Chapter 13: Homecoming
Renault and I didn't stay in Ashfield long. Just enough that Renault got a new sheathe for the cursed sword made by Menard, which itself was only a couple of extra days to let us rest up from the mountaineering.
And once it was done, we were gone as quickly as we'd come, and it was right back to the routine we'd established in the last two months.
Only now, the training was even more intense, Renault fighting me with his sword properly instead of practice blades. If I was going to master the Longsword of Light, then the most direct and simple method was to simply throw it at me again and again until I caught up to it.
That feeling that had hit me when fighting the dragon had been the clincher.
As the days went on, Renault's previously imperceptible sword became more and more visible. Slowly but surely, I was catching up with his speed, even if I was still finding myself getting knocked around like a sandbag whenever he used it.
Two more months of travel, two more months of training.
"Huh… guess I'm thirteen now…"
And less than a day's ride out from Roa, at what was probably going to be the last camp that Renault and I set up, I was staring at my Adventurer's Card. At some point, the age section had bumped up to thirteen without me even noticing. Just like that, three years of my life were spent as an adventurer, and I hardly seemed to notice my birthdays come and go.
I guess not celebrating it just makes the day lose whatever meaning it had.
"That card of yours is handy," Renault chuckled as he tended to his horse.
"How old are you anyway?" I pocketed the card, Renault letting out a hum.
"Hmm… maybe twenty-five? Twenty-seven? Close to thirty, all I really know. Haven't been keeping track all that well. I'm from the North, and we don't exactly celebrate birthdays like you Asurans do."
"Guess it's different everywhere," putting my arms behind my head, I scanned around the night sky, spangled in stars and clear of any clouds. "Y'know… now that we're so close to Roa, it almost feels kind of… weird. I haven't been there for almost eleven years, and as far as my family there knows I'm still in Ars, stuck in James' manor as some political tool. I'm wondering if letting them know I'm there is such a good idea now…"
"See it through to the end, no matter what," Renault sat down on his bedroll, and I looked over at him. "It's too late to let doubt get to you right at the end of this. You decided to return, so see it through and see your family again. Worry about the deeper consequences later, when deciding on them actually matters. Not a second before."
"Sword God philosophy, huh?"
"Just the philosophy of an older man with experience," Renault chuckled, pulling out a knife and starting to whittle at a twig. "Worrying too much about what could happen tends to leave you unprepared for what does happen. Life has a funny way of taking unexpected turns, right?"
"Ahahaha… yeah, it definitely does."
"Now get some sleep. Tomorrow's gonna be a busy one, for a lot of reasons."
"Definitely…"
Tomorrow was it. Admittedly, trying to sleep with that kind of anticipation in one's chest made it harder than you'd want it to. Both for my return home, and for Renault's final test.
We'd started riding before the sun was even up the next morning. And by the time the sun was starting to crest past its apex, Roa was at last right in sight as Renault and I rode alongside a caravan headed into the old fortress town. But, heading in wasn't the destination, not yet.
We diverged off the path, into the open fields surrounding the city yet away from the outer town itself. And once we made enough distance, horses were hitched to a nearby tree, and we took our places on the open grass.
"So, how's it feel to be so close now, hmm?" Renault placed his hand on his sword's hilt, and I looked off to Roa in the distance.
"Odd… when I was here last time I felt just as anxious, and that was just for a brief stay… this time I'm here to see if my family even recognizes me… so, hard to say my heart isn't running a mile a minute right now," I also glanced up, to that crimson sphere still hanging high in the sky.
An omen or a blessing, who knew what it would be in the future?
"Oh, I can imagine… and right when it's your final exam too," Renault drew his sword. Slowly, measured. "Today's make or break, Aegir. Either you figure it out here, or you're spending even longer on this road of yours."
"Well, not like I'll be lacking a good mentor," I drew my own sword, Renault chuckling as we shifted to our stances.
"True. But I think you'll impress Ghyslaine more if you master the Longsword of Light here," Renault's expression shifted from a calm smile to a serious glower. "I'm gonna come at you seriously like I would someone I plan to kill. So, fight me the same way, magic and all. We'll carve off whatever layers are left between you and that goal. Either you use it, or you stop fighting. Fair?"
