《The Regressed Cursed Hero》 Chapter 0: Last Breath A man can be seen running away in the middle of a burnt forest, his steps quick but exhausted it''s obvious looking at his appearance that he was in his last moments. His body missing an arm, his right eye bloodied to the point of being unusable, the left part of his torso with a burn so brutal that his torso appears to be made of burned meat. Even still, he ran. What was once a blue sky was now pitch black. What was once green grass now was an ashen grey. It was as if all color was drained from the world. Even when it was day, the sky made it seem like night, even when light was present. Suddenly, a noise could be heard in the distance, a grunt? No, it doesn''t make a sound, but then what? Maybe... just maybe it was resistance? "If we talk about her, then it''s actually possible," the man smirks to himself. But his little peace ends quickly as an object is thrown at him at such speeds that it would normally be impossible to react. -Eye of Intention- With a quick activation of the artifact installed in his remaining left eye, he feels the incoming attack and manages to dodge it. "Damnit...that was close...heh... she hasn''t lost her touch, although maybe she wouldn''t have missed in the past. " The man continues to run. Even though it delays the inevitable, he still tries to survive even a second longer. (Maybe he could think of a plan to escape the situation like he always does.) ''No. That''s a stupid thought. I am too tired and damaged to be able to pull it off. Heck, even my artifacts are broken at this point. It looks like this is truly my last day on earth...'' The man is starting to realize that this is the end. The man eventually ends up in a clearing in the middle of the forest as his legs give up, and he falls to the ground. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. "...*huff*...*huff*...looks like...this is it..." The man takes a breather after a long time. His lungs have been burning since a while ago, but due to the adrenaline, he didn''t notice. Footsteps can be heard coming from the forest. Slowly, a familiar figure steps into the light. Her blonde hair flaps in the wind, and her eyes, which were once a beautiful deep blue, were now completely black except for her purple Irises. And it appeared as if purple veins were coming out of her eyes, and they were pulsating. Her armor, once a silver tone, now was dirty with mud and blood. Her body now covered in vine like growth. Her sword once a symbol of salvation was now a sign of the end. "...you know...if I am going to die, at least it was in your hands... not everyone can say that they died in the hands of the "Destined hero"..." The man was losing his breath, even still a laugh escaped his mouth. "..." Nothing escaped her mouth, no...it was better to say, Nothing escaped its mouth. "So...end of the road...I wonder what are you gonna do..." The feminine figure gets closer, her sword being brandished in a menacing way. The man slowly reaches behind him as it starts reaching its hand towards him. "You know... I always thought that you were never fit to be a hero." It is a few steps away, but that doesn''t bother him."but...I never realized that people like you are needed...people..." it is about to strike, but then... "...living in a lie despite knowing it is one..." The man grabs a stone with a mark in it and brings it up. It opens its eyes wide, but before it could do anything. "Sorry I couldn''t do anything." The Man presses the stone as hard as he could, and the moment a crack is heard... An explosion so powerful that it could level an entire mountain range happened in front of both figures, leaving only a massive crater where one human used to lay. Then... Black. Nothingness. Peace. But... even in that peace, a voice is heard. "It took you a while to come here, huh?" The man opens his eyes and sees that he is in a boat in the middle of the ocean. "I thought the afterlife would be more pretty" he says while accommodating himself "Ha...kid this place isn''t the afterlife... at least not yet" the figure guides the boat while talking. "Then let''s go. After all, I am probably currently ashes. " The man quickly accepted his fate. After all, he was ready since a while ago. "Believe me, i wish I could do that, but sadly, things aren''t good enough for that to happen" "What do you mean?" "***" "Shit... I guess that explains quite a few things about the Calamity" "Yeah, that''s why sadly your rest must be delayed." "I thought beings like you couldn''t intervene in such a way?" "This is an exception. The balance accepted the intervention." "So it''s that serious, huh?" "Sadly, yes, my good friend." "So what do I have to do? Go to some different realm to get a weapon or something? I heard that the soul realm managed to resist to some degree the Calamity" "***" "...really?..." "Sorry." "The world really hates me, huh?" "..." Suddenly, everything turned white. -------- Chapter 1: A New Morning A morning bird can be heard in the distance, and a figure in a bed starts to move. "I can''t believe it..." The man looks at his hands, now free of scars and burn marks. His body, once broken, now was young and healthy again, weaker, sure, but that''s only a minor inconvenience (it was never his strength anyway). The man gets up from bed and goes to the nearby window where he sees a beautiful blue sky that seems to expand forever. It was just like how the man remembered it. "It happened just as they said, but... why do i feel like something is missing?" The man realized his memory wasn''t as good as he hoped it''d be. The man continues to inspect himself and the surroundings until suddenly... "SWEETIE" a woman can be heard screaming."ITS MORNING ALREADY. ARE YOU SLEEPING ALL DAY?". The voice takes a while to settle in, but once it does, the man runs to the voice as if his life dependents on it. After running down some stairs, he opens a door, and on the other side, he sees the owner of the voice. "M...m....mom...?" the man says as his voice now sounds different. "Is...that...you...?" The woman is currently baking some bread so she doesn''t see the child. "No, I am the princess of the draconian kingdom" she says in a sarcastic voice, her back still facing him. "..." The child slowly walks towards the woman and hugs her back slowly as if she could vanish at any moment."it''s really you..." The child could feel tears starting to spill out. "Of course it''s me-are you crying?" The woman finally turns and watches as her son starts crying."wow wow what happened, sweetheart? Did you have a nightmare or something?" The woman starts inspecting her son as he continues crying. "...*hiccup*... sorry... it''s just that... it feels like I am in a dream... Don''t worry about it..." The child tried to convince her mother, but she was still checking him. "Sweetie, you know that if anything happens, you can tell me, right? You know that we are in this together." The mother was still worried, something that her son hated. (She shouldn''t suffer from his stupid things.)This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. The child finally stopped crying."I know, mom. Thanks for always being with me...after everything..." The mother finally calmed down and tries to change the subject. After all, if her son was truly in trouble, she trusted that he would seek her out. "Ok... I trust you..."The mother cracks a smile then. "You are really sentimental this morning. Even thanking me and everything. If you have any trouble you can stay in your room I can manage the bakery" "No no no I will help. Here, let me continue making the bread. " The child still wanted to stay near. He wanted to enjoy this little moment of happiness at least a bit. "I don''t know, little guy. You never were the best when it came to food." The mother was impressed of her sons motivation. "Don''t worry, mom, I am sure I will impress you. Just wait." The child put himself to work wanting to enjoy the moment. ---- After a while, the child finishes preparing the bread while his mother finishes setting up the bakery that she owns. "Ok, everything''s ready, but let''s see how it is." The mother picks up a piece of bread and notices it''s still hot."au... should have checked first. Move a little sweetie, I will make sure the bread isn''t so hot. " The child proceeded to move to the side while his mother raised her arm and proceeded to aim it at the bread. "Soft wind" Suddenly, a wind that should be called more of a breeze proceeds to happen around the bread that regulates the breads temperature. ''Elemental magic... no matter how many times I see it, it still amazes me. Something so simple but full of possibilities..." The child proceeds to look at his hands again. ''Magic... something so simple yet complex that everyone has...'' The mother, while still using the spell, notices her son''s depressed look and could only just look away. After a little bit, the bread is at the correct temperature and takes a bite. "Oh wow, this is the best batch you ever made. Have you been practicing in secret, sweetie?" The mother tries to change the subject. "Oh...eh yes, yes, I did." The child was a little caught off guard. "You should be careful sweetie. You could have hurt yourself... and be both know your injures are a little difficult to treat..." No more words needed to be said. "Yeah... sorry but don''t worry, I took all precautions possible." He more than anyone knew how difficult things like that could be. "It looks like we are running low on ingredients if we want to make the next batch. I know you hate it, but... can you go get more?" The mother asked her son, who was in a meditated state. "Yeah, don''t worry, mom. I will be back in a flash." The Child proceeds to grab some money from the counter and leaves the store, wanting to breathe a little and to think about his situation. But before going, his mother had one last thing to say. "Be careful, Kei!" -------- Chapter 2: Situation As Kei was walking down the busy streets of the city, he started compiling everything he knew so far. ''Ok, so it appears I have traveled back in time. It''s obvious it''s a few years back (maybe 5-6?) I should check a calendar later to confirm the date.