Illusion of The Past

*PISCHHH!!!!!*

Mideus throws a vase on the floor as she tears a piece of paper. She is in her office located at her mansion. The scraps of paper vaguely make out a newspaper discussing a sudden appearance of a star, named Loi.

Mideus scratches her hair as she grits her teeth. She leans her head against the desk, her face contorted into a monster of anger.

"Loi Loi Loi, everywhere I go I keep hearing of his achievements. That fucking brat. That parasite. How dare a mere commoner dare to humiliate my Nelson family! I will kill him I will kill him! That bastard must go..." Mideus mumbles.

Mideus snaps and an assassin appear from behind the curtains. He walks to Mideus and kneels to her, sweating and fidgeting uncomfortably.

"So? Any reports on that brat?" Mideus asks.

The assassin gulps as he says with a shaky voice "h-he...arrested the Azure family and confiscated all of their properties and assets. Currently, they are rummaging through the Azure residence-"

"WHAT?!!!!!!"

Mideus flips the desk as she emits a gush of malicious aura. "Why! Why is nothing going according to plan?! Why!!!!!"

Mideus draws her sword sheathed at her hip and decapitates the assassin she called.

Her grip on the sword loosens as she drops to her knees. Looking at the mirror nearby, an old frail lady in distress can be seen, Mideus didn't put in her makeup and her purple lipsticks are all over the place around her mouth.

"Bastard bastard bastard!!!! No no no!! If they find that demonic sword hidden in the Azure family... What am I going to tell the higher-ups..."

Mideus sheath the sword as she carries herself up. She takes a cane hooked at the door and exits the office, several anxious maids walk into the office with trembling bodies to clean Mideus's mess.

Mideus walks to a room 5 doors away from her office and opens it. It is a bedroom with blood-stained all over the walls. Irina is tied to the bed as Clifton lies unconscious on the floor. Irina's shirt is ripped apart as bruises and cuts engulf her body, her body is dirty and has stains of blood everywhere.

"IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT! YOU USELESS BITCH!!" Mideus shouts as she whips the cane at Irina. "WHY DID I RAISE SUCH A WORTHLESS BITCH! YOUR BODY IS THE ONLY WORTH OF YOU!"

Mideus gasps for air as she drops the cane. Her chest hurts from the constant shouting.

"Loi... I swear I will kill your entire family... No, I will torture every single one of you, to the point you will beg me for death!"

-------------------------

We walk into the cave hidden behind the treasury. There isn't any light so I cast a small flame spell on my finger.

Weird, I sense something...people, deep in the cave.

But the amount of accumulated dust...?

Mi places her hand against the wall and closes her eyes. I walk past her and say "there are no traps."

?

"That's reckless." Says Mi.

"There aren't any mana fluctuations in the air, which means there are no traps or spells put into place."

"Mana fluctuations?"

Mi stares at me in confusion but she decides to trust her instinct. An experienced adventurer will discover something called mana fluctuation because of the number of dungeons and explorations we go to. Different things can create different mana fluctuations.

For example, a dormant hidden trap has a certain frequency of mana fluctuation emission, which is different from the mana fluctuation of sound transmission.

It is something similar to sound waves, if nothing interrupts a sound wave, it will go on as normal until all energy is given out. However, if there was an obstacle, the frequency will change unusually.

Every cultivator can experience and feel mana fluctuations. However, because of the extreme variety of mana fluctuations, they tend to ignore them as they cannot pinpoint each mana fluctuation to a certain thing.

It is similar to feeling sunlight but ignoring it while some remember the intensity of the sunlight to pinpoint their location on the planet. Adventurers remember certain Mana fluctuations for an increased chance of survivability.

We walk deeper as the road in the cave becomes wider until we approach a large and tall space.

"Light?" Mi mumbles.

A bright light is emitting from the ceiling, allowing me to realise I'm in a very tall space.

!!!

That's Oranium! That white translucent shiny ore is a condensation of impure mana. However, the concentration of each mana must be perfect for the ore to form, which is very rare to occur.

Yet, my attention was brought to a large red sword plunged into the ground in the middle of the room. Its black edge and handles are emitting a dark aura, it's a demonic blade...

Six old people are sleeping around the blade. I walk to them and check for vitality, they are still alive.

!!

