Soul of Searing Steel

Wherever I go, blood and death would follow.

A battle always ends up with one side losing.

… However, it cannot be helped. It cannot be stopped.

No matter for what reasons a person joins a battle—to protect the person they love, to protect the world they love and all sorts of reasons that sound noble.

Those are simply excuses.

I had a friend who once told me that my desire for battle had driven me mad… That is not true though.

Only battles can satisfy my desire; only the blood of my enemies can suppress my rage—

The arm of the warrior which had turned into white bones remained firmly gripping the long spear. The Divine Power continued to tremble, causing the lights in the surroundings to ripple. Joshua stood upright in the sky as he remained in control over the black pillar of light.

At that particular moment, he directed the Divine Power at his target. Regardless of whether it was his hands, his legs, his body or his head and brain, every single part of the body had become part of a lifeless and cold machine that persisted to serve as the generator to turn the Divine Power into energy that powers up the destructive light beam. Even though it was about to be used up, it showed absolute resolution to push against that gigantic meteor to prevent it from destroying the Illgner Continent.

The warrior could not even move even a single muscle in his body. With the lights of soul gushing in, his body was torn to the point where only his bones remained. He was well aware of his current condition. However, he was not able to respond to it as he was already fully occupied with the task at hand—to prevent the meteor from crashing.

When the lights of the soul penetrated his body, Joshua felt a sense of warmth flowing from his heart.

The heart that was turned into the core where the Divine Power circulated, had already stopped beating long ago. But now, it trembled for an instant, causing the body of the warrior to tremble as well. His body was already on the verge of being completely destroyed by the Divine Power as he had completely lost control over his own body. However, at that moment, he instantly regained strength.

His heart started pounding again as it pumped a miraculous power. That power was filled with passion and determination of life. The moment it flowed through the warrior, it made the cold and lifeless machine vibrant again, like the body of a human being.

That power was weak at first. It came in like a small river that flowed at a rapid speed. The lights of souls gathered and formed a stream that flowed rapidly. Joshua took a deep breath. The heat went into his lungs along his throat, causing him an excruciating pain. However, that pain had stimulated his spirit, causing the warrior to feel much more vigilant and alive than he was just a few moments ago.

At that moment, Joshua understood the reason and the cause of everything.

“Is that right… I see, all of you do not want to die in vain.”

Silently whispering to himself, Joshua who just came back from the brink of death, spat some blood. He turned around and stared at the souls that were flowing towards him. The lights of the souls that gathered beside him like stars were so bright that the light from the Divine Power was overshadowed.

Sensing the perseverance of the dead, many shadows of the elves were reflected in his eyes as millions of them encouraged him to move forward. Sensing all their wishes and hopes, the warrior sneered as he looked up at the sky. His eyes seemed to see through the layers of rocks as he stared right at the true form of the Evil God. Joshua burst into laughter. “We have already come this far, I will not let you all down!”

Rage, hatred, destruction, everything remained the same. A lifestyle like that was just too dull.

The sword forged from steel, the armor from iron, and the chilly feeling that came into contact with the skin always brought discomfort to the mind. As he was exposed to blood and fire for so long, he could no longer recognize the scent of fragrant flowers.

Therefore, even a man born out of war would occasionally crave for a change and a reason for him to fight.

The quaint Dragon-hunting Gunblade vibrated a little. With the gunblade as the center point, the black pillar of light trembled violently. The gigantic meteor immediately pushed the end of the black pillar of light with a horrifying pressure that brought along strong currents of wind, stripping away a layer of dirt and sand from the surface of the earth. Roland and Black turned their heads around as they resisted the heavy pressure. Even Father Nature’s crown shook violently as leaves fell from its branches.

It was about to hit the ground!

Just as their chests were struck by a chill and they thought that everything was too late, a faint golden light suddenly emerged in the middle of the black pillar of light. Unlike the black Divine Power that carried unspeakable destructive presence, the golden light was firm and tenacious even though it appeared weak. It seemed as if the light could resist all harm.

In the center core of the light beam, Joshua held the gunblade with a long spear attached to it with both his hands. The golden lines glowed on the surface of the gray long spear that was formed from both silver greatsword and the black giant axe which had fused into the body of the warrior and vanished. The same happened to the green symbol of a crown that was on his forehead.

Battle—not because one was fuelled with rage nor to cause destruction but because it was one’s responsibility to protect.

Hence I accepted the Divine Power with my own free will, used the Sage’s Legacy to battle against Chaos and Evil on behalf of the world and everyone—

For that, I remained indestructible and nothing cannot be destroyed by me!

