0005 - Cultivate at the Shrine

Raynare dared not say anything and quickly took out a device. She placed it on the table in front of Haruka and pressed the magic circle engraved on it.

White light particles emerged from the device and flowed into Haruka's body. Haruka allowed the light to enter his body while observing the changes.

When the white light particles stopped coming out of the device and were fully absorbed into Haruka's body, Raynare suddenly prostrated herself before Haruka.

"Please forgive me, Haruka-sama."

"I-I didn't... I was just following orders."

"I will do anything, please don't kill me."

Raynare, waiting for Haruka's response, dared not lift her head.

On the other hand, Haruka closed his eyes and entered the inner world within his soul.

Haruka floated in the air. Below him was a large volcano on an island surrounded by lush trees. The island was surrounded by a vast ocean with a boundary that seemed to touch the star-filled sky.

He observed a sword slowly forming from light particles in front of him. This sword was a longsword with a black color adorned with white cloud-shaped engravings. The sword guard had a simple golden color with a black handle. When the sword was fully formed, Haruka reached for the hilt and swung the sword to try it out.

"Fascinating, I was actually surprised when this sacred gear merged into my soul, ignoring the empty vessel in the remaining original Haruka's soul."

"Does this sacred gear have its own instinct?"

Redirecting his awareness to the outside world, he saw Raynare and her companions bowing in his direction. Ignoring the three of them, Haruka took out his Sacred Gear to examine it again. He was still fascinated by the artifact in his hands, which could exist in both soul and physical conditions depending on the owner's desire.

Curious, Haruka channeled a bit of his sword intent into the sword-shaped sacred gear. Surprisingly, the sword could withstand Haruka's sword intent. The sword was enveloped in a reddish light, resembling hot flames reflecting the light.

Raynare and her two companions trembled, feeling the sharpness of the strange energy emitted by Haruka.

"Am I going to die?"

"W-What's actually happening?"

"Please..."

"Haruka-sama, please don't kill me/us, I beg you!" All three of them were shouting over each other.

"Alright, alright, you don't have to be so frightened."

Haruka pressed his sword intent back into his body.

"What is the name of my weapon?"

Raynare, with a little hesitation, raised her head and sat in a seiza position. She took the device again and opened the screen to show it to Haruka.

"Haruka-sama's sword is called the Skyrider Sword. The ability of this sacred gear allows it to float in the air at the owner's will and can also carry the wielder while floating."

"Hmm, a fairly simple ability. What do you think?"

".. The Skydriver Sword is classified as a low-tier sacred gear, Haruka-sama."

"Not many recorded and recognized users in its history."

Raynare tried to explain Haruka's sacred gear as best as possible without offending him.

'It's not my fault if the sacred gear doesn't have powerful abilities.'

'And judging from his lack of knowledge about this sacred gear, it means he's not the original Kaito Haruka.'

Haruka just nodded and smiled, listening to Raynare's explanation. He was simply delighted with the new type of weapon he had found.

"This sword will be my first collection in this new life."

"Good stuff."

"Alright, I'm feeling content for now."

"Mittelt, Kalawarna, you may leave for now."

Haruka snapped his fingers, and Mittelt and Kalawarna disappeared from his living room. He then turned to Raynare, who looked pale but smiled.

"And for you, who once killed me, you need to be punished."

Raynare's eyes widened, and she shed a few tears.

"I BEG FOR FORGIVENESS, HARUKA-SAMA!!"

...

The night passed, and dawn began to break.

"Um... How does the food taste, Haruka-sama?"

Raynare now wore a black-and-white maid uniform with a hint of purple. She stood beside Haruka, who was enjoying his meal.

"It's quite good. You seem to have a talent for this."

"Thank you for your praise, Haruka-sama."

While bowing slightly, Raynare tried to contain her embarrassment. Her face turned slightly red. On her neck, there was a circular magical formation with a symbol of two wings on the front.

"You can sit with me for the meal."

