Chapter 6: A new start
"Very well, we should start at the break of dawn, and you should be well prepared for the journey." While looking outside, Blood Claw notices that the raging snowstorm has subsided. While the angel soldiers stop looking for both of us, their roaming over the mountain continues. Another night increases our chances of being discovered, but his health is more important right now. Demons heal differently than angels, and while using blood and dark spells may speed up regeneration, the environment's mana is also an important factor in their healing.
"Did you notice anything, Blood Claw?" I point outside at the sliver of sunlight peeking through the crack between the mountain columns. He may want us to leave as soon as possible, but he is still giving me time to prepare. Even though I haven't brought anything with me, I am grateful for this suspension. A brief respite before the onset of a storm.
"Say whatever comes to mind, Mikhail." He still ignores the outside world, settling himself near the bonfire. The argument must have made his tired face shine on the ashes bonfire. If we decide to stay any longer, the fire could go out at any time, and he'll have to go look for firewood. I feel terrible for pointing out the approaching dawn. Maybe he planned it when he was changing in the cave; I don't mind exhaustion if it saves him some trouble.
"Dawn has already come." I point to the dusty sky, where the sun has finally reached the cave entrance. Blood Claw scratches his tired eyes and looks out the window, the scales falling off as he does so. The breathtaking scenery has an unsettling effect on the half-asleep demon.
"I can perform "Abaddon's ritual," but I'm worried about how it will affect you, so I'll contact his majesty to postpone my return if your condition worsens, Mikhail." While pulling a crystal ball from his sub-space, Blood Claw makes a suggestion. His mana was also depleted slightly when he used the recovered magic; the remainder of the mana used in the ritual came from the environment around us. Demons who use magic arts and dark magics differ from most in that the mana is drawn directly from the environment rather than the caster due to the way demons' vessels form entirely from their soul and magic rather than flesh and mana heart.
"I'm all right, this much exhaustion is nothing compared to..." Thinking about those lessons makes me want to rip my heart out. "my past," I continue, while also casting "cure," because while my physical body has recovered from exhaustion, the mental strain is still weighing on my mind. Nausea still lingers when I recall those lessons, and the image vividly visualizes itself.
"Are you certain, Mikhail?" You begin to appear more uneasy than before." Blood Claw expresses his concern directly. This may come across as unflattering for his prince's first impression. I need to calm down about this and not think about it.
"No, I just have a disturbing memory that I want to get rid of," I reassure him. The previous gush gradually subsides.
"Then let us go, would you like me to hold you like before?" Blood Claw extends his hand. True, his body temperature is warm and comfortable to hold onto, but wouldn't it be strange and inconvenient to just carry me to the palace? Not to mention that this location should be far from his home. According to how Kuishel would be the first to capture Blood Claw, his domain on the other side of the world. Making it would be far from ideal.
"I can fly, no problem." Simply lead the way." I spread my wing to the side. The white feathers dance around the air like pure snow falling down the mountainside, and Blood Claw focuses his attention on my wing, as if he has been drawn to it, and begins to caress it.
"To see an archangel's wing, how rare and pure it is." When he says that, he puts his face on my wing. Some of my feathers are sharp enough to pierce his skin and rip a few Blood Claw pieces.
"Wasn't it before the Garden of Promise that you were at the 6th Archangel's place?" "Didn't you see him wearing it?" I push him away and pull the feather from his face. I'm not sure if it's my pheromone's euphoric scent or pure curiosity that keeps him from feeling pain. He gradually emerges from the mirages.
"Do you mean the wing of the god punisher?" I've seen them... They are, however, quite hard and made of an unknown metal. He made use of them to punish me." Blood Claw stumbles a little as he recalls the event. For me, this little near-death experience of his is nothing to compare with; many terms resisting death have pa created from this body of mine that has made the cycle where my resilient being tested with dying over and over to those lessons.
"I've seen them before, the metal wing, isn't it?" He does have the feather one; I just expected to see it more often." Of course, I inquire. Simply to confirm the angels' weakness to him. Those feather wings are nothing more than glorified transportation. For humans, those wings are a fantasy of being granted the title of a lifetime virtue. Lest they know, the only value they may qualify to pa and ma is the amount of entertainment value they have in their mortal lives.
"You've also seen his steel wing. Must I remind you that he only used them for punishment? So, Mikhail, I guess I wasn't the first demon you saw?" Blood Claw interrogates me. If he knows what I went through in the past, he will either be agitated for my unreasonable "lessons" or exaggerate about me for living to this day. I can't tell him for those reasons alone, and especially not at this time.