Laughing loudly, the warrior lifted the gray spear in his hand high up into the air. A spot of golden light shone in the middle of the sky like a bright star.

The flight of the meteor that was about to crash onto the earth was instantly brought to a stop. The black pillar of light that fused with a little golden light seemed to have turned as firm as an indestructible rock. It became stronger and started to push the meteor back into the sky. Layers of sacred runes emerged all around it.

Crack—

Along with a sound that echoed through heaven and earth, many cracks started spreading across the surface layer of the rock under the push of the light pillar that was becoming stronger by the second. The gigantic meteor began to crack from the outside as it slowly broke apart, having decomposed into sparks of flames and dark vapor of Chaos that filled up the sky.

Crack!!!

Another sound echoed. The holy knight and the draconic horse lifted their heads and looked at the destructive falling star, dumbfounded. The layer of tough rock continued to crack. The cracks spread across the entire surface of the meteor. It seemed that the time had stopped. Under the impactful shockwave that was emitting light and a thunderous sound that shook the entire heaven, the gigantic falling star that was flying above the Illgner Continent instantly exploded.

Blazing shards of the falling star swept across the sky leaving trails of flames behind them with thunderous explosions lighting up the entire area of the mountains. Clouds of dust floated above the impact sites of the blazing rocks over the mountains, burning the entire area, causing destruction to the surroundings. The destructive shockwaves of those impacts swept across half of the world, destroying everything in it. However, that was way better than if the entire ‘Great Star of Ten Calamities’ were to crash down to earth. Perhaps that was already the best case scenario.

When the meteor was destroyed, Joshua spat out a mouthful of blood. The blood, which glittered with faint golden light, was instantly vaporized by the heat of the Divine Power. The lights of soul gushed out from the back of the warrior like a spring fountain as the lights of soul formed into a stream of light that flowed all the way back to the Father Nature’s crown. The warrior seemed like a kite that was detached from its string, falling all the way to the ground alongside the pieces of the meteor.

Meanwhile, in the middle of the sky, the radiating light of the magic energy flashed. The Dragon-hunting Gunblade was dissembled back into a silver greatsword and a black greataxe before they turned back into a silver-haired girl and a black-haired boy. Both of them swiftly caught the body of the warrior that was falling from the sky. Then they carefully landed and laid the body of the warrior slowly upon the ground.

“Master! Your body?!”

As they had been near the body, Ying was able to immediately sense that there was something not right. The body of the warrior was always strangely heavy—the body that went through hardships and training, which was forged into steel. No one would forget the toughness of that body. However, now, the body of the warrior was so light. The only thing that remained in that body was the mass of ashes and dust.

Ling instantly flipped Joshua’s body over. The both of them inhaled sharply—

It was a horrific sight. The radiating light of Divine Power was shining from the body of the warrior. His two arms and half of his torso had been completely reduced to white bones. There was no sign of any flesh left. Through the white rib cages, the both of them could even see the heart of the warrior that was still pumping slowly as if it was about to stop.

If his heart continued pumping at that rate, the two divine armaments will keep to their pact with him and stay right by his side, even if everyone else would have thought him already dead.

Roland and Black came as swiftly as possible. When the holy knight saw the body of the warrior, his eyes widened in horror. He had never heard or seen a man that was inflicted with such horrifying injury to survive it. Casting away all of his emotion, he immediately stepped in and asked Ying and Ling to put the warrior onto the back of Black. At the same time, he conjured his Holy Light as he prepared to heal the wounds and injuries on Joshua.

However, even though the white healing lights were shining bright, the wounds on Joshua did not seem to heal at all. The warrior did not seem to be responding to Holy Light. A mass of radiating light isolated the Holy Light from running its course. That was in fact the remaining Divine Power that was scattered all over the wounds on the warrior. It seemed to be blocking the blood and the life force from flowing out from Joshua’s body. It temporarily stopped the warrior from dying. However, it had also stopped the others from healing him.

“God damn it! Why is it not working at all?!”

Kneeling on the back of Black, cold sweats dripped off of Roland’s forehead. His eyes were filled with insecurity and fear. The holy light in the hands of the holy knight shifted. The runes were shining bright. All sorts of Divine Spells and holy techniques were used in attempt to save the warrior. However, all efforts went to waste. Everything seemed to be fruitless no matter how hard he tried.

In the end, Roland ground his teeth and said, “This is futile… I have no way of saving him at all!”

Ying and Ling who had been witnessing how hard the holy knight was trying to save the warrior had already ppreparedthemselves for the worst. Just as Roland spoke out in despair, both of them turned around and looked at the giant tree.

