Revelation

by Sisa, Michael

  Gaston remained silent.

  Big Mona said, “It’s hard, isn’t it? When everything you’ve believed in until now turns out to be a lie, a facade.” Gaston’s shoulder trembled upon hearing those words. Big Mona realized that his conjecture was spot on. “But at the end of the day,” Big Mona said wisely, “Isn’t it up to us to determine if everything is truly a lie?

  “I don’t know about you, sir butler, but I firmly believe that the people we met in the past, in the present, and in the future are basically one and the same. Isn’t change inevitable? Humans face adversities on a daily basis. Weak creatures like us need to adjust according to the current circumstances in order to survive this damnable jungle called life.” Big Mona wiped his lips with a napkin. “Why brood over useless thoughts? If it’s too complicated, just try living in the present.”

  Although it was probably bad advice, it was Big Mona’s honest opinion. The Lark Marcus he’d met over a year ago was already possessed by the consciousness of Evander Alaester. For him, the previous Lark and the current one were one and the same. He never intended on overthinking this complicated matter.

  Just try living in the present.

  The words of Big Mona kept echoing in Gaston’s mind. The butler had never expected to hear these words from this greedy, fat merchant.

  Big Mona pulled out a golden watch from his pocket. He called the server and paid for their drinks.

  “The workers I’ve hired from the city should have arrived at the gates by now,” said Big Mona. He stood up and fixed his garb. For several seconds, he stared at the old man. “This may sound gibberish, coming from someone like me, but follow what your guts are telling you. Follow what your heart truly desires.”

  After Big Mona left, Gaston sat there for almost half an hour, contemplating the fat merchant’s advice.

  “What am I doing… getting drunk this early in the morning?” Gaston said self-mockingly.

  The last time he drank like this was years ago, when the duke told him that he’d decided to exile the young master to this town. That was one of the most painful moments in Gaston’s life. Still, without much hesitation, he’d followed the young master all the way to this faraway place.

  “If it’s too complicated, just try living in the present,” he repeated the words of the merchant. “Follow what my heart truly desires…”

  Gaston stood up and nodded, clearing unnecessary thoughts. Although his face was flushed, he had quite a strong alcohol tolerance.

  He decided to go back to his room in the mansion, before rumors started spreading throughout the town. It would be hard to arrive at a conclusion so soon. The butler decided to take things slow, one step at a time.

  Upon reaching the mansion, he saw a familiar person being ushered by one of the servants.

  Crimson hair and deep red eyes. Chryselle had finally returned to Blackstone Town.

  VOLUME 7: CHAPTER 17

  Lark had just finished looking through the documents for the morning when the door to his office opened, and a red-haired woman entered the room. She closed the door, and upon locking eyes with Lark, bowed her head.

  “I hope you’ve been well,” said Chryselle. “I’m back, Master.”

  She’d been gone for several months. Lark smiled. “Welcome back.”

  Seeing Lark’s warm smile, Chryselle unconsciously tucked her hair behind her ear. For some reason, she felt at ease whenever she was with him.

  Chryselle walked toward Lark and said, “I brought a present for you, Master.”

  “A present?” Lark beamed. He playfully added, “George and Austen will grumble when they hear that only I received one.”

  Chryselle handed him an item wrapped in an expensive-looking cloth.

  “I brought gifts for them too, don’t worry.” Chryselle chuckled. “Please open it. I’m sure you’ll like it.”

  Lark unwrapped the present, revealing an old painting of a beautiful, brown-skinned woman in her early thirties. Although she was wearing nothing but a simple white ceremonial dress, she looked dazzling, as though a celestial being had descended on the mortal realm. Unfortunately, a small portion of her drawn face, along with her right hand and legs, had faded over time.

  “I heard from the residents on my way here,” said Chryselle, “that you’re the one who created that colossal wall and the barrier currently enclosing the town.”

  There was a pause. Lark’s gaze moved from the painting to Chryselle.

