The Regression Of A Grand Mercenary - 14 - A Storm's Rage

As the storm was raging on outside, I was inside the workshop, working on thechores I plan to do in my freetime.

In about a while from now, I’ll also have to watch over Theodore in his training in using magic.

Even with the storm outside, I don’t want him to think that he can just use this as an excuse to skip out on training.

This weather may be harsh, but it’s a good opportunity for Theodore to conjure a flame against a few strong winds that comes with the storm.

But for now, it’s a bit dangerous…so I’ll wait it out until the storm slows down a bit.

Currently, I did the usual chores in my workshop. Usually, I would have Thomas help me, but right now, since there was a storm passing by, he had to look out for any sort of problem that comes by. Certain damages would occur like our roofs leaking or the floors creaking. In just a blink of an eye, some accident might pass by and we wouldn’t be prepared. So it’s Thomas’s job to be o nthe look out.

As for me, I’m cleaning out the forge. By removing some ash, slag, and debris from the forge, it helps ensure optimal heat and prevent any buildup that could interfere with the forging process.

Along with that I was repairing some of my equipment. It’s common knowledge that the better the equipment, the better one’s work is. And it’s even better if the equipment I’m using is more than just a simple metal hammer. I’m thinking of one day going deep into the forest to look for a lesser dragon or a wyvern just to harvest it’s material. If I can get those monster parts, I can easily make better swords with better equipment.

And finally to end the day, I should start trying to make more decorative sketches for swords to appeal to the customers. It’s one of the ways to rake in a potential customers even here in the village.

***

As I was cleaning up the forge from its ash and debris, all of a sudden Thomas busted into the workshop, looking really shocked.

*Thud!*

“Thomas?!”

“You gotta come to the house quick, there’s an injured man and a lady with fancy clothes!” he said.

“Fancy clothes? ”

“Yeah, they looked like nobles.” he said.

“Did they come from this storm?”

“I don’t really know, but they knocked on our door, so big sis decided to let them in.”

“O-okay, I’ll go.”

Having wondered what was going on, I dropped everything that I was doing and went straight to the house.

When I arrived there, the first thing I could see was an old man soaking wet from the rain.

“…Who are you people?” I asked.

“Y-you must be the man of the house. My name is Desmond, I work for the Amber Family.”

“…Amber family? Do you mean the richest merchant family of the kingdom?” I asked.

“Indeed, and with me is Miss Evelyn Ambers.” he said, but I couldn’t find any lady beside him.

“Where is she?” I asked.

“She’s currently drying herself up in big sister’s room.” said Theodore.

“Okay, so why did you come to our home?” I asked.

After a bit of talking, the old man explained the whole situation.

“I see, so you came here when you saw the horse outside on our backyard?” I asked.

“Indeed, we are in need of your services. If you could help us, we would truly be indebted to your family.” he said.

“…” having looked outside, it seems the storm still hasn’t slowed down.

“I can’t believe that you actually went here while the storm was passing, didn’t you know?”

“We didn’t expect it to happen.” he said.

“…Okay, fine. I’ll lend you our horse.”

“Thank you!”

“But I’m coming along to help.”

“Pardon?” he asked as he was a bit taken aback by my help.

“Riding into a storm with two horses is too dangerous for one man. You need two riders.” I said.

“Brother, are you sure about this?” asked Thomas.

“Don’t worry, I know my way against a storm like this.” I said.

After that, I made my way to grab my coat and went to the stables to get the horse.

As I ride in front of the house, I waited for the old man to come by. Once he did come by, he was seen with a coat as well.

“Lead the way!” I said as I shouted against the strong winds.

“Okay!” the old man agreed and we both decided to ride.

As the old man started riiding, I turned my way back to the house for just a quick moment, and up on the second floor, I meet eyes with a certain blue eyed woman.

“?”

Her face seemed familiar as it was paired with her luscious blonde hair.

