Chapter 408: Farewell

"Kill them all!"

"Oohhh!"

A lot of beasts had died after the counterattack. They fought brilliantly.

At the same time, Katarina, Vera, and Ellia were still hunting down the beasts without receiving any instructions from Auric.

Katarina couldn’t help but ask, "Stella, what’s the situation over there? Is Auric fine?"

"He’s fine. He just can’t continue the battle right now. Either way, everything does look fine. Please continue with the hunt and minimize the damage to the city."

"Understood. Be careful over there." Katarina sighed. Even though she was worried, she couldn’t go there. She still had a job to do, and Stella’s main job was to protect Auric as well.

In the end, she chose to focus on her task for the time being.

"..." Ellia didn’t say anything, but she had been listening to their conversation carefully. At the very least, Auric was safe.

Judging from the momentum, it was clear that they would win sooner or later. There was no telling what was happening between the Rank 7 beast and Joker, but if Joker could actually repel the Rank 7 beast faster than they defeated the beast wave, there was a chance the Rank 7 beast would end up retreating with the rest of the beasts.

While waiting for the battle to be done, the other parties also wrapped up their affairs.

"Lucky you. I can’t trust this kind of evidence to other people. I’m going there directly to confirm it." Arnie looked at the director. "As soon as I confirm it, I will kill you and take your daughter away. I don’t particularly like granting you one last piece by giving you a chance to say goodbye to your daughter after everything you’ve done."

It was disappointing, but the Director had accepted his fate.

He thought he had outplayed Auric completely, but it turned out Arnie had expected him to try to outplay Auric.

The biggest miscalculation was the fact that Arnie killed all his people. Lady Merlin helped him, but even without her, Arnie could probably defeat all of them by himself.

He could have escaped, but Arnie had prepared and sent Bernard.

Still, the three of them shouldn’t be here officially. Their plans would go awry if they showed themselves. At the same time, they had secured this place so that even if he screamed at the top of his lungs, no one would come to rescue him.

It was truly his complete defeat.

So, the Director closed his eyes and said, "Just make sure you fulfill the agreements."

Arnie turned around and asked, "What are you two going to do now?"

"I should accompany you this time." Bernard pointed at Arnie. "You should be leaving this country quickly. It will be troublesome if they notice we’re here.

"Let’s secure everything, and I will go back. As the NIA director, I shouldn’t help you with the rest of your case. It’s inside the country after all. The problem will be the spies hidden in other countries."

Arnie nodded. "If we just leave them be, they will rebuild the organization again. These guys are like cockroaches. We really need to eliminate them completely."

"I can handle the spies within the UK. Just send me the information. I’ll process the rest," suggested Lady Merlin. "If there’s any, of course."

Bernard added, "In that case, I will try to leak the information to other countries through my own channels. You just clean up those annoying people in our country."

"Okay." Arnie had no objection. Although he wanted to help Auric since he had contributed a lot to this task, he really couldn’t show himself.

"In that case, I will need to kill the rest of the people heading north. From what I’ve heard, Vanessa was sending the spies over there."

Bernard and Arnie looked at each other. "Should we handle those first?"

After careful thought, they chose to go back. There were instructors from Granda dealing with them. Even if they were defeated, Arnie could make another arrest later.

The best way to conclude all this was simply by returning to Esfrata.

In the end, they chose to clean up and started preparing for their return, making sure there was no trace of their presence remaining.

On the other hand, Auric was still struggling to absorb everything. There was simply too much information since Natalia gave him the knowledge from Rank 1 to Rank 6.

The technique she used earlier was actually Holy Sanctuary. It was a battle technique that formed a domain that healed anyone inside.

The unique element allowed it to regrow their limbs and restore their strength.

He could see a few battle techniques at Rank 2 or Rank 3 that he could use. Some were healing abilities, some were fighting abilities.

He couldn’t use them yet, but he could definitely reveal them as trump cards when it was necessary. He was itching to use his unique element, but it couldn’t be helped because he couldn’t reveal it yet.

Besides, he was wondering what kind of unique element his father actually possessed. It could completely change everyone’s life.

However, that was not the problem. Among the techniques he had just received, Auric found one that looked slightly concerning.

"This..." Auric opened his mouth in shock. He endured his pain and looked at his mother. "Ress..."

As if knowing what he was talking about, Natalia, who already turned into a small form as though she was never a human, smiled and nodded.

Auric knew Natalia was somewhat similar to Lindwurm. She wasn’t his mother. No, she had been his mother for the last 17 years. That should never change.

Auric wasn’t so cruel as not to acknowledge the sacrifice she had made for the last 17 years.

At the same time, she had been lying to him for that long. She couldn’t tell him she wasn’t his mother, just a creation made by his father.

Even with this knowledge, Auric couldn’t see what kind of power had been used to create her or what she actually was.

However, he knew one thing. His mother might have died 17 years ago. In other words, his father might have created this woman as a replacement for his mother.

While it was true that this made Auric live with both of his parents, this also meant that he would end up losing his mother twice.

Auric gritted his teeth. He couldn’t speak to her, but his expression said a lot.

There were a lot of things he wanted to ask her. Even if it were just for one more day, he really wanted to talk to his mother after knowing the truth.

Unfortunately, the only thing he could do was lower his head, thanking her for everything she had done for him.

"..." Stella didn’t have any change of expression, but she was holding her spear tightly to hold back her tears.

Even at the last moment, Auric couldn’t do anything. She might not know the pain he experienced, but for someone who looked mostly composed in all kinds of dangerous situations, the tears Auric shed were clearer than a thousand words.

Stella couldn’t say anything because she knew this was going to happen. This was what Stella meant by saying that she didn’t have much time left.

The only thing she could do was lower her head, thanking Natalia for giving her this opportunity.

