Regnum Aetern: Dual Rebirth

"I really can’t believe it was that easy... I didn’t think she would be that childish..."

Evangeline muttered absentmindedly as she walked alongside Xion.

The fact that the duke’s daughter was childish enough to accept her offer and join her team all because of the cheap trick she had tried to pull was still too hard for her to accept.

’Well, at least I was able to recruit her in the end, so I guess it’s a good thing.’

With Xion and Saria recruited to the team, Adrian was the only one remaining. So they were on their way to the grand library to recruit him as well.

She turned to Xion.

"By the way, how do you plan to recruit him? Don’t think that the trick I pulled on that rude girl is gonna work on him. If anything, that’ll just piss him off further."

He smiled.

"I don’t think recruiting him will be all that hard for me. In fact, it would probably be far easier than recruiting that beast of a girl."

He sounded confident, but Evangeline couldn’t really believe in that confidence. It was not like Xion knew Adrian to make that judgment.

Soon, they reached the library and entered. After navigating the path made by bookshelves, they finally arrived at the spot where Adrian was.

Adrian seemed to be utterly focused as he drew something on a page.

As she focused on the page, what she found was...

’...A scribble?’

What Adrian was drawing on the page looked like a scribble no matter how long she stared. It felt so strange to see him scribbling on the page with such utter focus.

’Is he going through puberty, perhaps?’

Evangeline and Xion calmly walked up to him and sat down facing him. Adrian paused and raised his head.

"What is it now?" He furrowed his brow and pointed at Xion. "Why is he here?"

Before she could speak, Xion leaned forward and smiled amicably.

"Nice to meet you. I believe this is our second meeting? We have already met during the ranking duels, so I hope that you still remember me. Oh, right. Forgive me for forfeiting during our duel without even putting up a fight. That was shameful and cowardly of me."

Saying that, Xion offered Adrian a light bow. In response, though, Adrian narrowed his eyes and said flatly.

"I would like it if you would get to the point instead of speaking about irrelevant matters."

"Ah, yes, of course." Xion let out a cough as if to clear his throat. "I am here to ask you to join her team. Both Saria Velcyra Mythrien and I have agreed to join her team. You are the only one remaining, so please join so that we can together take on a mission from the island exploration category."

Adrian frowned, alternating his gaze between Xion and Evangeline. Even though he wore a perfectly calm expression, she could somewhat sense that he was rather taken aback.

But that shock seemed to have lasted for only a few moments before he calmly leaned back and spoke in his usual dull tone.

"You wish to recruit me to your team just as she had tried to do a short while ago? Then I will ask you the same question that I had asked her. What is the merit of choosing the island exploration mission over the quest missions? I can point out plenty of demerits, though. So, do you have an answer?"

Xion calmly shook his head.

"There is indeed something you gain, and that is a challenge. As you know, island exploration missions require you to be at least Phase Four, while being a Phase Five is recommended. So it is obviously going to be much more challenging compared to the quest mission, where the minimum entry requirement is only Phase Three. Don’t forget that the sea itself is a dangerous place filled with gigantic beasts and incomprehensible monsters."

Adrian narrowed his eyes.

"I would count that as a demerit. If you think of that as a merit, then you do you. I have no interest in challenges. After all, nobody would go out of their way to face a greater challenge when their goals can be achieved without doing so."

’I hate to admit it, but I feel like siding with Adrian on this.’

He was correct. Taking on challenges for no apparent reason was masochistic behavior. Only muscleheads like Saria would choose to do so. Because greater challenge doesn’t equate to greater growth. It equates to greater risk of failure.

But as Xion heard Adrian’s reply, he sighed.

"You have a mindset that is going to hold you back, my friend. You are thinking of only the end goal, disregarding the process completely. Did you know? Most of the powerful individuals have one thing in common. There is something that’s driving them forward. Some of them wanted revenge, some of them had a great dream that they wanted to achieve from the bottom of their heart, while others wanted something else. The point is, they all had a drive that made them move forward regardless of the obstacles in their way."

He turned to look out of the window.

"That is why it is often said that to reach the top, one must have the drive to never stop climbing. But not everyone can have such a drive. I myself am a good example. I don’t have any grand aspirations. That is why I go out of my way to put myself in dangerous situations where giving up means death. After all, the greatest drive in the world is the desire to live. You have to think about what you can gain from the process rather than treating it as a mere obstacle."

Evangeline was taken aback. The way Xion spoke made him feel like an old man who was sharing his years of accumulated experience.

Adrian asked in a curious tone.

"Is that something that you learned after fighting in the never-ending war at the borders?"

Xion shook his head with a smile.

"No, not really. In fact, the reason I had fought in that war in the first place was that I had come to learn this fact."

Adrian began pondering in silence as Evangeline waited patiently.

’Please say yes, please...’

And then, finally, Adrian slowly opened his mouth.

"...I am busy preparing a few things that I wish to finish before going out on the mission. Of course, I know that we must take one mission per month, so give me until the end of the month and I will be done by then. We can depart on the last day of the month."

Evangeline’s lips curled up into a smile.

’Yay!!!’

He hadn’t said this directly, but it was clear that he was agreeing. This meant that she had successfully managed to gather all four of the Phase Three cadets in a single team. And by doing so, she had fulfilled the requirements to take on a mission from the island exploration category.

She felt like dancing.

’Xion, I should’ve never doubted you!’

And so, she left the library soon after and went to the academy office building to register their team.

After some effort, she finally managed to register all four of them as a team.

Leaving the office building, Evangeline pumped her fists.

’Sea adventure, here I come!’

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