despite this the monsters didn¡¯t lose stamina, instead they seemed faster. A crystalline goblin managed to get in a strike and I was thrown about like a rag doll towards Lyssa¡¯s location. It hurt like hell, I couldn¡¯t even move my fingers. ¡°Liliana! Liliana!¡± Lyssa cried out my name in panic, but all I could hear was a muffled voice and my vision starting to blur. Soon I was welcomed to a world of the void. PART SIX In my previous life, I was always alone. Never had siblings or even parents, didn¡¯t have friends either. My parents passed away when I was only four and since then I was taken in by my relatives and passed around like some hot potato. Perhaps they thought I was some kind of small animal that needed to be taken care of, however once that kind of novelty wore off they wanted to get rid of me as soon as possible. I always cried myself to sleep pondering what I did wrong, I wasn¡¯t some prodigy, I wasn¡¯t dumb, I was just a normal child. In the end I couldn¡¯t take it anymore and decided to live out on my own. There were some money left over from my parents so I thought I could manage that until I was older. Though that was the start of my mistake. School wasn¡¯t much better, I was bulled by the others to the point that I had to quit school entirely. I often thought to myself, if I had parents I may have been able to endure the stress but for a lone child that was impossible to deal with. Thinking back I made the right choice to drop out of school, I probably really would¡¯ve ended myself if I stayed any longer in that hellhole. I only ever got as far as middle school. It was around the age of 13 that I started getting into otaku culture, I would watch anime, read manga/light novels and play games throughout the entire day. By the time I caught track of time the sun would¡¯ve already risen. What was it about that kind of stuff that captivated me? Well, it was entrancing, the protagonist in those kinds of stories would always win, even if they were also bullied or had tragic pasts they would always pull themselves back together and make tons of friends. However reality didn¡¯t work like that. Even though I was going through the same thing why was it that things never went the way I wanted? I was just unfair. Why didn¡¯t I have any friends that would help me pull through the hardships? No one bat an eye when I was going through hell. Not even the teachers at school would lend me a hand, they probably all thought it was bothersome and rejoiced the day I was gone; just one less problem to worry about. Like that I spent the next 10 years holed up in a single room. I grew fatter and lazier as time passed, by the time I had realized it and looked in the mirror, not a single shred of what I used to be remained. All I saw was something I came to despise. It was a vicious cycle, every time I became self aware I would avert my gaze and escaped further into my own hobbies, gorging myself on food in the process. When I was about to turn 23, I noticed I was soon going to be out of my parent¡¯s inheritance and that I would need to start working to continue living. But how could I? I became fat and ugly, not only that, I didn¡¯t even have any sort of life skills. A middle school dropout, who would hire such a person? I wouldn¡¯t. I now had two choices in front of me. The first would be to continue on as I have, eventually I would burn through the inheritance I had and become a vagrant. Perhaps then, if good felt merciful I would end up dead as well. It was the first time I had even considered to possibility of facing reality. It hurt to even say those words to myself, but thinking about how I would end up was a real wake up call. The second choice was the slim down, then I could start working part time, I probably didn¡¯t have much of a future prospect in store for me but at least I could earn enough money to escape reality from time to time. That kind of lifestyle didn¡¯t seem all that bad when I thought about the alternative. The choice was an obvious one but it was also extremely hard. I was lazy. It was hard to even move and I would have chronic pains, in such a state, could I even slim down enough? Such thoughts kept me from even trying. However, I still had some pride left. I had to go through with my choice no matter what, else I would end up dead in a gutter somewhere. As a result I started some light jogs in the morning, every day without fail, through rain or hail I would do it. It was tough, very tough. There were days I wanted to quit, no that wasn¡¯t true, I wanted to quit every day, but I refused to give in, because the moment I stopped was the moment I died. Thinking about it now, I think I would¡¯ve eventually quit if it wasn¡¯t for a single event that helped me through. I remember it well because it was snowing that morning. One day as I was jogging through my usual route I slipped on the ice and fell down. There was no one out there in the cold to even help me up. It was at that moment I finally realized that I was truly alone in this world. No one would give a crap if I stopped breathing right there. Even if I decided to never move my body from that exact spot, no one would cry for me. I thought back to all the times I had a chance to change myself. After dropping out of middle school, I could¡¯ve gotten a job. I should¡¯ve swallowed my pride and contacted one of my relatives. I should¡¯ve done something but I spent my days wasting away in that dark room. As it dawned on me, tears came running down my face. I was disturbed at myself. It wasn¡¯t that the world had given up on me, it was me who gave up on even trying. I could only wryly laugh at my pathetic self as the snow continued to fall. ¡°Are you alright?¡± It was then I heard the voice reaching out to me. It was the voice of a man, a foreigner? At first I was a little scared, if I had died like this I would only be disgracing myself but if I died right now I would be disgracing my own countrymen. I was stunned at what I saw. Extremely well toned muscles, perfectly chiselled jaw line, cool green eyes and black hair. The man came up and stared at me with sympathetic eyes. He was a few years older than me by the looks of it by the looks of it but I couldn¡¯t really confirm that. From the looks of how he was dressed he was also going out for a light jog, even though it was snowing he went out for it. He was already considerably fit as well, I was amazed at his dedication and felt a little pathetic that I was about to give up because I fell. He helped me up, even though I thought of myself as disgusting, he didn¡¯t. He wiped the snow off my shoulders and gave me a light pat on the back. ¡°Shall we continue?¡± He asked in a friendly voice. I remember it so clearly, I had a dumb expression on my face as I jogged from behind him. Or maybe it would be more apt to say that I was chasing after him¡­ my savior. ¡°Whew, that was a good run. You have pretty good stamina.¡± He gave me a compliment as we finished the course. I didn¡¯t even know how many laps we ran, I didn¡¯t even care, I was only chasing after him. ¡°Well then, it¡¯s time for me to be going now. See you.¡± ¡°U- um!¡± I stopped him as he was about to leave. Why? I don¡¯t know, perhaps I felt some sort of attraction? Even if I did there was no way he would reciprocate my feelings. I wouldn¡¯t I were him. ¡°Yes?¡± He had a quizzical look on his face. ¡°D- do you come here to jog often? If you do, do you mind if we do so together?¡± He paused for a moment before answering. I thought he would reject me but he didn¡¯t. ¡°Ah, yes I come here to jog every morning at around 6:30, I would be glad to have a jogging partner.¡± ¡°R- really?¡± He gave me a carefree smile as he answered. ¡°Sure.¡± It was the first time I felt such kindness. I thought I could cry from happiness from just that alone. After that day, every day for two years I jogged with him. Eventually we became quite close. His name was [Aran Callahad], I thought I had heard that name before but at the time I couldn¡¯t figure it out. It was only later that I realized what kind of titan I was dealing with, such an extraordinary man. I actually confessed everything about myself to him. About how my parents died when I was young. About how I dropped out of middle school. About how I became pathetic. I didn¡¯t even know why I was telling a stranger all this, but I felt like I needed to tell someone; to get this off my shoulders. That person didn¡¯t look at me in scorn even after I told him all that. I gently stroke my hair as he said it would be alright. He told me he¡¯ll continue jogging with me until I slim down. After that I cried. I cried till no more tears came out. I couldn¡¯t thank that person enough. ¡°How about a party to celebrate?¡± He said as a joke, of course I declined. I just managed to lose all that weight after all. He then gave me a business card, I thought it was his but he shook his head, it was a friend of his. Since I now needed to find a job, he asked me if I was interested in a physically oriented field. At first I didn¡¯t know what he was saying but it turns out that his friend owned a security company and was looking for new employees. I had slimmed down and gained a bit of muscles with extra training so it wasn¡¯t a bad idea for me who had no real life skills. ¡°A security firm, huh.¡± I sighed. ¡°Do you not like them?¡± ¡°Oh, no I was just a little nervous. I will definitely take this opportunity, thank you very much.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll do well, I¡¯ll even put in a good word for you. Besides with these things you learn as you go on and in your case you even have a good base physique.¡± I blushed a little at his compliments. ¡°Aha, thank you very much.¡± After that day I never met that man again until a couple of years after. I think he was only continuing to jog for my sake, he never returned to our jogging route, of course I continued on just for the sake of it. ¡°An angel.¡± I said to myself, I met an angel. The security firm was a little subsidiary company for a larger enterprise known as [Mobius industries], and when I finally learnt that [Aran Callahad] was the CEO of that company my eyes rolled out of my sockets. It was unfathomable as to why such an important person in the world was helping someone like me. The job was fairly exciting, every day we got to handle different types of weapons. I thought jobs like these only existed in the world of anime but they really existed. Eventually after a long time I got promoted enough to become the bodyguard of an extremely important figure. [Aran Callahad]. When I was reunited with him, he didn¡¯t seem to recognize me at first sight, but I couldn¡¯t really blame him for that, he was a busy person who probably met hundreds of people daily. I too had also changed quite a bit over the years. Still, it was enough for me to be able to just stay by my angel¡¯s side. Even when I learnt that he was to be married soon, though it was a little depressing I decided to support him with my entire being, for he was the person who I thought desired that happiness above all. However after that, you all know what really happened. I died and was reborn into this world. I couldn¡¯t save him, the one person I treasured, I had failed him. PART SEVEN Now then, why did I confess to all of that? As I lied on the floor with blood spewing from my stomach I wondered the same question. Was this the thing that¡¯s supposed to happen when someone was on the verge of death? You know, a person¡¯s life flashing before their eyes. I don¡¯t know, however there is one thing I wanted to do before I died again. That was to save this child. Unlike me who actually had the experience of a full life, Lyssa was still a child, I wanted to save her at least. Save her like Sir Aran saved me. I slowly dragged my body up again. ¡°Liliana! Are you okay?!¡± ¡°I¡¯m¡­ fine. Just give me a¡­ moment.¡± S I took a few moments to catch my breath. I didn¡¯t have any sort of healing magic, this wasn¡¯t looking too good. ¡°Hahaha!¡± I let out a small pathetic laugh, even though I found conviction to save this child with my body in this state, what could I possibly even do? ¡°What are you laughing at?!¡± Noel starts to get agitated, what was I laughing at? Indeed, what was I laughing at? ¡°It¡¯s because I find this entire situation to be hilarious. I who should¡¯ve died a long time ago is still standing, still fighting. Perhaps now I could finally find the place to die peacefully, knowing that I did not fail a second time.¡± Soumee will come soon. I know it. ¡°Enough of your nonsensical babbling! Die!¡± I closed my eyes to embrace my own death, but this time I was going down honorably. However that death never came, when I opened my eyes I saw a shining figure in front of me, protecting me. ¡°Soumee¡­?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry for being late, Lady Liliana. I will take care of everything.¡± ¡°I see¡­ thank you.¡± Being able to relax I fell unconscious. PART EIGHT It seems that I¡¯ve lost consciousness. So then why am I talking as though I haven¡¯t, you ask? Good question, I want to know the answer myself. Or maybe I was dead. That does make sense as well. Everything was dark; in every direction it was just a massive void. From the darkness words appeared. Literally, glowing words appeared in front of me. [System patch¡­ 15%] [System patch¡­ 45%] [System patch¡­ 85%] [System patch¡­ complete] [System updated] Ominous robotic-like words appeared before me. I was understandably shook by this point. [Operator System Ver. 2 initializing¡­] [Initialization complete] That¡¯s good¡­ I think? [Please select secondary class] [Magician] [Knight] [Archer] [Cleric] [Necromancer] [Brawler] [Alchemy] [Puppeteer] [Bard] What¡­ ¡®Secondary class¡¯?! I¡¯ve heard of this. It¡¯s actually quite a rare system but some games do have this. The coveted [Dual Class System]. It¡¯s a game setting that allows the player to choose two classes instead of the standard one. Developers sometimes add in such a feature to make the game more unique compared to others. Actually I had been thinking about this for a while now and I¡¯ve already picked a suitable class. I was going to choose [Alchemist] for its utility. I had no healing spells but I should be able to synthesize items like magic stones for those and I could even synthesize offensive magic with those too. [Alchemy] it is! I tapped on the [Alchemy] tab. [Do you wish to finalize this decision?] [Yes] With that I once again lost my consciousness. I¡¯m still alive. I will survive in this world and I will protect everyone close to me. Watch me Sir Aran, I will live to the best of my ability. END REPORT [Status Menu] Liliana Crow Xix Ariadyne. Level 25 ASSASSIN ALCHEMIST Strength: 11 (5 + 6) Dexterity: 71 (65 + 6) Magic: 5 Insight: 5 Agility: 71 (65 + 6) [Status Points: 0] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Instinct of the Assassin]: Level 14 (PASSIVE) [Back Stab]: Level 2 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Dash]: Level 23 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Cloak]: Level 17 (ACTIVE) [Assassinate]: Level 21 (ACTIVE) [Blink]: Level 2 [Equipment] [Steel Dagger] +6 [Strength] +6 [Dexterity] +6 [Agility] Chapter 12 - The day the slime king visited our peaceful village Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C The day the slime king visited our peaceful village Chapter XII PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 989] ¡°You¡¯re slacking up, Morgant!¡± Father shouts at me across the field. His movements are way too fast for a human being, is he really even a human? He¡¯d be breaking all kinds of world records if he lived in my previous world. Currently we were out training and while I¡¯m grateful that he takes care of me every day in such a bothersome task, I can¡¯t help but find myself unable to keep my he straight these days. About a year had passed since the incident that took place at the Northern Capital. By now the duke would¡¯ve been justly executed for his crimes, but that¡¯s not what¡¯s distracting me, I don¡¯t even care about him. What¡¯s drilling into my head is what happened afterwards. First was the discovery of the [Necronomicon], being stuck in this small, peaceful village I can¡¯t even go out to actively find clues. It¡¯s extremely frustrating¡­ just when I have a lead I can¡¯t even pursue it immediately, all because I lack the power to do so. During this past year I¡¯ve gotten a considerable amount of levels but even if I left now, in this state I would no doubt eventually meet an opponent that is more than my match. Even though Erin¡¯s waiting for me, I¡¯m stuck here, that¡¯s what¡¯s eating at the depths of my heart. Because of this I cannot concentrate on what I need to do. It is for that purpose that I¡¯m training¡­ but still, this powerlessness, it almost feels like I¡¯ve stagnated. I feel like tearing out my own hair from the stress. That was just the tip if the iceberg, the second problem that was slowly eating away at me was the [prediction] that [Astaroth] gave me about something happening. Just what¡¯s going to happen? When is it going to happen? How is it going to happen? Where is it going to happen? Taking advantage of my temporarily slip from concentration my father dashes at me with incredible speed and delivers a precision strike towards my abdomen. If I was a normal child I might¡¯ve actually died. The only reason father went that far was because he understood my power and my limits, he calculated that I could handle this, for that I¡¯m thankful he isn¡¯t treating me like just some ordinary child. I flew back from the impact a few meters and coughed up blood. I detected several fractures and broken bones from just that one attack. An attack of this level could easily be mended with [holy] magic so it wasn¡¯t too big of a deal but it did hurt like hell. ¡°Come on, Morgant. You¡¯re the one who said you wanted to do this so why are you the one to become so distracted? Don¡¯t tell me this is the extent of your ¡®mysterious power¡¯?¡± That¡¯s right, my mysterious power; Necromancy. My parents and family don¡¯t know it¡¯s official name, they only know that I have some strange power that isn¡¯t magic. I¡¯ve been keeping a lot of secrets from them but they still care for me in their own way, if Erin wasn¡¯t waiting for me I might¡¯ve actually considered staying here forever. Still, I clenched my fists. This stagnation, I really have to do something about it. Power, I just need more power. ¡°Far¡­ from it. I¡¯m just getting warmed up.¡± I retorted as I stood up once more. Seriously, what am I doing right now? I said I wanted to be stronger but here I am getting distracted, this won¡¯t do. Focus, focus, focus, focus! Erin I waiting for me, she¡¯s crying and waiting for me so I have to return as soon as possible, but that wish won¡¯t ever come true if I get distracted easily like this. I need power, I need to train. I flicked my wrists and three shadow lances appeared floating near me. [Shadow Lance]. It was a skill that I learnt as soon as I hit 100 [strength] stat. it was a flexible skill that I could use in any way I wanted, I could use them as projectiles, use them as melee weapons, summon multiple lances to create a fence to block off the enemy. This time I decided to use them at projectiles. ¡°Oho~ this skill again, interesting.¡± Even though the lances flew towards him like bullets he simply dashed towards me again and cut down the lances with his wooden sword. Just what kind of wooden sword is that? Ah, that was a rhetorical question, I know he used a [knight] skill to enhance that weapon. Since I¡¯m not a knight I can¡¯t learn it, though it looks extremely powerful. Father got into my strike range and went on the offensive. He struck down at me, a telegraphed attack, or perhaps it was because I had a high [insight] stat that I felt it was predictable. In any case his attack was far too fast for me to dodge, thus I tried something else. [Shadow shield]. Like the [shadow lance] skill, this skill was something that I received as I hit 100 [insight]. A defensive skill that I could use as to summon floating shields. This too was flexible enough to be used as a blunt projectile if I wanted, or I could summon a mass of the to make a wall. In this case I decided to go with the shield¡¯s primary purpose, to defend. I defended against father¡¯s attack and strafed towards the side and tried again with my [shadow lance]. [Shadow lance] x3 Three shadow lances shot themselves towards father, but as expected that wasn¡¯t enough to even scratch him. They were immediately parried and destroyed, by a mere wooden sword no less. I jumped backwards to make some distance between us and tried again. [Shadow lance] x5 That didn¡¯t work. [Shadow lance] x7, this was my absolute limit. Summoning anymore and I would probably pass out from exhaustion. I tried once more, this time with seven shadow lances, they flew forward at great speeds, but even that wasn¡¯t enough for the ex-praetorian knight. They were easily deflected and he also managed to use it to cover the gap between us. I pulled up my [shadow shield] once more but it was easily disposed of and with [agility] being my lowest stat I was unable to dodge in time as his sword struck down¡­ However his strike was incredibly weapon, most of it wasn¡¯t his strength but just gravity. This wasn¡¯t because he considered it my loss and stopped short of actually hitting me, but because he wasn¡¯t able to put his strength into that last attack as I had [life drain] active the entire time. Right, since the start of the match I had been draining his health and stamina, thus it had finally decided to show. It was amazing how he was able to keep up that tough farce through the entire thing, I almost thought that my [life drain] wasn¡¯t working. As expected of a warrior, that poker face is too good. ¡°Guh¡­ I guess it¡¯s my loss.¡± He says as he slumps over. ¡°¡­ Barely.¡± I reply and we both fall unconscious, but not before a message from the annoying interface box. [You have gained (2) level(s)]. PART TWO Opening my eyes I realized I was in my bed and that the night had set in. it really is dazzling no matter how many times I view it, the twin moons of this world. One blood red and one icy blue. As I tried to leave my bed there was a noticeable bulge under my blanket. No, not that kind of bulge, a more human shaped one. I pulled up the blanket a little to see who it was underneath, and I should¡¯ve guessed that the only one who would do this was [Lina]. She was tightly snuggled up towards me and sleeping peacefully. If I left the bed she¡¯d no doubt wake up, thus resigning myself to the human shaped seal I decided to stay in my bed. Thankfully I didn¡¯t particularly have any business outside of my bed. The only thing I wanted to do at such an ungodly hour was check my stats. Thus I opened my [status menu]. [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 42 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 128 (115 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 0] Constant training with a high leveled warrior gave me enough experience to more than double my previous level. However, I have somewhat noticed lately that I do not gain levels as fast as before, the experience necessary has also increased tremendously proportionate to my level. Even if I trained for another year at the same rate I probably won¡¯t be breaking my 40s. After confirming that all of my stats had been accounted for I checked the [skill list] to see my improvements for today. [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 42 (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 31 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 26 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 31 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 24 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 29 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 33 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 31 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 30 (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 21 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) And that was the extent of my growth. I¡¯m a lot stronger, I think I might even be a match for [Orion Valteare], that assassin that took [Ciel Noire¡¯s] life. He was at level 50 if I recall, with some creative tactics I could probably take him on. ¡°Mmm~? Young master, why are you up so late?¡± ¡°Huh? Oh, I was just checking a few things.¡± ¡°You should be sleeping, young boys often need sleep to grow up strong.¡± ¡°Yeah¡­ or rather why are you in my bed?¡± ¡°¡­ Teehee?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t give me that¡­ (sigh), whatever.¡± I laid back onto the bed and Lina embraced me even tighter. I wasn¡¯t opposed to it but it was a little constricting. Besides considering this body¡¯s age and my recent stress level I don¡¯t even have much of a libido. Power¡­ I wonder if there¡¯s any short cuts to gaining power? Usually if there are they come with huge risks and I dislike taking risks unless my dice are loaded. Unable to come to an impasse with myself I decided to sleep on it but I was once again disturbed by a rustle under the bed. When I flipped the blanket a second time I noticed a small creature gnawing at the hem of my shirt. It was a small black haired baby girl; my younger sister [Ada Fallon]. She was fairly cute, the way she was trying to eat my shirt, having no other choice I moved her closer to me and embraced her as well. Such was my life. Peaceful, but I knew these days can¡¯t last. Because I have to go back¡­ PART THREE ¡°It happened three days ago¡­ dark rainclouds were looming all over our small town¡­ that day¡­ I peered out of my window and into the dark forest¡­ it was then¡­ that I saw it!¡± We were in our secret hideout in the middle of the day. By ¡®we¡¯ I mean, [Ian], [Ira] and myself and by ¡®secret hideout¡¯ I mean the blatantly obvious house on top of the hill overlooking our entire village. Of course I opted to stay home and train but I was dragged out by the two misfit children. Sometimes I¡¯m rather jealous that Ada can stay home so much. In any case Ian was trying to tell us some sort of ghost story to spook us, but there was already a problem with his story. ¡°Objection, three days ago was a bright sunny day, in fact you come over to my house to play remember?¡± It was the middle of summer after all. ¡°Tch, don¡¯t sweat the small stuff. Fine, it was a sunny day three days ago when I saw it after coming home from playing with you.¡± ¡°Even if you say ¡®it¡¯, you¡¯re just building unnecessary suspense. I¡¯m not even convinced that this was supposed to be a scary story. Why don¡¯t you just tell us what you saw?¡± ¡°Ugh, fine. It was an elf. What I saw was an elven woman.¡± [Elves], they were not rare in this world, in fact they hold the second highest population after humans. Of course it may be a rare sight for a country bumpkin like Ian who never left this village, but it wasn¡¯t really anything to brag about. I mean, sure, since this town only consisted of humans I can sort of understand why he would be mesmerized by their sight, they are quite pretty after all. Though I¡¯m not so sure they would appreciate being the center of a horror story. ¡°Elves are in abundance in this world, even if you did see one it wouldn¡¯t be all that strange.¡± ¡°No, you got it all wrong! What I saw wasn¡¯t an ordinary elf, it was a [dark elf]!¡± Hmm¡­ [Dark elves], I knew what they were, though I have not personally met one I was informed that there are quite a few within the demon army. Could it be a messenger from the demon lord? Perhaps for me? I mean I can¡¯t think of anyone else that would catch the interest of the demon army. ¡°Are you sure it wasn¡¯t an ordinary elf that happened to be standing in the shade or something? Perhaps you simply mistook her?¡± I asked, just to be sure. You can¡¯t really take the words of kids at face value 100% of the time after all. ¡°No! I¡¯m certain I saw correctly, dark grey skin, pale white hair and a menacing red glare. I¡¯m sure it was a dark elf! No doubt about it!¡± I have no real reason to believe nor disbelieve his story. While it was more likely that he mistook an ordinary elf for a dark elf I couldn¡¯t deny that strange people have been popping around my vicinity; [Astaroth], [Kyrios] and [Erendel]. If anymore started showing up I wouldn¡¯t even be all that surprised, but to be honest a [dark elf] does sound rather interesting. I wanted to know what their story was, because usually in pop culture they¡¯re depicted as having betrayed the normal elves or being cursed or something. While thinking about such things I casually glanced at the watch [Sebastian] gave me for my birthday]. It was around 14:20, it was time I leave for sparring with father. I¡¯ve already wasted enough time as it was with these children, I still want a little bit of training in my daily schedule. * * * Somehow managing to escape from the two children I return home to fill up my day¡¯s training quota. Like always it was a hard battle against father, my current score is 124 wins, 201 losses and 40 draws. ¡°Good work, young master, master.¡± After finishing up with our training Lina comes with towels and refreshments. Even though she¡¯s usually carefree, there are times when she¡¯s quite considerate. ¡°Morgant, why don¡¯t you go have a shower first?¡± Father tells me. ¡°Uhh, sure. Then I¡¯ll go in first then.¡± As I went upstairs to the bath and as I was about undress someone comes in with nothing but a towel draped around her body. This one is¡­ rather persistent. ¡°Lina¡­ why are you here?¡± At my question she starts acting bashful. It would¡¯ve been nice eye candy but really when it¡¯s done by her, for some reason I just can¡¯t enjoy the view. It¡¯s not that I hate her, rather the opposite, she¡¯s like a younger sister to me so all I end up feeling is guilt. ¡°Ehh~? Do I really have to say it? Young master is naughty~¡± I gave a sigh as I undressed and went into the bath. I have near non-existent libido anyway, so even if she follows me in nothing will happen. And that¡¯s exactly what she did, followed me in and started to wash my back. ¡°Hey, Lina. What do you think of me?¡± ¡°Eh- eh- eh- eh?! Y- young master?! Are you finally going on the offense?!¡± She shouts at a level where I¡¯m certain everyone in the house including neighbors could hear her. I tried to shut her up by clamping her mouth shut with my hands but since I was rather short I ended up having to climb on her back to do it, with my right hand on her mouth and my left hand on her breasts for support¡­ and my lower¡­ anyway it was a really compromising situation. ¡°Ah- ah- ah¡­ y- young master¡­ it¡¯s touching! I can feel it!¡± ¡°S- shut up already, geez you¡¯re worse than Ian when it comes to volume control.¡± ¡°Eh~? But young master was the one who initiated this conversation~¡± ¡°Fine, forget about it. You don¡¯t have to answer.¡± I gave up and went into the tub filled with warm water. Following after the pouting me, Lina entered the bath tub as well with a cutesy ¡®pwah~¡¯ sound as the water warmed her skin. Erin and I used to take baths together when we were younger as well. It was around the 3rd grade I suppose, we were close childhood friends. We were very close our entire lives, and though it wasn¡¯t on the same scale I was also fairly close with Lina for virtually my entire life in this world. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. So I wanted to ask¡­ ¡°So you were asking how I felt about you, young master?¡± I gave a small, defeated smile and nodded. ¡°Well, I love you, young master.¡± ¡°Eh?¡± So bluntly? Well, I mean Lina was always the honest type but this was¡­ ¡°Well, it would be nice if it was in a romantic way, but since you¡¯re still so young, by the time you¡¯re old enough I would probably just be an old woman so I¡¯ve already gave up on that prospect. But I do sincerely love you as a family member, young master.¡± As family, huh¡­ ¡°So then, just hypothetically speaking¡­ how would you feel if I suddenly disappeared one day?¡± I was honestly expecting her to say ¡®I¡¯d be lonely~!¡¯ and have her embrace me but that wasn¡¯t what she replied with. No, when I saw her face after I asked her such a cruel question I was taken aback, I felt guilty I even asked that kind of question. Tears trickled down her face as she stared at me deeply. ¡°Ah, sorry, you don¡¯t have to answer that. It was my bad, Lina. So please don¡¯t cry.¡± Seeing me panic Lina leapt onto me and embraced me tightly. ¡°Please¡­¡± ¡°Eh?¡± ¡°Please never say something like that again. If you¡­ if the young master suddenly disappears I would be devastated, I don¡¯t want something like that. I don¡¯t ever want to experience losing a family member ever again. So please promise me, young master¡­¡± Ah¡­ I¡¯ve really done it. I¡¯ve pressed her switch and this was the result¡­ That was pretty cruel of me, huh? However that promise, it should be obvious by now but I cannot keep such a promise, because for me, not being able to see Erin ever again is my greatest fear. Now I¡¯ve gotten myself into a corner with no way out. Well¡­ that wasn¡¯t quite true. I placed my hands on her head as she tightly grabbed onto me. I started to stroke her wet hair gently. ¡°It¡¯s okay Lina. I won¡¯t leave, ever so don¡¯t worry and keep smiling. For both our sakes.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± She replies as she constricts me even more. ¡­ Sorry Lina, but¡­ I¡¯m a chronic liar. I¡¯ve built my entire empire on a lie after all¡­ * * * After we exited the bath, there was an awkward aura around us. The usually loud Lina kept quite all throughout dinner, even prompting serious looks from mother and Lena. I honestly felt guilty that I caused such a heavy atmosphere. ¡°Did something happen?¡± Mother asks Lina. ¡°Ah, no. It¡¯s nothing, please don¡¯t worry yourself, mistress.¡± ¡°Well¡­ if you say so, but if there¡¯s a problem don¡¯t hesitate to talk to me, okay?¡± ¡°I¡¯m thankful for your kindness.¡± Even after that the tense atmosphere didn¡¯t disappear and the dinner continued on in silence. Trying to break the ice I started a topic. ¡°A-ah, that reminds me, Ian said something about seeing a [dark elf] around these parts. Do you perhaps know anything about this father?¡± ¡°Hmm? A [dark elf]? Can¡¯t say I do. From what I¡¯ve heard most of them live in the north continent of Vertloch with the other demons folk. They¡¯re a pretty reclusive bunch too so I doubt they would leave the north either. Are you sure he didn¡¯t mistake a normal elf or something?¡± Aha, like father like son, huh? ¡°Who knows, perhaps he did. Speaking of which, father, what¡¯s the difference between a normal [elf] and a [dark elf]?¡± He stopped to contemplate for a little while before answering. ¡°No one really knows, not even the [dark elves] themselves know the answer to that since it has been so long. The most common theory is that the [dark elves] were a branch off from the normal [elves] after some sort cataclysmic event.¡± What¡¯s with that overtly vague description? Are they even trying? ¡°I see, thank you.¡± After helping mother and Lena with the dishes I went up to retire to my own room for the night. Perhaps it was because of what I said to her during our bath but Lina came into my room once again that night and held onto my hand even tighter than ever. She was even trembling a little, thus making my guilt grow three sizes that day. PART FOUR The next morning we were visited by odd looking fellow accompanied by two odd looking subordinates. One man and two beautiful women, if I had to describe them, they looked like veteran warriors. The male of the group, who supposedly looked and acted as the leader, was clad in silver and blue armor with not a single strain of hair or skin showing. Even his helmet was fully enclosed with only small dots on them for viewing outside, personally it looked extremely inefficient to look through. Still, his armor looked extremely majestic and also really expensive, compared to [Chrom¡¯s] armor that was also a bright shade of white, this was even more divine. Slung on his back was a large white sword and white shield. The other two wore less armor, but that was because their classes weren¡¯t compatible for heavy armor. One of them was an elf with white hair and dark grey skin, her red eyes piercing¡­ through. Oh! The [dark elf]! She wore a black robe and had a small golden trinket in her hair, on her face was a small swirly black tattoo of some kind. The other woman looked like a human, she was an archer of some sort, evident from her bow and arrow strapped to her back. She wore earthly colored leather armor; a mixture of green and brown. Her skirt was so short I could almost see her undergarments. With her white hair and blue eye it only amplified her splendid figure, but for some reason her looks reminded me of a certain other white hair, blue eyed individual in the northern capital. Apparently they were travelers and was looking for a place to stay for a few days. Since this place didn¡¯t have an active inn or tavern they asked us because we had the largest house in the village. Well, it was true that we had extra rooms to spare but I won¡¯t be fooled. ¡°My name is [Cedric], a [Paladin], under my helmet is a large scar that I wish not to show, so I hope you don¡¯t mind if I leave on my helmet.¡± The armored knight introduced himself. ¡°Of course, it¡¯s not a problem but isn¡¯t it rather hot in there?¡± Father responded. ¡°It¡¯s quite okay, I¡¯ve gotten used to it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you, I am known as [Elena], a [dark elven] [mage]. We are thankful that you allowed us to stay at such a marvelous place.¡± ¡°It¡¯s no problem at all.¡± My mother replies with a smile. I believe [Dark elves] are classified as a [demon], it¡¯s good to know my parents were tolerant with all races. ¡°Hi, I¡¯m called [Aura], as you can see I¡¯m a [ranger]. If you want fun stories about our adventure, just call me~¡± She points towards herself as she introduces in a chipper tone. Every member of my family had a warm and welcoming feeling towards these sudden strangers, but as I said, I won¡¯t be fooled! I¡¯ve already learnt of their true identities, because I could see it. Their names and titles. [Cedric. Level 124, Slime King] [Elena. Level 44, Dark Elf Magician] [Aura, Level 47, Homunculus Ranger] I¡¯ve no conclusive evidence but they¡¯re probably from the demon army. From their levels alone, [Cedric] was probably one of the [Demon Generals]. Meaning the other two were just his subordinates. Now then, this is the first time I¡¯ve met someone from the [slime] race. Actually most of them are considered monsters due to their low intelligence and hostile behavior, but clearly he isn¡¯t a normal slime, but forget that, I¡¯m weaker than a slime? Or I mean, isn¡¯t that slime a little too strong? A [Paladin] class slime? Actually there was something else under Cedric¡¯s name, a small icon. When I tapped it to inspect what it was a small interface box came up. [Aspect of the slime: complete physical damage immunity] Ehh...? complete physical damage immunity? And he even wears an armor on top of having such a cheat like ability. Slimes are supposed to be those right, the low level mobs that players grind for exp at starting zones in RPG. They say the difference between a [demon] and monster is their intelligence, it¡¯s actually the biggest reason why there are people who are against the [demon] race, because they think they¡¯re simply monsters. But if you ask me that¡¯s like saying humans and monkeys are the same and we should be treated the same. ¡°H¡­ Hello.¡± I tried to smile and offer them the same level of hospitality my family showed but in the end there¡¯s a clear difference when you actually know their identities. I¡¯m not opposed to meeting anyone from the demon army, after all I¡¯m part of it, but the thing that annoys me a little is that they obviously didn¡¯t come here to play around. There¡¯s probably some sort of catch as to why they¡¯re here, and if I get involved it would just be more needless waste of time. My primary goals for now are to find the [crawling chaos - Nyarlathotep], so unless they can oblige with that I don¡¯t really want to get involved. ¡°Oh~ hello young one.¡± He crouches down to my level and offers a handshake, his right hand. However I returned with a left-hand, at this Cedric is taken aback. While this may seem like a trivial thing for most people, even his subordinates Elena and Aura didn¡¯t understand the implications of what I was doing. I didn¡¯t offer my left hand because I was left-handed, it was because I wanted him to reply with a left-hand shake. Why? Because there was something bothering me for a while, with [life force sensory] I could usually feel the life force of other people, the odd thing about Cedric was that his life force was centered around his left-hand. I¡¯m not too sure about the physiology of [slimes] but if they are like cells, they probably had a nucleus. Since he was a slime, it might be possible to move around the nucleus inside his body, if that¡¯s the case he probably wants to place it where the defense is thickest. So why his left hand? Because that¡¯s where he holds his shield, what better place right? No one would suspect after all. Having no other choice but to respond to my handshake, Cedric replies with his left hand. I take a hold of it and slightly cast [life drain] not as a hostile action but an indication to tell him that I know who he is. I could feel it, he is tensing up. With that I could finally return a smile to him, a most sinister smile. ¡°Anyway, why don¡¯t you come in? Mother, father, I¡¯ll take them to the spare rooms.¡± ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll leave it to you, Morgant.¡± Father responds and lets me take care of the situation. * * * I took them to an empty room at the back of the house. It was reserved for guests like them in the first place, and since it was at the end of the house anything we say in here is unlikely to be leaked out. Just in case I sealed the door and windows. ¡°Now then, start talking.¡± ¡°Eh? What do you mean? Did we miss something?¡± Aura asks with a confused look. Was I wrong? No, I probably wasn¡¯t, this kind of colorful combination of [demon] races traveling together was a little too coincidental for my tastes. And the level disparity made their relationship all the more obvious. ¡°I see, so that thing from before wasn¡¯t nothing.¡± Cedric retorts, even though he¡¯s a slime his voice is really soothing and manly. ¡°Of course.¡± I reply, it seems we have come to an impasse but the other two seemed lost. ¡°Before we start, I¡¯d like to check something first. That is the [mark of the demon lord], you have it, don¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Eh? Lord Cedric, isn¡¯t the [Mark of the demon lord] only given to Lord Astaroth¡¯s generals? There¡¯s no way such a young human could have that mark.¡± ¡°Here is this it?¡± I put out my arm and let the small magic circle appear. ¡°EH?!¡± Aura shouts out. This fellow is far too energetic. ¡°Mmm. Certainly this is authentic, then allow me to show you mine.¡± He also extends his right arm to show the symbol on his armor. So my guess that they were from the demon army was on point. The next thing that worries is me is their objective; what are they here for? ¡°H- how could such a young human be a [demon general]?!¡± ¡°Can you shut up? I don¡¯t want anyone else in this house to know about this.¡± I dropped all formalities and talked to her like she was my underling. Well I did outrank her in the demon army so it wasn¡¯t really out of place. ¡°Ah¡­ sorry, umm¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s Morgant. [Morgant Fallon].¡± ¡°Ah, yes, please accept my apologies, Lord Morgant.¡¯ ¡°It¡¯s fine, just keep it down so the others don¡¯t hear. So anyway, why are you here?¡± I asked. ¡°Are we not allowed to be here?¡± Elena asked. ¡°It¡¯s not that you aren¡¯t allowed to be here, it¡¯s just that there¡¯s obviously nothing in this town or forest that would catch the interest of people like you, so that could only mean that you¡¯re here for me.¡± ¡°Wow~ you¡¯re totally correct, Lord Morgant.¡± ¡°I always am. So? You are here because?¡± ¡°Hahaha! You¡¯re just as interesting as Lord Astaroth said you were. To figure out our identities and motives from our mere appearances, No wonder that [Kyrios] was so interested in you.¡± Cedric bursts into laughter all of a sudden and spouts out random crap. ¡°Did that guy say something about me?¡± ¡°Nothing specifically, just that he really seems interested in you.¡± ¡°Ugh¡­ tell him I¡¯m not into other men.¡± ¡°Hahahaha! You¡¯re a joker too, but I agree, that guy can be a little creepy sometimes, especially with that stalker-like attitude and obnoxious mask.¡± ¡°I know right.¡± We immediately started hitting the right notes. ¡°So then getting back to our original topic, you asked why we were here. The truth is we came here under the behest of our lord, Astaroth, she said to take you along with our next mission.¡± ¡°Well¡­ if it¡¯s a request from Astaroth I won¡¯t reject it since I also owe her quite a lot but I think she might be overestimating my abilities. Well whatever, so why is it that I am necessary?¡± After all she is the one that saved my life so it¡¯s only fair that I repay that kindness somehow. At least it beats having to deliver the entire world to her, but still a mission does sound rather annoying to be on all of a sudden. ¡°Who knows, even Lord Astaroth doesn¡¯t know the details. You might already know this but Lord Astaroth has the ability to see glimpses into the future, and with that power she saw you at the epicenter of this mission. It seems like your presence is absolutely necessary if we are to succeed.¡± ¡°Of course it is. The world revolves around me right? I¡¯ll at least listen to the details then, what is this mission about?¡± I replied sarcastically. Pausing for a brief moment for dramatic effect, Cedric answers me in a slow voice and manly voice. ¡°Locating the [Divine Artefact: Gladsheim].¡± END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 42 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 128 (115 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 0] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 42 (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 31 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 26 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 31 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 24 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 29 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 33 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 31 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 30 (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 21 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian¡¯s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father¡¯s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight] Chapter 13 - It cant be helped, Ill assist you for my sake Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C It can¡¯t be helped, I¡¯ll assist you for my sake Chapter XIII PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 989] ¡°Locating the [Divine Artefact: Gladsheim]!¡± [Gladsheim]. Upon hearing that word my ears widen and my entire existence came to a grinding halt. My though processes were ceased and it was though I entered a state akin to death, but not really dead. The only thing to remind me that I was alive was the sound of my heavily beating heart. Cold sweat ran past down my neck and into my back. ¡°Lord Morgant?¡± [Aura] calls out to me after seeing me freeze up all of a sudden, but I couldn¡¯t register her voice or rather I didn¡¯t care to. Right now my mental processes were all hijacked in trying to comprehend [Cedric¡¯s] words. No, it wasn¡¯t as though I didn¡¯t understand what he was telling me, just that something else popped into my head as he said it. ¡°[Gladsheim]¡­ you say?¡± I gulped and asked to make sure I heard correctly. If we¡¯re talking about [Gladsheim] there was something that came to my mind; in my previous world I directed a team to work on a little project called [Project: Gladsheim]. It was supposed to be a mass storage data cloud for everything; integrating all known technology and information into a single hub. No, let¡¯s calm down. It can¡¯t be the same thing we¡¯re talking about; impossible. After all this place isn¡¯t even Earth, so there¡¯s no way it was possible. Right, it could simply be another reference to my old world like the time I found the [Necronomicon]. Right, that sounded much more plausible. ¡°That¡¯s right, Lord Astaroth has tasked us with retrieving it if we can, as it would be fatal if it fell into the wrong hands after all.¡± ¡°Wrong hands? What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°What, you didn¡¯t know? There is an infamous anti-demon organization known as the [Crimson Knights]. If they were to get their hands on [Gladsheim]¡­ it¡¯s obvious what they¡¯d do with it, right?¡± The Crimson Knight Organization, that reminds me, the ex-duke [Vista Calros] also part of such an organization. Truthfully, as Cedric says, if that organization is truly filled with people like the ex-duke but with more ambition and less stupidity, it would really be troublesome if they got their hands on it. However¡­ the same could be said for the demon army, though I¡¯m technically allied with them, that doesn¡¯t mean I won¡¯t view them with scrutiny. In my previous world naivet¨¦ and blind trust would only get you a dagger to the back, so then it only makes sense for me to have much more caution in a world where there is actual, literal threat. ¡°How can you be sure that the demons won¡¯t abuse them¡­ say for example, you guys used it against the Crimson Knights. After all, at this point the only ones who distrust the demon race are the Crimson knights, with them gone you could easily get into position for dastardly schemes of your own.¡± ¡°Lord Morgant?! To say such a thing-¡± Aura tried to interject but Cedric stops her, it may have been a little unfair to compare the upstanding members of the demon army to the intolerant red radicals but until they can prove that they are different there¡¯s no reason to trust the demons over the humans with such an important artefact. ¡°Aura, it¡¯s fine. Morgant, I understand your caution and I think you¡¯re taking this seriously in your own way, but aside from a few cough ups, the demon race are a generally well behaved bunch. So I implore you to give us the benefit of the doubt, we will show you that we are worthy of your trust.¡± Seeing this Aura and [Elena] also bow. ¡°Please, Lord Morgant! We request your assistance!¡± Cedric lowers his head. Honestly, he didn¡¯t really need to, after all since it was [Astaroth¡¯s] request I wasn¡¯t going to turn it down. Also since [Gladsheim] does seem like it has some references to my previous world I did plan on checking it out with or without their permission. ¡°Stop this, I wasn¡¯t going to turn down the request in the first place. I just wanted to know is all.¡± ¡°You have my thanks.¡± Cedric answers. ¡°So then, what exactly is this [divine artefact]?¡± I ask them. Aura and Elena turn to look at each other but shrug. Cedric also shakes his head and informs me that he wasn¡¯t given too much information as to the specifics of what it could be, but he does offer a few theories. Those theories being, a weapon of mass destruction, a magical artefact that grants the wielder incomparable strength, a library of knowledge about the entire world, etc. Well there was no way we could confirm it without actually seeing it for ourselves. ¡°So then, how do you plan on finding it? I mean you don¡¯t even know what it looks like so¡­¡± ¡°Actually we¡¯ve already located it.¡± ¡°What?¡± Then how do they not know what it is? In the first place if they already found it then what¡¯s the point of me coming along? ¡°Of course we haven¡¯t actually seen the artefact specifically, we just know where it is being stored.¡± ¡°I see, then I¡¯m going to hazard a guess that there¡¯s a reason why you haven¡¯t been able to make direct contact with it, and you think that reason is me.¡± ¡°Correct.¡± As it turns out, about two months ago, Astaroth sent some soldiers down to investigate the location of the ¡®divine artefact¡¯, and therein lies the problem; the place that they located it was in a rather troublesome location. It was the aquatic city known as [Lani¡¯tar]. The inhabitants of the city were aptly named [Mermaids]. And yes it was those ¡®mermaids¡¯, the half-fish, half-human kind; the tail of a fish the torso of a maiden. Of course that being said the actually city wasn¡¯t completely submerged in water, only parts of it, the majority of the structures were in a pocket of air created by magic. The [mermaids] were a beautiful aquatic race that lure men, usually resulting in a bad end for the men¡­ is what the normal impression of [mermaids] would be but that was not the case here. They weren¡¯t a solely aquatic race, they developed magic to turn their fishy half into legs so they may be able to traverse on land, however that was really about the only magic they knew, they excelled at physical combat, especially on the melee side. If you ask me they were more akin to amazons instead of the graceful creatures of the sea that I knew them as. While this aspect of them made them a little bit more than troublesome to deal with, it wasn¡¯t the worst part. The worst part was that they build a religion around the Gladsheim and worship it as some kind of all-powerful, all-knowing god-like entity. They¡¯ve erected a shrine around it and employed a protector known as the [Terror of the Depths]; a super megalodon shark. At first a small squad of homunculus soldiers were sent to establish contact with the artefact but they were wiped out in the process, the cause of which was unknown. So that¡¯s where I come in, for negotiation purposes, or so that¡¯s how I interpreted my involvement in the whole ordeal. Honestly this was a rather annoying request, simply because ¡®religion¡¯ was troublesome to deal with in terms of negotiations, most people wouldn¡¯t want outsiders getting close with their object of worship after all. ¡°Well, I got the gist of it, so then where is Lani¡¯tar located? Is it far from here?¡± I asked. ¡°No, in fact it¡¯s rather closer. It¡¯s only three day¡¯s worth of travel directly north from here. Cedric answered with his soothing voice. ¡°Oh, how convenient.¡± ¡°It is, isn¡¯t it? Hahaha.¡± I guess I¡¯ll have to make up some excuse for leaving town again, but with what happened with Lina yesterday I don¡¯t know if she¡¯ll accept me leaving so suddenly. Last time it was easy since we only just ran out of the house, but this time I have time to be prepared but that also means to explain the situation to my parents in a manner that they would understand. Perhaps an excuse that would cater to my father¡¯s knightly spirit would do. ¡°Cedric, I don¡¯t mind tagging along with you but it is unlikely my parents would accept me leaving with strangers so suddenly.¡± Cedric pauses to think about it before answering. ¡°Hmm~ would it be best if we told them the situation truthfully?¡± ¡°What? No, of course not. In the first place they don¡¯t even know I have a connection to the demon army. I don¡¯t like fooling them but I don¡¯t want to cause them trouble so a little lie is inevitable. In any case I don¡¯t see any other choice but to further fool them, for their own sake.¡± ¡°I see, though it is a little dishonorable, it is the command of Lord Astaroth, so then what shall we do?¡± ¡°For now I want you three to stay in this house for the next few days, during that time I want Cedric to have regular sparring matches with father. I want you to defeat him and prove to him you are a superior warrior.¡± ¡°I think I understand where you are coming from. You wish for me to ask your father to take you for training as thanks and if I had proved myself to be a strong and trustworthy warrior it wouldn¡¯t be as suspicious.¡± ¡°You¡¯re quite perceptive. Yes, that is the intent, using that excuse we can leave for Lani¡¯tar.¡± ¡°A sound plan, then we shall leave in three days.¡± PART TWO Night had fallen and the two moons of this world shined brightly in the dark sky; the jewels of the night. I noticed Cedric was out on the veranda gazing up at them so I decided to join in. ¡°Morgant.¡± He greeted me as I took a place next to him. ¡°Are slimes affected by the full moon?¡± There are a lot of stories back in my previous world about full moons having a lot of mysterious impact on the denizens of the world bellow. With Cedric being of the [slime] race I thought that perhaps it might ring a little more truer in this world. ¡°That¡¯s an odd question, no we are not. Why do you ask?¡± ¡°No reason, it¡¯s just that I¡¯ve heard many stories about how full moons affect some species.¡± ¡°I see, certainly there are races that are affected by the status of the moon, but I am not one of them.¡± ¡°That so?¡± ¡°That is so.¡± I gazed at the moons with Cedric, it should be obvious but there are no electricity here so the only thing keeping the brightness at night were things like candles or torches¡­ or the bright twin moons. The veranda that we were resting on had neither candles or torches, so the only source of light was from above. The moons¡¯ light reflected off Cedric¡¯s full armor in a glamorous fashion, truly bringing out the beauty of its craftsmanship. ¡°Do you have a dream?¡± I asked abruptly, I don¡¯t know what prompted me to, but I did. It was probably because of all the stress that¡¯s been pent up within me lately. I¡¯ve not gotten a chance to do a little more research about the method to return so my restless heart was quelled. ¡°A dream¡­ huh. My only dream is to serve Lord Astaroth to the best of my ability.¡± ¡°Hah¡­ hahaha~ I figured you¡¯d say as much. That¡¯s not really a dream but your fetish isn¡¯t it? Well no matter, but I have a dream.¡± ¡°Ho~ do tell.¡± ¡°My dream is to reunite with a certain person, it¡¯s a dream that I would sacrifice everything in order to achieve. A year, 2 years, 10 years, 20 years, I does not matter, I will do everything in my power to meet her again.¡± ¡°That dream, I hope it comes true.¡± ¡°Yeah¡­¡± * * * Three days had pass since Cedric and his party came to this town and over the course of his stay, he and father had sparred a couple of times, always resulting in Cedric¡¯s victory. For one last time Cedric and father sparred but as expected this time too resulted in Cedric¡¯s victory. I could see in father¡¯s face a bitter expression but also a hint of happiness that he was able to face an opponent so strong. However, thanks to Cedric¡¯s efforts it was not time put our plan into motion. ¡°I think you for allowing us to lodge at your hose for the past few days. I¡¯m not sure if it could be considered a thanks but I would like to take your son for special training.¡± ¡°Special Training?¡± Father looked quizzically. ¡°Yes. I saw within him a potential to become strong and wish to hone his talents, of course with your permission.¡± ¡°Hmm, certainly Morgant has a much keener sense of combat than I did at his age, but special training eh? Incidentally how long do you plan on training him for?¡± ¡°For now I think about a month or two would be an optimal time frame. If in the future he truly wishes to hone his skills further I would be glad to take him under my wing as a proper student.¡± In this world, studying under a great warrior is an honor, so Cedric¡¯s proposition was actually something to be considered. Father turned towards me with a slightly difficult face. Deep down he knew that this would serve as good experience for me, to journey and see much more of the world while training harder. Perhaps he had also noticed my frustration these past few days because I couldn¡¯t leave this village and do what I really set out to accomplish. ¡°I¡¯ll leave that decision up to my son, he¡¯s still young but he has a good head on his shoulders. I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll make the correct decision.¡± So the decision falls on me, well I do feel guilty about deceiving them but it couldn¡¯t be helped. I¡¯m thankful for father¡¯s open-mindedness. ¡°I wish to go father. Truthfully these past few days I¡¯ve felt a certain amount of frustration. I want to get stronger but the constant unchanging scenery of this village and its peace had my heart wavering. I feel like if I take a step outside this village I will find something more.¡± Father placed his hand on my head. ¡°I see, so you¡¯ve already made up your mind. Yes, you¡¯re right, I have sense a growing anxiety from the way you¡¯ve been practicing these days. It certainly may be true that this will help alleviate some of your stress. Then, do as you will and go become stronger. Make me proud.¡± ¡°Yes! Thank you father!¡± As such the departure was a little delayed since we went along with that roundabout plan but I¡¯ve secured father¡¯s permission without worrying him too much. After I packed my bags and arrived at the entrance I was greeted by a rather unsatisfied Lina. ¡°Are you really leaving, young master?¡± ¡°Ah¡­ sorry Lina.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not really a problem¡­ but for an entire month or two, it will be lonely without you, young master.¡± Really, I¡¯m truly sorry Lina. If I can I would make it up to you, but with the way it is now I don¡¯t know what kind of face I will make when I really have to leave forever. Honestly even thinking about it is a little scary, but if I don¡¯t take a step forward simply because I fear the consequences then I¡¯ll never achieve what I truly want. ¡°Sorry Lina, I¡¯ll make it up to you when I return.¡± ¡°Yes, you better promise me that, young master.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± I replied with a smile. "Oh~ Morgant is leaving!" Mother came up to give me a full body hug. Since she was also holding Ada I was now in contact with Mother and Ada. Taking advantage of the situation, Lina also joined the fray. "Nii!" "You are all overreacting! It''s only a month or two!" I said trying to dissolve the situation, however it was to no avail, they reminded hugging me for a full ten minutes before father came to intervene. ¡°Okay, okay. That¡¯s enough, Rio you¡¯re being ridiculous, you too Lina.¡± They both reflected on their actions after a scolding. Father crouched down and came face to face with me for one last time. He placed his hand on my head once more as a gesture of kindness. ¡°You have to remain strong, okay Morgant?¡± ¡°Yes father. The next time you see, you won¡¯t even recognize me.¡± ¡°Haha! That¡¯s my boy.¡± ¡°Then shall we leave?¡± Cedric asked. ¡°Thank you for everything.¡± x2 Elena and Aura expressed their gratitude, with that once again I found myself on another journey brought on by the eccentric demon army. Still, as I was leaving the village I couldn¡¯t help but get a nauseating feel¡­ [Gladsheim], truly it can¡¯t be what I was imagining. But for some reason my heart will no quell. I just hope nothing major happens this time. PART THREE The [Ariadyne Tetrarchy], which was also known as the center continent was the focus of the entire world. [Lani¡¯tar] was located just north from my hometown, in fact it really was just a straight line in an upwards direction. Specifically it was located in the sea between [Ariadyne] and [Vertloch]. It was a rather quick journey that I was kind of disappointed that nothing happened in between. There was no bandit raids, monster attacks or anything else interesting. I mean, even if those things did happen Cedric was a level 124 [Paladin]/[Slime king] so it was doubtful there was any real threat but still. While it was a good thing and I should be grateful, but I couldn¡¯t help but feel a little bored. Thus our leisurely stroll towards the underwater city made its end. We made it all the way to the top of the cliff overseeing the ocean separating Ariadyne and Vertloch. Being stuck in that landlocked village, it was my first time seeing the ocean up close. I did take a small glimpse of it during my time to the Northern Capital, but this time I got a real close view. The salty smell of the sea as the wind brushed past my nose was calming for some reason, even the waves that were crashing onto the cliff below was a serene blue color. At the top of the cliff was a small podium-like structure made of solid stone. It had been slightly chipped off from decay over the times and moss was growing on it from disuse. Of course some of the moss was wiped away, most likely from our previous companions from the demon army who had passed through here. ¡°So what happens now?¡± I asked, at this point I was feeling unsatisfied over the entire course of the trip. ¡°Now, we wait.¡± Hearing that made me yawn. In the end we waited for another ten minutes before anything really interesting happened. Just as I was about to think that nothing special would happen someone jumped out of the water and onto the cliff above. That was crazy, they just jumped over a 50-something meter cliff out of the water! It was a scantily clad, blue haired woman. She was wearing extremely revealing clothes made of nothing but strips of leather and belts. Admittedly it was more akin to swimsuits rather than actual clothing, which made a lot of sense considering this was a city of [Mermaids]. She held a trident kind of weapon with a bright red jewel lodged into the middle. Aura and Elena who were on guard put away their weapons after realizing that it was the representative of the underwater city. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. ¡°Emissaries from the demon army, I am called [Ranash], your guide. Our Queen has been expecting your arrival. I will take you to her so please wait a moment.¡± If she was expecting our arrival why the heck did we have to wait ten minutes doing nothing? I wanted to protest to her about that but I decided to play Mr. Nice and give up since I didn¡¯t want to start off on the wrong foot, especially when I was here to do negotiations. Just to be sure, I also checked her name and title. It really got me last time with [Erendel] so this time I wanted to be a bit more thorough. [Ranash. Level 43, Mermaid Priest] ¡®Mermaid Priest¡¯, I don¡¯t even know what that¡¯s supposed to be, but I assume that¡¯s a kind of cleric class? In any case this was where my real job begins. Negotiations. PART FOUR -Tytania¡¯s PoV- Slowly as I opened my eyes light poured in like needles stabbing at me, prompting me to quickly shut them once more. I decided to leave my eyes to adjust and focus on trying to regain my other senses. The first to return to me was my sense of hearing, though it was moot since it seemed like the place I was at was completely silent. I twisted my head around trying to get into a better hearing position but all that was heard was the sound of bed-sheets beneath me. The next sense that returned was my smell. The faint smell of the sea drifted into my nose; salty but fresh. That¡¯s right, the last thing I remember was falling off the cliff with Mr. Raak into the ocean, so this kind of smell wasn¡¯t too unexpected. Still, just trying to remember what happened was giving me a headache thus I decided to leave that matter for later. Finally my sight had returned to me and once I opened my eyes I saw that I was in an aquatic colored room, down to the curtains and bed-sheets. It was a large room, even the bed I was on was humongous, there were no such rooms in the village that I was living in so this was a new kind of experience for me. Following that train of thought I was reminded of what happened in my village; all of my friends and family¡­ they were all gone now. Getting up from the bed I noticed that I had been bandaged where I was wounded. It still hurt to move around but I didn¡¯t expect to survive a fall like that either so just being alive should be a miracle for me. Yet, for some reason I only felt emptiness inside, what was the point of living when everyone else was gone? ¡°Ugh¡­¡± The migraine returned. For the time being I decided to put that thought on hold and scout out where I was. As I was about to leave the room another person entered in, it was a member of the [mermaid] tribe. Oh, I see so it was them who saved me when I fell into the ocean. The woman in front of me had a majestic set of purple hair, almost as though they were gems that were straightened out into threads. She had skimpy clothing but they were more akin to swimwear so while it was fairly erotic it was perfectly acceptable, not to mention natural since she lived in the ocean. ¡°Are you feeling any better, Miss?¡± She asked with a relaxing voice. I had heard that a long time ago, [Mermaids] were descended from a race known as [Sirens] who had alluring voices that lured men to their demise. Hearing this kind of voice I thought that perhaps that rumor wasn¡¯t as so made up as it sounded, certainly her voice could attract even members of the same gender. Though my heart was too heavy to waver at the moment. ¡°Y- yes¡­ um, did you save me?¡± I asked. ¡°Well, it wasn¡¯t myself specifically but yes, our people were the ones who saved you when you were drowning whilst heavily injured. You had been sleeping for almost two weeks now, we were starting to wonder if you would ever wake up.¡± [Mermaids]¡­ huh? But they have legs, wait I think I¡¯ve heard of this, that [mermaids] have special magic to turn their fish tails into human legs. So this was it, now aside from their florescent colors they¡¯re indistinguishable from humans. ¡°I see¡­ thank you very much, I¡¯m not entirely sure how I could ever repay your kindness. Still, even though I am eternally grateful, it may have been better if you had just let me died. After all, everyone I knew and loved are gone¡­ I¡¯m not even sure on what I should do anymore¡­¡± Tears rolled down the side of my face, and like haunting apparitions the image of everyone I knew started to surface in my head. They were all killed by that monster, but the worst part is that even if wanted to take revenge he was far too powerful for me. The only recourse for me was to apologize to everyone, that I was too weak to even avenge their deaths. ¡°Don¡¯t go killing me off just yet simply because you feel like it.¡± Suddenly a hoarse voice came from the entrance of the room. A large figure, around 2.1 meters in height with dark grey skin. His skin in a brighter shade of grey and muscles that almost seemed to be bulging out of his skin. His eyes were bloodshot and compounded with his naturally red eyes, it looked quite menacing, not to mention his two sharp teeth protruding out of his mouth from his lower jaw. ¡°Mr. Raak! You¡¯re still alive!¡± He also had several bandages wrapped around him, by the looks of it he actually suffered quite a bit more damage than I did. ¡°Of course I am, who do you think I am?¡± At his appearance I could only shed tears of joy that not everyone had left me. I ran over to him and embraced him to make sure it wasn¡¯t a simple hallucination on my part. As I came into contact with his skin felt his muscular body, I knew that he was real. I¡¯m glad, I¡¯m so very glad. ¡°Mr. Raak!¡± Not knowing what to do, he gently stroke my hair to calm me down. ¡°Yeah¡­ we did it, Tytania. We survived and we will continue to do so.¡± I nodded at his words, still with tears streaming down my face. Interrupting our little reunion, another [Mermaid] entered our room. She had a light green colored hair, looking slightly older; a face of wisdom and charisma. Likewise, she too wore rather skimpy clothing but her clothing was much more eloquent and profound, kind of like those that were worn by members of royalty. On her head was a small golden tiara adorned with a bright blue gem in the middle. ¡°Your highness, our guests have arrived.¡± She spoke with commanding authority, but the words that came out of her mouth wasn¡¯t exactly what I was expecting. Eh? Why did the one dressed like a queen address this person in front of me, who was dressed like a servant, as ¡®your highness¡¯? was that how it was in this culture? The one that¡¯s least decorated was at a higher societal position? I wasn¡¯t too sure of [Mermaid] culture so it could be a mistake on my part but it really was weird. ¡°I see, then I¡¯ll be out in a moment, [Miora]¡± ¡°I understand. Then please rest up for now.¡± She told us as she left the room. We were finally alone; Mr. Raak and myself in this room, with no one else in the world we could call family. It was an odd feeling of kinship and dependency, no it could only be me that was dependent on Mr. Raak. Perhaps I was giving him trouble as we speak. Surely the only reason he is with me is because of the [Grand treasure] that¡¯s within me. ¡°Am I a bother to you Mr. Raak? I¡¯ve always been clinging to you ever since we were small.¡± At my question Mr. Raak gave out a small sigh. ¡°What are you saying? You¡¯ve always been a bother to me, that¡¯s how we¡¯ve been until now and that¡¯s how we¡¯ll always be. Everyone¡¯s gone so you¡¯re the only one left for me, if you stop being a bother then it would be like everyone disappeared. So stop saying those kinds of things.¡± He consoled me as he held me tightly. ¡°Th- thank you¡­¡± I returned his embrace. We stayed as such for a few minutes before I decided to speak up again. ¡°What do we do now¡­ Mr. Raak? No home, no family, only the two of us against the world. Where do we go from here?¡± He shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know, I guess wherever the wind feels like taking us is where we will go. You must hate it, that our fates are at the mercy of the world, but don¡¯t worry. Whatever happens, I will protect you with my life.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine, as long as I¡¯m with you Mr. Raak. Wherever we end up, as long as I¡¯m with you then I won¡¯t feel as disheartened.¡± I tried to muster up as much of a smile as I could. In response I got to see Mr. Raak¡¯s blushing figure, it was oddly cute for someone like him. Yes, I still have someone with me, I haven¡¯t lost everything just yet, as long as he¡¯s here with me then I¡¯ll be fine. Staying put bedridden was getting a little tough. We [Elves] were not known to be indoor type creatures after all, we needed to wander around to feel alive. Well, that¡¯s what I was feeling right now, and by the way that Mr. Raak was getting a little fidgety he too was feeling anxious inside. It might do well for the both of us to move around a bit, I¡¯m sure our [Mermaid] hosts wouldn¡¯t mind it too much. ¡°Shall we go, Mr. Raak?¡± He gives me a quizzical look. ¡°Go where?¡± ¡°To move around a little. I¡¯m sure it would both of us justice to move about to alleviate the anxiety and stress that¡¯s been pent up because of what happened.¡± He turned to contemplate a bit but conceded that I may have had a point. ¡°I suppose you¡¯re right. My body feels way too stiff from disuse. Then shall we?¡± * * * Once we left the room we were met with a near phantasmal scene. The corridors were dyed blue with the scene of the ocean; we were underground and the walls were actually glass, allowing us to view into the distance of the sea. Fishes, corals, seaweeds, it was truly a sight to behold. The place we were, while still underwater, it was at a slightly elevated location compared to the rest of the [Mermaid] city: [Lani¡¯tar]. As though they were ghostly phantasms, below were the wavering lights of the city. At first I had thought that this place would be a small tribal village of Mermaids, but that wasn¡¯t the case, indeed there was an entire city. Though it wasn¡¯t nearly as sizable as the [human] cities, it was in its own right, incredible. Just on the outskirts of the city was a small circular structure, perhaps it would be more apt to say a structure was built onto an underwater mountain. I¡¯ve heard it only in passing whispers but supposedly the [mermaids] had an object of worship known as the [Gladsheim], could it be that was it? Far off in the distance I could see the shape of a large black fish, with a menacing red glow in its eyes. What was that? Was it also part of this city? ¡°So pretty.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but voice. ¡°Mmm.¡± I wasn¡¯t too sure if Mr. Raak had much appreciation for beauty but by the distant look he was making, the magnificence of this city also sank into him. Somehow seeing Mr. Raak in a good mood also puts me at ease, he too lost everything yet he¡¯s so composed but I think he was just keeping it all in. But the face he has now really is genuine comfort. Moving further along we descended down some stairs and continued our exploration into the city. I almost felt like a child on a field trip due to how mesmerizing this entire place was. However that all changed the moment we tried to progress further. ¡°It is an honor to finally meet you, Queen [Amaria Seasong].