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🕑 Added 2022-11-16 02:35:55 +0000 UTC.
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'Somewhere within a forest of giant emerald trees, a house built from the branches of a massive tree stood like an apple hanging from a tree...'
'It had a unique mix of colors, however, none of the wood had been painted.'
'So how did its creator manage to create such a cohesive display of colors?'
'It was mostly a clear green color mixed with white and blue, and from time to time, you could see a few hints of purple and yellow here and there, which was very surprising.'
'From the looks of things, this was an Elven home, but in their culture, Purple is often associated with Religion and…'
'Royalty.'
'So to have such colors in a home of all places… Who lived here?'
…
/Sha sha sha…/
/Chirp chirp…/
'Inside this wooden house, the wind moved freely from window to window and the birds flew in and out as if it was the natural thing to do.'
'Wooden branches dug into the house's walls, ceiling, and ground as if it hadn't been taken care of for decades…'
'Yet there was no dirt laying around, no dust, the wood was firm and there were no stains on the long carpet laying on the entrance, leading deeper into the Manor.'
'The Manor gave off a serene aura, it was one with nature around it, and it seemed more like a natural creation of the forest rather than a man-made construct.'
…
/Clack… Clack…/
'Following the carpet into the other sections of the Manor, a man appeared.'
'He was wearing a casual half-opened robe that went all the way to the ground, it exposed his well-developed chest, he clearly wasn't slacking off.'
'His hair was just as long, almost hitting the ground.'
'It was just as green as the leaves on the tree his house hang upon, and his eyes were a deep shade of purple.'
'But his pupils were a bit different from normal, they were star-shaped and they looked rather odd.'
(Image?)
'If all of this wasn't enough to label him as special, his last features said it all.'
'A pair of sharp ears that rose into the air, indicating that he was an Elf.'
'And the beautiful golden Tiara he was playing around with on his fingers, spinning it away like a toy…'
'When all of this was put together, his identity became a bit more clear… He was a Royal Elf.'
'But which of the many princes was he?'
'Whoever he is, one thing is for sure, he was rather handsome, even by Elven standards.'
/Clack…/
'While his left index finger was occupied playing with the Tiara, his right hand was busy pushing around a set of toys on a small board similar to chess.'
"..."
'He was expressionless, but he seemed a bit… Vacant?'
'As if he was unmotivated to do anything, simply pushing things away without a thought…'
(Like you and me on Sunday)
'Or were his movements too complex to be understood?'
"... I lost."
'He spoke for the first time in a long while.'
'His tone was calm, there was no surprise in his words.'
'Only his star-shaped eyes gleaned slightly…'
'But there was one odd thing in all of this… Who was he playing against if there was no seat on the other side of the board?'
/Chuckles…/
'Against all expectations, he chuckled as he grabbed one of the pieces from the board.'
'It looked like a knight as it held a large sword, it wore a mask on its face, so it was hard to distinguish who it was.'
'However, this very same piece was the one that seemingly finished him, the one that dealt the last blow to his strategy.'
"I'll concede this one to you."
/Clack…/
/Twinkle…/
'He placed the piece back on the board, and suddenly, the entire board turned into speckles of light, flowing into the air…'
"Already? Shame..."
"Hm…"
'The Elf continued to gaze into the distance, resting his head on his hands.'
'There seemed to be little focus on his eyes, so it was hard to discern whether he was thinking or not…'
'This Elf was sitting on a chair on a balcony overlooking a long patch of green… It was a lengthy forest that went as far as the eye could see.'
'Albeit, upon a closer look, the forest looked more like a patch of grass rather than an actual forest.'
'The Manor was so high in the air that the trees bellow seemed to fuse with one another, becoming one cohesive sea of green that went into Horizon.'
'But this raises the question, just what sort of tree was this Manor hung in?'
'Not quite as far far far away, a very very faint figure of a mountain could be seen, one that rose to the skies, surpassing the clouds… The Never Ending mountain.'
"..."
'The Elf turned his face to the side, looking at the hall his balcony was connected to.'
'There, in the middle of the room laid a massive… Pink flower?'
'Closed, yet to bloom.'
/Poof…/
'Or perhaps…'
/Shaa…/
'The flower slowly opened, releasing many spores into the surrounding, creating a thick pink cloud.'
