He woke without the usual haze. The world around him seemed to be clearer, and more vibrant. He welcomed the changes with a thin smile drawn across his face. It was pretty early, so he wasn't late for his shift at the mine like the other day.
After getting done with everything, he quickly left the room and went to get breakfast. He stopped before the door, hearing voices come from behind it.
"...Zatanian troops…heading for the mines," Zale's voice said in a low hush.
At that, Melchior paused. He quickly put two and two together.
'Zatanian troops must be the men I encountered yesterday.' His eyes narrowed as he quickly recalled all the information about the Republic of Zatania.
It was a state that operated a system of governance jarringly similar to democracy on Earth. They opposed the kingdom, and both forces were hostile, just barely separated by two smaller nations.
The Centuros Kingdom which he was reincarnated into, was in constant skirmishes and battles with the Zatanian troops, but it hadn't escalated into a full-on war since the last one centuries ago.
'Blackmount is nowhere close to the border.' He muttered, connecting all the dots even further. 'They have a lot of guts coming so far into the kingdom.'
Eventually, he reached somewhat of an impasse and returned to his eavesdropping.
"Does the head know?" his mother's more audible voice asked, with a hint of worry seeping into her words.
"Informed him as soon as I dealt with the first of them," Zale paused, "That second one escaped, however. He was… fast,"
That last part alarmed Melchior. The second one who escaped could be none other than Hawk, who was unarguably one of the more dangerous soldiers he encountered the last night.
'Can't be good, but at least the town is aware of it now.'
A small pause emerged, followed by Alissa's voice.
"You don't have to do the night shift, Z. If it's getting too dangerous, just stop."
Then, a sigh and his father's voice. "I'm okay. Everything's fine. If it helps protect us, I'll do it."
Afterwards, Melchior felt it was too wrong to keep listening in on their conversations anymore so he stepped away from the door quickly. He also did this to process the full extent of their entire conversation.
It provided him with a much broader perspective on everything that was happening and allowed him to extrapolate a few things.
As someone who had been into history, Melchior noticed a reoccurring pattern with all forms of history and humanity in general; wars. Wars happened for several reasons and motives, but a common one was for resources and territory.
Centuros was a resource-rich nation. Resource-rich as in Stactite. The Republic pulling off a stunt like this had weighty implications.
He sighed, 'I just got here, dude.'
Well, no matter. It wasn't as if he could avoid it in the long run. This only made things a little faster and didn't foil any plans in specific.
His brows furrowed the more he thought about it. The Centuros Kingdom, Republic of Zatania and the Ja-Lyon Dynasty; otherwise known as the Three Hegemons.
States as powerful as theirs weren't the type to fight over something as measly as a single type of resource, which they were surviving without, regardless.
'Sure, Stactite is rare and extremely valuable, but it doesn't seem like something that'd cause an all-out war. That's a bit too shallow…'
Melchior stopped thinking about it with a sigh. He was too small a pawn to be pondering matters of such importance… not yet. There was a long way to go before that.
He recollected himself and then stepped into the dining area where both his parents sat. There was a noticeable pause as he did that. His father and mother stopped talking and turned to face him.
"Mel, you're up!" Alissa called out, grinning from ear to ear. "Come sit and eat breakfast with us."
The boy wordlessly nodded and moved over to sit next to them.
"You aren't late this time," his father acknowledged without saying more. The large man continued to eat his food, sharp like a constantly unsheathed sword.
"I heard some talk about Andy and Clyde getting considered for the Excalion Academy," he blurted casually.
"They are," Zale snorted. "No matter how despondent they are, those two are undeniably talented."
"Are they really all that?" his mother asked, confused. She didn't seem to get out very often. Melchior found out a little curious since she was a little similar to his previous self.
"Capable of manifestation at only the First Layer," the man nodded, playing with his food a little.
'That's what Tirun talked about,' Melchior noted as he listened carefully.
"I figure they'll be off by the end of next month," Zale continued. "They won't bring shame to our town's name."
Alissa hummed, laughing. "I remember when those two were kids Noisy and potty-mouthed, too."
"That much hasn't changed," Mel grunted, earning a brief stare from Zale.
"Mhm."
It seemed to her they were nothing more than children. Melchior sympathised with her, given that he was at least six years older than they were mentally.
The conversation stalled there. Melchior had already gotten most of the information he required, and it was satisfying…but it also gave him a timeframe to work with. Just a month. He had a month to leave this town and get to a favourable position for him.
'That's enough time… kinda.'
He didn't know he'd go about even exposing the fact that he could use Spirit Energy.
'No time to rest. No time to sit.'
"I'll be heading to the mines now," he said, getting up quickly.
"Alright, Melly, be careful," Alissa replied with the same warm enthusiasm as always.
From Zale? Nothing.
Well, there was something.
The man, without looking up, spoke. "Come by the hunting fields when you're done,"
It wasn't a request, more like a command. Melchior was curious. And since he had nothing else to do, of course, he would abide by it.
He nodded and stepped out of the room without saying anymore.