Chapter 271 - Nathan Evenhart, Athena, and Kinue
Nathan Evenhart:
Cylla rolled around on my bed, laughing and sniffing my pillow, completely overjoyed, repeating the words I had said when I called her "beloved." She knew I was still here, right?
I can see you sniffing and hugging my pillow…
I decided to ignore the phoenix's shouts of joy and focused on my thoughts.
Nikolaus Wolves served beings considered deities, and the idea of facing something so deep and hidden tormented me. At the very least, I was certain of one thing: they didn't know who I really was. The attempt to kill me with those two assassins didn't seem directly connected to the fact that I possessed the Celestial Eyes, nor did it originate from them—it was something orchestrated solely by Nikolaus. If they knew I had the Celestial Eyes, they would have done things very differently, like capturing my mother or Chloe to blackmail me. The fact that I was the bearer of the eyes while they schemed in the shadows seemed to be nothing more than a coincidence.
I weighed my options and took a deep breath.
Nikolaus Wolves was just a piece on the board, a pawn that no one would have discovered if he hadn't attacked my family. If it weren't for our retaliation, I would have never known he was one of the chosen of these 'Illuminated Ones.' This means that, somewhere out there, others like him could be operating, infiltrated in every corner.
Facing beings who played so well with the mind, always several steps ahead, was terrifying.
These guys are natural-born strategists.
The moment the word "strategy" crossed my mind, an image of someone immediately surfaced. And as if summoned by my thoughts, Athena appeared before me.
"Coward..." she said, her gaze filled with disdain. "So much wasted potential..."
ASPECT OF TIME!
In that instant, time froze around me. Even Athena seemed caught off guard.
"I see… you can exist here." My voice was cold. "Mana stops functioning in this space, which means you are not a being of mana."
Every time I had tested the Aspect of Time, Athena had never appeared. She had never allowed me to discover what she truly was.
"You do know… this is cutting away at your lifespan, right?" She tried to smile, but it was a fake one. I could see through her expression—she was nervous.
"It doesn't matter. This will be the last time I use this power unnecessarily."
I took two steps toward her, and she instinctively stepped back. For the first time, I saw Athena hesitate. Her back hit the wall of my room.
"W-what are you doing?" she asked, her voice trembling.
Without answering, I reached out and grabbed her neck, squeezing tightly.
"Disappear," I ordered, tightening my grip.
"I-I-Icarus..." she stammered, the usual confidence vanishing from her eyes.
I kept squeezing, ignoring her words, until I felt her breathing weaken, her consciousness beginning to fade. Then, I let go.
She collapsed onto the floor, coughing and gasping for air.
"You can't… not in this place," I said, watching her struggle to get back on her feet. "So even you are affected by these powers…"
Athena staggered as she stood, her expression shaken.
"I… could kill you, you know?" she said, her voice unsteady. "I can create a copy of a sword and end you in your sleep. The touch is reciprocal. I can touch you too…"
I sighed, staring at her without emotion.
"You won't kill me."
She fell silent, her words stuck in her throat.
"When you tried to force me into discovering my secret… it was a lie," I continued. "You don't want me to know. You were just playing with my mind."
Her face changed. For a moment, I saw fear.
"I-I don't know what you're talking about…" she tried to deny it, but even she didn't sound convinced.
"Sisika knew the secret, and you were afraid she'd tell me," I said, stepping closer. "The truth, Athena, is that you fear these answers just as much as I do. Because, deep down, even you don't know why you came into this world with me. You're just as scared of the answers hidden in my mind. And that… that terrifies you."
I crouched down, bringing myself closer to her.
"Nothing scares me!" she shouted, her voice echoing through the room. "Nothing! Do you hear me?"
But her words didn't match her face. Her once-imposing presence was crumbling, her eyes betraying everything.
"It's not you who's haunting me…" I realized. "It's me! I'm the one haunting you, Athena. Maybe this is your hell, after all the evil you've done… You're condemned to watch your greatest enemy live a new life, moving forward… while you're stuck watching. In the end, I am the one who is your ghost…" My words trailed off as I reflected.
As I spoke, it became clear—her composure was breaking apart. She feared the same secret I did. This mystery didn't just tie us together as enemies; we were two sides of the same coin. Something dark and inexplicable connected us, a bond of shared fear that not even the Goddess of Wisdom could understand.
"But don't worry," I said as I stood. "I won't chase after that secret."
"W-why?" she asked, her voice carrying a mix of surprise and unease. "You already know… you've realized that I have no idea why I exist here… with you."
"Because I won't," I answered, turning my back to her. "I won't let the ghosts of my past haunt me anymore. I won't seek the truth of that secret—not out of fear, but because it simply doesn't matter. Icarus is gone… I am Nathan Evenhart. And I won't let his shadows chase me any longer."
She let out a bitter, disbelieving laugh. "And what if I just put on an act? What if this is exactly what I wanted you to do? Maybe I'm manipulating you right now."
"Your fear is real," I said, turning to face her. "Just like mine. But it doesn't matter anymore."
I stepped closer, lowering myself until our eyes aligned. I grabbed her throat again, squeezing just enough for her to understand the gravity of the moment.
"But next time you create a false illusion, fabricating memories that include Helen… know that I won't hesitate to kill you again."
"I-I-I swear!" she cried out, her voice filled with desperation. "I swear I wasn't the one who made you see that lie! It was your mind! You unconsciously scratched the surface of that secret—that's why!"
I let go, allowing her to catch her breath.
"I'll believe you," I said, my tone cold. "But even if it's my own mind… if it happens again, you will die."
"Then… are we back to what we were?" she murmured, letting out a tired chuckle. "Enemy souls, condemned to live in this hell together?"
