Chapter 3
Familial Love

"What do you mean that the Goddess isn't here?" Alexander heavily frowned when the priest in front of him announced the absence of the Goddess Ilias. "She was here last year, she was here the year before that, and today is the day of baptism, right? Or did we get the wrong day?"

Much to Alexander's dismay, the priest shook his head. "Unfortunately, you're wrong. This is the day of baptism, there is no mistake here. However, for unknown reasons, the Goddess hasn't descended yet. The Goddess Ilias always arrives early to celebrate her birthday with all the members of the church present here, and then she proceeds to go through the ritual of baptism. But it did not happen now, so we can expect that she won't descend in the mortal world for this year."

"Could it be that she is just late?" Alexander continued to insist. "Maybe if we wait more time, she will-"

At those words, the priest started to frown and immediately rebuked his words. "Preposterous! As if the Goddess Ilias can be late! If she wants to do something, who even is supposed to stop her from doing it? If she isn't coming here, then she won't be coming here, it doesn't matter what reason caused this to happen! Go away and reflect on your words!"

"..." Alexander's eyes twitched at the priest's words, but he didn't take immediate action. He wasn't that childish to assault a priest for something he didn't have any decision for.

"Hey, Alex, relax, we can work out something together." At the side, Luka tried to pacify Alexander, who immediately replied back: "Don't worry, I'll leave now."

He took a deep breath before walking away, followed by Luka behind him.

"So… I guess we took the short end of the stick." Luka commented, trying to start a conversation with Alexander. "It's not like we can change the day we were born, so we can just deal with it."

"Yeah, I know." Alexander replied with an exasperated tone. "Well, it's not like it will change anything, I'll just go out without the baptism. The only problem I will have is the fact that I have to count my coins along the way. Still, it's kind of annoying that this happened in the first place."

"I can see that." Luka was just as exasperated as him in this regard, and Alexander couldn't blame him. They were friends for years, so he knew more than just the basics about Luka's life and his daily routine spent on training just for this day to come. If there was someone who had to be sad about losing the chance to get baptized into a Hero for the rest of their life, then that person should be Luka.

After all, he spent the last five years training with the temple's militia, and half of the times they met for a friendly chat, Luka appeared with bandages over his face or his limbs, hiding some ugly bruises he acquired from practicing more than he should.

He also worked in an inn all by himself, since his parents died while he was young, and every year close to the baptism day, he would take the opportunity to listen to the experience of his fellow Apprentice Heroes. And just recently, he happily told him that he was able to defeat a soldier called Maki back at the Ilias Temple.

Sure, it's been five years since he started practicing swordsmanship to become a Hero, and even now, he doesn't look like he got that much better than before, but it is an unquestionable proof of how hard Luka worked for this day, just for everything to vanish in a puff of smoke.

He must be pretty pissed off about it, even though Luka showed only a dejected expression. Still, he doubted he would be left dispirited just because the Goddess didn't descend from Heaven to baptize him into a Hero. Probably, he will try to defeat the Monster Lord anyway, with or without the baptism.

Suddenly, a person caught Alexander's attention, and he told Luka: "I'm going to talk with Hans for a bit, you go prepare yourself first. We'll meet up at the northern main road by the afternoon."

"Sure, see you later." Luka saluted Alexander as he walked away, while Alexander approached Hans.

"Hey, Uncle Hans, how's it going?" Alexander greeted Hans, pulling the latter's attention on his approaching figure. Hans stared at Alexander in surprise and immediately exclaimed: "Alex, you're okay! I thought you disappeared when the knights returned back with no news about any sightings of a monster!"

"It was just a Slime, nothing to worry about." Alexander eased Hans' worries for his wellbeing with a smile on his face. "Even you could deal with it if you didn't run like a chicken."

"Don't overestimate me, my bones are getting old now." Hans shrugged off Alexander's words, which made him raise an eyebrow.

"So cutting down whole trees by yourself is where you draw the line? I'm serious, all you have to do is scare off the Slime like you would do with a bandit. Just raise your ax and threaten them, hit them a few times if you have to. We're in the Ilias Continent, you will hardly find any strong monsters here."

"If you say so…" Hans could just drop the argument with a defeated sigh. Then, he looked straight at Alexander's black eyes and asked him: "By the way, are you really okay? I heard that nobody could get baptized today."

"I'll just have to suck it up and deal with it. It's not the first time something like this has happened, and probably it won't be the last time." Alexander replied while shaking his head in disappointment. Then, he pulled the ax hanging from his belt, wearing the appropriate safety sheath, and handed it over to Hans. "Anyway, take it back. It will take a long while before I return."

Hans simply smiled behind his beard and shook his head. "Keep it along, you'll need it more than me. Who knows, maybe you will encounter situations when your weapon can't do much compared to an ax."

Since Hans didn't want to take the ax, Alexander could simply shrug and keep it by himself. "Fine then."

