Return of the Fallen Volume 11 Chapter 36
(DON’T SHOUT! Damn, my mind is a wreck. Whatever you do, don’t shout right now. I still feel scattered.)
Arc was colder than usual.
“Scattered?”
(Yes scattered. Did you think getting to a Higher Realm would be so simple? I used up more than I originally planned. In doing so, I nearly destroyed myself. Damn, I’m so weak. We need to find my missing piece. I’m tired of being so powerless.)
“Wait, you still haven’t explained. What happened, why were you not answering me all this time and why should I not check Marty’s soul?”
(Haa, so bothersome. Look, I underestimated how much it would take to get to one of the Higher Realms. It took more than Origin energy to get here and because of this I accidentally entered a deep slumber to try and recover but I’ve recovered practically nothing. To top it all off, the moment I awaken you do some dumb shit like try and enter a Demigod’s soul world. Kazuki, if someone just tries and enters your soul world, do you take that person as friend or foe? her natural defense would attack the invading soul and destroy it, aka destroy you.)
“You don’t understand, we’re friends and I just saved her life. She wouldn’t do that.”
(How naive. This woman you’ve known for how long and you claim to be friends. Even if that’s true, can she recognize who is who in her unconscious state? From her darkened mind, you are a foreign invader trying to touch upon her most intimate of places.)
“Can you not say it like that? Sounds wrong when you put it that way.”
(Whatever, you know what I mean. In her state, she can’t tell the difference between enemy and ally. You would be walking straight into a hornet’s nest. So don’t do it.)
“New Unregistered User Detected. Entering Simulation In
(SILENCE!)
The A.I. tried to put Arc into the simulation and before it could finish its sentence Arc sent a small wave of power out into the world. The black-shaped diamond A.I. Faltered momentarily before turning around and avoiding Arc.
Kazuki couldn’t believe what he had just seen.
“So you can manipulate it like that?”
(Whatever that thing is, it can at least recognize the food chain. Anyway, what is the situation? I could only gather bits and pieces while I was out so tell me what I need to know.)
“What, no please?”
…
(Is now the time for jokes?)
“Damn, I forgot how cold you can be.”
Kazuki just showed Arc what took place through his soul. After a moment Arc understood everything clearly.
(Now I recall why I came to this dying place.)
“Wait, you came here purposefully?”
(Yes. I felt something that was similar to me and thought that it may be my missing piece. Did you think I would just choose some place at random before traveling here? No, I came here with intention. It’s a shame though, it seems this similar thing was a false clue. This place has nothing to do with me so we need not be here much longer. I can sense the restrictions of this place. We won’t be able to leave with your strength alone. I’ll need to recover more power, thankfully this place does seem to have a bit of Origin energy deep within the core. I can’t absorb the energy from here. Right, head to the core of this decaying world so I can gather enough energy to get us out of this place.)
“Whoa, stop. My first priority is Marty. She’s having trouble recovering. I need to let her recover and then we can all go and try your idea later.”
(Negative, leave her, and let’s go. She is of no importance. We need to get out of this place and never look back. We have things that must be done or have you already forgotten your revenge and my missing piece?)
…
“Don’t ask me that ever again. You know the answer to that question a million times over. Anything else and you’re just trying to piss me off. As for Marty, I told you, she is my friend, I’m not just going to leave her. to die.”
(Kazuki, be realistic. Right now, this woman is no more than a burden to you and me. I won’t bring up other things and simply stick to the facts. We need to get to the core before it’s too late and this person will only delay our escape which will lead to our own doom. Besides, there’s very little you can do. This woman needs Divine energy in order to recover, divine energy in which you cannot supply. Not only that this building is currently pulling 98.9% of all divine energy from the surroundings and using it for power. If you leave her here she dies because of a lack of power. If you bring her with us, she slows us down greatly and will most likely cause your death. Best among best, you leave her be and her fate s her own and ours we make. In this way, we will most likely survive, this is the scenario we must play if we want to have a higher chance of escaping before this place is destroyed.)
“Wait what now? What do you mean this place is going to be destroyed?”
(This is what I’ve been trying to say but you were blinded by this so-called friend.)
“Stop! Tell me about the destruction.”
(I can sense a cycle repeating in this place, along with this cycle there is a great reduction something like a countdown. I sense this cycle will repeat another 1,341 more times before the reduction can no longer be reduced. At that point, catastrophic destruction will occur.)
“Cycle, what are you saying just speak plainly.”
Arc was annoyed by this point.
(Listen carefully Kazuki. I sense a great soul in this place. From your memories, I believe it is the being once known as Resadez. The sandworms that roam this place feed off of his energy. They consume his soul in order to survive but they also cannot digest the divine power in its entirety and end up spitting that backup out into the world. Because of this feeding, his soul is reduced a little more each time. Eventually, to his consciousness or whatever remains of him will no longer remain. Once that happens, there will be nothing to control the remaining power within this world. A power of this magnitude with nothing holding the reigns, no good will come out of this.)
“Wait, so this ancient begin still has control now. Why allow itself to get eaten all this time? Why not just go out of control and destroy itself and take out all the leeches along with it?”
(I can’t say for sure. Maybe he’s clung to hope after all this time that something would change, someone would come to his aid. Suffering alone all this time, it’s understandable to wish for a savior.)
“Ok, let’s say he does lose control, does that necessarily spell doom? Couldn’t the remaining power simply go dormant and everything comes to a peaceful end?”
(Kazuki, seriously, have you already forgotten what I said earlier? Even if he is no longer in control, there would still be something left, something like an instinct of self-preservation. What happens when you can’t tell friends from foes and you are under attack? Naturally, you attack back. The same for this place. It will be as if the mind is under a dark veil and attacks will be coming from every direction as the worms continue to eat him. If you cannot see your attackers yet you are being attacked from every side. Your response would most likely be to attack in every direction you’ve been attacked from. This is why I believe this place will not go out with a silent fart but a final beastly roar of epic proportions. The echoes of this explosion could ripple through the entire Higher Realm and possibly even spill into the other two Higher Realms as well as the infinite Lower Realms. So you see, we need to be as far away from this place as possible before it is too late. Is that simple enough for you to understand?)
…
“DAMN!”
Kazuki looked at Marty laying there on the ground with a deathly pale expression and he was torn.
(To just leave her behind. Without her, I would have already died a few times over. At the same time, we are basically strangers…DAMN!)
Kazuki shook his head.
“How much time is left, can you tell me that?”
Arc thought for a moment.
(As the cycle repeats and then reduces, it speeds up by a factor of
(Forget that and just tell me how much time!)
…
(A little over 3 days. Outside of that, the time varies due to this being’s own will. It just depends on how long he can continue to hold on if he even wishes to hold on at that point. That could mean a few extra hours or only a few more minutes past the 3-day mark. Why do you ask though?)
Kazuki made up his mind.
“I’m not letting her die.”
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