****
It's been about six years since then and I have finally turned seventeen years old, with my sister turning eighteen in the next few days. Here in the Empire, this was the appropriate age at which rich kids from aristocratic families would finally be sent to one of the most prominent magic academies of the Empire in order to train into excellent mages and warriors
And this academy was known as the 'Gates of Tartarus'
I've only heard stories about it, but apparently all who crossed inside the walls of the academy would have one of the hellish experiences they would ever have in their lives. Their training and academic curriculums were apparently strict, and most of the students who attended the first year never made it to the second one
But despite this, the ones who graduated from the academy mostly ended up being the most prominent figures in the world. Take Julius Arnimus for example, the seventh Emperor of the Empire, and the one who almost conquered the entire world. Or Roin the Black, which is one of the strongest paladins in history
There's also Meleina, the witch of fate. And Malcolm, the pioneer of magical engineering. You get the point, each and every one of the alumni of this academy has made a significant impact on society
My sister had just received an acceptance letter to this certain academy
Ever since she was sixteen, she had been pouring her blood, sweat, and tears into becoming stronger in order to attend the academy. Her drive probably came from her desire to finally beat me, and I couldn't help but admire her for that...
After all the grueling trials and tests that they threw at her, my sister was deemed worthy to be accepted. Bear in mind that the 'Gates of Tartarus' is an institution that heavily practices meritocracy, so they won't care if you're a commoner or a noble, so long as you have the skill then you'll get right in
And most of the time, there would be tens and thousands of applicants who would try to get in
Most of them were probably mediocre, but many of them still have the talent and potential to be admitted...
So the fact that my sister was one of those made her scream in pure bliss
"Yeaaaaaaahhhh! Do you see this, Vergil?! Do you see it? I got into the 'Gates of Tartarus' I'm a bigshot now, wahahahahah!"
"Ahaha, Congratulations sis"
"Damn right, you should congratulate me! I'll be at the top of the world soon enough, and I can finally beat you! Ahahha!"
My sister was jumping around her room as my parents happily watched her from the sidelines
And I was watching along with them
I've actually received a letter of acceptance ever since I became champion in that tournament in the Empire, but I just decided to keep my mouth shut and let her have her moment of glory...
Anyways, since she'll be off to the capital to study in a couple of days, my parents decided to hold up this massive banquette to congratulate her. Our entire city was practically joining in on the preparation since she was a very kind and helpful girl and all that. I've heard some of them making songs about her, while others are making flower crowns, or statues of her in celebration...
And me? I'm just here on the sidelines just watching the events unfold
I wanted to try to prepare a gift as well. Butt due to Morgana's competitive nature against me she'll probably see it as a challenge, an insult, or both. In the end, my parents also agreed that it was better for me to just give a speech once the big day arrives
"And what are you doing all the way out here, milord?"
As I'm watching our servants prepare everything downstairs, Quinn managed to sneak up to me and tap me on the back. Ever since I took her in, she's been training herself to follow up with my shenanigans, and she's become very good at it. She's one of the very few people who would always manage to sneak up behind me...
And I can never get used to it
"Quinn...It's nothing. Just watching as they run about in their business, that's all"
"If you're just standing there then I'm sure you could help me arrange the flowers. There's still a lot of ground left for me to cover, and I'd really appreciate some help"
"Hard pass...I'm really bad with all this decoration nonsense. If there was something that Morgana has always had me beat, then it's with this"
"Good grief, you really grew up to be quite a slob, milord"
"Hey don't call me that, I've been doing my fair share of hard work recently. I've been out and about exterminating all of the bugs that cross our lands so that they don't bother anyone. And recently, there's been a massive fluctuation of them out in the forest so it's been getting a bit tiring for me"
Hearing this Quinn's expression turned serious as she began to place flowers at a nearby statue
"I've been doing my fair share of snooping around the city recently, and apparently there seems to be a...collector, who's been releasing all of these bugs into the wild. A meticulous and crafty collector that seems to be searching for something"
A collector, huh?...So there's a big shot pulling the strings and funding those bandits. Well, can't say I'm surprised, I've always known that there was something off about them...
"And that something he's searching for is?"
"I'm not certain yet. He's been giving vague instructions to those bugs on what they should exactly find. Some say it's some sort of treasure, while others say it's an ancient and dangerous magical artifact hidden somewhere in the forest. Either way, their numbers are not to be taken lightly"
"Yeah, you got that right. I've been running around all night recently and I haven't had the fortune of exterminating all of them. They were usually just camping out in the open back then, but now it seems that they're hiding in the caves and ancient ruins...what a pain"
"Hm, but worry not, milord. I've got a couple of leads on my hands, I'll make sure to investigate them once this celebration is ove-"
"Quinn? Quinn, could you help us with this one, please? One of the guys assigned for this apparently took a sick leave , and we really need some extra hands"
"Alright, coming~...I'll give you an update soon, milord"
Quinn nodded and bowed before walking with the rest of the group
I watched her figure disappear into the distance with a smile. People were quite reluctant with her at first, but now she's fitting in like a glove. If anything, I'd go so far as to say that the entire mansion is reliant on her now...
She's changed...
I, on the other hand...might have hit a wall...
"I still haven't gotten stronger..."
Ever since the day I ate that red rock, I felt like my progress in regard to my strength had halted. Don't get me wrong, I'm still pretty powerful, and I've learned a few techniques over the past couple of years. But my growth wasn't as quick and massive as when I was originally starting out into this world...
Maybe it's because I've reached a certain height of power that It's getting harder for me to improve...but staying at this level will simply not do. I'm still very far from the final boss that I aspire to be and to do that I need more power. And in regards to my influence, while I may be a bit popular in the Empire, I'm nothing to the rest of the world
I only have one subordinate under my wing...and I need to expand my sphere of influence more If I truly want to fulfill my dream...
"Haaaaa...Damn, being a final boss really takes some work..."
And I really need to make my big bad debut at some point
****
The darkness of the night has descended...
And hiding among the cover of the forest was a lone man. He was standing among a tall tree while watching a mansion from a distance. That was the home of the Albions, a domain that might be where his enemy was. After observing it for a while longer, he placed the telescope in his pockets and jumped down
His landing seemed to cause the earth itself to tremble and caused the trees to shake
"It's time..."
While muttering this, the leaves began to rustle, and emerging out of them were about a hundred men in total. Each of them looked more intimidating than the other, their bodies were riddled with scars and tattoos, and their eyes were oozing with bloodlust
They were bandits, and they were clearly itching to shove their weapons into something
Yet despite being surrounded by such dangerous people, the man showed no signs of fear.
He walked past the crowd and pointed his sword toward the mansion
"Go, and slaughter as much as your heart's content. Remember that this is the home of the people who painted the forest with the blood of your brothers in arms. Show no mercy, make sure that none of them leave alive!"
"Yes sir!"
"Now go!"
The forest was filled with screams of rage as they all charged to the mansion, with their arms at the ready. And as the man saw them run off to the battlefield, he snapped his fingers. A group of cloaked men appeared from his shadows...
"Remember the plan, use this commotion to sneak into the sidelines and grab the packages. Do not mess this up"
"Understood..."
The cloaked men nodded as they vanished into the night
When he was finally left alone, the man tightly clenched his fist as he watches the scene unfold with his eyes
"Just wait for me, you bastard...I don't know who you are but you'll pay for stealing what's mine"
He began to slowly walk to the mansion with his sword at hand
"I can't afford to disappoint the elder anymore..."