Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Chapter 1991: Ablaze

Under normal circumstances, Hana wouldn't have an issue sensing the location of her opponent. In Vahn's case, however, his presence was comparable to the peculiar ambiance one would feel when locked in a soundproofed room. It was possible to sense 'something', but, the moment you tried to focus your senses, it was easier to detect your own heartbeat than it was to discern his location.

Though she had dealt with opponents who were skilled at masking their presence, Hana had never encountered someone who could conceal themselves within an attack. She should, at the very least, be able to feel feedback from her energy colliding with his. Instead, there was simply 'nothing', and, were it not for the fact he had started to forcibly manipulate her flames, she would have thought he had teleported away.

Feeling indignant at the notion that Vahn was manipulating her flames without her permission, the center of Hana's pupils began to release a violent golden light as she spread her arms and shouted, "True Flame Manifestation - Solar Prominence...!"

Following her outburst, the avatar surrounding Hana promptly collapsed into a sphere reminiscent of an actual star. There were even sunspots, solar flares, and a discernible corona, yes, as was often the case when such abilities were used, the user remained perfectly visible at the very center of the star. This made Hana resemble a Goddess of the Sun, and, thanks to her Authority, the potency of her attacks could easily trespass the realm of Tier 5.

Unfortunately, being able to trespass a realm was far from being able to contend against it, so, even though the surrounding temperature instantly shot up to more than a million degrees Celsius, Vahn emerged unscathed from the ocean of golden flames, an awkward smile on his face as he said, "You interrupted my attack..."

Without bothering to ask what he was talking about, Hana slapped her hands together, a vermillion Lighthouse appearing in front of her as she shouted, "Yeon Family Lighthouse Control Skill - Flame Boost!"

Fearing that she would soon lose control of her flames, a mistake that would cost the lives of nearly every resident of the 100th Floor, Hana began compressing the energy of her Solar Prominence into a single point. She didn't believe that anything could be immune to the flames of the Three-Legged Golden Crow, so, even if she needed to sacrifice one of the most valuable Lighthouses in her entire family, it was a small price to pay if it meant wiping the smile off of Vahn's face.

With Hana's emotions providing a boost to her willpower, Vahn could hear his armor creaking as the ivory-white plates covering his body began to blacken. This was quite surprising, not because he doubted Hana's willpower, but because this particular armor possessed SS-Rank Fire Resistance. The only thing he had that was even comparable was Laev-tan's Bankai, so, even if it wasn't enough to completely overwhelm his defenses, Vahn couldn't help feeling a little impressed.

As that thought crossed his mind, Vahn's pupils shrank slightly as the space around Hana shattered, instantaneously turning pitch black. In the very next instant, his vision became dominated by a pillar of golden flames so compressed that, were someone to press their hand against it, they would feel physical resistance. This was in spite of the fact that the beam was traveling faster than the speed of light, a state that generally converted matter into energy, not the reverse.

Unfortunately, as impressive as the attack was, the moment Hana released it, time effectively came to a stop from Vahn's perspective. Even as far back as Danmachi, his reactionary senses had been so exceptional that it was nearly impossible to catch him by surprise. The only detriment had been that his physical body had been unable to keep up. Now, however, he could transition between the axes of space and time, so, despite her best efforts, all Hana had accomplished was giving Vahn a pretty light show.

Caressing his chin, Vahn took his time to inspect the pillar of flames before teleporting next to Hana and saying, "Not bad. Unfortunately, your inability to control the Three-Legged Golden Crow places the entire Floor at risk. It's time for you to go to sleep."

Though she was unable to remove herself from the axes of space and time, Hana's status as a being near the pinnacle of Tier 4 created the illusion of her body vibrating at high speeds. If given enough time, say a thousand or so years, she might even be able to move relatively normally. Unfortunately, Vahn wasn't going to wait around that long, so, after conveying his words directly into her mind, he placed his palm against her abdomen, instantaneously dissolving the armor around her navel as he said, "Imperial Mandate - Seal of Heaven...!"

Having accumulated knowledge regarding sealing and formations ever since his time in Danmachi, it wasn't an exaggeration to say that Vahn was near the pinnacle of the art. He had even mastered a few extraordinary seals using the Sacred Tome, so, the moment his palm contacted Hana's stomach, three massive eyes seemed to open from within the void. At the same time, a pattern reminiscent of a circuit board instantaneously spread across Hana's body, complete with vias-like markings located atop each of her meridians. Immediately thereafter, inordinately beautiful white needles manifested out of thin air, each penetrating one of the tiny circles before promptly vanishing.

Confirming the seal was in place, Vahn retracted his hand from Hana's surprisingly soft abdomen before nodding towards the trio of eyes closely observing his every move. In response, the eye at the center, located above and between the other two, promptly closed. This was an indication that the 'heavens' had approved of his decision, and, so long as he didn't remove the seal from Hana's body, he could only use the Seal of Heaven an additional two times.

With the process completed, Vahn reintegrated with the standard axis of time, effectively allowing it to resume flowing. This caused the space shattered by Hana's attack to turn violent, her complexion paling as the golden flames erupting from her body spontaneously vanished. Fortunately, beautiful scarlet flames immediately replaced them, so, even without Vahn's support, she was able to protect herself from the extreme heat. At the same time, the fiery golden raiment covering her body began to dissolve, replaced by a stylish yet significantly less gaudy outfit with accents clearly inspired by a Phoenix.

Though her face had become whiter than a sheet, tiny beads of sweat appearing on her brow, Hana still managed to glare at Vahn, asking, "What did you do to me...?"

