Chương 62: Saying farewell

It had been a week since the battle of Highrocks. During that time, Ethan had been—by his definition—relaxing. Even if his days still held quite a few activities, between him sparring Mia, to him training Leah and pushing her to unlock [Sword Mastery] on her own. But for him, it had been peaceful. There was no longer any urgency for him to be rushing around. And so, he had spent his time decompressing while spending time with Leah and the others.

He could still feel there was a slight rift between him and his sister. It wasn't anything noticeable. Not to anyone surrounding them or even to Leah herself. But Ethan could feel it. And as time carried on, it became more and more apparent that Leah still looked at him like he was his younger self. He wouldn't say it annoyed him, especially because he could understand why she would still assume so. It was easy to hear—and maybe even accept—that Ethan had been in the trials before. And for years at that.

But he could tell she hadn't actually come to fully realize what that meant, in terms of time and how long it had been. So she assumed he was still her baby brother. Which he was. But he also wasn't. He was trying his best to be the little brother she remembered though.

"What's gotten you so quiet?" Mia asked, throwing him some water. Ethan caught it and took the lid off, before taking a swig.

"The levels have come to a standstill again. Just thinking about what's next." Mia clicked her tongue.

"You're a freak, you know that?" Ethan narrowed his eyes at her. Though he had gotten used to how blunt she could be.

"I don't mean that in a bad way." She added.

"I just don't understand how you could already have advanced your sword mastery and still be complaining about how it's stopped leveling. You've gained like what? Five levels?" Ethan rubbed the back of his neck.

"Well yeah…" He wanted to continue but was unsure on what to say. It's not like he could tell her he thought he should at least have the rare upgrade by now. Still, he wasn't exactly unhappy with his progress. He'd actually gained seven levels, though he had down played it. It was a massive gain and just proved how beneficial it was to have someone who could push his swordsmanship to the brink. He had a feeling, all he needed was someone who could match his skill, if not in talent then in pure stats.

And he was right.

"Have you got any more information out of the poison lady?" Ethan asked, changing the topic and handing the bottled water back.

"Why?"

"What do you mean why? Because I'd like to know obviously. These people also held my sister prisoner. It's not all about the Broken Dawns," Ethan stated.

"Calm down," Mia said, and waving her hand.

"Nothing solid has come from that woman. So far, all I've gotten is useless information."

"However your little friend Alice has been great." She continued with a smile.

"That woman held a lot of information on Desmond and what he had been up to. She also helped shed a lot of light on the information in the Farscribe book." Ethan let out a sigh. Alice had weaseled her way into working with the Broken Dawns, while taking over the Valkyries. It was a precarious situation, where she ultimately answered to Mia. Essentially bringing the Valkyries under Broken Dawn influence—at least on the first level.

Which in turn forced Ethan to see her whenever he met up with the higher ups to go over things. Which was quite often, now that they were focusing on figuring out who was pulling the strings behind the curtain.

"Yeah, yeah. Perhaps I could have gone about things differently. Whatever," Ethan responded while sheathing his sword.

"So we're done for the day?" Mia asked.

"Yeah. Thanks for your help. But I think I'll be leaving tomorrow. I want to go put my higher leveled sword mastery to the test."

"That's a shame. I was coming to enjoy our sessions. I don't think I've had anyone test my swordsmanship like you have. In fact, I can hardly call this a favor considering I benefited from it as well," Mia said, also putting her sword away. Ethan put his hands up.

"Please don't make me think of anything else." Mia laughed.

"Don't worry I'll still call it even when you get your storage item."

"Thanks," Ethan smiled, while gathering his things.

"I've got a few more people to see before I leave, so I'll catch you later."

"Sure." Ethan paused, just before exiting the training yard.

"Oh and next time I'm going to beat you for sure. So you better be prepared." He didn't wait for a response and carried on walking. When he rounded the corner, he could hear Mia laughing, loud and obnoxious.

"I'll be waiting, don't you worry, little monster," she called out. A smile spread on Ethan's face. He had finally found someone who could push his limits, and aim towards a new goal. She might have beaten him in all their matches so far, but that would change. Ethan would catch her. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. He walked through Highrocks and towards the guildhall, which was only a short distance away from where they had set up the training yard.

Once inside, Ethan pushed through the crowd and headed towards the food court, where he had agreed to meet Alex and the others for lunch. The food court was packed when he entered, people were lining up with trays and receiving their allocated meals. After seeing how busy it was, Ethan decided to forgo the meal and instead made his way through the room until he spotted Nivia watching him. Alex and Thane were with her, both of them were in a discussion, and hadn't noticed him yet.

He walked over, and sat next to Nivia. She had been a little funny with him since the battle in the desert, he had a sneaking feeling it was because of how he killed Desmond. She was still polite enough though. So when he sat down, she made room and greeted him. Alex and Thane broke away from their conversation and looked towards Ethan.

"You're here. Good," Alex said, before looking at the empty table in front of him.

"Not eating?"

"Nah. The line's far too long. I'll just get something back at home."

"Fair enough. So today's your last day then? You're really leaving?" he questioned.

