S Ranked Reincarnation: My Infinite Leveling System-Chapter 42: The Rogue Reclaimer As Summoned

An unbreathing silence had fallen over the Guild Hall. It was heavier than stone, a void where the boisterous energy of Hunters used to live. Now, it was a tomb.

Linx’s body, shrouded in white linen, lay on a low wooden table in the center of the room. The sight of it was a wound in the air itself, a raw, undeniable fact that bled the life from the space around it.

Ning Que stood apart, meticulously wiping his katana with a soft cloth. The steel was pristine, but the ghost of blood clung to his memory.

He could still see Linx’s smile falter, the light in his eyes extinguish. He could still feel the phantom weight of his friend’s body. Each swipe of the cloth was a futile attempt to scrub the image from his mind.

Across the room, Viera was a knot of pure, unadulterated grief. She knelt beside the body, her shoulders shaking with sobs that made no sound. In her hands, she clutched the worn leather coat Linx had always worn, pressing the fabric to her face as if she could inhale his very essence as if the familiar scent could somehow reverse time.

Aeris stood behind her, a hand on Viera’s shoulder, her own face a mask of stoic pain, the cracks beginning to show at the corners of her eyes. Lian, the team’s healer, was hunched on a nearby bench, her hands clasped so tightly her knuckles were white. She stared at them, the instruments of her failure, her quiet tears a confession of her impotence.

The heavy doors of the hall pushed open, letting in a sliver of gray afternoon light. It was time.

In the central courtyard, Hunters gathered in solemn ranks, their usual bravado replaced by a grim-faced unity. They formed a silent audience around a tall, unlit pyre.

Ning, Aeris, and Lian carried their fallen comrade, his shrouded form feeling impossibly light, a hollow shell of the man he had been.

As they laid him upon the wood, Viera finally broke.

"No," she whispered, her voice cracking. She took a step forward, her hand reaching out. "It’s not right. We can’t."

Aeris caught her arm, her grip firm but gentle.

"Viera. We have to."

"He should be here!" Viera’s whisper became a choked cry, her composure shattering. "He should be standing with us. He promised he’d buy the next round." Her words, so mundane, were daggers to Ning’s heart. He turned from the pyre to face her, his own eyes burning.

"He is with us," Ning said, his voice low and rough with emotion. "And he’s not done fighting." He looked at her, then at Aeris and Lian, his gaze a burning promise. "This isn’t the end of his story. It’s the beginning of theirs. We will make them pay for this, Viera. I swear it on his name. Every last one of them."

A path was cleared through the assembled Hunters. Grandmaster Li approached, his ancient face carved with lines of sorrow. He moved with a slow, deliberate grace that commanded silence, his presence a mountain of quiet authority. He stopped before the pyre, his gaze falling upon the shrouded form. He looked not at a fallen soldier, but at a lost son.

He raised his weathered hands.

"Spirit of the eternal hunt," his voice began, deep and resonant, a sound that seemed to vibrate in the very stones of the courtyard. "Receive this warrior. Linx, son of the Guild, who gave his fire to protect the flame of others. May his path to the Ancestors be clear. May his blade find rest. And may his courage be a guide for those of us who remain."

As he lowered his hands, a single, deafening boom echoed from the Guild’s watchtower. The cannon salute. A warrior’s farewell. The sound rolled across the courtyard and was swallowed by the sky, leaving a ringing silence in its wake.

Ning’s hand tightened on the hilt of his katana. Tao. The name was a curse in his mind. This ceremony, this honor... it was for Linx. But the rage, the fire now stoking itself in his chest, was for the man pulling the strings, the architect of this pain.

The crowd began to disperse, murmuring condolences as they passed. Ning’s squad huddled together, an island of grief in a sea of mourners. The quiet that settled between them was heavy with unspoken plans, with the burning need for vengeance.

"Ning Que."

The voice was sharp, cold, and devoid of any sympathy. Commander Valerius, the Guild’s second-in-command, stood a few feet away, his arms crossed over his chest, his eyes like chips of flint.

Viera bristled instantly.

"What do you want?"

Valerius ignored her, his gaze locked on Ning.

"You are needed in the Grandmaster’s chamber. Now."

"He just buried his friend," Aeris said, her tone dangerously level. "Give him a moment."

"He has had his moment." Valerius snapped, his patience clearly nonexistent. "The Guild does not wait for grief. The summons is not a request."

Ning held up a hand, silencing his teammates. He knew this was coming. The questions. The accusations. Running from it would only prove their guilt in the eyes of men like Valerius. He looked at Viera, then Aeris and Lian, his expression hardening.

"It’s alright," he said, his voice low. "I’ll handle this. Stay together. Wait for me." He met Viera’s defiant, tear-streaked gaze. "Don’t do anything... rash."

She held his gaze for a long moment before giving a small, sharp nod.

Ning turned and followed Valerius, leaving his team in the shadow of the cooling pyre. As he walked, the familiar blue haze of the system interface flickered to life at the edge of his vision.

System Alert: Critical Threat Detected: Tao’s Network Exposed

They know, Ning thought, his jaw tightening. Or they’re starting to figure it out. But what do they believe?

Objective: Gain the Trust of Guild Leadership

He almost scoffed. An impossible task when men like Valerius were already convinced he was a traitor.

XP Gained: 500

Five hundred experience points, he thought with a wave of bitter irony. The reward for burying a brother.

Warning: Reputation with Guild: Negative Impact Detected

There it was. The confirmation. They saw Linx’s death, the unsanctioned fight, and his defiance of orders, and they had already passed judgment. This wasn’t a debriefing. It was an interrogation. Maybe even a trial.

He reached the towering, ornate doors of the high council chamber. Valerius pushed one open without ceremony and gestured for him to enter. Ning took a breath, steeling himself, and stepped across the threshold.

The room was stark and imposing. A dozen high-backed chairs were arranged in a semicircle, occupied by the stern-faced leaders of the Hunter’s Guild. Their collective gaze was a physical weight, pressing down on him with cold, calculating intensity.

At the far end, on a raised platform, sat Grandmaster Li. His eyes, ancient and weary, were fixed on Ning, his expression impossible to read.

Valerius stepped to his seat beside the Grandmaster.

"The rogue, Ning Que," he announced, his voice echoing in the chamber. "As summoned."

Another council member, a woman with a severe face and iron-gray hair, leaned forward.

"Rogue is a generous term, Commander. He defied a direct order to stand down. He faced a threat far beyond his team’s capabilities. He led a loyal Hunter to his death. The correct term is liability. Or perhaps, traitor."

Ning’s fists clenched.

"Linx died saving this city from a Behemoth your intelligence network completely failed to detect," he shot back, his voice raw. "If we had followed your orders, this entire district would be a crater."

"Arrogance!" another councilman barked. "You believe your judgment supersedes the collective wisdom of this council?"

"My judgment was the only thing standing between that creature and thousands of innocent lives!" Ning’s voice rose, the fury he’d been suppressing finally breaking through. "Where was the council’s wisdom then? Hiding behind these walls, debating protocol while my team bled?"

"Enough." Grandmaster Li’s voice cut through the tension like a blade. It wasn’t loud, but it silenced the room instantly. All eyes turned to him. He slowly rose from his seat, his gaze never leaving Ning.

"Come, Ning Que," he said, his voice carrying the weight of centuries of leadership. "We have much to discuss..."