"I see..." Their gazes lingered on me for a moment before leaving.
Then Windsom walked up ahead next to me and stopped just shy of my side.
"It seems you are the boy, Arthur Leywin."
His tall form towered over Arthur, a mere twelve year old, while I stood roughly the same height.
Arthur nodded, his confident gaze matching my own.
"That's me."
"I assume you are aware of what needs to happen, yes?" Windsom asked him.
"Yes, I do. I accept. But I have one condition." He brought up a finger, stopping Windsom from speaking.
"I will speak with my family before I go. No exceptions."
I could see the resolve in his eyes. He had truly accepted his responsibility as a holder of Sylvia's Dragon Will and Sylvie's bond.
He nodded, turning back as he joined his companion. "Very well. In due time, we will return. I hope you have prepared yourself for that when it arrives."
"Likewise," I commented on the side as they left us.
I rubbed the back of my head, trying to make sense of their early arrival.
Shit.
"Alright, it looks like Agrona's moved his plans up. We don't have much time before shit hits the fan," I whispered to the two as we returned to Ren and Rizem.
They were joined by several other beast warriors, who obviously seemed to be high-ranking.
"Ren. We need to leave now and prepare for the Asuras' intervention. If you need anything, you know how to reach me."
I offered my hand for a greeting, to which he returned it.
"Likewise, boy. Before you return to Dicathen however, there are a few individuals I would like to introduce."
Three humanoid beasts stepped forward.
One was feline, her thin form accentuating the daggers that sat by her sides.
The second was bulky, ox-like and shouldered a warhammer engraved with intricate markings that held an obvious power to it.
And the last was slim, yet defined. His lack of presence, yet the fighter's build he possessed suggested he specialized in speedy, merciless barrages that left no room to dodge or counter.
"This is Morgana, an elite warrior, and our fastest among the Salast Clan."
"Hello, boy," her seductively smooth voice rang in my ears, even though her mouth remained unmoving.
Continuing, he presented the burly warrior. "This is Tasu. He is a warrior of the Krimo Clan, and specializes in large-scale raids."
"Yo! Boy." He smiled brightly as he greeted me, to which I returned.
So he's a softie? Huh.
"I am Leto," the last man spoke before Ren could introduce him.
He had a strange lack of presence, and his slim fighter's body also reminded me of an assassin's.
"Nice to meet you all. You already know me, but I'm Kuro. The boy with jet black hair over there is Nico, and the auburn-haired boy is Arthur Leywin."
I pointed over to the two who waited for me where I opened a rift.
"While our greeting seems to be a bit poorly timed, I feel we'll be seeing each other in the future quite often."
I joined Arthur and Nico as I donned Gram, shouldering the greatsword.
"We'll await your call, boy," Rizem commented, the greed in his voice leaking.
"Until next time, Kuro."
___________________________________
Castor Vigo
"Say Cas, what do you think about the class?" My brother glanced at me as we ate our lunch.
"Incompetent. Weak. Untalented. Miniscule. Aside from a certain few who I keep eyes on for my own entertainment, everyone else is trash."
Cyrus knew sugarcoating was never a skill I possessed. I was honest when I spoke, whether it was good or bad.
I believe Master- I mean, Young Master Kuro- called it "unfiltered".
"Like the Princess Kathyln, huh?" He mused.
I nodded in agreement.
"She may not be like us, but she at least has some level of competence among her peers. She's quite a talent, by normal standards at least."
Even though she was a mere Orange core mage, Princess Kathyln possessed quite a level of insight from a young age.
Like her mother, the Queen, she inherited the Water element, and incredible talent.
She would be quite a mage come a few years' time.
"Hey, you two!" Ms. Bladeheart greeted us as she walked over.
"Hello," I simply greeted, careful not to overstep my boundaries.
"Good afternoon, Ms. Bladeheart," Cyrus greeted.
"You guys know where K is? The only knews I got was that he left campus this morning with Nico and Arthur."
We shook our heads. "The Young Master has gone somewhere private. Even we were uninformed of where exactly," I relayed.
