Lingering Catastrophe

After all of the beatings that I took, I still managed to stay conscious. But I still couldn't beat this knight that went for me.

The gap between our battle experience is so wide that I who had no troubles with beasts had a difficult time just trying to make an Origin Screw even as I dodged again and again. Even the few counters and parries that I tried to do were easily handled like I was just like a child...that I am, true.

Even possessing Origin didn't amount to what his battle capacity is, seeing that he only used the blunt sides of the blade, and even the hilt, to deter me.

Dad...

I could only look up as I struggle with my only working arm.

"Well, nothing you can do anyway." I glanced at him and saw him shrug off his shoulders, before floating towards the three men that were charging up their probably destructive moves.

I saw a sword light try to thrust him from below, but it dispersed after the knight casually waved the exactly same thing. He looked down below and I noticed Aunt on her knee, and was also trying to get up.

"I'm not a fan of hurting ladies but since you insist..."

The knight sent out about twelve sword lights before firing them onto Aunt below, only to be dodged. As soon as she quickly stepped in towards the side to dodge, the knight instantly appeared before her, blocking her tracks, making her slip on snow before chopping the back of her head using his hand as she tried to get up.

Damn, we already got so far...can't we do anything?

Just one, even if maybe just one of them. That man in golden armor, if I could only take him down...

For Kirllia...

Golden light quickly gathered around me as I form a barrier. The knight tried to break it but I continued to pour more Origin towards the barrier, until it became red. Focusing on only myself, the barrier was so small that if it breaks there won't be a time for me to bother how to dodge. But this is only the first step.

I try to make another Origin Screw, but this time there are also four swirls around me.

Before I tried to spin the screw, I first rotated all of the swirls in a single direction, before closely holding it towards the screw as I aim towards the man in golden armor.

"Are you serious?"

I can't be bothered with the knight right now, but I know he won't be able to destroy the barrier within a short frame of time.

I finally spun the Origin Screw the moment the four swirls made contact, and if I'm correct, I think this helps with lessening the burden on my mind. With all the swirls in reverse, and the screw going on the opposite spin, unless I'm only spinning think air then this won't work.

My head started to hurt as I added an orb below the Origin Screw, but I didn't add any spin to it.

I slowly put the five rotating constructs of Origin outside my barrier as I aim towards the man, and remembered how Kirllia slowly fell from his golden spear. The knight tried to block my screw, but once he hit it, his sword only flew away from the sheer speed the screw rotated. I heard it flying towards a tree, and once I glanced, the sword stabbed through it.

Seeing this I made a faint smile and some sort of darkness was clouding my vision. I know I'm getting angry because of what they've done, but killing Kirllia was too far.

She's... a special friend.

We met and made through all the trouble, even saved me once, and now finally meeting Dad as our goal...

If I said I didn't like her right now then I wouldn't be lying.

What am I thinking, I'm a child right now.

Finally, the Screw turned from golden into red, and then as I pumped more of Origin, it turned from red into a gradient of red and white.

Seeing that I've produced the most deadly skill I currently have right now, I only need to release it, and... experience my first kill of a fellow human.

There was no sound, there was only a short whirl before I saw the white Origin Screw propelled itself towards the man in golden armor. The knight wasn't even able to see what happened, and grazed the side of his ear. The white screw just passed through the golden armor and it felt like nothing happened, but I heard a loud clang from the impact, followed by a massive tailwind that pulled even the ice and snow from behind, towards the man I aimed for.

I only saw him arch backward for a moment, before he glared at me as he continued to charge more of white light in front of him with a glint on his eyes.

Seriously, it didn't work? My fully charged Origin Screw that surpassed the red threshold didn't harm even his cape?

"Of course, why did I worry..." The knight chuckled before he sighed in relief.

I could only remember the time from my previous life when I was powerless, and stared as three circles of light appeared at the center at the top surrounded the whole pillar of light, before a loud boom erupted; The explosion only contained within a triangular barrier that the three men probably made.

I could only feel the sides of my eyes become cold as the weather once again turned into a windy snowfall, only making my cold heart even chiller.

"Dad?"

The light covered the pair inside, and I couldn't see anything anymore as they vanish within the tri-colored light that seemed to eradicate the both of them out of existence, before I felt something within my chest rip in pain.

My breathing turned unstable and I couldn't breathe...

Mom...sorry...

***

After the light receded, the three men did not attempt to blink as they waited for the tri-clored beam of light eradicated everything in its path.

The general however, took a glance below behind him towards Kaff, who's already dropped to the ground. His eyes slightly half open.

"That kid... is surely Meltor's son."

"What's the matter?" William asked, still continuing to stare at the large scale spell they made.

"He actually made my armor shiver, and even generated enough to instantly force me to make a barrier."

"Wow! Now you've made an enemy!" Virol spoke in a jolly tone, as he also continued to stare at the light that still didn't stop erupting from the three circles above.

"Hmph. Just make sure sparing today him won't kill you later on if he gets stronger."