  “Master, isn’t about time you tell me?” said Chryselle. Her heart pounded in anticipation as she uttered her next words, “You’re that magician. The legendary Evander Alaester, right?”

  To Chryselle’s surprise, Lark readily replied, “I am.”

  Lark leaned on his chair and raised the painting, allowing the rays of the morning sun to touch it. He nonchalantly added, “Gaston, Austen, George, Anandra. Even Big Mona already knows.”

  Before coming, Chryselle had prepared several contingency plans in the event that Lark refused to reveal his identity to her. She was even prepared to swear an oath of death just to gain her master’s trust. Never in her wildest dreams did she expect that her master would admit it this easily. Furthermore, according to him, the rest of the disciples were already aware of his true identity.

  “They already knew?” Chryselle frowned. She felt left out, for some reason. She mumbled dejectedly, “And here I was, thinking I was the first to discover master’s secret.”

  “Well… you did uncover it first,” praised Lark. “And I would have also told you the truth, had you not disappeared a couple of months ago.”

  Lark’s revelation regarding his identity now felt underwhelming. Even the way he nonchalantly confirmed her speculations made it sound as though he no longer had any intention of hiding it.

  Lark continued staring at the painting. Although half of it had already faded away, it still looked incredibly beautiful—nostalgic even. “Strange. The woman in this painting. She’s… oddly familiar.”

  “That painting was stored in the treasure room of the tower,” explained Chryselle. “And of course, it’ll be familiar.” She smiled and softly added, “It’s a painting of one of your disciples. A painting of Leanne, the Deity of the Desert.”

  Lark’s eyes slowly grew wide. His hands holding the painting lightly shook.

  “I hope you like it, Master Evander.”

  Chryselle’s soft voice slowly faded away from Lark’s mind as he stared at the painting in his hand. Time seemed to have slowed down.

  So, this was why this woman felt so familiar. That crimson hair, that sun-kissed skin. Although she looked a lot older than how he remembered her, she was without a doubt that little girl—Leanne. The youngest of all his disciples.

  “Thank you,” whispered Lark. This was definitely one of the best gifts he’d received not only in this life, but also in his past life.

  Chryselle fondly gazed at Lark. “You’re welcome, Master Evander.”

  Lark’s eyes were moist, still glued to the painting in his hands. This was the first time Chyrselle had seen Lark this sentimental. It seemed that taking that painting from the treasure room in the tower was indeed worth it, despite the protests of the other Elders.

  I’ll send a message to my brother later to thank him for letting me have it, thought Chryselle.

  According to the other Elders, the painting was extremely valuable. There had even been offers to buy it for forty thousand gold coins, a few decades ago. Had the current master of the tower not threatened the other Elders, it would have been impossible for Chryselle to obtain this item. She was really lucky to have such a doting brother.

  For several minutes, Lark sat there silently, admiring the painting of his disciple. A myriad of emotions—nostalgia, longing, sadness, fulfillment—swept through Lark.

  Like a father worrying about his daughter, Lark wondered if Leanne lived a happy and fulfilling life. Did she marry? Did she have children? How long did she live and how did she die? There wer
e a lot of questions left unanswered.

  “You said that you took this from the treasure room of the tower,” Lark finally said after several minutes of silence. “Do you know where the magicians of Wizzert obtained this item?”

  Chryselle nodded. “Yes, Master. According to my brother, it was sold by a Mullgray pirate to a merchant from the Empire, several decades ago. The merchant—Agustus Vont—migrated to this kingdom and brought that painting with him.”

  “Agustus Vont,” said Lark.

  “Yes, he’s my maternal great grandfather. The founder of the merchants guild in the capital.”

  “I see,” said Lark.

  Over time, Lark was starting to realize how powerful Chryselle’s family truly was. Her paternal grandfather was the chairman of the Magic Academy and the current leader of the Grand Order. Her brother was the current Master of the Tower, while her maternal great grandfather was the founder of the merchants guild in the capital. Her lineage was more than enough to shame most noble houses.