(but even that won''t help a lot. The Calamity didn''t help with the perception of time) My condition is the same that it was in the past meaning I didn''t keep any of my blessings or marks (that actually sucks) not even the soul related ones were saved but I do feel a certain sensation regarding some. For example, I may not possess the Dragon Pact, but I can still feel a lingering effect of it, not enough to use, but it is something. My objective should obviously be stopping the calamity, but...how can I do that? The Calamity is such a powerful thing that even the Destined Hero failed to stop it. And they had the most powerful blessings in the worls. They were called "Destined Hero" for a reason after all. I will have to seriously think of a plan for this.(would that even change anything?) But now the elephant in the room... why can''t I remember the full conversation? I remember that I died and met with Them, and we talked, but... parts of the conversation are...obscured? Like someone doesn''t want me to know. But that''s impossible! it was just the two of us. And I know that whatever they said was important.Come on, Kei, think!'' But despite trying to remember what was said, the only thing he got was a headache. ''Aaaaaa Damnit, I guess I will have to continue blind for now. It''s too early for this... for now, I will enjoy the fact that the world is normal. Maybe at night I will start thinking of a plan.'' With his mind set up, he finally focuses on the road ahead. ----- After walking for a bit, he finally reaches the store. ''Ahhh this store, the only one that will sell the materials for bread at such a low price, I have come so many times here that I could do it with my eyes closed'' Kei thought as he entered the store. ''But why would I hate coming here?'' "Well, hel- oh, it''s you..." The man attending the store didn''t look pleased as Kei entered. "Hello to you too -" ''What was his name again? After so long, I kinda forgot.'' "It''s Leroy" The young man says as he looks with disgust to Kei. ''Now i remember a little. Leroy, the son of Reiyo, his father is considered something of a charitable sort of person.''This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. "Oh yeah! Leroy! What are you doing here? Shouldn''t your dad be here?" "He is currently talking to a client backdoor, so you will have to wait." It was obvious Leroy didn''t want him to wait. "Sadly, I gotta talk about some business with him. So I will wait." A smirk almost crosses his face. After all, being able to be childish again after so much is quite the unique opportunity. "...you have quite the nerve you know...after what you pulled the other day." Leroy started to watch him with anger. ''Fuck... what did I do? I should have done a little overview of what I did in the past few days... another thing for the checklist.'' "No response, heh... not surprising coming from a weirdo like you." "..." "You think because you are ohhh so miserableeee you can do whatever you want? Well, the answer is no, you freak of nature. " ''Now I remember...'' "Hey Leroy. Remind me of something. When was the last time your girl didn''t sleep with the fat pig downstreet?" "!... You motherfucker!!!" Leroy volts over the counter and tries to grab him. ''Yeah, I remember. You were so insignificant in the past that I probably deleted you from my memory. The second rate bully that used his age and height as an advantage. You used to bully me around this time, didn''t you? Oh, but I remember how, in an espionage mission, I found out how your future wife earned a few extra coins. Your face was priceless when I threw it at your face, hahaha. I think that was the last time i saw you alive...'' "You know for being someone so "superior" you can''t even cast basic spells. Heck I would even say that you are worse than me because at least I got an excuse, while you are simply bad" Kei says while gracefully dodging Leroy''s attacks. "YOU FUCKING FREAK! WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT ANYTHING! AT LEAST I DONT HAVE TO LIVE KNOWING I AM A FUCKING NOBODY LIKE YOU!" "Uf...that actually hurt you know" he says in a sarcastic voice. "I WILL FUCKING KILL YOU!!!" Suddenly another voice enters the discussion. "Who will kill who?" Leroy immediately stops his attack and watches as a man stands next to the backdoor of the store. The man is big (not in a fat neither muscular way, mostly a balance between both) his once brown hair now started turning grey(age is catching up to him). His presence was imposing and demanded respect. An annoyed look on his face. "D...d...dad..." Leroy''s anger immediately subsides as nervousness(and a hint of fear) settles in. "W...we we ju...st...playing" he immediately starts to create a little story. ''If I let him alone he will definitely be punished...ahhh just this once.'' "Hello Reiyo. We were just talking about the last story released in the newspaper. You know the one about a knight seeking vengance." Leroy immediately jumps at the chance of being able to free himself from his father''s punishment. "Ye... yeah... we were acting the part of the knight taking revenge..." Reiyo looks at both of them and simply exhales. He probably didn''t buy it, but at least he didn''t make it apparent. "What do you need, Kei? I am pretty sure you aren''t here just to talk about the newspaper" "You got me! I am here to buy materials for our bakery. And also to talk about something" "I got the materials right in the other room. If you wanna talk, come back later, I am currently busy." "Sounds good to me" ''Even though I said I would start planification later, I still need to start setting up some things in advance. And what better way to start than having a talk with Reiyo, the publicly known "protector" of the streets and those unfortunates enough to end there... what a load of shit.'' Before going to the next room Kei looks over his shoulder and sees Leroy with a mixed looked on his face. ''Even though I don''t like you, even you didn''t deserve what came to you. Who would have guess that the only reason one exists is just to be merchandise?'' Kei with a pitiful look continues forward again and collects the materials to go back home. ----- Chapter 3: Conversation After exiting the store with the materials he starts going back home. ''Now I gotta think of the way I am gonna approach Reiyo. Probably a "naive" type approach will help me... Even though I wouldn''t like to work with a piece of shit like him I need his connections and resources.'' As the man rummage his thoughts he feels someone watching him. ''What...? Why would someone watch me? Has this happened in the past too? Is it Reiyo?