9 Searching For a Place to Call Home 6

Because Roland's clothes were on High Mortal tier nobody thought he was out of place despite his clothes having a simplistic design, and yet people were still laughing at him. August seeing this smirked and wanted to give a good 'slap' to their faces, he since a child always hated someone more prideful and petty than him.

He sent telepathically to Roland. "Pick Elizabeth's invite and nonchalantly say this while showing off your invite."

Roland looked annoyed at the turtle on his head, but sighed and decided to let his master have his fun by saying what he sent to him despite him perhaps causing everyone around him to become his enemy. The turtle's pride has been too hurt lately, some mending to it will be good for the master-disciple relationship.

Roland indifferently picked the golden invite from his bag and said while pointing the invite to people that laughed at him. "No animals? Then why those people are being permitted to enter?" Roland turned around and said with the coldest voice he could muster. "Laughable, I'm leaving." August sent to him even worse words after that, but he knew there was a limit on how much you could hurt the hearts of strangers.

The people being insulted were at first incensed until they saw the golden invite on Roland's hand, their knees shook and blood drained from their faces as they perceived the big mistake they made in provoking the black haired man.

On his hands was actually an invite made especially by the Lakepoint's mayor and only the high echelon from both Societies could have one of those.

No even the new genius from Kirin Renascence received the esteemed golden invite.

"I'm so sorry, Sir! I didn't know you had the golden invite and dared to say you couldn't bring your precious pets with you. Please come back, I won't commit the same mistake once again. If you so wishes those 'animals' you pointed won't enter the castle." All the guards bowed and made a way for Roland enter the castle first than anyone on the bridge.

Roland was feeling a little guilty about how appalled the people that laughed at him were looking, so he went against August's desire of suggesting to really bar them from entering. "It's fine, I will come back to the castle and you don't need to prevent those people to enter. To make a mistake is human, and you need to always have a forgiving heart to achieve happiness." Roland smiled like he was doing them a favor and went back to the row of people to enter the castle, not seeing the necessity of jumping the queue.

The night is long, after all.

The guards respected his wishes and made the row look normal again.

August wasn't totally satisfied since Roland didn't do everything he wanted, but it was good enough for him to see the despair on the faces of the ones that laughed at his disciple.

His mother scolded him later for picking on babies though.

Roland with a turtle on his head and a fox resting on his shoulders because of how comfortable the scarf is, entered through the big gates after thirty minutes and encountered what appeared to be an old butler with kept short white hair and even wearing white gloves.

"Invite." He said shortly but still with courtesy. It seems he didn't see or care about the earlier commotion on the bridge.

Roland showed him the invite and the old butler looked to it without any change of expression, saying. "Mister Roland, your invite permits you to go almost anywhere on the castle with exception of the place where the elders from Kirin Renascence are. But if you wish you can even go to the place where Master Blacksmith's patriarch is having his birthday."

Roland didn't think Elizabeth really gave him the invite to make him, a stranger she only met one time, go to her father's birthday. That moment is special to her and he didn't want to mess with it. "I'm new here and don't know a good place to visit in the castle. What do you recommend?"

The old butler paused to think and decided to explain from the beginning. "In today's festival, you can go to four different areas. The Minor Area where normal integrants from the Societies, minor nobles, and soldiers on vacation go. That place is almost cramped and doesn't have anything of interesting going on, it is just a normal party with food made by all restaurants of Lakepoint.

The other two areas are the Elders Area where the Master Blacksmith's patriarch is having his birthday and the High Area where all the higher nobles, special disciples from both Societies and people famous as you normally go. There the space is perfect, there are activities planned and the best food is served.

And the final 'area' isn't an area made for the festival, it is just a sparring arena to everyone that wants to compete with someone in a fight or competition in one of the Arts. Anyone can go there to appreciate the arenas."

"Can you tell me how to reach the High Area then?" Roland wasn't interested in watching people fighting or pass his night cramped on a place.

"Please follow me." The old butler let his comrades take care of the gates and guided Roland to the golden door of the High Area.

The castle inside was just as beautiful on the outside, the decorations were similar to ones on the city but were of higher quality.

If Roland didn't have the old butler to guide him he would easily get lost in such a big castle.

"Enjoy your night, Mister Roland." The old butler said as Roland entered the High Area.

The High Area had multiple tables decorated in white with flowers and there was a big empty space on the middle, supposedly to one of the activities that will happen.

With everyone using formal clothes and the place exuding an aura of luxury and elegance that Roland wasn't used to, he felt out of place and solitary since he probably doesn't know anyone here.

Everyone looked surprised at him, no only he was wearing High Mortal tier clothes and for some reason a scarf inside of the castle, he was permitted to come with animals to the castle.

Now Roland was feeling even more awkward with everyone looking at him and decided to sit on an empty table until they forgot about him and could explore more the High Area.

Roland ate the cakes and juices distributed by the waiters, he never liked alcoholic drinks, they cloud your judgment and makes you do things you regret later.

