WIEDERGEBURT: Legend of the Reincarnated Warrior: Volume 2

by Brandon Varnell

  Our exercises had just ended, and we were meditating to control our Spiritual Power and widen our Spiritual Pathways. We sat cross-legged on the ground. Fay was sitting with her hands on her knees, palms up, and currently had two leaves floating about six centimeters above her palm. I was doing that as well, but I also had ten small twigs stuck to my fingers with Spiritual Energy. The twigs were delicately balanced on each finger, tilting one way to the other without ever falling too far.

  As I looked at Fay, I was not surprised to see wisps of Spiritual Power wafting off her body. Each wisp was a vibrant red like her hair. I could detect a strong fire element within her.

  “It looks like it won’t be long before you can form a Spiritual Aura,” I said.

  Fay opened her closed eyes. “Excuse me?”

  “A Spiritual Aura.” I nodded at her. “You are close to forming it.”

  Fay looked at herself and saw the moats of red energy swirling around her, causing her to gasp in surprise. She looked at the wisps in wonder. Reaching out with her hand, she tried to grab one, but it broke apart and dissipated. Then, as if her attempt at grabbing them had frightened the wisps off, they evaporated into the sky.

  “You still can’t quite control it yet,” I observed. “That said, I think you will be able to release your Spiritual Aura at will with another ten or fifteen days of training. Once that happens, you can consider yourself a true Spiritualist.”

  “Do you really think I’ll be able to form a Spiritual Aura so quickly?” asked Fay, her brow furrowing as she looked at me. “I don’t mean to sound skeptical, but even elite Spiritualists have trouble forming a Spiritual Aura. Every member of the Nevarian Spiritualists and Imperial Royal Guards can do it, but they are trained more extensively than academy students like myself.”

  I almost shook my head at how weak the people in Nevaria were. If I didn’t know any better, I would have said that someone had purposefully erased knowledge of matters like Alchemy and Spiritualism to weaken the city. It was a ridiculous notion. I knew that. Even so, the fact that forming a Spiritual Aura was considered an advanced state of Spiritualism instead of the First State was just depressing.

  “The fact that your body is emitting Spiritual Power without conscious thought is proof that your Spiritual Aura is close to forming.” I paused long enough to smile at her. “Once you can form it, you and I are going to begin the next stage of training.”

  “The next stage?” Fay blinked at me like I had said something unfathomable. “What is the next stage going to be.”

  “Learning Spiritualist Techniques, obviously,” I answered.

  “Oh…” Her eyes widened and her mouth formed a pretty O-shape. However, that look of shock was soon replaced by one of unending and unlimited determination.

  “Just remember not to rush things,” I lectured when I saw the fire appearing in Fay’s eyes. “The most important aspect when forming your Spiritual Aura is to let it form naturally.”

  My words caused Fay to pause. She took several deep breaths, nodded, and then smiled at me. I couldn’t help but admire how she was able to calm herself from just that. Anyone else would have been jumping for joy.

  “I understand. I’ll keep doing what we’ve been doing.”

  “Good.” I sighed in relief. “Too many people try to rush gaining strength, and they end up stagnating in the end.”

  “Wouldn’t the pills you make be considered rushing to gain strength?” Fay asked, tilting her head.

  I shook mine negatively. “No. The alchemy pills I created for our use don’t rush anything. They promote the natural cultivation of strength, which does help raise our strength faster, but it does so in a way that gives us a strong foundation to work with. Think of it like building a house. A house with a strong foundation will be sturdy and won’t crumble when a storm comes along. However, no matter how strong the walls are, if the foundation is weak, the house will collapse.”

  Fay was listening to me with rapt attention, her narrowed eyes like a pair of emeralds as they gazed at me. That gaze of hers was enough to make my heart skip a beat. However, I dutifully ignored the feelings in my chest.

  “That makes a lot of sense.” She nodded several times. “I think I understand what you’re telling me.”

