***

Walking through the valley which looked like a big cemetery with a few houses dotted here and there, I couldn't help but to frown as I looked at Celi's back.

'Is she not bothered by this...?'

From what I've seen up until now, Celi had puked every god damn time she saw a dead body. So her walking through this place perfectly fine was extremely strange.

Eventually, curiosity got the better of me.

"Celi, are you alright?"

"Huh?" Celi turned around and looked at me in confusion. "I am... why did you ask?"

"Well... I thought you hated dead bodies?"

"Ah that? I do. But the necromancers are nice enough to do their Magic researches inside their own homes."

'I think they're just more unsocial than the dark Elves...'

But of course, I didn't have the chance to interject in her ramblings.

"To be honest, I was repulsed by this place at first due to the fact that there are corpses underground everywhere, but I've gotten used to it now!"

Seeing Celi puffing her chest in pride at her merely not instantly puking on the ground when going outside, I had the urge to just dig underground and pull out a corpse out of spite.

However, I resisted my urge with much effort and continued following her to the strong necromancer's house.
...

"Are you sure this is his house?" I asked skeptically as I stared at the so-called 'house' in front of me.

"I'm certain. Zakadon, Reiner, and me have gone in here before."

"I- I see..."

Despite saying that, I was still skeptical of her.

After all, the 'house' was merely a wooden cabin that was even smaller than Alicia's old cabin. I doubted that the supposed 'strong necromancer' would be willing to live in a shithole like this.

'And the Orc wouldn't even fit in here!'

Unaware of my thoughts, Celi opened the door, walked in, and closed the door again.

Now staring at the closed door, I took out a sword and put it in [Distorias] just in case. I then waited 36 seconds for my scabbard to fully charge up before entering the cabin.

"Huh?" I looked around the inside of the cabin in confusion.

The interior of the cabin was more spacious than its exterior suggested.

'No... that isn't even the right word to describe it...'

After all, I was now staring at a fucking mansion.

The stairways and floor were made of white marbles, and lavish decorations made out of pure Mithril were littered all over the place like they were mere pebbles on the side of the road.

There were also decorative suits of armors standing with their backs against the walls as if to protect this place from any intruders. Not just that, the shinning golden chandelier hanging on the tall ceiling looked so expensive that I wasn't sure if even someone like Eleanor could buy it on a whim.

As I was busy admiring and calculating the sheer cost of having this place built, I suddenly heard a hoarse voice whispering in my left ear.

"You like what you're seeing?"

Startled, I jumped back and drew my sword. "Who!?"

Frantically scanning around the room, my gaze eventually landed on a man donning black robes that had several white skulls printed on it.

'What a shit sense of fashion'

In fact, I'd have laughed and made fun of him on the spot if it wasn't for the fact that I could tell that he was at <A+> rank at the very least.

'No... maybe he's even <S> ranked'

But even if that was the case, I wasn't going to surrender to my fate that easily.

Sensing that Space and Lightning mana was slowly rising from my body, the man sighed. "Look, we should fight outside if you want to do it with me. I'm certain that you can't pay for anything inside my house."

'His house...?'

"A- Are you the strong necromancer that Celi was talking about?"

"Strong necromancer? That's certainly hold some truths", he chuckled. "But you might better know me as the [Corpse-devouring necromancer] - Weizer."

'I have no idea who that is.'

Of course, I knew better than to voice my thoughts out loud.

Eleanor's book might have contained some information about him, but the fact that he didn't appear at all when I searched for notable Void lords, and the fact that Celi and Reiner displayed some degree of trust toward him meant that he was most likely not an enemy... at least not until I accidently offended him.

As such, I took out a book and a pen from [Alternate storage] and held it out to him.

"Sir corpse-devourer! Sorry for my earlier imprudence but I'm actually a big fan of yours! Please give me your signature!"

Weizer looked perplexed by my suddenly change in attitude. However, he soon burst into laughter as he delightfully received my pen and signed his name on the book.

"Hah! So someone do remember me after all! I thought I was forgotten after so many years of lazing around in this valley!"

Receiving my book and pen back, I hugged them tightly as if to cherish them. I then turned to my side and carefully placed them back inside [Alternate storage].

As I turned back to Weizer, however, I flinched in surprise upon seeing that his face were only inches away from mine now.

"Say—", Weizer said as he studied my, or well, Lyra's face carefully. "—You look familiar... I could have sworn I saw you in a book owned by my good friend Lietas before."

But eventually, he distanced himself from me with a sigh. "I guess I'm mistaken..."

He then returned to his original excited demeanor and asked me. "So, how did you know of me?"

"I- I read about you in a book!"

"Really!?" He widened his eyes in surprise. "Which battle did the book record? The great [Terarian war] or the grueling [Uerast battle]?"

Not wanting to appear suspicious, I instantly gave my answer. "Th- The [Uerast battle], sir!"

"I see...", he nodded his head.

After a while, he continued.

