It All Started With Lightning

Mission Completed

[Days and nights I'm walking alone

Like the wind, nowhere I belong...]

William removed his hand from the guitar strings and looked at the others. All of their eyes were shining. This time not only the girls, but also the trio that had come with him looked at him with confused eyes.

They thought he was just going to play something simple and funny, like an ordinary bard. But this song almost made them cry. As they listened, they dreamed of a lonely wanderer on the roads. It dragged them along for days like a grain of sand in the wind. Loneliness had penetrated their hearts. They imagined their faces in the wanderer.

"William, do you have any more?" Venil asked. The tears in the corners of her eyes were like a climber holding on to a branch to avoid falling.

William replied with a smile. "There are, but I can't guarantee you'll like them."

"It doesn't matter, if it's like that, it doesn't matter at all." The four girls said at the same time.

William found it hard not to laugh.

"Then should the next one be a song instead of a poem? What do you think? It's about love." He said.

She nodded, which meant that everyone, including the men, would be fine.

Again William felt the strings of the guitar and started to play.

  [You left me alone in dark

  And made a pain just like a shark

  There's no need for talking

  Don't get tired for explaining]

As William pressed harder on the guitar, a high note and William's low scream woke everyone from their dreams.

[wowww, it's too late

 I'm afraid ex-love, I started to hate]

                                       

Those who heard him talk about an old love could not hold back their tears. All of them had heard at least one or two love stories. This song, tainted with breakup and sadness, aroused hidden feelings in them. Tears flowed from the corners of their eyes before they even noticed.

This world has never heard depressing words without the theme of fun.

[ I deeply felt as I die

  understood lately everything was a lie

  Faught with my soul and heart

  Try to push you away so hard

  Nothing will be the same again

  And our love never will begin

  Stop telling me about your regrets

  You'd never touch my soul again

  And never search my heart again

  cause i don't wanna hear your usual lies

  

  wowww, it's too late

  I'm afraid ex-love, I started to hate]

                                            

William finally put his guitar down. He put it back in its case. Meanwhile, none of them had yet awakened from the flood of highly charged emotions.

'I guess these words are a little too much for this world,' he thought and left with the guitar case on his back.

The deeply emotional girls and the other three hadn't even noticed that William had left. After a while, they came to their senses. They all made a promise to themselves. They would live this world to the fullest, without regrets. They would do everything they could.

No one was depressed. Although the emotions took them out of this world for a few moments, these two seemingly simple songs were already beginning to change their perspective.

Some got the words wrong, some got them right. But it was clear that they would play an important role in the decisions they would make in the future.

...

William noticed that the sun was slowly starting to slide down the hill and walked towards the villa where the mage lived.

When he reached his door after a while, he straightened his clothes and took the materials out of his dimensional bag.

He carefully knocked on the door.

At the third knock, the door opened, but he noticed that it was huge enough to block the way of the person who opened it.

Even the two-and-a-half-meter door seemed small to the man facing it. He couldn't see above his chest.

Smiling, he said, "Sir, I've come to deliver your mission!

The man invited him in a very husky voice.

"Ah? So you are finished. Come, put it in here."

William entered with the barrel of blood. At last, he could see the man's face. If he had to describe this man in just one word, the word "giant" would be the most appropriate.

He was about three meters tall. With his bald head and a dot-like tattoo in the middle of his forehead, it was hard not to recognize him.

Despite his gigantic and ferocious appearance, the mage was very friendly.

He even shared his concerns about his mission.

"I wasn't expecting anyone to take this mission. I was very worried when I saw that you accepted my quest, and I wanted to cancel it, but you were already gone." He said.

"Sir, since you gave the mission, you must need it, right? So why would you cancel it?"

"The staff told me that you are one of the newcomers this year."

"Ah! Don't worry about it, sir!" He smiled. "Even though I just joined..." He circulated qi in his body. "Actually, I am different from them. I'm at the iron level!" he said.

The colossal mage was surprised by William's strength. As a newcomer, he hadn't expected him to be at the peak of Iron Level. This reassured him.

"Well, how were the roads? Were there any dangerous situations?" he asked.

"Actually, yes, but not because of worms, but because of a pack of wolves. On the way, I had to endure the wolf pack's pursuit," William said, shaking his head.

"Ah! It is good that you are well."

As William felt his fear ease, he unconsciously felt a little closer.

"Will you be posting missions again, sir?" he said.

"You don't have to call me sir, even though I am older than you, you are my equal in strength. You can call me Baldur. And yes, I definitely need more worm blood."

William had wondered about his interest in worm blood.

"If you don't mind me asking, what do you need all that worm blood for, Baldur?" he said.

Baldur had no qualms about saying that his research was already funded by the Academy. After all, William was also a student of the Academy, and perhaps he could help him more with his worm blood supply.

"For this." He said, taking off his long blue robe.

He showed the massive, hand-chiseled muscles underneath.

"Baldur? Aren't you a mage? Why do you want to train your body?"

"Actually, I always wanted to be a warrior, but my talent was almost non-existent. I became a mage by accident. A wandering mage gave me a talent test, and I barely managed to meet the minimum requirements. I was definitely luckier than any of my other friends who worked with me, and I successfully advanced to become a level one mage," he said. It was like he was remembering the old days.

"Then, of course, the most feared thing happened. My talent is gone. My warrior talent was already on the ground, and I wouldn't be considered successful as a mage."

