Chapter 1 - The Disciple, Krist Ceringer
In the original life, Krist Ceringer was a no-name soldier of the Kingdom of Lukedonia who had lost his left eye in one of the initial skirmishes of the war. After being discharged from the military with little to no benefits, Krist carried his life with pure grit as an Adventurer and Treasure Hunter. He had successes here and there, and a few life-and-death situations. However, there are other reasons why Gene would like to obtain this precious Disciple at this current juncture of history. It is because this was when Gene knew where Krist would be located and when he was the youngest, being only 13 years of age.
If he gets any older, it would be much harder to attain the “Governor Vessel” and “Conception Vessel.” Better to mitigate the pain rather than prolong it.
Therefore, Gene sneakily headed to the outpost where Krist was stationed. Very soon, he will be sent to Hollow Bastion to fend off the last efforts of the Carcerons. They will act hastily after knowing their Sword Lord has died. A devilish grin appeared on the handsome young prince’s face. Lord Kenesis appears as a handsome, tall, and slender young man with fair skin slanted violet eyes, and jet-black hair separated in the middle creating two separate bangs. Very few have truly seen the image of Lord Kenesis.
After several days of trekking the magnificent land which brought upon fond memories, “At long last.” Gene was out of breath after a long time. The pain from my damaged “Innate Pure Qi” is quite sharp, stabbing right at me. It’s been a while since I felt such a sensation. Hmph. Chuckling like a madman, Gene was enthralled with a sensation that he hadn't felt in centuries. I will relish this pain until I feel no such thing any longer. Melancholic, Gene intends to live this last life with leisure. That is when they complete the concoction of a legendary Rainbow Pill.
Lord Kenesis had written many things in weeks shortly after his regression. Many things had to be delegated and only trusted servants were entrusted with the most sensitive of information and missions. Geshalt was given the special mission of obtaining legendary ingredients while conquering dungeons and discovering specific Artifacts.
When I recover my Innate True Qi, Enlightenment will be simultaneously gained and Transcendence Realm will be achieved. These were the thoughts of the young prince who had used his Innate True Qi to fight against an Astral named Diablo. They are beings who were the first to be created and had walked the world before anyone else. Lord Kenesis and Geshalt had discovered the Dungeon in which Diablo was imprisoned and used a third of his Innate True Qi and damaged his Neidan, the inner core of the concentrated Dantian that was cultivated for several decades.
There he is. Kenesis had located Krist coming out of a tent with the rest of the soldiers. Looks like this was your first encounter with, “Dual Executioner,” Forris Zecht, the illegitimate son of Count Ludwig Van Solidor.
Krist came out of the infirmary after stitching up Loutch Lawliet, his childhood friend. There were orders from a soldier delivering news that the unit that Krist was dispatched to was to be the Reserves of the 7th Infantry, in other words, their only task was to be cannon fodder onwards. Other than that, there was a 10-day resting period for the Reserves and Krist was already quite ambitious.
You gave some cigarettes to some older soldiers, huh? It was quite smart of you to plant seeds with the senior soldiers to eventually give fruit to enter the hunting party. Grinning at the fact that his soon-to-be Disciple was cunning and was not afraid to practice black-market deals. When Tremblin enters the outpost, it’s all over.
The spiky dark-haired young man had joined the hunting party alongside Saix, Laciel, and Reddas, young teens who are the first to become close friends with Krist. “Hey, why are those babies going with us?” Lieutenant Zecht questioned one of the Sergeants of the hunting party.
“Relax will ya? I know you’re talented and all, but, check this out. That guy in the back with the black hair is called ‘Krist.’ He gave us these cigarettes and asked us to do the hunting while we sit back and relax.” The Sergeant replied, knowing that the hunting task was going to be scarce, therefore, not inducing as much labor. “Are you gonna smoke sum, or what?”
“I’ll refuse,” Forris dismissed the offer with indifference.
“Whatever suits ya,” the Sergeant puffed the cigarette and exhaled a cloudy smoke.
“Attention! 5 Rabbits for each person!” The order was cried by a soldier. “Beware! Venturing deeper in the woods would risk an encounter with a Kobold. Be wary!”
5 Rabbits… Piece of cake! That was what Krist thought.
Hunting was an art that Krist had already mastered. This was the perfect time for Krist to gather useful materials, especially, ingredients to cure the infection in Loutch’s arm. In the original timeline, Loutch Lawliet had lost an arm during the beginning of the war with Carceron and was effectively discharged with some medical benefits. Not only that, but, Loutch Lawliet had kept a hidden secret from Krist and struggled to deal with that reality.
However, the second life, Loutch Lawliet was saved from amputating his arm and had ascended to great heights. Additionally, he even accepted his complex of being a “Half-breed” or “Hybrid.”