"I see," she mused, her hand brought up to her chin, "do you know when he'll be back?"
Cyrus shook his head.
"We're not too sure, but at the latest, he'll be back before school next week," he spoke casually.
"He will return back today," I said. "I know it."
I shot a glance at my brother, giving me a knowing nod in response.
Standing up, I neared the crimson-haired girl.
"Have you noticed as well?" I whispered quietly, to which she subtly nodded.
"The only person in the school aside from the DC and you two that have those kinds of mana reserves is Lucas," she commented.
"We've grown suspicious of him. Meet us at the Young Master's training room after classes."
She nodded fervently as we walked away to dump our trays.
The moment classes ended for the day, we heard a loud knock on the door.
We invited Claire inside, walking over to our resting area.
"So what's up with Lucas lately? Why's he so focused on you two in particular and what do you think he's planning?" She asked.
"We have reason to believe he's after those connected to the Young Master," Cyrus said.
I nodded. "Wykes has a particular hatred for the Young Master, as he picked a fight with him the first day of school and lost.
The only viable answer we can come up with that explains his sudden attachment to studying us."
I saw Cyrus zoned out, which reminded me of how he was left in deep thought.
"What is it, Cyrus?" I asked.
He looked up, a slight tint of worry on his face.
"I don't think the three of us are the only ones he may be targeting."
My eyes widened in realization, remembering the stories the Young Master always told us.
"The orphanage! The Young Miss!"
I immediately ran out, Lightning mana already coursing through my nerves as the world in my eyes slowed.
I ran outside, willing Wind mana into my legs as I pushed off of the ground, hopping from building to building.
With slow, steady breaths despite the internal stress I
was holding inside, I conserved mana as best as I could, making sure I had some left to defend the orphanage and myself.
As I came to a halt, I saw the giant sign marked [Xyrus Orphanage].
I threw myself into the shadows, concealing my identity with the mask Young Master Kuro gave me.
Closing my eyes, I shot a pulse of Wind mana throughout the area in an attempt to confirm my surroundings.
Three people, no one inside, but they're on high alert. Probably because of me.
I heightened my senses with mana as I listened closely to the voices.
"-but seriously, why do we have to do this again?" A male voice rang in my ears.
"Because our client ordered us to keep watch on the place, and to confirm if a guy with white hair comes by at all," another voice, that of a female's, replied irritatedly.
"Quiet!" Another man chastised the two. "Are you not aware that the high mana signature that appeared may still be here?! Shut it!"
"Fine, sheesh! Friggin' hate nobles," the other man's voice grumbled.
"Tch. You got that right. But we can't just turn down a family like the Wykes'. Especially with that brat son of theirs," the woman's voice agreed.
Shit. So it was true. He really wasn't just targeting us.
"In any case, it doesn't look like we'll get anything today either. Let's just go back and see if he comes tomorrow," the other man ordered.
The three signatures soon left my range of detection and I withdrew my mana.
Taking off my mask, I walked up to the door, knocking on it. A young lady opened the door.
"Yes, Sir? How can I help you?" She looked at me curiously.
"I'd like to speak with the owner of this establishment please," I requested.
In my grip, I held the coin the Young Master gave me. He said to inject mana into it in the case that I would ever need his help as soon as possible.
So...
___________________________________
"I see..." the Head Mother muttered worriedly.
"B-but still! I'm proud to see Kuro's already made new friends."
The young lady, Mary, seemed to have a fondness for Kuro.
"The question is why are we being targeted by a noble of the Kingdom?" The elder lady asked.
I lowered my head in shame. "I'm afraid we're to blame for that, ma'am. Lately, the Young Master's temper has become less controlled around certain individuals.
In this case, he has a particular hatred toward Lucas Wykes, a noble who hurt one of his friends not long ago."
"The Wykes Family?!" Mary gasped.
Just as I nodded, a familiar, powerful mana signature assaulted my senses.
The front swung open, and the Young Master, with Sir Nico and Lord Arthur in tow.