There was nothing else to be said, so it was time to bid their salutes. Alexander jabbed a thumb behind him and told Hans: "Well, I'm going back home to finish my preparations now. Goodbye, Uncle Hans."

"Make sure to keep Luka from committing suicide. He was the first one to move as soon as the news that a monster appeared near the village, without even waiting for the military to move out, so I don't know what he will do out here. I hope that the Goddess Ilias watches over you both… And good luck with your findings, Alexander."

Alexander nodded in understanding and flashed a friendly smile at Hans, before walking off to his home at the edge of the village. It was just a small shack with two rooms, but it was big enough for him.

He opened the door with his own keys and stepped through the door frame, before the familiar smell of home welcomed him with open arms. Alexander took a deep breath as he approached the sofa placed in the middle of the room and sat on it.

Upon relaxing his body there, he began to think about his future.

He can't become a Hero now, because one can participate in baptism only if they have recently become adults, which is at the age of 16. In the next year, he will be 17, so he will be ineligible for the next baptism.

In short, he will have to accomplish his goals without the baptism, and without the assistance of the church.

What is this 'Goal' he keeps thinking about, you may ask. Of course, that is to find his family, his father.

It's been four years since that event happened, he was just a 12 years old boy, and he lived in a completely different place from Iliasville…

Across the streets, a young boy sprinted across the streets of Grand Noah while carrying a long item wrapped in red leather on his arms. On his face, a large and excited smile was spread over.

Today was a special day for him, it's his father's birthday!

His dad always did his best to make Alexander happy ever since he was born, whether it was buying toys, showing him cool stuff from other places, to the point where he even felt proud of his father.

Of course, there were moments when his father chided him on certain things, such as that one time when Alexander asked if he could eat cake every day. But after some personal talk between the two of them, he forgot about even caring for such things.

His father taught him to give respect to one's parents the most, and many times over, his dad always showed himself to be not only worthy of respect as a father, but also as a man. If his dad says that something is wrong, while also giving him proof that such a thing is wrong, then why would he go against what has become a fact?

In short, it could be said that Alexander had his utmost respect for his father, and as the person who took care of him ever since he could remember it, he was also the most important person in his life.

Some days ago, Alexander snuck out of home and asked the best blacksmith of Grand Noah to make the best spear for his father, which now rested on his arms, ready to be used. His father's personal spear already broke some weeks ago in the famous Colosseum when he fought against a particularly powerful Slug because of her corrosive acids.

Even though he still won the fight because he always had replacement weapons just in case, it was still sad seeing one of his weapons breaking apart just like that, in the middle of a fight.

Because of that, and knowing that soon it will be his dad's birthday, Alexander had the idea of giving him a weapon that can withstand corrosion from acids, which he can use instead of the weapons he already has.

It was quite easy to get it, though. As soon as he told the blacksmith that he had the intention to give the spear to his father, the blacksmith immediately reassured him that it would be done as fast as possible with the materials of highest quality, and that it wouldn't cost him even a single coin.

According to him, his father did a lot of things for Grand Noah while Alexander was still an infant, before he was shown to be eligible for the seat of the Commander of Grand Noah Army's First Regiment, so this can be considered as a way to repay him for his help.

Since the blacksmith said so, Alexander didn't impose and waited for the weapon to be forged. And now, here it is, on his arms: Tempest, a spear forged from the bone of a dragon, and synthesized with a Green Wind Stone to grant it magical abilities. The bone used as a base already resisted over a thousand years of erosion in the nearby Fossil Mines, so they, along with the powerful Green Wind Stone, could create a weapon that can easily resist any kind of acid thrown against it.

However, upon returning home, instead of seeing his father resting on a chair and staring outside of the window like he usually does when he has nothing to do, there was nobody at home. The only thing he found in the house was a letter…

"I'm sorry to leave you like this, Alex, but an urgent problem arose and I must go. Whatever happens, in any circumstance, don't leave the town until I return. I'll be there as soon as possible."

These were the contents of a letter… However, even after weeks have passed, there was no news of his father's presence in the town. Even when he asked the military, they had said that they didn't know where he went or where he is right now.

It was then that he began his preparations to search for him, using the money his father gained on the Colosseum as its champion to assist him. It started with requesting the Information Broker Guild to search for his father's traces and update him whether anything had been found.

However, after seeing that the guild couldn't find anything anyway, he decided to do things by himself, starting with getting baptized at the Ilias Temple at the south of the world.

As a Hero, he would have better opportunities to look out for his father.

But now… He had to abandon that idea. If he has to find his father, he will have to work harder than he planned, but anything will be fine as long as he has even the smallest hint that suggests that his father is still alive and well.

