Chapter 16: Accumulating

Kiyotaka's point of view:

The door to my chamber creaked ominously as two shadowy figures stealthily entered the darkened room. The larger of the two made a subtle motion, to which the smaller, whose twin tails swayed with each step, nodded in acquiescence. As they advanced, the air seemed to grow heavy with their malevolent intent.

With one eye half-open, I observed their movements from my bed, my senses heightened by the influx of mana that rendered me almost impervious to surprise attacks such as this. Furthermore, the two individuals who had invaded my chambers were evidently untrained in the art of covert infiltration. As they stumbled clumsily through the shadows of the darkened room, their intentions were all too transparent.

"Careful." The larger figure stopped near my nightstand and whispered. "We don't want him to wake u-" Before she stumbled and fell face first to the floor.

"Pfft!" The smaller figure covered her mouth with both hands in an attempt to muffle her laughter, but it only made it louder. She didn't seem to notice, and when she could stop laughing, she walked over to the figure who was rubbing her arm in pain. "Shhh!" warned the small figure. "Be quiet."

"Why don't you want me to wake up?" I shattered their illusion by turning on the lamp next to my bed.

"Kya!" exclaimed the small figure, leaping back, her figure revealed by the warm light of the lamp.

The identities of the two intruders were revealed; one was a girl with dark brown hair that was evenly combed, her brown eyes searching the room for an excuse to explain her situation.

The other figure was a smaller girl with light brown hair combed into twin pigtails and light brown eyes that looked nervously between Lilia and me, her small hands clasped behind her back and she moved from side to side feigning apparent innocence. Her lips pursed to whistle, but she couldn't and instead blew air.

I sighed and rose to my feet, walking towards them. "If you want to surprise me, you'll have to be more stealthy." I said as I extended my hand to Lilia on the ground.

She nodded and sighed resignedly as she accepted it with a grimace. "I've been awaken for a year and I still can't catch you."

"Keep trying."

"Big brother!" Ellie ran toward me with a big smile, her small footsteps echoing on the wooden floor; I assumed she wanted to draw attention away from how unstealthy she had been. She jumped into my arms at full speed, oblivious to the fact that she might get hurt if I didn't catch her.

I lightly braced my body with mana to keep myself from falling and caught her in my arms. Ellie clung to me immediately, wrapping her little legs and arms around me and squeezing me tightly.

I patted her on the head, and she rubbed her face against my neck, almost like a cat rubbing herself. I let her hug me for a while before I spoke. "Do you have anything you want to tell me?"

"Aunt Ruri came." Ellie said, her voice muffled by her continued burying of her face in my neck.

"Then let's go downstairs."

I didn't even try to pull her away from me; this was normal for her; she had surprising strength when she clung to me. Ellie laughed and cheered slightly as I started walking towards the stairs, relieved that I hadn't tried to pull her off me.

Lilia closed the dark wooden door behind me, then followed me to the stairs, and I thought about the three years that had passed as I listened to the wood rattling under our shoes.

Time passed normally after the birth of my younger sister, Eleanor. I am eight years old and Arthur also sent sporadic messages about his progress in the Elven realm. It must be said that hearing a little girl's voice snort a "fufu~" in the background every time Arthur greeted me was quite disturbing. I assumed she was a friend of Arthur's, as is Tessia, the princess, and filed it away.

However, other than that, the only significant thing was Lilia's awakening, which occurred a couple of weeks ago and my breakthrough to the solid orange core.

It should be noted that when their daughter imploded their room one night, the Helstea family almost cried. I considered clarifying that it was my fault in teaching her because I assumed they were crying over the loss of their belongings, but I was surprised when Vincent hugged me and thanked me for doing so.

It was a little unsettling, but I was also relieved that they weren't angry. The last thing I wanted was for them to abandon us on the street with newborn Ellie.

And speaking of my younger sister, she was very active, but she seemed especially fond of me because she followed me around like a baby duckling to its mother.

