Sylvia POV
When I push Arthur to the rift. I deactivated it and remove the static void the look at the visitor that just arrived.
Because I gave my will to Arthur and the wound that I have I'm dying faster. Looking at my visitor I think he also know that I'm dying. Which he just smirk at me while saying.
"Lady Sylvia. Stop your resistance and stubbornness. Hand over to me the child of my Lord, you're dying anyway and we both know it" the bastard lessuran, and my ex-husband's loyal dog, also known as Cadell. Said to me while smirking.
"Oh... I see it's was you I thought It was someone else." I said while looking at him. "And here I was thinking, That, that bastard will send one of his sovereign to catch me, to think it was just a lesser, a dog no less." I said while looking at him with a mocking smile which make his face darkened.
Cadell was my ex-husband enforcer.
He took great pride of having an Asuran lineage that he got from countless experiments. Him being called as a lesser was a damage to his pride.
"YOU! You over grown Lizard, you think you're still strong as you used to be. Both of us know that in your current state you're no match for me. So hand over it now!" Said Cadell an angry voice, while moving toward me.
I already know that I'm no match for him at my current state. But I couldn't help but smirk knowing that he failed the Mission given to him by that bastard.
Accepting my fate, and closing my eyes waiting for Cadell to kill me.
Arthur Leywin POV
She's gone.
I can no longer see her again.
Those thoughts triggered a tear making me cry. I cried till there's no tears left for me to shed.
I began recalling the near four months we had spent together; how caring she was, and treating like her own child.
Succumbing to the faculty of my mind that desired sleep in order to cope with the pain, I curled up into a ball where I landed when a searing pain props me back up.
The burning sensation spread from my mana core throughout my body until a voice echoed in my head.
"Ahem! Testing, testing... Ah good! Hello Art, this is Sylvia."
My heart fluttered as I instantly responded to the voice. "Sylvia! I'm here! Can you hear..."
"If you're listening to this right now, it means I have shown you what I actually am..."
Ah, it was some kind of recording that she had infused into me when she gouged that small hole into my mana core.
"... You're nowhere near ready right now to know the whole truth. Knowing you, if I were to have told you who that figure in the sky had been, you would have brashly tried and fight. I have infused with you my unique will. This is something incomparable to a normal beast will. Your future progress as a mage depends on how well you will be able to use my will that is embedded into your mana core..."
Was that why the purple in her eyes and golden patterns disappeared?
"The moment your mana core reaches a level past the white stage is when you will hear from me again. At that time, I will explain everything and what you do from there is your choice."
There was a stage past white?
"Lastly, Art... I know you may be in grief, but remember that you have your family to look out for and the stone I entrusted you with. My only wish is for you to embrace the joys and innocence of childhood, train hard, and make your parents and I proud. Do not go chasing after shadows in a fit of rage. Killing the ones that are responsible for my death will neither bring me back to life nor make you feel better. There is a reason for everything and I do not regret what has happened. With this, I bid you farewell for now. Remember, protect your family and the stone, study what I have left you, and enjoy this life, King Grey."
"..."
That name and title was from my previous world.
She had known the entire time...
How did she know? Did she discover something in my mana core? Was she able to look my memories?
So may questions but the only one who can them was now gone.
I refused to move for a long time, staying in my cozy fetal position, deep in thought.
Sylvia was right. She had said all of this knowing what my life back in my old world was like. I can't make the same mistake of living for the sake of solely pursuing strength. I wanted to be strong, but I also want to live my life without regret. I want to live a life that Sylvia would be proud of. I don't think she'd be happy even if I reached whatever stage was after white while living a life of only training. No, I needed to hurry and reach my family.
But before that... where the hell was I?
Looking around, trees that towered high over my head surrounded me. There was a dense fog that loomed thickly a couple centimeters off the ground, filling the air with nearly palpable moisture.
Trees and an unnaturally thick fog...
I sank back on my butt, crestfallen at what this could only mean.
I was in the Forest of Elshire
I reinforced my body with mana. Enabling mana rotation I began climbing to trees and began looking around. Jumping from one tree to another what I was looking for was humans that will help me get out from this forest. Sylvia told me, she will send me near humans so I began searching for them.
After minutes of searching I found what I was looking for.
I hopped a few more trees when I'm almost there. I feel something was off
I hid myself behind the thick trunk. Then enable mirage walk before and conjuring some illusion, before coming to them to see clearly. Then I saw what's off they were humans.
Slave traders to be specific.
They capture an elf around 6 or 7 year's old. Not knowing how they navigate and capture an elf I began looking around. Then I saw attached to leashes were mana beasts that looked like a mix between a deer and a dog, with antlers that branched out, looking like a complicated satellite. They were mentioned briefly in the encyclopedia I had always carried with me. The forest hounds were native to the Forest of Elshire and could navigate even better than the elves could.
Then the child began shouting.
"NOOO! HELP! SOMEONE PLEASE HELP! MOMMY! DADDY! NOOO I'M SCARED!!!"
"Someone shut her up! She's going to attract attention!"
THUD
Looking at them and analyzing them. I found that, One of the four slave traders was a mage at solid red core. Which answer my question I have about how they capture easily capture an elf.
