The next day, Ella, Anna, Eve, and Skyla sat in the garden while listening to the songs that William was singing. He was in the middle of recording songs using a high-grade recording crystal that had been given to him by James at his request.
Since he was always stuck inside a hospital room back on Earth, William had decided to have a few hobbies like playing the guitar to pass time. He was quite good at it, so when he had obtained the Bard Job Class, he decided to record a few songs for Arwen. This way, his mother would always hear his voice and not miss him too much.
Due to the power of the Job Class, William’s playing skills were enhanced to another level. Not only that, his voice was smoother and more captivating.
The songs he recorded were Disknee Songs that he had loved since he was a child. Songs like, Do You Feel the Love Tonight, Fly the Distance, My Whole You World, and Beauty and the Bestie.
Anna was quite curious about how William learned these songs because she had never heard them before. The young boy only said that he had heard the songs during his travels outside of Lont.
The songs were like a lullaby for Eve and the little girl slept peacefully while William was doing his one man concert.
That night, Skyla spread her wings and embarked on her journey towards the Silvermoon Continent. She was quite in a hurry to return back home and let Arwen listen to her son’s performance. The crane knew that her partner would cry tears of joy the moment she heard William’s songs.
And it made her determination to return as soon as possible burn brighter.
—–
The next day, Feyright sat beside William as he taught him the proper way to perform in front of people.
“When you sing a song, you should smile,” Feyright said while holding his lute. “You might not believe it but when you are smiling, your heart smiles as well. This will empower our songs because us bards must always sing from our heart. The stronger the emotion, the stronger the power of our songs.
“With a song, we can raise the morale of an army, or make them weep bitter tears. We can make the hearts of ladies swoon, or make the children dance to our tune. This is the power of music, and I dare say that it is one of the most wonderful gifts that the Gods have given us mortal creatures.”
William nodded in agreement. Music had been one of his constant companions during the hard times of his life.
“Well, since both of us are already handsome, we don’t need to fix our faces,” Feyright smiled. “However, we need to always look presentable, especially when performing in front of people. Those shabby shepherd clothes of yours just won’t do.”
Feyright shook his head because although William looked good, his fashion sense was a disaster. As a fashionista, he couldn’t accept the young man’s taste in clothing.
“Listen. Although I understand that you are a shepherd, while we are together I expect you to dress up as a performer,” Feyright ordered.
“I don’t want my colleagues to spread gossip that my student is a crude boy who doesn’t even have an ounce of professionalism in his bones. The moment I hear that you performed wearing shepherd’s clothes, I swear I will whack you until you forget your name. Do I make myself clear?”
William nodded his head once more. Although he didn’t think that playing a song while wearing shepherds clothes was a big deal, he didn’t want to offend his current instructor.
The young boy was currently holding a lute similar to the one in Feyright’s hands. The only difference was that William’s was more beautiful. James had rummaged through his treasures and found several musical instruments like the Harp, flute, mandolin, lyre, and several others that he had taken from the Bandit Camps that he had raided.
After pondering for a while, William decided to just… take them all! Since he was a bard, he could play all the instruments with the help of his Job Class. Since that was the case, taking these “treasures” from his Grandpa was the most ideal choice.
Feyright and William did their lessons in the garden, because the Elf wanted to be surrounded by beautiful things when he performed.
William didn’t expect Feyright to be very skilled in his craft. The boy thought that his songs were already good enough, but when he heard the Elf sing, he felt his soul being forcefully taken to places that he had never been before.
To glorious battlefields, to beautiful valleys, hidden abodes, and to peeping in on romantic trysts. Feyright did it all, and he did it so naturally that William felt envious of his musical talent.
“You can praise me, you know?” Feyright gave him a teasing smile. “I will not charge extra for overtime.”
“You’re amazing, Maestro,” William praised from the heart. “I wish I could perform like you.”
“Don’t worry, when I’m done with you, you’ll be able to perform in front of Kings and Emperors.” Feyright flipped his hair like the narcissist he was. “Sometimes, all you need to do is let your heart do the talking when you play. Remember this, my dear student, music is the universal language of mankind. Spirits don’t usually talk to anyone, but when you play them a tune, they will start to dance.”
With Feyright’s personal teachings, William was able to let go of all the pent up emotions inside his heart. Every time he sang a song, he could feel himself letting go of all of his worries, and it made him feel at peace.
Ella, Anna, Eve, and Helen were his avid fans. They would always find time to listen to him singing in the garden, and William liked their company. Although singing by himself was good every now and then, singing for others made him happier.