"Castor, what happened?" He asked me as he stormed up to me almost too quickly for me to even realize.
As soon as he calmed down, I explained to him my suspicions and fears regarding Lucas' recent behaviors.
"So that's how it is..."
He stood up, wearing an expression I couldn't read. But all I knew was this; even I felt bad for what Lucas would have to go through.
I saw his head turn slightly, and the expression he wore immediately softened into a relieved smile as he walked up to the Head Mother and Mary.
"I'm glad you're both safe," he said, pulling them into a hug.
___________________________________
Kuro
"So, what do we do now?" Arthur asked me as we trekked our way back to the academy.
I had Castor go back first and debrief Nico on the situation so I could be alone with Arthur.
"We do every last thing in our power to protect the others. This concerns the others now.
He knows you're connected to me just by our relationship at the academy, so chances are he's got information on your family too."
Mana slightly flared from his core, being quelled just as quickly.
"I... see."
I looked behind my shoulder back toward the orphanage.
"I've already placed a protective seal onto the orphanage, but that's only restricted to actually being inside the orphanage.
I can place one around the manor as well, but my concerns lie in our family's safeties. The pendants and rings only protect from a killing hit, so the problem is them not dying."
Nodding, he agreed.
"Not to mention, the Wykes' are pretty high up there, despite being infamous for their experiments.
There's no way he'll only stick to hurting them with just weapons or magic."
"In any case, how're you holding up with classes lately? Aside from the whole Geist situation and me dragging you out to another continent, that is."
He looked up into the night sky, staring absentmindedly.
"It's been boring, I won't lie. The classes I chose are covering what I already know, so nothing new is being mentioned that I have any concern for."
He then grumbled. "And the classes I'm not familiar with are filled with crazy old coots, gossiping students, and professors with loose screws."
I chuckled, knowing exactly who he meant.
"Let's see... Gideon, Glory and Cynthia?" I inquired.
He sighed. "Yeah. First day of school and I'm already being gloated upon by Gideon, Glory's forced me into a match against the Student Council and Director Goodsky's made me a teacher.
Boy, I'm gonna go insane one day from these guys."
"Well, I'm sure we'll have fun, yeah? I have my own responsibilities as President of the Student Council as well, so you can expect a common ground on our boredom," I chuckled in amusement.
We continued side conversation as we walked, discussing magic, technique, and talking about our time as Adventurers.
"Get to bed now, it's about time you get some sleep and prepare for classes. I'll have the Twins debrief you on what they did in class while you were gone."
He waved as we went our separate ways. "Night~" he yawned.
___________________________________
I closed the door behind me as I walked into my training room.
"I guess it was a good decision letting Cynthia know I wouldn't need a dorm room. I could make use of the extreme ambient mana around here."
I conjured an earthen chair, sitting in it as I threw the Transmission Cube into the air.
"Yo, Kuro! Long time no see!" Zalam seemed to have a habit of changing every time I saw him.
"Another change? Whatever, that's not what I'm here for. I need some more time, it looks like."
"Ah, right, because of the whole Wykes situation, yeah?" He guessed, and he was right.
"Yeah. He's become quite the issue lately, going after my family and those connected. I've got the all-clear from Arthur to bring the original one over as well, so do take care of that.
Also, I'm gonna need a few components for a hyperbolic time chamber that I can't build myself."
He leaned toward the screen teasingly. "Eh, and here I thought you could create anything with that little skill of yours."
"Shut it. I don't have the skills to replicate the time ratio I want right now."
"Wait, are you not going to add adjustable capabilities to it?" He asked seriously this time.
"No, I will. It's just that the upper limit I want to yield isn't high enough for my liking."
He eyed me suspiciously. "Define 'upper', you insane brat."
"I'd say about 1:1,000,000. Maybe more. The highest I can go is probably 1:275,000, because I don't know the sequence behind something as complex as that."
He, understandably so, rubbed the bridge of his nose, sighing deeply.
"Of course you want that. I should've known you'd come up with something crazy."
Sighing in defeat, a few objects gravitated toward him slowly.