The best case scenario would be finding him and learning from him the reason why he left home all of a sudden without leaving behind any explanation. However, the more years passed in silence, the more worried he got at the thought that the worst case scenario would happen instead, a scenario where his dad has died somewhere…

Alexander's sight shifted from the wooden ceiling to the corner, where a familiar-looking long rod wrapped in red leather stood, near a wooden armor stand holding a set of light armor made up of white dragon scales.

Of course, the weapon inside the red wrap was Tempest, the weapon he was supposed to give to his father for his birthday four years ago. As for the armor, that's another piece of work from the blacksmith of Grand Noah, the Dragon Skin. By connecting the various dragon scales found in the Fossil Mines, the blacksmith made a vest that is both flexible and hard.

It could even resist a fragmented explosion with a slight dent, although it's hard to say if the person wearing it can survive the explosion. Anyway, it still speaks volumes of how solid the armor is.

With Tempest and the Dragon Skin, he won't have to worry about any random fight in the wilderness against assaulting monsters.

He may have lost touch with the spear after all of this time spent here in Iliasville waiting for his baptism, though… But well, it's not like he's going to fight the Monster Lord like Luka. As long as he can find his father and have his doubts cleared out, he's happy to return to Grand Noah and wait for his eventual return.

"...Anyway, I'll just do it the hard way." Alexander muttered to himself, referring to the task of finding his father. What was the hard way, you may ask. Well, it's just going in each town and looking out for him by himself.

But first…

Alexander looked around his home before he sighed, standing up on his feet. "I may as well give it a last cleaning."

He thought about selling off his home since he will return to live in Grand Noah, but since he has a home in Iliasville, which is in a completely different continent than Grand Noah, he thought about lending this place to Hans so that he may make more money by letting travelers rent this place.

He's getting old, after all, it's not like he will work as a lumberjack even at old age.

Alexander went to the bathroom of his home to bring out his cleaning tools before he wiped the floor and the furniture with them, giving this small shack a last chance to shine in front of his eyes.

It took him some time until he was done with the cleaning, but as a silver lining, this task distracted him from the negativity he accumulated with the recent events, such as the fact that he lost his opportunity to get baptized or meeting two Monsters today out of any possible days in the last peaceful three years and a half he spent by living here.

The traveling bag was prepared, the dust was wiped off from any corner of his house… Now it's time to dress up and leave.

Alexander approached the armor stand on the corner of the room and started to wear the Dragon Skin, which included a vest, a pair of bracers for his arms, a pair of greaves for his legs, and a few layers of scale plates around his hips… That was what was supposed to happen, at least.

"You're kidding me right now, they're too small…" Alexander frowned as he tried to force the dragon scale armor to cover his body. However, as he was only 12 when he wore this suit for the last time until now, he wasn't able to account for the fact that he may grow out of the Dragon Skin, and because of his carelessness, it had come to bite him back.

One misfortune after another…

"Goddammit." Alexander, extremely annoyed by this fact, threw the Dragon Skin on the ground and cursed himself for his carelessness. He should have thought about asking the blacksmith to create a second set of Dragon Skin fitting for the average 16 years old.

He looked down on the dragon scale vest and couldn't help but let out an exasperated sigh. Ultimately, he picked the vest up and put it in his bag. He may as well hand it over to Luka since he is still small enough to wear the suit, probably.

Otherwise, he's just going to sell it out in the nearby town of Iliasburg for a good price, and maybe find a new light armor suit to replace the Dragon Skin. Unfortunately, the stuff in Iliasville is a bit too low in quality, so he can just hope that the capital town in Ilias Continent, Iliasburg, has some good stuff from elsewhere.

Well, at least, Tempest was made to fit his father, so it fits him too, especially now that he has grown taller and stronger than before.

Alexander unwrapped the red leather sheath covering up Tempest's whole length and pulled the spear out of it. It was long and thin, with the tip of the spear shaped like a spade. It had great piercing power by itself, but when the wind enhancement put in the spear would be activated, its sharpness was unparalleled among the spears of Grand Noah.

Unfortunately, while his father may know how to activate that wind enhancement, he doesn't so this kind of sharpness is wasted on him. Still, as mentioned before, the weapon was already sharp and tough enough, so it's still fine.

And besides, he's not like the majority of Heroes around here. There won't be many occasions for using Tempest, as long as the wild monsters across the road around Ilias Continent won't act like the Slime he encountered today. He is only carrying the spear for self-defense, nothing else.

"Well… It's time to leave." He muttered under his breath as he put Tempest back on its own sheath before hanging it on his back, followed by his traveling bag. Now that he was ready, Alexander closed the windows that were left open and walked out of his home, closing the door behind him.

He may have wasted three years and a half waiting here for a baptism that never came, but the Goddess may be damned if he starts crying about it.

So what if he has to worry about his financial status? So what if he has to worry about wild monsters assaulting him? So what if his father didn't show his face to the Information Broker Guild for these last four years? It didn't stop him from going from Grand Noah to Iliasville when he was 12, and it won't stop him now that he is an actual adult.