"Was it the right decision to teach him Sword Aura?" Hana asked with a grim expression once Taranis returned to his world. "What if he walks down the path you once walked?"
"You saw how determined he was to beco stronger. If I hadn’t taught him, he would have done sothing irreversible to gain that strength," Aruma sighed.
"But I’m still worried. Currently he has lost most of his emotions. The first intense emotion he experiences after returning will overwhelm his other feelings. If he experiences sothing bizarre, a catastrophe will be unleashed upon the world."
"I reminded him multiple tis not to lose his purpose," Aruma murmured, his face carrying a tired look. "It all depends on his own willpower now."
---
"Where have you been for the past three hours?" Vyaghra asked, appearing before the mont I returned.
"I was training," I replied, rising to my feet.
"Did you suffer those injuries from your battle against that mortal?"
He was referring to the terrible scars on my face.
"So the scars are permanent," I murmured inwardly.
Wearing the helm and covering my forearms with vambraces, I replied, "No, from the training."
"I couldn’t sense your presence anywhere," Vyaghra pressed, clearly not pleased. "And what happened to you? You do not seem like yourself anymore."
"I’m fine, Vyaghra," I said, tapping his shoulder before continuing, "Forget about . Tell , how are your injuries?"
"They are not worth ntioning," Vyaghra replied. "So tell —"
"I need to rest," I said before he could pry further. Seeing how I was avoiding the topic, he decided not to ask anymore.
"The central room of the fortress has been prepared for you," Vyaghra replied after a sigh. "Rest there. Robert is taking care of the prisoners of war."
I nodded and reached the room Vyaghra ntioned.
One by one, the heavy tallic parts fell to the floor as I walked forward, removing the armour from my body before taking off the thin tunic and trousers I was wearing.
"Why am I fighting this war again?" I murmured, looking at my horrifying body in the mirror of the bathroom. From head to toe, every part of my body was covered in scars and dried blood clung to my skin.
After taking a brief glance at the mirror, I entered the bathtub filled with cold water.
"I feel empty," I whispered as my body slowly subrged completely into the water.
---
Knock knock.
"Prince Taranis!"
My eyes opened as I heard the familiar voice from the door.
"Main Quest: Save Nyria’s life.
Deadline: 23 days, 13 hours, 56 minutes."
"I have been sleeping for a whole day," I murmured, looking at the window before . Previously I used to feel anxiety upon seeing this tir, but now it did not stir any emotion within .
Ignoring the screen, I rose from the bed where I had moved after bathing, wore my clothes and armour, and opened the door.
"What is it, Master Robert?" I asked, seeing him at the entrance.
"Prince, you have been sleeping for a whole day," Robert said, his old voice carrying a hint of worry. "Please tell if you suffered any serious injury."
"I was just tired," I replied from behind the helm. "Do you need sothing?"
"Forgive for disturbing your rest, Prince. I ca here to inform you that the main army has returned. Lord Aurelion wishes to see you."
"Alright," I replied, moving out.
---
The mighty fortress of House Ironvale was bustling with thousands of Banes’ soldiers, drunk and feasting on their first victory of the war. The key figures were obviously absent. They must be ditating to restore the Soulforce they had lost during the battle against Thornwall.
At the highest tower of the fortress, Aurelion was standing silently, looking at the country below.
"You have made a breakthrough," Aurelion said the mont I arrived at the tower.
"The battle with the commander of House Thornwall helped," I replied with a nod before asking, "You must have pushed yourself against the main army of Ironvale."
Aurelion’s usual cold and stable energy was more chaotic, and the natural pressure emitted by his Demi God realm Soulforce was not even half of its usual dominance.
"It was not easy to freeze seven hundred thousand soldiers at once," Aurelion revealed. "I can only subdue such a massive army at most once more before my Soulforce runs out."
From my storage ring I took out a Grade 3 High Tier Soul Stone and said, handing it to him, "Use it to recover yourself."
"Who do you think I am? Only a temporary ruler, but I was once the king of the Hundred Sky Mountains. I already possess such treasures," he said, firmly refusing the stone. "Demi Gods cannot recover simply by absorbing Soulforce."
"Alright then," I replied, putting the stone back.
"Why are you still wearing the armour?" Aurelion asked, his eyes still fixed on the city below.
"I feel hollow without it."
Aurelion turned his face and finally looked at for the first ti since our conversation began. After staring at with a blank expression for a few seconds, he asked, "What is your current realm?"
"Level 2 Transcendent."
"You said that you need to reach level nine to heal Nyria."
"Yes. To make a successful breakthrough, I need to push myself to the extre."
With the number of tis I was pushed to my limits in the dinsion where Aruma trained , I would have already broken through to the Celestial Realm. However that place was solely built from the Divine Soulforce of Aruma and Hana. It did not contain the heavenly Soulforce required to trigger the breakthrough.
"Co with ," Aurelion ordered, suddenly flying into the sky.
My body followed him without resistance, and soon the two of us reached an open ground outside the valleys of Ironvale.
Once we landed, Aurelion moved his hand through the empty air and took out a pillar of ice that had been perfectly hidden from all reflections.
The ice lted and a figure erged from inside, clad in silver armour with a crest of an anvil on its chest, revealing his identity as a soldier of House Ironvale.
As the ice around his face vanished, I instantly recognized the man.
A sudden jolt of emotion surged through the mont my eyes landed on him. My hands trembled, my eyes turned bloodshot, and a storm of Soulforce blasted outward from my body.
"Astrid Ironvale," my heavy voice rumbled through the helm.
He was one of the perpetrators present at the Sentinel Line when the Empire massacred my sect.
He was the one who pierced the throat of my cousin, Nathan.
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