“Please be careful, you are Nerathis’s only hope.”
The Town Head spoke as he bowed his head as a form of respect.
“…”
Kael stayed silent, not knowing what to say.
His mind was filled with too many thoughts.
Tobias, misunderstanding his silence, continued further.
“I understand that my actions have consequences, and as a Hero, it is your duty to punish me for the wrongs I have done.”
The man then raised his head and,
“I surrender.”
He declared, and before Kael could say anything, he continued,
“But I will say one thing,
I do not regret my actions. I did what had to be done.
Hero Kael, I have lost everything. I lost my son, my daughter-in-law, and even my most precious Bond.
Selina and my Wind Wolf are the only two things I cherish, and I will do everything in my power to protect them, no matter what.
This is what any man in my place would and should do,
Even if it means going against the Kingdom that doesn’t care about its people.”
Tobias declared confidently. He had surrendered, but his eyes were burning with conviction.
“…”
Kael was still silent.
The two stared at each other, and then,
“I never came here. This conversation never happened, is that clear?”
Kael spoke up.
“What…?”
Tobias blinked in surprise.
“I do not know what happened to your Laughter or where it went, but I promise you this, Tobias. The moment I am strong enough to face it, I will try to get to the end of the matter.
Till then, take good care of the people you cherish.
Now sleep.”
“He—”
Before Tobias could speak, Kael struck him at the back of the neck, causing the Town Head to collapse, unconscious.
Kael glanced at the documents Tobias showed him one last time, memorizing them all, his memory had always been good, but now, with his intelligence raised, it had become even easier for him to learn some simple documents.
Once done, Kael walked away with a heavy heart and a messy mind.
…
“Lord Kael…?”
Aria, who had been waiting for Kael all this while, frowned when she saw his expression.
“Is everything alright?”
She questioned.
“It is.”
Kael nodded, not sharing anything.
“You should go sleep. I wish to stay alone for a while.”
“You do not seem alright.”
Aria muttered. Kael, however, didn’t reply, hinting to Aria that he didn’t wish to talk. A hint that the Mage understood and stopped talking.
In her mind, however, she was wondering another thing,
‘Did he go meet another woman?’
Soon, however, she shook her head as she lay down next to Sarah.
Time passed. A few hours later, Sarah woke up and offered to keep watch. Kael shook his head again and told her to sleep. His mind was still occupied with countless thoughts; he couldn’t sleep even if he wanted to.
Just like Aria, Sarah tried to talk to him as well, but as much as Kael appreciated that, currently, he was doubting everyone around him, even the three of them, so he decided to remain silent.
Another few hours later, the sun rose up, and Kael and the party decided to return.
Was it safe to return to the Royal Palace?
Kael didn’t know. Honestly, he was sure it was not. People who wanted him dead were inside the Palace, but…
Did he have any other choice?
Kael knew he wasn’t strong enough to go out on his own. Even if he added Igni into the equation, his chances of survival were still low.
Also…
Kael highly doubted everyone in the Royal Palace wanted him dead. If that were the case, wouldn’t he already be dead?
Yes, the Royal Palace was dangerous, but inside that place, there were also people who would protect him with everything in their power because they wanted him to protect their world.
‘Two sides, one wants me dead, one wishes to strengthen me…
And my life is hanging between the odd balance these two forces have formed…’
The Hero sighed.
Information…
He needed more information.
At the very least, he needed to know who was actually on his side and who was not.
Kael sat inside the carriage. His mind continued to race for the next few hours, but then, he closed his eyes. His exhaustion had finally caught up to him.
…
“Kayden, what are—”
BOOOOOOM
Kael was jolted awake from his thoughts as he heard the thunderous explosion. He looked around and quickly realized that he was seeing the Vision again.
And this time, it was an entirely different vision.
“KAYDEN!!!”
The Future Kael screamed as he extended his hand towards an ally who jumped into a horde of corrupted beasts and self-destructed.
Kael, who once again found himself in an unfamiliar body, noticed that both his arms were covered with dark scales and his strength was ridiculously overwhelming compared to what it was right now.
‘I am very far into the future.’