“… Come here.”

Giving out all his Divine Power as it once again withdrew the souls of the elves, the god of elves that seemed exhausted remained in silence for a brief moment. Then, he started to communicate with the others through his spirit. His will was mixed with complicated feelings. “Come closer, or else I won’t be able to observe his situation thoroughly.”

Black, immediately and as gently as he could, moved closer to Father Nature. The draconic horse looked at its master with care as it was trying not to affect the body of its master or even worsen the condition of the warrior.

When Black had come within the area, the draconic horse instantly noticed that there was a force lifting the body of the warrior. The horse noticed that it was the manifestation of the god and simply allowed the force to lift the warrior off of its back.

A great will swept across the vicinity as Father Nature descended into deep thought.

“… The entanglement of the Divine Power.”

After thinking about it, it started speaking at a slow pace, “The gathering of the souls has created a miracle that even I could never understand. That miracle has changed the attribute of the Divine Power, causing Joshua to become capable of destroying the falling star sent forward by the Evil God. However, the residue of Divine Power that remained on him is no longer the Divine Power that I lent to him.”

The ancient god attempted to explain the current situation of the warrior. “The body of a human being would never be able to embrace the Divine Power. Even if he had already woken the power of Mastery Strength within him, that would only allow his body to last for another brief period of time after enduring the pressure of the Divine Power. So, his body is burned inside out. Only his skeleton, which is the toughest part of his entire body, remains. However, these bones are currently entangled with some residue of that Divine Power, causing no power in the mortal world to heal his wounds.”

“So, Lord Father Nature —”

Ling lifted his head and look straight at the giant tree. He tried to implore for sympathy, “Can you heal my master, please?”

Right next to him, the others also turned around and looked at the giant tree, seeking sympathy from Father Nature.

Father Nature shook Its branches gently as It spoke with a serious tone, “Yes.”

However, before the others could cheer in relief, the giant tree spoke again,“But not now.”

Instantly, everyone remained silent. Upon sensing the tense atmosphere, Father Nature explained Itself, ” Take a look around you.”

After hearing what Father Nature said, everyone looked around them.

The ‘Great Star of Ten Calamities’ was shattered by the light beam and turned into burning shards before everything rained down on earth. The remaining meteor had set the forests ablaze, leaving scars upon the world. The dust and sand tainted by the presence of Chaos were scattered all over the world, killing the remaining survivors in the entire world.

The dimensional rift in the sky had shut itself up. The Chaos world that was filled with darkness seemed to have gone far from the Illgner Continent. After the descent of the ‘Great Star of Ten Calamities’, the Evil God Calamity had left the world alone. However, the traumatizing scars that it left behind on Illgner tormented the world. If those dust and sand, and also the fragments of the meteor were left unattended, the world would still be moving towards destruction. When that happens, no living being on earth would be able to live on Illgner ever again.

Even Ying and Ling were not able to ignore what Father Nature just said.

“The possibility of a human being is truly amazing.”

Father Nature took a look at the body of Joshua and sighed. Then It said,“Having courage and persistence that carries unwavering faith, this man could be seen as a great warrior even during the Glorious Era.”

Even though the silver-haired girl remained unsettled, worried sick to her stomach about the warrior, she could not help but feel proud about the warrior. However, she still felt a little sad whenever she saw the white bones that were exposed on the warrior’s body.

If the praise had to come with a price like that, she would rather not see the warrior getting praised for it. Furthermore, the two divine armaments remained unharmed because the warrior deliberately protected them during the battle. The girl felt embarrassed about that.

It was simply the greatest shame that the owner got hurt himself instead of the weapons.

Without further ado, Father Nature’s crown shook again with a stream of green light. Sacred tunes emerged as the entire purification network that covered the entire world was activated. With a radiating light, the presence of Chaos slowly faded off. The world that appeared dead seemed to be recovering, having the vibrant presence brought back to the world.

The elves that were hidden in the deepest underground shelters sensed the changes in the outside world. Some of the braver ones removed the gravel that blocked the exit as they stuck their heads out of the shelter in order to take a look at the situation on the outside. They were shocked to see that the golems had turned into statues. Soon, everyone was cheering.

Although the surviving elves were small in numbers as most of them gathered by the Central City of the Bay which was well reserved compared to the other cities, the seed of the civilization remained. In a few thousand years, perhaps this world would flourish and become prosperous again.

After it was done restoring the world, Father Nature turned its attention towards the warrior.