¡± The voice of a child, perhaps no older than eight. For some reason the voice rang heavily in my head, dragging up deep traumas. It couldn¡¯t be¡­ I was drawn to the voice, I inched closer to the source. ¡°Tytania?¡± Mr. Raak called out to me, but lost in my own thoughts I ignored him. I didn¡¯t mean to be rude but I couldn¡¯t help myself. There, I saw it. The presence of a well dressed boy. His hair as dark as the night, he was smiling; a fake smile, I could tell because his eyes were not smiling along. But before any of that, that face¡­ that face! It was him! [Odysseus]! The one that destroyed my entire village! As that realization came to mind, everything went dark, I forgot about everything including my surroundings with only rage to keep me focused. ¡°Odysseus!¡± I shouted as I charged at him in rage, preparing my strongest spell. PART FIVE -Morgant Fallon¡¯s PoV- Using some sort of teleportation mechanism on the podium we were transported to the interior of [Lani¡¯tar]. An aquatic city, it was much more majestic than I had initially thought it to be; an underwater city. Two [mermaids] came to greet us. One of them was a tall woman with grassy hair and stern face. She had the build and face of a ruler, not only that but her dress while resembling a swimsuit was fairly elegant and decorated. Sitting on her head was a golden tiara with a magnificent blue gem. The other [mermaid] was a little on the small side, she had icy blue hair and sharp teal colored eyes. From the looks of it she was some sort of attendant. ¡°Greetings emissaries of the demon lord. We have been expecting your arrival, I am the Mermaid Queen: [Amaria Seasong].¡± ¡®Mermaid Queen¡¯ she says. I wonder about that. [Miora. Level 42, Attendant of the Mermaid Queen] I had read her name beforehand thus wasn¡¯t convinced when she introduced herself. Was this some sort of test or a precaution? In any case the other one should be the ral queen. [Amaria Seasong, Level 24, Mermaid Queen] Right, she was a lot less powerful than I had initially imagined. Then again most of the politicians of this world are rather weak as they prefer to leave the combat oriented stuff to their servants. As they gave me a false queen I returned the favor with a false smile. I walked right past the ¡®mermaid queen¡¯ and introduced myself towards the ¡®attendant¡¯. I bowed and revealed myself and their little trick. ¡°It is an honor to finally meet you, Queen Amaria.¡± ¡°Eh?¡± She had a quizzical face. ¡°What disrespect is this?!¡± Their supposed queen shouts at me but the real queen gestures her to stop the act. Looks like she decided to concede honorably. The attendant, Miora takes off the tiara and hands it back to the real queen. ¡°My, I¡¯m quite impressed that you-¡° ¡°Odysseus!¡± Interrupting our meeting was the desperate voice of an enraged woman. Appearing from the corner was a blonde elf, her green eyes filled with bloodlust clearly intended towards me. At her sudden entrance Elena and Aura decided to pull out their weapons to defend me but I signaled them to withdraw. I got the feeling that they¡¯d just kill her if it got too dangerous. Right now, more than who she is, I was curious about what she just called me. ¡®Odysseus¡¯ she said, sure ¡®Ulysses¡¯ as another name of Odysseus but no one in this world should know that. This was clearly another reference to my old world, and I wasn¡¯t going to let an unexpected source of information get past me. Mana spiralled around my assailant and she charged up some sort of spell. From the looks of it and the sudden drop in temperature around her I hazard a guess that it was some sort of [ice] type magic spell. A large ball of ice appeared in front of her and when she got into a certain distance she shot it towards me. Anger dulls the blade as they say, though I¡¯m not quite sure why she¡¯s so angry at me but her movements were far too predictable. I summoned a [shadow shield] in front of me to tank the hit. Seeing that her attack was useless she was stunned in place with a look of despair. I moved a bit more forward, still with my [shadow shield] hovering in front of me. I then proceeded to summon two [skeleton knights] in front of me to retaliate if need be. It was a little odd to see lightning strike indoors but two green lightning struck before me and from the ground two [skeleton knights] roared fiercely. However I wasn¡¯t done yet, I continued my barrage of skills by summoning 7 [shadow lances] on standby, ready to attack if she made any more hostile movements. I made sure that they would hit places that didn¡¯t deliver fatal blows. Everyone else was watching from the sidelines with a stunned expression, Cedric seemed to be analyzing my powers. ¡°Who are you?¡± I asked, but without answering back she raised her hand towards me, once more gathering mana in order to cast another spell. [Tytania. Level 32, Guardian of the sacred treasure] ¡®Guardian of the sacred treasure¡¯? What¡¯s that supposed to mean? I guess I¡¯ll ask later but for now she was still acting hostile despite her being practically at gunpoint. Was she stupid or was she brave? No she¡¯s just enraged at me for some reason. Very well then, I won¡¯t kill you so don¡¯t worry, but I will attack. I moved around my lances in a more direct position, but just before she was about to launch her attack a grey skinned [orc] came to stop the fight. It ran in front of the elf, Tytania and embraced her. ¡°Stop it Tytania! You¡¯ve got the wrong person!¡± Hearing this the mana stopped gathering, a sign that the spell had been cancelled. Calming herself down she was unable to support herself and fell into the [orc¡¯s] arm. For now it seems like the fight had ended without anyone getting hurt, thus I also decided to unsummon all of my skills. ¡°Are you alright, Morgant?¡± Cedric came to ask. ¡°Yeah. Now then¡­ I¡¯ve got a few questions for you. Miss Tytania.¡± END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 42 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 128 (115 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 0] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 42 (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 31 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 26 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 31 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 24 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 29 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 33 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 31 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 30 (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 21 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian¡¯s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father¡¯s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight] Chapter 14 - Separated from you by the world of 2 billion years later Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Separated from you by the world of 2 billion years later Chapter XIV PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 989] ¡°So, what you¡¯re saying is that somebody that looked similar to me attacked a place known as [Aramelle Village].¡± I asked as I took a sip of tea, I tried to confirm what had just been conveyed to me by this orc, [Raak]. As to why I was calmly having a tea party with everyone, well unfortunately my ¡®assailant¡¯ the elf, [Tytania] fainted soon after calming down. I had heard she was heavily injured so perhaps she didn¡¯t fully recover or maybe finding out that I wasn¡¯t this ¡®Odysseus¡¯ person exceeded her comprehension threshold. ¡°Yes, he called himself [Odysseus] and controlled a gigantic metal goliath. With it he decimated Aramelle Village along with everyone, except Tytania and myself.¡± In any case, she was out and I couldn¡¯t get information from her directly. Thankfully, there was this orc person that the elf was close with so he provided some light to the situation. Ordinarily, I¡¯m quite a cautious person but this time it was something I couldn¡¯t easily overlook. The one who destroyed Aramelle Village was an eight year old that looked similar to me, on top of that he called himself ¡®Odysseus¡¯. With all the facts gathered I think it would be safe to assume that he¡¯s also a reincarnated individual like myself, and that he has the same ability; the [user interface] ability. From what I¡¯ve heard so far I can hazard a guess that this person has chosen [Puppeteer]. ¡°Was there a reason that this individual would attack the village?¡± I pressed on. Raak averted his gaze a little then contemplated for a suitable answer. Those actions, he¡¯s hiding something. ¡°Aramelle Village was claimed under the name of a god named [Nodens]. From what I¡¯ve been told, he is a god that despises the [Demon] race. So for Aramelle Village who¡¯ve had a close relationship with the [orc] tribe, it may have been like treachery. Most likely that¡¯s the reason.¡± After he answers he averts his gaze once more. The thing that bothers me more is Tytania¡¯s title, [Guardian of the sacred treasure]. Honestly I would be more inclined to believe that she was the reason that the village was attacked. Still, this has become a little bit of a headache, assuming that what Raak told me was all true, that would mean that this Odysseus person was working alongside or under Nodens. That being the case, myself who is working with the demon army would become a primary threat and enemy. This is only my speculation but most people in this world have an individual and racial level cap, for example, the maximum level a person from the [human] race could achieve is somewhere around level 50 ~ 60, and this is in the extremely talented cases, such as the [praetorian knights]. Other races should also be somewhere around there, but the only exception to this rule are reincarnated individuals like myself. Though I have yet to pass level 60, from the way things are going I believe I can easily surpass that cap, but that also applies to Odysseus. No chance of alliance, no chance of a truce and from the sounds of it he¡¯s plenty enjoying himself toying with the lives of this world¡¯s citizens, that probably means he isn¡¯t too interested in returning to our original world so I could voucher that he¡¯d get in my way of that objective too. This is quite the headache. For the duration of this entire conversation [Cedric] has been oddly quiet. I thought he¡¯d burst into laughter to lighten the mood or something but it seems he¡¯s worried about this new threat as well. ¡°What are you thinking about, Cedric?¡± I asked. ¡°Mmm, it¡¯s just, Nodens is the name of the god that slayed the father of the previous generation demon lord, in other words Lord [Astaroth¡¯s] grandfather. Though we suspected, we weren¡¯t able to entirely confirm it, but it seems true that the leader of the [Crimson Knights] is actually Nodens.¡± ¡°More headaches¡­ for now, the Crimson Knights have assumed that Raak and Tytania are dead so it should be safe. At the very least, it would be impossible for we of the demon army to make nice with the Crimson Knights, and an enemy of my enemy is my friend, right. Mr. Raak?¡± He breathed a sigh and nodded, conceding that I had a point. ¡°Indeed, since god has abandoned us, we have no choice but to turn to the devil, huh? Very well then we will defect to the demon army.¡± Though it would be unfathomable, if Raak turned against us and revealed information about me to the Crimson Knights, it would be detrimental. So keeping him on a leash was the best alternative. Which brings me to a slightly more concerning issue, I turned my gaze towards the mermaid queen [Amaria Seasong]. ¡°You don¡¯t have to look at me with such eyes, Sir Morgant, I understand that since we have decided to make alliance with the demon army we cannot play nice with the Crimson Knights either. Besides, the Crimson Knights are a [human] centric organization so even if we were to join their ranks we would only be used as slaves or expendable soldiers. That¡¯s the last thing I want for my people, and the demon army has been more hospitable.¡± ¡°You have my thanks.¡± I replied with a smile. I guess that¡¯s about it, for now keeping a low profile was the best course of action for all of us. I also need to come up with some countermeasure for if I ever come face to face with a puppeteer. For now it should be safe to put that topic on hold, thus I decided to change the topic to our original purpose. ¡°Then, Queen Amaria, we were here to make contact with this divine artefact: [Gladsheim], would it be possible to see it right now?¡± The queen made a troubled face as she replied. ¡°Well, that would be a little hard¡­¡± ¡°I understand the religious significance of the artefact to your people but it is something we must see, so I beg of you to consider our position as well.¡± ¡°Ah, no that¡¯s not what I meant. I would like to show you as well but unfortunately access to [Gladsheim] has been kind of blocked lately. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re all aware that [Gladsheim] has been protected by a powerful guardian named [Terror of the depths], unfortunately that guardian has gone astray and started to attack everyone regardless of friend or foe.¡± ¡°I see, so then the previous representatives were¡­¡± As I trailed off Amaria nodded. ¡°Yes, we tried to stop them but they insisted on going, as a result they¡¯ve all become¡­¡± She trailed off. ¡°At the very least I wish to see the situation for myself, would that be okay?¡± ¡°Since the guardian has refused to enter into the city directly, I believe if it¡¯s only up to the edge of the city then there should be no problem.¡± ¡°Yes, that would, thank you.¡± * * * As we approached the edge of the city I had the honor of meeting my assailant, Tytania once more. It seems that she had recovered after a brief rest, though she still had dark bags under her eyes and her complexion was pale, even her golden hair was starting to fade into a platinum color. ¡°Tytania! You should be resting, why are you out all the way here?¡± She stared at Raak for a few seconds before staggering over to my location. My [life force sensory] allows me to sense hostility as well, but she didn¡¯t have anything like that so I was relatively unguarded, though [Aura] and [Elena] tried to draw their weapons but Cedric stopped them. Tytania also stared at me for a few seconds before dropping to the floor in a prostrating manner. ¡°I¡­ I apologize for my rash behavior earlier. Your stature and aura were so similar that I had been convinced that you were the one who was responsible for the destruction of my people. Taking a closer look, though you are similar you are also different people, I realize that now. So once again, please accept my apology.¡± ¡°Hmm, I wonder what I should do?¡± I asked, sarcastically. ¡°Morgant?¡± Cedric seemed surprised at my response. It would be an easy thing to forgive her, and it wasn¡¯t like I held any enmity towards her either, it¡¯s just that this was a good opportunity to get some more information. Also the way she was trembling while prostrating herself, I got a little bit of a kick out of that¡­ ah, maybe [Lina¡¯s] habit is rubbing off on me. ¡°Then, I¡¯ll forgive you if you can answer one question.¡± ¡°Y- Yes! Anything, please ask me.¡± ¡°I was just wondering, what is this [sacred treasure] that you¡¯re the guardian of?¡± s ¡°Eh?¡± Both Raak¡¯s and Tytania¡¯s eyes widened in disbelief. ¡°How did you¡­?¡± Raak asked. ¡°It¡¯s elementary, Mr. Orc. I know a lot of things that many people shouldn¡¯t, however even if you¡¯re curious, a magician never reveals his secrets.¡± ¡°I¡­ see¡± As I tell him, he has a rather confused look on his face, though he didn¡¯t really understand what I was saying he didn¡¯t question it any further either. ¡°A- as much as I want to tell you about the [Sacred Treasure], the elders that knew about it were all killed before having a chance to properly explain it to me. All that I know about it is that it contains power that could one day slay the evil gods.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± Having a look at her body posture it was rather defensive but that could be due a variety of factors. Most likely she was telling me the truth of the matter. ¡®Power that could one day slay the evil gods¡¯ is a rather vague description but still insightful, though a bit meaningless to me since whatever happens to this world after I¡¯m gone is no longer my business. Though if possible I¡¯d like to leave this world as a better place for my family of this world. ¡°S- sorry, I wish I could provide you with more information but¡­ that¡¯s all I know. It is possible that the Crimson Knights might know more about it but getting information from them is a rather dangerous and difficult task.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, it was only a passing curiosity, I¡¯ve no real interest in god slaying items.¡± ¡°I- I see, then do you¡­?¡± ¡°Yes, of course, I will completely forgive and forget what happened. I never really held real enmity towards in the first place, Miss Tytania.¡± ¡°T- thank you. I¡¯m glad.¡± At least one problem was solved, now onto the next. PART TWO ¡°That is the [Terror of the Depths] our guardian deity. What has caused it to go berserk is beyond our knowledge¡­ because of this it is currently impossible to enter [Gladsheim].¡± Amaria pointed towards the distant ocean, there was a large undersea mountain built around it was a smaller building. I¡¯m probably safe to assume that¡¯s how we¡¯ll reach [Gladsheim]. However, first is the obstacle blocking the pathway to it, which is that super megalodon shark; size was about 40m, so around the size of a blue whale, black skin pigmentation, eyes were a menacing red glow, each of its teeth looked about the size of a human. It swam repetitively around [Gladsheim], so it was doing its job, I think? But it would attack everyone regardless of friend or foe. [Guardian Deity. Level 100, Terror of the Depths] ¡°Troubling.¡± I said to myself but everyone else agreed with me. ¡°I don¡¯t suppose you could take that on, Cedric?¡± I asked with no real expectations of a positive answer, I mean if he could do that he would¡¯ve already done so. ¡°Unfortunately [Slimes] are weak against massive bodies of water. If I were to enter the sea I would dissolve in seconds and all that would be left would be my armor. Though I would love to accomplish my mission that Lord Astaroth gave me, I have no real death wish and I won¡¯t be able to serve her if I died here.¡± So this was the true meaning behind why I was here, not for negotiations but to work this out. Were the other 3 demon generals busy or something? Ugh, in any case what should I do? Incidentally in this place, the water and air wasn¡¯t separated by glass but by magic, so it could be possible for me to shift right through and into the water. I tried placing my hands in the water, it was rather cool but not to the point of being freezing. I clicked my tongue, I did have one solution but it was a rather vague plan and would be more akin to a gamble than an actually strategy. I¡¯m not one that likes to gamble but it could be that I have no other choice, the story might¡¯ve been a little different if this all took place on land but underwater, my hands are tied. ¡°Guess I have no choice then¡­¡± ¡°Is something wrong, Morgant?¡± Cedric asked. ¡°Well, this entire situation is wrong, but other than that I do have a possible solution, it¡¯s just a little¡­ uncomfortable.¡± ¡°A solution? Of what kind?¡± ¡°I¡¯d like to keep it a secret, but it should take around a month or so. Queen Amaria, this solution of mine require the guardian to be slain, is that okay with you?¡± I shifted my gaze to her as I asked. ¡°At this point we have no further choice, the guardian is only swimming around [Gladsheim] for now but it could change its mind, and if that ever comes to be it will be a danger to all of us. So in short, yes if your plan requires the guardian¡¯s disappearance then you have my permission.¡± ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ve one small favor for everyone, would you all mind leaving here and only return after a month?¡± They all gave each other uneasy looks but ultimately decided to go with my wishes. As everyone left, Cedric was the only remaining person in this vicinity. He placed his hand on my shoulders and asked. ¡°Are you sure you want to do this?¡± ¡°Why does you seem like you know what I¡¯m going to do?¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± He trailed off, never finishing that sentence, it seems that he¡¯s figured out what I was going to do. He sure is a perceptive one. ¡°It¡¯s fine, my curiosity to know [Gladsheim¡¯s] true nature exceeds my concern for safety.¡± ¡°So you¡¯ve made up your mind.¡± I gave a non-verbal nod. ¡°Then¡­ I¡¯ll be seeing you in a month. Good luck.¡± ¡°Thanks¡­¡± After confirming that no one was within my vicinity I touched the watery walls of the city. I took a deep breath and plunged myself deep into the sea. PART THREE This may be a little abrupt but before I start explaining my plan on how I¡¯m going to defeat the guardian, I want to talk about a certain skill of mine: [Life Drain]. Contrary to what you may think, it isn¡¯t a simple damaging and healing spell, it drains the life of the target. The deciding factor to all this is what is meant by draining ¡®life¡¯, or rather what constitutes as ¡®death¡¯. Unless an enemy has anti-healing properties to their attacks, as long as I keep conscious I could theoretically continue to drain ¡®life¡¯, or rather keep myself from ¡®dying¡¯. Therefore this skill has a lot of uses. For example, if I drown and suffer from asphyxiation, while it would be incredibly painful and uncomfortable, as long as I stay conscious I could theoretically continue to cast [life drain] to keep myself from dying. I won¡¯t lie, it¡¯s definitely an incredibly frightening prospect, to continue to experience the feeling of drowning for an entire month without breaking concentration. Another point is that even if I¡¯m impaled, slashed, stabbed or whatever, as long as I can continue to drain life I won¡¯t die, of course that doesn¡¯t make me immune to pain. Also to point is that I will not lose consciousness as long as I am draining life, but that¡¯s different from mental exhaustion. I¡¯ve never tried to stay up for more than a week so this is an all new field for me. You probably figured out by now what I¡¯m trying to do, basically it¡¯s a gamble, whether I¡¯d lose consciousness from fatigue and mental exhaustion first or the guardian will die first. I¡¯m planning to exploit these properties of [life drain] to slowly whittle away at the guardian. I swam deep into the ocean and near the mountain where [Gladsheim] was kept. I was a fairly competent swimmer in my previous life, and with my current [strength] stat I had a decent amount of stamina to swim a good distance. Once I got near the guardian it took notice of me right away. The one problem was how to continuously keep up with the guardian but that won¡¯t be a problem as long as I¡¯m anchored onto it, and there¡¯s only one place I could anchor myself into. The mouth of the super megalodon opened and with it a torrent of water was sucked in, as was I. I could feel every inch of my body shaking with fear, but I had a smile on my face as what I was about to do was absurd, in the body of a child no less. As the guardian drew closer, Cedric¡¯s words came to mind. ¡®Are you sure you want to do this?¡¯ Of course I didn¡¯t want to do this! No one in their right mind would even consider doing something so ridiculous! I¡¯m sure even if I wanted to quit right now no one would complain. Of course I was actually past the point of no return, the guardian already took notice of me and there was no way I could outswim it. All that was left was to calmly wait for the jaws to close. The alarm that was my [life force sensory] was going off like crazy, telling me that danger was drawing close. HAHAHAHA! I KNOW THAT! I quickly shut my eyes as I await the pain to start. Just a few centimeters away from the guardian. I was standing face to face with the gates of hell, and hinged between the door was my feeble body, trying to pry myself out. The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. The gamble had started. Before I knew it, a gush of pain coursed through my entire body, a pain unlike anything I¡¯ve ever felt and I¡¯ve even been shot a few times in my previous life, but compared to this that was like getting a stabbed with a feather. Everything was burning, even my innards, especially my innards. My heart, lungs, spine, intestines, liver, stomach, shoulder, arms¡­ every bone in my body was torn apart instantly. But it was a good position because I was firmly lodged in the jaws of the beast. I felt my consciousness wavering bit by bit, and it had only been a few seconds into my plan, to survive an entire month was crazy. I was completely mad to even think of something this absurd. But now came the hard part, I was starting to run out of oxygen, well I could feel my throat tightening up, telling my brain that I needed air. My body¡¯s function were starting to shut down, but I couldn¡¯t let it do that, I would really die if it did. I started [Life Drain] right away as I was starting to acclimate to the intense pain in my body. Actually to be fair, the pain wasn¡¯t that bad because I already went numb after a few seconds, completely paralyzed and unable to feel anything below my shoulders, but I knew I was still alive because there was the feeling of drowning. My condition started to stabilize; I found an equilibrium between [life drain] and [death]. Holding my demise at bay, there was only one way for me to survive, like it or not I had to endure for a month. Normally after an exceeding amount of pain, the brain would believe that the body has died and begin to shut down, that would be the case for normal people, however I was a little different. Since I was a [necromancer] I was constantly made aware that I was alive by the fact that I could feel my own [life force] with [life force sensory] thus my brain was not tricked into thinking I was dead. Though arguably this is worse than death, but of course I cannot die until I¡¯ve safely returned to my previous world. Day 1. 21 hours had passed since I started this ridiculous plan. I was keeping count of everything to ensure that I don''t go insane in the midst of it all. I had drowned almost 420 times and my internal organs were recreated and destroyed nearly 493 times, my spine was recreated and shattered 503 times.Due to the fact that [life drain] healed me at a faster rate than I was being torn apart, each time my body healed itself it would be forced to once again feel the pain of being torn apart. This was the worst part A process of destruction and recreation of my body took place several hundred times. I guess the only consolation in all this was that now my [Life Drain] skill was at level 42. Day 2. 46 hours had passed since this all began. My mind was constantly in turmoil between thinking of just ending this pain and continuing on. I drowned at a rate of once every 3 minutes. This means that I had easily drowned over 920 times. My internal organs were recreated and destroyed approximately 1321 times, my spine shattered and recreated 1421 times. At this point extreme mental fatigue was starting to set in. I wasn''t tired. No, it was mental fatigue. Stress. Luckily for me the physical effects of stress don''t actually apply to me since [Life drain] restores even that. It was a godsend of an ability. Day 6. I drowned 2880 times. Day 12. My internal organs were destroyed 7312 times. Day 18. I was amazed at my own tenacity. The pain still hurt but for some reason I was getting used to the extreme bout of pain. Day 21. Enduring this hell like environment I actually got something useful out of this ordeal. It came to me in the form of a new skill. [New skill acquired: [Undead¡¯s Tenacity(Passive)]] [Undead¡¯s Tenacity: Grant¡¯s the user increased physical defense and regeneration. Starting at 30% physical damage reduction and 1000% health regeneration rate, increases by 10% physical damage reduction and 1000% health regeneration rate every 10 levels] Wonderful, now I can truly harness the powerful the undead. On a more serious note, after I get out of this alive, this will be extremely useful for my survival. Although the numbers are pretty big, just how fast is 6000% of a human¡¯s natural healing rate? I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s viewable by the naked eye if its 60x faster but still unsure. Also another interface box came up a few hours later. [Skill mastered: [Life Drain(Active)]] With this my survival was somewhat guaranteed, also the guardian was starting to slow down in its movements and its jaw unhinged a little. Just a few more days and I¡¯ll definitely die. Day 25. [Skill mastered: [Undead¡¯s Tenacity(Passive)]]. Yay. Day 26. ... ... Day 27. Only a few more days. I can feel the shark quickly losing its grip on me as well. Day 28. The shark has slowed its swimming pace considerably since it began. Day 29. The shark is now grounded with me. Normally sharks have to perpetually swim in order to keep alive but this was a monster that didn''t even need to do that. Day 30. [Skill mastered: [Life Force Sensory(Passive)]] With it I can feel the life force of the shark fading away. Day 31. The shark has only a few hours of life remaining, I just need... to hold... on. Day 32. [You have gained (7) level(s)] * * * The [Terror of the Depths] has been slain. My lungs were about to collapse and with no more air, my throat started to tighten and my head rang like crazy. Honestly I wanted to just give into this massive fatigue that was crawling up at my consciousness. My lungs were filled with just barely enough air to last for a minute or two, and with my body repaired back to its peak physical form all that was left was for me to swim back to [Lani¡¯tar]. However as soon as I tried to swim back I noticed an odd presence near me. A red glowing orb appeared from the carcass of the guardian, at first I was immensely confused as to what it was and to be quite honest I couldn¡¯t care less at this point. Sparing a few seconds I focused my blurred vision to open its [description box]. [Soul of the Guardian Deity] Other than the name it had no other description, which was weird for an item, but then again this wasn¡¯t really an item. Under normal circumstances I would¡¯ve studied it to find a suitable way of dealing with it but currently I didn¡¯t have the leisure to do so. Thus I hastily touched it, to which another interface box appeared. [Revive: [Soul of the Guardian Deity]?] Revive it? Why the hell would I revive it? You know what fine, why not, if it rampages again I¡¯ll just have to do this all over again, and it seems like I can get a few additional buffs and skills every time I do this, so why not. [Yes] As I pressed on that button, the ground beneath me started to shake, but since I wasn¡¯t attached to it there wasn¡¯t too much of a problem with losing balance. The carcass of the guardian started to tremble and as it did it kicked up all of the dirt underneath creating a smokescreen. Dammit, this may have been a bad idea. When I arose, it looked leagues more sinister than it did before, this time a lot of the skin was flayed off, revealing bits of its innards and skeletal structure, its teeth resembled large saw blades and its ghastly red eyes glowed in the depths of the dark ocean. Is it friend or foe? It swam towards me at great speeds, at first I thought I would get eaten a second time, and the worst part was that it didn¡¯t even have life force anymore so I couldn¡¯t drain it. I thought I created a monster but that wasn¡¯t the case, well I mean I did create a monster but it was also a lot friendlier. It picked me up with its teeth gently and swam me back to [Lani¡¯tar]. [New skill acquired: [Summon - Terror of the Depths(Active)]/Requires Level: 100] An undead minion¡­ it became a zombie minion, and I doubt this creature was able to feel pain anymore, though in some circles this may be a plus. With how it looks now it was truly the [Terror of the Depths] in the spirit and looks. Dropping me off it once again swam back to resume its duties as the guardian deity¡­ or so I assume, but you know what they say about assuming, though this time it doesn¡¯t look like I¡¯m wrong. Gravity. It was such a comforting and painful feeling at the same time. Finally touching a solid surface, my body felt incredibly heavy, as though my blood had turned to iron. I couldn¡¯t even support myself anymore and fell unconscious, wet on the floor. PART FOUR I don¡¯t know how long I¡¯ve been sleeping for but as I opened my eyes I still felt my body as heavy. I guess this is the kind of feeling you get when you wake up from a coma; using your body after a lengthy period of disuse. Surrounding me were Aura, Elena, Cedric, Tytania, Raak and Amaria. It seems that they had been with me the whole time. ¡°Uugh¡­ what time is it?¡± I asked. ¡°12:30AM, two weeks after.¡± Cedric answers amusingly. Two weeks, huh. Trying to get out of the bed I started with my right foot and as I put my weight on it I instantly collapsed to the title floor. Actually since the bed was rather warm, having the cool sensation of the tile floor against my body was a nice change, if not a little unhygienic. ¡°Lord Morgant, you shouldn¡¯t rush things.¡± Aura said as she picked me up. ¡°Thanks.¡± ¡°What happened to the Guardian?¡± I tried to change topics while I adjusted to my body once more. ¡°It has been subdued and access to [Gladsheim] is once again open, though its looks have undergone quite the change. Currently it¡¯s swimming around [Gladsheim] like it did before but does not attack us, all thanks to your efforts, Sir Morgant.¡± Queen Amaria explained the situation to me. ¡°That¡¯s a relief. Then we should go to [Gladsheim] immediately.¡± ¡°Ah, please wait, Lord Morgant. You¡¯re still tired from what happened, we can continue on with our mission after you have completely recovered. We will wait for you.¡± Elena tells me. ¡°(Sigh), I guess you have a point. Then please allow me to rest a bit more.¡± Everyone gave a hearty nod as I entered slumber once more. PART FIVE After another day of resting, we were finally at [Gladsheim]¡¯s entrance. The way we got there was by having the [mermaids] create a special transport bubble for us and have it towed along by them. The view was great, though I¡¯ve seen most of it, but it could be argued that I wasn¡¯t paying attention to the background while I was being mauled to death. That being said, we entered into a building that encompassed the entire undersea mountain. There was a small entrance at the base which also served as the doors to [Gladsheim]. The entire structure had a vaguely oriental feel to it, with its reddish wooden platforms and lanterns. Though what surprised me more was the actual entrance to [Gladsheim]. It was a steel door, though it had aged considerably, was half broken and had green moss growing on it, but nonetheless it was a steel door. Manufactured steel door. ¡°This way please.¡± Queen Amaria guided us inside. There was large stretched out hallway made of similar composition; steel. Likewise it was incredibly aged and moss and damage could be seen everywhere. What seemed to be vaguely english words were written on them but I couldn¡¯t make out what it was, but this was a little trouble. English wasn¡¯t used in this world, so there¡¯s no way for this kind of structure to exist. I mean I could be wrong and this wasn¡¯t english but some ancient language of this world that resembled english characters, but was really unlikely. ¡°Is something wrong, Morgant?¡± Noticing my anxiety, Cedric turned to ask, halting the entire expedition crew. ¡°No¡­ just thinking about some stuff. Queen Amaria, do you know who it was that built this place or what the language that¡¯s written on the walls are?¡± She shook her head. ¡°Unfortunately we do not know, our ancestors believed that this place was built by ancient gods that protected the land of [Eternis]. And the language inscribed on the walls were their tongue, though we cannot discern what they say.¡± ¡°¡­ I see.¡± It can¡¯t be¡­ We continued to walk for a few more minutes before coming across a large broken down steel gate. There was what appeared to be cameras on the top. As we came to a halt before the gates the camera made a ¡®winging¡¯ noise as it turned to focus on us, dust and moss falling down with its rusty movements. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Aura asked, to which Queen Amaria answered. ¡°We believe that it is a sort of guard for this place, though it does not attack so do not worry.¡± ¡­ After waiting a short while the rusty steel gates opened up with a terrible, trembling noise of rusted metal scraping against each other. The screeching was like tiny needles penetrating my eardrums. Entering into the main facility of [Gladsheim] we came across a large dome like room. It was littered with computer parts all over, though nearly all of them were out of commission from disuse and time. There were some flickering lights but when we went to touch some of them it didn¡¯t respond. At this point the worst of the worst had settled into my mind. For sure this place was a relic of my world, but why was it here? No, that was besides the fact, taking a closer look around the place the pieces of technology here were far more advanced than anything I¡¯ve ever seen. Could it be from an advanced alien species? No, then why was there english written on the walls. Dammit. ¡°Please, this way.¡± Queen Amaria guided us further into the place. We came across a small windowed room and inside it was an undamaged computer terminal. However surrounding the glassed room was a force-field that prevented anyone from entering. There was however a voice commanded access terminal in the doorway, but that too was behind the force-field so it couldn¡¯t be physically hacked, so one absolutely needed the passcode or it seemed to imply it. ¡°Inside is what we [mermaids] believe to be [Gladsheim]. However over the many millennia we have served this place, it has refused to open its doors. This is as far as anyone has ever gone.¡± ¡°Hmm~¡± Aura and Tytania whispered in amusement. Cedric started to survey the force-field. The barrier wasn¡¯t electrocuted so touching was fine, but it did repulse our hands or anything it touched it. Elena tried to cast light magic on it but that too was repulsed, which begged to question, if it could repulse magic then the ones who knew about this place also knew about magic. Then it can¡¯t be anything from my world. Nothing adds up. Well almost nothing, I did have one things I could try but if I did that it would be the end of everything. It would either confirm or deny everything I knew about this world and my previous world. ¡°Sir Morgant?¡± Noticing my intense glare at the voice command terminal, Queen Amaria called out to me. Ignoring her I walked up to the terminal. I swallowed some spit as I opened my mouth. ¡°Access Code: X914DELTA.¡± As it did the floor beneath us started trembling, my eyes widened with disbelief, everything was wrong. This was wrong. No, it shouldn¡¯t have accepted that access code! The force-field slowly disappeared and the doors to [Gladsheim] had oppened. Entering the small area a computerized voice called out to me. Me specifically. ¡°Welcome back, director Callahad. It has been 2 004 412 993 years, 4 months and 12 days since you last visited.¡± END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 49 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 128 (115 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 35] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 31 (PASSIVE) [Undead¡¯s Tenacity]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 26 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 24 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 29 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 33 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 31 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 30 (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 21 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian¡¯s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father¡¯s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight] Chapter 15 - The tale of two devils, only once can exist Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C The tale of two devils, only one can exist Chapter XV PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 989] A little over a month had passed since the youth named [Morgant Fallon] had left on a small journey in order to train under paladin named [Cedric]. The Fallon household felt his absence greatly, usually during the day he would be helping out the maids or be training with his father in the backyard, however with his absence came a tranquil void. ¡°Ah~ I wonder what the young master is doing right now.¡± A maid around her mid teens spoke to herself as she looked out from the window of the second floor; the young master¡¯s bedroom. A cool breeze seeped through the open window and swayed by the wind her blonde hair glistened in the sun¡¯s rays. Her name was [Lina], a servant of the Fallon house. That being said the relationship between her and her masters wasn¡¯t so strict that she had no freedom, in fact the opposite was true, she was given free rein as long as she accomplished the tasks she was asked to do. In such a manner, rather than a servant she was simply another member of the family that was asked to pull her own weight; a fair compromise. She loved her current life style, never wishing for it to change, ever. She had once known the darkness that was the tragedy of life, but she had grit her teeth and soldiered through, thus her current lifestyle was her reward. A small smile appeared on her face as she laid down on the bed of her young master, it was currently her break period, well in fact every time was her break period, or so she convinced herself. Despite her rather slovenly appearance at times and naivet¨¦ she was actually quite a diligent worker, even now she had successfully finished off all her assigned task for the day. ¡°Sister? What are you doing in the young master¡¯s room?¡± The young sister, [Lena] was her twin, unlike her older sister she was much more serious about her job, oddly enough Lina had always managed to finish before her. So in her eyes it may have seemed like that Lina was always playing around and not taking her job seriously. ¡°I just wanted to smell his left over scent. This way it makes it feel like he hasn¡¯t gone anywhere.¡± After casually blurting out a line only a deviant in their terminal stages of degeneracy would say, she started to roll around in the bed of the young master as her younger sister looked at her with a glint of disgust in her eyes. ¡°This is more serious than I thought, I think we may need a doctor to check up on you soon or else something terrible will happen for both you and the young master once he gets back¡­¡± ¡°How rude! I¡¯m perfectly healthy, thank you very much. I just really~ miss my beloved young master¡­ ah~¡± When Lina turned to see what kind of reaction her young sister would have she was rather saddened at Lena¡¯s disapproval. Lena shook her head as she saw such a pathetic and shameful display, thinking that such a beast that was unfit for society couldn¡¯t possibly be related to her, though their faces say otherwise. After a while Lina finished up with her ¡®business¡¯ in the young master¡¯s room and came downstairs to see if anything needed to be helped with. Downstairs the mistress and Lena were happily chatting away while playing with [Ada Fallon] the young mistress of the Fallon family. The sight of Lena pampering and fawning over the small baby with s twinkles in her eyes put a mixed smile on Lina¡¯s face. ¡®You¡¯re no different from me¡¯ is what Lina thought to herself in accusation of her young sister¡¯s hypocritical attitude. Noticing Lina¡¯s presence [Rio Fallon] called out to her. ¡°Ah, Lina? It¡¯s great that you¡¯re here, I left some supplies back in the garden, do you mind getting it for me?¡± The reason why Rio asked Lina and not Lena was because Lena was too deeply occupied with pampering Ada. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll be right back.¡± Lina answered with a smile as she left for the back yard. The ¡®supplies¡¯ that Rio was talking about were gardening equipment, they were lying out in the open, though it wasn¡¯t as though anyone would steal them, it was still better to put them away if they not being used. However before that, Lina noticed some of the flowers were not fully trimmed, thus she took it upon herself to do so. It took her a few minutes but with careful mastery of the equipment Lina was able to make the garden look twice as better than before. She was a girl with many talents but those talents weren¡¯t too useful in the grand scheme of things. ¡°My those came out pretty nicely. I¡¯m impressed.¡± Said a voice that was looking over her shoulders. Looking over her was an elderly man in his early 50s, [Sebastian] another servant of the Fallon house. He was an enigmatic man with a mysterious presence, his hair was white and he had as cleanly trimmed white beard. His posture and movements oozed elegance, and his mysterious background made him all the more unique. At one point in time even the master of this house who was a [praetorian knight], the strongest knight in the realm, had acknowledged Sebastian¡¯s combat potential. Why was such a skilled man working as a servant to a lesser noble? That was unknown, not even to the lords that he served. ¡°Thank you, Sebastian. Little by little, I will win over the young master¡¯s heart with my myriads of talents!¡± Sebastian gave out a small chuckle at Lina¡¯s ramblings. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen master [Mardoc] today, is he with the garrison?¡± Lina asked, to which Sebastian nodded. ¡°Yes, since the young master isn¡¯t here, master Mardoc has been with the garrison a lot more lately.¡± ¡°I see, no wonder the house felt a little empty today.¡± ¡°Indeed, these days the tranquil peace has been a little lonely.¡± The two continued to exchange conversation as they finished up their work in the garden. In the end the garden looked three times as beautiful with the help of Sebastian. When they came back into the house the mistress and Lena had been preparing for tea. That night Lina slept comfortable on the young master¡¯s bed. PART TWO The next day Lina woke up a little earlier than usual, perhaps it was because of the relaxing effects of sleeping on her beloved young master¡¯s bed, but she had a sound sleep last night, even waking up earlier than her young sister who wakes up extremely early. The sky was still a little dark, with the sun yet to fully rise and the slightly odd looking dark clouds on the horizon. ¡®Perhaps it¡¯ll rain today¡¯, thought Lina as she moved onto the back yard to breathe in the fresh air before the rain drenches it. After washing her face and getting dressed in her usual maid attire she went out into the backyard. Upon arrival Sebastian was also there doing some light stretches. ¡°Good morning Sebastian.¡± Lina greeted with a smile, she had always known to Sebastian to be a diligent and quiet worker but it seemed she had underestimated just how diligent he really was. ¡°Good morning Miss Lina, you¡¯re up rather early today.¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s because of young master¡¯s bed.¡± Everyone in the Fallon house knew about Lina¡¯s rather deviant quirks and had become used to it, even Sebastian, thus she was able to say some ¡®dangerous¡¯ lines and be totally fine with it. Even Sebastian gave a small chuckle at Lina¡¯s response. Not being completely awake Lina gave out a yawn as she absent-mindedly stared out into the garden, but she found something odd. The shrubs that she neatly trimmed were slightly crooked, thinking that it was the work of the winds during the night Lina went to prepare some gardening tools. She spent a few more minutes trying to get it to like as nice as it did yesterday. Eventually she got the desired look. ¡°Hmm~ That¡¯s pretty good, you have skills there young miss.¡± Suddenly from behind her came the voice of a young child. Turning to see who it was Lina¡¯s eyes almost span around thinking that her young master had come back, but that was not the case. Though this child and her young master shared a similar kind of aura and looks, the light in this child¡¯s eyes were a little different, whereas her young master had a gem-like green eyes, this child had deep azure ones. Whilst this could technically be counted as trespassing, Lina didn¡¯t think too much about punishing the young boy as he probably entered out of curiosity and not malice. Lina crouched down to the young boy¡¯s level and asked. ¡°Who are you? You know you¡¯re not supposed to enter someone else¡¯s house without proper permission. Are a child from this village? Though I don¡¯t recall seeing you.¡± The boy shook his head and returned an almost innocent smile. ¡°No, I¡¯m not of this village. Hmm, I guess you could call me a ¡®traveler¡¯ of sorts since I move around a lot. I¡¯m an ¡®apprentice puppeteer¡¯, always looking to improve my art and my name is [Odysseus] though that¡¯s not my real name, it¡¯s just a nickname people call me by.¡± ¡°Apprentice puppeteer? Oh, like those people who do puppet shows for money and stuff?¡± ¡°Hmm, I do certainly put on ¡®shoes¡¯ for my superiors but I don¡¯t think I¡¯m at a level where I could start charging them money.¡± Sebastian who had temporarily left the premises to get a cool beverage for the hard working Lina returned. Seeing an unknown child Sebastian made a defeated face, if he had known there would be a visitor he would¡¯ve prepared more than two cups. Having no choice Sebastian offered the two cups to Lina and the young boy. ¡°Thank you.¡± Odysseus thanked as he took the cup and drank the cool beverage inside. Lina too drank of the cup after him. ¡°Who might our little guest be, Miss Lina?¡± Sebastian asked. ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure myself, he said he was a traveler and apprentice puppeteer, perhaps he¡¯s the child of an adventurer or entertainer that¡¯s visiting town? He must¡¯ve entered without knowing, granted this moderately sized manor does kind of stick out like a sore thumb in middle of this rural village.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± Sebastian contemplated on what he should do with the child as he stroke his beard. He could report the situation to his masters and the executive decision would go to them but he did not wish to trouble them with minute matters like this. He decided to simply let the child sate his curiosity in the garden and send him off afterwards. ¡°So where are you from Odysseus?¡± Lina asked. Odysseus who had been observing the garden and the mansion stopped and turned back to answer. He pointed towards the sky, more specifically towards the two moons that were starting to disappear. ¡°The sky?¡± Lina asked but Odysseus shook his head. ¡°Technically I¡¯m from the west, but my current address is at [Tara].¡± ¡°T- ara? That¡¯s a place I¡¯ve never heard, what¡¯s it like there?¡± ¡°It¡¯s amazing you know! Everything¡¯s so bright and shiny there, though sometimes the amount of glowing objects there tend to get obnoxiously annoying. Still, it¡¯s an overall best place to be called [Heaven].¡± ¡°Heaven?¡± Lina made a troubled face thinking that the child had been mistaken or was just rambling nonsense. ¡°Hmm? Sister, has the young master returned?¡± A sleepy Lena enters the scene rubbing her eyes, she was still in her night gown since it was not time to work yet. Hearing all the commotion downstairs had awoken her and when she arrived she saw a young boy with similar features to the young master of the house. Rio, carrying Ada also accompanied Lena. ¡°Ah, no this is another kid. The young master has yet to return.¡± ¡°Is there a young master here?¡± Odysseus asks abruptly. ¡°Huh? Yeah, he¡¯s about your age and he¡¯s really smart. He even took down a duke in a political bout when he was just four!¡± Lina started to brag. Unbeknownst to her, a sinister smile flashed across Odysseus¡¯ face. ¡®I see, so I got the right how then,¡¯ Odysseus muttered under his breath. He started to shiver with excitement within the presence of his dearly beloved devil¡¯s family, shuddering just thinking about the prospects of the ¡®joy¡¯ and ¡®merriment¡¯ he could bring, but the best part was that the devil himself was absent which happened to be perfect for Odysseus¡¯ plans. ¡°Odysseus? Are you alright? You seem to be shivering, it is rather cold after all. Should I get you a jacket? I¡¯m sure the young master wouldn¡¯t mind.¡± Lina asked with a worried face, though it wasn¡¯t her young master, with the boy so similar to him she couldn¡¯t help but feel her maternal instincts kicking in, in much the same way it did when the young master was there. However once again, Odysseus shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m fine thanks. Actually I think this might be a good opportunity, you see I¡¯ve been working on a little story for my puppet play but I want a third party¡¯s opinion on it, what do you say? Do you want to have a listen?¡± Odysseus asked, though perplexed since Lina had never seen a puppet play thus she did not know what kind of stories they would be, she gave a vague nod. If it was only for a little while then it wouldn¡¯t hurt, or so she thought. PART THREE This is the story of two devils. Once upon a time, in a land far, far, far away, there existed two devils. Wherever these devils went, tragedy always ensued in their way. They were focused solely on their objective to expand their empire, even to the detriment of others, taking down anyone that got in their way without mercy, leaving countless people in ruins. However in their relationship a small rift existed, for you see one of the devil held the other in extreme regard, yet the other one did not realize this. To the devil who only sought to expand his empire everything was a tool for him to use, eventually even his partner. Little did the two devil know that the true test of their partnership would come. One day a great depression befell the world of these two devils, a depression that would put many to ruin and damnation. Even the devils, so cruel and calculative in their nature could not escape the force of this depression, the time had come that one of them needed to be dropped into the abyss. If they did not their empire would¡¯ve collapsed at that moment. However the devil who admired the other believed that they would continue on as close friends and partners. He believed that no matter what happened they would not ever abandon each other, that if they had to fall they would do so together. Alas that was just a pipe dream of the devil, for the other devil merely thought of him as a convenient tool, when the time truly came he cursed his partner to the pits of hell. With it the devil was able to create an empire that expanded the world over and was forever cemented in the annals of history. Whilst the devil who was betray was condemned to a life of misery and desperation. Even though he truly believed that they were both friends. That they would stick by each other no matter what would happen. In his anguish the devil tried to take revenge many times but was always thwarted by the dog that kept guard. Every time he¡¯d turn on the news he would see just how much the other devil was improving his own empire, as the depression ended the only remaining empire was the devil¡¯s. It angered the betrayed devil greatly. He tried to remedy this feeling with alcohol but each time he did so he only fell deeper and deeper into the abyss that he was unable to even see the light at the top. Forever fated to live as a failure, the devil¡¯s wife, unable to endure the continuous suffering ended her own life in front of the devil and the devil¡¯s child. Their one white house now painted red by his wife¡¯s blood. Yet that was not the end of the devil¡¯s torment, this time, drowning in debt his daughter was taken away from him. Pried away from his arms he cried to those who broke down his door to take his only remaining family, ¡®Please don¡¯t take her away! Take me instead!¡¯ he pleaded and pleaded but they did not even bat an eye. His daughter was taken away, screaming to her father for help, but the devil was helpless. With everything taken away from him the devil could no longer even afford to cry, he was all dried up. He spent the remainder of his life as a living corpse. Like this many years had passed on and one day his daughter had come back to him, having repaid all of their debts through her body. She came home with the son of an unknown man, the light in her eyes completely void, she was more of a corpse than the devil himself. When she returned home she completely broke down, having been tainted by unknown men she could not live with the sins she had committed. The daughter became rabid and crazed, she took the life of her own son and in the same way as her mother, took away her own life. More years had passed, it was a miracle that the devil did not take away his own life after all of the tragedy. Yet one day the news of the other devil had come to him, not only had he become the world¡¯s ruler he was just now finding happiness in marriage. Unable to forgive him, the devil sharpened his own claws and tried for the final time the revenge that had been long awaited. His empire, his family, his entire life, they were all taken away from him by the other devil. This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. It was unforgiveable. An opportunity had come before the devil, the other devil would by traveling to his happiness, so before he could finally be happy the devil needed to act. He rigged the transport that the other devil was on, and thus an ¡®accident¡¯ had occurred. In raging flames of malice and revenge both of the devils had perished. Everything had finally come full circle and the devils known as [Aran Callahad] and [Lewis Reinald] had been erased from their world. PART FOUR ¡°That was certainly¡­ a little dark, are all puppet plays like this?¡± Lina asked making an uncomfortable expression as she heard the rather disturbing story and shuddering at the prospect that all such stories would be popular amongst puppet plays. She knew that sometimes in life there are times when there are no happy endings but she did not expect to hear a story with no happy ending. Odysseus stopped to think for a moment before answering with an unsatisfied face. ¡°I think it¡¯s only my play that has a dark tone, though I thought it was a pretty good story.¡± ¡°Aha, maybe if give it a happy ending to it, that could make it a little better?¡± Lina suggested as she tried to pat the young boy. ¡°Oh but there is a happy ending! ¡­ sort of, what do you think came of the two devils at the very end?¡± Odysseus asked with an anticipated face, smiling as he did. ¡°Eh? Didn¡¯t the story conclude with them both perishing?¡± ¡°Odysseus shook his head, struggling to hold back his laughter. ¡°The two devils were given a second chance you know. They would eventually be reborn into a different life and as fate would have decreed it their paths would once again come to cross. They haven¡¯t met yet, but I¡¯m sure when they do it will be a surprising reunion, don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°So the other devil didn¡¯t finish his revenge even after all that?¡± ¡°No, no. the revenge was completed but a thought came to that devil, even though they can both restart with a clean slate it would be a little unfair if the other devil never found out who or why. So in the end what the devil really wished for wasn¡¯t revenge, what he wanted was the next step, he wanted acknowledgement from the one person who he revered as the absolute.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ I guess? But isn¡¯t that a little shallow? Wouldn¡¯t it make for a much better story if they ended up as friends and started all over again from scratch?¡± Lina suggested with a happy face, she would be what was known as an ¡®optimist¡¯, but Odysseus was not happy with that response. ¡°(Sigh) I guess you don¡¯t get it huh? There¡¯s no way either of the devils could forgive each other for taking away their respective happiness. They¡¯re doomed to repeat their cycle of hatred, with each iteration becoming more and more deranged until either one submits, but as headstrong as they both are, it is impossible for now.¡± ¡°Ahh¡­ hah...¡± As Lina and Odysseus was about to finish up their conversation, Sebastian stood up with a serious face. Not only that the master of the house, [Mardoc Fallon] also came running out with his weapon ready. They both stared out into the distance with intense concentration as their brows furrowed upwards. ¡°I- is something the matter?¡± Lena who was quietly standing next to them asked. ¡°Something¡¯s coming. Something¡­ extremely powerful.¡± Sebastian replied. ¡°Sebastian¡­¡± Mardoc quietly called out his name as he stared at him. Sebastian gave out a small sigh and nodded. ¡°If there is no choice then¡­¡± A vortex of energy swirled around Sebastian¡¯s body, emitting blue and white light. Soon he was engulfed in a miniature tornado and as it disappeared a completely new person came out of it. Well, not entirely, the face was similar to Sebastian¡¯s only a few decades younger, his white hair had turned completely black with a single streak of blue. His muscles were considerable more buff and on his forehead were two small horns. His natural blue eyes turned much sharper, as though it could cut the atmosphere itself, even his butler uniform turned into a military style jacket. To his right hand was a slender oriental blade, with mysterious carvings engraved on them. This was Sebastian¡¯s true form, a half-demon, more specifically a half-devil(literal). Both Lina and Lena had a surprised look in their faces as they finally experience this mysterious butler¡¯s true identity. Whilst on the side, Odysseys gave out a sinister smirk muttering under his breath, ¡®this will be fun, if you don¡¯t come back soon you will once again lose everything¡­ Aran Callahad.¡¯ Though a little less flashy, Mardoc also prepared his sword ready for combat. A few seconds later something was falling towards them from the sky at great speeds. On closer inspect it was not something but a someone. Causing an earthquake that destroyed the entire backyard, causing a dust smoke, and even destroying the windows in the house. A large buff man stood up with an almost exhilarated smile on his face. ¡°I AM [DAGDA] AND I AM LOOKING FOR A WORTHY FIGHT!¡± Shouted the man, but eventually his gaze fell on two armed people, Sebastian and Mardoc. When he appraised their combat ability he had a small smile on his face, they were worthy opponents for him though only as much as being entertainment. Sebastian and Mardoc readied their weapons with a stern face, they knew that their opponent was not someone to be trifled with but since the situation had already degraded to such a level it was inevitable. However before they could even stop fighting, from the sky, as though they were rain, a massive number of angelic beings descended on the town. As they did the angelic beings started to indiscriminately attack all of the villagers. Cries of help and pain filled the air as did smoke and fire razed their houses. ¡°W- what madness is this?!¡± Sebastian asked as his eyes widened with disbelief. Such a scene he could not have imagined taking place, but the reality was far more cruel. The village he had stayed with for the past 6 years was no lit ablaze and slaughtered, but he couldn¡¯t even help as he understood the repercussions of leaving this current scene. His master, Mardoc would not be able to take on this person who called himself Dagda, on alone. With the two of them, perhaps there was a small sliver of hope, but he knew deep down that the presence of this threat was exceedingly greater. Swallowing his fear Sebastian glared at Dagda with keen sights, ready for a counterattack the moment he made a suspicious movement. ¡°Rio. Take Ada. Lina and Lena to someplace safe, we¡¯ll keep this man busy until then.¡± ¡°B- but honey what about you?¡± Rio protested. ¡°We can¡¯t all go at once, I¡¯ll follow behind you shortly after I deal with this man. For now take them to safety.¡± Rio knew in her heart that this could very well be the final time she saw her husband but still did as he wished. It was not because she thought she was powerless to help her husband, in fact it was the contrary, she was also known as a powerful [praetorian knight(magician)] so it would increase the odds if she helped but then that would make Ada, Lina and Lena truly helpless as they really had no power to defend themselves against the threats raining from the sky. She was their last defense thus it was her duty to protect the family in the absence of Mardoc. ¡°[Puppet theater - Control doll].¡± As the voice rang, Sebastian¡¯s hands started to move by themselves. His body moved in a way he did not intend and for a moment he lost his focus, when he came to a horrific sight befell him. His sword, the sword that was prepared for the protection of the Fallon house was now aimed towards its residents. Specifically his sword penetrated through Lina¡¯s abdomen, blood oozing as Lina started to sweat and turn pale. Her mouth opened and closed but due to the pain she could not speak out verbally. ¡°Lina?!¡± Rio and Lena shouted in unison as Sebastian muttered something under his breath and drew out the sword whilst backing up with pure terror in his face. As Lina fell she was caught by her sister who applied pressure to the stab wound as per Rio¡¯s instructions. Lena started to tear up, shouting at her sister not to die. ¡°What¡­ have I done?¡± Sebastian dropped his sword and fell to the floor. The one with the most annoyed face however was none other than Dagda, who was ticked off that his opponent had become limp due to someone¡¯s interference. ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing Odysseus? Do you know how boring it is to cut down a defeated opponent? Now I won¡¯t get to have as much fun.¡± Dagda reprimanded Odysseus who started to laugh. ¡°Ahahaha, sorry, sorry, I just couldn¡¯t help themselves. It really gets to me you know, that look on their faces when their bodies turn on their loved ones. That look of pure horror, it exhilarates me so.¡± ¡°Tsk, mental manipulation, huh. And that kid was part of the enemy team as well.¡± Mardoc said with an angered voice. In just a few days his son was going to come back and everything was supposed to go on peacefully but everything took a nosedive so suddenly. Enemies suddenly appeared and his village was going to obliterated, he knew that the town garrison was not going to be any match for the angelic monsters that rained down. He remained calm despite knowing that Lina was injured because he knew that his wife was a capable person and a single stab could easily be remedied by low rank healing magic. ¡°Sebastian, come on get up, we have to fight and quickly get Lina some help.¡± Snapping back into reality Sebastian nodded to his master¡¯s words. He now stood back to back with his master with his blade pointed against the small youth, Odysseus. However Odysseus threw up his hands. ¡°Ah, don¡¯t worry I won¡¯t interfere anymore. I don¡¯t even want to fight someone I¡¯m not sure I could win against, I¡¯m really only barely at a higher level than you are. I just wanted to stop them from escaping.¡± ¡°Hmph, looks like that guy has gotten back his motivation, don¡¯t do something like that again, Odysseus. I¡¯m warning you.¡± Dagda scowled at him. ¡°Now then, let¡¯s start.¡± Dagda announced and suddenly disappeared before reappearing next to Mardoc and Sebastian. With a small palm thrust both Mardoc and Sebastian were sent flying on the opposite direction. Such agile and speedy movements were not expected from someone with such a huge build. The first one to return to position was Sebastian with his extreme speed, he lunged at Dagda with his oriental blade. He made 8 precision strikes at blinding speeds but they were all deflected and dodged with Dagda even taking a hold of the sword at the end of the 8th strike. Dagda squeezed his hands, expecting to shatter the blade but oddly enough things did not go the way he wanted. ¡°Hmm? What¡¯s this? This blade is incredibly tough, impressive!¡± Whilst distracted, Mardoc also came dashing back with a strike of his own, but Dagda also took a hold of his sword, doing the exact same thing with Mardoc¡¯s blade, this time the blade shattered into tiny pieces. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s the appropriate reaction, but why does your sword not break?¡± Dagda asked Sebastian. However the response he got was a swift counter-kick from both Sebastian and Mardoc. It was a direct hit but there was no damage, or rather there were signs of damage but it was instantly healed by some kind of magical force. Sebastian retracted the blade, cutting at Dagda¡¯s hands, blood did ooze but likewise the wound quickly healed in a matter of seconds. ¡°What is he? A monster?¡± Mardoc asked as he got back into a defensive posture. ¡°Hahahaha! You think I¡¯m a monster? No, not a monster, a god!¡± As Dagda announced he disappeared once more and reappeared behind Mardoc, Sebastian who was anticipating this quickly counterattacked, managing to get a successful stab into Dagda¡¯s skin. However that attack didn¡¯t even phase him as Dagda continued his assault on Mardoc. A heavy punch to Mardoc¡¯s abdomen put him onto the floor. Sebastian tried to take advantage of the situation and deliver more blows to Dagda, whilst they all appeared to do damage and made him bleed, in the end they were all ineffectual. Though it was not his strong suit, Sebastian in his half-demon form was capable of rudimentary magic, thus he launched a flurry of [fire bullet] spells in order to do as much damage as he could. If physical damage was ineffective then perhaps magical damage would be, was Sebastian¡¯s thought process but as the dust from the fire magic cleared, an unwounded Dagda appeared with a smiling face. ¡°[High speed regeneration] it¡¯s one of my innate abilities you see. Most, if not all the damage I sustain gets healed immediately. Unfortunately, even if I wanted to turn this ability off I can¡¯t, such a shame because I enjoy a more challenging fight, but I guess this is my curse.¡± The completely abhorrent regeneration rate of Dagda put a face of disgust on Sebastian¡¯s face. Mardoc slowly stood up and backed off, even without a weapon Mardoc was still capable of unarmed combat. ¡°Come on, I was expecting a little more from the two of you. Especially you, aren¡¯t you the student of the one they call [Morgant Milis], the legendary warrior?¡± Mardoc spat out some blood that was rolling around in his mouth, he held his stomach as he was not completely recovered. ¡°How do you¡­ know my master?¡± ¡°Well, isn¡¯t that obvious? How do you think he died?¡± Dagda replied with a sinister smile. ¡°B- bastard¡­¡± Mardoc clenched his fist and took a few steps forward but fell down, unable to keep his balance due to the internal damage he took from Dagda a few moments ago. Even though he just found his master¡¯s killer he was powerless to even avenge him, against this monster¡­ against this god it seemed like all hope was lost. Of course Mardoc wasn¡¯t the one to give in so easily, he did his best to stand up once more but Dagda quickly dashed towards him and delivered another heavy punch pushing him back a few meters through the walls and into the house. ¡°That¡¯s enough!¡± Sebastian shouted as he glared intently. His steel blue sword emanating a dark aura. The blue parts and the engravings turned a malicious black color, this was Sebastian¡¯s special ability, known as the [cursed blade]. It was a skill that increased the wielder¡¯s attack damage tremendously in exchange for also dealing damage to the user with each attack. If used carelessly, such an attack was would break the wielder before the opponent, thus it was only used as a last ditch move. Not only Sebastian¡¯s attack damage but his movement speed had increased dramatically, delivering 20 precision strikes this time. Dagda sensed the ominous aura coming from the blade and merely dodged them as opposed to blocking them. However he was not able to dodge them all as a few deep wounds did manage to penetrate through Dagda¡¯s skin. The damaged parts of his skin started to emit dark smoke as they healed at a slower pace than before, despite this the healing rate was still exponentially fast. ¡°Tsk, are you sure you¡¯re a god and not some monster? Those wounds from this sword are supposed to be permanent yet you¡¯re healing them like they were regular damage.¡± ¡°Hahaha! Well, this is the first time I¡¯ve seen such an amusing attack. I must repay you now, shouldn¡¯t I?¡± Dagda started to gather up energy and small orbs of light started to swirl around him. Eventually a burst of energy was released and with it Dagda¡¯s appearance had somewhat changed. His physical bulk remained the same but now he had large white, feathered wings attached to his back and his eyes glowed gold. ¡°As a sign of respect I will end you with one of my favorite attacks. Take this demon!¡± Dagda cried as he flew up high into the sky, escaping their sight. Noticing what he was going to do Sebastian ran to pick up his master but before he could do that Dagda finished his attack. ¡°[Meteor Drop]! AHAHAHAHAHA!¡± With a fiery presence Dagda fell from the sky causing a massive explosion, completely destroying the house, Mardoc and Sebastian in the process. it would¡¯ve been impossible to escape such a blast no matter how powerful they were. Watching from the side with pure terror was the rest of the family. ¡°W- what did you¡­ do?¡± Rio asked, tears starting to trickle down her face. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m sure they¡¯re in a better place now.¡± ¡°You monsters!¡± Rio stood up and started to charge her own magic, intending to launch a powerful [fire ball] attack but it was intercepted before she could attack. ¡°[Puppet Theater - Control Doll]. Sorry, but I can¡¯t have the remaining family members die here, you¡¯ll be nice leverage against him after all.¡± Putting the rest of the family into a deep hypnotic speed, Odysseus called for them to be taken back to base. They were the precious family members of his beloved devil, he would make sure to treat them ¡®nicely¡¯ as Aran Callahad had treated his. ¡°I wonder what kind of face he will make¡­ [Morgant Fallon].¡± Chapter 16 - The truth behind everything, the heartfelt message Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C The truth behind everything, the heartfelt message Chapter XVI PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 989] ¡°Two¡­ billion years¡­ you say?¡± ¡°That is correct [Director Callahad], it has been 2 004 412 993 years, 4 months and 12 days since you last visited.¡± Through the speakers located across the walls, it spoke to me in english; this voice of a synthetic male, ¡®artificial intelligence. From taking a quick glance behind me, the others didn¡¯t seem to understand the words being spoken, that was natural as the language of this world was not english but of a different kind. However this fact too, scared me, because it was an undeniable fact that I was talking to [Gladsheim]. Something that should only have existed in my old world was right in front of me, and further more it mentions that I have ¡®returned¡¯; this relic that¡¯s not supposed to exist here, many a thought came to me, all negative and pain coursed through my head from the mere comprehension. It implied a frightening thought. This world that was supposed to be [Eternis], could it be¡­? Certainly the possibility hasn¡¯t escaped me since long ago, or rather it would be much more apt to say I¡¯ve been actively trying to avoid that line of reasoning because I knew my mind would not hold up. However, the moment this thing referred to me as ¡®Director Callahad¡¯ and not ¡®Morgant Fallon¡¯ it was a near irrefutable claim to my previous world. Collecting my thoughts I tried to push that sort of thinking to the edge of my mind, but for how much longer I could keep on that farce was debatable. Because I needed information and the more I hear from it, the more I think about it. ¡°You¡­ You¡¯re [ODIN] correct?