I opened my eyes and a clear blue sky appeared in my vision. Am I— dead? I can't be, otherwise everything should be white, or at least a bridge for me to cross over. I thought I was hearing things, but the sound of tremors and buzzing, although sounding some distance away, could still be heard. Damn it, is the jellyfish not dead? I thought we had eliminated her once and for all!
I pulled myself up and scanned my surroundings. The Elementalist was standing over the partial body of the jellyfish, with John kneeling close to her. Why haven't they killed her yet? There's an army of bugs approaching us, and there's a possibility that eliminating her might kill those bugs or drive them mad.
I quickly made my way towards them and overheard their conversations. Upon realising what I was hearing, I lowered my pace and approached respectfully. Guess I figured out why they had not slain her yet.
"I don't— I don't want to die… I just want to live," spoke the loli jellyfish. Half her body was missing vertically, and it's amazing that she still speaks.
"I was just following orders… All I wanted was for you to take notice of me. I just— wanted to show my love to you for saving my life," she uttered.
"I— don't recall ever saving you. Did you mistake me for someone else? Why are you so infatuated with me?" asked John.
"You probably don't remember, saving a little bug from certain death, but I always remembered you. And I am forever grateful for that," her voice was starting to soften as she clings on to life.
"I'm— sorry. I really don't remember. But I will remember you now. I promise," spoke John with a firm tone.
"Do you— *cough cough... love me?" she uttered those last few words softly.
"I— I'll treasure every memory we shared to my grave. You won't be forgotten. On that, I promise you," he replied as he held her only hand.
"Thank.... you..." her head slumped to the side and I knew that she had passed even though I was standing behind her.
John stood up and turned his back to us. I could still hear the tremors coming closer even though she was dead. Damn it, do we need to dispose of her body entirely for the remaining bugs to die? We don't have much time before all of them get here.
"John, we might need to..." he cut me off before I was able to say more.
"I know, Zen. I know. Just make it quick, please," he spoke without turning to us.
I glanced towards the Elementalist who proceeded to burn the body with his blade. There's certainly more than meets the eye with his legendary weapon since the flames don't even produce any smoke. What it looked like was that the purple flames seem to be eating the body rather than actually burning it. No wonder the jellyfish was so afraid of those flames. I am definitely going to have a chat with him after this is over.
The sound of tremors continues to approach us and it was getting louder by the second. Damn it! Do we need to burn everything for it to take effect? Why do I get the feeling that my hunch might be wrong this time? Isn't it always the case when the main baddie dies, all the minions follow after? Why do I recall seeing such a thing happening time and time again? What a fool I was in believing that.
"John, are you alright? We gotta go. The fight is not over yet," I placed my hand on his shoulder but he shrugged it off immediately.
"I get it, Zen. I get it," he sounded frustrated.
"I don't think you do. Why— are you angry? Is it because of the loli jellyfish? Get over yourself, John. She's our enemy, a Vessel of a Cosmic God that decided to attack us. We didn't ask for any of this," I told him sternly.
"I understand, Zen. Doesn't mean I'm okay with it. Why the fuck are they using a kid to fight us? She was just a kid, Zen. A fucking kid! And we killed her," He finally turned to shout at my direction, but I had never seen him so angry before.
"Did you— ever consider that our enemies are just pulling on our sympathy strings? You do realise that they are just messing with us? She wasn't a "kid", John. She's our enemy and nothing else. Don't let them get to you, you hear me? Stick with me," I grabbed both his shoulders but he shrugged it off again.
"She's a kid, Zen. There were no lies in her eyes during her fleeting death. She is who she is, Zen. And our enemies are throwing children for us to dispose of. How are you going to live with that, Zen? They're just kids and we're the ones who are killing them," he gave me a stern look.
"Fellas, in case you didn't notice, the tremors are coming closer. There are probably thousands of insects approaching to attack the city. We need to regroup with the army and ready ourselves. Let us go," ushered the Elementalist.
"John, morality on the battlefield is a weakness. We mustn't feel for our enemies, no matter who or what they are. Close your heart to it," I told him as we proceeded to rendezvous with the army.
"You tell yourself that, Zen. While I will fight my enemies, I will not remove my humanity just for the sake of it. The concept of right and wrong must still exist, otherwise we're worse than animals," he warned me.