"Yeah, but not before giving you guys some things," Ethan responded.

"Presents?" Nivia chimed in. Ethan side-eyed her.

"I guess you could call it that." He put a journal onto the table and slid it across to Alex.

"What's this?" Ethan pushed his hair back and dusted his hands.

"That is all the information I've managed to acquire. I'll leave it to you guys to look through and see what you think. However, I'll say this now. The information isn't only for you three. This is part of our deal Alex. And I want you to distribute it freely." Alex raised his eyebrows and opened the book, skimming through it. Each page his brows rose.

"What's this? How do you know about all these skills?" he questioned. Ethan shrugged.

"I've spent a lot of time researching and asking around." Nivia narrowed her eyes beside him.

"What the fuck," Alex stated, looking up at Ethan in shock and drawing attention from the surrounding tables.

"What's this cultivation technique?!" He looked back down at the book.

"Just from looking at it, I can tell this is a great foundational manual. Where did you get it?" Ethan smiled.

"That's actually my method and it's the main thing I want you to distribute to everyone. It's basic so it should be good for the masses. Just keep the clause in there that if they follow it they should find something new after the second tier."

"Ethan…" Nivia whispered beside him.

"That's perhaps one of the most valuable things someone could get their hands on." Ethan shrugged.

"Yeah well, hopefully it helps a lot of people." He paused.

"Just make sure no one knows where this came from." Alex nodded, slipping the book into his pocket.

"I actually have something for you as well. It's just in my room."

"That old trick, aye," Ethan said.

"I'm serious. I'll drop it by your residence before you leave. And Ethan. Thank you. For everything. I know how much you've helped out from the moment you arrived. And I'll never forget it. Trust that I'll keep my end of our deal. You'll have Broken Dawns support in anything you do. And you'll personally have my own." Ethan chuckled and nodded.

"Watch out. I'll take you up on that offer."

"It's still there," Alex said, in a firm voice. Ethan looked at him again. Noticing how serious he was. Then he turned and took in the others' expressions as well. And only now, that he was about to leave, did he realize that he'd made serious bonds with this small group. It made him want to smile but he held it down.

"That's me then. I'll see you guys on the second level." Ethan stood, pushing himself off the table.

"Don't die or anything." Ethan left the food hall, feeling lighter than he had in a long time. Even having to weave his way through people didn't sour his mood. Ethan returned to Mark and Sarah's with his armor in tow. The damage it had acquired had been fixed up. For a small fee of course. He opened the door just as Leah was saying goodbye to Alice. He paused as she turned to look at him, her expression souring. Two Broken Dawn members flanked her.

"Hi," Ethan said awkwardly.

"Fuck off." Ethan tried not to laugh, he really did. But he couldn't stop the small smirk from forming on his face. She scowled and turned back to Leah.

"As I was saying, you're still officially part of the Valkyries, and I'd like it to stay that way. I know it's been a bit fucked up. But with us and the Broken Dawns working close together now, things will be a lot better. So just think about it okay?" she questioned, watching Leah intently.

"I'll think about it. Just don't do anything dumb alright," Leah stated. Alice smiled.

"I won't." She turned back to Ethan, her smile vanishing.

"You better keep her safe." Ethan frowned.

"Obviously." Alice scoffed and exited the house. Ethan and Leah watched her leave, her two guards flanking her.

"What's her problem," Ethan mumbled. Leah pinched his side.

"You know what her problem is. If only you'd say sorry."

"For what?"

"Shut up." Ethan pushed her and walked into the house. He could hear Mark and his family in the lounge. He popped his head around the corner, just as Tom jumped from the couch and crash landed into Mark, who was lying on the floor.

"I'm back," Ethan said with a smile. Mark raised his thumb in acknowledgment.

"Just going to put my shit away," he continued.

"Language," Sarah called out from around the corner. Ethan winced as he noticed Tom staring at him. He raised his finger to his lip and slipped back down the hall and to the room him and Leah had fleeced. Ethan went over everything, making sure he had all his belongings in his pack. Including his journal that sat tucked away. Most of the contents had been memorized by now, and soon he doubted he would need it at all. But still, it had become a bit of a keepsake.

A reminder of where he had started and where he was heading. When he was finished, Ethan lazed around. Until after a few hours Sarah told him they were having dinner. Ethan exited the room. And sat with the family one last time. Originally they were going to come with him. But now with Mia's promise, there was no safer place for them. With her around, they could grow in power, keep the kids safe and not have to travel until absolutely necessary. Which made things far easier for all of them.

Now Ethan wouldn't have to return and could instead meet them on the second level, he could also focus on finding and killing the strongest monsters on the way to the oasis, without having to protect a literal baby. Though he had some nerves about leaving the potential strongest human in the hands of others and without him looking over them. But Ethan put that to the side for now, and instead, enjoyed a nice dinner with people he had grown to care deeply about.

When they had finished and Ethan had excused himself, he found his way outside. He sat there, looking up at the stars. Mark soon joined him, talking about any random number of things. But the main thing on Ethan's mind was the fact that tomorrow, he would leave. Tomorrow he would set out to reach the second level.