Rylan left the tower, nodding at the middle-aged woman by the center desk of the bottom floor on his way out, and started walking to his dorms. Thankfully, neither Hayden nor Jasmine had been waiting for him outside. He nodded to himself as he walked under an archway.

We'll tell them soon.

The story he and Damian had come up with would have to be enough to keep his two friends from wanting to come along.

Rylan looked to the side before he entered another building to take a shortcut. The sun was setting on the horizon, dyeing the skies orange. Unsurprisingly, his conversation with Damian had lasted quite a while, given the sheer number of things they had needed to discuss in detail. His left hand touched the hilt of Silver Twilight, caressing it slowly. It helped him focus.

There's a lot to do.

Rylan turned away from the beautiful sunset and entered the building, a bit lost in his thoughts.

I don't know if it's time to move past the introduction period.

The Stormcaller Sword Style was the best introductory sword style he had developed in his past life, but it was still an 'introductory' style. Despite being ranked 'S,' the style lacked the specificity and power of greater styles. It was complete, efficient, and versatile, but it lacked a few things. Choosing to move past it to learn greater styles should have been a simple decision, but Rylan hesitated for one reason alone – he hadn't awakened to Aura yet.

Even Stormcaller is only complete with Aura.

His current self couldn't even draw out the full power of the Stormcaller Sword Style, so was moving past it truly the best decision? He didn't know. All the styles Roland had created had naturally had Aura as their foundation.

Rylan walked, weighing his options. In the end, he reached a conclusion.

I'll focus on complementary styles and Skills.

He would concentrate his efforts on learning sword styles that had useful Sword Arts or that could complement the Stormcaller Sword Style, like the Mountainpeak Swordsmanship. Most importantly, he would focus on acquiring support Skills that Roland had used at the beginning of his journey, especially those that could increase the effectiveness of his physical stats. As for his magical stats, he would rely on the knowledge he'd learned from Damian.

It's time to start merging the Passive Skills I already have, too.

All kinds of Skills, including even Hybrid Skills, could merge with others to become something greater than the sum of its parts. An enormous list of Skills didn't always mean greatness. Rylan nodded to himself. It was settled.

After walking for some time, Rylan reached the door to his bedroom and entered, closing it behind him. Aelfric was sitting on his bed with a complicated expression and immediately stood up when Rylan entered. He smiled at Rylan.

"So? What did Damian say?" Aelfric asked.

In his brother's expression, Rylan could see infinite trust. He smiled back, his chest warm. He still didn't truly think this devotion was the best for Aelfric, but he couldn't deny that he was glad someone trusted him this much.

He approached Aelfric and tapped his shoulder.

"We came with a few things we can do," Rylan replied, gesturing to the bed. Aelfric sat down, and Rylan sat down next to him. "Doesn't mean the situation will automatically be solved, but we've got a plan."

Aelfric's smile widened as he nodded. Rylan grinned at him and put his arm around his brother's shoulders.

"There are three Dungeons. They're all dangerous and all that, but I'm going to raid them. Hopefully, it'll make my Level increase enough to deal with whatever bullshit might come our way because of what happened. I also have in mind a few Skills I could acquire. With some luck, I'll even get a Title," Rylan continued.

Aelfric nodded again, then furrowed his brow.

"And how long do you think that would take?"

Rylan blinked and sighed.

"…I don't really know," he replied after a second. "But Damian and I agreed that even if Jason knows some people in the Empire, it's not like they'll be able to do something by next week. These things take time. I can only hope that it will be enough for me to prepare myself."

Aelfric beamed at him.

"It will. I believe in you, Rylan. You'll return stronger than anyone else."

Rylan threw him a helpless smile, tapped him on the back, and stood up, scratching the back of his head.

"Now, we need to decide what to tell everyone."

He turned around to look at Aelfric. The boy had tilted his head.

"The truth, I think. No reason not to."

Rylan let out a small sigh and nodded.

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"Yeah, but telling Mom about it won't be fun. I guess I can include Sarah in that."

Aelfric flinched.

"…Yeah, Mom won't take it so well, but she'll understand. Let's do it together."

Rylan smiled at his brother. At the very least, Aelfric was someone who had never left his side. Even now, he wanted to help him shoulder the burden.

"Let's go to Sarah," Rylan hesitated for a second. "Honestly, I miss her. It's been a long while."

She wouldn't be too happy about his reason for visiting her, but he could only hope that she would appreciate it. He didn't want to tell her that he was going to risk his life again through a letter.

Aelfric stood up and nodded with a smile.

"It's almost nighttime, so she'll probably be in her room in that inn. Can we go now?"

It made sense. Rylan nodded at him.

Together, they left the dorm bedroom and started making their way out of the Academy with the larger Caer Rhelon as their destination. Rylan pushed open the doors that led out of their room's hallway.

At least I know where she's staying.

It was a bit annoying not to have an instantaneous method of communication. In his past life, he hadn't really needed one, since he had always been alone save for Moonlight, with whom he had been able to talk telepathically regardless of the distance between them. Letters were too crude.

I'll talk to Damian about it.

