Return of the Fallen Volume 10 Chapter 64
Detra handed Kazuki a small recording crystal.
“This is?”
“That holds the information you asked me for. It’s a map of this Lower Realm. I haven’t specifically searched the entire Realm and seen every corner but I have been to most places. Inside there is a map.”
Kazuki activated the crystal orb and a holographic image was displayed in front of him.
“Kind of small is it not?”
Detra waved her hand and the image instantly expanded hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of times in an instant.
“You can use a hand or simply think and the map will expand or shrink according to your will. It shows not only your exact location but I have also gone ahead and marked out a path for you.”
“A path for me, why? To grow my physical strength as fast as possible, would it not be better to form a straight line that has the most planets in that general direction?”
Detra nodded.
“That would, in fact, be the quickest way forward but in doing so you would be devouring many planets with your definition of life. You said you would create more tiny worlds to house these living creatures but doing so would take up more time. If you follow the path I have outlined, you will be devouring dead worlds along with stars that host no life in their vicinity. I already felt a few stars being destroyed earlier, It seems you have some problems of your own and can’t devour a whole star without it going off. The stars I have marked are all small ones with no life around so even if they go out with a boom, there’s nothing in their surroundings that they can affect. I personally don’t care if you want to just go and devour any and all planets as long as you don’t mess this one up.”
Kazuki did mention he wanted to help preserve life from these worlds. He didn’t want to just go around ending worlds if there was a bunch of living creatures on it but at the same time just creating a world consumed a fair about of energy as well as some time. Maybe not a lot of time, after all, he could create a world in an hour or so but still, he didn’t really want to put his precious time into such things right here and now.
“Why did you make this map in the first place when you could of just let me see your memories firsthand.”
Detra’s expression became cold.
“Kazuki, that was a one-time thing. Allowing one to enter your soul is something far too intimate. I knew this already the first time I allowed you in but It affected me more than I thought it originally would. It is not something I will allow again. This is where I draw the line.”
Kazuki understood where she was coming from. She is someone who never allowed anyone in. Even her husband had never had that part of her. Opening one’s soul completely was a vulnerable thing and Kazuki got that. Since she told him so, he would respect this boundary. Since she was his ally he would not push any further. Had she been anyone else, Kazuki would not have given it a second thought.
Even though Sid was his ally and friend, Kazuki was a hypocrite in this regard since he tapped into old Sid’s memories without his permission. Kazuki though saw it differently though. Since he could easily enter Sid’s soul world without notice, there was no reason to deny himself that knowledge. He did not remove anything or steal anything, he simply took a look. This already could be seen as a perverse display of power but Kazuki did not care.
If the person was completely unaffected, Kazuki felt no guilt. The same could not be said for Detra. Her soul was far too powerful. Even though Kazuki could overpower her, this would be crossing something he knew he shouldn’t. One was looking in without the other knowing and the other was forcefully entering.
Kazuki took the crystal orb and held onto it.
“Understood. I’ll put this item to good use.”
Detra felt her nerves on edge but with Kauzki’s relaxed answer, she eased up. She had just witnessed Kazuki kill an Ancient beast as if it were nothing over a few words. She didn’t think Kazuki would kill her or anything like that but at the same time, she still did not know Kazuki all that well. She had witnessed him do incredibly generous things like when he healed everyone on the planet. At the same time, she saw how cruel he could be.
In the end, she felt Kazuki leaned a little more to the side that sought fairness. This fairness though was defined under his own rules. She felt as long as she had no ill intent she would be fine but knowing there was someone so close by that could impact her life so greatly, well it was nerve-racking. These were the thoughts going through her head when Kazuki asked.
“I’ll be gone for a bit but when I return will you be joining us all for dinner?”
She didn’t expect an invitation.
“Um, I have tea at home so maybe I should jus
“Really, It’s just a meal. There’s no need to come up with excuses, no one is forcing you. I Think Alutra would be thrilled seeing as you are her first friend here but it’s up to you.”
Detra was a little taken aback. The number of times she was invited to dinner, she could literally count on a single hand. Kazuki was right, it was just a meal and she had known Alutra for an even shorter time than she had known Kazuki but she had already started to grow fond of her. There were almost none who she could relate with but Alutra she could. Alutra, like her, was a powerful woman. One who was bound for a long time and like her she had recently found a new freedom.
Not only that, but Detra also enjoyed the lively atmosphere the others brought. She liked hearing Shin’s weird jokes that made no sense to her and she enjoyed seeing little Mei stuff her face with food as she shouted delicious this and delicious that.
“So I’ll take your silence as a no then?”
Detra shook her head.
“I…I’ll come.”
Detra could feel some excitement for some reason. She was looking forward to it.
Kazuki gave a sly smile but said nothing before opening a rift and disappearing.
Kazuki appeared in space and in his hand was the recording crystal. Taking a look at the map inside, he located the nearest dead planet and entered another rift.
As soon as he arrived, the first thing he did was scan the planet with his aura. It’s not that he didn’t trust Detra’s word but it was better to check for life just to be safe. Finding nothing on the surface of the planet, his senses dug deeper into he sensed the entire world.
(It really is dead, there’s also not a ton of energy in this world. Comparing it to Gordonia, its mass is almost twice the size but the energy is only around a third, interesting.)
Kazuki’s thoughts entered his soul world and in an instant, he activated the spinning void at the bottom of his soul tree.
The planet had no possible way of resisting such a dominant power and it began to crumble and break apart at a rapid pace before being sucked into his soul world and into the spinning black void within him.
One second, no a fraction less and the entirety of the planet was no more. All of it was devoured by Kazuki and some of the energy stored inside was spit out of the spinning void and his body absorbed it. Kazuki felt a slight increase in his strength. It was nothing compared to the first time he devoured a world, no it wasn’t even close to the time he devoured a part of a world when he faced Fera but it was still something.
(It seems my physical strength, my body will only grow so much more from eating worlds. It may seem useless but a fraction more in power could very well be the difference between life and death for me. Destroying worlds for fractions of power, how laughable.)
Kazuki found this both stupid yet necessary. Following the map Detra gave him, he moved through the Realm devouring worlds along with small stars. He avoided blackholes and kept to a strict route in order to grow a little bit stronger again and again. Kazuki looked at another world and wondered how many billions of years it took to form, only for him to come along and eat it all in less than a second. He wondered if the universe itself was not a joke.
(It’s obvious why the Gods teamed up and destroyed Ourodyess. This cheat-like ability, once you reach a certain level, devouring worlds does almost nothing to benefit you. You would have to consume tens of thousands or more to see anything significant.)
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