Chapter 8 - The End
The powerful Curse of the Enemy of Fate had targeted Kyros's soul. And because Calaminus had bound his soul to Kyros, that curse itself would grow stronger as the curses on Kyros and Calaminus will merge during the time-reversal.
"The most difficult part of this curse is how it will reverberate to all that you know and cherish. It will grow stronger and stronger, and fate will slowly desire to hunt those with who you have developed some relationship with. As you live, Fate will slowly remember that it hates you and will attack all those you love." Calaminus added as he sighed.
"You mean to say that if I am reborn, my family, friends, and Mechiel might die even before I met them?!"
"That is why you need to grow stronger. Kyros. Do not underestimate your heritage! It sounds hopeless, but you have to understand that even with all these curses, you've managed to become this strong! I can take advantage of how my enemies designed my curse to scatter and inform them. When it scatters, I can forcibly repel Fate's target on you. This will give us years where the curse is minimized and won't affect them. But unless you grow stronger, the curse will catch up, and Fate will find you and start to attack them. This means that harm may befall them earlier than what you remembered in this life! This will begin to affect your friends, family, clan members... You will have an easier start, but unless you grow strong enough to fight them, they might die an even more terrifying fate!"
Kyros began to ponder. If his stats are as exaggerated as Calaminus, then Kyros knew that there was hope. Of the many depressing things that Kyros faced in his life, the one thing that hasn't diminished was his fighting spirit and his confidence on himself.
"So be it! I can't give up! If this is my heritage, and you say that I can grow stronger, then I myself am more curious at how strong I can become!" Kyros said as his gaze lingered on Mechiel.
"Well said! For now, we talk about which of the other curses I need to weaken." Calaminus glanced at the curses once more.
"The moment we time travel, I plan to use the shock waves of my time magic to attack the Fate Limiter seal and weaken it. With this, I might be able to remove some of the active curses. I can even choose which of the curse effect to attack."
"You can remove all the [De] magics affecting me?"
"It's not that easy. The curse is strong, and the limitations of my current powers will only allow me to remove two strong curses at most!"
"Why not just use that power to weaken several? Won't that be more helpful?"
"The magic that I need has to be strong enough to at least damage it. Spreading out that energy would weaken the effect of damage. It's like throwing an egg to several hard rocks. It will be futile if I do that. But if I focus the energy into a few curses, it would be like driving down a hammer to a rock."
"Then what curse do you intend to break?"
"Of all these curses, the one that surprises me the most is De-Smart and De-Wise. Both elements of intelligence and wisdom are very important for cultivation. Honestly, I'm quite curious..." Calaminus smiled.
"Curious of how smart I am?"
"Yes. And hitting De-Smart and De-Wise will allow me to weaken De-Joker. We may even destroy it totally. De-Joker and De-Spacito are all linked to the mind. So hitting those two might weaken the rest!"
"What about Enfeeble or De-Might? I am already smart as it is. I need strength! The more, the better!"
"That's why I am hitting De-Smart and De-Wise because you need strength! You are Nephilim! Neither a god nor a devil! If you relied on the training method or on the power I could bestow, or what the mortals know, it will hinder your growth! Besides, De-Smart and De-Wise are the strongest curses! Look at your stats! Check on your intelligence!"
Kyros did so again.
Intelligence- 758 ( Sealed/ Greatly Cursed)
"Of all your cursed stats, Intelligence is greatly cursed! It means your aptitude for learning is far stronger than this! Right now, you are a mighty Force cultivator! But it is possible for you to be a magic-user! You may have the aptitude to outdo your peers in the areas of studying! While most cultivators will spend most of their lives trying to understand either Magic or force, you have the possibility of understanding both in a single lifetime!"
"I can be a mage? The truth is, I planned to do that. I have grown strong using Force. I plan to look for other means to help my family. That includes being a physician, an alchemist, magic, or a weapon forger!"
"Well, let's see. In this lifetime, you might even shock me in wisdom! It might be that you will have intelligence and wisdom that equals mine! I need that since the cultivation of a Nephilim has never been created before! I need all the help I can get to make you stronger! And that is why I want to attack De-Smart and De-Wise!"
"Then so be it! We should hurry and be on the move. I fear that our enemies will soon notice."
"Relax. I am the master of time here. It's a bit annoying since you have De-Spacito, but our conversation has been going on at ten times the speed faster during our soul conversation! It hasn't been a minute outside! Besides, we need to discuss more what to do. If we go back to your youth's time that you cannot remember, there is a possibility that you would be asleep or immobile. But I fear that since you are a Nephilim, you might be in a berserked state. Weren't you living like a wild animal back then?"
"That's right..." Kyros realized it.
"You see, the reversion of time will create an immense physical force. I will try to look for the right time to explore that energy. If you are sealed, it might weaken the physical integrity of the seal itself. So in your berserked state, you might awaken earlier, and if you are unable to control yourself, you might end up somewhere dangerous, and I won't even deny the factor of being discovered."
"You have no way to awaken my berserked state?"