"If that's what Haruka-sama desires."

Raynare sat facing Haruka and prepared her own meal.

"As for the contract I placed on you last night, for the next 40 years, you will be my maid."

"I want you to come every morning to tidy up the house and prepare breakfast."

"After that, you can engage in your own activities because I don't want to restrict you too much."

"But sometimes, I will also call upon you if I need something."

"You can use the magical formation on your neck to communicate with me and activate the teleportation formation so you can easily come here."

".. Thank you, Haruka-sama."

Haruka nodded and finished his meal.

"Hmm, you may leave if you have plans for today, Raynare."

"... Am I really allowed to leave, Haruka-sama?"

"Yes, but don't forget to come tomorrow morning at 5 and start your duties."

"I will do my best. If that's the case, I'll take my leave now, Haruka-sama."

Raynare bowed briefly, then turned to the balcony. She spread her wings and flew. After hovering for a few meters, Raynare disappeared using teleportation.

Haruka chuckled watching the girls try to distance themselves from him as quickly as possible.

"Do I look that terrifying?"

"But they're truly cowards; I just released a bit of spiritual pressure, and they stopped moving."

"If they were cultivators, they might still withstand the pressure."

"At least try negotiating to survive."

Haruka stood up and began stretching his body. He planned to start his spiritual cultivation today. And, of course, he would continue tempering his body to quickly reach the Aura Initiation realm.

Exiting through the balcony, Haruka jumped down, activating all the formations he needed.

"Let's go around the city once more."

Humming a tune, Haruka jogged using a different route than before. Sweat quickly covered his entire body. Haruka continued to increase the load from the formations in his body as he got accustomed.

...

Time passed until the sun was about to set. Haruka stopped briefly to buy food and drinks at a convenience store. He then continued his journey leisurely while enjoying his meal.

"Hmm, I thought my body refinement would reach the first realm today."

"But it seems there's a bit more progress to make."

"Is it because of my new body, or is it the difference in the conditions of this world?"

"It looks like it can't be rushed for today."

"My goal is perfect foundation without any deficiencies."

"Each step must be taken carefully, one by one."

Haruka continued to walk leisurely and finally arrived in front of the staircase leading to a temple on top of a hill.

"Yeah, this seems like the right place for spiritual energy cultivation."

Haruka slowly climbed the stairs, feeling the spiritual energy around him. His eyes closed, and he took a deep breath at a certain rhythm.

"The spiritual energy here is dense, though a bit chaotic due to the mixture of various elements."

"There's also a bit of residual spiritual energy from people who died here."

Soon, he reached the top. There stood a large temple with a spacious courtyard and garden. The evening sky created a golden glow around. The surroundings were filled with the sounds of insects and the rustling of leaves in the gentle breeze, but there were no signs of anyone.

Haruka approached the temple and stopped in front of a water pool to clean his hands and rinse his mouth. Then he approached the shrine or altar in front of the temple.

"Hmm, this temple seems to have no connection with any deity."

"I don't feel their connection like the other temples I visited yesterday."

Haruka closed his eyes and used spirit scanning.

"Hmm, this place seems to be inhabited by someone with a unique mixed blood."

"Her spiritual energy traces are scattered everywhere, but it seems she's currently away."

"I thought of greeting first before using this place."

"But maybe later. Hopefully, the owner won't mind if I cultivate here."

Haruka found a comfortable seat near a large tree on one edge of the summit. The setting sun illuminated Haruka's left side as he sat cross-legged, closing his eyes.

Haruka's body was gradually covered in a warm reddish glow. His breathing was steady, and his mind focused. He began gathering spiritual energy around him to transform and then absorb.

Haruka seemed to become one with the surrounding nature. His breath synchronized with the blowing wind. The converted spiritual energy around his body resembled the beautiful sunset sunlight.

As the sun slowly set, leaving a bit of orange glow above the sky, the world darkened, but Haruka's body still shone like the afternoon sun illuminating the temple on the hill.