"..."
'The Elf's expression did not change, but he did grab a fan inside one of the pockets of his long robe, fanning away the annoying spores so he could breathe properly.'
"Cough cough!"
'Finally, something broke the serenity of this scenario.'
"Cough!... I hate these things…"
'The flower was now fully opened, displaying its secrets.'
'It was another Elf, one that looked a tad older, but he didn't have a single shred of elegance or beauty as compared to the other Elf sitting on the side.'
"You're here, I've been waiting." The Elf in the robe said, this time with a very small smile
"I'm… Cough! Sorry for the delay... COUGH!... Your majesty."
"Some things happened and it took me a bit longer to compile them."
'But the Royal did not mind.'
"Mistakes can happen... No, they are expected to occur every once in a while."
"What matters is having the will to deal with them properly." The other Elf replied as his hair moved with the wind
"Yes…"
I'm giving my all to not cough again...
'The newcomer tied his bowtie, and if it wasn't too late to explain, he was using something similar to a Tuxedo.'
'He was very out of line with the ambient around him…'
'His hair was brown, and a bit curly, while his eyes were blue, a bit soggy since the dark circles around his eyes made him look older and shadier.'
'He had a long mustache, too long in fact to the point it seemed a bit comical.'
"So… Shall I start?"
"First… Take a seat, there is no point in rushing everything."
"I… As you wish."
'The man took a few steps out of the flower, walking into the balcony.'
/Thud…/
/CREEK!/
'The Royal Elf tapped his index finger on the table, and the wood next to it creaked heavily, altering its shape into a chair.'
"Excuse me." The man said as he sat down on it, unfazed by this bizarre situation
...
/Silence…/
'For a few awkward seconds, no one said anything, only the chirping of the birds and the strange sounds of the insects all around could be heard…'
'The man seemed to want to speak, but the other Elf opened his mouth first:'
"How was your day?"
"M… My day?... Well… Can't really say it was out of the ordinary…"
'He touched his head awkwardly.'
If it wasn't for all of the recent events, I would only be tired.
But now I'm overly so, border-line falling apart.
"I see… As for me… I'm a bit tired as well."
"You don't look like that, to be honest…" The Old Elf replied
"Hm? Isn't it obvious through my expression?"
'He seemed a bit upset...'
"Your highness… Pardon my lack of words, but you have no expression…"
I wonder who is the true Highness, this man, or the man that...
No, these are some useless thoughts.
"I told you before, I'm just bad at expressing myself."
"But you have no problem posing to others."
'The Royal Elf smiled, albeit he had some melancholy on his tone.'
"That's an act, it is expected of me as a Royal to act like that and so I do."
"But that…"
"Tires me."
'The purple-eyed Elf looked into the distance before looking back at the man.'
"Well then, I had enough rest for today."
"..."
/Clears throat/
"Then, allow me to go over the matter regarding the Emerald-Sun Kingdom's response to that last matter…"
"And also the other reports of the activities of the other forces..."
"A lot has happened recently hasn't it?"
"You're right your Highness, would you like me to start with a specific subject?"
"Hm... Ah, there is indeed something on my mind."
"Tell me, what have our Heroes been doing?"
"Well..."
…
/Later.../
'For the next half hour, the Elf spoke nonstop while the other one only listened, nodding and telling him to move on from time to time.'
"... And… This leads us to the anonymous report from the Dwarven Council."
"Hm? The Dwarves?"
'The Royal raised one of his eyebrows, albeit his eyes squinted for a moment.'
"Yes… Not so long ago, there was an anonymous report coming from the South."
"Normally, they ignore such reports, but this one was made directly into their most important channel, the one they reserve solely for Inter-Tribe communication."
"It bypassed all of their security codes, and also utilized their encoding scripts..."
"Yet, this report was traced to have come from the South… And its contents were something they couldn't ignore."
"Is that so?"
'Despite his uninterested reply, the Elf's eyes had already sharpened, there was no need to hear the rest, he had already understood what this was about.'
"Albeit the report was unclear and very abstract, Dwarves are very stubborn whenever their curiosity is picked... Because this was all about the Magmatic Forges… "
"As we speak they should be discussing what to do with this information, and soon enough, they may send someone into the Free City under whatever excuse they may find."