  “The Mullgray pirate who sold this painting to your great grandfather,” said Lark. “Did he say where he obtained this painting?”

  Chryselle shook her head. “Apologies, Master Evander. Even my brother doesn’t know the details. That painting was just among the innumerable items the pirates sold my great grandfather. Do you remember the magic towers in Wizzert? The blueprint for those relics were among those items. I was simply lucky to be one of the magicians to first learn how to decipher the blueprint.” She self-mockingly added, “Although it’s embarrassing that despite obtaining the blueprint, I was unable to perfect the relic.”

  Lark remembered that Chryselle was the youngest magician to have been bestowed the title of an Elder. And she’d achieved this feat by helping create the magic towers currently found in Wizzert.

  So, that was the origin of those items.

  “Master!” A shout was heard outside the room. It was quickly followed by footsteps. “We heard that Chryselle has returned!”

  The door was opened with a loud bang. George and Austen barged into the office, their eyes scanning the room excitedly. Upon seeing Chryselle standing in front of Lark’s desk, George shouted, “I told you I saw her on the way here!”

  “Does that matter?” said Austen. “She’s finally back!”

  The brothers ran toward Chryselle, and from their glee, began performing a weird dance.

  George clasped Chryselle’s hand and said, “You should have told us you were coming back! Why did you visit Master first?”

  “That’s right! You should have told us first!” added Austen. “Master is boooring! He won’t appreciate you coming to see him first!”

  George nodded several times in agreement.

  Chryselle chuckled. “I brought gifts for the two of you.” She handed the brothers two small boxes. “I’m sure you’ll like them.”

  The brothers gawked at the small box on their hands. It was rare for former paupers like them to receive presents. They opened the boxes, revealing the rings inside.

  “It’s a ring containing an extremely strong antidote capable of neutralizing almost all poisons,” said Chryselle. She didn’t tell them that it was one of the treasures stored in the tower. Rings worth ten thousand gold coins each. Unsurprisingly, Alecto was more than happy to give these treasures to her before she left the City of Magic.

  “Awesome!” George tried it on. As his fingers were too small, he ended up wearing it on his thumb.

  “It looks expensive,” said Austen. “Is it really alright for us to have these?”

  “I got them for free,” said Chryselle. “There’s no need for you to worry.”

  Austen raised his hand and stared at the ring on his finger. It glimmered whenever touched by light. Since Chryselle said that she got them for free, then they probably weren’t that expensive. He no longer felt uneasy receiving the gift.

  “I really like it!” said Austen.

  “I love it!” said George.

  The brothers said their thanks and started doing the weird dance once again. Lark and Chryselle locked eyes with each other and laughed.

  By this time, Princess Esmeralda and Anandra had finally arrived. It seemed that unlike the brothers, the two hadn’t rushed on their way.

  The princess ran to Chryselle’s embrace the moment she saw her, while Anandra simply stood next to Lark, wearing his usual, stoic face.

  “Here,” Chryselle handed the princess a book. “Master, George, and Austen already received theirs. This one is for you, Esmeralda. You wanted to learn magic, right? It’s the latest edition of the book currently used in the Magic Academy. The mana exercises inside should be helpful in increasing your perception of mana.”

  Princess Esmeralda gratefully accepted the book. She hugged it tight. “Thank you! I’ll be sure to read this book!”

  Although the princess had decided to develop her skills with the sword, she still held deep desires to learn magic. Since Lark refused to teach her any spells, this book would be incredibly helpful to her.

  “And this one’s for you.” Chryselle handed Anandra a bottle of wine. “I know you don’t drink, but the former Elder of your village— he loves alcohol, right?”

  A rare smile formed on Anandra’s face. He could not wait to give this bottle of wine to Gahelpa Village’s Elder. “I’m sure the Elder will like it. Thank you. And… welcome back.”

  The last part of Anandra’s statement was almost a whisper.

  Lark gently wrapped the painting with a cloth then stood up. “Since Chryselle has finally returned, I’ll ask the servants to prepare a feast for us tonight.”

