Chapter 602: It's So Dazzling, Until Everyone Can Only See Me
Time flew by.
Outside a large magic mine, a group of mysterious figures wearing uniform black trench coats stepped out through a crack leading directly to the outside world.
Judging by the flaming red sun emblem dyed onto their coats, they were the Seven Demon Envoys, the infamous users of illegal magic patterns who were so feared across the seas that children stopped crying at the mention of their name.
However, the Seven Demon Envoys looked unusually disheveled this time.
"It's finally over!"
"It felt really dangerous in there! Powerful monsters were everywhere."
Now back outside and breathing fresh air, Greed Nipero, took a deep breath and joked.
Upon hearing his words, most of the others remained silent with blank expressions.
Nipero curled his lip at them.
These guys spent every day lost in their own worlds, barely speaking. Truly boring.
"Those guys were strong! But I'll be even stronger. Violence will eventually crush everything!"
A yellow-haired man clenched his fist with confidence.
He was Eugene the Terrorist. A former gangster, he always carried an air of arrogance.
Even though this trip into the large magic mine had humbled him,
He had personally witnessed many powerful figures, fought alongside the Seven Demon Envoys against the overwhelming Demon King Gusen, and even experienced the terrifying aftermath of the War Lord's power.
Despite all this, he remained stubbornly prideful, or at least acted that way on the surface.
"Fits your personality perfectly, Eugene."
Nipero didn't take Eugene's wild boasting seriously. His interest was focused elsewhere now.
"That guy came looking for me again. Strange, isn't it? In such a vast, complicated magic mine, we ran into each other again. Must be fate."
"What do you think, Asara?"
Facing Nipero's teasing expression and the stares from the others, Asara's face turned cold as he glanced back.
"You go on ahead. I'll be there soon."
Leaving only those words behind, Asara re-entered the magic mine.
"Tsk tsk! Still so cold. But what can I say, I'm such a caring companion."
Nipero said to the others.
"You guys go first. I'm not at ease leaving him alone, he's still injured, after all… haha."
Laughing lightly, his figure melted into the shadows.
No one reacted to Nipero's departure.
He was a thrill-seeker; wherever there was excitement, he would join in.
But staying here was unsafe. Who knew if the major forces would suddenly turn their attention to them?
Now that tensions between humans and the demon army were finally relaxing, the Seven Demon Envoys had to retreat quickly.
Otherwise, as the strongest illegal magic pattern guild, if neither side could afford to offend them, someone might try something drastic.
"Let's go."
Arrogant Artek left first, uninterested in Asara's personal affairs.
He was more concerned about raising his own strength. Being forced to retreat due to insufficient power still stung his pride, but he had no choice.
He was arrogant, not stupid. He would not challenge overwhelming power for no reason.
And even if he insisted, the others wouldn't accompany him into recklessness.
The Seven Demon Envoys were merely interested parties; it was best if no one caused trouble for one of their own.
---
Meanwhile.
Asara moved swiftly through the crack, heading toward a familiar magical presence.
Within moments, he ran into its owner.
"Asara…"
The visitor looked surprised to see him. It was none other than Red Flame Geno, leader of the Seven Flames of the Blazing Sun Sect.
Earlier, Geno had pursued the Seven Demon Envoys from the competition grounds, but monsters along the way disrupted his chase, and he lost track of them.
Even though his abilities allowed him to track by scent, the Seven Demon Envoys had fled deep into the underground.
With his strength, navigating that area safely alone would have been difficult.
After all, his actual power level was comparable to a high B-level magic pattern user.
Strong, yes, but not strong enough to guarantee safety down here.
Fortunately, by refusing to wander too shallowly, he had coincidentally crossed paths with the Seven Demon Envoys exiting the mine.
"I almost forgot, you have that sense of smell…"
Seeing Geno's partially animalized nose, Asara immediately understood how he had tracked him.
"Hahaha, that's right! My sense of smell is as sharp as ever."
Seeing Asara's stunned expression, Geno felt a familiar nostalgia wash over him.
He wiped his chin beneath his nose with his right index finger, smiling brightly.
"You're still the same as before…"
"That's right, I haven't changed at all. So, Asara, what about you?"
Tap… tap… tap…
Under the dim light cast by the magic lantern flowers, Asara took slow steps toward Geno.
Clatter.
Looking at the still-cheerful young man before him, he spoke.
He didn't answer directly, but instead began recounting the past.
"Geno, do you still remember?"
"Our hometown, that carefree little island where we grew up together."
"We spent our days playing with the other kids, without a single worry."
"I was very happy then. Truly happy."
Hearing Asara's low voice, Geno's cheerful smile stiffened. A vague sense of foreboding stirred within him.
He forced himself to smile again.
"Yes! Those days were wonderful. I still remember catching insects and fish with you… sneaking up the back mountain to watch the sunset…"
"Well, you were really stupid back then. You were always the one getting pranked."
As Asara spoke, Geno scratched the back of his head with a sheepish grin.
"Yeah… Everything was wonderful, until you ate that strange fruit."
"I still remember the looks on the kids' faces when they saw the 'monster.'"
Geno's expression turned regretful.
"You can't blame them. People back then didn't know much, and Devil Fruits were rare. It was normal for them to be afraid."
"They were scared, but I wasn't. I still played with you."
"Even when my family forbade it and called you a monster, I stayed."
As Asara spoke, Geno felt himself being pulled back into their shared childhood.
When he first transformed into a monster, he couldn't control it at all.
All the other children feared him, and even the adults avoided him.
Only Asara stayed, encouraging him just as he always had.
Asara even dared to poke around his monstrous teeth before telling him his breath smelled bad and he needed to brush.
"Asara… I'm really grateful for that. Otherwise, I don't know what would have become of me… an orphan like I was."
Geno looked at him with deep gratitude.
Without Asara's support back then, who knew what path he might have taken?
"There's nothing to thank. You know… I just didn't understand back then."
"I thought there was no difference between monsters and people."
"But reality always teaches you."
Asara's expression cooled.
"A pirate attack turned our village into ruins. I lay there among the rubble."
"Until you arrived."
"Your brilliant light cut down all the pirates. At that moment, I can still see it clearly."
"In the thick smoke, the sunlight illuminated your figure."
"When you reached out your hand to me with that bright, reassuring smile…"
"At that moment, I finally understood…"
Asara's eyes locked deeply onto Geno's.
"That we no longer lived in the same world."
Seeing that cold gaze, Geno smiled bitterly.
"Asara… Are you blaming me for not saving your uncle and the others?"
"Not at all."
Asara shook his head and turned toward a cluster of glowing flowers.
He continued as he approached them.
"I just watched those villagers who once feared you… now cheering for you with gratitude."
"When you joined the Marines and became a colonel, they treated you like their pride."
"It's blinding, Geno."
Clatter.
Arriving at a magic lantern flower, Asara plucked it.
The center of the flower shimmered in his palm, then slowly dissipated.
"You're simply too dazzling."
Asara clenched his hand slowly.
"But…"
"Geno, I'm not the same anymore."
He looked directly at Geno, eyes burning.
Asara opened his hand,
A radiant light burst forth from his palm.
"Look!"
"This is my light!"
"I will shine far brighter than you. And I'll keep growing brighter…"
"Until everyone can see only me."
(End of this chapter)