"There is little to no chance of our contacts stopping this from happening, at most delaying it."
"..."
'The Royal merely tapped with his index finger on the table, looking at the aged Elf with a serious gaze.'
"W-We expect them to send someone within the next 2 days, at most 3 if something happens."
"And it's very likely that this person will be Cerulion."
"... Haa…"
/Chuckles/
'Instead of thinking it through, the Elf chuckled after letting out a heavy sigh.'
'He looked at the ceiling, at the distant canopy of the massive tree he resided in.'
'But when he looked back, he wasn't the same.'
"So… They found out?"
'His tone and expression completely changed as he looked at the other elf, he looked… A tad more… Darker?'
"Ah… That is most certainly… Not true."
"Whoever made this report was unwilling to relay everything, either meaning they don't know much…"
'But the Royal interrupted him:'
"Or they know everything, and are now using the Dwarves' interest to plot something."
"Besides… There is no need to search for the culprit, it's obvious who it was."
"... Do you think so too?..." The Aged Elf asked, sweat falling from his forehead
/Grab.../
'The Royal grabbed a small leaf that flew by next to his face, staring at it calmly.'
"After everything, I was thinking about what they would retaliate, given that the past few negotions went in our favor."
"But midway through that, I didn't expect them to sniff this out as well."
/Chuckle/
'The man laughed once more, for him, this was certainly amusing.'
/TAP!/
"But something... Is odd." He said as his finger hit the table a tad stronger
"First, they found out about the passage and the goods, which cause me quite the headache from several of those Old Farts factions."
"P-Please do not call the Elder Council Old Farts..."
"They are too old to think straight anymore, there is a point where too much knowledge becomes poison to you when your body starts to fail you."
"..."
I technically agree...
"Second... The Academy."
"It wasn't enough she met her, but now, all of the strategic value in it has been lost as someone robbed the academy of the resources..."
"Even if it wasn't his target, this means the Seed has been taken, or at least, all of the clues have been lost until we find out the culprit."
"Now this… Something few knew."
"Where is the leak?"
"I... I'm investigating..."
"Now now, calm down, no need to be tense, I'm just stating what happened."
"Yes..."
"So."
"All of this happened in close-by events… One after the other…"
"Also, all of the affected areas were within the borders of the Human Kingdom…"
"And there have been no hiccups with the operations outside of their influence."
"How long has it been since the Humans performed that?"
"... 4 months and a few days, the exact date has yet to be determined."
(1 month here is about 2 weeks, so this would be equivalent to 2 EARTH months and a few days, which is about the time Philip spent in Eden)
"Hm… Remind me… What happened in the Free city again?"
"As planned, Rafiel was sent to the city under the ruse of the coming of age ceremonies and teachings as the next in line of the Pyke Family."
"Yes, I remember this."
"... While everyone paid attention to his existence, the Family would continue with business beyond prying eyes…"
"..."
"But midway through his welcoming party, Princess Victoria visited Rafiel, causing quite the ruckus…"
"The reason being?"
"There was no cause."
"..."
"We believe this was the Human's way of showing to us they have caught onto us… Or they are at least starting to."
"It could also be a power play to keep the Pyke Family in check, albeit, there would be no point in doing that since it could lead to dissatisfaction amidst the Aristocracy."
'But the other Elf shook his head, merely asking:'
"... Then tell me… What is her personality?"
"Hm..."
'The aged Elf had to think for a few moments before replying.'
"Princess Victoria is a very unruly young woman, albeit she knows where to draw the line."
"She constantly seeks new things to see and experience as she finds the life in the Palace boring, her abilities and understanding of politics allow her to manipulate others around her so she may seek those things."
"Albeit she has never manipulated them in a malefic way to this day, merely making use of her many strings to fit her young and childish desires."
"Hm…"
'Everything fell into place for the Elf.'
'No, it had already clicked long ago.'
'So he looked towards the horizon, his eyes set on the distant mountains.'
"There is… A Human Hero in the City of Freedom."
"Wh…?"
If I... Yes... There is certainly this possibility...
But its a bit of a jump, there are several better alternatives...
