END Initiated...

A week passed away without even noticing. In this week, Kiel didn't go out much. He had already gathered  funds for his travels, and the monthly expenditure of his family members. So he was not worried at all. Instead he just focused on training his way of the sword, and energizing his body enough through the various chakra exercises for the upcoming journey. Sometimes, he would go to Anabelle, to ask her for instructions. But most of the time he would be alone, cleansing his mind and focusing on vitalising his body. 

"Little brother bye. Take care of yourself. And come home soon"

As the two spoke, their eyes misted up a little.

"Bye big sis Amber. Bye big sis Fawn. I'll be back after my mana ceremony. So don't be too worried about me.  And be sure to take care of yourselves. I will bring home candies when I return"

Kiel hugged his sisters one by one. He could see their eyes a little red due to crying. So, he gently wiped their eyes and consoled them while promising to treat them. After bidding them farewell, Kiel went to his mom and hugged her. 

"Bye-bye Mama"

Agatha had gentle eyes while she gently c.a.r.e.s.sed his hairs with affection.

"I'll be not here, so don't work too hard mama. The money, I got from my last hunt is enough for you all to spend three months with comfort. So don't be a miser mo..."

*Bang* Kiel had more to say, but a sudden hit to his head, took away all he wanted to say. He looked up with blaming eyes, but only watched her glaring back at him.

"You are still a thousand years early to teach your mother how to handle her household. Just go to the Province safely. That will be enough."

"Ok mom." Kiel wanted to say more in his goodbye speech, but he had to stop there. He just hugged her a  little more and then turned back. Seeing his son with drooping shoulders, Agatha softened her voice and continued, "Be careful on your way okay. Remember to meet your aunt Ena the first thing you do after you get to there. Our time is not going good now. So don't do anything stupid there..."

Kiel turned back once and then smiled at her but didn't say anything. He just waved at them and left to see his master who was standing not far away from him.

Watching him come to her at last, she felt a little sour. Her little disciple was now going away on her own. She wanted to accompany him, but just couldn't leave her wealth care centre closed for a long time. So she had to discard the notion. But kept it within herself. As he came close to her, she finally spoke with her usual cold voice, "Finished with your family drama?"

Knowing his master's antics, Kiel just smiled and replied to her in a few words "I'll miss you too Master"

His words earned him a hard glare while Anabelle's cheek turned flushed a little. She also wanted to hug him and say goodbye. But her cold nature and pride didn't allow it. So, Anabelle didn't continue on the line and just advised him.

"Hmm. Go on spread your wings. I know you have a great future ahead. So try your best! In the province you'll have enough chances to shine. So, just keep in mind to not be too hasty. Sometimes taking a step back is necessary to win the final battle. So don't be too hot headed. Remember to be always cool and calm"

Pausing for a bit, Anabelle unwrapped a thin sword from her back and gave it to him.

"Here take this. I've prepared this for you, to keep yourself safe in your travels"

Kiel took it from her, and unsheathed it. It was a single edged sword with its top curved a little. But it had no guard to separate its hilt from the blade. Unsheathing the sword, Kiel swung it a few times.

The sword felt so comfortable that he thought that he had been swinging the same sword everyday for a long time. Kiel was surprised as the sword felt like it was customised just for him.

"It's a level 1 sword. It's shaped is as you like. Although I don't get your tastes, but take it as a parting gift from your master."

 As he sheathed the sword and hung it on his waist, Kiel felt a deep gratitude for his master. If it was not for her, he would maybe still feeding on weeds in his backyard, while watching his mom with red swollen eyes. But he knew that no words would be enough to express it. So he dived and suddenly hugged her tightly.

"Thank you master. I'll forever edge in my heart what you have done for me."

Anabelle was stunned for a moment bit soon regained her composure. She just patted him on his head a bit and shook him up.

"Alright. Don't be too emotional now. Off you go."

Kiel shook off the hug, and then walked away to the village gates. He looked one last time at his family and master, and waved towards them, before running off towards the market area, where a big caravan stood to take them to the city. 

