The atmosphere was tense when Xenovia suddenly appeared, breaking the silence with a wave and a mischievous smile. "Hey, little brother," she said casually, a tone that contrasted sharply with the seriousness of the situation. Her words lingered in the air for a mont but failed to soften Strax's expression.
He regarded her with a cold, indifferent gaze, clearly unwilling to engage in her playful banter at that mont.
"Stop ssing with , Xyn," Strax replied, his voice heavy with impatience. The weight of recent events still pressed down on his shoulders, and he had neither the ti nor the inclination for gas. Too much was at stake, and ti was running against them.
Xyn, Xenovia's familiar, grinned with a mischievous glint in her eyes, her form floating in the air as her true appearance manifested. Unlike Xenovia, she reveled in provoking and testing Strax's limits. "Oh, if it isn't my dear Contracted Dragon," she said with false reverence, her smile widening. "How funny that you're no longer human.
What happened, did you lose your taste for the human side of life?"
Strax sighed, barely containing his growing irritation. "Are you testing my patience?" He watched her with a mix of frustration and exhaustion, knowing that the familiar delighted in pushing him to the brink.
"Well, we can always test, can't we?" Xyn replied provocatively, twirling in the air with a lightness that seed to mock the emotional weight Strax carried. "It's not like you have any weapon that could kill ." She smiled, but there was a spark of challenge in her eyes, as if she were eager to see how far she could push him without awakening Strax's true fury.
Strax clenched his fists, restraining the urge to retort. He knew Xyn thrived on these provocations, but at that mont, every second felt too precious to waste on ntal gas. The only thing preventing him from exploding was the fact that, deep down, he recognized that the familiar was linked to Xenovia and could be useful, even if she acted like a constant thorn in his side.
"But all that aside, let's get down to business," Xyn finally said, dropping her playful tone. Her mischievous smile vanished montarily, and her expression beca more serious. Even with her provocations, she understood the gravity of the situation.
"Xenovia asked to deliver a ssage to you, since she… well, she's probably halfway to the Capital by now," Xyn said, shrugging; she could really be annoying when she wanted to be.
"I'm just going to give you a warning: Don't go after her until you reach the King level. You'll be killed instantly. She doesn't know how you survived Kryssia, but I presu you used Dual Assimilation. That could kill you if you do it again at such a low level. So train hard." Xyn's eyes seed to consu Strax as she spoke.
"Well, that's all," she said, raising her hands in the air. "And what about our contract?" she questioned, and Strax rely sighed. "I found the Alchemist decent; we just need the Blacksmith now." Strax stated, and Xyn's eyes sparkled.
"Oh… what a competent man," she smiled, playfully biting her lip. "Too bad I don't get along with dragons." She returned to her normal deanor, stopping her playful antics.
Suddenly, her body beca translucent. "Oh… I have to go back; I can't stay much longer," she remarked. "See you in a few months, kid." Xyn said and vanished.
The air felt heavy as Xyn disappeared, leaving Strax alone with his thoughts and an avalanche of emotions. Xenovia's ssage echoed in his mind like a distant bell, impossible to ignore: don't go after her until reaching the King level. It sounded like both a challenge and a sentence at the sa ti.
Strax's pride made him loathe the idea of waiting, of feeling inadequate, but at the sa ti, the wisdom of the warning did not go unnoticed.
"Damn it…" he murmured once more, irritated, as he left the room and strode toward the training grounds outside the mansion. The cold night wind wrapped around him like a slap, but he didn't care. His body simred, not with heat but with frustration and repressed anger.
And thus… a major problem began.
...
The soft morning light illuminated the mansion, bringing with it an illusory calm that contrasted sharply with the tense atmosphere in the air. Strax had been training tirelessly, as he had for the past week, without rest. Each passing day seed to amplify his focus and determination, but it also brought with it a dark weight that his wives could no longer ignore.
In the living room, Samira, Beatrice, Monica, and Cristine gathered around the table. Breakfast was served, but the food seed forgotten, replaced by worried glances and silent tension.
"He's going too far," Monica said, breaking the silence with a voice heavy with concern. She nervously fiddled with her coffee cup, as if trying to ease the tension sohow. "He's barely sleeping, hardly eating. He's exhausting himself and doesn't seem to notice."
Beatrice let out a deep sigh, crossing her arms as she gazed out the window, where Strax was training in an open field, the sounds of his shouts and strikes echoing through the air. "I've never seen him like this before. He's always been determined, always focused, but now... it's different. He's obsessed."
