SWNOVELXO Chapter 6: Strife
The faint light produced by the various candles cast an ominous shadow upon Leylin's face, which made him resemble some kind of cursed spirit.
The interior of the carriage let off a very faint odor. The stench was a mixture of rot and sweat.
Because of this, all of the noble youths refused to stay in the carriage any longer than necessary. Once they did a pit stop, they would escape to the grass fields outside like little wild horses coming out to play.
Leylin didn't care about it though. He had grown accustomed to fetid smells in his past life.
This line of thought brought some peculiar memories to Leylin.
'Serious question, Aralis: what do you think of this world's non-Magi society?' -Inquired Leylin as he sorted through some herbs he had collected the previous day.
[Mmm, thought-provoking question... Let's see... I think that they're too concerned about superficial matters -like sex- to realize how helpless they actually are. They remind me of our old world in that sense.]
The concept of relationships in this world was strangely very open-minded; all the more so for nobility. With the long-range scans of Aralis, Leylin had constantly discovered many affectionate couples doing their business relatively close to the main campsite. Sometimes, they didn't even use a tent.
This had led Leylin to seek an even farther location to conduct his training sessions, like that meadow from his spar.
'Go on...'
[I mean, you have seen that Leylin's memories... Everyone he knew that was nobility, minus his father, behaved like a nymphomaniac elitist... Is that even a term?]
'And I'm guessing you're making a point regarding magic?'
[Precisely! They keep waging their dumb wars and going around fucking anything that moves, yet they fail to notice how they're nothing but insects before the true rulers of the world. Theirs is such a mediocre existence...]
'And you draw a parallel line between Magi and those rich and powerful on Earth?'
[Yeah. I mean, think about it: they're the ones that decide things. If a Magus came down here right now and told all those kids to go home, what would they do? They would obey thoughtlessly. No matter if their father is some great king or if their talent with magic is said to be grandiose...]
[Why? Simply because they lack actual power. They are looking to change that by going to an academy, but none of them have that look in their eyes... The resolve. The will to do better than everyone else. To transcend... At the end of the day- ]
'They're nothing but insects...' -Leylin finished the thought.
[Mm-hmm]
'Then, what about me Aralis? Do you think I'm an insect?' -Leylin queried with a raised brow.
[As you are now, I am afraid so. We can't cover the sun with the palm of our hand...]
Nodding in agreement, Leylin ordered: 'I endeavor to change that as soon as possible. Anyway, enough chit-chat for now. Show me my body's statistics.'
[Here...]
//
Dr. Fang Ming (Leylin Farlier's body)
Strength - 1.51
Agility - 1.65
Vitality - 1.48
//
It had been over a month since Leylin first began practicing the Cross Blade Breathing Technique.
Presently, Leylin's physical capabilities not only matched those of his same-age peers, but he had also surpassed many of them.
Against George, he had concealed his true strength, which in turn had caused him to assess Leylin's strength wrongly in that last fight. Not that it would've altered the result, but still.
'Looking good. I should proceed with today's cultivation.'
Leylin settled himself into the exact posture and entered a state of cultivation. This was his homework every day.
According to the Viscount's instruction engraved in his memory, after his physical training at night, he would cultivate the breathing technique to have the best effects.
Following a 20-odd-minutes session, Leylin was completely drenched in sweat, but the number of black impurities that had flowed out was nothing compared to the first time.
Releasing a deep breath, Leylin opened his eyes and looked at his body.
He said in slight exasperation: 'The breathing technique's effect is reducing, which is logical...'
[According to my estimation, the optimized Farlier breathing technique will completely lose its effect by the time you've heightened your body's statistics to 2.]
[That is the threshold for true Knights. Once you reach that level you must use your own power, as well as the external stimulations from near-death experiences, to try spurring your inner life energy. Only then will you be able to improve again...]
'Although, I would say that exposing myself to near-death just because of enhanced physical power is utterly outlandish. If I get the chance to spark my inner energy without critical difficulty, I'll go ahead and do it. Otherwise, the prize is not worth the risk.'
[I'll take a second or third dive into the Viscount's teachings, see if I can find anything less perilous for you.]
'You may do that, but don't give it too much thought. Bear in mind that as soon as I get to the academy, my number 1 priority will be studying and mastering the arcane arts. That is the true power of this world, after all.'
