*I"ll post an extra chapter for last week when I have time*
Chapter 9: Restraint
Atlantis 5:21 AM
The surroundings were very cold.
"Chu, let go of your hands."
I heard someone say this, and then a face was reflected in front of me. It should be very familiar, and yet, I felt that it couldn"t be more unfamiliar to me. "Kai, get Tyre over here, and immediately send an urgent notice to Linda Cinaya too." Blood red hair swayed in front of my eyes, like threads of blood, bewitching*.
[T/N: Not exactly the word, but it"s similar. It"s something like coquettish or alluring in a deadly way, sort of like how a fox spirit would be]
Someone crouched down in front of me, and suddenly gave me a slap.
It was only after the sharp pain had pa.s.sed that I was able to see clearly. That person who directly gave me a slap was the poker-faced Senior.
"Chu, let go of your hands." Then, he repeated the words that I heard just now.
I lowered my head, and saw Yido"s pale face. Immediately, all the things that happened just a few minutes ago rushed back to my head, so quickly it was almost like a nightmare, an unrealistic fact.
"Senior, Senior…" I really want to cry, really, really want to.
I"m afraid that Yido really did die.
"I know, don"t worry. Nothing happened, so let go of your hands first." It was rare that Senior"s voice was slightly gentle. Once I let go of my hands that were hugging onto Yido tightly, both of his palms moved down and covered Yido"s chest. A faint silver ball of light gently emitted light in between them.
I sniffed hard, and let Yido lie on my hands, not daring to move around.
Many small silver light spheres rose up in the surrounding. At some point, the entire underground medical cla.s.s had all sat down. With their hands forming a circle, the same circular array appeared rotating beneath each of them. The silver light spheres illuminated the whole underground cave, sending off resplendent light like a galaxy.
Julian walked over to us, squatting down beside us, "Prince Icy Flame, his injuries are too heavy. I"m afraid that even if every member of the medical teams here were to give it their all, it"d still be difficult for him to pull through." Senior withdrew his hands, and looked at him, "Yido"s body has the Ghost Tribe"s aura and poison on him. And furthermore, the water mirror attached to his soul has completely disappeared. I"m afraid it"s very difficult…"
Red eyes narrowing, Senior turned his head back, "Water mirror…Nn, I"ll transfer all his injuries and poison to my body to let the medical teams stabilize Yido"s soul. Once Tyre and Linda Cinaya arrives, immediately hold a Soul Returning Ritual for him."
"Transfer? You can"t!"
Julian"s voice was a step too late. The faster-moving Senior put one hand on Yido"s forehead, his mouth speaking some kind of incantation that I couldn"t understand. A golden-red light array appeared directly beneath us. The surrounding medical teams that saw the light array began to move about, and subtle whispers could be heard everywhere.
At the same time that the first black injury appeared on Senior"s hand, someone grabbed his wrist from the side, abruptly stopping the array that had already been activated.
"Don"t give us more work to do." The one who stepped in to stop him was the a.s.sistant who came just in time, "There are enough wounded already."
Senior raised his head, glanced at him, and then withdrew his hand. "At least transfer all the poison to my body, so that there"ll be one less obstacle when you guys perform the returning incantation."
"Alright." The a.s.sistant stood up, not opposing anymore.
He reached out his hand once more, but this time his speed was a lot faster. I saw the black lines on Yido"s injuries disappear bit by bit, as Senior"s hand gradually turned black. It was only when they were completely transferred that he removed his hand.
"Chu Ming Yang, you can step back for now." Julian crouched down, took Yido, and told me this.
"Okay." I tried to get up, but my legs were a little weak; the whole situation was rather embarra.s.sing.
At the side, Senior unceremoniously reached out his hands and picked me up. "Don"t worry, the head of the Phoenix Clan is already on the way here, and will arrive soon." Hearing Senior speak, I seem to feel a bit more at ease.
The silver lights remained in the surroundings without fading, dot by dot as they continued to maintain their blinding halos.
After putting Yido vertically on the ground, the a.s.sistant and Julian sat kneeling upright on the ground, with one on the left and one on the right. Both of them moved as one, as their hands drew out in a semicircle gesture, then formed complicated hand signs, their mouths singing a chant that I couldn"t understand, low and heavy.
"Chu, you"re also injured?" Just when I was nervously staring at that bunch of light, Senior"s voice drifted from the side.
Aih?
I am?
I don"t seem to feel anything.
