Regaleon: The Forgotten Knight

Sylveris noticed her sister’s odd state and immediately asked worriedly. "Uhm, Sister... are you alright?"

The young girl looked at her sister, her silver eyes shining with a concerned glint. Her worried words garnered the attention of the others, who had been engrossed in their own discussion.

Sylveris’ voice finally snapped Aureleah out of her distant state.

The failed Assassin blinked once before turning away from Regaleon. She looked toward her younger sister and plastered that same infinitely small smile upon her lips.

"Of course, Sylveris. I’m alright."

Her voice was warm and soothing as she spoke, before gently pulling her younger sister into a hug. Sylveris, now basking in the familiar warmth of her older sister, simply nodded.

She didn’t catch the undertone of reassurance hidden within Aureleah’s words neither did the others. Eventually, everyone returned to their conversation; yet Aureleah’s gaze shifted imperceptibly toward Regaleon once more.

It was fleeting, like a shadow passing across a wall beneath the moonlight. Then, after a moment, she pushed those worries to the back of her mind and joined the others in their verbal exchange of insights.

In the meantime, Regaleon’s body continued to cultivate autonomously.

Honestly, it was a bizarre situation. But what else could he do?

He had tried several methods to wrestle back control of his body, but no matter what he attempted, nothing made the slightest difference. It was almost as though his conscious will had been locked out of his own body, leaving him no more than an observer to the inner workings of his cultivation.

By now, he had long since gotten past his ruminations. After thinking so hard that even his cerebrum seemed to ache, Regaleon had finally reached the conclusion that no amount of contemplation would allow him to unravel the mystery behind that strange "Heart".

Besides, there was something else. A vague sensation lingered within his consciousness; it wasn’t exactly a feeling per say, rather, it was more like a hunch. Weirdly enough, something was telling him that the key to understanding that "Heart" lay in one thing; becoming a complete Etheryean.

For some reason, Regaleon couldn’t help but trust that instinct. And because of that, the failed Knight was able to put his mind at ease.

After all, sooner or later, he would discover what was happening to him but all he had to do simply wait.

It wasn’t long after he reached that conclusion that a series of muffled explosions suddenly erupted from within his body...

Boom! Boom!! Boom!!!

Willing his consciousness deeper into himself, Regaleon was able to witness the awakening of his Secondary Aether Veins.

The autonomous mechanism within his body was directing torrents of Aether toward them.

It began with the veins within his spine, then his lungs, then his liver, and finally, his kidneys. Then one after another, his Secondary Aether Veins awakened...

Previously, Regaleon had been carrying an awful apprehension concerning his cultivation. That was because he had been convinced that something would eventually go wrong somewhere.

How could it not?

His body was cultivating without his conscious direction as every single step was being handled by something he didn’t understand.

Yet, as fate—or perhaps reality itself—would have it, everything went far better than he had expected.

His cultivation proceeded so smoothly that, for an instant, Regaleon actually wondered whether all of Aelric’s warnings and insistence had been nothing more than bombastic talks.

However, remembering how serious the green-eyed youth had been when explaining the dangers, Regaleon quickly debunked that thought. This is because Aelric wouldn’t have gone to such lengths simply to lie to them nor would he have had any reason to frighten them without cause.

If only the failed Knight knew just how lucky he truly was.

While the rest of the cohort had treated their breakthroughs like riding a unicycle across a tightrope suspended above a sea of flames while juggling knives, Regaleon was cruising through his as though the road had been prepared long before he ever set foot upon it.

There were no obstacles, turbulence or resistance. Rather, there was only a paved path. And perhaps... That was exactly what his situation was.

In any case, once everything was completed, Regaleon immediately swept his body with his consciousness.

He searched for inconsistencies, abnormalities, deficiencies; anything that might indicate a mishap. And after a thorough examination, he was finally able to confirm that there had been no mishap.

But he still wasn’t finished yet. His dormant Secondary Aether Veins had awakened; now came the next stage. They had to be strengthened, thickened, and expanded.

This was the very stage that Aureleah had been trapped within for hours, unable to find a suitable solution. And when she finally discovered a way through it, she had been forced to treat the process like a matter of life and death.

But once again, under the guidance of that strange will, Regaleon simply... Cruised through it.

Aether began pouring into his body in flood.

The Essence Pool trembled with countless strands of concentrated Aether surging toward Regaleon’s body, causing the liquid around him to spiral violently.

Within moments, the entire pool began rotating, forming a vortex of pure energy around him.

The enormous quantity of Aether being drawn toward his body transformed his position into the focal point of a terrifying whirlpool but Regaleon remained perfectly still.

