Chapter 15: Interlude 1

///This chapter is continuation after Elysia Soubuelle died due to Physique Corrosion Curse///

(5 years after Elysia died due to The Physique Corrosion Curse)

On Planet 35423

On a planet brimming with life but inhabited only by flora, two extremely beautiful teenagers stand amidst a sea of graves, gazing at a single grave bearing the name Elysia Soubuelle.

The man among them wears an expression of guilt, while the woman stares at the grave with a hint of anticipation and amusement.

The man, possessing silky black hair that extends to his back, brown skin, and striking golden eyes, stands at 1.9 meters tall. He wears a black shirt and black jeans, his athletic physique complementing the woman beside him. Together, they form a perfect pair.

The woman, with long red hair in a braid reaching her waist, possesses intense blue eyes reminiscent of flames. Her physique is undeniably alluring, with her red shirt and blue jeans highlighting her figure, igniting lust in all who see her.

"Zero, this will be the final time I ask: are you sure you want to resurrect her, even if it means she will suffer even more after being reborn?" the woman asked, a serious expression adorning her beautiful face.

"Yes, Ella. I vowed on the day she died that I would resurrect her and protect her from any harm," the man, Zero, replied, his voice filled with determination.

'That's strange, Zero. Why do you want to do this much for an unknown girl who suffered from your wrath when you never took pity on anyone else? I just hope it isn't anything harmful to all of us,' Ella thought, pondering the suspicious behavior displayed by her friend and crush.

"Then let's begin," she said. Following her words, Zero released his mana, and the earth was dug out, fully exposing Elysia's bones to the world.

The bones were black, appearing demonic. Upon seeing them, Zero felt even more regret, which fueled his determination to give Elysia Soubuelle a better life.

Inhaling forcefully, both Ella and Zero took flight, revealing their wings from their backs—a crimson feathery wing from Ella's back and a scaly black wing reminiscent of a bat from Zero's.

They ascended higher and higher, eventually reaching above the clouds, where they gazed at the floating bones below.

"Zero, bring out the materials while I draw the world spell."

"Okay," Zero nodded and took out seven materials. Three of them appeared bright, three appeared gloomy, and the final one, though not given much attention, was the most crucial for bringing back Elysia Soubuelle from the realm of the dead—a Spirit Queen's Heart.

The three materials with bright appearances were:

Blood Essence of the Phantom Cat: A cat the size of a fully grown leopard with sleek black fur and black eyes, possessing shadow affinity and the ability to phase through objects like a phantom. The blood essence must be given willingly by a Phantom Cat in good will.

Specter Gem: A creature made of black fog with only red eyes and a single weakness—its core or gem. Specters can only die when their core or gem is destroyed. The required gem can only be obtained when a specter dies naturally, as they are said to be immortal unless they wish to die on their own.

Fairy Dust of an Eclipse Fairy: Fairies are creatures the size of an adult man's finger, beloved of mana or miasma due to their innocent mindset. An Eclipse Fairy, the progeny of a Sun Fairy and a Moon Fairy, is very rare. Fairy dust can only be obtained with the fairy's consent, and their will is transmitted into the dust released by their wings, making it last until its purpose is fulfilled.

The three gloomy materials were:

Eye of a Seven Sins Demon: Cambions, who appear human, become demons when consumed by deep negativity, embodying one of the seven sins. Rarely, a cambion follows all seven sins, becoming royalty. The eye is taken forcefully after they give up on all seven sins.

Horn of an Atrocity Unicorn: Unicorns are pure creatures that attack only when threatened and heed any non-malicious request. If a young unicorn witnesses unspeakable atrocities and succumbs to the nightmares, it becomes an atrocity unicorn, finding pleasure in committing atrocities. The horn is severed after the creature is killed with the help of its parents and forgiven for its crimes, granting it peace.

Soul Essence of an Abyssal Dragon with Celestial Dragon Bloodline: Abyssal dragons revel in atrocities, and those with celestial bloodlines find even more pleasure in such acts. The dragon must regret its actions throughout its life and willingly offer its soul essence.

The seventh material was:

Heart of a Spirit Queen: The heart of a spirit who ascended to the position of a queen and died peacefully, leaving behind a heart-shaped core filled with spiritual energy.

…

It only took a few seconds for Zero to bring out the materials, but it took six months to draw the world spell in space. By the time it was completed, the moment to act upon the resurrection had arrived.

The world spell, the highest tier of spell creation, was shaped like a world but filled with intricate lines and diagrams. Inside the spell, the three bright materials were placed in an equilateral triangle formation, while the three gloomy materials were arranged in a reverse equilateral triangle on a single horizontal plane, creating a six-pointed star. The bones of Elysia Soubuelle were positioned at the center, with the heart of the Spirit Queen placed on the left side of the chest where a heart usually resides.

As a total solar eclipse began, Ella used an artifact to replenish her mana completely.