I stepped away, letting the silence settle between us.
"Goodbye, Athena. We won't be seeing each other… for a while," I finished.
"Wait!" she called, but her voice was cut off the moment I deactivated the Aspect of Time and focused, forcing her presence to disappear.
When time resumed its flow, only Cylla remained in the room with me. I sighed, letting the exhaustion wash over me.
I needed to put all these problems aside—at least for a moment.
What I wanted now was to see my family, to spend time with them. My break had been ruined by dark days—living through the torment of having Chloe and Kinue in a coma, preparing for war. Then I was the one who blacked out, unconscious for a whole week.
Most likely, classes had already resumed.
But at that moment, all I needed was peace.
Because the world I was reborn into had proven to be far more complex than I had imagined. There were demons. And before Charon sent me here, he mentioned that I was heading into a hell. And in hell… the soul that is sent there is tormented by demons.
I had found them.
Now, the only question left was… when would they find me?
'BAM!'
The door suddenly burst open, and my wind barrier shattered instantly.
"Stop it, Chloe!" Kinue shouted, being unceremoniously shoved forward by my cousin.
"Don't be so shy! I got rejected, and I still insisted!" Chloe said with a mischievous grin, forcing Kinue into my room.
The door slammed shut behind her, leaving me alone with Kinue and, of course, Cylla, who was still lost in her own world, laughing and rolling happily on the bed.
Kinue, visibly red, looked at me nervously.
"Nathan…" she started slowly, her voice almost trembling. "There's something I've wanted to tell you… for a long time."
I stared at her, unsure of how to react.
"Nathan Evenhart, I won't give up on you!" Her words were spoken with such conviction that they caught me completely off guard. And before I could even respond, she jumped on me, wrapping me in a hug so tight I could barely breathe.
"C-calm down…" I tried to argue, but the words came out with difficulty. "You're crushing me… you have super strength…"
Kinue kept hugging me tightly, her demi-human strength making it impossible for me to escape.
She looked at me with eyes full of emotion and continued without hesitation: "I've liked you for a long time, Nathan. We demi-humans… we don't fall in love based on appearance like humans do. We fall in love through bonds, through trust. And you… you are my best friend. Do you know what that means?" She was visibly flustered, but her gaze remained firm.
I tried to process what she was saying, but her next words completely caught me off guard.
"It means that you're the one I like. It means that you're the one I want to build a family with and have my pups with."
"P-pups!?" The word got stuck in my throat, and even Cylla, who had been laughing moments ago, suddenly sat up in shock.
This was definitely heading in a direction I hadn't expected.
Kinue, however, didn't stop. "I want to build my pack with you. I want to sleep in your arms, to feel your warmth on cold nights… I want to be cherished by you at night…" She paused, clearly overwhelmed with emotion, "…I want to have lots of pups running around our home. I want to spend all my mating cycles with you…"
I was completely speechless, trying to process everything she had just said.
The door suddenly swung open with a loud bang, the sound echoing through the room. Chloe stormed in, looking both nervous and shocked.
"What's going on here!?" she demanded, her brows furrowed. "I thought you were just going to confess, not skip straight to the final steps!"
Kinue, now completely red and visibly embarrassed, finally let go of her crushing hug. I, on the other hand, was too stunned to respond immediately. Everything Kinue had said still echoed in my mind. I had expected her to simply confess that she liked me, and I was already preparing a speech to explain that maybe what she felt was just a deep friendship. But apparently, in her race, this kind of connection was exactly what signaled that she was in love.
Kinue, still flustered, turned to Chloe. "Wait! You were eavesdropping behind the door!?"
Chloe froze, her cheeks now also flushed. "Maybe… I was still nearby when you started saying those unbelievable things!" She tried to play it off, but the expression on her face made it clear—she had definitely been eavesdropping.
Kinue turned even redder but remained firm. "It's not unbelievable… it's just how I feel."
I watched the two exchange words, and before I could stop myself, I let out a laugh. The tense atmosphere eased slightly with my reaction, and for a moment, all the embarrassment gave way to a silent relief between us.
"What's your answer, Nathan?" Kinue asked, anxious.
I took a deep breath, feeling the weight of her emotions.
Helen… I'm sure that somewhere up there, you must be laughing at all of this.
I looked at the two girls staring at me with expectation, and I couldn't hold it in. A genuine laugh escaped my lips, a laughter that seemed to come from somewhere deep inside, maybe from relief—something that finally dissolved my internal struggles.
Helen… I've found a way to accept myself and move forward. But know this—even so, I will never forget you. Wherever you are… I hope you continue to shine upon my new life, my beautiful and eternal sun, now turned into a brilliant star. Even in the darkness of the night, I know your light will always be there to guide me.
"I accept. I accept your feelings, Kinue."
"You're going to… 'mate' with her?" Chloe asked, surprised. "You didn't say anything like that to me…"
I flinched slightly as Cylla collapsed onto the bed, laughing.
"What? I was talking about feelings! Calm down, that's still way too soon," I tried to clarify.
Kinue threw herself at me, hugging me tightly. "Thank you, Nathan. Just know… I will do my best to be an excellent wife," she said, her eyes shimmering with emotion.
"Alright…" I replied, patting her back, realizing how deeply moved she was.
"I… I have a family… I will have a family forever," she murmured, her voice fragile—like someone who had finally found what they had always longed for.
I embraced her warmth, letting the weight of emotions and the complexity of feelings settle in that hug.
I lowered my head to place a kiss on Kinue's forehead, but the moment my hair fell over her, I jolted in shock.
"What?" I murmured, surprised. I grabbed a few strands with my hand.
My hair was white-silver.
"When? How did this happen?"