232 Preparation 2 (2/2)
Both of them ate without a word.
Vanderman looked at his son, his son who was never a stickler for rules, was suddenly obedient. Usually he’d have gone out to gamble or to court Aquarius whatshername, but the past few days he’d been quiet.
”When Sofea left yesterday, why didn’t you see her off?” He asked, ”You shan’t be so rude, do you hear?”
”Yes, father.” Garen nodded and muttered. He forgot. He’d been paying attention at the tombstone so much, he didn’t know Sofea had left.
”About the Astronomical Edict, you were in the wrong. Don’t think I won’t know just because you don’t tell me. But you’ve already given it away, there’s no need to take it back, lest other families shame you. You owe your Big Sister Sofea an apology.” Vanderman closed his eyes for a moment. ”I will repay her on your behalf. Do not do it again.”
”Yes, father.” Garen nodded conscientiously.
The original Acacia did behave that way with Vanderman.
Whatever wrongdoings he had had, Viscount Vanderman was tepid at best, he never really showed any distinct expressions. He would gently take over and solve things as being Acacia’s ‘loving’ father.
Somehow, Acacia was just afraid of his father without any specific reason.
Vanderman finished his soup and wiped his lips clean before standing up.
”Alright, enjoy the meal. I will be out for a forum in the afternoon and will return late. Do stay in the manor for this evening, it may be dangerous out there.”
”I understand.” Garen nodded with alert.
Danger in the evening? What danger?
He started to have a guess for the possible reasons. Vanderman never used to warn Acacia like this. As a Luminarist himself, if he would consider something a danger, he definitely knows something.
Could it be that something is happening within the Luminarist circle?
Guesses kept flashing through Garen’s mind.
He had been following Acacia’s behavioral pattern for the past few days. He also minimized interaction with people who were close to him, for example, his friends. They sent him an invitation to a ball the previous night, and he’d turned down the invitation.
The point for this seclusion was to slowly change the impression people have on his behavior, to adapt to this life.
After all, no matter how much he disguise himself, Garen and Acacia are two very different people.
Staying in his seat, he watched as Viscount Vanderman left the dining hall.
He sped up and finished up his food, and wiped his mouth as he stood up. A servant passed him his palate cleanser soup, which he swallowed after gargling with it.
He excused himself to go have a walk by the lake, and under two guards’ protection, he strolled along the lake.
The guards here, as compared to the guards in the last world, were just two normal people who were slightly stronger. They wore leather armor and were equipped with daggers. Only a captain would qualified to carry a gun.
Even with Garen’s weakened body, he’d be able to take out the guards by himself. It doesn’t matter if they’ve been trained as a Royal Guard, the outcome would be the same.
He found an excuse to get away from the two guards. There were the patrols and the outpost nearby anyway, he needn’t worry.
Alone, Garen walked until he could see the tombstone from afar.
Viscount Vanderman’s warning had him thinking the battle may be happening that day itself.
The timeline for the battle in the memory aligned with the current period too.
He hid himself in the bush and concealed his presence using his Martial Arts breathing technique. His weakened presence quickly wicked out of existence. After all, he’d learned the Turtle Breathing Technique in his last world.
Inside the bush, Garen paid close attention to everything around him, especially for the sound and movements.
”According to the last world’s classification, I was a Grade B at my highest achievement, that’s the power level of a guided missile, my destruction level is equivalent to a mobile bomb able to cause mass destruction.”
He calculated his rate of recovery.
”Within four days, I only recovered to the level of a normal adult.”
When he was chosen as a core disciple for White Cloud Dojo, he was already close to attaining Grade E barring some combat experience. Grade D was Grandmaster of Combat level, Grade E was Fei Baiyun and First Senior Sister Rosetta’s level. They were qualified to open up a dojo of their own and teach.
With a body of normal human being, there are a lot of skills in the Divine Statue Technique he can’t use, with the exception of some basic battle and grappling skills. However, with his experience in combat and knowledge of the Secret Methods, Garen was confident he could beat anyone below a Grade E.
In other words, his body was weak, but his mind was one of the strongest fighters, of the King of the Century.
”It boils down to how Luminarists fight now…” Garen’s presence sank deeper and deeper into concealment, even his breath became slow, trickling, and drawn out. He could already sense something wrong in the environment with his rich experience in combat.