Eventually, my birthday came around and I was finally a man.
My Dad was happy and really proud of who I had become. I was now level 50 and my rate of increasing levels had significantly decreased.
Regardless, I was feeling very strong now. Although, Warmage and his safety precautions continued saying that it wasn't enough.
I had also begun to talk to Vengeance.
Hey Vengeance, what are the legendary swords, anyway?
[You asked me that long ago in a different way. I would prefer to tell you later... But I will speak.]
I'm not sure I understand. I asked you before?
[Forget it. We are known as the Deus Arms. Legendary weapons of immense power, created to safeguard all of creation. I am their Overseer and Master.]
Deus...Arms...?
[God Weapons.]
H-hold on! What do you mean by that!?
[I have said enough. You lack the ability to understand, but the one known as Warmage knows. You, specifically, are unworthy of my power, but I will continue to give it for his sake.]
I see... Thank you, Vengeance.
This sword was really particular about how it spoke, but I didn't let it bother me.
Warmage might have had something to do with its behavior, so I would ask him at some point.
After that, my father and I went to Mason's shop and bought a set of armor.
One that felt really familiar. Warmage recommended it as well.
At one point before leaving, my father began to wonder about the two personal guards he'd sent back to Noir. Warmage simply told us that they weren't coming back.
One of them had been reassigned and the other ran away.
Unsurprisingly, my Dad was pissed about it. Regardless, Warmage said it didn't matter.
And later, Warmage told me to go to the guild to meet someone.
He said that it would be really important.
I shrugged and we went to check it out, but...no one was there. Other than regular adventurers, of course.
{WhaT The HEll...? DId sHE nOt comE...?}
Who?
{Ugh...DOn't WORrY abOUT iT... StuPiD OrACle...}
I had no idea what he was talking about, but regardless, I chose to ignore him. Warmage was really mean sometimes, and I tried not to bother him when he got angry.
Although he was almost perpetually angry.
And that begged the question... If Warmage was me, why was he so angry all the time? What kind of life had he lived to make him that way?
We left the adventurers guild and looked around nearby for a bit.
Then, we were off to the sleeping dragon inn.
* * *
When we walked in, both of us were wearing normal clothes.
Dad seemed nervous, but still walked inside with me.
It was still fairly early in the day, so there weren't many people. We just walked in and sat down at a table.
All the while my dad kept looking around and trying not to stand out.
Eventually, a young woman with brown hair stopping above her shoulders came over and smiled at us.
"Hello! My name is Aria! And I...umm..." She stopped as she saw My dad.
"Hey, Aria... Been a while... Sorry..." Ulysses said.
"Ah...Ulysses...? Is that really you!?" She said.
"Yeah...it's me. I'm sorry I haven't been around since Karia...you know..." He said.
"What!? What does Karia have to do with it!? Where have you been!? We were so worried! When we heard about Karia, we were sad, but we never saw you again... And since you didn't have your own house here yet, we had no idea where to find you!" Aria said.
Suddenly my dad looked up at her with tears in his eyes.
"You were worried...? For me? Why...? I killed your beloved sister... She had my son and died as a result... If she had never met me, then-"
Suddenly, Aria slapped Ulysses.
"You...DUMMY!!! Karia loved you!!! She loved you so much! We all considered you family and you just ran away!" Aria shouted.
I had been silent until now, mainly because I kept getting messages on my status menu...
{ArIa!!! AuNt ArIa!!!}
{It'S sO gOoD tO sEe YoU aIvE aGaIn...}
{Aria...I'm sO sorRy... PleASe forGIvE mE...}
Then an older woman and a large muscular man came over after hearing the commotion.
Aria hugged the large man and cried on his chest.
Ulysses just closed his eyes as if he were waiting to be yelled at more.
"So you've finally returned, Ulysses," the large man said.
"Yeah... Hey Maul, it's been a while..." He said.