(maybe the way I acted triggered some alarms in his head. The cunning bastard) For now I think it''s best to ignore it. If this also happened in the past it''s probably nothing.'' Even still the man couldn''t contain his nervousness. After all if things started changing so soon, part of the information he has about the future will become useless. ''I still remember how the butterfly effect can act...cannot let that happen again.'' An image of a crystal palace comes into mind. The man continues his way home while under the gaze of an unknown individual but the moment he starts reaching home, the gaze leaves. ''Looks like it left...'' ________ "Mom! I came back!" The child tells his mother. "That was quicker than I thought it would take. You normally take a while for things like this. I know you don''t enjoy it...but Reyo is always happy when you visit." ''I wonder why...'' A disgusted look almost crawls to his face. "Yeah I know. Although he wasn''t very happy today, probably a bad morning" "Oh that''s a shame. Hope he gets better later." His mother does a small gesture with her hand. "I am sure he will. Now let''s get through the day shall we?" _______ Night is starting to fall. All in all it was a peaceful day. Not a lot of costumers (mostly the regulars) but seeing some old faces brought a couple different reactions from him. "..." "Is everything alright sweetie?" His mother watches the melancholic expression on his face. "Oh sorry...I was just thinking about something..." he didn''t put much effort in his lie. (It always hurt when he lied to her). "And by the way I will go out for a walk in a little. If that''s not much trouble?" His mother watches him for a second trying to analyze his expression. (She was the best at it. Until he...) "Are you sure sweetie? You won''t get in trouble right?" His mother had a concerned expression. "Don''t worry mom! You always know I never liked trouble." The Child smiles. "Ok... be careful please..." As the Child changes his work clothes to his normal ones he responds. "Of course mom." The Man let''s a small smile escape his lips. ______ It was dark outside but not enough to need candles just yet. ''Now i gotta go to the meeting with Reiyo''The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Reiyo the "protector" of the streets. A while ago criminal groups ruled the zone, doing whatever they wanted whenever they wanted. That is until one day Reyo stood up for the people and with his group he defeated them. After that he became the protector of the streets, always lending a hand to those who need it. That''s the story everyone knows. It was only after his death that the truth was revealed. (In life no one suspected anything) Reiyo also know as "The Gravedigger" was hired muscle for one of the criminal groups, as his nickname would suggest, whenever he killed someone he always buries them. No matter the age, sex, or affiliation of the person.(Why?) But one day something changed. Nobody knew exactly why but he started to desire something... Power. He wanted influence, resources, control. And thanks to his multiple years in the criminal underground he had enough information to deal a massive strike to each of the criminal groups. So he did. At an accelerated rate he took control of each of the criminal groups and hide them from view, later he put himself as the protector of the streets. Thanks to this he became a respected public hero and feared criminal head in the background. ''He did an incredible job hiding the entire operation. When publicly he gave home and shelter to people in reality he sold them as slaves to whoever had the money to pay. And if anyone spoke up? Vanished, publicly and eventually privately. It was only after his dead that the jig was up. He is smart. He is strong. And most importantly he has the things I need to start making progress. I have a general idea of what I need to do.'' The man continues walking as he stops at the store again. ''I need to make a deal with him. I got the info advantage but if I don''t guide this conversation correctly...he will kill me.'' _______ Entering the store, the place was empty except for Reiyo himself at the counter. Reiyo was eyeing the newspaper of today. He was relaxed, it appears that whatever had him annoyed in the morning was over. "You know Kei. After reading the newspaper I can''t seem to find that story you talked about." He wasn''t even seeing him. "Oh then it must have been yesterday''s newspaper. You know that sometimes things gets mixed up." Kei tries with little effort to keep the lie. "Kei... you know that you can tell me when my kid annoys you. You don''t have to defend him." "I don''t know what you are talking about. The story is real I swear!" He puts a childish smile in an exaggerated way while putting his hands up. ''Poor kid deserves a little rest'' "...*huff*...OK if you don''t wanna talk about it that''s your thing. Now... what did you want to talk about" (Now Reiyo was a little tense) ''This won''t do'' "Oh its a little something I want to try my hands on." "Andddd I guess I have the things necessary?" "Wow always on top Reiyo. Almost like you read my mind. Didn''t heard that you learned that magic?" "I wish I had that much talent. Sadly this old man just has muscles on his back." "I don''t know man... I heard that in the capital a new kind of potion is starting to circulate." "...? What kind of potion?" ''Got him'' "Heard that it''s one that boost magic to an obscene degree. But not only that, it also makes you capable of casting complex types of spells even if you aren''t talented." Kei says with a mischievous smile, as if he was shearing the biggest secret he knew. "U la la, talk about a boost. Where did you heard this from?" Reiyo''s attention focused on Kei. "Sorry but can''t reveal my sources" Kei shrugs. "Oh come on little man, do your big friend Reiyo a little favor. I wanna hear more about it." "Mhhh....maybe maybe...if you also do your little friend Kei a big favor." A mischievous smile appears on his face. "...ha..." "...?" "HAHAHAHAHA" Reiyo starts laughing like if he heard the world''s best joke. "..." "HAHahaha....uffff....sorry kid. It''s just that seeing young blood trying to negotiate is like seeing a baby''s first steps." "Hehehe...did I do it so badly?" A defeated smile adorns Kei''s face. "T.e.r.r.i.b.l.e. if that supposed potion existed I highly doubt you of all people would hear of it. After all why would you care about it? It''s not like it''s of any use to you. Even if you say it''s for negotiation that''s a critical mistake you are making. As a merchant you start small, gaining experience and reputation. If you wanna go big all at the start you will end like that dude with the wings from that history we tell you kids about." "Hey! I am not so young that you can call me that!" "For me, anyone below 20 is a kid, kid. Anyway you also didn''t hide your intentions with your body language, that smile and little moves you made? HA too obvious." "Oh well at least I tried." Kei puts his hands up. "That you did...what did you even need anyway. For the attempt I will help you a little. I like when kids like you try to their fullest." What appears to be an honest smile adorns Reiyo''s face. ''...I wonder how many people you lied to with that smile.'' "Thanks a bunch Reiyo. Own you a big one." "So....what do you plan to do?" "...Just a little alchemy" a melancolic smile adorns the Man''s face. The image of a woman with green hair flashes in his head. "Alchemy?" Reiyo had a curious look on his face. "Now that''s a weird choice but a promise is a promise. I will get you some materials for tomorrow, how does that sound?" Reiyo had a curious look on his face. "Sounds good to me. Then tomorrow morning?" "Not a problem" "Then see you tomorrow Reiyo!" The child says as he leaves. "..." "..." "Alchemy huh?" A contemplating look is on Reiyo''s face. _______ Chapter 3.5: Just A Little Alchemy ~~~~~~ "So...what do you plan to do?" "...just a little alchemy" the woman with disheveled long green hair replies annoyed by the stupidity of the question. The two figures start talking while looking for materials and components in the place''s storage room. "Are you sure? We don''t have the best materials." "Uhhhh...." she sounded annoyed. "I thought you were better than this semi-solid head. You should know by now that a truly talented individual can make gold out of dirt" a smirk creeps on her tired face. "I know I know. But isn''t alchemy the exception? You need good materials for the result to be good." "Why are you pushing thisssss" the woman was now frowning. "Let''s make an example so your now solid head gets it." "So now I am fully solid?" The woman continues as if she didn''t hear anything. "Let''s say you give the most powerful wand in the world to an average mage. What is the mage''s level now?" She prepares the materials on a table for her new concoction. "Definitely a high tier mage. A good wand boost the mage''s capabilities a good degree." "Wrong." She says as she fills a pot with water and a strange looking purple liquid (Expired fairy blood?) and puts it on a flame coming from a fire stone. "?" "The mage will continue to be average. Just because you give it a fancy tool doesn''t change the process that goes into what makes the mage a good or average one." She waits for the water in the pot to be boiling and now puts different herbs in it.