"These are the main components for reaching 500,000. They have a sort of evolutionary pattern that forces them to adapt to the internal module whenever another apparatus is Included.
If you create another one, a million won't be an issue. The pressing matter is a question of whether you can even create something like this."
I searched through my dimensional storage, locating the same objects he showed me, and opened a Door.
"So these must be just that hard to replicate. Cool. I'll see what I can do with these, thanks."
I placed them back inside my dimensional storage, returning my attention to the screen.
"Anyway, I was hoping you keep the dragonoid body fairly to the book too.
I think using something that can let me use ambient mana in its purest form would be better too, for both myself and for the physical realm."
"Oh, what, so you can create and manipulate other elements too? Yeah, no. I'd rather not have you razing an entire continent just because you can."
Irritated, I pinched the bridge of my nose.
"Zalam, even you know that my credibility as a genocidal maniac without care for any kind of life is low. If anything, I take offense to that."
He clicked his tongue, adjusting his position as he slouched in his chair.
"Whatever. Leah, bring it here," he ordered to someone.
"Yes, sir!" A squeaky, feminine voice shouted.
A small girl with peach blonde hair tied back into a ponytail ran into view with a giant capsule following.
Inside the capsule was a man with pristine white hair and a built, yet lean fighter's body.
"This is our current progess so far. I've already implemented soul repair and a few of your current mana capabilities.
Mana creation, portal opening, yada yada. I've got most of your original abilities including the subspace."
I tilted my head, confused.
"Subspace? It's not dimensional?" I inquired, curious to know if my theory was right.
He shook his head.
"I don't know why, but for some reason, you did something and I temporarily lost all contact with you. I couldn't even track your soul.
When I went to check up on your latest location, you were standing with your eyes closed, so I assumed you used mana creation.
A subspace isn't typically created like this, but because it's you we're talking about, chances lean toward spatial manifestation."
"So... you're telling me I created an entirely new space in which not even you can find me?"
He begrudgingly nodded with irritation.
"You're a fucking monster, and a God doesn't even compare to your capabilities.
You have the talent, skill, and the body capable of handling all that mana that flows through your body and the magic that enters your mind.
What you don't have is the work ethic of refining such skills to their sharpest edge.
Mastery, yes. Complete mastery, not quite."
"Sheesh, you're hurting my ears with that one," I commented, rubbing the back of my neck.
"Well, whatever. Onto real business. What do you want now? I'm willing to bet you didn't just contact me for progress checks alone."
I nodded.
"I need another body. Female, slender and flexible, but powerful and meant for combat.
The main attribute is Plant, so I'd use Plant-based monster parts as the foundation in order to maximize synergy.
I also want it to be that of an adult's body. And keep it that way to best retain combat efficiency."
Another screen gravitated towards him as he began inputting information I couldn't decipher.
"Okay... on it. And an Anti-corruption arsenal should be a good countermeasure against the Vritra, yeah?"
"Yeah, that'd be great, thanks."
"All set for production. I can send one of my guys down during your training to help with whatever you couldn't, since the war in this timeline won't be for another two or three years, tops."
I brought my hand up, pausing the conversation, because there was obviously something wrong here.
"Wait, what? I was expecting at least a five year lead! What d'you mean two or three years, tops?"
He shook his head.
"Kuro boy, you forget!" He leaned in, wearing a teasing expression.
"You've already forgotten about your little enemy, an ally of the Vritra, huh? And here I thought you were oh so great."
I deadpanned.
"Right. Because some rando I don't even know but apparently do that works behind the scenes with the enemy of this continent is more of a concern then the current individuals in my grasp."
"Tch. You could at least pretend the guy's on your radar."
"Oh, he is. I just can't be concerned with him at the moment. I still need to deal with Lucas, I have my family to take care of, and I'm literally making changes to the continent.
I have to go now. I'll be busy for some time, so don't contact me unless you absolutely have to."
"Hah? I should be saying that to you, brat!" He exclaimed before the screen went black.
Chuckling, I returned the Transmission Cube to my hand.
"Right."