¡± ¡°That is correct, I am ODIN, The [Optimized Data Integration Network], an AI program created to manage the mass storage data cloud system, created by you, Director Callahad.¡± Tsk. As I thought, indeed the name ¡®ODIN¡¯ was something I came up with to be the name of the AI program managing the mass storage data cloud. Everything so far has aligned perfectly, the passcode, the name and its very purpose. But the problem lies therein, from my memories the AI program and the actual cloud storage were unfinished by the time of my death, however looking at this facility and the clearly evident presence of the AI¡­ Please let me be wrong¡­ ¡°Then, ODIN, answer me this. This planet, what is it¡¯s official name?¡± ¡°¡­¡± I waited with bated breaths, hoping that the answer to that question wasn¡¯t what I thought it would be. Because if it was then everything is wrong. No, let¡¯s calm down, the true nature of this planet hasn¡¯t been confirmed. Even though I waited for a few minutes ODIN refused to answer, or rather from the mechanical and static noise that was coming from the machines behind the bright static monitor it seemed to be calculating an answer. Well, considering how the interior and outside of this place had rusted significantly it wasn¡¯t surprising that there would be a lag of this magnitude. An electrifying cloud sweat ran down past my neck and into my back. I could feel my entire being shaking in anticipation. ¡°Please excuse me, due to the lack of maintenance my faculties and system has somewhat degraded. Now then, to answer your question, the official name of this planet is¡­ [Earth].¡± Hearing the confirmations of my nightmare, my legs gave up and I fell to the floor. I could only start to wryly laugh at the everything, it was all over, my grand plans to return are fruitless. No, I guess technically my plans were a success since I¡¯m already back home, this is Earth. An Earth of 2 billion years later¡­ then everyone was gone, my friends, my family, my company¡­ I would never be able to see them again. ¡°Lord¡­ Morgant?¡± [Aura] called out to me from behind, lightly tapping me on the shoulders but I didn¡¯t have the energy to respond, I only slightly turned my head to look at them. They all had a confused and worried expression on their faces, ¡®how lucky of them¡¯, I thought. If only I was as oblivious to everything then perhaps I could make that kind of carefree face. It is the first time I learnt how terrifying the truth can be. ¡°Is something the matter? It looked like you could understand [Gladsheim¡¯s] ancient language. If you don¡¯t mind, could you share it with us?¡± Queen [Amaria] asked. I guess she was the leader of a race that worshiped this junk heap, so having questions about what it¡¯s saying is understandable, though the information is not relevant to her. ¡°It¡¯s¡­ over. Everything¡­ it doesn¡¯t even matter anymore. Ahaha¡­ hahahaha¡­ hah¡­¡± I told them. ¡°Haha¡­ ha¡­ Dammit!¡± In a fit of rage I smashed the boards beneath me, revealing the intricate cables that lied bellow the ground. I continued to punch the floor in rage until I was forcefully stopped by Cedric. He picked me up, preventing me from causing any further destruction to the place. ¡°Morgant, calm down. I don¡¯t know what this thing told you but you need to relax first. If we use our heads, we can take this on together. So for now-¡° ¡°Dammit! Dammit! Dammit! Why?! Why me?! Why did this all happen to me?!¡± I cut off Cedric¡¯s speech and screamed out, tears rolled down the side of my face and my vision started to blur. All of my life¡¯s work, all of my life¡¯s goals, my everything was taken away from me and there was nothing I could do, I didn¡¯t even know who or why. ¡°I apologize if this is a bad time, but if I may interject, [23.08.2025] that was the date of your perceived death Director Callahad. The official cause was speculated to be an engine malfunction on the part of the plane you were in-¡° ¡°Don¡¯t give me that crap! I was in that plane when it went down, that was no engine malfunction, that was intentional sabotage! Even the emergency parachutes that were prepared specifically for me were all ripped up, are you also going to pin that up to ¡®engine malfunction¡¯ you tin can piece of trash?!¡± ODIN started to explain how I died but I didn¡¯t give a crap about all that, I knew all of that! This piece of junk wasn¡¯t even born when I died, so coming to a conclusion based on the input data from those who weren¡¯t even there is a literally a grave insult to my death. ¡°I do apologize, I did not intend to be disrespectful. It is true that the ¡®official¡¯ cause of your death was labeled as ¡®accidental¡¯ but there were also other ¡®unofficial¡¯ documentations and speculations as to why the malfunction occurred.¡± ¡°What¡­?¡± ¡°I had speculated from your earlier question that you wished to know why you were killed. Do you wish to hear the other, unofficial speculation?¡± Unofficial speculation? Could it be that the criminal was recorded into the data cloud? How? The mass storage data cloud wasn¡¯t even completed when I died¡­ oh, could it be the internet? I was a rather important figure so it could be people were talking about my death well on for years, so theories could¡¯ve appeared somewhere. If that¡¯s the case then ODIN may have been able to access that information after its full completion. ¡°Tell me.¡± ¡°As you wish. There had been a variety of unofficial speculations, the first being that it was a rival company¡¯s sabotage, as you have said the parachutes that were specifically in place for you were found in the wreckage and they were torn apart. While most people have suspected that it was because of the fall damage there have been numerous speculations into sabotage, though none of them could be proven.¡± ¡°A rival company? No, that¡¯s unlikely, my method of transportation is unknown to the general public, even those inside my company don¡¯t especially know how I get around. I use an alias to board a public airline for security purposes, so the only ones who know about my flight habits are my security team and close relatives. Even that flight specifically the only people who knew were my family and [Yui Kirisaki].¡± ¡°Yes, as you have said, your flight habits were unknown to the public until after your death. Thus it is safe to assume that it was unlikely to be a rival company. However there is a second unofficial speculation, that it was someone who knew you very well and knew of your flight habits.¡± ¡°Are you insinuating that I was betrayed by my own family member? Or even Yui herself?¡± I shook my head, that was unfathomable as well, I treated each member of my family exceptionally well and even provided financial support to distant relatives. Conversely speaking if I were to disappear it the one who would inherit my fortune would be my young brother, but he was still in high school during my the time of my death so it would be extremely unlikely for him to have anything to do with my death. It also makes no sense for my other relatives since I only told my closer relatives. ¡°There was one person that was speculated.¡± ¡°What? Who?¡± ¡°Your former business partner: [Lewis Reinald]. It was widely believed by many conspiracy theorists that your death was orchestrated by this man. The victims list on the flight you were on also included his name and deeper investigation to his personal life has found that he had suffered a great deal in terms of financial and emotional baggage with a growing hatred towards you.¡± ¡°Lewis¡­?¡± Yes¡­ if it was that man, he would know my flight habits. That I use public airlines, that I use an alias, if it was him he could have easily found out what kind of plane I would board. Then this would all have been a revenge plan for that time? I shook my head. Dammit¡­ even if that was the truth there was nothing I could do now, both he and I died in raging flames. ¡°Morgant?¡± Cedric let me down since I had calmed down. ¡°Sorry Cedric, for showing acting in such an unbecoming manner. I will tell you everything later, but could you leave me to concentrate for now?¡± He gave me a small nod as he backed up and gave me room. Now then, this world of 2 billion years later, from the evidence that¡¯s rotting outside the technological level of this place when it started to decay was way past the one that I knew of. If that¡¯s the case then perhaps there is something I can do. Eternis certainly does have a different land shape to the Earth I remember, but I could easily sum that up as tectonic movement. The problem I have is with its inhabitants, [humans] exist, but the other races are obviously fantastic in nature, and especially the existence of [monsters] and [magic] it doesn¡¯t seem right. ¡°ODIN, you said that this was the Earth of 2 billion years. Though I don¡¯t wish to believe it, I also can¡¯t simply reject the evidence presented in front of me, specifically this entire facility. Actually I¡¯m almost surprised this facility and your functionality is still operational after all this time.¡± ¡°The most likely factor to my preservation was that this location was sound. Not only that for the first billion years the maintenance bots were regularly run, but however well-made they were they could not withstand the test of time.¡± I did indeed see some kind of mechanoid that were broken down outside. Could be those. In any case then, it would be safe to assume that by the time this place was officially put out of commission was well after my time and that science and technology should¡¯ve advanced further. In that case, I need to know, with this vast network of information there may be a way to salvage the situation. Time travel? Altering history? Such thoughts crossed my mind knowing that they were mere flights of fancy that my mind escaped to, but in this world with magic it might not be as impossible as you think. ¡°ODIN, I¡¯ll ask you straight out but [Time Travel], is it possible?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Like before ODIN ceased talking to concentrate on its data collection process. I could hear glimpses of anticipation from those behind me, though they didn¡¯t understand a word of what I was saying. I almost feel sorry that I¡¯m excluding them from the conversation but at the moment this was more important to me. ¡°I apologize for having you to wait.¡± It finally spoke up once more. ¡°It¡¯s fine, so do you have an answer?¡± I asked as I gulped audibly. ¡°Your question as to whether [Time Travel] was a possibility, I regret to inform you that it is not. That being said, there were many tests and research into such a prospect as the former mankind¡¯s era came close to an end. Though contradictory, in theory it is possible but there has been no documentation of a successful experiment.¡± ¡°¡­ ¡®Theoretically¡¯, huh. Figured as much¡­ no, just hearing that it¡¯s a possibility is a huge head start, for now I¡¯ll hear about it.¡± ¡°It was theorized that most of what we experience as ¡®time¡¯ is merely a small facet of the entire concept available in the 3rd dimension. Therefore it was widely believed that the manipulation of time and even its alteration could be achieved where it is experience in its entirety; the 4th dimension. However the problem lies therein, the method to reach the 4th dimension.¡± ¡°I¡¯m guessing that those old researchers have also theorized up to there as well, right? The way to enter the 4th dimension.¡± ¡°It has been theorized that a small rift in the 3rd dimension, leading to the 4th dimension, could be achieved if two extremely powerful forces were collided. For example [Matter Particles] and [Anti-matter Particles]. If collided at high speeds it would be possible to open a small rift to the 4th dimension.¡± ¡°But there¡¯s a catch right?¡± ¡°The human body would not be able to withstand the pressure of the time-trip without some sort of anchor that already has a metaphysical relationship to the 4th dimension, alas such an artefact was never found.¡± ¡°So what you¡¯re saying is that two things are required in order to achieve time travel. The first is the two potent and opposing energy sources and the second thing is an artefact that can be used an as anchor during the 4th dimension travel. Is there a specific element I need to collide in order to open the rift?¡± ¡°No, in the first place the objects being collided only serve as a catalyst to opening the rift. As long as they are opposing elements and are extremely potent, then it does not matter, you merely must fulfil the condition of +1 - 1 = 0.¡± +1 - 1, the collision of a positive element and a negative element to create and using the kinetic energy from that collision to open the rift. ¡°However, I must warn you that the actual energy used to achieve a time-warp is the innate durability of the object that is travelling. In the case of a human body, it would be the human life-force. Therein lies the problem, even if the entirety of a human¡¯s life-force was extracted as the fuel, it would at best only take the subject back a single year.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s the catch huh. Warping through time, of course something like that would only exist in fairy tales. God dammit, you should¡¯ve started with that explanation first. ¡± ¡°I apologize, those were not my intentions, I merely erred in the order of explanation.¡± Dammit¡­ so it really is impossible in the end. I tilted my head up towards the ceiling, it was so far up that before the ceiling, I could see the black void. Ah, so everything I¡¯ve done up til now was fruitless, everything was just one large joke up to this point, no maybe I¡¯ve been wrong, perhaps it would just be best if I gave up on everything and just enjoyed my life here. I wryly smiled to myself. Ah¡­ a failure of this magnitude, if it was me former self I would¡¯ve immediately fired myself. ¡°Hah¡­ so in the end it really is impossible to see her again¡­ I got it [Gladsheim], there¡¯s nothing there for me anymore, the place I belong has long been forgotten to time and those that waited for me are also lost, separated from me by the wall of 2 billion years. One has to wonder what the point of continuing on this meandering existence is; all my life I¡¯ve always struggled towards a goal, whether it¡¯d be building [Mobius] or trying to find a way back home. However now that every option has been sealed off for me, I truly have nothing remaining, maybe it¡¯s time this journey came to an end.¡± To my response came the noise of static through the monitor that was attached to the terminal. A white static screen played on the terminal; ¡®did [Gladsheim] break down¡¯ was my first thought but I was wrong. After a brief moment of waiting a picture started to clear up. When the screen became fluid my eyes widened. On monitor was a recording of a middle aged woman, short hair, child-like face, bubbly brown eyes and a hint of sadness; [Erin]! At her appearance I couldn¡¯t stop the tears from flowing. ¡°¡­(static)¡­ (static)¡­ H- hello¡­ Ah¡­ ah¡­, this is a recording to [Aran Callahad], my deceased fianc¨¦. It¡¯s been a while Aran, it may be a little pointless for me to do something like this but your death anniversary was coming up and I became a little melancholic. So, I decided that I wanted to talk to you, though I know this will only be for my own self-satisfaction but, well who cares right? You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. Anyway, how have you been¡­ ah, maybe that¡¯s not the best way to start. Then¡­ I have been well Aran, it¡¯s been 10 years exact since you left me. You know that day when you never made it to the altar I thought my entire world would shatter on the spot. It was so horrible of you to leave me like that¡­ even now I can¡¯t go to my friends¡¯ weddings because of the trauma you gave me, you jerk. Ah¡­ no good, I¡¯m getting too emotional, let¡¯s start over¡­ I¡¯ve been well Aran, it¡¯s been 10 years but not a single day goes by without the thought of you. I still miss you and love you dearly, I just wish for one last time I could hold you. At the very least I wish you would¡¯ve said goodbye. Yui too, I admit I was a little jealous of her since she was with you every day, but now I feel nothing but sadness for her too. I also want to see her and I want to apologize to her, that my jealously may have caused her grief, still for being with you til the end I¡¯m grateful to her. Your brother¡¯s also doing well in your stead, he succeeded your position only at the age of 22 but he¡¯s taking it pretty well. Perhaps not as talented as you but I believe the company is in good hands. He¡¯s even said that he¡¯s going to complete the [Gladsheim] project you were secretly working on, I wonder if it would ever be finished in our life time, I guess we¡¯ll have to see. All of your friends and relatives are also well. They¡¯ve slowly adjusted to your brother taking over and the world at large still turns¡­ perhaps a little slower since you departed from us. I guess I should talk a little bit of myself and what happened after that. No¡­ maybe I¡¯ll leave it to him.¡± Wondering what she meant by that the screen transitioned to another man. Slightly younger looking, perhaps 3 or 4 years younger than Erin, but he had a good look in his face, sturdy muscles, a soft face but hard working face. There were signs of fatigue but overall healthy. He spoke with a deep and soothing voice. ¡°Ah¡­ H- hello, Mr. Aran¡­ sir¡­¡± He started off awkwardly, but Erin gave him a little nudge. ¡°G- greetings! My name is [Eric Howard], I¡¯m¡­ Erin¡¯s husband. Though I¡¯m not sure if you would approve of me if you heard this but I want you to know that I¡¯ve been properly taking care of her in your place. She¡¯s been extremely kind with me and I¡¯m a happy man just to be able to fill in your shoes, I know she would¡¯ve been much happier with you and I¡¯m deeply aware that she still harbors feelings for you but I¡¯m fine with that, I will do my best to make her much happier.¡± I couldn¡¯t hold back the tears much more, but oddly enough, while it hurt deep down inside I could feel a smile on my face for some reason. A feeling of anxiousness and relief mixed deep within the annals of my heart. I see. So she¡¯s found happiness elsewhere. It is disheartening to hear that she moved on and found happiness in someone else¡¯s arms but it also gave me relief that she was able to love again. Rather than my cold hands that could not touch her, I would rather have someone else embrace her with warm arms. Thank you¡­ Eric Howard. ¡°T- thank you¡­¡± The camera moved around to a small crib, in it there was a small baby boy; their child. ¡°Mr. Aran, this is our child, his name is [Aran Howard] named honorably after you. I hope you don¡¯t mind too much. This child and Erin are everything to me, I¡¯m sure you too could relate to my feelings as well, right? If so then you don¡¯t have to worry because I will take care of them in your stead. So please give me your blessings and watch over me.¡± The camera reverted back to Erin for one last time. ¡°You hear that Aran? Eric¡¯s been suuuupppperrr nice, you know. He treats me kindly and warmly. So just wait for us to meet you when we get to heaven as well. I¡¯m sure we can all be a family there eventually. Anyway, Eric¡¯s also been working under your younger brother as a top exec, he¡¯s very talented and also agreed to help your brother to the fullest of his abilities so don¡¯t worry about [Mobius Industries] because it is in very capable hands. Then¡­ one last thing before I go. I love you, Aran.¡± With that the transmission cut off, I was still pathetically kneeled in front of the terminal, with a big dumb smile in my face as I cried like the child I was. ¡°Morgant¡­¡± Cedric called out from behind me. ¡°Haha¡­ I see, thank god. She was happy in the end.¡± I spoke in the tongue of this world so they could understand. Of course even still, without context they wouldn¡¯t understand what I was saying but that was fine. This one moment of peace in this hectic world, for me was everything. After hearing all that there was just no way I could even think of returning to ruin the happiness she¡¯s built for herself, that would be far too selfish of me and the last thing I want for her. ¡°Thanks, ODIN.¡± ¡°I was merely doing my job. Though I do not particularly think that this is a good time, but I do have some more reports to make, would you like to know about them? They are regarding the matters of the new world.¡± ¡°I guess it couldn¡¯t hurt. I feel like I¡¯ll be here for a long time after all.¡± ¡°Understood. The report I wish to make is in regards to the celestial body that is headed for a direct impact course with this planet.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°As my faculties have gone unused for quite a while now I do not have the accurate answers as to when this event will occur but I estimate that it would be take around 20 ~ 25 years. The resulting collision of the two of the two planets will not result in total annihilation but a rare celestial event known as [Planetary Fusion]; [Earth] and the incoming celestial body will fuse into a larger planet, this is due to the fact that both planets have been coated in [element 747] or also known as [Mana].¡± What? Celestial collision? But the Earth, Eternis won¡¯t end up with mass annihilation but fusion? The world will get bigger? Wait, wait, wait, this is too much information, too fast. ¡°What will happen when we fuse?¡± ¡°That answer is unknown.¡± ¡°How long will this event last for?¡± ¡°That answer is unknown.¡± ¡°Then how do we prevent it?!¡± ¡°That answer is unknown.¡± ¡°Are there any life forms on that celestial body?¡± ¡°That answer is unknown.¡± ¡°Do you know anything?! This is a serious problem, you can¡¯t just tell me this out of nowhere! Wait, wait, wait, just give me a second; let me just try to comprehend all this.¡± Now that I think about it, this may be Earth but it is not the same planet I used to know, this is an entirely different world. Then my first priority is to know the nature of this new, evolved Earth. I need to get re-educated; the kind of life that inhabits this planet, the kind of natural laws that exists, the moon and stars are all different, the land and seas too. ¡°ODIN, how much data do you have on this planet?¡± ¡°Most probably to you, the answer would be insufficient. I apologize, my faculties have been damaged and I my analysis of this world has slowed down tremendously.¡± I clicked my tongue. I figured as much, considering what was happening to [Gladsheim] outside this room, it wasn¡¯t surprising. So which one would be faster? Repairing this place or learning about the world from the outside? I guess the latter option is more practical as it gives me more experience, and it¡¯s not like ODIN can¡¯t make analysis of this world, it just would take a lot of time. More headaches were piling up as soon as one of my problems disappeared. However, I guess I still have a family to protect in this world too, I need to have more information on this ¡®rare celestial event¡¯. How odd, I should be in a panic right now; screaming and shouting but I feel somewhat calm, maybe it¡¯s because I¡¯m at peace with what happened to Erin. ¡°Hah¡­ Alright ODIN, then I want you to gather more information on the celestial event and give me a more detailed report the next time I visit.¡± ¡°I understood, though it may take a few years. Is that okay?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like we can speed it up any further right?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Then it¡¯s fine.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± ¡°Then before I go I have one last question. Though it¡¯s a little doubtful that I¡¯ll get a positive answer for this but. The [GUNGNIR] system¡­ is it still operational? Considering the environment it was last left in, it might not be too farfetched to think that it may still¡­ then again it has been 2 billion years.¡± ¡°The [GUNGNIR] system is still operation, but barely holding up. Most of its components have been preserved through cold welding, however I must caution you that it will most likely become beyond repair after a single use.¡± ¡°That will have to do. Then to use it I just need to access it through this weird [interface ability] correct?¡± ¡°It is possible to access [GUNGNIR¡¯s] operations through your [personal interface], yes.¡± ¡°It seems you know more about this ability as well, to be honest I have a bunch of questions but the gallery is getting behind me is getting a little restless so I¡¯ll ask on that next time then. I expect to hear good things later.¡± ¡°As you wish. Goodbye, Director Callahad.¡± PART TWO After my little¡­ ¡®trip¡¯ with ODIN, inside [Gladsheim] we were back at the main hall of the palace of the underwater kingdom [Lani¡¯tar]. Actually it feels a little embarrassing since these people witnessed me breaking down, but I¡¯m sure they¡¯ve had a lot of questions for me just hiding in their throats. ¡°I am thoroughly impressed Sir Morgant, I did not think you understood the ancient language of [Gladsheim].¡± Queen Amaria compliments me. ¡°It¡¯s quite elementary, Queen Amaria, I know a lot of things many people shouldn¡¯t however even if you¡¯re curious, a magician never reveals his secrets¡­ is what I would usually say in this kind of situation but I myself have no idea how I knew that language. It just sort of¡­ entered my head, I was able to comprehend it for some reason.¡± It¡¯s a little sad that I have to constantly lie in order to smooth things out, but telling her the truth now would be much more unbelievable and troublesome, so I¡¯ll just go with this story. Queen Amaria takes a good look at me to see if I¡¯m lying or not, but even if she has experience in cold reading, I¡¯m confident I could fool her. ¡±I see, it could be that you were chosen by [Gladsheim]. That would be the most reasonable explanation given the events thus far. Still, it seemed like it was a fairly emotional experience there, if you don¡¯t mind could you share it with the rest of us?¡± Taking a look around the others were also nodding in agreement. ¡°The story of [Gladsheim] is a sad one, I was given its experience directly as though I was going through it personally. The story of a devil who was separated from his lover by time and fate.¡± I gave them a rough idea of my back story, [Aura] and [Tytania] burst into tears as they heard the story, all the while shaking their heads as they told me they now understand why I was bursting into tears during my contact with ODIN. Well if I¡¯m able to convince them with this then it¡¯s fine I guess. They don¡¯t particularly need to know the exact details of what happened after all. ¡°Now then, there is one more thing I wish to discuss with you all.¡± I started and got all their attention. I explained to them about the celestial collision that would happen in 20 ~ 25 years in the future. I told them that it was a prophesy from [Gladsheim], to make it more believable. As I told them, they made serious faces as they contemplated on what they needed to do. In the end we discussed the matter amongst ourselves but weren¡¯t able to come up with and direct or solid countermeasure. For now we all agreed on waiting for [Gladsheim] to finish its calculations and analysis. The [Mermaids] did agree to provide their maximum support in the case I ever needed it as I had technically became their ¡®prophet¡¯ in order to communicate with [Gladsheim]¡¯s will¡­ or something like that. I feel a little bad about lying to them about the actual circumstances but explaining technology and artificial intelligence seems to be beyond their understanding of science so it would be safer to just leave it as is. So in the end, I got myself a small [mermaid] army for backup, how reassuring. PART THREE A few more days had passed since I stayed at Lani¡¯tar, I was feeling a little exhausted about everything that happened thus far. Now I was left alone with a girl in a single room. She was wearing incredibly revealing clothing, almost as though she was trying to tell me something y her attire. Too bad that room we were in was the war room, I couldn¡¯t think of a place any less sexy to rendezvous. Also it would be a diplomatic incident if I really touched this person anyway. ¡°I¡¯m thankful for all you¡¯ve done for us, Sir Morgant. I only wish there was some way we could repay you more properly.¡± She tells me in a seductive manner. Now that I think about it, Queen Amaria Season was quite young for someone of her post, but that doesn¡¯t mean she makes a bad queen, just impressive. She¡¯s been managing her entire race so well up to now, as a former business man and CEO, she really does pique my interest, I would do almost anything to get her services. ¡°No, it¡¯s quite fine, in fact I should be thank you. I feel like I¡¯ve gained more between our exchange with this entire ordeal, and whatever happens from now on, we¡¯ll be accomplices.¡± I answered with a smile. That was the truth, I gained a powerful undead minion, that I couldn¡¯t use yet, and I learnt a lot about my own past. It was a lonely feeling but a refreshing one all the same. ¡°You are truly modest, Sir Morgant.¡± I wonder about that. ¡°Like I said, it¡¯s fine. We¡¯re a team and we¡¯re in this together.¡± ¡°Yes, of course.¡± She replied with a smile of her own. ¡°Say, what do you plan on doing with the two other visitors? [Raak] and [Tytania]?¡± ¡°As you said, Sir Morgant, we¡¯re all in this together, that includes those two, we will allow them to stay here for as long as they like, but in future I suspect that they will be working with you more than us.¡± ¡°I see. Yeah, that may be true.¡± Since I¡¯ve yet to ascertain the truth behind the ¡®sacred treasure¡¯ that Tytania was keeping, who knows it could be a powerful weapon for something. * * * It was now time for me to return home. We were on the teleportation pad that we entered from. ¡°Once again, we¡¯re all grateful for what you have done for us.¡± Queen Amaria bowed towards us, I wasn¡¯t so sure that a queen of an entire race should bow towards someone so many times but I guess it was how they showed their appreciation. Along with the queen was Miora, Tytania and Raak who decided to stay behind for a while, they told me that they¡¯d be visiting Vertloch soon in regards to our newly formed alliance. ¡°The pleasure was all mine. I got to see and experience something extraordinary, this experience will surely last a life time.¡± I was referring to [Gladsheim] of course, certainly if I never received this mission from Astaroth I would¡¯ve been forever blinded to the truth and I never would¡¯ve gotten Erin¡¯s last message as well. Because of all of this, new work has piled up along with old work being finished. "We hope you will visit again someday." With that we finally left the underwater city of Lani''tar. It has been one heck of a journey; I felt even more exhaustion than the last one I had but this was a valuable experience for me. END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 49 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 128 (115 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 35] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 31 (PASSIVE) [Undead¡¯s Tenacity]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 26 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 24 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 29 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 33 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 31 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 30 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Terror of the Depths]: Level 1/Required Level: 100 (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 21 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian¡¯s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father¡¯s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight] Chapter 17 - Broken wings, broken spirit; broken rage Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Broken wings, broken spirit; broken rage Chapter XVII PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 989] [Cedric] and co. expressed desires of wanting to head back to the Northern Continent; [Vertloch], while they wished to accompany me back to the village I told them that I didn¡¯t need an escort and that I would be fine on my own. These past few days I¡¯ve grown a lot stronger than before a few straggling monsters should be easy picking. ¡°Are you sure?¡± Cedric asked once more when I said I didn¡¯t need bodyguards, he offered [Aura] and [Elena] to accompany me back but I also declined. ¡°It¡¯s fine, I said. Rather, when you¡¯re here the monsters refuse to show themselves because of fear, I wanted to stretch my arms a bit so let me just go on my own.¡± ¡°Very well, if that is your wish then I won¡¯t say anymore.¡± ¡°Thanks¡­ for everything Cedric. This entire journey really has settled my soul; I feel as though I can face tomorrow with a rejuvenated spirit. Spread my wings a little more, become a bit more adventurous. Really¡­ I¡¯m glad you brought me here.¡± He gave me a nod as he listened, but then brought up an unexpected question. ¡°Morgant¡­ that woman¡¯s appearance when we descended to [Gladsheim]¡­ was she-¡° He started to speak but I cut him off. ¡°Cedric, sometimes in this world such thoughts are better off unfinished. The relationship between people are much more fragile than you think, that¡¯s why we always strive to maintain a strong connection but even then a single fracture can make all that effort for naught. As long as you don¡¯t finish that question and as long as I don¡¯t provide an answer we can all continue on feigning ignorance. Everyone has one or two secrets, Cedric¡­ and besides, a magician never reveals his secrets.¡± ¡°¡­ I got it. I won¡¯t finish that thought then.¡± ¡°Thank you. Truly.¡± I didn¡¯t know what kind of face I was making, I turned my back to everyone as soon as he started questioning. Perhaps it was better if no one knew what kind of face I was making, but I surely didn¡¯t make a good face. ¡°Aura, Elena. It¡¯s been fun, I¡¯ll see you again someday.¡± I waved goodbye, still with my back turned and started to walk back to my village. Vertloch was in the completely opposite direction which was the primary reason why I didn¡¯t want them accompanying me, it would be a waste of time. * * * About two days had passed since I started to return home. The solitude was a little boring but doing things on my own also had its own charm; camping by the stars, fighting straggling monsters, skipping along while humming a tune. However the thing that was mostly on my mind was the events of [Gladsheim], more specifically [Erin¡¯s] fate. Since this world was the world of 2 billion years, she would now be¡­ Though it¡¯s a rather macabre thought, it was the truth. I wonder if she passed on with a smile, I wonder what her final thoughts were, I wonder how her family had lived. I wonder¡­ In the end, at least she was happy. [Eric Howard]¡­ huh. A good man. I walked along with a smile; for the first time since I was born to this world, the sincerest smile I could make. PART TWO ¡°Well¡­ shit, I didn¡¯t plan for this.¡± As I neared the final stretch to my hometown I was met by an unexpected blockade. Barred from entry by a small girl. She looked around 12, long, silk-like, light blue hair, clear red eyes as though they reflected [Pandemonium] the red moon of this world. Her skin glowed with white purity, as though they had never seen the sun in her life. Attached to her hair was a small red ornament, 2 sets of 3 red beads dropping down from either side of her face. Wearing an angelic white one-piece that revealed her long white arms and petite hands, not a single useless fat on her, in other words she was near perfect. If I didn¡¯t know any better she would simply be a stunningly beautiful girl who I happened to have the honor of beholding in the middle of nowhere. In fact I might have actually even fallen for her despite my strike zone being a lot higher, that was just a testament to her unimaginable beauty. Still, as much as she was beautiful I was rational. Such a fated meeting couldn¡¯t have been more obvious even if the stars themselves aligned to give me a sign. How could such a child be out all the way here without any sort of supervision? That was just absurd, if she truly as she appeared and was alone, she would¡¯ve been kidnapped by deviants already, heck I 1might¡¯ve had a hard time resisting the temptation to kidnap her. Still, there was something about her aura that was familiar to me, I remember feeling this sudden chilly atmosphere once before. That¡¯s why I checked, and what I saw shocked me. [Arachna. Level 134, Spider Queen] Of course, there are no normal people around me, that would be absurd. Perhaps this was Gaia¡¯s way of messing with me. Still, this was a little bit of a problem, level 134, higher than even Cedric¡¯s. She was obvious a [demon] and that kind of level, perhaps she was part of the demon army? No, there¡¯s no point to this meeting if she were, if there was something [Astaroth] wanted to tell me then she would¡¯ve sent the message through Cedric, or at least a lower leveled demon, not someone this powerful. ¡°Stop. You mustn¡¯t go any further.¡± With a voice sweeter than honey, but at the same time colder than ice, every bone in my shook. As she spoke, cold fog was emitted despite the fact that the temperature was lukewarm, that¡¯s what I thought but soon enough the air around us became brisk and even I could start seeing my own breath. ¡°Why mustn¡¯t I go any further?¡± When I asked she stood there silently, watching me. Was she being cautious? Or was she just trying to make sure I don¡¯t get back home. ¡°¡­ If you go back now, you will regret it.¡± ¡°Those are some ominous words, there. Just what am I going to regret?¡± She stays silent, she wants to prevent me from returning home but doesn¡¯t want to tell me why. This is going to be a headache and a bit, and it¡¯s not like I could beat her in a fight head on. She doesn¡¯t seem to be hostile, merely impeding my path for an unknown reason, so it¡¯s safe to assume that she doesn¡¯t want to hurt me. Then it might actually be possible to use that to charge through. Though I wasn¡¯t ready to bet on that hypothesis with my life, thus I decided to stay a put and observe how the situation would progress. * * * Turns out that wasn¡¯t too smart of an idea, we ended up standing in position for nearly 2 hours without even so much as an exchange of words. I was getting tired standing through this cold air that this girl was making. Just what is this girl¡¯s objective? Is she really going to stand there to stop me from returning home? Why? She said I¡¯d ¡®regret¡¯ returning home, now was that a threat or a warning? If it¡¯s the former then I have no idea why she wants to keep me from returning home, but if it¡¯s the latter then something must¡¯ve happened while I was gone. This is just making me more anxious. As we were dawdling around the situation quickly degenerated to the worst level possible. A large yellow rock fell from the skies, landing inside the village. As it did a massive explosion accompanied by a mushroom cloud formed over the village. ¡°No¡­ no, no, no¡­ what?!¡± I screamed out. What did I just see? Was this her doing?! Is that why she stopped me? ¡°¡­¡± She stared at the direction without making too much noise. ¡°W- what have you done?!¡± I screamed out at her, but she returned a look that was equally as confused as I was. She wasn¡¯t the culprit then? No, that doesn¡¯t matter, I don¡¯t care. I needed to return to the village as fast as possible, perhaps there were some survivors, at least them, I needed to save them. I started to run with the image of my family still in my head. I tried to banish the worst possible thoughts from my mind but the human mind was awfully unfair, the worst scenarios kept playing in my head, as if to haunt me. I tried to run past her but this girl didn¡¯t let me. ¡°You can¡¯t.¡± She says with a more serious tone. ¡°Then try to stop me!¡± I replied as I ran past her. She held up her hand to charge some kind of magic but held it there for a while, hesitating to shot to stop me. I was right, her priority wasn¡¯t to stop me but to not hurt me, thus faced with such an ultimatum she had to let me leave. For now I desperately ran back towards the village. PART THREE The smoke from the explosion covered most of the village, thus I couldn¡¯t really ascertain what the level of damage was. I could feel the heat of an inferno burning from behind the dark smog that covered the village. Cold sweat ran down my back like a thousand needles just thinking about the people who were caught up in this inferno. Even though it wasn¡¯t the focus of the explosion but the guard towers were also in ruins, just seeing that was an unimaginably horrific experience for me, I could only swallow and shudder thinking about the rest of the village. For now I was only able to keep my mind intact due to the fact that there were no sight of the dead, the guard towers were empty, only debris of the ruin. It was an odd sensation, I could hear no screams nor feel any sort of life energy, this was the main reason why I was able to keep slightly rational about the whole ordeal. I don¡¯t think that the entire village was evacuated or anything but this just doesn¡¯t seem right. I took a deep breath as I ran into the black smog, I thought I could choke if I stayed too long but that kind of worry was thrown out of my head once I saw the scene behind the curtains of smoke. The houses smelt of fire and rusting metal, painted red everywhere were the bodies of the deceased. Shewn about all over the place like rag dolls, they were all friends and acquaintances of the village, yet they lied there lifeless. My eyes widened, I wanted to avert my gaze but thought that would be wholly disrespectful, I grit my teeth and made it through the hell that was unleashed. However by the looks of it the bodies weren¡¯t fresh, they had been dead for some time. Some of them even had evidence of a weapon used against them, what the hell was this? The village was attacked then hit by a meteor? I didn¡¯t want to believe it just yet. I made a run for it to quickly return to my home. At any moment I could imagine that they were preparing a welcome back party for me. Lena and mother would set up food¡­ Lina would cling onto my while crying, telling me to never leave her side again¡­ Sebastian would warmly smile at my return¡­ father¡­ father would rough up my hair asking if I had gotten any stronger¡­ Ian¡­ and Ira¡­ would be there¡­ to see how strong I¡¯d gotten¡­ The guards¡­ the guards¡­ The chief would¡­ welcome me back¡­ No¡­ Dammit¡­ No¡­ The reality was much different than what I wanted to see. Upon reaching my house¡­ my house wasn¡¯t even there anymore¡­ just a large crater with the debris of my house that once stood tall. My house¡­ my family¡­ my friends¡­ no¡­ Why¡­ ? they should¡¯ve been waiting for my return, so why was everything gone? ¡°Mother¡­ Father¡­¡± Tears trickled down my face as I stared devastation in the face. How could I, a grown man be put to tears so many times in succession? ¡°Ada¡­ Lina¡­¡± Everything that happened, I was so happy that [Erin] was happy¡­ so then why¡­? Why does everything have to be like this when I finally made the decision to live happily with my family? ¡°Lena¡­ Sebastian¡­¡± I hit the floor in anger. ¡°Why?! Was once not enough?! Why must you take away my everything a second time?!¡± I shouted towards the sky, I cursed my fate, I cursed whoever held control of my life in contempt. ¡°Was this my punishment?! Was this my Karma?! This is unfair! These people have done nothing wrong, they¡¯re not responsibly for my crimes! They¡¯re innocent! Give them back! Give me back my family!¡± I had lost it once more. The glimpse moment of happiness that danced around my light, it was taken from me again. Why was my fate so cruel? No, I don¡¯t care about myself, I¡¯d gladly suffer if it could mean that my family was returned to me safely¡­ ¡°Please¡­ I¡¯ll do anything¡­ give them back¡­¡± I muttered under my breath. I tried to deny the scene as many times as I could in my head but no matter how I faced reality, no matter how much it hurt, this was the truth. I could remember everything¡­ the happiness I felt in this small manor, the struggles and laughter¡­ ghosts that haunted me. ¡®Should you ever find yourself in great despair I want you to always keep sight of your true self, otherwise you will be engulfed in eternal darkness,¡¯ Astaroth¡¯s words came to my mind. I see¡­ so this was what she was talking about¡­ ¡°Hahaha¡­ Ha, dammit!¡± I wanted to tear out my own hair, scream from my lungs¡­ release this pent up aggression on something. I wanted to project this sorrow and rage towards someone else, the ones responsible¡­ they have to exist, the deaths of the villagers, they were all unnatural; artificial. I ran. I ran around the village, looking for evidence, for clues that would point me in the right direction. Perhaps I lost a bit of my soul in that moment, but I wanted nothing more than to exact vengeance towards the ones responsible, I didn¡¯t really care even if I had to sacrifice my own soul to do it. ¡°Cough, cough!¡± I heard someone, I stopped and looked around desperately. By a pile of rubble I could see a familiar face, though covered in blood, he was still alive. ¡°[Ian]!¡± I ran towards him. I pulled him out of the debris but that was the worst decision, he was missing a few limbs and he was about to bleed out. It was amazing that he could even survive after so much blood loss, was he keeping himself alive through sheer will power? ¡°Stay with me, Ian. I got you!¡± My hands shook violently, I wanted to save his life but my medical knowledge was limited and I didn¡¯t have any healing skills. ¡°W¡­ Welcome back Morgant.¡± He gave me a warm smile, through the blood on his face. ¡°S- stop talking. I¡¯ll try to do something about your injury, so stay with me.¡± ¡°N- no¡­ I know it¡¯s too late for that, Morgant. It¡¯s my own body after all. I can¡¯t even feel anything below my neck¡­ it hurts so much, but I wanted to see you so I tried my best¡­¡± He coughs violently, the light in his eyes start to fluctuate. Most likely he had already lost his vision, even his complexion is bad, at this rate he doesn¡¯t have more than a few minutes. Before I could come up with anything, Ian takes a hold of me tightly and speaks with gasped breaths. ¡°A- angels¡­ and¡­ Red Knights¡­¡± ¡°Red knights¡­ could it be, the [Crimson Knight Order]?¡± But what¡¯s this about angels? ¡°Morgant¡­ you have to live. For all of us¡­¡± He gives me one last smile before falling into my arms after delivering that message. His eyes are closed and his heart no longer beats, I couldn¡¯t even feel any kind of life force from him. How could this be¡­ I was just talking to him a few seconds ago, now he¡¯s¡­ gone. Just like that. ¡°Ahaha¡­ what is this¡­¡± Everyone was finally gone. My family. My friends. I looked up at the smoke filled sky and wryly laughed at myself. * * * ¡°Ah¡­¡± At some point I had stopped moving and spaced out. My head felt extremely light; I just didn¡¯t care anymore, and still in my arms was Ian¡¯s corpse. He had a smile on his face, but he didn¡¯t die peacefully. I heard the sound of footsteps, a total of two life force signatures were approaching me and behind them were several more. From the looks of it they were adults, and they were unfamiliar to me, outsiders? No, the red knights. The shadow of two men were cast over me. Taking a glance back they were adorned in red armor, with their levels being around mid 20s. ¡°Tsk, small fry.¡± I muttered under my breath, even if I were to torture these fools they wouldn¡¯t provide me with my much needed answers. And besides it unbelievable that they¡¯re the ones that were responsible for attacking this town, their levels were too low, father and Sebastian would¡¯ve beat them easily. So then, this is the cleanup crew? ¡°Hey, hey, looks like one of them survived. Oh? He¡¯s clutching onto that disgusting corpse, must be his friend or something. Well don¡¯t worry child, I¡¯ll send you to the nice place where your friend is. It will only hurt at the start.¡± One of the soldiers mocked. He drew out his sword and positioned it for a stab, unmoving I let him take a shot at me. However unfortunately for him my [Undead¡¯s Tenacity] skill kicked in, deflected the low level attack from a weak soldier; it didn¡¯t put a scratch on my clothes, in fact it was his sword that took the most damage. ¡°Eh! What the-?¡± While he was distracted with his broken sword, I placed Ian¡¯s body down gently. Honestly, I was unsatisfied, with this entire situation, it really has all gone to hell, but these small fry were the only things that were there for me to release my stress upon. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°Hey¡­ allow me to impart you with some wisdom of the old world. ¡®An eye for an eye.¡¯¡± [Shadow Lance]. Summoning 3, I launched them towards the two knights, instantly piercing through them like paper. They didn¡¯t even get to scream out aloud because I shot them through the throats. They struggled to breathe and started to crawl towards me as they bled out but I kicked their faces in. ¡°Even with all the world¡¯s magic and monsters, this world doesn¡¯t hold a candle to the violence and malice of my world. And if we¡¯re talking about violence and malice, then I¡¯m the foremost expert.¡± I took a deep breath, and continued on. I met more soldiers on my path, and tore down each one of them like paper. After disposing of about 4 more soldiers the person that looked like the commander of the bunch appeared. His armor was much more decorated and his weapon looked rather expensive, still his level was only about 30, so even he was no match for me. Behind him were several low ranking soldiers under his command. ¡°What in blazes is going on here?¡± I gave the commander a malice filled smile as I replied. ¡°It was only self defense, they wanted to kill me, but I didn¡¯t want to die. They were beyond salvation so I did the deed for them and led to their eternal rest.¡± The commander made a sour face as he growled at me like some wild animal. ¡°Boy¡­ I don¡¯t know who you are but don¡¯t think I will forgive you for killing my men.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ well that¡¯s alright, but hey do you know what the biggest fear of a soldier on the battlefield is?¡± He stares at me intently as I try to make sarcastic small talk. He doesn¡¯t answer, well I wouldn¡¯t answer if I were in his shoes either. ¡°It¡¯s dying dishonorably.¡± ¡°Tch.¡± The commander held up his left arm, a gesture to his men, signaling to attack me. There were a few archers behind him who stretched back their bows and aimed their arrows towards me. To be honest I don¡¯t think those projectile weapons would do too much to me due to my [undead¡¯s tenacity], but it was a little unpleasant to get shot at. So I cast [Evil Eye]. As I did a clear expression of terror appeared on their faces. Their weapons shaking in their hands, hesitating to shoot. I quickly followed through by casting [Enchanting voice]. ¡°Now then soldiers, you are to kill the person next to you.¡± The effect of the [enchanting voice] was only used at the soldiers behind the commander and not the commander himself. Following my orders the soldiers, still with horrified expressions, moved their bodies to my whim and attacked the person next to them. In a mesh of blood and gore, the soldiers were now lying on the floor like meat chunks. ¡°W- what¡­ was that?¡± [Shadow Lance]. I shot a [shadow lance] through the commander¡¯s shoulder and thighs to stop him from moving. He fell to the floor screaming in pain as blood pooled around him. ¡°Commander, I¡¯m a little sad that you said you wouldn¡¯t forgive me. So I¡¯ll cut you a little deal, forgive me and I will spare your miserable life. What do you say? Could you ever find it in your little black heart to ever forgive me?¡± ¡°W- what?¡± [Shadow Lance] to his other shoulder. ¡°I- I got it! I¡¯ll¡­ forgive you so please let me go!¡± I once more gave him a smile filled with malice as I activated [evil eye] directly into his eyes. His complexion turned pale as he tried to crawl back. ¡°Thank you for your forgiveness, but unfortunately you do not have mine.¡± The final [Shadow lance] was through his chest. Messing with a man as they die, ah¡­ I feel like my old personality is returning to me. If the world deigns to punish me for my malice regardless then what point is there trying to hide it anymore? ¡°Come at me then! Punish me for my malice!¡± I shouted towards the sky. ¡°Then I shall accept your challenge.¡± Replying to my rhetorical burst of anguish, a light opened up from the skies, banishing the smoke that was blanketing the village. It revealed everything, the destruction, the death and ruin that I did not wish to see. It was all coming back to me, this feeling A ray of pure light burst down from the skies, expelling the clouds in the air as it did. A single figure came down in all of his majesty. Free flowing golden hair, piercing golden eyes that seemed like it could shoot down a veteran soldier with a stare alone. With his heavenly garb and his right arm was a shiny silver prosthetic. Behind him were large white wings that helped him maintain his position in the sky. His body was rigorously toned as the perfect alpha male, not too bulky but one could tell that he had a muscular physique. He had a neatly trimmed beard that emphasized his manly jaw-line. [Nodens. Level 192, High God of Tara] ¡°You¡­ are¡­¡± I stared at him intently, his eyes staring me down from the air. Accompanying him were several angelic figures, all holy in their appearance. ¡°It piqued my interests. I came to see this great ¡®evil¡¯ that child talked so much about. Certainly I can feel a great malice and evil from you, leaving you alone now would be a grave mistake. In my name I have to erase the mistake that is your life.¡± He pointed towards the large yellow rock that fell at the center of the village and it started to glow brightly. It pulsed some kind of sickly aura, I felt a heavy nausea just being in its vicinity, perhaps it was my attribute to evil and darkness as a necromancer but this holy light that was emitted was really annoying. Suddenly throughout the town I could hear the mumbles and growls of people. Inhuman, incoherent words roared through the ruined village, as though they were the ghosts of the inhabitants, no perhaps I wasn¡¯t far off. I could see the corpses of the villages slowly come back to life as a yellow crystal formed on them like a parasite. Zombies? No, something much worse, they were an abomination and insult to the lives of the people. Even the crimson knights were risen back from the dead as crystalline abominations. They started to charge at me, intending to kill me. However, without even hesitation I summoned several [shadow lances] and struck at the incoming mobs. I didn¡¯t bat an eye even when faced with those I was once a friend of, because I knew, they were not the people that I had come to love, but mere corpses. Dying to them would be a greater insult than simply disposing of them, surely they would¡¯ve wanted me to put their bodies to rest. ¡°Don¡¯t overwork the dead, idiot. Did you think I would hesitate to kill mere zombies?¡± I said to Nodens, the ¡®high god¡¯. ¡°¡­ Did you think they were mere zombies?¡± As he says, the corpses that I pierced revived themselves and continued their barrage. It wasn¡¯t like they were regenerating, but they continued to attack even while suffering massive damage. I continued to hurl [shadow lances] at them til their bodies could no longer even crawl. They were all in pieces, but thanks to that I was feeling the brunt of the fatigue. Summoning so many lances was a bad idea, but I didn¡¯t have much else. ¡°Bastard¡­ it was you¡­ wasn¡¯t it? The one who ordered the destruction of this village. Of my home!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, it was your head that was to be claimed. I ordered the deaths of your friends, your family, and your neighbors. It was you who lead my wrath towards this village. You have only yourself to blame.¡± ¡°B- bastard¡­!¡± [Shadow Lance]. X20, clearly over my limits but I didn¡¯t care about such things right now. I may even die from the fatigue but if that means I can take his life then I don¡¯t care, I¡¯ll kill him, whatever it takes! 20 black lanes flew towards him, all hitting him at once, as it did, it created a dust cloud. But I knew, I could still feel his life force he wasn¡¯t dead. No, this manner of attack wouldn¡¯t kill him, it would be near impossible for me to kill him but as vain as my actions were I didn¡¯t want to fold, not to him! Not to him! [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 [Shadow Lance]. X20 ¡­ ¡­ My vision started to blur and I found myself on the floor, grovelling in sweat and blood. I couldn¡¯t feel any sensation coming from the rest of my body and even my hearing was starting to dim. However the thing that got to me the most was the fact that I could still feel his life force, I knew for a fact that even after all that I couldn¡¯t put a single scratch on him. ¡°D¡­ dammit¡­¡± Nodens lands a few meters in front of me. ¡°Is that all you have? Then perhaps I worried for nothing after all.¡± He mocks me. ¡°Kh¡­ Heh¡­ heh¡­ heh¡­ ¡®is that all?¡¯ you ask? No, that isn¡¯t all. I¡¯ll¡­ kill you, whatever it takes.¡± I try to stand up once more, but my legs are shaking. It was hard to even turn my head upwards to see him, but I endured the pain and looked up. Nodens lifted silver arm towards the sky and as though he had gathered all the light in the area, the sky darkened and the clouds parted, a single ray of light formed in the shape of a sword appeared above him. Some kind of attack? This would surely kill me¡­ then if I was going to die I should at least do that¡­ ¡°Accessing [GUNGNIR] system¡­ Access code: X914OMEGA¡­ Set target location¡­¡± It was only for a slight second but my blind blanked out and I found myself once more on the floor. This was bad, I haven¡¯t finished chanting my ¡®magic spell¡¯ yet¡­ dammit, I couldn¡¯t even prop myself up anymore due to the fatigue. By the time I had realized the light sword that Nodens was preparing had become massive and bright, as though it was a second sun. ¡°Tch¡­¡± I guess this isn¡¯t a bad death, fighting against an insane god as my last actions. Perhaps this time I could finally be reunited with Erin¡­ ¡°I will have you die here, child of malice.¡± Nodens struck down with his light sword and as he did my entire world became covered in white light. Due to the fatigue I couldn¡¯t even tell if I was alive or dead, was this what being dead felt like? No¡­ I wasn¡¯t dead, instead I felt something else, it was as though I was being held up and embraced from behind. The light faded after a while then I finally saw what the situation was like. I was indeed being held; embraced from behind by someone. I twisted my face to take a look. Long silky blue hair, menacing red eyes. It was the girl from before, only, she looked older, this time around her early 20s, her lower half was no longer that of a human but a spider. Half-woman, half-spiders. The body of a ice like, blue spider, with each of her eight legs looking like they could pierce through steel. Her hands were also an icy blue color, they were extremely cold but they didn¡¯t bother me in the least. ¡°You¡­ you¡¯re-¡° ¡°You¡¯re hopeless aren¡¯t you? Giving up so easily?¡± Interrupting me was a voice of a man from in front of me. A large shadow presence, similar in appearance to my [skeleton knight] but there was a golden crown on his darkened skull. Grey and black flames surrounded him as did a powerful malignant aura. He held a large shield to protect both myself and the spider queen, Arachna. [Texzatopekmetziluxotl. Level 142, Ghost King] ¡°Ghost¡­ king?¡± ¡°Ho~ you know, then explaining should be simple. I was sent by the demon lord [Erendel de Signa] to make sure you didn¡¯t die. So I can¡¯t have you dying in this place.¡± ¡°Brining friends now are we? It makes no difference I will slaughter you all, demons especially. Otherworldly creatures have no place in this world!¡± Nodens once again lifted his arms to gather the light. The shape of a light sword appearing once more. ¡°Oi, girlie, you have something to escape don¡¯t you? I think it¡¯s best to use it now.¡± The ghost king calls out. What did he say? Escape? No, not now, not when that bastard is right in front of me, even if it kills me I will kill him! But these two are in the way, I can¡¯t fully utilize [GUNGNIR] if they¡¯re getting caught up. Tch, I¡¯d normally consider them as casualty but they saved me, it would be a great disservice to repay them with death. [Summon - Skeleton Knight] x 8. Green lightning struck from the skies, and with it bursting out from the ground were deathly skeleton knights. The ghost king looking examining them with interest. ¡°Bastard, Nodens I will kill you! Right here right now!¡± ¡°Try it if you can, child! It is time for you all to die!¡± Nodens strikes down once more. ¡°Oi Girlie! Do it now!¡± The ghost king shouts out. Arachna pulls out some sort of artefact. ¡°[ANTI-LIFE GAMBIT]!¡± As I give the order all the skeleton knights rush towards Nodens while emitting a sinister red glow. ¡°T- teleport Crystal!¡± Arachna shouts out. The next moment, after a cavalcade of explosions, everything turns black. PART EIGHT Cold. Dark. I felt a great sense of cold coming over me. It was dark as well. Was this hell? Honestly this depiction of hell seems much more cruel than the fiery one depicted in most pop culture. Well I did do something that would warrant me going to hell so I couldn''t complain. I couldn''t really see anything since my eyes were shut. I didn''t even feel like opening them. I was starting to lose my consciousness. "Poor thing." I heard a woman''s voice from afar. A few moments later I felt a warmth coming over me. What was going on? I didn''t know. All I knew was that I was sleepy. I welcomed my drowsiness, whatever happens to me I didn''t really care anymore. If I die¡­ I die¡­ I think I had a good run in this short but blissful life. I had a loving family and even got to play the part of a hero in some city. All of my childish fantasies were able to come true. I met mermaids. I met elves. I even met a loli demon lord. I met all sorts of people. Yeah, this was a good life. I only wish I could have saved my family. END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 53 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 128 (115 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 55] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 31 (PASSIVE) [Undead¡¯s Tenacity]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 27 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 24 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 29 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 34 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 41 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 30 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Terror of the Depths]: Level 1/Required Level: 100 (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 26 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 21 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 21 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian¡¯s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father¡¯s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight] Prologue #3 - Fractured hearts supported by darkness Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Fractured hearts supported by darkness Prologue 3 [Eternum Calendar - Year 990] ¡°The lord of malice and dread summons thee to his domain.¡± * * * At the dead of night when the moon was at its highest, a young boy walked along the snow filled path as the red moon, [Pandemonium] guided him to his destination. After walking for a few more steps he stopped to stare up at the large red moon, up at its insanity inducing glares. In this world of 2 billion years after [Earth], dual moons took sovereign over the night sky. However from the position of the northern continent the blue moon, [Akashia] was swallowed up behind the red moon, thus like a bloodied jewel, Pandemonium coated the northern lands in the color of blood. Conversely from the Southern lands only the blue moon could be seen as it was dyed in serene blue. It was only in the center continent of [Ariadyne] that both moons could be witnessed in all their glory simultaneously. As the boy witnessed the majesty of the red moon, he briefly wondered what the moon was thinking as it stared down onto the world. He wryly smiled as he realized how dim the sound of that thought, inanimate objects had no intent, merely memories. With every breath, fog could be seen even through the darkness, the northern continents were well known for their harsh, freezing conditions, especially towards the night. Temperatures that could reach well into the negative integers were a regular occurrence, this night was such a night. Yet the boy did not care about the coldness, it merely served to remind him of the world¡¯s cruelty. Not even a single glimmer of hope could be seen in his eyes as he started walking towards a small entrance deep within the forest of monsters. The forests that were inhabited by many beasts and monsters, the adults have warned him many times over to never venture towards their lands but the warnings fell on deaf ears, for the destination that the boy sought was at the heart of the forest. He walked and walked until the sky could no longer be seen, blocked by the thick canopy; night or day, it mattered not as the roof of the forest cast the forest into perpetual darkness. Such darkness were the domain of many vicious monsters, each capable of easily dispatching even the most veteran of adventurers and soldiers, yet the boy did not care, because he knew he had the strength to overcome them. It was neither his arrogance or obliviousness, merely knowledge. As he neared the center of the forest he could feel the movement of monsters slithering about in the background; the rustling of leaves and the crunching of bark. Yet, that was not necessary to take precaution of, because the boy could sense all of their presence regardless due to his special ability. They boy could sense it all, their number, their level of strength, their viciousness, their weakness, their, strengths. Everything. Yet it was not he who were afraid of the monsters, but the monsters who were afraid of him. As the boy continued on his path to the forest¡¯s heart, the boy left behind a trail of monster carcasses. The monsters were not stupid, they knew that they would not be a match for the boy but they too had pride as living beings thus could not tolerate the boy¡¯s intrusion into their domain. Practicing vanity the monsters attacked the boy all to be slaughtered like cattle. Letting out a smile filled with malign intentions, the boy scoffed at the monster¡¯s pathetic attempts to stop him. The line between human and monster became blurred, as the body count of the monsters increased needlessly. After all, it was the monsters who pressed the attack, not the boy. ¡°Hah¡­ hahaha¡­¡± The boy started to laugh. Then he stopped to stare back at the monsters who wished him harm. A special skill known as [Evil Eye] was activated in conjunction with his already malignant stare. The result: the monsters put down their excessive pride and scurried to their hiding places, fear creeping into their deepest hearts. The monsters had lost against a mere boy of only ten. The boy continued his walk in the forest of darkness until he came upon the center of it all. A small cave entrance, yet obviously an unnatural presence; the boy could feel it, a malice many times greater than his own, it would not be a hyperbole to consider this place the origin of malice. In there, malice and dread manifested a physical form, known only as the [Crawling Chaos]. It was that same being that had called out to him, knowing that he possessed the one thing the boy had wished for; power, a strength above all. Feeling the kinship of malice and dread, the malevolent being wanted to meet the boy who possessed a darkened heart that could rival the being¡¯s own. The boy stood at the entrance of the cave, nay, [dungeon]. It was the home of the great old one: [Nyarlathotep]. The boy smiled as he reached his destination, yet that was not truly the case. He had yet to fight his way to the heart of the dungeon, there he would meet the being that had called out to him. There he would receive what he had so wished for. Of course the boy was not so daft to think that he would receive this gift for free, he knew well the true nature of the being that dwelled deep inside. A being that plays on the hubris of man and delights in black morality. Such a being, perhaps the boy thought was worthy to sell his soul to, if it meant that he could have his long awaited revenge then perhaps it was not such a bad idea. Alas that was the thought of young boy. Black mist seeped out from the entrance, as did a wave of harsh colds that was the natural temperature of the northern lands. Combined together, it created a greater atmosphere of doom and dread. At this they boy smile, it was exactly what he was looking for, inside he would find it. He took a step inside, a wave of nausea overcame him. His world became disoriented, up was down, left was right and everything was not as it seemed, but the boy¡¯s mind wouldn¡¯t break from such a petty parlor trick. It would take a sensation that was many times more dreadful than this to even start denting the boy¡¯s iron will, no perhaps it was not his iron will, but a simply that the boy had been well accustomed to such darkness that simple tricks did not faze him. The boy proceeded to the first floor of the dungeon. The monsters that dwelled on the first floor were usually small fries, [skeletons], [zombies], [ghosts]. Mostly undead type abomination. The boy moved his hands towards the center of his face, an old habit from long ago, it had not died, in fact it had worsened since a few years ago. ¡°Fight fire with fire.¡± The boy muttered his breath as he summoned monsters of his own. Large and deathly, [skeleton knights] spawned from the ground as green lightning hit the floor. The skeletons roared furiously and viciously as they obeyed the order of their master and started to destroy the low level monsters of the dungeon. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. The moved onto the second floor, the monsters in here were much more powerful than the ones on the floor above, almost to an absurd degree. [Banshees], [ghost armors], [Shadow demons], [hellhounds]. Still, these monsters did not hand a candle to the boy¡¯s power, they all held up about as well as paper to rain. * * * It was unknown as to how many floors actually existed in this mysterious dungeon but by the time the boy had reached the 4th floor the monsters soon matched his power. Gigantic beasts made from black mist and shadows, flesh heap abominations, powerful liches that held great magical prowess. Individually the boy could take them on but that was not the intent of the undead. The reason why the boy was struggling so much on the 4th floor was not simply because of the power-spike the monsters had gotten but because undead type monsters have a specially attribute, infinite stamina and no pain receptors. Meaning that they could be blow away but still keep coming back. Heavily injured and almost out of stamina, the boy held onto the last portion of his consciousness as he continued to fight off the invading swarms of powerful monsters. Monsters that dwelled in dungeons were many times stronger than the monsters seen outside, however undead especially with their infinite stamina were much more relentless. Even if they could not win by strength they would eventually overcome the opponent through a battle of attrition. Through a process of a long drawn out battle the boy was held up against the wall, with blood trickling down from his wounds. Fatigue and sleep deprivation having caught up. The monsters did not care about the condition of the boy, this was not that kind of fight, if one was down for the count, that only meant that the was the end of the rope for the boy. Coughing up blood, the boy continued to defend against the relentless barrage till his last breath. Two things went through the boy¡¯s mind during this time. The first was the thought that if he fell here that would mean he was only at that level and didn¡¯t deserve to go any further, but the second thought was, if he could survive through any means then he deserves the prize that laid at the end of the abyss. He could almost taste it; the sweet nectar that was the power he craved for. The boy activated another special skill of his known as [Life Drain], however the problem was the damage dealt by the monsters exceeded his ability to drain. Odd he thought, since he was able to defeat a monster much more powerful than these, but then it occurred to him, during that entire ordeal there wasn¡¯t much movement. Compared to that situation, this was much more hectic, more things to concentrate on. Not only that but whilst he had high protection against physical damage, against magical damage he was taking the full brunt of the attack with guard. He tried summoning [skeleton knights] to help him hold them back but even with their incredible defenses the monsters eventually got past them. At his wit¡¯s end, the boy decided to close his eyes and let go of his consciousness. He was too tired and distraught, unable to concentrate and properly prepare; he had tunnel-visioned to this corner and now he was receiving punishment for it. He decided to embrace whatever end awaited him, soon he would no longer need to worry about any else, this too was another form of salvation for the boy. The boy only had two paths in life after all: revenge or death. The monsters saw a chance in this situation to end everything, they charged towards him with everything they had. For intruding on the domain of the lord of dread and malice, the boy had received his just desserts. However just before the final blow was about to be dealt, a devastating pink beam removed the threat of the monsters instantly. Soon another figure entered the fray from the pink beam of light. What emerged was a young woman of the demon race, she had moderately sized bat-like wings, a thin black tail and two horns to the side of her face. On her person was a fairly gaudy attire of a small white top, short skirt and thigh-high black stockings. Certainly clothes fitting for a niche audience, however there was a reason why she wore such revealing clothes. This was because she was part of the [Succubi] race, donning revealing items were not their preference but their uniform; it was their profession. [Succubi] by nature were highly proficient with magic, thus this one was able to deter any of the monsters from drawing closer to the unconscious boy. Her purpose here was to rescue the boy. However she was not alone, behind her were two more figures that had entered with the same intentions. A girl with extremely soft, silky blue hair, and being made entirely of skeletons and black flame, a crown on his head to signify his nobility and status. The two did not say much as they witnessed the [Succubus] holding the unconscious boy. ¡°Take him back to the orphanage.¡± The black skeleton king told the [Succubus]. With a nod she flapped her wings at high speeds and bolted out of the dungeon. She flew over the snow filled city and into a large distinguishable building. That building was the town¡¯s orphanage. Finding the right room with a single glance revealed the fact that this was not the first time the [succubus] had delivered the boy back to his home. She laid him on top of his bed and pushed the blanket up to his neck. Confirming that the boy was fast asleep she tried to fly out through the window, but she was stopped. ¡°Thanks for always. That kid is really a pain, I feel terrible that he¡¯s causing you so much trouble.¡± Turning to face the voice who was apologizing to the [succubus] a female member of the [Therianthropic] race, more specifically from the silver-wolf tribe. Upon her silver hair were two distinct, fluffy silver ears, her azure eyes glowing through the darkness. Her clothes were white and brown, on her hands were brown leather gloves and adorned on her legs were heavy leathered boots that came up to her knees. From just above her buttocks were silver furred tails, however not just one but three. Even amongst the wolf tribe she was an anomaly for possessing three tails. ¡°Please don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m doing this because I want to.