Home The Author's POV Chapter 54: Eve
Chapter 54: Eve before the trip [4]
Six days had passed since the meeting with Amanda, and just like she had promised, my new sword manual arrived the next day.
When I first opened the package and saw the manual, I was once again reminded of how much influence Amanda had in the Demon hunter guild.
The manual looked like it had just been freshly copied, with no creases or stains on it.
It had to be noted that it was not that easy to make a copy of a manual.
Because for obvious reasons guilds were trying to minimize the circulation of manuals, a lot of procedures had to be taken before being allowed to make a copy of a manual.
It had to be approved by a vast majority of the board members and the guild master, and this was especially hard since a lot of the members were conservative people that hated sharing things with outsiders.
Simply put, the fact that Amanda was able to give me a copy the next day meant that she had just as much influence as her father. The guild master.
That aside, during these past six days, since I had nothing to do, as soon as the manual arrived I decided to train it.
Surprisingly, because my swordsmanship had improved to level 2, I was able to grasp the contents of my new manual fairly quickly.
Though I was nowhere near reaching the minor realm of mastery, the time it would take me to reach that level would be a lot faster compared to what it took me to reach that level with my main sword art.
Though I said that, it would still take me quite a while before I could reach that level of mastery.
Unlike the [Keiki style] which had five stances, [Ring of vindication] had three levels which were, Ring of Aegis, Gravitational ring, and Elemental alternation.
The first level, Ring of Aegis, created a ring in the air that acted as a shield. How strong its defense was depended on the degree of mastery of the sword art.
The second level was a more advanced version of the first level, Ring of Aegis, and added a gravitational pull on the ring that redirected all the attacks towards the ring. This was extremely useful, as only one ring needed to be created to defend rather than multiple rings to deflect multiple attacks coming from different directions. This way, I didn't have to split my focus on defending different areas.
Lastly, the third level, elemental alternation. This level consisted of manipulating psyons in a way that the ring attained elemental attributes. This was extremely useful in countering elemental attacks, as fire attacks could be countered with a water attributed ring.
However, in order for one to be able to pull this move, they had to have a high degree of mana control. They had to be able to harness the precise psyon they wanted to use and create a ring with it.
That alone was incredibly hard to do, and if someone did not reach a certain level of mastery towards mana control it would impossible.
These were the three levels of [Ring of vindication], and the first time I learned about their effect I couldn't close my jaw for a whole hour.
After the shock died down, what replaced it was pure excitement as I couldn't wait to start practicing it.
…and here I was now, six days later standing in the middle of the training ground practicing the first level, Ring of Aegis.
"Fuuuu…"
Sucking in a deep breath, I closed my eyes and slowly drew a ring in front of me with my sword. In the process of doing so, I focused entirely on channeling my mana to the tip of my sword.
Slowly as I drew the circle in the air, if one looked closely, a dimly lit line followed the tip of my sword. After one full circulation, it formed a yellow ring in the air.
However, exactly two seconds after I drew the circle, it broke down and scattered in the air.
Opening my eyes and looking at the scattering circle, I let out a satisfied smile.
"Two seconds…"
Though it didn't seem like much, in the first three days I could barely even draw a full circle. That's how much I progressed these past few days.
However, I was still far cry from reaching the point where I could actively use this sword art.
Although I could create a ring that lasted for two seconds, it could barely be used to defend. It still had no substance to it, meaning that right now it was nothing but a beautiful decoration.
One thing I noticed these past few days, as I was practicing the sword art, was how flawed the grading system for manuals was.
Despite the fact that [Ring of vindication] had no offensive properties, if one practiced this art to the fullest, I would doubt anyone could penetrate its defenses.
It may have not been a five-star manual, but it could definitely have been a four-star manual with its defense alone.
This was especially so if one considers the fact that the greater the mastery of the sword art one had, the stronger it would become.
If one day I were to reach the perfected realm of mastery, no, even the essence realm of mastery, I would without a doubt not have to worry about my defense.
That said, I shouldn't get ahead of myself. I was still very far from reaching that level.
Let's not delude ourselves.
-Click!
Placing my sword back into the scabbard, I looked at my watch
It was precisely 8:00 p.m., and because tomorrow was the day of the trip I decided to head back and rest.
If things were going to progress just like I thought they would, I needed all the rest I could get…
Looking at the darkening sky, I murmured
"This is going to be one hell of a trip…"
…
Parker Tower, Ashton city.
-Knock
Sitting at his desk looking through some papers, Micheal Parker, the current head of the Parker family, heard a knock coming from the other side of the door.
"Come in"
Putting the papers down, Micheal looked in the direction of the door.
