Rylan felt his mana roar within his body like a beast that had just been freed from its shackles. Incomparable to before, it reached every corner of his body in an instant in the shape of roiling waves. His muscles and organs responded, brimming with power and life. Strength that he hadn’t experienced in this life yet filled him. He looked down at his hands.
…Now this is more manageable.
His perception turned almost fully inward as Rylan tried to gauge how much stronger he’d beco. He scoured himself from head to toe, analyzing his muscles and the amount of mana he could now wield.
The seconds ticked by as he stayed silent. As if trying to respect this mont, Gerard also didn’t say anything. It was only after almost twenty seconds that Rylan looked at him. His father’s expression was frozen in shock, the man’s shaking gaze running over Rylan. Rylan smiled.
“I think I can beat you, Father.”
Gerard flinched, then slowly nodded with a solemn expression.
“…That’s ridiculous. Sword Saint or not, how is the ability to simulate an Aura Heart so… great?”
The man looked like he’d been slapped. Rylan shook his head, keeping his smile, and looked down at his body again. He felt like he’d been reunited with an old friend.
“In terms of power alone, I’m far from a Fifth Circle Mage like you.”
“But you think you can beat in an actual fight.”
Rylan shrugged. Gerard let out a deep sigh and covered his eyes with his hand.
“…This will have consequences,” Gerard continued. “If even I could notice it, there’s no way Damian won’t.”
Rylan shook his head again.
“Not necessarily. It’s possible that Damian won’t realize it unless I circulate my mana.”
Gerard let out another sigh.
“Based on the stories I’ve heard about Mages above the Fifth Circle… damn it, I don’t know.”
Rylan rubbed his chin with a pensive expression. He still knew too little about Mages at high Circles.
“You noticed it because I circulated my mana right in front of you. We can only hope that Damian won’t.”
Truthfully, there wasn’t much that Rylan could do if Damian was truly able to perceive the change in his Circles. To beco more powerful and hone his magical abilities, the Academy was the best possible path for his current self, especially because of the Empire’s conquest wars. As such, he would have to return to the Academy anyway, whether Damian was able to notice the changes to his Circles or not. There was only one problem with this line of thought.
I don’t know Damian well enough to predict his reaction.
Rylan clenched his jaw. It was possible that Damian would sell him out to the Empire or any other force keeping tabs in the Ceotha Kingdom if the man managed to realize his changes. If that happened, there would be no way to avoid a grim fate. Even though he’d reached the Third Circle and beco much stronger than before, Rylan knew he still wasn’t much compared to the Empire’s high-ranking Mages. If so imperial Mage decided to kidnap him for experints, there would be nothing anyone would be able to do.
“Sure, but we still need to prepare for it,” Gerard said, dragging Rylan out of his thoughts.
Rylan readily nodded.
“Of course. I’ll try to co up with a way to hide my Circles’ true nature, but… to be honest, I don’t know how I should even begin to attempt it.”
It was only natural. Since he didn’t know how a Mage at Damian’s level perceived the world, he didn’t know what to try and hide in the first place. Even Gerard’s knowledge was bound to be limited, given the scaling nature of Circles.
Gerard nodded slowly.
“Fuck. I’ll try to think of sothing. We’ve only got a few days.”
Rylan let out a breath.
“…Yeah. We’ll deal with the consequences as they appear. Worst-case scenario, I’ll leave and go as far away as possible.”
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Gerard imdiately narrowed his eyes and stared at Rylan.
“What do you an?”
“To protect all of you, it would be best for to—”
“Absolutely not,” Gerard interrupted, his voice tinged with growing anger. “We’re your family. I’m not going to let you fight whatever bastards might co after you alone, and I’m sure your mother feels the sa way.”
Rylan frowned.
“Be sensible, Father. Logically speaking—”
“I don’t care. I won’t abandon you.”
Rylan blinked, his words dying in his throat. A mysterious feeling filled his chest in response to his father’s words. Even after a few seconds, he couldn’t quite put his finger on what it was. His mind flashed with images of Roland’s brother, Theodore, from childhood to grueso death.
…Is it because of you?
Why did Gerard’s words shake him so much, even though he had already spent so many months rebuilding his relationship with his family after rembering his past life? He already knew the answer to that question. Rylan couldn’t help but smile, even though Gerard was disagreeing with him and throwing caution to the wind.
“Thank you, Father. But if it really cos down to it, I won’t give you the opportunity to choose,” he said firmly. “It would take any worthwhile enemies less than an hour to investigate my background. If I remain close to all of you, they would certainly target you. I won’t let that happen.”
Gerard scoffed.