Followed by Aelfric, Rylan reached the entrance to the Royal Magic Academy after a while. The white-robed students at the gate looked at his robe and hurriedly bowed deeply, making him realize that he was still wearing the student council's robe. He nodded at them and entered the capital city proper. Walking on the sidewalk, Rylan looked around. It felt like it had been a long time since he had last been here. The streets were bustling, as usual, despite the fact that it was almost nighttime. Lamps had already been lit, and carriages still endlessly moved through the paved streets. The familiar sights and smells were comforting, in a way.

"It's a short walk from here," Aelfric said from behind him as they turned a corner. Rylan nodded.

Naturally, they drew increasingly more stares as they walked, most of which were focused on Rylan himself. Some people looked at his robe and raised their eyebrows, while others whispered to each other about who he was and his performance in the tournament. Rylan ignored them and continued on his way.

Eventually, they arrived in front of a small, inconspicuous inn that was still in a good location. Rylan opened the door and entered. He was met with hot air and the smell of good food, as well as laughter. He looked to the right. There were a few tables where men and women sat around, laughing and talking to one another. Then, he turned to look at the chubby innkeeper who was staring at him with a professional smile. The man was bald and had a bushy beard, and he donned a stained green shirt.

"Welcome!" the innkeeper said, almost shouting, likely in an attempt to overcome the voices of the people sitting by the tables.

Rylan nodded at him with a smile.

"I'm just here to see someone. I'll leave soon enough."

The innkeeper's expression sank a bit as he nodded, then turned away, grumbling to himself about the lack of customers these days.

Finally, Rylan looked to the left, where a short woman with shoulder-length blonde hair and green eyes was staring at him like a child who had been caught doing something wrong. Sarah wore simple clothes, but she still looked beautiful all the same. He smiled at her, making her bow with pristine form. He approached her, followed by Aelfric.

"It's been a while, Sarah," Rylan said when he got close enough, keeping his smile. "Were you watching the people eating?"

She raised her body and slowly nodded with a complicated expression.

"Good evening, young masters," she replied, then hesitated for a second. "I was, yes. It's just that it's been a long time since I last experienced that kind of thing, my lord."

Rylan looked at the people by the tables. They laughed and ate, seemingly without a care in the world.

"It's a good thing to be like that," he replied sincerely. "There's nothing wrong with wanting some of it. I get it."

Because she had been his maid for a long time, Sarah's only friends had been the other maids, which were now far away, back in Cantavega. Stuck in her desire to help her family, she hadn't made many friends or had time for relationships at all. Instead, she had been forced to clean up after his messes for years on end. His heart ached a bit as his thoughts reached this point before he turned to look at her again.

Sarah nodded and pointed at the stairs.

"Please follow me, young masters. We can talk in my room."

Rylan and Aelfric nodded almost at the same time. The trio made their way up the stairs and into her room. Rylan looked around. It was rustic, but complete. A bed, a washroom, a desk with a mirror, and a wardrobe. It looked clean and tidy.

Not that there was any chance of her room being messy.

Grinning, Rylan looked at Sarah and closed the door. She bowed again.

"It's great to see you again, young masters," Sarah said, still bowing.

Rylan gave her a dismissive wave.

"Aren't we close enough that you don't need to bow every time?" he asked. "Let's just talk for a bit."

Sarah raised her body with a smile, but he could see the concern in her eyes.

"Did something happen, my lord?"

"It's just something we need to talk about," Aelfric replied. "But I guess something happened, yeah."

Sarah furrowed her brow and nodded.

Taking a breath, Rylan started his explanation. He spoke of how he had joined the student council, what that meant, how the different factions had reached out to him, and how that had ended, including the exchange with Jason. Once he reached the end of his explanation, Sarah looked completely serious.

"…Do you think imperial soldiers might come after you, young master?" she asked slowly.

Rylan readily nodded.

"They might. So I'm here to tell you about it and ask you to come with us back into the Academy. I'm sure Damian will let you stay, since he already knows what's going on. I'd appreciate it if you could reach out to Regis and Lillia, too. I'll send a letter to Father and go talk to Mom."

Sarah looked into his eyes.

"No," she simply replied.

Rylan blinked, caught off guard. He furrowed his brow.

"You should be the one to talk to your siblings too, my lord," she continued with a grin. "I understand your relationship still isn't great, but please don't forget what you set out to do from the moment you remembered your past life."

Rylan gave her a helpless smile. Part of him had only wanted to make the entire process more efficient, but it was true had another part of him had simply hoped to avoid telling his older siblings that they were in danger. He didn't want to be the one to tell them bad news.

"…I will. Thank you, Sarah. Then, we need to move quickly."

She smiled sweetly at him and nodded.

"Pack up your things," Rylan continued. "And follow us back to the Academy. We'll talk more on the way. Once we're back inside, I'll find Regis and Lillia and write a letter to Father. Once that's done, we'll go get Mom together."

Sarah nodded.

"I'm sure the Lady will be pleased to see all her children together again, my lord. Even if the situation isn't a happy one."

Rylan smiled at her. Now, he needed to gather his entire family. It was unlikely that Gerard would be willing to leave Cantavega, given his position as the town's protector, but this time, Rylan wouldn't compromise. He needed his father to be within the Academy grounds and under Damian's area of influence.

I'll just have to convince him.

Once they were all together and safe, he would go to the Dungeons.

From there, it would be a race against time.

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