Moving swiftly forward, Krist gave orders to his party and gave simple instructions. One, they will be carrying satchels of bags and storing ingredients. Second, to search for a Heavenly Silkworm Ant. That was all that was tasked to Saix, Reddas, and Laciel.
Unlike Loutch and Krist, the others don’t know how to do anything else other than fight, yet, in this life that problem is no more. They all returned to Lieutenant Zecht with five rabbits each equaling twenty rabbits hunted.
“Good work,” Forris complemented Krist but was cold-blooded. “This should curb the hunger of the soldiers for a short time.” The soldiers in this outpost were having problems with rations. “You and the unit are freed from Night Watch! Effective immediately,” the Lieutenant issued the order.
***
Loutch Lawliet had awoken from his deep sleep, “Haven’t slept that long in a while.” The brown-haired and green-eyed teenager stretched his arms high in the sky. “Oh? I didn’t notice you there,” Loutch saw Krist in his peripheral.
“We’ve been back for a couple of days. Here, drink this to prevent any infection from that wound.” This was one of Krist's main priorities in his teenage life. Both had experienced losing a part of themselves, however, not this time.
“How long have I been asleep?” Loutch drank the vial. Gulp. Gulp.
“About a day and a half. You slept like a log.” Krist had expected the recovery to be around that time. The deep wound stopped bleeding in one day thanks to my sewing of the skin. If it wasn’t sewn in tailor-precision, there was a high chance that an infection would raze causing a necessary amputation. Moreover, the application of several medical balms and ointments recovered the physical skin and showed no visible scarring.
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“Thanks, Krist.” Loutch thanked his friend.
“Don’t mention it,” Krist replied. I want you to live a long life, my friend. His thoughts reflected his sentiment and the treatment shown by that.
“Attention!! Attention!” A soldier yelled outside of the Barracks.
?!
“Someone important must have come,” anticipating the arrival of a high-ranking individual, Krist already knew what was going on.
And this was why Gene had wanted Kris to be his Disciple. It was because he was a “Regressor” just like him, albeit, in a different way. Therefore, Krist knew of future events like it was the back of his hand.
“Lord Tremblin enters the outpost! Order Arms!!”
Lord Tremblin, “The Terrible,” a Force Master, and “Right-Hand of the Sunshine King.” Krist also knew the reason why the Sword Demon had entered his camp. Were you watching from the beginning, Master? Ending the scene while posing a question to himself made it seem like Krist knew that Gene was watching him the whole time.
***
Matters had proceeded forthright just as Gene had wanted. Force Master Tremblin entered the outpost and made necessary arrangements for Lord Kenesis to meet Krist.
“I greet the ‘Emir’ of our Tribe,” Krist kneeled.
“Please rise,” Lord Kenesis did not want to waste too much time on formality and proceeded to ask the inevitable question. “Will you become my Disciple?”
?!
It was a question Krist was expecting and accepted forthrightly, “I accept.” With those words, Krist began the ceremonious bows to commemorate and formalize the relationship between Master and student. The event did not take long and Gene taught Krist the Chi Cultivation Method, The Final Purification.
For the rest of the 10 days given to the unit at this outpost, Lord Kenesis opened the Governor and Conception Vessels in a matter of days allowing for the rest of the break for Krist to recover and adapt to the newfound dimension. It was a surgery that Gene was successful in operating.
Soon after, Lord Kenesis set off on his own because he understood that teaching a student too much will only poison their growth. Not only that, Krist was a Regressor, he was already ahead of most people his age. Other than teaching The Final Purification Method, and Martial Arts, Krist was prepared to fight the impending battles that would test his life.
“We’ll be solving the food crisis in this outpost,” Krist had prepared some ingredients for when the hounds of the Carceron Kingdom would be sent to Lukedonia and aggravate them.
Thanks to the earlier hunting expedition, Krist, Saix, Laciel, and Reddas, had a total of ten bags filled with specific herbs and ingredients. Even before Loutch had awakened, Krist had successfully concocted a drug that people had not discovered the effects of yet. Specifically, it was a potent drug for hounds, a Sleeping Draught.
“Douse these at locations where you think wildlife would take a rest,” Krist gave a hint to the instruction. When the liquid comes into physical contact, anything that is on the receiving end would fall asleep for some time.
At this moment, the food shortage was a growing concern for Krist’s camp. If that wasn’t bad enough, an even bigger problem had shown itself.
GRRRRR!! Bark! Bark!
Bloodhounds sent from the Carceron Kingdom were set free to terrorize Lukedonia. Some of the hounds had infiltrated the camp and caused a ruckus around the food supplies.