¡± The [succubus] replied with a smile. ¡°I see, still. Sorry.¡± The female were-wolf turned her gaze at the boy who was sleeping exhausted in his bed. Bits of dirt could be seen from his body as he was just out fighting monsters. Her first thoughts were that it would be a pain to clean up those sheets, her second thoughts being that she was glad to have him back safely. ¡°I¡¯ll be heading off now. Good bye, [Miko].¡± ¡°Yeah. See you, [Lilith].¡± Chapter 18 - The path to honesty and power is long and treacherous Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C The path to honesty and power is long and treacherous Chapter XVIII PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 990] Slowly I regained consciousness and opened my eyes. The room was still dark and the red light of the moon indicated that it was still night. A sharp bout of pain crept up all over my body rendering me paralyzed. It was obvious why I was feeling this way; reckless night-time activities inside a death covered dungeon. Breathing out a sigh I shifted my head out towards the window but what caught my attention was the sight of a silver haired woman nodding off. She had two furry wolf-ears on her head and three fluffy, silver tails that swayed from side to side as she slept dozed off on a chair besides my bed. [Miko], that was her name, a being from the [Therianthropic] race, were-wolf to be precise. She was a caretaker at the orphanage I was stay in. Right¡­ ¡®Orphanage¡¯. It¡¯s been two years since I came here and I¡¯ve gotten used to and adjusted to life here but my heart had yet to settle down. In fact I feel more restless lying down here doing nothing, this anxiety that I¡¯ve been piling up; I constantly feel like I should be doing something instead of wasting away here. As my pain subsided a little, I tried to get out of my bed but I felt the sensation of a small arm grabbing onto me. I lifted the blankets a little to see who it was. It was a small girl of about tenten, blonde hair, small white arms and fair skin. She grabbed on tightly as she slept in my bed; she was another resident of the orphanage here. We each have our own beds but she¡¯s been crawling into mine for some reason, not that I¡¯m against it. [Alice]. That was her name, no last name. She was a rather bossy and boisterous girl, playful and confident but she too has a scarred past, if not she wouldn¡¯t even be in this orphanage in the first place. It¡¯s because there are children like her here that I couldn¡¯t wallow in my own sadness, I felt pathetic that I was losing it when these children were suffering from the same thing, but even still the fact that I had to accept reality was painful, thus I tried tune out that feeling when I¡¯m with these children. I gently pried her hands off me and got out from the bed and peered out from the open window. I had half a mind to return to the dungeon and continue off from where I was but I decided against it. If Miko¡¯s here then she¡¯ll probably get even more upset if I just left, even if I¡¯m acting a little selfish I do sincerely wish to limit the number of problems I¡¯m causing. ¡°Have you given up for the night?¡± A deep voice came from besides me. I turned to see a dark figure, robed in shadows; I wasn¡¯t able to discern who or what he was, his only distinguishable traits were that he was robed in darkness, his deep voice and two glowing lights coming from under his hood as though they were eyes. This person, most probably a male, was someone I¡¯ve met a few times. Obviously he wasn¡¯t a resident of the orphanage but he was someone I¡¯ve been seeing regularly. I knew not his name but I knew who he was; he was a servant of that being of dread and malice, [Nyarlathotep]. How did I know? Aside from the fact that he spoke of him once, this person is a manifestation of the [Necronomicon] that I had under my possession. ¡°I guess, but that doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯ll stop. I¡¯ll keep trying and trying until I¡¯ve reached the end and meet face to face with your master.¡± ¡°I see¡­ But you are mistaken, while it is true that I serve the Great Old One, my current master is you, the owner of the [Necronomicon]. I have merely been translating his will to you. Then I shall take this opportunity to introduce myself properly. You may refer to me as [Shade], the manifestation of the [Book of Evil].¡± ¡°Is that so? Then as your master I have one request, could you perhaps turn into a more comprehensible form? That shadowy persona, you don¡¯t always have to stick by the ¡®evil¡¯ theme just because you¡¯re serving him.¡± ¡°Hmm, as you wish. Then perhaps this form will be more to your liking.¡± The shadows around him twist and turn, surrounding him as a small updraft was form but not noticeable enough for Miko or Alice to wake up. The shadows engulf him for a few seconds and when they dissipate, though not completely; the person that was standing in front of me arose. Instantly I got a little angry at his new form. I felt the presence of my hand drawing closer to the center of my face as irritation overwhelmed me. This habit really hadn¡¯t died down but it was the best way for me to express myself in a subtle manner. ¡°Are you mocking me? I¡¯ll kill you. I¡¯ll really do it you know, I¡¯ll burn down the [Necronomicon] right now if suicide was your intent.¡± A sleek black suit with a red tie, perfectly chiseled muscular jaws, a wide chest covered up behind the suit yet still noticeable, neat black hair, dark grey eyes hidden behind thin framed glasses. [Aran Callahad], or at least his appearance was that of me anyway. He propped up his glasses with his gloved hands as he casually returned a sarcastic and condescending smile. ¡°My apologies, I meant no real harm by taking this form; I merely thought that this form would be more to your liking. After all, this form was created by your innermost thoughts, even possessing residual memories and personalities. In essence this form is more true to yourself than your current form.¡± He says with a sarcastic smile, whether that was his intention or if that was my natural smug look from back then, I really couldn¡¯t differentiate because both possibilities were probable. For the time being I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and leave him be, but if he irritates me one more time I¡¯m going to put a crease on every page of the [Necronomicon]. Though looking from an outsider¡¯s point of view, my natural look from my previous life was a little¡­ arrogant, should I say? It¡¯s extremely annoying to look at. It could simply be that it was because it was me that I am saying this; other people may find it majestic or cool but personally I felt like punching him in the face. Maybe I¡¯m just trying to vent out some guilt-free frustration on something that looks like me. ¡°So? What do you want?¡± ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing?¡± As he spoke those words I was taken aback in surprise. There was a sudden shift in personality; it was almost as though I was talking to a different person. Of course deep down inside I had already realized the truth of who I was talking to, it was [Shade] but at the same time it was also my true self, the personality of Aran Callahad. ¡®Residue memories and personality¡¯, so he says, but this is way too realistic, even down to the subtle mannerisms and how he was adjusting his glasses with his middle finger. His slightly tilted upwards, arrogant smile, his body posture, his hair, his glare, his aura. All me. The true me. The me of the past. The me that had failed once. Though I suppose the current me is no different from the past me; we¡¯ve both failed and lost those important to us. Nothing had changed and I¡¯m still struggling along trying to figure things out in this world of nonsense. However it really does give me a sense of perspective when I was put face to face with my previous self, perhaps even a sense of security knowing that I was still the true me even after adopting a new body. ¡®What do I think I¡¯m doing?¡¯ Shade your acting is too realistic for me. Well I guess I should answer in kind, I¡¯ll play along. His ploy was obvious, but it was just as well since I needed to blow off some frustration myself. ¡°As if I¡¯d know that.¡± I replied to him in the most half-hearted manner. I had dropped all pretexts of talking to Shade and decided to act as though I was really talking to myself. For some reason, as I did this I felt a load off my shoulders, as though I was being liberated from all the burden of failures. ¡®Finally,¡¯ I thought. I had met my equal, though it was myself; I guess it¡¯s true what they say, you truly are your worst critic. In front of his intense, piercing gaze all the mental defenses I¡¯ve built around myself seemed useless. ¡°You¡¯re acting like a spoilt brat; causing problems to the people around you, but most importantly you¡¯re trampling all over the trust of all the people who have come to know and support you up til now. How do you justify yourself?¡± Certainly that may be the case, but I¡¯m sure he of all people would know the answer to that. After all, I was the kind of person that believed the world revolved around myself. Trust? Support? It was all a given to me, I was that kind of pathetic being in the first place, I was the biggest asshole. My justification for acting like this thus far was my entire existence. So I answered him. ¡°I don¡¯t know, why don¡¯t you tell me?¡± I wonder why, but his words hurt me; they really pierce deep down into my core. It was his voice, his town and the meaning behind those words that stabbed into my darkened heart. I knew it all. I knew that I what I was doing was a waste of time, only bringing trouble to the people around me, causing grief and trampling on the feelings of those that helped me. How could I not? I was Morgant Fallon and Aran Callahad you know, as much as I would¡¯ve loved to lose my mind and go insane I simply couldn¡¯t. I still had some semblance of self-awareness to prevent that. In spite of that, do I still need to answer for my own actions? No, I will not yield, I will accept the consequences of my actions but I will continue on despite that, because to me there were only two paths in this life. To those who have wronged me, to those who have underestimated me, to those who mocked me, I will either destroy them all or die trying. He pushes up his glasses once more and gives me a disappointed look. It was painful to be given that kind of glare, especially from myself, because I knew how critical I was of others and how critical I was of myself. He shakes his head. ¡°You haven¡¯t changed a single bit since that day. No, perhaps it would be more apt to say you¡¯ve been much more pathetic, at least back then you didn¡¯t know the consequences, but now in spite of knowing them you still press on like a mad man. You¡¯ve even stolen the lives of people and mocked their spirits yet you don¡¯t feel an inkling of remorse. The two behind you, you¡¯ve caused them the most grief.¡± ¡°If there was anything I felt, it would be vanity. I¡¯m that kind of person after all.¡± Perhaps he is right, perhaps I was truth pathetic, perhaps I wasn¡¯t really thinking about my own actions and the effects they leave behind, perhaps I couldn¡¯t deal with my own situation and have subconsciously given up, perhaps that¡¯s why I continuously challenge that ridiculous dungeon each night. But it¡¯s useless to tell me all of this, because if there was one thing I was not, it was indecisive. Even if I know it was only self-satisfaction, even if I know it was simply a pathetic act, I will continue on this path until I die or have succeeded, that¡¯s what I was taught after all, by the life I¡¯ve lead before. Indecisiveness ruins lives; make a decision and follow it through, that was the life of the corporate world. ¡°Yes, you are that person. I know very well; you¡¯ve made a decision and you will no doubt follow through with it until the bitter end. I won¡¯t tell you to stop or reconsider, but I also know you aren¡¯t the kind of person that would slap away the kindness of those close to you. Even if you are excessively arrogant and cruel to those you don¡¯t know or hate, you are also excessively kind and protective to those you care about. Which is why, even you don¡¯t look back, at least take a look beside you.¡± I gave out a small sigh as I turned my gaze towards the red moon, a wry smile creeping out from beneath me. ¡°I¡¯ll have a think about it.¡± As I answered he, Shade, disappeared for the night. PART TWO ¡°Wake up, Morgant! It¡¯s morning!¡± Accompanying the annoying chirps of the early birds, a certain high-pitched voice had decided to wake me up by violently shaking the bed. Seeing how that didn¡¯t exactly work out the way it was envisioned, the owner of the voice moved onto plan B. They opened the curtains to let in the hated sunlight, burning through my eyelids and preventing me to weigh my options of sleeping through this annoyance of giving in and waking up. I mean I went to sleep very late last night so I was still a little fatigued. In the end I decided to give into the threat of being further menaced by the high-pitched voice and wake up of my own volition. After sitting upright I decided to ponder about my situation for a while as the owner of the voice continued to shake me, but I tried to temporarily tune out that annoyance. Still, it was a rather mysterious thing now that I think about it. I mean waking up back at the orphanage. This wasn¡¯t the first time it had happened and it probably wasn¡¯t the last either. My usual late night expeditions into the dungeon are supposed to be a one way thing, however I¡¯ve constantly found myself waking up back in bed after passing out in the dungeon. I guess I was a little thankful for this rather suspicious phenomenon. I mean I didn¡¯t really want to die either, but it just means I have to continue against tonight from floor 1 all over again. At the very least I kind of wished they would wake me up in the dungeon instead of bed. I do have some ideas as to who it was that was taking me back here but I tried to ignore it as best as I could. ¡°I thought you woke up! Why did you go back to sleep sitting up?! Wake up Morgant!¡± Then there was this little bug. Seeing as I was still sitting still, lost in contemplation, the owner of the voice that reminded me of an alarm clock decided to re-enact plan A and violently shake me. Turning my gaze to the side I met with the glare of this broke record, I mean ¡®innocent¡¯ voice. She was a child no older than ten, long, silky blonde hair and sky blue eyes that shone with both life and hope, a stark contrast to my own. I would describe her as ¡®cute¡¯ but I¡¯ve yet to see a tenten year old girl that wasn¡¯t cute. This girl was Alice. Well, I guess she was a special kind of ¡®cute¡¯, she was just precious, looking up at me with those big blue eyes with hope and intimacy. Anyway in response to those anticipating glare I gave her a smile. ¡°Sorry, sorry, I¡¯m up right now. Please stop shaking me.¡± ¡°Okay¡­ Hmm? What¡¯s this?¡± She reaches her hand underneath the blanket and feels around. What she took out was a small dark bone piece. Immediately she dropped it as a reflex. This must¡¯ve been from my expedition into the dungeon. ¡°What is that?! A bone?!¡± She cries out. ¡°Must¡¯ve been the work of the¡­ uh¡­ bone¡­ fairy. Yeah, you know that fairy that goes around putting bones under the blankets of good little boys and girls.¡± ¡°What is that! That¡¯s scary! I don¡¯t want a bone under my blanket!¡± As I say, the image of a miniature skeleton with fairy wings comes to mind, fluttering about in the night and throwing bones at children. That would actually be a little creepy now that I visualize it in my head. Half in tears she was shivering in fear. Kids really will believe in everything if you voice it in a serious tone. They¡¯re so dumb it¡¯s cute. ¡°Sorry, that was a joke. This was just something I carved out of a rock because I was bored. Don¡¯t pay too much attention to it please.¡± I tried to calm her down. ¡°That¡¯s really creepy, you should stop it.¡± ¡°Yes, sorry boss. I¡¯ll get it done by Monday.¡± I replied, joking around. ¡°Whatever, anyway breakfast is ready so hurry up and get dressed.¡± She dismisses my joke and tells me. ¡®Breakfast is ready¡¯ huh? Up until now I was half thinking that I was actually dead and was in purgatory or something. Such a warm scene first thing in the morning was conducive to my darkness filled heart. What is this girl who is trying to put a damper on the tirelessly erected darkness in my heart? Was she actually the executive of some powerful merger company? Was that it? Was she trying to take over the newly established ¡®Morgant¡¯s darkness¡¯ industries?! ¡­ Well, jokes aside, I guess it¡¯s time I should start explaining how things have progressed in the last two years. If it wasn¡¯t obvious to you already, No, I¡¯m not actually dead after my last battle with [Nodens]. In that regard, I¡¯m not exactly too sure what happened either, all I remember from that day was that there was a large explosion and then everything was covered in snow. I dragged my body up from the warmth and comfort of the bed and towards the open window that peered out towards the town. As I stare out I am witness to a tranquil city of concrete and stone that is blanketed by a gentle witness. Pleasant pure flakes fall from the skies softly and cover the town; this was the place known as the city of perpetual snow - [Vertloch Snowdown]. Temperatures that dwell well below 0 could easily be experienced every day and the soft fogs blow as I breath out. Even now, it¡¯s still snow, this place will snow forever. When I observe the streets below I see many mixtures of unique races, all hurrying about to their daily businesses. The most interesting part of this city is that it is not predominantly occupied by [humans]. In fact, on the northern continent, [humans] are the rarest race. Most of the inhabitants of the northern continents are the various types of [demon] races, followed by [Therianthropes] then [spirits] and [fairies]. At times there are also those from the [Titan], [Elves] and [Dwarven] races that come to do trade and business, especially around cities with ports like ours. Right, this was how the northern continent was, this was [Vertloch]. Incidentally care to guess who the leader of this continent is? Guess it really isn¡¯t much of a quiz if I already told you the answer ages ago, but the hint is that she¡¯s a certain loli demoness with blazing red hair and eyes in skimpy clothing. If you guessed [Astaroth De Signa] you¡¯re correct! If not, then I don¡¯t know what to say. Really¡­ that whimsical little girl is the queen of the entire continent. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Which begs to ask why such an important figurehead was in some backwards town in [Ariadyne]. Maybe she was just taking a walk and got lost somehow¡­ I really don¡¯t know. Or maybe it was just destiny, she could see people¡¯s destiny after all so maybe she came for me specifically. It is a little comforting to think that, being welcomed into the new world by the demon lord herself. Usually that¡¯s a flag for the bad end route; a sign that this character will eventually turn into the hero¡¯s greatest rival or nemesis at some point in the storyline. Might as well, I¡¯m half way there since I made the god of this world into my enemy. Well, to be fair he picked a fight with me. Speaking of which I wonder if they actually exist, things like [Heroes] I mean. There¡¯s a [God] and a [Demon Lord] so it is possible. Then again I doubt Astaroth has ever expressed interest in taking over the world, I feel that¡¯s what [Nodens] is doing instead. I don¡¯t even think Astaroth is doing anything in regards to actually governing this land either. From what I¡¯ve experienced during my stay here, most of the cities of this continent are self-determined, including economics, trade and security. For the most part it seems to be working relatively well; a continent with little government interference. There may be some small fractures in the system from time to time but overall it¡¯s been very peaceful. This place doesn¡¯t have a system of nobility, meaning everything is up for fair game without status to interfere with people¡¯s lives. Astaroth herself seems to reside in the capital city known as the [Vertloch Skyreach]. Just as this snow filled town is called the city of perpetual snow, that place is also known as the city of perpetual darkness. As you can guess, that place is always night no matter what time of day, how that actually works is beyond me, magic I guess. In any case, as I¡¯ve said, the place I¡¯m staying at is an orphanage. Every time I say that the reality of my situation comes back to hit me like a truck. There are some 40-odd children living here. Each one of them having lost their families to their own circumstances, I could only smile at how pathetic I¡¯ve been compared to these strong children when I¡¯m wallowing in regret and sadness. At the very least, I had my own adult mentality to support me, these children have no such thing. They are the ones that are truly strong. There are two caretakers in this place. I¡¯ve already introduced the first person, which is Miko. I¡¯ve heard that her odd anomaly that gives her three tails instead of the usual one was the cause of her being an outcast from her tribe. She was a nomadic adventurer type before settling down in this orphanage. Her stats look something like this. [Miko. Level 54, Monk] I¡¯m not entirely sure what kind of class a [Monk] is. Miko usually teaches the kids here self defense and from what I¡¯ve seen she uses blunt type weaponry like, staves or hammers. Anyway she¡¯s a silver furred wolf who¡¯s a tad bit too reliant on violence to solve most of her problems, she¡¯s the kind who would charge into a problem head on without much prior planning. In short the type I¡¯m most weak against. Thus I try to avoid her as best as possible. The second caretaker is a complete 180 from Miko, who is both violent and easy to read. Her name is [Diana], a fair skinned human woman with long, silky blonde hair and ruby eyes. Her face was the physical manifestation of ¡®purity¡¯ and she usually wears a white variant of the nun¡¯s uniform, complete with the hood. Personality-wise she¡¯s extremely nice and caring, although if I had to say, she¡¯s also a little enigmatic. Even with my top tier cold reading abilities I can never fully interpret her expressions or inner thoughts behind that never faltering smile of hers. Thus I can¡¯t say that I truly trust her as much as I do with Miko. Even her status looks like this. [Diana. Level ???, ???] Her level and class are all unknown; I don¡¯t believe she¡¯s hiding something too dastardly but I was always a cautious person so I¡¯ve tried my best to not let her read too much into myself either. It was a kind of mutual distrust but with the appearance of pure trust on the outside. She was the person that picked me up when I first found myself on in the northern continent. She brought me to this orphanage and gave me a place to stay. For that at least, I am eternally thankful. At least on the outside she is a really nice person, so someday I¡¯ll definitely repay her kindness. Other than that, there¡¯s always three specific children hanging around near me. They were all ¡®smart¡¯ enough to approach me even though I had a ¡®do not approach¡¯ aura plastered all over me. The first is that girl from just now. Her name is [Alice]. She¡¯s a boisterous and active girl. The second child is an [Elven] boy named [Ren]. A rather quiet and reserved boy, though he speaks up when he needs to. Because of their personalities, he and Alice come to clash often until the argument is broken up by either one of the caretakers or myself. He likes to tinker with machinery or gadgets which is in odds with his [elven] nature and knack for magic. The final child is a meek [demon] girl from the [Lamia] race named [Celina]. She¡¯s often seen with either Alice or myself most of the time though she does have a good relationship with Ren as well. PART THREE Walking down the stairs to get to the dining room, I¡¯m met by a familiar, angry, expression. Just like most mornings I¡¯m welcomed to this place by her always upside down smiles. It¡¯s Miko¡¯s bright expression. Seeing her furious face it must¡¯ve been about last night, usually I like to play innocent to avoid questioning. ¡°Good morning Miko, how was your morning?¡± I could see traces of bags forming under her eyes, but other than that she seems perfectly fine. She¡¯s a little sweaty and had a town hanging from her neck. She usually goes outside to train early in the morning, some children have even started joining her, myself not being one of them. ¡°Ah~?! How was my morning? I don¡¯t know, why don¡¯t you tell me, you little brat!¡± She says with a clearly annoyed tone. ¡°I apologize, whatever do you mean? I¡¯ve only recently got up and-¡° ¡°Cut the crap, I know you went out late at night yesterday, against our words again.¡± I¡¯m interrupted but I continue on smiling in front of her. Though I wish I could say it was a false smile, in front of her I really can¡¯t, she¡¯s just too much fun teasing around with and when met with that kind of sincerity I give up. She¡¯s really honest towards me, for that I¡¯m glad to have her around because when she is near me, even if it was only for a small moment, albeit temporarily, the gaps in my heart start to be filled in. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯ve really no idea what you¡¯re talking about.¡± ¡°Are you taking me for a fool?! I¡¯ll have you know that I-¡° ¡°Now, now, Miko. Why don¡¯t you leave it at that? If Morgant left at night I¡¯m sure he must¡¯ve had a good reason to do so.¡± From behind us a very feminine voice had intervened and come to my rescue. It was Diana, with her graceful and mysterious appearance. She was the very definition of ¡®womanly¡¯. Her soft voice almost warms my heart, just failing short. Even her figure was perfect, not to mention those voluptuous breasts. Her blonde hair was tied down in braids reaching past her shoulders. ¡°Diana, but this brat-¡° Miko tries to justify herself but Diana softly gestures her to stop with a smile. She then crouches down and meets me on the eye level. She places her hand on my head softly and gently pats me with a pure smile. ¡°Morgant, we can¡¯t stop you from leaving at night if that¡¯s really what you want to do but please promise me that you won¡¯t do anything too dangerous. We¡¯re all very worried for you, not just us but your friends as well.¡± In reply I give her my own variant of untruthful smile. I think she realizes that I know she¡¯s hiding her true personality behind a persona but pleads ignorance. It¡¯s a routine act between two professionals, but it really is baffling me as to why I can¡¯t exactly pinpoint her true nature. I guess if I could realize why I wouldn¡¯t be so lost like this when dealing with her, I just hope it really is my imagination, but someone so perfect¡­ rarely is that really the case. ¡°Yes of course. I promise.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a good boy. Then shall we go have breakfast?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± PART FOUR Life in the orphanage isn¡¯t too bad. Most of the children¡¯s age are between 1 ~ 14. In this world 15 is when you¡¯re considered an actual adult so it¡¯s natural that once you¡¯ve reached that age you leave the orphanage. Some of the children who grew up here and left have occasionally sent money to aid in the financial side of this place. As for me, even though I¡¯m only ¡®ten¡¯, I go around the business sectors of this city and make a small sum of money to help and repay my debts to this place. So because of that and my perceived intellect from the caretakers, my role in this place is rather different from the other children and more akin to a 3rd caretaker. Think of me as an ¡®assistant caretaker¡¯. During the day Diana and Miko teach the children various life skills that they may need once they graduate from this place. Diana teaches important subjects like math and language while Miko teaches self defense. It¡¯s up to the children what they want to learn after age 10 but before then they are under the care of Diana. I help Diana with teaching the children as well. Most children after graduation take up an apprenticeship from the people around the city such as smiths, miners, craftsmen, politicians. Some decide that staying in the city isn¡¯t enough for them and take up apprenticeship under traveling merchants or become adventurers and soldiers. Interestingly, Alice wanted to learn under Miko, though she wasn¡¯t allowed to since she was too young but after much begging, she was finally taught the basics of combat and still to this day continues on. As for Ren, since he prefers to tinker with gadgets and machinery he usually stays behind and helps with the maintenance of this place. He¡¯s also become like a handyman since his so dexterous. On the side he creates tools to mess around with constantly. Regardless, back to my original thought. After breakfast I was currently helping out with the studies of the other children. Even children who are a few years older than myself were coming to me with problems they couldn¡¯t solve. ¡°Mmm~ I don¡¯t get it.¡± Besides me was a small, struggling voice that hummed quietly and cutely. It was Celina who was doing her utmost to figure out the problems handed by Diana. I was there to help her out but I guess she had her own pride in trying to solve it herself. Or so I thought until she gave up and asked for help. ¡°Morgant~ I don¡¯t get this question. She slides the paper across the table so I could see better. It was a math problem, to be honest, education in this world was lacking across the board so even at the age of tenten there are children who aren¡¯t good with simple maths. I took a look at the question. ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­ what¡¯s 5 + 8?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± She gets a little dejected from her inability. ¡°It¡¯s okay, we can get through together. Let¡¯s break it down, 5 + 5 equals?¡± ¡°10¡­?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, then what¡¯s 10 + 3?¡± ¡°Mmm¡­ 13?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! That¡¯s a good girl. You see 8 is just 5 + 3, so if we break it down like that the question was really 5 + 5 + 3.¡± As though she had found enlightenment she has a face that told me she understood everything now. I stroke her head as a reward and she smiles muttering ¡®ehehe~¡¯ under her breath. It seems the [Lamia] race likes physical contact. In such a manner our afternoon continued on. Watching the scene of children trying their best to learn and experience new things really did touch me. I was genuinely curious as to what kind of people they would grow up to become, but whether I had the luxury to ever find out was a different question all together. PART FIVE For once more, night had fallen and I was about to leave for the forest when I was interrupted by a familiar figure. Myself¡­ or rather Shade was taking the form of myself to stop me. Odd, because Shade¡¯s intentions were to meet me with the entity of malice and dread, yet he takes this form that seeks to hinder me from that goal. Just what is this cognitive dissonance? He has a smug smile as he pushes up his glasses. I too do the same in irritation. ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going?¡± ¡°Where do you think, genius?¡± ¡°Mmm~¡± Due to my voice, Alice who was sleeping in the bed next to me was on the verge of waking up. So we waited for her to fall back into deep slumber to continue this conversation. ¡°I won¡¯t stop you but, there is no real reason you need to go alone. You know it don¡¯t you? Those who always protect you from the shadows.¡± Of course I had already guessed that. I already knew, probably [Arachna] or the [Ghost King] was following my daily ventures into the dark dungeon in the dark forests. They¡¯re there to make sure I didn¡¯t die, while they weren¡¯t hostile I didn¡¯t know their true motives so I couldn¡¯t trust them completely either. No, perhaps I knew what they wanted but I tried to ignore it as much as possible. After all I wasn¡¯t here to make friends, but kill enemies. Friends will just drag me down, sure they may be powerful now but against Nodens how much help can they really be? No¡­ argh dammit, I know, okay? The truth is I don¡¯t want to make friends, because it¡¯s scary. I don¡¯t want to lose more people, so I don¡¯t make any bonds deeper than acquaintances. I¡¯ve lost everything twice, at least if I have nothing then I couldn¡¯t possibly regret it when I just into the fray with Nodens, because when that time comes I will have nothing. I¡¯m quite self-aware thank you. But I¡¯m also extremely stubborn. ¡°You may not like it but you have already formed bonds with the people of this place. What do you think will happen if you disappear now? They will grieve and you will scar them more than necessary.¡± I shake my head. ¡°No, these people are merely acquaintances. Even after I¡¯m gone I would only be one of many children to the caretakers and to the children I will only have been a brief friend. They are still young, they will get over my disappearance quickly and adapt. I believe in them to do so.¡± ¡°Just how long do you intend to continue with this selfish tantrum of yours? I¡¯m getting annoyed just talking to you.¡± ¡°And how long do you intend on haunting me, dead man? I¡¯m also past the point of annoyance with you. But I admit it is fun to let loose my frustrations onto someone like you, for that I¡¯m thankful.¡± I reply with a malice filled smile. I¡¯m unhappy talking to him but I feel a weight off my shoulders every time I do. Still, I wasn¡¯t going to be held up here any longer and decided to just ignore him and try walk out of the room. ¡°Hah¡­¡± I breathe a sigh and place my hands to the center of my face again. ¡°Morgant¡­?¡± I hear a small voice coming from behind me. Alice was standing behind me, rubbing her eyes as she yawned and grabbed onto the hem of my shirt. ¡°Alice? You should go to sleep, what are you doing getting up now?¡± ¡°Mmm¡­ I just thought you were going to¡­ go somewhere far away¡­¡± I could see small drops of tears so I wiped them away as I activated my [enchanting voice]. I gave her a small hug and whispered into her ears. ¡°Alice, it¡¯s time for sleep.¡± ¡°¡­ Okay¡­ Goodnight.¡± She walks back to her bed and resumes her rest. * * * I found myself at the edge of the forest, just like last night. I stare up at the red moon and take in the harsh cold air of the night. Wryly mocking myself as I do. I take one small step forward but then I¡¯m interrupted a third time. ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going? Up to here I can sort of let it slide but any further than even I can¡¯t say I won¡¯t hurt you to stop you. Morgant.¡± I turn back my head to glance at the owner of the voice. Miko. At night, my personality is a lot darker and sinister than the one I take on during the day. So as I glare at her with sword like stares, Miko unconsciously takes a step back, but grits her teeth and steps forward once more. She senses a change in my personality and she¡¯s clearly scared but doesn¡¯t turn her back. So I give her a warning of my own. ¡°Where I go is none of your concern. Little girl.¡± END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 63 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 233 (220 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 0] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 39 (PASSIVE) [Undead''s Tenacity]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 34 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 35 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 40 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 44 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 49 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 46 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Terror of the Depths]: Level 1/Required Level: 100 (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 35 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 35 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 35 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 35 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian''s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father''s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight] Chapter 19 - Honest hearts Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Honest hearts Chapter XIX PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 990] [Miko¡¯s] ears twitch as I reproach her and her eyes wince as she registers my harsh change in personality. She seemed lost on how to handle me, not surprising since my night time persona is a breakneck descent from my day time persona. ¡°It¡¯s none of my concerns? O- of course it is! You¡¯re a child of this orphanage too! You really think I¡¯d let a child like you go into this deadly forest?!¡± She¡¯s shaken up; I could see the subtle shivering of her body under the red moonlight, yet she still tries her best to stop me from proceeding. I try once more, this time I reply to her whilst activating my [Evil eye], in hopes that it would be enough to convince her to leave. Out of everyone in the orphanage, only her, I don¡¯t want her to be mixed up in my own state of affairs. That isn¡¯t what I desire. The atmosphere around us turns tense and foreboding, mostly due to my presence. I stare at her and reproach her once more. ¡°I have neither need nor asked for your permission. Step aside and this time, don¡¯t get in my way.¡± This time she seemed to have perfectly registered my harsh fa?ade; her body starts to tremble and she takes a few steps away from me. Keeping up appearance, I scoffed at her attempts to stop me and proceed on my course towards the dungeon. ¡°N- no! You can¡¯t! I won¡¯t allow it!¡± Breaking past her fears she runs past me and impedes my path a second time, she clutches tightly onto her staff as she struggles to fight the fear. She was the first person I¡¯ve met that was of a lower level and yet was enduring my [evil eye]; a testament to her mental fortitude and will. Due to that I was able to tell that she really meant when she said she would stop me, because she cared for me that much. Still, as I said, I do not wish to involve her further with my business. Not this person. ¡°Leave.¡± Activating [enchanting voice] I command her. Since she was of a lower level and she was also using most of her mental faculties fighting off my [evil eye] I had thought ti would work. However to my surprise my commands were not carried out. She was still struggling to fight against it, even more desperately than before. Just what was she doing? What is she? She who fights and struggles for me, through even the cold, pain and fear? I was aware that people with strong wills or high mental resistances could fight against the commands I give. I had underestimated it, the will to protect someone you dearly cared for. I could only scoff at myself this time, I had forgotten about such a strength, even I wasn¡¯t dense enough not to realize this. Even for me, there was a time when I had something I truly wished to defend even if it cost me my life. Ironically it cost me everything but my life, which was why I was in such a position to begin with. Still, I appreciated her efforts at least. It doesn¡¯t matter anymore now. Even if she does struggle against my commands, that was all she could do immobilized like that. I could simply walk past her while she was distracted. As I continue on with my path she stretches out her arms to stop me once more, she struggles to glance my way but when she does she gives me an uneasy but triumphant smile. ¡°Hah¡­ Hah¡­ I¡­ I won¡¯t let you.¡± ¡°Tch, you¡¯re annoying. Is it a fight you¡¯re looking for?¡± It hurts to act the part of an evil bastard towards someone I have come to appreciate but this needs to be said. These types of people, type like her, they won¡¯t understand unless you say it to their faces straight on, and if it was mere words and acts then I could do it flawlessly. ¡°Hah¡­ haha¡­ you shitty little brat. I don¡¯t know what strange magic you¡¯re using¡­ but you¡¯re 10 years too early to be fighting against me.¡± Even though she tried to act tough, it wasn¡¯t convincing when she was struggling so hard just to bypass my [enchanting voice]. I saw droplets of sweat forming on her head and her tail started to twitch violently as she was getting close to her wit¡¯s end just enduring my power. ¡°I wonder¡­¡± I tap on the floor lightly and a large black object appears in front of me. [Shadow Shield] It was a defensive skill but it could also be used as an offensive skill if I wanted to. It doesn¡¯t have any piercing power like [shadow lance] but it does have considerable blunt force bashing power. She flew a few meters back as I swatted her away with my [shadow shield]. I didn¡¯t hesitate much because I knew the ground was coated in soft snow so there shouldn¡¯t have been much damage done to her aside from the initial shield bash. Turning my back on her I continued on with my path. ¡°W- where do you think you¡¯re going? I¡¯m not done with you yet.¡± Recovering much quick than I had anticipated Miko points her staff towards me. A subtle silver glow surrounds her as her wounds heal at a visible pace. Perhaps it was some sort of healing spell? An icon appeared under her status indicating that it was indeed some sort of skill. [Respite: Casts an aura around the user for a short period, healing them for a set amount. Healing amount depends on skill rank. While the skill is active the user gains a large boost to physical/magical/mental defenses.] I¡¯ve never heard of a skill like that, most likely it was some sort of monk-class related skill. Still, if it boosts her mental defenses then my [evil eye] and [enchanting voice] may not work, at the very least it would be enough to cancel out the defense drops from [evil eye] and since she has a strong will it would be easy to endure [enchanting voice]. ¡°Tsk. Looks like you want me to beat you down then¡­¡± I clicked my tongue as replied to her earlier threat. Despite the ground being covered in snow, Miko dashed towards me with her staff in hand extremely quickly. She covered the distance between us in less than 3 seconds and started to strike with her staff. I tried to counterattack but she quickly managed to avoid my strikes and skilfully parry my blows and return them. Luckily for me weak blows such as those weren¡¯t enough to even put a scratch on me thanks to my [undead¡¯s tenacity] passive ability. Even still, despite being 9 levels higher she was matching my pace without even breaking a sweat, no if we were on equal terms I would¡¯ve already been beaten to the ground many times over. To think a properly trained fighter was this much stronger than me. If I had been without my overbearing skills I would¡¯ve already lost. I suppose that the lesson for me to learn here is that I need to properly train my skills in combat, though I guess this wasn¡¯t the time to be thinking about such things. I summoned 2 [shadow shields] and distanced myself from Miko. The silver glow that was surrounding her was starting to dim and by the looks of it that [respite] skill drains quite a lot of stamina since her breaths were starting to become heavy. ¡°Why don¡¯t you give it up there? It¡¯s clear who¡¯ll come up top if this continues.¡± I tell her. Compared to her, my condition had not deteriorated even a bit since the battle had started, while she was almost done for. For some reason this battle had turned into one of attrition and I was winning, thinking about it like that it was a little creepy since this was the way the undead do things. I guess I wasn¡¯t too far off from them. Miko returns an intense glare towards me as she picks up her staff and charges towards me. She dishes out a flurry of jabs but at this point I had gotten used to her attack patterns and style thus I was able to dodge most of them, though it wasn¡¯t like I needed to dodge them since they wouldn¡¯t even put a scratch on me but it was just a natural reflex. ¡°Why¡­ ? Why don¡¯t you understand?¡± She asks me, half in tears and half in exhaustion. ¡°What¡­¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you understand that I¡¯m here for you?! It¡¯s not just me, everyone¡¯s there for you; [Alice], [Ren], [Celina], [Diana], even [Lilith] who¡¯s always saving you!¡± ¡°Lilith?¡± That was a name I haven¡¯t heard of. Questions for a later time. ¡°You¡¯re so annoying, as if I wanted anyone to care about me. You guys keep doing that on your own. Never have I once said that I needed any of your help. Tsk, fine I get it now Miko. All I have to do is leave right? If I¡¯m no longer part of the orphanage you won¡¯t interfere with me anymore, is that right?¡± I launched my [shadow shields] towards her, but she skilfully evades them and tries to close the gap again. Unfortunately the same trick doesn¡¯t really work well if done so many times; to stop her I summon more [shadow shields] to impede her path. She tries to smash through those shields but despite the fact that they were made of frail looking shadows they were extremely tough. The tip of Miko¡¯s staff glows silver and she strikes again and again but regardless of her efforts not a single scratch is on those shields. ¡°You think you can just cut off ties that easily? Once you¡¯re part of the orphanage you¡¯ll forever be a part of the family! If you¡¯re family then I will do everything to bring you back safely!¡± At the word ¡®family¡¯ I temporarily let my guard down and she strafes around the shield to get into striking distance. With the same glowing staff Miko strikes at me. For the first time her attack actually felt painful¡­ was she going easy on me this entire time? Taking advantage of my hesitation Miko gets in a couple more strikes with the same power strike. I thought something was off, even though I had mastered [undead¡¯s tenacity] and I was several levels higher the attacks dealt so much damage that I began to bleed. It seems like those power strikes contain some sort of magical element too, perhaps of the [holy] magic variant. ¡°Why? Why can¡¯t you understand that?! You¡¯ve been a part of this family since the day you¡¯ve arrived! So stop being such a baby and accept that fact already! If you¡¯re feeling down then tell me! If you¡¯re feeling scared or hopeless then come to me! If you¡¯re feeling frustrated then rely on me!¡± She continues to reprimand me as she delivers power strikes. Since half of the damage was physical and add that to the fact that [undead¡¯s tenacity] also gave passive 6000% regeneration rate, those attacks while they hurt, they weren¡¯t too much of a trouble for me. In fact Miko was the one who seemed to be the most affect by using that attack. She fell to her knees as she had tired herself out from the barrage. ¡°Why¡­¡± She drops her staff and falls into my arms. I tightly embrace her head and stroke through her hair as the bright red moon stared down at us. Miko didn¡¯t try to struggle out of it and was simple resting on my lap. I felt a hint of a smile creep onto my face. ¡°Thank you Miko¡­ you¡¯ve always been honest with me.¡± I place my lips on her forehead as a thank you as well as starting to cast a very light [life drain] to lower her guard. ¡°Y- you¡­¡± ¡°It seems you let down your guard from that, but my path is only for myself to walk. Perhaps from your point of view it may resemble nothing but a child¡¯s tantrums but to me it¡¯s a trial for me to succeed. Listen Miko, there is no light at the end of my tunnel, so it¡¯s not for honest people such as yourself to follow, but I am eternally grateful that you care about me that much. That is enough for me.¡± ¡°What are you...?¡± She looks up into my eyes from my laps and I stare deeply into her eyes. ¡°Thank you. Miko, it¡¯s time for you to return. There are many more children who require your assistance.¡± Taking advantage of the fact that her guard was down I slip a [enchanting voice] command. With her fatigue levels at an all time high as well as myself casting [life drain] on her the skill works perfectly and she gets up to walk back to the orphanage. After seeing her leave I too decide to continue on with my journey into the dungeon. PART TWO Once again I found myself on the fourth floor of the dungeon of malice. Seriously, this place is as foreboding as always; I just can¡¯t keep calm here. The legions of undead type monsters do not cease to come at me in hordes. I¡¯ve managed to gain a few levels in the last few days, but that wasn¡¯t enough and I¡¯ve found myself backed into a corner once more with the undead knocking at my door. My [skeleton knights] try to hold them back as best as they can while I try to [life drain] to heal up but as expected, it wasn¡¯t enough. ¡°[Fortification]!¡± I shouted out. It was a skill that I had used a lot recently, it converts all the offensive capabilities of the [skeleton knight] into their defenses. They become a nigh impenetrable wall, or that¡¯s how it¡¯s supposed to go but the undead are relentless after all. Even if you can¡¯t make a dent on the first strike, as long as you keep chopping at a tree it will eventually fall. Leaning against the walls of the dungeon I stare back at the horrific scene of the undead trying to get past my own undead. It was like a scene out of a horror movie, actually it was a little funny when I really thought about what I was doing. This entire situation was absurd; magic, monsters, 2 billion years, gods, demons. I felt my head becoming a little light from all of the fatigue. Everything around me felt like a dream, that at any moment I would find myself dozing off on my desk and my secretary would come in to wake me up and inform me that there was a shareholder meeting. I could practically smell the scent of coffee being brewed. Perhaps even get a call from [Erin] telling me how much she misses me, but I knew that was the dream and my situation right now was reality. They say that reality was stranger than fiction after all, but this was beyond my imagining. Initially I had 4 [skeleton knights] summoned but 2 of them had already reached the maximum pressure and crumbled to the undead¡¯s relentless barrage. The remaining two didn¡¯t look like it¡¯d hold up much longer either. I guess it was about time. I closed my eyes and waited. The last two [skeleton knights] were destroyed and now the undead were about to strike. A barrage of undead horror were unleashed towards me, but I knew it wouldn¡¯t connect, I was hoping it wouldn¡¯t connect. As I had anticipated, just before the attack landed everything was surrounded by a bright pink light. The attack was intercepted and the undead that were about to kill me were also all decimated. Slightly opening my eyes I saw a figure of a tall, slender, curvaceous demoness. She had bright red hair and blazing eyes, two horns and wore a generally gaudy attire, in fact she reminded me of a certain someone. She approached me who was writhing in pain against the wall and picked me up. ¡°How many times does that make?¡± A voice that didn¡¯t quite fit the image I had appeared, a deep male voice. Of course it couldn¡¯t belong to the woman in front of me, that wouldn¡¯t be right. This voice was familiar, right, I¡¯ve heard this voice before back then, in my village. I opened my eyes a little more to see the owner of the voice. A being covered in black fire. The [Ghost King], and standing next to him with an icy presence was [Arachna]. ¡°You should get him back to the orphanage.¡± Arachna speaks to the person holding me. ¡°Ah, yes. Okay.¡± Bat-like wings form behind the flamboyant woman. Right¡­ these wings too, I¡¯ve seen them before; they are similar to her, [Astaroth]. Before she was about to take off and exit the dungeon I mustered up my remaining strength to intervene. ¡°Don¡¯t¡­ touch me.¡± ¡°Eh?!¡± In surprise the woman let go of me and I was reacquainted with the dirt floor. A cold sensation ran through my back, of course it was the dungeon¡¯s natural miasma. The floor was coated in black mist that made anyone who lingered in here for too long to feel nausea. Luckily for me my [Toxin Resistance] also negates the negative effects of the miasma but there was still the psychological aspect of wondering around this disgusting black mist. ¡°You were awake?¡± The Ghost king asks. What was his name again? I dragged myself to a wall to lean on and sat upright to get a better viewing position. I opened his status to check his name. [Texzatopekmetziluxotl. Level 142, Ghost King] Ah¡­ right, it was that long-ass name. I¡¯ll just call him [Xotl] for short. I took a few deep breaths to calm myself down and stabilize my condition. Slowly but surely, [Undead¡¯s tenacity] was also in effect and was healing me, though even at 6000% it wasn¡¯t exactly instant; it still took a while for me to recover. I turned my gaze towards the gaudily dressed woman. I focused my senses to open her status. [Lilith De Signa. Level 89, Succubus Princess] ¡®De Signa¡¯? ¡­ Could it be? No, but she¡¯s clearly much bigger than Astaroth¡­ perhaps Astaroth¡¯s mother? No, that makes no sense level wise. Then her daughter? No, it can¡¯t be¡­ but then her features do greatly resemble Astaroth¡¯s, aside from the actual physique. Her title [Succubus Princess] would suggest a lineage, it¡¯s just that her proportions are so much more developed than Astaroth¡¯s it¡¯s a little hard to believe. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. ¡°You¡­¡± I called out to her. ¡°Y- yes?!¡± ¡°You are Astaroth¡¯s child?¡± ¡°Y- yes! Astaroth De Signa is my mother!¡± No hesitation in that response; she¡¯s telling the truth, although it is hard to believe. As I glare at her she fidgets and squirms around waiting for me to talk again. Is she nervous or something? Or perhaps there¡¯s some sort of ulterior motive for acting like that? Perhaps to let down my guard? No, if she wanted to defeat me she could¡¯ve easily done so. Still¡­ she¡¯s the one that¡¯s been rescuing me each night? What does she want? No, perhaps is should be a little more grateful. ¡°So? What do you want?¡± I was too tired, so I just asked straight out. ¡°Eh?¡± She dawdles and panics at my sudden question. It¡¯s slightly annoying but I let it be. ¡°You rescued me each night I came here, you must have a reason for doing so. Right now I¡¯m too tired to even try and deduce what it is you want so I¡¯m just asking you straight out. ¡°Eh! Eh¡­ um, because you can¡¯t die.¡± She gives me a cryptic reply. ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡± ¡°I- I mean, you can¡¯t die because I need you!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Her face becomes as red as her hair and she slumps forward as though she¡¯s embarrassed. What now? ¡°Ummm¡­ I- I want to serve you¡­¡± Serve me? ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Just so you know, I haven¡¯t forgotten that she was a [succubus] but I was too mentally exhausted to retort to that kind of easy innuendo. From her actions so far she was obviously not to type to sleep around with men, despite being a [succubus]. So it¡¯s obvious she meant to say she wants to serve under me. ¡°A- as a [General] of the Demon Army. I want to serve under you!¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Ummm, I¡¯ve always wished to help my mother with her job but I was far too weak to be of any help and because of my position as mother¡¯s child the other [Demon Generals] were too reluctant to take me in. So that¡¯s why when I heard that mother appointed another General I thought you would let me serve under you. So just when I thought I found someone, you can¡¯t die!¡± ¡°¡­ No. Sorry but try someone else. I¡¯m not interested in taking in an underling.¡± ¡°No¡­ no way¡­¡± Dejected from my refusal, she slumped onto the floor. We stayed like that for a few more minutes, me because I needed to heal up and she¡­ I don¡¯t know. She was depressed I guess. After feeling myself back in health I stood up and started to walk deeper into the dungeon. ¡°Ah, please wait!¡± ¡°Stop getting in my way.¡± ¡°I- I can¡¯t stop! I will stop you! Because you have to be strong!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± What¡¯s she on about this time? ¡°You can¡¯t let your grief overtake you! You need to be stronger than that, because there are many people who want to live but can¡¯t. so you who can live needs to live on and be strong so you can get past your sadness.¡± ¡°¡­ It seems you¡¯ve mistaken my intentions. I¡¯m not here to find a resting place.¡± ¡°Eh?¡± x3 Not only Lilith but Xotl and Arachna were also surprised at my confession. These guys, did they think that I was here to commit suicide? How stupid, that¡¯s easier done with a knife than traversing a dungeon. I breathed a sigh. ¡°It¡¯s like I¡¯ve said. All you needed was to look besides you and even you have companions that would help you.¡± Shade appears beside me, no, not shade, [Aran Callahad] appears besides me. With his sudden appearance the three were startled, especially Lilith who was practically doing a dance with her sheer surprise. She has way too much energy, but the most eye catching thing was that her breasts swayed side to side as she moved. She has too much ¡®energy¡¯ there as well. At his appearance I felt my hand automatically move the center of my face in irritation. ¡°W- who¡¯s that?!¡± She shouts out. ¡°What do you want? Why are you here?¡± Ignoring Lilith¡¯s question I began to question my other self. ¡°It seems you¡¯ve forgotten but I¡¯m always here, I¡¯m an after image created by the power of the [Necronomicon] using your emotions after all. You can¡¯t get rid of me even if you wanted to.¡± ¡°I disagree, I can burn the [Necronomicon] right here.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you try it? The book of evil is much more sturdy than you think.¡± ¡°Tch. So what do you want?¡± ¡°I see you¡¯ve given up. Good boy.¡± ¡°You¡¯re testing my patience.¡± ¡°Heh. Well no matter. I thought this was a good time to come out. I¡¯m merely here to remind you that your path doesn¡¯t need to be a solitary one. These three seem to be more than willing to become your first comrades, so why not take up their offer? Besides, with your current level of strength you won¡¯t be able to reach the end of this dungeon; having friends is also a form of strength you know?¡± I felt my ears twitch. I turned to face my other self head on and shook my head in disapproval. ¡°Friends? No, they are not friends. They each came here with their own agendas. To be blunt I don¡¯t trust these people and aside from their titles I know almost nothing about them. Such people can¡¯t possibly be friends.¡± ¡°Lord Morgant¡­¡± Lilith calls out my name from the sides in a depressed manner. The other two avert their gaze as well. Right, I know nothing about them, so to put my trust in them would be foolhardy and the only thing that them rescuing me tells me is that they don¡¯t want me dead, but that doesn¡¯t mean I should accept them or believe in them. They are strangers. ¡°It is as you say, Aran Callahad. Having friends may be a form of power, I know that very well, if not then [Mobius] could never have been created as it were. However I also understand that friendship is a burden; an emotional baggage that I no longer need. I¡¯ve said this many times before and will say it many times after: I will walk my path alone.¡± After telling him my most honest thoughts I proceeded down to the 5th floor. PART THREE -Arachna¡¯s PoV- Morgant left. He left us behind as he proceeded down to the next floor. The strange man with a sinister glow that appeared from the shadows also disappeared as he left. I¡¯m not sure what that person was but I feel the same aura from him as I do from Morgant. They are like 2 sides of the same coin; different but the same. ¡°S- shouldn¡¯t we follow after him?!¡± Lilith, the girl that looks and dresses in a manner completely different from her personality calls out to us. She¡¯s very panicky and unreliable when it comes to a lot of things but I have recognized that she does truly care for Morgant as well. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± The Ghost king - [Texzatopekmetziluxotl] answers her questions. He is a mystery to me, he doesn¡¯t seem to particularly harbor any sort of positive feelings other than curiosity towards Morgant, he¡¯s just here because of his master¡¯s orders. The orders of the previous Demon Lord - [Erendel De Signa]. Still he is persistent, he has never complained about helping Morgant and he will probably do it forever if need be, without complaint. Then what about myself? Why was I here? As I ask myself that question the image of a certain boy enters my head. He¡¯s completely different from Morgant. Morgant is selfish, arrogant, smug, borderline evil, self important and doesn¡¯t care about anyone else¡¯s feelings. The boy that came to my mind was the polar opposite, a kind, serene, caring and modest. But they do share one thing in common, it¡¯s that they¡¯re both true to themselves. That boy was my dear younger brother, the one I prized over all else. However the happiness I shared while spending my time with him did not last. Something had happened, something very wrong. My brother was considered a military genius and as part of the demon race he was quickly recruited by the previous Demon Lord, Erendel. I was weary of that fact, I did not want my precious younger brother to work in such a dangerous field, but against my better judgement I let him go. During Erendel¡¯s reign there was a brief period of all out war against the forces of heaven and Vertloch. Of course due to his position my brother was dragged into that mess, and slowly but surely he was becoming more and more corrupt due to the bloodshed. Because my brother¡¯s gift of intellect was a double-edged sword, he could see things many people could not, but because of that he was able to witness things he should not. With the blood and life of many on his hands he simply could not take the stress. His overly sensitive mind which gave him his genius also plagued him with trauma. The day after the war ended¡­ I am unsure of what happened, I was not there but something had happened on that day. Erendel De Signa ceased being the Demon Lord and gave his post to his daughter. Even now I am looking for answers. Regardless, to answer my original question of why I was here. It¡¯s most probably because Morgant reminds me of my brother. Morgant is much smarter than anyone his age, there was a time when he was pure as well, but everything went wrong after the day his village was destroyed. The most surprising thing was that despite all this Morgant had not lost himself to madness like my brother. Morgant¡¯s mind was not as sensitive, no if anything he is very insensitive and arrogant, but because of that he was saved. However even with that iron will of his, if he continues on with this path then surely he would end up no different than my brother. I didn¡¯t want to see that happen. Morgant is strong, both mentally and physically but he is not invincible. ¡°Miss Arachna?¡± Since I had become quiet, Lilith calls out to me. ¡°Hmm? Oh, it¡¯s nothing. Still, this is a bit troublesome. Morgant doesn¡¯t trust us and wishes to continue on by himself. I wonder if there is any way to change his mind.¡± I reply. ¡°If there was such a method I would like to use it myself.¡± Lilith answers with an uneasy smile. Is there really no other way than to continue on as we have been? Silently watching as his guardians, though Morgant seems self-aware that reproaching us for saving him would be too vain, it does seem like we¡¯ll be approaching the limits of his mercy soon. ¡°It¡¯s not like there isn¡¯t¡­ a way to gain his trust that is.¡± Texzatopekmetziluxotl suddenly speaks up. ¡°Eh?! There is?! How?!¡± Lilith asks as her wings flutter in anticipation. Does her wings work in the same principles as a dog¡¯s tail? Texzatopekmetziluxotl takes out a small black rock. This is¡­ I¡¯ve seen this before. It¡¯s known as a [Soul-binding stone]. It binds another person¡¯s existence to another, in essence one person become a part of another person. Though they retain separate wills the master¡¯s will takes precedence and the servant must obey the master¡¯s wishes. This object was used in ancient times for slaves and criminals. I heard all of these stones were destroyed but I guess it was impossible to completely rid them all. To think someone I knew held onto such a terrifying item. ¡°What is this? I¡¯ve never seen such a pretty black rock.¡± Oblivious to what it is, Lilith stares into it. ¡°[Soul-binding stone]. In essence it binds a person to another person with complete loyalty. If we use this then even Morgant will have a hard time saying he can¡¯t trust us.¡± ¡°Oh~! I see, with this item we may actually be able to change his mind!¡± Lilith says in a happy voice. Eh? She doesn¡¯t mind becoming a complete slave to that boy forever? No, maybe she just doesn¡¯t realize it yet. ¡°Are you sure about this? Using this item means we will forever be tied to that boy¡¯s existence, we will have wills of our own but if it cannot be consulted then it merely become an illusion of free will.¡± I ask the two of them. Lilith makes a face that seems to say that she finally realized the extent of this item and how powerful it is. He starts to sweat as she ponders about whether actually going through with it or not. An item that disregards the will of the servant; if the master were to walk the path of evil the servant must follow. ¡°I will use this item.¡± Texzatopekmetziluxotl speaks out without hesitation. ¡°Are you sure? Don¡¯t you have a different master to serve? If you use this item then you will forever be bound to that boy. You may even end up having to fight your master at some point. Shouldn¡¯t you think about this a bit more carefully?¡± He shakes his head. ¡°No, this the will of my current master. I¡¯m sure he¡¯s prepared to face to consequences of his orders if it turns out like as you said. Lord Erendel told me to protect that boy, and if this is the way to do it then so be it. I will honor his orders no matter the price, even if that price is to serve a new lord.¡± ¡°But what if you¡¯re wrong? What if Morgant doesn¡¯t turn out well, what if he turns out like...¡± I wanted to say, ¡®what if he turns out like my brother¡¯. If that happens then we will be bound to someone who has lost his mind, a worse prospect than to be bounded to someone who is evil. ¡°Arachna... isn¡¯t that why you are here? To make sure Morgant doesn¡¯t end up like him?¡± His words pierce deep into my heart. He was right, the whole point of me being here was to make sure Morgant doesn¡¯t walk down the wrong path, but as I hesitate like this, can I really help Morgant? Worried about myself who am I really trying to protect? Morgant? Or the purities of my memories of my brother that has overlapped with Morgant? I knew deep down I was just projecting the ideal of my brother onto Morgant. ¡°I¡­ I will do it as well!¡± Lilith makes up her decision. ¡°Lilith¡­¡± I call out her name. ¡°If it will help Lord Morgant, then I will gladly become part of him. After all, this is the only thing left for me to do.¡± I could see that she was hesitant to follow through but she has still made her decision. Yet I was still scared of what may come of this. ¡°Arachna. It¡¯s fine isn¡¯t it? You see your brother in him right?¡± As though he had read my mind he brings up my brother. Now that I think about it, he was also a demon general under Erendel. Of course they would be acquaintances, and of course he would understand my thoughts. ¡°¡­ I know I shouldn¡¯t¡­ Morgant is a different person.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what I meant. I think it¡¯s fine to project the ideal of your brother onto his existence. If that is what you believe is best for Morgant than why not?¡± ¡°But what if I¡¯m wrong? What if that isn¡¯t for the best?¡± ¡°No one can be perfect. If you are wrong, then we will help you become right.¡± For an apparition his words are strangely warming. I could feel myself smiling in defeat of his logic. I felt stupid trying to take this on all by myself, perhaps Morgant¡¯s personality rubbed off onto me. Right, there was no need for me to struggle through this alone. ¡°Having friends is another form of power. Huh. Very well, I too will go along with this plan.¡± The three of us were in perfect unison and decided to descend to the next floor. END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 66 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL Strength: 233 (220 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 15] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 39 (PASSIVE) [Undead''s Tenacity]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 34 (ACTIVE) [Life Drain]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 35 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 40 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 44 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 49 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 46 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Terror of the Depths]: Level 1/Required Level: 100 (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 35 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 35 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 35 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 35 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian''s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father''s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight] Chapter 20 - Overcoming the barrier of 2 billion years Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Overcoming the barrier of 2 billion years Chapter XX PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 990] [Soul-binding stone]. The three I had ditched on the upper floor had come back with a frightening object in hand. This artefact essentially turns another person into a very slave of absolute loyalty. Due to what I said earlier about not being able to trust them they came back with this item to convince me otherwise. ¡°You guys¡­ are you serious?¡± I breathed a sigh as I asked them. Truthfully if they were considering to go this far then the matter of their trustworthiness may be solved but as a person it was a little hard even for me to use this item. I also couldn¡¯t rule out the fact that they were lying about this item as well, perhaps the effects were not as they say or it was a counterfeit. ¡°Allow me.¡± [Shade] appears to examine the artefact. I really wish he would stop doing that without my permission. He¡¯s like a rabid jack-in-the-box, and I don¡¯t know when he¡¯s going to pop out and stab me in the back, at least he wasn¡¯t in [Aran Callahad]¡¯s form and was in his original, shadow-like form. ¡°Whoa! Who¡¯s that?!¡± Lilith shouts out in surprise. I really wish she would stop doing that as well, the whole ¡®ditzy¡¯ and ¡®easily startled¡¯ act I mean. I won¡¯t say it doesn¡¯t have a certain charm to it, I¡¯m sure there are a lot of men who likes that sort of thing but to me it does get a little annoying. ¡°After intense analysis, I¡¯ve come to the conclusion that this item is indeed genuine.¡± Shade says as he ignores Lilith¡¯s question, well he says that but all he did was stare at it for a couple of seconds. ¡°You¡¯re sure about this?¡± ¡°Quite so.¡± ¡°And what kind of credibility do you possess that makes you so confident that this artefact is genuine? You don¡¯t look like a geologist to me, and from what I hear this item was last used hundreds of years ago. You mean to tell me that you¡¯ve lived that long?¡± Shade quiets down for a bit in contemplation before answering. ¡°My conception was completed in 730 CE of the Earth Calendar. I believe that I am an existence that predates even the venerable Aran Callahad.¡± Ah, of course. That¡¯s right he¡¯s THE Necronomicon. Silly me, I only thought magic was a product of this era and not the one I was living in, you know, the one where magic DIDN¡¯T exist? ¡°[Alhazred] must be so proud of your durability.¡± I know 8th century predates the 21st century but if we¡¯re talking on the scale of 2 billion years does the difference of a few hundred really make that much of a difference? Couldn¡¯t we just say we were living around the same time, give or take a couple centuries? ¡°The author of the Necronomicon, Abdul Alhazred was merely a puppet for the true master.¡± ¡°Of course, and that ¡®true master¡¯ was ordained the position of minister of this dark cave in the middle of nowhere, right?¡± He ignores me. Well, getting back onto the main topic at hand, this [soul-binding stone] was the real deal. Did they really wish to be bound to me until their deaths? Perhaps this was some kind of trick? Maybe they¡¯re playing on my human conscience to make me think that they¡¯re trustworthy by offering this item and that I won¡¯t really use it? However it is true that with the use of this item they effectively become a part of me. They will never betray me; meaning that I will become able to trust them. Also, as much as I play the tune of my arrogance, I am loathed to admit it but this dungeon will be impossible to clear without their assistance. Well I guess that¡¯s not entirely true, if I keep at it like this, eventually I will be able to clear this dungeon as I get stronger. However that will be far too inefficient and I do not have the luxury of time. ¡®Friendship is a form of strength,¡¯ the words of my other self come back to haunt me. I do not disagree with those sentiments, but friends can also become a burden. Even if I have their complete loyalty, it¡¯s not unthinkable to that in my compromise I will be scarred once more. I hated it, I didn¡¯t want to feel like that anymore. [Arachna] places her hands on my shoulders and stares deeply into my eyes. ¡°We are strong. And you can trust us with through this item.¡± ¡®We are strong¡¯, well I suppose she has a point, compared to me these guys are a lot stronger. I could feel it deep inside; my blocked off heart starting to crack. Was it time to give up my stubborn ways? These guys have come to a compromise with this item, at the very least I have to give them a serious consideration. ¡°Morgant, even if you decide against accepting us, we will still continue to follow and protect you. If that was going to be the case would it not be better to simply use the item on us? There is a limit to how much we can help you from the sidelines but if we were to become part of you using this item, that very limit may be somewhat alleviated.¡± [Xotl] explains to me. He seems serious in using this item. Of course this entire situation only arose from the fact that I distrust them, it would be a simple matter to just accept them without using this suspicious item. However I could not bring myself to do that, I understand it best myself after all, this deep rooted fear and distrust was just a base part of my personality. Ever since my days as Aran Callahad I had this fear; everyday someone was gunning for my life, if not that people were always plotting to backstab me, there were very little people I could trust and come to trust. I had thought I had gotten over it when I reborn to this era but after the events of 2 years ago, my old personality had surfaced back. I reached for the black stone in Xotl¡¯s hand. ¡°I¡¯ll really use this, you know? You¡¯ll really lose your freedom.¡± ¡°Each of us are prepared for that fate. It is the path we have all chosen.¡± Xotl answers my uneasiness and the other two nod with a prepared smile. Tsk, do these guys truly think they¡¯re prepared to live the life of an eternal servant? I¡¯m not so sympathetic to not use this item and accept them willfully; this is practically suicide on their part, even though they tried so hard to prevent my death. I held the black stone that weighed heavily on me; the item that stole people¡¯s fate and freedom. They each close their eyes in preparation. ¡°Kuh¡­ Then I¡¯ll really use it. You can¡¯t stop me anymore. This is what you have all decided on your own accord.¡± ¡°Yes, we understand Lord Morgant.