Chapter 260: Not There

[Scholar Guardian's Legacy]

[Level: 37 (4%)]

[Legacy Points: 9]

[Stats Points: 8] 

[Strength: 196] [+75]

[Agility: 192] [+75]

[Stamina: 182]

[Perception: 171]

[Mana: 259/259]

[Abilities: Beginner Runes Wordsmith (58%), Useable Runes: 24]

[Skills: Lesser-Mana Breathing Skill (F – 65%), Poison Strike (F – 39%), Camouflage (F – 26%), Earth Manipulation (E – 69%), Bladeless Wind Storm (D – 22%), Shadow Space (D – 19%), Monster Claws (D – 42%), Iron Skin (D – 43%), Wings of Wind (C – 2%), Goblin's Bond (Unique – 90%)] 

[Arts: The Art of Creation – Part One, Basic Dagger Art (21%)]

His strength and agility reached a whopping 271 and 267 in one go after he wore the armor. At the moment, this was the most he could amplify his body. 

He followed the principle of divide and conquer, albeit differently. His body couldn't stack runes, but his organs can. Instead of amplifying his whole body, he amplified whatever tissue the artifact covered. 

The six items that he engraved were the limits of what his body can handle at the moment. This wasn't a game; stats couldn't be raised infinitely by wearing a piece of armor. 

As he stood in his room, he admired the black surface of it. He put away the armor and left his room, heading toward the Explorer's Facility. There, he was given a uniform and a badge for his task today. 

He would be leaving in an hour toward Yalen using a teleportation circle. From there, he could take an airplane or a train to Kera and start his five days field training. 

He was briefed on the task beforehand. Three weeks ago, the mountain range was swarming with undead legions, proving there was an undead lord around. A higher form of creature that kept summoning the undead and using them to kill more creatures. 

This cycle had to be broken by killing the lord and then clearing the undead, but a strange phenomenon happened. Unlike the usual snowball effect, the undead stopped increasing in number about three weeks ago. 

This would have been great news usually, but the unknown was always more feared. The cause of this dwindling might be a sign of a bigger disaster. 

That's why the Union has asked Jerano to investigate it, assigning it to one of its students. Even though they can investigate it themselves, Jerano has a much higher success rate than most intelligence agencies.

Furthermore, everyone wanted to befriend the next generation of leaders. The Explorers are considered the pioneers of humanity in this turbulent struggle against monsters. That's why this was a good way of establishing connections and getting in people's good books. 

Arthur left the college and took his badge toward the Teleportation Halls where the teleportation circles were inscribed. He showed his badge to the man behind the glass and he nodded before giving him a ticket. 

As he took the ticket, Arthur heard someone run behind him. He found Ellen also holding her ticket and looking at him as she gathered her breath. 

"Well, I guess there's no way to change your mind." Arthur shrugged and lead the way. Ellen followed after him silently. 

Even though they got closer during the entrance exam, the gap grew larger now after she heard Arthur talk about her like that. Arthur knew she heard and he also knew that she can conclude why he said those things, but it was still as if a wall has been built between them. 

The teleportation was as fast and nausea-inducing as usual. As he felt like traveling a great distance in a second, Arthur found himself standing in a different hall. 

He could feel space decompress itself after the teleportation, making the surrounding unstable. He left the hall with Ellen only to stop on the doorsteps of the hall. 

Standing in the middle of the street was an alluring figure with white hair and red eyes. She wasn't looking at them but at the tower in the distance. As if sensing their stares, she turned to them. 

"Do you want your eyes plucked out?" Rae snarled with hatred at Arthur. 

"What are you doing here?" Arthur asked with furrowed brows. Could it be that she followed him? 

"Don't think highly of yourself, I'm not here for you." Rae sneered and pointed at the tower. Her disgusted face was overtaken by a grin. "I'm here to conquer that."

"Is that your task?" Arthur sighed in relief. "Well, then we'll get going. Bye." 

