( After some time.)
< Ki Cultivation in Progress. >
< Ki Cultivated +1.000 >
< Ki Cultivated +1.250 >
< Ki Cultivated +1.750 >
" Hmmm... " Ragna tries to cultivate his Ki, using Galen's tutorial.
< [Tutorial]: Ki Cultivation I >
" Hmmm.... "
< Ki Cultivation continues properly. >
< Empowering the Dantian [Ki Energy Center/Core (in this world).] >
< Congratulations you got an Achievements. >
< Rewards: >
< Status Increased >
< Sense... >
"( Shut up, I'll look into it later. )" Ragna said in his mind, receiving the notifications but decide to not even bothered by it for now, since he wants to continue his meditation, his first basic meditation Galen taught him.
"( Since I don't have the Yakan Curse to seal me anymore, I can gather the Ki more freely. )"
"( Guess it's time for me to learn new things to empower me after being sidelined for some time. )"
"( Wait, not sometime, for many years by the society. )" Ragna remembers how many years that his potential had been hindered.
"( The difficulty of the world should've been in 'Medium Mode' for me like other people would be given, but thanks to that Curse, I was given the 'Hard Mode' as it took every opportunity of advancing I could've gotten. )"
"( People always see me as a weakling, but I guess it's time to surprise them after this. )" Ragna just swears in his mind but tries to focus again as it momentarily disrupts the gathering of his Ki.
"( I can sense things even better now, I can see more using this alternative, using my other senses, without solely depending on the eyes. )" Ragna says as he sees his surrounding using his senses, empowered by his Ki.
"( Galen says that the first power of Ki that a beginner like me could have is an empowered physique, senses, and also... )" Ragna says while on the other hand.
...
" The two of them seem to be diligent lately. " Inquisitor Kara says to the Battle Maiden who is currently in her prayer mode.
" Hmmm... " Battle Maiden responds as she continues to focus on herself to a more 'Divine Matter'.
Seeing Battle Maiden's response, Inquisitor Kara begins to went silent as she also holds Raiden who is still unconscious thanks to Ragna earlier.
" Ragna grew so much, I never thought the boy I met in the 'Ruin of Swords' would immediately begone that powerful in such speed. "
" As if time went fast on him. " Kara says, reminded that she and Ragna only just met for some time and had already gone close for a while as if the bond was already made between them in such a short time.
She hears Ragna's voice and Galen's, training together both training the new ways that have been taught to them by each other, Ragna trains to do Ki Cultivation, and Galen trains to increase the Aether in his body, given by Ragna earlier.
" Galen's body feels different now, it seems the 'Aether' given to him somehow affects him exponentially. " Inquisitor Kara says as she remembers how Ragna give Galen his Aether.
" I remember him trying to give it to him by stabbing him with his 'Aether sword', Dainsleif, was it? " she asks herself as she remembers that Ragna had to stab Galen with it earlier in order to inject him with the Aether's power.
" I too was quite shocked in that scene, even I had to intervene to slap Ragna from doing so. "
" But as I came, Ragna immediately told me that is the way, for he says the Aether's power is the power cultivated through death and rebirth, he says that the 'Aether' will fill the user with its power, shines the power to him, if the user had once experienced and survive death. "
" I don't know more about it, but that is what he says while telling me that he's been dying so many times before. "
" But when he says that, Galen immediately wakes up, filled with so much energy that I never thought it would happen to him immediately. "
" If I follow what Ragna told earlier, it means Galen must also have experienced many life-or-death situations before. "
" Unlike me sometimes that despite being an Inquisitor, I often had my comrades beside me," she says as she sighs.
" But now I'm separated from them," she says while looking at Raiden, slumbering, beside her.
Seeing him, her Previous Timeline memories click again as it pinpoints her into memory, similar to what she saw on Raiden right now, for she sees him behaving the same, sleeping beside her.
Seeing those memories, Kara begins to put Raiden's head on her lap, probably doing what she used to do based on her memories.
[Awakening Ability: Pinpoint Memory]
[The ability that lets the user remember things with great speed and precision.]
[Since the User is an Awakener, it means she can also remember the precise memory from the memories of the Previous Timelines.]
" You really love sleeping beside me, didn't you Raiden? " she asks while seeing those memories.
" What an unordinary man you are... " she says while her memories show who Raiden is in the Previous Timeline, a kind man despite his awkwardness for he always had many troubles in his life, following the wrong footsteps, or even joining many wrong communities but always stay strong with his simple desires.
" I'm..., powerful... "
" Don't..., dare... "
" Look down..., upon me... " he says during his sleep, the exact same words as what Inquisitor Kara sees in her memory.
" Oh my, he says the same. "
" Is it just coincidence or it's just fate...? " she says while having those memories.
" He's really close to you, huh? " Battle Maiden suddenly appears behind her.
" Maiden! " Inquisitor Kara was shocked to see her behind her.
" Weren't you...? "
" I'm finished," she says as she then sits beside her.