"Raai! Here I come"

***

The market was as overcrowded as always. Arriving at the marketplace, he looked around to find his caravan. And after a few minutes of searching, he finally found it at a far corner, among many other caravans.

The caravan was big enough to carry around 30 people. It was tied to two big and sturdy horses. Kiel slowly walked towards it and found the standing coachman at the side. He  paid the man 20 copper coins and boarded the caravan. Everything had been arranged, so he didn't have to do anything extra. So, he entered caravan and looked around to find himself a proper seat.

He saw that the van was almost full with all kinds of people bustling off. But the most in numbers were  kids in the same age group as him, sitting and chatting among themselves. Kiel found out that he knew most of them. Some of them were from his village while others were from the neighbouring village. But most of them had someone accompanying them to their destination. It seemed that only Kiel was the only one alone.

 As Kiel boarded and looked around, so did everyone to see the new person entering  out of curiosity. But noticing it was him, many inside recognized him and turned their gazes away while avoiding him like some kind of plague. Some even whispered among themselves and let others know all about him. It didn't even take a few minutes as everyone seems to now have recognised him from their gazes.

 Kiel was not formulated to any kind of bullying till now, like those mentioned in those novels. Probably because he looked a little sturdy and bigger than the rest, so most kids kept away from him to avoid any troubles. Kiel found many types of gazes mixed with disgust, satisfaction, sympathy and many others, but he didn't mind the gazes on him. He has always been a loner and never minded if he remained alone now.

 Kiel just ignored the people around took his place at the other free end of the caravan, away from those pesky people. After settling down at his spot, he closed his eyes and began to meditate and waited patiently for the carriage to depart.

After almost an hour, the coachman untied the horses and started the caravan. A navigator and two guards also boarded the caravan, with him. The two horse then drove the couch forward departing their village. 

Kiel looked back to take a last glance at his home village. He was a little sad to leave his family away. After all it was the first time he was experiencing a family in his life. But he knew, he needed knowledge and power both in this world. So he had to take this step. While Kiel was glancing back, the caravan slowly made its way away from the village onto the path ahead to his destination. 

"I wonder if the cities in these worlds are also polluted like my previous worlds!"

Although he felt a little down, Kiel was also excited to see the new world and unravel it's mysteries.

Slowly the caravan made its way as the earthen roads shook the carriage, giving him a laid back feel. Time passed and the caravan moved on; Kiel watched the different types of plants and animals passing along the way.

Kiel knew it would take him a week to reach Raai, their Provincial capital and also the biggest annual trade center of the neighbouring provinces. Kiel had heard that the Baron was very kind and hence  the province prospered more under his reign. It became so prominent that it was now even regarded as the main trade center of the Kingdom.

But Kiel was a little prejudiced at the Baron because of his father, as he had his own guesses about the situation. But now he was more interested to meet his father, and see how he was doing. Kiel had not heard from his Aunt Ena from a long time now. She hadn't even come back. Just some occasional passing of letters, which had become even less as time passed.

However, it didn't take him much to let these thoughts pass to the back of his mind, as he couldn't do anything now. So he just started gazing at the scenery to freshen his mind. The refreshing and clear weather calmed him a lot. Sometimes, a few hunters passed by the roads, while at other times there would be two to three wild animals appearing in the distance. But Kiel observed that none approached their caravan. This was pointed to the caravan being applied with special apothecaries which kept the wild animals at bay. 

As more days passed on their way, many other caravans could be seen heading towards their direction. Some of them banded with them, while others kept their distance. There were even some richly decorated caravans emitting auras of nobility around them.

The weather maintained its calming nature, and with the addition of other caravans along with them, the atmosphere became more jovial. People shouted, gossiped and enjoyed their ways towards their destination.

 However, Kiel remained calm and collected, focusing on improving his mental state. He could now feel a very strong sense of attraction towards any object when he focused on his surroundings while circulating his life energy. Kiel felt like if he just focused a little more, he could even move the objects towards him like before; but the more he tried, the more he got a similar sensation. Kiel didn't know what was causing it. So, for the time being, he just focused to improve his mental strength, thinking that maybe it was his mental energy that was lacking. The caravan even took care of their meals, so Kiel didn't have to worry about it. He just trained like always, spending his mornings practicing his chakra, while meditating in the night. Slowly but steadily, he could feel his second petal of the root chakra opening. This excited him way too much, and let him to practice even more.

