Sword God.

Archibald was startled awake.

Gasping loudly as he realized he had just returned to his body after ascending to the Second Firmament.

"Damn you!"

Despite his relief at being back in his physical form, he was frustrated with Muramasa.

She dropped information about Sakura and then abruptly ended their communication.

Archibald believed this was the worst possible time to wake up, as he had hoped to gather more information about his past life.

He couldn't shake the feeling that everything was just beginning, despite thinking it was all over.

It had been observed that time moved differently in each Firmament, with the Third Firmament moving the slowest.

A day in the Third Firmament is equivalent to months in the Second Firmament and years in the First Firmament.

This phenomenon explained why Gods were much older than humans, demihumans and demigods alike.

"Sakura... So you died... I wasn't able to save you..."

He ponderously spoke to himself.

Seeing as he was indoors, Archibald didn't need to tie his long hair in a ponytail. Rather, he left it in its normal appearance.

Staring at his hands, relief. At least he was back in this world.

Arcelia, a 6-year-old girl, observed her brother Archibald in a state of puzzlement and quiet sorrow.

She was hidden next to the door, uncertain of how to console him.

Although she did not comprehend the situation between him and their father, she desired to offer support.

Archibald was so absorbed he didn't even notice her.

This became more apparent after Amara came to get Arcelia so she could sleep.

'My son... I worry about you, but you're a smart boy... I know you'll learn a lot from this mistake.'

Even now, his mother remained hopeful.

No matter how much doubt Archibald had in himself, his mother stayed completely confident in him.

----In the western continent Oruinʼs Dagaric Empire----

Oruin, the western continent of the World, was known for its monolithic nature and scarcity of islands.

The Dagaric Empire, ruled by the 7th generational Sword God, Lord Artorius Dagaric, was the most powerful country in the continent.

This was natural, given that Artorius was the strongest of all the 7 Sword Gods selected so far.

It was important to note that the Dagaric Empire's power was not just due to Artorius' strength, but also due to their advanced military tactics and strategic alliances with other countries.

Artorius was a highly skilled Sword Magus and was renowned for his proficiency in [Wind Magic].

He was among the elite Sword Magus class of the 7 Sword Gods and was known as the "Tempestuous God of Swords."

In anticipation of his demise, Artorius carefully selected four disciples whom he deemed to be the most skilled swordsmen of their time.

He bestowed upon them "true names," which were as follows:

    - Aquilon :: Sword God of the North.

    - Vulturnus :: Sword God of the East.

    - Favonius :: Sword God of the West.

    - Auster :: Sword God of the South.

He referred to them as the "Four Divine Blades."

These individuals were chosen to carry on Artorius' legacy and to continue the tradition of the Sword.

In the Swordcraft Castle.

"Aquilon, it seems we've been having a lot of visitors lately.."

Artorius, an elderly man with long ivory hair and thick white beards, sat on his silvery white throne.

His eyes were dragon-like.

He wore white armor that glistened and a long cape to join. His imposing voice had power behind it.

"Yes, Lord Artorius.."

The man behind Artorious, spoke.

Aquilon.

[Four Divine Blades] First ranked.

He was observed wearing white pants with black trimmings, paired with a white frock-coat also with black trimmings. His dark blue hair was styled upwards, with the tips slightly tinged and two strands framing the sides of his head.

Additionally, a plain white mask obscured his facial features.

"The Vampyre God - Silvana has even selected a disciple..." said Aquilon.

"Is that so? That's quite interesting.."

"Yes, in fact, it seems reincarnators have become the ideal choice of Gods.."

"Do you think I should select another disciple?"

"Hmm... Lord Artorius, that choice is entirely up to you. But, I support the idea of selecting a new disciple, after all reincarnators are born with certain advantages... Some possess a mana pool that rivals Demon Lords like Avarakneis, others are born with the Rayman Factor.."

The last words in particular, surprised Artorius. Adjusting himself on his throne, he said:

"Are you serious?! Rayman Factor?"