Although I enjoyed their love because it was new to me, I was struck by one particular behavior.

Lilia and Ellie had been talking about food on the way down, and when it was Lilia's turn to answer a question. "Who knows?" She responded in this manner.

Why does everyone try to imitate me? I couldn't help but be curious. But I didn't say anything to her because it gave me a strange feeling in my chest when she said it. Was this the familiar love I had hoped to find when I came here? Who knows?

As I considered all of this, we arrived at the base of the browned flight of stairs. Raising my gaze to the hallway where the auction house's imposing double doors should be, I was met with the familiar sight of a woman looking at me and nodding her head.

Her mane of auburn hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and her refined features had remained largely unchanged over the three years that had elapsed. However, she was dressed in a tunic that clung a bit more closely to her form this time, revealing her slender and well-toned physique despite being a conjurer. The garment seemed to emphasize her curvaceous figure, and it was clear that she had taken great care to maintain her physical fitness. As she moved, the tunic rustled softly, giving the impression of a graceful and elegant dancer. Despite the passage of time, she remained a vision of beauty and refinement, with an air of sophistication that was hard to miss.

I approached her because she appeared to be waiting for me at the front door. "Did you come looking for me?"

"Kiyo." She smiled, then her attention was drawn to Ellie, who was clinging to me like a monkey. "And luggage."

Ellie finally let go of me, so I set her down as she pouted and sulked. "I'm Eliie, not baggage." She declared, standing up straight as if to give her words more strength, but it only made her look cute.

Ruri knelt down to her height and shook her hair, much to Ellie's chagrin. After that, Ruri stood up again and looked me up and down, as if assessing me.

"Change your clothes and say goodbye; we're going on a hike." She stated it simply.

I nodded and made my way upstairs to my room. It wasn't the first time we went out; we usually went to the outskirts of the beast glades where she would teach me about the flora and fauna, even though I already knew it, but her argument for continuing to teach me was that reading a book isn't the same as seeing it for yourself, so we usually stalked a couple of days in the outskirts and then returned, nothing particularly dangerous.

I carefully selected a few articles of clothing and placed them in a compact backpack, one that I could easily manage even with my small frame. Ensuring that I hadn't forgotten any necessities, I also packed some additional dry food rations in a diminutive box, just in case of unforeseen circumstances. I made sure to pack only the essentials, trying to keep the weight of my bag to a minimum while still bringing everything I might need

I heard small footsteps behind me and knew who it was without even turning around. When I felt small arms wrap around me, it confirmed my theory. Ellie began to cry, and my brown shirt became wet with tears, causing my clothes to stick to my skin.

"I do not want you to leave." She sobbed, clinging to me even more tightly.

I turned on her, forcing her to hug me from the front. I lifted one hand to her face, wiping away her warm tears with my finger, and smiled a little, knowing it would calm her down.

"As usual, I'll be back in two days." I ruffled her hair slightly, which made her pout. "Behave yourself for the time being."

She sulked and turned her head, causing her pigtails to swing and whipping me slightly as if to express her displeasure.

"I'll bring you a souvenir." Try to cheer her up.

My attempts, however, were futile, as she simply said 'hmph!' to everything I said. I couldn't stop sighing. This big brother thing is exhausting.

"Ellie," I tried once more. "I'll buy you candy; don't you like it?"

She appeared to hesitate as her pout quivered, but she crossed her arms and turned her head away anyway. "Who knows?"

My sigh was audible this time; I still had a lot to learn about this type of relationship. However, I will buy her some candy in the hopes that it will persuade her. Bribing people has been a strategy used by mankind for generations, and I will not be an exception.

Also, the taste of sweets is something I can say with certainty that even I enjoy.

(***)

We left the teleport doors after saying goodbye to my mother, who was as worried as usual. My father was at work, so I didn't get to say goodbye.

The twin horns hadn't been in town for about a month, so Jasmine's dagger classes were moving more slowly than usual. Not that I'm complaining; now that my core is close to average for this world, I can fight the weaker mana beasts in melee and rip their hearts out with my palm.