"It's true that he only used them for punishment, but you are the demon I first saw." I don't want to confess right now because of what I've seen." This ends our argument, and Blood Claw decided to strike a nerve in me by remaining silent as the two of us take to the morning sky.
I follow Blood Claw without looking back, saying one last farewell to the garden. The valley opens up before my eyes, far away from the endless mountain range. Once we reach the valley below, pine forests begin to appear randomly.
We land at a lake near the mountain ranch after a few hours of flying west. I sit down at a nearby pear tree to rest my feet while Blood Claw takes a bath. He changes his clothes again, this time to a tunic, as in an adventure depicted in my book about mortals.
"Are you tired yet, Mikhail?" Blood Claw examines a drench book. I make a mental note of the demon skin's inability to be waterproof. Another myth was discovered in the library's books. But, without a book or a quill, I could only make a mental note of it.
"No, I'm just getting my wing ready to keep flying." My robe is now stained with the color of forest dirt. After all, the small amount of natural pheromone that this child-like body emits is enough to cover up the dirty robe and the unbathed smell. The trip is more important than my physical condition. However, it would be problematic if "rebirth" ever became active. So, for the time being, my main goal is to avoid dying as much as possible.
"It should be nighttime soon; I've already marked the inn on the map, so we should fly about fifteen minutes," he says, pointing to the forest to the north. As I declare, "clairvoyance." The scene flashes before my eyes as the two of us enter a small house on a busy street. After all, there is an inn, but shouldn't it be closer to his homeland?
"Shouldn't we keep flying to your homeland, or would it be dangerous as it is now?" I propose. Blood Claw makes a curious expression as if I've asked an intriguing question.
"How long did you think it would take us to fly to the capital?" Blood Claw inquires.
"Wouldn't it be a day or two?" Kushiel has always arrived at the garden on time." Geography is not my strong suit because my desire to flee was not strong enough to even dream of doing so, let alone plan for it. The book is now nothing more than a collection of falsities, but the demon legion was supposed to be in the south, while paradise is in the north. So he requests that it be relocated from its original location. The remark about Kuishel is merely a diversion from my ignorance of the current state of the world.
"Kushiel?" The mention of his name surprised Blood Claw. After all, why should one say their name in front of their adversaries... with the exception of my naive twin? As a result, Gabriel was constantly chastised by pa, and a million curses were directed at his name. Dispelling them was the closest I got to the true lesson I was taught.
"Ah, I forgot, the sixth archangel, I mean" I reveal Kushiel's identity to weaken those I will fight from now on. It's possible that one day I'll wipe that fake smile off his face.
"I believe he used a teleportation spell, Mikhail." Blood Claw suggests, but that damned fool of a brother never used spells above the 8th and 7th, the title bestowed upon him due to the usefulness of his personal spell when he was a human inquisitor.
"That makes sense." At the very least, he was capable of casting such a simple spell. "How long is it exactly?" I reluctantly laugh it off.
"A simple spell..." For the nature of the thing that I judge whether the thing to standard, Blood Claw constipates. He goes on. "About four or five days if we skip sleeping and resting, which I would not recommend; otherwise, seven days."
"Can't you use teleportation spells then?" I wonder if, while the teleport spell is a high-level one, Earl shouldn't be able to use it with less than just mana support.
"I can't...only Duke or better can do that." Magic At best, I'm an earl. Can't you do it as simple as you said, Mikhail?" Another deception. Nonetheless, I've found the book to be a source of comfort for years, only to be let down by reality.
"I, too, am unable. I haven't even been there, let alone familiarized myself with the area enough to cast an accurate spell." The teleportation spell "collocatione" works on the basis of mental and weight transport, mana regulation over a long session, and knowledge and familiarity with the location to be teleported. The lesser version "wrap" only requires the regulation of mana flow and only transports oneself within eyesight. "Then it's seven days." We can't take the risk because I'm on the run." Ambushes by other archangels are difficult to predict, especially the fourth, so we must blend into mortals if we are to be released from the constant pursuit.
"I was also on death row." While laughing, Blood Claw says.
"Don't worry, I'll save you at the very least before they get both of us." I also tease him back, and he takes it well.
"Knowing the third archangel is on my side is reassuring." He teases once more.
"Come on, Blood Claw!" This time, I hide my agitation behind the white wings. We're not far from the small town nestled among the pine forests. The first time I ever stepped inside a human town, we were slowly flying toward the bright light of the night.
The end