But soon enough,I turned my attention back to the old man.

The storm raged with unrelenting fury, and as we rode through it, the rain pelted down on me like a barrage of stones. Each drop felt heavy and destructive, soaking through my clothes and stinging my skin. The wind howled, tearing at my coat, but I kept my focus on the path ahead.

“Are you okay?” the old man asked, his voice barely audible over the roar of the storm.

“I’m fine,” I shouted back, tightening my grip on the reins. “I’ve been through worse!”

We pressed on through the tempest, riding for what felt like an eternity. The rain blurred the world into a haze of grey, and the wind made it difficult to see more than a few feet ahead. After about twenty minutes, we passed a cart filled with mercenaries, their faces hidden beneath hoods and cloaks, bracing against the storm. They must be the ones the old man had mentioned, but even as we rode by, we didn’t stop. There was no time for questions.

Ten more minutes passed before we finally reached the carriage. It lay by the side of the road, battered and weathered, the corpse of a horse sprawled beside it, lifeless. A middle-aged man huddled inside, sheltering from the winds, his eyes wide with fear.

I surveyed the scene, my voice steady despite the chaos around us. “What do we do with the horse?”

“We bring it with us,” the old man replied, shouting over the storm. “It’ll add enough weight to keep the carriage from being blown away.”

I frowned. “So we’re putting it on the back of the carriage?”

He nodded. “It should work.”

The logic felt strange to me, but the storm was fierce, and the winds were strong enough to lift the carriage off the road. If we didn’t add weight, it would be at the mercy of the gale. Still, I couldn’t shake the nagging thought that there was an easier solution. “Why don’t we just leave the carriage behind and get the coachman to safety?”

The old man’s face darkened, his voice dropping low. “This carriage is worth more than your life—and the coachman’s. It stays.”

I clenched my jaw, feeling the weight of his words. In the world of nobles and merchants, objects often held more value than people. I hated it, but there was no time to argue.

Together, we heaved the dead horse onto the back of the carriage. It was a grim task, the stench of the animal’s wet fur mixing with the cold bite of the wind. The coachman, pale and trembling, took the reins once more, his hands shaking as he prepared to ride.

As we mounted up, I could feel the storm intensifying, the winds whipping at us with renewed force. “The winds are getting stronger!” I shouted, trying to steady the carriage as it rocked beneath the relentless storm.

With each passing moment, the shaking grew worse. The carriage creaked, groaning under the pressure, and I could feel the tension building in the air. It felt like the storm was a living thing, bent on tearing everything apart.

And as we moved forward, every step felt like a gamble against the storm’s rage.

During that time, we had a little bit of room to breath.

“So let me ask you, what is the Amber Family doing in our village?” I asked

“You might not have heard, but the Amber Merchant family intends on building a base around the village. Because of it’s flourishing land, It’s one of the perfect places to create a business around agriculture.” he said.

“Agriculture huh, is it just that or do you plan on building a store as well?” I asked.

“We do.”

“Oh, that’s great. If one of the greatest merchant families erupt a store here in our village, we don’t have to worry about our resources anymore. It would be great that I don’t have to go to the city so often.”

“That’s good to hear, Miss Evelyn plans on leading the project of the agriculture plan head on and spread it’s product country wide.”

“I’m expecting good things.”

“Hmm, and may I ask, what do you do?” asked the old man.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“I can tell from you posture alone that you’re well built, and even more so, I noticed that beside your house was a shop.”

“Oh, um…our family shop sells metal crafts. Mostly, I make swords and armor.” I said.

“Oh, so you’re a blacksmith?”

“I am, but it isn’t just swords and armor, I can also take on personal commissions like say equipment for farming or whatnot.”

“Hmm, I see. Indeed, that explains your body.”

As we talked for about ten minutes, suddenly, the winds started to slow down.

“It looks like the storm is ending soon.” said the old man as a smile appeared on his face.

But it was actually the other way around.