(the herbs aren''t fully grown)The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. "Process?" "If you think about it, magic and alchemy are almost the same. You use different materials to obtain a desired result." The woman casts a complex type spell ''subtract'' on the flames but not the fire rock, it gives a weird vibe seeing colorless and warmless flames coming from a fire stone. Then she continues. "In magic you use mana, affinities, magic tools, blessings, formulas, experience among other things to be able to cast a spell. If you want to cast a different one you change certain materials. Just because a step of that process is better than the rest doesn''t mean it changes the result." The woman now casts another complex type spell ''Add'' and a medium tier ice spell ''cold zone'' now the flames seem to become cold, After doing that, she starts revolving the now black sustance in the pot. Then she continues. "In alchemy it''s the same. We use more physical materials that is true, but the process is the same, an accumulation of different things. You have materials, experience, skill, intellect, talent, etc." After finishing revolving the pot, she takes out a vial with a red liquid(blood?) from one of her coat pockets and pours a little of it in the pot. "Now in this situation if every step of the formula is better except one then the result is..." The woman shows the finished elixir she was making, a silver color is reflected in the pot that it is contained in. "Wow I can''t believe it..." "Heh...when you are truly talented you can make stuff like this with scraps. Tell me who can make a Novel grade magic boost with just what we had here." the woman smiled as she looked proud of her creation. But that smile didn''t last very long as her red eyes started to lose color. "Maybe if I had realized before... I could have done something..." "..." "Do you ever think about it? What could have been? And I am not talking about that guy, I am talking about thinking about the different options we had and we didn''t choose. Can we blame ourselves for that?... For not choosing the correct one?" "Was there even a correct choice?" "...I don''t know..." "Then it''s no use thinking about it. It will just eat at your mind. The best we can do now is continue after all..." "Maybe you are right... thanks..." "No problem." "Looks like your solid head became semi-solid again, if you continue like that maybe you will reach liquid head." A little exhausted smile adorns her face. "Cannot wait for it to happen haha. I am gonna go met Lucius, apparently he discovered something." "Then be on your way. I heard he could get pissy when people make him wait." "Look who is talking" "Hey! At least I won''t throw a fit!" A little of energy got back to her voice. "Sure sure. See you later then." "See you later Kei." She waves as he leaves. They never saw each other again. ~~~~~~~ Chapter 4: Time For A Deal After leaving Reiyo''s store, the man finally relaxes. ''Fiuuuu... that went better than I expected. I knew that playing naive would lower his guard but not to such a degree. Now i gotta gain his trust, make myself appear as a "talented" alchemist who wants to start a business to make money. But Reiyo will not let that happen, he always had an eye for potential partners in the business so what will most probably happen is him offering me a good job, clean at first but the more exciting the potions the more he will be willing to let me in the dirty side of the business. Combine that with a desire for money from my part and boom! We will be best "friends" by the end(and if I reveal a few quirks of my condition, even faster)'' The man smiles, knowing that the first few steps of his plan have been successful. But that smile soon disappeared as he received a punch to the gut. "Bleeg... what the-" "Missed me freak?" Leroy stands above kei as he tries to get up. "You know I almost did..." Kei finally gets up with a hand above his stomach. "You did? Awww, you almost make me wanna cry. Look, I even brought some friends to celebrate." Leroy proceeds to point behind him, and soon a group of 7 people gather around Kei. "Is this for what I said before? Look, I am sorry, okay. Let''s just put this behind us. I even saved you from the assbeating your father would have given you." "Shut.the.fuck.UP. You think you can just say sorry and fix everything? No, no, no, this requires retribution." He says as the other guys around him start closing in on Kei. ''Just my luck...'' The man prepares to fight. After all, he had a clear vision of the power of each of Leroy''s lackeys. And the result? Not very high(winnable) "Look, I made a mistake, right? Everyone makes mistakes. If you let me go, I can fix this mistake."A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. ''Even still, negotiating can be better'' "And what would you do, oh so "talented" freak?" ''This might be a good chance to get some muscle on the streets'' "Give you a magic elixir." Kei responds with a straight face. "...!?" Leroy looked shocked as Kei continued. "I know you probably don''t believe me, but think about it. If I lie, then you can just beat me up later, but if I am telling the truth, then you now become capable of casting magic. So, how does that sound?" "..." Leroy seemed to be in deep thought while one of his goons spoke. "Heh... as if a freak like you could craft such a thing. How would you even know how to make one." "Fairy blood, water, fire stone emanating cold fire, blood from a mage. Do you want me to continue?" Another of the goons reacted. "Wait... that''s actually the recipe for a magic elixir..." (it looked like he knew a bit of alchemy) "..." Leroy finally seems to finish his thoughts. "How can we trust you?" "You can''t, but do you have anything to lose?" "...When?" "Tomorrow morning, I will go to your dad''s store to craft a few normal potions. There, I will also craft the elixir. But I need one ingredient from you." "Which?" "Blood from a mage. The more talented, the better." "...if you are tricking me, I will beat you to death." "Don''t worry. This will be the beginning of a fruitful relationship." Kei extends his hand, offering a handshake. "..." Leroy looked at the hand but dismissed it and turned back. "We leaving" The rest of the goons look at each other and decide to leave. ''Well, that was unexpected.'' The man retreats his hand and continues his way home. ''If I succeed tomorrow, then things will move faster than expected.'' The man smiles while still holding his stomach from the punch. ___________ Finally coming back home, after dark, has finally settled, the man finds his mother waiting for him. "...! Sweetie! You are finally back! It''s extremely late. What happened? " The mother begins to check for injuries on her son. The child tries to act like nothing was wrong. "I am fineeee mom. Look, nothing happened." The child does a little spin showing he was fine while also hiding the probable mark he had in his stomach. Eventually, the mother seemed satisfied with her check. "Why did you take so long, sweetie?" "While walking, I ended up encountering Reiyo he said he would teach me alchemy if I wanted and said that tomorrow morning would be the first lesson." The man lies through his teeth. "Really? Wow, that''s so nice of him! Who knows, maybe you have a talent for it. Even if you don''t, it is a good learning experience." "I know, mom. I have a feeling it will be quite the experience." The mother and son smile. "I guess it''s time to go to bed then, little man. Wouldn''t want to arrive at your first lesson late." "Yeah, you are right. I will be going then. Sleep well, mom." The child gives his mother a kiss in the forehead and proceeds to leave. "Love you, sweetie!" "Love you, mom!" _____________ Chapter 5: The Plan The moon is high in the sky, and as most people sleep resting for the next day, a man in the body of a child stays awake preparing himself for tomorrow. ''I can''t believe this is real, I know it is, but... seeing everything just as it was is...'' The man sits on his bed as he finally accepts the reality he is in. ''Now that I have time, I will have to make a plan to defeat The Calamity... but first things first, I need to know the entire conversation that took place before my travel(?) to the past. So... I gotta call him.'' The man closes his eyes and starts reciting the name of who he needs. "Oh, Death, who was there since the day of my conception. Who follows the living until their last days. Why should I begrudge it, since during the hours, when my body gave up, it was seated there beside me? O death, I have ended, you see, by respecting you, because I am certain you will be there for me when my eyes lose their strength. Because i know that on the day of my final agony, there you will be, lying in my sheets, O Death, for when I cast my last breath... you will take my cold hand and guide it to an eternal paradise" The man finished reciting the ancient text and waits. A minute, then 2,then 5, then 10... ''...Why isn''t he appearing?'' The man gets nervous as usually when the ancient text is said, Death will appear for a talk. ''...why?...WHY?...WHY ISN''T HE APPEARING?!'' The man loses his patience as he gets up and starts walking around his room quickly. ''Dammit DAMMIT why can''t things go my way for once?! You send me back in time to leave me just like that?!?!?!'' The man starts growing furious. ''YOU THINK YOU CAN JUST DO THAT?! NOT ONLY YOU FAILED BEFORE BUT YOU FAIL NOW TOO?!?!'' Little by little, he starts breathing slowly, trying to calm himself. ''No...no... calm yourself... being emotional only interrupts rational thought...'' The man finally calms himself. ''...now let''s think this slowly... From how little I remember of the conversation I think it''s safe to assume that The Balance isn''t allowing him to interfere or even appear, I guess that sending me to the past put all kinds of limitations on him.