  “I’m glad. I’m not very good at explaining these things.”

  “Really? I think you’re very talented. You’d make a good teacher.”

  I shook my head in a self-deprecating manner. “No. I am just paraphrasing a great person I know. Everything I’ve learned comes from them.” I could see that Fay was curious, but I couldn’t tell her that what I knew came from what myself and Kari from my past life had discovered during our journey together. “Anyway, I think we’re done for the day. It’s getting late so we should head home.”

  “Yes, I suppose you are right.”

  The two of us stopped our training and stood up. I stretched my muscles a little, groaning at how stiff they were. Sitting for two hours with a perfectly straight posture really did a number on my body.

  “Have you been able to get in touch with your father?” I asked.

  “I have.” Fay nodded. “He says that he is willing to meet with you.”

  “When?”

  “Tomorrow, if possible.”

  I paused at that and contemplated whether or not tomorrow would work. I didn’t have to work at the library tomorrow, and while I had planned on going to the Alchemist Association to teach Feinrea how to create the last of the six alchemy pills I was hoping to have the association sell, that could wait until after I’d spoken with Fay’s father.

  “I can meet with him tomorrow,” I said at last.

  “Great.” Fay placed a hand on her chest as though she suddenly felt relieved. Her smile had a similarly reassured demeanor as though I’d taken a weight off her shoulders. “In that case, I’ll stop by your place and take you to my house. He’ll want to meet you early tomorrow morning.”

  “That’s fine with me,” I said.

  Since our training was done and Fay had said what she needed to, the two of us headed back into the city.

  I actually took a bath the next morning. After scrubbing most of the grime off, I bathed using some scented soap I’d bought from a shop in the Noble District. It had been more expensive than I expected at 250 valis. However, since I was going to meet with the head of a noble family, I believed it was a necessary expenditure.

  Once I dried off, I got dressed in the outfit that Fay had bought for me. I smoothed out the fabrics of the sleeveless shirt and vest. I didn’t have a full-body mirror, so I couldn’t see how I looked, but Fay and Helle had approved. A woman’s approval was generally a good sign.

  Just as I was finished getting dressed, a knock sounded at my door. Of course it was Fay. She had chosen to wear black shorts and a blue shirt that day. The shirt was sleeveless, but it also featured a high collar that wrapped around her elegant, swan-like neck, and it closed on the sides. I could see the stitching going down the left side of her chest. Completing the ensemble were long sleeves that trailed past her hands. They were not attached to her shirt. Rather, a golden cord tied around her arms just below the shoulders kept them in place.

  I took a deep breath and slowly settled my heart. It was beating several kilometers per second. Once I was sure that I had become sufficiently calm, I smiled.

  “You look good,” I complimented. “Is the reason you’re dressed up like this because I’m meeting with your father?”

  Fay always blushed well, and this occasion was no different. The way her cheeks and ears turned a light pink was fetching. She looked away.

  “More or less… yes.”

  I had a feeling she was hiding something, but I didn’t say anything. A woman needed to keep her secrets. Kari had told me that once.

  “Well, let’s get going,” I said with a smile.

  “Yes.” Fay nodded.

  I turned my head and stared at the snake, which had curled up on my bed and was just
lazing around.

  “I’ll be back,” I said. “Try not to ruin the place.”

  The snake hissed at me in a manner that I could only describe as lackadaisical. I shook my head and, after making sure I had the bag filled with my pills and the Spiritual Technique Scroll, I left my room, closed the door behind me, and locked it. I gestured for Fay to proceed me down the stairs, and then the two of us made it onto the street.

  As we were walking, Fay gave me an odd look. “That snake of yours is very odd.”

  “You’re telling me,” I mumbled. “I have absolutely no clue what’s going on with that creature. It seems far too intelligent to be a mere animal. I’ve heard there are some Demon Beasts that are capable of human speech, but that’s only after they’ve lived for hundreds of years. They are also ridiculously powerful.”