Another three days on without Kiel's notice. Today, another caravan stopped beside them. Kiel thought it was usual, but this time a boy of around 6-8 years left the other caravan and boarded theirs. 

The boy seemed a bit peculiar, as he had two small horns protruding from his forehead. Kiel was clearly intrigued this time seeing someone from another race. His turquoise eyes glowed with a cyan glow, as how the inner scientist in him wanted to dissect the fellow in front of him, and study him from head to toe. His whole attention was driven to tsoe horns. To Kiel now they held a fatal attraction. 

The other coachman whispered something in the ears of their coachman, before leaving. But, it changed the expression  of the people on board, as they now looked at him with strange gazes. But the boy seemed to be accustomed to such gazes, as he didn't mind them.

Kiel was still staring at the boy's horns, but a shout from the caravan manager, woke him up.

 "You from the Shadow Witch tribe, don't disturb anyone here. Sit at a corner, and be quiet. I don't want any disturbance"

"Ok"

As the man finished and started the caravan again, Kiel only now noticed his features.

 The boy was not that good looking and even had two little black horns protruding out from his forehead. Paired with two black eyes, and black hairs, along with a little pointed ears, the boy looked 'different'. Literally different.

Hearing the words from the coachman, Kiel recalled his memories. He knew about the Shadow witch tribe from the various stories he heard from his mother or the books he read. They were from a similar humanoid race, but had small pointed horns and  were generally associated with darkness. The stories mostly depicted them as villains who did many things, only to be then hunted down by some hero. So, he could understand the general reaction of the people. But to him, he looked just like a fresh specimen.

As Kiel was glancing at him, the boy seemingly sensed something this time, as he turned and looked at Kiel's direction. Turning towards Kiel, the boy passed him a sweet smile. Seeing the boy looking at him, Kiel also smiled at him once before turning around and entering meditation to discard the thoughts of dissecting someone.

But a few moments later,Kiel felt some light footsteps nearing him. Opening his eyes, he saw a familiar face staring at him. Seeing the new kid staring at him, Kiel also returned the gaze. This continued on for a few seconds before the kid spoke out. "Can I sit beside you?"

"Sure not like I own the place."

The kid then beside him. However, the silence still continued as Kiel closed his eyes again.

"Umm, what's your name?"

"..."

"Eh… eto… I'm going to Raai to test my mana score. Where are you going?"

"..."

"..."

"Haven't you heard to introduce yourself before asking questions. By the way, I'm Kiel, and am from the nearby Ratri village. Nice to meet you." Kiel said and stretched his hands towards him.

The boy seemed to have given up on the conversation, but seeing the stretched hands in front of him, he became enthusiastic again.

"Oh sorry. I'm Niyaas. From the Shadow Witch tribe as you may have heard. We are from the Dusk forests outside the Areneu Kingdom."

(A/N: In case you forgot, it is the kingdom, Kiel id currently in)

"Oh. It seems so". And the silence continued again. Kiel was not the talkative type. And now was the time for his morning practice. So he just stayed quiet. 

The following days were relatively peaceful as Kiel would still focus on his training. And in his free time, he would talk with Niyaas. Kiel learnt a few things from the new boy. The two remained together, which still earned them gazes all the time. But the two were accustomed to each other. 

And soon the trip came to an end as they could see a green dot in their sight becoming bigger and bigger, finally forming into a city. The trip was really calm with no obstructions in his way. So Kiel deducted that he was not the protagonist of this world. If he was he would already have been attacked countless times in his journey. This was his knowledge from the various novels.

The city was surrounded by huge gates on each side. Kiel was really intimidated by the feeling he got from these walls.

The caravan went to one of the gates, which already had a long queue. A lot of caravans were waiting for there chances to enter the city. They had to wait for almost half a day for their chance to come. Kiel  gazed at the big words in front of the gates

"Welcome to Raai"