Kael realized it, and as he stared at the scene around him, he was overwhelmed.
Dark skies, blood, fire, and smoke all over the place, heavy air, and thousands of corrupted beasts, every single one of them seeming far stronger than the Roc he had just faced, dashing towards them as if prepared to rip them apart.
Kael himself was sitting on top of a giant Dragon who was hovering in the air.
‘Igni…’
Kael recognized his Igni in an instant.
‘You are still alive…’
His eyes turned moist.
Right now, however, he didn’t have the time to feel such emotions. Too many things were happening around him.
Beside him, there was that purple-haired woman he saw in his previous vision, who was sitting on top of a Phoenix.
Future Kael and the woman exchanged glances as they saw their ally sacrifice his life for their sake.
“KAYDEN!!!”
Another woman on the ground screamed, her voice full of agony. It was clear that she had a special relationship with Kayden.
However, that woman wasn’t the only one who was hurt by his sacrifice.
“AAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!”
A Frostfang Wolf, an Epic Rank Magic Beast, and Kayden’s first Bond, roared in frenzy and lost his mind.
His attacks became reckless, and if this continued, even someone as inexperienced as Kael could tell that he wouldn’t survive.
“Igni, take care of things here.”
Future Kael spoke, and suddenly, Kael heard a voice in his head,
[Yes, Father.]
His eyes widened in surprise, but before he could react to Igni’s voice, the Future Kael jumped down and dived towards the Frostfang Wolf.
“Frost, calm down.”
Future Kael spoke, his voice much heavier than current Kael’s.
He placed his hand on top of the Wolf’s head, and suddenly,
BOOOM
His Aura burst out, crushing every single Corrupted Beast around him as if they were insects.
“RROOOOOAAAAARRRRRRRR!!!”
Sensing what their father wanted, four large Dragons appeared around Kael and Frost, protecting them from all the attacks.
‘Please… work out this time…’
The Future Kael desperately prayed in his head, his heart feeling heavy.
Then, he gathered his energy, and Kael quickly noticed something.
The way the Future Kael was using his energy… it felt familiar.
He was activating the <Draconic Awakening>. However, the moment Kael realized it, he frowned.
‘He is using <Draconic Awakening> on a Wolf…?’
He couldn’t understand.
But then, the Future Kael suddenly changed the energy flow. The energy continued to move around in his body like he directed it to, and once done, he injected the genesis energy into Frost’s body.
“AAAUUUUUUUUUU!!!!”
It was rough at first, and it required a lot more energy than normal since Frost wasn’t exactly in a friendly state and continued to resist Kael, he howled, he thrashed, he struggled as much as he could, even trying to overpower him, but the Future Kael held on.
With his face covered in sweat, heart thumping loudly, he continued to inject his energy into the Wolf.
And finally, something changed,
Frost’s body began to change, his fur started becoming shinier and shinier, Kael could see it, he could tell that the Beast was transforming, but before he could observe too much.
[Ding!]
[Skill <Draconic Awaken#@$!#!> was succesfu@#!#!]
[Awake#@$r! Frostfang Wolf la@#@ Bloodline.]
[Ding!]
[Congratulati#@$!##! Frostfang Wolf has tur$$%$## into Frostlord Fenrir.]
[ERROR! ERROR! ERROR!]
[System Error: Unexpected Transformation Outside Of Established Parameters.]
[Processing.]
[Adaptive Response Initiated.]
[ERROR! ERROR! ERROR!]
[Threshold Exceeded]
[Attempting Recalculation.]
[Response Blocked: System Limits Exceeded.]
[Adaptive Response In Progress]
[Error: Unable To Fully Process Extreme Transformation.]
[Error! Unknown Anomaly Detected.]
[An Impossible Feat Has Been Achieved!]
[Rewards Are Being Calculated.]
[Processing.]
[Error: Host’s Time Has Run Out. Complete Reward Cannot Be Granted.]
[Final Reward Selection Initiated.]
[Ding!]
[Title Awarded: “The One Who Broke The Limit.”]
[Title Effect: +25 To All Stats.]
…
Countless messages appeared in front of Kael, and as he tried to read or understand what they meant,
The Vision ended.