I kept quiet as there was nothing for me to retaliate. John has his points and I do understand where he's coming from. We still need the concept of right and wrong. But our enemy was a Vessel of a God and it didn't really occur to me that I was fighting a kid. She might be a loli but she fought with precision and skills that gave me even more trouble than Horrus or even Baku. Guess I saw her as a worthy opponent rather than who she really is. But come children or teenagers, no matter who comes my way, I will do whatever it takes to protect my loved ones.
***
I'm… so tired. How many hours had I been fighting until now? I was fully expecting to get some rest after defeating the main baddie, but here I am still needing to help out in fighting thousands of bugs. How much longer am I going to last? Even though these bugs are not tough or powerful in general, if I were to slip up, I'm going to get eaten!
I fell to my knees as the world was starting to look hazy. Exhaustion had finally overcome me, and dizziness struck me. Everyone was fighting for their lives at the sheer number of bugs that were coming to attack us, yet I couldn't maintain myself in the fight. A familiar, blurry-looking face came into my vision, and perhaps it was due to my dizziness, but I think I called out Lily's name. She looked concerned and was calling out to someone before darkness completely overtook my vision. I'm so sorry, everyone. I tried my best to help, but I cannot overcome my human limitations.
***
I woke up to the sound of an extremely loud roar that shook the entire ground I was lying on. I immediately pushed myself up to gain some semblance of where and what was going on and quickly noticed that I was inside a tent with a couple of other elves beside me. Judging from their wounds and reaction, it would seemed that they too had woken up from their slumber by the excessive loud roaring. What the fuck is going on? Is a dragon coming to attack us? Right here, right now?!
I immediately rushed out of the tent, only to find thousands of bugs started falling from the skies or rolled over themselves. Despite the excessive volume of the roaring, the elves still managed to push through and execute the defenceless bugs that had rolled over. Whatever it is that had given us this opportunity, now is the best time for us to slay as many of those bugs as we can. I thought of helping out until the loud roaring stopped and suddenly started speaking words.
"Habitants of the elven forest, heed my call! I require your aid. My city is under siege by unknown forces yet I cannot protect it on my own! The City of Underwater Marrydia is much of a home to you as it is to me, save it from utter destruction, please!" roared the loud voice.
Wait a minute, that voice— isn't that the Underwater Dragon King? What is he doing— here? Isn't the elven port some distance away from where we are? And his voice even made it all the way here? What should I do though? Should I continue to help here or do I head over to the port? Where is Noah anyway? The Supreme Commander should be at the command centre calling the shots, not out in the field fighting alongside his soldiers. Where is the bloody largest tent around here?! Everything is so messy!
An elf called out and gestured me to follow after him. Finally, some semblance to what's going on around here. I need some sitrep before making any further decision. Let's follow the elf and figure out what happened after I lost consciousness. Sure hope I wasn't out that long.
***
"Zen, you're— awake. It hasn't been long since you passed out. Good thing Violet spotted you and called for aid before you ended up as bug food. I would like to thank or even embrace you for what you had done for us, but as you can see, we're still at war. Fortunately, we're doing much better now after the Underwater Dragon King incapacitated a lot of the insects to our advantage. And I'm sure you've heard his— request," sighed Noah.
"Give me a sitrep. I would like to access the battlefield and figure out what I need to do," I told him.
"Zen, as much as I would like to continue to have you with us, I believe you're needed elsewhere. I don't have many soldiers to spare for the Underwater Dragon King, but you alone are plentiful for him. I'll send the Viking Lord and the Elementalist when things fare better here. You can count on me sending help when possible," explained Noah.
"Nonsense, I am needed here since the situation hasn't gotten any better. We can head over after clearing up the bugs. What's the point in wasting time travelling when I can do more here and now? Besides, there is the matter of the— Cosmic Tree, which I am certain the council is not too pleased with now that it has fallen. I'll be the witness or scapegoat if need be, it doesn't matter," I explained my point to him.
"Now's not the time for that. The council can wait until the war is over and there's still the recovery period to consider. You don't have to worry about any of that, I will handle things from here. You are dismissed, Zen. Go, before I change my mind," he shooed me away.
"I— very well, I'll take my leave then. Thank you for everything," I bowed to him.
"I'll inform Violet that you've left us. No doubt she'll be bawling her eyes out that her precious son-in-law has left, but the situation calls. Get some rest in the carriage, Zen. You're going to need it before your next battle. Take care— son," he smiled.
