Arc 7. Death to what came before

  Road to a Hero:

  Three Chances in Another World

  Chapter 18. The Spring Festival

  Gray rolls around the fuzzy furry bead, trying his best to sleep, but the sound of partying floors and floors above him keeps him up. The sound of dancing shakes the enormous tree, so he decides to look around, as the sound of his grumbling stomach begins to overpower the fun above. Still dressed in the clothes he left Greenvale in, he decides to take off his sweat-covered jacket, as the muggy air of the bog-swap is getting to him, and right after, he begins walking around the staircase going up the tree in a spiraling fashion. Gray can’t stop but be stunned by the sheer height of the tree, shaking because of it. While he’s never been that afraid of heights, standing on the outside of a skyscraper would still make the stares of people a bit shaky. He passes other huts, hangs up animal skin drying in the wind, weapons laid out, and a few kids running around, he makes it to the middle platform.

  It holds what looks to be over a hundred people, being a mix of the witches, Demi-humans, and a small number of Dark Elves. But those are just this event's attendants, as the main event seems to be the dueling men and women in a small drawn circle, while the winners feast on the cooking animals. Enormous pigs, chickens, and a few creatures Gray doesn't recognize are being turned on the rotisserie fire pits. Then in large black pots are bubbling stews, which the witches churn, resembling a witch making a potion in a cauldron. Under the veil of the midnight sky, this celebration holds more care and joy than anything Gray’s experienced the entire time he’s been in this world and the previous one at that. But two people suddenly take note of him, Ander, who’s sitting down in a large circle, watching the brawls, and his son Ari, who runs over to Gray with a glimmering light shining off of his sharp teeth.

  Ander: ARI!”

  Gray steps back, watching Ari stop in his tracks while the celebration suddenly stops. Everyone is silent, with the sound of the crackling fires and bubbling stews being the only noise in the area. As Gray’s eyes widen, and Ari’s shiver, Ander stands up with his arms stretched out.

  Ander: “DON’T LET A NEW COMER RUIN ARE SPRING CELEBRATION! EVERY CONTINUE! EVERYONE HAVE FUN! AND GRAY! YOU COME ON IN HERE!”

  Ander's kind and bombing words start up the part again, and Ari points directly at Gray after getting washed over with confidence.

  Ari: “I CHALLENGE YOU TO THE WARRIORS CIRCLE!”

  Gray: “Ummm…I dunno what any of this is.”

  Ari’s face drops, but he picks himself back up, screaming out once more.

  Ari: “IF YOU STEP FOOT IN THE WARRIORS CIRCLE, NO MATTER THE OUTCOME YOU GET TO EAT! AND IF YOU WIN, YOUR PLACE ON THE TREE GOES UP! SO I, ARI OF THE GREAT TREE, CHALLENGE YOU, GRAY KYOJIN OF WALGONIA!”

  Gray, feeling his still rumbling stomach, and looking around at the most likely much stronger fighters around him, decides if he wants to eat he’ll have to face him in the circle. So, bowing his head to the boy gives him a striking thumbs up right after.

  Ari: “....Is that a yes?”

  Gray: “Yes, it’s a yes. You’ve never seen a thumbs up?”

  Ari: “You’ve never seen a warrior's circle?”

  Gray: “Touche Lion boy.”

  Ari, not knowing what touche means, moves on, watching the still ongoing fight. Gray decides to pay more attention to the people around him, all eating the beautifully smoked meat and sipping from the perfectly brewed stew. Gray had always felt lucky for the fact that this world's food wasn’t too different from the food he was used to. While it didn't have some meals, the ones it didn’t have didn’t seem to be an issue, because while Gray had a nice pallet, he couldn’t care less how fancy it was. After all, if he wanted it, he already knew how to make it. Inside the ring, a male Dark Elf, fighting a bear-like Demi-human effortlessly bends around and pushes him out of the fifteen-foot circle, the same size as a sumo ring, everyone begins clapping and cheering for the two. Even if the Demi-human loses, he grabs the extended hand of the Dark Elf, pulling himself up, and hugging each other.

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  Ander: “THERE WE HAVE IT! NOVA HAS INCREASED HIS TREE RANK TO THE EIGHTH FLOOR! BUT THE TWO FIGHTERS FOUGHT WITH RESPECT, AND PASSION, AND SHOULD BE HELD IN HIGH REGARD FOR IT!”

  After the volley of praise is thrown at them, everyone turns to Gray and Ari. Ari, filled with joy, grabs Gray's hand, leading him to his side of the circle.

  Ander: “Okay, we have two new challengers here this spring. My son, who turned fifteen last May, and Gray Kyojin, an outsider. Now we’ve never had an outsider here before, but this man is held in high regard and will be leaving soon. So unlike the people outside of the bog, we won’t push him away!”

  With another barrage of applause, Gray and Ari stand ready, though Gray’s mind is rampaging with thoughts. If his new shorter hair looks stupid, if Ari is secretly a god in disguise, if allowing himself to lose is weak, and most importantly, the thought that stabs his mind all day every day, IfRosemary’s okay.

