Chapter 115

< 114. The Great Warrior Kaharefer (3) >

*

“Gulp…!”

The explosive divine energy flowing through his bloodstream had cleanly healed his wounds, but Fernandez’s condition was only getting worse. The divine energy, more than a mortal body could handle, was overloading and raging inside him.

Blood spilled from his mouth.

-Slurp.

With trembling hands, Fernandez sheathed Vaitas’s Keyblade at his waist. It was the first time he had used it since obtaining it from Kadán’s sanctuary, but he had no desire to use it again.

‘The blade Kadán used after losing his divinity… Truly, it’s not a weapon meant for mortals.’

-Almost evaporated.

‘That’s a shame.’

At Fernandez’s words, Faijashi chuckled. Fernandez planted the King’s Greatsword into the ground and steadied himself.

-Thud, thud, thud.

His heart was still pounding violently. His blood vessels, unable to withstand the pressure, burst, and veins turned red. Fernandez looked down at the fallen Kaharefer with bloodshot eyes.

The Great Warrior, cleanly bisected at the waist, was staring at him, his body flickering with magical runes instead of breathing.

[You’re not Mumto.]

“Yeah.”

[Why would a mortal, a living being, impersonate him? All three Pharaohs of the wasteland will be after your head. What could you possibly gain?]

Kaharefer was completely incapacitated. His body was crumbling, soaked in the divine energy of the Keyblade. Fernandez, panting, approached him.

“I wanted your kings to come after me.”

[You wished for death?]

“Ha, no way. They’re fools. Too stupid to kill me.”

[···You insolent brat.]

The Great Warrior glared at him with burning eyes. But that was all he could do.

[···But. I respect you. You, a mage, surpassed me.]

Yeah. It was a battle mixed with tricks and deceit. But a win is a win. Fernandez thought, rubbing his sore throat. If it weren’t for the blessing of immortality, how many defeats would he have suffered?

But he had immortality. He didn’t know how much was left, but he still held the strongest trump card.

If he could use it more efficiently and precisely, Fernandez was willing to throw his body, soul, and life into the fray as one of his discarded tools.

“Tell me your story, Great Warrior.”

[My story?]

“You’re going to disappear anyway. I need to rest a bit too.”

His body wasn’t in normal condition. He needed rest before he could recover his functionality. Fernandez hesitantly sat down beside the fallen Kaharefer.

[Huh, fine. To have a candid moment with an opponent after a duel… If I were alive and there was alcohol here, it would’ve been perfect.]

“The atmosphere is already good enough.”

Fernandez sheathed his greatsword and flicked his fingers. The fierce battle had left the surroundings completely devastated, but with a crackling sound, the extinguished campfire reignited.

As he caught his breath, a cool breeze pleasantly cooled his heated body. The night sky was filled with stars and the Milky Way.

Kaharefer turned his head to gaze at the sky. Fernandez opened the cap of his water flask beside him.

[My throat is dry.]

“You don’t have a throat, do you?”

[It’s a spiritual thirst. Our souls are always tormented by thirst and hunger. Some of my comrades lost their sanity because of it. Even if we chew flesh or swallow liquids, we feel nothing.]

“Is your sanity intact?”

[How many in this twisted world truly have intact sanity? Everyone just hides their madness with courtesy. Are you any different?]

“…No, I’m not.”

Fernandez pondered his words for a moment and took a sip of water. The flask was less than half full. While Diemonica’s body had some resistance to dehydration, it wasn’t invincible.

Hunger and thirst aren’t just about desire. Prolonged, they would lead to immediate functional decline. But Fernandez tilted the flask and poured water into Kaharefer’s mouth.

-Glurp.

“I don’t mean to mock you.”

[I know. It’s a meaningless but valuable gesture. Thank you. Will you help me up?]

“Sure.”

Fernandez swung his greatsword and planted it firmly into the ground. With a strong grip, the blade dug deep into the earth. He pulled Kaharefer’s shattered upper body and propped it up against the sword.

[Thank you. This is nice. Now I can see the sky fully.]

For a while, he silently gazed at the night sky. His body was slowly crumbling. The countless ancient runes on his body were the only anchors keeping his flesh together.

[The moon and stars still shine as they did in those days, but this land has twisted and fallen. This dry grave of earth is our…]





I hope it’s not the last moment you see, but that the grasslands spread across this land again, and our descendants can run and play on them.

“Was your king the same?”

[···At least I was.]

The Pharaoh’s heart was filled with nothing but ambition. Kaharefer gave a bitter, spiritual smile.

“Do you have someone you love?”

“I did.”

