Title: The Promise
Shortly after the battle quieted down, smoke began to gather over the area once more, becoming cloudy.
He looked down at the ground towards the corpse of that Immortal, lying in a crater with rocks protruding around him like a giant flower that had recently bloomed, showing the immense power of that small strike from the cat. James didn't grieve for the Immortal; instead, he swapped places with a lamppost on the half-destroyed street in front of a flower shop.
The lamppost appeared in the sky before falling down due to gravity, while James Beyond appeared on the street in front of the flower shop, exactly where the lamppost had been.
He bent down, stepped forward, and picked up his black, round-brimmed hat, then dusted off the debris and wood from it, remnants of the battle he had just fought. He looked towards the flower shop window and saw his reflection.
His clothes were in disarray, and even his hair, which he had previously swept back, was now messy and full of dust. He let his short hair fall back down to its usual state, covering his temples and his right eye, from which blood had started to drip!
A drop of blood slid from his right eye, down his right cheek, before falling to the ground.
"Plop!" The blood droplet splattered on the ground, the sound reaching James's ears.
"This reminds me of someone's condition! Hehehe..." James Beyond couldn't laugh lightly and suddenly stopped.
At that moment, James held the round-brimmed hat in his left hand, while his right hand rose to his face, pressing against his right eye as he slightly lifted his hair.
Strange script in an unfamiliar language reflected in the shop window, along with a black shadow that had been hiding directly behind James Beyond. When James saw it, he quickly turned around but saw nothing. Immediately after, the glass suddenly shattered, shards flying everywhere, revealing a pleasant breeze coming from inside.
It was the scent of the beautiful flowers and roses inside the shop. James stepped forward, walking over the shattered glass on the ground in front of the door, and pushed it open. As he pushed, a bell hanging above jingled.
There was no one to greet him, so he pushed the door closed behind him and entered.
He suddenly felt warmth, coming from a fireplace at the far end of the room. The light from the lanterns hanging on the glass walls reflected in his eyes.
He looked ahead and saw a vast variety of flowers, differing in color, scent, and shape. There were chrysanthemums, violets, mountain flowers, sunflowers, red moonflowers, and white ice roses.
Each type was in rows separate from the others, arranged in a rainbow color pattern. Each flower and rose was placed in its own dedicated vase, and each carried a different price from the others.
James Beyond looked carefully and chose one of the white ice roses. Its price was four copper liras. It was very cheap in James's eyes, but not in the eyes of everyone.
...
Not everyone is rich. You might see a person without money to feed themselves or their family, yet they are happy. Why? Because they have contentment. Meanwhile, another might possess vast wealth but feels no happiness with what they have because they lack contentment and always want more. Someone might come along and say, 'Give me money, and to hell with happiness,' but these are just words spoken out of envy, nothing more, blinded by the love of money. So, if they acquire money after saying that, they will feel inadequate and want more and more money. This is called lacking contentment with what you have, and unfortunately, many people lack it.
Then there is the other type of person who complains that they don't have what others have, but they also possess what that other person doesn't, yet they still lack contentment.
People have always had different perspectives on life, but money, fame, power, or status in society are what matter in their view. This is a mistaken mentality. Why? Because when one dies, they won't take a single piece of it with them.
This is the main reason families tear apart when the founder dies; all members will strive to fight each other to fill the void left behind.
There's a saying: "A son can bear the loss of his father, but he cannot bear the loss of his inheritance!"
...
After James Beyond chose the flower he wanted, he walked towards the cashier's seat near the fireplace. He put his hand inside his coat, took out four copper liras, opened the drawer, and placed them inside.
Then he left the shop, holding the white ice rose in his right hand and the black round-brimmed hat in his other hand.
"Why did you go buy flowers?!" questioned the black cat named Sticky, walking over the shattered glass on the ground and looking at James!
"They're for that person!" James replied, pointing towards the corpse of the Immortal in the crater!
"For him? What's going on in your mind, James? He was your enemy!" The cat screamed in his face, but the look James gave made him stop. He sat down and watched James Beyond walk slowly towards the crater.
James kept walking until he finally reached the giant crater. He stood at its edge, looking down coldly.
"Whoosh..." A cold wind blew, making his short hair sway as he stared intently into the crater before him.
The first thing that caught his attention were the rocks that had erupted from the ground, truly like a giant flower. In the center lay the corpse of a tall, gaunt man with long hair. His upper body was bare, while the lower half was covered in a full black outfit, slightly torn. His hair also covered half of his face, and the uncovered eye was wide open!
James Beyond stepped towards him, remembering what this man had said before losing his mind. But he didn't react much and continued walking and descending towards the corpse! When he reached it, he remained silent, not uttering a single word for a full minute.
