Desolate Mage: A Legend Reborn! 167 Mystery Realm 1

The effects were immediate; his swollen, puffed up skin receded visibly, though it still looked slightly inflamed, while his countenance looked soothed and eased. It seemed that, despite the full recovery not being instantly complete, great headways had been made towards regaining his peak condition as a high-Legendary combatant.

And in the meanwhile, Lars stayed on, sitting at the side as he reminisced and ruminated upon his own journey.

Born as an orphan, raised in a home for troubled families - one that was closed down before he had any clear memories.

Then taken in by a kindly old couple; rubber tappers who, within the year, pa.s.sed away to tuberculosis. By the age of 10, left to fend for himself; albeit with the knowledge of how to tap rubber, go to school and somehow feed himself - of course, with the kindness and support of the other villagers.

He had always known and been known as an incredibly intelligent and talented boy, never forgetting a single thing he had learned, heard or seen. Which also made him an easily scared, easily scarred, emotional and vulnerable child; unable to forget the sorrows in his heart but merely shove them into the dark corners of his heart and soul.

He tried hard not to think about the time of knowing Sara, thoughts of her family, thoughts of the promise they made, thoughts of the tearful separation, thoughts of the emotions he could not help but find welling up in his heart. He struggled internally even as his body continued to be completely still, pus.h.i.+ng those memories of the schooling years aside as he fast-forwarded his mind to the time he entered the armed forces.

That was when he was enrolled into the 3-month crash course to train, groom and identify each recruits war talents - and discovered to be what they called a "once in a galaxy find" as he skyrocketed from the Normal realm to the peak of the Grandmaster realm in those 3 months alone.

Then, instead of being a.s.signed to the local South East Asian corps, he was transferred to the heartlands of Europe where the fiercest battles - and the greatest commanders, leaders and mentors - were locked in a desperate struggle for supremacy.

In the grand scheme of the war, he had felt that his sublime talents were meaningless in the face of his meagre abilities merely at the Grandmaster level. However, in the local battlefields where he was actually engaged, the addition of a Grandmaster mage turned the tides of the skirmishes again and again.

...And that was while he was still a Grandmaster, for within mere months, Lars had advanced again to the World-cla.s.s realm, a last-ditch breakthrough on the knife's edge of life-and-death.

While his thoughts were still clouded by these old memories, Lars heard a voice and, when he realised he had not caught what was said, shook his head and blinked.

His gaze fell on Maester who stood before him patiently. He looked fatigued as well as relieved; but also like one who had seen too much tragedy for just one life to bear.

The head steward of the Slith household also looked like he had been standing there for a while from how he responded, though he did try to hide the fact when he spoke.

"Ah! My apologies to interrupt your thoughts, sir Lars, benefactor...!" Maester looked genuinely bashful and apologetic at interrupting Lars thoughts, but Lars just smiled non-committally and waved it off.

Seeing that Lars did not mind, Maester spoke his mind, "I, *we*, are really glad for your help and rescue... It's getting late, shall I show you to a room to take a night's respite...? We can talk in the morning and, I hope, satisfy your reasons for coming here to this G.o.d-forsaken corner of the country..."

"Yes... Alright. That would be good." Lars stood as he slowly nodded his head, getting up from where he had been seated, leaning against the cool stone walls.

"Please, follow me, it's not far..." Maester walked briskly, bringing Lars to his room for the night.

* * * * *

Come break of day, Lars cleaned up quickly, doffing his night clothes and storing them away in his storage ring.

'A real convenience if I would say so myself... Sigh, how different the lives of the rich are... No need for c.u.mbersome or heavy luggage... Imagine how much the transportation and logistics industry on Earth will change once I figure out the mechanics behind making these things...!' Lars eyes glittered with a fanatical look as he thought about the amount of money he could make monopolising the production and sale of the storage devices.

'No, no... I shouldn't think like that...' He shook his head, chiding himself for his foolish thoughts, before nodding as he determined what he should do.

'I can't be so selfish and narrow-minded... I must learn and be big hearted and think of the long-term benefits...'

Lars gaze sharpened once more as his heart pumped madly at his plans.

'...I should sell temporary patents to other companies, and give them flawed designs with a built-in expiry date of the runes and magic formations!'

Rubbing his hands in glee as he walked to the main meeting room, Lars shoulders began to rise and fall heavily with deep excited breaths as he walked, fidgeting and beginning to skip and hop and jump up and down with every step!

'...That way, I won't have any initial outlay, I can tap on their distribution and sales networks... And I can come out with a "new and upgraded" product every year for new business!! Yes!!! How could I have such a lowly mentality like producing it myself!!! Imagine the money I'll make!!!! HAHAHAHA!!!'

"HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! MUAHAHAHHAHA!!!!" Lars began to laugh out loud at nearly the top of his lungs as he was hypnotised by the thought of earning so much money that he could buy and then ride an airline carrier from the Americas to Europe for a picnic anytime he wanted!

He was still so busy chortling and laughing over his master plan that when he opened the large doors to enter the meeting hall, he nearly b.u.mped face-first into the equally oblivious Kenzie who was just about to open the door from the other side!

Startled, the two distracted men nearly fell unto their rumps, barely catching themselves before hitting the floor; one with his mind only on money while the other was melancholic and brooding over his loss of a son.

Kenzie, annoyed and knocked out of his reverie, nearly snapped at Lars, wanting to chide him for not paying attention - before he caught himself from his usual bossy att.i.tude and choked back his words, forcing himself to smile instead and ask, "Sir Lars...! What a, what a surprise to see you, erm... Here...!"

Then he stiffened as he realised that he was speaking utter garbage - what surprise was there seeing his guest at the meeting hall, the agreed location, at the arranged time for meeting...?!? However, he brushed it over as was his wont, his countless years of being shameless coming to great use.

