Sigh…

The contract binds anyone to those who are in relation with its owner, not because it promotes slavery nor it puts anyone under the mercy of the owner. Rather, the [Rift Shard] sees this as unnecessary in respect to the guideline proposed by its principle towards life.

However, once a soul or a creature bound with a contract disobeys the will of the [Rift Shard]. An energy will manifest from the crystal, reappearing in formless energy. Invoking pressure to those who go against its will or a rule set by the crystal.

Olen took advantage of this rule by pretending to be the manifestation of its presence. By having his aura merge around the energy and faking his voice as godly as possible and shouting the magical word in an exact moment. Rewarding him the option for the [Silver Tongue] from his well-done act.

‘what can I say i’m smort, yes smort’

He wasn’t just really confident if his warriors could win the favor of the yeti which cost him to think of such underhanded means.

And if he remembered correctly, the souls residing in the Gate of Souls were filled with fragments of the past floating in the void. Two warriors even said by themselves: souls or memories of the past wandering aimlessly in the void.

He didn’t know if an otherworldly presence altered his memories, but he knew one thing for sure. A strange voice would emerge from his consciousness, relaying its past like a link between their souls. He was sure it was those memories from the day when he had gained those visions, the crystal and the sword.

Olen looked at the monster beneath his gaze, shaking his head in pity. Looking at the two warriors at his side, he said: “Do I really need to take matters in my own hands or are you going to help me?

Feimshall looked at the goblin, its eyes filled with fear, while sliding a glance toward Alfrick. Conveying his intention from his meaning. Afterward, he moved toward the Yeti, looking at the monster struggling to break apart from the chain covered in its body. Meanwhile, Alfrick push the goblin's shoulder to the ground, keeping it from moving.

Feimshall confused at the sudden events that had happened a while ago, flustered. As the deep voice of his liege reached to his ears, and nervously said: “Ah yes… how could I… forgot my liege”

With the goblin cornered on the ground, Feimshall reached out his hand at the Yeti, hoping to calm it down. The yeti then turned its head at the man in front of it, while its rage gradually cooled down as it saw its master coming toward it.

Feimshall instantly turned his head to Olen and the Yeti as he moved his head back and forth curiously. Suddenly an idea sprouted in his mind and said…

“He’s your father,” while pointing his fingers at Olen.

Olen “...”

Alfrick “...”

The goblin “...”

Feimshall didn't know what to do to ease the tension surrounding him, so in some sort of way, he found out maybe his out-of-the-mind idea could raise the familiarity between his liege and the Yeti. In fact, he had only one thought in his mind after realizing the genius idea planned in his head.

‘If he's my lord, then does that make him the Yeti father?’

“Roar?” The Yeti looking back and forth in confusion at its master, trying to picture what its master meant by pointing its finger and calling it father.

When Feimshall was about to explain what the father meant by carving a picture in the snow on the ground. Olen suddenly appeared and grabbed his shoulder. “If you want to treasure your life, you better let me do the drawing,” he said, looking at him with a grim look in his eyes.

Feimshall shuddered in fear, as he looked at the Yeti one last time, hinting it to be calm. The Yeti aura suddenly dimmed down, subdued by the look of its master's eyes.

Olen nodded and slowly approached the Yeti and looked into its eyes. “Father means god… understood!” his silver tongue whispered to its ears while drawing a monster and baby gorilla in its front.

For a moment of clarity, Olen thought there might be something amiss at the conjecture he used to portray himself at the drawing.

‘Wait… did I just use the father as a role?’

The Yeti shivered in fear, as it saw Olen's image overlapped with the monstrous figure towering over him. The Yeti's furious aura soon diminished as the chains surrounding its body slowly vanished.

“Good, now that the [Rift Shard] freed you, you must have already accepted me as your god,” Olen indifferently said, still acting like a god.

“Let’s call you Krongus from now, ok krongus?” Olen said in an authoritative voice. He then turned his head at Feimshall, as he point his finger at him, “Master” while also pointing his finger once more to his chest, and said “me God”

Olen satisfied with the idea and nodded, a grunting sound all of sudden rushed to his ears, as the voice struggled to say the word with confusion in its eyes. “Fwather? Gwad?” the yeti spoke for a moment scratching his head, “Gwodfwather?” Krongus nodded, satisfied with the word.

“Godfather,” Krongus repeated and happily said.

Olen “...”

Alfrick and the goblin “...”

‘It’s always all about me being the old man,’ Olen thought, to think he would be still carrying this burden after reincarnating into this world. He felt stifled, unable to guide his frustration whether it was the Yeti fault or the man who taught it to say the word father.

He swept his eyes toward Feimshall and sighs… ‘there’s no doubt about it, they are both idiots, and both muscled brain’

Olen looked at the sky for a while, taking a deep breath and after quite a while, Olen looked at the two warriors in a distance, drenched in sweat—

“Gather the stones outside from the snow, and make use of Krongus. The yeti could be of help in lessening the effort of picking up the pile of rubbles outside the area,” Olen said, dismissing their nervousness in his mind.