"A very very interesting person… Indeed…"
"I see now… Why I lost."
"Your majesty... Isn't it too early to assume things?"
'But the Royal replied without even turning his face:'
"If I'm wrong, then I shall admit my mistake, but until proven otherwise, I'll move with this idea in mind."
"... As you wish."
"One after the other... In following sequences of events..."
"If we draw a line..."
'The Prince moved his finger in the air...'
"Then we go back... To the Palace."
'Of course, by this point, the aged Elf had already understood what he was insinuating.'
"Y-Your highness, isn't it too much to assume all of this is the workings of the recently summoned Warriors?"
"... I think it's too much to disregard this very possibility."
"Potential isn't solely determined by species... Do you know why you are my retainer?"
"I-I..."
"You aren't the most capable, nor the strongest, my brothers and sisters have chosen a vast array of potent subordinates... Yet they fail again and again."
"Y-You jest... I'm not that great..."
"No, you are."
"The most important thing in you is the ability to understand and have an open mind..."
'The Prince's gentle eyes suddenly became dark.'
"So never allow yourself to lose this ability."
"I-I'll keep myself in check."
"Good."
"We are so high up in the sky, that sometimes, it becomes hard to understand what lies beneath."
"The dirt that keeps us afloat... It can be hard... But it can become loose, like sand."
"So don't underestimate them, otherwise..."
"You may lose your ears."
(This is an Elf idiom :D)
'His expression went back to a relaxed one, while his lips widened into a genuine smile.'
"But truly… How impressive."
"I lost once to an enemy I didn't even know existed, and almost lost again without even knowing…"
"If it wasn't for a naughty girl… I would still be in the dark…"
'A shadow formed around the corners of his lips…'
"Then… Why don't we send a gift to them for helping us?"
"... You mean…"
"Call them…"
'He looked at the giant tree that rose to the skies, especially towards a certain place further above, a massive Palace that was built around the massive trunk of this gargantuan tree…'
"I have a task for them."
"..."
'The Middle-Aged Elf nodded, bowed down, and said:'
"As you wish your highness..."
"The Crown Prince."
'Upon saying his farewell and leaving behind the documents he brought with him, the man stepped onto the flower, letting it close around him once more.'
/Cough…/
'Faint coughs were heard soon after.'
"..."
/Shu…/
'The magical board appeared on the table once more, this time, the Prince rearranged the pieces, leaving behind only 2.'
'One piece that was nothing more than a white rectangle, and another one… The Knight he held not so long ago.'
"Now…"
"I'm not a very good loser."
/Clack…/
'The Prince moved his hand, placing 3 new pieces onto the board.'
"But I'll give this victory to you."
"Slowly... We'll set up this new board."
Since the other ones bore me.
"I made my move…"
…
/Somewhere a bit far away…/
/Swoosh!/
/Swoosh!/
"..."
'Back in the Academy Fabrin lazily sat on a beach chair, overlooking his daughter as she swung her sword again and again…'
'In his hands, he had a piece of black and white paper with many images printed on it.'
'Some of these images were actually moving, while some others even jumped out of the paper, moving in the air as they became tridimensional…'
'It read:'
*Today's Dream*
"Huff… Dad, can you stop reading the newspaper like an old man and help me?" Ivia asked as she breathed heavily
/Flip…/
'Fabrin carefully moved one of the pages, reading the next article.'
*Still no signs of the Culprit, whose fault is it?*
"Just a bit more dear, keep up the good work…"
This one is quite good...
"I've been doing this for over half an hour, even though you told me you were going to continue where we stopped yesterday immediately."
"Then take it as a warm-up…"
"If this goes on I won't even be able to lift my arms later!"
"Don't you want to get strong? So keep swinging it."
"I…"
But I don't want to become a Macho girl!
"..."
'While his daughter complained mentally, Fabrin read the article with a dark expression…'
*... After an entire day of investigations, the thief's method of entrance has been discovered, a backdoor in the defensive arrays around...*
/Shake…/
'But Fabrin eventually shook his head.'
Kid…
Hopefully, I'm thinking too damn much.
Take care out there, I'm rooting for you.
So you may find what you were looking for, and the reason you persevered through that training in the first place.
