6 Meeting Acquaintances
Death... This is a phenomenon that all living things instinctively fear. It is because of the fear of death that humans sharpen their life instincts.
The reason for fear of death is simple. That's because no one knows what happens after death.
Are their souls crushed?
Did they assimilate into the universe?
Do they experience rebirth?
No one knew the answer, not even Ars who had been reincarnated seven times.
He's a special case, or an anomaly.
Until now, he didn't know why or who gave him the ability to reincarnate.
Thoughts of death came to her mind as soon as she stood in front of Nicholas' grave.
"Long time no see, Nicholas. Sorry for being late, my perception of time has been a little messed up recently."
Scattering flowers over the tomb, Ars spoke as if he were talking to someone else.
Ars looked at the photo of the white-haired old man in the tomb.
"So that's how old you look. The last time we met, you were still 50 years old, I didn't even recognize you."
He remembered his first meeting with Nicholas.
At that time, he was 45 years old, while Nicholas was a young man of 22.
Ars liked visiting human cities rather than settling on an island like Rin. One day, he visits Mathias City, while he is out walking, someone tries to steal his money, and the pickpocket is none other than Nicholas.
Nicholas in his youth was not the successful businessman he is now, but a pickpocket on the streets. After all, Mathias City wasn't as advanced as it is now, and there was a lot of crime due to being led by a corrupt ruler.
But who is Ars? How could he possibly let a mortal steal his stuff. As a result, Nicholas was caught, and beaten to a pulp.
The frightened Nicholas begged for mercy while prostrating.
"Please forgive me, I did it to provide for my 80 year old mother and little sister, please spare me."
Thanks to this reason, Ars didn't cast Nicholas until the seventh sky.
That's an excuse commonly used by low-level villains in Chinese novels. Nicholas had caught his attention with that ridiculous excuse.
To pass the time, he ordered him to become a guide, because it was the first time he had arrived in Mathias City.
Later, Ars toured the city with Nicholas as a tour guide, though there was nothing worth seeing.
The rule of a corrupt ruler has caused the people of Mathias City to suffer from hunger, poverty, and high crime rates.
In the end, Ars dragged Nicholas to the city lord's residence and killed him.
From then on, Mathias City was managed by Nicholas because of his orders.
Only the poor understand the suffering of the poor. Under the trustful and wise reign of Nicholas, slowly but surely, Mathias City became a prosperous city and was no longer poor.
The relationship between the two of them also changed, from boss and subordinate to friendship.
"Wouldn't believe it if I said that the lord of Mathias City and the owner of a Grocery Bar whose branches are spread all over the world, were just pickpockets in the past."
"I didn't choose you wrong, Nicholas."
Ars smiled with melancholy.
"Are you Uncle Ars?"
A girl's voice of disbelief and doubt sounded from behind.
Hearing someone say his name, Ars turned to look behind him and found a beautiful girl accompanied by two burly men in all-black uniforms to her left and right.
It was a beautiful teenage girl of average height and a slim body. She has fair skin, long blonde hair that falls over her shoulders and reaches down to her waist. Its most striking feature was a pair of large, piercing blue eyes.
"You are… little Marie?"
The girl in front of him reminded him of Nicholas' granddaughter.
"You really are Uncle Ars!"
The way the young man in front of her addressed her by that nickname confirmed Marie's doubts.
"Leave us alone."
Marie said to her two bodyguards.
"But miss..."
"Enough, this person is my acquaintance, I will be fine."
"Alright, call us if something happens."
The two burly men obeyed their young miss' orders, and left.
As the successor of the Grocery Bar, it was no wonder Marie had bodyguards with her.
"Little Marie has turned into a beautiful and charming girl." Ars said with a smile.
"Uncle Ars has never changed from back then." Marie spoke in a low voice.
"Nicholas... Your grandfather told you some things about me, didn't he?"
"En, grandpa often talks about his youth, especially his meeting with Uncle Ars."
Marie stood beside Ars, and sprinkled flowers beneath her.
"You are not afraid of me?"
"Why? Does Uncle Ars want to do something bad to me?"
Seeing the small smile on Marie's face, Ars sighed. The cute and innocent little girl has turned into a calculating girl.
"Forget it, pretend I never asked." Ars said casually.
"Who exactly is Uncle Ars?"
"Wow, you didn't hide your motives at all."
"That's not necessary, Uncle Ars is not a bad person."
"Where does the source of your confidence come from."
Ars scratched the back of his head, then asked back.
"What are you asking for? Want to find out the source of my immortality?"
The richer a person is, the more afraid that person is of facing death.
As can be seen from historical records, Emperors and Kings are trying to find a way to become immortal. Even in modern times, global elites build research facilities to ensure research longevity.
For mortals, immortality was very tempting to them.
Only immortals know that immortality is nothing more than the cruelest curse.
Ars started to realize this recently, the people closest to him died and left him alone.
"Uncle Ars misunderstood, I just want to know, if you don't want to say, it's okay not to say."
Marie hurriedly explained, she didn't want to have a bad side in front of her uncle.
"I was just kidding, you are still as clumsy as ever, little Marie." Ars said this while brushing Marie's hair.
"Don't treat me like a child, I'm an adult."
Marie puffed out her large chest.
"Yeah, you're not a kid anymore."
For reasons unknown, Ars does not lust after human women. So, he treated Marie as just an acquaintance.
"Okay, it won't hurt to tell you."
"Is it true?"
"Yeah, since this is going to be a long story, let's move places."
"My residence is here, let's go there."
With an excited expression, Marie pulled Ars' hand towards her steam car, which was parked outside the grave.
The two bodyguards looked at each other in astonishment, it was their first time seeing their young miss holding a man's hand. Then they sat down in the front seats.
The car drove out of the grave, a few minutes later, it entered a luxurious villa, which had a large yard.
Looking through the window, Ars was not surprised to see the luxury before his eyes. In fact, he also looks a bit like Nicholas' success.
There were many people who were greedy towards Mathias City, after it had progressed and prospered under Nicholas' reign. Hence, there were many assassins sent to kill the city lord, unfortunately they never came back after entering the city lord's residence.
It was all because Ars stayed there for a while to look after him, after Nicholas completely laid the foundation, only then did he not interfere anymore.
The reason Ars did it all was not out of kindness, but as a way to get rid of the boredom he felt.
"Welcome, young miss."
Getting off the car, Marie was greeted by two rows of maids and a butler.
"Sebastian, prepare the best lunch, today a special guest came." Marie said in an elegant manner like royalty.
"Understood, young miss."
The butler named Sebastian endured the shock in his heart when he saw Ars, he had been a butler of the Nicholas generation, and he was now over 80 years old. Of course he had seen Ars in the past with Nicholas.
Seeing that Ars still looked like he did decades ago, Sebastian thought that his eyesight had deteriorated or that the person in front of him just looked the same.
"Come on in, Uncle Ars." Marie spoke softly.
"En."
Ars followed Marie into the villa.
Sebastian's body trembled slightly, his young lady called the young man uncle.
(Is it really him?)
There were many doubts in Sebastian's mind, but as an experienced butler, he endured those complicated thoughts, and ordered the maids to prepare the best banquet.