(he sent me to the past right?...) If that''s the case, then I can''t consult him about the full conversation. That''s a shame because I have the feeling that something really important was said. And also that last thing I said... "The world really hates me, huh..." I know that it probably does, but the way I said it was...depressing... more than usual. Guess I won''t know until later. If I think about it there are a few places where I may be able to talk with Death but none of those places are close neither are they accessible at this time so for now it''s better to leave this for later.'' The man completed his thoughts about the conversation and left it for later. ''If I can''t know the full information, then the next step is...'' The man sits on his bed again and closes his eyes. ''I learned this trick from Lucius. It''s not really an ability, but it does feel like one.''This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. -Mental Palace- Suddenly, the man opens his eyes, and he finds himself in a white void. ''Now, this will help me think.'' The man moves his hands, and with each move, a place or a person appears. ''Let''s start planification'' ________ ''Ok, this took a while but as a quick first steps plan, it should work. For now, the overall plan is: 1) Gain Reiyo''s influence and trust. 2) Using his influence, enter Malsahars Magic Academy. 3) Meet and nurture the Destined Hero. Nurturing other powerful individuals is recommended. 4)Obtain multiple legendary equipment for protection and power. 5) Prepare the world for the Calamity. An alliance between nations and factions is the adequate play. 6) Fight the Calamity. 7) Win. (Hopefully) ''For now, that''s what I have. It''s a little rough, but it will suffice. The first step is already in motion. Gaining Reiyo''s trust may take a while, but it is possible. Even if that fails, there is a backup plan, but it will consume too much time, so preferably, I go with Reiyo. If I complete this step calmly, I will be able to start my second step.'' Malsahar''s academy is one of the most important academies in the kingdom. It is a prestigious place that has created some of the most legendary heroes and historical people. It is said that the mage that founded it, Malsahar, was the first ever recorded Destined Hero. And from then on every 100 to 200 years a new Destined Hero is born. ''The Destined Hero... a person who is born blessed by the world itself to stop whatever catastrophe appears.''(why did they fail this time?) Malsahar being the first ever to appear caused quite the uproar according to ancient scriptures. Many believed he was the descent of the God of Magic due to the power of his spells, others a person who made a deal with the Demon King to gain power. It was only later that it was discovered this "Destined Hero" phenomenon as it was called. So seeing this Malsahar founded the academy for talented individuals with the hope that the next Hero will assist and learn from it. That was about 800 years ago. Sadly after he passes away the new directors started changing the academy, little by little. What was once a symbol of hope, now became a place where one goes to establish political connections and obtain powerful allies. Something that also changed was the method of entry. When before pretty much anyone with a decent amount of talent could enter, now things like titles and payments became necessary. Considering this... There''s 3 possible ways to enter. 1) You are of a powerful royal faction or noble house. 2)The scout group of the academy noticed your magical or swordship abilities and offered you a position. 3) Someone important sends a recommendation letter vouching for your talents. ''Considering the options to enter... The first option is immediately out of the table. The second option is possible but extremely difficult. I could try to impress them with a multitude of inventions and potions, but it would only take me so far...(I am not talented enough to replicate what I know) So that only leaves the third option. Getting a recommendation... Getting one with Reiyo''s influence shouldn''t be too difficult. But another problem rises. He is not the only one who controls the city. Due to it being so apart from the Capital City of the kingdom of Seras, the criminal activity here is notorious(except on this side)'' The city of Mirul is divided into 3 sectors. Each is controlled by a different crime gang. ''Reiyo controls this side, and it is considered the most peaceful of the 3 but also the weakest. Due to hiding the criminal activity to such a degree, Reiyo doesn''t have the most amount of armed muscle to act. And even if I don''t like to do it... I gotta help him control the other 2 sides or at least 1 other. If I try to get a recommendation, let''s say... from the best alchemist in the city, the other 2 sides will hear from it and probably stop it.(nobody wants to deal with random variables) not to mention they will want the person who''s recommendation they stopped to work for them. After all, the peace that currently exist is because if they start a war with another of the gangs, the one that was left will simply wait till its over and destroy what remains of the winner. And attacking both gangs at the same time is stupid in many levels. So the only solution is to consume one of the gangs or, best case, both. That will give me control of the dirty side of the city but, most importantly, resources and influence. I would be able to get multiple recommendation letters, which even the academy wouldn''t ignore. Not to mention the information, bases, minions, and more, I would get controlling the gangs. But a problem will surge eventually... When I leave, who will take my place? I will have to leave the city to assist the academy and due to the distance between the two I will have great trouble communicating freely, not to mention that the old bosses or their right hand guys will want to take back what''s their. I would say that I could convince them not to do it, but it''s preferable to have a backup plan. For now, I don''t have candidates, so it''s a thought saved for later. Let''s get back on track. How to gain Reiyo''s trust? There are multiple ways I could achieve this. Although... I don''t really need Reiyo himself. I could kill him and take over what he has, but too many troubles appear. For beginners, being the head of a criminal group would surely put a bounty on my head. Second, the moment I leave, my group will lose its morale, and the other groups may make an alliance to take my group out. Third, it would bring too much attention to me, risking the fact that the academy may discover my dealings and kick me out. There''s just too many variables that can happen. But by being in the background it will at least not put a target in my back. Will the academy question me about working with a criminal if they discover it? Sure, but I can save myself. Will the other groups try to contact me? Probably, but if it happens, it will just add value to myself, and as long as I don''t directly support any of them, I can sleep with my eyes closed.'' I got off the rails again... How to gain Reiyo''s trust. Don''t deviate Kei. There are multiple ways. One is to show myself as a talented but naive alchemist who slowly gets corrupted by the want of money, eventually starting to make deals with other criminals. If I leave a few clues for Reiyo to find, then he will probably talk with me, and if I guide the conversation correctly, then we will work together. And little by little... a few incidents here... a few incidents there... he will trust me, and like that, the "expansion of the group" will commence. Another way is a more direct approach. But sadly, I lack the components to do it.(The mind controlling ring would be such a good thing to have) Another one is through drugging him. It would be one of the fastest ways. If I make a few "calming" potions, it would leave him extremely susceptible to my control. The problem is how unstable it''s "loyalty" would be.(A detoxification spell and it''s over) There are other ways, but they aren''t good enough, but if push comes to shove, then they will be used.'' The man takes a breather. ''I know I said that taking his place would be bad, but... what if another person took it? Mhhh... No, there are... too many variables, but it is worth considering. It should be someone that deep down has the people''s interest in mind. Well, if I see someone like that, I will take note. I think it''s best to leave things like this for now. If I try to plan too much ahead, I will lose sight of what''s next. If I focus too much on the future, I will lose sight of the present. ''...There is a way for the academy to notice me that would guarantee my acceptance, but... it would bring too many eyes and some of them will not be good.''