"Why is Aria crying?" Maul asked.
"Because I'm an idiot..." Ulysses said.
"Really? You had enough smarts to come back here. I thought you finally wised up and realized something," Maul said.
"What's that?" Ulysses said.
Suddenly, Maul put his hand on Ulysses shoulder and a gentle smile crossed his face.
"It wasn't your fault. You made Karia happy in the final years of her life. She always had health problems and you brought her joy. So...who is this kid? He looks a lot like her... Is he..."
"This is my son. Karia's son. Mizik Iratus," Ulysses said.
Suddenly the three of them looked at me in surprise.
"Uh...hi...?" I said.
Another message also appeared.
{It's good...To SEe yoU all aGain...}
The message was accompanied by a great feeling of happiness and sorrow.
It felt like I was home.
Suddenly, Aria leaned over to me and looked into my eyes.
Really close to my face.
"No way... He looks so much like Karia! And he has Ulysses' eyes! Hello, Mizik! I'm Karia's sister, Aria! I guess that makes me your Aunt, right?" She said happily.
I couldn't stop myself from crying.
Suddenly the tears just started flowing and I hugged her.
And for a moment, I felt like I was someone else.
"Aria...I'm so sorry!" I said.
"Eh!? F-for what!? What happened!?" She said.
Maul looked like he wanted to stop me, but Ulysses raised his hand.
"It's okay. He won't hurt her. He's a good kid. I think feels guilty about Karia. I've told him that she had no regrets, but he won't listen..." Ulysses said.
"Maybe you should take your own advice, Ulysses?" Maul said.
"Ah...y-yeah..."
Despite what he said, that was only partially the reason.
I felt something deep within me when I looked at Aria.
A deep longing and desire to protect her. Like she was someone dear to me. It felt like something horrible had happened to her.
And what's worse...
I felt like it was my fault. Because I didn't protect her. I failed her.
When I finally finished, she smiled at me.
"It's okay, Mizik. I don't blame for anything. Karia was happy to have had you. And I can tell we're going to be best friends!" Aria said happily.
"Yeah. We will!" I said.
{Thank yoU, ArIA... ONe daY, I'll aVengE you.}
"Well then, how about we get you two something to eat, huh? On the house!" Maul said.
Then the older woman walked over and hugged me.
"You've grown so much since I last saw you, Mizik. I'll never forget that day. I was there when you were born. She was so happy when she looked at you," the woman said.
I tilted my head as I looked at her.
She smiled.
"My name is Cleo. I'm Karia's aunt. Maul's sister. Just think of me as a grandmother to you. Anyway, figure out what you two want to eat. And Ulysses..." Cleo said.
"Yes?" Ulysses said.
"If you run away again, I'll hunt you down and beat the crap out of you!" Cleo said angrily.
"Y-yes...yes ma'am," Ulysses said meekly.
"Good. We'll see you around, then!" Cleo said.
Then she quietly walked away.
After that, my Dad looked at me and smiled weakly.
"Thank you, Mizik. You really helped me out there. I've been a fool for so long... I didn't think they would still love me after what happened... I guess I was just being stubborn," he said.
We stayed at the Sleeping Dragon Inn for a while until it was time to go home.
On the way back, a man wearing a hood brushed against my shoulder and glared at me.
"Watch where you're going, you shitty brat!" He growled.
My father stepped forward and glared st him...
"Maybe YOU should watch where you're going. Don't insult my son because you can't be bothered to take the damn hood off your head!" Ulysses growled.
Then I saw a message appear.
{oH? DaRen? TEll hiM tO GO dowN INto tHe SEwer for A jOb to SLAY gobliNS.}
That's a strange request... But okay...
As the man, presumably Daren, got into an argument with my Father, I approached him.
"Excuse me, Daren. I have a message for you," I said.
He looked at me curiously.
"How the hell do you know my name?" He asked.