Opening the door, an elegant elderly individual with a butler outfit entered the room. He had long white hair accompanied by a finely trimmed mustache that rested below his nose. Despite his age, his face barely had any wrinkles and aside from the pigmentation of his mustache and hair, someone could've easily mistaken him for a forty year old man.
"Greetings master"
Elegantly bowing in front of Micheal Parker, the butler looked at his master and waited for him to speak.
"Are the preparations ready?"
Looking at the butler before him, Micheal's authoritative voice rang across the room.
"Yes master, everything has been prepared"
Hearing the butler's response, Micheal nodded slightly. Pausing for a moment and looking at Ashton city from the window he said
"…has the Trivot squad been dispatched?"
Hearing the word 'Trivot' being mention, the butler's demeanor faltered for a split second before recovering.
"Yes…everything is as you have ordered."
"Good"
Letting out a satisfied smile, Micheal slumped on his chair and lightly murmured
"With the Trivot squad in charge of this case, I don't have to worry about anything"
Looking at Micheal Parker with a complicated look, the old butler couldn't hold it anymore and said
"…Sir, though it may be rude of me, are you sure you want to send the Trivot squad for this mission?"
As soon as those words escaped the butler's mouth, the temperature of the room dropped to freezing points.
A strong oppressive force started emanating from Micheal, as he looked at his butler.
"Richard, it seems that I had been too lenient with you…despite having served me for over fifteen years, you still doubt my decisions?"
Subjected to such immense pressure, cold sweat dripped from Richard's back as he immediately lowered his head.
"n-no, I jus-t thought that after raising them for so long, it would be a waste to let them go just like this"
Smirking, Micheal shook his head
"Naive, this is the best time for the Trivot squad to come into play. This mission requires the assassination of several high-profiled individuals whose backing is just as strong as our family if not even more…a single failure could cause everything that my father and grandfather had built to go down the drain"
Looking back at the butler, Micheal coldly said
"If anyone catches wind of what we are planning, the fate of the Parker family would be on the line. A single mistake and we could very well be wiped out from the face of this planet. Only if we utilize the Trivot squad will we be able to complete our plan without worrying about it implicating us."
Squinting his eyes, the pressure around Micheal intensified many folds.
"ukhh"
"…do you understand why I am employing the Trivot squad?"
"Understood"
Struggling to adjust himself to the pressure, Richard forced himself to nod.
The pressure was too much for him.
"Good"
Letting out a satisfied smile, the pressure around the room dissipated.
Feeling the massive pressure lift from him, Richard finally managed to catch his breath.
After a while, a complicated look appeared on his face.
There was only one reason for his sense of discomfort.
The Trivot squad.
An elite squad that was secretly raised by the Parker family and created for the sole purpose of killing high-profile targets.
Each member, who were raised from a very young age, had no other purpose to their life aside from serving the Parkers.
They were essentially discardable elite soldiers. Once used, they would be killed. They were a one-time use squad.
Regardless of whether they succeeded or not, they were fated to die after completing the mission.
The reason for such a procedure was because the Parkers didn't want to leave behind any loopholes in case any of their missions failed. Even if they succeeded or failed, no other person apart from a few trusted individuals could know what they had done.
The fewer people that knew the better.
"…you may go"
After seeing that his butler had somewhat understood his intentions, Micheal waved his hand and dismissed him
"As you wish"
Standing up, the butler bowed once again before leaving and closing the door on the way out.
Soon, Micheal was left alone in his office. Looking at the papers in his hands, Micheal's eyes paused on a few profiles.
'Kevin Voss'
'Emma Roshfield'
'Amanda stern'
'Jin Horton'
'Han yu fei'
'Melissa hall'
Those were just a few of the names of the people he was planning to have assassinated during the academy start of year trip.
He was planning on killing them all.
He planned to kill all of the individuals who were either too talented or were direct competitors of the Parker family.
Twenty years.
That's how long he had been training the Trivot squad. It was all for this moment.
He wanted to deal a fatal blow to all of his competitors. One that would cause them to lose what was most precious to them.
He wanted them to dispair.
He wanted them to suffer a pain that was worse than death. Just like what he had been through all those years ago…
Reaching for the corner of his desk, Micheal flipped over an old wooden picture frame.
Staring at the photo behind the picture frame, Micheal's indifferent face slightly softened as he lightly caressed the glass on the frame.
After a couple of seconds, his fingers started trembling and his voice shook.
"Soon my dear…I'll see you soon"
-Tak!
Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, Micheal flipped the picture frame down. It took a couple of seconds before he was able to revert back to his previous indifferent demeanor.
Standing up, Micheal walked to the edge of his office, where thick reinforced glass replaced the walls, allowing him to overlook the whole of Ashton city.