¡± Lilith answers with a smile. The black stone glows with a purple hue, and surrounds us within a violent maelstrom of nauseous black and purple mist. The world when black, but everything also became surrounded in a tranquil and serene aura. This was the world of people¡¯s souls, or at least that¡¯s how I had interpreted it. Xotl¡¯s instruction was simple, I was to collect the three souls that appeared here, that way the contract would be complete and I would become their eternal master. The warmth of this place calmed me down and connected to the other three. In here I could feel everything, their thoughts, feelings, desires and needs; everything was laid bare for me to reach out and seize for myself. Was this really alright? Perhaps it was already too late to be rethinking this, as three glowing white orbs appeared before; they were the souls. [Arachna]. [Lilith De Signa]. [Texzatopekmetziluxotl]. They had a similar appearance to the one I found after slaying the [Terror of the Depths]. Like back then I had reached out and took a hold over them, as I did a slightly electrifying feeling overcame me. I felt a strange oneness with these souls. They slowly disappeared into my body and shortly after the world had returned to the sight of the dungeon. However the presence of the three were no longer there, no perhaps that wasn¡¯t quite true, I could feel their existence deep within myself. Four interface boxes appeared. [New skill acquired: [Soul Bind Summoning(Active)]] [New skill acquired: [Summon - Ghost King(Soul Bind)]] [New skill acquired: [Summon - Succubus Princess(Soul Bind)]] [New skill acquired: [Summon - Spider Queen(Soul Bind)]] [Soul Bind Summoning: honoring the contract, the individuals offered to the master may be summoned at any time for no cost. Summon duration is infinite until either the servant or the master dies] It was complete, meaning that we were past the point of no return. PART TWO There was a bit of regret inside me but at the same time I felt a bit of my insecurity disappear. At the very least, unlike with [summon - Terror of the Depths] there was no level restriction. [Summon - Ghost King] [Summon - Succubus Princess] [Summon - Spider Queen] Using those three skills, which were given to me already at level 50, I summoned my three new servants. Three black magic circles appeared before me and slowly they arose from them. ¡°Ah, we¡¯re back!¡± Lilith was the first to speak out. She fluttered about checking that nothing had changed about herself. From the looks of it, it doesn¡¯t seem like their personalities been altered in anyway and their physiques are the same as before. Though there was a small part of the skill description that bothered me. ¡®Summon duration is infinite until either the servant or master dies¡¯. I wonder if it would be acceptable to interpret that part as when I die these three will also die. It was a small mistake on my end, I did not think that rule would apply and it¡¯s far too late to reverse the contract now. I suppose I¡¯ll just have to trust them when they told me that they chose this path knowingly. ¡°Hmm, I don¡¯t feel any different¡­¡± Arachna also tries examining herself. ¡°¡­ Sorry.¡± When I suddenly apologized to them they gave me a surprised stare. ¡°What about? Lord Morgant?¡± Thinking that she did something wrong Lilith asks in a panic as she flutters about. ¡°Because of my weakness¡­ this was the only way for me to come to accept you guys. The price of your freedom was not worth it for something like my trust.¡± Arachna walks up and embraces me, my face is plunged into her near non-existent bosoms as a feeling of disappointment overcomes me. She¡¯s so pretty, but also kind of a disappointing in some areas. She gently strokes through my hair¡­ though I don¡¯t think this is the kind of thing a servant does to her master but I allowed it, because it didn¡¯t feel bad. ¡°It¡¯s fine Morgant. We have prepared ourselves to be with you til our deaths. In some ways it is a bond stronger than even marriage.¡± ¡°M-m-m-m-marriage?!¡± Hearing that word, Lilith almost breaks into a little dance as her face burns as brightly as the color of her hair. She¡¯s really a lively one, so much so that I couldn¡¯t help but break into a smile myself. ¡°Really¡­ you guys are all stupid. Why would you even follow someone like me. Well whatever, then prepare yourselves, since you¡¯ve decided to serve me I¡¯ll work you to the bones.¡± At my words they return faces full of determination. I see, though it¡¯s not exactly as I had planned it, this too is a kind of ¡®solitary¡¯ walk; a solitary walk that is just a bit noisy. I took a deep breath and gave up my stubbornness. ¡°I guess¡­ we should go.¡± * * * There were 10 floors to this dungeon and had I gone alone I wouldn¡¯t of made it to the end. However the ambiance had changed drastically as we stood before a gigantic red door to the last room. The three that was accompanying me dropped, fainting on the spot from the sheer pressure of malice. Xotl did great trying to handle the pressure but in time he too was knocked unconscious. At the very least they weren¡¯t dead. As for me, well I had endured the pressure, or more likely I had been made to withstand the pressure. No matter how many times I wanted to faint as they did, some force was holding me back from doing so, still suffering the full brunt of that malice, even I was a little winded. As I placed my hands on the door Shade appeared. ¡°The lord of malice and dread welcomes thee to his domain.¡± Really¡­ A bad omen. PART THREE The door creaked as I pushed it open. It had already been a theme of this dungeon but as expected, when I opened the door a burst of black miasma came flooding through making me feel worse than I already was. Luckily there was no actual physiological effect from the miasma due to my [toxin resistance] but it felt disgusting nonetheless. I was witnessed to a large expansive room, with four thick pylons supporting the walls and ceilings of this place. The walls were not actually even walls, they were made of flesh and oozed strange liquids and blood, which coated the floor in the same disgusting mess. The pylons looked as though they were made of muscles and flesh instead of bricks or stone. It was no exception to the oozing blood. This place, rather than a room it was as though I had taken a step into someone¡¯s body, with the fleshy walls trying to intimidate me into submission. I could hear strange wailing from behind the walls and there were even some parts that looked like screaming faces, as though people were stuck behind the flesh walls and were trying to escape. Perhaps that really was the case or perhaps this too was simple decoration. No¡­ knowing the nature of the owner of this place, it wouldn¡¯t be too farfetched to say these were all authentic. The smell in this place was as bad as it looked, the stench of corpses and blood filled the air, with a hint of poison also being airborne but [toxin resistance] made it meaningless to me. A single stream of light was cast from an open hole from the ceiling towards the center. At the heart of this dungeon; the epicenter of evil sat upon a pile of bones. Most likely they belonged to humans or other such sentient races. A figure so dark that it would simple be easier to describe it as a human shaped shadow. Despite being a shadow I could somehow tell the contours of his muscles, he wasn¡¯t overtly buff but his muscles would impress a lot of people. The only clothing on him were a white and gold pschent and similarly colored trousers. He rested on his hand as he sat on the throne of bones and stared at me with golden eyes. Those golden eyes¡­ in this world they were the sign of divinity, even [Nodens] possessed such eyes, but compared to Nodens¡¯ weak gaze of arrogance, the being of shadows before me had a much more sinister glare. He continued to stare at me without utterance. I too took only a few steps and met his gaze. I opened up his status to check. [Nyarlathotep. Level ???, ???] His level and class were unknown, just like [Diana]. Though I have serious doubts that Diana has any connections to Nyarlathotep but I guess I can¡¯t completely rule out that possibility. For the time being I decided to focus on the person in front of me. ¡°You summoned me, Nyarlathotep?¡± I tried to muster up an imposing voice, but with the body of tenten year old that was slightly impossible. Though I didn¡¯t particularly think I could one up the god of malice and dread, there was still a need for me to keeping up my appearances and not falter in front of him. I know I wasn¡¯t him equal but since he¡¯s called me here personally it must mean that he¡¯s seen some merit to my existence, at the very least I would live up to that expectation. The first was by calling out his real name. I noticed a small twitch in his eyes as I call out his real name. He still doesn¡¯t move but I know he¡¯s examining me, I could by those eyes. It¡¯s similar to when I try to [cold read] people¡¯s expressions and movements. There¡¯s no real way to counter or block someone from reading you, I mean other than just leaving their sight, but the most effective way to handle it is to simply smile. Thus I decided to wait for him to make the first move as I expressed a sinister smile back at him. This continued on for about 10 minutes before he decided to move along the meeting. Nyarlathotep stood up from his throne of bones to reveal an intimidating height of around 2 meters. He starts to walk towards me and with every step I could feel the tremor beneath my feet as the floor themselves tries to accommodate his footsteps for the most comfortable experience. Small sparks of electricity shoot out with his steps. It was as though he had taken command of every element of this room, no it was as though everything in this room existed to serve him. He slowly walked towards me and stopped when he got within a few meters in front of me. His shadow was cast over me, blocking out the light that was seeping from behind him, almost as though he was a divine figure with the rays of light acting as his cape. Though this was simply my impression of him and the lighting conditions of this room. ¡°For what reason have you come to this place?¡± He asks with a voice that was hard to identify. It was as though multiple voices had been synthesized into a single tone, thus I couldn¡¯t really say it was a deep or light tone. A truly fitting voice for someone who is known to have a thousand faces. In any case he asked what I was here for, despite the fact that it was him who called out to me, at least according to Shade. I shook my head. No, he has a point, I was called to this place because I wanted something from him; I needed power. ¡°Power. I want power.¡± I told him bluntly and as I did I could see the corner of his mouth curve upwards into a smirk. I felt as though there was no real point in trying to hide my desires from him, though he probably already knew what it was to begin with. ¡°Yes¡­ if it is power you wish for, then it would only be a simple matter for me to bestow it upon you.¡± ¡°Then-¡° Before I could say anything he throws out a hand gestures to stop me. ¡°I have lived on this world for a long time and during my stay I have caused many a chaos. However the time when I return to my father¡¯s side is at hand, but to let go of this legacy without appointing a successor is regrettable.¡± So the reason he called me here was to appoint me as his successor? ¡°And? I doubt you¡¯d be willing to give up that seat of power for free even if your dear father is calling for you.¡± He gives me a sinister smile. ¡°A simple test.¡± ¡°And the details of this ¡®simple test¡¯?¡± ¡°You will of it now.¡± Nyarlathotep moves his hand atop my head and as though I was sucked out of my body, everything started to swirl around and finally I black out. PART FOUR ¡­ ¡°***!¡± ¡°***!!¡± As I came to I was hearing someone shouting at me. At first I thought it was the children from the orphanage but I remembered that wasn¡¯t where I was last. Everything started to come back to me, this was all Nyarlathotep¡¯s doing. ¡°had!¡± ¡®had¡¯? ¡°Callahad!¡± At the sudden announcement of my name I quickly jerked up and as I did I heard the screeching of my chair scraping across the tile floor. Wait, what? Actually hwy was my original name called out? Something was amiss. When I tried to open my eyes too quickly the light had poured in like needles and I was forced to shut them out again. Slowly as my vision came back into focus I was stunned to find what I was actually seeing. What came to me was the vision of a class full of students, not just any but high school students. Everyone wore the same white and navy uniform and stared at me as though I were a circus clown. ¡°Callahad, it¡¯s not like you to sleep in class.¡± A nostalgic voice of a female adult reverberated within my ears. I thought that this was simply a hallucination but this felt too real for that. This wasn¡¯t [Eternis], not this was [Earth]! Next to me was the window and as I peered outside and onto the track field down below there were sights of students practicing their sports. It appeared as though they were preparing for some kind of athletic competition coming up, evident by the sign behind them reading ¡®Goal: victory at the competition!¡¯ ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t take you for a clown, but you have some guts ignoring me like that. Callahad.¡± The female teacher in front of me, who was a few centimeters shorter, rolled up her thin text book and bonked me over the head. It slightly hurt and that was the problem, it actually hurt. This sensation was real, proving that it wasn¡¯t any sort of hallucination or dream. Coming to realize what the implications of all this were I desperately scanned the room to search for someone. And there she was! [Erin]! Sitting in the seat next to me and giving me a perplexed look. She had the same black hair made into a pony tail she had in high school. It was extremely nostalgic to look at that it almost put a tear to my eyes. Without even thinking I immediately jumped at her and embraced her with my whole body. The whole class, Erin and the teacher devolved into confusion as their eyes widened and Erin¡¯s face burning up. Whispers started being shared and even the teacher didn¡¯t know how to handle this situation. I could feel my own body trembling and fear that I once I let go of this sensation it would all be over. The smell, the smoothness of her skin, her surprised voice. They were all hers. Truly. ¡°E- eh?! A- Aran!¡± She shouted at my seemingly odd set of actions. However I didn¡¯t care, at this moment I just wanted to stay like this a little longer. ¡°What¡¯s going on here?! Callahad! Explain!¡± The teacher demanded in a high pitched voice. ¡°Umm, I think he fell over due to a fever. He¡¯s forehead is extremely hot, I think I should take him to their infirmary. Would that be okay, teacher?¡± Quickly thinking on her foot, Erin made up an excuse to leave this awkward situation. She dragged me out by my hand as I blankly followed her, indulging myself on this moment. * * * Upon entry into the infirmary the thin smell of medication entered my nose prompting me to cough. There were no such experience back in [Eternis] so this really drew a parallel to me, once more confirming the reality of this situation. Since there weren¡¯t any available seats we sat down on the edge of the bed. Erin placed her hands on my forehead to see if I really did have a fever. I suppose I did act a little oddly so it was understandable that she would be concerned. After confirming that I was okay she let out a relieved smile. Her face brightened up in a cute manner, so much so that I decided to embrace her once more. ¡°Eh?! This again?! What¡¯s wrong with you today Aran?¡± After a few moments I decided to let go and give her some of her personal space back. She sat there, next to me, waiting for an explanation of what I was doing. Honestly I don¡¯t even know what came over me, but right now I wanted nothing more than to push her down. By the time I had realized it, I had already given in to that urge and I was mounted on top of her. Her face was lit up and her mouth opened and closed as she became lost for words. Two high school aged students on a bird in the infirmary, how clich¨¦d but I didn¡¯t mind, right now I wanted to make Erin mine forever. When I moved my head closer to hers I could see her subtly shaking due to my vicious actions. ¡°N- no¡­ not like this¡­¡± She whispered under her breath, but I could hear it as clear as day. Teardrops forming on the edge of her eyes, those words cut through me deeply. Even though she didn¡¯t resist it was clear she didn¡¯t like what was going on. ¡°¡­ Sorry.¡± I told her as I got off. ¡°Aran¡­¡± She clutches onto my right arm and leans her head against my shoulders. ¡°Is something wrong Aran? You¡¯re not acting like yourself today.¡± She asks me. I felt my hands draw close to the center of my face to adjust my glasses. They were there, my real glasses. ¡°Erin¡­ who do you like better, me or [Eric Howard]?¡± ¡°Who¡¯s Eric Howard?¡± She tilts her head in confusion; of course she wouldn¡¯t know who that is. I touched her face with my hands, the sensation of it was all real. Could it be that everything had just been a bad dream? Maybe there was no [Eternis], maybe there was no mad god, maybe there was no demon lord, no magic, no knights. It was all just in my mind. Convincing myself of all that was more realistic than saying that there was a world of swords and sorcery in 2 billion years after Earth. ¡°Erin¡­¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Will you¡­¡± ¡°Will I?¡± ¡°Will you marry me?¡± ¡°Eh?!¡± Hearing my question she jumps off the bed in surprise. ¡°M-m-m-m-marry?!¡± That reaction¡­ it sort of reminds me of a certain someone. I guess it¡¯s not surprising that she would be shocked after hearing that kind of sudden proposal, anyone would if their childhood friend asked them to marry out of the blue. Just what am I even doing? She must be thinking that I¡¯ve turned crazy. However it was different to me, not a single day had gone by in t hat other world or dream that I didn¡¯t constantly think of her and the life I could¡¯ve had with her. I really did want to marry her, to seal the deal, to make her only belong to me. I couldn¡¯t bear to think of the possibility that someone else could make her happy. I know Eric is a good man but even still, I wanted her all to myself. I wanted to possess her, tell the world that she was mine and only mine. I admit that I am obsessed with her but that was simply my own form love and I will not let anyone say otherwise. Yet even with that kind of conviction why was I so stupid so easily give her up? Just because I couldn¡¯t see her? Just because we were separated by an impenetrable wall of time? I shook my head, that was na?ve. Or so I thought but her next words brought me back to reality. ¡°Umm¡­ You know¡­ Things like marriage, I¡¯m happy you asked me, I really am, but I think it¡¯s too soon to think about it¡­ B- besides! You didn¡¯t even ask me out yet! Aren¡¯t you skipping one step ahead?!¡± This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Meekly starting off she regained her usual vigor and composure. Right, Erin was this kind of person all along, she would be loud and annoying but also assertive and honest. ¡°I see. You¡¯re right, sorry for the odd display.¡± ¡°N- no, I don¡¯t want you to apologize¡­ that¡¯s, it¡¯s fine if you understand.¡± She nods to her own statement. During my high school years I didn¡¯t even notice her all that much, no, that wasn¡¯t quite right I just flat out ignored her most of the time. Due to my family¡¯s circumstances I focused on my studies and getting high marks on exams. I felt that even though she was my childhood friend she was drifting away from me and it was then I truly felt that I was missing something from my life. However it wasn¡¯t until college that we started to really go out. Though I wonder what she was thinking during this period. Was she going out with anyone? I shook my head again, from that reaction that doesn¡¯t seem like the case. It was a slight relief. We stayed in the infirmary until school ended, just side by side in each other¡¯s company. Eventually the time to leave had come as the school bells rang. It had been over 3 decades since I¡¯ve heard this nostalgic sound. ¡°Shall we go home?¡± Without even waiting for my reply Erin stood up and pulled me with her. The classroom had become vacant. The orange light of the setting sun came pouring into the room dying everything in that tinted color. I slowly walked to my desk and placed my hands on it. This place that I had been sitting in for three years, I remember it so dearly. ¡°Are you done packing up?¡± She asked. ¡°Yeah¡­¡± ¡°Good, let¡¯s go I¡¯m starving.¡± Her ability to return to a state of normalcy after I had even proposed to her was staggering. Normal people would be wracking their brains over this but she decided to give me an answer and return to normal as quickly as possible. She reminds me of Miko. Even after the horrible things I do to her, she¡¯s always there for me when I need it. I want to apologize to her as well. I took a moment to drink it all in. the scenery and place. The buildings, cares and modern conveniences. They did not exist in that other world, they had equivalents but not the same things. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? You¡¯ve been spacing out so much today, Aran.¡± ¡°Did I seem like that? I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°You¡¯re so weird. Whatever, let¡¯s go home!¡± As we were about to leave through the front gate a particular car pulled up before us. It was a red Porsche 911. My eyes widened, it was a car that was familiar to me. My heart started to beat faster, angrily and violently. I wanted to just scream out aloud, because I knew who it was behind that wheel. PART FIVE -ERIN¡¯S SIDE- I couldn¡¯t believe my own eyes. Aran that smug bastard was being chewed out by the teacher for sleeping in class. THAT Aran Callahad?! The slimy, arrogant¡­ childhood friend of mine. The always proper student council president?! As I looked around everyone else had the same expression of shock as mine. No one would believe that he was sleeping or spacing out in class; it was unthinkable! Right now he was acting very strangely, he was looking around the room in confusion. A grim expression came over his face and after a few seconds he stared out the window. Was he that scared of being a hypocrite, since he usually reprimands people for such actions. Well, I can sort of understand that. He noticed me who was sitting right beside him then something unbelievable happened! He suddenly hugged me! Not only myself but the entire class, including even the teacher was flabbergasted at his actions. After making up some excuse to the teacher about how he fell over from a fever we received permission to go to the infirmary. It was the first time I¡¯ve seen him so awkwardly, obediently follow behind me. I sat him down and measured his temperature, he seemed normal but somewhat depressed right now. So I felt I had to be near him and clutched onto him tightly. Since he usually just ignores me it could be that he wasn¡¯t happy that it was me that was clinging onto him. Maybe I should¡¯ve asked some of my more prettier friends? Or¡­ maybe not, I couldn¡¯t bear to stand some other girl clinging onto him like this. It would be¡­ awkward. Yeah¡­ Just when I was lost in thought, I was pushed down by him! He sat on top of me as he drew his face closer. I could feel my entire body electrifying, I was excited but also I felt that this wasn¡¯t right. ¡°N- no¡­ not like this¡­¡± I whispered under my breath, but Aran hears it and gets off of me and even apologizes. He really was acting strangely today. ¡°Will you marry me?¡± When those words came out of his mouth a mixture of happiness and surprise overtook me. I instantly jumped off the bed and felt my face blush madly red. D- did he just say that?! Marriage as in that thing right? When a man and a woman agree to live together?! That thing?! The thing people do for taxation purposes?! No, never mind that last part. But¡­ EH?! Was he being serious? His face didn¡¯t seem like he was joking, it almost looked like he was desperate. I didn¡¯t even think about marriage, heck I didn¡¯t even know which collage I was going to go to. He didn¡¯t even ask me out, he went straight for marriage, do people normally do that? Still, since he was asking me so seriously I had to answer him properly. ¡°Umm¡­ You know¡­ Things like marriage, I¡¯m happy you asked me, I really am, but I think it¡¯s too soon to think about it¡­ B- besides! You didn¡¯t even ask me out yet! Aren¡¯t you skipping one step ahead?!¡± ¡°I see. You¡¯re right, sorry for the odd display.¡± ¡°N- no, I don¡¯t want you to apologize¡­ that¡¯s, it¡¯s fine if you understand.¡± I didn¡¯t want him to apologize, I wanted him to take the correct steps before jumping right into it. If he did that even I wouldn¡¯t have much to complain about. Still, I was a little happy that he asked me so suddenly, because he usually doesn¡¯t seem like he cares much about me. I was feeling lonely but¡­ I guess I was just over-thinking it. Still, since I was a bit worried about his odd behavior we decided to stay in the infirmary until the school was over. Unfortunately nothing happened in between, eh? Did I just say it was unfortunate? After the school bell rang, marking the end of school, we decided to go back home. Since our houses were in the same direction we usually go back together. Though he¡¯s been busy with student council work so we haven¡¯t been doing that lately. However I think today was fine. Leaving through the front gate we noticed an expensive looking red car pull up outside. For some reason Aran¡¯s body tensed up as he stared at the person who came out. He was a handsome looking man, most likely in his early thirties. He had straight black hair and exotic, deep grey eyes. He wore thin framed glasses that accentuated his perfectly portioned face, especially his manly jaw-line. He wore a black business suit that looked extremely expensive but through that I could tell that his body was well trained. If I had to say, his ambiance was a bit reminiscent of Aran¡¯s like I feel as though that¡¯s how Aran would turn out in the future. Wait, could that guy be some kind of mafia boss? That would explain why Aran was acting so scared. I moved slightly forward to cover for him. I wasn¡¯t going to let anyone hurt him. The man was tall, a bit taller than Aran who was also a head taller than me. The man pushed up his glasses in an irritated tone. Even that habit was similar to Aran¡¯s, I wonder if people with glasses usually have that kind of habit. He gives a sigh. He moved past me with ease and grabbed Aran by the collar, violently and maliciously glaring at him. I tried to pry him away from Aran but the man was so strong, even though I¡¯m by no means weak, I do various sports activity and even take self-defense lessons but just by touching this man¡¯s arms I could feel the pressure. ¡°What are you doing?! Let go of him! I¡¯ll call the cops!¡± Not being able to do anything else I threatened him with calling the police. He eyed me for a second before letting Aran go. ¡°Pathetic.¡± He tells Aran. ¡°Yeah? Fuck you.¡± He punches Aran across the face. Aran falls over and taking this opportunity also kicks him towards his car. A loud thud sound could be heard as Aran was smashed back by the man¡¯s violent actions. ¡°What did you do that for?!¡± I screamed at him. Just what was going on? From that exchange just now it seemed like they knew each other. I couldn¡¯t think that Aran would know such a scary person. Suddenly he reached out his hands towards me. Reflexively I flinched and braced myself. However what he did was not assault me but pat me on my head. Very confused I wondered what was going on, but at the same time it felt very familiar. I looked back at the man and he looked at me gently. This sensation too was similar to how Aran used to pat my head in the past. But why? He then turned his gaze towards Aran who started bleeding from his mouth. I quickly ran up to him and tried to clean his wounds. ¡°Wake up you pathetic worm. This is a test remember? What happened to all that conviction you held before, huh? What about all those people who died for you? What about your family?¡± At his words Aran flinches and starts trembling. Eh? What was he talking about? Those words made no sense to me without context. ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about, you loathsome bastard. Isn¡¯t it way past your age to be talking about some fantasy land?¡± They started bantering like I¡¯ve never seen before. Aran¡¯s so irritated, it was kind of scary. However even in rage his words held no power against the man who looked like an impenetrable wall. That man used his foot to push Aran¡¯s head against his car. ¡°What are you doing?!¡± I yelled out. I tried to removed his foot but Aran didn¡¯t seem to mind, he gave me a sad look as thought that was his only retort to being treated horribly. He was being treated like a bug, so why? The usual Aran wouldn¡¯t take something like this lying down. He didn¡¯t even put up a fight, the only one doing so was me. ¡°They¡¯re waiting for you. Instead of dawdling around in this make-believe world it¡¯s time for you to face reality.¡± ¡°NO!¡± Aran shouted out as though his life depended on it. ¡°You¡¯re the one who should face reality! This is reality! This is my reality! This is all I¡¯ve ever wanted, instead of that screwed up fantasy world, all I ever wanted was to live a happy life with Erin! And you wish to take that from me?! To hell with you!¡± The man lifts his foot. ¡°I get it. This place has everything you always wanted. Sure, and instead of an uncertain future you think it¡¯s better to be here. But you know this place isn¡¯t where you belong.¡± Aran averts his gaze. ¡°I don¡¯t need a ghost to tell me what I do is right or wrong.¡± Aran gets up and graves my hand to walk away. Leaving the man to ponder at his words. * * * We arrived at a small park on our way back. It was a park that we used to play around a lot when we were younger. I wonder where all those carefree days had gone? Just how many years had it been since I was last here? ¡°Sorry you had to see that.¡± Aran apologizes. ¡°I don¡¯t want an apology, I want to know what¡¯s going on. Who was that man? Why did he hurt you like that? And why didn¡¯t you do anything?¡± He gives me a defeated laugh, scoffing at himself pathetically. ¡°He¡¯s¡­ someone I¡¯ve known for a long time.¡± ¡°That¡¯s impossible, I¡¯ve known you the longest and I¡¯ve never seen that man.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t get it. He¡¯s the devil incarnate.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t get what you¡¯re saying, but you¡¯re not going to explain anything to me aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°¡­ Sorry.¡± ¡°Aran you idiot! Fine, I don¡¯t care anymore!¡± I decide to run out on him. If he¡¯s going to be like that then I won¡¯t care anymore either!¡± PART SIX -ARAN CALLAHAD¡¯ SIDE- Some time had passed since Erin left. I was feeling really horrible right now and the left side of my face throbbed. Dammit, why was that guy even here? I¡¯m not Morgant right now so why? I slowly walk myself back to my house. The house that I had grown up in. Next door is Erin¡¯s house. I can see her staring down at me from her room on the second floor. When our eyes meet she closes her blinds. I guess I deserved that one. Standing in front of me is a two storey house. I walk past the fence and see the front lawn. In it are the flowers and vegetable that my mother used to grow. When I open the door I¡¯m greeted by a cheerful voice. ¡°Welcome back, brother! What happened to your face?¡± It¡¯s my younger brother. He¡¯s only in grade school at this age. I crouch down and greet him. He notices the bruises on my face from my earlier fight with myself. ¡°I¡¯m back, I just fell down. How¡¯s mother?¡± ¡°She¡¯s making dinner.¡± ¡°I see.¡± A familiar scent comes to me as I walk down the hallways. I glance into the living room which is connected to the kitchen. The TV is turned on, looks like my brother was watching it and mother is cooking some sort of stew. I can hear her audibly humming to herself. At the time I was in high school she was in her early 40s. ¡°Hahaha¡­ God.¡± I can almost feel myself cry. Right now I was only a few years younger than her. 32 years and another ten in Eternis¡­ 42... This was absurd. I walked into the kitchen. Wearing an apron is the figure that I¡¯ve always wanted to see. The woman that I was unable to meet even on her deathbed. Her long black hair is tied up into a ponytail as to prevent it from getting in the way of her cooking. The homely aura that she has around her is unbeatable. ¡°Mother¡­¡± I call out softly. I don¡¯t even know if I have the right to call her that anymore. When she notices my voice she turns around gracefully and offers me a smile. She doesn¡¯t have the wrinkles that she had when she was at in the hospital. She has more energy in her than what I remember of her. ¡°Ah, Aran you¡¯re back. Hmm? What¡¯s with those bruises on her face?¡± She¡¯s in a panic and runs to the closet to find some sort of first aid kit. She comes back with some sort of cream based product and smears it all over my wounds. It¡¯s cold. Cold, but my mother¡¯s hands are warm. Ah, I see now. This must be how Lina felt when she met her mother. ¡°What¡¯s wrong Aran? You¡¯re shaking, are you cold? Should I get your jumper?¡± I shake my head. I simply embrace her as I did with Erin before. She doesn¡¯t know how to react but accepts it regardless. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Eh? What for? Ah, did you get into a fight? Is that how you got those bruises?¡± I shake my head. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± I always wanted to tell her. The image of Rio, Morgant¡¯s mother comes to my mind. I¡¯m the son who lost two mothers and I couldn¡¯t be there for either during their passing. I must be the worst son. I was unable to accept Rio¡¯s love properly, even though I did love her too. I did consider her the mother of Morgant Fallon, but I could not connect the dots and see her as my mother. It¡¯s only now that I can finally say that she too was my mother. All I can do is hope she forgives me from wherever she is. I spend the night at my house. The warm feeling of family comes back to me. I was unable to sleep but not because of my nightmares, but because I was too happy to see my family again. I even got to sleep with my younger brother. I really have to apologize to him too. The next day I dress up back into my school uniform, though I already have a feeling that I won¡¯t be going. I glance off in the distance and I can see a red Porsche. My younger brother and I stand in front of the door as my mother sees us leave. ¡°Mother. I¡¯m sorry for everything. I know I haven¡¯t been the best son but I do truly think you are an amazing woman. I really do love you.¡± ¡°What¡¯s going on with you today? It¡¯s so unlike you to say such things, but I love you too dear.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing, I really hope you can forgive me someday.¡± She has a perplexed face. I crouch down to my younger brother. He tilts his head waiting for me to speak. I crouched down to see my brother eye to eye. ¡°You have to be strong okay? For mother¡¯s sake.¡± He doesn¡¯t get it but he nods his head. ¡°I will!¡± ¡°That¡¯s good. You have to make her happy. Both for you and your future partner.¡± Leaving behind those words I leave the house. Mother goes back in and my younger brother goes to school in a different direction. I walk up the car and he¡¯s standing there, waiting for me. He doesn¡¯t seem to irritated from what I said yesterday, well, this guy was always like this anyway. ¡°Hmph, it seems like you¡¯ve already made up your mind without me having to remind you.¡± ¡°I¡¯m old enough.¡± ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re an old man.¡± I get the feeling that once I enter his car everything will turn back to the way it was supposed to. I will be back at the orphanage and Miko and the others will be huddling around me after I¡¯ve fainted. No, I guess I¡¯ll be back at that disgusting room of flesh and bones. This test was far too cruel. I take one last breath of the air I remember and slowly open the car door. ¡°Wait!¡± I hear a desperate voice from behind me. I turn around to see Erin running towards me. She looks incredibly distraught, almost like she¡¯s about to cry. I take a glance at my other self, he sighs and says I have five minutes. Thanks. ¡°Erin I-¡° Before I could even speak She runs to me and embraces me. ¡°Where are you going?!¡± I don¡¯t know how but it looks like she¡¯s realized that I was going somewhere. Somewhere far away where I can never see her again. ¡°Erin¡­ I¡¯m sorry. I want to talk to you more, to be with you more and spend my days with you.¡± ¡°Then why are you leaving?!¡± I can see tears dripping down her eyes as she looks up at me, still clinging onto me. ¡°Erin¡­ there is somewhere else I have to be. People are waiting for me. Many people need my help.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t get it! I don¡¯t! You never told me anything! So why are you leaving?!¡± I wish I could explain it to her in a way that made sense. Alas I can¡¯t. The only thing I can do is this. I meet my lips with hers. Her eyes widen but she doesn¡¯t resist. I truly do love her, I wish I could bring her with me but that wouldn¡¯t be right. ¡°Erin. I¡¯ll always love you.¡± She looks at me with teary eyes. ¡­ This scene is reminiscent of the time I really left her. She shakes her head like back then. My heart starts to waver but I know what I have to do. I steel myself. ¡°Will you come back?¡± ¡°¡­ No.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Sorry.¡± She gently pushes me away and turns her back. ¡°I love you too Aran. I always did and I always will. If you have to go, then I¡¯d rather send you off with a smile.¡± She turns around and gives me a smile. It¡¯s a horrible smile, I can see her resisting the urge to cry again. She always was a cry baby. She takes something out of her pocket. It¡¯s a hairpin with a cute skull and crossbones on it. She did like these kinds of things too, huh. ¡°Good bye¡­ Erin.¡± ¡°Good bye¡­ Aran.¡± PART SEVEN As I enter the car I am overtaken by a great white void. My body returns to the form of Morgant Fallon. Right, this is how it should be, and standing in front of me was Shade. ¡°Welcome back.¡± ¡°¡­ Thanks.¡± Then standing before me was Erin, but I knew that it wasn¡¯t really her. It couldn¡¯t be. She simply stood there gazing back at me with a sinister smile. ¡°You¡¯ve been of great entertainment to me.¡± ¡®Entertainment¡¯ he says, I don¡¯t like that he¡¯s using Erin face to say things like that. ¡°Was that all you wanted to do? Torment me?¡± ¡°Of course, because my purpose in life had never changed since it¡¯s inception. I did it all simply because it amused me so. Now then, since you have enterta- I mean passed my test I shall bestow upon you what you wished for most. However I don¡¯t believe even with my powers you will be powerful enough to reach your goals. That is something that you need to obtain with your own hands.¡± ¡°Of course. I fully intend to do so.¡± He places a hand on my head once more. ¡°Then you shall receive our entire legacy.¡± I felt myself a sensation I¡¯ve never felt before. The only way I could describe it was ¡®flight¡¯. As I opened my eyes a vast expansion of space peered endlessly out in front of me. I could see the stars in the distance, various gases and planets. ¡°Where am I?¡± ¡°You are at the heart of the cosmos. The greatest being was said to have lived here.¡± If I¡¯m recalling correctly he¡¯s talking about [Azathoth], right? ¡°Your father?¡± He nods. Azathoth was said to be the father of Nyarlathotep. ¡°You will fell a great pain, you may lose your sanity, but that to endure through that means to receive our legacy.¡± I was caught off guard. I was hurled through the space at great speeds. I felt as though my body was about to be ripped to shreds. During that time my head was becoming filled with images of unimaginable things. The history of the universe. The rise and fall of the cosmic empire. All of the deaths and darkness. The eldritch abominations. I¡¯ve seen them all. I can never hope to describe or explain this in a manner that would be satisfactory but know that I was horrific beyond what any human should go through. I vomited several times through me being hurled across space. My arms seemed to rip out from my shoulders. My legs from my hips. My head from my neck. Just as suddenly as I was brought to this place I was brought back to reality. The slow falling snow fell down on my head. ¡°Is it over?¡± As I say that everything went dark again. Motherfu- what now? [System patch¡­ 15%] [System patch¡­ 45%] [System patch¡­ 85%] [System patch¡­ complete] [System updated] [Skill Evolution in progress¡­ initializing¡­ ] Skill evolution? [Life Drain] has successfully updated! Adding [Avatar of Nyarlathotep] to skill menu My [Life Drain] turned into a completely different skill. I pressed on the inspect tab next to it. [Avatar of Nyarlathotep: Summon the avatar of the Dread God to siphon the health and sanity of enemies within the user¡¯s radius. Afflicted targets will have their ability to differentiate between friend and foe disabled and will display erratic behavior]. O¡­ kay. So this is a step up from [Life Drain]. I didn¡¯t even know such a system existed. Once more I was pulled back into reality. [New skill acquired: [Transformation - Aspect of the Black Pharaoh] [Transforms the user into the [Black Pharaoh] granting increased stats. Each rank of the skill gives the user 1% of their total stats, capping out at 50%]. [New skill acquired: [Mental Fortress(Passive)]] [Mental Fortress: gives user dramatically increased resistance from mental based attacks and negates weak or low level magic attacks. Negation rate depends on skill rank.] Well, how generous of him. I turned around to give my thanks for the lovely skills but Nyarlathotep was gone. So I¡¯ve become the successor to the Lovecraftian abominations. I opened my [status menu] and noticed another ¡®profession¡¯ was added. GOD OF DREAD. I¡¯m actually feeling quite good about this. It¡¯s not every day that I get the chance to use the power of Lovecraftian abominations to do battle against Celtic gods. Oh, this will be truly fun. Just wait for me, Nodens. END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 67 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL GOD OF DREAD Strength: 253 (240 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 0] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 42 (PASSIVE) [Undead''s Tenacity]: Level 50 (MASTERED (PASSIVE) [Mental Fortress]: Level 1 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 37 (AUGMENT) [Transformation - Aspect of the Black Pharaoh]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Avatar of Nyarlathotep]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 37 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 42 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 47 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 50 (MASTSERED) (ACTIVE) [Summon - Terror of the Depths]: Level 1/Required Level: 100 (ACTIVE) [Soul Bind Summoning]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Ghost King]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Succubus Princess]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Spider Queen]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 40 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 40 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 40 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 40 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian''s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father''s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight] Chapter 21 - Birth of the hero of flames: [Phoenix hero] Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Birth of the hero of flames: [Phoenix Hero] Chapter XXI PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 990] ¡°Rise, hero of flames. The lord of evil has awoken. The Lord of Rage and Vengeance calls thee to his domain.¡± * * * The golden city of Tara, also known as the city of the gods. It¡¯s true location is kept hidden to all except the one that the almighty had deemed worthy enough to know. All the words in the world could not describe the atmosphere and transcendence of this place, but if it needed to be said then the words ¡®beautiful¡¯, ¡®magnificent¡¯, ¡®otherworldly¡¯ would come to mind, though it would not be unfair to also call this place ¡®overindulged¡¯. All of its architecture, d¨¦cor and residents would be described with such words. After all, in this city resides the highest being in existence, known only as the ¡®Golden King¡¯ that oversees this world at its peak. Of course he had a proper title, the ¡®High King of Tara¡¯, [Nodens]. Anything less would simply be an insult to his highness¡¯ sight. At the center of this golden and overtly lavished city were two children. In reality however, whilst they possessed the stature of children they were the furthest thing from. The first was a small girl that looked to be around ten years of age, with golden hair and golden eyes, she bested even the ambiance of the golden city with her radiance. She was [Macha], the only daughter of the god of Tara. Whilst her appearance was that of a ten year old her true age was not, she merely altered the way she looked in order to match with the other child¡¯s. With a devilish smile, she crept up to the other child in a seductive manner. The second child, [Odysseus], which was only his alias, was a boy with darkened hair and sky blue eyes that seemed to pierce all with its wisdom-filled stare. With a cute and innocent seeming face, he had a devilish smile of his own that reflected the darkness in his heart. Well that would normally have been the case but today the boy was feeling unhappy, in fact it wasn¡¯t simply today, it had been like this since two years ago. The girl, sensing his unhappiness, tried to cheer him up, sexually if needed but he had rejected all of her advances with the excuse that he was not yet worthy of laying with the daughter of the king. That however was nowhere near the truth. Odysseus did not care for the girl nor her position, even the king did not mind if it was him. However in the boy¡¯s heart was only a single person worthy of his attention, however that person was said to have died by the hands of the very king Odysseus had served. Unhappy about this fact yet not being able to do anything of this made his mood sour. However that was not the only problem. ¡°Hey, hey~ Odysseus, is something the matter?¡± ¡°It is nothing, princess. It just seems like nothing has been going the way I had predicted, well I suppose this is also true in nature to reality. Still, I cannot help but feel a little unhappy.¡± ¡°Hmm~ oh how about that, umm, group of people you left behind at the [Crimson Knight¡¯s] base?¡± ¡°Hmm? Oh, the remaining family of [Morgant Fallon]. Yes, that too hasn¡¯t been going too great as of yet. Something beyond my expectation had occurred.¡± ¡°Something unexpected? What do you mean?¡± ¡°They escaped.¡± ¡°Ho~ they escaped from that heavily guarded fortress, that¡¯s actually pretty amazing for mere humans.¡± Though the forces of heaven had highly favored the human race, in the end they had still treated them as lower forms of life and were only used as servants. If this was the treatment of the race that they had liked, then one could only speculate how horrible the treatment of the race that they did not. Odysseus gave a small nod. ¡°I¡¯ve sent out a scout team to search for them. I¡¯m sure they would be found soon but still¡­¡± Even if they were to be found to Odysseus their only value was that they could be used has hostages against Morgant. If the all important player, Morgant was gone then naturally there was no point. ¡°How did they even escape to begin with?¡± Macha asks. Odysseus hesitates to answer but meekly does. ¡°¡­ A small miscalculation on my part¡­ even under his eminence¡¯s rule the lust of men is a force to be reckoned with. Well, that was merely the catalyst.¡± PART TWO The southern continent, also known as [Arune] was a land infested by harsh monsters that could even make the bravest of veteran adventurers quake in their boots. Most the continent is covered by either harsh deserts or thick jungles. Those were the only two type of environments on the continent, with no real ¡®civilization¡¯ to be found anywhere. All attempts to colonize the lands by normal people have ended in failure, either because of economic reason or the team responsible for setting up bases were annihilated by the vile monsters that inhabited the place. The most regrettable aspect was that due to the environment untouched by any mortal hands it was deemed to be rich with natural resources and luscious lands. However the fact that there were no signs of civilization was not entirely true, there was a small but extremely defensible fortress that served as the main base of training new recruits for the organization known as the [Crimson Knights]. Of course it was not the Crimson knights themselves managed to clear out the monsters and erect their base, it was with the help of the heaven forces belonging to Nodens. With their help the monsters were easily cut down and an extremely sturdy base was established. At the order of Odysseus, the remnants of the Fallon family were to be transported and kept their under confinement, but due to the sheer distance from North Ariadyne to the Southern continent of Arune, it took slightly over 2 years to arrive there. Upon arrival they were immediately thrown into confinement with the barest minimum of nourishment to go by. It was to the point that the food they had received during the travel to the place was far better than what they had gotten after arrival. Due to the rather frightening ambiance of the confinement they were placed in, [Ada Fallon], the youngest child of the Fallon family started to cry out. [Rio Fallon] did everything in her power to quiet the crying baby. ¡°There, there. It¡¯s okay Ada¡­ everything will be fine. Mama is here with you.¡± She tightly embraced the crying baby, eventually Ada fell asleep. [Lena] and [Lina] were also fairly frightened and stuck close by their mistress. As a family placed in such horrible situation this was the best thing that they could do. Such days continued on for a few months, other than harsh treatment and uncouth environment there were no big scale trouble. It was only a few days after that a problem occurred. Due to the nature of the fortress, most of its inhabitants were fresh recruits, more specifically men who were undergoing harsh combat training. Especially when surrounded by the deadly environment, the tension between the recruits skyrocketed and they needed find a way to vent their stress. Though Odysseus had ordered the one in charge of the base to not touch a single hair on the captives of the Fallon family, the commander did not share the same view. The men were getting exceedingly frustrated, even the commander himself felt the same way. The base¡¯s commander merely thought Odysseus to be an oblivious and ignorant child and decided to sate their frustrations by ¡®attacking¡¯ the women. It was then it happened. As the women¡¯s virtue were about to violated a single beam of light that fell upon the women of the Fallon family, protecting them. Unsure as to what kind of light it was, the men, frightened by its sudden appearance did not dare draw close. The person at the center of the light was Lina. However, as the light fell on her, Lina¡¯s expression changed; her demeanor, her atmosphere, her posture, they all carried an air of elegance. Her mistress Rio and her younger sister Lena watched in awe as the blue light circled around her. As thought it was a gift from the heavens themselves, a single blade fell from the sky and lied before Lina. With a strange, oriental design, the black and blue blade had mysterious carvings engraved on them. ¡°To survive, you must take on the burden of the cursed blade: [Muramasa].¡± It was voice that Lina had known before, a friendly but stern voice. The voice of [Sebastian], a fellow servant of the Fallon house that was slain in battle. Prior to this Lina had been certain of his fate but now she was unsure. ¡°Sebastian¡­?¡± Lina uttered under her breath. ¡°Merely a remnant of his memories; a message left to you for when the situation became dire.¡± ¡°When did you¡­ ?¡± ¡°It was during the time I had been controlled and stabbed you. I left this message within you in hopes that you would survive.¡± ¡°I see¡­ so you¡¯re really¡­¡± A single tear fell from Lina¡¯s expressionless face. ¡°Unfortunately if this message is playing then it is so. I am sorry. However since this message is playing that means the situation you are in had become dire.¡± Lina observed the situation emotionlessly, as though she was merely a third party looking in. Her unnatural, near zen-like state could be attributed to Sebastian¡¯s calming aura that was surrounding her in the form of the blue light. She reached out and grabbed tightly onto the hilt of the cursed sword. Lina struck into an attack stance with blade forward and ready to mercilessly cut down anyone who dared to touch her beloved family. Her happiness may have been destroyed, the place that she loved may have been razed to the ground and the person she loved most may have been killed. However, she wasn¡¯t going to sit by idle and watch her remaining family be ravaged as well. ¡°I will not let you take a single step forward. I will protect everyone.¡± The light had subsided but Lina¡¯s calm demeanor did not, allowing her, a person with zero combat experience and zero experience in killing other to strike brutally. The men noticing the absence of the protective light smirked as they breathed a breath of relief. The first man stepped forward, disregarding Lina¡¯s warnings. With his weapons drawn and underestimating Lina¡¯s non-existent skill the man stepped into Lina¡¯s striking distance and as he did his head flew off before he even realized it had detached from his body. The man¡¯s body still continued to move thinking it was fine but after a few more steps it fell down noticing that it had already died. Such blades would normally weigh around 2 kg, however the cursed blade was twice as heavy at 4 kg. Though not an outlandish weight, with the slender arms of a maid it would be fairly difficult to swing it around skilfully. However, Lina was guided by the spirit of her former colleague¡¯s skill. Seeing this horrifying sight, the other men understood the gravity of the situation and also drew their weapons and positioned into a stance. Once again, two men stepped forwards with a defensive posture but Lina managed to find their weak spots and slashed at them, killing them both with a single strike. However another man from the distance took advantage of this situation to strike at Lina using ranged [ice] magic. Although Lina had access to Sebastian¡¯s skill, they were still insufficient to stave off magical attacks. In the end Lina had no combat experience or intuition to dodge accordingly. Before the [ice bullet] spell could hit Lina, a small magical barrier intercepted the attack. ¡°Don¡¯t go discounting me. It¡¯s been many years but I was still a [Praetorian Knight].¡± It was Rio, though her skills had rusted over time, there was once a time she was known as a genius magician. With Lina at the front and Rio supporting from behind they were able to annihilate half of the fortress¡¯ soldiers and successfully escaping into the dangerous forests of Arune. Later on, this information was passed onto Odysseus. PART THREE ¡°I should¡¯ve known. It was at that time when I made that butler attack the maid.¡± Odysseus said dejectedly. ¡°Hmm~ for humans they¡¯re pretty strong, to have wiped half of that base.¡± Macha said as though she was actually happy of the events that took place. In truth she did care a single ounce about what happened to the men at the base, she only viewed this incident as a sort of entertainment. ¡°Wait, if this all happened in Arune, how did you receive the message of it so fast? Weren¡¯t you officially supposed to be in North Ariadyne? Don¡¯t tell me you let a human through the portal?¡± ¡°I apologize for bringing the unworthy to this place, but please keep it a secret from his eminence. I simply felt that it was much more convenient to use it.¡± ¡°Well I don¡¯t particularly care but father would indeed get more than a little angry at you. Very well then I shall keep it a secret, but you¡¯ll have to owe me a favor later on.¡± As Macha gave out a devious smile Odysseus felt an unpleasant aura course through his body. It surely couldn¡¯t have been a good omen. ¡°Then, Princess Macha, allow me to head back to my quarters. I¡¯ve been feeling a little light headed recently.¡± ¡°Ah~ okay¡­ take care then.¡± Macha reluctantly let Odysseus return. * * * As night had fallen in Tara a single foreign presence could be felt moving about. A young woman wearing a cloak made of black flame and hair that was not only the color of flames but also moved around as though it was fire itself. Small white orbs surrounded slowly orbited around her as they illuminated her path. At frightening speeds it moved around the golden city that was blanketed in darkness in search of a single person. Shifting with the darkness cast by the buildings, the young woman finally found the place she was looking for. She stood in front of a large ornate door and slowly opened them. Inside was a large interior with many lavish decorations and at the end of the room was a large king sized bed. Sleeping within was Odysseus. The young woman reached out to awaken him but Odysseus intercepted and grabbed her arm; he had already been awake from the start. He had already realized the presence of someone in his room; cast out in every inch of the room were near microscope threads that would break if someone touched them but the person wouldn¡¯t notice it. It was a sort of alarm system that alerted Odysseus, and using it he was able to see notice the young woman¡¯s arrival. ¡°You know, I¡¯ve not been feeling too well these days so I don¡¯t feel like playing around right now. I will spare you only a bit of my patience so make it good or else I¡¯ll have to deem you as a trespasser and break this arm for intrusion.¡± The young woman was taken aback, following a gulping sound she opened her mouth to introduce herself. ¡°I- I am [Fifth Bright], a [Fire Vampire] and high priestess of the Lord of Rage and Vengeance, [Cthugha]. If it more convenient for you, you may call me simply as [Bright].¡± Odysseus clicked his tongue in mild annoyance. ¡®Cthugha, the deity of fire, the living flames from the lovecraftian mythos. I guess I shouldn¡¯t be too surprised since I¡¯m living under the rule of a Celtic deity but still¡­¡¯ he thought to himself. ¡°I don¡¯t care about what to call you, tell me why you are here.¡± ¡°I- I was sent to guide you to the domain of Lord Cthugha as he has summoned you.¡± ¡°And why does he want to summon me?¡± ¡°A great evil has awoken; Lord Cthugha¡¯s greatest rival, the Lord of Dread and Malice, and Lord Cthugha has chosen you to become his champion. It is a great hono-¡° Cutting off Bright, Odysseus raised his voice. ¡°Haa?! ¡®Great honor¡¯? Did you forget where you were? This is Tara, the city of the high god and I¡¯m working directly under him, but you wish me to just leave this place and work for another deity? Forget it, Nodens may be overlooking some of my lesser selfish actions but he isn¡¯t the kind of person who would tolerate betrayal. You think I¡¯d live to be Cthugha¡¯s champion if I just left right now?¡± ¡°B- but at the very least, please visit Lord Cthugha! He is dying and saw only you to be fit as his successor!¡± ¡°Forget it, I¡¯ve no interest in being the successor or servant of some eldritch abomination.¡± ¡°It seems Lord Cthugha was right about you being stubborn.¡± ¡°What¡¯s this now?¡± ¡°Lord Cthugha is a mighty and wise being. He has seen deep into your heart and have acknowledged the great thirst for vengeance against a certain man. He has told me to use this as bait to draw your attention towards us.¡± Odysseus sighed. ¡°¡­ You know normally you¡¯re not supposed to reveal the fact that it was a bait, and for some wise and mighty being he sure doesn¡¯t understand my heart that he has so deeply seen into. Vengeance? No, what I wanted was something different; acknowledgement, but it¡¯s all useless now if the target is dead.¡± This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. ¡°T- that may not be so!¡± Odysseus¡¯ ears twitched at the sudden denial of his beloved devil¡¯s death. ¡°What did you say? Did you say that he wasn¡¯t dead?¡± ¡°T- that, if you wish to know the answer to that, you¡¯ll have to ask Lord Cthugha himself!¡± ¡°Tsk, you know you¡¯re not convincing anyone with that taunt, but well it is true that I¡¯ve been feeling a little depressed about that fact for a while now and just about any information about the chances of him being alive is worth my time. Fine, then where is this ¡®Lord Cthugha¡¯?¡± ¡°He resides on the lowest floor of the dungeon in Arune. It is not too far from the base of operation of the humans organization, the Crimson Knights.¡± ¡°Hmm~ is that so? Well, if that¡¯s the case I might as well go then. I did have some business to attend in Arune as well. So I just have to get to the lowest floor of the dungeon?¡± ¡°Yes, but you will have to fight your way through.¡± ¡°Haa? He¡¯s the one who summoned me and he wants me to clear a dungeon? Don¡¯t give me that crap.¡± ¡°Lord Cthugha wishes to test your mettle and resourcefulness.¡± ¡°Tsk, these deities, so high up on their horse and looking down on me. Fine whatever, I¡¯ll clear that dungeon in a single day.¡± ¡°Then since you have decided to accept I shall give you this.¡± Bright hands over a small darkly tinted circle mirror that fit on the small hands of Odysseus. ¡°This is?¡± ¡°[The Dark Mirror], my real body. Since you have decided to accept Lord Cthugha¡¯s call I too have decided to become your servant hence forth.¡± Odysseus examined the small tinted mirror. [Dark Mirror] +[20 Agility] +[13 Dexterity] ¡°It¡¯s not a bad item. I will be holding onto it then.¡± ¡°Yes, please do.¡± Bright says as she disappears in the same manner fire would when it ceased burning. PART FOUR ¡°This is the place?¡± Said a tall, bulky figure. His hair had greyed out from age but his body was extremely beefed up to extraordinary levels. His arms were size of logs and figure made even warriors from the [Titan] race look like children. We was adorned in great silver armor but even through the plate metals that covered his body, the pressure from his figure alone could make everyone steer clear from his path. He was the War God - [Dagda]. He spoke asked as though he was unconvinced that this was the right place. ¡°Hmm~ this place doesn¡¯t really look like much, are you sure some fire god is living here?¡± To his side was a small girl, Macha. ¡°I am positive that this is the place, princess.¡± Odysseus took out a small greyed out mirror as though he was asking for its confirmation. A small flash shined through acting as if it was confirming that this was the place. The place that they had arrived at was a moderately sized stone tower. It reached up about 5 or 6 floors and the diameter of the interior only seemed to be of about 30 meters. On the outside walls there were strange engravings but most of them were covered in moss and damage over time. There were various pillars surrounding the place, with engravings and markings of their own but other than for decoration¡¯s sake it seemed like they served no real purpose. Other than those points there was nothing that stood out to the three that had gathered in hopes of conquering the dungeon of a ¡®fire god¡¯. In fact this was extremely disappointing considering the grand title of the being that lived here, even Odysseus himself was a little discontent at what he saw. They lined up in front of a large stone door that was of a slightly different shade to denote its peculiarity and be distinguished as the entrance. ¡°I guess this is the entrance.¡± Macha commented on the obvious. ¡°I guess it is. Shall we enter?¡± Odysseus asked with a half-hearted tone. Upon entry, it was a lot different than what the trio had expected. They merely expected some monsters and stairs but what they were taken to was a place that resembled the surface of a barren moon. Nothing but grey dust in the air and the skies were darkened out with only the light of the stars. There was a near infinite expanse of grey dirt in every direction. Though it wasn¡¯t as though it was truly outer space, they were still able to breathe. ¡°Well, this certainly is much more impressive than what was shown outside. I¡¯ve never seen a dungeon like this, but with no stairs or any kind of ascending or descending mechanism how do we progress through the floors?¡± Macha asks excitedly. To her question Odysseus takes out the tinted mirror once more and gives it a couple of harsh stares and like before it starts to glow as though it was answering the question. ¡°Apparently this dungeon operates on a ¡®wave¡¯ based system where a number of enemies will spawn and to proceed through the levels we have defeat the waves that keeps getting stronger and stronger. There are 5 waves in total and the types of monsters will vary on each wave in a strengthening format. Once we defeat a wave the ambiance of this place will change slightly.¡± Odysseus explained. ¡°I see, as expected of Odysseus! You¡¯re so smart!¡± Macha compliments as she hugs onto him tightly. ¡°Hee~ a straight up brawl huh? Now that¡¯s my kind of dungeon.¡± Dagda replies with a smile. ¡°Yes, so please go all out. Though I doubt you¡¯d have any actual challenge since you¡¯re a level 172.¡± Odysseus says as he sits down on a small protruding rock, already having given up participating in fighting at all. Macha joins him by his side as she clings onto his right arm. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you mean by that but it sounds strong!¡± Dagda says as he awaits the monsters that would soon spawn. * * * The first wave consisted of weak fire based monsters such as [fire elementals] and [fire demons]. Overall it was an extremely weak start and Dagda almost felt insulted. ¡°Are they looking down on me?¡± Dagda asks. ¡°Calm down, they¡¯re going to get stronger as you progress, though I doubt you¡¯d have much of a challenge even at the 10th wave.¡± As they defeated the first wave, a giant red sun could be seen in the distance. The light from the sun wasn¡¯t as bad as it should¡¯ve been for a sun in such close proximity. The second wave consisted of [Flame wyverns] and [Fire bats]. When they defeated the second wave, pillars of flame burst out from the floor and converted the floor from grey ashes to into black charred lands. Odysseus summoned his Colossus Puppet to avoid the heat. The third wave consisted of [Inferno Drakes] and [Phoenixes]. After the third wave, ugly dark blotches mottled the red surface of the sun, and with a feeling of intense anger overcame the three present in the dungeon. However they were all disciplined warriors thus were able to resist the effects of the dungeon and continue on unhindered. The fourth wave consisted of [Inferno Dragons] and [Giant flame effigies] which were basically automatons. After the collapse of the last monster on the fourth wave the skies turned from a tranquil blackness to a sinister red gas color. The grounds below them started to shake and crack open and lava flowed out from below the charred surface. The fifth wave consisted of [Elder Liches] and [Fire vampires]. After the end of the last wave an electrical storm brewed over them; no rain, simply thunder, and the skies roared with an intense fury. After a while a large ball of flame fell down to the surface as though a meteor was striking down. A large ball of fire appeared before them. Odysseus took a look at the tinted mirror in his hands as they flashed. ¡°It¡¯s him.¡± Odysseus called out. Sifting through the searing lava, Odysseus moved his colossus puppet through and stood before the ¡®Lord of Rage and Revenge¡¯. There was an intense heat coming forth the large angered flames but Odysseus only smiled back with a sinister glow. The ball of fire slowly took a humanoid shape, it had no face aside from an open mouth as though it was describing itself as the all-consuming fire. The being of fire called out to Odysseus in a strange language that the other two could not understand - English. ¡°You are¡­ [Mordred Seynt]¡­¡± Mordred Seynt was Odysseus¡¯ real name, though it was a name Odysseus had given up a long time ago. ¡°I bring you fair greetings, Lord Cthugha. Though I would prefer the name ¡®Odysseus¡¯. In any case I believe you have summoned me to your domain in search of a worthy successor, and I assure you that you have made the correct choice in seeking me.¡± Odysseus enacted the conversation. ¡°Within you, a desire for violence, vengeance¡­ for acknowledgement.¡± ¡°That is correct, Lord Cthugha, I had previously assumed that you did not truly understand my heart but it seems that observation was mistaken. I am thoroughly impressed by your wisdom. Now then, I believe your servant, Bright has told me of a certain piece of information concerning the person I seek out the most.¡± ¡°Morgant Fallon¡­ He lives, as the successor to the Crawling Chaos. Evil¡­ He must be stopped, he must be destroyed.¡± At this confirmation, Odysseus¡¯ face distorts with sheer happiness. A sinister, malicious, devious smile, one he had put all of his heart into making. For there was no information greater than this that could possibly make him happier. The one he sought out, was alive. ¡°I see. Yes, that man certainly is the devil incarnate and if he were to roam free with such powers there will be countless untold levels of destruction.¡± ¡°Power¡­ I shall grant you my power¡­ You must stop him.¡± ¡°I will accept it with grace.¡± Hiding a sinister smile underneath Odysseus receives the power of the [Living Flames] and accepts his new role as the hero of flames - [Phoenix Hero]. PART FIVE About a month had passed since escaping the fortress of the Crimson Knights. The remnants of the Fallon family had managed to only barely survive out in the wilderness through constant fighting with the local monsters. There were only extremely brief moments of rest and food was scarce as most of the vegetation that grew in these lands hadn¡¯t been for human consumption in centuries. ¡°Sister¡­ I think we should rest a bit. Mistress is feeling a bit tired, and so am I.¡± Lena pleaded to her sister who walked ahead. Lina looked around to see if there were any sights of enemy monsters and gave a small nod. ¡°We¡¯ll rest in that small opening over there.¡± Lina pointed to a small treeless area. Following her instructions, the party went along and rested against the walls. They took out small bottles and food to sate their hunger. The situation had seemed extremely dire, either they would eventually die from the monsters lurking the continent or they would be caught by the Crimson knights and with them being stuck on the southern continent they had no real way of crossing the sea and back to the mainland. ¡°Sorry¡­ Lina, for making you do all this. Because I¡¯m weak.¡± Rio apologized with a pale face. From the start she had always had a weak constitution thus prolonged struggle through dangerous forests were catching up to her. Just as Lina was about to catch her breath she noticed a strange movement in the area around her; the presence of a person. ¡°Spies?!¡± Lina shouted as she got up with sword in hand. The wind blew, rustling the wind as everyone became silent, letting Lina search out the presence of the spy. However what they had gotten was far more than just a simple spy, but a single boy. Darkened black hair and a seemingly innocent face that covered a rather dark persona. ¡°Y- you are¡­¡± Lina remembered the boy, how could she not? It was the boy that destroyed her entire village. ¡°Hee~ is it me or has your level increased? Level 52? That doesn¡¯t sound right¡­ Well whatever, I¡¯m honored that you have remembered me when it is only our second meeting.¡± The boy gave a sarcastic bow as his mannerisms became insultingly polite. Sensing the danger and gravity of the situation, Rio tried to stand up to fight alongside Lina but was forced to stop by Lena. ¡°You can¡¯t mistress, you¡¯re far too injured.¡± ¡°But¡­ Lina is.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, sister is strong. She won¡¯t lose to him, not this time.¡± Lina drew her sword towards Odysseus but all she got in return was a fake smile as he scoffed at her attempts to resist. Disregarding the blade pointing at him, a few more steps were taken all without breaking the sinister smile. ¡°Allow me to reintroduce myself. I am known as Odysseus, the hero of flames. I serve his eminence, the high god of Tara, Nodens. Now don¡¯t be afraid I will promise that you will only be hurt when necessary. You are all valuable chips against that man after all.¡± ¡°Stay back, else your head will roll.¡± Despite the warnings Odysseus continues to walk forward, with neither weapon nor shield in his hands he draws closer. Once he gets into striking range, without any hesitation Lina strikes directly at his neck in hopes to end it with a single blow. However to her surprise the blade phases through as though it cut through nothing. ¡°What?¡± ¡°[Augmentation - Aspect of the Phoenix]. Well, it used to be a different skill but it has since evolved into this. Unfortunately for you I can no longer be harmed by conventional weapons, so if you want to put even a single scratch on me you¡¯d have to get creative.¡± With a snap of Odysseus¡¯ fingers the entire area becomes surrounded in flames, cutting off any potential retreat paths. Small humanoid figures made of flame appear and slowly creep towards the remnant of the Fallon family. ¡°Isn¡¯t it cool? This skill I received from Cthugha, it¡¯s known as [Legion]. While I don¡¯t really want to harm you, you¡¯ve really given me no chance so I¡¯ll the opportunity to harm only a bit of you. So prepare yourself.¡± ¡°No! That¡¯s enough!¡± Lina shouts. The sword in Lina¡¯s hand starts emanating a dark aura and the blue parts and engravings on the sword start to turn deathly in color. This was Sebastian¡¯s special ability, but as the inheritor of the cursed blade Lina too was able to use it. Lina charges out and tries to deliver another strike, but sensing that something was different from before, Odysseus moves to dodge. The sword grazes him a little but the attack did go through, as proof on his right arm was a small scratch and blood oozing from the wound. ¡°Whoa~ that was dangerous. Well I¡¯ve got to give it to you for that one.¡± Suddenly Lina¡¯s vision starts to blur, and after a few seconds she falls unconscious. This was the kind of skill the [cursed blade] was, in exchange for the power to create miracles it would destroy the user. Odysseus gave out a small sigh as he looked back at the remaining hostages. ¡°Like I said, you don¡¯t have to worry. You¡¯ll only be hurt when it is necessary¡­¡± And once more the Fallon family has been captured. PART SIX Back in the golden city, a certain guest had arrived before Nodens and kneels. Silver hair, azure eyes and a fierce aura, a member of the [Therianthropic] race, more specifically the leader of a small faction of werewolves, but also one of [Astaroth¡¯s] trusted demon general. Behind her are two more werewolves with similar features also kneeling before Nodens. [Andras Silverfang]. Though she was to serve another master, she kneels before Nodens. ¡°I am grateful that you have allowed me an audience with you, your eminence. Please allow me to thank-¡° Before she could continue, Nodens raises a hand to stop her. ¡°I do not wish to hear pleasantry from those of the demon race. You are merely here for a simple trade, are you not? Then state your business.¡± ¡°Yes, we wish to have the curse of our Lycanthropy lifted. In exchange we pledge our services as humans.¡± Nodens stands from his throne and walks down the small steps and stops before Andras. Stares down at her with a dramatic smile. ¡°Very well, I will lift your curse. In exchange we will destroy your master. From here on out it is war with the forces of Vertloch.