Most of the Divine Power that was directed towards destroying the ‘Great Star of Ten Calamities’ came from Father Nature. The warrior was merely channeling the Divine Power and turning the power into something much more destructive. Hence, Father Nature was very exhausted for the moment. It was barely holding on while it purified the presence of Chaos across the entire Illgner Continent. It was about to reach its own limit.

However, the final task must be done no matter what.

Once again, the green light that carried the Divine Power filled with life force surrounded the body of the warrior. The power was not going into the body of the warrior. That was a power that only God could use to heal someone.

The flesh and blood that was originally missing from the warrior’s body began to regenerate cell by cell across the surfaces of the white bones that were exposed to the air. Roland was shocked, Ying and Ling were overjoyed as they cheered and Black neighed in excitement. It did not take long before the entire body of the warrior was back to its formerly perfect condition. That scene looked just like another miracle. A strong and tough body of the warrior in perfect condition appeared right in front of everyone just like that.

Father Nature had exhausted every last bit of Its strength and had no energy to listen to the crowd as they cheered for the warrior’s recovery. It seemed that the power needed to restore the body of the warrior had increased tremendously due to the fact that the Azurite orb remained fused in the body of the warrior. Hence, healing Joshua had used up more energy than Father Nature had expected.

The time for Father Nature to return to Its slumber came.

—Perhaps Father Nature would need to sleep for another hundreds of years.

He thought about the elves that were walking out of the ruins as His heart was filled with doubts and concerns.

Having no chance to be there for his children when they walked out of their difficult times was a failure to uphold His responsibility as their god.

Having that sort of thoughts in his mind, Father Nature used the last of Its energy to open up a portal.

The blue light flashed as the dimensional passage opened. Right after that, everyone saw the familiar view on Mount Great Ajax through the dimensional door.

“I have opened a portal to the coordinates of your arrival in this world.”

The grand will blurred into the distance. Father Nature’s voice was getting weaker as It spoke, “Quickly, return to your world, and return to your home…”

“Black, quickly!”

Upon noticing that something was not right, Roland knew that it was not the time to be polite anymore. While Joshua was not around, the holy knight had burdened himself with the responsibility to give commands. Upon expressing their gratitude towards Father Nature, Roland did not have the time to say anything more. He hustled Black to cross the dimensional passage as they made their way back to the Mycroft Continent.

The moment right after they left the Illgner Continent, Father Nature instantly closed the dimensional passage. He was silent for a long time before letting out a relieved sigh but also with a tinge of regret.

“My friends. I did not turn away from my enemy this time…”

After Father Nature finished its last words, the green network that covered the entire Illgner Continent instantly stopped radiating. The green light particles spread as the presence of life reached out across the world. The greenish vibrant leaves on the crown of the giant tree turned gray as they slowly turned into stones. Layers of gray rock slowly spread across every branch on the giant tree.

It was not long before the entire body of Father Nature had been turned into a giant rock tree, rooted deep into the earth in the middle of the world.

The god went into his slumber once again.

However, as long as the elves were faced with imminent danger, no matter what the situation was, the god would definitely wake from its slumber again.

*****

[Mythical Event—The Great Star of Ten Calamities]

[Confederation Calendar Year 71, Ancient Historical Year 1315, Mount Sigma. Passengers from the outer world have descended upon the Illgner Continent. They have aided the elves in defending against the golem army as they slowly noticed the presence of Chaos lurking behind the golems. With the support of the miracle that originated from the Mountains of Origins and the aid from the ancient god of the elves, the new ‘King of the Searing Soul’ lifted his weapon as he was supported by the lights of souls when he crippled the attack that was thrown from the outer realm at the Illgner Continent.]

[The result of the Myth—World Savoir]

*****

Holding the hands of his parents, an elven boy walked out of the sanctuary.

The boy looked confusedly at his surroundings. The streets he was once familiar with were all gone. The houses were reduced into piles of rubbles. Rocks and dirt were everything the boy could see.

Their home was in ruin after the golems and the meteor destroyed it. The young boy could not understand anything. However, he felt nervous and anxious and gripped his parents’ hands tightly

But why?

They were still alive—but they remained uncertain about death, any of the elves that survived the calamity was able to understand one thing though. Even if a grass was pulled out of the soil, as long as the root remained in the soil, it would not be long before the green grass grows again.

A particle of greenish light drifted down from the sky. The young elven boy could not help but slip his hands out of his parents’ grip and reach out his hand to catch the light particle.

It felt just like winter was coming to an end and tomorrow would be spring that brings hope.

That was the light of hope that would never be extinguished.

Arc 5, The Calamity of the Falling Star. The End.