Targon, the Crystal Beast, and his two guards watched as Adam and Silvana, in her spectral form, left the Glass Bridge.
Usually, Targon did not participate in this, leaving all the work to Kara and Toa. Every month, dozens, and sotis even hundreds of creatures wished to cross the Glass Bridge. Not all of them had the ans to pay, but most found a way to convince Kara and Toa to let them pass, or... they perished.
"Agh, what a pity they’re leaving." Targon shook his head with a heavy sigh. "The last fifty years before the World Wipe are the most boring. No one does anything, and no one is willing to take risks, especially at the highest level. Everyone is just waiting for the inevitable!"
"Khm." Kara coughed. "But, Mr. Targon, isn’t that logical? If so catastrophe occurs 50 years before the World Wipe, then one may not have enough ti to prepare. It could lead to death and the end of everything."
Scratch. Scratch. Scratch.
"Yeah, I know that, Kara. However, that doesn’t change the fact that these are the calst and most boring tis. Do you even understand how much I miss fun? Real fun! With blood and death!"
Kara and Toa exchanged glances as Toa cautiously stepped forward.
"Then why did you co here in this form?" Toa asked, touching her lower lip. "Don’t you want to have fun with your real body?"
"Pffft!" Targon snorted. "Toa, you’re a smart girl, don’t say such stupid things. If I did that, I would have accidentally killed him during the first trial. That’s not what I want."
Toa nodded weakly. She wasn’t surprised because she understood that this was exactly what had happened.
She and Kara had reasons to fear and respect their boss so much. Targon possessed far more power than he had shown Adam.
"Alright, I’m off. Let know if anything interesting happens. Although... what am I hoping for? The next seven years will be deadly boring as usual!"
Whoooooooosh.
With a gust of wind, Targon disappeared, his shadow flashing before Toa and Kara’s eyes.
Unlike the too-young Adam, who couldn’t understand Targon at all, Kara and Toa were gradually approaching this stage. This World Wipe wouldn’t be their first, but they had lived far less than Targon.
They sincerely hoped that boredom would never beco their sworn enemy as it had for Targon, but they both knew that it would inevitably happen over ti.
"This... This wasn’t what I expected today." Kara muttered, glancing at Adam’s back as he left the Glass Bridge area.
Toa nodded in agreent as she headed for the entrance.
"Yes, but I’m glad Mr. Targon had so fun, even if it was short-lived, and the next ti won’t be anyti soon."
Kara smiled bitterly as she followed her.
"Hah, at first you desire power and long life, but then it becos your curse. Even humans, who have surrounded themselves with a complex society, are powerless to escape this fate."
Toa shrugged, as this problem did not concern her or Kara.
"When you’ve fought your entire life and spilled rivers of blood to reach the top, it’s like being cursed. You can no longer get the sa pleasure from anything else.
Nothing but wild, painful battles to the death with victories brighter than the sun itself can make their hearts beat as fast as they did decades or centuries ago, when it happened every day. It’s no wonder they miss that feeling."
As if to confirm their words, deep at the bottom of the rift, two eyes appeared for a few monts.
They were as blue as Targon’s, but much darker and deeper, full of ancient power, but... its light was eclipsed by all-consuming boredom.
It was the sa look shared by all the most powerful beings in this world most of the ti.
And people like Kara and Toa knew there was only one thing that could make those bored eyes light up and reveal their excited grins.
It was war, without rules or limits.
But war needed a reason. No one was going to destroy each other just for fun.
The most powerful had their own goals, but that wasn’t enough, because the threat of the World Wipe constantly hung over them.
The First Star and the Last Star plunged them into this endless cycle. It annoyed them greatly, practically drove them crazy, but there was nothing they could do about it.
The delicate balance of this world was too strong, and the World Wipe, which occurred every 250 years, prevented it from evolving into sothing truly dangerous.
But...
Even for the strongest dam, there was a last drop that made the pressure unbearable, ultimately destroying a wall that could have stood for hundreds or even thousands of years.
...
Step. Step. Step.
So ti ago, Adam left the Glass Bridge. The outlines of the great bridge were already barely visible as the first wisps of fog slowly enveloped Adam in their cold embrace.
"So I need a white mill?" Adam muttered as his eyes lit up.
Many threads of the Connected String appeared before him, pointing in different directions.
Certainly, so of them led Adam straight to the black mills. He couldn’t be sure until he reached the Forgotten Mills, but he could feel it.
’Co on, there’s not much left. You are full of energy and stronger than ever before...’ Silvana’s gentle voice echoed in his mind. ’I’m sure you’ll get the Connected Heart.’
In silence, Adam climbed to the top of the hill to see the first mill on the opposite side.
It was a gray mill. If Targon hadn’t warned him, he would have gone straight to it.
But his gaze turned to the elevated plain covered with white flowers, among which stood a pure and majestic mill, the white one.
"Yes, and for that I will have to kill another thread bearer like myself. It will be difficult, I can feel it."
His fra trembled as he headed forward, following straight toward the white mill. He didn’t know what awaited him there, but it was a direct path to his goal.
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