Chapter 376: The Start (7)

—

In no time, it was only Thomas and the White Tiger who remained with Neji.

He was going all out against the two, who were both physical fighters.  

Thomas had a transformation where a blocky something covered his body, giving him great power, while the White Tiger had transformed into a full feline.

"How are you still holding on-?!"

"Kegh…"

The white tiger slammed its paws on Neji's chest, sending him flying. The tiger figured out that blunt attacks were the best way to damage Neji. He crashed into the mountain walls and coughed up blood – without all his fully buff form the 7th gate did some damage to his body – and before he could get up, Thomas jumped on his body and began to plummet punches down on his face.

All his punches could destroy a country with ease. The mountain only held onto itself because he was reinforcing the world around him with his mana even as he was hitting Neji.

One tooth, then another, and in total seven of them were lost in no time. Neji tried to block some punches with his forearms, but Thomas grabbed it and twisted it the other way around.

"Aghhh!"

"That's it, we got him!"

Neji growled in pain, while the tiger yelled to cheer for Thomas.

Thomas was just about to punch Neji again, but then the world shook as the light came washing over.

"...Flare of a Dwarf Star!"

A voice came from somewhere, and as Neji watched a hot white energy wave came rushing. It wasn't a round wave but scattered as if someone threw an uncapped bottle and water spilled out. The beam hit the white tiger, burning him in mere milliseconds, but it only managed to throw Thomas off Neji, sending him flying.

The beam was aimed in a way that it went right over Neji, by a nose. 

"Huh."

Neji sighed. He grabbed his messed up forearm with his better hand and snapped it back into place, wincing.

He slowly got up, while grabbing his injured waist, and looked in the direction from where the attack came.

"Hey there!"

It was Lucille, who waved a wooden staff in his direction and was smiling widely.

Neji released a sigh. He mouthed her a thank you, not finding it in himself to get mad at her for following him, and turned around to look for Thomas.

When he found him, with an enraged yell, he rushed with [Discs of Void] forming on his hand, as he rushed like a barbarian at the larger man.

….

The fight lasted for two more minutes. When one reaches the high leagues of powers, fights usually didn't last longer than that even with a group.

Neji fell on his butt and sighed. He looked to the side, body parts filled the formerly empty mountain.

The only hunter who was fully disintegrated was Thomas, erased by a sphere of [Void Singularity]. Now he was alone, beaten and injured, but victorious.

Well, he wasn't exactly alone. The key to his victory jumped from one of the smaller caves near the roof, floated down, and rushed at him.

"Hey, hey, do you need healing?! I, uh, can't heal, but I am sure there are some good healers in the Association."

The girl was yelling while running at him, she stopped before him and sat down, taking his head and hugging it.

"You look worn out, gosh."

Neji couldn't help but laugh at that remark.

 "Do I? Anyway, no, I don't need any healing. I'll heal on my own. And going back to the Association isn't a good idea. When I just killed some of their finest hunters. I am surprised you helped me kill them, though."

"Well, not that I had any choice. It was either them or you. I obviously chose to save you. I always will."

"...."

Neji gently pushed her back. He stared at her eyes and pondered if he should tell two more harsh lines before leaving. However, he couldn't find it in himself to say any of that.

She had changed.

He had been noticing it for a while now but she really had changed a lot. For the better, of course.

No, instead of insulting her, he couldn't help but lean over. His blue eyes stayed open as hers widened. He leaned over to leave a peck on her lips. He saw her soul shake through her eyes as if this was the most exhilarating thing in her entire life.

His blood painted her lips red and he drew back. Neji stood up. With a sigh, he patted his wounds and turned to the purple gate.

Slowly, he began to drag his body in that direction. Leaving a stunned Lucille behind, he walked with deranged steps. His expression was a little complicated as he approached the Gate.

He didn't get to meet his Mother. Not that he was looking forward to it. Just… it was something. Neji was just five steps away from the portal. The place he called home now.

He approached it further until one last call startled him.

"We have a child."

Neji paused like a stone. Lucille's voice was calm and gentle as he heard her speak, unable to turn around.

"I did all the things for you because I didn't want my child to grow up without a father. Ah, not that I didn't do it out of my love for you too, but yes. It was for my child too. Our child. Neji. You are… going back, aren't you?"

Neji turned around, his eyes sharp as he shot her a look.

"I heard stories. When people go into a coma, some of them dream of another life. Some say it's a hallucination, some say it's supernatural. But now that the supernatural side of the universe has been revealed to us, many people believe in the latter possibility. Perhaps, did you dream of a world such as that? Is that Gate leading you to that life?"

"...."

"Don't go, Neji."

Lucille took out her phone, unlocked it, and raised it in his direction. Neji looked away instantaneously when he noticed what she was trying to show him.