I find pouches around the body and inside them are valuable items and mountains of money. Judging by the fact that they have the crest of the Azure family on the pouch, these people are Azures.

----------------

Quest complete! (Julius)

Find the heavenly demonic sword that belonged to Akira.

Plot rank: 13->14

+5000 points.

----------------

----------------

New Mission available:

-Conquer the demonic sword and make it recognise the host as its owner. (Ignore)

Rewards:

+10000 points

+7000 plot armour value

+1 Demonic Sword Spirit Zenkai.

+1 common draw ticket

------------------

Oh?! Now that I think about it? I haven't checked Lorraine's and Julius's quest.

...

I will check it next time. For now, this sword.

I walk near it.

!!

"Hey! That's dangerous."

"It's okay, trust me. If I don't return within a week, forcefully wake me up." I say.

"What?!"

These Azure ancestors sleeping around this sword must have tried to conquer it and are still attempting to do so. Their life force is constantly seeping out and into the sword.

I grip firmly onto the handle as the aura engulfs me.

Afterwards, Darkness.

"My... Another foolish one." A voice echoes in my head.

------------------------

...

*pit pat pit pat*

Something is constantly hitting my entire body as it dissipates. The environment is noisy with sounds of water colliding against the ground, it is raining.

I open my eyes and shield my eyes from the rain.

Where am I?

A bloody battlefield littered with bodies of humans, kobolds, elves, and orcs. The battle took place on rocky plains with no nature in sight...

I...

Anyone who participated in the Great Race War happening 10 years after my father's death would recognise this. This event was known as the battle of sacrifice. People sent here to fight were with the intention of creating a diversion and were not expected to return alive. The fact that I survived is already a miracle.

I touch my palm and realise my hand is very rough. I extend my arm to realise my bruise, cuts, and scars are back.

...

My arm has gotten longer and my legs and body have grown bigger, I'm back at 27 years old. Although I know this is an illusion, it feels too real...

System.

...

System?

...

...

I look at the sword in my sheath and draw it before attempting to execute the Seven Star Sword style. It is successful, which means I didn't go to the previous timeline.

It may be because I haven't gotten a system in this timeline so the illusion took that into account. I don't know.

!

A blood trail in front of me leads to a cave near.

I follow it and find a collapsed man with a woman in his arms.

It's Carl Igniz(Chapter 1).

...

If everything is accurate, then that woman in his arms must be his wife, she is dead. Her body has been pierced seven times.

Carl has lost his right leg and is pierced through his chest with a sword. He realises my presence but didn't bother to turn his head. He smiles.

"What good timing, to think you will be the last person I see before I die." Says Carl. His eyes full of greed and arrogance in the past is now eyes full of regret and tears.

"... I'm sorry." Says Carl.

"For?" I say.

"You know. Bullying you and stuff. Ack ack!... I was so proud of my family's noble status... I was born with a golden spoon in my mouth... I don't even know why... I... Hah..."

Carl is using his last strength to communicate with me, he has given up on surviving. A stream of tears comes down Carl's eyes.

"I don't care what happens to me, I deserved it... But why her too..." Says Carl.

He must be talking about the woman in his eyes. "She was pregnant... Hopeful of the future, why do they have to do this... I..."

...

"Don't just stand there in the rain, come sit beside me for a while." Says Carl.

In the previous timeline, I continue to stay in the rain due to my loathing hatred towards him. But this time, I walk into the cave and sat beside him.

"Hey... Do you know... When we were 17, I still wasn't able to go to the toilet myself at night... What a joke, isn't I? Hah..." Mumbles Carls.

...

"Hey, Loi. I know I did terrible things to you. The young me is... Terrible. Not that I'm not now."

"You are on your death's door, yet you are still mumbling rubbish," I say.

"Haha... Harsh. Can't I at least... Have a little talk?" Says Carl.

...

"Loi. Can you do me a favour?" Says Carl.

"What is it?"

"Cripple me if you ever have the chance to go to the past... I want you to teach me a lesson so bad I won't forget about it. And also... Oriel, make sure she never falls in love with me. She's a kind woman, a very bright angel who I don't deserve... Haha... What am I saying..."

I smile. "Don't worry. I've heard this before and I've already done it."

"...I see..."

Carl sounds like he doesn't believe me. But he ends his life with a smile as he closes his eyes.

...

The smell of blood and rain.

I hate it.