[Of course, Doctor.]
Thinking up to here, Leylin took a yellow-colored fruit out from his leather satchel. There were some black bulging spots on its surface, making it look considerably unpleasant.
Leylin directly placed it in a bottle, pulverized it, and then added the root of a brownish herb. After blending them together vehemently, he drank the heterogeneous mixture to the last drop.
[Nutrients assimilated. Inner life energy rebalancing. Your body is now speedily recovering from its burnout.]
'Then I shall carry on with another round of the Knight breathing technique.' -Lelin informed with a satisfied expression.
This simple herbal mixture had been produced by Leylin over the past month from countless experiments with the help of Aralis. It could greatly reduce his fatigue and increase the number of times he could cultivate the breathing technique.
Despite not having the ideal quantity of body-strengthening medicine, the quality of Leylin's physical body had nonetheless improved at an extremely fast pace.
'Here I go.' -Leylin once again entered the state for the breathing technique.
During the past month and a half, the acolyte caravan had already traveled across many small kingdoms.
Eventually, they had entered the wilderness entirely.
There were very few people out in these lands. It was but a desolate stretch of deserts and plateaus, with fresh tracks from vicious beasts and horse-mounted bandits running along the dirt roads.
Ever since the traveling party had first entered the area, they had already encountered danger several times. Although nobody had died yet, Leylin's sense of urgency had gradually turned more substantial.
He could not wait to quench his thirst for power.
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When the rays of dawn shone brightly, the caravan once again resumed its journey.
Leylin relaxed alone in his corner seat with his arms crossed in front of his chest.
As usual, nobody even sat on his same row. The youths around him had all avoided him with disgust, allowing him to have quite a bit of space.
'The people in the caravan are still isolating me. I wonder what method that Bessita used to convince them... If it were a regular youngster, this would've most likely driven him to his suicide ages ago. It's just too bad that they met me instead.'
[I think we both know what method she used. She swayed that cleavage around like one would a piece of meat at a dog.]
Leylin only smiled mutely in response.
He then contentedly stretched his arms. He had trained late into the night yesterday, which had made him extremely exhausted. These moments of riding the carriage were adequate for him to rest.
'On another note, this world sure is huge... The caravan has been traveling for a little over half a year, but we still have not reached our destination. We haven't seen the ocean yet either...'
As Leylin thought of that, he entered a comfortable nap with half-closed eyes.
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Multiple hours had gone by. The traveling party had already stopped and begun to set up camp.
The black-robed man Angelo shook the bell in his hands: "Ladies and gentlemen! It is time for lunch!"
'It's that time again?' -Leylin opened his eyes groggily.
After exiting the carriage and receiving his rations, Leylin chewed on a piece of white bread as he walked towards the grassy area beside the campsite.
He had already used up the previously gathered substitute herbs, so he was preparing to restock.
His metabolism was extremely efficient so he didn't have to worry about a heavy stomach as he disposed himself to traverse the brush.
As he walked, he carefully observed the enclosing plants. Finally, his eyes rested on a large accumulation of thickets.
'Samun Grass, a kind of plant that can only be found in the desert. I'll reap some.' -Leylin plucked a dirty blueish-colored stalk of grass.
There were extremely sharp thorns on the weed's sides. Leylin carefully broke the weed in half and used his fingers to dab at the jade-colored liquid that had been constantly flowing out from the grass.
An expression of disappointment appeared on his face as he placed his fingers in his mouth.
'Ughh this isn't Samun Grass, it's just Jadun Grass! Useless!' -Leylin threw the bundle of grass on the ground and continued his scavenging run.
As he casually walked over, he noticed through the corner of his eye the same yellow-colored fruit that he had used in his mixture growing on a shrubbery.
'I found it, more Flowerless Snake Fruit!' -His face showed the joy that overcame him. This fruit was the base for his concoction and basically his only supplement for cultivation.
[Doctor, I detect multiple youths coming your way. I don't have their IDs, but judging by their stats, you shouldn't have any problems.]
'I have fruits to harvest. I don't care about some brats coming out to play.' -Leylin replied dismissively.
Several moments later, just after he had plucked the last Flowerless Snake Fruit and placed it inside his satchel, an overflowingly contemptuous voice was heard shouting out to him.