Lars on the hand flashed Kenzie a deep frown, as if saying, "Stupid and blind old man! If you weren't so poor already, I'd rob your a** of everything you have! Too bad you're so poor that it's too much of a bother!"

The Patriarch was taken aback at the glare, gulping slightly as he felt confused - why was the man acting like he had a blood grudge or some sort of other dire crime had been committed against him...? Kenzie shrugged inwardly and decided to change the topic quickly.

"Err, mmmm... I was just about to go look for you! Yes, yes... Yes, let's head on in to the room! Though there's only a few of us, we - Maester and myself - felt it would be better for all of us to settle things with an announcement together..." His eyes fell for a moment, looking sad and pensive as he added, "...After all, this decision will affect us all..."

Then he regained his clarity and force of character as he beckoned for Lars to follow him to enter the room and take a seat, asking, "And yes, I have not had the pleasure to ask you what your purpose is in coming. I recall Maester mentioning you had a question? Some clarifications to make...?"

Lars nodded, taking in the surroundings in the a.s.sembly hall he entered.

A long meeting table was placed in the centre of the room, one that looked like it also doubled as the dining table during meal-times. At the head of the table was an empty seat pushed back - presumably Kenzie's - while Maester sat on his right, Lars's left.

Lars saw two people he did not recognise seated on either side of the table beside where Maester sat, while Ol' Mulberry was seated on the other side, beside an empty seat on the left hand side of the head of the table.

At first glance, Lars thought it might have been reserved for him, but when he noticed a high-grade, expensive but very practical looking defensive cloak was laid across the back of the chair, he realised that it must be the seat reserved for Everaldus, the heir and darling child of the Ancient Slith Sect.

Kenzie's eyes scanned over the people in the room, pausing for a short moment on the empty chair, his lids drooping slightly before he regained his spirit.

"Ah, yes, sir Lars, you haven't met Bernie and Ollie yet!" He gestured to the two men seated along Maester's side who stood and bowed as he called out their names.

"Please, please, you may sit wherever you want. It doesn't matter anyway - protocol and all that... Haha! Too long have I been caught up in such meaningless things such as face and authority, property and land! Haha! Why didn't I realise earlier what truly mattered to me, to the household..."

And though Kenzie was laughing as he walked to take his own seat, he was shaking his head in self-guilt, evident through his slumping shoulders and weak posture, despite his revitalised and rejuvenated frame of body.

Lars watched but did not respond, instead sitting down beside Ol' Mulberry, nodding at the ancient-looking bag o' bones who looked like he was more suited to being a librarian than a guard!

Kenzie cleared his throat, then met eyes with Maester for a moment before nodding.

With that signal, Maester Slith drew his body up straight in his chair and spoke clearly, though not loudly as there were but the few of them there.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for gathering here this morning. We, the Ancient Slith Sect, would like to express our utmost grat.i.tude to each one of you--" Kenzie and Maester looked one by one at those seated at the table, stopping with a sincere look of appreciation for everyone there.

"--Especially sir Lars, who the rest of you have not yet met; our benefactor who quietly disposed of Patriarch's Desert Sun and Fire Scorpion the night before..."

Bernie and Ollie started to nod perfunctorily, then froze; their eyes widening to the maximum, with no small amount of shock upon hearing those words; those were both Legendary level powerhouses, not some common fry who could be defeated simply and easily! How did this una.s.suming and greying, skinny old man who looked like a harmless farmer manage to achieve such a feat...?!?

Glossing over the fact, Maester continued, saying, "...And you can also see that our Patriarch, Kenzie Slith, is fully recovered due to the young master's purchase of the Cryo Core... Brought back also by Sir Lars..."

Hearing these words made Bernie and Ollie's eyes bulge even more as they stared at Lars, subconsciously backing away from him, squirming to the edges of their chairs to get as far away as possible from this monster!

It was already preposterous enough to kill two beginner-Legendary experts who trespa.s.sed unto their sect grounds; now this old man also had been able to invade the Underworld's hideout and s.n.a.t.c.h away the young master's spatial ring from their grasps??? What would they hear next, that the entire Ancient Slith Sect was shutting down...?!?

Maester once more continued, "This morning may come as a surprise to you who have followed my brother and I for these years; though I guarantee that it will be good news for you... And we will ensure that we fulfill our benefactors request first before we make good on this... For that announcement, I'll pa.s.s it to Kenzie".

Maester then let out a long breath, the tension in his shoulders easing as he sat back in his chair, looking no longer like a high-ranking leader of an organisation, but rather just an old, tired man.

Bernie and Ollie, the Chief Financial Officer and the Chief Operations Officer respectively, also long-time disciples of the sect accompanying Kenzie and Maester since they were teens, glued their eyes on Kenzie with rapt attention. What great announcement was coming after the understatement of such good news as the Patriarch's grand recovery...?

Bernie whispered, saying, "Psst...! I bet you it's finally time to strike back against those despicable sects! Now that they have lost their Patriarchs, they'll have no chance at all! We can easily snap up their a.s.sets and devour their entire sects, disciples and all!"

"Heh, that sounds about right! Maybe we'll even expand and relocate our base into the city this time!"

But when they heard the announcement, they nearly lost their bananas.

They were completely right about their guesses - about the earlier guess made in sarcastic jest, that is.

"Gentlemen... To keep it short and to the point..."

Kenzie closed his eyes, drawing in a heavy and deep lungful of air as he spoke, lending to the gravity of his figure as his eyes slowly opened.

Then he spoke.

"As of today, the Ancient Slith Sect is no more!!"

The sound of his words reverberated like a bad dream, a nightmare, the sound of words that they could not believe were true!