“What bullshit. Isn’t that why we’re here? What family is for?”
Rylan kept his smile, looking at his father warmly.
“…It’s my decision.”
Gerard gritted his teeth and cursed under his breath, then turned around and started making his way back to the chair behind the desk. Rylan stared at his back.
Thank you.
No matter what, he wouldn’t let his family be affected by anything he did. His mind clad itself in steeled resolve.
If you target them, I’ll kill you.
It didn’t matter who it was. To protect this life’s most precious treasure, he would fight anyone and anything, regardless of the odds.
Rylan took a deep breath and closed his eyes, trying to steady his mind. He only opened them again once he succeeded. Gerard was now sitting in his chair, looking through the window.
“Now,” Rylan started. “Let’s do what we can. I’ll try to co up with a way to hide my Circles’ changes.”
“You won’t be able to hide the changes to your body,” Gerard replied with a steady tone after a few seconds, turning to look at Rylan. “So we better co up with a good explanation. I’d guess you’re going to say you got a good Class that gives a lot of Free Points?”
Rylan nodded.
“He probably expects to have gotten a Class that increases my magic stats and does that anyway. Just have to lean into what he already believes.”
Gerard nodded and stood up.
“Alright. Sounds good. Now, let’s see what we can do about those Circles.”
Rylan turned around. A few monts later, he could feel his father touch his back. He closed his eyes as Gerard’s mana entered his body and started flowing toward his Mana Core.
The final part of his training period had begun. In such a fashion, the last few days passed.
***
Rylan hugged Gerard tightly, only parting after a few seconds. He smiled at his father. Gerard’s expression was marred by concern and hesitation, but he said nothing. It was only natural: both of them had discussed everything they had needed to over the past few days. For now, this would have to suffice.
“…Return if you ever feel like you need so rest,” Gerard finally said after a few seconds. His blue eyes seed to beco almost transparent under the sunlight.
Rylan nodded and took a step back just in ti to create space for Aelfric, who also hugged Gerard.
“I’m going, Father! I’ll be fine, Rylan is with !” Aelfric exclaid with a wide smile. Rylan sighed.
“Take care of yourself, son,” Gerard replied. His eyes revealed similar concern, tempered by softness.
Once Aelfric retreated, it was Elizabeth’s turn. Rylan glanced at his mother as she approached Gerard. Just like before, she was dressed in simple leather armor covered by a short robe, her usual elaborate dresses nowhere to be found.
For a few seconds, the husband and wife duo rely stared at each other.
“…When will I see you again?” Gerard finally asked sadly.
She slowly raised her hand and caressed his cheek softly.
“Soon, my love. I promise. Nothing could keep from it.”
Gerard smiled for the first ti in this conversation and covered her hand with his.
“I believe you. Take care, Liz. Rylan will keep you safe.”
She smiled back.
“…I’ll go to Caer Rhelon as soon as I can,” Gerard said decisively after a few seconds of hesitation, staring deep into her eyes.
Elizabeth blinked in surprise, as did Rylan.
“You’re coming to the capital?” she asked.
Gerard nodded with a serious expression.
“I can’t keep waiting for Gael to let you co here. Now that the Dungeon has been cleared, all my children are students at the Royal Magic Academy, and Rylan is powerful enough… It’s ti I started facing this head-on.”
Elizabeth froze in place, clearly caught off-guard. After a second, her smile only widened. Rylan nodded to himself in satisfaction, then waved at Gerard and turned around, beckoning Aelfric, who looked at him and started following him to the carriage a few ters in front of them. Sarah stood next to it. She bowed with pristine form. Keeping his smile, Rylan entered the carriage, followed by Aelfric and Sarah. Patiently, he waited for his parents to finish their conversation.
I wonder how much they had been wishing for sothing like this.
After solving the Dungeon issue, Gerard had clearly relaxed enough to simply enjoy the company of his wife. The past fifteen days had been the ones where he had seed the happiest.
After a while, Elizabeth opened the carriage’s door and entered it, then sat in a free spot. She looked as giddy as a schoolgirl in love. Rylan smiled at her, and she smiled back.
“I’m glad,” he simply said.
She nodded repeatedly and took a deep breath.
“Your father wanted to tell you sothing,” she said after a second.
Rylan raised an eyebrow. She kept her smile.
“He wanted to tell you that you should study hard, Sword Saint or not,” she continued.
Rylan laughed.
I wonder how different magic is from Aura.
He looked through the window as the carriage started moving. His Circles were an indicator that the two types of energy weren’t that different from each other, but that didn’t an they were the sa.
His heart was filled with expectation.
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