"Do you remember what I did in the [Uerast battle] then? I don't particularly remember it myself, but I'm certain that it's one of these two."

He then pointed toward two paintings on a nearby wall.

One depicted a man in dark robes with his massive army of Undead and Living armors facing what seemed like an endless horde of soldiers. The other illustrated the presumably same man fighting a pitch-black dragon with malicious swirls of Void mana circling around it.

After letting me study the paintings for a while, Weizer continued. "Was it the one where I killed 50,000 men alone? Or was it the one where I fought a Void dragon?"

'Shit! How am I supposed to know?'

But seeing that Weizer was looking at me with expectant eyes, I could only gulped a mouthful of saliva and pray that I was going to have Arthur's luck right now.

"I- It was the—"

"Aryl! What took you so long?"

Hearing Celi's familiar shout, I literally cried in happiness and rushed toward her.

"Sorry for being late! Where's Reiner?"

Celi alternated her gaze between me and Weizer confusedly, not really knowing what to do.

Seeing this, I dropped her a 'subtle' hint. 

"Celi, don't let me ask again. Where. Is. Reiner?"

She stiffened in fear for a split second upon seeing my scary smile. Before long, she calmed down and stuttered. "Th- That way. He's in the training room."

I then turned toward Weizer with an apologetic look on my face. "Sorry sir corpse-devourer, but I need to see how my friends are faring."

"Haha, I don't mind. I know how important friends can be after all. Oh and don't be too formal. Just call me Weizer", he laughed as his gaze softened at me.

Nodding, I walked toward the training room with Celi and Weizer following me suit.

As soon as I entered the room, I was met with the sight of Reiner facing off against a red-haired, green-eyed boy around my age.

'Can this even be called a fight though?'

After all, Reiner was basically getting smashed to the ground every 5 seconds. He was, in every sense of the word, a punching bag for the boy.

I soon took my attention away from the one-sided beating and scanned the room.

Its walls were made of Birum, an expensive and rare metal that could only be obtained in the deepest part of duke Smithian's territory.

'To have an entire training room made of a material that can withstand <B> ranked attacks... just how rich is he?'

I then drifted my gaze toward the Mithril-gilded bench, where the Orc and a dark Elf with a scar on her right eye sat. They were hugging each other tightly while occasionally whispering something to each other.

'What the actual fuck...? The Orc actually had an Elf lover?'

Everything kept getting weirder and weirder.

'Meeting a supposed forgotten <S> ranked necromancer that has wealth equivalent to that of a Grand duke... helping an Orc that has a fucking Elf as his lover... am I becoming Arthur...?'

Just when I thought that things couldn't get more absurd, I suddenly heard a familiar sound coming from the training ground.

Bzzzzzzzt—!

Immediately after hearing the familiar crackling sound, I saw red electricity manifesting around the red-haired boy.

'Isn't this...!'

Before I could recover from my surprise, the boy had already pointed his finger toward Reiner and chanted.

<[Lightning spear]>

An all-too-familiar spear of Lightning hurled toward Reiner, who immediately ducked down in response to the attack.

The spear grazed past Reiner's brown hair, lightly searing it a bit. It then embedded onto the ground and discharged all the power inside it.

Pzzzzzzt—!

Red electricity crawled on the ground toward Reiner's legs. As soon as it made contact, Reiner got paralyzed and fell to the ground with his muscles convulsing.

"Now do you yield?" The red-haired boy asked as he slowly walked toward Reiner.

Having been paralyzed, Reiner could barely give the boy his answer. "I... yie-ld! Y-o...u wi-n!" 

And with that, the boy swiftly turned away from the pathetic figure of Reiner.

Reiner, on the other hand, heaved a sigh of relief and then simply passed out.

It was then that I recovered from my surprise. And when I did, I approached the boy with rushed steps.

"Hey!" I called out to him.

Perhaps he was too engrossed in the one-sided beatdown earlier, or he was deliberately ignoring me out of arrogance. Whatever the case was, it was true that he turned around to look at me as if he hadn't seen me entering the room earlier.

"Y- You are...!"

Ignoring his wide eyes and opened mouth that clearly conveyed an expression of absolute shock, I asked.

"How? How did you use [Lighting spear]? More importantly, how the fuck did you make your Lighting spells red?"

In response, however, the boy merely knelt down and stuttered with a pale face. "E- Esteemed Great General! F- Forgive me for my insolence!"

'Great General...? I'm using Lyra's face right now... So does he knows about her?'

Before I could continue with my thought, Celi suddenly shouted from behind. "Aryl! Is everything alright?"

"Everything's fine—"

"So your name's Aryl?" The boy suddenly spoke up, interrupting my sentence.

I was rather annoyed by his rude interruption.

"Yes, I'm Aryl Myrsky - the Inquisitor of Ashes and Lightning. Now answer my question or I'll have to arrest you for failing to comply with a heretic inquisitor!"

At my threat, the boy merely stood up, dusted his knees and drew the sword that was strapped to his back.

