“Well I guess, wait. No. Definitely not. Absolutely not. A hundred times no,” I exclaim, being caught quite off guard by the suggestion.

The voice, which obviously was Teacher, response, ”Tch! I almost got a confession. Well that aside, it seems like you’ve stabilized your energy. I don’t think it will be easy to hide your connections to the dragon clan. The seams between the scales on your hands are visible to the naked eye and your nails are halfway between becoming full-on claws.”

Holy creator, was she recording that. That could have turned out bad. But, yeah that's to be expected. Innate spells are always active as they are powered by the residual innate energy that can’t be stored. Still, I can adjust their expressions so that they appear more human. With that in mind, if the change wasn’t because of my innate spells then it would be much harder to hide. Well, I guess I could add a human mimicry to my list of innate spells in the future but, it would be a waste of a spell slot.

Well at the end of the day it's not the spell that matters but, how it's used. In my last life, I remember a famous mage who had fireball as their second-level innate spell. Everywhere he went he had a pet fireball that followed his every step. Most have made the mistake of applying a spell-like that to their innate spells but he was the only one that ever made it to the 5th level. It was mostly due to how clever he was in using it. Very rarely did he actually use it as an attack spell and instead used it as an infinite lamp when he went exploring or as a heat source in the cold.

I don’t fear the man who practices ten-thousand arts one time but, I do fear the man who practices one art ten-thousand times. Something like that. In my last life that definitely described my practice all the way up to the 6th level. Even by the time I was called a Legendary Sage I really only knew one or two skills. It wasn’t until I was studying to break the mortal taboo and ascend to the divine level that I really opened up my skill set. However, in this life, I’m simply not fated to be a master carver with only one chisel but a master carver with luxury themed chisel set.

After all, at just the first level I’m armed with not just one, not two, not three, but 9 innate spells. That's nine times more than a normal first circle mage. While not even a hundred first circle innate spells could handle someone of the third level and higher, It definitely won't end at 9. Imagine having 9 third-circle innate spells or a total of 27 innate spells. It would be absolutely crazy.

Teacher cut through my stupor once more and asked, “So, what now? I don’t really know why you came back, nor should you tell me, but I imagine you have some sort of plan, right?”

“Well, my priority was strengthening everyone's foundations as well as setting myself up to surpass my past glory. Now that I’ve done all I can on that front for now, hmm,” I took a moment to collect my thoughts before continuing, “I guess my next plan would be obtaining information and influence. I probably need to form ties with the Maerin Dragon Clan and the House of Grey.”

I’m already a member if unofficially, of the dragon clan by practicing a variation of the “Dragon Heart Rebirth”. I would just need to apply and get my Dragon Clan ID number to make it official. Honestly, though, that won’t be enough to fulfill what I need as I can’t just be a member of one of the tribes. I need to become a member of the mainline family. Only with that could I throw some weight around to get my hands on any intel.

The House of Grey on the other hand is going to be a nightmare. They aren’t based in the Maeia Realm and the locations of their small houses are one of the five mysteries of the universe. After all, this is the family that claims to have produced the Demon God who almost wiped out all life. Many, many, people be more than happy to murder them all. The crimes of an eon ago may have disappeared from the minds of the normal people of the world but, to devil realm experts it may as well have happened yesterday.

Needless to say, I have a couple leads to where the Maeia Realm Small House may be located but, that's pretty much it. It will be even more annoying trying to form relations with them. However, if I want to get access to information outside the Maeia Realm it will be essential to borrow their network.

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Because when it comes down to it I have no idea where that abomination came from. I don’t know if it was a calculated strike. I don’t know if this was a complete accident. I don’t know if the thing that killed everyone was human. I don’t know if it was from one of the other species that inhabit the realm. I don’t know if what happened was malicious in nature. I don’t know if it was a sacrifice for the greater good.

I DON’T KNOW.

Letting out a sigh, I said, ”Whatever happens, happens. If it goes bad again I can always use the ‘Temporal Phoenix’ spell and try. . .”

Before I could even finish I received a quick and sharp flick to the forehead. It wasn't a light one for a comedic effect like I was so accustomed to. It actually broke the skin. For someone like me, it would heal in a couple of seconds but I stopped it subconsciously. More accurately Teacher’s aura forced me to let it stay. She was angry.

“Listen here, I don’t want you ever using that spell. The fact that you’ve used it once I’ve let slide but repeated use of that spell will only kill you and the universe as well. The fact that the me you grew up with never drilled that into your bones is my fault to bear. However, I will never. NEVER. Let you use that spell again,” Teacher sheathed.

She’s right. I shouldn’t rely on a redo button. Just using that spell the first time required all of the violent and chaotic energy released during the collapse of the Realm. I don’t even know what other cost I had to pay for it. I might as well have been playing with fire for all I know. That's on top of issues that might occur in the fabric of spacetime.

The skin quickly healed and the blood dried. The dent in my skull stayed. The message was clear. It wouldn’t heal till she knew I didn’t plan on using the spell. When I had used it I was in an emergency but, I was still under the impression that it was an emergency and that using it was fair game. If I continue to think like that it will cause me to suffer. I won’t put in my best effort now if I think I can just reset when I don’t like the outcome. Once there is a first there will almost always be a second.

Teacher calmed down a notch before finishing her piece, “That also doesn’t answer my question. What will you do now? Thinking about the future and expanding your network is fine, but how will you get to that point. I don’t know if you noticed but, you're not good at politics. Nor are you adept at subterfuge. I’ve also never seen you able to keep a secret. You're also not all that flexible or creative in your plans.”

“I. . I guess that's true,” I reply meekly.

“I have no idea what got you into this situation but, just knowing you I can make a pretty educated guess. You got too focused on one thing and then got completely blindsided when an enemy appeared out of nowhere. That's about it right,” Teacher says, almost reading my mind.

I try to explain but she cuts me off and continues, “Look I'm not criticizing you. In fact, I love that you are such a deep thinker. However, you're so deeply rooted inside yourself that you fail to notice anything that happens around you. The moment someone comes in and so much and bumps into a chair it completely throws you off your rhythm. I don’t know about you but, I know I didn’t ever raise a weakling. If you gave your everything you would have walked out with more than just your life.”

I couldn’t refute that. I had been so focused on breaking the mortal taboo and ascending that I pretty much-ignored everything. No, I just assumed Justin or Aubrey or Ebony or someone would deal with it. I shouldn’t have forced that on them. I was the strongest at that time. I was the one who got us to continue to interact even after thousands of years. The moment Aubrey died, I gave up. I ran away. It really was my fault.

With no regard to my permission, tears flew down my cheeks. I was scared. I was vulnerable. Yet, I never faced it in any way that mattered. I had time to reflect but I didn’t. It was what got me into this mess in the first place. Even if they were still alive here, I never grieved the loss of MY Vane, MY Jade, MY Scott. Those weren’t just dead. They were erased from time. And it was me that killed them. They will never exist again. New ones will be there but they will be different.

Teacher pulled me into an embrace and wiped away my tears. She let me get it out of my system before she finished her speech, “I’m sorry, that's just one weight that comes from using that spell. You have more on your plate to bear and for that I’m sorry. I never wanted any of you to go through the same mistakes I made. I can’t change that for you. However, as your mother and your teacher, I want to help you. I think it's best if until the other students graduate you spend time here with them and try to move beyond your weaknesses.”

With only a handful of words my future had been charted, I only needed to sail it.