(it will be a last resource in any case) The man, finally finishing his plans, proceeds to close his eyes again. After opening them he finds himself in his room again. ''What a day...I am busted, I better go to sleep now or I will arrive late to the store.'' The man proceeds to prepare himself to sleep. As he lays on his bed... ''...can I do this?...'' ''...'' ''...'' ''...'' ''...I don''t know...'' The man finally sleeps. Chapter 6: Nightmare Dark. It was dark. The Dark expanded to infinity. A figure stands in that dark. The figure moves their hands to their face and feels that their face is gone. Fear. They felt fear. The figure starts searching for their face, but all they can find was a mask... a purple mask. Fear. They were scared. The figure throws the mask as far as they can and starts running. Not them. Not them. After running, they stop at a house. A house that the figure feels could call...home. Peace. They felt peace. The figure enters and sees that the house was also a bakery. Remember. They remember. The figure felt a profound sadness until a sound was heard in the kitchen. Defeat. They failed. The figure goes to the sound, and the only thing there is a man, kneeling while looking at the ground. Fault. It was their fault. The figure approaches the kneeling man and turns him around to see his face. Mirror. It was a mirror. A man with short onyx black hair and a golden eye and orange one is seen in the mirror. His face is tired but not physically... it was simply exhausted with everything. Me. It was me. The man looks at the mirror and turns around to leave. He didn''t see the reflection''s eyes turning purple. Ignorance. Bliss. The man leaves the house and comes face to face with the purple mask again. "Why..." "..." "I will never accept it..."A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. "..." "I don''t want to become one of them..." "..." "I am me..." "..." Despair. The man feels despair. The mask approaches his face, and the man doesn''t move. But before it could reach his face... _______ A sudden breath leaves a child''s mouth as he wakes up. "*huff*...*huff*... talk about a bad dream...haha..." The man starts breathing deeply to calm himself. "..." Nervous. He was nervous. ''Just checking wouldn''t hurt, right?...'' The man moves to a corner of the room where a desk is located. He searches and takes a pocket mirror, and opens it. The man is welcomed by a reflection of himself, Onyx black hair with two golden eyes. His face rejuvenated and full of energy. "...haaa... still old me..." he closes the mirror. The child finally calms himself and checks the window of his room to see the approximate time. ''Still dark...probably an hour or two until morning... Well, let''s be productive and check my memories of this time. Maybe something slipped by me.'' ______ An hour passes, and the child doesn''t turn up anything useful except one thing. ''If I am correct about this, then this means I am currently 4 years before the calamity started and 6 before my death. Then if it takes me... let''s say a year to get into the academy, then I will only have 3 before everything starts... that doesn''t seem like a lot now that I think about it...'' The man gets a little nervous. ''Let''s better not think about this now... I gotta prepare for Reiyo''s shop.'' The child stores the thought and goes to take a shower. ______ After a nice breakfast that his mother made. The child goes to the shop but encounters someone in the way. "...? Leroy?" "...you said you could do it right? You just needed this..." Leroy presents Kei with a vial of blood. "Oh wow... I didn''t think you would actually get it. You have my applause." Kei takes the vial of blood while contemplating it. "Shut up and just do your thing... if this doesn''t work, I will make sure you regret being born..." An angry look presents itself in Leroy''s face. "Heyyyy don''t worry, I will uphold my part. But... I do need one tiny little thing..." Leroy looked annoyed now. "What?! You said that''s all you needed, you freak!" Before things could escalate more, Kei clarifies. "No no no don''t misunderstand me. When it comes to materials, I probably have everything, but I need a little help in the magic department." "What? You are kidding, right? You want help in the magic department when you are going to make an elixir to allow me to cast magic?" Leroy''s expression was mocking him. "It does sound bad, huh? Well, I don''t need you to cast a spell. I need you to concentrate the mana, even someone like you can do that." Kei explains with a smile on his face. "...? Why don''t you make it? You have a mana pool too, don''t you?" ''Oh, that''s right! I said to everyone here that I got a minuscule mana pool.'' "Ehh... yeah, but I don''t have a good affinity with it, so I can''t do it correctly..." Kei gives out an innocent and defeated smile. "Is that so..." Leroy watches him cautiously. "You are not trying to get me in trouble, aren''t you?" "Ouch... me? You see me as a person capable of such?... actually... don''t answer that." Kei lets out a little laugh. "..." Leroy now looked even more cautious than before. "I swear if this is a trap..." "Leroy." Kei puts on a straight face."I swear I am not setting up a trap. I want us to fix our problems and what better way than to lend a helping hand to you. And... I am really sorry for what I said yesterday..." Kei proceeds to bow in a 90¡ã degree angle. Leroy watches as Kei apologizes sincerely to him. "...ok... you know what will happen if you lie so... let''s go... I will help..." Leroy turns around embarrassed and also conflicted in the way that Kei was acting to him. ''Good... now I have everything ready... let''s truly begin this day.'' A look of determination grazes Kei''s face. Chapter 7: Elixir Kei and Leroy arrive at Reiyo''s shop not long after their encounter. "Ok. Just follow my lead inside, ok? "As long as I don''t get in trouble..." The ring of a bell can be heard as they enter the shop. Looking inside, there were a few customers, and at the reception, they could see Leroy helping a customer. "While I agree that a normal rope would do the trick, I recommend one with more density so it doesn''t break while trying to pull it out." Reiyo says to the customer as they contemplate. "Hmmm... I guess that if I think about it... you are probably right about it. Then, I will take the reinforced rope." The customer decided to accept Reiyo''s advice. "Good choice, my friend. I will get it ready. It will be 1 silver and 10 copper coins." "That''s actually not a bad price... considering it''s reinforced..." "You know it, my friend. Here at Reiyo''s shop we got the best at the cheapest price." Reiyo said with a friendly smile on his face. "And you are always right Reiyo, what would this community do without you ? Haha, " the customer laughed, being grateful for Reiyo''s presence. After the customer left with his reinforced rope, the duo approach Reiyo. "Good morning, Reiyo!. What a beautiful morning, isn''t it?" Kei says in an energetic voice. "Good morning to you too, kid. I guess you are ready for your little practice?" Reiyo answers calmly while eyeing Kei and Leroy. "Of course I am! I could barely get any sleep due to the excitement! I even brought a little assistant to help me out. " Kei points to Leroy. "An assistant, huh?... Didn''t think you would follow someone else''s orders, son." Reiyo replies while looking a little surprised at Leroy. "Ehh... yeah... I just wanted to see how Alchemy works. You know? Heard that Kei over here planned to try his hands on it so... I wanted to see..." Leroy responds a little nervous, but Reiyo either doesn''t notice or cares. "...Really? You may be of my blood, but even then, you still are a box of surprises." ''Of your blood... what a joke...'' Kei thinks while watching the interaction and decides to interfere. "Yeah, I know. I also reacted the same, but hey! If he wants to try new things, who is anyone to tell him, no?" "Mhhh... I guess you are right... reminds me of my youth when I used to work all types of works to be able to bring food to my table. Ahhh, the old times..." Reiyo seems to reminisce of the past as he looks up to the ceiling. "Wellll... now that that is done, why don''t you take us to the alchemy station that you prepared?" "Oh... yeah, sorry, kids. This old man was just remembering different times." Reiyo proceeds to stand up and guide us to the backrooms of the shop. ''Now... this is where things get good..." __________ Finally, they reach a room in a little corner of the shop where a basic alchemist set and multiple kinds of materials are present. "You didn''t say exactly what you wanted to try, so I got a little of everything. Just check the book over there for some basic recipes to make. Try not to break anything, or you will pay for it." "Don''t worry, Reiyo, I will be careful... and thanks for helping the stupid idea of this kid..." Kei says with a sentimental voice and lowering his head a little. Reiyo proceeds to lift one of his massive arms and ruffles Kei''s hair. "It''s no problem, kid... just... promise me you will take care and if you need help... good old Uncle Reiyo is here." He then gives Kei a big smile(he seems completely honest...) ''...'' The moment quickly finishes as Reiyo prepares to get back to the counter. But before going, he throws a look at Leroy. Leroy''s only response is to look away. After Reiyo leaves, kei finally relaxes but not completely. "See? I told you everything would go well. Just follow my lead." "... Let''s just do this..." Leroy''s eyes looked sad...