"Fair."
"Good."
The moment that word left Renault's mouth, the pressure around him changed. Pure, directed killing intent itself. It was fiercer than anything I'd felt from the monsters I'd hunted the last few years, even greater than the juvenile dragon's had been.
And despite the cold spike it shoved into my heart, I held firm as Renault took the first step forward. And I stepped forward too.
Swords rang as the duel began, and for the first time since I'd met Renault, one in earnest. Before it had been sparring, teaching. Even these last two months, despite Renault intensifying things, he still never pushed harder than necessary.
All too slowly whittle away at my imperfections, sharpen my skills more and more in pursuit of mastering just one technique alone.
And now, that restraint was thrown out to force it to happen. Every time our swords connected, I felt the impact ring up my arms, the force enough to push my feet into the dirt with each strike I just managed to block or parry. My awareness of that gap between us only came to the fore as we fought on. I may have been catching up to Renault, but he was still far and away my superior as a swordsman. Years more experience to match whatever talent I had backing me, on top of a physical advantage that I was years off from closing no matter how hard I trained.
But I had my magic.
Swathes of fire from my hand or around my sword to keep distance, bursts of wind to bounce back if I was knocked away. Earthen pillars to shield myself from sudden strikes. Or a blade of solid ice to quickly parry with my offhand or even extend the reach of my own sword for a moment. Whatever disadvantages I had as a swordsman for now, I could bridge them with my advantages as a mage.
And I wasn't focused on anything else but the fight, of the man before me fully intent on striking me down. I knew Renault wouldn't do it. But the instincts firing off didn't think so. And those were what guided me as I pushed back, pushing not just to defend myself from Renault, but catch up with him, to push back and take my own ground. If it was my instincts, Aegir's instincts, not the person whose memories I was born with, that would see me through, then I'd follow those instead of the logic of that old life.
The grass around us became marked by the battle as it wore on. Marred by cuts into the ground, marked by licks of fire and earthen mounds left to crumble. Anyone who could have been watching from Roa's walls would probably think this was exactly what it looked to be from afar, two swordsman dueling to the death. I certainly wouldn't have blamed them for thinking that.
Yet with each blow, I could visualize it. Thin layers of the person I was being peeled away and cut off. Blow by blow, moment by moment we were cutting deeper into whatever lay beneath. Until that was revealed, until I finally hit that point of logic that would bring my sword faster than it had ever been before.
I lost track of how long we'd spent dueling. Minutes? Hours? Time didn't seem to matter as Renault and I fought. Until my arms began to weigh, until my mana began to flicker, I wasn't about to stop. Either my sword would surpass light here, or I'd keep at it for however long it took.
Arms began to weigh; spells began to feel like they were harder and harder to cast. Renault's blows felt like a hammer to my arms with each block and parry.
Closer and closer, my limit was drawing nearer. And yet my senses only felt sharpened by the rising exhaustion that came with it, mind clearing by the moment.
And then I saw it. Renault's blade moving, that two handed hold I'd grown accustomed to over two months. I saw his blade move, and mine did too. Both hands gripping the hilt, mustering every last ounce of strength I had left into it. That sensation I had felt before, that had tried to evade me ever since the fight with the dragon.
It felt like I was reaching out towards it as I grasped my sword, the hilt representing that spark. There wasn't a separation between me and the blade anymore.
And it came.
That "logic."
Two swords surpassed sound.
Two swords reached light.
CLANG
I felt myself forced down to a knee, but my arms didn't buckle as my sword and Renault's connected. The air around us burst outward as the swords rung like bells, neither giving way as Renault and I finally ended the long duel. Breaths tore out of my throat, and Renault too looked just a bit out of breath.
"And there it is," Renault chuckled as he drew his blade back, setting it on his shoulder as my arms could only go slack. "Congratulations Aegir, you just became a Sword Saint."
"I… did it…" I could only stare at my sword in awe. My arm felt like it wanted to drop, but as the realization sunk in, I could feel the exhaustion wash away in place of excitement as I shot to my feet. "I did it! Hahaha! I actually did it! My sword's never felt lighter!"