Senior stretched out a hand and directly poked my forehead. This time I felt a very real stabbing pain. "Your head almost had a hole opened up in it." He retracted his hand. His fingertips had a small piece of a broken rock.
When did it get stuck in my head?
While I was puzzled, the diagram of a teleportation array appeared on the ground not far away.
Is it that head of the Phoenix Clan?
The one who appeared in front of us wasn"t the person that I was thinking of. Instead, it was a large group of people who"d hurried here after hearing the news.
Mixed in among them were also two people who will definitely cause this place to be ripped apart, ripped apart, and ripped apart again.
"Yido!?"
Arriving just in time, Yado and Leido saw their older brother surrounded by silver light. Both of them froze, widening their eyes in disbelief as they stood dumbfounded at their original spot.
"What happened?" The only one out of the four people, who didn"t follow suit in being dumbfounded, Chifuyu walked over to us and asked in a low voice.
Senior glanced at me, and I carefully described that nightmare from just now. Because I was still very afraid, the sentences spoken from my mouth were disjointed and there were several small areas that I missed out.
However, I don"t know how to fully describe it.
My fear, Yido"s powerlessness, and Andellar"s tyranny. These couldn"t be described by words.
As soon as he finished listening to my brief narrative, Leido immediately turned around, "I"m going to kill him!"
"Stop!" Beside him, the five-colored rooster head grabbed Leido"s arm forcefully.
Leído turned his head. Both of his eyes were the crimson-red that I had seen before, fiercely burning like frenzied fire. "I"m going to kill him!"
Not saying a word from start to finish, Yado slowly walked to Yido"s side and crouched down. His eyes that had likewise turned blood-red narrowed slightly; his emotions couldn"t be seen.
He stretched out his hand, and withdrew it, as if he didn"t want to disturb the a.s.sistant and Julian from performing their treatment. Then he suddenly stood up, "Leido, let"s go."
Another person is going to kill Andellar.
Chifuyu blocked the path in front of the two of them, "Now that Yido has been seriously injured like this, you two shouldn"t go chasing after him to do meaningless things. If you also get injured, then it will increase everyone"s burdens."
His words are very practical.
Leído stretched out his hand, and pushed Chifuyu away, "Don"t bother us!"
"If you guys go now, what can you do? Not to mention no one knows where Andellar is!" Chifuyu also pushed Leido away, blocking in front of them and simply not moving out of their way.
"We"ll naturally catch him, so get lost!" With anger written all over his face, Leido almost shouted it out.
"Don"t talk any more nonsense with him." Coldly bypa.s.sing Chifuyu, Yado didn"t even give him a glance.
What should I do?
My feet involuntarily stepping forward, I quickly ran in front of Yado, "That person"s very dangerous."
Yado"s red eyes narrowed slightly, as he looked at me, "So, that"s why you did nothing at all?"
I froze, not knowing what I should say. Yado"s tone was very cold, so cold that I was completely unable to refute.
It was the first time that I was accused right to my face.
"Yado, don"t go too far! Everyone knows that Yang Yang has just entered this world not too long ago; he"s almost like an ordinary human! The force field of the Ghost King"s first expert is so strong, a normal student can"t even stand in front of him, much less oppose him!" The one who countered his words was Chifuyu. Several red robes tried to stop him one after another, but they were unable to.
"So what?" Yado looked at Chifuyu, and the conflict immediately went out of control. "So what if he"s just an ordinary human? Yado was killed right in front of him, and he only fired one shot? What good did that one shot do! Just because he"s an ordinary human, he can watch on and do nothing at all!?"
"Yado, don"t talk so much with them." Beside him, Leido was completely impatient, as he turned around to bypa.s.s Chifuyu, and walked away.
At the same time that everyone was filled with anger and the smell of gunpowder*, and I didn"t dare to go up and stop them again, a cold and clear voice drifted over, "Ziray little brother, stop those two Fairies."
[T/N: About to explode]
Moving almost simultaneously, the five-colored rooster head, who came with them, immediately stood in front of the two of them, turning his right hand into a beast claw. Then his expression turned to surprise after coming to a realization, "Lao San*?" He was blocking the two of them, as he directed a dumbfounded look towards Julian who spoke.
[T/N: Literally means "old three," which sounds weird in English. It"s a rather informal and rude way to call your third brother/sister. It"s like calling your dad "old man"]
With a "pa" sound, a small rock accurately hit the five-colored rooster head"s forehead, almost knocking him over.
"Call me third brother, how rude." Julian, who was healing people together with the a.s.sistant, coldly snorted.
