Chapter 125 - The End Of War, Part 1

This chapter was a tough one to write—I was feeling a bit burnt out. I decided to split it into several parts rather than rush the ending of this saga. Hope you enjoy it! :)

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"Go, Van." Amoria whispered in his ear, her voice barely cutting through the roar of the cheering crowd.

Van hesitated. "You sure?"

"Yes." She nodded. "I'll handle things here—calm the crowd, coordinate with the demonic advisor, and figure out what lies beneath the portal. It might take time to decipher, but with their help, we'll manage."

"Meanwhile… get ready." Her voice softened. "And then… you should go to the Dragon King's place."

A pause.

"Will you be alright?" she asked, her eyes scanning his face.

"It won't take a minute." Van let out, his tone steady—but his mind wasn't.

"Right..." Amoria looked down, a somber smile crossing her lips, as if she wanted to believe him.

The moment lingered.

"…Will you?" Van asked just as he was about to take off.

She smiled at him before swiftly pulling her arm from his grasp.

"Of course!" she said, her voice full of forced cheer—but he saw it. The way she bit her inner lip. The way her fingers twitched before letting go.

Van lingered. 'What can I even say to her?'

'Who knows how long she's been captive? How long she's been waiting for a moment like this…' But she was standing here now, determined.

'Still… I can tell.'

Time slowed. His heightened perception sharpened every detail—the subtle tremor in her breath, the way her smile didn't quite reach her eyes.

'I can tell that you bite your lip.'

'That you're hurting.'

His fingers twitched. He almost reached for her—almost cupped her cheek, almost tried to help her fight that war within.

But he stopped.

'Right.'

'Magus's influence is lifted, sure. But… she's not the woman I love anymore.'

'So then… why do I feel like touching you?'

'To comfort you? To tell you it's okay? That I can share the burden, even just a little?... To help fight that war within you?'

He swallowed, the weight of his own words pressing against his chest.

'...Yeah… I've fought quite a bit, haven't I? Wherever I'm needed. And seeing as even you up above have something against me, Goddess… there's still so much more to be done. So much more fighting, things to resolve.'

He took in the roaring crowd, their cheers echoing in his ears.

Their reason for cheering?

The body of the bishop—the one he had split himself.

'Violence, huh?'

The crowd cheered louder.

'Force.' He recalled Ami and the Feline Tribe's hostile takeover. Then Alicia—how she waged war against the humans.

'Manipulation…' His thoughts drifted to the bishop, how he had remained in power for so long—as long as he had slaves around him.

'Mind control.' Magus.

The way Amoria's heart, which had once beaten for him, had started beating for Magus instead.

'Will it ever be over?'

'Will I ever have the chance to fully concentrate on Alicia? On what it means to love? Does it even exist? To just… be with her, without the weight of war clinging to my back?'

He pondered, recalling Varlog's advice—how he would have to act the part once they started living in the Demonic Realm together.

What awaited him there was just another war—one of a different nature.

A war to keep her eyes on him at all times.

A battle of exhaustion, endless in its cycle.

Because war never truly ends.

Win one battle, and another waits just around the corner.

And now, with the Goddess herself standing against him, that truth had multiplied a million-fold.

"Van?" Amoria's voice pulled him from his thoughts, her eyes searching his for an answer neither of them could say out loud.

"Sorry, lost in thought... Then. I'm leaving." Van said as he looked at her, his expression flat.

"I have to sort some things in the city though." Van looked at her evenly.

"Okay." Amoria nodded with a smile. "I'll see you later, then."

"..." A moment of silence, the loud cheering of the crowd drowned between them.

"You bet." Van replied silently before vanishing from sight entirely, the crowd gasped in confusion; Amoria immediately worked on quelling them, as Nickelson climbed up the stairs, and discussed a game plan.

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"Marcy," Van let out as he walked in, spotting her standing at the counter.

"Ooooh, what's up, Mr. Hero?" she asked, flashing him a sly smile.

"I'M TERRIBLY SORRY, MR. HELLIX!" The guild's maid, Misa, suddenly bowed deeply before him as he entered. "I HAD TOO EASILY BELIEVED A LIE ABOUT YOU THAT CAUSED YOU GREAT MISFORTUNE! I HUMBLY APOLOGIZE!"

Van blinked down at her hunched form, her face hidden from view. "Ah... Don't worry about it," he said, waving it off. "Happens more than you think."

Just then, Gary - a Royal Guard member and Mongol waltzed in behind him.

"IT IS HIM, RIGHT?!" Mongol, the Royal Guard's archivist, blurted out, his eyes practically glowing with enthusiasm.

Gary, however, lingered at the entrance, his gaze flicking to the side, refusing to meet Van's eyes.

"THE ONE WHO FREED THE BISHOP'S SLAVES AND UNCOVERED THE TRUTH!" Mongol declared, studying Van as if he were a statue.

"VAN HELLIX! Magus Veil's former companion! Thanks to this, I will personally record your name in the archives as someone who accomplished what not even Magus Veil did! You will go down in history as an unprecedented HERO!"

'That bastard almost spat on Hellix's name a bit ago...' Gary growled internally.

