After a while, the two finally let go and waved toward Alka.
No lingering attachnts.
They sat together in a small boat, sailing farther and farther across the calm sea until their backs disappeared into the darkness. Alka’s vision blurred once more.
Alka opened his eyes and found himself back on the deck. Sifus’s corpse in front of him had turned into a pile of dust, a dagger buried within.
The mories no longer surged; they were truly his own now.
The specks of light floating around Alka’s soul completely rged into his soul-body, and the scattered light re-condensed, solid and firm.
His soul had grown stronger, more complete.
Alka crouched down, retrieved the dagger, then carefully scooped the dust into a bag.
He stored it all neatly in his ring.
Just then, a figure gently bumped into Alka’s arms, hugging him tightly.
The Lucilia doll on his shoulder also hugged Alka’s head.
Seeing their actions, Alka smiled helplessly and said, "Don’t worry, I’m fine."
"Really? But..." Chadite trailed off, unsure what to say to comfort him.
Lucilia, from Alka’s shoulder, piped up, "But your parents are gone, and now you’re all alone. That must be very painful..."
"..." Alka fell silent. Lucilia really isn’t very experienced with people; her way of comforting is quite unique, he thought.
He then said, "I still have you all, don’t I? How can I be considered alone?"
Chadite imdiately released her embrace, turned, and walked away, her ears visibly reddening.
Only Lucilia remained perched on Alka’s shoulder, the doll’s arms happily patting his head. "That’s right, that’s right! Don’t worry, I’ll always be with you. I’m a soul now, so I shouldn’t have any lifespan limitations. I’m just not sure how long you can live, Alka."
"Then, thank you," Alka said with a helpless smile, then sat down heavily on the deck.
He looked at the object in his hand; it was the Treasure he had taken from Sifus.
Then, he glanced around, checking on his teammates.
Chadite had walked off, heading toward her father.
Andre was sitting on a distant part of the deck, receiving treatnt from Vanessa; Alka wasn’t sure when she had arrived.
Andre kept looking in Alka’s direction. When Alka looked over, Andre stared at him with dead-fish eyes and made a fist gesture. He had just woken up to an unpleasant sight.
To this, Alka could only offer an awkward smile.
Pororo was also on deck, receiving treatnt from Church Staff. He grinned at Alka when their eyes t, revealing two rows of sharp teeth.
Julia stood to one side, conversing with soone.
Jason walked over just then, his face still stained with so blood.
He plopped down beside Alka.
"Ah, it’s finally over, finally over," Jason sighed. "I’m so tired."
Alka sat on the deck, gazing at the distant darkness. He sighed, shook his head, and said, "Yes, it’s finally over."
"What are your plans now?" Jason asked. "Judging by Andre, he probably won’t be forming another Treasure Hunting Team."
"Let’s set sail ourselves then. I’ll be the captain this ti," Alka replied.
"Do you have a destination?"
The two sat on the deck, talking back and forth like this.
It had only been a year, give or take, since he’d first set sail. He’d spent the first six months on various treasure hunts, becoming a Toucher, and then his father had suddenly attacked in the latter half of the year. Now, the enmity involving his father and mother was resolved, he had avenged Sang Kaka and the others who had sacrificed themselves on the ship, and he had rescued Andre. A sudden feeling of emptiness, coupled with an overwhelming weariness, washed over him.
"Maybe I’ll rest for a while," Alka said. "It’s too exhausting. Sailing in the Realm of Pitch Darkness for over half a year was really, really tiring."
He’d been in the Realm of Pitch Darkness for so long. The constant assault of darkness had persisted until he advanced to Two Spirals and finally found so relief with the Spiritual Protection Suit. Overall, getting a peaceful night’s sleep had been almost impossible. It felt like ages since he’d seen real sunlight. And all those treasures he’d left in the Realm of Pitch Darkness, still untouched... The thought was enough to make him want to cough up blood in frustration. Knowing there were still so many things he needed to do made him feel even more tired. But he couldn’t just stay idle.
Thinking of this, Alka imdiately felt a surge of motivation.
But before that, there was one more thing to take care of.
With this in mind, he pulled out the card that had shot out earlier.
The back of this card was dark blue with a hint of murky green, and its face bore a mirror symbol.
It didn’t seem particularly special, yet the entire card appeared to be shrouded in a faint mist.
Alka infused it with Magic Power.
The entire card instantly transford into a palm-sized mirror, its back intricately engraved with dense Spells.
Looking into the mirror, its surface didn’t reflect Alka’s face. Instead, a figure appeared within, frantically pounding against it.
Trapped inside was his enemy, the soul that had previously attempted to abandon its body and flee.
Jack.
Seeing Jack furiously pounding and apparently cursing inside, Alka couldn’t help but smile.
This mirror had initially been a semi-finished product he’d intended as a new abode for Lucilia. However, for various reasons, it hadn’t been successful, so he had kept it.
The reason it hadn’t been successful was that it fundantally couldn’t allow the soul within to enter or exit freely. It had truly beco a soul-trapping Magic Mirror—how could that be acceptable?
Naturally, it couldn’t be used for Lucilia. But since it was still a semi-finished product, Alka hadn’t destroyed it, simply storing it in his Pocket Ring.
He had several such prototypes, each with various problems. He never expected one to play such a crucial role now, imprisoning Jack’s soul.
Alka looked at the soul inside and said with a smile, "Although you are my enemy, you could also be considered my teacher. Thinking about it carefully, the reason you left your legacy there was as a contingency, wasn’t it? Hoping it might lead onto the Extraordinary path."
After all, you didn’t manage to take away or seize my body back then; you must have been deeply resentful.
Engraving those soul chains on my hand and leaving the legacy was rely a backup plan, a casual move on your part.
You must have rembered I dread of being a Treasure Hunter.
If not for that cursed Silver Coin, even the original Alka would probably have found that legacy box.
At most, he would have been only a year or two slower than in formally embarking on the Extraordinary path.
"After all, you are my teacher. I can’t kill you."
Hearing this, Jack, inside the mirror, looked bewildered, staring at Alka in disbelief.
Alka smiled and said, "Don’t worry, you will live."
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