Page 357

Late Morning - Late Winter : The Nest

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*WHAAAAMMM* The entire cavern shook violently as I casually kicked the massive thunderbird into the wall adjacent to us, having him ricochet off it before plowing through several heavily mana-strengthened stone structures as if they were made of hardened clay.

*Crumble* -Dumbass... Could he not feel my aura?

- Since I entered, I hadn't withheld it at all.

-He wasn't so weak that he couldn't be able to sense it. . so why?-

But after a moment of thought, as I went to turn back to Chamrosh, a young human woman caught my attention. -Hm?- She was familiar. Too familiar.

She wasn't someone I had simply seen when I was passing through a kingdom at some point in the past. She was someone I made a special note of.

"You..." -You're her...- *VWOOM* Instantly appearing in front of her, memories from my second dragon sleep vividly raced through my mind. Recounts of stumbling across a cabin in the woods, home to an old man and a young girl. A young girl who knew English. "You're that little girl.. aren't you..."

The moment my words, spoken clearly in English, met the girl's ears, her face paled and washed with fear.

-She really is!- My curiosity exploded in an instant, bringing a slightly crazed smile to my face.

But as a wave of excitement surged through me, a dark elf's dagger paused in front of my neck, a towering man's battle axe halted just over my head, and an arrow of fire, conjured through runes, appeared just in front of my forehead, all while an older female swordsman jumped in front of the girl, using a beautiful white sword braced against her arm to block as if I was going to attack.

Their expressions were all dark, and they each oozed killing intent.

But while I didn't care about them in the slightest, seeing as they were her companions, I held back. -If I kill them, then it will make our conversation more troublesome...- So I was quick to lighten my expression without pulling my eyes off her. "I mean no harm, so why don't you all-"

"If you say another word, I'll slit your throat." The dark elf holding her knife to my neck like an assassin spoke with a sour, demanding tone. "We'll be the ones asking the que-"

*CRUNCH* Before she could finish, her body was instantaneously crushed against the ground, smashing through the half-rotten floorboards before spitting blood from where she bit through her tongue. "HYAK!"

Almost immediately, the fire arrow in front of my face blasted over me, and the massive mythril axe came crashing down on my head.

But, of course, it didn't reach me.

*Creaaak* The echoing creak of metal instantly pierced through the sounds of crackling flames as my fingers sank into the mythril axe head.

"And what did you think that was gonna do?

" Watching him quickly go wide-eyed, my annoyance took the form of a column of aura that promptly came crashing down on him. *VWOOM-CRRACKLE*

In an instant, the giant man was reduced to a fish out of water, pinned against the ground and gasping for air.

Finally turning to the older woman who conjured the arrow as it's flames dissipated, her whole body tensed, and the thick book of text, runes, research, and experiments fell out of her hands before her body followed suit, limply collapsing as her knees became weak.

-She's a researcher, huh...- For a human, her rune actually wasn't too bad.

"I'll give you a pass." *tap-CRUNCH* Casually dropping the heavy mythril axe just centimeters from the elf's head behind me, I turned to the only two people in the group who hadn't moved yet to see if they would, only to be surprised by a familiar face.

"Huh? Michael Cotorel? What are you doing here? "

He was the nation-rank mage I had the opportunity to meet during my time in Kaelallan.

The human that helped me define the realm of humans as a kid.

"H..how do you know my name?" He spoke with a fearful quiver in his voice, clearly not recognizing me as the gazes of everyone still conscious turned to him.

"Ah, I was much younger back then, I don't blame you for not recognizing me.

However, I'll take this as a chance to reintroduce myself.

" *vwoom* Easing my aura on the human and elf as they were about to suffocate, I looked into the fear filled eyes of the blond woman with a smile.

"My name is Vasilias, but you may also call me Nott if you wish. "

The thunderbirds watching from the outside all simultaneously clammed up, recognizing the name.

But the humans weren't so educated.

Finally recognizing me, Michael's expression of fear deepened before suddenly turning conflicted with relief. "Y-You are Sir Whyte!"

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

I gave a gentle nod as my annoyance with the others started to subside. "Just Vasilias is fine." -I need to stop using that last name so I don't risk endangering them...-

"T-Then, Lord Vasilias, please forgive my comrades! They weren't aware of your strength and only wished to protect their comrade."

-Clearly...- I was quick to wave his worries away. -It wasn't them jumping to protect her I had a problem with...-

But as I was about to speak about the gall of the elf, the older woman in front of the blond I needed to speak with spoke up with a mix of fear and confusion in her voice. "Y-You.. went by the name Vasilias Whyte?"