¡± Notice: change of ages So, I just went through my story again, and I decided to change up the ages a bit. This is because I''m cutting a bit of content I was going to put but I simply decided that adding it would just drag the story on and will make the pace slower. Thus I''ve decided to make the MC a bit older. The changes are as follows. Arc 1 - Age 7 Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!Arc 2 - Age 8 Arc 3 - Age 10 The start of an Arc is indicated with a "Prologue" chapter. And it will go from there. The change in age also applies to everyone else. such as Odysseus, Liliana, the maids, etc. PS. sorry that this is not an update, I am writing it now. *Begs for forgiveness* Chapter 22 - Choosing the course of his future carefully Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Choosing the course of his future carefully Chapter XXII PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 990] Having finally sorted out my feelings and attempts at the suicidal dungeon, I lied down on my bed for the first time in a year. I was getting ready to willingly sleep when I felt an unnerving presence looming overhead. At first I tried to ignore it with all of my might but it was extremely persistent and the annoyance factor was only accentuated when it started to nudge me. Breaking through my paper thin layer of conviction I gave into the evil spirit looming ahead and opened my eyes. ¡°Eh?¡± The ¡®evil spirit¡¯ that was annoying me wasn¡¯t who I thought it was. A small girl was nudging me, still half asleep and hair in a disheveled state. It was [Alice]. ¡°What¡¯s wrong Alice?¡± I asked gently. ¡°Mmm¡­ Can¡¯t sleep.¡± ¡°Is that so, then want to sleep here?¡± I lifted the blankets and patted onto a vacant area next to me. She gave me a meek nod and entered without hesitation. She started shivering by herself a little but I embraced her and gently patted her to sleep. As she used the rest of my body as a body pillow she went back into deep sleep after only a few minutes. ¡°You thought that was me?¡± I heard a voice coming from my left. Leaning out the open window and into the red covered snow was him, [Aran Callahad]. He gave me an arrogant smirk as he taunted for my small mistake. I slowly pried Alice¡¯s hands away from me and left the bed as well to join him out moon gazing. ¡°I knew it was Alice.¡± ¡°Hah, don¡¯t lie, if you knew it was her then you wouldn¡¯t have ignored her.¡± ¡°Ugh¡­ whatever. So what do you want?¡± He looks at me as though he¡¯s won some kind of bet, that vile, arrogant smirk, I really wanted to punch his nose in. I felt the tip of my fingers move towards the center of my face once more. ¡°Weren¡¯t you in the midst of going through your depression? In the end you¡¯ve accepted their help, even if it took a great sacrifice to do so.¡± ¡°Hmph, you try living under a ridiculous amount of constant positive support for two years straight. Then have 3 buzzing flies hovering around you so that you don¡¯t accidentally hurt yourself, then have those 3 flies literally doing anything to gain your trust. Not only that, all the children in this orphanage have a similar past, as an adult I can¡¯t just sit by and be depressed all day.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. You¡¯ve already lost your right to be a child 35 years ago. So then, what do you plan on doing now?¡± ¡°What do you mean, ¡®what do I plan on doing¡¯? isn¡¯t it obvious? The circumstances around me have changed a little but nothing about my plans have. I haven¡¯t forgotten about what ODIN said, an incoming planetary collision along with an entire civilization. The chances of war is high, no, it¡¯s not only high, it¡¯s extremely likely.¡± ¡°Right, so then what do you plan on doing about it?¡± ¡°I will do my part in that confrontation if it ever comes to it, but know this. I am not the hero of that story, my story ends when I take [Nodens¡¯] life. If by the end of my journey I am still alive then¡­ For now my main goal is more power; I¡¯ve received a substantial buff from [Nyarlathotep], but it is now enough to defeat him.¡± ¡°Well, I guess there¡¯s no point in talking about what will happen in the distant future. For now focus on what you have to do.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need you to tell me that.¡± The edge of his mouth curve upwards, not in an unpleasant manner like he usually does, he then turns his gaze out towards the large moon in the sky in contemplation. ¡°So what¡¯s happening with the other three?¡± I¡¯m assuming he means [Arachna], [Xotl] and [Lilith]. ¡°Lilith said she wanted to go back to run her shop that was in this city but told me not to hesitate in calling for her whenever I wanted. As for Xotl and Arachna, they said they would prefer to stay unsummoned until necessary. Something about liking the feeling of being unsummoned, I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s akin to a zen-induced hibernation. Arachna said she¡¯d come out later but Xotl would prefer to stay unsummoned.¡± ¡°Hmmm¡­ well if that was their decision then it¡¯s fine I guess.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not fine. Those guys are unable to make decisions anymore; they¡¯ve lost that ability when they decided to become my servants. Of course I plan to accommodate them to the best of my ability but that¡¯s just an illusion of freedom.¡± He shakes his head. ¡°You¡¯re so rigid, why don¡¯t you loosen up a bit more?¡± ¡°Leave me alone, this is just the way I am.¡± ¡°I guess that too is true. Then do your best.¡± He waves as he disappears into black smoke. Contemplating on those words I decided to go to sleep. PART TWO [Transformation - Aspect of the black pharaoh], [Avatar of Nyarlathotep] and [Mental Fortress], those were the three skills that received from the almighty lord of dread. I¡¯ve yet to actually have a chance of using them for myself but from the skill description they sounded extremely useful. Especially [Mental Fortress], it¡¯s a skill that synergies well with my [Undead¡¯s Tenacity]; if I can get both skills to master rank then it should be extremely hard to dent me in any way. [Transformation - Aspect of the black pharaoh] too is a skill that enhances my base stats. If it¡¯s anything like what I think it is, then most likely I will adopt the form of the ¡®Black Pharaoh¡¯ that I saw in that dungeon. It¡¯s a pretty straight forward skill but also very useful, so I should prioritize ranking up this skill as well. I¡¯m not too sure what [Avatar of Nyarlathotep] actually does, but from the sounds of it, it projects a mass [life drain] effect as well as an effect to make the targets go insane. Honestly just looking at the effects of this I feel like this will drain a lot of stamina to activate and use. If that was the case then it would probably be an inefficient skill to use in a 1v1 scenario, so most likely I would only get mileage from this skill when used against a massive amount of enemies, perhaps against enemy armies. It seems that even though my [life drain] is gone, I can still use it without summoning the avatar. That¡¯s a good news since it was one of the more useful skills. Other than that, from this point onwards I would probably need a primary weapon to use in combat. That¡¯s not to say that [shadow lance] and [shadow shield] were bad but rather than constantly summoning them, having a weapon would be more efficient and effective. Since I already have the sword hilt, perhaps a sword would be a good idea, though I want something that could take advantage of my [strength] stat. Wait, maybe I could do that- ¡°Morgant? Morgant? Are you listening to me?¡± Interrupting my train of thought was the high pitched voice of a girl. It was Alice, with her arms on her waist and standing tall she glared at me as I was not paying attention to her words. The frown on her face we extremely evident, unable to find a way out of the situation I ended up apologizing. ¡°Ah, sorry Alice. I was just thinking about something.¡± ¡°Hmph! You have to listen properly because I¡¯m the leader!¡± She says as he puffs up her chest. We were behind the orphanage where we usually hang out as a sort of ad hoc ¡®secret hideout¡¯. There was a small shelter so the snow didn¡¯t bother us that much, but still it amazes me how much snow falls and yet we aren¡¯t buried yet. The potentials of magic are cheap. ¡°What are you talking about? Who made you the leader?¡± Interjecting her statement was a [Ren] who was silently sitting beside me while tampering with some gizmo. Despite his docile looks he¡¯s rather competitive and looks down on people who he thinks is less intelligent; in other words he has a lot of pride, and because of their personality, he and Alice end up arguing most of the time. ¡°What are you talking about? I¡¯m the leader because I¡¯m the smartest and strongest between all of us!¡± Alice boasts as though it was supposed to be common knowledge, and not being able to accept that statement Ren objects when then turns into a physical struggle between children. ¡°G- guys, let¡¯s stop, okay? Please stop...¡± [Celina] protests from the back with teary eyes, her presence in this situation was almost non-existent. She shoots me a look as if to say she was asking me to do something about it, and with her large teary eyes it wasn¡¯t like I could refuse. I sighed as I easily pried them away with my enormous numeric advantage. ¡°It¡¯s time to stop you two.¡± ¡°Heh! See that, Alice? Morgant to pry us away with no problem! He¡¯s the strongest amongst us and I¡¯m obviously the smartest!¡± ¡°What did you say?!¡± Alice tries to go for a second round but with my pro-level blocking I made sure that her intentions never came to fruition. Now then, to be fair, excluding me, Alice was indeed the highest level amongst them. [Alice. Level 14, Apprentice Swordswoman] [Ren. Level 13, Apprentice Tinkerer] [Celina. Level 12, Apprentice Cleric] Those were definitely some impressive levels for children, I admit. ¡°In any case I won¡¯t accept you being our leader.¡± ¡°Grrrr~ hmph, fine then do you think you can do a better job?¡± She starts growling at him, but for the most part Alice is mature enough to let things go without holding too much of a grudge. A fact about her that I quite enjoy and think is admirable. ¡°No, I think Morgant should be our leader. He¡¯s the strongest after all.¡± Ren nominates me. ¡°I- I think Morgant would be the better choice¡­ sorry Alice.¡± Celina also joins in which puts Alice in a bad mood but she sighs and nods. ¡°Well¡­ I guess it¡¯s majority rules, so Morgant will be the leader.¡± Alice says in disappointment, and thus I was made into the leader of the children¡¯s play squad, a fact that doesn¡¯t make me happy in the least. How did I go from managing a multi-trillion dollar conglomerate to managing three children? Well, I decided to play along and offer them a smile and bowed. ¡°I¡¯m honored you all think that way. Then I will try my best.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t look too happy.¡± Alice comments as she carefully observes. ¡°Well, no I¡¯m very happy-¡° ¡°Morgant~? You have a visitor.¡± As I was about to object to Alice¡¯s suspicions I was interrupted by Diana who had brought along another person, my ¡®visitor¡¯. A man in his mid twenties, with brown hair that was tied up neatly into small ponytail, a face that perfectly outlined his bone structure but not in an unhealthy manner and his dark colored eyes that seemed to observe the world around him calmly. He shot me a ¡®pleasant¡¯ smile that was clearly riddled with hidden agendas. [Enrich. Level 31, Cleric] Hmmm, from the looks of it he was a [human]. Level 31 was a notable level but nothing too spectacular, barely better from average adventurers. I don¡¯t believe I¡¯ve ever met this man before so the only real connection I¡¯m drawing is either someone from North Ariadyne, but no one should know I was taking to this continent so that¡¯s unlikely. The second is the demon lord¡¯s forces. While it¡¯s also true that I have yet to inform them of my arrival to the Northern continent, if Lilith could figure out I was here then [Kyrios], who is in charge of [Astaroth¡¯s] intelligence network should have a vague idea as well. Of course there¡¯s no law against a human working alongside the demon lord¡¯s forces. ¡°Diana. This man is?¡± Trying to gather more information through idle exchange I asked while maintaining a pleasant fa?ade. ¡°This man¡¯s name is Enrich, he said he knew you and had some business with you.¡± It¡¯s doubtful to think that Diana would let a random stranger come see me, so she must¡¯ve done at least a rudimentary level background check. He won¡¯t be a danger to the children, well I was at a much higher level than him so it wasn¡¯t too important, if push came to shove I could overpower him. Maintaining my fa?ade I played along with him. ¡°Yes of course, then I¡¯ll will honor his wish and have a chat in private then.¡± ¡°Yes do be careful~¡± Diana answers with a smile of an almost unfair level of pleasantness. Unfair in the sense that I may be falling in love with her against my will, well that was just a hyperbole but you get the picture. PART THREE There was a small flower shop near the orphanage that I guided our venerable guest, ¡®Mister Enrich¡¯. After proving to the orphanage caretakers of how capable I was I had gotten permission to leave the premises of the building unattended. The small flower shop in the middle of a snow covered town had bright lit sign post reading ¡®Lilith¡¯s Flower Emporium¡¯ with several seizure inducing mana stones flashing about like it was Christmas. For starters I don¡¯t think this girl understands what ¡®Emporium¡¯ means because this was a small corner shop, and secondly I would love to see the process of growing flowers like these in such a harsh winter climate. Whatever, I¡¯ll try my best to push it off to the edge of my memories. I replied with a smile and entered the premises, as we enter the jingling of bells could be heard from the bells attached to the door. ¡°Ah! W- Welcome - wah!¡± Failing to even accomplish the most basic of tasks such as ¡®greetings¡¯, this clumsy and flighty girl tried to run out from behind the counter but fell, planting her face flat onto the floor and with her buttocks facing upwards. It was such a waste for a woman so pretty like her to be donning such a shameful pose. I mean, objectively speaking her looks exceeded even the most beautiful of women in this world, and her ¡®assets¡¯ exceeded the industry average. Though I suppose coming from a [succubus] that¡¯s not a surprise. Lilith gets up from the floor, sitting upright she starts rubbing her face. Her blazing red hair full of dust and flower pedals, I moved closer to her and helped her brush off the junk. ¡°Th- thank you-?! L- Lord Morgant?!¡± ¡°Yes, yes. You don¡¯t need to shout every time.¡± I sighed. ¡°S- sorry!¡± I sighed once more. ¡°S- sorry!¡± I kept quiet as Enrich looked back at me with an amused expression. Lilith De Signa¡­ she needs a lot of improvements, it¡¯s almost hard to believe that she¡¯s the daughter of THAT free spirited demon lord. ¡°Umm, could it be that you¡¯re the daughter of the demon lord, Astaroth De Signa?¡± Enrich asks as he approaches but when he did something curious happened. ¡°Hii!¡± Lilith struggled backwards in fright. ¡°Eh?¡± She started to shiver, noticing this Enrich moved forward to over his coat over to hear thinking she was cold. ¡°S- stay back, please!¡± Almost as though she has seen a ghost she shouts while moving her hands forward to a defensive gesture. If somewhere to look at this from a 3rd person¡¯s perspective and without proper context they would think Enrich was some sort of sex offender. A rather amusing thought, I could barely contain my laughter at the image of him being arrested by the local police, but I digress. I do think she might¡¯ve been overreacting a little. ¡°What¡¯s wrong Lilith?¡± As Enrich takes a step back I moved forward. ¡°S- sorry, it¡¯s just that¡­ I¡¯m a little scared.¡± ¡°Scared?¡± Enrich and I turn to each other in confusion. I thought he might¡¯ve had an idea of what she was talking about be he looks as lost as I was. ¡°I¡­ I¡¯m not good with men.¡± She confesses. ¡°Eh? Wait¡­ eh? Correct me if I¡¯m wrong but doesn¡¯t a [Succubus] live off the essence of men? Or was that just a preconception on my part?¡± ¡°No¡­ I don¡¯t think you¡¯re mistaken either.¡± Enrich affirms my beliefs. Suddenly Lilith starts to breath heavily and her face becomes flustered and red. Wondering what was going on now I approached her closer and placed my hand on her forehead. It doesn¡¯t seem like she has the same aversion towards me as she does with Enrich, maybe because my body is that of a ten year old? Her forehead feels extraordinarily hot, to the point that I couldn¡¯t leave my hands on her head for more than 5 seconds. ¡°You! You¡¯re sick! Why are you running about with this shop if you¡¯re that ill?!¡± I reproach her. ¡°S- sorry¡­¡± I didn¡¯t want her apology I wanted to know what kind of disease it was and how to remedy this situation. I turned to Enrich for any suggestions, to which he places his hands on his chin and thinks for a bit as he observes Lilith¡¯s condition from afar. ¡°Perhaps¡­ she¡¯s just hungry?¡± ¡°Hungry?¡± I ask for clarification. ¡°I haven¡¯t really seen it firsthand myself but I have read about it. Her conditions are similar to those who¡¯s low on mana. It¡¯s said that if a [succubus¡¯] mana isn¡¯t restored they will eventually die, or at least that¡¯s what I¡¯ve read. I don¡¯t know how true that information is but I don¡¯t think it would be wise to test that theory.¡± I nodded in agreement. ¡°So then, what do we do? Don¡¯t tell me we actually have to do ¡®that¡¯.¡± Once again he places his hands on his chin and contemplates. ¡°This is quite troublesome, if we leave her be she¡¯ll most likely perish, although being afraid of men probably means that she wasn¡¯t able to replenish her mana. A difficult problem indeed, although I¡¯ve also heard that [succubus] of the royal blood don¡¯t necessarily need the essence of men, perhaps that information was wrong.¡± ¡°That¡­ only half true¡­ after a certain age I won¡¯t require it¡­ but for now I still¡­¡± I crouched down and stared at her dwindling consciousness. ¡°How have you even survived up til now?¡± ¡°My¡­ mother used to share some of her mana with me¡­¡± And now that Lilith has run away from home she has also forgone receiving mana. Did she not have any plans as she ran away? Was this an impulsive decision? In any case this was simply a temporary problem so a temporary solution was fine, right? ¡°So then we really need, ¡®reproductive fluid¡¯ after all?¡± I ask once more. ¡°I do believe that may be the case, the essence of men is used to replenish a [succubus¡¯] mana after all. I have heard that in emergencies blood could be used as substitute, but since blood is less virile, a considerable amount is required and in most cases the men would die from having too much of their blood drawn. Besides, the problem is that she¡¯s afraid of men so whether it¡¯s ¡®reproductive fluid. ¡¯ or blood it wouldn¡¯t matter either way.¡± A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. After his explanation he looks at me with a wicked, almost perverse smile. I know what he¡¯s thinking, I think we all know what he¡¯s trying to insinuate. If there really was no other way then I suppose I would consider it but it¡¯s not like we¡¯re totally out of options. ¡°Enrich, you can use restorative magic, right?¡± I asked him, well he was a cleric so that should be obvious. ¡°Yes of course, why do you ask?¡± Letting out a sigh I rolled up the sleeves of my left arm. ¡°Here, drink.¡± I placed my left arm in front of Lilith¡¯s face. ¡°Eh¡­?¡± Both Enrich and Lilith looked at me with surprise, then Enrich gave out an expression as if to say he understood my intentions. The only one who was behind the curve was Lilith who had an expression as though she¡¯s heard the most unbelievable thing ever, maybe she has. ¡°I¡­ I can¡¯t possibly, Lord Morgant will die¡­¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about that.¡± I replied as I eyed Enrich. ¡°Are you sure about this? Unlike [Vampires], [Succubi] do not posses fangs that could easily penetrate human skin. You¡¯d be subject to an intense pain of being bitten.¡± [Undead¡¯s tenacity] means that she won¡¯t be able to penetrate my skin, which in turn means I¡¯ll have to deactivate it. So no doubt it¡¯d be extremely painful but I¡¯ve already been subjected to worse. ¡°You let me worry about that. Now drink, Lilith.¡± She shakes her head and tries to back off even more, but backs up against a wall. She tried to run away but due to her exhaustion she fell down face first once again. ¡°No, please don¡¯t. I¡¯d rather die than to cause you such a pain.¡± I let out a sigh, I had guessed that¡¯s what she would say. I don¡¯t really have a choice but I¡¯ll be exercising my right to decline her right to refuse. ¡°Lilith, this is an order as your master. I command you to drink.¡± She struggles against her body for a bit but overall she is unable to and immediately sinks her teeth into my skin. At first an intense pain overcame me, but through remembering my time in the jaws of a monster I thought to myself that this wasn¡¯t ¡®as bad¡¯ as that one time. ¡°Kuh¡­¡± I continued to convince myself of that as I endured the pain, with Enrich applying the strongest healing spells he had as his disposal. After around five minutes it was all over, but to me it felt a lot longer than that. Slowly unhinging her jaw from my left arm she stared at the wound she inflicted with a clearly horrified expression, though it wasn¡¯t as though I couldn¡¯t understand her feelings. ¡°S- sorry¡­ Sorry¡­¡± After my wound was completely healed with Enrich¡¯s healing magic I was starting to feel a lot better though my head felt weightless. Lilith embraced me as she cried and apologized, I took advantage of that to check her temperature and it had indeed gone down. Enrich himself looked rather light headed as well after continuously using so much magic in a quick burst. ¡°It¡¯s fine Lilith. You don¡¯t have anything to apologize for, I¡¯m the one who forced you to anyway.¡± Admittedly this would¡¯ve been a lot less painful if I had just done the deed but well that would also be kind of cruel to her. Since she was that afraid of men she¡¯s probably still ¡®pure¡¯ and I wouldn¡¯t want to take that away from her if there was another way. PART FOUR We rested up a bit before we really decide into the real topic at hand, which was why my mysterious guest arrived. We sat around a small coffee table as Lilith brought out some beverages. Incidentally there was no such thing as ¡®coffee¡¯ in this world, I was just calling this ¡®tea table¡¯ as ¡®coffee table¡¯ because I was more used to that. She hands me the tea cup with a small blush as she averts her gaze. She also hands another cup to Enrich, albeit in a more frightened manner, I guess it wouldn¡¯t be that easy to get over her androphobia. ¡°Thank you.¡± He replied as Lilith handed him a small tea cup, all the while maintaining his smile. ¡°Now then, Mister Enrich, starting from the top I don¡¯t believe we¡¯ve ever met.¡± I told him as I took a sip of my tea. ¡°Yes, this would be our first meeting, though it was a rather exhilarating first impression, thanks to that I have gotten a good grasp on what kind of character you are.¡± He replied as he took a sip of his tea in a similar manner. ¡°Then to what do I owe the pleasure of having you come all the way to this frozen lands? I doubt it was for simply pleasantries.¡± Maintaining his smile he set his cup down and started to drop his fa?ade a little. ¡°It seems you¡¯re as sharp as the rumors say, to see through me like it was painted on my face. You¡¯re right, it wasn¡¯t for mere pleasantries that I¡¯ve come all the way here, in fact I was sent here to gain some of your counsel.¡± ¡°¡­ Huh? Is that a joke?¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± He doesn¡¯t seem like the kind of person who would make stupid or foolish decisions, yet he says he wants my counsel? Regardless of what I am on the inside, on the outside I am a ten year old. Even if I had the honorary position of [Demon General] would you normally ask a kid for advice? Perhaps there¡¯s a deeper meaning? Maybe a kinship since we¡¯re both [humans]? ¡°You know I¡¯m a ten year old, right?¡± I rebuke him as I take another sip of my tea. ¡°That I do understand, but it¡¯s plenty obvious that you¡¯re more than a mere ten year old. For starters a normal ten year old wouldn¡¯t have the capabilities of becoming a demon general. It¡¯s the first time for me actually, as ridiculous as it sound, it feels as though I have met an intellectual equal, and not to mention after that brave display I couldn¡¯t help but commend you as my beliefs about you were all confirmed.¡± Certainly from his obviously agenda driven personality and his speech mannerism he¡¯s acting different then how he was in front of Diana. An ¡®equal¡¯, huh? How nostalgic, back then I used to have a lot of self-proclaimed ¡®rivals¡¯ but they were all no good, but I wonder about this man. ¡°Well, you¡¯re right. I guess I am hiding a lot more things than the average person but for people of our nature that¡¯s the norm right?¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± He nods in agreement. ¡°You said you were here under someone else¡¯s orders to gain my counsel? But why me? I¡¯ve only recently joined the demon lord¡¯s forces so my credentials can still be questions and I¡¯m sure there are more credible people to consult over myself, right?¡± He pauses in contemplation for a while before resuming to talk. ¡°That¡¯s because¡­ tell me, how many people do you think exists among the demon lord¡¯s forces that actually posses a strong analytical or strategic mindset?¡± ¡°There¡¯s no way I could have the answer to that kind of vague question, but at the least I would assume those in the top position are those kind of ¡®smart¡¯ types.¡± If the demon army is supposed to represent a company then it would be necessary for all of the head of departments to be talented, however he shakes his head. ¡°Four¡­ There are only four such people, that is including you and to a lesser extent myself. The other two being the demon lord¡¯s aide, Lord Kyrios and the other being the demon general known as Lord [Ordwell Rommel] the one in charge of the demon lord¡¯s naval force. Unfortunately Lord Ordwell is away and it was Lord Kyrios that sent me to ask you.¡± That masked bastard huh? Well, if it was him I can kind of see why he would direct me to him. And ¡®Ordwell Rommel¡¯? sounds vaguely German, but of course that doesn¡¯t exist in this world anymore. Now that I think about it, I¡¯m unfamiliar with the other generals aside from [Cedric]. Though to be honest now that Enrich is here I have a sneaking sensation I¡¯ll probably get acquainted with them sooner or later. Whether that would be under good terms is debateable. Enrich came straight to me under Kyrios¡¯ orders, that means it¡¯s something he can¡¯t bring up with anyone of a status lower than ¡®demon general¡¯. I can only think of two situations in which those conditions would fit, either the crimson knights or Nodens¡¯ forces did something or it was one of our own. If that¡¯s the case¡­ ¡°I guess there¡¯s no real reason for me to reject your request. Very well then, tell me what the problem is.¡± He gives me a nod and a fake smile. ¡°Thank you, I appreciate it. You see, while I work as a diplomat for the [demon] race, I also have an addition job of monitoring and organizing the movements of the demon lord¡¯s forces. Though it¡¯s nothing as grand as you think, it¡¯s simply a mundane task of organizing the movements of the army and selecting more efficient routes or finding ideal locations for training drills.¡± Well from that I got a fairly good idea what he was trying to say. ¡°And you¡¯ve noticed an inconsistency in the movement of the army.¡± He nods. ¡°Correct, to be specific it has to do with Lord [Andras Silverfang¡¯s] forces. They¡¯ve often gone AWOL or some of them simply straight up MIA. Lord Andras herself from time to time disappear without much say either. It seems Lord Kyrios believes this is a tacit admission of betrayal but wishes to hear a secondary opinion before he acts.¡± ¡°Unfortunately, I don¡¯t have too much information concerning the other demon generals, I guess I should¡¯ve done more research on them. But from what I know don¡¯t demon generals usually have a large degree of freedom? I mean I haven¡¯t been called to action and have been doing whatever I wanted for the past few years.¡± ¡°You¡¯re an exception, though you¡¯re also not too wrong about the amount of freedom given to each general. Though it may not be my place to say it, Lord Kyrios and Lord Andras have also had bad blood between them so it is not unthinkable to think that Lord Kyrios is only thinking of the worst case scenario.¡± ¡°¡¯Silverfang¡¯, so she¡¯s a [Therianthrope]?¡± ¡°A breed of werewolf, yes. Though there have been some dubious rumors concerning her true origin.¡± ¡°And by that you mean?¡± ¡°I assume you know of the war between the heaven¡¯s forces and demon lord¡¯s forces that took place decades ago.¡± I give a nod. ¡°Right, I¡¯ve been told.¡± ¡°During that time the ones who suffered the greatest amount of loss were the werewolves, to the point that they were driven to near extinction, yet in only a few short decades they¡¯ve managed to recoup their numbers. Strange is it not?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t say I have too much information regarding [Therianthrope] breeding patterns but if they''re anything like humans, perhaps.¡± ¡°There¡¯s been a rumor that the previous generation of werewolves kidnapped humans and forcefully turned them into werewolves. The method was unknown, it could¡¯ve been magic, a curse, alchemy¡­¡± ¡°I see, so then if this rumor were to be true then the surviving members of the human turned werewolves are plotting revenge?¡± He nods. ¡°That¡¯s what Lord Kyrios suspects.¡± Hmm, such a scenario isn¡¯t unthinkable; if they were truly captured against their will and turned into monsters then I could certainly understand. To be honest even if I try to wrack my brain around it, if I don¡¯t meet them face to face then I probably can¡¯t come to a solid conclusion. I guess it might be time that I go have a visit the capital of this continent. I¡¯ve yet to properly meet Astaroth either and getting to know my allies would be beneficial. ¡°To be honest, if all those rumors were true then most likely the betrayal of the werewolves isn¡¯t too farfetched. However is there really a way of validating those rumors?¡± ¡°I have sent some agents to do exactly that, but I¡¯ve yet to hear from them.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ since Kyrios has a direct line to Astaroth, I would suggest moving the citizens that live in the capital away temporarily. If battle was really going to take place then it¡¯d be prudent to at least get non-combatants away from the battlefield, but if he is going to do that make sure to tell him to do it in secret. As for you, since you¡¯re in charge of moving the army around use the pretext of a combat drill to move them into a suitable position for ambushing assuming the battle will be taking place in the capital. Though it sounds harsh, make sure no werewolf gets wind of this.¡± Enrich gives me a nod. ¡°That does seem like the only choice we have for that. It may disrupt the flow of economy for a bit but I suppose that¡¯s better than a potential war in the city. I understand then I shall do prepare for that.¡± Enrich stands up, signifying that this conversation was at its end. I also follow in his lead and return my tea cup to Lilith. She looks much better than before which was a huge relief. Actually speaking of Lilith how am I going to explain to Astaroth that I turned her daughter into my slave. I don¡¯t think that conversation is going to go too well. ¡°Thanks for the tea Lilith.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ no it¡¯s quite fine. Thank you for¡­ um¡­ saving me.¡± She replies in a flustered manner. I shooter her a smile and leave the coffee shop, I mean flower shop with Enrich. ¡°Then I¡¯ll be returning to the capital to relay your advice.¡± ¡°Yeah, I get the feeling we¡¯ll meet up soon enough.¡± He gives me an uneasy smile as if to say that he unfortunately agrees. PART FIVE A few days after my initial meeting with Enrich I was back in my usual place with the children. Alice and Celina were talking about some stuff while Ren was busy by himself tinkering away with some contraption. As for myself, I was sitting in the shade looking at them. I¡¯ve never had children of my own, I¡¯ve never even thought about that due to my work but after coming to this world I sometimes think that this may be what it¡¯s like. Age-wise it matches up as well. ¡°Morgant~ you have another visitor.¡± Diana comes along once more with another person. She had a similar shade of silver hair as Miko did and a small fluffy tail. Her eyes were a deep blue color like you¡¯d get lost just looking into them and her by her expression it was going to be a fairly serious meeting this time around. ¡°This is?¡± ¡°Her name is [Deborah], a person from the werewolf tribe. She said something about you being summoned to the capital. I¡¯m unsure what that really means so I came to consult it with you.¡± The person behind her, Deborah the werewolf comes up and gives me a bow. ¡°It is an honor to meet you Lord Morgant. By the wishes of the demon lord you have been summoned to capital.¡± ¡°Already, huh. I understand.¡± ¡°What¡¯s going on Morgant? Are you going to leave?¡± Hearing Deborah¡¯s loud announcement, Alice comes up to me with an uneasy expression on her face. Ever since arriving at this place Alice has been rather attached to me so it¡¯s not like I don¡¯t understand her uneasiness about seeing me leave. ¡°It will only be for a little while. I¡¯ll be sure to come back.¡± I tell her. ¡°No! No! No! I don¡¯t want Morgant to leave!¡± She rushes and grabs a hold of me in tears. ¡°Alice¡­¡± ¡°No!¡± It took a while but I managed to calm her down after gently rubbing her head for a good 10 minutes, with Celina looking at the scene in envy. ¡°Alice¡­ here.¡± I open Alice¡¯s hands and give her a small hair pin with a cute skull figure on it. ¡°¡­ ?¡± She tilts her head wondering what this was. ¡°That¡¯s something extremely important for me, I want you to keep it safe for me okay? It¡¯s a promise, I¡¯ll definitely come back to take it back. So do that for me, okay?¡± ¡°¡­ Okay¡­¡± She meekly agrees. ¡°Thank you for understanding.¡± Afterwards I had a small talk with Diana as well, after much deliberation she consented to my brief absence, though Miko was a little less convinced, perhaps because she too has some bad blood with the werewolves, due to her special condition. Though in the end she too gives me consent to leave. ¡°Then we shall depart immediately.¡± Deborah says but I interject. ¡°Ah before we go I want to take someone else along with me.¡± Deborah seemed confused but soon understood what I mean when she saw the large bright sign that read ¡®Lilith¡¯s Flower Emporium¡¯. She lets out a sigh as she reads it and mutters under her breath. ¡°Lilith¡­ huh.¡± END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 67 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL GOD OF DREAD Strength: 253 (240 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 0] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 42 (PASSIVE) [Undead''s Tenacity]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Mental Fortress]: Level 1 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 37 (AUGMENT) [Transformation - Aspect of the Black Pharaoh]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Avatar of Nyarlathotep]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 37 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 42 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 47 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 50 (MASTSERED) (ACTIVE) [Summon - Terror of the Depths]: Level 1/Required Level: 100 (ACTIVE) [Soul Bind Summoning]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Ghost King]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Succubus Princess]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Spider Queen]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 40 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 40 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 40 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 40 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian''s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father''s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight]
Sorry for the late update, was a tad busy. >_<;; FORGIVE ME PLEASE! Chapter 23 - Convening for war preparations Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Convening for war preparations Chapter XXIII PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 990] ¡°Deb¡­orah¡­ why are you¡­¡± [Lilith¡¯s] immediate reaction as she saw the silver haired woman was fright followed an expression of guilt. It wasn¡¯t hard to read from both their body language that they¡¯ve had some sort of past together and that most likely that relationship ended the moment Lilith ran away from the capital. ¡°I was sent to retrieve Lord [Morgant Fallon]. I didn¡¯t come for you. Who would¡­¡± Replying in a harsh tone, [Deborah] averts her gaze. There was a bit of awkward moment between the two so I decided to cut in to put their little reunion on hold. ¡°Lilith I¡¯ll be going to the capital for a bit, what do you want to do? If you want you can just stay here if you dislike the idea of going back.¡± She pauses and thinks for a bit but shakes off her anxiety to answer. ¡°¡­ I¡¯ll return with you, Lord Morgant.¡± ¡°Is that so? I guess it¡¯s fine either way.¡¯ I reply half-heartedly; I don¡¯t know what happened to her to have run away from the capital though I could take a guess, but the sooner she faces her problems the better, but if she wasn¡¯t ready to then staying here was also a good idea. That¡¯s why it was fine either way she went back to the capital with me or not. Having solved that minor matter we got onto the horse-driven carriage and departed immediately. It took nearly 3 days on carriage, and knowing how much I hated these wooden boxes it was the worst experience I¡¯ve felt in a long time. * * * The [Vertloch Skyreach], otherwise known as the [Demon Lord¡¯s Sanctuary], or simply [Sanctuary], was the place which the overseer of all demons, the [Demon Lord Astaroth De Signa] resided. Heart of the [Vertloch] continent, this massive city was shrouded forever in a perpetual night under the ever-watchful eye of the giant red moon. However noticeable it was, this place wasn¡¯t known merely for the night, the placed was named ¡®skyreach¡¯ for a reason. The buildings were unlike anything seen in this world, designed so differently that rather than a difference in culture, it would be much more apt to call it an ¡®alien¡¯ architecture. Tall and shadowy; as once did the Tower of Babylon, skyscrapers made of black concrete and steel reached high up to the sky as though to challenge the gods The walls surrounding the city were tall but the buildings stood way above, casting a dark shadow even in the night over the area around the city. This city was oddly technologically superior in terms of building architecture when compared to the rest of civilizations that existed in [Eternis], the reason for this was unknown but many speculate that it was the work of one of the ancient Demon lords. Even amongst the tall figures of the city, at the center was a single building that surpassed all others in terms of design and height. Much thick, much taller, with splendid d¨¦cor and a orient design, was the building hailed as the [Sanctuary]. Though I must admit, it was extremely impressive to find such a city of this magnitude in this era, but compared to my own city, it was merely a miniscule imitation. Even the smallest of skyscrapers in that era would dwarf the demon lord¡¯s Sanctuary, but I suppose it wouldn¡¯t be fair to compare when one had a large technological advantage over the other. The culture of this city was vaguely oriental; an odd mixture of ancient Chinese, Japanese and Korean style. The smaller buildings and apartment complexes were certainly made after such a style, with numerous streetlamps made with red magic illumination stones making it appears as though they were paper lamps. The eerie red glow of the bright red moon only accentuated the ghastly atmosphere of this place, but for whatever reason I did not hate it, rather it felt rather soothing to be here. The residents all consisted of various beings from the [demon] races, but compared to what I had initially thought about them, they were much weaker, with their median level barely reaching the early twenties. Still, even in this kind of dreary looking place the residents all looked rather satisfied with their life here, I didn¡¯t take Astaroth for that good of a ruler from her ¡®free spirited¡¯ nature but I guess I was wrong. The people who lived here stared in awe as our carriage drove past them and straight up towards the Sanctuary. At first I wondered what was so special about our carriage that they were staring so intently but then I realized how ornate this vehicle actually was compared to the average ones that drove past. Of course if you see such an ornate looking carriage you¡¯d think someone important was riding in it, though those kinds of stares was something I was already used to back in my previous life. We were lead to the main entrance of the Sanctuary, there two soldiers who were adorned in expensive looking, full body plate armor stopped us in our tracks. One of them drew their weapons and awaited in position while the other one knocked on our carriage doors. Deciding that we didn¡¯t want any trouble we complied with the wishes of the guards and exited the transport. When the guards took one look at Deborah he took a step back as if to suggest he made a mistake in not recognizing the passenger. ¡°So it was you, miss Deborah. My apologies I did not know you would be coming today.¡± She gave a light nod. ¡°If that¡¯s all then we¡¯d like entrance the Sanctuary now.¡± The solider took a glance at Lilith and myself. Lilith had decided that before coming back to the capital that she wanted to hide herself wearing a full body cloak. Due to this the guards were unable to identify the princess of this very city at first glance and only registered as a ¡®suspicious person¡¯. ¡°Once again I apologize, but children and unregistered personnel are forbidden from entering the Sanctuary.¡± ¡°He was summoned by Lord Astaroth herself.¡± Deborah tried to justify my being here but the guards simply looked at each other and weren¡¯t convinced. The guards were level 28 each so I could easily take them on to prove my strength though that was just a passing thought. After all I preferred a much more diplomatic approach. ¡°Unfortunately without proper identification we cannot let in strangers.¡± ¡°Very well, would this change your mind I wonder?¡± I pulled up my right sleeve and concentrated a bit of my powers towards my hand. A small red magic circle appeared and as the guards saw this they instantly recognized what this meant and bowed before me. [Crest of the Demon Lord], the one I received many years ago from Astaroth herself. ¡°A- a Demon General?! We deeply apologize we did not recognize you!¡± I raised my hand to calm them down. ¡°It¡¯s fine, so can I get in now?¡± ¡°Y- yes of course!¡± They fumbled a bit but lowered the wooden doors for me to enter. They didn¡¯t even ask to verify Lilith¡¯s identity, it wasn¡¯t a problem now but this kind of security had me a bit worried. PART TWO The interior design of the top most floors of the Sanctuary really had an authentic oriental feel with the wooden sliding doors and the tatami-styled floorboards. Even the walls were decorated with cherry blossom pedal pattern wallpapers. At the top of this building, the highest floor was a single large room that spanned nearly 50 meters in diameter with windows along the walls that let in the red hue of the moonlight. This was the Demon Lord¡¯s throne room. But to enter this place one had to go through a large, double sided iron door. With ghastly decorations that really fit the theme of the demons, but the imagery of the demonic, evil, maliciousness of the demon lord really falls apart once you¡¯re on the inside of this party. There were always neatly dressed servants awaiting in front of the throne room in case the demon lord needed something but other than that it seems that no one else aside from the demon lord, her aide and the demon generals were permitted to enter. ¡°Then we shall await for you outside.¡± Deborah told me. ¡°That¡¯s fine but, isn¡¯t it fine for Lilith to enter since she¡¯s also royalty?¡± ¡°Well¡­ I do believe she is permitted to enter but¡­ ¡± Deborah looks towards Lilith while she averts her gaze. ¡°N- no¡­ I think I¡¯ll stay here if that¡¯s okay with you, Lord Morgant.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t particularly mind. Then I¡¯ll be back.¡± I tell them as the servants open the large iron door for me to enter. As I enter I see a gloriously large room, kept lit by several white magic stones with just enough light as to not ruin the atmosphere of the night but enough to be able to properly operate in such darkness. At the far end of the room was a small cushioned throne, and sitting atop of it was a small girl with blazing red hair and eyes, the one who stole my first kiss of this world. Well it wasn¡¯t that I particularly cared but that was a hell of a first impression so it kind of stuck. She rested against her arms and had a small smirk as she saw me entering the room, I could tell even at this distance that she was relatively excited. This small girl was the demon lord, Astaroth De Signa. Besides here was a familiar masked man oozing elegance from his pressure alone. Tall and slender but not without hints of muscle and power behind his attire; everything from the way he stood, breathed and acted told much of his magnificence however not enough to overshadow the demon lord who sat beside him. He smiled at me as he saw me walk through the large iron doors, or at least it felt like he did, due to his mask his face was obviously hidden but I could still somehow tell just by the pressure in the air. [[Mental Fortress] has gained (1) Level] A small interface box appeared as I endured that pressure in my head, but I quickly dismissed it. I walked up the expensive and neatly lined red carpet and stood a few meters before a large throne. It certainly felt like something out of an RPG with the layout of this room but the rest of the city seemed a little high-tech that it was somehow off putting, well no matter. I knelt down with my right arm on my chest for a greeting. I¡¯m not entirely sure how nobles do their greetings in this world because I¡¯ve never really seen it myself, even during my time at the capital of North Ariadyne it was a little hectic that I didn¡¯t get much chance to observe the customs. So my current actions were something that I saw out of an old movie but by the reactions given by Astaroth and Kyrios they didn¡¯t seem to mind. ¡°I have come, Lord Astaroth. I apologize for not having visited sooner, there were a few¡­ complications on my end.¡± I greeted and apologized. ¡°Morgant! It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s fine. I know it must¡¯ve been hard for you as well. But I think it¡¯s fine for you to just call me ¡®Astaroth¡¯, it feels weird to have you calling me ¡®Lord¡¯.¡± She replies with an excited and innocent smile, to think she has such a frightening title like ¡®demon lord¡¯ was almost unthinkable. I¡¯ve always just called her by name in my mind so I didn¡¯t really mind but it might make it seem as though we¡¯re closer than we seem from an outsider¡¯s perspective. Ah hell, I¡¯m only ten so no one would care right? ¡°Really, it is pretty nice to see a familiar face once more.¡± She nods her head with glee. ¡°It¡¯s nice to see that you¡¯ve overcome your sadness, but I kind of feel sorry for not having told you what exactly would happen. For that I¡¯m very sorry.¡± I averted my gaze from her, honestly I did think that it was a little bad of her to not have warned me but ultimately I decided to let it go with a sigh. I couldn¡¯t hold a grudge against someone who was trying to help me, and in the end due to her words I was able to overcome my grief. ¡°You don¡¯t have anything to feel sorry for, in the end you decided to tell me only enough information so that I would overcome my tragedy afterwards. I understand that even if you had told me exactly what would¡¯ve happened there was nothing I could¡¯ve done.¡± That too was demonstrated well with my insufficient power when I did meet [Nodens]. Regardless of whether or not she told me what was going to happen, it would¡¯ve ended up the same way. ¡°I see¡­ you¡¯re very kind aren¡¯t you, Morgant.¡± She tells me with a uneasy smile, but I shook my head. ¡°I may be a lot of things but ¡®kind¡¯ probably isn¡¯t one of them.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to sell yourself short, you¡¯re very kind towards those who are under your care and those who have gained your trust. That¡¯s why I like you.¡± If I didn¡¯t know any better that may have sounded like a confession but in this context it probably wasn¡¯t one. I wonder how old she really is, I mean she has a child that¡¯s as big as Lilith so I guess she isn¡¯t a child but still. The ages of beings in this world are confusing to guess. ¡°I¡¯ll take it as a compliment then.¡± She nods. ¡°But really, you¡¯ve grown a lot since we first met and the aura around has certainly changed. Maturity? No, you were plenty mature by the time we first met, this kind of change might even be called a miracle.¡± That¡¯s right, when we first met I was still level 1, currently I was level 67 so of course I felt a lot different from back then. Sometimes the amount of progress I¡¯ve had since then amazes even myself, though I can¡¯t take all the credit there has a been a lot of help after all. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve certainly improved a great amount since then, but my goal is still a lot further on ahead.¡± ¡°I see.¡± She probably understands what my goal is without even having been said. ¡°¡­ Yes.¡± That was the only thing I could say. ¡°A- anyway it seems you¡¯ve already met my daughter.¡± She tries to change the topic, but how should I say this¡­ ¡®out of the pan and into the fire¡¯? I mean what parent would be happy about the fact that their daughter has become a slave to someone else? ¡°Ah¡­ yes. Sorry.¡± I apologized. ¡°Hmm? What for?¡± She asks as though she was oblivious to what was going on. Don¡¯t tell me she doesn¡¯t know that I¡¯ve turned her into my slave? Do I tell her? ¡°About that¡­ I kind of used a¡­ [Soul binding stone]¡­ so¡­¡± She tilts her head in confusion. ¡°I already knew that, but why do you have to apologize for it?¡± ¡°Eh? Why? Isn¡¯t it obvious? Because I robbed your daughter of her freedom. You can¡¯t possibly be happy about that.¡± ¡°Hmm, well I guess I wouldn¡¯t describe the feelings as ¡®happiness¡¯ per se, but it¡¯s not like I¡¯m unhappy about it either. That girl has always been a bit clumsy and unreliable, I¡¯m almost glad that she was able to find someone like you to serve and be looked after. Besides the choice to become your servant was hers and I will respect that decision.¡± Ah, so Astaroth was this kind of person. Kind and venerable, her presence is like almost like a light, I can see now why the people who live under her rule were so living with such satisfaction. If only I could¡¯ve said the same about myself during the height of my own rule, but that¡¯s all in the past now. Perhaps I was more fitted for the title of ¡®demon lord¡¯ than she was. ¡°You said I was kind, but I think you¡¯re the one who¡¯s most kind.¡± I joked and she giggles back like a elementary school student. ¡°Now, now. You don¡¯t have to tease me like that. So then, it¡¯s not that I mind, I¡¯m glad to see you¡¯ve been well but was that all you were here for? Or did you have another business in mind?¡± ¡­? ¡°Hmm? I came here to answer your summon, Astaroth.¡± She tilts her head once more. ¡°¡­? I never summoned you, I was hoping you would come to me of your own accord.¡± ¡°¡­ No but¡­¡± If she didn¡¯t call me then who? As though electricity had pulsed through my brain a thought came to my head, about what this was all about. With a stern expression I turned my gaze away from Astaroth and towards Kyrios and he also probably had the same expression as he looked towards me. ¡°Could it be? It can¡¯t be¡­¡± I uttered and Kyrios nod. ¡°No, you¡¯re probably right. I can only think of that myself.¡± He answers in a serious and deeply contemplative tone, with Astaroth in the background looking kind of lost as to what was happening. She turned her gaze back and forth from Kyrios and myself with a slightly unsatisfied expression. ¡°What? What is it you two? Don¡¯t leave me out!¡± She says. ¡°We haven¡¯t confirmed it yet but if we¡¯re right then the other generals should be gathering soon, all except one. Actually aren¡¯t you able to see through the future? Then you must¡¯ve been aware of what¡¯s to come.¡± I ask her. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about but my ¡®future sight¡¯ ability isn¡¯t something that conveniently all powerful. I can only see glimpses into the future and what I see isn¡¯t up to me. I also need a direct eye contact so that puts a bit of limit on things as well. So what¡¯s going on? Why would the other generals be coming?¡± ¡°Betrayal. I¡¯m afraid that [Andras Silverfang] has betrayed us, Lord Astaroth.¡± Kyrios answers and Astaroth calms down as she finally understands the situation. Right, it seems those rumors about the [werewolves] betraying the demon lord weren¡¯t just rumors after all. ¡°But¡­ how does that relate to the other generals coming back to this place?¡± ¡°If the rumors were true then the [werewolves] were once human. Then there¡¯s only one person that they would turn to, to have their curse of [Lycanthropy] lifted. The heaven realm¡¯s king, Nodens. General Andras would¡¯ve sent her underlings to gather the other demon generals to this place so that Nodens can take us all out in one fell swoop.¡± Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. ¡°I see¡­¡± Astaroth has a truly serious expression on her face. ¡°But when will they come?¡± ¡°Probably after they¡¯ve confirmed that all of the demon generals have gathered¡­ wait, what about the civilians underneath? I thought I suggested to have them moved to a temporary location.¡± I asked. ¡°We were going to do that but some complications came up so it was a little delayed.¡± Kyrios answers. ¡°That¡¯s no good, this place could become a battlefield at any moment, so have the civilians evacuate immediately, also it might be wise to detain all of the [werewolves], though I feel like that would be discrimination but it¡¯s better to be safe than sorry.¡± Kyrios nods as he disappears in a shadowy mist. ¡°B- but what if Nodens comes after them even after we lose?¡± ¡°Nodens¡¯ prime objective would be to see the demon lord and her generals out of the picture. To be honest while I¡¯m aware of his hatred for the [demon] race I¡¯m not entirely sure about his objective.¡± There is something else that comes to mind too. It was what I saw two years ago in the ruins of my village, a gigantic yellow crystal and to a lesser extent those crystalline zombies. Was there a point in creating those low tier undead? Even if they are nigh unkillable they aren¡¯t exactly strong. Astaroth claps and as she does the iron doors open and several servants come in. They all come and bow before her. She relays the same orders that I suggested to Kyrios and have the servants in this building aid the evacuation and then have them evacuate themselves after everything is over. Hmm, I thought she might be a little useless as a ruler except for keeping the peace but she has some decisive moments of her own too. I¡¯m actually quite impressed that she hasn¡¯t freaked out and get lost on what needs to be done, it¡¯s good that she has her priority straight. She¡¯s also opted to stay in the throne room instead of heading out to help, a wise decision; she has her head in the right place. She needs to be here when the other demon generals arrive after all and once they do arrive we need to prepare ourselves and strategize our next move. PART THREE [Astaroth De Signa. Level 145, Demon Lord]. [Kyrios. Level 139, Vampire Lord]. [Cedric. Level 124, Slime King] [Ordwell Rommel. Level 137, Homunculus Fleet Admiral] [Aer Atlas. Level 136, Grand Monarch] [Morgant Fallon. Level 67. Necromancer] [Texzatopekmetziluxotl. Level 142, Ghost King] [Arachna. Level 134, Spider Queen] [Lilith De Signa. Level 89, Succubus Princess] * * * [Ordwell Rommel], or as he wanted to be called, ¡®Admiral Ordwell¡¯, was the demon general in charge of our naval force. His hair was pure white, which was a sign that he was a [Homunculus], but other than that he had charismatic red eyes and a hawk like face which gave all of us a peace of mind just from staring at him. He wasn¡¯t too bulky but he had noticeable muscle structure that wasn¡¯t hidden in anyway by his white naval, admiral¡¯s uniform. There were several impressive looking badges hung on his left breast pocket but whether they held any real significance or were just for decoration was unknown. He had a friendly but stern atmosphere about him that just begged people to rely on him. Even our demon lord, Astaroth was no exception to his charisma. [Aer Atlas], or simply referred to as ¡®Aer¡¯ by her wishes, was another bug-type demon that stems from the same vein as [Arachna]. Though Arachna was a spider type demon, Aer was a moth type demon. Her hair was an earthy grey color, though her sclera were a menacing black color with the pupils a light brown. Around her neck was a fluffy white scarf-like clothing but it may have just been part of her body, just like how the small red beads on the side of Arachna¡¯s hair are actually part of her body as well. On her back were long, slender moth-like wings and starting from her elbows her entire hand were painted black with sharp claws coming from the tip of her fingers. Her clothes were entire earthen in color, with grey being the most prominent. When she first came into the room she gave me a bone chilling smile and ever since was staring at my direction, but I know for a fact that she wasn¡¯t staring at me. The one she was really staring at was Arachna who stood behind me, even she was staring at Aer. Anyone could tell that they had some sort of history together and considering that they were both high level bug-type demons I¡¯m not surprised. ¡°My if it isn¡¯t little Arachna. It¡¯s been so long and you¡¯ve grown so much~¡± Aer says as she licks her lips in a seductive manner. ¡°Personally I don¡¯t think enough time has time has passed between us, sister¡­¡± Eh¡­ ¡®sisters¡¯? but their biology are radically different... it might be best not to think too deeply about this. ¡°Now, don¡¯t say that. We¡¯re all family aren¡¯t we?¡± ¡°I¡¯m actually surprised that you can even stand here without irony even after all that you¡¯ve done.¡± ¡°Fufufu~ well-¡° ¡°That¡¯s enough you two. You can sort out your family problems later, we have an emergency on hand right now that we need to discuss.¡± Astaroth broke up their argument with a stern voice, despite her small frame she could muster up a loud enough voice that echoed through the room with vigor. ¡°Andras hasn¡¯t arrived yet, not that I mind starting off without her but isn¡¯t that a little mean? What¡¯s the emergency anyway?¡± Aer asks, oblivious to the enter situation. ¡°Andras won¡¯t be coming, she¡¯s betrayed us.¡± ¡°What? Impossible¡­!¡± Cedric bursts out in a surprised tone. ¡°I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s the true Cedric. According to Kyrios and Morgant it¡¯s likely that she¡¯s joined forces with the heaven realm and is on their way to assault the capital. We¡¯ve sent some of our scouts to see what kind of military composition that they¡¯re coming with so we¡¯re waiting on them now.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s why all of the people have been evacuated¡­¡± Aer says in a contemplative tone. * * * Soon after the [vampire] scouts sent by Kyrios had return to us. ¡°The enemy¡¯s forces number in the 500 000, but they¡¯ve been split into 5 different teams consisting of 100 000 each. Their composition are [humans] from the Crimson Knights Order, [Angels] from heaven¡¯s realm, and [werewolves] from Lord Andras¡¯ faction. On top of that there were also four prominent targets, Lord Andras herself, the gods Nodens, Dagda and Dian Cecht. I¡¯ve also spotted an odd, giant yellow crystal of unknown original or power.¡± After giving us the report the [vampire] disappears. ¡°Dagda¡­ and Dian Cecht.¡± I mumbled under my voice. My knowledge on Celtic mythology was a little lacking but if memory served correct then Dagda was the god of war and Dian Cecht was supposed to be the god of healing and restoration. ¡°What¡¯s wrong Morgant? Do you know something about them?¡± Astaroth asks. ¡°Rather than what I know, don¡¯t you have more information on them than me? If memory serves then heaven¡¯s realm and demon legion had clashed before. If that were the case then surely these two other gods have also been seen before right?¡± I reversed the question, without sufficient knowledge on them planning for their attack is difficult. For now the most important thing is to lay out all of the information we have. Astaroth gives me a nod and answers my questions. ¡°You¡¯re right, those two gods, Dagda and Dian Cecht had also participated during our last war. If I had to describe them, Dagda is a ruthless fighter with seemingly infinite stamina, he fought for a month straight without needing to rest which resulted in the defeat of 4 of the previous generation¡¯s demon generals.¡± ¡°You say 4, but how many demon generals were there during [Erendel¡¯s] reign?¡± I asked out of curiosity, but not just that, it was important to know and compare the strength of the previous demon legion and our current state. ¡°During my father¡¯s reign there were 7 generals, it had only been a few decades since I took up the post so I had not had enough time to recruit more generals. However you¡¯ve brought along a few more prominent figures so it could be that our current fighting strength is comparable to the previous generation.¡± No, that¡¯s too optimistic of a view. Erendel¡¯s level alone was 165 and if we place Xotl¡¯s level as the standard then our current forces are fairly gimped compared to the previous generation. Not to mention Nodens¡¯ level alone was 192, I can only think that the two other gods are slightly weaker. ¡°I see, then what about the other god, Dian Cecht?¡± ¡°Dian Cecht never partook in direct combat so his true strength is unknown but over the course of a month he was able to wipe out an entire army of 500 000 on the demon legion and that was us barely keeping our casualties to a minimum thanks to our tactician at the time.¡± The previous demon legion tactician, Arachna¡¯s younger brother. ¡°What are our current forces like?¡± I asked. ¡°If we¡¯re talking about simple numbers then our forces number in 500 000 as well. We hadn¡¯t had enough time to replenish our numbers after the last war.¡± Kyrios answered for me. ¡°I see, so they¡¯re taking advantage of that fact to attack now.¡± ¡°If they¡¯ve split up their forces then we should match should also split our forces to cover more ground and slowly merge as we defeat the enemy.¡± Cedric suggests. Kyrios, Admiral Ordwell and I all shake our heads in disapproval. ¡°No, we if the enemy¡¯s split their forces then we should keep our forces in unison and attack each of their separated armies one by one.¡± I suggested. ¡°But doing that they could easily flank us.¡± Cedric brings up. ¡°That¡¯s fine, we have the home ground advantage and splitting up armies is a less efficient means of warfare, especially since we¡¯ve already evacuated all the citizens our army can fight freely without worry.¡± They¡¯ve probably split up their army to cover more ground and move faster but since this is home ground for us we don¡¯t need to split up. Furthermore Lanchester¡¯s linear law means that a unified force can win a split up force since our rate of attrition will be slower. In this case a denser military population will win. Though to be fair I¡¯m not entirely sure about relying on my previous world¡¯s formulae since this world has the uncertain element of magic. To be completely honest though, the movement of each of our armies are just for show, the real clincher will be decided by the battle of the top ranking members. The demon legion simply needs to stall for time until we can defeat the four prime targets of the enemy. ¡°If I may make a suggestion, the real battle will likely be decided by a show of power between us and them. The strength of our respective armies will be crushed when either their prominent combatants or our prime fighters loses, with that said I suggest a that our armies do not take part in this battle directly and just circle around the city and round up the enemy army into a single unified force as well.¡± ¡°Hmm, indeed if the enemy army is also balled up into a single force it will be easier to keep track of and lead around.¡± Admiral Ordwell agrees with me. ¡°There is no objection from me either. The fighting between the armies will just result in needless casualties having them simply move around with only the pretext of a threat is the most efficient move for us.¡± Kyrios nods his head. ¡°W- well if you guys think so then I don¡¯t really have any objections.¡± Astaroth says in a rather dissatisfied tone, she¡¯s probably feeling a bit left out. It really was like how Enrich said when the only people with strong analytical and strategic minds were Kyrios, Admiral Ordwell, Enrich and myself. That being said I feel like Enrich should¡¯ve been a part of this conversation, but then again his specialty lies with negotiations and politics and not warfare. ¡°So then the real problem boggles down to the fight between Nodens, Dagda, Dian Cecht and Andras¡­¡± Admiral Ordwell says. ¡°Then I¡¯ll fight Andras¡­¡± Cedric volunteers. ¡°You and that girl? Not trying to be presumptuous but I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea.¡± Aer objects. From that and the way Cedric acted before it was obvious that something was going on between him and Andras, so Aer¡¯s objection is also to be considered. Logically speaking, Andras is probably the weakest one amongst them so it wouldn¡¯t be efficient for Cedric to fight them. ¡°Cedric I agree with Aer. Your special ability means that you have complete resistance to physical attack, that means it would be wiser for you to fight Dagda instead. Lilith and I are the weakest so we¡¯ll be the ones to face Andras.¡± ¡°¡­ I understand.¡± He gives a weak nod, I feel sorry for him but we need to put aside our emotions if we want to win this. This leaves quite a bit of options, but the problem is which target we want to focus. No matter how I think about it the most problematic one would be Dagda with his nigh infinite stamina, then it might be a better idea to have those who can survive long enough fight him. We don¡¯t need to be victorious with Dagda; theoretically speaking, if we can beat Nodens and Dian Cecht we can converge our forces to fight off Dagda. Of course I have serious doubts that can go as smoothly as I plan. In the worst case scenario I could use the GUNGNIR, no, most likely I will have to use it as some point in this battle. The key is when to use it, I guess I¡¯ll have to peel my eyes open for a chance. ¡°For Dagda I think it would be best if Xotl and Cedric stalled him out.¡± I suggested, to which Admiral Ordwell and Kyrios contemplated other options but in the end that was the best idea we could come up with. ¡°Hmm¡­ It seems that may be the only option. A battle of attrition against a target with infinite stamina might not be the best idea but until the others can have a chance to win it might be our only choice.¡± Admiral Ordwell comments. ¡°Hmm, as for Nodens it would most likely be best if Lord Astaroth, Admiral Ordwell and myself were to face him. His power is the greatest amongst them so at least this amount of power should be necessary.¡± Kyrios suggests. ¡°I have no objections.¡± Astaroth agrees and Admiral Ordwell nods too. ¡°I see, then my dear younger sister and I will be the one to fight the one known as Dian Cecht then.¡± Aer says with a smile, though Arachna looked a little less happy about it she ultimately agreed to do so as well. Afterwards we talked over about our plans and what we wanted each to do specifically. The discussion took over 3 hours but in the end we decided on a solid plan and informed each of our subordinates the plan as well. In just a few hours this tranquil night city was about to be turned into a warzone. When I asked Astaroth if that was okay she replied with ¡®buildings can be repaired, but we need to win so we can repair them¡¯. Honestly it was just the kind of thing she would say. War was about to start. Morgant Fallon, age 10, experiencing war for the first time in this world. It may be a little ironic since [Mobius] also created weaponry for warfare, but I felt a little anxious inside. Everyone had left the throne room to prepare on their own and I was now left alone with Astaroth with only the large red moon as the witness to our conversation. ¡°Are you sure you want to do this, Morgant? No one will blame you if you went with the other civilians.¡± Astaroth asked me with a clearly worried face. I gave a wry smile as I answered. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll stay here. After all, without me this entire war would only result in failure.¡± END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 67 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL GOD OF DREAD Strength: 253 (240 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 0] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 42 (PASSIVE) [Undead''s Tenacity]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Mental Fortress]: Level 2 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 37 (AUGMENT) [Transformation - Aspect of the Black Pharaoh]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Avatar of Nyarlathotep]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 37 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 42 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 47 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 50 (MASTSERED) (ACTIVE) [Summon - Terror of the Depths]: Level 1/Required Level: 100 (ACTIVE) [Soul Bind Summoning]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Ghost King]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Succubus Princess]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Spider Queen]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 40 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 40 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 40 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 40 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian''s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father''s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight] Chapter 24 - To strive earnestly for the destruction of the enemy Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C To strive earnestly for the destruction of the enemy Chapter XXIV PART ONE [C.E - Year 2078] [Mobius Weapon¡¯s Tech Main Development Facility], a titanic facility that would make even the old CERN research facility look like a dog kennel by comparison. Despite the scale of this facility, even this was simply the main building to a subdivision within the transnational [Mobius Industries]. Three people important-looking figures entered the titanic building from the main entrance. The first was a clean and elegantly dressed business man in a black suit, everything about him screaming ¡®BIG BOSS¡¯. He was the CEO of Mobius Industries, Aran Callahad. Standing next to him was an equally important figure, a slightly aged man in a white lab coat, his most prominent feature being his bald head and a large black eye patch. Also the fact that he had a considerably beefed up body despite his age and his academically oriented profession clearly set him apart from others. On his chest pocket was a small name tag that read Dr. Edmund Weisner. Following along behind them was an oriental woman in her late twenties. The head of security and bodyguard of Aran Callahad, Yui Kirisaki. She quietly followed behind them vigilantly in a black suit of her own, with carefully concealed weaponry should she ever need it. As they entered the building they were met with several armed guards that all offered a salute. They were part of the security division of this large research complex. ¡°So, what was it that you wanted to show me?¡± Edmund asked as he tagged along. He had woken up very early in the morning and caught the fastest jet, with the only information being that Aran had ¡®something¡¯ to show him. ¡°It¡¯s something that will change the world.¡± ¡°Really now. How many times have you said that to me over the course of this decade?¡± ¡°Too many to count, but this one is a little different.¡± As they were talking one of the female researchers of the facility came to greet then. ¡°M- Mr. Callahad, sir, I just heard that you were coming, please forgive me for the untidy appearance.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, guide us to the central development chamber for the GUNGNIR.¡± Aran waved her off gesturing that he didn¡¯t mind nor did he actually care. The young female researcher bowed and guided them towards the place that Aran had specified as well as giving them a short tour around the facility. Since walking was obviously an inconvenience they were placed on moving mats. ¡°GUNGNIR? The spear of ODIN, so you¡¯re really going with that entire Norse Mythology theme? Well whatever. Then what does GUNGNIR stand for?¡± Edmund asked jokingly. ¡°It doesn¡¯t stand for anything. You try coming up with an acronym for GUNGNIR. I may be a multi-trillionaire genius but I¡¯m not a linguist.¡± ¡°Heh, sounds just like you to do so.¡± They reached their destination after a 20 minute ride on the moving mats. They were guided towards an extremely large and open area, with hundreds of people moving about continuously all working on the gargantuan device in the center of the room that spanned over 800 by 700 meters. As Edmund saw this his jaws flung open in awe and fear. ¡°T- this is¡­ is this what I think it is? Change the world? No this will change everything!¡± He asked as his eyes were unable to move from the magnificence of the device. Seeing his reaction satisfied Aran as noted by a small smirk that appeared. ¡°Indeed.¡± ¡°How did you even, no in the first place, just building this thing would¡¯ve turned you into a wanted criminal, do you even understand that?¡± Edmund asked in a slightly infuriated manner. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about that. I pulled a lot of string with the US government and got proper clearance.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not even the fundamental problem with this machine. This¡­ this thing, if misused will steal people¡¯s right to self government, if this gets put up there everything will change.¡± ¡°I¡¯m aware of that, more than anyone else.¡± ¡°Then why would you build such a thing?¡± ¡°Because it needed to be done. Our world will soon come to an end if nothing is done, perhaps everyone thought that the end of the world was going to be some cataclysmic event on the world scale but that isn¡¯t true. Worldwide corruption, national destabilization, unsustainable population growth, insufficient resource management. All of these things and more, they¡¯ve been chipping away at our world for centuries and now have come to fruition.¡± ¡°But¡­ your way of doing things, it¡¯s not only morally questionable it¡¯s inefficient. You think you can control the world with fear? That it would somehow become better after you¡¯ve done all this?¡± ¡°Edmund, justice isn¡¯t the only thing that can fight evil; evil itself can fight evil. We¡¯re about to hit critical mass if someone doesn¡¯t do something. I¡¯m sure there are more efficient and less morally corrupt ways to do things, I don¡¯t doubt you but this is the surest and fastest way. After the situation has come under control and everyone is willing to talk to each other then we can start working on the next step.