"That isn't important. But it seems like there's a job for you to slay goblins down in the sewers," I said.
"Oh...? Does it pay well?" He suddenly asked.
{It PAys VERY weLl. MaKE suRe tO BrinG A LANterN!"}
"It pays very well. Make sure to bring a lantern," I said.
I had no idea why Warmage suggested such a thing, but I wasn't about to question it...
"Hmm. Thanks for the tip, kid! See ya!" Daren said.
Then he ran off towards the adventures guild.
Something in me suddenly felt like laughing.
"What the hell was that all about...?" Ulysses asked.
{dON't WOrrY ABOUt iT. PersoNAL gRUdge.}
"Don't worry about it. Personal grudge," I said.
"I mean...you just gave him a tip for easy money. Is that really something that someone with a grudge would do?" Ulysses asked.
"I don't know, but for some reason I feel like he's in terrible danger..."
"Eh...whatever... Let's just go home..." Ulysses said defeatedly.
Shortly after that, we finished making our way back home.
We took turns getting cleaned up and headed for bed after that.
Reluctantly, I laid down to sleep as usual.
Then I mentally prepared myself for another horrible dream...
* * *
As I walked through the streets of Lorelei with my Dad, I had an odd feeling that I was being watched.
We were headed to the mines today because someone requested that my Father take a look at the strange activity nearby.
After walking for a while, we exited the town and were approached by a blond-haired knight with blue eyes.
"Excuse me, I am Knight-Captain Cain. I have a request for your son, Sir Ulysses," the man said.
"Hm? What do you mean?" Ulysses said.
Cain leaned down and smiled at me.
"Umm...what do you need me to do?" I asked in confusion.
His smile became much more sinister as he looked down at me.
"Die."
Just as I felt my heart sink in my chest, my vision suddenly went...upside down.
{He FiNaLlY fIgUrEd It OuT...}
{HoW mAnY tImEs UnTiL hE gEtS bOrEd...?}
{PlEaSe StOp KiLlInG mE...}
[He is immune to the memory loss...? That is...really bad. Ugh...forget who you are. Let go of the few memories you had. Awaken back in bed earlier today. The place where it begins... Hopefully, he will lose his memories this time...]
* * *
I awoke with a start.
I felt incredible panic rising in my chest as Dad shook me.
"Mizik? It's alright! You're alive! No one's going to kill you!" My dad said.
"Wh-what...? I had a dream... Cain killed me..." I said.
"You were screaming about not wanting to die again. Something about being killed over and over. And I had a feeling that bastard was no good... I really don't think it's a good idea to hang around him," He said.
"Sorry for worrying you, Dad... I don't know what's happening to me."
"Warmage, what's going on? You said these are past visions? You're my son too, right?" Ulysses said.
{I am the preVIous MizIK. ThESE are paSt ViSionS Of thE tIMes we'vE dIEd...}
"I am the previous Mizik. These are past visions of the times we've died," I said.
"What in the nine hells is going on here!?" Ulysses said.
{It'S ToO muCH tO EXplaIN riGnT NOW. JuST TrUst mE. plEase.}
"It's too much to explain right now. Just trust me. Please," I said.
"Alright. Mizik... Er...Warmage, I have a lot of questions about what happened to you. But I guess those will have to wait."
I decided to just get out of bed after that.
"You're not tired? You can go back to sleep, Mizik. I'm sure it'll be fine," Ulysses said.
"No. I'm an adult now. I'm going to go practice in the back yard with Vengeance. Besides...sleep doesn't bring me comfort anymore..." I said.
"You might be fourteen now, but you're still my son. No matter what happens, I've got your back. Okay?"
"Thanks dad. I'll just be outside."
After that, I went into the back yard and started practicing.
I talked a bit more with Warmage, and he wanted me to visit the adventurers guild again soon. He wanted to check if that person would be there or not.
I wanted to know who it was, but he said all would be made clear later on.