“No, somethings wrong…” I said as I started to feel an unnecessary amount of worry.

“What?” asked the old man.

All of a sudden, I heard the rumbling noise of a thunderous roar up in the skies.

“!?”

And what came about it was the sudden increase of the wind’s blow. It was so strong that it quickly blow the carriage down to it’s side.

*Boom!*

“Ugh!”

“Khk!*

“Ahh!!” the coachman screamed as we all lost our balance.

As fast as I could, I opened the door on the carriage and left to see what was happening.

And to my surprise, out from the distance, a twister was forming from the heavens.

“…Shit.”

What followed behind me was the old man who was bleeding on his head from the carriage crashing.

“W-what’s going-” before he could finish his question, he witness the sight of a tornado spinning cllosely to the road.

“What is that?!” he asked in shock.

“A Tornado?!”

“Not just any tornado, it’s an unnatural disaster.” I said as I tried to stay calm.

“What does that mean?” asked the old man.

“It’s a storm that hunts for blood.”

“WHAT!? Is that even possible?” he said as he looked nervous as well.

“I’m not joking. That thing will search for anything that’s roaming near it’s winds. Rarely does it ever appear here, but about once every five years at best, it does happen.”

“But how? It’s just wind?!”

”It’s not just wind, it’s a storm influenced by the magic in the surroundings!” I said as I could feel the magic circling itself as it influences it’s movement.

“What do we do then?” he asked.

“There’s only one thing to do…”

I couldn’t help myself….

‘Hehehehe…’

‘This power….this unbelievable feeling….ohhh, How nostalgic it is…IT REALLY RILES ME UP!!’

This devil of a storm…this was the very inspiration to my once recognized strength.

I can’t help myself…

If the old man could see my right now…

If my family could see my reaction right now, they’ll surely be disgusted by just how grievous my smile is right now.

I can’t help myself…

Old habit’s are hard to escape…

“Hahaha…come, oh old friend of mine.”

“I’ll take you in just like the old days.”

Without any sense of hesitation, I ran towards the twister.

“O-oi!!” the old man tried to reach me and stop me from going, but I slipped past through his arms.

Despite the old man’s try in stopping me, I would have killed him if he did…

You shouldn’t waste an opportunity like this…

‘Come, oh you sweet little devil!’

Using the first stage of my own pure core, I leaped from ground to ground, until finally I landed only ten meters away from it.

The winds it carried was strong enough to break an arm into a mesh, if I’m ever careless, I would surely die…

But I’ve been through this before…

I’ve been through this a thousand times in the days where my name was chanted like a legend’s tale.

***

With no sense of fear placed on his expression, Thill stood before the storm with such a smile placed on his face.

This feeling of such exhilarating energy…

The feeling of having such a wild wind come across his face…

It was all so nostalgic…

He couldn’t blame himself to react so creepily and willingly in meeting the storm…

It was like experiencing one’s first ever love yet all over again…

The storm was raging with energy…

And he was willing to take it all…

What did he mean by it?

Simple.

He would devour the storm, magic and energy all alike.

And to the reason why, it was simply one of the things that brought about his power…

But gaining the power was just an after thought for him. To be truly honest of himself, he simply wanted to feel the nostalgic sensation of the wind that once felt like his past.

It was sort of like a drug to him…

Power and anything after the feeling of nostalgia is but an after thought to him at that point.

So with his arms out to the open, out of nowhere, he conjured a circle on his chest.

It was his pure core.

A delicate piece of power that he himself was able to produce out of his own will.

And for it to manifest outside his body, it might seem like a mistake, but it was the process of devouring the very storm that stood before him.

Exposing the pure core to the storm will bring about the necessary aspect of the pure core that he once had in the past.

And that was the affinity to the nature of the winds.

Sure he can use skills of the winds through his memory from the past, but as of his current strength, to truly bring out the ability to manipulate the winds out of his own will is to have an affinity for it with or without mana.