Lao San?
Third brother?
Before I could even think about what the relationship between these two people is, Leido and the five-colored rooster head, whose personalities were impulsive, suddenly began fighting.
"Don"t get in my way again, or else I"ll kill you!" His eyes red with anger, Leido pulled out an explosive charm. A long, black sword appeared in his hand, and with a violent and fierce slash, it struck the five-colored rooster head"s beast claw, causing tiny sparks to fly.
"Come and kill me! I"ve been wanting to have a good fight with you for a long time!" Likewise becoming serious at once, the five-colored rooster head swung his left hand, his left arm immediately turning into a beast claw. He dodged left and right to avoid getting his vitals. .h.i.t, as he got into a fight with Leido.
Deafening noises continued to spread through the underground cave. Of the two, one of them had lost his reason and fought fiercely. The other didn"t hold back at all, similarly using his full strength to fight back.
What else can I do?
At the side, Yado clearly didn"t want to continue being entangled here. As soon as Leido and the five-colored rooster head started fighting, he turned around, and a teleportation array appeared on the ground.
I didn"t even think as I directly ran over, standing in front of Yado. There was something that I should say, and it was also something that I definitely need to say, "Yado, I"m sorry." I shut my eyes hard, allowing him to hit or curse me as he wants.
Yado didn"t say anything, just standing in front of me.
I secretly opened my eyes, and saw him raising his hand up high, "Yado was seriously injured. You are also responsible for it."
"I know, so if you want to hit or curse me, you can. But don"t go and look for Andellar." I"m scared, very scared that Andellar would once again hurt the people I know.
Yado looked at me, "This is what you said."
I nodded, and saw Senior behind him. He was frowning.
That…Senior, if it"s possible, please don"t step in.
I know Senior can hear me.
After a long while, he nodded slightly.
Yado"s expression was icy. His eyes were as red as blood.
This reminded me of what happened before this compet.i.tion. When Yido got injured before, he was also like this. During the match against Evil Spirit Academy, he cut a female player in half, without any mercy at all.
His hand was slowly, laid flat above my head. I was so scared that I couldn"t even hear any sounds around me. All I could hear were the "peng peng" sounds of my heart beating.
Then, my right pinky finger suddenly heated up.
I remember, during the confrontation with Evil Spirit Academy, something like this had once happened too.
Yado"s hand stopped, and he looked at my right hand. I subconciously raised my hand, and there was a blue thing that encircled my right pinky twice, faintly glowing.
"No matter what, we will never ever attack our friends." Then, he spoke a sentence, a sentence that was both unfamiliar and yet familiar, and looked at me. "If you believe me, then make a pinky promise."
I held out my hand, and wrapped around my pinky finger was a deep blue snake totem.
Looking at that blue snake pattern, Yado held out his hand, "I, will not attack my friends."
I looked at that snake pattern and looked at Yado. Behind him, Senior nodded at me, and so, I timidly held out my pinky. In front of me, Yado also held his pinky out, lightly hooking and shaking it slightly for a moment, before withdrawing.
Raising his head, Yado"s eyes had already turned back to a light brown, "Yido is not an idiot. He must have his own reasons for protecting you. I…have to follow Yido"s decision."
Then, he turned around, and directly cut into the fight between Leido and the five-colored rooster head.
Surprised that he would suddenly rush in, both sides immediately stopped, and the remaining energy shook off the nearby rock fragments. After a vague smoke rose up, it was a long while before it gradually subsided.
"Yado, don"t stop me…"
Before he could finish his words, Yado, who was blocking him, directly raised his hand. After a "pa" sound clearly rang out, Leido dumbfoundedly looked at his twin brother who slapped him.
"Yido is still alive; you don"t want to see him wake up?" Before his brother could return the slap, Yado"s cold tone caused Leido to be stunned for a long while before he followed suit and calmed down.
A moment later, Leido"s eyes gradually returned to their original color. Then without even a glance at the five-colored rooster head, he quickly walked to Yido"s side, standing there without speaking.
Seeing that the conflict has temporarily come to a close, Senior, who didn"t get involved from start to finish, slowly walked over, "Have you calmed down?" His words were directed to Yado, and the latter slowly nodded. "That"s good then. Right now I want to ask about the water mirror"s breaking. Do the Water Fairies have any way of recasting the water mirror?"
Yado frowned slightly as he thought for a while, "As far as I know, the Foretelling Mirror was cast from special materials and the power of the Water G.o.d, so if you want to recast the exact same mirror, it would be completely impossible. Not to mention that Yido"s soul is connected to the water mirror. Regardless of how you recast it, it can"t be replaced."