"Yes... My Lord... But so far I am only aware of two individuals."

"Namely?"

"I'm sorry, I do not know their names. Vulturnus was the one who gave me this news, so it is not entirely dependable."

"I haven't spoken with Vulturnus in a while, for some reason he prefers the laborious life of a normal swordsman... Than that which I offered him as one of my Four Divine Blades."

"Vulturnus never seems to take anything seriously. I would admonish him, but in the end it is futile."

An essential fact was that Aquilon never used contractions to speak. In his opinion they were disrespectful.

"He's a talented swordsman nonetheless.."

"I agree.."

"But, I don't think there's any need to select a new disciple... I have enough competent ones already."

In respect to such words of high praise, Aquilon genuflected to thank Artorius.

--- In the eastern continent Esesʼ Zenoa Empire ---

The eastern region of the world was home to a vast peninsula known as Eses.

This peninsula was surrounded by numerous islets of varying sizes.

The mainland, which was governed by the Zenoa Empire, was the central focus of Eses.

In addition to this, the remaining territories were divided into separate countries.

The Ixtal Kingdom and Beldris Kingdom were two distinct regions on the mainland, located on the western and northern parts, respectively.

Ixtal Kingdom was composed of three territories, namely Velvana, Galdruos, and Castain.

The Berkyl Region, which was considered the outskirts of the Empire, was separated from Velvana by the Azapita Mountains.

The Blackwaters District, although known for its danger, was connected to the Red Desert, which led to the Beldris Kingdom.

Archibald and Arcelia were strolling in the cornfields of Berkyl Region when Archibald proposed to take Arcelia for hunting.

She expressed her interest in magic.

"Well I plan to do the fighting, but you should at least see what the monsters here are like."

"What type of monsters will we be fighting big brother?!"

"It has to be a low-level one for sure.."

He then began to ponder on finding a monster for them to hunt.

There were six difficulty ranks to classify monsters.

[[ S | A | B | C | D | E ]] Ranks.

In order of strongest to weakest.

"If we stay just around the Blackwaters District, I'm sure we can find some rank D monsters to fight..."

They were already close to the said district, but were yet to encounter any monsters.

("My little sister is on a mission to learn magic and swords. I mean, it's not a terrible thing, but come on, take a break. When I was her age, I only studied swords. I still don't know any basic magic spells. Those incantations are too much work for my brain. But hey, if she wants to be a Sword Magus, who am I to say no?")

Their parents were two different classes.

Micheal was a Swordsman and Amara was a Magus.

As expected, they were both Adventurers, before they got married and decided to settle down.

"But... Big brother, there aren't any monsters around here.."

"Yeah, we're definitely gonna have to search for them."

"Can I use search magic?"

"Huh? Search wah?"

Expectedly, he didn't understand what she meant by her request to use search magic.

She was stoked to impress her brother.

"Spread out mana... Oh great spirits that navigate the world, use your guiding wisdom to grant your servant sight beyond sight, [Search]"

By thinly spreading her mana around herself, she gained the ability to sense the presence of other living creatures' mana.

As all living creatures possess mana.

This technique allowed her to immediately detect the location of any living being.

This was a Jade-ranked magic spell.

"Some creatures are fifty meters away from us.."

She informed Archibald after deactivating the spell.

He was amazed.

"Wait you actually sensed them?!"

"Yeah... I learnt it some weeks ago."

"Some weeks ago?"

Archibald widened his eyes, staring at her with a skeptical look.

("....I see, so my little sister has more talent than me. It's okay, I won't cry.")

He rubbed his eyes vigorously.

This was to remove the tears that were about to exit his eyes.

"So how'd I do?" she asked, excitedly.

"You did good, I haven't even gone through the Magical Guide.."

He had to say the truth. It was preferable he didn't act unimpressed simply because he was a little jealous of her.

Arcelia was elated. Her studies were paying off.

"Okay, let's go hunt down some monsters.."

He pointed forward in anticipation.