(inferiority?not expected) "... yeah, let''s do this..." Kei prepares the different materials needed as well as the equipment. _______ A little while later, he is almost ready to start with the elixir, but he realizes something. "Hmm... we are missing a material..." Kei puts on a contemplating look. "What? Then all of this was for nothing?!" Leroy hearing that all his efforts didn''t matter started to get angry. "You should really wait for me to finish speaking... yes, we are missing one thing, but it can be remedied. We lack fairy blood, but that''s something I expected. Luckily, in alchemy, one of the most important things you learn, asabrokealchemist," he says the last part a little too quickly. "Is the fact that you can substitute a huge array of materials. For example... in this case, we need fairy blood, don''t we?" Kei prepares a pot with cold water. "But we don''t have fairy blood. This would seem like a problem if you didn''t know how fairy blood is composed." Kei took out the vial of blood Leroy gave him.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Leroy, while this is happening, stays in a corner of the room watching with interest. "The main benefit that Fairy Blood brings is its incredible mana conductivity. They are mostly magical beings, after all..." Kei now pours just a tiny bit of the blood contained in the vial. Next, he grabs a piece of slime and puts it in the pot as well. "Soooo... all you need to substitute Fairy blood is a good mana conductive substance. Which is what we are gonna do first. Come here a sec." Leroy snaps himself out of his fascination with the process and comes close. "Now... I need you to close your eyes and concentrate." Kei moves himself, so Leroy is in front of the strange substance combination. "... are you sure about this?" Leroy still found himself insecure. (This won''t do...) "Yes. Trust me." Kei says with a determined voice. "..." Leroy proceeds to close his eyes and concentrate just like he asked. "Now hear my voice and do as I say ok? First, I want you to breath, breath as calmly as possible." Leroy starts breathing, deep and long breaths. "Now... feel the world around you. The air, the heat, the humidity, everything..." Leroy starts to feel... feel in a way he hadn''t before... while before he didn''t notice anything while breathing, now, he felt every little vibration that the action caused, he could feel the heat of his mouth and the humidity in the air in a way he couldn''t before. "Good... good... now I want you to block all those things. Stop feeling the humidity in the air, the air that comes and goes through your mouth, the feeling of your skin attached to your flesh, everything." Leroy tries to do as he says, and little by little, he succeeds... he starts blocking every stimuli until eventually... only one remains... "You feel it, don''t you?... that sensation in the air that it''s like humidity but more oppressive? You see the tiny blue dots?..." Leroy slowly nods. "Well, Leroy... what you are feeling and seeing right now is mana in its purest state... without any outside imput. This... is the first step to become a proper mage." Leroy gets surprised by the reveal. All of this was mana? The thing he could never even properly see? Nor use? "Don''t get too excited yet. Now... I need you to put your hand forward and concentrate. Imagine that you have 2 more arms. Those arms are part of you, and they will do whatever you desire them to do... now... move those arms around the mana and push it forward... towards the substance..." Leroy does as he says and starts imagining. He suddenly starts seeing a pair of blue hands in the darkness that he finds himself in, so he starts gathering the floating blue dots in the air and pushes them forward. "It''s almost ready... now press it. Press all those dots together as strong as possible. " Leroy applies all the mental strength he has and presses as hard as he can. Eventually, all those dots become one, and that one dot suddenly gets absorbed into the substance, giving it a blue hue. "Perfect. Now you can open your eyes." Leroy opens his eyes and notices 2 things. 1) that the substance that was once an ugly grey is now a deep blue. 2) he was exhausted. He then sits down in one of the chairs in the room. "...*huff*...*huff*... I can''t believe it... I manipulated mana...like a mage..." Leroy started to realize everything he has done in these few minutes. "Yep, you did. But don''t get too excited yet. You still have a long way to go before you become even a decent one." Kei nonchalantly continued working with the substance by moving it to multiple vials. While Leroy rested from the mental exercise he just did. Kei started preparing the elixir. ''This will be nowhere near as good as her elixirs and potions, but it will have to suffice for now.'' First the boiling water then the fire stone, next the substitute substance and he continued like this until the elixir was ready. _______ A while later, the elixir was ready. Instead of the silver color he remembered, what appeared was a grey-ish color that marked the medium quality of the elixir. ''Pfff... if she saw this, she would give me a hearing about the proper way to do alchemy in general.(A nice experience) But...all things considered it is a good result(not enough experience with making elixirs).'' Elixirs... one of the few method that someone can upgrade their capabilities after birth. There exist multiple types of elixirs, the most important ones being: Mana elixir. To upgrade the user''s mana reserve and affinity. Aura elixir. To upgrade the aura of knights and physical fighters. There''s another like the Life elixir that extends your natural life, but those aren''t as common. There''s also multiple ranks of elixirs from beginner, basic, medium, high, noble, royal, king, heaven and the wish of every alchemist... God. ''If I perfect my alchemist abilities, I will be able to make the future heroes stronger. I will still try to recruit her, of course(who wouldn''t want the best alchemist in the world)... but it would feel good to be able to do things myself.'' His thoughts are interrupted as a voice speaks "...how do you know all of this?" Leroy, now a little rested, questions. "How can you know any of this? The elixir, the method, the magic thing, how to do it? How?" Leroy started throwing question after question, trying to comprehend all that was happening. "You really wanna know?... Then the answer is..." Kei started talking as if he was about to say the world''s biggest secret. ''I knew that this question would eventually appear... but I already planned for it.'' "The truth is... I simply learned it from a book." Kei says with a straight face. "...? You are joking, right? You expect me to believe that? What you just did is an evident proof of experience. You know I am not stupid enough to eat that excuse." Leroy now put a face of annoyance. "Again with not letting me finish... it was not a normal book. It was a book taken from a very special place." Kei answered the argument with a sentence that was said as if he was merely stating a fact of the world. "...and?" "I would tell more, but sadly, I am not allowed... I made a Pact." Kei responds honestly. "A Pact? You have to be lying..." Leroy was prepared to shut down Kei''s response until he started seeing Kei showing him his arm. Even if it was barely noticeable, the symbol of a Pact was present in his right forearm. "See? I told you I can''t say a thing." Kei responded matter of factly. "You made a Pact?... I can''t believe it..." Leroy was shocked at the reveal but quickly he got closer and started inspecting it. "It''s my first time seeing a Pact in person. I heard that a Pact occurs when a powerful being makes a deal with a human... it''s so incredible..." "Guess you know your sources eh? Sadly this bad boy here has already been taken." Kei replied with a grin on his face. "... you are the weirdest person I know Kei..."Leroy says