Although I believe that ripping enemies' hearts out is more efficient, I still have a pair of daggers that Ruri gave me after I killed a mana beast by ripping its heart out on our first excursion; she said it was quite disturbing to see a kid my age kill a beast like that with a indifferent stare.

Of course, that wasn't the only reason; she also told me that some beasts have very tough skin and that I could get hurt, and that learning to use weapons would be essential for when I could shape my mana to form the weapon I desired, which would be disposable and powerful.

There was still a long way to go, but I could see how much faith she had in me.

All of this came to my mind as we drove to our destination.

The morning sun, casting its rays upon the city shrouded in clouds, lent a sense of warmth and luminosity to the surroundings. The Xyrus Academy, an edifice of captivating design, loomed imposingly in the distance, resembling a castle bereft of its sovereign. The academy's towering spires and grandiose architecture seemed to exude a sense of power and majesty, commanding respect and admiration from all who beheld it.

However, Ruri's flawless beauty also caught the attention of the passersby on the streets of Xyrus. Like a beacon, her allure drew the gaze of men, some of whom even paused to take a closer look. The elegant and unattainable atmosphere that seemed to envelop her as she walked with a straight back and a slight smile on her face was perhaps the only thing that distinguished the thin line between simple observation and more forward behavior.

Her poise and charm were undeniable, and it was clear that she commanded a certain level of respect and admiration from those around her. Despite the attention she received, Ruri remained poised and self-assured, exuding an air of confidence and refinement.

Anyone observing her would likely have assumed that she was of noble birth, and the throngs of people traversing the streets of Xyrus parted before us as she moved with graceful ease.

"We'll do something different this time," Ruri said as we walked.

The clatter of wheels and the neighing of a horse caused me to pause before responding. "And what could it be?"

"I figured I'd go a little deeper this time." She hummed, but explained herself when I gave her a questioning look. "Don't worry, we're not going that far in; we'll just look for a small plant I need to find."

I nodded toward her. "Okay."

She gave me a sidelong glance before gently nudging me with a playful hip movement. "I'm sure you wanted to go into a dungeon." She cracked a joke. "Unfortunately for you, your mother would kill me if I did that." She deflated. "As a result, we'll be spending some time in the children's area." She made a childish snort.

I shrugged, not responding to her joke, and instead focused on the road. I saw her pout in my peripheral vision, but I kept looking straight ahead with my full attention; I'd learned over the years that ignoring her was the best way to avoid her taunts.

(***)

The verdant growth rustled beneath my footwear as I stepped through the watery purple portal. My olfactory senses were filled with the fragrance of freshly cut grass and pure air as I emerged into the forest before me. A light misty fog permeated the trees, signaling that we had arrived at our destination, the beast glades. 

The forest was awash in a soft, ethereal light, and the air was filled with the gentle rustling of leaves and the faint chirping of birds. It was a peaceful and serene setting, a world apart from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. 

Ruri took a step forward and inhaled deeply, opening her arms as if to embrace the air itself. The gesture seemed to embody her sense of wonder and delight at arriving in this place,  She seemed to take in the sights, sounds, and smells of the forest with all of her senses, savoring each moment and reveling in the beauty of her surroundings. 

"Well, home sweet home," Ruri said. She smiled and turned to face me, hands on her hips. "Ready?"

When I nodded, she returned my nod and turned to walk into the woods. She twirled the ring on her finger a few times as if checking something.

"Is everything okay?" I asked when I saw her pause for a moment.

"Yeah... I was just checking on something," She spoke.

I shrugged as I averted my gaze to her ring; she always uses her dimensional ring to carry what she needs for the trip, and she was probably checking to see if everything was in order.

"Let's not waste any time; let's go find that plant." She said this as she walked to the front of the forest to go deeper into the woods.

I simply followed her, my guard up, merging into the misty fog that enveloped us. At the time, I had no inkling of what this little excursion would bring.