After a while seeing boring and useless activities, like a show of training techniques, in the center of the area, two people went to his table to talk with him.

They were Jimmy and Carmen from Kirin Renascence Society.

"Roland…? Is that really you? I'm Jimmy, we've met on the jungle. Do you remember?" Jimmy said, uncertain that the well kept and in the seventh layer of Essence Formation man was the same muddy man that saved him and Carmen.

How was also possible to someone in such a short period of time go of the fourth to the seventh layer? Unless Roland used some kind of special expensive medicine of course.

And that wasn't the end of his questions, he being from Kirin Renaissance knew better than anyone that animals weren't permitted on the castle, yet Roland brought the infuriating turtle and a beautiful white fox he never saw before.

What was exactly Roland's identity?

It took a long time for Jimmy and Carmen to gather the courage to talk with Roland, maybe they are mistaking him for someone else, and if that happened they would be embarrassed on the High Area.

"Yes, I remember you and also Carmen that is at your side. How's it going? Sit if you want also." Roland was happy about finally seeing familiar faces despite only exchanging some words with them.

Jimmy and Carmen accepted Roland's offer. Carmen's suspicions were slowly confirmed since the day she met Roland, and while Carmen was in her own world Jimmy had small talks with Roland, cracking a laugh sporadically.

Jimmy whispered to Carmen after nudging her. "Come on, Carmen. You are the one that said to us come, it has been a while and you still didn't say a thing to Roland. At this rate, he will think you hate him."

Carmen wasn't completely sure of her suspicions yet, she needed one more event to be sure, perhaps the event will occur at the festival, so she doesn't want to Roland hate her. It would be too dangerous for life.

If she had seen Roland fight against the masked people, she would perceive her suspicions were true or at least partially true.

She said. "Roland, that fox on your shoulders is really beautiful. What's its name?"

"Her name is Lucy and before you ask, the turtle on my head is August. They are my pets."

"Pets? Then you didn't use Soul Tampering on them?"

"Yes, sorry if I offend you two from Kirin Renascence Society, but I don't like the Great Art Soul Tampering or the other Great Art you make a business of, Medicine Alchemy."

"No offense taken. Do you practice what Art then?"

"I know a little about Equipment Formation. Not much, only enough to make High Mortal tier equipment." Roland continued to answer Carmen's questions and tried sometimes to question why she and Jimmy were doing deep into the jungle and being chased by a Magic Foundation beast.

However, they evaded the subject and didn't tell him anything.

Jimmy suddenly said after it was past the eight boring activity in the middle of the High Area and discovering Roland had a golden invite. "Roland, what's the name of the organization you come from? I don't want to be rude, I'm just curious. You must have learned a training technique from an organization, right?"

"I don't come from any organization and I'm actually thinking of joining one of the two Societies. How's life on Kirin Renascence? I don't like any of the two Great Arts that you guys have business so I don't know if I would fit there."

Jimmy was ready to put good light about his Society when a distinct laugh came from behind him, his heart sank already knowing who is behind him. He knew that person wasn't bad, but wherever he goes, disasters come following him like a magnet.

"How interesting, this is the first time I saw someone saying that don't like the Great Arts of my Society at my front. You have some guts, don't you? It's not everyday I find someone worthy of talking. What's your name? Of course, you already know that my name is Shin Tan. I'm super famous in this city." Behind Jimmy, there was more than ten people in blue formal garments and one person within them stood out with his hands on his pockets.

He despite being a teenager at the same age of Jimmy and Carmen was taller than Roland and more handsome than him, Shin's short black hair and black eyes together with his triangular face were different from anything that Roland ever saw. It was as if Shin Tan belonged to another region far away from here with how different he was to everyone else on the High Area.

But his smugness and pride 'aura' in Roland's opinion for sure belonged to the High Area and Lakepoint based on Roland's experiences.

"Seriously, what's the deal with these people?" Roland thought and said. "My name is Roland, Mister Shin Tan. And of course, I heard about you. Who never heard about the genius of the Kirin Renascence Society that in his teenage years became a Magus Rank 1 and is said to be the reincarnation of a supreme expert?" Roland as always tried the diplomatic route to diffuse the situation, being formal and stroking the ego of the child.

Shin looked happy at being so well recognized and left after saying some useless words Roland didn't care to listen.

As soon as Shin Tan left, Lucy and August's voices bombarded Roland's head. "Don't ever enter in contact with that man once again. We had our suspicions since we discovered his name is Shin Tan, and now we confirmed it with how his Essence works and the power of Fate surrounds him. If you have to enter in contact with him again, don't become an enemy or ally. Just become a bystander in his life.

"That man Shin Tan is dangerous, not on power but on destiny. He probably is reincarnated from someone. We can't explain right now why we are saying this, but believe us. Anyone that has a relation good or bad with him is doomed or at least will live a life close to dying almost every day."