He started walking away to get a cab that could take them to the airport. He could feel Rae's glare on his back as he entered the car. 

He sat down with Ellen beside him with relief overtaking his heart. This was the first time that he felt the gaze disappear, making him finally free to do what he liked. 

From the airport, the plane took them directly to Kera. As soon as the plane landed, Ellen hurried to leave the airport without Arthur. 

'She's probably going to see her mother.' Arthur thought to himself with a smile as he missed his mother. He looked around and found a bathroom to hide in. From there, he teleported more than once until he was standing in the garden of Master Ronin's villa. 

At that moment, Arthur felt nostalgic. The peacefulness of the garden brought back memories of the time he first trusted his legacy. 

The only reason that he had trusted Sier at that time was his legacy. Now, he had come a long way from that clueless person. 

The garden's door opened to reveal Melania's surprised expression. Her expression quickly turned to hostile when she couldn't recognize Arthur. 

"Wait, it's me! Arthur!" He raised his hands quickly as he took out the artifact and turned it off. His face and hair quickly changed to how they were. 

"Haha," Melania laughed. "I almost split you in half. What brought you here? I thought you were studying in Jerano." 

"I am having field training. Is my family still here?" Arthur asked as he looked around, seeing no one. Melania shook her head and went inside. 

"They moved away shortly after you left. The money that you gained from the competition, fifteen million, was more than enough for them to buy a proper house for them. Runera's protection made even the royal family think twice before they can lay a finger on them." 

"Can I have the address?" Arthur asked as he followed inside. She was already holding a piece of paper and handed it to Arthur. 

"Your mother wrote it. I guess she knew you'd be back. You should've contacted them earlier." 

"It's risky," Arthur took the paper and read the address. It was a walking distance from here. "I'll be leaving. Give my regards to Master Ronin and Si." Arthur said before leaving. 

He resumed his disguise before he walked toward the house. As he walked through the streets, he enjoyed the mundane theme the neighborhood had. Away from the danger and chaos of the world, this place enjoyed a serenity that Arthur missed.

Arthur reached the address and found a villa with a wide garden. Green grass and plants surrounded it as trees mottled the front yard. 

A kid bumped into him while he was standing there. He was holding a red ball with a crooked tooth. As he looked at Arthur, he said with a scared tone. 

"I'm sorry, mister." He said before running away to the house next to his family's. Arthur realized this was their neighbor's kid. 

'I need to leave now.' Arthur realized this place might be protected by Runera's agents. He resumed his walk before finding an alley where he teleported from to the inside of the house. 

He was in a guest room on the second floor. His disguise wore off as Arthur deactivated the artifact and went downstairs. He heard the sound of sizzling meat and chatter from the kitchen. Using his detection rune, he found the two people he dearly missed. 

"Hello, Mom, Oren." Arthur walked in and stood by the door with a smile. His mother and brother paused and turned to him with shock. His mother's hands trembled as tears streamed down her face before rushing to hug him. 

"My boy, my little boy. You're here." She cried as she hugged tightly. His brother was right behind her smiling sadly as Arthur patted his mother's back. 

"I'm here, I'm here," Arthur reassured. "I'm sorry for being late." 

"No, it's alright." His mother broke the embrace as she shook her head. "I'm fine with knowing that you're alright." 

"I am," Arthur nodded with a smile. "How about you two?" 

"We're fine. Thanks to the money you left, we don't need to work." 

"I'm still going into dungeons and training with Melania though," Oren interjected. "I can't just sit idly." He said sheepishly. 

"I bet you're only going because it's with Selena." Arthur teased playfully, making Oren's face turn red. 

Arthur and his mother laughed as the three went over and sat on the kitchen table. His mother started serving them lunch as Arthur learned how their lives were after he was gone. 

He felt slightly heartbroken when he realized how their lives were changing when he wasn't there to see it. His brother was growing up as his mother was growing older. Yet, he wasn't there with them anymore.