On a blood covered landscape, stretching as far as eyes can see, Arian was sitting, chained to a throne made from guts and bones.
All around him were the mountain of corpses in unrecognisable shapes
of ma.beasts, humans, elves, dwarves, devil's and even the mighty dragons.
They were releasing an unbearable stench into the air that could turn anyones stomach upside down.
This hellish landscape wasn't unfamiliar to Arian,
as he would always end up here every time he become sick with unbelievably high fever.
Of course, it wasn't this bad at the beginning.
However, the more times he ended up in this place, it's scenery would become worse and worse...
[[Do YoU DeSiRe PoWeR ?!]]
Very familiar creepy voice echoed throughout the landscape.
It was a voice Arian has become used to, but he still felt goosebumps all over his body the moment it spoke.
[Nah. Thanks, but no thanks. Can I go now, pretty please ?]
[[YoU lItTlE !!! KiLl AnD I wIlL gRaNt YoU tHe PoWeR !!!]]
Every time Arian ended up in this place,
the mysterious voice would always say similar things, always babbling about killing and power.
Arian found it annoying at the beginning, but recently, the mysterious voice has started using more...
forceful methods of conveying his message...
It was sooner than normal, but Arian braced himself for what was about to occur next...
[Ghhh... AAaAAAaAA...!!!]
Arian started to spasm on the throne of gore as the pain spread through his body
like a thousand needles repeatingly piercing his skin and flesh...
He was glad that the [Pain Tolerance] skill was effective, even in this situation...
(KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,
KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,
KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,
KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,
KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL,KILL...)
An endless amount of bloodlust started filling his heart as he screamed,
trying to break from the chains that were keeping him seated on the throne.
[[YoU cAn'T eScApE mE, kIlLiNg EvErYtHiNg On YoUr PaTh Is YoUr DeStInY !!!]]
A very loud and creepy voice echoed throughout the landscape, cold and full of malice.
It was obvious that the voice was trying to insert fear into Arian, make him scared and weak and easy to control.
This whole thing is just some kind of brainwashing method...
(Damn it all (KILL),
if I got that (KILL) medicine that grandpa Quinn (KILL HIM) have always given me (KILL EVERYONE) when I got this fever (KILL),
I could have spared myself (KILL) from this nightmare (KILL YOURSELF)...)
[[FaR tOo MaNy HaVe EsCaPeD mY cAlL, yOu WiLl NoT bE oNe Of ThEm...]]
The voice said angrily, trying to sound as threatening as possible.
However, this was its mistake. What it said didn't make Arian feel despair, but hope.
If there are others that managed to escape this annoying brainwashing, then he will too.
Arian managed to smile despite the pain he was feeling.
There is going to be one last unnecessary gory spectacle, and then this nightmare will be finally over...
Arian braced himself for the finale.
[[[[YOU.WILL.KILL]]]]
A large amount of voices come from behind Arian.
Not even a second after, a few thin, long, black hands pierced through the throne and Arian's chest,
holding his heart in front of his face as it slowly stopped to beat...
.....
......
.......
I finally woke up from that nightmare. No matter how many times I have experienced it, there is no way I will get used to it...
Ugh, I feel sick. I don't know why but I can still smell the stench of that place...
Not to mention, I can also still feel the bloodlust in me. It really feels unpleasant.
After the school start next sabb, I'll need to go on another hunt to release this bloodlust out of myself.
I feel that it's affecting me more and more...
Haa, while Myla is already being able to move around, here I am bedridden for about two sols straight...
[Oh, you're awake. How are you feeling ?]
Miranda asked when she realized that I was awake.
She's been taking care of me ever since my fever has risen up.
She even sleeps here in my room on some old chair, to be here in case I need something.
I already told her that she doesn't need to go that far, but she simply doesn't listen...
Looking at her like this, she does look like a worrying overprotective mother, kinda makes me feel nostalgic.
[Better, now that I'm awake...]
I said that, but being white as a wall with gigantic bags under my eyes isn't exactly the definition of "better".
[See, we told you not to force yourself so much. You need to learn to take care of yourself.]
She's right, I did overdid it last sabb. But what's done is done, there is no point thinking about it.
But I need to prevent those nightmares from happening again, even if I get this fever again.
So right after I visit father Killian at the end of this sabb,
I will go to my family's treasury in the mansion to get those medicine.
