Beyond The System-Chapter 271: Story By Fire

The words lingered in the air long after I spoke them—my attempt at easing the tension clearly falling flat. A brittle, almost crackling silence settled over us, but thankfully, younger minds stepped in before it grew any heavier.

“What happened to you?” Mei asked, her voice soft but direct. “We were told a little, but only that you were taken and fine.”

I smiled and started toward her, fully intending to sit at her side, but a streak of vibrant green flashed past me and claimed the spot first. An eager Harua, leaning over the girl with bright-eyed enthusiasm. “I can tell you!”

I only shook my head, not even bothering to argue, and instead drifted toward Thea. The moment I settled beside her and leaned gently against her shoulder, a subtle unwinding rippled through both of us. It may not have been the homecoming I’d pictured, but with that lightest touch, I felt the pressure weighing on her melt away.

Harua whispered something into Mei’s ear, then stood, sliding into another open space near Griffith, who blinked at her as if unsure how he should greet her. She settled in effortlessly, rocking in small, lazy circles like a bored child who had somehow always belonged among us.

Everyone was present except Bristle and the other animals. Perhaps they were having their own gathering… though realistically, the brightest mind among them was the snake, with Bristle a very clear second.

Mei looked at me expectantly, repeating the question to me with a tinge of confusion in it. Clearly Harua hadn’t helped. There was something so earnest in her tone that dodging the question felt impossible. Everyone’s eyes drifted toward me.

I leaned back, letting my thoughts sift through the past few days—though, truly, it felt like one long, distorted stretch rather than several. “Yeah, it was… an interesting place.” Changing my posture, I rolled my neck and leaned in, focusing on Mei and Vel more than anyone.

I began with the kidnapping orchestrated by Drema followed by the Domain of Death. “It felt like everything inside me was ripped away, leaving only the power of my body behind. Fortunately, that’s the part we’ve all trained well.”

Then I described the undead. Their hollow bodies lit by internal flames, the way strips of flesh sagged from bare bone. I couldn’t help but smile at everyone’s attempts to picture it: some faces twisted in confusion, others in outright disgust.

Mei, for some reason, began laughing lightly. “I thought you made up the stories you told me back then. So there really are ghosts?”

I shrugged, adopting a mock-thoughtful expression. “I thought I made them up too, but it seems not. Though I’d call them zombies more than ghosts. And there were more kinds.” I went on to explain the differences, how some were more intact, how the Domain of Death felt heavier and more potent around them.

Harua jumped in occasionally, offering her own peculiar but sometimes surprisingly useful insights. When I reached the part about the worm in the desert, she chimed in with a helpful—“Help took care of the grandmother.”—which, with my explanation as to Help’s identity, cleared lingering confusion.

When I told them about the Nikmes—their bondage, their history, and how they were freed—she again contributed details, repeating things she had once told me about their origins and the two divergent paths of their species. But before anyone could ask questions, she abruptly derailed the topic to dissect the finer mechanics of flapping appendages.

But of course, there was someone more than eager to listen, the large man beside her absorbing every scrap of information like a sponge desperate for water.

“Wow,” Mei breathed, turning toward her father. “Mom didn’t say anything about a place like that.”

Sei nodded thoughtfully. “I’m not too experienced either. But there are many places out there, each filled with their own creatures and dangers.”

My eyes widened. Not at his caution, but at a particular word Mei used. I didn’t dare bring attention to it, yet my reaction must have slipped through, because Mei suddenly stood up with a bright, triumphant grin spreading across her face.

“I bet you’re wondering who my mom is,” she announced proudly, pausing for dramatic effect.

I blinked. “Uh… yeah! I’ve never heard you mention her before!” I played along, pretending ignorance.

“Heh,” she chuckled, pointing toward the area where Serith and Amei had vanished moments ago. “She told me a couple days ago! It’s Miss Amei!”

I let the revelation hang for a heartbeat. “Crazy.” My delivery might have been a shade too monotone, because she narrowed her eyes suspiciously just as her father tugged her back down, smoothly diverting the topic.

“Her talent makes a lot of sense, right?” he said with a self-satisfied grin. “A goddess and a genius among geniuses can only lead to an even greater genius.”

I didn’t have much to compare with, but seeing how well their conversation must have gone filled me with a warm relief. I didn’t push further, just smiled at Mei. “It’s really amazing.” We lingered on that subject only briefly before drifting back to the final stretch of my story.

I wrapped up the tale with the storm’s aftermath and finally mentioned my attainment of Air Essence.