After listening to these words, Senior was deep in thought for a moment, "What if you use the original fragments?"
"If you use the fragments, then you need to bring the fragments to the quiet secluded place of the Water G.o.d, which is also the Water Fairies" Valley of the G.o.ds. Maybe Yido himself would know a way." Looking at his unconscious older brother, Yado took a deep breath to calm himself down. "However, the water mirror"s fragments were left behind in the third s.p.a.ce."
Left behind in Andellar"s black s.p.a.ce?
I suddenly thought of those blue fragments that he crushed.
"If we recast the water mirror, then every one of the fragments must be recovered without exception." Yado said firmly.
But, how can we find such tiny fragments?
Senior broke the third s.p.a.ce, and the third s.p.a.ce is within the underground ruins.
I looked around the entire underground ruins. There was feeling of not knowing where to start looking.
"Would gathering spell-based techniques work?" Chifuyu made a suggestion.
Yado shook his head, "The water mirror itself has a counter-spell effect, so ordinary spell-based techniques cannot detect its existence. Moreover, it won"t be long until the entire underground is flooded, and it"ll be even harder to find underwater. I guess…recasting it is…impossible." He gritted his teeth hard, closed his eyes, and said almost despairingly.
Is there really nothing we can do?
I turned my head. Leido, who was standing on the other side, was just looking straight at his older brother, unable to say anything.
Just as everyone fell into silence, a drop of water appeared in front of me.
A huge snake body turned about in the air.
The red robes, who originally thought that another situation had occurred and were getting ready to move out, stopped, and looked at the drops of water floating in the surroundings, mingled and mixed within the silver sphere of light.
A face the color of water emerged, and her eyes opened.
"As long as it is your wish, I will accomplish it for you. You don"t want that Fairy to die, and this is the result that I have attained for you." Minas elegantly stood in front of me, ignoring everyone"s gaze on her. She stretched out her palm made of water, and slowly opened it. On top of it were many tiny blue fragments, faintly glowing. "But, consuming a large amount of your mental strength is the price for using my power." She stretched out her hand and placed it on my forehead.
In that instant, I felt like my whole body had lost its strength, and almost collapsed. At the side, Chifuyu immediately pulled me up when he saw this.
Minas looked at the nearby Yado. Then a water bubble surfaced from her palm and enclosed the fragments, before it was slowly sent to Yado"s hand. "The Foretelling Mirror"s fragments. These are what you left behind."
Yado reached out his hand, and the water bubble stopped above his hand.
Turning around, Minas gently looked at me, "As long as it is your wish, I will accomplish it for you." A second later, she disappeared in midair. All the water drops turned into bubbles, burst apart and dissipated.
I looked at the blue illusionary weapon that has already returned to my bracelet, and closed my eyes hard.
Thank you.
Really, thank you so much.
And so, I opened my eyes, and saw Yado and Leido giving me a slight nod. Beside me, Chifuyu patted my shoulder. I didn"t know what that meant, but, I felt a lot, lot more relieved.
If I didn"t have Minas, there definitely wouldn"t be a way to recast the water mirror.
I currently feel that being able to have Minas is simply too good.
"Your weapon really is special." Chifuyu"s voice drifted over from the side, "Way too special. You"re very lucky."
Nn, I really am very lucky.
No matter if it"s Minas, or other things.
In these ten years or so, for the first time, I felt that my life was actually not unlucky, and instead, I was too lucky.
Really, no matter what it is.
A few minutes later, I recovered a bit of strength, and after thanking Chifuyu, I carefully walked over to Yado. He turned his head to look at me. Although he was still expressionless, he looked a lot better.
"That…Yado, I, in the future, I definitely won"t be doing nothing at all." I reached out my hand, and looked at him, "So, can you believe me?"
He looked at me, and after a long while, he likewise reached out his hand. "This is a restraint that you placed on yourself. I believe you, and you, the same."
In that instant, our fingers that were hooked together became hot, and a green snake pattern crawled up to our hands. After a few seconds, it gradually disappeared.
"I won"t forget today"s words." I swore to Yado and also swore to myself.
Yado nodded slightly, then stretched out his hand and patted my shoulder.
Time pa.s.sed by just like this, until someone shouted and broke the silence.
"The head of the Phoenix Clan has arrived!"
And so, just like this, the compet.i.tion formally drew to a close.