[I did too. A woman who couldn’t overcome the cold madness of a dead body. I buried her with my own hands.]

“Do you have a god you believe in?”

[Rafarata.]

“···Shield, then.”

The sun god Rafarata of the ancient Temple of the Gods. A great deity who now occupies a seat in the current Temple of the Gods. Fernandez took out his rosary, wrapped it around his wrist, and dropped it in front of him.

-*Clatter.*

“Will you pray?”

[Were you a priest?]

“Now, I am.”

[Haha. I’m getting curious about your true identity. Dark magic, priest, and warrior…]

He laughed, clicking his jaw. Then, in a low voice, he whispered:

[May the souls of those who fell on this land of death reach your hall.]

“May the Temple of the Gods bless us.”

[May they bless us. May those poor souls find abundance in your embrace.]

“May the gods protect us.”

Fernandez quietly closed his eyes and wrapped the rosary around his hand. *Clatter, clatter.* The sound of the chain wrapping echoed softly.

“I don’t want to send you away.”

It was a sudden whim. Fernandez felt a sense of kinship with this dead wraith. A man who had to kill his loved one with his own hands.

The fierce battle where they aimed for each other’s lives was ultimately a struggle for their own ideals. Fernandez looked at the wraith with gloomy eyes.

“Your prayer won’t be answered.”

[···What?]

“Don’t you know? The Soul Realm of this Great Wilderness belongs to Mumto. Your lover’s soul has likely been dragged into Mumto’s domain. No matter how great a deity Shield is, he cannot cross the sealed entrance of the Temple of the Gods on this land.”

[How dare you!!]

-*Crack!*

Kaharefer clenched his jaw hard. His eyes burned with anger and shock. Fernandez didn’t avoid his gaze and spoke.

“You asked what my purpose is. My purpose is Mumto’s death. Eternal death.”

[···?]

“My goal is to permanently strip him of the magic that has consumed this land. Kaharefer, the great warrior of the Empire of Ashit. Don’t you want to see flowers bloom on this land again, and young souls running and playing on it?”

Fernandez’s voice echoed lowly through the night air.

“I can make it happen. And with your help, it will be even easier.”

[···You can kill Mumto?]

“And free all the souls he has captured.”

[How?]

“By offering the lives of three kings, including your Pharaoh. I will open the gate to the Necropolis. I will raise the great seal and go in myself to take his life.”

[How can I trust you?]

“If you don’t trust me, will you die here and be bound to Mumto’s Soul Realm again? Will you lose yourself and repeat a life as a mere puppet?”

[···.]

Kaharefer stared at Fernandez in silence for a while. The crackling sound of the campfire filled the silence.

Soon, his head turned toward the night sky.

[What must I do?]

“Return to your Pharaoh’s side and stay as his loyal servant. Until I raise the signal fire. Until I step forward and take his life.”

[For a member of the great Triarch to play the role of a spy. What a pitiful thing.]

“The Pharaoh’s ambition is meaningless. Your king only wants to satisfy his desire for domination. But you and I are not like that, are we?”

[Yes… You’re right.]

-*Crack.*

Kaharefer clicked his jaw once and turned to look at Fernandez. He slowly raised his intact arm and reached out to him.

[Am I to become your puppet now?]

“No. We will become friends.”

-*Click.*

Fernandez grabbed Kaharefer’s forearm. Kaharefer, in turn, grasped Fernandez’s forearm. A strong sense of power emanated from their tightly gripped arms.

The bond was formed.

-*Whoosh.*

Black flames flickered behind Fernandez’s head. Fernandez quickly pressed his hand on the beastman. At the same time, Kaharefer’s broken body began to slowly mend.

“I too buried someone I loved with my own hands. A friend. An innocent, pure child.”

[Did you have a child?]

“It was the blessing of my later years. I was always lacking for that child.”

[All parents feel that way about their children. You too are living to turn back the past.]

“No. I am turning it back.”

Fernandez stood up and pulled Kaharefer to his feet. Kaharefer’s broken lower body mended as he slowly regained his posture.

He was a giant, almost two spans taller than Fernandez. Fernandez looked up at Kaharefer’s fully restored body and said:

“I am turning it back now.”

[I will gladly join you, friend. What is your name?]

“Fernandez Sernerd.”

[My name is Kaharefer Kamet Kasht. I will now be your dagger.]

Thank you. Fernandez nodded quietly. Faijashi whispered in his ear:

-Good talk. You roasted the spy alive. Things will go smoothly now.

‘It was sincere.’

-Sincerity is one of the tools that can be exploited.

Faijashi chuckled. I don’t commit to one move at a time. But Fernandez didn’t respond to his mockery.