  The brothers squeaked in delight.

  “A feast!” said Austen.

  “Master, may we bring our siblings along?” said George excitedly.

  Lark chuckled. “Of course.”

  The brothers pumped their fists in celebration.

  A luxurious feast was held in the mansion that day. Various officials of Blackstone Town, merchants, and the other key figures in the territory attended the banquet.

  Everyone was in a festive mood, and it continued on until the next day.

  ***

  After combing Boris County for any information regarding Lark, Nickolai became certain that the second son of Duke Drakus had indeed gone inside the Forbidden Region.

  Several people, including the guards, the server at the inn, and the armor merchant, testified that they’d seen someone with short silver hair in the city that day.

  “That thieving brat!”

  Nickolai gnashed his teeth. He was certain of what he’d seen that day.

  The seven-headed monster.

  The colossal golden statue.

  And the masked figure sitting on top of the monster’s head.

  All evidence was pointing to Lark as the culprit responsible for the disappearance of the statue of the legendary Evander Alaester.

  He’s not going to steal the treasure?

  Bunch of lies!

  Nickolai cursed Lark.

  After making adequate preparations, Nickolai, his disciples, and almost a hundred hired mercenaries, made their way toward Blackstone Town. They had just passed through Lion City when one of his disciples finally voiced his thoughts.

  “Master, is it really alright for us… to do this?” the disciple said carefully. He was one of the three disciples Lark had confronted back then. He could still vividly remember that encounter. Although he was spared by Lark, he was not certain if that noble would be as merciful next time.

  “What? Are you afraid of that brat? He’s already been thrown away by his father to that town,” said Nickolai. “There’s no reason for us to fear the Marcus House.”

  The disciple looked at the other two disciples who’d encountered Lark back then. Judging by their expressions, they too seemed reluctant to join the master on this mission.

  “That’s not it…” The disciple shook his head. “Master, you saw it too, didn’t you? That masked figure. Even if it
’s really Lark Marcus… he’s managed to tame that seven-headed monster. We should probably tread carefully, Master.”

  Nickolai snorted.

  “I’m sure he stumbled upon an artifact in the treasure room in the Forbidden Region,” Nickolai said without any hint of doubt. “Do any of you really believe a human is capable of taming that monster?”

  Nickolai smirked. He deemed that as long as he took the artifact from Lark, that seven-headed monster would no longer be a threat to his life. Better yet, the moment that monster submitted itself to him, he could usurp the throne and rule over the kingdom.

  No, that was too short-sighted.

  If he became the master of that monster, even ruling over the Empire—the entire continent—would no longer be a dream.

  The Thunder Lord’s disciples thought that their master’s judgment had become clouded with greed. Even they thought that it wouldn’t be wise to confront Lark Marcus like this.

  Forget the House Marcus and the seven-headed monster. Currently, people were starting to hail Lark Marcus as the kingdom’s hero. This was especially true after his victory against the Empire, after helping sever the royal family’s curse, and saving Lion City from the monster horde. It would be foolish to carelessly threaten him.

  Even when they passed through Lion City, several hours ago, they frequently heard the residents talking favorably of Lark Marcus and Blackstone Town. It seemed that saving thousands of lives from that monster horde had had a great impact. Even the commander of the soldiers in Lion City saw the second son of Duke Drakus in a favorable light.

  “Master,” said Videl, Nickolai’s strongest disciple.

  “Speak,” said Nickolai.

  “Forgive my impertinence,” said Videl. “But I believe the words of the young ones have some merit. If we carelessly attack the Lord of Blackstone Town with this army, I’m afraid the royal family will—”

  “They’ll what?” interjected Nickolai. “Only Farsight is capable of fighting me on equal grounds. What can the royal family do against me, a royal court magician?”

  Videl looked at the younger disciples behind him then bit his lip. It seemed that the master had been thoroughly consumed by his greed and would no longer change his mind. Videl silently prayed to the Gods for divine intervention. He vehemently prayed that the small army would fail to reach Blackstone Town.