[Alexander Cane's Pov]
*BOOM!*
Clashing yet again with the old acquaintance that I had fought against so many times in the past, it was impossible to not get a bit nostalgic.
Being this high up in the air, going at each other's throat fully intent on claiming the other's life, I had truly missed this kind of thrill in my life.
After I had become older, and as more and more responsibility fell on my shoulders to act as the patriarch of my family, I had no choice but to stop. Even more so as the next generation was quite keen on trying to assimilate with society instead of segregating us from it.
And I couldn't help but agree with them.
Trying to keep ourselves hidden in this kind of time, with more and more advanced technology being developed every year when our purpose had already been long lost in time, was simply fruitless.
The hidden families that in the past had been responsible to make sure the balance of power was kept in check were now simply independent actors that only cared for their own agendas.
This was why I also couldn't help but feel more than a bit of hatred toward the man that had assisted in completely destroying any and all chances for us to allow our children to live peacefully, for the simple reason that we didn't want to walk under the king's flag.
'[Thousand Winds]!'
Pouring mana into my hands, I set my aim at the man who was standing in the air ahead of me, wearing an animalistic kind of smile, and let go of the violent winds that I had gathered.
As the storming hurricane of more than a hundred blades of wind approached the beastly man, he as well gathered his own mana, raising his hands as he sent out a wall of invisible energy, creating yet another explosion in the sky.
Following this, he raised his arm and violently swung it downwards, making a pillar of telekinetic power follow it, ready to smash me to the ground.
"Hup!"
Using a powerful gust of wind, I pushed myself to the side, looking down at one of the buildings that his attack was heading to.
*BOOM!*
A second later, as the energy collided with the facility, it easily crumbled under the weight of his strike, becoming nothing more than a collection of debris.
'He's gotten stronger...'
Unfortunately for me, I could sense that while I had grown older and weaker, the man in front of me had not. No, he had gotten stronger. So much stronger that I knew that I had no choice but to simply hold on until I got the order to retreat.
[James' Pov]
Looking down from the air at the floor that was now carpeted with holes, blood, and debris, seeing all of the students strewn across it, I tried my best to act as if I was fine, ignoring the taste of blood in my mouth.
I had more than outdone myself this time, bringing out more power than I had ever done before and finally getting to see the real extent of my power.
It couldn't be helped that I had been skeptical of how the fight would go at first, seeing as that I had in reality never gotten to fully use my strength. However, when Sophie and Arthur had attacked me, I fully understood just how big of a disparity there was between an [A]-ranker and even Arthur, who I believed was [B]-rank.
"Monster..."
From behind me, I could hear the voice of a golden-haired girl who was completely unscathed, now standing up on the stage with her staff in hand, trembling while looking at me with tears still rolling down her cheeks.
Without even turning around, I finally responded to the woman that I had tried my best to ignore, knowing that there were still emotions inside of me that I didn't want to recognize.
"Perhaps. But is that really something you should say? Aren't you the daughter of an equally horrible monster?"
"That... It is not the same, and you know it."
Setting my eyes on the ceiling, I took a moment to think about it, not wanting to give her an answer that I couldn't stand behind, an answer that I didn't believe in.
"Perhaps. But I also know that it doesn't matter. Nothing matters in this world, and nothing will continue to matter until things change."
The sounds of crying began yet again behind me, and I knew that if I did try to look at her, I would most likely falter. Therefore, despite hearing her say the words that I had longed to hear for such a long time, I did not budge.
"Sniff... You know... I loved you, James... I really did..."
"..."
A moment of silence swept the room, as we both were swept into the memories of the past, remembering the short time we had spent laughing together, smiling together. Unfortunately, the past was, and will always be history.
'I have to get going...'
*Tang!*
"Stop..."
Just as I prepared to leave the woman grieving her friends, another voice rang out, a voice that belonged to the one who was fated to always force himself to stand. The one that didn't have a choice but to keep fighting, for he had the weight of humanity on his shoulders.
Using his sword as support to pull himself up from the ground, the hero of the story stood up, his face darkened with anger and blood. Though his body had been skewered by multiple beams of my ruthless water, he still got to his feet yet again.
"Arthur...? How are you...?"
Yet, the hero didn't answer Sarah's question, his head limply hanging down, with his hand somehow still holding on to his sword in a tight grip.
'He isn't even conscious...'
It was impressive, it truly was. Not even fainting could bend the hero's will, and once again I was reminded just why he would be so important in the future, and the reason why I couldn't get rid of him here.
Therefore, I thought it would be best to simply leave.
Then, just as I was about to switch places with sub-me, something very particular started to happen as Arthur's body commenced to start shining with a golden hue. It was a very nostalgic kind of energy that seeped into his body, a power that the voice inside my head knew better than anyone.
It was the voice that had comforted me so many times in the past, yet now only brought with it painful memories.
*Tap*
Landing in front of Arthur's body, which was still in the process of allowing the otherworldly presence into his vessel, I had a hard time controlling myself. Before I knew it, my mouth inadvertently opened, calling out to the one that I knew was borrowing the body of the hero.
"Mother..."
Lifting her head, still wearing the skin of Arthur, Theia spoke with tears in her eyes, while looking around the room, seeing all the unmoving bodies covered in blood.
"You... have done something truly awful, Zero."
Unable to smile anymore, our retort almost came out like a growl, seething with the hatred that we now felt for her.
"You should know better than anyone that I am not Zero anymore, mother. Not after what you did to us."
Putting her hand on my cheek, I felt the warmth of the mother that had told me to simply wait so many times in the past, the one who so often spoke of the destiny that I had to fulfill. A destiny that had only led to tragedy and pain.
"I suppose so, James. I... am sorry. I never meant for things to turn out this way. But that still doesn't mean..."
With a deathly cold tone, I interrupted the goddess, not wanting to hear any more of her stupid, idealistic chatter.
"Dad died, mother. Our dad died a truly pitiful death, for no other reason than because of the incompetence and greed of a king who does not care. And yet, you dare to come here and condemn my actions while allowing this cycle of corruption and manipulation to continue?"
"That's not it, James. It's not about..."
"Then what is it about?! Tell me, Theia! How is it that nothing in this world ever changed, how history keeps on repeating itself in an endless loop no matter how many hundreds of years go by?!"
The face of Arthur twisted, as Theia realized that I knew more about this world than she would have liked. And in the end, the goddess kept her silence, and I prepared myself to depart, sensing that her connection had already begun to fade.
"This is the way you made things, Theia. You made us. Though I cannot say that I wouldn't have taken a similar path before we became One, your choice cemented the future."
"James... Please don't do this..."
"You and the other gods... I will tear you down from the heavens, no matter what I have to do. And while doing so, I will enjoy myself. Because that is my birthright."
With that, I cut my connection to my clone, in sync with Theia being forced to leave the realm of the mortals, having accomplished nothing. Nothing except reminding me of why I had to fight, and why I was playing this game in the first place.