Regalus took a deep breath and focused within himself. One would have to be at least in the first rank of the Esoteric Arts, a Mage Apprentice, in order to sense the Mana around them as well as in themselves. However, for the former G.o.d of Mana and basically Magic itself, just his gut instinct regarding anything mana related is worth more than the most advanced, sophisticated, profound mana sensing techniques. While his body doesn"t have enough maturity to actively absorb mana, Regalus could instinctively feel the natural mana go in and out of his body as he breathes.While the [Teleport] spell he used was only Tier 1, the simplest and most basic spells, it was a special spell whose usage and difficulty far surpa.s.ses those above it while having only slightly higher mana consumption. However, even after he had specially adjusted it to use even less mana, his body had little mana to begin with.
If his muscles, organs, and body were to be compared to a balloon, mana would be its air, the life force nourishing them. As of right now, his body was forcefully deflated. Since he let the air out, he naturally have to blow some back in. This is harder than it seems as he is just a normal boy and it would take some time to naturally heal. Sadly he couldn"t do much but breathe properly.
And all of this on top of the exhaustion he acc.u.mulated from the morning, saying that he"s "worn out" is beyond an understatement. He really can"t do much of anything but stay on his bed and move as less as possible.
"Since that little one saw me, she should be visiting me soon. I don"t think mother and father saw me however."
4 hours pa.s.sed by quickly as Regalus focused on his breathing, trying to acclimate his body to recover as much as possible before it was suddenly disturbed.
*Knock Knock*
"Hmm? Who goes there?!"
"..."
Regalus squinted his eyes hearing no response. Beside his bed were some strings, taut from a mechanism he hid in the ceilings. He let loose one of the string. In no less than one second, no less than 10 crossbows, all of which were reported missing from the Castle Armory and was discreetly modified by Regalus some years ago, dropped down from the ceiling but still maintaining a concealable height. They all pointed directly at the door. With a single pull from Regalus, these crossbows would fire steel arrows laced with pressure sensitive explosives. Regalus couldn"t help but smile a bit seeing his handiwork from all those years ago.
"Ehehe. Nothing beats dwarven engineering."
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*cough* "It"s me, Young Master," the voice of Ira Ignus sounded out.
"Tsk. I thought I could have a test target."
Regalus pulled another string and tied the first again and the crossbows disappeared.
"Come in!"
The red headed maid soon entered, closing the door behind her. Ira Ignus immediately opened her mouth but before she could talk, Regalus beat her to it.
"What is a heavenly tribulation?" Regalus asked.
There was no need to beat around the bush. They saw each other as clear as day and the small doubt plaguing Ira"s mind was answered, he really did see. Ira Ignus blamed herself for this. She was in charge of the people around the Young Master as his personal maid, but she didn"t believe that he could recover in such a short amount of time and left him alone. Not to mention the immediate emergency she faced when Lent Arendale, the King, just collapsed and a majority of the castle had to be cleared out to keep it both a secret as well as their safety.
The only thing left disturbing her was how did the normal Young Master was able to return to his room so fast. Aria Arendale"s spiritual perception allows her to view the entire castle at her will, and she only saw the him on his bed just as before. But she"s no longer in the position to ask him considering with what he witnessed.
"Under the Madam"s order I can"t answe-"
"You answer to me, do you not?! Is that not my mother"s order as well! Answer my question little one!"
A shiver went up Ira Ignus"s spine. Usually, whenever she hears the Young Master call her "little one" she would snicker in disdain inside, but now, hearing his wrathful voice carried an intangible quality to it. One enough to make her scared.
"H-Heaven"s Tribulation is a punishment for attempting to go against the heavens..."
"Continue."
"It is an event where the different layers of heaven send down tribulations on us, cultivators, for disturbing the laws of nature and stealing strength from it. As one walks through the path of cultivation, they will face stronger and stronger tribulations."
"And under what authority do they have to punish cultivators?"
Ira Ignus opened her eyes wide, "T-That... Young Master! You can"t just question heaven"s authority like that!"
"And why not?"
"That..."
"I read in a book that the heavens had manages this world and all that lives on it, do they not? They wish us not to cultivate, yet at the same time, forces us humans to face spirit beasts of unimaginable power? They send us to death if we cultivate, yet if we don"t, we are to be trampled by beasts! What hypocrisy!"
"I am the prince of the Arendale Kingdom, a Kingdom that faces the full brunt of a beast horde each time once happens. I full well know what our soldiers face. Despite my parent"s efforts to stop me from seeing such events, I"ve seen young and old soldiers bleed to death for every horde that had been thrown against our walls. I"ve seen the warriors we send out on the expeditions return with less men than there were initially. YET it is MY father that thanks this WORTHLESS HEAVENS MERCY?! AGHH!"
"Young Master!"
As he grew more and more agitated and tense, his muscles spasmed out once again. But it was not enough to distract him from his anger.
"Then what is this Ninth Heaven Eternal Tribulation?!"
Ira Ignus"s eyes retracted, glancing away from him.
"It is one of the highest levels of tribulation. Whenever a cultivator gives birth, that baby is given a portion of his parent"s prowess, of which is in of itself against the laws of nature. As such, the baby is often given a tribulation of his own, of which the parents can block for it. However, the Ninth Heaven Eternal Tribulation is one of the most powerful tribulations that poisons its victim until its eventual death. It is sent against one that has committed a grave sin or taboo, however, regardless of how powerful the cultivator giving birth is and the resulting baby, such a tribulation should have never been given. We don"t know why it had struck his Majesty and why it appeared on your birth."
At this moment, a cold feeling emerged in Regalus"s heart, extinguishing his previous anger and replacing it with a certain fear.
"T-Tell me, how grave a sin or taboo could summon such a tribulation."
"Umm..."
"They"re called taboos for a reason, I can"t just say them out loud," Ira Ignus thought, but looking at the Young Master"s face, she couldn"t help but say them. Besides, he doesn"t seem to be as innocent as he appears to be.
"Large scale ma.s.sacres, sacrifices, killing mortals, demon worshiping, either creating or wielding heaven-defying treasures..."
"... How about reincarnation?" Regalus warily interjected.
"Umm... if it were possible, I would presume as well, Young Master..." Ira Ignus said, confused about the mention of that topic.
Regalus"s face immediately paled. He found the reason why the heaven"s unleashed such a tribulation against his parents and why his father is in such a critical condition. It was all his own fault.