Chapter 330 Chapter 330 - Last Trip Ho
"Laria, the land amidst the tundra…" Turning back ti for the castle itself, Haruki ventured in through the front gates trying to relive the cherished mont from his past. With a single step in, he stopped to look at the stairs that led to his room as well as the door with the frost dragon seal. "To think I'll grow attached to this place, how unfortunate."
His life before the revival was no better than the one he'd been given by Asmodia, yet the companions he'd made throughout had made it a lot more tolerable. And this ti before death, perhaps he'll leave behind a legacy, a legacy in the form of his benevolent daughter.
'I should head up fir-' A sudden fit of coughs broke his chain of thoughts. Coughing into his hands for a while, he pulled it away to the sight of blood painted all over his palm. 'Seems like I have even less ti than I thought.'
With a shake of the head, he put a spring to his feet and headed upstairs. Just climbing up the carpeted steps was enough to remind him of a ti when everything seed so simple. He would wake up in a castle that he could call his own, and Asuka would be on his side whenever he went. Getting to the first floor, yet another mory triggered inside his head.
'The assassination attempt at Snow Frost, we fell through the roof onto this floor.' The mory of Snow's tattered body was still fresh in his mind. 'The whole castle was destroyed after Rose took care of those assassins sent by Margarette, ahaha.'
Looking back on it all, he couldn't help but laugh. He'd almost forgotten that the very first enemy he'd made in this world was now a lifelong companion and the general of his demonic army. Then there was Riley, Margarette's stepson once now turned into a daughter, sothing that had Haruki conflicted at tis but couldn't spare to fiddle on much since it seed to have made Riley happier.
Cruising through those mories, he began walking towards the frost dragon's sealed door. At the sight of it from afar, he was reminded of the ss the whole ordeal with Rose had caused near the beginning of his new life. At that point, he was still thinking about exacting revenge on those who'd wronged him in the previous life, but now, looking back, he couldn't have cared less about the injustice he'd experienced in the past.
'Marquis, I hope your wife and daughter don't go to the sa place as you did after their passing.' Clutching his fist, he moved closer and closer until the sealed door was just inches away from him. Turning his hand into his frost dragon form, Haruki pressed it against the ice and tried to undo the seal's effect. However, his attempt to enter the room failed as he needed the help of a fire dragon to breach through the sealed door.
"Dungeon portal!" Teleporting slightly further, Haruki popped up inside the room regardless. "Unholy fla."
Lighting the place with a violet fla of dark magic, he looked around at the massive chains that once held the maddened dragon. Even now, Haruki barely knew the potential of Klain's strength which was only worsened by the fact that the frost dragon had been severely weakened after being reverted back to his younger self.
"I wonder how strong he truly was, the creation of the tundra couldn't have been an easy task after all," muttering to himself, he conjured up a table with two cups of bitter tea resting on them. Creating a pair of chairs as well, he sat there for a while wondering about all those tis he'd had to sip that bitter liquid while conversing with Asmodia. "And then, I did the sa to Rose, to make that deal to garner her help in exchange for her brother's life."
Picking up the cup, he took one light sip and the familiar bitter taste made him set it right back onto the table. With her powers, perhaps he'd gained more than he expected, as instead of being repulsed, the taste felt indifferent. Or perhaps that was just a strange longing for soone who'd been in his head for most of his new life.
"Portal!" teleporting outside, Haruki was off on his way to check the room he used to stay in.
Just a level above, he found it quickly. Standing before the door itself was more nostalgic than he'd expected. As if reunited with a long-lost sibling, he felt assaulted with a wave of emotion, but keeping it all confined, he pushed the door open and headed right in.
Glancing around, he noticed the sa familiar bed with white curtains tied around its fra to keep insects out while sleeping. Shifting his gaze sideways, he noticed the window overlooking the tundra and the towns of Laria. Moving closer he breezed through the sights of the once bustling streets and the semi-thawed tundra attempting to regain its natural glory.
'I-I did this?' When he'd first awoken in the castle, the sight through the very window had been substantially different. The streets were filled with traders hauling their carts, and the people of the land let their voices bustle as they went through their everyday lives. But now, nothing but ruin laid forth, for the Laria Haruki knew had long been gone.
"I am a monster," he said to himself.
'A monster, for what? Trying to survive when everyone wanted you dead?' Fought his demonic side.
"Shut up…" He muttered and put his thoughts to a rest.
Turning around he noticed a stool beside him by the window. It was the very stool Asuka used to watch over Haruki whenever he passed out while staying in the castle. Even now, her ghost of the past, sitting there, watching over him as he slept. Her eyes weary with exhaustion, yet she wouldn't sleep or take even a light nap.
As a cold breeze seeped through his cloak, another fit of cough took over Haruki's throat and lungs. Coughing blood against his palm, he wheezed about heavily until Asmodia's passive abilities eased so of the effects of the poison. Hunched over and looking at his palm, he noticed the illusion of Asuka turning in his direction. Looking at her concerned face from the edge of his eyes, he forced a smile and assured the nonexistent presence.
"I'm sorry we had to break our promise temporarily, but I'll be joining you soon so we can be together till the end of tis," seeing a smile replace that troubled look, Haruki straightened himself before deciding to head back to his people again.
Reaching near the door, however, he took one last glance at the ghost of the past, but this ti there was nobody there. Even so, he spoke his mind as if making a commitnt to himself and the departed.
"I'll be the worst monster this world has ever seen for one last ti. Past that, it'll all be in the gentle hands of our daughter, Stella," with that said, he looked back into the front and headed right out.
While he made the journey back, the others were nearing the end of their preparations for the war was soon to co and they needed as many extra days to flatten out the rough edges. With two days more to go, the soldiers inside the dungeons won't only have ti for any correction, but they'll also be able to make their journey to a much flatter land and more manageable battlefield.
Under Margarette's command, they were being readied to create nurous traps around the tundra's forests, so the Valkyries could be surprised from under the shades even if they arrived from the skies. As for the monsters, they too were preparing in their own ways, all the while also preparing the most components to receive the new god-kin bodies.
Fay, however, still not keen on giving out such powerful vessels to the competitive soldiers, had sothing sinister planned in case things went sideways. Creating a special pod inside those vessels fused with traces of soul magic, she used them to isolate dark matter inside the vessels without letting it touch the rest of the body.
Making sure it was well hidden in all of them, she cast nurous curses and spells so if in case even one of them rebelled she could easily bust the pod and release dark matter right into their bloodstreams.
'Now the only problem is that they'll die in case a weapon or a crash against a surface bursts the pods open.' All alone in the facility, looking at the vessels growing their limbs as fetuses, Fay knew that things could go wrong in many ways because of her precautionary asures. 'As if I have another choice anyway? No way in hell do I want Stella to deal with a god in case Haruki…'
Shaking her head, she didn't finish the sentence and returned to work as if everything was normal.
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