Chapter 76

  The front door clicked open, followed by the unmistakable stampede of two pairs of hurried feet.

  “…and then the scavenger tried to bite me, but Dad kicked it in the face,” Albert was saying, voice pitched with the sort of theatrical pride only a kid could muster in their situation.

  “That’s not what happened,” Victor countered, equally loud. “It tried to bite you because you missed the shot. I hit mine in one hit.”

  “You hit the tree.”

  “It ricocheted!”

  “It doesn’t count if it ricochets—”

  “Boys,” Laura sighed as she stepped inside, brushing a stray leaf from her hair. “Inside voices, please. And take off your boots before spreading dirt everywhere.”

  “We are inside,” Albert mumbled, already wrestling with a muddy shoelace.

  “We are spreading dirt everywhere,” Victor added, and Alessandro gave him a look that said don’t push it.

  The rifles clinked softly as they set them by the wall. Backpacks slumped to the floor by the rack.

  The twins weren’t finished.

  “Mom,” Albert said, leaning forward with the exact same expression he’d worn nine hundred and ninety-nine times that morning, “since Raime’s offered… can we go level with him today? Pleeease?”

  Victor folded his arms. “He said that he’d help us. And he’s like super super powerful now, nothing bad will happen.”

  Laura pinched the bridge of her nose. “We told you both—first we talk to your brother. Then we’ll see. End of discussion.”

  “But—”

  “No.”

  Two matching groans. A synchronized collapse of shoulders. Another doomed attempt delayed.

  Alessandro smothered a small smile as he shut the door. “Come on you two. Help unload before your mother decides you’re in time-out for the next week.”

  “Dad,” Victor whispered loudly, “please help us convince her.”

  “Let’s make it two weeks,” Laura said from the kitchen doorway, not even turning around.

  The twins exchanged a look of pure betrayal.

  As they finished dropping their bags and weapons in their usual corner, Victor suddenly froze. Albert bumped into him.

  “Hey—why—?”

  Victor pointed.

  Slowly, the others followed his finger.

  Raime sat in the center of the living room, legs crossed—not quite touching the floor. He hovered a few centimeters above it, suspended in a slow, steady rise. A stone tablet rotated gently in front of him, covered in thin, flowing lines that wriggled and rearranged themselves as if alive.

  The room hummed softly. Not a sound—more a sensation under the skin.

  Alice stepped in last. Her breath caught.

  “Raime?” she called, voice quiet, as if even sound might disrupt the fragile stillness around him.

  Raime’s eye opened—not abruptly, but like something vast waking up in stages. With a controlled exhale, he drifted down until his feet touched the floor. The tablet froze, then slipped into his spatial ring with a flicker of light.

  “You’re all back,” he said, brushing residue light from his palms. “Good. We need to talk.”

  Alessandro’s posture shifted instantly—alert, but steady. “Problems?”

  “Yes and no,” Raime replied. “But you need to know what happened.”

  The room tightened. Laura crossed her arms. Alice stepped closer. The twins hovered uncertainly near the door.

  Raime didn’t sit. He didn’t pace either. He simply stood there, calm and controlled, and told them everything.

  How he’d gone to the salamander-things emerging from the river portal.

  How he’d killed them all.

  How the battle had gone.

  And finally—how a young man from Rinaldi’s group had raised a rifle, aimed at his head, and pulled the trigger.

  Laura froze first.

  The twins stopped mid-step, staring at Raime as though they’d walked in on a bomb that hadn’t decided whether to explode. Alessandro’s brows drew together. Alice went pale.

  “You’re telling me,” Alessandro said slowly, “that someone pointed a rifle at you and pulled the trigger?”

  “Yes,” Raime replied. “He shot me in the head, pretty accurately I might add.”

  Victor’s face twisted with outrage. “What—why would anyone—?!”

  Albert, ever the quieter of the two, looked between them all with wide eyes. “But… you saved them. You cleared the whole river from the monsters.”

  “Apparently that wasn’t good for everyone,” Raime said.

  Alice stepped closer, her jaw tightening. “Are you hurt?”

  “No,” he answered. “But that isn’t the point.”

  You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

  Laura placed a hand on her chest, breathing out hard. “God. Raime… this is—this is insane. They’re terrified of you already, but shooting? Shooting you after showing goodwill?”

  “They’re under pressure,” Alessandro muttered, rubbing his temples. “People panic. People do stupid things.”

  Raime’s eyes narrowed. “Oh, don’t you start with that too.”

  “What?” Alessandro lifted his head.

  “Excusing him.” Raime’s voice sharpened. “Like fear justifies pulling a trigger on someone who just kept your entire town from being overrun.”

  “I didn’t say it justifies anything,” Alessandro snapped back. “I’m explaining, not excusing.”

  “Feels the same right now.”

  Victor stomped up beside Raime. “Tell me you crushed him. Tell me you broke his legs or something.”

