Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix

"Almost two years… you did well in protecting everyone, Rain," Roan said after a long sigh. "I will try to make it up for you and everyone else, but I guess I will have to change my identity to avoid problems in the future. The war is at a stalemate, but the balance will break in less than five years again. I don't think that our country will last like this for long."

"I suppose we don't have many options left, huh," Rain said. "I am not surprised learning this... it actually feels like I just confirmed what I knew."

"The enemies are playing the long game while the humans are only thinking about the present," Roan replied. "I can't see them winning unless some big changes take place now."

The humans losing the war was worrisome… If the capital falls, the whole kingdom falls, and so goes the peace of Rain's family. He had to do something about that, but what could he do? He thought a lot during the trip back home, but nothing came to mind. He had to get stronger since, to rescue his father, he only could be stealthy… his options were limited thanks to his power level.

After several days and in the morning, Rain and Roan were able to see the village where their family was living; Roan hesitated a bit from approaching. He felt truly ashamed since he worried everyone so much, and his duty was to protect them instead. Since that was the first thing that he said once he was back, that truly had been haunting him.

"Trying to avoid the unavoidable is a waste of time," Rain said. "It is better to accept whatever happens and adapt to it."

"I always knew that you would become smarter than me, but it is quite painful to receive such lessons from my seven years old son," Roan said and then sighed.

While looking around, Rain confirmed that nothing changed in the village while he was away. So, he felt relieved. His grandpa wasn't working in the fields that morning, so it seemed that they would be able to surprise everyone at home. Once they arrived in front of the house, Roan took a deep breath to prepare himself mentally.

Still, much to his surprise, Leiah suddenly opened the door and showed herself while carrying Gila. Her expression froze when she saw Roan and Rain; she found it hard to believe that they were actually back.

"Hey… sorry for the delay," Roan said while forcing a smile.

It seemed pretty obvious that such a thing would happen, but Roan was caught off guard when Leiah began to cry uncontrollably and then rushed to hug him. She left Rain to look after Gila, who was still sleeping. Although that was an emotional meeting, Rain could only wonder if that would make him get more siblings. The way his parents liked to shag, he could only assume that.

Before long, Roan was able to meet everyone in the house, and while he had a hard time not crying in front of his son, he let some tears fall when he confirmed that Dana and Kei didn't forget him. That sure was surprising. Maybe it was because they hadn't seen many people since their father disappeared.

"Papa, faster!" Dana said while she was using Roan as a horse alongside Kei.

"Okay, okay," Roan said while smiling.

Roan never pretended to play horse for his kids, but he felt like he didn't have any more reason to try to save his pride after being away for two years. When Luana and Meiro showed up, he bowed at them deeply. He said that he was sorry for not protecting their daughter for such a long time and making her deal with such hardships, but they didn't mind that at all.

Instead, they just asked for the details of what happened. After a long explanation, they showed some concerned expressions.

"I see… we are sorry for your brothers," Meiro said.

"They died doing what they wanted, trying to take back our hometown, so they had no regrets," Roan said. "Honestly… I fought with the same intentions. My parents died, we lost everything, and my family had to endure all this… I felt that I had the duty to deal with all of the enemies in one way or the other."

"Well, your family has always been stubborn about honor," Meiro said and then shrugged.

"What about Leo?" Luana asked.

"... He moved to the magic people's land one year ago," Roan said and then sighed. "He will gain a position alongside his family on the upper echelon there for giving them such a foothold in our territory. That is what he wanted, and the people from the other country also think that leaving him in the command of Tristan city would be too risky."

It made sense for the enemies to change the rulers of the cities they took. As long as they keep some of the heads alive, the common folk will feel the need to follow the rules as well. Rain was beginning to understand how politics worked in that world and felt a bit troubled since it was a pain in the ass. The kind of approach that nobles had when it came to politics was too different from his.

In the first place, those kinds of people weren't true leaders since they never put theirs on the line. So, how could he trust them?

"Well… I can't forget about what he did, but I don't have to worry about him right now," Roan said. "I have to make up for the lost time, but I also have to find a job here once I change my appearance a bit."

"We will do something about that. For now, just enjoy your return," Meiro said while smiling. "I have some work to do this afternoon, so I will leave now."

"I also have to do some things," Luana said while grinning.