Chapter 96: Rest

From high above, Noir watched the battle with his wings fully spread. The cold wind whipped against his scales as he hovered above the treetops, following every move made by the guardian and Aster.

From that distance, the difference in size between the two seemed even more absurd. The guardian looked like a small black mountain making its way through the rocks, while Aster was barely more than a human figure running around him.

’This is much more interesting from up here.’

Noir tilted his head slightly as he watched the guardian swing one of its enormous paws at Aster. The immortal waited until the very last moment before stepping aside, causing the blow to shatter several rocks behind him.

Shards of stone flew in all directions, but Aster didn’t even lose his balance. He simply kept running, as if he were expecting something.

’What is he doing?’

Noir narrowed his eyes. Up until that point, Aster had limited himself to dodging the guardian’s attacks and seizing any opportunity to strike back, but his attacks barely seemed to affect the enormous creature. Still, something was strange about the way he moved. He wasn’t running away.

He was waiting.

The guardian roared and opened its jaws.

A massive torrent of blue fire shot toward Aster. The flames engulfed the entire area in front of him and turned the rocks into black silhouettes for a few seconds. Noir watched from above as Aster disappeared completely into the blaze.

"Did it hit him?"

For a moment, Noir thought the immortal had finally made a mistake. Then a figure slowly emerged from the flames. His clothes were completely torn to shreds and several parts of his body were burned, but Aster kept moving forward with a calm expression.

Noir’s eyes widened.

’Ah.’

Aster looked up at the guardian and wiped the blood trickling down the corner of his mouth. Then he looked up, straight at Noir, as if he knew exactly where he was.

"What are you looking at?"

Noir blinked, and a smile spread across his face, though he didn’t understand how his voice had come through so clearly.

"Watching you suffer."

Before Aster could say anything else, the guardian charged again. Its enormous paws pounded the ground as it advanced toward Aster with a speed that shouldn’t have been possible for a creature of such size.

Aster’s smile faded.

This time, he didn’t dodge.

Noir felt his eyes widen slowly as he watched the immortal stand completely still in front of the creature.

"What the hell is he doing?"

The guardian raised one of its legs and brought it down with enough force to destroy an entire house.

The ground caved in under the impact, and a huge cloud of dust engulfed the area. The nearby stone mills shook violently, and several branches snapped from the shockwave.

Noir dropped a few meters out of pure reflex before regaining control of his wings.

The cloud of dust began to slowly disperse. Then a hand emerged from the center of the crater. Aster walked out.

Noir hung completely still in the air.

Aster brushed the dust off his shoulders and looked at the guardian. His expression had changed. He no longer seemed to be enjoying himself.

He looked tired.

"That’s enough."

The guardian responded with another roar, and the blue lines on his body began to glow more brightly. Mana gathered around his six eyes, and a heavy pressure descended upon all the mills.

Noir felt his scales bristle.

The guardian opened its jaws again. This time, it wasn’t just a simple burst of flame. A sphere of blue energy began to form in front of its mouth, growing by the second as it absorbed mana from the surroundings.

Aster didn’t back down; he slowly extended a hand. The air around his fingers began to distort.

Noir narrowed his eyes.

"What...?"

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then Aster vanished.

Noir could barely follow the movement with his Draconic Senses.

A fraction of a second later, Aster appeared in front of the guardian. His fist struck one of the stone slabs.

CRAAAAACK!

A crack appeared in the black armor.

Noir opened his eyes.

"What?"

Aster struck again.

CRACK!

The crack spread.

The guardian tried to move one of its legs, but Aster had already vanished again. He appeared on its back and delivered another blow to the stone plates.

BOOOOM!

The armor shattered.

The guardian roared and unleashed a blast of fire in all directions, but Aster leaped through the explosions with absurd ease. Every time she appeared, she landed a new blow on the creature’s body.

Aster’s movements became so fast that Noir began to have trouble keeping up with them, even from the air.