"Don't say that, Baldur, aren't you a level one mage right now?" said William, trying to lift his mood a bit.

"Yes, I am, and I am also a warrior. I'm at the top of both. With a little breakthrough, I can become a bronze warrior or a second-level mage." He said with a slight smile.

William became even more curious and asked.

"Then what? What changed you?"

Baldur pointed to the barrel on the table with fingers as thick as William's wrist.

"Thanks to this, the worms helped me." He said.

"How so?" William was astonished. He couldn't imagine how a little worm blood could help him. It would only increase a beginner's physical condition and strength, but it would not help their talents. Besides, the power it provided was very little compared to a normal person.

"I am a mage, so of course I knew a little bit about potions. One day, while making potions, I remembered old children's stories. In those stories, people would turn into birds, dragons, or tigers and fight. I'm sure every child born in Argos knows this."

"Yes, I do too. How can I forget Agnes the Phoenix?" he said.

"Yes, that's what I'm talking about. I was coming to the end of my life. The first idea that came to my mind was to extract the bloodline of creatures with strong vitality by distilling their blood. And as you can see, I had some success." He said smiling.

"I haven't been able to complete this potion yet, but I'm sure I will one day. Don't look at me like that, I'm like this because the potion isn't quite right. My growth is a side effect of the excess vitality. The blood concentration required for the body to absorb it must be very high. According to my calculations, the highest rate I've ever been able to achieve is five percent." Seeing William's confused look, he felt the need to explain.

William actually respected his persistence. He had found a new way to become stronger or to escape death, and he had succeeded.

"Well, how reliable is this potion?" he asked.

"It is very reliable. I have done various tests and found that I get the most benefit from higher-level creatures." There was a barrel of beer behind the table. He poured two glasses and gave one to William.

William described the beer as the best he had ever tasted.

Baldur continued. "I have a theory that I think will be groundbreaking in the world of magic, but I can't prove it."

"What?" William asked, still enjoying his beer.

"If my thoughts are correct, over fifty percent concentration can provide what is called bloodline power. But let alone fifty percent, I don't think I could reach ten percent even if I had another hundred thousand years to live."

"The bloodline power? What is that?" William became even more confused.

"Don't you know? Just like Agnes turning into a phoenix. In my theory, that story is true. My intuition tells me that there is a grain of truth behind every story. Besides, I've read every book I have access to in the Mage Tower. I've hardly heard of such potions or powers in any book."

Then he took a sip of his beer and asked William.

"Have you ever read 'Etha's Travel Journal'?"

"Yes, it is my favorite book."

"Then you remember the mini-story in the book?" he said.

" The one where he got stranded on the island?" he asked in surprise.

"Yes. William, I want to tell you that there is no island on our continent!"

"What?" William was brainwashed. His eyes were wide open and he could only stare at Baldur. Even the beer he brought to his mouth had stopped halfway.

"Yes, this may be a difficult situation to accept, but I believe it is the right of every citizen living on the continent to know. I can't inform everyone, because if I do, I will definitely be killed first."

"But... But Etha said he was on a real island. It even had a city and creatures in it?"

"Yes, actually, Etha has another book. This book is kept in the mage tower. It explains everything in the second book." He took another sip of his beer and continued.

"William, I am not telling you all this because you are my father's son, my friend, or a relative. I know that eventually you too will be caught in this stalemate. I'm telling you this so that you can create an idea, an understanding. Even if you don't hear this from me in the future, when you reach the Silver Level and above, you will find out."

"I understand what you mean. You can rest assured that these words are not too difficult for me. You can tell me, I'm definitely interested." William replied after some thought. It was definitely a more serious matter than what the teacher was talking about. Maybe these were words that could affect his future.

If what he had to say collided with his dreams, and Baldur intended to help him on his way, even if it was as light as a firefly. He felt more or less the same way about Baldur as he did about his father.

Baldur was like the kind of old uncles he had known in his former world. You could get along with them, and be friends, but sometimes what they said hurt. So he felt the same way about Baldur. He felt that he should listen to his words, even if they hurt. After all, he didn't want to stay here for the rest of his life, hunting the creatures.

Baldur wore a serious expression. As if his next words would decide whether he would be William's friend or enemy. So he spoke slowly and clearly.

"That includes the secrets of the Academy and the Mage Tower? Do you want to learn?"

Faced with this serious question, William pulled out the chair he was leaning on and sat backward on it. He rested his arms on the backrest. He answered with all his attention and seriousness.

"Yes, I want to. What's in Etha's second book?" he asked.

"Then open your ears and listen carefully."

Baldur drank his beer in one go. Then he got up and poured himself another glass.

He sat down in his chair, put his hand to his chin, and began to speak quietly.

"Etha was a strong man..."

...

Songs:

1

[Days and nights I'm walking alone

Like the wind, nowhere I belong

Days and nights I'ma walking

Days and nights I walk alone

Like the wind that is blowing

There is nowhere I belong

Under the sky is where I call home

And till I die since I was born

I don't know how I am

I'm going night and day

Day night, day night

Day night, oh All x2] -Aşık Veysel, Uzun İnce Bir Yoldayım. (I am on a long and narrow road)

2

[You left me alone in dark

And made a pain just like a shark

There's no need for talking

Don't get tired for explaining

Nothing will be the same again

And our love never will begin

Stop telling me about your regrets

You'd never touch my soul again

And never search my heart again

cause I don't wanna hear your usual lies ] -Esra Kahraman, Ex Love.