"Don't look away. We have a child. You have blood in this world. Don't… don't leave. You don't even know if it's a son or daughter. That day when you were pushed down, I was about to tell you about my pregnancy. The only reason I saw your mother push you down is that I was coming to you to show you that. But then that happened."

She added: "Our child is already seven months old. The green eyes… they're just like yours. Neji, are you still going to leave? Don't you wanna come and see if you have a son or daughter?"

"...Lucille. You told me you were on birth control." Neji suddenly said, he knew what was the exact day that caused this. "You lied."

"Yes. Because I wanted to mark you as my territory as soon as possible."

"You're stupid."

"In your love."

Neji stared into her eyes. A child. He had his own blood in this world. A little human that deserved love.

Sadly, if she was trying to use the child card on him… she was too late. He had a child already, someone he cared for more than someone he didn't know the existence of. Kurai was waiting too.

"Too bad. You worthless piece of shit. My lips feel disgusted. Good luck raising him as a single mother."

Lying through his teeth, feeling more than just guilty, Neji turned around. He dragged his body towards the portal.

"...Neji. Neji, don't go. Neji! Don't leave me! I-I did so much to bring you back, come on, don't go! N-N-Neji! Hey!"

The girl yelled, getting up and running at him, but he already took a step into the portal.

"Neji! I-If you go, I'll abandon him! It's a boy! I'll abandon him if you leave! Come on, Neji, don't leave!"

"...."

Neji shot her one last look. Then, he gently stepped into the purple world.

His vision spun.

And he returned.

* * *

Lucille stood in her spot crying, as she watched Neji vanish. As he vanished, the purple portal crackled. It broke like a mirror, and the cracks spread into reality.

The fabrics of space and time got fractured. Reality shattered, and the cave and the wilderness visible outside it began to break. Behind this broken reality was revealed to be an endless stream of color, endless mana, as if it was a dimension of its own.

Slowly, reality crumbled fully. All life, all creations, this entire universe, all of it simply withered away. Only "Lucille" stood in her spot, her crying expression going blank.

From out of nowhere, Yasmin walked behind Lucille. Her clothes changed as she took her steps, and her hair took a deep purple change, as did her eyes. She stood behind Lucille with red horns popping out of where her sunglasses once were.

"Any changes this time?"

"Well, yes,"

Lucille answered with a sigh, shaking her head gently. Her hair fell free from her twin tails as she did that, her body growing in size too.

"He gave me a kiss… finally. I had him trapped in this time loop, without his knowledge for four years now. It was our first kiss throughout the entire time. I… wish I could do a bit more than just a kiss, but there's no more time, haah."

Lucille's human ears flinched out of existence as she stared ahead. A screen popped in the air, and the scenery of Neji lying unconscious, with his eyelids moving a bit showed up. 

In the same scene, the Creator Goddess Eurynome Celestine was blinking in surprise, staring into empty space where the Director was just a moment ago. Whatever the Director had said before vanishing had left Celestine puzzled. Then, she had vanished noticing Neji was waking up.

 "A kiss isn't bad. Though I imagine it just made things worse for you. Well, we will think of something."

Lucille sighed. "...I believe he would be pretty mad if he found out he was stuck in a time loop by me, though. More so for a selfish reason like mine. All the times he left through the portal, the timeline restarted, just so I can spend more time with him. I already feel bad."

"Well, as a price you did free him. He wouldn't have been able to do it all by himself. You also let him see his world once more, even though it was a mere copy of his original one. How much of that Lucille and her child story was real, though? Is there really a child out there? And Lucille… are you and her the…"

When she gave her a side glance, her subordinate shut up. She… Nawab, gave a short sigh and looked away. Then, the girl going by Lucille until now smiled gently and looked away. 

Obediently, Nawab raised a hand upwards, and earrings formed on her palm, which “Lucille” accepted and raised to her head.

Her human ears were gone, and instead animal ears… cat ears, popped up on her head. She gently put the earrings on then, flapping them like wings after.

"Mhm, yes. Missed them, actually."

She didn't bother changing her outfit as she looked into the hologram. As she watched, she made random comments.

"Honestly, I barely held back from forcing myself on him. Since I remember the result it had last time… Haah, not good. It's good that I held back. Oh, it looks like he's waking up. Speaking of, the kills should give him enough EXP."

Slowly, Lucille K. Sugawara… no, the legendary maid, Kimi Sugihara, watched the scene in the hologram. With slight tension between her brows, she made sure her young master would be fine in the tight situation he was stuck in.

Then, Neji parted his eyelids and woke up. Just as the Goddess chuckled. Whatever the case, Neji had successfully avoided his [Start], and now he was back. Now he had to once again try to survive… except now he had a plan.

**

**

**

If you want to read the next 20 chapters right away, visit my Patreon.

Link: Patreon.com/Master4thWall