As he observed the process, however, a strange occurrence caught his attention.

For Aureleah, before she passed this stage, she had first needed to return to the first stage and strengthen her Primary Aether Veins.

But strangely enough, Regaleon didn’t need to.

This is because the influx of Aether wasn’t being handled by his physical heart alone. It also had the influence of the metaphysical "Heart" also.

The sight was strange, almost incomprehensible.

Regaleon simply couldn’t reconcile the sight before him with the idea that something metaphysical—something that should have been illusory—could interact so seamlessly with something as tangible and physical as his actual body.

Yet he didn’t dwell on it much longer as he considered it another mystery to be unraveled in the future.

As Aether flowed into his two hearts, Regaleon focused his consciousness upon the distribution. Like two conductors directing the same orchestra, each heart handled a different section of the torrent.

His physical heart sent the necessary amount of Aether toward his spine and lungs while the metaphysical one handled his liver and kidneys.

At the same time, Regaleon could see his Primary Aether Veins absorbing their share of the energy which caused them to expand of their own accord. Yet strangely enough, his other "Heart" was absorbing Aether as well.

Also, the more it absorbed, the more tangible it became causing it’s once-illusory structure to gradually solidify. What had previously seemed like a phantom carved from nothingness was becoming increasingly real.

Regaleon’s consciousness remained fixed upon it. Looking closely, he discovered two familiar colours shimmering across its surface and between them was a faint tinge of crimson.

Regaleon’s consciousness trembled but before he could investigate any further...

BOOM!

A deafening explosion erupted from within his body. The force was so tremendous that it felt as though something had detonated inside the very foundations of his existence...

The others were still engrossed in their cultivation when suddenly...

BOOM!!!

A tremendous detonation erupted from the center of the Essence Pool.

Everyone immediately turned their attention toward it only to see a massive shockwave roaring toward them.

The surface of the Essence Pool churned violently before rippling outward, wave after wave surging across the cavern like miniature tsunamis.

The glowing Essence Crystals embedded within the cavern walls began shuddering violently. The force was so tremendous that several clusters and chunks of Crystals broke loose from the walls and crashed onto the ground.

The shockwave washed over the group like a typhoon. Even with their enhanced physiques, several of them were forced to brace themselves.

Sylveris, in particular, nearly lost her footing.

"Ah!"

She immediately wrapped both arms around Aureleah, clinging tightly to her older sister as the force threatened to tear them apart.

"Hold on!" Aureleah shouted.

The violent disturbance continued for several moments. Then slowly, it began to subside...

The moment the disturbance became subdued, everyone’s attention immediately returned to the center of the pool and what they saw caused several jaws to slacken.

Regaleon was sitting within the Essence Pool but calling what they saw simply Regaleon felt almost inadequate.

His entire body radiated an intense silver and golden brilliance. He looked like a literal physical manifestation of a human torch burning within the depths of the pool, except his radiance wasn’t merely bright.

It was majestic, overwhelming, and has a touch of something almost sanctimonious.

The light pouring from his body illuminated the cavern, washing over the walls and reflecting off the countless Essence Crystals.

Yet the most astonishing part wasn’t even his radiance, it was the aura surrounding him.

Intense heat radiated from his body. It was so intense that the air itself seemed to distort around him. Furthermore, the water beneath him churned continuously, evaporating into thin wisps of mist before being replaced by the surrounding Essence.

For a moment, Regaleon didn’t look like a cultivator, he looked like a being that had descended from the heavens. A seraphim if you will.

And perhaps it wasn’t an exaggeration to call him one.

This is because if one looked closely enough at the radiant silhouette behind his back, they would notice six enormous wings seemingly sprouting there.

These appendages were formed from the overwhelming radiance surrounding him, though their outlines was barely visible through the silver and golden brilliance.

The phenomenon was so magnificent that it completely overshadowed the manifestations produced by the others. Well, all except Aureleah’s.

If Aureleah’s manifestation had been the epitome of darkness, then Regaleon’s was the epitome of light.

"Whoa..." Veyrath stared at the sight before him, his mouth hanging open.

Then, almost absentmindedly, the failed Alchemist muttered. "Why do I feel like I should prostrate myself before him?"

His question might have sounded preposterous. Yet none of the others found it strange. This is because, for some absolutely inexplicable reason, they felt it that strange compulsion also.

Their bodies instinctively wanted to lower themselves; to bow and show reverence. It was an urge that came from somewhere deeper than thought; something primal and unexplainable.

In fact, if one didn’t know any better, they would actually think that Regaleon was some monarch from a forgotten age, a sovereign whose very existence commanded the reverence of all who stood before him.

And perhaps, that was the case with him...

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