"Hahaha! What's this I see? Leylin...?!"
The owner of the voice and his accompanying group came closer to the Farlier heir.
Leylin stood up from his crouched position and saw none other than the murderer of his body's previous owner.
[That's Ourin and his gang, Doctor.]
"Should I be saying 'as expected from a rock-eating bankrupt noble'? Are you actually collecting wild fruits on the roadside? You have really outdone yourself, tarnishing the reputation of the nobilities in this manner..." -Spewed Ourin.
He had fiery ginger hair, and there were ripped muscles all over his body. His arms were thick as logs. He currently had his arms crossed presumptuously, as he sneered at Leylin.
There were a few nobility youths at his side, which had all coordinated to jest and bully along with their leader.
'Show me the stats of that redhead. I wanna know exactly what I'm dealing with.'
[At once.]
//
Name: Ourin || Gender: Male || Estimated age: 15-17 || Strength: 1.7, Agility: 1.2, Vitality: 1.5
//
Looking at the information in front of his eyes, Ourin's strength wasn't so bad. His strength was almost that of two adult men. It was no wonder that he had been able to fatally injure the previous Leylin.
Being a child of the upper nobility, as long as he persevered in his daily training, coupled with the breathing technique and expensive medicines, it was not strange to achieve such results.
The others who were beside Ourin were not as strong as him though. According to Aralis' voiced feedback, most of them scored an average below 1.
Leylin had even caught sight of a pale-faced youth whose stats must've ranged at about 0.5, giving a run for the money of the previous Leylin.
Mentally comparing the variables, Ourin's strength did not differ much from his. But his sword technique and moves definitely couldn't rival Leylin's. His situation was a carbon-copy of George's.
As for the rest of the youths, they were only there to pad Ourin's numbers. However, the disparity between Leylin and the lackeys was simply too huge. It would be extremely easy to deal with them, like kicking a can around on the sidewalk.
'Hmmm... I'll humor this chimp for a bit...'
"Is there a problem, friends?" -Leylin asked with a tone as soothing as a mountain creek.
"You...!" -Ourin's tongue got stuck inside his mouth.
Leylin's reaction had obviously gone beyond Ourin's expectations. Not only was he neither angry or afraid, but he had even referred to them as 'friends'. That was enough to make him speechless.
"If this is about Princess Bessita, rest your minds since I have properly apologized to her already. She even found it in her heart to forgive me..." -Leylin lied nonchalantly.
"That's right! This IS because of Bessita! She may have forgiven you, but I have not!" -Ourin spoke loudly, his hands tightly clenched into fists.
"Is that so? Then, what do you want?" -Leylin spread out his hands, as if helpless. Yet, there was a glint of mockery deep in his eyes.
Ourin hadn't imagined that Leylin would be so submissive, and struggled for a long time before spluttering: "You have to make an oath to never bother Bessita again in the future!"
Since Leylin was being so tractable, Ourin wanted to humiliate him further and squash his pride.
"That is most reasonable. I shall go ahead and swear that oath to the Princess herself. Would that be enough to appease you, good Ourin?" -Leylin bowed with perfect noble's etiquette that mismatched with his apparel covered in dirt.
It had never occurred to Ourin that Leylin would show no resistance, and would even go as far as acting like a true noble. It was at this notion that in his eyes stirred an avaricious glint.
Leylin was turning to leave the plateau, but his path was abruptly obstructed by the redhead.
"Hold it right there!" -Ourin called out Leylin as his index pointed accusingly at him.
"Following the noble's code of conduct, as Bessita's most promising suitor, you still have to compensate me for your past offenses... Hand over all the magic crystals in your possession!" -The redhead commanded arrogantly.
"Magic crystals?!" -His flunkies gasped in surprise.
According to Leylin's memories, magic crystals were the chief currency amidst Magi. They were items of prime necessity for acolytes with no credentials to enter the academy.
Nevertheless, Leylin did not know the exact amount required to enter an academy because he did not have even a single magic crystal on him. And there was that ring affair, of course.
Viscount John Farlier had tried numerous approaches to obtain magic crystals for his successor. However, for all his trouble, he was unable to get even one.
From this, one could draw the evident conclusion of just how precious magic crystals were in the Magus World.