Luckily, I have the permission from both grandma and grandpa to take anything I need from there.
It's only been just two sols and I already wish for just one peaceful sleep more than anything...
[Yeah, yeah, I learned my lesson. Thanks for the advice, I will take it into consideration. Anyway, what's for breakfast ?]
I asked as my stomach growled, looks like I'm pretty hungry.
[Light soup with those spices you come up with. Also, there should be a few karr's left from last sol.]
Miranda said as she stood up and headed to bring me my breakfast. I could go to the kitchen and eat there,
but everyone insisted that I don't need to force myself for something like that, so I complied.
Anyway, the karr's Miranda mentioned are thick and short yellow vegetable, similar to the cucumbers.
They are really sour, just like I love them.
And those spices she mentioned are just dried up and crushed slime's paradise grass.
I figured out that they could be useful for something, but it was a challenge to come up with a way to use them.
First, I cut a few millimeters of it and eat it raw, to see just how bitter it really is...
Let's just say that I underestimated what Calvin said and nearly choked to death.
Now I understand why nobody tried using them for anything...
The solution I come up with is to dry them up and then crush them as much as possible.
Calvin helped me with this as he has a fire attribute, so drying the grass was quick.
Now, using just the right amount of it and a overly salty soup becomes a slightly bitter soup.
Everyone loved it, so I even plan to sell it when I have the time or I'm not glued to the bed.
While I was trying to find the use for slime's paradise, I also had Miranda teach me how to cook.
While I know a thing or two about cooking from my previous life, that wouldn't be useful here in this life,
so this was a must if I want to become an adventurer or something like that.
While the Deurius family is actually filthy rich, I don't plan to overly depend on it and try to attain my own wealth.
I don't even know how long I can lech on them, to be honest.
Since my father just up and run away somewhere, my social status should be that of a commoner now...
Haa, I just turned 5 and I already need to think about this complicated stuff...
Anyway, other than attending Miranda's cooking lessons,
this past 5 sols I also have been training my [Mana control] for about a hour or two every morning.
Because of my leg injury, physical training was out of the question, so this was a perfect time to train it.
Learning the mana flow inside my body and the flow of mana outside of my body was surprisingly easy to get a hang on.
Based on what I heard from grandma Abbey, it takes a few cycles to even get this [Mana Control] skill yet I got it in a few lun.
But I think that anyone that has memories of their previous life can do this.
The explanation is quite simple, because in my previous world there wasn't any mana,
being suddenly born into this world, the mana in the surroundings is really noticeable.
To put it simply, when I train [Mana Control], I concentrate and then try to feel the thing that I never felt in my previous life.
All that is left then is to learn how it flow and how to change that flow.
While I think I made a good amount of progress, there is a limit how much I can learn on my own.
Grandma Abbey should be coming to visit us in about a lun, I need to ask her about this then.
[Here you go, eat it all.]
While I was lost in thoughts, Miranda has already returned with my breakfast.
[Mmmm, there is nothing better than a few sour karr's in the morning.]
I said as I started munching karr's first.
[Heyyy, eat the soup too...]
Miranda said as she smiled.
[I will, I will, but karr's first !]
I said with a full mouth...
[Well, good to see you in high spirit again. Anyway, I need to go now, we got a few guests. Do you need something before I go ?]
Hmm, guests ? They are probably tourist, after all, it's that time of the cycle again.
Usually there is barely anyone that come here during the summer or Solis as that is the busiest time of the cycle.
But it's incredibly full during Pluvi (autumn) or Vento, which is the name for spring.
[Can you give me that book over there, I've been reading that lately...]
[Hmm, "Lonely Demon Lord"? Is it any good ?]
I guess that the title and the illustration on the cover catches her interest.
On the cover is drawn a crying young man with horns and one wing.
Because Demon lords are depicted as embodiment of evil in this world, this book surely attracted a lots of curious readers.
[Yeh, it is. It's actually written by the same author that wrote father Killians favorite book "Hero and a demon princess".]
If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.
[Hmmmm...]
Looks like it catched her interest too...
..... ..... .....
On a well maintained road between Volos Mountain and Pixie grove, a few caravans were going from Immitrex city to Veles village.
They do this trip every other sabb, trading goods between the city and the village.
