"Argh! I don't feel anything!" I exclaimed.
"Quiet, woodhead! I'm trying to concentrate!" Emma said.
I glanced at Phillip, who had somehow acquired a stone rocking chair.
He lay in the sun with his eyes closed.
His half burnt, wrinkled face and dull gray scales looked surprisingly relaxed.
"Phillip!" I called.
"Hmm?" He opened his eyes, looking like a ghost.
"Just keep trying! Eventually, it'll work. Now *yawn* let me take a little nap."
"Could you at least give me a tip?" I complained.
"A tip?" He pondered. "Your status!"
He smiled and closed his eyes again.
I grumbled to myself and continued trying.
Midway through, Emma gave up and said she was going to eat.
It was already afternoon, but she hadn't returned yet.
Phillip had just woken up and didn't seem to notice Emma's absence.
I was still struggling and thinking about the tip he gave me, trying to make it work.
"Hey, do you feel it yet?" Phillip asked, startling me.
I joltedout of focus, staring with shocked eyes at him.
"No!" I replied, frustrated and surprised.
"Why don't you…continue tomorrow then? You seem tired," he suggested.
"I have to beat Emma somehow, and...Hilde…you know" I said quietly.
"Why is that?" Phillip inquired.
"Well, she's so much smarter than me! I can tell, and I'm just... dumb," I admitted, feeling embarrassed.
"No one is dumb; they might just be less talented in certain areas. But everyone has a talent; you just need to discover it,…maybe your…interesting ideas come to handy someday? " he tried to encourage me, nodding as if he approved his own words.
"So, you agree with me?"
"Well, you did notice it, so you're not that dumb!" Phillip chuckled. "Just trust in Mephisto, and you'll find your way!"
I nodded.
"I'll give you a little tip that helped me too. When you access your status, a minimal amount of mana is used, in your soul stone."
"And?"
"Try focusing on your soul stone when you open your status. Maybe you'll feel something."
"Ah! Thanks!"
I wanted to try it right away, but Phillip informed me that it was time to free my sister.
"Oh, how could I forget..." I said, feeling down…I had been so focused on mana that I had completely pushed it out of my mind. I felt a bit embarrassed about it.
"But Phillip! What do we do now? I didn't succeed!"
"What didn't you succeed at?"
"I want to free Hilde!"
"Well, you should have tried harder. Now let me handle it!"
"You're mean," I said, tears welling up again as my emotions resurfaced.
I stuck my tongue out at him and headed towards the temple.
My mother was already there, along with my other three siblings.
I hugged them all and was happy to see them. I held back tears because I was supposed to be an adult now, especially in front of Robert.
Then we all went into the temple together.
Phillip was there now, and Emma seemed to have shown up too.
I sat with my family, watching as Phillip approached Hilde's lifeless body.
He thanked Mephisto and the Dungeon, then asked for Hilde's soul to be reintegrated into the cycle.
He created a calm green flame, that danced slowly like a sad spirit on his hand and slowly let it descend onto her body.
Don't cry! Don't cry! Don't cry! I thought the whole time, but my eyes still welled up at the sight.
Nevertheless, the sight of the green flame was strangely beautiful, and I wished I could do it too.
After this we buried her ashes and said goodbye to her. Weh also wished her a happy new life.
In the evening, I didn't say anything and quietly went home with my family.
...
"Congratulations!" Phillip said solemnly. "You are officially a Disciple of Rebirth now!"
"It's about time!" Emma said. "You took your sweet time!"
I just nodded and looked into the mirror expectantly.
Under my left eye, there were now two tattoos arranged vertically: a circle with a flame in it.
Phillip explained that they were connected to my soul stone, which is why they shone the same grass green.
__________________
[Status]
Name: Larry Potter
Title: Disciple of Rebirth
Age: 9 Years 3 Months
Species: Skalari
Level: 1/3
Exp: 74/200
Mana: 42/42
Muscle Strength: 3
Muscle Agility: 4
Body Control: 4
Stamina: 6
Skills: [Green Fire Magic; Competency 2],
[Atmospheric Mana Sensing; Competency 2]
__________________
He had apparently finally found the right materials and was able to create these tattoos again.
They were lost during the storm, just like half of his face.
Now that I think about it, it looks quite creepy.
Well, now he had five Eternal Flame marks under the right eyes.
He was already quite high in the hierarchy, so his tattoos glowed brighter, as his soul stone was purer.
I was really proud; I had worked on this for almost three years, and I had finally achieved it.
Emma had become a Disciple half a year before me, but I didn't care about that now.
Not much had happened over the last few years, except for my growth.
I was now 173 cm tall at the age of close to 10.
We had transcribed "The Chronicles of the Eternal Cycle" during that time, which allowed us more time for training in the last six months.
Phillip had started teaching me melee combat two weeks ago, although it was mostly theoretical.
So far, nothing substantial had come out of it; magic had been easier for me.
He wanted me to travel the Dungeon once I became a Faith Ambassador, pursue my dream, and search for new groups of Skalari that had arrived here over time.
I was looking forward to that.
I was just saying goodbye to Phillip. Emma had left earlier, as usual.
"Why is she better than me?" I muttered in frustration as I walked along the path towards home.
Then I hummed a song.
I was admiring the trees, which had grown quite tall now, almost 3 meters, and were bearing juicy apples, pears, and more.
Mama said they had brought them with them, in the Dungeon.
When I got home, I picked a red apple; autumn was beginning.
We had to start harvesting soon, as waiting wouldn't yield results.
The fruits took too long to grow once autumn arrived, and they were more likely to be eaten by insects then.
As I reached for a red apple, the ground suddenly began to tremble, then more strongly, causing the tree's leaves to rustle.
Just as suddenly, it stopped.
"Weird earthquake," I muttered.