Janus exhausted every possible measure to heal Caen, but to no avail. The insidious nature of the Poison was unlike anything he had encountered before. It displayed an unprecedented level of hostility towards Divine Energy, exacerbating the situation instead of healing Caen.
"So you finally returned, old man..." Caen weakly opened his eyes. Although his vision was blurry, he could never mistake Janus for anyone else.
This was the Uncle who he had known since childhood. This was the Uncle who played with him when he was a little child, being his most favorite person.
Caen didn't even remember how the two of them ended up with such hostility between them. Was it the words of his friends? Or was it his suspicions? It didn't matter. What mattered was that he started hating his uncle, thinking he was after the throne.
At this moment, the throne became insignificant. Caen was on the verge of death, and even he knew it.
As he lay there, gasping for breath, his uncle was the last person on his side. He could feel Janus' concern towards him as his Uncle tried to do everything he could to save Caen, concern etched in his eyes.
It was clear that his Uncle cared for him. He could've just let him die if he hated him, but he didn't do that. Even if it meant risking his life against the army of enemies, his uncle came to save him.
"Don't worry! Nothing will happen to you. I'll let nothing happen to you!" Janus exclaimed. He refused to let his nephew die! This was the last remnant of his brother... This was his own child!
More than that, he was the nephew that Janus watched over since childhood. Although he didn't want Caen to become a king due to his personality, that didn't make him care any less for his Nephew.
"You've always been bad at lying," Caen laughed lightly, but even that was painful as black blood trickled out of his lips.
"I know I'm dying. I don't regret my death... I deserved it for all the mistakes I made in this life. It all happened because of me... It all happened because I was paranoid towards your intentions... It's all my fault."
Even though it was painful, Caen still spoke.
"I am the cause of it all. I'm the reason Mother..." A tear trickled down his eyes. In this last moment, he missed the warm embrace of his mother.
He wished he could apologize to her as well, one final time, to make amends for the pain he caused her.
Memories flooded his mind, reminding him of their precious moments together, the love and care she had shown him throughout his life.
Caen felt pain in his heart, but this time, it wasn't because of the poison. It was a pain of regret.
As his vision blurred and his strength kept fading.
"Don't close your eyes! I forbid you!" Janus roared, his face pale. "I told you I'll let nothing happen to you! Even if Heaven wants to take your life, I'll stop it! I can't use another person!"
He placed Caen on the ground gently. "Just wait a short time! I'll go to Ezekiel and take the cure from him! Just don't close your eyes until then! You must not!"
He stood up and turned to leave, only to stop as he felt a freezing cold hand getting a hold of his hand.
He turned around, noticing it was Caen who stopped him. He could feel Caen's hand trembling. "Don't go..."
Caen didn't doubt Janus' strength, but the situation was too bad. Janus was alone. All the gods on their side were dead. On the other hand, the other side had Ezekiel and many more people like him. And now, Ezel even had his sword.
His father was dead, his mother was dead and his life was also hanging by the thread. He didn't want his uncle to also face his death for a futile cause like saving his life.
Even if Janus defeated Ezekiel, he wasn't going to hand over the cure. And without the Sword of Life, Ezekiel couldn't be killed.
Everything was against his uncle. And even if somehow his uncle could get the cure, by the time he returned, Caen was certain he was going to be dead.
He could already feel his life slipping away.
Although he was very weak, he lightly pulled Janus closer to him. Janus didn't resist, tears trickling down his cheeks.
Janus had gone to the Abyss, never expecting that something like this was going to happen in such a short time. His entire family was killed, and the realm of gods was taken.
Even the Gods were killed. Everything was destroyed, but at this moment, he didn't care about anything like that. He only cared about his nephew.
He sat on his knees before Caen.
****
Back in the Southern World, Gabriei was sitting alone, looking into the distance. He didn't know why, but there was a strange feeling in his heart. He couldn't understand it, but he felt as if something was wrong.
He found himself in a state of confusion and emptiness. He had assumed that avenging his sister and restoring justice to his world would bring him a sense of relief.
Yet, he discovered that it did not alleviate the overwhelming void within him. No matter what he did, he couldn't bring back his sister and friends.
He realized that his purpose had been tied so closely to seeking vengeance that he hadn't thought about anything else. In this battle, so many people had died. An entire world was destroyed.
Although it happened because of Caen's attack, but that didn't change much. So many lives were just gone, just like the lives of his world.
As Gabriel was lost in thought, he heard the laughter of one of the two Villagers.
"Hahaha, you should've seen how those little kids were crying when I killed them! What a great sight! Even though they were children of so-called gods, before their death, even they were no different than mortals!"
"Hahaha, I feel bad that I wasn't there. I wanted to enjoy the sight as well. What a pity." Another Villager laughed.
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