"I don't have the luxury of using my magic after the rebirth. I plan to channel the energy when I reverse time. So after that, I would also fall into a state where I am magicless. I'll be with you, but you can't rely on me to use my magic. And if I try to alter your state of mind during the time reversal, it might be dangerous as I might damage your brain. So it's all on you. You have to keep yourself awake!"
"But how? How can I keep myself awake?"
"You need an obsession! Something that will drive you to fight it! In the process of reversing time, your soul will travel in a strong and torrential passage. Time is being reversed, and it's difficult to explain what that is. But what I am certain of is that you will experience immense pain. I am the god who lived as long as creation itself. So this won't affect me. But traversing the years will take a toll on your soul. But if you have something that will keep you awake, it may just be able to hold until you reach the time of your rebirth!"
"Then I know just the thing! Mechiel claims she knows something about my past. She even knows who it was that killed my parents! That has been my obsession for so long! If I know who killed them, I might just be able to do it!"
"Good! Then I shall restore time now!"
"Wait!"
"Wait?" Calaminus wondered.
"Will your enemies have a vision of what occurred here? Will they know my face?"
"They will see your sight. With the power of our curses, it may give them the ability to see at least five seconds prior to your death."
"Five seconds? Alright. I have an idea. Do it!"
"Get ready..." Calaminus nodded.
The Eldrich was about to bite Mechiel as it was taking pleasure on how it was torturing Kyros, who was trapped in time.
But suddenly, time changed. The Eldrich was the one that couldn't move for a second. And that second was enough.
Kyros's sword stabbed the Eldrich. The force of his attack threw the Eldrich back.
"AGH!" The Eldrich cried in pain.
Kyros grabbed on the half body of Mechiel. But then, Kyros realized that the attack of the Eldrich was draining Mechiel's life.
"Mechiel! Who killed my parents! Who?" Kyros asked urgently. He had to know.
"Kyros... I think... I'm dying."
"Mechiel, it's going to be alright. Please tell me who-"
"I never did tell you why I'm saving you."
"It's alright... What's important is you-"
"It was me."
"What...?" Kyros felt numb. His entire body stiffened.
"I was... the servant who the Steele Family took to take care of you... I was that servant."
"Wait... What?" Kyros was awakened from his shocked trance.
"When I learned that they killed the Steele family, I was so angry... I wanted to take my revenge..." Mechiel smiled as she looked at Kyros.
"I can't... see... I can't hear. Are you there? I can't feel anymore..." Mechiel began to cry.
The sight of her tears falling was a crushing blow to Kyros's heart. A great rage was surfacing.
"Kyros... I've known you for years. But I didn't know... you were that young master... that lonely... sad young master that I served... until the Great War of All began... I was bound to honor and to serve my race... But now... I am free."
"Mechiel..." Kyros lost sense of his purpose.
"Kyros!" Calaminus shouted to remind Kyros.
"Kyros. The reason I saved you... it actually has a very simple... truth behind it. I love you." Mechiel smiled.
Kyros trembled as he heard those words.
"Wha... what? She actually loved him?" Calaminus was brokenhearted at the revelation and began to cry.
"DIE!" An enraged shout was heard as the Eldrich hacked a large blade towards Kyros.
Facing the falling blade, Kyros didn't retreat but stepped forward.
Kyros brought all his anger into one strike.
BOOM!
The sword clashed with the Eldrich, and the Eldrich was actually blown back! Kyros exerted a force that he couldn't have produced even at this peak.
"The soul shackle seal has weakened. No wonder he got stronger." Calaminus analyzed in between his tears.
Kyros fell on the floor. His entire body was bleeding. The attack caused his body to break and his blood vessels to rupture. His angry gazed remained at the Eldrich, who was thrown back. The poison was once more attacking the Eldirch.
Kyros gazed back at the dying body of Mechiel. All he wanted to do right now was protect her in the next life.
It was then that an idea surfaced.
"Mechiel! I have bested you! But I will kill you again! I will make sure that you will suffer!" Kyros shouted.
Calaminus was stunned at Kyros's sudden shouts.
"Eldrich! Be warned! I will hunt you all down! You will all fear me...!" Kyros was shouting at the Eldrich but suddenly stopped.
"Calaminus! Make up a name and a domineering title! Quick!" Kyros suddenly called out to Calaminus in his soul.
"What? What are you...?"
"Quick!"
"Erm... Cracky Batcheeks the Naked Offender!"
"CRACKY BATCHEEKS THE NAKED OFFENDER!" Kyros shouted at the Eldrich.
When Kyros's strength was spent, and as he saw the enraged Elderich stand up and rush towards Kyros to kill him, it finally dawned on Kyros.
"What did you make me say?!" Kyros cursed at Calaminus.
"Forget about that! Look! He's killing you! The Eldrich is killing you! Remember! Mechiel loves you! Protect her in your next life! Remember that!"
Kyros saw his vision spinning and flying. It then landed on the ground. Kyros saw his headless body, and his vision became dark.