after finishing inspecting Kei''s forearm. He looked at him with a mix of suspicion and fascination. ''I think this is the first time he called me by my name.'' "I will take that as a compliment. Now I think you understand that you cannot reveal what you just saw don''t you?" "Oh... yeah don''t worry... Even I can see that knowing it would just bring trouble for everyone here..." Leroy looks at the floor with a nervous expression. ''Probably heard of the "Purification" that happens with certain types of Pacts. It is said that if the church discovers a Pact and considers it "Evil" they will genocide the entire place that the person lived in to "purify" whatever the individual did.'' "Hey hey hey why the long face? Are you forgetting something?" Kei says as he points to the elixir at the table. Leroy follows Kei''s finger until his gaze falls on the elixir. Due to everything happening he forgot the main reason he was even here in the first place. "...can I truly have it?..." Leroy questioned, unsure if what he was about to drink was truly his. "Yes Leroy. We made a deal and here''s your part. It''s yours to enjoy." Leroy gave the last push necessary for Leroy to grab what was his. Leroy proceeds to walk to the table with the elixir standing. In front of the elixir he then grabs it and opens it, taking it to his mouth. He gives one last look to Kei who only nods. *Gulp* Quick and simple. In the blink of an eye Leroy drinks the entire vial. "*blag* this taste horrible-" burn, fire. It burns. He falls to the ground as his body starts burning with a heat so hot that it felt that he was next to a volcano in eruption. He tries to speak but nothing comes out of it. He starts crying as the heat becomes unbearable and then... He faints. Kei watched as everything happened. "I forgot to mention that due to it being the first time you drink one you will have a tough time. So... sorry" Chapter 8: Business After putting Leroy on a chair in the corner of the room, Kei prepares himself to work. ''Everything went better than I thought. I expected the elixir to be a basic one, not a medium one. I guess my skill was better than expected... To be one of the simplest elixirs to make the skill required to make a good one is quite high. I don''t want to imagine what the more complex elixirs require...'' The man starts making some basic mana and health potions. ''For now, I will prepare some basic stuff to show that I am capable of doing stuff like this to Reiyo.'' The man looks at the unconscious Leroy. ''I know that I said that I would help him to gain a bit of street muscle, but... is it worth it? I am opening myself to be exposed, especially now that I showed him one of my Pacts. Yes, it was a practically fake one due to the time travel taking away all the effects that actually matter, but the presence is still there. If the Church actually discovers it, they will definitely hunt me down. The previous war aftereffects are still kind of fresh...'' The church also previously know as The Church Of The Truth is the biggest religion of the kingdom, it started even before the Destined Hero phenomenon began, it preaches about how the humans are the True God''s favorite creations and that''s why they were chosen to get the blessings that exist in the world while most other races didnt get them and especially the Destined Hero phenomenon, previously they said that they were the True God''s children and venerated them as such but that changed after one of them went against the church which lead to a civil war and internal chaos, after the Hero''s death they completely removed that part of the teachings and now they only consider them a tool that was send to serve humanity and stop the disaster that was to come. ''The church... even in the previous timeline, there was one question that plagued my mind... Why didn''t they know when the disaster would come? As I remember, the church has a member who could see the future... so why did they not say anything? People counted on them warning the world about when the Calamity would arrive and where but nothing... they said nothing. I should be careful and eventually investigate them, maybe a betrayal to humanity? No... it wouldn''t make sense... In the previous timeline, no one on the group was related to them, so information was scarce. Eventually, we simply decided to drop the thought(for being such a large religion, the information available is low).'' The man, meanwhile, checks a few of the materials given again to see what he can make. ''Information... that''s the biggest thing I have but also what I lack the most. For starters, nobody truly knows when or where the Calamity started, or most importantly when the Heralds started appearing and their identities...Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. And most things I know are when the Calamity was already happening, I lived a normal life and became a baker for the shop heck... I need to assist an academy I never even went to nor desire. Most of the things I heard of were by people who assisted the place and that is not always reliable, but it should give a baseline of things. Not to mention the conversation that I still do not remember. Why is life so difficult with me...'' The man stops checking for materials and sits down in one of the chairs. ''Why was I the one sent back? Why couldn''t it be her? She was stronger, faster, had more influence, had actual power... And then there''s me... probably the weakest human in the world not even smart enough to save his own ass and depending on others to survive, a stupid fucking kid who was cursed at birth... So why?'' The man contemplates. ''Maybe... maybe it''s because my curse-'' A sharp pain passes through his head as he grabs it with a pained expression on his face. ''Uggg... Dammit... what was that?'' His thoughts wouldn''t last long as he hears someone waking up. "...wha...what...happened...?" Leroy wakes up with a noticeable exhaustion. "Good morning prince. Did you have your beauty sleep?" Kei answers with a joking question. "...you fucker...you didn''t tell me that would happen..." "Sorry I forgot. Not that it matter does it? Would you have not drink the elixir?" "That''s not the point you bastard" Leroy responds with an irritated look on his face. "It doesn''t matter anyway. You have something to try don''t you?" Kei ignores the answer. Hearing this Leroy starts watching his hands and a worried expression appears on his face. "You don''t know how to do it don''t you?" Kei accurately guesses. "...No..." Leroy responds embarrassed "Hey don''t get ashamed. No mage is born knowing how to cast a spell or even see magic itself. Except people like the Destined Hero and the like. If you want you can later go to the local library to grab a book or two about it so that you can learn." Kei started recommending a few methods Leroy could use. "...I really don''t trust you..." Leroy says directly. "And why would that be?" Kei starts packing the remaining materials and cleaning the table. "You know things you shouldn''t, you have a Pact, you are acting weirdly, you would have never helped me before, you can do things that aren''t the norm and a few other things. So yeah I don''t trust you." ''Ahhh... now I know why I am helping you. You remind me of my situation and also something else... you have potential, a potential to be much greater than you are. You question the things around you, including people, thats good... you can''t trust a world that you don''t know. We just have to work on your personality a little.'' "You don''t trust me but you will still work with me don''t you? As you said I have things that aren''t usual. And as I said before I hoped this would be the beginning of a fruitful relationship so let me clarify..." Kei extends his hand again to Leroy "I want us to have a business relationship. I will help you and your little group get stronger among other things, such as having a source of income, and in exchange I want you all to follow my requests. Don''t worry I won''t request anything that would bring harm to any of you, that I can guarantee." "So basically you become our boss?" "In simpler terms yes. But I know you don''t like that term so let''s just call it a... mutual beneficial relationship." "..." Leroy appeared in deep thought as he contemplated the deal. "Look... with my support I will also help you all with your problems. That includes the little problem you have with your girl." "!" "If you want to, we can deal with that fat bastard later. So what do you say? Deal?" Kei shakes his hand a little. "...They say that by accepting a deal with the Demon King you would get whatever you wish for..." "Does it matter if I was him?" Leroy looks deeply at Kei''s hand until... "No. It doesn''t matter." Leroy grabs Kei''s hand and shakes it. "But just because we will work together doesn''t mean I will trust you..." "Hahaha... I don''t expect less. This will be a day to remember"