Both Ella and Zero watched the solar eclipse intently. After 112.5 seconds, when half of the sun was covered, they flared their respective energies—Ella releasing mana and Zero releasing miasma. Together, they recited:

"By the light of the eclipsed sun,

By the shadows of the moon,

I call upon the Realm of the Dead,

Reveal the souls of those passed."

As they recited the first third of the spell, time itself seemed to slow to a crawl.

The sky, a perfect picture of encroaching darkness, rippled like a disturbance on a lake. Gradually, a part of the sky turned pitch black, summoning the boundary to the Realm of the Dead.

Millions of souls swam in the sea of the Realm of the Dead, yet one soul—a silverish-purple one, about one-third the size of the others—shone the brightest, dwarfing all the other souls around it.

"With mana pure and miasma dark,

With energy of the spirit realm,

I bind thee, Elysia Soubuelle,

To this spirit body I create."

Gradually, mana and miasma came into contact with Elysia Soubuelle's bones. As the spell invoked these two energies, they formed a bridge between Elysia's bones and the silverish-purple soul.

"From life to death, from death to spirit,

By the eclipse's might, rise again,

Not in flesh, but as a spirit,

Eternal, unseen, yet ever present."

The silverish-purple soul emerged from the Realm of the Dead through the tunnel. As it did, Elysia's bones evaporated, and all the materials placed inside the spell were absorbed into the heart of the Spirit Queen.

The soul flew to the heart and enveloped it completely. Seeing this, Ella summoned a grey flame in her hand and threw it onto the heart.

The flame burned furiously, expanding at a speed visible to the naked eye, eventually consuming the heart and converting it into pure spiritual energy.

As this process concluded, the moon began to move out of the sun's path, allowing light to return to the earth.

When 25% of the solar eclipse had passed, the boundary to the Realm of the Dead closed completely.

When 50% of the solar eclipse had passed, the grey flames purified the heart and the materials, converting them into pure spiritual energy, which was devoured by the silverish-purple soul.

As the soul absorbed more spiritual energy, it grew, eventually forming the shape of a silver egg with purple lines.

By the time the egg had fully formed, having absorbed all the spiritual energy, the solar eclipse had ended. Seeing this, both Zero and Ella sighed in relief.

Suddenly, the egg began to fall. Both, in a state of alertness, rushed to catch it, panicking and forgetting that, being a spiritual egg, it couldn't possibly break. They managed to catch it before it could fall to its doom, breathing heavily from the adrenaline.

Both Zero and Ella sighed in relief, feeling each other's breath on their faces. In astonishment, they backed away with flushed cheeks, forgetting about the egg once again. It began to fall, but this time Ella caught it before Zero could even move.

Before the atmosphere could get sweet or awkward, Zero, being an idiot, said, "E-Ella, cough, Ella, let me make a spirit contract with her."

Ella, with flushed cheeks, showed an expression of disappointment but relented, handing the egg to Zero. He immediately bit his thumb and pressed it on the egg, a magic circle manifesting on its surface.

The blood was absorbed by the egg, and the circle glowed with a bright white light before vanishing into the egg.

"Sigh~ with this, our work is completed for now. Hey, Ze—huh? What's wrong?" Ella sighed in relief and stretched her arms above her head, but stopped mid-stretch upon seeing Zero's confused expression.

"Huh? I can't feel any connection," he said in a bewildered tone, not understanding what had happened.

"Hm? That shouldn't be possible. Try to feel the connection more closely. Perhaps it's so faint you couldn't trace it."

"Alright, let me try." Zero closed his eyes and focused on the connections he shared with his spirits but couldn't feel any kind of connection with the egg in his arms.

"I can feel my other connections, but not the one with her," he said again, confused.

"Why don't you try to make a spirit contract once again?"

"Yeah, let me try it again."

He attempted the contract once more, but the result was the same.

"Seriously, I don't know what's happening here," Ella spoke, puzzled, thinking of all possible theories. Suddenly, a wolf mark appeared on her arm, hidden by her clothes. She felt the desire of one of her spirits to come out. Relenting, she summoned her spirit, and a massive wolf with snow-white fur and blue eyes materialized.

The wolf approached the egg, touched his forehead to it, and closed his eyes. After a minute, he burst into laughter and gazed at Zero with mirth.

"Master, the problem is extremely simple," he said, continuing to laugh loudly.

Seeing him laugh like that, both Zero's and Ella's brows twitched. Inhaling deeply, Ella asked, "So reveal it," her irritation evident.

"Sh—Hahaha! She is a lesbian! HAHAHAHA! And she will only make a contract with a female, not a stinky male! HAHAHAHAHA!" he spoke and continued to laugh. Upon hearing this, Ella burst into laughter as well.

Seeing both of them laughing like that, Zero just stared at them with a deadpan look. His flushed cheeks and red ears revealed his embarrassment.

After laughing for some time, the Spirit Wolf asked Ella to make a contract with Elysia Soubuelle and then disappeared, forming a white wolf tattoo on her arm before vanishing again.

Listening to her loyal friend, Ella made the contract. Unlike Zero's attempt, the contract was successfully completed. This incident became one of Zero Celest Abyssal's most embarrassing moments.