"You know, oh Immortal whose name I do not know, what a remorseful person wishes for after death is to be buried properly as a human, whether they were a criminal or a sinner in their life! But some who die without feeling remorse instruct those close to them—their group, tribe, organization, or whatever is dear to them—before their death, to have their body burned instead of buried. Do you know why?
Because they fear torment in their grave, so they resort to their miserable idea of cremation upon death, instead of repenting their sins and returning to the right path!" He sighed and said, "And unfortunately, you chose the second option, and this is the great sin. But you didn't choose cremation of your own free will; you wanted burial. So, I will respect your true wish and bury you! And as for those who made you choose what you didn't want, I will eradicate them all!" As he said this, an oppressive and terrifying aura erupted from James's body, unlike any he had emitted before.
James bent down, closed the Immortal's eye, placed the white ice rose on his chest, and stood up, placing his hat over his own heart as a sign of respect for the dead! While in this state, he heard Sticky's shouting.
"You'd better hurry, James... The official power-bearers will arrive any moment now, so it's best we leave!" The cat shouted, flying towards James.
"So, this is the end!" James uttered those words as he placed the hat on his head and adjusted it. He turned around and then waved his hand, saying, "Let everything return to how it was!" The giant square, about 200 meters in length, shook and then began to shrink. Whenever it passed over a destroyed shop, it restored it to its former state. The pavement, the street, and all the shops were restored to new condition. Even the people began to appear one after another.
They were carrying on with the same activities they were doing when they were transferred, like promoting and shopping, etc.
There were people on the street as James walked, with Sticky sleeping on his shoulder. James looked ahead with a cold expression; he glimpsed happiness, sadness, greed, and helplessness on the faces of the people in the market at the end of Monarako Street. James moved through the crowd and the congestion of people, ignoring everything. He looked to the left and saw a restaurant with a sign above it that read:
"Monarako Musician Restaurant!" James muttered, reading the restaurant's sign. He looked ahead and saw a stack of crates before running towards them, grabbing the sleeping Sticky on his right shoulder with his left hand... then he climbed onto them, performed a mid-air flip, and landed safely on the ground.
"James, stay calm; I want to sleep!" Sticky grumbled at James's action but soon fell fast asleep!
James walked a little further, soon turned left, and entered the alley situated between the restaurant and the shop next to it!
He felt that same humidity and the same foul smell as before... Darkness enveloped the place, and he couldn't see anything until he channeled some energy into his left eye. He saw the cracked walls, the damp wooden planks on the alley floor, the scattered trash and bottles leading out of the alley. He entered and walked to its end before turning to his left and reaching out to touch the wall. But his hand passed through the wall as if it were transparent. He quickly pushed himself forward and entered the bar.
The light from the lanterns hanging from the ceiling of the large room hit his eyes, but he quickly adjusted to the situation. He looked ahead and saw many people sitting at round tables. There was also a medium-height table in front of them, with large glass mugs bearing the image of a green snake coiled around a sword! Their faces were sullen, filled with fear, as they looked towards the shattered tables and the three bodies thrown on the floor. There were also many people getting up from under the tables, with alcohol spilled over their heads.
James saw this and turned, looking at all of them with a cold expression, but no one had noticed him yet. So, he walked forward, understanding that this was an effect of the battle. Unfortunately, although the restaurant and many shops had been transferred to a parallel void, the bar hadn't been moved because it was already in a parallel dimension!
He looked ahead and saw the bartender watching him with angry glances, hidden beneath his light gray eyes!
'It seems Pablo Escobar is upset! And I think it's because of... but I tried to control my power as much as possible to not damage his bar too much.' James thought to himself, ignoring the bartender's stares. He looked towards the round table in the semi-dark corner and felt a chill run down his spine!
He saw a boy sitting in the dark side of the table, his hands clasped tightly together, looking at him. There was a high-quality bottle of alcohol on his right side, and he had placed his hunting hat on top of that bottle.
"You're finally back!" Xiao Ping spoke nervously to James.
"Yes, I am back!" James replied, showing a broad smile to Xiao Ping. But the people around them, when they noticed James, lowered their heads and placed them on the tables!
At that moment, Sticky felt the warmth from the fireplace in the corner, stretched on James's shoulder, and took a look to see where he was now and who this person was speaking so nervously with James. But what he saw shocked him.
"The street kid!" The cat shouted when he saw it was the same homeless boy he had met before.
"The talking cat!" Xiao Ping also shouted when he saw that talking cat from last time.
...
End of Chapter ~ To Be Continued