"Just make sure you keep practicing, don't forget what it felt like," Renault stepped over, putting a hand to my head. "Good job, Aegir. Now… normally, new Sword Saints are given a coat like mine to show your rank. But… something else will have to do for now."
"What have you got in mind?" Slow as it was, I followed Renault back to our horses. I was expecting him to pull something from the saddlebags, but instead, he pulled the cursed sword from where he'd slung it, turning around and holding it out to me. "Eh?! You're going to…?! But I thought you were going to give that to the Sword God if you weren't gonna keep it!"
"I got a feeling if I did do that, it'd just end up in your hands anyway," Renault stepped over, setting the sword into the ground, leaning it towards me as both the sheathe and hilt glinted in the waning sunlight. "I spent the last two months trying to figure this thing out, and it just wasn't clicking. Blade's got some trick, and I feel like a swordsman such as myself won't find it… but you, a proper Mage Knight? You might be able to figure it out. So, don't hesitate. Take it. Better off in your hands than gathering dust in the Sword God's closet for years on end."
"I…" Shaking my head, I sheathed my current sword, taking the cursed sword with both hands, carefully looking it over as I drew it from the sheathe a bit, looking at the carefully crafted blade and its gemstone core. Looking back to Renault, I bowed my head. "Thank you. For everything! I wouldn't have gotten this far if you hadn't been my master all these years."
"Hehe, then you can pay me back by becoming the kind of swordsman people will write stories about," Renault lifted himself back onto his horse. "I've got a journey of my own to get back to. Next time we see each other, Aegir, let's meet in the Holy Sword Land. I expect to hear about the Scarlet Wolf with the Cursed Sword eventually."
"Of course! You'll be hearing all about me, bet on it!"
As Renault took off, giving one more wave as his horse trotted off, I waved back as I tucked the cursed sword close. Once Renault was out of sight, I turned back to Roa, gazing past the scarred ground from my and Renault's duel, and to the walls beyond. My eyes traced up to the castle atop the city, gazing out across everything else.
"After eleven years… I'm coming home."
Chuckling, I strapped the cursed sword to my back and hopped onto my horse. Being able to say that… it felt nice for once.
Even if I'd barely even left Roa a couple of months ago, something about returning to it now, on my own and intent to actually stay instead of simply drift on through, made my return to the town feel so… different.
It was way too late for me to go walking up to the Boreas manor out of the blue, so I spent the night in the nearest inn I could find. The duel with Renault had cleared my head plenty, but it had also left me plenty exhausted and getting at least some rest was welcome as could be. And yet the moment I entered the walls, a different kind of anticipation built up in me.
Anticipation about the day to come, of what would happen when I arrived at the Boreas manor so unexpectedly. I could hope that Ghyslaine could vouch for me, and I was sure she'd kept her word and not told Philip or Sauros I'd even been in town. But it had been 11 years, and who knew what had changed at that household in all that time?
Looking at myself in the basin the following morning, it really did sink in how I'd changed.
Cleaned up as I'd gotten during my return to Ars, the fact remained I wasn't coming to Roa as a returning noble scion. I was an adventurer through and through, scuffed and scarred and hardly presenting the image anymore.
But that was the way I liked it. I wasn't here to go back to being a noble after all.
So, anticipation in my chest and spirits high from my accomplishment prior, while it was still a bright morning, to the Boreas Manor I went. A place I hadn't been since I was barely a toddler, and hopefully my home until I came of age.
At some point, I'd gone from walking to a hurried, brisk trot. Excitement soon took hold the closer I got, and it felt great to have that hit me. Onwards I went, until I finally reached that distantly familiar castle. And as I reached the archway, the sound of wooden swords clacking against each other reached my ears, at a pace I was quite used to from the Water God Dojo.
Drawing my cloak's hood up as I walked into the archway, the old grounds I used to remember hadn't changed at all.