Surprised that the woman was still awake, a thoughtful glimmer flashed across Vahn's eyes as he responded with a question of his own, asking, "Does your Immortality Contract prevent you from sleeping...?"

Rather than waiting for the woman to respond, Vahn shifted his attention to the Law of Identity, who, as per usual, readily revealed the truth, stating, "It seems they have to use a special ritual of some kind in order to emulate sleep? It's no wonder they all behave like they have a stick shoved up their bums..."

Humming in acknowledgment to the Law of Identity's words, Vahn interrupted Hana's attempt to respond, answering, "I placed a seal on your body to limit your ability to manifest the Three-Legged Golden Crow's power. Without the support of the Divine Phoenix, you are unable to counteract the influence of Yang Elemental Energy on your mind, body, and spirit. This imbalance causes you to act in an unhinged manner, so, for the sake of everyone, yourself included, I have prohibited its use. Be grateful. Under normal circumstances, I would have either killed you or extracted the Three-Legged Golden Crow from your body."

Though she felt a bit of panic in her heart, Hana maintained her glowering expression, exclaiming, "You want me to feel grateful!? Just how arrogant can you be...!?"

Maintaining a calm expression, Vahn tilted his head as if he were actually considering his response before plainly stating, "Arrogance is when someone exaggerates their capabilities in order to make others think they are important. In that regard, I suppose I could be infinitely more arrogant? After all, I have never once considered exaggerating my capabilities. As for your other question...well, it's ultimately up to you. I have no intention of forcing you to feel grateful. I'm just informing you that you should."

With Hana giving him the kind of look that would allow someone with an ocular Innate to bore a hole through seemingly indestructible matter, a teasing smile nearly developed across Vahn's face until Sis chimed in to say, (*Naughty boy...must you always behave like this when your opponent is a beautiful woman?*)

Suppressing a wry smile, Vahn willfully ignored Sis' remark, saying, "You are free to continue hating me, but, regardless of the circumstances, you are ultimately responsible for the crimes perpetrated by your Aunt. Though everyone is ultimately responsible for their own actions, you, as the Leader of the Yeon Family, had every opportunity to rein her in. Instead, you allowed her to act with veritable impunity, and, as a result, millions of people, including members of your own family, have lost their lives...I wonder...what would Viole think of the person you've become?"

Though she didn't lose her glare, the little color remaining in Hana's cheeks drained the moment she heard Vahn mention the name of Baam's father. Many were aware of her unreciprocated love, but, with the exception of her fellow Great Warriors, few knew that Viole was the man mentioned in the rumors.

Under normal circumstances, Hana would lash out at anyone who dared mention Viole's name, but, now that the Three-Legged Golden Crow had been suppressed, tears immediately began welling in her eyes as she muttered, "You don't know what you're talking about..."

With what could best be described as an 'oh really' look on his face, Vahn crossed his arms, saying, "Sure. Let's go with that. I mean, denial doesn't really change anything, but, after thousands of years of pandering to Ilarde, I guess it's only natural that you would resist anything that is inconvenient to your personal world view, right? I'm sure Viole would be proud..."

Though the Divine Phoenix tried to stop her, a vibrant red Needle manifested in Hana's hand as she charged towards Vahn, tears streaming down her face as she attempted to stab him in the chest. To her surprise, he made absolutely no attempt to evade, and, as a result of her emotions empowering her attack, the Needle was able to pierce cleanly through his body. Unfortunately, despite piercing his heart directly, she could still feel it pulsing vivaciously through the grip of her Needle, almost as if nothing in the world could prevent it from beating.

Feeling a little sorry for the teary-eyed woman, who, as a result of her sisterly bond with Arlen, had never even tried to confess her love, Vahn's expression softened as he grasped Hana's Needle and said, "Fortunately for you, Viole was never the type of person to pass judgment onto others. Even if you were the one to commit Ilarde's atrocities, I imagine would have forgiven you. He couldn't help seeing the best in people..."

Shifting her gaze away from the hand grasped around her Needle, Hana gazed into Vahn's golden eyes, tremendous conflict visible in her own as she sobbingly stated, "I hate you...not only did you kill my only family member, you sealed my power and are now going out of your way to make me feel guilty...I don't think I've ever met someone as cruel and hateful as you..."

Without losing his smile, Vahn just shrugged in response to Hana's words, extricating her Needle from his chest as he said, "That's life. Things don't always go your way, and, no matter how right you are, there will always be people who resent the things you do. This is something I have come to accept, so, even if others resent me, I'll willingly bear that burden so long as it allows them to reflect and grow. Viole wouldn't want to see you living like this, so, even if it's merely to honor his memory, you should seriously consider what you want to do from here on. Ten-thousand-years is a long time to be living in the past. It's time for you, and the rest of your companions, to begin moving forward again..."

Finished with what he had to say, Vahn attempted to ruffle Hana's vermillion hair, but, the moment he extended his hand, she promptly swatted it away before bolting towards the horizon, tears still streaming down her face. This left him feeling somewhat helpless, but, with less than three minutes remaining until his scheduled battle with Eduan, someone else would need to comfort the bereaved beauty.

With that in mind, Vahn cast his gaze upon the fiery wasteland created as a result of Hana's attack before ultimately shaking his head and vanishing from view. The destruction far exceeded the range of his domain, so, even if he wanted to repair things, he simply lacked the ability to do so. Reversing time was infinitely harder than driving it forward, so, after confirming that the devastation extended far beyond the horizon, he turned his attention away from the burning landscape, sights set firmly on the future...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: '*insert Saitama face here*','This...this ain't even fair...','Nothing to see here...')