As she sits, she looks at Raiden, sees him closely, and then looks at Inquisitor Kara, she repeated it three times.
" What is it, Maiden? " Kara asks, feeling awkward of course.
" This man, isn't he with Adrian? " Battle Maiden says as she remembers seeing him with Adrian earlier which shocks Kara.
" Wait, you can see? "
" I thought you were given the [Divine Sight] after we split up. "
" You were still 'blind' back then, weren't you? " Kara asks.
" I am, but before even given this sight, I can already 'see' and 'know' people using a different method. " Battle Maiden replies.
" You mean, like echolocation? " Kara asks as she knows some 'blind' people often unlocked that ability to balance their main inability to see.
" No, this is more advanced than that. "
" Mine is not simply to hear the voices around me, if that's so, how could I immediately notice that the man you hold is with Waterson from far away? " Battle Maiden asks.
" Instead of just hearing more advanced, being unable to see made me have another gift, a different kind of gift that can't be intervened by any other source. "
" That is, I can see using my 'Inner Eye'," she says which made Inquisitor Kara shocked for she never thought that she has the ability to use an 'Inner Eye', for she thought that ability just belongs to the gods or those other mythical or legendary characters.
" 'Inner Eye', isn't that ancient ability that enables one to see from the 'eyes of their hearts? "
" I only heard briefly about those, it is said that the gods only give it to some people, right? " Kara says asking her with the limited information she had.
" Of course, despite my goddess, Athena never specifically confirmed that she's the one who gave me this ability. " Battle Maiden says as she then opens her headband that covers her eye, trying to see more with her new eye given by the goddess back then.
" I must say, having an eye felt different now. "
" As if I can see things, more colorful and more detailed... " she says while looking at both Kara and Raiden.
" So, seeing you doing this... " Maiden says it, which made Kara wonder but suddenly, she realizes what Battle Maiden is thinking right now.
" No, it's not what you think, we're... " Kara says as she prepares to put Raiden aside, but Raiden holds her, hugging her in his sleep.
Seeing them, Battle Maiden smirks, closing her eye, for she then tells them that it's okay, for she can hold it.
" Even before having 'real eyes', I've already seen many of these. "
" Please continue..., take your time... " Maiden says to her.
" Wait for him to wake up, Inquisitor. " Maiden says, as Judgment Libra also appears behind her, giving her its decision.
"( Libra? )" Kara asks as she sees that.
" After he wakes up, tell him that we will also prepare. "
" For the three of us will also train just like the two of them. "
" Given that we were given much time, right now. " Maiden says to the Inquisitor while seeing both Ragna and Galen, as both cultivate both of their newfound power sources.
.....
( At the same time. )
[ System Space ]
" Thank goodness that we're still given time to prepare. "
" Even Ragna Current once still want to get to the top first, but thankfully he listened to what we said. " Ragna Twelve says while drinking.
" Of course, not only he followed your advice, it seems the boy is pretty realistic despite his teenage brain and heart. " Aphrodite says, being the Guest inside the System Space.
" Of course, he is... "
" Even before becoming a teenager, reality had already taught him many lessons before he starts having his own 'dreams' like most teenagers did and just 'going with the flow' before he met me. "
" So don't be surprised that despite him still often giving us many of his 'nerd' references, he already sees things realistically since he's already been taught to never do 'nonsense things'. "
" Yeah, but isn't it bad...? " Aphrodite asks, wondering more about this.
" Indeed, him having a more matured mind at this age is quite a good attitude but... "
" Isn't he too young, I mean... "
" His age..., do you still think it's wise to let your Twelve years old, Current Timeline Self deal with our 'mature' jobs and problems? " Aphrodite asks, knowing how hard things can be after living for so many ages.
" I know, that's why I, and the others, will constantly give him advice. " Twelve says as he sees to Ragna 69 and Ragna 100.
" You should, he needs advice and guidance after I saw his past. " Aphrodite says as she remembers what she sees.
" And when I said 'guidance', I mean 'real' guidance. "
" From a 'real' guide," she says while Ragna Twelve has his [Twelve Eye of Time] active.
" Of course, and in order to do that,... " Twelve said.
" I must get rid of any 'wrong' guidance and the potential ones. " Twelve says while seeing what the eye gave him.
[ 12th Floor. ]
" Such a... fodder... " the transformed and monstrous formed Hunter Park Ignis says as his body is filled with unrelenting fire as he pushes forward, consuming everything in front of him.
As he walks, another Demonic Monster suddenly tries to subdue him from behind, but he immediately burns it with fire.
" Burn... " Ignis says as he presses forward, destroying the enemies as he wants to ascend to the 13th Floor, the top Floor.
But, before he entered.
" So, it seems you're the one who came here first, outside of my followers and the others who survived. " Adrian says as he descends from the 13th Floor.
" Adrian... " Ignis says as he heated up, ready to burn Adrian who challenged him.
__________________________________________________
Extra:
After this chapter, I'll assure you that there will be a time skip for it's time to wrap this arc up.