Inside a prismatic cave filled with plants, gems, and other luminescent stones sat 8 individuals. Despite their situation, they looked majestic and dignified, like rulers of the world. None of them had traces of time on their faces. Youth reigned over them.
"There is no other way, Laex. No one knows what lies behind the Gate of Rebirth, but it is the only way to escape the chains that come with eternal life."
"I am sure, though, that you will live a prosperous life. Whether your power remains or not, you will still be a force to be reckoned with."
"When you feel lonely, call us."
"When you become powerful enough, open the Gate of Rebirth for us."
"We will gladly walk this road as well."
"In the next life, together once more."
Just then, Laex willed a White Key to his hand. He pierced the space with it and called.
{Gate of Rebirth: A New Life}
A Gate opened as he called. It was filled with symbols of death and life, terrifying yet peaceful, chaotic yet serene. It was a mystery that was too difficult to comprehend even for them.
"Goodbye, Laex."
...
'Where am I?' Laex tried to speak, but no voice came out.
He could hear his thoughts, though, as if they were resonating through his core. Around him were countless lights, some small, some large; some dim, some bright.
He could feel him being called to go to one of them, for him to choose any one of those lights. As he went near some bright and some large lights, though, he could feel death.
He knew the feeling all too well. It was ingrained in him when he passed through the Gate of Rebirth.
He roamed around the endless space continuously, looking for a light that would make him feel "life".
He looked around incessantly until he did not know how much time had passed anymore. Until, finally, he saw a small light, small but bright. It drowned the lights of others near it despite being smaller than them.
What is more important than that, though, is that it screamed life. When he saw this, he knew for certain that life awaited behind this light.
...
"Sir Andrew!" a man dressed in a butler's robe exclaimed as he stormed inside the conference hall made from Jade Wood and countless precious materials.
"Speak!" the man dressed in a scholarly robe embellished with luxury said with a look that pierced through the businessmen that was sitting at the table with him.
"Your Son, I think you need to see him right now," the butler replied, warily looking at the other people inside, not daring to go into the specifics of what happened.
In a huff, Andrew rushed to his son's quarters. He was his only child, and ever since before, he had shown tendencies to give up life, finding that it held no meaning to him.
It was always Andrew's great fear that his son would never find a purpose in his life and completely give up on it, and from the tone of the butler, it seemed just to be the case.
"Bang!"
The sound of the door being opened rushedly echoed throughout the room.
Andrew's eyes widened at the sight of his child.
"Laex!" he exclaimed in joy, seeing his son out of bed, staring at the mirror, looking at his face.
"You have finally gotten out of bed! How are you? Are you well? Does your body hurt?" Andrew fixated on him.
Laex could not be bothered to respond to him, though, as his thoughts were already filled up.
'It worked! It really worked! I'm alive! A new body, a new flesh, mortality!' he thought before letting out a large smile.
Seeing this, his father's delight soared through the roof, hugging Laex, knocking him off his thoughts.
"Do not worry anymore, Father. During these past weeks, I had an epiphany, a goal. I am no longer my past self!" Laex stated with confidence. He meant this literally as he was indeed no longer his past self anymore.
He, now, realized why the light was radiating life. It was because at the other end of it was a soul that no longer wished to occupy the body, giving Laex a turn in it.
"This is fantastic news! Carl, inform everyone. We are going to have a feast tonight! My son has returned!" Andrew said in delight.
All the while, Carl, the butler, could only stare at the situation with his mouth open. Just moments ago, he saw his young master die, prompting him to run toward the conference hall. Who would have thought that he would be alive and renewed?
He dared not say anything, though, lest he ruin his master's mood and, in turn, his life.
When the two finally left Laex alone, he took the time to organize his thoughts.
'What luck! I am reborn in a family of Magnates. If the memory of this boy is up to date, then my family has enough spending power to fund a continental war. No wonder our status is high despite not being able to produce a decent Adventurer,' he thought in glee.
'It seems like it had been 500 years since the Fall of the Ancients. Many things had changed, but many remained the same as well. Though 500 years is a long time for mortals, it would have just been a blink of an eye for me back then. The goal is unchanged! However, I must first be strong enough to open the Gate of Rebirth again and call upon my fellow Ancients. This would not take long,' Laex vowed to himself as he stared at the door of his room with such determination that it could make a horse fly.
'Senate, Council, wait for me. There is no way I will forget what you did to us. How dare you bite the hand that feeds? When the Ancients reunite again, when the time comes that we rise to power, we will finally be free to retaliate! You should count your days then.'