.

The elven language was a special kind of language especially when it came in written form. In Edea's history, elves were a magical race that taught the first human mages how to use magic. The very first spells humans used were originally cast using elven incantations. The language itself contained many mysteries, take elven scripture for example. One who cannot utilize mana cannot even see elven characters.

Kazuya didn't understand the language when he first learned about it. He only got the basics when he was taught at the academy in Edea. It was only after seeing his whole life multiple times that he could be considered to already be considered fluent in using the magical language.

"The hero Uriel truly was fit to be the most powerful mage. He was curious about anything that caught his attention" He surmised as he skimmed through the various research titles written on the book.

Natsu or the hero known as Uriel was not only known for his unrivaled prowess in magic, but also for his thirst for knowledge which led to the application of the schooling system in the continent of Edea. Kazuya himself attended the famous school that was built on the territory given to Uriel which was located in the middle of multiple borders. This land came to be known as the 'Freelands' after he had returned to the modern world.

He felt inferior not only to Natsu but all his other predecessors since their legends were discussed in the academies and there were various books about all their achievements. Compared to him, whose only achievement was winning a war that was but a conspiracy, he was nothing but a joke. To make things worse, he even got himself killed by the people he tried to help.

"Hmm?" His hands stopped at the research about the summoning formations.

[Hero summoning Formation Findings]

[According to notes found by the sages of ancient history, they dabbled and set different coordinates using the ancient language when they first experimented on hero summoning. The formation that summoned hero Raphael was the only successful one and had been released as the only working hero summoning formation]

[The voice that I, Natsu heard seeking for help when I was first called to Edea seems to have belonged to Great Sage Eleanor. She herself engraved her own voice in the formation so that the heroes summoned would know what they have been called for]

[Summoning a hero seems to have a heavy cost. Just activating this formation will make the land suffer from mana deprivation for many years]

[The dessert separating the two human kingdoms were most likely the result of the human sages' experiments]

[It is my theory that most of the mana used in the process acts as a blessing to empower the person summoned]

[As a precaution, the summoning formation targeted pure youths were the target of summons to prevent the possibility of uprisings]

[It is uncertain as to how we otherworlders can withstand such a colossal amount of mana]

"So that beautiful voice was not from some goddess but was from a sage. Add that to the list of lies that despicable royal family spat" Kazuya cursed.

The research was long and detailed but Kazuya took note of the important parts and was deeply impressed. The effort put into each and everything written on the book was not half-baked. It was as if he could feel his predecessor's passion through the magic language. Kazuya wondered what kind of person Natsu was and looked forward to meeting him if it was possible.

"Huh? What's this?" his hands stopped after reading a peculiar page's title.

[Hero Theory: Omnispecies]

[Please note that this is merely a theory that has nothing to do with Edea but rather the world we heroes come from known as Earth]

[I do not have the capacity to prove this theory because of the basic need to put together the requirements just to start this research. One: Technology from Earth at least on a genetic level, Two: people of different races from earth Three: people from various races in Edea]

[According to the results from the hero summoning formation research, any human from Earth that would match the description can be called to Edea. There has yet to be a summoned hero that has failed to exert prowess befitting of the title. This leads one to ask; how can humans from Earth be capable of feats humans or other races from Edea cannot?]

[Much like Edea, Earth's records do not reach very far into the past, however there are a lot of similarities especially when it comes to legends. Elves, Dwarves, Demons, Beast races and whatnot can be found all throughout Earthen literature. If they really did exist, where are they now?]

[This theory is based on my own knowledge of earth and it's history combined with what I've learned here in Edea. It can be said that Earth has existed far longer than Edea has if we base it upon the development of not only by it's technology but also society]

[Much like Edea's history, for as far as the records go on earth, it has been repeated cycle; An era of peace and then an era of war. A time of conflict and then a time of acceptance. To give an example would be the issue when humans and beast races fought and on Earth, the battle against racism]

[On earth, there are many theories about the origin of the human species like Darwin's theory of evolution. My theory is that the other species that can only be found in Earth's literature were not legends. They were merely forgotten and eventually merged with all the other races. They were eventually just labelled as the two legged 'humans' on Earth]

[Like I mentioned before, I do not have the capacity to present concrete evidence. As a citizen of Earth, this theory's circumstantial evidence can only be understood by residents of my world. Earth's landscape has changed throughout the decades and it is my belief that the diluted races' genes can easily be identified if one were to examine the different kinds of humans on Earth]

[This theory was formed in my pursuit to find the reason why we can handle the colossal amount of mana infused into us at the moment of our summoning]

[as for the reason why Earth lacks sufficient mana for us to be able to rely on magic rather than technology; I can only think that if earth had existed and developed to the point that the most dominant species of the planet had become a single entity, Earth's mana simply died out or we have such a high capacity for it that what's left of it is simply to the point that we can hardly even feel it anymore]

"Omnispecies… wait a minute" Kazuya realized something after reading.

Records say that Natsu decided to return to Earth after peace was stabilized and ensured. He took his wife with him to earth. That wife was an elf and elves for the most part needed mana more than they needed food.

"Then does that mean that Natsu's wife would have a hard time surviving on earth?"

He thought about it seriously because he himself found the scarce mana on earth a little troublesome. Kazuya had no idea how much mana elves needed to survive but it was surely more than a human would need right?

After pondering for a bit, he closed the book and locked it inside his desk drawer once more. He figured that he wouldn't get anywhere by thinking too much about it.it was already getting late so he decided to train once again before taking his bath and going to sleep.

