Sword Saint's Reincarnation

Book 3 Chapter 21: Profession (1)

Rylan pushed open the doors to Damian’s study and entered the room.

It looked the same as usual; ordinary and rustic, with a few chairs and pieces of furniture surrounding the single desk in the middle. Damian sat behind it and raised his gaze to watch Rylan come in. The man smiled, his relief almost palpable.

“You’re back,” Damian said slowly, then breathed out and leaned back in his chair. “Thank the gods.”

Rylan raised an eyebrow and walked closer to the desk.

“Worried about the Empire?” he asked in reply.

Damian scoffed.

“Of course I am. You left alone to go to a high-level Dungeon where nobody would even know if you got killed. I know it was done so you could Level up, but that doesn’t mean the possibility of the Empire sending another strike team ceased to exist. Anyway, I’m glad you’re alright.”

Rylan smiled. He was grateful for his master’s worries, especially because he could tell they weren’t just because of his value to the kingdom.

“Yeah, everything’s fine. I got stronger and more used to my abilities, including my new Class. I also learned a critically important Skill.”

Damian furrowed his brow and motioned at Rylan to continue.

“Aura Casting,” Rylan said with a grin. “The ability to cast spells using Aura instead of mana, just like Mana Cultivation uses mana to strengthen one’s body.”

For a few seconds, Damian only stared at him fixedly. Then, the man covered his eyes with his hands and let out a deep sigh.

“I’m not even surprised anymore. I have no idea how you did it.”

Rylan shrugged.

“Just reverse-engineered what I knew about Mana Cultivation’s concept.”

Damian scoffed again.

“Yeah, right. So simple. Fuck.”

Rylan waited for his master’s shock to wear off as the man mumbled curses to himself. After a short while, Damian took a deep breath and looked back at Rylan.

“…I’m glad you’re alright. Really. Have you talked to your family? Or did you come straight here?”

Rylan shook his head.

“I haven’t talked to them yet, because I wanted to ask you something. It’s about our contact with Mar. Is there an estimate on how long it’ll take for the delegation to arrive? Or will I have to travel there?”

Damian shook his head firmly.

“Having you go there is out of the question. The journey is long, and we won’t risk you getting ambushed by imperial Mages on the way. Mar will send people here. Still, because of the distance, it’ll take a while before they arrive. Last I heard, Catherina is ready to send people here. Maybe they’ve already departed. My estimate is about a month.”

Rylan rubbed his chin in thought.

“Then, there’s something else we can work on. My Profession.”

Damian tilted his head.

“Have you decided what you want to go for?”

Rylan nodded with a smile.

“Yeah. Since I’m guiding so many people and will be an Academy professor for some time, I think something related to teaching would be nice.”

Damian smiled back after a second.

“Now, that’s something I can get behind. We’ll work on it when you start giving lectures on everything you know.”

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Rylan nodded.

“Alright. Can I begin a few days from now?”

“The earlier, the better.”

Rylan kept his smile.

“It’s a deal. I’ll go talk to my family now. See you soon, Damian.”

Damian nodded at him and waved. Rylan promptly turned around and left the study, then descended the winding staircases of the ever-shifting Mage Tower until he reached the door to his family’s quarters. He pushed it open and entered the large bedroom. The first people he saw were Aelfric and Sarah. Both of them were meditating, Aelfric on his bed and Sarah on the chair next to it. Rylan looked to the left to see Regis and Lillia, also meditating. Lastly, Gerard and Elizabeth were talking in hushed tones by the table, but they both turned to look at him as he entered the room. Elizabeth virtually lit up, while Gerard smiled.

Rylan smiled back at them and walked closer, his steps soft and almost inaudible. Elizabeth hurried over, clearly trying her best to be as silent as possible, to middling success. Once she was close enough, she promptly dragged him into a hug.

“I’m so glad. You don’t know how worried I was,” she whispered in his ear, sounding like she was steps away from crying.

Rylan hugged her back tightly.

“Everything’s fine, Mom,” he replied. “I’m here.”

She didn’t let go. He looked over her shoulder at his father and nodded at the man. Gerard approached the two of them and put his arms around them.

“Welcome back, son,” Gerard said tenderly. “We were waiting for you.”