'He finally closed his newspaper, unwilling to read the rest right now.'
'He had lost the drive to read it further.'
'Instead, his gaze fell on his daughter's "awful" display of swordsmanship...'
"Tsk… If you're tired, just slow down, there's no point in the training if you don't do it properly."
'While he approached his daughter to help her with his posture, he thought about the current situation of the Academy:'
It's so messy right now.
To the point it makes me wish to just bail out…
But I can't… I'm waiting for someone.
"Like this?" She asked as she put a step forward
"The angle is off, try again…"
"Ha!"
"..."
She resembles her a tad much…
But at the very least… She now listens.
'He touched his head in frustration.'
Sigh, to think I would need another man to put some sense into my own daughter…
I'll just go complain to that old man later, perhaps he knows more about this...
And also a bit about raising rebel girls, he did it thrice after all.
"Urg…"
'Ivia almost dropped her blade as she felt a massive cramp on her shoulder.'
'But Fabrin was merciless.'
"Giving up already? You barely swung it 10 times properly."
That boy... I would've killed him once by this time... Perhaps not that extreme, since he would react, but a few bones would be the least...
Sorry... But I can't do the same to her, not even close.
If you're resentful, come back stronger heh.
"I'm trying, but it's surprisingly difficult to do it like this..."
My arm will fall at this pace... But there is progress.
So I must...
/Tad/
'Fabrin touched her shoulders, soothing light being released from his palm.'
"Keep doing it until you imprint the proper moves into your bones, make this task something natural to your brain, just like breathing."
Re-arrange your muscles, temper your flesh.
"Until then, you'll have to calculate on your own… Now, again!"
/Swoosh!/
"If you don't try your best, next time we meet that kid he'll wipe the floor with you without much effort… Even that little wizard girl next to him might be able to do it."
"Urg! No need to tell me…"
/SWOOSH!/
"That!"
'The girl kept moving her sword while under 3 pairs of eyes, albeit she only saw one…'
'Not all Heroes come from afar, most were born from effort and opportunity…'
'Albeit it would be an overstatement to say that this is enough.'
…
/At the same time, further down South once more…/
'Within a beautiful green field next to a crystal clear lake surrounded by a forest…'
"Urg… Hu… I'm dying… P-Please... At least some fucking water..."
"Stop being dramatic, and watch your language, +5 minutes."
"Uhhh..."
'Two men could be seen training, one doing a Handstand, his face extremely red and his arms swollen…'
'While the other one was barefoot and… Walking on the water?!'
"You've only been there for…"
'But he was interrupted.'
"I've been here since 5 Am, okay?"
"The first thing I did after breakfast was coming here... No, I didn't even have that, I merely ate a toast you did half-assedely, and now I'm here, dying of hunger and thirst."
"The moon fell, and the sun rose."
"At first the sun was shining on my back, now the sun is shining on my chest and face, and I didn't even use sunscreen."
"Give me a break." Petter exclaimed with a tired face, his expression displaying his agony
"Hm… Just a bit more."
He has quite the energy for someone that has been doing that for close to Half a day.
"You've… Said that… Several fucking times… Already."
"Add one more then."
(Insert disintegrated emoji)
"..."
'Petter stopped talking, he felt that if he were to lose concentration, he would faint right then and there.'
'Dae on the other hand raised his left hand…'
/Splash…/
'The water morphed, becoming a Trident…'
/Splash…/
'But just when he grabbed it, the trident dissipated, mixing with the water once more.'
"Sigh."
"Not yet…"
I have yet to fulfill the requirements…
But that's strange, even though I was very occupied in the first month of the Summoning, I still tried my best in the following one.
I should've done everything… Did I forget something?
That would be… Not ideal.
'He touched his head in frustration, when you have so much going through your head all the time, it was normal to forget one thing or another…'
"But I ought to keep trying."
I need to have this and one more thing ready by the time Philip comes back.
'Dae's Class, Legendary Hero is as great as the name says.'
'Starting off with close to 20 Skills, just that alone would already make it incredible, especially when those weren't ordinary Skills mashed together without order, but a group of Skills that added upon each other into a proper set.'
'With a few of them being Unique Abilities rarely seen if at all.'