There was no point to have to put his fingers in the problem and make a drama out of it, also this has nothing to do with them. He always takes everything personally when someone called him an old man.

‘all for that act and I get called a godfather at the end, damn, stupid damn world reincarnating me with an old body’

***

Olen crossed his legs and sat on the ground. His ears picked up the sounds of the group treading their way to the snow. He then closed his eyes and meditated below the [Rift Shard] as his presence merged with its aura and essence drifting around him.

Olen hummed with the snow falling around him, as his aura fused with the snow, elevating his mind to serene tranquility. He explored at the remains of his memory, transcribing the contents in [Dovahzul Language]. Enriching his knowledge in reconstruction of some spells, increasing the likelihood of their survival and the Rift.

The [Rift] was their only means of securing the rations needed for the group. Although he doesn’t know if the [Rift] was stable enough to travel to its other side of the world. However, the [Rift Gate] has unique properties to manipulate the [Rift], and using it would prove useful in locating the [Rift] and its coordinates.

For an hour he merged words to symbols, runes to spells. And by so far, the spells in his arsenal are of [Illuminate], and nothing else. If not, it was practically useless for battles and only to serve as a strategic counter. His thoughts wandered, trying to dig deeper into his memory, finally finding a particular book with a title named above it. “King of the Rings”

'interesting, finally I could use some inspiration'

Olen rammed through the pages as he flipped through countless pages until finding a particular chapter. It was an old man fighting over a demon under the steep rocks. As the old man stood along in the middle of the bridge, standing tall at the demon presence towering over him.

The old man's staff then suddenly shone with white brilliance, as he raised his staff to the air and said:

“NONE SHALL PASS!”

The old man plunged his staff to the surface of the bridge, as a burst of light burst forth from the staff, blinding the entire alley and the demon. The bridge broke into ruins, falling from their feet, as the rubbles of rocks carried them through the endless darkness.

Olen rummaged through the entire language, looking for the right symbols and runes to merge the spell from the story he found in the book. After scouring for hours, he finally found the right symbol for the spell, by combining the barrier rune and shout rune with the [Illuminate] spell, creating an offensive replica of it similar to its effect, naming it [Aspro Lux].

Satisfied at the newfound spell he had created, Olen opened his eyes, letting the information of the result of the new spell sink into his mind.

[Due to integrating the new spell, your understanding of [Dovahzul] has increased sharply]

[Language proficiency has increased significantly]

[Your understanding toward the [Arcane] has increased subtly]

[Your understanding toward the [Evocation] has increased sharply]

[You have gained a small amount of [Essence]

Looking at the new information ringing through his head, Olen nodded and proceeding to check his status while waiting for the group to arrive.

[Olen Fairer]

[Proficiency]

Language: 9 (20/100)

Arcane: 7 (4/100)

Speech: 100 (100/100)

Essence: 5 (20/100)

One-Handed Sword: 9 (22/100)

Rift: 2 (69/100)

Evocation: 7 (3/100)

Agility: 5 (69/100)

[Progression]

Rift Dweller: 2 (79/100)

Olen thought for a while and decided to check the description of the [Essence] if any useful information could help him to understand its properties. So far in his understanding, only the information from his vision could explain the memories from his consciousness about the [Essence].

The function of the [Essence] seems to be focused on the internal energy of the body. Aside from that, no established boundaries have yet to receive its limit other than his understanding stuck at level 5.

Essence: It's what makes up the myriad energies in life, where all origins are. It’s an energy that encompasses every source of life there is.

Olen had already a hunch of its definition before. After all, he’s not strange to such concepts back then on earth. Feeling confused, he entered a state of disunity as he let his mind merge to his body.

After quite a while, he opened his eyes, and to his surprise, a new piece of information appeared in his mind.

[Essence]

Essence: 20

[1st Stage]

Elated, Olen decided to check the mana lingering in his body.

[Mana]

Mana: 100/100

[Apprentice]

This information seems to be only unique for the individuals who attained the power of the crystal and the stone, making it an alternative chip ingrained in the mind, displaying the changes in your body.

Though you can still feel the changes through sensing your body, the amount of energy was still consistent with similar to calculation of the energy and sensing it. The only difference was that your eyes can see the numbers constituted in the amount of energy in your body.

He didn’t know if this function was unique to the world he lived in, but he was sure of one thing. The captive who they brought from the battle understood the changes in the energy in their body. The shadow method was the proof of it, and there’s no doubt that the other side of the [Rift] possesses the same qualities as them.

‘It seems we're gonna need a use of her, not that, I mean explore’ as much as Olen hates it, he had never been in a romantic relationship before or anyone close to any woman in his life, well other than his relative of course.

No one could blame him though, his disorder has almost taken the entirety of his life.

Sighing… he looked at his willy wonka below his robe, and thought…

‘not that it matters, anyway. I’m old,’

Author: “…” (I’m still young…)