“Damn Bloodhounds! Not even our traps can ensnare these bastards!” One of the soldiers designated as one of the chefs bickered about how the Bloodhounds of the Carceron Kingdom were cunning and could detect traps.
“What’s going on?” Loutch asked an open-ended question.
“Lieutenant, if you would permit it, we will catch those Bloodhounds.” Krist made his request.
Indifferent about such a petty task, Zecht’s reply was apathetic, “Very well. You have one day to make it happen. Good luck.” The order was particularly harsh, catching a pack of Bloodhounds in a mere night, though, Krist had planned ahead of schedule.
***
“This will serve as a good opportunity to show you something, Loutch,” Krist and his friend were busy heading to the plains. To be honest, it's just an excuse to teach Loutch about his unique Mana Breathing Method. Both were of equal age and were ripe to cultivate Aura in their youth. I need to find more herbs as well.
In this lifetime, it appears that there is a subtle development of the sequence of events so far. Truthfully, everything and everyone is in some ways better than they could ever show. For instance, Krist was not able to have Saix, Reddas, and Laciel pick out herbs for him and search for the Heavenly Silk Ant native to this area.
Due to His Majesty, Lord Emir appearing much sooner, Krist was now a “1st Rate” soldier who could infuse Aura. This time around, Krist is showing more ambition. These subtle changes could eventually add up to a snowball effect. The question is; is it good or bad?
“Krist! Over here!” Saix, the tall young man shouted who had long, frayed dark pastel blue hair framing his face, though slicked back creating a middle part. Around the tall young man were bags filled with various medicinal herbs.
“You’ve improved greatly. I’m actually surprised at how fast you were able to know your plants,” Krist praised his soon-to-be Knight who would swear his fealty to him in the near future.
“And we’ve doused certain resting spots in the forest. The Bloodhounds of Carceron love flat plants to lay on,” Saix proved more crafty and used the brain more than what he is known for, ‘brawn.’ Things are progressing far quicker than anticipated, so much so, that I won’t be able to keep up! Krist noticed the events unfolding right in front of him.
“Good. You remembered your bearings well. We’ll check the traps tomorrow,” Krist had more time to kill and proceeded to collect twenty bags of various herbs with Saix and Loutch being his helping hands.
By morning, Krist had escorted Lieutenant Zecht to where the Bloodhounds were peacefully sleeping, “I’ve seen you collecting herbs alongside your followers and using the Herbalist Clinical Lab. Tell me, what type of drug did you use?”
“A Sleeping Draught. Powerful enough to subdue hounds like these by merely coming into contact with your skin,” Krist replied. Not really. The true reason is because of the Heavenly Silk Ant.
Including the thirty bags of various herbs, Krist, Saix, Loutch, Reddas, and Laciel were able to find one, except for Krist who found two Heavenly Silk Ants. In total, there were six Heavenly Silk Ants currently in the possession of Krist. If you feed them a certain herb, the Heavenly Silk Ant has the ability to weave a web with “Debuffs” and “Buffs” depending on what the insect has consumed.
“You’re quite talented alongside your followers,” Lieutenant Zecht gave praise that was uncharacteristic of him.
“Lieutenant, with your order, we could put an end to these pests,” Krist asserted himself as this would be a good reason to get the jump on Carceron and their Bloodhounds.
Zecht did not hesitate with this matter, “Ah.” When Kris addressed Zecht as “Lieutenant” was when he showed the exact identity of Forris Zecht.
Introducing Forris Zecht, a senior soldier at the level of Peak Realm representing Lukedonia. Long platinum blond hair that reaches his back with some hair sticking upwards and part of it swept to one side. A well-built body perfect for combat. Unequivocal Fortitude. Forris Zecht, or really, “Forris Van Solidor.”
“Fine,” Zecht was about to leave but imparted Krist with rewards. “This will be your award for solving this pesky problem.” The Lieutenant pointed at Krist, “In exchange, I will raise your rank upon the success of the mission.”
***
“Krist!” Saix yelled while sprinting with the group composed of Loutch, Reddas, and Laciel. “We’re at the depths of the forest, don’t you think?”
“Nothing to worry about!” Krist assured his fellow soldiers. We’ve practically reached the borders… These were the words emanating from Saix’s face.
“Why so serious?” Krist read the expression on Saix’s face and uplifted him. “We’ll be home before sunrise.” The Disciple of the Sunshine King held an assuring smile.
“This is the place,” Krist perfectly located the Carceron Camp hidden deep in the forest. “Those men breeding these Bloodhounds are the ones who sent them to Lukedonia.”
“I’ll say this once,” Krist stood from their stealthy position. “Get ready.” A sneak attack was brewing behind such words.