  “I’ve never heard of anything like that,” Fay said.

  I grinned at her. “That is because they only teach the most basic knowledge on Demon Beasts at school. I’m sure you know the Demon Beast classification system, right?”

  “Of course.” Fay nodded. “Demon Beasts are classified from F to S based on factors like their overall strength, defensive power, and deadliness. S is the highest rank a Demon Beast can go.”

  “That is correct, but there are some Demon Beasts out there whose strength is simply incalculable.” I looked off into the distance as I recalled my last battle with the Great Overlord of the Seventh Plane. “While they are still classified as S-rank, that is only because we have no higher classification to give them. However, if I were to give these Demon Beasts that are capable of speech a classification, it would be SSS-rank.”

  Fay was so startled she almost tripped after hitting a small piece of the cobblestone road with her foot. “That’s very interesting, if true.”

  “You don’t believe me?” I asked.

  “I didn’t say that.” Fay shook her head. “It’s just that I’ve never heard this before.”

  “Most people haven’t,” I said. Even I didn’t know how many Demon Beasts had reached this level. The only ones I knew were the seven Elemental Birds who had reached the pinnacle of elemental manipulation for their respective elements.

  After reaching the Merchant District, Fay hailed down a passing carriage and had it deliver us to the Noble District. The estate that Fay led me to after we hopped off the carriage was a lot like the others I could see. We stopped before a steel gate that was large, imposing, and had a symbol known as the “Sign of Four” located in the center. It was a reversed four. This symbol was often used by merchants as their Coat of Arms, so to speak. That the Valstine’s were using this as their family symbol told me a lot about them as a family. Surrounding the Sign of Four was a dragon and a tiger.

  “I just realized that your family is primarily a mercantile family,” I said.

  “Not quite.” Fay shook her head. “It is true that we have a lot of businesses that deal with buying and selling merchandise, such as our Auction House and various stalls and shops, but like every noble family, ours values strength of arms above all else.” She paused, sighed, and then amended her previous statement. “Well, it used to. We don’t have the training methods or techniques to stand up to many of the other noble families, especially not the Heavenly Families like the Leucht Family.”

  “Hmm…”

  “Anyway, please follow me.”

  There was a young man guarding the gate, someone who I guessed was a branch member of the Valstine Family if I were to judge by the crest on his clothing, which bore a striking resemblance to the one on the gate. When he saw us, he greeted Fay with something of a blushing stutter.

  “M-M-Miss Fay! It is good to see you!” he squeaked.

  “It’s good to see you as well, Cane,” Fay greeted. “Can you please open the gate? I’ve brought the man my father is meeting today.”

  “O-of course!”

  The boy hurriedly opened the gate and let us pass. We walked further into the estate, the gate closing behind us, and I glanced at the boy one more time before turning to Fay.

  “I think he likes you,” I said.

  “He only likes my appearance,” Fay muttered in a dispirited tone.

  “Well, you are very pretty,” I teased.

  Fay didn’t blush this time. She smiled, but it was a sad smile.

  “Maybe, but I don’t want to be with someone just because they find me attractive. I want someone to love me because of who I am and not how I look.”

  Her words caused me to sober up. “I understand. I guess women have it rough.”

  “We do, and don’t you forget it.” Fay smirked at me. It was the first time I’d seen her look smug.

  The Valstine Family’s mansion consisted of a single building, which was quite large. Judging from the number of windows I could see, it was three stories. It wasn’t designed in any specific shape like a square or a rectangle. Instead, it looked like many shapes combined. The center was a square with a crenellation that allowed people to shoot arrows down at attackers. Connected to this section were two other sections that vaguely resembled the shape of an L.

  While the mansion was fairly impressive, the grounds were also a sight to behold. Fay and I walked along a straight path. As I looked around, I spotted several gardens further out. These gardens were dotted by winding paths and gazebos. Of course, given how space in Nevaria was somewhat limited, the gardens were not large by any means—at least, not when compared to some of the gardens I’d seen before.