’Since when has he been able to move like that?’

The guardian tried to turn around, but Aster appeared in front of one of its six eyes and landed a direct blow.

CRASH!

The creature’s head lolled to one side.

Aster landed on a rock and took a deep breath.

"That should do it."

Noir sensed that something wasn’t right.

’It can’t be that easy.’

The guardian was still standing.

Cracks covered much of its body, but the blue lines continued to glow between the stone slabs. Then the creature began to gather mana again.

Aster looked up.

"Ah."

Noir could almost hear the thought behind that expression.

’Now it’s really angry.’

The guardian raised its six eyes toward Aster and unleashed all the energy it had gathered.

A blue explosion engulfed the stone mills.

BOOOOOOOOOOM!

Noir felt an overwhelming pressure even from high above. A massive column of fire shot up into the sky.

The young dragon had to flap his wings hard to stay airborne.

"What the hell?!"

For several seconds, all he could see was fire.

Then something pierced through the column of energy.

Aster.

The immortal shot straight up into the sky, but instead of falling, he spun around and plummeted back down at a terrifying speed.

Noir realized what he was doing.

"...It can’t be."

Aster fell like an arrow.

The impact against the guardian produced an explosion that shook the entire valley.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

The creature’s head slammed into the ground.

The stone slabs began to shatter one after another.

Aster didn’t stop.

He struck again.

Cracks spread across the guardian’s entire body. The blue lines began to flicker as the enormous body lost its balance.

The guardian tried to get up.

Aster appeared in front of him.

For the first time, Noir saw the immortal prepare a strike with both hands.

Aster clenched his fists.

"Rest."

KRAAAAAAAAAASH!

The guardian’s armor exploded.

Thousands of stone fragments were hurled in every direction, and a wave of blue energy swept through the area. The creature’s enormous body split in two from the center, and the lines of mana began to fade one by one.

The six eyes glowed one last time.

Then they went dark.

The guardian fell. Its massive body struck the ground with a crash that shook the Silent Stones.

Noir remained suspended in the air, staring intently at the crater that had been left behind.

Aster stood amid the debris. His clothes were in tatters. He had blood on his face and several wounds all over his body, but he was still standing.

Noir slowly descended a few meters.

’...He just destroyed it.’

Up until that moment, Noir had considered Aster a strange, annoying guy who was extremely hard to kill. He knew Aster was strong because he’d managed to survive his attacks, but it was one thing to survive and quite another to do this.

Aster had just completely destroyed a creature that Noir could barely find a way to fight.

Noir descended a little further as he looked at the guardian’s remains.

"You’re definitely a monster."

Aster looked up.

"Is that a compliment?"

Noir landed on a nearby rock and crossed his wings slightly.

"No."

Aster let out a little laugh.

"What a shame."

Noir looked back at the enormous crater.

"How did you do that?"

Aster shrugged.

"By hitting it."

Noir stared at him.

"Thanks for that detailed explanation."

"You’re welcome."

Noir let out a sigh.

’I definitely don’t like him.’

Then his gaze shifted to the guardian’s remains.

The stone slabs were completely shattered, and the blue mana that had coursed through its body was slowly dissipating into the air.

Noir narrowed his eyes.

Something was strange.

It wasn’t just the creature.

It was the feeling that lingered after its death.

Something had changed.

And the golden sphere, which until then had remained aloof from the battle, began to descend slowly from the sky.

Noir looked up.

The sphere came to a stop right in front of him.

For the first time since they had arrived at the Silent Stones, its golden particles began to spin with unusual intensity.

Noir watched the glow.

"What’s wrong with you?"

The sphere didn’t answer.

It just kept spinning.

And then a small golden particle broke away from it and descended toward the guardian’s remains.

Noir followed the movement with his eyes.

Aster’s smile faded as well.

The two watched in silence as the particle vanished among the shattered stones.

Something was about to happen.

Noir swallowed hard.

"...Great."