"Aryl Myrsky!" He shouted. "You shall be detained for suspected heresy!"

"Wha—"

"Let me recite your crimes! You conspired to destroy the nameless town near Ascurt town and wrecked havoc in the Neviltis estate of Kerudark city!"

'W- Was he stalking me?'

Unaware of my thoughts, he continued. "And worse of all, you did all of those atrocious acts while wearing the appearance of our Celestial Great General - Lyra Myrsky!"

'Our Great General? Is he a part of the church of St—'

Before I could finish my thoughts, I suddenly felt an intense bloodlust coming from the boy. Startled, I unsheathed my sword and got into a fighting stance.

'Shit...! I literally have no Mana right now! Why do I have to fight!?'

I glanced at Weizer, hoping that he would stop needless bloodshed from happening inside his own home. However, I was met with the sight of him lazily sitting back on a foldable chair with his arm crossed, looking at me with an amused face.

I couldn't ask Celi for help either, as she was busy fanning Weizer, presumably at his request. And the Orc was useless too, as he was also looking in my direction with eyes full of anticipation.

Thus, I had no choice but to focus on my opponent. 

As his bloodlust reached its peak, the boy shouted with all righteousness. 

"I - the 5th Hero of Storms Nevih II, shall deliver God Vihar's judgment upon this heathen—"

Red Lightning exploded around him as he pointed his sword at me. 

"—Through the sharp blade of my sword!"

BZZZZZZZZZZT—!

***

"Sweetie, you're ready for this?" Sylvia asked as she looked at Glacia with a worried gaze.

"Mhm!" 

"Are you sure?"

"Yes!"

Despite seeing her daughter's eagerness, however, Sylvia couldn't help but to frown.

"It's going to be hard, and you might hate me after this. But it's necessary if you want to protect yourself."

In response though, Glacia fervently nodded her head, blissfully unaware of what was about to come.

Seeing this, Sylvia sighed. "Haaah... I hope I won't accidently go to harsh on her..."

...

After only an hour and a half of training Glacia, Sylvia was already out of breath.

"Haaah... Haaaah... h- how is this possible?"

Catching her breath, Sylvia once again stared at the scene before her in disbelief.

There she was, Glacia, standing in the middle of the training room with an excited smile. However, her surroundings were either frozen solid or crushed flat.

The frozen part was the result of Sylvia having to freeze Glacia's Water spells to prevent Glacia from hurting herself with her own spells, and the crushed bits of ground were merely the byproducts of Glacia's Wind spells.

"H- How can she use such spells already?"

After all, all Sylvia taught her was how to feel Mana in the atmosphere. And as soon as she did so, Glacia was already shooting spells all over the place.

However, something was strange, extremely so. Even if Glacia could use spells like this, it didn't make sense that her Mana was hardly depleted at all after an hour of continuously using them.

Now sensing that something was really wrong, Sylvia slowly approached her daughter and asked. "Sweetie, h- how did you use Magic?"

"Mmmm...", Glacia tilted her head innocently. "...My friends helped me!"

"Friends...?"

"Yes! Let me show mommy!"

Before Sylvia could say anything, Glacia had already began to shout with a smile on her face.

"...Water go splash!"

Instantly, a large beam of condensed Water shot to the ground, drilling a big hole in it.

"Wind go wooooosh!"

Sensing danger, Sylvia hurriedly manifested an Ice barrier around her and Glacia. And the second she did so, sharp winds cut into the barrier, nearly breaking it.

'Wh- What power! And she isn't even moving her own Mana at all!'

Unware of the danger she had just put both her and her mother through, Glacia continued.

"Lightning go zap!"

However, nothing happened, and Glacia was just as confused as her mother was.

"Zap!"

Nothing happened again.

It was then that Sylvia finally recovered from her surprise. She then let Glacia sit on her arm and asked. "What's wrong, sweetie? You can't use Lightning magic?"

"No...", Glacia shook her head in disappointment.

She then stared into thin air and asked seemingly no one. "Sylph! Where is Elektra?" 

After staying in silence for a few seconds, Glacia nodded her head and turned toward Sylvia with a pout.

"Mommy! Elektra don't want to play with meeee! I can't use zap!"

'Elektra...? Who's that?'

While she appeared calm right now as she was patting Glacia's back to soothe her, Sylvia was absolutely confused.

After all, her daughter didn't come into contact with anyone other than her and Krista since the start of the summer vacation, and she made sure of it.

However, she soon widened her eyes in surprise upon recalling something in an old book she had read.

'She talked to someone named Sylph... don't tell me...!'

Sylvia hurriedly activated her [A - Mana sense (Superior)] and used it to its maximum power.

After a while, she could feel the vague outline of something... small and... humanoid floating right beside Glacia. More importantly, it was purely made of Wind attribute mana.

Focusing her sense on the humanoid lump of Wind mana even more, Sylvia couldn't help but to gasp in shock.

"A- A spirit!?"