Joint Training 1

Nox was surprised looking at Oscar. His glowing crimson eyes gave him a dangerous feeling. They were pupilless and crimson. They were the rage-filled spirit eyes. Nox could feel a hidden power in the depths of them.

'What the heck?! What kind of power is this?! I never heard Oscar had a power like this. Even convict has surprised by them. What kind of magic those eyes have?'

Nox couldn't help but shudder when Oscar looked at him in the eye. For Jason and the others, it might not be detectable but Nox and Convict are spirits. They can feel the power inside them. Before that power was dormant but after hearing and learning the plans of the spirits something broke inside of him.

Oscar held his head. His eyes gave him a terrible headache. He could feel strange energy flowing through his head from his eyes. But before he could focus on it his nose bleed. At the same time, his eyes burnt to cause Oscar to cover them with his hands.

"Urgh!" (Oscar)

"Oscar! Are you okay?!" (Lydia)

"I need to wash my eyes they are burning!" (Oscar)

Lydia helped Oscar to the bathroom. He kept washing his eyes and nose but neither did his nosebleed stop nor the burning of his eyes. He knew the real reason for this. His Spirit Eyes put a huge burden on his body causing some tissues to be destroyed. It was getting worse faster than he and Kairi imagined. His body was breaking down quite fast. Spirit Eyes uses spirit mana which is more intense and powerful than normal mana. To use his eyes he shapes his mana into spirit mana which again damages his body internally.

"Are you okay?"

Lydia was worried about Oscar. With the kiss they shared they become closer than ever. She wanted to confess to him but he was continuously changing the topic. She was nervous because of it. It was obvious that something was still holding Oscar back.

Oscar looked at his reflection in the mirror. His eyes were red from the burning feeling and his nose was red with blood. After five minutes his nosebleed and burning of his eyes stopped. But he could see that it was getting worse. He looked pale and sick. After the fight with Kulligar, his condition became worse. He used mana to survive lethal attacks multiple times in that fight. And now his eyes are consuming more mana than before.

He took a deep breath. He kept this a secret from the others. He didn't know what to do. He just hoped that he could heal himself before it gets too late. But now he started to lose hope. He is dying he can feel it. And it's not slow either. He glanced at Lydia. Her eyes were filled with worry. She was in love with him and he was in love with her. He didn't want to make her sad but he couldn't hide it anymore.

"Lydia... I-i have... something to tell you."

"I am listening. You don't have to force yourself. Take your time."

Lydia was extremely worried. The sudden change of Oscar made her nervous, worried, and anxious. What was he going to tell her? Is it about his condition? He looked sick and it was easy to notice. But she thought that he could heal himself with mana. So, was it about something else? Was he going to confess? No, he looked gloomy and sad. Was there someone else? She hoped not. But if there is really someone else she wouldn't hesitate to fight against her for him. It was her first time to love someone. She wasn't going to give up on her feelings.

"Before saying anything, please don't shout. I don't want others to hear."

"Yes, don't worry."

"The thing is... I'm dying."

"W-what?!?!" Lydia was about to shout but Oscar closed her mouth with his hand. A few seconds later Lydia nodded her head and he took his hand back.

"Are you serious?!? Can't you just heal yourself, like before? Is it a disease like a sickness or something else?"

"Actually it's mana. Turns out my body is not meant to have mana. It damages my body from the inside."

"It must be a way to save you! Tell me what can I do to help. I will do anything! I... can't lose you... I love you. I can't do without you."

"I love you too, Lydia. I don't know how can I solve this but I promise you, I will fix this and spend the rest of my life with you."

"Oscar..."

And they kissed.

Seeing the tears of Lydia, Oscar promised her and himself to find a way to survive. He didn't want to die and leave this world. Not when he finally found love. A fire of determination burned inside his heart. The determination to defeat the death and escape from it.

After the kiss, they finally confirmed their relationship and became a couple. They returned to the living room while holding each other's hands.

"How lewd! Hand holding!" (Jason)

"Shut up." (Oscar)

Meanwhile, Nox had a complicated look on his face. He heard everything they talked with his superior hearing. From the moment he met with his cousin he learned a lot about him. And learning that he was dying caused mixed feelings in his heart. Yes, he was angry and hateful because of growing without family and being locked in prison just because he was part of his family. But meeting with his family member was different than he imagined.

He didn't feel the urge to kill him. He always thought that the moment they stood in front of each other they both will attack and won't stop before one of them dies. But against all of those expectations, he felt good about meeting him. A warmth he hadn't felt for ages. Maybe I should give a chance to... be in the family, he thought.

He felt sad that learning he was dying. At first, he thought that he could use his help. And learning that his potential ally is dying, he was sad. At least he tried to think that way. But now he wasn't sure why he felt sad. He looked at him in the eye. There was determination, sadness, depression, and many more feelings. These many emotions overwhelmed him.

"Are you okay?" (Aiken)

"Yeah, I'm fine. Nothing serious." (Oscar)

"If you say so..." (Aiken)

"You don't need to worry. I'm really fine." (Oscar)

"Well, fine. What are we going to do now?" (Aiken)

"We will focus on finding Odin's Eye first. We'll see what we can do after that." (Oscar)

"Where can we find it? I don't think it will be easy." (Jason)

"I have no knowledge about where it can be. I don't think other spirits have either." said the Convict. Oscar asked Kairi but her answer was pretty much the same. Finding an artifact which no one knows where it is, is a hard job. But Oscar was determined to do it. He will first find the eye then he will talk with Amaris to reach a final conclusion. If she really tried to confuse or use him, he would make her regret it.

"How about a joint training?" (Nox)

"What do you mean?" (Aiken)

"Well, I will naturally help my cousin in this fight. But before we fight anyone I think we should work on our teamwork, or at least we should familiarize ourselves with each other's spells and magic." (Nox)

"This... actually sounds good. What do you say Oscar?" (Aiken)

"I think it's good too. Unfortunately I'm low on mana so you guys have to without me." (Oscar)

"Fine. Let's do it then!"