'Not only that, Dae's Class gives him a total of 10 Stat points towards all Major Stats(Mind, Physical, Energy, Spiritual), apart from Mystical.'
'This made it one of, if not the Class with the highest Stat growth in recorded History.'
'If there were some that went beyond it, they surely surpassed a single one, not all 4 values.'
'However, that in itself wasn't enough for him to be considered "Exceptional".'
'When being surrounded with so many Hero Candidates, having a large Growth prospect wasn't enough.'
'And that is where his Sword, Excalibur comes into play.'
'Excalibur can be considered the main part of his Class.'
'First, it is considered a lone entity, meaning, it has a Level and Stats as well.'
'Second, it can hold Skills and Abilities just like him, albeit no Traits since despite having a Level, it isn't a living being with Sapience... Yet.'
'Third, no one else can use it…'
'Well... Not quite, that was mostly a lie Dae made sure to spread around slowly.'
'Just like in the Myth, those worthy of wielding this sword can lift it, however, finding such a person would be difficult, much less having said taking ahold of it.'
'Most people have assumed Dae's Class is merely a reenactment of King Arthur's tale, his Myth, that he'll become a Great swordsman and leader together with the Mythical Sword.'
'But that couldn't be farther from the truth.'
'For them, he was the King of Heroes in the flesh you could say…'
'After all, most Heroes were like that, a resurgence of Myth, tale, story, folklore... With most being from Earth, a few, from this one.'
'And who was King Arthur, if not one of the most known tales all around?'
(This may not be accurate considering we have several billion Asians with completely different values to us, buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut)
"Let me try something…"
/Splash!/
"Hm?... Hey!"
"..."
Did he just jump into the lake for a swim again?
'Petter's expression was a mix of envy, anger, resentment, desire, and more...'
While I'm forced to have my face burn in the sun, you go for a dive?
Fuck you!
…
'Dae swam into this surprisingly deep lake, and when he hit the 80M mark, he finally reached the sandy bottom.'
'Lodged onto rock was his beautiful sword, waiting silently amidst a few algae a small school of colorful fish with stripes, they had a half-moon shape and they looked very pretty.'
'Those fish seemed very used to Dae's presence, so much so they completely ignored him even when he walked right through them.'
'If he wanted to, he might even be able to grab one of them without much effort.'
/Grasp…/
'Dae grabbed the hilt of the sword, but he didn't pull it, instead, he focused his attention on the series of notifications that played on his eyes.'
"..."
As I thought.
Only 4.7%... And it's stuck in this value.
I thought leaving it here for 2 weeks would be enough… But is its Level too low?
'Shaking his head due to his oversight, Dae proceeded to fix his mistake.'
[... Transferring]
[Readjusting Statistics…]
[All Parameters will be kept the same]
[DING]
[Holy Sword Excalibur's existence has been increased]
[Increased…]
[Incr…]
'5 prompts, one after the other repeated in front of his eyes.'
'But finally, as the number turned from 9 to 10, Dae's eyes relaxed.'
So I wasn't wrong.
I just forgot to take better care of it…
[DING]
[Your state has been readjusted]
"..."
So I'm back at Level 9?
How awful…
It took me so damn long to hit Level 10, then after they checked me, I used those Levels to raise Excalibur to Level 5.
Then it took me an awful amount of time to become Level 20, and now I'm back at 9.
I sometimes forget how much of a pain the first time I dealt with this, but at that time, I received a lot of help from the Crown... Albeit it made me a tad too tied.
I even... Sigh, hopefully, she'll have a better life this time around.
But if at least my Parameters were readjusted as well… Then I could increase Excalibur's power and defeat stronger opponents without much effort...
But of course, it never is that easy.
Can't win them all, I'm not like Philip who can get stronger indefinitely without the necessity of Leveling up, that damn bitch.
Still, he has his own problems, living outside the System yet keeping one foot in it is certainly not an easy thing to do, and by now... He should be facing the consequences of that.
His Parameters will never make sense... But I have a solution... At least a theory.
That is something for 4 more months in the future though...
Anyway…
'Dae smiled, a small vortex forming around his body as he pulled the sword.'
/Shine…/
'The sword started to shine, becoming like a mass of light…'
Come on…
'The light distorted, finally taking the shape of a Trident.'