Interlocking his hands behind his back, he coldly murmured
"Hollberg will be the first step to my revenge"
Chapter 55: Hollberg [1]
"Alright, everyone please enter the bus"
Wearing a loosely fit white T-shirt that was neatly tucked in her jeans, Donna did a quick roll call.
As she was doing the roll call, her every movement attracted the attention of every boy present. Her violet eyes shone slightly causing everyone to fall into a daze.
I too was entranced by her.
After making sure that everyone in class A-25 was present, Donna, taking no notice of the boys' flushed faces, boarded a huge white bus and urged us to follow along.
Right after her figure disappeared inside of the bus, the boys snapped out of their daze and regained their senses.
Seeing the confused look on everyone's faces I couldn't help but lightly shake my head
This scene was too familiar. This was not the first time it happened and it probably wasn't going to be the last time it happened.
Donna, whenever she was in a bad mood, tended to unconsciously release some of her powers causing all the boys in class to suddenly feel extremely infatuated with her.
Sometimes it would get so bad that some of the guys would directly faint.
Only the likes of Kevin and Jin were somewhat able to remain unaffected by her sudden seductive outburst.
Regaining my composure, and looking at the others who were boarding the bus, I couldn't help but stare at the bus which Donna had just entered.
I was in complete awe.
The bus's outer body was painted in white, and its smooth design was slick and modern.
The bus, which was enormous, measuring up to 15 meters in length, could house up to 200 people.
The reason why the bus was able to hold that many people was because it had a second floor which surprisingly had a mini snack bar.
Around the bus, all the windows were tinted in black making it impossible to see through, preventing people from prying inside.
The bus's frame was made from highly durable metal alloys that could withstand the full power of several ranked villains.
It was highly secured and was specifically made for protecting students from sudden ambushes from either villains or beasts.
Looking behind the bus, fifteen more buses lined up in the distance. Next to them, a crowd of students similar to us were all waiting to enter their respective buses.
Because the number of people in the first years was well over 2,000, the students were each divided into different classes.
My class was class A-25.
Each class had its own instructor, and the selection was random. That was if we exclude Jin, Emma, Amanda, Kevin, and Melissa who each could select which class they could be in.
The privilege of the talented…
Entering the bus, I looked left and right, and after spotting my group I made my way towards them.
Along the way, I couldn't help but marvel at the interior of the bus.
The seatings which reminded me of first-class seats on planes were made of fine leather. The seats were separated into two rows with two seats on each side. In front of each seat, there was a nice oak table that had several snacks on top.
Arriving where my group was, a complicated look appeared on my face.
According to what Donna had briefed us beforehand, we had to sit with our group during the whole bus ride which would take approximately five hours. This was so that we could get to know each other better.
…however, looking at my group, I started to doubt whether this was a good idea.
On my right side, Evan and Cassandra were sitting together munching down some chips. Behind them, Melissa was quietly sitting on her seat with her eyes closed. Her whole aura screamed 'Don't disturb me'
On the right side, Donald was sitting next to the window. He was currently busy staring at the scenery outside the window and thus seemed to have not realized that I had just arrived.
Looking around, apart from the seats next to Melissa and Donald, everywhere else was full.
As my eyes alternated between Melissa and Donald for a couple of seconds, I decided to sit next to Donald. Though I disliked the guy, I at least didn't risk the possibility of dying.
"Hmm? What are you doing you bastard?"
Just as I was about to sit next to Donald, he turned around and glared at me.
"…errr I am sitting"
Pausing for a moment, I looked at Donald for a bit before ignoring him and seating on the seat.
As soon as I sat on the seat, a moan almost escaped from my mouth.
It felt as if I was inside of a cloud made of cotton. My back instantly sank into the chair, and the leather coating around the chair which preserved some of the cold from the previous night instantly cooled my body.
…Too comfortable.
Just as I was enjoying my experience, I heard a loud voice on the right side of my ear. Turning my head to the side, I was met with the sight of Donald shouting at me
"You rude bastard! Who gave you permission to sit next to me?"
Frowning, I was about to retort to him, but after thinking for a bit I refrained myself from doing so and decided to ignore him.
I wasn't going to gain anything from arguing with him.
"Are you even listening to me, you rude bastard? How dare the likes of you ign…"
At first, I was able to ignore him without any problems, however, after a couple of minutes of continuous verbal abuse, I couldn't take it anymore and snapped
"Who you calling a bastard you bastard? My name is Ren. Ren Dover, not 'rude bastard'."
Flipping the middle finger at his face I raised my voice
"Leave me alone dammit, I am trying to enjoy this seat, so stop shouting like a parrot and let me have my peace!"
"You son of a…"
Opening his eyes wide, Donald was just about to retort back but before he could do that he heard a cold voice coming from the left side of the bus.