And as expected, Ghyslaine was the first person I spotted, hopping around the yard with practice sword in hand as she sparred with a young, red-haired girl, and with fierce red eyes all too like my own. That has to be Eris. And on the sideline watching the two was a boy, also in practice gear but sitting out the sparring, with dusty brown hair and bright green eyes.
Huh… he looks like Zenith… so that must be Paul's kid. Rudeus was his name, right?
The sparring went on for a bit longer, and I was content to watch as I leaned against the archway. And it was Rudeus who seemed to notice me, the boy looking from the sparring and ending at me, perking up, and a bit alarmed looking at that.
"Ghyslaine, someone's here!" said the boy, Ghyslaine and Eris stopping their sparring quickly enough.
Ghyslaine followed Rudeus' gaze to me, and I gave a slight wave. After a moment, an amused smile split Ghyslaine's face, the beast woman tucking the practice sword under her arm.
"It's nothing to worry about, Rudeus, it's just a friend of mine," good to hear Ghyslaine was sticking to some story. "What are you doing here? I didn't expect you to be back in Roa for a while!"
"Let's just say my situation has changed a bit, so I decided to come back," as I entered the yard proper, Ghyslaine's eye widened in surprise, her ears and tail twitching too. She must have realized what I meant quickly enough. "Sorry if I interrupted you. I just have some business with the mayor."
"Why would some random person need to see my father?" Eris stormed up to me, arms crossed over her chest plate as she looked me over, leaning in to look under my hood. "Ehhh?! You're still a kid!"
"Pot meet kettle, little lady," Eris guffawed as I chuckled. "And I may be young, but I'll let you know I've been an adventurer for three years now. And I'm a Sword Saint, so I'm a lot tougher than I look."
"A Sword Saint?" Ghyslaine looked surprised, and I shot her an amused look. "Hah, you've made a lot of progress since we last talked. Rudeus, Eris, practice by yourselves for a bit. I need to take him to see Lord Philip."
"Ugh, really?!" As Eris protested, Ghyslaine stepped over and pat her on the head.
"We'll practice more later. Rudeus?"
"Gotcha! Eris, let's practice some more spells inside," Rudeus hopped from his seat, Eris perking up at the mention of magic.
Ghyslaine and I watched as the two hurried off into the manor, before turning off ourselves and heading in through another door.
"So, what happened in Ars that made you come back here?" and Ghyslaine got to business immediately, and she was particularly eyeing the new sword on my back.
"I'll explain it all to Phil… ahem, to Father once I see him. Better to save explaining it too many times, y'know?" Ghyslaine let out a satisfied hum, though her tail thrashed a bit. "Sooo… curious about the sword?"
"Also, the fact you're coming back here a Sword Saint… that means you mastered the Longsword of Light," Ghyslaine smiled as I nodded. "How hard was Renault pushing you to get that done?"
"I've spent the last four months on it," Ghyslaine snickered as I shrugged, also showing my still bandage covered hands as proof. "Two of those were us heading south to look for this thing. Renault gave it to me as a gift for becoming a Sword Saint. It's a Cursed Sword, like the ones the Sword God gives to Sword Kings."
"So, he's still looking, huh?" Ghyslaine folded her arms, and I nodded. "Do you know it's ability?"
"Not yet… gonna figure it out though. It has a gemstone worked into its core, so it's gotta have some trick. Hell, it's got its own mana signature for one. Being a Mage Knight will probably help me there. Maybe you can help me figure it out," as I snickered with a playful smirk, Ghyslaine bumped my shoulder with a fist. "So, where's Father?"
"He should still be in his office. Lord Sauros is probably in the study… best we start with your father."
"Probably… I remember Grandfather being rather intense."
Ghyslaine nodded as I laughed, and it wasn't much longer until she came to a stop at one of the many doors in the hall. The beast woman nodded to me, knocking at the door.
"Lord Philip, it's Ghyslaine!"
"You can come in!" Ghyslaine pushed the door open, and I peeked into view to get a look at the office.
It was as lavish a space as I expected, and Philip was seated at the well-made desk opposite the door. And despite the decade that had passed, the man barely looked to have aged since I was a small child.