Samira, who typically maintained a firm and resolute deanor, now seed restless, her worried gaze following Strax's movents outside. "I understand what he's going through. The anger, the desire to protect Xenovia... But he's destroying himself before he even begins to fight. We can't let this continue."
"I tried talking to him," Cristine said, her voice low and filled with frustration. "He just ignores . He thinks he has to do this alone, that he has to bear the weight of it all. But this obsession is eating him alive."
Monica frowned, looking down at her hands. "He's so focused on rescuing Xenovia that he's forgotten to take care of himself. If he keeps this up, he's going to get hurt—or worse, he won't be ntally prepared when the ti cos to face them."
Samira nodded, her expression serious. "The problem isn't just his body; it's his ntal state. His anger is consuming him. And the more he ignores it, the more dangerous he becos, for him and for all of us."
Beatrice stood up from the table, crossing her arms and taking a deep breath. "We need to do sothing. I hate seeing him like this, pushing himself beyond his limits, as if he's carrying the weight of the world alone. But what can we do? He doesn't want to listen to us."
"He thinks he has to be the hero," Cristine murmured, her tone sad. "But heroes fall alone, and I won't let that happen to him."
For a mont, silence fell over them again. Each of them was lost in their own thoughts, concerned for Strax and the uncertain future that awaited them. The sound of Strax's strikes against an improvised target echoed through the house, each impact a reminder of the fury and determination driving him.
Monica, usually the most playful and carefree, now appeared somber. She looked at Samira with a serious expression, sothing she rarely showed. "Maybe we need to be more firm with him. If he won't listen to us talking, then... we might have to force him to stop, sohow."
Samira furrowed her brow, deep in thought. "I've thought about that too. Maybe we need to confront him more directly. Show him that if he continues like this, he won't be able to rescue Xenovia or protect himself—or us."
Beatrice sighed, visibly frustrated. "He's as stubborn as a mule. You know that. But maybe... maybe it's ti for all of us to co together and make him realize he's not alone."
Cristine nodded. "We're all worried, but he needs to understand we're here to help him. We can't let this obsession destroy him."
Samira stood up, her expression determined. "We need to face this together. We can't just stand by while he pushes himself to the limit. Let's talk to him now."
They agreed, and together, they left the room, driven by a shared determination. As they opened the front door and stepped onto the training field, the sight of Strax furiously striking a wooden stump froze them for a mont. He was drenched in sweat, his muscles tense and wounded, and his face was a mask of uncontrolled fury.
"Strax!" Samira called, her voice firm. He didn't respond, continuing to strike the trunk, completely ignoring them.
"STRAX!" Beatrice shouted, louder this ti, and finally, he stopped, breathing heavily. He turned to face them, his expression still radiating contained fury.
"What do you want?" he asked, his voice hoarse from exhaustion but still filled with anger.
"We want you to stop!" Cristine said, her voice heavy with concern. "You're killing yourself with this training. We can't just stand by and watch this happen."
"I don't have ti to stop," Strax retorted, his eyes burning with determination. "You don't understand! Xenovia is in their hands, and if I'm not ready, she'll stay there! I have to do this!"
"Not like this!" Samira shot back, stepping forward. "You're destroying yourself, Strax! This isn't the way. You won't be able to rescue her if you're completely exhausted and ntally unstable."
Monica nodded, approaching. "We need you whole, not just physically, but ntally as well. You're blinded by anger and guilt. This will end up destroying you before you even have a chance to save Xenovia."
"I can't stop!" Strax shouted, his voice echoing across the field. "I'm the only one who can save her! Don't you get it? If I stop now, I'll lose her forever!"
Beatrice looked at him, her eyes filled with sadness. "And if you keep this up, you'll lose yourself."
The silence that followed was heavy. Strax looked down at the ground, still breathing heavily, their words echoing in his mind. He knew they were right, but the pain and anger blinded him. Xenovia ant everything to him, and the thought of failing her haunted him every second.
Samira took another step forward, placing her hand on his shoulder. "Strax... we're here with you. You don't have to carry this alone."
He closed his eyes, feeling the weight of her words and her hand on his shoulder. For a brief mont, his anger subsided, replaced by a deep exhaustion.
"I just... can't lose her," he murmured, his voice finally wavering.
"You won't," Cristine replied softly. "But we need you whole. We'll get through this together."
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