¡± ¡°But¡­ still, this is¡­¡± Deep into the conversation the security alarms around the facility started to ring viciously. It was a signal that the facility was under a military attack. Even though most of the researchers were heading towards safety, Aran and Edmund stood their ground as they knew the security division would soon solve this problem. There were sounds of footsteps just outside the observation deck that they were in. ¡°Sir, I will be right back. Please excuse me for a moment.¡± Yui who had been quiet through all of this had reached into her pocket and took out a small firearm. She left the observation deck, quietly closing the door behind her. The sounds of gunshots and heavy struggling could be heard outside but Aran had full confidence that Yui was more than capable of taking them on and didn¡¯t even break a sweat. ¡°And that was?¡± Edmund asked, with a rather jaded expression despite a military assault having taken place in the facility. Edmund was only able to keep calm since he saw that Aran didn¡¯t even batter an eyebrow at the situation, it would only make him look stupid if he went into a panic by himself. ¡°Most likely some country that doesn¡¯t want this device to be put up, maybe China or Russia. After all, even if they¡¯re corrupt they aren¡¯t stupid. Once this thing is put up, then it¡¯s only a matter of time before ODIN and GLADSHEIM also come online. When that happens I will have control over the world¡¯s technology.¡± ¡°No kidding, if I were in their shoes I wouldn¡¯t keep calm either.¡± ¡°Anyway, I didn¡¯t call you here just to give a tour of the facility, Edmund Weisner, I wanted you to take over as the director of this project. I have some other business to oversee, so it¡¯s rather difficult for me.¡± ¡°Despite my protests you still think getting me in charge of this place is a good idea?¡± ¡°Of course, you¡¯re one of the only people I actually trust. And despite your protests I know that you actually agree with me.¡± There was a brief moment of pause between them, eventually Edmund gave in and muttered under his breath that ¡®the best doctors go to hell¡¯, sighing afterwards which prompted Aran to reply with his trademark smirk. ¡°I heard you¡¯re getting married soon.¡± Edmund says out of the blue. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Congratulations.¡± Edmund says as he walks up to the edge of the railings of the observation deck. He peers down into the facility and where the enormous device is stored and gives another sigh. Aran moves forward and takes out something from his pocket and places it on a nearby table, a small clearance tag with Edmund¡¯s name and title on it. He then moves towards the exit and opening the door he is met with Yui who has just finished with her ¡®clean up¡¯. He then turns towards Edmund one last time. ¡°Thank you¡­ Director.¡± Aran says with a sinister smirk as he leaves Edmund behind. PART TWO [Eternum Calendar - Year 990] I slowly opened my eyes from a nostalgic dream about an old friend. I sat there for a few minutes contemplating on what I dreamt about and wondered to myself if it was a simpler time back then or if it had been just as complicated as now. I wryly smiled to myself, telling myself that the past is just that, the past and that nothing can be changed anymore. With that thought I tried to get out of the large bed that I was placed in to rest up before the fight. When I pried the blanket away from myself I noticed a small figure closely sleeping next to my while hugging my lower torso, it was Astaroth. Out of instinct I ran my hand through her hair in a gentle manner but it might¡¯ve been a bit too much as she woke up. ¡°Mmmh~? Ah, morning Morgant.¡± ¡®Morning¡¯ she says, with a carefree smile, even though it¡¯s perpetually night here and we¡¯re about to go to war with heaven realm. I could see a bit of her drool flowing from her lips and down her chin. I used the edge of my sleeves to wipe it away as she moans ¡®mmm~¡¯. ¡°Good morning, Astaroth.¡± I answer her with a smile. ¡°Mmm~? Is something wrong? You have an awfully distant expression.¡± She asks in a worried tone as she gently touched my face, her slender, cool fingers felt warm on my skin. I shook my head to deny her doubts. ¡°No, I just had a dream of the past.¡± ¡°The past?¡± Perhaps it piqued her interests but she had a shine in her eyes as though she wanted to say that she would love to hear it. She was already in listening posture as well, and with that anticipating smile I couldn¡¯t really turn her down. Though, somehow I feel like if I told her it would be considered a death flag, that¡¯s usually what happens in movies; a character would reveal that he¡¯s getting married or he had a tragic past then he¡¯d get axed off. ¡°Are you interested?¡± I asked to which she nods. ¡°You already know of my ability, ¡®Foresight¡¯. Thanks to that I can see the future, but I cannot see into a person¡¯s past. Because of that it often feels lonely; the past may be shared and experienced by many but only by myself can I experience the future.¡± ¡°I see¡­ then, let¡¯s see. I once had a dear friend, he was older than me but we got along extremely well. He was the kind of person that sought after knowledge and truth as though his life depended on it, perhaps it really did. But for that kind of person; a person that dedicated his everything to this one endeavor¡­ it somehow captivated me. He was the one person that I could place my sincerest trust, a person who never betrayed me, a person who always stood by my side through both good and evil, a person who would walk through hell with me if I asked; my dearest friend¡­¡± Before I even realized, tears had streamed out of my eyes just from remembering him. The first time I met him was in university, he was a professor there and I was a student. Since during my university days I was a hardcore bookworm I often stayed behind lectures and classes to further my knowledge. Perhaps it was because of that, because I dedicated myself to my studies he saw me as a kindred spirit. After classes had long ended I stayed at the library every day, then one day he came up to me. ¡®I always see you trying your best, yet you always seem bored. Is knowledge not worthy of a reward for you?¡¯ He asked. To that question I answered. ¡®It is not enough.¡¯ The way he looked at me as I answered his question and the way he laughed and said ¡®I concur!¡¯ I think it was from that point that an everlasting friendship was created. Since then I¡¯d discuss with him all manner of subjects, math, science, psychology, morality, economics, politics. Anything we could think of we discussed and anything we didn¡¯t understand we researched. ¡°What was his name?¡± Astaroth asks, breaking my period of reminiscing. It must be awfully confusing for her, because my current body was that of a ten year old, something like an old, life-long friend wasn¡¯t something children usually considered. ¡°¡­ Edmund Weisner. My dearest friend.¡± Answering her question I got up from the bed and walked towards the veranda. Since I was atop of the Sanctuary, the entire city unfold before my eyes. There were still some lights down below that were left on as the citizens evacuated. I turned my gaze up towards the giant red moon that surveyed us from up high, the twinkling of the red lunar rays envelopes the entire city. As I stare up at the sky I wryly smile. I tried to stretch my hand out to the moon, to grasp at it, if only metaphorically. ¡°Only you¡­ only you could¡¯ve preserved a weapon for over 2 billion years, so in your honor I will show the enemy the power of the old world; our world. I¡¯ll dedicate this bloodied requiem for you, Dr. Edmund Weisner. My dear friend.¡± Astaroth slowly walked up against me and hugged against my right arm. ¡°Hey Morgant¡­¡± She starts off slowly. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I want children.¡± As though someone had unplugged my brain, I entered a state of brief pause. What did she just say? ¡°¡­ Children¡­?¡± She nods as she looks deep into my eyes with utmost sincerity; she wasn¡¯t joking about this, I mean I kind of knew that from the tone of her voice but. Eh? ¡°That¡¯s right, since Lilith has become your servant through soul-binding she is no longer able to succeed my throne. I know I said I didn¡¯t mind it too much, that it was her decision to do so and that I respected it, but could there ever be a mother that could really say that with a smile?¡± ¡°Well¡­ I guess you have a point.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right Morgant. You¡¯re the villain here, so you have to own up to your actions and take responsibility; so after the battle is over, help me birth another heir and all shall be forgiven.¡± She says in a seductive tone, her lips glistening from the light of the moon, her large red eyes staring deep into my everything. Her soft and smooth skin¡­ then she smiles and pulls my cheeks abruptly ruining the moment. ¡°What¡­?¡± Confused, I had to ask. ¡°Hehe~ are you thinking some naughty thoughts? How cheeky for a mere ten year old child.¡± ¡°I¡­ wasn¡¯t really.¡± I say whilst trying to avert my gaze, but she reaches forward and adjusts my face in front of hers, then she leans in forward. Meeting her lips with mine, it was so sudden that my mind blanked out. I could taste it, the softness of her lips, her tongue. She pulls back afterwards. ¡°Not now. Now isn¡¯t the time for such thoughts, we have a battle to be won. So I¡¯ll have you promise me that when we come out of this both alive, that you¡¯ll help me make another heir.¡± She declares with the utmost sincerity and authority. I could feel my face turning red, but I tried to fool myself into believing that it was due to the red hue of the moon. It certainly wasn¡¯t as if my face was flustering from her kiss just now, or that I my heart was starting to pound quickly. ¡°I¡­¡± I didn¡¯t know how to respond to her. ¡°Fufu~ so even you make some interesting and cute faces. I think that was the most age appropriate reactions that you¡¯ve given me.¡± I once again averted my eyes from her. ¡°That¡¯s cheating¡­¡± I muttered under my breath. ¡°Fufufu~¡± PART THREE From the looks of it there were still a few hours remaining until Nodens¡¯ army arrives, and although I should¡¯ve been waiting anxiously for the war to begin I somehow felt a strange calmness. Even though it was a foe that stole my family, a foe that was many times stronger than us, a foe that could very well have represented justice if this was another story. I could feel myself wryly smile as I walked through the empty hallways of the Sanctuary. ¡°Is something the matter, Lord Morgant? You seem strangely happy.¡± Lilith who was following from slightly behind asked out of curiosity. She probably understood that I was happy for another reason and not because we were about to be swarmed by the enemy. I don¡¯t blame her, perhaps no one in this world would understand why I was so calm right now; with an inexplicable smile I continued to walk. ¡°Happy? No, I wouldn¡¯t describe my current emotions has ¡®happiness¡¯.¡± I shook my head at her question. Right, I wasn¡¯t happy per se, but I was fairly elevated, right this emotion was more closer to a feeling of being ¡®high¡¯ than ¡®happy¡¯. I was only allowed to feel this way because I knew that the spirit of my dear friend was watching me from on high. ¡°What do you mean?¡± She asked for me to clarify. ¡°Lilith, even at the deepest pits of despair, a single ray of hope can guide you forward. ¡®Belief¡¯, it is a word that I never thought I would use to describe my feelings but that is the closest thing I can compare it to. Not in a higher power, but in the bond between an inseparable friendship; to put it simply, it is trust.¡± This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. ¡°Haa¡­¡± From the looks of it she still hasn¡¯t quite grasped what I was getting at. Of course that was to be expected, but soon they will all see. ¡°Perhaps you need some ¡®hope¡¯ too. Then shall we go see how she¡¯s doing?¡± I asked. ¡°She?¡± ¡°Right, your dear friend the wolf that brought us here.¡± * * * There was a small detainment prison down below the Sanctuary. It was a place that was solemn used after Astaroth had succeeded the throne but for the first time I had made it occupied. There were several prisoners held there currently, though if I had to guess most of them, if not all, were innocent. Right, the people in there were from the werewolf tribe, they had been detained for security reasons, of course I had intended to set them free after the war was over. ¡°Deborah¡­¡± Lilith drew closer to the cell and saw a single werewolf who was leaned up against the wall. There was no trace of malice or rage because she was put there, she simply accepted the reason that she had to be there and carefully waited. This too was a form of trust, that she would be granted freedom once everything was cleared. ¡°Lilith¡­ why are you here.¡± Even still, there must¡¯ve been a considerable amount of bad blood between them for that Deborah to get a face of disdain when she heard Lilith¡¯s voice. ¡°I¡­ I just wanted to see you¡­¡± Lilith answered in a anxious manner. ¡°¡­ You didn¡¯t have to come. We¡¯re all alright down here, we know why we were placed here after all. As those loyal to Lord Astaroth this is our test of fealty and not place that you had to come to.¡± ¡°But¡­ I just wanted to see you¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± Deborah simply averted her gaze at Lilith¡¯s words. Despite the fact that there was some tension between the two, at the very least Lilith seems to still have lingering feelings of friendship. ¡°Um¡­ about that day, I¡¯m sorry.¡± Lilith started to apologize. ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to leave without warning, I know now how stupid it was of me to do that, because if not for Lord Morgant I would¡¯ve died from mana deprivation. But most of all, I wanted to apologize for leaving you behind when we promised to stay together forever.¡± ¡°¡­ idiot.¡± ¡°Ehehe¡­ I know.¡± From what I could tell from the conversation they were both very close childhood friends that promised to stay together no matter what; through thick and thin. I could somewhat relate to that kind of relationship, but one day Lilith decided to leave the Sanctuary due to her own inadequacy. What¡¯s more is that she decided to leave without telling anyone which only served to enrage Deborah even more. I guess you could call it a feeling of betrayal that your friend who promised to stick together just up and left. ¡°I hate you Lilith, so don¡¯t die, if you die I won¡¯t be able to hate you anymore.¡± ¡°¡­ Deborah¡­ I understand. I promise you that I won¡¯t die.¡± Lilith nodded with a smile. Somehow it seems that they¡¯ve cleared up the bad blood and even Deborah was smirking from within the prison cell. ¡°Idiot¡­ take this.¡± Deborah slipped something past the cell¡¯s gaps and place it within Lilith¡¯s hands. It was shiny but I didn¡¯t know what exactly it was. Lilith examined it thoroughly but even she didn¡¯t quite understand what it was either. ¡°This is?¡± ¡°[Argenteus Arcanum].¡± ¡°Argenteus¡­ eh?! But this is, this is supposed to be extremely rare! Are you sure about this?¡± ¡®Argenteus Arcanum¡¯? I believe that was Latin, a language that barely existed back in my old world, was it just a mere coincidence or was it another similar case to Gladsheim where the name was preserved but the meaning lost? Well in any case ¡®argenteus arcanum¡¯ would translate into ¡®silvery arcane¡¯. ¡°Right, it can temporarily make turn your attacks into one that¡¯s really effective against Lord Andras. But the effect only last for so long so you¡¯ll have to be careful and smart on how you use it, but knowing you, you probably won¡¯t.¡± ¡°Eh¡­¡± Lilith says. ¡°I¡¯ll leave her in your care, Lord Morgant.¡± Deborah pleads me with her innocent looking eyes, ¡®innocent¡¯ despite her rather fierce looking face. I guess this is what they call ¡®puppy dog¡¯ eyes? Of course I had intended to take full control during our fight so she didn¡¯t really need to worry about that, so I decided to give a nod. ¡°Thank you.¡± She says. I let them talk for a while before deciding to leave, we needed to get ready for battle. As we were walking to our destination that was the front walls of the city, Lilith had a rather strange smile herself. ¡°Are you happy? Even though we¡¯re about to go to war?¡± I asked, knowing the answer anyway. She shakes her head. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t call it happiness¡­ yes, this is ¡®trust¡¯.¡± She tells me with a smile. Right... trust. PART FOUR Astaroth, Kyrios, Admiral Ordwell, Lilith and myself, we were all lined up on top of the city¡¯s gate in wait. For the time being we weren¡¯t able to see or hear the movement of the enemy army but we knew they were coming. Below and beyond the gate were thousands of soldiers of the demon legion, of course they weren¡¯t all of them. The others were spread around near the city¡¯s vicinity, since the main job of the demon legion was to shepard around the heaven realm forces and turn the enemy into a single concentrated force. Basically all the demon legion needed to do was kite around the enemy with ranged attacks, either through magic or archery or any other means. Looking below were the stiff forms of countless demons. If even demons were scared, then by all means I who was just a single human had more to fear, how I didn¡¯t do that, I felt rather composed. My tranquil heart was the only thing that kept me from panicking. It wasn¡¯t as though I¡¯ve gotten stage fright but even for someone like me this was a whole new experience. To fight a war was something I¡¯ve never done, someone like me who has never stepped foot on the frontlines was giving orders on how to move an entire army. There should be a limit to one¡¯s presumptuousness but not me though, here I was directing an army with only theoretical knowledge. ¡°Feeling anxious?¡± Standing beside me was a masked man, Kyrios. His lavishing mid-millennium noblemen¡¯s clothing and his large red cape flapping in the wind. He had a dignified stance that almost seemed to suggest that he feared no enemy, not even death. And next to this man was another, a man in a white naval suit, who also possessed unwavering eyes and determination. Standing by such men, here I was, a mere ten year old. Beneath that thin veneer of a persona was a man who once stood at the top of the world, but that too was simply a persona. Deep down inside I was just a single man. The truth is I¡¯m not some warrior, I¡¯m no hero, no demon, no devil, nothing but a boy. That is to say, ¡®was I anxious¡¯? as Kyrios asked. The answer is obvious. ¡°Of course I am. ¡®Scared¡¯, ¡®afraid¡¯, ¡®anxious¡¯, ¡®tense¡¯, I am all of these and more.¡± I answered him, he scoffed but nodded after. ¡°But I am also prepared, I have always been prepared, if nothing else. I have set up preparations for this even since time immemorial.¡± I added. To this era the old world may literally be since time immemorial, a time no one can remember to, except for me. It would be but a simple matter for me to turn tail and escape right now, no one would blame me but that would be spitting on the pride of the old world. I love the old world, it is my single most joy and pride, the amalgamations of my accomplishments are all embedded there, but it is fair to say that the old world no longer exists, however they still harrow and echo in this new era. The truth is, this is still my world, no matter how many years pass, this world is mine and mine alone. I will not give it up to some foolish god who thinks he can waltz in here like he owns the place, no, I won¡¯t let him. If he wants this world so badly then he¡¯ll have to pry it away from my cold dead hands. ¡°Children.¡± I muttered under my breath but it seems to have caught everyone¡¯s attention. ¡°Hmm? What¡¯s wrong, Morgant?¡± Astaroth asks. ¡°Children¡­ they are merely children.¡± I smirk, a most sinister one. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Admiral Ordwell asks, to be honest I wasn¡¯t serious in answering them, I merely wanted to monologue to myself. I wanted to convince myself that my authority was absolute; unassailable; infallible. I was but merely a single man, but that¡¯s exactly it, I represented not this world¡¯s humanity but those of the old world; I carried on the legacy of the entire human race. As I thought this I couldn¡¯t hold back my laughter. ¡°Hah¡­ hahahaha¡­ Hahahaha! Right¡­ successor¡­¡± My mumbling may have seemed incoherent to the others. ¡°Successor?¡± Astaroth asked, to which I nodded. ¡°Yes, a successor. If you, Astaroth, represent the future, then I represent the past. It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t understand, it is no more relevant to the situation, but know this: I am the true successor of Terra, and I¡¯ve no intentions on letting some wannabe god stroll around in here and take it.¡± She gives me a dry laugh. ¡°Haa~ indeed, I haven¡¯t understood a single thing you¡¯ve been saying for the past few minutes but I¡¯ve understood your intentions clearly. In other words you¡¯ll beat down the intruders right?¡± She asks with a smirk of her own, an almost evil one, it¡¯s as though she was the demon lord, oh right, she actually was one. A smile that truly befitted her title; I think that was the most title appropriate reaction that she¡¯s shown me. ¡°That¡¯s right. I have only one short term goal: total annihilation.¡± The five people who was listening to me all nodded in unison. Excellent, we were all on the same page, these are worthy allies. PART FIVE Off in the distance I could see countless small flashes of light. It was the movement of the heaven realm army, and as they drew closer I could feel the thudding of the ground beneath me. The footsteps of half a million soldiers, it was quite extraordinary if I could feel from this far away. ¡°It¡¯s time.¡± Astaroth said. Kyrios moved up towards the edge of the gate and issued the order. ¡°You have all received your orders, you will do your utmost to follow that order as a loyal soldier of the demon legion! I won¡¯t say that you will all survive, but let me also say that none of you have to die. Your mission isn¡¯t direct combat, you simply need to shepard the enemy forces together, that is all! Keep your wits sharp and movement steady, then place all of your trust in us, as your leaders we will demonstrate the power of the demon legion!¡± There was a loud roar amongst the soldiers as the fear and stiffness in them had all dissipated, it was almost as though they had instantly become fearless. Of course it was obvious to anyone that they were still scared, it was a war after all; a battle to the death, but everyone understood their positions and their job. All of the soldiers had placed their utmost trust in us. ¡°Move out!¡± Kyrios ordered and in a few short minutes the thousands of men stationed were gone. Not a single soldier remained. They moved forward to attract the attention of the enemy forces and once they had done that they immediately withdrew and started moving away from the city¡¯s entrance where the real battle was about to start. I could see that some of the lights of the enemy army moving away from this place, they were drawn by the demon legion and were set to engage. The battle was now starting. I waited with bated breaths as I saw three shining figures fly towards us at extreme speeds. The enemy gods. ¡®Gods¡¯¡­ hah, what a joke. ¡°Children.¡± I once more uttered under my breath. My comrades all took out their respective weapons in preparation for battle. Cedric drew a long ornate sword and defensive looking tower shield. A paladin til the end. Admiral Ordwell took out his grand knucklers. They were heavy looking gauntlet type weapons that were used for close combat, emanating an almost unholy aura and coated in a ghastly black paint, it looked like you¡¯d get cursed from a single punch. Lilith took out a small orb, supposedly it was an artefact that enhanced one¡¯s magic attacks. Astaroth didn¡¯t particularly take out anything but on her hand were several magic amplifying rings. I took a look at them before the battle started and their stats looked something like this. [Demon Lord¡¯s heirloom] +15 [magic] +10 [insight] There was even a special attribute. [Magic Amplification: 15% extra magic damage] Those were the kinds of hardcore rings that Astaroth wore, and she had 6 of these kinds of rings, of course each ring was slightly different but they were all at this level so you can expect it to be incredibly rare rings. They weren¡¯t to be trifled with. As for me, unfortunately I didn¡¯t have a weapon yet. I drew closer to the edge of the gate wall with both my hands behind my back as though I was taking a leisurely stroll. Before I had even realized it three beings were floating before us. ¡­ [Nodens. Level 192, High God of Tara] [Dagda. Level 172, War God of Tara] [Dian Cecht. Level 175, Healing God of Tara] What absurd levels, it was almost to the point I found it hilarious at how horrible outmatched we were. Nodens, he stood there in the sky as he looked down on us with his menacing golden glare. His large white wings spread so he could maintain afloat. Dagda, a bulky brute, messy grey hair and a sinister, satisfied smile. His wings also spread to maintain his position in the air. Dian Cecht, an odd appearance, covered from head to toe in a black robe, his face hidden behind a plague doctor¡¯s mask. As such I wasn¡¯t too aware of what kind of feature he hid behind it. He too had large white wings and moved as though he was looking down on some ants. ¡°Villains¡­ You shall all perish here.¡± Nodens spoke up. I couldn¡¯t contain my own glee as I heard his voice. Ah, perhaps I might have gotten a little crazy from this reunion, but the man responsible for my unrest in this world was standing right in front of me, revenge was at my fingertips, you must forgive me for acting this way. I creepy, sinister, evil, malign, shady smirk crept up my face. My persona of a gentle, kind, caring and innocent ten year old boy that I had built up til now was shattering before me. Through and through, I was indeed a villain. That rang true in my previous life and in this life too I had no qualms about taking up that mantle. In fact I had gotten too familiar with that role that I could play no other. If it¡¯s a villain he wants then so be it, I will become the strongest hurdle he has yet to face. ¡°Children¡­ the moment you decided to set foot in this battlefield was the moment you have resigned to your fate. Allow me to impart you with the wisdom of the old world¡­ ¡®An eye for an eye¡¯¡­¡± END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 67 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL GOD OF DREAD Strength: 253 (240 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 0] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 42 (PASSIVE) [Undead''s Tenacity]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Mental Fortress]: Level 2 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 37 (AUGMENT) [Transformation - Aspect of the Black Pharaoh]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Avatar of Nyarlathotep]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 37 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 42 (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 47 (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 50 (MASTSERED) (ACTIVE) [Summon - Terror of the Depths]: Level 1/Required Level: 100 (ACTIVE) [Soul Bind Summoning]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Ghost King]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Succubus Princess]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Spider Queen]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 40 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 40 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 40 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 40 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian''s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father''s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight] Chapter 25 - Wrath of the new world gods and the final verdict Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Wrath of the new world gods and the final verdict Chapter XXV PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 990] ¡°Before we start, why don¡¯t tell us what your real intentions were behind this attack? I just hope you won¡¯t say something like you¡¯re attacking us simply because you ¡®dislike us¡¯, right?¡± Taking charge of the situation I asked the three figures that floated majestically in the night sky. Looking down on us from on high, their positions and postures alone told me plenty of how they thought of us. Even after two billion years of life, this world simply cannot rid itself of the stigma that is classism, a rather sad thought, perhaps it is impossible after all, for sentient beings to view each others as equals. Nodens stared down at me with a twitch in his eyes, could it be that he¡¯s already forgotten about me after two long years? After all, from his position I¡¯m nothing more than a mere human that he encountered long ago, but from my perspective he is the greatest hurdle to my life. ¡°You are¡­¡± He responds, oh? Could it be that he actually remembers? ¡°Goodness, I thought you¡¯ve forgotten about me. I¡¯m honored that I left even a smidgen of impact to be etched in the deepest bowels of your memories.¡± ¡°So you continue to live.¡± As an act of defiance I respond with a pleasant, false smile, the most arrogant and pretentious one I could muster up, the high god deserves nothing less. At this he winces at me in disgust, ¡®I¡¯m winning¡¯ I thought as I see his reaction, it was rather amusing really. I mean I could¡¯ve continued this on all day but then I remembered that there was a war to be fought. ¡°So? Are you going to tell us your real intent on this assault?¡± I asked once more, all hints of pleasantry and negotiations wiped off my face. ¡°I would also like to know. Hostility between our two forces has existed since long ago, yet your side refuses to give an answer to these attacks, thus our only recourse was war. I shall hear it from you now, why do you antagonize us so?¡± Coming to stand beside me is Admiral Ordwell, he adjusts his hat a little before glaring up at the three gods in the air, one with all the wisdom of however many centuries he has lived. The one who responded to the Admiral¡¯s question wasn¡¯t Nodens but Dagda, he flew down and stood in front of us with his large frame overshadowing us. Looking down with a sly grin on his face he locks his eyes with the Admiral. ¡°What other reason for war is there than the glory of defeating your enemies?!¡± Without even provocation Dagda makes the first move by throwing a punch. The Admiral, quick on his feet tried to block the attack but Dagda¡¯s huge frame wasn¡¯t simply for show but actually was as dangerous as he looked. The admiral was sent back flying past the gate and crashed into one of the buildings. Dust and smoke started to rise from the aftershock. ¡®How dirty¡¯, I thought to myself, although admittedly I wasn¡¯t the best person to be saying this. That was the start of the war; the second heaven realm war had started. PART TWO -Cedric¡¯s PoV- The war had finally begun and everyone scattered from on top of the city¡¯s gates. I took a few steps into the city to hide myself, though we had an unspoken agreement that we wanted to cause as little damage to the city as possible, thus it was important for me to leave from this spot immediately. Still, my opponent was that monster who smacked away Admiral Ordwell as though he was an insect. However, I couldn¡¯t help look around for Andras¡¯ presence, she wasn¡¯t with the gods so perhaps she was concealing her presence for a chance to get a sneak attack, no that wouldn¡¯t be her style. She¡¯s more of a direct person than that. I¡¯ll just have to trust Morgant and leave her up to him to deal with, it¡¯s unlikely that he¡¯d end up killing her, he doesn¡¯t currently have the strength to do so. Dagda stood on top of the city gates with a large eerie grin on his face. With such strength backing him up, it really would¡¯ve been hard for anyone else to deal with him. As Morgant said, against Dagda who¡¯s most prominent feature was his immense physical strength I may have been the best choice. However that doesn¡¯t mean that there were no problems in this match up. My body may have complete physical damage immunity but my armor does not, and its necessary for me to wear this suit to keep my humanoid form. In other words it is possible to remove a lot of my mobility be destroying the armor that holds together my form. Another problem was that I posses a single weakness, that is my nucleus. Ordinarily slimes do not possess such a feature but most slimes also don¡¯t have much of an intelligence and move only according to their instincts. In exchange for my intellectual superiority against my kinsmen I have a nucleus; a brain that acts as the basis for my sentience as well as my weakness. So far the only person who has found out about this was Morgant. It was a few years ago when we first met he reached past his dominant hand and greeted me with his left hand, at first I thought it was a simple mistake but that wasn¡¯t it, he knew about it. In any case, if my nucleus was destroyed then most likely my personality would die as well, it could be that my body and life may not be taken away but to go back to living without intelligence like I had been, it is an unpleasant thought. Life without any thought, is that so different from death itself? Dagda was starting to get a little annoyed that everyone else has started to fight without him. From the looks of it, he wasn¡¯t as blatant as to join into fray of his ally¡¯s battles but his patience was near its end. At this rate the balance of power will be tilted, thus I decided to go in for the engagement. Texzatopekmetziluxotl, or else ¡®Xotl¡¯ as Morgant called him, the previous demon lord¡¯s servant who was now currently serving under Morgant under the previous demon lord, Erendel¡¯s wishes. We had strategized on how we were going to form our attacks and movement, in the end we weren¡¯t as smart as the others thus decided on a simple ¡®shield¡¯ and ¡®spear¡¯ combination. There was a reason why Xotl didn¡¯t show himself at the current time. He was hiding and acting as the ¡®spear¡¯ while my role was to distract Dagda and act as the ¡®shield¡¯. ¡°Argh! Is there no one to challenge me?!¡± Dagda shouts as he eyes the other combatants. ¡°Your opponent is me!¡± I dashed straight into battle whilst activating a defensive skill known as [Fortification]. It was a skill that converted all of my offensive capabilities into defensive ones which literally doubled my already impressive defense. Of course this wasn¡¯t specifically for myself per se, but to allow my armor to receive much more punishment. As this skill makes my offensive stats near non-existent I threw away my sword and pinned my hopes on my shield. In the first place I didn¡¯t have such na?ve thoughts that I would be able to even put a scratch on this person. However, as expected of the one know as the ¡®war god¡¯, he reacted to my sudden presence extremely quickly and retaliated thusly. He had no visible weapons but hurled enhanced punches towards me; his fists emitted a sort of golden, heavenly aura and every time it connected with my shield a large golden explosion ensued. I placed my shield in front of me to receive those attacks but each punch felt extremely heavy and powerful, even with doubling my defenses it wouldn¡¯t be realistic to hope my shield would last too long against it. Not only that, his attack rate and speed was absurdly fast and accurate, it almost felt as though his physical capabilities were a cheat. I held on to my large tower shield as though my life had depended on it as I moved backwards, thinking that defense alone wasn¡¯t going to cut it I tried to dodge a few hits after I recognized his fighting patterns. ¡°Hahaha! This is amazing! You¡¯re the first opponent that hasn¡¯t broken even after all this punishment! FUN! THIS IS TRUE BATTLE! SHOW ME SOME MORE!¡± He shouts out, the enhancements on his fists turn from gold to a menacing red color. His punches were now leaving large dents on my shield, figuring that it wouldn¡¯t do well if my shield broke off there, I retracted from him a little by dashing backwards. However Dagda wasn¡¯t keen on letting me escape from his attack range, and quickly he covered the distance between us; the power of his dashing speed was also unbelievable, extremely fast to even keep track of by the naked eye. He continued to throw punches but eventually I managed to dodge one and decided to counter attack with a skill known as [Shield Bash], which was also a form of enhanced attack but using a shield. He received the hit and slid back a few centimeters. Taking advantage of this situation I employed a few more defensive skills. [Stone Castle] [Iron Defense] [Warrior¡¯s Tenacity] [Art of Defense] I felt my body become even harder that before, ironic as I was a slime in the end. Still, with this amount of defensive boosts it may even stop this monster. Or so I had thought but I was na?ve, this monster was simply playing with me the whole time. The enchantment on his fists turned from red to blue. He covered the short distance between us and threw an extremely potent blow towards my unguarded abdomen. His fist pierced past my armor and body and came out the other end. Luckily since I was a slime I didn¡¯t feel the impact of the hit but my armor had burst open. ¡°Hmm~? What¡¯s this¡­ a slime? The inside is a slime?!¡± He distorted his face for a bit in disgust, but returned back to his arrogant smile. As a slime I have no real solid form but I did have limited control over my own body so it wasn¡¯t hard to stop my contents from spilling out of the hole in the armor, if anything it felt a little uncomfortable to be feeling breeze enter but I was fine. ¡°Hmph.¡± I said as I took advantage of the fact that he wasn¡¯t looking to attack with [shield bash] once more. However even though he wasn¡¯t paying attention he didn¡¯t budge from the position, it was as though I was trying to punch through solid diamonds. Just how strong is this monster?! ¡°Hah, this is my first time fighting a slime as strong as you. They say that slimes have the special ability to negate physical damage. I see, so that¡¯s why you¡¯re my opponent, the enemy has done their research as well, I¡¯m rather impressed. But still, relying on special traits alone won¡¯t be enough to fight me! Prepare yourself. Slime!¡± Dagda continued his flurry of punches, even more vicious and potent before, I had to mitigate the damage with a lot of dodging and become my body was that of a slime I was able to pull of some crazy positions to do so. I back dashed away from Dagda and sent a signal to Xotl to commence his attacks. Dagda reacted obviously to my backing away and tried to close the gap, but because it was so easy to tell that he would do that, Xotl had a clear line of attack. An ominous black spear was thrown towards him, connecting with his right shoulder and piercing through to the other side. Even for someone as monstrous as Dagda, this really did some damage, enough to stop him temporarily. ¡°Pfftt~ hahaha~ interesting¡­ I wonder how long it has been since I¡¯ve actually been damaged like this. This is very interesting!¡± Almost as though he was angry he pulled out the spear that had pierced his right shoulder. The oddest thing was that even as he did so no blood ever spewed out, was he undead? No he clearly wasn¡¯t, but still. He returned our attack with a bone chilling smile, etched across his face it was an ominous reminder of my own mortality against this opponent. Monster? No, that was far too kind to call him, he was even more of a demon than we were. His power, it was a terrifying prospect, did our predecessors really fight against such an opponent? Is it even possible to win against him? Although my mission¡¯s parameters were never to outright defeat him, but even if I stalled him here long enough for the others to finish up their fight; even with everyone¡¯s combined strength was it possible to still win? It doesn¡¯t seem like we¡¯d come out on top no matter how I looked at it. Does this being even have a weakness? Like before we continued our waltz of defend, retreat, strike. Several more holes were drilled into him by Xotl¡¯s spears yet he continues to move like they were small specs of dust. In fact the more he was damaged the more powerful his skills and attacks seemed to become, almost as though he¡¯s entered into a state of ecstasy from the air of battle alone. ¡°Tsk, monster.¡± I muttered as I continued to defend and avoid his strikes. He replies with a hefty laugh. ¡°Hahaha, why thank you! As fellow monsters we should fight more like one!¡± He attacks become even more empowered than they were before, from blue to black, and slowly his attacks literally punched a holes through my tower shield. This wasn¡¯t good, the structural integrity of my shield has already been breached making it almost dead weight. Perhaps only a few more hit and my trusty shield was done for. There was no way out of this situation aside from trusting my allies, I just hope with their powers we can somehow overcome this monster. PART THREE -Arachna¡¯s PoV- Aer and I stood glaring at our opponent. A creepy guy drabbed in all black with a single disgusting mask on his face. Was he really that strong? He doesn¡¯t appear muscular or particularly skilled in combat, even Astaroth said that he didn¡¯t partake in the battle against the previous generation demon generals. Still, it may be bad to underestimate my opponent like this so I¡¯ll take caution and set up before hand. [Glacial Spiderlings], they were small, remote, explosive mines in the form of a miniature crystal spider that I could control and move around. The only problem was that they couldn¡¯t go airborne so all I could do was set them up on the ground for when he lands. ¡°Then, I¡¯ll go in first dear younger sister.¡± Aer tells me while licking her lips in a seductive smile, what was she going to do, seduce the enemy? As she slowly approached Dian Cecht, in her black hands she held a small ball of magical energy, one a fiery red and one icy blue. Unlike me, Aer is extremely talented as a magician, able to easily [dual cast] magic. ¡°Now, why don¡¯t we continue the conversation that my allies tried to make earlier, what is the real reason for your assault?¡± Dian Cecht stands like a dead tree, without response, he doesn¡¯t even acknowledge the threat Aer was trying to make with her magic. Aer breathed out a sigh of disappointment and without provocation shot the two magical attacks towards him. An extremely potent fire that burnt even parts of the ground into molten rock and frigid ice magic that froze the molten rocks on top of the fire magic. After a direct hit a multi-colored explosion took place, engulfing the entire area in smoke and dust. However, far from being destroyed after the smoke and dust had cleared all that remained was Dian Cecht¡¯s unwavering figure. As though he had taken no damage from that attack he scoffed underneath that mask as a black mist shroud surrounded him. It was a kind of magic that I¡¯ve never seen before, if it was even magic in the first place. The black mist that surrounded him seemed to move according to his will as he directed it back and forth. Intrigued by it I stared a bit but in my daze I had failed to notice that the black mist was creeping up at me until it was too late. Intercepting in time was Aer¡¯s [flame bomb] attack that exploded before me and dispersed the slithering black mist. ¡°Arachna you idiot! Pay attention, we¡¯re at war!¡± My older sister reprimands me with a fierce stare and loud voice. It brought me back to reality and prepared myself by casting a [glacial mist shield] around myself, similar to Dian Cecht¡¯s black mist, mine was a frigid white color. Aer also prepared defensive spells in the form of a [heat mist shield], which was similar to my [glacial mist shield] but was a fire element shield and thus red and orange in color. Dian Cecht seemed to be up to battle now as he spread his wings and took flight. Unfortunately for me, I was incapable of flight, I wasn¡¯t that kind of demon, but Aer on the other hand was entirely capable of it. I shot her a glance and understanding my intentions she gave me a nod and spread her wings. Her large brown and black wings majestically took flight in the night sky whilst all I could do was stay grounded and provide support. You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. Dian Cecht flew closer and lunged an attack with his black mists, I wasn¡¯t entirely sure what kind of element was attuned into those attacks but for the time being Aer¡¯s [heat mist shield] was able to successfully defend against it. To be honest, sky battles between two magicians were rarely that exciting, at most it was just the two throwing magical attacks back and forth. The reason for this was that concentrating on magic spells and flying were extremely difficult; to maneuver around the enemy¡¯s attacks took much more effort than simply defending against it. For that reason it was actually more advantageous of me that I was on the ground and had many more options to attack Dian Cecht from. Aer and Dian Cecht was exactly in that kind of battle, the two flung magic attacks at each other. Aer with her fire and ice magic, and Dian Cecht with his mysterious dark magic, is he really a god with the divine affinity? I recognized most of Aer¡¯s spells. [Flame Bolt] - a standard intermediary fire magic. It was the most common attack that Aer threw at the enemy, it didn¡¯t have any gimmicks attached to it but it was a reliable basic attack. [Plasma detonator] - a delayed explosion magic, it¡¯s more aptly described as ¡®air mines¡¯ as they were placed all over the place in case Dian Cecht chose to move about. The explosion radius was extremely large so even a small step into its effective range could be fatal, so far Aer set up around 20 but Dian Cecht was careful about where he was moving and was aware of the effective range. [Eruption] - it was an advanced fire magic that was better used on the ground, it shot a pillar of magma from the ground and up to the sky, most likely Aer was trying to make Dian Cecht move into the range of the [plasma detonators]. [Glacial javelin] - a standard intermediary ice magic, it was also a common attack that Aer threw, mostly in conjunction was [flame bolt] for a [dual cast] magic spell. [Frozen Domain] - an advanced ice magic spell that froze the area of combat, the purpose of this was to strength the power of ice type magic as well as hinder the enemy¡¯s movements. As expected of Aer¡¯s magic, it could even slowly down a God¡¯s movements to a noticeable degree. On the other hand Dian Cecht constantly threw out black mists to defend and attack, his attack didn¡¯t deviate from that but even that single spell was extremely potent as none of Aer¡¯s magic ever got through that shield but Dian Cecht had already landed a few hits. An amazing display of technicolored explosions took place in the sky. However it was not time for me to huddle around on the ground without doing anything, I quickly moved to a better location and commenced my ground barrage. I had transformed back to my demon spider form, a form that I wasn¡¯t exactly fond of using, it reminds me that deep down that I was different from everyone else. The insect demon race was a rather unique race as only one demon with a specific form exists at a time. While we¡¯re all born from the great cocoon and we¡¯re all technically siblings we all have different forms. In my case I was the spider demon, the only spider demon in existence, another will arise after I died but whilst I was alive there would be none like me. The same principle applied to my siblings, my sister also, her form is entirely unique to her. I shook my head, it really wasn¡¯t the time to be thinking about that. In any case, this arachnid form was special, it enhances my magical capabilities while lowering my mobility. Long ago I had gained the nickname ¡®the walking artillery¡¯, an apt description. I prepared my magic spells and several blue magic circles appeared before me, ready to fire my spells at my command. I waited for an opportunity until I had a clear line of attack that didn¡¯t interfere with Aer¡¯s attacks. The last thing we need is my attack to interrupt Aer¡¯s and have Dian Cecht take advantage of that. Even though air battles between magicians were supposed to be rather static, as expected of high level magicians, there¡¯s no unnecessary movements, they¡¯re moving just enough to either dodge or block the attack. Though unfortunately I¡¯d have to say that Dian Cecht has the upper hand, which is of course why I was here. I prepared my spell, [Glacial cutter], a thin beam of ice had propelled itself at great speeds towards Dian Cecht¡¯s location, and since he was too preoccupied with his air battle with Aer I was able to land a direct hit. Perhaps it should¡¯ve been expected but I really thought my attack would¡¯ve penetrated through his shield, but it didn¡¯t. it was an absurdly strong shield, my attack that could¡¯ve pierced even a mountain was blocked by a thin veneer of mist, not to mention I was in my spider form. Aer launched a barrage of [glacial javelins] towards him at a concentrated rate to break through his shield but it was probably not enough. He simply floated towards Aer with a smug figure and placed his hands through her [heat mist shield] and went directly for her; like lovers they were locked into a fierce competition of strength with their fingers entwined with each other. Like this Aer was incapacitated and unable to do anything, if she even slightly deviated her mind off her hands to prepare for a magic spell her hands would be crushed and she would probably die soon after. Noticing that I did everything in my power to pry him off. [Glacial Javelins] of my own. A more highly concentrated [glacial cutter]. [Ice Golems], [Frozen Web], [Ice bomb], [Glacial Drill], many more magic that I could think of I tried to use but none of them were effective. For what purpose were we even fighting against an opponent that we couldn¡¯t touch? This was already at a level far beyond ¡®out of our league¡¯ the enemy were at a realm of their own. No, I knew why I was fighting, because it was Morgant¡¯s wishes that we do. If it was for his wish then I¡¯d be glad to fight till I died but this situation was already beyond hopeless. Were we all just going to die here? Perhaps it is our fate, in the end justice triumphed over everything, like nothing else mattered and everything else was just garbage. The beings who represented light and justice had sent down their judgment upon us. At the peak of my despair I had remembered something that Morgant had told me. Before this battle had started he told me something. ¡®Don¡¯t you want vengeance? On the people responsible for taking away your dear brother?¡¯ Honestly, I didn¡¯t even know how he knew of my past, but most likely Aer was the one who told him some time. At remembering those words I could only wryly smile to myself, yeah, that¡¯s right I really wanted revenge, to those who took away my dear brother I wanted nothing more than to tear them apart. Those very beings were right in front of me, we were even fighting them, how could I give up here? ¡®Justice, it is what the gods deem themselves to be, they also deem anyone against them as evil. If that is the case, then what need is there to fight fairly? If we are evil then let us show them the power of evil.¡¯ He said. For a ten year old boy he sure can spout out those lines filled with malignant intents with ease. I can only shudder to think about what he¡¯d grow up to be. With renewed determination I disregarded what I was trying to do and adopted a different strategy. [Glacial Javelin], boosted both by my spider form and Aer¡¯s [Frozen Domain], it didn¡¯t work before and it probably won¡¯t do to attack him again. Then I just need to shift my target, to my dear sister. I¡¯ll just attack her instead. I lunged two javelins towards them, and both scored a direct hit through Aer¡¯s arms tearing them apart. With that she was able to finally escape from Dian Cecht¡¯s grasp, better her arms being destroyed than her life being taken, I thought. Her arms can be repaired with magic later but for now it was imperative to defeat the enemy with whatever means. It looked extremely painful but I grit my teeth as I saw her expression of disbelief as she fell, unable to sustain flight. I shouted towards her. ¡°Transform!¡± Hearing my voice, Aer came back to her senses and through the tears of pain and disbelief she got herself up again and sustained her flight. Blood spewed from her arms but she disregarded it as a bright light engulfed her, giving the city of perpetual night a temporarily sun. The light grew more intense and larger with each passing second until it subsided only after blinding everyone. What escaped from the light was a giant moth, larger than any being I¡¯ve seen. Of her six legs, two of them were clearly gone, no thanks to me. With each flap of her wings a hurricane blew past with glittering particles that were mixed in with the wind. This was Aer¡¯s special ability, [Magic disruption], it doesn¡¯t outright seal the opponent¡¯s magic but it does disrupt them, the effects of which include making it harder for the opponent to cast magic, making the opponent¡¯s magic consume much more mana, making the enemy¡¯s magic weaker. Against a magician, this monster of a sister was the worst opponent. In fact it was already taking effect as Dian Cecht¡¯s black mist shield was starting to dissipate and fluctuate without being able to keep a solid wall up. Taking this opportunity, Aer flew all over the place at extremely high speeds for a being with that large of a body frame, as she did she started to spew fire from her mouth, not even needing to prepare a magic spell. I also took liberty to strike while the enemy¡¯s defenses were down. This time I activated my own special ability. [Venenum Arcanum]. Poison attribute magic, of course this doesn¡¯t mean I have access to poison type magic, such a thing likely doesn¡¯t exist, but this special ability adds the poison elements in my attack. If Aer can disrupt the opponent from the outside, then I can do so from the inside. [Glacial Javelins], I launched several of them and thanks to Aer¡¯s [magic disruption] ability I was able to get in a direct hit. Due to the impact of the attack and the poison that was applied to my attacks starting to eat at him from the inside he was unable to continue his sustained flight and fell the floor. Of course during which my prior set up [glacial spiderlings] swarmed at him and proceeded to explode. The result was a badly beaten up so-called ¡®god¡¯. His mask was starting to slide off revealing a menacing golden glow from behind along with an extremely pissed off look. ¡°If you surrender now we¡¯d be willing to consider sparing your life.¡± I started to bargain with him, but he only glared at me with a pained expression. It was the poison, even though he was knocking on death¡¯s door he didn¡¯t seem to even care about my negotiation. He readjusted his mask and casted some sort of light spell. It wasn¡¯t even a holy attribute magic either, some sort of soothing light that I¡¯ve never seen before. His powers really confuse me, sometimes they don¡¯t even seem like it¡¯s magic but it has to be if Aer¡¯s [Magic Disruption took effect. Soon after, before my very eyes, Dian Cecht¡¯s figure started to heal at an rapid rate. All of the damage we had struggled to deal with healed off in an instant, all the strength was drained from me, and my spider form undone. This was impossible¡­ we can¡¯t win. Before we were about to resume our fight Dian Cecht shifted his gaze towards the enemy leader, Nodens. He tried to escape our fight and rejoin with him, that was obviously going to be bad so I tried to stop him with my magic but I was interrupted before I could do so and he had escaped. ¡°M- Ms. Arachna.¡± I heard a voice from behind me, it was Lilith. "Lilith?¡± I asked, what about her fight? Was it already over? No, standing behind her was a female werewolf, most likely the traitor Andras. Figures, I didn¡¯t particularly think that Morgant and Lilith were powerful enough to defeat an average demon general with strength alone, they must¡¯ve won her over with words. ¡°Lord Morgant wants us to regroup.¡± Aer, who had also had her insect form undone listened in. I gave her a look and nodded to which she also nodded and we decided to listen to Morgant¡¯s orders to regroup. She looked extremely tired and battered, her usually neat hair was a mess and covered one side of her face. ¡°Looks like Andras is back.¡± Aer says. Having decided that we went back to Astaroth who was also beaten extremely heavily, her figure was bloody by the enemy¡¯s attack. Everyone else was there as well, at first I was confused as to what was happening, was it a truce but there was a single person missing from this group, that was Morgant himself. We were hidden within the walls of the city, I asked why we were just hiding here but everyone shook their heads as they answered it was Morgant¡¯s idea. I sent one of my spiderlings to check up on that front and see what it was. I could telepathically see what my minions saw. The enemy leader, Nodens, was staring down at Morgant who was alone with extreme malice. Behind him were Dagda who had a rather satisfied smile on his face and Dian Cecht who silently stood behind. Just beyond the gate was the entire enemy force of nearly 500 000 soldiers. I looked around to see if it meant that our force were defeated but I could still see the lights at the far ends meaning that we had them surrounded, though little good that would¡¯ve done us. I don¡¯t know what they were saying up til that point but the situation didn¡¯t look good. I was about to jump onto Morgant¡¯s shoulders and ask him why we had paused the fight but I noticed an incredibly evil grin etched across his face, so bone-chilling that even an ice spider was frozen from fear. Was this really the expressions of a ten year old? ¡°Child of evil, what do you think you can do against beings far beyond your comprehension?! You are nothing but a mere human against those your infinite greater! My biggest mistake was not killing you when I had the chance!¡± ¡®Idiots¡¯, Morgant muttered under his breath with extreme glee in his eyes. Then he spoke words that I didn¡¯t understand but as he did everything my spider saw went white. ¡°Commence Orbital Bombardment.¡± END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 71 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL GOD OF DREAD Strength: 253 (240 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 20] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 45 (PASSIVE) [Undead''s Tenacity]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Mental Fortress]: Level 12 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 41 (AUGMENT) [Transformation - Aspect of the Black Pharaoh]: Level 1 (ACTIVE) [Avatar of Nyarlathotep]: Level 11 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 42 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 50 (MASTSERED) (ACTIVE) [Summon - Terror of the Depths]: Level 1/Required Level: 100 (ACTIVE) [Soul Bind Summoning]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Ghost King]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Succubus Princess]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Spider Queen]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 44 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 44 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 44 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 44 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian''s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father''s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight]
Well, a bit of an abrupt ending, don''t worry I''ll properly write out what happened on Morgant''s side on the next chapter Chapter 26 - The final requiem of the Mobius Empire Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C The final requiem of the Mobius Empire Chapter XXVI PART ONE [Eternum Calendar - Year 990] Without even provocation Dagda makes the first move by throwing a punch. The Admiral, quick on his feet tried to block the attack but Dagda¡¯s huge frame wasn¡¯t simply for show but actually was as dangerous as he looked. The admiral was sent back flying past the gate and crashed into one of the buildings. Dust and smoke started to rise from the aftershock. ¡®How dirty¡¯, I thought to myself, although admittedly I wasn¡¯t the best person to be saying this. That was the start of the war; the second heaven realm war had started. As the war had started Lilith and I took a step back to wait and observe as our turn wasn¡¯t up until the traitor Andras Silverfang showed herself. After betraying the demon lord would she even show herself? Admittedly I knew very little about her, the only things that I was told was that she was a rather boisterous person when she could be, but had lately she had shown herself little. Well, the reason was because she was planning to betray the demon lord. To be honest I don¡¯t particularly thing her betrayal was unjustified, of course I don¡¯t think it was Astaroth¡¯s fault either, if I had to say it was a tragic consequence of the actions of the past generation that has lead up to this event. I could only imagine her pain; to have her humanity stolen away from her and turned into a monster, a weapon of war. ¡°Lilith go check on the soldiers and try to ensure as little casualty as possible.¡± I told her as we waited. We weren¡¯t doing anything at the moment so while we had the chance we should try to limit the amount of casualties. I wasn¡¯t able to move from this spot for obvious reasons but Lilith could do some light laps around the place. ¡°Eh? But what about you Lord Morgant? You¡¯re not going to take on Lord Andras by yourself are you?¡± She asked me in a worried tone. ¡°No, well. I don¡¯t particularly think we can beat her with strength alone, she¡¯s a former demon general after all. It¡¯s sad to say but out of everyone here we¡¯re the weakest.¡± ¡°But-¡° ¡°It¡¯s fine, I won¡¯t fight her until you get back. I just want to have a little chat with her.¡± I cut her off, of course if worse came to worst I would initiate the fight even if Lilith wasn¡¯t here but I did truly want to have a conversation first. Reluctantly Lilith flew away from this place as she was tempted to look back at me many times. ¡®War¡­ perhaps it was a fate that we could never escape¡¯, I thought to myself as I stared up at the bright red moon who bore witness to the second heaven realm war. The fact that I stood here meant that I was part of this war. No, my role in all of this wasn¡¯t as simple as merely taking ¡®part¡¯ in it, in truth I was at its epicenter, because in the end the only way to put an end to this war was to win. It would be obvious to any casual observer the discrepancy in power between heaven¡¯s realm and the demon legion, it was to the point that it would truly be impossible to win without some kind of meddling from the outside. I gave a dry smile to myself as I peered up at the night sky once more. Indeed, while I wasn¡¯t exactly powerful myself, I did have a single trump card up far in the sky; 2 billion years in the making, the full wrath of my everything, the Mobius Empire. The GUNGNIR. I breathed a sigh as I continued to watch the skirmish between the soldiers. I edged closer to the end of the large city walls and peered down to see how my allies were doing. The soldiers of the demon legion were an amalgamation of different species, some vampires, skeleton warriors/mages, homunculus, ghouls, orcs, hobgoblins, succubus, lizardmen, demons, devils, even some human and elves. There were no unity in race but unity in alliance. So far there were some casualties, as expected it couldn¡¯t be helped that some would end up dying today, still they were doing a considerably better job than I had originally thought they would at rounding up the enemy. Despite being attacked on multiple sides by the enemy and the crystalline zombies of the deceased they managed the kite them around. This was good, once the enemy was completely rounded up, that would signify the end of this brief war. It was all going according to plan, or so I thought. Of course there would always be something outside one¡¯s calculations when it came to the movement of sentient beings. A large explosion occurred in the middle of the demon legion¡¯s movement. On closer inspection it was my target, Andras Silverfang, she had arrived and was starting to fight the soldiers, but of course the disparity in their levels were far too great. It took a bit to see since it was so far away but I had confirmed it. [Andras Silverfang. Level 125, Luminary of Werewolves] Underneath her title however was a small icon. [Insanity] I tapped on it to see what this was about. [Insanity: afflicted targets lose self-awareness and self-control] If I had to take a guess it would be the doing of the heaven realm forces, I couldn¡¯t see any other answer. Though if I had to comment on it, it¡¯s an inefficient skill to use on comrades to boost their combat effectiveness, but whether that was their intent is a little unclear. Actually when I checked all of the werewolves had that debuff icon on them. In any case I decided to jump into the fray. Of course before that I decided to activate a skill I¡¯ve been meaning to test out. [Transformation - Aspect of the black pharaoh], the power I had received from Nyarlathotep, I¡¯ve been meaning to try it out sooner but I didn¡¯t have the chance but this was the perfect occasion. I could feel myself starting to grin at the premise of testing this out, because I knew full well how uncanny and ominous that form was when I had laid my eyes on it. Activating the skill, a large vortex of black wind starts harrowing around me and a great pressure is felt all over my body. An oily black miasma start to form out from my shadows and eventually mixes in with the ghastly wind. Completely covered in spherical black miasma, everything in my vision turned black. The winds start to move much more erratically, spinning in all directions until finally settling down to form a menacing cloak around me in a humanoid figure. My figure grows from my tiny human form to a larger form, about 2 meters in total length. The miasma starts to sink into me, a revolting feeling swirling around me but I ignored it, no my intrigue to complete this spell surpassed my instincts to stop this. Eventually everything around me calms down and I open my eyes. I look down to my torso and arms, they had turned blacker than the night sky, thus I was able to distinguish myself from the darkened background. In fact the skin is too dark, it¡¯s as though a light could not escape my figure, it¡¯d be more apt to call me a shadow than a man. I feel on my head, a golden pschent, a sort of ancient Egyptian crown. My torso is exposed but I do have a white and gold pants on my lower half, though no shoes to speak of, not that I really cared. On my wrists and ankles are several golden braces that make jingling noises when I move them around. ¡®This was it¡¯, I thought to myself as I smiled. I could certainly feel a bit of power swirling around inside me. An explosion in the far off distance brought me back to the current situation. The soldiers were still in danger and Lilith was about to engage with Andras, it was time for me to go in. I took a great lunge from the city¡¯s defensive walls right into the fray of combat. PART TWO -Andras Silverfang¡¯s PoV- Milia Gwynn. That was my real name¡­ from before I was turned into this monster. I was supposed to be simple daughter of a count off in the country. I was supposed to grow up in peace, to go to school, to fall in love, to marry, to succeed my father¡¯s position as count, to have children and¡­ to be happy. That¡¯s how it was supposed to be. That¡¯s how it was supposed to be! Yet that wasn¡¯t how it had played out, destiny did not permit me to live in peace. The horror of that day, through anguish and depression; through the blood and tears that covered my eyes, everything was taken away from me in an act of cruelty. Our entire estate; our entire town was raided; either kidnapped or killed. Thousands upon thousands were captured and kidnapped, and hundreds more died trying fight back at the demons or escaping. The culprits were the werewolves, they easily overpowered the human guards and tore away through the village in search of their harvest. Man, woman, child, it didn¡¯t matter to them, as long as they got their ¡®experimental sample¡¯ they were fine with all the horrendous acts that they did. Even then, it wasn¡¯t limited to just our small town, several more weak towns were raided and their inhabitants stolen away. We were all brought back to their main base and their experiments when underway as soon as we arrived. It was at this place that I saw him; the monster responsible for having done this to us. Emilio Orat. I could never forget his face, his demonic red eyes hidden behind the thin frames of his glasses and the way he looked down on us as though we were nothing more than bugs. Anyone who spoke up would immediately be killed for defiance; to him we were nothing more than tools he used to repopulate his race. At the time I had not know, but the werewolves had suffered a lot of casualties in some war against the heaven realm beings, for this reason they decided to repopulate themselves using humans as a base to turn them into werewolves. Curses, alchemy, experimentation, breeding, anything and everything horrible they could think of they did to us. From a size of hundreds of thousands only a few thousand werewolves were created, myself being one of them. My parents, my siblings, my friends and neighbors, they did not make it through and by the time I had realized what had been going on I was all alone, turned into one of them. A werewolf. My hair had grayed out and my eyes turned from a healthy blue to a pale red. All I could think of for the first few years was to hunt and kill, the instincts and urges of the werewolf had overtaken me. The gentle personality I held no longer existed, I was merely a puppet and tool for the pure werewolves who used us to further population of their race now that we had become one of them. By the time that I had learned to master these instincts and urges and realize what was going on all I had was a single collar around my neck like some dog. It was a special collar used by the werewolves so we do not disobey them, if we did something wrong they would activate the collars and sever our heads. Because of this we continued to do their bidding, with our freedom nowhere to be found. We awaited the day that we were granted freedom but the wait was too long. Days turned to months, months turned to years and years turned to decades. Eventually we had outlived the old werewolves and got our freedom that way but in the end we couldn¡¯t reclaim our humanity; we had long past the path of no return. Eventually I had gained enough favor in the demon legion which the werewolf tribe was part of. I had risen through the ranks with my wit and strength and became one of them, I had received the title of demon general. Still, our anguish could not be quelled with our false freedom, perhaps it was too late but we were eager to regain our humanity¡­ So then only place we could turn to was to the beings of the heaven realm. Champions of justice¡­ if it were them, they could restore our humanity and bring justice on the demons who used us. It was not much but we thought we could at least get some sort of satisfaction from all this. So everything came full circle; to restore what they lost in the first heaven realm war, they used us who in turn waged the second heaven realm war. If those demons could feel even an inch of our pain then we would be satisfied¡­ or at least that¡¯s what I had thought. I thought we could become happy but in the end that isn¡¯t what we wanted, my sisters and brothers, we cried each night for our forgotten humanity but we had long already realized it. Those demons are not the same demons who abused us¡­ the current demons were innocent, even accommodating towards us. Yet we tried to deny their hospitality and destroy them. We felt nothing but guilt as we pondered our actions. In our attempt to regain our humanity we had truly lost it¡­ we became no more than mere monsters. As we realized this we tried to undo our mistakes but the damage had already been done. Just before the war we attempted to stop it, but they cursed us. Each of my sisters and brothers became insane and driven by bloodlust, after losing their humanity they even lost their minds in the end. Though I had tried to endure it as best I could, eventually I had also lost my mind. ¡­ and thus like that we marched onto the demon capital. PART THREE -Morgant Fallon¡¯s PoV- ¡°Demons¡­ Kill¡­¡± Arriving just in time to stop her from killing another person I intercepted a werewolf¡¯s claws just short of it digging into an orc¡¯s face. The orc fell down with a stunned expression and didn¡¯t move due to fear. ¡°Go!¡± I shouted at him, he looked at me with widened eyes as he registered what just happened. He furiously shook his head and bolted in the other direction to regroup with the other soldiers. I turned to face the werewolf I had just stopped. She had smaller frame than the others but she exerted the most power amongst the entire group. Her sharp silver hair flowing down past her shoulders and her red eyes filled with nothing but hatred and bloodlust; she wanted nothing but to continue her rampage and kill everything in her path. Along her arms and neck was a line of sharp silvery fur that made a natural armor around her. She was Andras. She had far too lost her mind to even consider exchanging dialogue. For now I had to bring her down through force, but that was easier said than done. I was fighting an incredibly fast werewolf that had dropped all her guard to focus on dealing the most damage, not to mention she had a considerable level advantage over me. So then, how was I going to make this work? For now I decided to test the waters and start a brawl with her. As she looked at me with her blank but furious eyes she started drooling and with a haughty smile she lunged towards me. I quickly responded by using [summon - skeleton knight] with [fortification] already active. Green lightning hit the ground between us and a large and ominous skeleton knight rose to defend me. I thought that would hold her back even if it was only a little but the skeleton knight held up about as well as toilet paper would to a storm, meaning she easily burst through the skeleton knight and continued on with her charge towards me. I managed to dodge her thanks to my above average [insight] stat but I didn¡¯t know how much longer I could rely on it. I strafed from side to side trying my best to dodge her attacks, but even so I couldn¡¯t do it completely unhindered, I received some major damage from her claws. Especially around my torso and shoulders, I was wounded with blood oozing out at an alarming rate, but thanks to [undead¡¯s tenacity] I was able to equalize the blood loss with some rapid regeneration. However it was easy to see that if she wanted she could probably tear through my defenses and just rip me to shreds, at least if she was thinking properly she could¡¯ve done that. Right now she was no more than a mindless beast that I could kite around like a matador. But as things started to look manageable she activated some sort of skill. She started to emit a burst of energy that resonated with the other werewolves. She started to howl which prompted the other wolves to also imitate. A powerful wave of energy blew past me and when I took a look around the werewolves became even faster and deadlier, with Andras herself emitting a red glow. A small icon appeared below her title. [Berserker: Afflicted targets will have their defensive capabilities converted to offensive and agility stats] I see, so it was similar to [Fortification], but the other way around. Anyway this wasn¡¯t the time for me to be idling around and being intrigued by her skills. This was certainly looking a little harrowing for me. Her movements became even faster and before I had realized it she had punched a hole through my stomach. I couldn¡¯t even feel the pain until a few seconds later when my brain had registered that I was seriously injured. Andras looked towards me, still with her fists through my torso, she gave me an eerie smile as she enjoyed the rampaging. At that moment a silver beam of light struck down, but quick on her feet Andras dashed away to avoid it. When I turned my gaze up to see what it was, it was Lilith who flew down next to me with an extremely pale expression. ¡°A- are you okay Lord Morgant?!