I Refused To Be Reincarnated

Adam and Julius tensely awaited Elysia's return, praying for her plan to work, when a sudden shout echoed. Simultaneously, the sound of forceful steps colliding against the ground reached their ears, causing them to sigh in relief.

Half a minute later, the teacher raced beside them, her voice cracking under the pressure of her scream, "I'll become the family head today! Bring Eldarion if you want to stop me. Hahaha."

Her provocations, boosted by mana, resonated in the entire house, alarming every family member. Smirking, she continued running until she left the duo's vision after taking a turn.

Three seconds later, two armored middle-aged elves emerged from the dark passage. Their faces distorted into grimaces as they chased behind her, yelling, "Nieces have gone crazy. Mobilise everyone to catch her without harm!"

Upon seeing them leave, Julius silently stepped on the stairs, hoping Elysia would be fine. Determination covering his features, he hastened his pace, reaching the underground complex half a minute later.

"You're becoming visible again!" Adam exclaimed, hurriedly scanning the area to spot any threat. Holes covered the ground and walls here and there while some traps' after-effects lingered in the air, causing a cacophony of sizzling or burning sounds to fill the entrance. Fortunately, he sighed in relief at the absence of mages.

"From now on, activating any traps will alert them and cause more trouble for Elysia," Adam said, walking before the transparent Julius. Then, showing his back, he crouched down, adding, "You know what to do."

"It's so embarrassing. I'm glad no one can see us," replied Julius, smiling wryly before climbing on his big brother's back.

"Humph. When you were a baby, you cried the moment I didn't carry you," Adam said, a warm smile tugging at his lips while remembering those peaceful times. After securing the boy on his back, the ghost floated a dozen centimeters above the ground before moving onwards.

"You check the left walls while I do the same for the right. Tell me if you spot any hidden door or entrance," Adam said, picking up his pace since time was short. With Elysia's map and his floating ability, avoiding any dead ends and traps became easy.

"I have better eyesight than you. I can do both sides," the boy replied, confident in his capabilities and attention to detail. After all, he knew how exceptional his big brother's vision and reasoning were in grand things or schemes. Yet, he noticed that on minor matters, he tended to forget details to focus on efficiency.

Since they were a team, he focused on them to complement and harmonise their duo.

"Alright. Don't forget not to touch any surface before we enter a chamber," Adam said, agreeing with the boy. Julius' dynamic vision and sense of detail were things he didn't possess. However, he wasn't bothered by it. The poor boy would have nothing to show off if he became the best in everything. 'What a pity it would be,' he half-jokingly thought, preparing mentally for their challenges.

Two minutes later, Julius pointed his index towards a section of the wall, saying, "There is one here."

Adam squinted his eyes in response, gazing at the brown soil with a frown. "I see nothing," he answered, scratching his head.

"Trust me. I feel the wind blowing through," Julius said, confident in his remarkable senses.

Doubtful, Adam floated to the area pointed out by the boy, gradually shoving his face to phase through it. Contrary to his expectations, he felt no resistance for a few centimeters before the familiar power forbidding him to stand in a different room than the boy acted again.

Simultaneously, Julius jumped off his brother's back, fearlessly launching himself against the wall. Then, to Adam's surprise, he saw how the boy's body disappeared.

"Come in. Someone set an illusion spell to hide the entrance," Julius said, proud he didn't miss it.

"Would have never found this one," Adam muttered, admitting defeat while joining Julius. Gazing at the empty chamber with a frown, he asked, "Now, what? There is nothing here."

However, responding to his words, illusory Elven symbols weaved themselves from thin air, forming sentences in the middle of the room.

"Participant: one. Welcome to the challenge of wits. To complete it, resolve the following three riddles."

After each word he read, Adam palled. "Why?! Make us fight tier-three beasts instead!" He yelled, his left eye twitching in annoyance. 'Do I look like a magic scholar? I almost know nothing about this world!' he thought, gritting his teeth. After all, even if they completed the challenge, they would lose valuable time and if they couldn't...
Enjoy exclusive adventures from empire

Well, that'd be the end of their search for Selene's grimoire.

As he despaired, the text changed, revealing the first riddle: "In the forest deep, where shadows creep. A creature prowls. It does not sleep. With eyes of gold and fur so fine, tell me, friend, what beast is mine?"

"Hah? That's easy!" Adam answered, hoping every question would be on that level. "It's a wolf!" He added, raising his fist.

However, the room showed no reaction to his answer, even after two minutes.

"I think you are wrong, big bro?" Julius said, shaking his head as Adam's lips twitched.

'Is the challenge a scam? How is it not a wolf?!' he screamed inwardly, feeling wronged. Then, anger boiling in his heart, he used Plan B, shouting random beasts' names, "Bear, fox, squirrel, raccoon, otter!" Alas, despite his efforts, nothing changed.

Upon seeing Adam fail repeatedly on such an easy riddle, Julius facepalmed before saying, "The answer is a werewolf, big bro." Thanks to the lessons about geography and history he attended in college, his knowledge about legends, beasts and their habitats kept growing weekly, finally finding a practical utility.

"What? Noway!" Adam answered, balling his fists. He didn't know those creatures existed for real. Even then, weren't they half-human like in Earth's stories? Despite his disbelief, the shifting text proved the boy's answer correct, causing him to feel his intelligence challenged.

A second later, a new riddle greeted his narrowing eyes. 'I'll get the right answer this time!' He thought, focusing more than when he brewed potions.