"Of course he's a friend, but... I can't do anything about it when it comes to demons. The Beast God really insisted for me to kill all of them, and... It's bad news, but his Dad really got implicated this time."

"Such a small body contains a massive potential, who would've known?"

"The Beast God, of course."

The general once more glanced towards the unconscious Kaff before finally noticing that the light was starting to recede... and for their eyes to widen.

They could only fall to the ground after a pressure enveloped them three, including the knight Enjil.

The atmosphere started to get heavy, and the windy snowfall weather once again turned into a complete still. The four men that were currently surrounding the floating pair in front dropped to their knees and tried to get up but they could only slightly resist with force.

"I initially planned to end the war after reaching God-level, but I never thought you'd have something that could bypass a barrier that was supposed to bless us with our new power."

A woman talked, and on her arms... a man laid, his clothes were partially torn, his hair turned white. There was no motion coming from him. The snow that once avoided the man was now finally able to reach him. Seeing that, the woman frowned, and her eyes closed.

After a minute, she finally looked upwards, and it could be seen that tears were about to flow out from her eyes, but she blinked again and again, trying to hold the tears back.

She slowly floated towards Kaff and placed the man beside his unconscious body.

"El, why did you have to die? I should've been the one to die instead. Why did you insist on pouring everything to me to quickly finish our ascension?" The woman softly whispered to the man's ear as he laid on the ground. She touched his cold face, and parted his familiar hair that turned into white.

After another minute, she lightly kissed his cheek, accompanied by a single teardrop. She then waved her hand towards somewhere and Arc's body floated towards her front, and she placed her beside Kaff.

"Take care of your Aunt, kid."

She gently let her body float downwards before finally facing towards Kaff. Red light gathered on her hands, with a hint of gold before she touched Kaff's broken arm...healing it within seconds.

"F*ck..." there was a whisper, before a flash of black light appeared throughout Virol, before he vanished into thin air.

The woman could only click her tongue upon seeing that, before focusing on the kid once more. She then placed her finger on his forehead, closed her eyes, and finally stood.

Somewhere within the forest of thin trees, a flicker of blue appeared and then the woman appeared. She took that flicker of light before holding it in her grasp, and kept it inside a shiny pointed oval bottle she took out from somewhere within her person. After that she reappeared from her previous position within a blink of an eye.

"You're the one who broke his arm, right?" She didn't even look at the knight before sending him flying a hundred meters away with a wave of her hand; Knocking every tree he met and rolling on the ground.

He was still conscious after that, and he only saw his arm as broken as it could get before he gritted his teeth in pain.

As if distance didn't matter, she once again reappeared near the knight within a blink and kicked the side of his face, sending him flying once more. This time, two molars fell before he was even sent flying.

"That's payback then. I'll let you live so that the kid could kill you himself."

The general and William saw everything from start to finish and could barely even follow the woman with their eyes.

"Now, you're next."

The general floated into the air and was slammed downwards without warning. He tried to struggle by moving his limbs, but failed. He could only grit his teeth as he felt being swung downwards once more, kissing the snow, dirt, and everything on the ground.

Next, he felt his armor starting to cave in, crush his muscles, but didn't totally caved him in.

"Just enough to let you experience the pain I felt inside that tight triangle you made. Oh."

As if she just remembered something, white light gathered within her palm before she made a circle with it, and moved towards the top of the general. Light came gushing out from that circle of light downwards as he laid on the ground. The general could only scream in pain, and William was confused as there was no damage to his armor or anything.

As an unknown magic continued to torment the general, William could only expect the worst.

His power was the natural enemy of demons. He expected the worst to come for him. His eyes closed but opened them in confusion.

Strangely, the woman released all the pressure on William, and controlled him floating; letting him stand up.

"You're a special case. I remember you having a brother and a child...and that girl was this kid's friend if I remember correctly."

He was trying to speak but he couldn't open his mouth to do so.

"I'll let Kaff decide for your life, as you're his friend's father... But how will he feel about it now since he's lost his dear father now?"

*grgkl*

William's left arm broke, and he was thrown by a force towards the side. He tried to get up and escape, but a pressure once again enveloped him.

"You don't deserve your power."

His eyes widened as his mouth opened, before his expression turned into a total panic.

Golden light flash from her palms and converged into a glowing circle, before it rushed towards William's belly.

"NO!"

He finally let out a word and it only had a tone of desperation.

The golden light flash incessantly within his body, circulating, until it dimmed and went out of him.

The Vates mark on his body disappeared, and it was replaced with a red mark.

"You hate demons so much so I've given you the mark of a demon. I hope you don't get killed by your own kind."

She was about to fly away before stopping a bit and seemed to remember something.

"Oh, you don't have to worry about your Gemmatria or something, Vates magic is a copy of our original god Salire's anyway."

With that, she flew away, erecting a barrier, carrying three unmoving bodies with her.

"...also from now on, call me the Endless Empress."

William forcefully destroyed the general's armor after the woman left to relieve his pain, and collapsed from the pain.

He finally kneeled on his fours after, his eyes wide open, his whole body shivering.

"What have we done?" He murmured to himself.