During four months I spent together with Sylvia. I manage to unlock all of my deviant magic. and I train them with the help of Sylvia and knowledge from of my past life.
Thanks to abundance of mana that Sylvia place have, I manage to break through light orange core. So he's not that difficult to handle.
"Quick. Put her in the back of the carriage. We're only a few days away from the mountain range. We'll be safer then. Don't relax and keep moving."
"Hey, Boss? How much do ya reckon she'll sell for? Elf girls go for a lot, don't they? Hehe, she's a child too so a virgin at that! I bet she'll fetch us a lot of money, huh!"
I feel disgusted hearing the conversation of these people's. not wanting to hear more. I conjure four ice spear under the influence of mirage walk, Killing them in a blink of an eye.
Since the elf was knocked out it will take some time before she woke up.
Feeling bad about leaving a children out here alone. I decided to stay till the elf wakes up before leaving.
Since I have nothing to do. I began looking for checking the slave traders belongings. There's nothing valuable I found from the first three, other than dagger, I'm happy that I found something useful item like dagger, because I lost my dagger that jasmine gave me when I leave Sylvia's place. Searching the three slave traders before I let the forest hound eat them up.
Then I began searching for the last one. There's nothing from him other than the storage ring he had on his pinky finger.
Putting the ring on my thumb. I began rummaging finding what it contains. To my disappointment just like the others it has nothing other than food. Food must be useful to others but not for me since, I don't really need to eat food every time.
Putting everything I have on the ring. I then look at the now awake elf.
She studied me in surprise and doubt, her eyes almost saying, 'He can't have been the one who save me, right?'
I untied her as she remained silent, her swollen turquoise eyes never leaving my face.
Tired and feeling gross, I helped her up and simply stated, "You should go back home now."
"Hic...hic..."
She probably didn't know whether I was an enemy or friend until now, but once the word 'home' was said, a look of relief washed over her tense face and she broke down.
"Hic! I was so scared! They were going to sell me! Hic! I thought I was never going to see my family again! Hic! WAAAAAA"
~~Time Skip~~
After the elf calm down I decided it's time for me to leave. standing up from the ground then looking at her I then say. "Since your out of danger and those bad guys will not hunt you down anymore I think it's my time to leave. Goodbye!" When I'm about to leave.
She suddenly stop me and look at me with horror and disbelief at her eye as if saying ' are you just gonna leave me here to wander all alone. You piece of trash?'
"Look I need to go home too. And aren't elves safe in this Forest?" I ask her.
She violently shook her head, much like a dog drying itself, and rebutted, "Beasts only scared of adults...Parents warned me that children will get eaten by hounds or tree golems."
I would normally be pretty amazed about something like a tree golem, but it was becoming pretty hard to find something that surprised me after witnessing a demon king metamorph into a dragon.
I rubbed the bridge of my nose, trying to come up with a solution for all of this.
"How long does it take to get to where you live from here?"
"..."
Still holding onto my shabby shirt, she looked down and admitted, "... I don't know."
I held in the temptation to let out another sigh, since the poor girl looked like she was about to cry already, and agreed to take her back home.
The Kingdom of Elenoir was quite a long ways north so my only hope was that there would be a teleportation gate there that can could me back to somewhere, anywhere, in Sapin.
Since I already have all what's I needed in the storage ring I recently got we started to move.
~~Time skip~~
During these past few days I and the elf girl named Tessia, Wander in the Elshire Forest.
"Arthur? You said your family and the people close to you called you Art. I feel that, through this journey, I have gotten close enough to call you that as well." We were crossing a stream atop a moss-covered log bridge when she suddenly stopped. "So... can I call you Art as well?" Tessia turned around, revealing a wide smile.
"Hmm? Sure, I don't mind," I said, returning her smile.
"You' don't mind'? Tch, you could sound a bit more enthusiastic..." she stuck her tongue out at me.
"I would be honored to be called Art by you, your highness," I made a bow gracious enough for a noble despite my tattered clothes.
"Hehe, and you may also have the honor to call me Tess," she giggled, curtsying back at me before turning back around and hopping off the log.
After our last quick rest on a soft patch of moss, we continued forward for the last stretch. Tess and I had gotten a lot closer on this journey; the once shy and reserved elf girl showed bright smiles that were contagious despite our less than comfortable conditions. She would continue teasing me too, saying that I should call her older sister since she was a whole year older than I was. I teased her back, imitating her when she was crying, rubbing my eyes and yelling, "WAAA~ MOMMY, I'M SCARED!" This turned her bright red. She smacked my arm before she started to pout. Crossing her arms and lower lip protruding, she stomped off before yelling, "HMPH! Meanie!"
She suddenly turned to me, her face a mixture of happiness and hesitation before she muttered, "We're here."
Looking around, the only things visible were clusters of trees and fog. Confused, I was about to ask where we were, but I stopped myself when I saw Tess placing both her palms on a tree and muttering a chant.
Suddenly, the fog around us was sucked into the same tree and what came into vision was a giant wooden door that seemed to be propped up by itself on the ground.
Tess grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the door. When she opened it, I was reminded of the portal that Sylvia had pushed me through. The experience didn't feel any better the second time but I at least knew what to expect. As we softly landed on our feet, arriving at our destination.