While Veles village is well known in the Kingdom for their excellent warriors and "eaters",
in Immitrex city they are more known for the goods they sell that they obtained from ma.beasts.
Skalavoger for example, a two-legged reptile and their eggs are considered a delicacy among both nobles and commoners.
This is because Skalavoger's can only be found at the edge of Volos mountain which is their natural habitat,
and are hard to maintain anywhere else.
Their meat has a unique flavor to it and their eggs are big and full of nutrients.
Because Veles village is also near the dangerous "Dark Forest",
they hunt ma.beast in it and then sell the materials for a really good price.
Together with merchants, there are always some passengers that are going to Veles village as either tourists,
someone that's going to visit his friends or family, or simply an adventurer eager to challenge the "Dark Forest".
Usually these trips are always peaceful and neither ma.beasts nor bandits come even close to this road.
However, they now face with an... unusual problem...
[Damn it, how long does it take this junk to get there ?! I can't even feel my ars anymore !!!]
Screamed the man at the caravan driver. It was a skinny, tall man with a bald head and a mustache.
He has piercing deep orange eyes, that are currently blood red from stress.
There is also a vein popping on his bald head.
He was wearing an expensive-looking dark pants and red coat.
Everybody who sees him could guess that he is a noble.
He is the Earl Ballard Garcia von Lucatero,
who is currently heading to the Veles village to enroll his second son Rodger Garcia to school.
He also wished to enroll his first son into this school together with Calvin's son Bernard,
but because he is going to inherit his title of a Earl,
Ballard decided to enroll him to the Royal Academy in the Capital city Durrant.
[Sir, we will arrive there before the midsol, please be patient...]
Caravan driver answered Ballard as politely as possible.
[Father, please lower your voice, I'm trying to read here...]
Rodger said to his father in a monotone nonchalant voice.
[Grrrrrr... HMP!!!]
Ballard backed down. He know there was no point arguing with his child, because it would be meaningless.
Rodger wasn't your typical normal child, he was what the others would call a genius.
He learned how to speak when he was only three,
then learned how to read when he was just four and by now, he could probably also write in a recognizable writing.
There are barely any children his age that could do something like that.
His talent with the spear was also extraordinarily, which made Ballard sure that Rodger's future was as bright as the midsol sun.
However, because he was so special, Ballard has given him everything he desired, spoiling him to the core in the process.
This backfired at Ballard as Rodger started losing interest in everything that required any effort,
even worse, he started finding his father annoying.
Ballard tried disciplining him, but to no avail.
So by enrolling Rodger to Veles village school that is known for being distasteful harsh,
Ballard hopes that it will repair his son's bad personality.
[Heh, even your kid put you in place. But he's right, we will be there soon.]
Said the man in cloak that covered nearly his entire face, only a big scar near his lips could be seen.
As he was sitting next to Ballard, he overheard them.
[Oh, shut it scarface. Do you even know what it is like to have kids ?!]
Ballard was irritated at the man that has balls to talk to him yet is scared in showing his face.
Especially since he seems like a commoner without any kids...
[Don't be so stingy old man, I'm just saying...]
Said the man in cloak half amused, half irritated.
[Then don't open that mouth of yours if you never had any children in your life...]
There was also a few problems with his first son who is currently 16 cycles old, but it wasn't anything like with Roger.
[Eeeh, maybe one sol, when I settle down.]
Said the man in cloak, before he smiled, realizing that him having kids was impossible.
Ballard didn't even look at the man, as he was only hoping that they would get to the village as soon as possible.
They would have arrived there last sol if his own caravan wasn't attacked by bandits not far from Immitrex city.
While the bandits were quickly dealt with, his caravan was heavy damage
so the only option to get to the Veles village was to go with the merchant caravan
or go back to Immitrex city and rent a new one, which woud take a lot of time.
.........
When they finally arrived to the village, the sun could barely be seen from the dark clouds. It will probably rain soon.
However, the marketplace that was located in the middle of the village was full of people going about their business,
without caring about the weather.
In every wealthy village, it's always lively like this in the marketplace every morning and midsol.
[Finally, I was starting to wonder if we would ever arrive here!!!]
Said Ballard as he jumped out of caravan, while Rodger followed after him silently, still reading a book.
[Looks like the weather got a lot worse while we were traveling...]