A man sighed dramatically, leaning against his wife. “Your speed is a little scary, Peter,” Marcus lamented in a mock sob. “Leaving your combat instructor behind… It’s sad watching the kids grow up.”

I rolled my eyes as Griffith chimed in, his sincerity only slightly stronger. “Truly. But is that not a master’s role? To be surpassed? It is… pleasant, in its way.”

Next came Sei—who had really offered me little before now—joining the chorus. “Indeed. Such is life with a student, is it not?” he mused, slipping into a philosophical tone. “Of course… he’ll never surpass me, but watching a student grow is something extraordinary.”

Harua nodded earnestly, growing uncharacteristically serious, perhaps unaware of the sarcasm thick in the air. Then again, according to her, she was “always joking and serious” simultaneously.

“But we can always watch from afar as he grows more and more… I can, anyway,” she sighed, shaking her head in solemn disappointment. “If only he would listen to his master and flap just a little harder. He could fly.”

Not wanting to be excluded, even though she probably couldn’t hear him, Wyrem offered his own commentary. I suppose you could be considered a student of mine, though certainly less talented than my other. She has a point. Flying is quite nice.

Not like a worm would know, Luna teased. It is pretty crazy though. I was just a little grass. And now?

I knew exactly what she meant, and so did the others beneath all the joking. It was outrageous to even consider what we’d become. Me and them, we were no longer in the same realm as ordinary people. Even by the standards of this world. In more ways than one, we were practically different creatures entirely.

I honestly doubted I could still be called human anymore, beyond outward appearance.

“I haven’t even gotten my second one, and you’re on your third?” Trevor cut in, genuine frustration edging his voice. “Do you know how annoying it is to have a fire-breathing monster torture you for two days straight?”

“Yes,” Elric answered before I could. “I do. But—” his tone took on a dramatic note of irritation. “He doesn’t. What can we, the untalented, do? Sometimes we’re simply bound to what was given to—OW!”

He was pinched.

Well deserved.

“You’re the last person who should be talking about talent,” Sia shot back, fire sparking in her eyes. “I haven’t been able to do anything about it either. Even mom beat me to it!” Her voice rose at the end, more flustered embarrassment than actual anger.

“I have many years on you. Understanding the nature of what I’ve wielded for so long wasn’t too difficult,” Helen said with a gentle smile, resting a reassuring hand on her daughter’s shoulder. “You and your father are in the same boat. There’s nothing to be embarrassed about.”

Marcus quickly looked away, a small red blush creeping up the side of his neck.

Griffith stood and brushed a few stubborn flecks of dirt from his pants. “It sounds like we all need a bit of training, then.” He turned to me. “It’ll be good for you to relax before tomorrow. Once the match is over, we’ll talk more.”

One by one, the others began to rise, peeling off into the jungle paths or wandering toward the beach. Some needed air, others needed training, and a few likely just wanted an excuse to disappear before more teasing could begin. I decided it wouldn’t hurt to relax for a while.

Rojin and Synthia were still nowhere to be seen, but since no one seemed remotely concerned, I assumed nothing was wrong. I’d ask later.

Eventually, only Mei, Harua, Thea, Vel, Sia, Lyra, Elric, and I remained.

My gaze drifted to Vel, and a reminder surfaced. Before anything else distracted me, I needed to take care of this. I should act like her master at least some of the time.

“We should start your Body Refinement… unless someone’s already taught you?”

She shook her head, chin dipping slightly. “I was waiting.”

I nodded and glanced at the others, who stood and gathered around her in an open semicircle.

“It’s not complicated,” I explained. “Just draw in as much energy as you can until you start to feel uncomfortable. That feeling will shift into something else, and once it does, it’ll be hard to stop.” A flicker of worry crossed her face, so I shook my head gently. “That’s why we’re all here.”

I turned to Mei. “If you and your parents agree, you’ll start this soon as well. So pay attention to her Inner Realm.”

Mei nodded obediently and placed her hand on the small of Vel’s back.

Harua mirrored the gesture, though her contribution was simply, “I’m curious, so I’ll watch too.”

“You can join—”

She cut me off instantly. “From what I’ve seen, I would die.”

Elric blinked at her, then looked at me. “You’ve shown her?”

I shook my head. “Nope. She just likes to peep on others.” Then I focused on Vel. “Ready?”

With a silent, steady nod from her, we all slipped into her Inner Realm, allowing my first student to begin her Body Refinement.