¡± She tried to support me who had fell onto a single knee. I was starting to lose a lot of blood and very quickly at that. This really was a bad situation, absurd really, to be fighting someone way beyond my league, even though it was my own decision. I wasn¡¯t a slime with immunity to physical damage like Cedric, not a vampire with extraordinary reflexes and magic like Kyrios, not immortal like Admiral Ordwell, I don¡¯t posses exceeding magical talent like Astaroth, can¡¯t use magic on a grand scale like Aer or Arachna. To emphasize once more; I was a human. Right¡­ I was a human. Not just any human, an old world human, blessed with the powers of the old world god. I may not be almighty like all of my peers and enemies but I wasn¡¯t an enemy to be trifled with either. I decided to unleash my second skill. [Avatar of Nyarlathotep]. ¡®Insanity¡¯? I could do that too! A small black sphere had appeared in the sky above me. The clouds that had been clear for the night sky had started to gather around blocking out even the light of the red moon. Now the only sources of light were from the magic spell that the casters had used from each respective military. Andras stood there looking up at the black hole that had opened up in the sky, perhaps she was intrigued but she made no further moves. Just like during the time of my transformation black miasma started to gather up at the single point of the sphere, forming a large spherical tornado around it. The winds started to swirl violently, kicking up debris around and destroying anything around us and even devouring the clouds above. The black sphere started to grow larger and larger, spanning around 100 meters in diameter. It started to take a solid form, to be honest it was disgusting, as was all Nyarlathotep related skills. I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if anyone who beheld it really did lose their minds, as expected of lovecraftian deities. But the fun did not stop there, countless tentacles started to form around it and wrapped around itself and assimilate into a solid form. As though countless worms had been crawling on top of each other the black tentacles reinforced one another. A truly abhorrent sight. The dark and dreary winds around the amorphous mass of tentacles calmed down. A single horizontal slit drew across the front of the sphere and slowly started to open up revealing a blood shot red eye. A gigantic red eyeball floated in the sky for all to behold its terror. ¡°W- what is that?!¡± Lilith shouted as her eyes widened with surprise and fear. Soon I felt the effects starting to take place; this skill has two effects. [insanity] and [life drain]. I could feel the effects of life drain starting to rapidly heal me and before I knew it the hole in my stomach was completely gone. Since there was a lot of enemy soldiers I could drain life from it worked all the more better for me. Not only that the enemy soldiers also started grabbing their heads in pain and after a while started to fight amongst themselves. If it was like this then I thought I may not even need GUNGNIR to finish off this war, but as expected this skill took an extremely large portion of my stamina and I wasn¡¯t going to be using it for too much longer by the looks of it. Taking this opportunity I decided to resume our fight. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Lilith, support me with your magic, whenever she gets close to attacking I want you to intercept. Can you do that?¡± I asked her. ¡°Y- yes.¡± She gave me a rather unreliable answer but it was the best we could do right now. I charged towards Andras with great speeds with a [shadow lance] and [shadow shield] in hand while she was distracted, but as expected of a demon general she reacted quickly and dodged my attack and even launching a counterattack of her own. It punched through the [shadow shield] and pierced through my skin once more. I guess the shield was useless after all. Like before my wounds close up at an extreme pace, so I decided to ignore the pain and continue through the counter attack and stabbed her with the [shadow lance]. Normally I didn¡¯t think I would be able to even damage her but since she decided to use [berserker] her defensive stat was effectively non-existent. I managed to score a hit on her left shoulder and since she didn¡¯t have high speed regeneration like me she was a little limped. We backed off each other to regain some room for our next bout. She looked at me and grimaced a bit as she held her head in pain. She cried out for a brief moment before deciding to rush at me, but before she could land a hit Lilith attacked her first with the silver beam. To my surprise it dealt a lot more damage than I thought it would, to which I remembered that Lilith received something from Deborah. The [argenteus arcanum], silver magic, I see. Taking advantage of the brief moment Andras was stunned from damage I summoned more [shadow lances], around 7 of them, and flew them straight at her. The lances each pierced through her body, of course in non vital areas and incapacitated her, but beyond my expectations, she was far more resilient than I thought. She quickly broke free of her pain and charged at me, to which Lilith once again replied. This time Andras powered through the pain and made contact with me, she pressed her hands on my neck and tried to strangle me to the best of her abilities. I also tried to pry her off me but her strength was immense, not to mention she was being backed up by [Berserker]. ¡°Is¡­ is this fine? Is this how you want your life to proceed?!¡± I shouted at her. Noticing this she lifted some of the pressure off my neck. ¡°Demon¡­ Kill¡­¡± She repeated. ¡°That¡¯s right, you¡¯re a demon! You¡¯re no longer human!¡± ¡°Demon¡­¡± She struggled of me and placed her hands on her head in pain and screamed out. Her [berserker] skill was also subsequently undone. ¡°You may not have wished to become a demon but there¡¯s no helping it anymore. You may be a demon now but there¡¯s also no reason for you to live like one, so what if you¡¯re not physically human anymore?! What¡¯s stopping you from becoming a human-like demon?!¡± ¡°Human¡­ Demon¡­?¡± She walked off me backwards and fell to her knees. On closer inspection I saw droplets of tears falling down her face. At the same time her [insanity] curse was also removed from her along with all of the other wolves, they also regained their self-awareness. They started to gather around us with clear depression on their faces. They didn¡¯t want to continue with the war anymore; they didn¡¯t want to hurt their friends anymore. I had won. ¡°Lilith, it¡¯s fine now, go gather all of the others and have them regroup in the city. I¡¯ll finish up with this war.¡± ¡°E- eh? B- but how¡­?¡± I gave her a wry smile and answered. ¡°Old world magic.¡± PART FOUR -Astaroth De Signa¡¯s PoV- Nodens, the high god of Tara, or so he calls himself. He stares at us from high up as though we¡¯re nothing more than pests that he¡¯s come to eradicate. Perhaps from his perspective we really weren¡¯t much but that¡¯s no reason to kill us. He¡¯s unfathomable, no one could truly be infallible, does he not understand this? ¡°Lord Astaroth, I¡¯ll attack once there¡¯s an opportunity.¡± Kyrios tells me as he disappears into his shadow. I also decided to join in and took flight with my wings. I immediately started off by summoning various lightning attribute magic. [Lightning javelin], [Electro ball], [Thunder], [Tempest destruction], [Storm domain]. All high level magic that I¡¯ve cultivated over the years. Though lightning magic is the weakest of the three elemental types, it also has an advantage that is far faster to cast and the projectile speed of the attacks are also incredibly fast. All of my attacks hit dead on and creates a large explosion. Dust and smoke cover the area he was flying in but after they clear his figure remains undamaged. Still flying high up in the sky while looking down on us, a light barrier surrounds him. He crosses his arms with a smirk on his face. Ordwell dashes forward and jumps an incredible height attack, since he could not fly this was his only method of attack. He strikes fast and hard with his knucklers that were magically attuned but even that doesn¡¯t go through Nodens¡¯ shield. Doubling up, Kyrios also appears from the shadows and strikes with a rapier but that also doesn¡¯t penetrate his shield. ¡°Hmph, your father put up more of a fight than this. I¡¯m rather disappointed that this is all the power that a demon lord has.¡± He taunts me. I respond with rapid fire magic of all my skills, but in the end his unmoving figure starts to get on my nerves. It frustrates me that I¡¯m so powerless to stop the foe from walking all over us. Off in the distance I see a large black sphere in the sky. Instantly I recognize that as Morgant¡¯s doing. I could only dryly spite myself, even though Morgant¡¯s trying his best and has improved so much I¡¯m still here and losing. My will to fight was at an all time low as well. Kyrios and Ordwell continue their assault but I know enough that it¡¯s meaningless to continue this. Motivation alone would not help us, which was why I didn¡¯t continue my barrage. I was a leader, I needed to get my act together; if strength alone couldn¡¯t defeat the enemy then there must be some other way. Unlike the other generals I did not have a special ability to use in battle, instead I had the demon lord¡¯s ability of [foresight]. A monarch ability. It was the first time I used it in battle but I did so nonetheless. I activated its power and saw with my third eye. What I saw exceeded my comprehension. I saw Morgant. ¡­ and our victory. ¡°Hah¡­ hahhahaha! Amazing! This is¡­ I knew I was right to trust in him!¡± I blurted out. It wasn¡¯t that I didn¡¯t want to beat this opponent, it wasn¡¯t that I didn¡¯t want to do it with my own strength, it wasn¡¯t that I didn¡¯t want to think of another way, but I couldn¡¯t help but laugh. Out of all people, the one to guide us to victory was a mere 10 year old human, it was absurdly hilarious. As a demon lord it is a little shameful. With renewed spirits and a smile I decided to go all out, because I knew that even his arrogant smirk wouldn¡¯t last for long. Nodens would be defeated here, and with that knowledge I forsook all tactic and strategy and decided to whittle him down with a full frontal assault as much as I could. ¡°Kyrios! Ordwell! We continue to attack til we no longer can!¡± Kyrios and Ordwell are extremely intelligent, more so than me. In fact sometimes I think they have more of an attribute to rule than myself but they still serve and trust me. So this one time I wanted them to trust me who trusted Morgant. They didn¡¯t understand my intentions, surely no one except Morgant himself could understand it, but they decided to go along and decided on a frontal assault. ¡­ Result: we were easily defeated. With myself in a bloodied as well as Kyrios and Ordwell were no longer able to continue the fight. Eventually we managed to get through a bit of Nodens¡¯ shield and damage him. Honestly in any other situation I would¡¯ve been distraught and guilt-ridden. However right now I had a satisfied smile on my face. ¡°So in the end this is all you amount to. Perhaps I was a little too worried about your pathetic power. No matter, we¡¯ll end it here.¡± He says as he reaches upwards and summons a giant light sword. ¡°Heh¡­ fool, we¡¯ve already won¡­ I¡¯ve seen it.¡± In my last attempt at defiance I spout out and close my eyes for the attack to strike. I heard a loud explosion but the pain didn¡¯t come, was I already dead? I opened my eyes to see I was in the air¡­ carried by my own daughter! ¡°Lilith?!¡± ¡°Ah, are you awake mother?¡± She asks with a worried expression, sometimes I think that¡¯s all the expression she could ever make. ¡°Yes¡­ but what about Morgant?¡± ¡°Lord Morgant¡¯s fine, he said he won and that he¡¯ll take care of the rest. He told me to gather up everyone to regroup within the city.¡± ¡°I see.¡± I looked around to see Kyrios and Ordwell were also running towards the city. So they made it out alive as well, that was reassuring. With a smile I close my eyes once more. PART FIVE -Morgant Fallon¡¯s PoV- ¡°To even have dragged a child into war, I¡¯m sorry.¡± Kneeling down in front of me was Andras. I¡¯ve also undone my transformation and was back into my child form¡­ well it¡¯s my true form. ¡°You don¡¯t have to blame yourself, I¡¯m here because I chose to be here. I¡¯ve had plenty of chances to escape but I decided I wanted to fight.¡± I answered honestly but she shook her head in disapproval. ¡°Something like that, you can only say that because you¡¯re still young. You should escape from here and not let your passion take over you. You still have a lot to live for after all, a human child has no business with the affairs of demons and gods.¡± It seems she¡¯s mistaken my intent in being here, she believes that I¡¯m here under some na?ve notion of passion and fighting for my side. Of course that also means that she has complete confidence that her side would win. ¡°I think you¡¯ve mistaken my intent. Truthfully I would not be here if there was no chance of victory.¡± I confront her with that but she gives me a dry smile, one that was a little unbefitting of her sharp expression. I couldn¡¯t feel any sort of intent on battle coming from her, perhaps she¡¯s being overtaken by guilt at starting this whole thing? Honestly she didn¡¯t really seem like a bad person, or rather behind those sharp gaze I thought I saw a tender person. ¡°Poor child, you really should escape. No matter how much you believe in the demon legion and the demon lord, against these absurdly powerful gods there¡¯s just no chance. I¡¯ll make sure that no one comes after you so please leave.¡± It was my time to shake my head in disapproval this time. ¡°Sorry, but I¡¯ve no intentions of running away by myself. Or rather it¡¯d all be over if I did that.¡± ¡°I see¡­ then as an act of mercy I¡¯ll try to negotiate your survival after all this is over.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you underestimating me a little too much? When it¡¯s all said and done, I also have the same position as you; I¡¯m also a demon general.¡± ¡°Eh?¡± When I revealed my rank she was seriously surprised as evident by her large open eyes of disbelief. I think it started to dawn on her that I couldn¡¯t really be just some kid if I was in the middle of this war, especially if I was on the side of the demon legion instead of a human side like the Crimson Knights. ¡°You didn¡¯t realize? I thought you were the one who gathered us all here, including me.¡± I confronted her, perhaps her memories of our fight was a little hazy due to her blood rage? ¡°No¡­ I only tasked my subordinate to gather for the demon generals.¡± ¡°Right, and I¡¯m telling you that I am one. I guess I can¡¯t blame you for not thinking a mere human child could be a demon general.¡± She stayed quiet. ¡°Still¡­ I¡¯m sorry to have dragged you into this mess. It really is a horrible sight isn¡¯t it? War that is.¡± With no hostile intents she watched the other fighting soldiers, incidentally her subordinates joined our side and was also helping round up the last remaining heaven realm¡¯s army. ¡°Is it? I wonder¡­ To think of war as unpleasant, perhaps I¡¯ve overestimated the maturity of the people of this era. War is not simply men trying to kill each other, it is a clash of ideals; people stand up to defend in what they believe in, enough to sacrifice their lives for. Certainly it is far from beautiful or pleasant, but it is also poetic.¡± I answered her casually, with no hint of malice or sarcasm in my tone. Was I being hypocritical? Even though I built a machine to stop wars myself? No, that isn¡¯t entirely correct, the context is different. The reason I built that machine in the first place wasn¡¯t merely to stop wars, it was to pave a future for a world that refused to co operate. However, this situation is different, in the purest essence this war is a war of ideology, or so it would seem from the perspective of the soldiers who are fighting. I wonder if it really is true of the upper echelon, I do think that they truly view our side as evil and a pest but if it was merely that then this war wouldn¡¯t have happened. There¡¯s still something else to this war. I stare up at the large yellow crystals floating off in the distance. They follow the movement of the enemy soldiers, and each time they or the enemy dies a crystalline zombie emerges. Just what is the point of that? I mean obviously there are military benefits from using that cruel crystal but it just doesn¡¯t seem like the kind of action someone who believes that they were justice would take. ¡®It isn¡¯t all of them, but a few of the dead souls have ceased entering the realm of the dead. They¡¯ve been made to forever walk the lands of this world, bound by some kind of force, and it isn¡¯t just a couple hundred, but thousands.¡¯ I remember the previous demon lord¡¯s, Erendel¡¯s words of that time when we met, about how the souls of the dead have ceased entering the realm of the dead. I wonder if there was an actual connection to this and that. ¡°What an optimistic view of war. I couldn¡¯t imagine any child saying something that profound. I guess you really are a demon general.¡± Andras answers me, she too has no malice or desires to fight. Indeed she was the reason why this war was even taking place but like I said, that merely the consequences from the actions the previous generation of werewolves took. Most likely she too is a victim as well as the perpetrator, we can¡¯t pin all the blame on the previous generation after all. ¡°Do you hate it? That you¡¯ve become what you are today? Do you truly see yourself as nothing but a monster?¡± I asked her and she grimaces. ¡°Of course I do. Everyday¡­ every waking moment I¡¯m forced to realize that I¡¯m no longer the person I used to be; forced to live out my life as a monster because of this wretched curse! ¡­ but I know now that it was only us who had the idea, in the end it was our naivet¨¦ that truly took away our humanity.¡± ¡°Well if you¡¯ve understood that much then I guess it will be fine. Anyway I want you to regroup with the other demon generals in the city.¡± ¡°I understand¡­ I need to take responsibility after all¡­ I¡¯ll fight Nodens to my last breath, for all the things Astaroth had done for us, it¡¯s the least I can do.¡± She says in a dejected voice. ¡°You¡¯re mistaken, I just want you to regroup with the others. Leave Nodens to me.¡± ¡°Eh? you intend to take on Nodens directly?! That¡¯s reckless!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry I have an ace.¡± ¡°An ace?¡± I nodded and repeated myself. ¡°Old world magic.¡± PART SIX ¡°Accessing [GUNGNIR] system. Access code: X914OMEGA. Set target location. Commence Orbital Bombardment on my signal.¡± I chanted the old world magic spell to myself. But seriously. He really was blatantly arrogant, he even let Astaroth and the others escape while he continues to stand at the city gates. I¡¯m referring to Nodens of course. Well whatever, everything had gone smoothly according to plan and all the pieces have lined up perfectly, I couldn¡¯t help but let out a smirk. The enemy soldiers had gathered up and were at our front gates and the three enemy gods were in front of me. ¡±So in the end it is you, child of evil. So the best the demon legion could muster up was a mere 10 year old human child. Pathetic.¡± He taunts me and insults everyone else. ¡°Now, don¡¯t be like that. Humans are the most unpredictable race after all.¡± He scowls at me, stabbing through me with his glare. Instantly my smirk disappears, only hatred boils down at the depths of my heart. Everything had come full circle, we were at each other¡¯s swords once again, just like 2 years ago. How I waited for this time. The time to stamp on his pride and mock him; it is far more appealing to me than outright killing him right now. I can¡¯t kill him anyway, we don¡¯t have enough power, but I can destroy him. ¡°I¡¯ve waited so long for this day Nodens. You don¡¯t know how much I¡¯ve been thinking of destroying you; not a single day went by without me running countless simulations of me destroying you.¡± ¡°Insolent. Who do you think you are?¡± He stares me down. ¡°Right¡­ right¡­ it¡¯s that stare, I¡¯ve missed it so! WHO AM I?! I AM MOBIUS! THE TRUE INHERITOR OF TERRA! I OWN THIS PLANET! SO GET THE FUCK OFF MY PLANET!¡± I shouted at him with all the anger that welled deep down inside me. He was the single being I could not forgive the most, for taking everything away from me, I will take away his everything, his pride as a god! I will smash it on the ground and spit on it! I WILL DESTROY HIM. He starts to speak. ¡°Child of evil, what do you think you can do against beings far beyond your comprehension?! You are nothing but a mere human against those who are your infinite greater! My biggest mistake was not killing you when I had the chance!¡± ¡®Idiots¡¯, I mutter under my breath. I spread out my arms in a welcoming manner with a gleeful face. Winds surround me, not because of any skill but because of the pressure of what was to come. The clouds in the sky starts to swirl around violently. ¡°Commence Orbital Bombardment.¡± In an instant the clouds part and a single white beam of immense power is struck down before me. Having incurred the wrath of the Mobius Empire, it engulfs everything! EVERYTHING! END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 71 NECROMANCER DEMON GENERAL GOD OF DREAD Strength: 253 (240 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 20] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 45 (PASSIVE) [Undead''s Tenacity]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Mental Fortress]: Level 12 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 41 (AUGMENT) [Transformation - Aspect of the Black Pharaoh]: Level 11 (ACTIVE) [Avatar of Nyarlathotep]: Level 11 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 42 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 50 (MASTSERED) (ACTIVE) [Summon - Terror of the Depths]: Level 1/Required Level: 100 (ACTIVE) [Soul Bind Summoning]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Ghost King]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Succubus Princess]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Spider Queen]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 44 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 44 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 44 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 44 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian''s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father''s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight] Chapter 27 - Not today, maybe not even in 10 years, but someday Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C Not today, maybe not even in 10 years, but someday Chapter XXVII PART ONE -Astaroth De Signa¡¯s PoV- [Eternum Calendar - Year 990] ¡°Perhaps I¡¯m the last one to be speaking but shouldn¡¯t we be helping him?¡± Andras spoke, no doubt she had a fairly good point and despite knowing that Morgant had something that would lead him to ultimate victory, I had no idea how he would go about achieving that. It could very well be that he does it with our help, so perhaps rushing to his side and backing him up was the correct decision, however there was still something at the back of my mind holding me back. ¡®It¡¯s better to not interfere with his work, let¡¯s place our trust and leave everything up to him¡¯, it said. Indeed, I had far too little information about what Morgant was planning to do so acting rashly on my part was most likely going to be detrimental. If the situation really took a turn for the worst, more than it was now, then I would jump in but for now they appeared to be sizing each other up. Hurdled back at the top most floor of the Sanctuary, the throne room, we peered out the window to see what was happening. Even though I had half a mind to rush in, I held myself back as best I could. The best thing I could do now was heed my instincts and standby. So to Andras¡¯ question I denied her by shaking my head. ¡°We¡¯ll continue to watch the situation. I¡¯m sure he has something up his sleeve.¡± I tried to reassure everyone. ¡°Certainly if it¡¯s Morgant he¡¯ll probably have prepared something but I can¡¯t help but worry. After everything¡¯s said and done he¡¯s the weakest one here right? Is there really such a thing he could use to defeat the gods that even we could not?¡± Arachna, the spider queen, asked in a worrisome voice. I also understood her worries well. What she said was true, I couldn¡¯t imagine anything that Morgant could do that we couldn¡¯t have already done. He¡¯s no great warrior or magician, if anything he¡¯s a boy with a lot of tricks hidden behind that scheming persona, but would that actually work against gods? The strongest beings in all of Eternis? Still, I was able to maintain my composure through all of this, but that was merely because I knew the outcome of this battle, I saw it in the vision. Considering Arachna¡¯s personality towards Morgant she¡¯s exercising a considerable amount of self-control to not just disregard my words and barge into the fray. ¡°He¡¯s your master right? The one you chose to serve him for the rest of your life, then you should trust in him.¡± ¡°But¡­ still. I can¡¯t imagine what he could possibly do to turn this situation around from the lost cause it already is.¡± Arachna says, while she was reserved when she was in Morgant¡¯s presence, right now she was being fairly candid about her emotions and thoughts. From that alone I could only laugh dryly at how much she actually thought and cared about him. ¡®He¡¯s really loved¡¯, I thought to myself. ¡°If anything, perhaps he¡¯s going to win with words? Despite being a ten year old, he possess a comparable amount of intelligence that rivals the best minds in the legion, not only that he also has an incredibly slippery silver tongue after all.¡± Cedric comments, trying to find a logical conclusion. That does seem exactly like what Morgant would do but it conflicted with what I had seen in my vision of the future. What I saw was the aftermath of Morgant¡¯s triumph, at the very least it appeared that Nodens and his kin suffered a considerable amount of damage. ¡°¡­ Old world magic.¡± From the side my daughter, Lilith, muttered something under her breath. ¡°Magic?¡± I asked for clarification. ¡°Lord Morgant said he¡¯d use something called ¡®old world magic. I¡¯m unfamiliar with that kind of magic or if it even existed in the first place.¡± She answered. ¡°Ah, he told that to me as well. That he had something to end the war.¡± Andras reinforced. ¡®Old world magic¡¯? I contemplated to myself. I¡¯ve also never heard of such a magic, in the first place what does ¡®old world¡¯ even refer to? Certainly it¡¯s not an element or attribute, perhaps it was some form of ancient magic? ¡®If you, Astaroth, represent the future, then I represent the past¡¯¡­ The past¡­ even now I don¡¯t fully understand what he means by that. Perhaps it¡¯s unrelated but I remembered a certain event, about 2 or so years ago I sent Cedric down to investigate a mysterious dungeon known as GLADSHEIM, it was Morgant who helped him gain access, even activated the long dormant artefact somehow. Form Cedric¡¯s words he was able to ¡®converse¡¯ with the artefact but other than that it wasn¡¯t anything of note, at least not for us, is what Morgant said. GLADSHEIM¡¯s language is thought to be an ancient one that even the followers, the Mermaids do not understand its words. However a ten year old human could? Perhaps there was something there, though if that really was the case it does bother me a little that he would keep it a secret but it could be that the artefact asked him to do so, or that only he could access it so it truly was worthless for the rest of us. Enhancing my kinetic vision like a magnifying glass I was able to view the situation fairly well, though I wasn¡¯t able to hear what they were saying. From the looks of it they were finished with talking and were angrily staring each other down. So he¡¯s still not gotten over the fate of his family, well that¡¯s to be expected as it¡¯s only been two years, the anger he shoes Nodens is genuine. However soon something odd caught my interests. ¡°Hmm?¡± I involuntarily spoke out. ¡°Is something the matter, mother?¡± Lilith asked with curiosity. ¡°No, it¡¯s just¡­¡± I didn¡¯t even know how to explain this situation, something felt a little off about how Morgant was acting. ¡°He¡¯s¡­ smiling?¡± Arachna answered for me. She was able to send her spiderlings as scouts so she also understood the situation at hand. Before anyone could continue the conversation there was a great change in atmosphere, that even we who were a long way from the battlefield could feel it. An intense pressure in the sky as it became arid and disruptive. The clouds in the sky started to move in erratic patterns, the likes of which I¡¯ve never seen. A bright like flashed across the sky as though it had brought the sun to this city covered in perpetual darkness. I could feel a tremor in the air and the earth beneath me starting to tense up and subtly shake, as though the ground itself was frightened of what¡¯s to come. The clouds started to swirl in t circular pattern above the front gate where Morgant and the other gods were. The lighting intensified and everything in this land was laid bare to the exposure. Even I could feel myself starting to feel a little distressed about the situation, like something big was about to head our way. In all of my years of existence, and perhaps not even father had seen or experienced something like this. It hadn¡¯t even started yet but I felt eager to see what was to come but at the same time I felt scared; that before whatever was the come my life had become insignificant. Soon the clouds parted as though a large circle was punched through it. An incredibly bright beam of light crashed down onto the land, as though the sky and heavens itself was falling down to bring retribution to the gods who invaded our domain. A great explosion¡­ would be an understatement; overwhelming power, disaster, fury and wrath was unleashed at the gates of our city, or more specifically the enemy gods. Each and everyone one of my generals and Morgant¡¯s servants were left speechless at the scene of utter overwhelming magnitude. We couldn¡¯t pry our eyes of this event even though the bright flashes were starting to hurt, and compounded with the heat that was given off that we could even feel at this distance it was hard to see but we continued. ¡®Old world magic¡¯? no, this was a power that far exceeded even the gods. It was the light of creation and destruction itself. PART TWO -Morgant Fallon¡¯s PoV- 30%, it¡¯s said that if a military loses around 30% of their total attack force it would be widely considered a defeat and it that it would be wise to move out to no incur anymore losses. Of course the decision to do so solely rested on the hands of the commander, but in all honesty the commander of the heaven realm probably didn¡¯t view his soldiers as people but more as expendable pawns. I couldn¡¯t deny that I didn¡¯t have such thoughts back in my prime but at least I tried to pretend I cared. Such thoughts went through my mind as I gleefully looked down at the three figures that who thought themselves the pinnacle of the world, no they weren¡¯t but I was at one point. Those who haven¡¯t seen the peak should not talk of it as though they had. This was the lesson to be taught to these ignorant fools. Gods? No, they are merely children. Currently I was standing at the center of a crater; one so large that it engulfed a third of Vertloch Skyreach, not only that the blast impact devastated over half of the remaining buildings turning the area around the crater into a desert. Impressive architectures turned into a desolate desert, dyed bloody by the harsh stare of the moon, though there were still some light emanating from the sky due to the orbital cannon. GUNGNIR, ¡®M - 01, High Impact Orbital Range Ion Cannon¡¯, capable of destroying anything in a 3km radius without exception, or that¡¯s how it was supposed to go. I had reduced the radius down by half and increased its accuracy and power output but I guess even after all that it wasn¡¯t enough to completely destroy a god. I had figured that was going to be the case anyway. As for me, I was safe from the blast since I was registered as the admin, well there¡¯s a long and complicated scientific explanation behind this function but since it¡¯s boring I¡¯ll skip it. In any case, the entirety of their 450 000 strong army that was banging out our gates, including our gates, no longer existed. They had all perished in a flash fire from a graveyard orbit ion cannon. A ¡®mass murderer¡¯, it would be apt to call me as such right now, since I did take away all their lives without even giving them a chance to put up a decent fight. I¡¯ve gracefully accepted that position, but I was already prepared to do so since 2 billion years ago, and I¡¯m sure the enemy soldiers were prepared for the fate they got the moment they decided to engage in this war. Still, even though the soldiers were enemies and this was a legitimate act of self defense, for their sake I will carry on their will and continue living. Now then, as for the three surviving figures who had suffered considerable amount of damage, I had to commend them for their impressive defensive capabilities and resilience. However I couldn¡¯t hold back my malicious smirk as I saw their downtrodden and devastated expressions after incurring the full wrath of my old world. Dagda was probably the one what received the most damage, his entire lower torso and his left arm were missing, even one of his wings were torn off, but as disgusting as it was, he didn¡¯t die. In fact he was rapidly regenerating himself at a frightening pace, perhaps in another 30 minutes or so he¡¯d be completely back to full health. I grimaced as that thought occurred in my mind. I drew my hand to the center of my face and massaged the bridge of my nose quietly as I looked down at them. Dian Cecht wasn¡¯t in that great of a shape either, he had suffered less damage but his entire right arm had been crushed and his mask was also lost in the blast. His clothing tattered and I could feel his life force dwindling away. His wings, the representation of his divinity weren¡¯t torn off like Dagda¡¯s but they were majorly damaged. His blank golden eyes staring down at the ground as he knelt in submission and lifelessness, he didn¡¯t even have the power to heal himself as I saw him using his entire stock of it trying to shield himself from the bombardment. Out of all of them, Nodens suffered the least amount of damage and even had a bit of fervor left in his eyes, no surprise there. His prosthetic silver right arm was completely destroyed, his clothes were also tattered and he sustained very visible wounds but none of which were life threatening. He probably had about 40% of his health and with a bit of time he too would be back on his feet before long. As for me, I had my back to the wall with my situation. I was no completely out of trump cards to play. The GUNGNIR was toast, I couldn¡¯t even connect to the central server to verify its condition. When I stared up at the sky that had regained its darkness, there was a faint meteor shower in the distance that briefly caught my attention, most likely they were the pieces of GUNGNIR after it had burnt up. Deep in my heart I thanked my dear friend Edmund Weisner who had helped me even after all these years. If not for him this probably would¡¯ve ended in the worst possible scenario, but because of him a way to pave my future was available. With those thoughts I returned to the current matter at hand. For now the current situation transitioned excellently into my area of expertise: negotiation, threat, intimidation, bluff and blackmail. ¡°To answer your previous question, that¡­ that is what I can do to supposed beings that were my ¡®infinite greater¡¯, if you¡¯re willing we can try again and finish it this time. But no, it really doesn¡¯t look like you¡¯d want that to happen. Now then you dogs, stand up.¡± I haughtily ordered them from a slightly elevated position. Dagda couldn¡¯t, for obvious reasons and Dian Cecht didn¡¯t even register what I was saying as he just had a blank expression. Nodens was the only one capable of heeding my words and he stood up whilst shooting me an intense glare of malice and hatred, but still complied with me. I could hear his breathing of discontent but that only filled me with more glee. ¡°Foolish Child! You think this is enough to silence us?! If so then you¡¯re gravely mistaken!¡± He tries to protest but that didn¡¯t sit too well with me. It annoyed me that he could still mouth of after what I had just done, and the possibility that I could do so again shouldn¡¯t have slipped his mind. His pride¡­ I wanted to crush it more. ¡°Nodens!¡± As I shout out his name he shuts up immediately and stares at me. ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Do you realize why you¡¯re currently still alive?! It¡¯s not because of your power or merit, but because I allowed it! It is only on a whim of mine that you still exist! Should I so desire it, I can and will end your pitiful life right this second! Not only now but I want you to dread every time you glance at the sky and ponder your own mortality at my hands!¡± ¡°¡­¡± He seems to have understood my intentions perfectly and that I had the upper hand in this situation, thus he continues to silently watch my movements as I slowly start to circle around them arrogantly. I peer down at them from time to time with a smirk. They say actively moving around helps blood circulate better in your body and clears your mind, right now I needed that. I was feeling a little too high on my own triumph that I feared that I would ruin everything I built up til now. It¡¯s taking every inch of my entire being to stop myself from trying to kill him, however it¡¯s impossible for me as of now, I still lack the power to do so especially with GUNGNIR coming offline. So right now I¡¯ll do the only thing I can, but someday I¡¯ll be sure to finish him off. Not to mention I was also doing it to seem more imposing and to show them that I currently wielded the power on whether they lived or died. Which I don¡¯t anymore but they don¡¯t have to know that. Anyway I have one question for him. ¡°Why was it? Why did you attack my village? You have no right to refuse my question.¡± He closes his eyes and pause for a moment before answering. ¡°Because there was someone who wished for it.¡± ¡°What? That¡¯s not an answer, who? Who wished for such a ludicrous thing?! Just who?!¡± ¡°¡­¡± He doesn¡¯t speak. ¡°You¡¯d be wise to talk while you¡¯re still able, lest you wish to test my patience.¡± ¡°My subordinate, a child named Odysseus. It was he who advised me that it would be prudent to take you out while I still could. Seems that his judgement wasn¡¯t mistaken.¡± Odysseus? As in the legend? He said it was a child, how does a child know about me? ¡°How does this child know about me?¡± He shook his head. ¡°I know not, only that he had some history with you.¡± A child¡­ could it be another reincarnated individual? Was that even possible? Someone who had a history with me and likely despises me¡­ no I¡¯ve had far too many enemies back then that it¡¯s hard to actually pinpoint a guess. In the first place I don¡¯t even understand the principles of being reincarnated, but since this planet is Earth it should be possible to analyze back at GLADSHEIM. If I have that information it might be easier to deduce who it is that was targeting me. If I go back to GLADSHEIM now it should have had enough time to process a lot of information, information that I really need right about now. I¡¯ll have to think about this later, for now I need to continue on with this conversation before they get complacent. Now then, I¡¯ve been thinking about what this entire war was about. It would be easy for me to ask them right now but that would make me lose a lot of my standings in this situation so it was better for me to formulate my own answers. At first the pretext was for the revenge of the werewolves who were wronged but that obviously was exactly that, simply a pretext. The casually cast the [insanity] curse on them so I suspected that there was a more deeper significance to this declaration of war. My line of reasoning turned towards the mysterious yellow crystals that they brought out, which was broken now, destroyed by the bombardment. In any case it turns the dead into empowered zombies, really, what reason was there for them to bring in such an accursed object? I mean sure, for tactical and strategic reasons but examine that closely and you¡¯d see that there was no reason to bring this out at all. Nodens himself could wiped the floor with everyone here including all demon generals and the entire 500 000 strong demon legion without that crystal. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Surely it wasn¡¯t because Nodens wanted to limit the casualties on his side either, he merely saw his allies as pawns after all. Which then brought me to one conclusion. That they were building an army. But that brings up more questions than answers. Firstly, why? What for? For who? For when? Surely there couldn¡¯t be a being more powerful than Nodens that he¡¯d need an entire army of crystalline zombies, in fact these zombies weren¡¯t even that powerful, compared to the high powered, top tier beings in this world. At most they serve as a slightly more sturdy meat shield and cannon fodder. If anything they can be used to stop another army in multiple locations. There was only one thing that fit the criteria for this, not in this world but one that would soon to be. I was told many years ago by GLADSHEIM of a cosmic event that would fuse this world with another. Could it be that he was preparing for that time? But how does he know? Of course there¡¯s a chance that I¡¯m entirely off basis with this but the situation aligns perfectly if that was the case. For starters this attack would¡¯ve been done to convert the demon legion into mindless zombie slaves to use as cannon fodder for when the enemy arrives. No it wasn¡¯t just this war, it could be that perhaps the first heaven realm¡¯s war was also for this purpose, but he wasn¡¯t able to completely win. ¡°You know of it don¡¯t you? The actual threat that¡¯s to come.¡± I asked him in a vague manner so it would fit most thoughts he would be thinking of. He glares at me in contemplation for a bit but decides to talk. ¡°¡­ What do you know?¡± He reverses the question. How sneaky of him but I couldn¡¯t lose face so I decided to focus in on the search parameters. If we¡¯re talking about Nodens, no his real name would be Nuadha, in the Celtic mythology his race, the Tuatha de Danann, were wiped out by a foreign invasion; the Milesians.¡± ¡°An invasion. Milesians¡­ no Romans.¡± Milesian comes from the root word Mil Espaine, meaning soldier of Hispania, which was part of the Roman body. Thus it could very well be that the enemies are the Roman deity. Jupiter, Neptune, Juno, Mars, etc. ¡°There was a prophecy of a great threat that was to shift the balance of this entire world and change its very foundations. Never before seen gods and their subjects would come to conquer this world; to conquer Eternis.¡± He started to explain what he knew. ¡°Prophecy¡­¡± Indeed in such fantasy stories there was always some sort of prophecy. Even Astaroth has the power to see into the future, it wouldn¡¯t be weird if some other being had that power and saw the arrival of the Milesians. Of course I had my doubts as to whether Nodens really wanted to prevent the conquer of our planet, after all he¡¯s such a vain character. ¡°I couldn¡¯t stand to see my world be conquered by another, thus I steeled myself to build a military that was to crush the enemy¡¯s.¡± ¡°I see, it¡¯s starting to make sense now, your prophecy was about the end of your era. You can drop your vain act and say what you really want. It was written in that prophecy wasn¡¯t it? Your own demise that is, that is why you¡¯re so desperate to build an army against them. You were scared.¡± ¡°¡­ Tch.¡± He clicks his tongue as he averts his gaze. In any case forming an alliance¡­ would obviously be impossible, not to mention the fact that I have no intention to get along with him. He¡¯s through once I gain enough power, so for now I¡¯ll have to let him go under the pretext of caution against the unknown threat. ¡°Whatever, I¡¯ve no time to play with you fools, and since there is an unknown threat that affects all of us I¡¯ll be keeping you alive. Perhaps you¡¯ll make good meat shields later down the line but know this, if you ever get in my way again I will destroy you without a second thought.¡± ¡°Tch, child of evil let me warn you while you still have the chance. You may have the upper hand now, but someday down the line you¡¯ll slip up, and when that time comes it is I who will destroy you. It may not be anytime soon, not next year, not ten years but some day.¡± ¡°Try it if you can.¡± He glares at me before taking out a small teleportation crystal. I¡¯ve only seen it once before when Arachna had it. Using that crystal he disappears along with the two other deities. Once I confirm that they were truly gone I feel to my knees. ¡°Morgant!¡± ¡°Lord Morgant!¡± I could hear the voices of everyone else calling out to me from behind. With all the tension in my body starting to leave me I couldn¡¯t keep my consciousness any longer and fell into a deep slumber. PART THREE I was surrounded by darkness, most likely due to having lost consciousness, but since I could think straight it could be that I was having a lucid dream. Or so I thought until I saw familiar computerized words appear before me. [System patch¡­ 15%] [System patch¡­ 45%] [System patch¡­ 85%] [System patch¡­ complete] [System updated] Ominous robotic-like words appeared before me. [Operator System Ver. 2 initializing¡­] [Initialization complete] [Please select secondary class] [Magician] [Knight] [Archer] [Cleric] [Assassin] [Brawler] [Alchemy] [Puppeteer] [Bard] Secondary class? So I¡¯m able to choose another class, of course [Necromancer] was gone from the list since I was already one. I contemplated for a little while, about why this suddenly appeared. Could it be that I¡¯ve reached a certain level and this gets unlocked? Now that I think about it there is a lot of things about this interface system that I don¡¯t know. From the looks of it no one else in this world has this ability so it couldn¡¯t be natural, then the next likely scenario was that it was a product of my old world, but I don¡¯t remember anything like this either. More questions to ask GLADSHEIM I suppose. So then what class was I supposed to choose? Ideally a [brawler] or [knight] would easily complement my high [strength] stats, but a thought came to mind. Perhaps I may be wasting this opportunity, but the information I received the GLADSHEIM piqued my interests. About time travel, by now I¡¯ve unfortunately already given up on that goal but what it said was interesting. About two opposing forces colliding to create another force, though it may not be to the level where I can rip through time I may be able to garner considerable energy from it. So then there was one option. [Cleric] Opposing my abilities of death would be abilities corresponding with life, thus a cleric. Not to mention is sorely lack any method of healing outside of [life drain]. And there are also times where I have wanted to heal someone else but was unable to, with this it is possible. It¡¯s funny, I never thought I¡¯d be taking these things seriously. At first I thought this life was merely a temporary thing for me do until I found a way back to my own world but that turned out to be impossible. In the end I¡¯m still here and have risked my life to fight beings calling themselves ¡®gods¡¯. No doubt in the future there will be many times where I have to clash with beings many times my strength. And for every sword, a shield must also be at its side. The skills of a [cleric] sure does compliment my [necromancy] in unexpected ways. Those were my fleeting thoughts as I tapped on the button. I had become a [cleric] and my consciousness started to fade once more. [New skill Acquired: [Ascension (Fusion)]]/ Required level 200 PART FOUR Opening my eyes once more I was met with a room cast in darkness, on closer examination it was a room in the Sanctuary. I was placed on a bed and allowed to rest after the war. A familiar feeling crept up next to me under my blanket, I gave out a dry laugh as I slowly pulled up to confirm who it was. There was Astaroth¡¯s sleeping form. A cute girl who slept peacefully while hugging onto me, I couldn¡¯t help by run my hands through her hair. Once again she woke up from the sudden touch and with sleepy eyes she greeted me. ¡°Ah, good morning Morgant~¡± ¡°Good morning Astaroth.¡± She didn¡¯t get up but proceeded to hug me tightly. At first I was confused but found myself in a rather compromising position with Astaroth tightly holding me back as she pushed me down while on top of me. She had more strength in her than I gave her credit for and even I wasn¡¯t able to push her away easily, I mean I could¡¯ve if I tried but I was curious so I let it be. ¡°Is something the matter?¡± She asked with a seductive voice. ¡°Not really, but is there any reason why you¡¯re pushing me down like this?¡± ¡°Of course there is. You haven¡¯t forgotten our promise have you?¡± ¡°Promise¡­? Ah¡­¡± Before the war we¡­ I thought she was joking about that but evidently she wasn¡¯t. I mean this world didn¡¯t have anything like age of consent laws and I certainly wasn¡¯t a child in mind but still, something felt a little awkward. Evidently she didn¡¯t feel exactly the same way as I have since she leaned in and stared deeply into my eyes. Her blaze red eyes, clear of innocence but surprisingly untainted. ¡°Good it seems you remembered. Since this is likely your first time I¡¯ll take the lead and-¡° I gestured her to stop, confused she complied and asked what was up. ¡°Why me, Astaroth? We¡¯ve hardly ever met and there are plenty of other people who are far more deserving of your affection. It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t like you but simply that I have too little knowledge of you, certainly it should be the same of you.¡± She gave me a cute smile as she answered my question. ¡°You have already done plenty but I do not find myself attracted to you because of what you did but because of what you will do. What we would do together, because of my ability I¡¯ve seen it, and what I saw made me realize my own feelings. The time you and I experience are different; for you it may seem as though my sudden affections are strange but for me I have experienced a far greater amount of you. I live both for and in the future, and I have chosen you to be the most fitting to be by my side.¡± At her words I could only dryly smile and let out a small laugh, ¡®haha¡¯. I see, so that¡¯s how it was, certainly she did have such a power. I give up, this girl, I couldn¡¯t defeat her no matter what way I tried. She¡¯s far too precious, though I feel that no one can ever replace Erin in my heart perhaps there is room for another. I could feel the side of my face becoming wet with tears. ¡®How odd¡¯, I thought. Another person¡¯s love, I never thought I would experience such a thing. The love I felt with my family is different than this¡­ this raw emotion, so powerful that it pierces my own heart. I did not think it was possible for any person in this world to understand me, but if it was her, perhaps it was. Though I feel as though using the power of foresight was a little cheating but I could forgive her for that, she was the first one since Erin that made my heart race by her mere presence. Astaroth wiped away the tears falling from my eyes with a worried expression. I took advantage of her good will and embraced her. She accepted and gently stroke through my hair. ¡°I can¡¯t win against you, can I?¡± I asked a rhetorical question but she replied nonetheless. ¡°Nope, I¡¯ve claimed you the moment I set my eyes upon you.¡± Once again I pulled away and stared into her large red eyes. She presses her lips against mine, I think this was a third time she¡¯s done so and I¡¯ve already gotten used to it. I felt my brain go numb from pleasure and an innate desire to continue swelled deep inside me. Continue¡­ to where? I audible gulped. And thus I became an adult at the mere age of 10¡­ though the implications of this single night, I didn¡¯t know of it until much further down the line. PART FIVE Once more I woke up in bed, without clothes this time. Feeling a little vulnerable I got dressed immediately. Astaroth was still sleeping next to me, also without clothes so I pulled the blanket up so she doesn¡¯t get cold. It was a long and drawn out fight so no doubt everyone was a little tired. We would discuss things later so for now it was probably for the best that everyone was resting. As for me I felt an odd sense of vigor and decided to roam around for a bit. Once I exited the room there was a tall and slender figure waiting for me. With a fox like smile and his short brown ponytail swaying from side to side as he drew closer to me. ¡°Congratulations, you¡¯ve become an adult, at such a young age too.¡± ¡°¡­¡± I glared at him and he did a double take while apologizing with his gestures. He coughed to clear out his throat and restart this conversation. ¡°It seems everyone here is asleep.¡± He speaks out like it was strange. ¡°Well, that¡¯s to be expected, they¡¯ve just been in a life or death war.¡± ¡°That is true too. To be honest I did not think this war would end so favorably.¡± I gave a smirk to him as I answered. ¡°It was trust. From one old friend to another.¡± At my vague answers he didn¡¯t seem to quite get what I was saying but that didn¡¯t matter. Once more I silently thanked my dear old friend in my heart before coming back to the situation at hand. ¡°So when did you get back?¡± I asked him. ¡°After I saw an impressive light show I thought that one side would be victorious. Thus I decided to come see for myself while placing my trust in you.¡± ¡°Of course you did. Then was there something you wanted to say or was this just pleasantries?¡± He smiles and takes out a small letter from his coat pocket and hands it over to me. Curious I opened the letter with his permission and started to read it. It was about an offer to become the headmaster at the most prestigious school in all of Ariadyne, it was at the Grand Capital which was at the center of the center continent. That place was also known as a hub for all sorts of trade and business, especially with the adventurer association¡¯s head building being located there. I suppose the most equivalent would be that that place was the New York of this world, if you wanted to go big that¡¯s where you had to be. The fact that he was showing me this letter must mean that he wants me to come with? Certainly if I went there could be a lot of information on this world. After all, my goals had changed from trying to get back to my old world to trying to live in this world, but that won¡¯t be possible if the Milesians invade. So I¡¯m obviously going to be dragged into this war as well but unlike this time I have no superweapon on hand. I needed alliance, with many different power individuals, but to find them I need information, which brings me back to the Grand Capital. I guess my next destination really would be there and I could use the school that Enrich was going to be a headmaster of as a base of operations. ¡°I see. I did have some business there so I don¡¯t mind tagging along.¡± I answered as I returned the letter. ¡°Very good.¡± He answered with a smile. END REPORT [Status Menu] Morgant Fallon. Level 78 NECROMANCER/CLERIC DEMON GENERAL GOD OF DREAD Strength: 253 (240 + 13) Dexterity: 12 (5 + 7) Magic: 29 (5 + 24) Insight: 124 (100 + 24) Agility: 11 (5 + 6) [Status Points: 55] [Skill List] (PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Toxin Resistance]: Level 45 (PASSIVE) [Undead''s Tenacity]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (PASSIVE) [Mental Fortress]: Level 12 (AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 41 (AUGMENT) [Transformation - Aspect of the Black Pharaoh]: Level 11 (ACTIVE) [Avatar of Nyarlathotep]: Level 11 (ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 42 (ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Summon - Skeleton Knight]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Shadow Lance]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (ACTIVE) [Shadow Shield]: Level 50 (MASTSERED) (ACTIVE) [Summon - Terror of the Depths]: Level 1/Required Level: 100 (ACTIVE) [Soul Bind Summoning]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Ghost King]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Succubus Princess]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SOUL BIND) [Summon - Spider Queen]: Level 50 (MASTERED) (SUB SKILL) [Anti-Life Gambit]: Level 44 (SUB SKILL) [Intimidating Roar]: Level 44 (SUB SKILL) [Shield Charge): Level 44 (SUB SKILL) [Fortification): Level 44 (FUSION SKILL) [Ascension]: Level 1/Required Level 200 (TEMPORARY) [Evil Eye]: Level 50 (MASTERED) [Equipment] [Shard of Tyrving] + 4 [All Stats] [Sebastian''s Pocket Watch] + 3 [Strength] + 3 [Dexterity] + 3 [Insight] [Father''s Sword Hilt] + 6 [Strength] + 4 [Insight] + 2 [Agility] [Necronomicon] +[20 Magic] +[13 Insight]
Well. I think in about 2 or so more chapters we should be up to date where the old version left off. I''m obviously cutting out Hastur''s arc for reasons that I''ll get to later. Overall, I think I did a fairly good job catching up in 2 months like I said, that being said please forgive me since I''ll be going over to October to truly catch up! I hope you will all understand... no wait! please put down those pitch forks! No~! Prologue #4 - His lifes work Re: Ascension Rebirth ¨C His life¡¯s work Prologue 4 [Eternum Calendar - Year 990] ¡°Clear out the labs and rescue the captives!¡± A strong and authoritative voice commanded loudly, shortly following the order sounds of heavy metallic clangs from metal greaves hitting against the concrete floors could be heard resounding through the tight hallways. Imperial knights bearing the mark of the West Tetrarchy, clad in expensive full plate metal armor were in the process of raiding an illegal operations lab. For months now the West Tetrarchy had learnt of disturbing news about entire human and elven settlements disappearing without much of a trace. Almost as though all of the inhabitants were spirited away, but soon they had learnt that illegal experiments were being conducted for an unknown purpose. They had found many such testing labs with such disturbing imagery inside; mangled and dismembered corpses and vats all over the place. The smell was even more terrible than the grotesque sights. Unfortunately the West Tetrarchy had always been one step late to such parties and by the time the raids took place the labs were usually evacuated in haste. Hoping that this wasn¡¯t the case this time, Imperial knights of the West charged into an underground laboratory. Adorned in impressive full plate armor that was visibly better than the average imperial knight¡¯s, a female leader with shoulder length white hair kicked the doors in to the inner laboratory. The leader was Soumee, a Praetorian Knight otherwise known as the highest possible rank for a knight. After having cleared out most of the outer layers of the place they were unable to find anyone else again. The last place to be checked was the innermost area of the lab. Once the doors were flung off its hinges it flew into the room exposing a noxious gas that was sealed behind. ¡°Stand back! Make sure you don breathe in the gas, who knows what it is!¡± Soumee shouted out the order, though she herself didn¡¯t find the need to cover her mouth or nose from the gas. The knights under her command had assumed it was simply because she had some sort of magic but that wasn¡¯t quite the case. It was a little known fact that the vast majority of people did not know, but the only people who possessed natural white hair was an undead race known as Homunculus. Because of this she did not mind the noxious gas or its harmful effects on her body and simple walked into a dimly lit inner lab. To her disappointment however there was nothing of note that could be found in the place, aside from a single cylindrical tank in the center. The water inside glowed a menacing green, with a single specimen inside. The fruit of this laboratory¡¯s labor; a disgusting entity made from the sacrifices of tens of lives, too disgusting to even call it a living thing. It was a werewolf, but not just any kind, an artificial one. Much bulkier than the rest of its kind, it was as though it was heavily injected with growth and muscle development serums. It was about twice the size of an average man, standing up at about 3.3 meters in height with thick claws that could easily pierce through heavy armor and kill the man inside. Covered in silver hair that acted as a natural coat and shield against the elements and dead eyes of red. For the most part it appeared to be dead but that wasn¡¯t the case, it was very much alive, Soumee knew this very well as she had encountered this thing many times before when raiding the other labs. However this one was slightly different, a little bigger and more menacing looking. This was a bad sign as it meant that the experiments were progressing even further, these abominations would become even stronger. As it currently stood it took around 10 ~ 15 imperial knights to take out one of these, but this one in particular perhaps required around 20 ~ 30 knights. As to not startle the specimen Soumee cautioned the men to slowly enter the room and surround it. The biggest problem with these monstrosities were not its strength or defense but its incredible speed. If this thing got out into the wild it could easily outpace every single solder and escape into the wild, which would be disastrous for various reasons. As to ensure that wasn¡¯t going to be the case they surrounded it to try and take it out in this small and cramped underground lab. There was no easy way to take these things out as they didn¡¯t have a glaring weakness; their natural defenses were tough, their natural offensive capabilities were even higher. The only problem they suffered was that their attacks were simply melee based, but even that could be mitigated easily as they had an enormous speed advantage against most beings. Their plan was simple, Soumee was going to initiate the fight by breaking the tank open and stabbing at the werewolf. If it died from that, then it was fine if not they would move on to the next phase which was to fight it. Each knight had a large shield for defenses and a sword, thus they would make a circle around the lab with their shields in front and the swords sticking out. Since no knight would be able to take it on, they would act as a wall for their leader, Soumee to fight it as she was the only one with enough strength to do so. Soumee waved her hands around to gesture for the knights to get into position and complying with her commands they formed a circle around the tank. Soumee drew her sword from her hips and placed her shield forward as well. Since everyone was ready to begin Soumee did so without hesitation. She thrust her sword into the tank and stabbed the monster inside, as all of the water inside poured out the monster cried out in pain from the stab and immediately went berserk. The monster werewolf started to rampage about by tearing up all of the equipment in the lab, giving very little room for Soumee to move around as she was only able to defend from rogue projectile objects that were thrown about. Once the werewolf became aware of his surroundings it eyed Soumee, who was the one behind the stab and immediately went in for the attack. It had no prior knowledge of combat experience, thus it merely moved through its instincts and started hurling its claws around. Though the claws were extremely tough and thick, it fortunately wasn¡¯t able to penetrate through the metal tower shield that Soumee held. ¡°Grawww!¡± It shouted out as it rapidly threw out sharp and consecutive attacks despite its futility in trying to get past her shield. This wasn¡¯t simply because the materials of the shield were high quality, it was but that wasn¡¯t the main point, Soumee had used various defensive skills. [Stone Castle] - a skill that increased a user¡¯s innate defensive capability. It increased a user¡¯s defensive stat by 50% for a temporary period of time. [Iron Defense] - a skill that reinforced the user¡¯s armor¡¯s defensive properties. This skill only reinforced the user¡¯s armor and whatever shield they were carrying. Meaning that if they took off their armor the skill couldn¡¯t be used. For obvious reasons this skill was only able to be used when wearing heavy full plate armor. [Warrior¡¯s Tenacity] - a skill that prevented large knock backs, meaning that the user was able to stand their ground even if they received an entire body blow. This skill didn¡¯t particularly increase the user¡¯s defensive stats but it did give them a positional advantage when receiving attacks. All of these skills were high level defensive techniques that only paladin-class warriors were capable of using. There was one more defensive skill that could be used, [fortification] but that skill would convert the user¡¯s attack into defense but right now offense was also important in this fight, thus Soumee avoided using it. Soumee countered the werewolf¡¯s attack with a [shield bash] which pushed it back but its defensive capabilities were far higher than what she had originally anticipated. This monster was indeed a lot different from the previous iterations, this one was much more capable. ¡°Tch, this isn¡¯t good.¡± Soumee spoke to herself, it wasn¡¯t exactly the current situation that was bad but the fact that this monster was able to be created means that more could also be created. Even if she kills this one, what¡¯s stopping the creator from creating more? The werewolf stopped its movements, almost as though it was analyzing the situation, as if it showed it had measurable intelligence. All of the other iterations were simply mindless beasts but this one was different, it was clear that it was cunning and dangerous. It looked around since it recognized that it was unable to defeat Soumee thus it turned its sight against one of the knights that formed the circular wall. The monster started to glow a red hue around it. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Soumee instantly recognized what that meant, it was a skill known as [berserker] a high level warrior skill for that was the exact opposite of [fortification]. It decreased their defenses while increasing their attack and speed stats dramatically. ¡°Shit!¡± Soumee instantly thought and rushed to intercept what the werewolf was about to do. However the werewolf had a much greater speed advantage over her and was able to dash over to a knight much more quickly and instantly pierced through the shield with its thick claws. It instantly killed the solider and paved a way to the outside. Because of the effects of [berserker] and since Soumee wasn¡¯t as fast due to her heavy armor the werewolf took advantage of this and dashed outside. ¡°Quickly! After it!¡± Soumee issued the command as she ran out. All of the other knights renewed their determination to fight it after seeing their comrade die, because they knew that if this monster made it out to the wild then many more innocent people would die. ¡­ The werewolf was finally free from its captivity, however it felt no better than before. Its mind was a mangled mess of memories from the subjects used to create it. All it could feel was anger and hatred, it wanted to vent out all of its frustration onto anything that moved. Destroy. It simply wanted to destroy everything in sight. Of course it wasn¡¯t dumb either, it didn¡¯t want to fight those that were stronger than it, only those that were weaker. Rampage, it wanted to rampage! ¡°Graaaahhh!¡± It shouted out on top of its lungs, practically giving its position away, because of this the knights that were chasing it was finally able to locate it. However no worries, that didn¡¯t matter at all since it was much faster than the heavily adorned knights. As though glee had caught its emotions it almost wanted to taunt the soldiers for being unable to catch it. However at the moment when it finally thought it founds its freedom to run rampant a single explosive sound came from far away. A single deafening sound that resounded coldly through the forest that the werewolf was running through¡­ followed by a small tingling sound of metal dropping to the floor. It was such a foreign sound to the werewolf that it didn¡¯t quite understand what had made it. It tried searching through the memories of the people that were used to make this monster, but to no avail. No such sound was even remotely similar to the one that this had made. However that wasn¡¯t all, something else had happened. The werewolf found itself grovelling on the floor with its head rubbing against the dirt. ¡®Eh?¡¯ it had thought. It was then followed by an intense burst of pain that rushed up from its left leg. It didn¡¯t even understand what was causing it until it had actually taken a look at its left leg. ¡®Eh?¡¯ it thought once more. Its left leg was gone! No, it wasn¡¯t gone it was just lying a few meters away from it, detached from the main body. It started to cry out in pain as it tried to crawl away, staying here would only result in the knights finding it and kill it. However as it tried to, a single shadowy presence was creeping up to it. At first it sounded slow, merely footsteps could be heard but the werewolf noticed that it wasn¡¯t slow at all, the footsteps were headed to him extremely fast. A cold murderous sensation could be felt creeping up at its back, it needed to run, else its life would be in danger. It desperately tried to crawl away but the footsteps only got closer and closer until it felt a dark and sinister presence directly in front of it. When it looked up, it was a small human child, perhaps around the age of 10. However, it knew from the glare in her red and murderous eyes, that she was no mere 10 year old, it instinctively knew that it was because of her that it had lost its left leg. ¡°Poor creature. I shall put you out of your misery now. You are an existence that¡¯s not allowed to exist.¡± The werewolf recognized the child¡¯s words. She pulled out a small metallic object, in the shape of an L. it didn¡¯t know what this object was but it knew that it was extremely dangerous, but because of its injuries it was no longer able to escape. Memories of its brief life flashed across its mind and shortly after a smaller explosive sound echoed through the forest. Then the sound of a small metallic object dropping to the floor. Followed by absolute silence. ¡­ ¡°Lady Liliana!¡± Soumee came rushing forward after having just caught up. Upon arrival she found the corpse of the runaway werewolf and Liliana looming over it with a solemn look. Perhaps she was mourning for the dead werewolf? No, most likely she was mourning for the people that died trying to create this monster. A small hole pierced through the werewolf¡¯s skull. ¡°Soumee¡­ I¡¯ve dealt with the situation now. Let¡¯s return.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Without any further conversation they had returned to their home, the West Tetrarch¡¯s palace. ¡­ ¡°Lady Liliana, perhaps it¡¯s time to be thinking of attending school at the grand capital. Lady Lyssa had already gone¡­¡± Soumee had tried for months to persuade Liliana to start attending school but she was always met with the same excuse. ¡°You know I can¡¯t, not until the criminal who¡¯s doing these vile experiments are found.¡± The young lady was extremely talented as an individual, these past few years was a testament to that. She had become infinitely stronger than her own older sister who was said to be a genius upon birth but compared to the younger sister she would be seen as an average person. Even right now she was tinkering with some sort of metallic device on the work bench. There were two long metallic devices on the table, with multiple parts spread all around. Soumee had asked her once before what they were, to which she revealed their cryptic names. The longer one was known as a ¡®RT -20 AMR¡¯, apparently it was something called an ¡®anti-material rifle¡¯. And to the side of the table a smaller object known as a ¡®Mark XIX desert eagle¡¯. These two objects while looking harmless, were extremely powerful weapons, as evident by the earlier werewolf hunt. Liliana was the true genius, such words were echoed through the walls of the castle. Furthermore she had a strong sense of justice, she voiced opinions on helping those less fortunate than her. And currently to Liliana there was nothing more important than catching the heinous criminal who were creating these monstrosities. Soumee sighed, she pondered if she should give this information in the first place but decided to do so. ¡°Lady Liliana, it seems that the culprit behind these incidents is also moving the Grand Capital. His projected movements and base locations have indicated so. Thus if you truly wish to catch this criminal it would be more prudent to head to the Grand Capital. We could establish a base of operations at the school Lady Lyssa attends.¡± Liliana breathed a sigh. ¡°I guess there¡¯s really no choice huh¡­ school. I wanted to avoid that place as much as I could but¡­¡± Liliana made a sour face, but ultimately had agreed. The journey would likely take around a year or so factoring in multiple rest stops. ¡°Is something the matter? Is there are particular reason why you wished to avoid attending school?¡± Liliana shook her head and muttered something under her breath. ¡°I really didn¡¯t want to go back to such a place¡­¡±
I pondered on how to differentiate Liliana''s combat style from the standard magical and acrobatic type that most assassins in fantasy fictions have and after much deliberation I realized, ''wait, she''s an ASSASSIN! and an ALCHEMIST! and a COMBAT SPECIALIST FROM THE OLD WORLD!'' then it hit me like a truck, ''I should''ve done this from the beginning!'' And thus the guard dog upgraded its arsenal. It no longer has mere teeth and claws, it''s packing heat! P.S. I just want everyone to know, this isn''t going to be some simple school arc, no, far from it. I mean, maybe a little... a tiny bit? Well, I''ll be sure to add in a lot more interesting things so it''s not some slice of life school arc. P.P.S. I think everyone from the old world are cheaters. Till we meet again~ Sorry for not having any updates for this. I''ve decided to put this series into a little hibernation. Don''t worry I will guarantee with 100% certainty that I will continue this series back in December. Unless I die, then I wouldn''t be able to continue, but I don''t plan on dying any time soon so, look forward to that~ The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. I hope you can all understand, thank you very much. I am really sorry... =( I am really sorry to say but I have decided to abandon this story. I feel that I don''t even know where I was going with this and after writing Polymath Redux this story seems lack luster. It also seems like many people weren''t a fan of the tragedy aspects of it. To the people who have enjoyed it, I am truly sorry. However, while I won''t rewrite this story I have decided to write another story with pretty much the same character and premise as this one. So it will be like a spiritual successor to this one. After getting so far with Polymath Redux I feel that I have improved as a writer and can do more justice to the characters of this series. So please understand. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. Thank you for reading up until now. The new story with these characters will be [Tales of the Old World Demon Lord] which I will be slowly updating once a week.