  Someone stood by the front door to the main building. He was a man with numerous wrinkles lining his face. I couldn’t rightly guess his age, but he was obviously very old. He wore a refined black tunic and pants. The tunic had long sleeves, and I noticed that he was wearing gloves. Was he a servant?

  “I see that you have returned with the boy,” the man said in a crackly voice. The man turned his attention to me. His sharp eyes reminded me of a Greater Hawk Lion—an A-Rank Demon Beast that made its nest in very high mountaintops. “He is the one you said can help our family return to its former glory? I do not recognize you, boy. However, you have a good look in your eyes. I sense a great strength within you.”

  “Um… thanks, I guess.” I wasn’t sure what to say to that, so I shrugged.

  “This is Eryk Veiger,” Fay introduced with a gesture of her hand.

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you,” I said with a nod.

  “A pleasure indeed. I hear you’ve helped our Lady Fay quite a bit this past month.” The man chuckled a little as if he was privy to an inside joke. “All of us were quite shocked when she revealed that the Spiritual Power clogging her Spiritual Pathways was healed. However, she wouldn’t tell us who had done it or how for the longest time. Her father was almost ready to begin sending out people to tail her.”

  “My father didn’t even know my Spiritual Pathways had been healed until just a few days ago,” Fay muttered in a bitter voice. “How could he send out people to spy on me when he didn’t even know what was happening to me?”

  The old man gave her a conciliatory smile. “He has been dealing with a number of serious matters as of late. You shouldn’t judge him too harshly.” When Fay’s expression remained stern, he sighed. “In either event, please allow me to lead you to Lord Valstine. He is eagerly awaiting your arrival.”

  The man opened the door and revealed a wide, spacious entrance hall. I glanced around as we walked into the marble hallway. There weren’t any decorations like I had expected. A single relief painting hung on the wall, some columns held up the ceiling, and a chandelier hung in the center, but that was it, and the chandelier wasn’t as ostentatious as I expected. The old man led us to a staircase that split in two directions. However, we did not take the staircase. Instead, we entered a side door that led into a wide hallway.

  “Lord Valstine is currently in his private study,” the old man told me. “By the way, my name is Bertrand. I am a branch member of the Valstine Family.”

  I nodded. “Whe
re is everyone else? This place seems a little empty.”

  “Most of our members are currently trying to keep the family afloat,” Bertrand admitted. “With the Auction House unable to auction items due to a distinct lack of valuable materials to auction, our family has been forced to take a more active role in the market. Except for the elderly and the young ones, everyone else is working.”

  That explained it. I stopped talking after hearing that and focused on following Bertrand as he took several turns, walked past a number of doors, and eventually ended his brisk walk at one door in particular. Fay and I stood behind the man as he knocked on the door once.

  “Lord Valstine, it is Bertrand. I’ve come with Lady Fay and the young master Eryk, who you have promised to meet with today.”

  “… Send them in,” a deep, baritone voice said from the other side.

  Bertrand opened the door and gestured for me and Fay to proceed him. “Please enter.”

  I stepped inside, Fay behind me, and glanced at the private study. It was a well-furnished room with several couches situated around a long table and a number of chairs. There was a bookshelf on one side. Several strategically placed lightning monster core lamps were hanging from the wall, illuminating the room.

  Over to our immediate right was a desk. The lacquered finish told me it was an expensive piece of furniture. Currently, that desk had several books sitting on top of it. A man sat behind the desk. It looked like he had been studying something, but he looked up when Fay and I walked inside.

  I wouldn’t say he was a big man, but he did have a broad chest and shoulders, thick arms, and an athletic build. Like Fay, he had red hair, though his seemed to contain more brown than red. Russet was the word I’d use to describe it. He also had a full, thick beard covering most of his jaw. He was dressed in a dark robe that had fur lining the inside. At the moment, his massive hands were pressed against the desk, but I could see a sword within easy reaching distance of his left hand.