For some time, Rylan only enjoyed his parents’ embrace. Even though it had already been a year since he remembered his past life, it had been less than that since he started receiving his parents’ affection. Compared to the century he’d spent as Roland without any parents at all, it was such a short time that he still couldn’t feel used to their love. This was what he fought for.

He valued such moments endlessly.

After a while, Rylan let go and took a step back, one hand firmly grasping Gerard’s shoulder and the other around his mother’s.

“I’m alright,” he said, looking at his siblings and Sarah. “Are they training?”

Gerard nodded.

“Figuring out Mana Cultivation isn’t easy, but they’ve all been hard at work. Both of us were training too, moments before you arrived. It’s difficult, but I believe we’re making progress,” the man replied.

“I’ll teach it to you guys as many times as it takes,” Rylan said seriously. "No matter how long it takes.”

Elizabeth smiled warmly at him and put her arm around him again.

“We’re just glad you’re with us again, son,” she stated.

Rylan smiled at her, then walked up to the nearest chair and sat down.

“I’ll wait for them to stop meditating,” he said.

His parents nodded at sat on the chairs next to him, one on each side.

“How was the Dungeon?” Gerard asked.

“Not too much trouble to me,” Rylan replied. “The Giant Sandworms could easily give a group of Fifth Circle Mages a run for their money, and there were many of them, but I could deal with them easily enough. The Boss also wasn’t anything too dangerous. I met some people in the Boss room, though.”

Gerard and Elizabeth frowned almost at the same time.

“What do you mean?” she quickly asked.

“Just some random Fifth Circle Mages. They knew about me and about Mana Cultivation, but didn’t try anything. Not that they would win if they did, anyway.”

“Damn it,” Gerard said from the side. “I knew the news had already spread, but… did they tell you where they were from?”

“Gryphon Kingdom.”

Gerard’s frown deepened.

“…A kingdom that is no longer an ally to Mar. They might try to contact the Empire, but since you’re already back in Caer Rhelon, it’s too late for them to do anything. I’m glad they really didn’t try anything.”

“I would have killed them if they had,” Rylan said coldly.

After this statement, the room went silent for a few seconds.

“…You say that too easily,” Elizabeth finally said.

“Sometimes it’s necessary.”

She went silent for a short while.

“I wish I could say you shouldn’t take more lives, but… the world isn’t so kind.”

“It isn’t. For all we know, war is coming.”

She gritted her teeth.

“Do what you have to do,” Gerard said from the side in a serious tone. “I’m not happy about it, but it needs to be done. You did well. What are you going to do now?”

Rylan watched his siblings and Sarah for a couple of seconds without replying.

“Train as many people as I can and make this kingdom as powerful as possible. It won’t be enough against a nation as massive as the Empire, so we’ll need to rely on Mar. The delegation is already on its way, according to Damian.”

Gerard let out a breath.

“That’s good. We just need to keep trying.”

Rylan nodded. The conversation went on as time quickly passed. By the end of the first hour, Aelfric shifted and opened his eyes, zeroing in on Rylan almost immediately. The boy smiled.

“Rylan!” he said loudly as he moved to get out of bed. The others also opened their eyes, like roused by the noise.

Sarah looked at Rylan and smiled, then stood up and bowed slightly.

“Welcome back, young master,” she said.

The others got out of bed to stand up. Regis and Lillia smiled at him, and he smiled back. Aelfric walked closer, his hand outstretched. Rylan firmly shook it.

“Hello, everyone. I’m back and everything went well,” he said in an upbeat tone.

Regis and Lillia walked closer to him, as did Sarah.

“I’m glad you’re okay, young master. According to Master Damian, Arid Wasteland is a very dangerous Dungeon,” Sarah stated with a relieved expression, her eyes filled with affection. “I’m really glad.”

Rylan smiled at her.

“Everything’s fine,” he then looked at his two older siblings. “And you guys? How are you doing?”

Regis grinned at him, his eyes warmer than before, while Lillia outright smiled.

“We’ve just been training and trying to learn what you taught us,” she said. “We’re getting better.”

Rylan nodded, genuinely proud of them.

“Let’s keep going, then.”

The conversation went on. To Rylan, there was nothing more fulfilling than being with his family. It was what he fought for.