/SPLASH!/
'All of the water around him was suddenly blown away, creating a vacuum in the bottom of the lake, the poor fish were sent rolling in the water...'
'But despite the pain he felt all around his body, he smiled.'
[All of the conditions have been achieved]
[Excalibur is transforming, taking the shape of a new Myth]
[A Great Accomplishment!]
'Suddenly, a new message played in front of Dae, this one being blue, but a dark blue.'
{How odd}
"..."
{Hmm... You qualify}
{Take it, worthy one, I'll keep an eye on you with interest}
{Lift the seas into the land, and lay waste}
[The Trident has Manisfested]
[You are one step close to realizing your Class' Fate]
'His ears were bombarded with the annoying system notifications, but Dae didn't pay it any heed.'
'He had already heard them once before after all…'
'What it matters is that now, he had done it again, years ahead of time.'
[Your attributes are being adjusted…]
'He closed his eyes and let the water around him engulf him once more.'
…
/Splash!/
'After a while, Dale jumped out of the water, but he had nothing in his hands.'
"You're finally back." Petter exclaimed in annoyance
"Well, sorry for that."
"..."
"You... You can stop if you…"
/THUD!/
"HAAAAAAAAAA…"
"I'm too tired to sleep…"
'Petter immediately let go, letting his head hit the ground, but this little bit of pain was incomparable to what he was feeling.'
"..."
'Dae on the other hand rolled his eyes.'
/Step step step…/
'It was at this time someone approached them from the side.'
"..."
'Dae already knew who it was, he had been waiting for him to arrive…'
'Albeit… Now of all times? It obviously wasn't a coincidence, because this man wasn't someone to lose an opportunity.'
'Because he always knew when to act...'
'It was a blond man wearing an unbuttoned shirt together with a pair of slippers and dark glasses.'
"Roy."
"Hey man, wats up? You look a bit… Shaken…"
/Stare…/
'The two of them looked at each other for a few seconds, one smiling, the other serious.'
'Every time they met, a battle of wits would play out, while poor Petter wanted nothing more than to let his blood rush down from his head…'
"Did you bring it?" Dae questioned
"Oi oi, don't speak so loud…~"
"Stop playing around, do you really think we can hide anything here, now, did you get it?"
"Sigh, you're so boring when alone… Completely different from how you were at school… And around those guys as well."
"Don't you think so?~" He asked as he pulled his glasses down
'Dae wasn't willing to play his mind games.'
"People change, if you don't, you'll end up like those rejects and be traumatized."
"You sure speak rough for 'the' Hero… No sugar, aye?"
'Seeing that Dae wasn't having any of this, he spoke again as he lifted the item in his left hand:'
"Here, take it, took me quite a bit of work to get it, those bratty kids sure know how to negotiate, I almost left without my pants."
"Albeit I have no idea how they managed to smuggle something like this into the Palace in the first place."
"As you said… People change… Some for the better, others due to necessity…"
"A few just end up home, and I guess those guys are one such case."
'Dae didn't say much, instead, grabbing the papers.'
'The first words on the paper were:'
*Today's Dream*
'It was a newspaper.'
"I've taken a look at it on the way, and I gotta say, why do you need that?"
"Information on the outside is always valuable."
"Yeah yeah, right… The same words as before."
'Seeing that Dae was now more focused on reading the paper rather than communicating, Roy coughed and asked:'
"Then…"
/Swoosh!/
"Oi…"
'A piece of paper was sent flying into Roy's face, but he effortlessly caught it.'
'Opening it revealed a small rune, but Roy smiled in deep excitement as he studied it.'
'Finally, after so Goddamn long he managed to get it…'
"Thank you, as always, you've kept your promise."
"I'll be back tomorrow with more news as you've requested… Until then…"
'He smiled.'
"Have a nice day my friends, we ought to enjoy this while we still can…"
"Because it seems we won't be having that long either…"
'Dae interrupted him:'
"Another one of your predictions?"
"No… I can't see that long… Call it… A gut feeling."
"The gut feeling of a diviner isn't something to ignore." Dae mumbled without taking his eyes off the paper
"I'm honored, albeit I'm far from being the Diviner I was supposed to be."
