Rebirth of the Phoenix God

"Thanks for the safe. This is the second time when you are saving my life, huh?"

As soon as the doors to Mark's room closed behind the two, it seemed as if two masks crashed against the floor, shattering upon impact. 

"Boy, it's been a while. How have you fared ever since you left?"

Instantly pulling Fen's relatively slim shoulders into his bear-like embrace, Mark took an even longer while than the young mercenary himself to calm down.

"And no problem. I think I can tell what happened. After leaving this place, it would be crazy to still consider the things you left here as unfinished… So you moved on. But now that you have returned to the past, now that you are bound to know about a lot more stuff than before…You look at some things from a different perspective, right?"

Falling heavily on top of a couch, Mark released a huge sigh from between his lips before starting at the ceiling above him.

"Well, that's more or less on the point. I… I'm not ready to decide how I should treat Kaisha now. Not only I have a girl already waiting for my return in the north, but I also…"

Stopping his words there, Fen tactfully looked at his master with just a small hint of anger hidden behind his look. But Mark wasn't someone who would miss even such a tiny clue in Fen's expression.

"You also learned that I kinda pushed her for your relationship, right? Well, man… I won't apologise for that. It would be an insult to the motives I had back then, and the situation has yet to change greatly enough for me to warrant the regret of my actions in the past. As conceited as it might be of me, if I had to do it again… I would. I can only hope you will understand that there was no bad will in my actions."

To Fen's surprise, Mark didn't attempt to shrug the matter off. With how easily he could claim to have little if anything to do with Kaisha back then, the fact that he openly brought and admitted to doing what Fen already learned he did could only mean that the second part of his sentences had to be as true as his description of what happened.

"WIth me capable of talking with Draconis and entering this world as one of the most talented arcanists of the age… Now that I think about it, that guy mentioned about gifting someone else with a huge blessing just to hide the fact that he was interacting with me. Did by any chance such figure appear in the past few months?"

As late as it was, once Fen recalled this small part of what happened during his awakening ritual in the now ruined bellows of the church, the possible reasons behind the entire civil war only multiplied. 

What if the war was caused by the inquisition taking over the promising candidate and grooming him to the point where they could attempt coup d'etat? What if they went against the crown and created their own faction to protect that person from royal's influence, only agreeing to rejoin hands with the royal family once they got a guarantee of safety for that someone? All of sudden, Fen noticed how possibly related all those matters were.

The young mercenary face whitened as those possibilities appeared in his mind. Because if his guess was right, then he would be as responsible for the eruption of civil war as everyone who actually actively participated in raising the tensions and conflict between groups of people within Akhaz!

"Someone powerful enough to wage full-scale wars just to secure him? Hmm… If that's true…"

Replying to Fen's question, Mark's face was initially calm and composed only to turn agitated as a realisation dawned upon him. 

'It seems that I was right…'

Noticing the changes going on, on Mark's face, Fen could only sigh deeply before following his master's example and sitting down on one of the chairs around.

"That means, the enemy has someone breaking through the limits of what your usual elite would do. Given how you are pushing for the open conflict from what I noticed so far, what are your plans about dealing with this threat? Gangbang him somewhere in the back alley?"

Bringing up the simple idea of grouping up and assassinating a single target, Fen couldn't help but scoff at his own words.

"If that person is really as powerful as we might expect, they would never him or her outside without a proper guard. The fact that I can move freely can only be attributed to how beside you and Hekarion, no one knows the truth about my identity."

With the corners of his lips suddenly travelling forward, Fen looked sharply at his master before adding.

"The truth is, I don't think you guys even realise the full extent of what has happened back in those pools and who I really am. But for now, let's leave it aside."

After sparking the fire of curiosity in Mark's eyes, Fen realised that he overstepped the limits of what he could safely say. The details of his true identity was something that he had to keep hidden as deeply as possible, at least for as long as it would take him to learn how to fully utilize his own powers. 

"I guess that marks the point when we no longer talk like old friends, but as representative of the powers behind us."

Smiling at the notion, Mark sat deeper in his chair, visibly relaxing. Even though it wasn't him doing the reveals, the potential meaning behind Fen's words from before was still huge enough to make him tense. 

Surprisingly enough, doing proper business in an official way seemed to be an easier way to communicate with his former student than just catching up like they would do if not for how the war was raging literally everywhere around the world.

"Let us start again then. Mark, the leader of the military insurrection of Akhaz, a descendant in the direct line of the Old Mercenary Kingdom line of generals. This is my real identity. Sorry for hiding it from you for so long."

Smiling with a hint of sadness hiding in his eyes, Mark looked at Fen with caution. If the younger man were to follow his example, then this would be his first chance to confirm how much of the rumours about his exploits that circulated in the society were true and how much of the stories about him were no different from horseshit.

"Fen of Galvat mercenaries, lord of Shataz and member of the ruling council of the second mercenary Kingdom. In addition to that, heir to the royal blood of the original pioneers and successor of the first of the thirteen."

While the first part of Fen's introduction, the one detailing his current position and seat of power didn't seem to surprise the leader of the Akhaz rebels all that much, the last title that Fen bothered to bring up actually turned his face into a frozen piece of immovable rock.

"Successor of the first? Are you sure about that?"

At first, Mark simply put Fen's words in doubt. But noticing the complete lack of changes on the young mercenary's face, Fen's master had no other way but to accept his story as a fact. 

"That's exactly the case. What you might not know if you are not Phoenixian, I can share the memories of all those in the line of my ancestry."

Lowering his sight towards his feet, Fen focused on recalling all the memories that he partook in, in the past. And amongst all those strange events that broke the clear diving line of what was real and what was not, there were two memories that could easily prove Fen's testimony.

"And? I'm sorry, but I don't seem to understand that memories part…"

Even though Mark was clearly trying his best to believe in Fen's words, the figure of the first of the thirteen original pioneers was simply too legendary for him to easily accept this story.

"Let me put it in those words. While I don't know the rules behind the mechanisms that allow me to see the memories from the past, it seems that I'm capable of seeing the stuff that members of my bloodline did."

Stopping for a moment, Fen raised his sight at his former master. After a moment of carefully watching how Mark didn't dare to move his eyes even a single inch away, the young mercenary could only sigh before finishing what he wanted to say in the first place.

"And tell me, how many of Phoenixian bloodline has ever crossed the dead ocean?"

Even though Fen was confused at those memories himself when he first saw them, just a few hours at Gauna's library managed to enlighten him. This one time, when he saw one of his ancestors looking from the stern of the ship and receiving the news of the coastline appearing…

There was only one instance during which phoenixian tribe left the dry ground and ventured into the sea. It only happened back before their first appearance on the continent. Before the legend of the Old Kingdom, pioneers and all that the world knew about Phoenixian exploits even took place.

And that meant, that if Fen could somehow dive into the memories from before his ancestors crossed the impassable ocean…

"Only the original thirteen…"

Mark didn't even need to fully answer Fen's question. Just bringing up the first part of the sentence was enough for the old soldier to realise what his disciple attempted to convey.

"Oh boy… Do you even have the slightest idea what does that mean?"