Black String of Fate

"Ugh…"

After what felt like a long time, Xavier regained consciousness. The first thing he noticed was the stinging pain in his head, a pain so intense that it reminded him of the times he used Forbidden Bloodlust. He was also expecting his body to hurt, but it surprisingly felt completely fine, in fact, he felt better than ever.

'How strange… What exactly happened? And… Why are my memories so blurry? I fought with Reno, I awakened to Initiate Novice, I used the first part of my new Limitless Ascension Battle Style, and then… I passed out?'

Xavier felt as if he was forgetting something extremely important but he just couldn't put his finger on it. After sitting for a few more moments and really stressing his brain out, he obtained nothing but even more headache.

'Ugh, I'll leave it. There's more important stuff to do right now."

Xavier slowly got up and scanned his surroundings. He noticed that while the office area was completely destroyed, the rest of the orphanage seemed fine. He then looked around a bit more carefully, and he noticed certain markings on the edges of the place where the destruction spread.

'Rune markings, so that's why there was no outside interference. It's made really well too, I never would've thought that a kid like Reno could learn all of this. Given his talent, I believe he would've been at least a Savant if he wasn't limited by that rank booster…

Fortunately, he's dead. But…'

*sigh*

'So are my party members.'

Xavier stood in silence for a moment, looking up at the sky. He recalled the time they spent together, and started moving towards the corpse of Alina and Lafia that was somehow intact after that whole fight.

He put the corpse inside his storage ring and started moving away from the site of the skirmish. He planned to collect the fingers of the other party members that he had thrown at them for taunt, because he was sure that the main bodies were most probably already smelted into a fucked up potion.

As Xavier roamed around, he submerged himself in his thoughts.

'...I hate the fact that I'm already over their deaths. From my time as a demon king, no, even before that, I have been surrounded by losses. I can't say that I've grown insensitive to death, but it clearly has become a normal thing for me.'

He soon found the storage room where the fingers of those party members were kept. He collected them all inside his storage ring and headed out into the forest.

'People who live on the brink of death always have places in mind in case they accidentally step over to the other side. Sadly, I did not know you guys that well, so make do with a beautiful garden I found nearby, okay?'

Some time ago, Xavier had found a beautiful, idyllic garden when he was scouting the surroundings. Even with his past life combined, it was one of the most beautiful gardens he had ever seen. It didn't sit right with him to just bury these acquaintances of his beneath any random tree, so he chose that location.

Soon, after walking for some time, he finally found the place he was looking for. When he stepped inside the garden, it truly felt like he had stepped into another world. While the forest surrounding this space felt like regular woods, the vibe inside of this garden was of an ethereal, mystifying grove.

Xavier abruptly stopped momentarily before walking again. He eventually arrived beneath a tree in the corner of the garden that he thought was the perfect place for the burial. He stood before the tree for a few seconds before speaking out loud.

"I'm here to bury some comrades, don't mind me."

Xavier did not look in any direction, but from behind him, he could hear some rustling sounds. Soon, the rustling sounds turned into footsteps, and they seemed to be coming closer.

"How did you sense my presence, child? This is something not even Sages can do."

"..."

"...Are you in the mood to not answer questions?"
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Xavier, without saying anything, kneeled down and used his sheathed sword to dig a hole. It was a time-consuming process, especially since Xavier did not use much force to be mindful of the surroundings.

The mysterious person also became silent and stood there watching Xavier dig a hole. Their curiosity had sparked, and they were now not gonna leave without answers so easily.

Eventually, Xavier had dug two large holes and three smaller ones. He used his storage ring to bring out the corpses, and he heard a gasp from behind. He did not mind it as he carefully put the corpses in the holes and buried them inside the dirt. He also then took a few sticks and buried them on the head as a tombstone.

He then, once again without turning around, said the following words,

"State your business, elven queen."

"...So you knew who I was, and yet you acted so calm. Who are you?"

Xavier then turned around and finally looked into the eyes of the elven queen. She was an extremely beautiful blonde high elf who looked dignified and wise. Though her beauty was enough to unsettle many young men, it had no effect on Xavier. They both stared at each other's eyes, before he finally spoke up,

"I'm Xavier, currently a D-rank adventurer."

"A simple D-rank adventurer? Haha, you're not fooling me when you possess those eyes, boy. I have lived for a long, long time, so don't even think that you can fool me."

Xavier silently stared at the elven queen's eyes before sighing and breaking contact,

"So a Crafted Savant like you knows something about me? I wonder what that is…"

The elven queen was shocked, extremely shocked. It was known to the world that she was an Advanced Savant, but Xavier immediately told her true rank to her face. Before she could say anything back, Xavier continued,

"I don't have much to say, I'm just here to bury my comrades. I'm really not in the mood for a conversation, so let's talk later."

Xavier said as he drew out his sword with zero harmful intent. He turned towards the tree beneath which he had buried his party members, and he scratched the following words on the trunk.

'Lafia's Super Duper Cool Party :)'

[Vol 2: End]