The next day, Kyouko was informed that Kazuya had woken up early and went out for a jog. She was bit surprised because her son was the type to stay at home and rarely took the time to exercise.

"You went for a jog early this morning Kazuya?" She greeted him after he had just come back.

"I did. The curriculum mentioned that even the physical education classes were unlike normal schools"

"It's good to see that you're determined to do well but don't overdo yourself okay?"

"I won't. Don't worry mom"

"Oh, have you thought about which club you want to join?"

"Mn, I have. I think I'll be joining the kendo club"

"Oh? Why kendo?" Kyouko was baffled by his unexpected choice.

The only choices that came to mind was between martial arts clubs and since he was a swordsman, kendo was the only sport where he could have anything remotely close to actual combat with his preferred weapon. He didn't want his battle sense to deteriorate too much since there were limits to self-practice.

"It's one of the school's well-known clubs in the school so I wanted to try"

"How about joining a local dojo?" Kyouko supported this because she herself once practiced kendo because of her father.

"Do I get to practice with people more often?"

"(Boys will be boys)" She smiled after realizing another childish trait her son was showing. "More than you will in a club. Your grandfather is good friends with a person who runs a dojo nearby. Do you want me to take you there?"

"Yes! I'll go get ready!" he ran up the stairs in a hurry.

"I believe the young master has changed for the better. You shouldn't worry too much about him mistress"

"Is it really that obvious?" she felt a bit perplexed.

"Even the young master tries to reassure you. I believe there is not much reason to worry. The young master is only six years old. He may have lost some of his memories, but he still has more years to make new ones with you mistress"

"Maybe you're right" Kyouko sighed. She got ready and left the house with her son.

The duo walked around the neighborhood and stopped in front of a large pair of wooden gates. There was a wooden plaque on the side that wrote 'Shiroyuki Dojo'. Kyouko pressed the doorbell and was greeted by a young man wearing a kendo uniform.

"May I help you?"

"Is grandpa Jirou in?"

"Yes he is. Are you signing up for—"

"is that you Kyouko-chan?" an elderly gentleman also wearing a kendo uniform greeted them.

"Granpa Jirou! It's been a while"

Kazuya observed the elderly man and was surprised. He certainly had the air of someone skilled. He only wanted to have practice with living targets but he was now looking forward to joining this dojo.

"This must be old Kou's grandson then?" Kyouko urged him towards Jiro.

"Hello! My name is Kouzuki Kazuya" he bowed politely.

"What a polite child. Good! It's been a while since I saw someone with great potential" He eyed Kazuya with great interest.

"It's good that you think so grandpa Jirou. Kazuya's actually interested in joining the Kendo club in his new school, so I asked him if he wanted to come here to learn first"

"That's good news then!" he clapped his hands. "A kendo club eh? That's not a bad place to start since competition is always a good motivation for improvement. Come inside and let's talk in the dojo"

They entered the Shiroyuki household and Kazuya saw many students doing different kinds of exercises. Kyouko was hesitant because they were actually being led into the dojo that housed the most talented disciples. This was not her first time here so she was very familiar of how this dojo operated.

"Granpa Jirou the place we're going to…"

"Haha Didn't I already say it? I think boy has great talent and I'm rarely wrong especially when it comes to finding talents" he turned towards the young boy "How old are you young man"

"Six years old"

"Really? Great! Which school's kendo club are you going to join" his mood improved even more. He didn't say why but he gave the feeling that he wouldn't answer even if he was asked so Kazuya chose to say silent.

"Sacred Forest Academy's"

"Haha! Even better!" the old man laughed after hearing his answer. The duo didn't know why but chose not to ask since Jirou didn't even try to explain himself.

They entered the biggest dojo and found several children of different ages practicing. He looked around the lively dojo. Kazuya's attention was drawn to the crowd gathered at one of the dueling areas where someone had been knocked down.

"(Hmm? That girl…)" his eyebrows furrowed.

Kazuya was drawn to her emotionless expression. He couldn't help but find it familiar. A certain figure in his middle school suddenly flashed through his mind which shocked him. He couldn't help but give a wry smile after making the connection. He was sure that this was the younger version of one of those people he used to know since he did enter the 'Shiroyuki' dojo.

The crowding students immediately gave way for Jirou and them after noticing their arrival. The girl who paid no mind to her fallen opponent glanced towards Jirou as he neared.

"Grandfather…" she bowed

"(I knew it!)" Kazuya's heartbeat quickened. He knew this little girl from his other life.

"Allow me to introduce my granddaughter, Tomoyo"

"Shiroyuk…i Tomoyo…" she said in a barely audible soft tone. She lightly bowed but paid no real attention and stood beside Jirou silently.

"This boy is the grandson of grandfather's good friend Kou. Do you understand Tomoyo?" Jirou grinned as the emotionless girl's gaze flickered before moving to stare at Kazuya's. She then gave her grandfather a nod as if understanding something.

"(This girl… even now I can't figure out what she's thinking)" Kazuya frowned. He wanted to leave this place.

"How about it Kazuya, do you want to try sparring with my granddaughter?"

The students were shocked. Was their master actually being serious in making a newbie spar with her of all people?

"No... I don't want to hurt her" Kazuya ignored the gazes that focused on him including the flickering gaze of Tomoyo before continuing "I'd rather spar with you grandpa Jirou"

The atmosphere froze. Even Jiro was taken aback by the sudden challenge. This time, even the instructors from the other dueling areas who heard paused and came closer with great interest.