Chapter 22: Heart
{Part 1}
'What is this place... Where am I...'
Reinhard's consciousness submerged deep into the darkness. Cold and black, it threatened to freeze his heart over. Ryoma simply floated through that dark void.
'That was right... I'm...' Reinhard's consciousness was gradually growing clearer.
"This is the depths of your heart." An artificial, emotionless voice resonated in Ryoma's ears.
'The depths of my heart...? This is inside my consciousness?'
"Correct." The voice replied.
'But I'm not speaking words here.'
"This is the depths of your heart; words are meaningless here."
'But you are speaking.'
"No. That is simply how you perceive it."
'Who are you?'
"Me? I am the one who is closest to you, who understands you better than any other."
'The hell?'
"For now, that will do... You will someday come to the answer on your own." The voice then asked Ryoma. "What do you desire?"
"I want... to go home. After a moment of thought" Reinhard said his deepest, most ardent wish. "I want to meet my family again. I want to gave my goodbyes before I go on my journey."
Deep inside his consciousness, there was faint memories what had caused all this.
During that time, he was riding a horseback just as he was about to enter the village. He met with his childhood friends that he lorded over as his soldiers.
Reinhard met with his first and loyal retainer Sylphiette after years of separation. She had taken command over the bunch of Buena village children on Reinhard's stead.
"You've grown bigger, Sylphiette."
"Reinhard-sama..." Sylphy was in tears meeting the Lord that she had sworn her loyalty over.
And then suddenly an explosion of bright white light engulfed everyone.
Fortunately at the last minute Reinhard embraced Sylphiette at the last second.
As the Mana Calamity that resulted to teleport the inhabitants all over the world, Reinhard and Sylphiette was fated to be together.
"But that wish cannot be granted." The voice mercilessly cut Reinhard's wish down.
'It can't be...' Reinhard thought in denial.
There was never been chance in his life that he suffered a setback. Not his previous life, until the present.
"You know and understand everything perfectly... You simply do not wish to acknowledge that answer." The voice said.
If this cold, merciless voice truly was a manifestation of Reinhard's heart, then it was only sensible that it would see through him. He could spin his lies as well as he would like, but there was no deceiving himself...
"If you let loose your wrath, grinding this world into dust would be easy. A world that doesn't acknowledge you will, doesn't need to exist."
'Destroy the world?'
"That's right, this is a world that presupposes one would pillage away from the other! Shatter this world. Kill. Ravage. Crush this world underfoot! Take back what was taken from you!!"
Suddenly faint memories started to enter his mind. However those memories were vague and he could barely remember its contents.
From his perspective he saw another alternate version of him. He was a timid and a guy with a big heart.
That Reinhard grew up in a lovely family in his childhood. In his juvenile years he accumulated his power and knowledge that was recognized by the world.
In his adulthood he married a loving wife and had children.
He was called the Death God who governs over Life and Death. He became the Death God after defeating the previous Death God in combat. Capable of God-tier Healing Magic. The world's life expectancy had risen, and new Healing spells were developed. It was without a doubt his contributions to the world was considered to be the greatest during the peaceful times.
But that's when it took the take for the turn.
There was a large scale war that happened. The war had caused and taken the lives of people dear to him. They died in a gruesome death.
And then that alternate Reinhard sparked a black flame of hatred for this world. After what he's done for the world, he was repaid in this way.
Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate.
Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill.
Destroy. Destroy. Destroy. Destroy. Destroy. Destroy.
'I...'
Emotions that he'd bottled up turned into surging, violent currents. There was no clear reason for it; suddenly, an anger Reinhard couldn't quite attribute a reason to flared up in his heart.
The current Reinhard felt those emotions as if it was his very own. The voice whispered, trying to unshackle the desires that had been held in check for years within. Anger and hatred flowed into his heart like a surging torrent of the ocean.
But just as Reinhard was about to give in to the merciless voice's seduction, the voice of his retainer echoed in his subconscious.
In that alternate world was his most trusted and loyal friend, Sylphiette. She was always by his side when people had left him. A strong woman capable of standing side by side with him. And she's his only pillar for emotional support that keeps him alive.
"It will be all right, Reinhard-sama. I am at your side. I will always be there for you..." Those were warm, soft words, filled with tranquility. And as he heard those words, Reinhard's once again lost consciousness and disappeared from that dark world.
This was how Reinhard Greyrat and Sylphiette was about to create their Legend.
-*-*-*-
{Part 2}
Deep in the Dungeons where Mana gathered and accumulated. There exists a Dungeon Core in which it was the source of energy of any monster spawned inside.
(AN: Dungeons=Labyrinths)
Dungeon Cores are Magic Crystals itself, sold at high prices, possibly you could live your entire life in luxury without any worry to work anymore.
Inside those Dungeon Cores will be often found Magic Items with useful effects on them. And they would also worth a hefty sum of money.
Dungeon Cores were guarded by the Guardian of the Labyrinth. They are last bosses to be killed and you can take the loot of the Dungeon itself.
Adventurers sought riches and fame of conquering dungeons, and their names will go down to the History books.
However somewhere in the Demon Continent. There was a Dungeon deep underground surpassing 1,200 floors in depth.
In that Dungeon Crystal was an appearance of two children.
One was a blonde haired 10 year old boy dressed in an armor and cape with a sword sheathed in his waist. In his arms was a girl at the close age with the boy. She had an Emerald Green Hair, considered to be a taboo color of hair in this world associated with a malicious tribe of the Demon Race– Superd.
*CRACK*
The Dungeon Core that was an enormous Mana Crystal, had cracks in it. As if the organism inside it breaking out of this she'll restricting it.
The cracks spreads from the interior of the Mana Crystal up to the surface. Soon the Cracks enveloped the entire crystal.
*BOOM!*
A huge explosion the Mana Crystal as it's origin. The force behind the explosion sent the entire floor of the Labyrinth shook.
The children inside the Magic Crystal emerged out of it, like a larvae from their cocoon and evolved into a beautiful butterfly.
Those children were none other than Reinhard and Sylphiette.
Reinhard achieved the impossible of waking up from a vegetable state. Finding out he was trapped inside an object, he only thought of breaking out with a burst of Mana.
"I..." As if waking up from a long nightmare, a year trickled down at the corner of his eyes. When he opened it, he could see things that can't be normally seen.
His eyes have a certain glint of light into it, as Mana had restructured his eyeballs. A rare smile adorned his face looking at the unconscious girl resting on his arms.
Sylphy opened her eyes, and the first thing that enters her vision was Reinhard's smiling face.
"Reinhard-sama."
An undescribable bond was created between the two. It was not with romance, but something even themselves can't figure out.
"I'll never forget this. Even if it takes my whole life. I promise I'll repay you back for saving me."
Whatever that voice echoing his heart was, it's a fact that Sylphiette had saved him from getting consumed over by hatred and wrath.
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