Said the man in cloak as he was paying the traveling expenses to the caravan driver.
The others that were with them had already paid and were going somewhere.
Probably to the tavern that is located near the marketplace
or to the famous inn with the hot springs located a little bit further from the marketplace.
[Luckily we arrived before it started to pour, or else our journey would be muddy.]
Said the caravan driver. Although the road from Immitrex city to Veles village was well maintained,
whenever it rained, it would be quite hard to travel.
[Father, where are we going now ?]
[To the inn a little bit further ahead. You will be living there for a while from now on, so get used to it.]
Ballard replied. He wasn't too happy going to that place, as he personally know the owner, Calvin Fronto.
Both of them were assigned to the same fort during the war and they didn't get along at all.
As they were walking in the direction of the inn, Ballard realized that the man in cloak was going in the same direction.
[Oy, don't tell me you're also going to the Fronto Inn ?]
Ballard asked with an surprised and annoyed voice.
[I only heard stories about those hot springs, of course I'm eager to see them for myself. I heard they can heal even the soul !]
Man in cloak answered with a smile, as if mocking Ballard.
He just love going on nobles nerves,who thinks how high and mighty they are while looking down on others.
He hated people like that.
Ironically, he wasn't any different from them in that regard.
...........
After they arrived to the inn, Ballard rented one room for Rodger and immediately paid in advance.
When Calvin saw him at the the counter, he made a really sour face for a second,
before he immediately put his business smile on and continued doing his job like nothing happened.
That irritated Ballard that even his eyebrows twitched, the bastard Calvin is pretending that he doesn't know him...
He would gladly start arguing with him, but he has better things to do at the moment.
While rodger headed to his room to unpack, Ballard immediately headed to the school to enroll his son there.
He plans to stay here in Veles village for about a sabb before heading back to his territory.
It would be bad for him if his work piled up.
He wants to be sure that everything would be fine for his son in here, truly a caring father.
Well, all he wishes is for this village to fix his son's bad personality...
..... One sabb later.....
And just like that, another sabb has gone by.
Thankfully I didn't have any more of those nightmares and even the fever is gone. Hooray!
I used this time to train my [Mana Control] and just last sol I leveled up.
I also acquired [Cooking] skill while I was helping Miranda in the kitchen.
This cycle, the customers started coming sooner than expected, so there was a lot of work around the inn.
This sol I plan to go to the church to have my level up recorded or something like that
and then I will probably head to the mansion to get those medicine , just in case I need them.
After running 5 laps around the village, I head to the kitchen to eat. Unsurprisingly, the kitchen is full of people.
Last sabb, one of Calvin's acquaintances has come to the village to enroll his son in the school.
He's one cycle older than me and Myla, but it seems like we are going to be in the same class.
Oh yeah, the school start next sol so I also need to buy something to write on.
I will definitely found something in the marketplace.
Anyway, Calvin acquaintance, who I nicknamed "Baldy" because I don't know his name, is leaving this sol.
So we are going to have a feast for some reason.
I don't know why, but Calvin looks unusually cheerful for some reason,
it's kinda creepy...
[If I could, I would stay here for another sabb. Those hot springs are truly amazing.]
Baldy said. I'm not even surprised, every time I see him, he's in the hot spring.
[Come again when you have the time, your son is staying here after all.]
Miranda replied. Baldy's son, Rodger if I heard correctly, will be staying here in the inn until graduation.
We will be going to school together.
Apparently, because there aren't that many children in the village,
both 5 cycle and 6 cycle old are going to attend classes together.
There are normal classes that everybody must attend and special classes that only those that wish to learn how to fight can go.
Special classes are further divided into "fighter" classes and "eater" classes.
We can choose whether we want to attend only one special class or both, it all depend on our willpower and strength.
[Haha, I will, I will. You got a really peaceful village over here, perfect for relaxing.]
Baldy answered. When he first came here, he was really annoying, shouting at everybody and everything.
But now, he's kinda... mellow...
I guess the hot spring really helped him.
[Glad you liked it here.] Calvin said with a weird smile.
[Soo... How did you two met, you never really talked about it ?]
Miranda asked. But at that moment, both Baldy and Calvin looked away from the table in sync, leaving Miranda dumbfounded.
Ta heck is this ? Now even I'm curious...
