Chapter Five

Raymond sat down beneath the thicket of trees, the weight of exhaustion pressing down on him. His shoulder throbbed, the wound from the cleaver a deep, jagged reminder of the battle. It was the first scar of this life, and it was quite a large one—already turning an angry red as the blood trickled out in small rivulets.

He took a deep breath, gritting his teeth against the pain, and reached inward, drawing on the Aether that flowed through him. His body screamed for rest, but this injury—this first wound in this life—needed to be tended to.

Focusing, he gathered the Aether that swirled within him, concentrating it in his shoulder. It was a delicate process, the energy of his soul twisting around the wound like threads of light, knitting together flesh and bone as it flowed. At first, there was only the sting of the magic, and then the burning heat as it fused the torn muscle fibers together.

The pain lessened as the wound began to close, but it was slow—far slower than he had hoped. He had pushed himself too far, and the Aether wasn't enough to completely heal the damage in one go. The scar would remain, a reminder of how close he had come to death and how much further he still had to go. It would be a long time before he could truly forget the weight of the cleaver's blow.

The Aether continued to pulse through him, but it wasn't enough to remove the feeling of vulnerability that lingered in his chest. He needed more than just power to survive; he needed allies, resources, and time. And yet, the scar on his shoulder would always be there, a testament to the battle he had survived and the price he had paid for each step forward.

Raymond sat beneath the canopy of trees, the weight of exhaustion pressing against him. His shoulder throbbed relentlessly, a constant reminder of the cleaver's brutal strike. The wound was deep, and though he'd used the Aether to stabilize himself, the scar was already becoming prominent—a jagged, raw mark of the battle. The pain was intense, but it was manageable now, the Aether working its magic slowly.

In the quiet of the forest, he focused on the two items he had acquired. First, the black stone he'd found in the dungeon. It lay nestled in his pack, its weight heavy and familiar, pulsing with a subtle warmth whenever he allowed his senses to drift toward it. It had been a strange find in his previous regressions—nothing more than a fist-sized rock with faint, glowing markings. He didn't know what it was yet, but its connection to something greater, darker, was undeniable. It felt like it belonged to him, or rather, like he belonged to it. He could feel its influence, deep and quiet, pressing against his mind, waiting for the right moment to reveal its true power.

there was the small box the woman from the caravan had given him. Raymond hadn't asked for any reward, but her insistence had left him no choice but to accept it. The box was intricately carved, with delicate patterns etched into its wooden surface. It was heavy in his hands, a stark contrast to its size, and though he didn't know what was inside, there was something about it that felt important. The weight of it wasn't just physical—it felt like it held something more. Perhaps it was a key, or a tool that would come in handy later. The feeling that it was tied to his journey, to his curse, lingered at the back of his mind.

Raymond's fingers brushed over the ornate box, the carved patterns still faintly glowing in the dim light of the campfire. As he lifted the lid, his eyes fell on the small, round pill resting in the velvet interior. Its deep blue surface pulsed faintly, the same rhythm as the Aether that flowed through the world around him.

For a moment, Raymond froze, the familiarity of it striking him with a sudden, jarring clarity. His hand shook slightly as he reached for the pill. He knew this. The sensation was unmistakable. He had seen it before—felt it before—in one of his past lives. The Aether Pill. He didn't know how or why he had come across it, but the memory surged through him like a torrent, a flicker of recognition from a life long gone.

In that life, he had been desperate—desperate for strength, for something to give him an edge. Someone had given him the same pill, though the circumstances were different. At the time, he hadn't understood what it was. But now, as he held it in his hand, the understanding was immediate. The Aether Pill was not a mere object—it was a tool, a gift, a crutch to draw Aether with far less strain than usual.

He had used it before, in times when the weight of the world and the limitations of his soul had threatened to break him. The pill was a temporary solution, a burst of concentrated Aether designed to soothe the soul and ease the process of drawing energy from the world. It was a shortcut, a way to bypass the usual cost of pulling Aether through his body. And it came with a price—he had experienced that too, in the distant echoes of his past lives. The relief it gave was short-lived, but it allowed him to gather Aether without the exhaustion and the pain that usually followed.

With a steady breath, Raymond pressed the pill to his lips. His mind was already buzzing with the memory of its effects—its cool, soothing energy filling him from the inside out. He swallowed, and the moment the pill touched his throat, it was like a flood of peace washed over him. The usual tightness in his chest, the constant weight of the curse, faded as if they had never been. His body relaxed, his muscles unwinding, and for a moment, he could feel the Aether inside him—no longer something he had to struggle against, but something he could call to him with ease.

Raymond closed his eyes, the pill's effects taking hold almost immediately. The soothing warmth spread through him, like liquid calm coursing through his veins. He could feel the Aether stirring deep within, almost like a sleeping beast awakening, stretching its tendrils out, searching for more. He inhaled, drawing more of it in with each breath, filling himself with its energy.

For a brief, fleeting moment, Raymond allowed himself to simply exist in the peace the pill provided. He could feel his power growing, the reservoir of Aether inside him expanding faster than it ever had before. But even as he reveled in the rush, the faintest whisper of his past selves stirred, a reminder that nothing came without a cost. The relief would be temporary, and soon, the weight would return. But for now, he would take whatever advantage he could get.

Hours passed in a blur as he fell into a trance, his consciousness merging with the very essence of the world around him. The Aether swirled through him, more potent than ever. He could feel the very structure of his being shifting, his soul growing stronger. The soothing sensation was replaced by a deeper sense of awareness, as if the Aether had unlocked something within him that he hadn't known existed.

When Raymond finally opened his eyes, the world around him seemed clearer, sharper. He could feel the weight of the Aether inside him—more concentrated, more controlled than before. The power he had drawn from the pill had brought him to a new stage, one he had never reached so quickly in any of his past lives.

He stretched his limbs, testing the change. It was subtle, yet undeniable. His senses were heightened. The Aether pulsed within him like a heartbeat, rhythmic and steady. He had reached Stage Two.

He frowned, contemplating what that meant. In his previous regressions, it had taken him much longer to reach this point, but now… now it felt different. He could already sense the path ahead of him, clearer than ever before. Stage Two was only the beginning, but it was a crucial one. With each stage of Aether, the flow of energy became more refined, more focused. His control over it would improve, and with it, his strength would grow exponentially.

But Stage Ten… that was the final stage. The one he had always dreamed of reaching, and the one that had always seemed so far out of reach. The ultimate mastery over Aether. He had never even come close to it in past lives—he had never reached beyond Stage Six, much less Stage Ten. But now, after this rapid progress, something stirred inside him. Maybe… just maybe, this time could be different. Maybe this time, he could push beyond his limits and reach the highest stage.

The thought was a beacon of hope in the darkness, and for the first time in a long while, Raymond felt a glimmer of something more—something beyond survival.

The box clicked shut in his hand as he tucked it back into his pack. Raymond took a deep breath, ready to move forward. Whatever lay ahead, he was more prepared now than before. The pill had given him a brief moment of clarity and a great boost of strength, but he knew better than to rely on it too heavily. It was just another piece of the puzzle, another tool in a long line of them. But it was enough—for now.