'But Roy then sharpened his eyes, this time he wasn't joking anymore, he sincerely wanted to warn them.'
"Be careful, friend."
"Hm? Why the warning?" Petter asked as he raised his head from the ground, a bit tired
"Hey, Roy."
"Wassup my dude, once again, we meet like this… Is there a time you aren't hyperventilating on the ground?"
"You should rest a little from time to time."
"Say that to him…" Petter said as he moved his hand to the side
"Anyway… Is there something wrong?" Petter asked as he rolled on the ground
"Ahh… Perhaps you should ask him, by his looks, he has already started to realize what's wrong."
"Hm? Dae?"
'But the man in question did not give in.'
"... Forget about it, focus on resting first."
"As for you, beat it, don't fill his head with useless thoughts."
"I'm genuinely offering advice you know?"
'His eyes opened, becoming serious as he took out his glasses.'
"Those guys… They don't like you 2 very much."
"Living on the edge, far from most, doing who knows what and how…"
"Yet you're still the strongest… Some don't feel convinced… Perhaps unwilling."
"Honestly, a stupid thought to have."
"Especially you, my friend." He said as he pointed at Dae
"It is clear 'those guys' are separating us into groups, that was clear to all that have a functioning brain."
"And now, the talks of a leader have started to spread..."
"Your Reputation is very solid, you are everyone's friend, there is no one that doesn't know you…"
"But at the same time, you have no achievements apart from winning the few spars that happen every so often."
"In fact, you refuse more spars than anything, and they seem to take it as a sign of weakness."
"You've been helping a selective few improve, and this has led to those that weren't helped to feel resentment…"
"But you do nothing to solve this… Soon enough, this will explode…"
"And?"
"..."
"..."
'Dae seemed unsurprised by Roy's words.'
"Heh… I knew you would say that."
"After all you…"
"!"
/Pressure/
'Before Roy was allowed to say anything else, Dae tensed his arms, looking at him without moving, but the air became a bit more palpable.'
"I… Damn."
This feeling again.
Just like when I met that other bastard…
Why do these strong guys like to show off like this?
Well… It's only a matter of time.
I've spent my chips, and now it's too late to take them back.
Philip… I hope that guy returns soon.
But first… He'll have to survive 'that'.
Sometimes I hate this ability, it makes life a tad too…
'Roy shrugged, he turned around, trying to keep a steady expression.'
'Raising his hand, he waved as he started walking away.'
But who knows?
Destiny isn't set in stone.
Fate can be altered… And renewed.
Just as much as it can be broken.
And in the end, I'm nothing but a glorified Gambler.
Because I'm always betting on what I can't see.
'His eyes glowed, the image of a wheel turning being reflected within his pupils.'
[...
Skills:
…
Glimpse Lv4 (Unavailable)
Final Moments Lv??? (Unavailable)
…]
Since the future I saw wasn't exactly pleasant.
"I'm not that bad of a person alright…"
I just want to live.
Although I'll admit, I'm an awful person to be friends with.
I'm sorry but… I have no intention to hang in the towel.
'Roy disappeared into the forest under the gaze of a pensive Korean man.'
"Can we have some Tacos tonight?"
"I ... Fine."
'Dae frowned as he walked in the direction opposite to Roy.'
"Hm?!"
He agreed?
…
/Back in the Crown Prince's home/
/Clack.../
/Step step step.../
"There they are."
'The Prince looked to the side, seeing 3 people entering his room, 2 girls and one man.'
"I've been waiting."
"Heroes."
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Notes
I wanted to add the Prince x Heroes interactions in this chapter as well, and also a few more words between the Prince and the other Elf, but this chapter was too big already, being 6.5 K words long.
Also, I felt that it wouldn't fit, given the idea of this chapter.
Anyway, next chapter, perhaps a few more POVs, I'm still thinking, to be honest, I have already started writing that chapter, but I won't spoil much more.
But hey, would you all be more interested in seeing more POVs, or just jumping straight to where Philip stopped?
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.
Thanks, and have a pleasant good night.
This chapter has 6666 words 💀, tremble in fear mortals.
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(If you have yet to understand the Title, it's because of the Prince's words...)