If he devours the storm with all of its magic and energy, he will be granted the ability to manipulate the winds simply by his will.

And in simply calculations, he becomes stronger.

His Pure Core and his own mind and will were one and the same…

To start the process, one must be prepared to risk their own life.

Slowly and gently, he wrapped his fingers around his pure core.

‘…There we go.’

And from it, he started manipulating his Pure Core to seep in the very winds that were circulating before him.

The winds were strong. One strong gust against his pure core and he will surely die. So by using his fingers that are wrapping around his visible pure core, they act as a shield.

***

The winds roared with chaotic fury, tearing at my clothes and skin as I stood before the twister, feeling its power resonate deep within my bones. The world blurred around me, the gale threatening to rip me apart if I dared misstep, but I wasn’t afraid.

In fact, I was exhilarated.

This storm… this chaos… it’s mine to claim once again.

I inhaled deeply, feeling the magic of the storm swirl in the air, the same wild energy that once fueled my every movement in battle. It felt like reconnecting with an old friend—a force that both terrified and empowered me. The Pure Core within me began to hum, vibrating as if responding to the storm’s call.

Good…

Without hesitation, I activated the first stage of my Pure Core. The familiar rush of power surged through me, enhancing my body, sharpening my senses. My vision cut through the rain, the wind, the debris, as if the world around me slowed down. My legs coiled, and I leaped forward, closing the gap between myself and the twister.

It was almost too close now. The winds screeched like banshees, their fierce tendrils wrapping around me, seeking to pull me in. But I didn’t resist. Instead, I welcomed it.

I reached out with my hand holding on to the pure core, and in it, it started connecting with the storm’s magic. I could feel it—its raw, unrestrained power. And with that connection, I began to draw it into my core.

The storm resisted, pushing back with an unnatural force, as if it were alive, a creature with its own will. But I was relentless, refusing to be overwhelmed. My mana surged outward, enveloping the storm, binding it to me. I could feel the core inside me expand, pulsing as it absorbed the chaotic energy, growing stronger with every passing moment.

My body trembled from the strain, but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t. This was the power I had once mastered—this was the force that made me feared.

You will be mine once more.

The twister roared louder, the winds intensifying as if it knew I was trying to devour it. But I pressed on, pushing my core deeper, commanding the storm to yield. Slowly, I felt the resistance weaken. The raging winds began to falter, the violent spinning of the tornado slowing as it succumbed to my will.

Yes…

With a final push, I unleashed a torrent of own power, enveloping the last of the storm. And then, in a single moment of silence, the twister collapsed into nothingness, its energy completely absorbed into my Pure Core.

The power surged through me like a river of lightning, wild and intoxicating. My muscles felt like they could tear mountains apart. My senses expanded, and for a moment, I could feel every drop of rain, every gust of wind, as if they were extensions of myself.

I stood there, breathing heavily, my heart racing with exhilaration. The storm was gone, but its power now belonged to me.

“Hahaha…”

My laugh was low, almost a whisper, but it carried the weight of a thousand battles fought and won. The old man stood behind me, eyes wide with terror, his mouth hanging open.

“You… what did you do?” he whispered, his voice trembling.

I turned to him, feeling the storm’s energy still swirling within me, feeding my core. I could see the fear in his eyes, the disbelief. He had witnessed something unnatural, something beyond the comprehension of a simple merchant’s servant.

“I did what I needed to do,” I said calmly, though my voice carried a dangerous edge. “Now, let’s get back before another storm rolls in.”

Without waiting for a response, I turned and walked back toward the carriage. My body was still humming with power, the storm’s energy coiling inside my Pure Core like a caged beast. But I kept it in check. I had learned long ago not to let such power consume me.

As we got the carriage back to the road, we started moving again, I couldn’t help but glance back at the skies. The storm had been wild, untamed, but now it was mine—its power now part of me.

Old habits die hard…