Chapter 266 Volume IV - Chapter 113: An Eternal Sleep for An Eternal Creature
A light caught my attention at first. Yet this was not what surprised me.
How long had I been in the darkness that the light appeared so abruptly? I hadn't even realized it...
Had I fallen asleep before I even realized how it happened?
So I focused on the light, and then I realized that it was coming from a very small place... a crack.
I reached out with my hand to this light, and I realized that this crack was actually not that far away from me.
And with that, I realized something else.
My body... feels different. When I wake up from sleep my whole body should be numb, even for a short time, but it's not. On the contrary, I'm strangely full of strength.
But rather the strangest thing is... my body feels alien to me. As if I am not in my own body but in a different one.
I looked again at the crack through which the light was seeping, and this time I tried to move my body, but it did nothing but make me realize that what I was in was actually quite small. I couldn't move as if I was trapped in a small space.
I focused on the only limb I could move freely, my right arm. I closed my fingers, clenched and stretched my fist, and without a second thought, I swung it into the crack.
My fist smashed through whatever was wrapped around my body quite easily, without even a little difficulty. A strange, sudden coolness quickly enveloped my entire right hand.
Ignoring the cold, I opened my fist back up, widening and widening the crack I had created.
As I did so, I noticed that the light seeping in from the outside was purple, a faint and familiar feeling purple, but I didn't stop. I widened the crack even more, finally managing to completely shatter the top of whatever was pinning me down and toss it aside.
The first thing I did was stand up quickly and look around. The first thing, or rather things, that caught my eye were the purple-colored crystals that were everywhere. There was also a strange feeling that for some reason my height made me feel a little... tall.
That's when I remembered what these purple crystals were.
"Ah... these are virgonium."
I pushed my mind a little more, and eventually, memories started flooding into my mind. For a brief moment, my eyes widened.
Memories flooded my mind in an instant. Why I was here, what happened...
I did the first thing that came to my mind, I turned around quickly. I looked at that huge egg I saw when I first came here and then... I just froze in place.
"You're finally awake... how nice."
The egg was cracked, it even looked like it had been broken a long time ago. And the former glory of the phoenix that was supposed to be inside, the flames, the bright colors... everything was gone. His eyes were squinting, almost weak.
He certainly didn't look like a newly hatched, newly-born phoenix. On the contrary, he was... dying.
"Ah... is it because of me?"
The phoenix said nothing, his silence was his answer to me.
"Although I have not spent much time in this world, I have lived too long, puppet. Dying, at least literally dying... doesn't mean much to me. It's more of a new beginning than an end, as we always say. A simple step into a sleep, but this time... an eternal sleep."
So… because I wanted more, he gave me more. This is not hard to understand... I wonder if is that why I experienced something that's not mentioned in the game.
It's impossible for the player to get these blue flames normally because this power is in the hands of another woman... But even with what she told the player in the game, I experienced something foreign. Normally, the only thing I should have gotten was mastery of the blue flames.
After realizing the situation, I said nothing. I could only sigh deeply.
I didn't know much about this gigantic creature, this phoenix, and frankly... to be honest, I didn't really care. I had gotten what I wanted. He had given me what I wanted. And the reason I felt a little guilty was that he was going to die in spite of that, because he had directly fulfilled my wish.
"You took not only my legacy, my blue flames, but so much more. You took a piece of me for yourself, you made the most of your 'death'. Well done, a move worthy of a phoenix."
Ah... is that why I feel taller? Did I really rebuild my body after I 'died' there?
I raised my hands, looked at my palms, and examined my body.
I was definitely taller and more built than I used to be, though strangely not like the giant people who work out every day. As built as I was, I was also strangely... slender.
I actually have a body that fits the descriptions of phoenixes quite well. Strong, but elegant...
Ah... Now that I think about it... has my charm stat gone up?
"In your veins now flows not only the blood and desire of a human, but also that of a phoenix. So live accordingly and use my flames properly. That is enough for me."
The phoenix sighed lightly as if he had been waiting for this moment for a long time. Then he closed his eyes, which he had kept open until now, their glow extinguished.
"I realize you don't feel much for me, nor should you. Now... whatever your goal is, keep moving toward it."
He took one last deep breath, his body shimmering slightly.
"I wish you well in your life, little puppet. I hope that when the time comes you will be free of the chains that bind you."
I sighed again as I realized that his body was turning to dust, or rather 'ashes'. I prepared to give him a proper goodbye, but then... I paused quickly, and my eyes widened.
An intense panic swept over me as I remembered something important, very important.
"N- no! Wait, I waited until this moment on purpose... I put all my questions on hold because I was in the middle of the tests... You can't leave now!"
I ran toward him in a panic, still shouting. It wasn't hard to realize that I didn't have time.
"Why are you calling me a puppet, what chains... I haven't asked you anything yet and you haven't answered me!"
The phoenix sighed again as he turned to ash, giving me a short and non-answer as if dealing with a small child.
"It is up to you to find them."
I frowned, clenching my teeth.
"No, come here! Don't go anywhere until you answer my questions!"
I raised my hands, focusing on my mana.
Intense, blue-colored flames suddenly enveloped my body. They were not burning or destructive, they were comforting. They were created for another purpose, not destruction.
The blue flames first flowed into my right hand, then moved toward the phoenix. Their purpose was to feed him.
The phoenix, however, did nothing in return, just let out another deep sigh.
The blue flames were extinguished before they could reach him. They swung back at me, throwing me backward, as if under the control of someone much stronger than me.
"As I said, it's up to you to find the answers to your questions. Now... don't disrespect me as I move on to my eternal sleep. I left you my legacy and much more because I trusted you... because I believed you could carry on my lineage as one of the last surviving members of the phoenixes, do not disappoint me."
The last parts of the phoenix that were still alive turned to ash after those words. His words echoed through the cave even as he disappeared. There was nothing of him anymore as the ashes of his body spread around.
"Damn it!"
I quickly jumped up again, looking at the closest thing to me.
Absolute Mind took over, trying to suppress my anger, but I didn't care. I strained my foot, and kicked the shell of the 'egg' I was sleeping in.
The shell shattered into pieces but I didn't care, I didn't even look back at it. I took deep breaths in and out, clenching my fist tightly.
I was postponing my questions, saying it was not the time yet... Is this what I get in the end? Nothing...?
I clicked my tongue and looked at the ashes left by the phoenix. His last words echoed in my mind for a moment.
Finally, I felt my anger calming down a little, Absolute Mind working as efficiently as it could, and I was giving it mana.
Okay... I'm calm now.
What I got is not nothing. I may have new questions to answer, but... I got what I wanted to get from this place, so I shouldn't be angry.
The phoenix is dead, and he left his legacy and his lineage to me. So... there's nothing more I can do about it.
I took another deep breath, finally managed to push it aside, and then I called out to my mind.
'Sith, wake up. I'm back.'
Before I knew what was happening, a teal glow appeared before my eyes. Sith appeared instantly, despite his sleepy eyes.
'Finall- Wait... Is it just me or did you grow taller?'
'It's a long story, I'll tell you later. First of all... how many days has it been since we got here? What is today's date?'
Sith waited a short while, then answered.
'It should be the fourteenth of April. At noon.'
Oh... so I've been here for a week. Time in that dimension seems to flow differently than outside, but the point is...
Aiden's birthday was April 13th. I don't know if it was a coincidence, but my birthday as Ethan was the same. In short... I missed both my nineteenth birthday in this body and my twenty-second birthday mentally by only one day.
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