"I... Uh..." Van murmured, glancing away, while Marcy smirked knowingly.

"OH, ARE YOU NERVOUS?! YOU'RE NERVOUS, AREN'T YOU?!" Mongol beamed. "Understandable! After everything you've been through, I bet even the slightest bit of attention sets you off—just like how Magus Veil set off Marcilla Veil's tribe chief—who happened to be her father—by sleeping with her—"

"OKAY, THAT'S ENOUGH!" Marcy suddenly barked, her face flushing red.

Mongol froze mid-sentence, as did Gary and even Misa, who had still been bowing.

Gary wasted no time stepping in, grabbing Mongol by the shoulder. "Sorry, Miss Veil. He insisted on coming here." His eyes darted toward Van—just for a second—before he quickly looked away.

"H-huh?" Mongol muttered, now studying Van more closely. "Where's your signature helmet? And why are you wearing a helmet from the Von Brayle collection?"

'...So the Royal Guards haven't caught on yet on what happened at their estate. Strange. It was quite the commotion. Someone must have worked to keep it quiet.' Van thought.

"I lost it," he shrugged.

"WHAT!!?" Mongol nearly roared. "THAT'S A HISTORIC RELIC! IT'S IMPORTANT! YOU HAVE TO FIND IT AS SOON AS—"

"We'll leave you be," Gary cut in, his voice quick and subdued as he dragged Mongol out of the guild.

"Haah..." Van sighed.

"Hah, indeed." Marcy sighed even deeper, leaning against the table.

They both looked at each other.

"Look, Helmet-head. I wanted to apolo—"

"Apologies are all mine. That... and..." Van trailed off, his gaze sharpening as he noticed a dense pink mist swirling around her eyes. "You might want to hold on to that apology."

"Just let me apologize!" she huffed, pouting.

"No."

"Why!?"

"I'll tell you after I talk to Michael. Is he here?" Van asked.

Marcy sighed deeply.

"Yeah. I told him to wait in the storage room... Had no idea he was a slave too. Thankfully we took care of that." Marcy said, subtly shaking her head as she looked down in frustration.

"... Right. Thanks. How are the girls?" Van asked.

"Still sleeping soundly, thankfully." She glanced toward one of the rooms up the stairs.

"...Good." Van muttered as he passed by Misa. Just before fully walking past her, he gave her a glance.

'Ah, right.'

The same faint pink mist lingered around her eyes.

'Makes sense. She interacted with Magus... I'll have to remove it from the children, as well as her.'

Without hesitation, Van swung his palm sharply, then waved it in front of Misa's eyes—

…Dissipating the mist entirely.

"...?" She hummed in curiosity.

"Ah, there was a bug," Van let out casually.

'She was only mildly affected. She probably won't even notice the shift in her emotions right away.'

Without another word, he moved behind the counter, passing Marcy.

'...I'll remove hers when I leave the guild.'

His grip tightened slightly.

'Since she loves Magus... and saw some of him in me... she might completely detest me once the mind control is lifted.'

To avoid trouble, he'd deal with it when he was gone.

'...Sorry, Marcy. Soon, you'll be free.'

Van walked past Marcy and stepped into the guild's storage room.

Without hesitation, he removed his helmet and placed it on a shelf before approaching the youth slumped in a chair.

Van then lowered himself onto the ground, meeting Michael's gaze—a gaze that was vacant, defeated.

'…'

"Guardian of Wind, come out." Van whispered, his voice barely perceptible.

["…Hello, Van."]

A soft voice responded as she materialized beside him—invisible to Michael and any unseen stalkers.

"Seal this room. Make sure no one hears anything from the outside… Please. Is it possible, considering you manipulate wind?" Van asked.

["Of course. Already done."] She nodded, her expression unreadable.

["…And… I accept your apology. From earlier."]

She turned away, her tone quiet.

Van exhaled softly. 'Almost like a second Lalyn…'

"Thanks," He let out causally and turned to Michael.

"Michael."

The young man flinched, slowly looking up.

"Ah… Van…" His breath hitched as his eyes widened.

"I'm... sorry. I... I was just a slave when I blamed you, and—"

"Stop." Van's voice was gentle as his eyes drifted to the wooden ceiling.

"…?" Michael hesitated, watching him.

"Yes, you were a slave. I could tell." Van lowered his gaze again. "But no one forced you to put the blame on me. I know that for a fact."

"…Ah… Huh...? I... I don't… But… I was enslaved..! I didn't mean any harm, or—" Michael stammered, his words crumbling as his gaze darted anxiously.

"When I dragged you out of the guild, you started begging me to stop. Saying you were sorry." Van's tone was flat.

Michael stiffened.

"No branded slave can do that. Go back on orders. This was all you."

Van sighed, then leaned in, locking eyes with him.

Michael's heartbeat pounded in his ears.

"Just tell me. I'm used to people treating me like shit. Part of this ability I have." Van exclaimed.

"…Tell you…?" Michael asked, his expression twisted into a grimace.

"Tell me. Why did you cooperate with Bernard?"

Michael's fingers dug into his pants. His throat tightened.