I bowed one last time before exiting the tent, albeit feeling— strange. Why do I feel this way? I feel… happy and warm upon hearing him calling me that. Is this what a parent's love is supposed to be? Either that— or I'm going gay. Fuck that if that's the case. I still can't wait to shack up with his daughter if I can help it.
The same elf was already waiting for me outside, ready to guide me to where the carriage was. I was surprised that even in such a situation they were still able to provide me with a carriage. Will the other soldiers be escorting me to the port or have they ridden ahead towards the port? No time to waste then, I can feel fatigue hitting me once again and a carriage for me to relax in is what I'm looking forward to.
Alas, as though the Gods were laughing at me, just when I was about to board the carriage, a familiar voice called to me from a distance. It sounded oddly familiar and I had an idea of who it was. But how— is she here? Shouldn't she be at home? Taking care of our child??
"Onii-chan!" she shouted as she galloped closer to my location with an unfamiliar-looking horsettette. Did she ride all the way here from the City Of Pines? How did she make such a distance in such a short time? That's just not possible, since it was not too long ago that Daisy was woken up by her. What in the world is going on?
"Oh, thank goodness you're safe and sound! Are you hurt anywhere? Is there anywhere you need healing?" she asked with a concerned tone.
I assured her that I am relatively okay but will require her healing eventually. She told me to knock it off and started inspecting all over my body despite being in public. Seemingly much more experienced in treating people now, she caught onto my broken ribs, swollen back, and bruises all over my body.
She gave me an unamused expression and ordered the elf that was guiding me earlier to provide a small private tent to treat my wounds. The elf gave her a confused look at first but quickly obeyed her request upon realising who she was. Well, well— I didn't know that Rose's reputation had reached the elves. Guess her reputation as White Angel had already spread far and wide across the realm. Perhaps they might even open up for a potential fifth Great Power.
We were provided with a relatively empty tent with absolutely nothing inside, but Rose thanked him for it. She immediately sealed the tent with her spell and asked me to strip without batting an eye. I gave her a horrified look even though I knew what she wanted to do to me. I reluctantly stripped my clothes, not bare naked, mind you, but enough to show her all my wounds that I've sustained from my fight with the Vessel.
Without hesitation, she began casting her healing spell all over my body. It might be my imagination, but her proficiency in healing seems to have improved. I kept quiet, letting her do her work without interrupting her concentration, until she started speaking to me.
"I— hate seeing you like this," she frowned as she continued to heal me.
"H— huh? What do you mean?" I asked her with genuine concern. What did she even mean by that?
"I meant you getting hurt… getting beaten and battered like this. I don't like seeing my husband getting injured just for the sake of helping this world," she sighed.
"Aren't you doing the same in helping people with your spells?" I asked her.
"It's not the same, Zen. I don't get hurt or put myself at risk by helping people, but you, on the other hand, just— *sigh," she trailed off.
I didn't respond to her as I realised there was no right answer to reply to her. I'm sure she realises that I have no choice to help the people around us when they need help. She knows it well enough, but she's letting her feelings of selfishness get over her. But now is not the time to make her realise her mistake; it's more of the time for me to comfort her.
"How's Daisy? Did she tell you about our little adventure? Our baby girl has some pretty interesting powers. Bet you didn't know about it," I smiled at her.
"Our little adventure? Is that why… ohh! No wonder she was mentioning that she was helping you! I thought she was having some weird dream or something. Although, she couldn't recall what she was doing after she had woken up. You are going to tell me what happened while she was sleeping. I had barely any time to pack my stuff before rushing to bring her over to Daffodil. The Underwater Dragon King just started requesting the help of very specific people to help him along with an army, me being one of them," she sighed.
"And here you are. Yet, I'm confused as to how you made it here so quickly. Did you rent that horsette from the city or something? I don't recall ever seeing such a horsette before," I asked her.
"Ah, on that— I'll tell you more about it after we head out. I'm not even sure whether I can explain it properly, honestly speaking," she explained as she finished up with her healing.
I wore back my clothes and got ready to head out but despite being fully healed, I still felt fatigue throughout my entire body. Rose gestured me to take point with her horsette but I declined as I had to slump my body against the horsette to keep myself up. I can feel my body giving in to fatigue once again as I had barely slept much earlier, thanks to the Underwater Dragon King.
Rose quickly took the hint and took point with riding the horsette, not before helping me up with the horsette first. The last thing I recalled was hugging and leaning against Rose before completely falling asleep once again. Surprisingly, it was the best nap I ever had.