"Stop"
Opening her eyes, Melissa took her glasses off and glared at both me and Donald
"Cease your immature display at once"
Pointing behind her, where the other students were seated, she said
"Are you planning on killing me from embarrassment? Was this something you had planned beforehand in order to kill me?
If so you succeeded. I would rather drown myself in a bowl of water than being subjected to any more of this"
Looking at where Melissa pointed, I soon noticed almost everyone on the bus staring in our direction.
"kheumm…kheumm, sorry everyone."
Awkwardly coughing a couple of times, I apologized to everyone.
It seems like Donald and I were a bit too loud…
Without needing to be told by Melissa, we sat on our seats and stopped talking.
Closing my eyes I decided to take a quick nap.
Turning on my mp3, I immediately plugged in my earphones and played a random song.
Seeing both me and Donald sitting quietly like obedient children, Melissa's brows finally relaxed. Soon after, she closed her eyelids and prepared to sleep. However right after she closed her eyes, she said
"You better be quiet while I'm sleeping, because…"
"Ok…"
"…if you as much as speak another word, I'll make sure you drink my newly created potion that can send you straight to heaven"
"…"
"…"
Looking at each other, both me and Donald felt a cold chill.
We immediately shut up and decided to never utter a single word throughout the whole bus ride.
-Vroom!
Soon the bus engine roared loudly and slowly the bus picked up its speed.
Staring at the constantly changing scenery from outside the window, I took a deep breath and prepared myself for the upcoming trip.
…
After the first cataclysm, the world map completely changed.
The whole world became one mass of land and the map that we previously were accustomed to completely changed.
Then, the second cataclysm happened and humanity lost 6/8 of their land.
Countries that somehow managed to survive the first cataclysm ceased to exist, and what replaced them was a new centralized government called the central government.
Despite the fact that countries no longer existed, people couldn't forget their roots.
Hollberg.
A city founded in 2015, by then S ranked Hero Ludwig Hollberg, a German citizen prior to the first cataclysm.
The intent behind the creation of Hollberg was to recreate 'Germany'. Ludwig Hollberg firmly believed that one should never forget one's roots, and thus from then on, Hollberg was considered the new Germany.
Many people of German descent migrated to Hollberg and settled there in hopes of developing the city further. The culture, the language, the people, everything was exactly how it was back in Germany prior to the first cataclysm.
Following the example set by Hollberg, many countries did the same and established cities that were based on their country of origin.
The central government did not stop them nor did it try to stop them. They had too many problems to take care of to care about such insignificant matters.
"Alright guys, we will be arriving in Hollberg in about ten minutes so get prepared."
Waking me up, was Donna's crisp and pleasant voice which traveled through the bus speaker.
"huaaam…"
Yawning loudly, I stretched my body.
Looking around, I could see Donald and the rest waking up. Behind them, several students were already awake playing on their phones or talking to each other.
Rubbing my eyes a couple of times, I rested my head on the headrest of the seat.
To be honest, though I was comfortable throughout the whole trip, I would've preferred if we traveled through dimensional gates.
Sitting for five hours without being active wasn't something I was used to now that I pretty much spent most of my time training.
If it were before I reincarnated, I would've had no qualms with it.
However, now that I have completely changed my routine, I couldn't stand not doing any physical activity for more than five hours unless it was for sleeping.
Sadly, because the academy deemed gates too dangerous we couldn't use them.
Because dimensional gates were still a new technology not much was known regarding their safety. Though tests have shown that it was safe to use dimensional gates, there have been a couple of incidents regarding them causing the whole government to still block them from being commercially available.
Trains were also a no-go since they couldn't carry certain equipment that the instructors had prepared beforehand, and thus in the end the only option we had was to go by bus.
"Stand up"
"…hm?"
Snapping me out of my thoughts was Donald who stood up and was waiting for me to leave my seat.
Standing up, I followed the line of students heading towards the exit of the bus.
As soon as I exited the bus, the light coming from the sun momentarily blinded my eyes.
A wave of fresh air swept all over me instantly refreshing my whole body.
Covering my face with my arm I looked around.
"…How nice"
Before me was a large expansive green field. Several houses built using timber framing and stone appeared on the green field, along with several cows that roamed around the field.
In the far distance, an enormous building with thick metal walls covering its perimeter could be seen. Beyond the walls, were several large buildings that released smoke in the air, polluting the clean environment.
After making sure that no one was missing, Donna who seemed to be in a better mood than before spoke
"Alright, everyone. Though we are in Hollberg, we are only in the outskirts. That is because before going into the city we will be making a trip towards the monster processing factory"
"We will first do a tour of the place, and then shortly after you will go with your group and complete your assigned task."
Pausing and making sure that everyone understood what she meant, Donna turned around and made her way toward the large industrial building.
"Alright follow me…"