  Ander suddenly claps his hands and Ari is off, running on all fours. While he's obviously a Demi-human, he’s more human than Lion, so Gray thinks of him as a kid, along the lines of Peter. So Gray begins to flow an aura of mana around his body, trying to refine his flow so it’s as strong as his body can handle, and not to its limit. All of the fights he’s recently been in seem to lean toward the thought that his mana isn’t the problem, it’s how he’s using it. This uneven strength and constant flow may be leading to an unneeded loss of mana. Ari is fast, his newly extended claws are sharp, and his movements are swift, but his overall skill is lacking, leading to Gray being able to easily dodge all of his attacks. After a quick roll under one of Ari’s pounces, Gray uses a spinning kick, hitting Ari in the back just hard enough to almost push him out of the ring. Though Ari’s skin is tough, and his exposed feet are strong, gripping into the wooden floor, keeping himself within the ring. Gray, not thinking much of this, continues to be nonchalant in his movements, looking a bit bored with everything. But, to make Ari look better, and not caring much for his image, allows Air to hit him, but that is an egregious mistake.

  Now, Demi-humans cannot use mana the same way Elves and Humans can, as their bodies, just like Dark Elves, are merged with their ODs. This allows their bodies to gain great strength, speed, and reaction time and also allows for a unique mana mutation. But what matters here is the dormant strength within Ari’s body, as his fist digs into Gray's stomach. It breaks through the aura of mana emanating from Gray’s body, like it was burned through, and hits Gray’s unguarded gut, causing him to wince in pain. But Gray, not a bit worried, instinctively pushes all of his mana he can out of his OD, boosts his strength to the max, and punches Ari in the face, sending him flying out of the ring. While the people around them gasp, Ander remains content, speaking out with the same boasting voice he did before.

  Ander: “AND HERE WE ARE! GRAY KYOJIN HAS SHOWN HIS REGARDED STRENGTH, TAKING OUT YOUNG ARI! BUT ARI HAD A TOUGH MATCH, SO HE’LL STILL MOVE UP TO THE SECOND PLATFORM, WITH GRAY MOVING TO THE THIRD! SO COME ON AND EAT!”

  Gray walks over to the wounded Ari, who’s whipping the blood pouring down his broken nose. Gray, panicking, puts his hand on his nose, attempting to heal it, but Ari pushes his hand away. This would leave the worried Gray to think Ari was mad, but it was quite the opposite, as he’s happy to hold such a wound.

  Ari: “Alright! Now let's go eat!”

  Right when Gray goes to get his food, reminding him of the school lunch line, Ander waves him over.

  Ander: “Ari, go get Gray food. Gray, sit beside me.”

  Ari shrugs his shoulders, leaving Gray to walk over, a bit worried as Ander's barbarian aura flows off of him. Gray had met Musashi, Ryo, Lincoln, and Kioshi, but they all seemed light, never fearing them, but even when Ander is being kind, Gray’s still tense. As one of the witches sitting beside Ander stands up, Gray takes her place, crossing his legs to sit beside this towering beast.

  Gray: “So…you guys do this every spring?”

  Ander: “Right before the great rainfall, we hold this celebration as we’ve come through another year. But that’s beside the point, what the point is, is that you need help. I can feel your OD, cracked, corrupted, breaking with every day, and that’s mana decay. Soon, your hair will turn black, then your eyes and nails will follow. Your veins will run with such darkness and your skin is as pale as one of a dead man.”

  This information waves over Gray, weighing him down. His eyes go wide, his lip begins to shake, and his will wavers, but he’s been in this position before, an oh-so-hateful memory. Counting down the days until he would quit, wishing something would end his meaningless existence, but now, he has a purpose, and something else counting down the days for him.

  Though Ander said these words hoping Gray would take more care of his life, it was more of a turning point for Gray, as he only has so long before he can save Rosemary, and end the Sect of Anarchy.

  Ander: “I assume you’re saddened by the news?”

  Gray: “I know I’m dying, but hearing you say it…it’s invigorating.”

  Gray trains his body by running mana throughout it, breaking it down, and building it back up in the passing days, but this may be his downfall. The further his OD crumbles, corrupts, and turns into a walking sickness he can’t get rid of, his mind will hate itself, but his body won’t know the difference. He’s continued to heal just as fast, but what will be replaced is this disgusting, murderous man, until he’s all but alive, either lying dead or becoming a pile of black blood and guts.

  Ander: “Invigorating? You’re insane.”

  Gray: “Probably, but it gives me more drive. I’ll be leaving at the end of the week, and I want you to put me through hell. Break down my weaknesses until they’re gone. If I’m going to die within a year or so, I’ll do as much damage as I can.”

  Ari returns with the steaming food, which Gray begins to scarf down. His serious demeanor drops for one of bliss, biting down on the perfectly tough and chewy meat, absorbing its savory flavor. He spends the rest of the night doing this, not saying a word. He just eats, watches the duels, and begins to feel the rain fall, assisting with the cleanup before he’s forced to run to his home, which has now been placed on the third platform.

  Inside, it seems to be reinforced by the rain and also holds all of his things, making his sleep routine come to him much faster, that routine being lying on whatever bed you have and sleeping as fast as possible.

  End of Chapter Eighteen