As time passed, the humans gradually overwhelmed them.

Ultimately, one roar ended their long battle.

The Rank 7 beast had decided to retreat after fighting Joker.

The beast wave finally broke up as they started turning around, following the Rank 7 beast deep into the wilderness.

As if knowing her time had arrived, Natalia finally spoke one last time. "I’m sorry. It might be because of my selfishness. I was supposed to be able to live for a few more months and disappear after telling you the truth.

"It might be because of my greediness, but I didn’t want to part with you while leaving this mess. I was worried a good kid like you would end up drowning in sadness, while suffering the trauma from this battle that took countless lives.

"I also knew that you didn’t want too much fame, especially when you were currently growing your strength. That was why I intended to overshadow you in this battle to take people’s attention. Let them search for a woman who is going to vanish from this world.

"But it doesn’t look like healing them is enough. That’s why I will use my last power to do more."

"M-Mo—" Auric gritted his teeth, trying to reach out to her.

Natalia smiled. "Thank you for being my son. Thank you for recognizing me as your mother. However, your real mother has been waiting for you for 17 years.

"In Gerden Mountain, there was a cliff that allowed you to watch the sunset in clear view. It was said to have the best view.

"That was where your dad and your mom first met. It was also the place where your mother was buried. They planted a cherry blossom when they first got engaged as a symbol of their love. Your mother was lying under that tree. You should go there and visit her before winter."

Natalia smiled before finally unleashing her power one more time.

"!!!"

Everyone couldn’t help but notice her presence again.

Since the angel had helped them, they weren’t exactly concerned about the angel attacking them.

However, they were indeed curious who was actually the angel.

Before they could even ask, the angel released her power again.

Among the techniques his mother had given him, there was one that could definitely overshadow his achievement.

It was an ability that used the person’s life source to boost everyone’s life force. However, that was only the explanation according to the light element.

Once this power was infused with his father’s unique element, the meaning of this technique changed.

And that technique was called... Resurrection.

The angel clasped her hands, squeezing the two energies, as though she were praying.

The light element burst into the sky and spread across it.

Multiple lights suddenly fell from the sky as if Heaven itself was shining upon them.

These lights didn’t target those who were alive. Instead, they were illuminating the dead.

Their bodies were floating one meter above the ground, which startled people. They were wondering what the angel was doing.

However, ten seconds later, the light gradually disappeared as their bodies gently landed on the ground.

"Gghh..." The people who were supposed to have died slowly opened their eyes.

"What?"

"You... You were supposed to die."

"You are alive?"

"What’s going on?!"

"Is this... Is this... revival?!"

Everyone’s view was turned upside down. Regrowing limbs was already impossible, yet the angel did one thing beyond that. She revived all the people who had fallen in the city.

With such a shocking ability, people would definitely prioritize her over anyone else in the world. No one would know that the person who used that ability had disappeared from Earth.

Auric could only extend his hand without being able to do anything to stop her. Even though she wasn’t his real mother, she sacrificed herself for him even at her last moment. To avoid making him the focus of the entire world, she took everyone’s attention with her.

The angel in the sky started breaking down into particles.

Natalia formed her body for one last moment, but she ended up looking like a golden soul, barely maintaining her form with her power.

Natalia couldn’t help but close her eyes for a second as her life flashed before her.

’Where am I?’ The first thing she remembered was waking up to an unknown ceiling, as she had just been created.

’Me? Your wife?’

’This is my son?’ She looked at Auric, who had just been born, while glancing at the man who couldn’t stop his tears after losing his real wife.

She couldn’t do anything for him, so she was coming closer to the little baby. When she extended her finger, the baby grabbed it tightly as if it didn’t want to let go. The baby smiled as though it felt safe.

As time passed, she accepted her role as Auric’s mother.

"You kid! You need to eat!"

"Come with me."

"Let’s go home! Daddy is done with his work."

She learned how to cook and did all the chores in the house. Gradually, the feeling of her mission had changed from obligation to affection.

She watched Auric gradually grow older and wiser.

"Watching movies with my son. Check!"

"Playing on the beach with my son. Check!"

She was happy as she looked at the bucket list she had made after finding her purpose and gradually completing it.

"What? What do you mean by saying that I will disappear? How can you be so cruel? I don’t care if I disappear, but what about Auric? You may have played along with me because you are my creator, but you have never treated me as your real wife. But Auric? He... he might lose his mother twice!"

"I understand your intention in wanting him not to grow up without a mother in his childhood, but this is just so cruel..."

At the last moment, she became quite greedy.

Looking at how Auric was crying for her, she couldn’t help but think, ’I’m sorry. I didn’t want to die as the mother created by your father. Instead, I wanted to disappear as your real mother, even if it meant I was your second mother.’

She did one last thing, which was to take everyone’s attention away. She just wanted Auric to grow in a little safer environment.

But looking at Auric’s condition, she couldn’t help but have another thought. ’Did... I end up hurting him even more by doing this?’

That thought came from Auric, who was experiencing the pain that kept him from talking or doing anything. He could only watch his mother disappear from this world helplessly.

Unfortunately, she couldn’t change anything else in this state.

She hugged Auric from behind. "I’m sorry if it hurts. And thank you... for acknowledging me as your mother. Please be safe... my son."

Natalia gradually dispersed, leaving Auric forever.

On the table in Elfe Household’s master bedroom, there was an open book containing a list of the things she wanted to do.

The list had expanded as Auric grew older, from ’Cooking Auric’s first food’ to ’Cooking Auric’s first spicy food.’ The way she addressed Auric in the book also changed from his name to "my son" as she gradually found her purpose in Auric.

The list contained over a thousand wishes. Unfortunately, there was one wish that could never be fulfilled.

Punishing my son after he did bad things to others. No bad kid!