  “Vic!” Laura barked.

  “What?!” Victor threw his arms up. “Someone tried to kill him!”

  Albert nodded, fists balled. “Yeah! If anyone tried to shoot Dad or Mom, we’d want them punished too.”

  Raime shook his head. “I didn’t hurt him.”

  “Then what…?” Alice blinked. “Raime… they could’ve killed you.”

  “No,” he said simply. “They couldn’t. And that’s part of the problem.”

  That sentence landed like a weight in the room. Even the twins went quiet.

  Laura stepped closer. “What did you do then?”

  “I made Rinaldi deal with it.”He held their gazes one by one. “Elia will be punished. No rifles. No weapons. Daytime labor building defences. Locked up at night.”

  “For how long?” Alessandro asked.

  “Five years.”

  Laura’s breath hitched. “Raime, that’s—”

  “It’s lenient,” he cut in. “For attempted murder? During an integration where five years of growth can make or break someone? He’s losing opportunity, not his life.”

  Alice crossed her arms tightly. “And Rinaldi agreed?”

  “He didn’t have a choice.”

  Alessandro stared at him. “What does that mean?”

  “It means,” Raime said, voice cooling, “that after killing hundreds of monsters alone, after showing them what real threats will look like, after proving that I’m the only reason the riverfront didn’t collapse today… I’m done pretending we’re under the old world’s rules. I’ll protect this city and this family to the best of my capability. But I won’t follow orders of people without any kind of ability to control their men.”

  The silence that followed was thick.

  Alessandro broke it first.

  “Raime… son… listen. I understand how you feel but—”

  “No,” Raime said softly but firmly. “No more ‘but.’ This world isn’t what it was. Power rules now. Whether we like it or not.”

  Laura frowned. “That doesn’t mean you have to turn into some kind of tyrant.”

  “I’m not,” Raime replied. “I don’t want to rule over anybody. I don’t want authority. I want competence. I want us to survive and to save our world.”

  Victor lifted his chin. “So you’re, like… above them now?”

  Raime thought about it—but only for a heartbeat.“Yes.”

  Laura closed her eyes with a pained exhale. “Raime…”

  “That’s not ego,” he said. “It’s reality. And if I play small to make them comfortable, you’ll all die.”

  Alice shook her head. “This is… a lot.”

  “You think it’s not for me?” Raime said. “You think I enjoy the position I’m in? I saw what happen to a world that fail its integration, it get broken into pieces and used as a training ground for whoever comes next. The civilizations living there extinct or worse, I won’t allow this to happen to us, and I’m the only person strong enough to do something about it, so I will do my part. But I’ll be damn if I get ordered around by somebody without a shred of authority or power and made into a weapon they can point here or there.”

  Alice looked away. The twins stayed frozen, caught between admiration and fear.

  Finally, Alessandro stepped forward and put a hand on Raime’s shoulder—the one he still had.

  “Son… you’re right about danger. You’re right about power. But don’t lose yourself in this new world. Don’t let it decide who you become.”

  Raime looked at him, and something in his expression eased. Not much. But enough.

  Laura approached next, her voice gentler. “We’re proud of you. You went through a lot, and I understand what you are talking about. Just… talk to us if things get worse, alright? We’re in this together.”

  Victor then threw his hand up. “Soooo… is this a ‘no’ to us coming with you to level up?”

  Both parents groaned.

  Raime managed a faint smirk. “We’re not closing this conversation today. But first you need training. Real training.”

  “YES!” both twins shouted.

  Alice pressed a hand over her face, laughing despite everything. “God help us…”

  Raime exhaled and finally, finally let his shoulders loosen.

  “By you, I mean all of you.” The looks he got from the family was a variety between surprised, overjoyed and worried.

  He looked at them. “I learn many things about manipulating energy and fighting, I can teach you, and protect you. So if there is nothing in program for this afternoon, we should just go out and get you some levels and combat experience.”

  “I suppose we really have nothing more to do for the time being, we have supplies for a bit, and the town I still standing for now, nothing is really pressing us right now, why not?” Alessandro said while looking at his wife.

  “Fine, we’ll rest and make lunch, then we will go out all together. Raime are you sure about it?” Asked Laura.

  “I am,” he said. “You all need more power for the challenges to come, I am strong but I cannot follow you all, all the time, I need to make sure you are safe even when I’m not there.”

  Laura nodded and reached out, briefly brushing his arm. “Then we’ll cook something and then get ready to this outing.”

  “About getting ready…” Raime exhaled softly and raised his hand. Space rippled around his fingers like disturbed water. The faint shimmer of his Spatial Ring pulsed once, and then—items began appearing in neat, controlled bursts of light.

  Alessandro blinked. “Madonna santa… how much did you even bring back from that place?”

  “Enough,” Raime said, arranging the gear on the table with a touch of telekinesis. “And too much for most people to actually use.”