[If I remember correctly, you were stationed at the same fort at the end of the war, right ?]
Bernard asked, looking at Calvin. Myla too. Even Rodger was looking at Baldy, looks like he was also interested.
[That's true. I was appointed as a commander by the Duke,
while Calvin was voted to be my right hand man by the fort soldiers. And let's just say that we didn't get along very well.]
Baldy said.
Hmm... Usually, the commander himself appoints that position to his most trusted man, not some random soldiers by vote.
I'm not even surprised, this Kingdom is weird. Hell, even this whole "aristocrat system" is weird.
[Why is that ?] Myla asked.
I never saw Calvin argue with someone, so I'm also wonder why...
[Well, he never respected my social standing nor my position as a commander,
even going against my orders sometimes. So disrespectful.]
Baldy said. Well, as an Earl, of course he wants Calvin who is a commoner to show some respect.
But for disobeying orders, that's...
[Heh, says someone who was lazying all sols in his quarters while I did all the work,
and those orders were stupid, it was clear that you didn't even know what you were doing.]
Calvin said in his self defence. Of course he didn't know what he was doing, he's a noble afterall.
[See, this is why he was always cleaning toilets]
Baldy said, like he just won the battle.
Calvin however, just looked away and calmly asked...
[I wonder from where did that water come from, that I used to make you your morning tea...]
Hah, nice one Calvin. Baldy just dropped his spoon and dumbfoundedly looked at Calvin.
Calvin just nonchalantly started whistling.
[Om my...]
Miranda said when she realized where this was going. Me, Bernard, Myla and Rodger just continued to eat, enjoying the spectacle.
Suddenly, Baldy took the fork and take a stance...
[Come on, i'll show ya, shit-cleaner !!!]
[Oh, now you talking in my language. Let's go, piss-drinker !!!]
Calvin shouted before they both got out of the kitchen and probably headed to that empty space near the inn.
Please watch your language, some of us are still eating....
Or were...
[We're going to watch !!!]
Both Myla and Bernard run after them, leaving behind empty plates... Wait, when did they... ?
[I'm going too !!!]
Redger said before also storming out...
Leaving only me and Miranda in the kitchen...
She was only smiling.
[Do you need anything from the marketplace ? I could pick it up on my way from church.]
I asked, completely ignoring what just happened.
[Hmm... Well you could pick a few things from lady Alvarez. You'll manage to come home before the evening, right ?]
[Probobly...] I said.
[Good, then here's the list. It shouldn't be hard to cary.]
As I also finished eating, I took the list and headed out.
Looking toward the empty space near the inn, I could see Bernard, Myla and Rodger watching Baldy's and Calvin's spar.
Calvin was using a sword while Baldy was using a spear. So they are using real weapons, huh ?
I think they are going a little bit too far for just a spar.
However, they are fast...
My eyes can barely keep up with the speed of their attacks.
I never saw Calvin fight before, so I also wondered how strong he really was.
While Bernard is mostly using heavy attacks because of his strength
and I'm mostly using speed attacks to compensate for my lack of strength,
Calvin is a balanced fighter, using both according to the situation.
He could probably take that alpha in a minute if he wasn't preoccupied with taking care of Myla. Truly amazing.
However, even Baldy isn't half bad at all.
He managed to defend against all of Calvins attacks and even attack Calvin a few times.
It wouldn't be a lie to say that they are even in both strength and speed... But Calvin has an upper hand.
Exactly because they are even, this fight now is all about endurance, who has more stamina.
Which is quite obvious, if you think about it. It's only a mater of time before Calvins win.
Oh god, when did I become an expert in this stuff ?!
I better go, I don't want to make father Killian wait for too long.
Myla has already been there last sabb to see her status, but she didn't level up unfortunately.
Only her [Swordsmanship] skill has gone up.
Walking through the marketplace, I head to the church.
Father Killian was already waiting for me at the entrance.
[Good Morning] I said.
[Oh, good morning Arian. Are you ready ?] He greeted me and asked with a smile.
[Of course, I wouldn't come here so soon otherwise...] I replied politely.
[Haha, that's true. Then come inside, I bought fresh juice not too long ago.]
[Juice ? Why ?] I asked confusingly...
[Well, I had a feeling we will have a long talk, so I bought something to drink.]
Father Killian answered as we entered the church...