The Sun God was right about everything. He had told her that she could trust her new friends, and until now, everything had gone well. Her life was peaceful, and there was no fear of being hunted after so long.
She had wished for such a life for so long, yet she couldn't help but feel like something was missing. Other than Lira, nobody had caused any issues.
I can't grow complacent. Just because Lira was an incompetent buffoon doesn't mean that someone like Rolan is not gonna appear.
She pushed herself up and crossed her legs. Her gaze wandered toward her window, and her mind plunged into thought.
Sun God asked me for a favor. She puffed out a cheek and exhaled. According to him, the World Soul was weak, and if his ranting about corruption had any merit, she would have a lot of work to do.
However, she had no clue how to contact the world soul of this world.
He has way too much faith in me. Her lips stretched into a wide smile. He had told her that communing with World Soul would be easy for her, and she could not disappoint her first teacher.
In the end, even the sun will bend the knee. Is that what you used to say, tyrant? She grinned at the mantra that Tyrant and his servants used to chant. They thought they would ever have a chance against her dear teacher.
It was a laughable notion. Even if the world soul hadn't found and offered the assistance, the Tyrant would have failed.
No entity in existence could kill the Sun God, and if they managed to, the world would crumble; after all, the planet was a mere shell of the world's soul.
But this world's soul must be weakened significantly if he was so worried. She had looked forward to going to the Academy with Azure and Sheira; however, Sun God's request took precedence over her wishes.
He had done far too much for her for her to delay it. However, despite her wishes, it was not something she could do so easily.
There shouldn't be any harm if I go with them while figuring out the best way to commune with the world soul.
It was an excuse. She wanted to spend more time around people she cared about. Even if it's brief. Aqua had no intention of immersing herself in the academy life, even if it was something she was curious about.
Perhaps weeks. Merely until the way forward revealed itself. I got too close to them. I really don't think it's a good idea. Distancing herself slightly was an option, after all, the pain of losing them would be too great to bear.
However, she didn't have the heart to do so.
Her friend made her feel warm and fulfilled when she was around them, and Azure had invoked the same feelings she had for Umbra, in addition to fulfillment.
Ugh, no. Am I falling in love now? She had to ask herself. She had realized that she liked Azure for a while, yet she resisted.
Her mind forced her to behave as if she wasn't aware of such feelings, yet it was merely fear that prevented her.
I am not ready nor deserving of it. She quickly dismissed her thoughts. If she were to truly love, it would sting terribly to lose them. Losing Umbra had hurt her so deeply that she was afraid of such feelings ever occurring again.
I can't stop them. She placed her hands on her chest and breathed deeply. Sorry, Azure, I am not ready to accept my feelings toward you. She was a great friend, yet she could not let herself get closer than she already did.
"I hope she understands… I can't let myself truly love anyone so deeply." She buried her head in her pillow and kicked her legs.
I don't want to lose her this way either. Distancing herself from her new friends was not something she was willing to do; they were a light in her life. Despite living for centuries, the girls she met just recently had become an indispensable part of her well-being.
"Agh!" She shouted into her pillow.
The silence fell like a heavy blanket.
A mere moment later, she turned on her back and jumped out of her bed. There was no point in thinking about her feelings, especially when so many threats existed. Someone more powerful than I is bound to appear and attempt to take them from me.
She had clawed her freedom out of Tyrant's nasty claws, and she needed to make sure it was protected, so that nobody could threaten it again.
Once the freedom for her and her friends was truly secured. Only then would she truly have peace of mind to relax and heal. It was impossible when a great enemy like Red Dawn existed in the world.
I should destroy them. Just to be safe. Erasing the Kingdom would have been the simplest move. However, that would provoke far too many unknowns. She hated acting without information; if she didn't know something, she would not act.
After all, if she had been reckless in that way, then she would have been The Supreme Parasite's slave, and he would still be alive.
She shuddered at the thought.
I really don't get the lust. He could have had anyone, but decided to chase me. It was such an irrational thing that he indulged in, yet it made sense. Divinity was a curse.
And as many curses, they brought out the worst in a person. No god was innocent, and no willing servant was worthy of redemption.
She stretched her hands up and let out a soft moan. The question of 'Why?' kept creeping into her mind for multiple centuries, yet no matter how much she racked her brain, nothing became clearer.
"It does not matter at all. He is dead, I am alive, and surprisingly, I found something that makes me happy…" She blinked slowly, and her lips stretched into a line.
Aqua huffed and clasped her hands together. She had promised a spar to Azure days ago, yet there was no time for her to do so. She was not the best when it came to swordplay, but it was not a skill she should have neglected.
While she would keep her feelings suppressed, as they would only lead to pain. She would most certainly still very much enjoy the champion's presence.
She pushed her hand into her dimensional storage and pulled out a simple metal blade.
It was long and only had one edge. It looked like it was only designed for slashing and nothing more. However, it was the weakest blade she had access to without any special enchantments.
Most of her melee weapons were imbued with pure black fire, a power that she would only use on gods or the willing servants.
Her fingers wrapped around the handle and pulled it out of its black sheath.
Her fingers passed over its metal. While it was true that Azure's blade was enchanted with black flame, it was heavily balanced by the crimson flame. Thus, it was made weaker, albeit safer, nobody she cared about would ever wield the true black fire.
It was not an element like regular fire, nor was it her own creation and manifestation like crimson fire. It was a pure curse that consumed everything it touched. In simplest terms, it was akin to a black hole.
"It took me a whole century to subdue it."
The entity known as the Black Flame was far more dangerous than any god, and thus only she would wield it in its full potential.
She nodded and attached the sword to her hip.
"Alright, time to fulfill the promise." The door creaked open as she made her way outside. Azure was most certainly already in Arena as she was rather busy training with Golden Fang.
Aqua had learned not to mind the man too much as he was working rather closely with her new friends. It's not like he is a true servant of divinity; he merely has a taint.
She passed through the halls with her back straight and head lifted high.
Her appearance was that of an honored general, something that wasn't far from the truth, as she had been thrust with both titles of a noble and a heroine.
The halls were full of servants gawking at her and moving away in fear. She had become infamous after dealing with Lira, yet it made her deeply uncomfortable to be stared at by so many.
This will get old so quickly.
"It's not like it was anything impressive either." A small chuckle escaped her lips.
After some time of walking, she arrived at the entrance of the arena where Azure spent her free time training. From inside, she heard the sounds of clashing blades.
She had redoubled her efforts. She couldn't help but feel a sense of pride in Azure's hard-working nature.
With a resolute nod, she finally stepped into the building.