  He thumbed a small dagger into the air. Its edge was thin enough to sing. He held it out to Laura first, then passed the others around.

  Laura weighed hers carefully. “This is… light.” She tapped the blade with her nail. It rang like crystal. “And very sharp.”

  “Don’t test it on your thumb,” Raime warned.

  “Wasn’t planning to,” she murmured, but her eyes shone.

  Next came the robes—folds of dark material threaded with metallic strands that caught the light like moonlit wires. He handed a set to each of them.

  Victor lifted his robe to the window. “This looks expensive.”

  “It is,” Raime said.

  “Then why—”

  “Because you’ll need it,” Raime cut in gently. “They’re light, durable, and they’ll keep you alive against things that bite harder than a crocodile.”

  Victor’s smirk faltered. He swallowed but nodded.

  Raime then took out a sword—long, reinforced, and proportioned for an adult. He gave it to Albert, who gripped it with two hands, testing the balance.

  “…It’s almost a greatsword,” he muttered.

  “You’ll grow into it,” Raime said. “The blade can channel any energy you can produce. Even if you’re still learning how to control your skills, the sword will respond.”

  Albert’s eyes brightened, pure joy flickering through the uncertainty. “This is soo cool! I promise I’ll learn fast.”

  Before his mother could interject at Albert owning a sword, another weapon arrived in Raime’s hands with a resonant thunk—a long, blocky instrument with clean edges and faint glowing conduits along its spine. Laura stared at it like it might start reciting poems.

  “That’s not a gun,” she said.

  “No,” Raime admitted, “but you’ll use it like one. It has internal accumulators. You’ll be able to channel your class skills through it once you get a feel for it.”

  She cradled it with surprising confidence. “It’s heavy.”

  “That’s the stabilizer core. You’ll thank it later.”

  “Honestly Vic, a number of weapons could be adequate for you, but what are your preferences?”

  “Dual wield! I mean… if it’s possible?”

  Raime spent a couple of seconds scanning the content of the ring, until a pair of elegant, curved shortswords with mirrored edges appeared on the table, scabbards aside. The moment Victor tooke them and the blades touched his palms, a faint vibration hummed through them.

  Victor’s head snapped up. “They… reacted. Are they alive?”

  “No, I never encountered any alive weapon like in the games or movies. But they’ll resize once you learn to link with them,” Raime said. “For now they’re locked. Don’t force it.”

  Victor’s grin returned in full. “Dual blades that grow with me. Hell yes.”

  Alessandro stepped closer as Raime withdrew a thick, rune-lined gauntlet—compact, and humming faintly with geomantic resonance.

  “For you,” Raime said, offering it.

  Alessandro raised a brow. “I feel something from it… but what does it do?.”

  “It is something a mason would wear, On Ithural.” Raime said.

  “…You’re giving me a construction tool?”

  “It enhances stone manipulation.” Raime leaned back, confident in his choice. “Trust me, Dad. You’ll find a way to turn it into a weapon.”

  Alessandro chuckled under his breath. “Damn right I will.”

  Only Alice remained.

  Raime paused for a moment before taking out a small, smooth orb. It glowed faintly blue, lines of circuitry curling like constellations beneath its surface. After that, four more orbs appeared on the floor.

  Alice watched him, head tilted in curiosity rather than fear.

  “This one’s tricky,” Raime admitted. “Your class isn’t built for direct combat. But with this…”

  He activated the orb.

  The four orbs transformed into four drones, folding out like metallic flowers—angular, spiderlike, each the size of a dinner plate. They clicked once, systems calibrating.

  Alice jumped back with a startled squeak. “Oh my God—Raime!”

  “They’re friendly,” he said quickly. “And linked to the orb. Think of it as a… tactical interface. You command them.”

  She eyed the machines suspiciously. “They have legs.”

  “Yes.”

  “And they move.”

  “Yes.”

  “And they’re looking at me.”

  “They don’t have eyes.”

  “They look like they do!”

  Raime bit the inside of his cheek to keep from smiling. “Alice… you’ll be able to control the battlefield with these. Strategy, positioning, awareness—this is your strength. Let the drones act as your hands.”

  She looked back at the orb. Then the drones. Then him.

  “…Can I name them?”

  Raime forced his expression to remain neutral, but inside he wanted to slap his forehead. “You can do whatever you want once you bond with the orb.”

  Her hesitation melted instantly into determination. “Okay. I love them.”

  Victor didn’t have his misgivings and groaned. “Of course she does.”

  As the family examined their gear—testing, touching, adjusting—the air shifted. Excitement and fear. Purpose and uncertainty. But beneath it all was something warmer.

  Trust.

  “When you’re ready,” Raime said softly, “we’ll head out.”

  And for the first time since his return, they looked prepared.

  “But first…” He started. “Let’s eat something, I’m starving.”