The reddish glow dimmed slowly and entered Haruka's body. When the reddish glow completely vanished from Haruka's body, the crescent moon appeared in the sky, illuminating the night. Simultaneously, a soft yellow light slowly emerged around Haruka's body.

"Sun-Moon Radiance Fusion Technique."

A technique that allows the user to harness sunlight to convert it into spiritual energy during cultivation. This technique is considered high-level due to the need for excellent control of spiritual energy. The result of this technique is a dense, pure spiritual energy that simultaneously cleanses the body of impurities.

Haruka continued using his technique without paying attention to his surroundings.

...

Time continued to pass until midnight.

Inside the dark temple, a magic circle suddenly appeared. The magic circle ascended, revealing a beautiful woman with black hair. She seemed to be wearing the Kuoh High School female uniform.

"Finally home. Accompanying Rias for patrols is truly troublesome."

"It seems she's genuinely curious about who caused that energy explosion."

"Uuungh, I better take a bath and rest immediately."

"..."

Before she could take a moment to rest, she sensed spiritual energy moving around the temple. Akeno hurried toward the source of the spiritual energy movement.

Upon reaching outside the temple, Akeno saw a young man of her age sitting under a large tree. A soft yellow light enveloped the young man's body, making him look like someone with a light attribute. This made Akeno stop in her tracks, a bit hesitant to approach.

"Light power!"

"Is he from the heavenly faction?"

Akeno became more cautious and prepared to fight. Her school uniform transformed into a miko hakama. Two bat wings appeared on Akeno's back, accompanied by sparks of purple lightning emanating from her hands.

"WHO ARE YOU?"

Akeno released her magic circle, ready to attack at any moment.

Haruka, who was cultivating, lessened his focus. The spiritual energy around his body moved slowly, and he opened his eyes.

"Calm down; I have no ill intentions."

Haruka didn't stop his cultivation technique and remained seated in his cross-legged position.

"I'll just sit here for practice."

"Do you think I'll believe that just like that?" Akeno wasn't easily trusting of Haruka.

"It's up to you."

Haruka ignored the girl behind him and returned his focus to cultivation. His body was once again covered in spiritual energy revolving around him.

Akeno silently observed Haruka. After a few minutes, she gave up and no longer considered Haruka a threat.

"Are you really not an enemy?"

"That's what I've been saying."

Haruka reduced his concentration, seeing that the girl behind him was open to conversation.

"Maybe this is a bit rude, but..."

Haruka turned around.

"Let me introduce myself. I'm Kaito Haruka, the cultivator."

"I find this place very comfortable for training, so I sit here to practice while enjoying the scenery."

"I hope you don't mind if I practice here every day."

Akeno stared at the man in front of her, who appeared to be about her age. He seemed indifferent and didn't care when he looked at her. If this were at school, a guy his age would likely have praised and tried to flirt with her, but the man in front of her just glanced briefly and immediately went back to what he was doing. She felt a bit relieved because this man was probably not an intruder.

"Next time, when you visit someone's house, at least inform the homeowner before emitting spiritual energy like that."

"I'll go inside for a moment before continuing our conversation."

Akeno turned and walked into the temple to clean up.

"Huh, just when I wanted to rest, why does a strange person have to come here?"

After changing out of her school uniform, Akeno entered the bathroom and rinsed off.

...

Akeno was soaking in a warm wooden tub in a seemingly traditional bathroom.

"Finally, I can relax."

The sound of water droplets flowing from a bamboo pipe and the warm steam created a very comfortable atmosphere to relieve fatigue. Unbeknownst to her, Akeno spent about 20 minutes in the warm water.

"Ara, this is bad."

"I forgot there's still that man outside."

"Yawn, I have to sleep soon; there's still school tomorrow."

"I hope Rias won't drag me again to explore the city."

"Searching for an intruder without any clues is like finding water in a desert."

"He could be anywhere, maybe even in..."

"..."

Akeno realized something and quickly put on her clothes.