"Sir, I've brought someone who's here to see you," Ghyslaine glanced back at me just a bit, and Philip raised his brow as I slid into the room.
"I don't remember having any meetings lined up… especially with an adventurer, going by the looks of things."
"This is more of a special occasion, so, sorry for the surprise," I stepped forward, Philip's brow raising further as I approached the desk. "Honestly I didn't even think of how I'd do this, so might as well just rip the patch off…" and in a quick motion, I lowered my hood and shook my hair loose. Philip's expression changed immediately, his jaw going slack and eyes widening as he saw my face. "It's been over a decade, though I'm sure you can still recognize me, right, Father?"
"Aegir…?" Philip stood shakily and moved around the desk. When I gave an affirming smiling, the man almost tripped over himself to reach me, placing his hands on my shoulders as the shock overtook him, dropping to a knee just as quickly. "It's you?! But… you should be in Ars! What are… how?!"
"It's a long story, but I promise I'll tell all of it," I gently moved Philip's hands off me, and he looked quite surprised how easily I did so. "Let's sit back down, it'll be a bit."
"Of course. Please, tell me everything… don't spare a single detail."
And so I didn't.
The entire time I filled Philip in on the last eleven years, he listened with quiet, rapt attention. Everything from the more mundane aspects of my time in education, be it the royal academy or with the Mage's Guild and Water God School, or my growing career as an adventurer over the last few years.
And of course, the last few months. From revealing that Leonel had been married off to the Zephyrus family, to the result of my departure from the main house and total giving up of any of my claims to nobility.
Which, as you might imagine, was what got Philip to respond after listening for so long.
"You just… threw it all away?!" Philip's previously tented hands and serene expression fell away, his hands slamming as his jaw dropped and eyes went wide. "But, to do that…"
"To be honest, Father, I never really cared for being nobility to begin with," Philip lurched a bit, catching himself before his head met the desk. "Besides… it's not like I'm officially disowned. Actually, I don't think James could disown me even if he wanted to, considering who's favor I've found myself in."
"What?"
"This would explain it," reaching under my shirt, it drew out the knight's crest Ariel had given me. And again, Philip looked like he was about to collapse onto the desk at the sight of it. "Princess Ariel gave it to me as a token of goodwill before I left Ars four months ago. Haven't had much of a chance to use it yet, truth be told."
"You have a… ugh… I see things at Ars have been remarkably interesting for you these last eleven years," Philip ran a hand through his hair, a crooked smile on his face. "A Ranked in the Mage's Guild and authored a new study on Silent Casting, an Advanced Rank Attack Mage, Sword Saint… and apparently in the favor of the royal court of Asura itself…"
"Wouldn't be too surprised if Ariel calls in a favor in a few years," I pocketed the crest, Philip leaning a hand on his forehead. "And yeah… that about summarizes my life so far."
"Pretty eventful for the time it's been," said Ghyslaine, and I chuckled while twirling a bit of my hair. "And you've earned more than a few scars as proof of your adventures."
"It certainly makes it impossible to hide his style of work with scars as prominent as those," Philip nodded, and I gave a dry chuckle as I pointed to my right eye.
"Coulda been worse. Almost lost my right eye to a Red Drake last year when I…" I paused, the memories of that day bringing a sick feeling to my stomach. "It was… bad. I actually don't like talking about it."
"I see… I suppose it can't all be fun and games… just like your brother being married off into the Zephyrus," Philip tented his hands, and I saw the dark look that came to his eyes. "James is shrewd, that's without a doubt. I suppose he counted that Father and I would have never learned of this otherwise."
"For what's it worth, Leonel actually seems to like it with the Zephyrus, and his wife seems like a decent girl," Despite my attempt, it didn't look like that idea comforted Philip at all. "And so we have why I came here… I basically don't have any reason not to. Since I gave up my claim to the Boreas name, I'm not under any restrictions anymore. James definitely couldn't have stopped me. So… I came back."
"Then what are you even planning? You know I can't publicly treat you as my son, even if you hadn't renounced the Greyrat name," Philip gave me a stern gaze. He was quite quick to turn to business.