Sometimes, Eve would crawl towards William and tug on his clothes. Other times, she would grab his lute and touch the strings. These precious incidents helped William gain better control of his emotions which greatly helped in his recovery.
—-
Almost half a year had passed since William started his Bard Training with Feyright.
The exchange of letters between him and Arwen continued without fail. With each letter he opened, he felt closer to his mother who was hundreds of miles away from him. The two had grown very close through these exchanges, and the young boy’s love for his mother grew with each passing day.
William gave Skyla a big hug, and the latter nuzzled him before soaring to the sky. In his last letter, the young boy sent his Mother a recording crystal with the songs he sang. Arwen loved William’s gift and played them everyday.
“Big Sister, have a safe trip and tell my Mother I love her!” William shouted as he waved at the crane in the sky.
Skyla replied with a cry of affirmation and circled William once before flying in the direction of the Silvermoon Continent.
—–
With the Maestro’s help, the red-headed boy was able to break free from the shackles that prevented him from being intimate with other people.
Sometimes, the Half-Elf wondered if things would have ended differently if he had chosen Jekyll instead of Feyright. He had a feeling that he might have lost something very important to him if he had chosen the dentist as his instructor instead of the lively bard who taught him the power of music.
“Twinkle twinkle, little star… how I wonder where you are?” William sang while Eve sat on his lap. “Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky…”
Eve was making random baby sounds as she tried to sing along with William. The two of them had gotten close after her “Big Brother” had started to open up his heart to people again. Deep inside, William was very happy because he loved spending his time with children.
He was now in full control of his emotions, and held Eve in a protective embrace.
“The two of you have really become close,” Anna said with a smile as she walked towards them. “I’m starting to feel jealous.”
“Mama!” Eve clapped her hands as she called out to her mother.
Anna scooped up her daughter and kissed her cheeks. “Have you been a good girl?”
Eve kissed her cheeks in reply and Anna nuzzled her beloved daughter.
William watched this scene with a smile on his face as he stood up from the ground. Although he wanted to stay, there were still a few things he needed to do. He bid his Aunt goodbye and headed towards the valley where the herds were grazing.
Yesterday, he bought the weapon that the system had recommended to him from the God Shop. This weapon contained a Job Class that William had wanted for a very long time.
Thanks to the 90% discount coupon, the God Points he had earned during his missions, and the bonus God Points that he earned through overcoming his weakness, he was able to purchase this weapon from the shop.
The system had thought long and hard for a proper excuse to give William for the extra god Points he had received out of nowhere, and decided to just say that it was the bonus points that was awarded to him after being able to recover from his previous state.
After acquiring the Job Class from the weapon, William understood that it worked the same as the other professions that he had mastered so far. Since that was the case, he wanted a master to teach him on how to utilize this new power to its fullest potential.
He believed that if he mastered this Job Class, he would be able to work with Ella to overcome most adversities.
“Just a few more months and I’ll be leaving Lont,” William muttered as he looked in the direction of the capital of the Hellan Kingdom. “I’ll be seeing you again soon, Est.”
William knew that he couldn’t stay inside this safe haven forever for he had to meet his mother and father in the Silvermoon Continent. However, this time, he was no longer afraid.
He had regained his purpose and the light in his heart was now brighter than before. It would not lose so easily to the darkness that had taken hold of him not long ago.
The young boy knew that right now, he couldn’t change the world and make it a better place.
He was not strong enough to do that.
William understood that he had to venture outside of Lont in order to make his mark to the world. Although he would encounter hardships, challenges, and people stronger than him along his journey, he would still walk the path he had chosen.
For he was not alone.
He was not the same boy he was back on Earth. Stuck inside a hospital room, waiting for the day when he would draw his last breath.
There were people who loved him, cared for him, and supported him. He also had his herd that would stand with him when he faced the inevitable battles that he couldn’t escape from. Naturally, he didn’t plan on losing any of these battles.
He would face them with everything he had. If he couldn’t win then he would just run away and call his Grandpa!
Calling reinforcements was not against the rules and William was perfectly fine with sitting on the shoulder of giants! He would just get his revenge when he had leveled up and became stronger.
William chuckled as he thought of these stupid thoughts. The image of him hiding behind James back as the old man punched the living lights out of his enemies made him laugh out loud.
Ella stood beside William and looked at the happy expression on his face.
“Let’s go, Mama.” William grinned as he pointed at the sun in the distance. “In this world of Swords and Magic, where adventure runs wild and free. Our Legend is about to begin!”
“Meeeeeeeh!”
