I've finally come to terms with everything. My new life... is here. And for the first time in a long time, I'm really happy. Everything was starting to fall into place again. I knew that I had made the right choice, that I was here, and that I had a chance to start over. As soon as I got home, without hesitation, I teleported straight to the garden. Everything around me was so familiar and peaceful, but there was something about it that filled me with both peace and excitement.
It surprised Lillie, who was hanging out the laundry. When she saw me, she almost dropped the basket of pins and looked at me in horror. "Oh, young master! I didn't expect you to wield such magic," she gasped in amazement.
I just smiled at her and nodded my head slightly. No words were needed. At that moment, I felt everything around me slowly returning to normal. It was like coming home, but at the same time I knew I would never be the same person I was before.
A little further on, I saw my father training with Rudy. Aisha and Norm were sitting next to him, along with Kuzuha, watching them intently. The atmosphere was calm, ordinary. Maybe too calm. Everything seemed so... normal. But for me, it was different. I had been through so many experiences, so many changes, that everything around me seemed like a slow motion movie.
As I approached, Paul called out to me: "Mephisto! Come show us how you've improved. I hope your progress will be better than your brother's!"
Rudy just snorted, winked at me and quietly walked away. He probably remembered our last exchange. I knew I had disappointed him a little, but that was reality - everything was easier for me. I picked up the wooden sword he'd left behind and stood casually. I stood up to fight with complete ease, almost bored, with the sword resting on my shoulder.
"Stand up properly!" Paul exclaimed sharply, obviously displeased with my attitude. He probably didn't like that I wasn't taking him seriously. But what was I to do? Everyone here was... slow for me. Weak.
At that point, I had something else on my mind. I wondered what world I would go to next. Maybe DxD... a world full of gods, demons and dragons. That could be fun. What about Koneko and Akeno? I liked them before. That was the perfect opportunity. I don't have to stay there forever. Just to have fun. Then move on. The possibilities were endless.
I was suddenly jolted out of my thoughts by Paul's quick movement.
To others, his speed might have been overwhelming, maybe even terrifying. But for me? It was as if he was walking... ordinary. Slowly. I used no enhanced perception, no skill. I just... got used to it. To a different level. Maybe it was a side effect of training with Ghislaine. And even that was more like a morning warm-up than an actual fight.
Paul approached - his eyes were full of concentration, his expression tense, as if he was really taking this seriously. But me? I was just having fun.
He attacked.
A quick, powerful lunge. Deadly to the average warrior. For me? Slow dance. I turned slightly to the side, not even raising my wooden sword to defend myself. I didn't have to. Its blade passed by my side - a few millimeters short. Close, as he would have thought. But in reality, it was just as much as I wanted.
"Focus!" thundered Paul, turning the lunge into a series of punches. Left, right, overhead, diagonally...
Still nothing. Step back. Step aside. A gentle flick of the wrist. Slight tilt of the head. Each of his punches missed the target by a whisker - as if I knew his movements before he made them. Because I knew them. I read him like an open book.
"That's it?" I uttered, bored, and yawned.
Paul flushed with anger.
"Don't provoke me, boy!" He hissed, and this time he started to run. He raised his sword above his head, ready to deliver a crushing blow that might have broken a tree.
I just shrugged.
And in that instant, I was gone.
One step. Not teleportation. Not magic. Just movement - a speed no one here understands.
Paul landed with a scream, his sword sinking into the ground where I'd been standing a second before. Dust flew into the air. And then... I brought the blade of my sword to the back of his neck.
"Dead," I whispered calmly in his ear.
He froze. Sweat trickled down his forehead. Norm and Aisha watched the scene with open mouths. Rudy chuckled softly.
Paul turned slowly, incomprehension in his eyes.
"When did you... how did you..." He stammered.
"That wasn't a fight," I interrupted. "It was a lesson."
I turned and threw the sword back into the grass. The sun was just breaking through the leaves of the trees above us. In that light, I felt almost like the main character of my own story. And maybe I really was. Hahaha, it sounded a little silly, but if the multiverse is infinite, why couldn't I be a fictional character somewhere, right?
I know arrogance is bad, but Paul is the one who needs a lesson. He needs it like salt. I could tell he was pissed that I beat him so easily, but at the same time, there was a pride in his eyes that I didn't expect from him.
I walked over to the girls and Kuzuha, who I patted on the head and asked, "So how was it?"
The girls smiled and replied, "Amazing, just like we expected from you, little brother." And then they hugged me. That put a smile on my face.
Rudy was visibly upset that they didn't tell him the same thing, so I just stuck my tongue out at him. He just jerked his head to the side and walked away from me.
After everything was over, I went back to my room to rest. I thought about taking Roxy with me to DxD. She might not like it there - after all, it's a world full of ecchi, which might spoil her. I'll probably give her a choice. I can't decide for her.
I still correspond after she left us, but since we talked about our marriage, we never opened it up again. Maybe I should visit her soon.
But I'll have to wait... just over two years now. I'll wait, Roxy...