"Not much of anything," I shrugged, lifting my feet onto the chair. "I plan to keep working as an adventurer for the most part. Roa's an adventurer's town, so there's plenty of work I can do on the daily, plus I'm close to qualifying for A Rank, since my master and I were taking jobs at the towns we stopped by while traveling south and back. Once I'm an adult… I'll figure it out in a couple years."
"For a boy raised in the capital city, you're far more casual in nature than I'd have expected," Philip sighed, then looking to Ghyslaine as she cleared her throat. "Yes, Ghyslaine?"
"I have a suggestion: Have Aegir work part-time as another bodyguard for Lady Eris," the beast woman's suggestion got Philip to raise a brow. "To the public all you'd be doing is hiring an adventurer for a consistent job between his other contracts. Plus, it'd put in a good name for our Scarlet Wolf here to be in the good graces of the local feudal lords. It would tell the Guild that he's worth hiring for more high-end work even on his own."
"Scarlet Wolf?" Philip looked at me with a raised brow, and I put a hand behind my head.
"It's a nickname I got while I was traveling across Asura the last couple of years. Go through enough towns, and word spreads quick when you've got some distinct features like I do. Aegir the Scarlet Wolf, it's not a bad title," to make the point, I tugged at my ponytail, that same deep scarlet color I'd gotten from my mother. "
"Also…" Ghyslaine continued. "It would allow Aegir and Lady Eris to reconnect."
"Right, Eris barely even knows Aegir and Leonel exist outside of the few times father and I have mentioned both of you," Philip put a hand to his chin. "It's not a bad idea… Still, in the long term…"
"Publicly, act like I'm some adventurer who happens to have an uncanny resemblance to members of the Greyrat household," I raised a finger, giving a chuckle. "Privately… I'm a wayward son returned home to a family he should have been with. You got two years 'til I'm an adult, and I don't plan to leave Ars until then."
"Rather than a bodyguard… I've got a better idea: On-staff adventurer," Philip chuckled, and I raised a brow. "Something I just made up; For the next two years, you would work at personal request of the feudal lord and myself the mayor. While able to take on any request the guild has as normal, anything that comes to us can also be handled directly by you alongside the city guard, and you'd earn the same salary as Ghyslaine alongside whatever pay you get from the guild. And, like the staff, you'd be housed here in the estate."
"Sooo… an obviously made-up job where the only real requirement is my normal guild work… pfffhahahaha! It's such obvious bullshit there's no way people would think it wasn't serious!"
"I'm… not sure I understand," Ghyslaine's tail was whipping about, and I chuckled while holding a finger up.
"It's simple: People have a natural ability to just ignore inconvenient information. In this case you just bullshit something hard enough and nobody questions it, because it takes more effort to pick it apart than to just roll with it. How do you think I got away with just changing my surname as an adventurer? Most people just assumed I'm some knight's kid, and once I made it clear I wasn't all bluster, they stopped caring… though I'm sure that probably half the nobility in Ars know about me by now…"
"You really should've gone without one to really sell it," Philip snickered, and I could only look to the side. "The other question is how to break this to your mother… it's a blessing you didn't run into her prowling the hallways."
"Why not just call a family meeting? No need to make it an occasion. Get everyone else together so I can explain stuff to them, and we can lay it out… y'know, after they get down losing their heads about it that is."
"Not a bad plan," Philip stood, stepping over to me. "I'll get everyone else together. Ghyslaine, take Aegir to the lounge, and try to avoid anyone else. Where are Eris and Rudeus?"
"Practicing spells, probably still in the yard," Philip nodded to Ghyslaine, tapping me on the shoulder as he passed by me and left the room. "I'm almost surprised how well this is going."
"I'm expecting some hearing damage thanks to Gramps once he sees me," I sighed, letting my head loll to the side. "Still, could always be worse, eh?"
"Exactly. Now let's get going. I'm sure Lord Philip is already scheming how to make this all the more surprising for everyone."
"Let's hope he doesn't give Mother a heart attack…"
Ghyslaine snickered at the dry joke, ruffling my hair a bit.
"You've gotten rude."
"What can I say? I'm an adventurer through and through."