1323 - Childhood Friend of the Zenith

The slight twitching in my hand caused my father's expression to harden. Fear gripped me. Yet, there was an odd thrill to it. ‘Ah, this crazy man.’ Thrilled? What nonsense. I couldn't believe I was feeling thrilled in this situation. At this point, perhaps it was a talent. “Heh.” I steadied my breath. Wasn't there a saying about enjoying the inevitable? It was the most ludicrous thing I had ever heard in my life. ‘What is there to enjoy exactly?’ Perhaps I indulged in this because there was nothing else to enjoy. ‘……Tsk.’ I understood, more or less. Yes, he I reached a point where it made sense. It was an absurd matter. Squeezing my hand into a fist, he contemplated how to handle the situation. “……!” I turned my head. Kwaaaa--!!! The heat grazed past me. It was father’s arm, closing in so swiftly. “……Wow.” Fast. And yet. ‘Did he mean to kill me?’ The recent strike seemed genuine. A smirk crept onto my lips. My father seemed extremely angry. “…….” The Sword Queen looked their way. Petals were sporadically rising. And the Dark King? Rumble-! ‘Hmm.’ That wouldn't do. What the restrained Dark King could manage was at its peak. I braced myself. I flew backwards, soaring through the air as if on a leap; fiery streaks flickered before my eyes, twinkling like stars. ‘Oh, damn.’ It was all a fiery prison. With a narrowed face, I shouted. “Tolly!” “Grrrr!” Tolly's massive form charged forward. Grabbing onto me as he ascended rapidly. Whooosh-!!! The wind roared as we climbed into the air. ‘Where.’ Was father below? I spotted father standing on the ground down there. His gaze turned towards me. At that moment— Fwoosh-!!! Flames erupted, radiating pressure. Sensing the familiar danger, I scanned around. ‘……Enemy's domain.’ A territory was declared. “Grrrr-!” Flames formed in Tolly's mouth. “Fire.” Without needing any command, the creature unleashed a blaze. The discharge, like a large fire gem, resembled a massive sphere of flames. Boom-! Boom boom-!!! Explosions swept through, scorching the ground, but it didn’t seem to make a difference. “Argh!!” The less significant ones screamed as they were engulfed in flames. Yet, while witnessing this, my attention remained fixed elsewhere. ‘Father.’ As I pinpointed father's location— Whoosh! “……!” I sensed it from the side. “Shrink.” Tolly's massive body immediately shrank. Kwoosh-!!! Flames violently rushed through the space they had just occupied. Any delay and we would have been incinerated. “Whew.” Frightening. A habit of lifting the corners of his lips formed during intense situations. My father charged. I had to evade his hands. At least, that was the plan. Snap-! “Urk!” I was caught. I had intentionally not avoided it. Ssssss. “……Grr.” The heat in father's hands seared my skin. The acrid smell of burning flesh filled his nostrils. My skin was smoldering. “Dad……!” Tolly exclaimed in shock. As he attempted to grow once more, I restrained him with a hand. ‘Location.’ In midair. High enough that the distance from the Sword Queen was considerable. Confirming this— “What’s your play?” My father spoke to him. “What’s your intention?” ‘As expected.’ My father seemed to have figured it out, realizing my attempt to create distance intentionally. “I did say we’d talk in five days, didn’t I?” “……I heard. But things have become a bit urgent on my end.” Five days. There was no longer any luxury left to wait. “What?” “……Additionally.” Grip. I seized father’s wrist. “Both parties need something, and if there’s a way to exchange it, there’s no need for this.” “……What are you getting at?” “For now, let me ask.” Ssssssss-!! “……!” Energy stirred. Before father could react. “Do you intend to turn back into a human?” “……What?” Father stiffened at my words. “I need to save the one tied to the tree. However, for that, you can’t remain in your current state.” Father’s expression hardened at the mention of turning back into a human. “……I don’t understand. Turn back into a human? That’s.” “It’s possible. I’ve done it before. That’s why I’m asking. Are you willing?” “…….” Narrowing his eyes he studied me closely. His gaze shifted somewhere. It was where the Sword Queen was. “Don't worry.” I read father's intent from his gaze, aware of what concerned him. “Right now, the Sword Queen cannot read your thoughts and feelings.” With my grasp on father’s wrist. “……I’m channeling energy and using everything to prevent it.” I was employing the power of the mark of the apostle engraved in my soul, tapping into my sense of detachment. ‘I wondered if it would work. It does.’ In the realm of detachment, I recalled father speaking, defying the Sword Queen's influence. The power of detachment seemed to have an effect. ‘Very slightly.’ I tethered the power in the mark with a spell, extending its influence briefly. Fortunately, it worked. “So, just make your decision: turn back into a human and save the woman you’re trying to protect, or continue as an apostle and merely flounder.” “…….” Father's desire to protect mother, despite his fading memories, was admirable. It was respectable but— “I’m in a hurry. Decide quickly so I can choose a different path.” I couldn't continue watching father like this. “……Can that truly be a solution?” “I don’t know. But it seems like the best option to me.” “What would change if I became human again?” “I don’t know what difference it’ll make if you become human again.” The reason I was attempting to persuade father was simple. “I just need your energy right now.” “……What?” “Originally, it was meant for another. Well.” He glanced at the ground. Apostles were scattered here and there. "I need to channel some energy from over there, but I don't have the luxury to do that here. So..." I turned back to my father. "I'm trying to use energy I'm familiar with." "You can use my energy?" "I... can't take it by force." The ancestor had mentioned that this cursed blood inherently rejects non-human power. However— "But if it's willingly given, that's different, isn't it?" "...You mean." "Yes. Please lend me your energy. And while you're at it, become human and help out with a few things." "…." "I can't give you much time to decide. If you refuse." I maintained my grip on father's wrist as he spoke. "Just kill me." I was dead serious. * * * Whooosh-!!! In the air, the sensation of energy persisted. The Sword Queen silently watched the intense heat. "……." The Divine Dragon was speaking with Baek Yangcheon, holding him. The atmosphere was anything but ordinary. 'What is...' What on earth were they doing? The Sword Queen was perplexed, trying to discern the situation, but felt nothing particularly amiss. It signified they weren't doing anything overtly detectable. 'If that's not it...' Were they preventing sensation somehow? Is that even possible? Breaking through this power seemed unlikely. 'Then what...' What could it be? Though there seemed to be no issue, it was unsettling. Instinctively, something felt off. '……What.' She rose, grasping her weapon, as she steadily turned her gaze in their direction. Crackle. A flame flickered in the air. The greyish hue burning from the Divine Dragon’s body flickered, the flames beginning to bloom. 'Is he trying to finish it?' It seemed he intended to end everything using those flames. Fwoooosh-!!! A vast blaze. It was astonishing every time. No matter how much of an apostle someone became, their inherent energy levels wouldn’t change. It's one thing to enhance the body and repel a martial artist's energy, but— 'To have such a quantity—' Could he have wielded that much energy? Amazement naturally glued her gaze to the unfolding spectacle. "……Hmm?" Something seemed off. Was that amount of flame necessary? There was no compelling reason for it. The Sword Queen frowned as she observed. "Stop it." "……!" A voice cut through the air. "Now." Her body moved on its own. "Stop that immediately." The voice was grating, causing grey petals to explode forth from her form as she leapt into the air. "……Great……." She couldn't hear the words of the apostles. Her only thought was to sever the two. Only as the distance rapidly closed did understanding dawn on her. 'It's different.' Something was there. She sensed something encircling the vicinity. The distance had obscured her awareness of it. 'I must strike.' She had to stop it. Concluding this, the Sword Queen's blade sliced forward. In that moment, Baek Yangcheon's gaze shifted towards her. Blue, radiant eyes piercing through as if newly alight. Simultaneously— "You're too late." A voice imbued with relief accompanied: Kwooooosh—!!!! An explosion burst forth as azure flames spread widely. The impact twisted the Sword Queen’s expression. The flames were intense, driving her to instinctively retreat. The searing heat spread like mist and then seeped back into the center. When it had all seeped back— "Grrrrr—." There stood a somewhat diminished creature— "Phew." —and Baek Yangcheon, cloaked in flames, faced the Sword Queen. "Now I feel alive." His face was alight with an infectious, buoyant energy.