-Hm?- Curious why she was asking, I tilted my head slightly. "For quite a while." -Does she know it from somewhere?-

However, instead of continuing, she simply looked back at the blond girl with an expression that could only be described as a mix of understanding and unadulterated confusion.

-Did I miss something?-

"D..Do you know of someone named Katherine Whyte?"

-I haven't met anyone in the Whyte family, so...- "N-"

"She's white fox demihuman."

I instantly paused as several memories I had nearly forgotten surfaced in my mind. "To think I would hear about her on the opposite end of the world from Kaelallan." -She must be in her twenties now...- "Is she someone you know?"

The blond spoke softly and hesitantly as she still thawed from fear. "Y-Yes.. we are her friends..." She appeared to brace herself as she spoke.

"Is that so?" My gaze slowly shifted back to the woman in front as my expression turned judgemental. "What's her connection to the Holy Kingdom?" -To be friends with an apostle... She must be someone with authority...-

As my gaze landed on the thin, noncontrolling tether connected to her reserve, she tensed and spoke quickly. "S-She is the hero!"

-Hm...- My mood immediately darkened slightly, making the room's atmosphere become heavy.

"Is that the path fate chose for her?" It was a position I would most definitely have to eliminate eventually, a proxy for the strongest god in the Aesir.

"How unfortunate..." Even back when I first met her, I knew she would turn into a monster.

I even helped her with it. -It's just a shame to see her take the other side. ..-

With a slight panic, the older woman spoke with haste. "I-I-If you want to come back to Voldukirk with us, I'm sure you could meet with h-"

"No," I spoke firmly. "We will eventually meet again, but now isn't the time." -The day we meet will be the day I have to fight Odin...- My expression darkened further as the disgusting feeling of weakness filled my gut. -I'm still not strong enough for him...-

But while he sat on his high horse, I was getting stronger, day by day, hour by hour.

"Haah..." -I should probably pick up the pace though.

..- Although I didn't want to admit it, ever since my last dragon sleep, my progression had slowed immensely, mirroring the growth of my body.

With the exception of switching my brain to use divinity, it honestly felt like I had stagnated.

. leaving a bad taste in my mouth. But after a moment, I clicked my tongue and turned back to the blond girl.

"Tch.. whatever... Regardless, I have far more business with you than I do her. "

Her whole body jolted before I lifted my hand, creating a table and chairs out of a mix of carbon and several metals in less than a second.

At the time, I had so much on my mind that I didn't even realize just how much faster it was than normal. "Please have a seat."

Everyone instantly jolted and stared at the table, having watched it suddenly appear out of nothingness before I casually walked up and sat down, using my aura to grab a few barrels of alcohol from the floor above us while I created two small glasses on either end of the table and filled them with ice.

*clink-clinck* I casually swished around the ice as I poured the opaque orange liquid into the glass and had a sip. *sip* -Oh.. it's Orange Death.. how nostalgic...- It was the drink I had when I met Adrian and Emelia in Elynnor many years ago.

But then wasn't the time to reminisce. "Now, everyone but her, leave." Sliding the other glass across the table, it stopped just in front of the other chair. "Including you, Miss Apostle."

She instantly tensed before the room fell silent.

But it only lasted a moment. "I..It's okay guys..." Finally breaking free from the fear gripping her heart, the blond reluctantly pushed aside her apostle friend before stepping forward and taking a seat. "I will be okay... Please go tend to Eve and Magnai..."

She was still shaking from fear as she sat down, but nonetheless looked me in the eyes without holding back.

"How commendable." -I'd expect no less from someone like you.

- *Vwoom* Wrapping us in silencing magic, as the others finally snapped out of their trances, my eyes landed on her chest, looking through her body at the reserve and soul opposite the heart, that looked akin to a dragons.

-Unless she's evolved, she isn't completely human, is she.

.. How interesting...- "So, why don't we start with your name? "

She immediately hesitated, but after a moment of silence, spoke nervously. "M..my name is Elizabeth... Elizabeth Valia."

-Even that name...- Although Valia was clearly native, Elizabeth was an English name. "Where is your name from?"

Finally averting her eyes, she looked down at her legs as her posture turned anxious. "F-From the southern peninsula of the Main Continent. Valia was my grandfather's-"

"I'm not asking about the name Valia."

She quickly looked up at me with a hint of confusion. "Y..yes, my first name is from there too-"

*clink-clink* I swiftly interrupted her by swirling around the ice in my glass.

"You really think you can deceive a god?

" *tap* Getly setting it down, I finally leaned over the table and looked her in the eyes with a dark expression.

"You know just as well as me that English isn't native to this world. "

Every drop of color drained from her face instantaneously.

"Now, let me ask again." *blink* All of our surroundings instantly went black, leaving only light illuminating us and the table as I idly shifted around my glass. "Who are you?"

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