Chapter 58: “I’m Coming For You, Whatever You Are.”
The trial ended as quickly as it had started, and in a moment, they were whisked back to the real world.
"Congrats on passing the trial, trust it wasn’t too difficult?" Shinzo asked, his words laced with sarcasm.
Xenia sat on the ground, exhausted and almost entirely covered in blood, Jacob sighed and walked over to sit in a corner.
"You know, you need to learn to give a heads up, or at the very least, sufficient information. How do you just throw us in an arena and spawn four different calamity level monsters?" Jacob complained, the tone of his voice rising with each word he spoke.
"You need to learn to always be prepared for the unexpected." Shinzo replied calmly, dismissing the boy’s remarks.
"Wait... you said four monsters?" Xenia asked, wearing an expression of confusion as she turned a bloodied face towards Jacob.
"Yes... four monsters... what’s wrong."
"I only faced three—" she stated.
"Erm—about that... Like the rules stated, the level of difficulty wasn’t the same. To avoid casualties." Shinzo cut in, his tone a little nervous now.
"To avoid casualties? You mean to tell me that I got three monsters and he got four because you were scared that I’d die?" Xenia got up angrily and dusted herself off, an act that didn’t do much to remove the dirt that stuck to her body.
"Precisely. As Jacob is significantly more stronger than you, it wouldn’t make sense to give you the same level of difficulty, now would it?"
Jacob remained silent, hiding a tiny smirk which he couldn’t help when Shinzo spoke about his power level.
It was a fact that he already knew, but having someone else point it out was still satisfying on some level.
Xenia walked up to Shinzo angrily waving a finger at him, the Sage wanted to move back but due to his size and the weight of his shell, he was unable move anyhow he wished.
She paused briefly and calmed herself down, she remembered that it wasn’t a competition and she was only here to guide and support her young master and not to compete with him.
Still, it vexed her that she was seen as weak by both of them.
"I am not weak, trust me. But I am also trying to grow and become stronger. If you keep giving me lesser challenges, how am I supposed to be of any help to Jacob in touch situations.
I know the young master is extremely powerful, infact I tell him every day, but what good am I if I can’t even do basic things beside him." She said, turning to Jacob and giving him an ’I hope you understand’ look.
"I understand your concerns, I will change my ways." Shinzo replied.
"Thank you! Now, time for a bath, I can feel my head starting to itch."
Jacob made a ’Yuck’ face as Xenia walked away, he was still looking as clean and handsome as he did when he was whisked into the pocket world, and because he wasn’t soiled by the blood of his foes, there was no immediate need to have a bath.
"So, are we done yet? Jacob inquired.
"Hm. Almost."
"What do you mean almost?"
"You’ll see." The great Sage replied and urged Jacob to rest before the next trial commences.
_ _ _
Light was close to the source of the golden bright light by now, he estimated that he had only one more day of walking to get to his destination.
As he slowly walked past a tree, he felt a powerful aura. It didn’t radiate evil or ominous intent in any way, but it was an aura so powerful it made even him wonder what could emit such a strong presence.
’This must mean that I’m close to whatever the source of that light is.’ The young man mused inwardly, looking at the goosebumps that has appeared on his arm.
His blood rushed with excitement and his heart began thumbping wildly in his chest.
He made camp right where he stood, and pulled out a roasted Lion lap from a small sack he was holding.
He took a deep bite of the meat and looked ahead into the distance as he chewed.
Whatever lay in wait for him, he would have to be energized and ready to take it on.
’I’m coming for you. Whatever you are.’
_ _ _
Xenia returned from a bath, her red hair was damp and there were still droplets of river water on her face as she walked past Jacob.
"Xenia?"
"Yes, young master Jacob?" She replied, in a calm and soothing voice, enough to put a grown adult to sleep.
"Do you know how far the Castle is from here?" The boy asked, he never turned back to look at her for fear that she might be changing.
"Roughly three hundred miles." She responded, "Why?"
"Oh nothing, I was just wondering if the letter I sent had reached mother and father yet."
Xenia smiled and put her fingers over her lips, "Don’t you worry, young master, they will get it. Knowing your mother, if she doesn’t get a response, she would send another letter immediately. She gets so worried."
"Youre not wrong," Jacob chuckled.
"Also, why do you keep calling me young master Jacob?"
"Huh?" She asked.
"You keep adding my name at the end, why did you start doing that?"
"Do you wish me to stop?"
"No, no, it’s just, it’s new. I have no problems though, I just wanted to know."
"It’s okay, I was just teasing you," she said with a light chuckle, "And you can turn back now."
Jacob sighed and turned back to meet her gaze.
The woman was over fifty years old but she looked just as young as his mother did.
In Jacob’s last life, women who looked the way Xenia and his mother did were the ones who were at their prime. The women that every man desired. And they surrounded him like it was nothing.
She was definitely a sight to behold.
But after spending so much time with her, it was etched in his brain already that nothing would ever happen between them.
