Sunrise

 

“What’re you laughing at? ”

 

“Die”

 

“…….”

 

“Arggghhh!!!”

 

“Help!!!”

 

“Urghh…ple..ase, hel….”

 

“My eyes!!! ”

 

“Don’t kill me.”

 

A foreign sense of cutting flesh, a heat from someone's blood. I don't know if I was fully conscious at that time, but one thing is for sure: I neither have guilt nor empathy for taking someone's life. I didn't take pleasure from it either.

 

However, at that time, what was that? Is that my memory? But I don't recall any conflict in my past life that brought me to that state. I felt like it was my memory and not the same time. Same with my murder; I did it naturally, as if I'm used to it. Ugh, I'm so messed up. My head was all scrambled. 

 

Blasting that guy's head in close proximity, decapitating several others, and killing someone who was desperately running for his life. Thus, karma falls upon me right off the bat. To think, the barrier dulled my senses to the point that Charles went undetected.

 

Shit

 

I’m done for; I let that bastard witness my ability. Now I have a perfect substitute for

His experiment….

 

With this, I achieved my goal. He was unable to reach Eu, and I just erased a pending disaster while the two protagonists were still in the prologue. Isn’t this making me better than them? Anyway, I hope they're doing better than me.

 

 

As my exhausted consciousness noticed a light, it came to me that I was about to wake up.

 

***

 

Before I even open my eyes, a pain all over my body reaches my brain. My eyes jerk open just to realize that I'm in an unfamiliar white room. Without a doubt, this was an experimentation facility.

 

Scanning my body, I found several tubes connected to my body protruding to seem like an analyzing machine. I’m glad that my state is not as bad as I imagined, although I'm pretty sure they did something to me; I barely feel my body.

 

As I scrutinize the surroundings, I'm greeted with an eerie smile.

 

“Oh, you're awake.”

 

Charles, who noticed me, walked towards me with a syringe containing red liquid, as if to purposely flaunt at me. This fucker! Don't tell me that's my blood?!

 

Sensing the impatience in me, Charles makes a disturbing grin.

 

“You're quite a perplexing thing . Your display of unimaginable power earlier was questionable. However, now it's becoming more mysterious. No matter how many tests we conduct on you, we couldn't figure out where you pull out such power.”

 

With a contorted expression on his face, he brought it near to my face. Giving me a shiver and pure disgust.

 

“So tell me. Where does an inept brat such as yourself pull enough power to kill several adults?”

 

His eyes were flooded with insanity and curiosity, as if staring directly at my soul. Though I’m not benevolent enough to feed his curiosity.

 

“Figure it out yourself, fucker!! "Sending man, on the circuit of my right hand, I strike him in the face. But he only flinched a little; even in my current state, that should have been a strong blow. 

 

His face twisted in hatred, though as if a switch were flipped, he went up with a gentle expression. "Haha, I see. Not planning on making this easy, huh?”

 

Sneering at him, I flash my middle finger. I'm trying to recover some of my strength. Though some force was hindering my recovery.

 

“You’re really an interesting subject. It’s evident that you’re cautious towards me, as though you already knew everything.”

 

As Charles walked back near the computer devices, I noticed that several other people were also staring at me with great interest.

 

“Even now, your current stance, even in this situation, is perplexing. A kid at your age wouldn’t be as calm as you are right now.”

 

“As every test we conduct is a failure, we arrive at one conclusion.”

 

Charles' mouth curves up until it reveals his teeth. "You're reincarnated!!!"

 

"HAHAHA, you're no kid at all."

 

"Are you someone who once lived in this world?"

 

"Or perhaps a vermin from the fallen world...Earth."

 

"Do you know some will pay a high price just to torture swine from Earth? KEKEKEKKE!"

 

Charles maniacally laughed, hugging himself. Seeing me keep quiet, he flashes a transparent container. "Maybe this will get your attention.

 

"............."

 

"Even taking a sample of your mana was almost impossible. Luckily, you've got auto-defense. Its potency was astronomical, as if I’m not looking at man.”

 

“……..”

 

 

“Argh.”

 

“Wha…!”

 

The disgusting excitement disappears from his face as a scalpel and several other tools fly past him. Bleed flows from cuts in his skin while others fall to the ground with fatal injuries.

 

“Hands…off. Take your filthy hands away from her!!!! ”

 

I know I’m yet to recover my strength, but in that container, I can't feel that our connection was blocked. As though, something about it partially separates me from Cilestia. 

 

Even if it costs me everything, I will kill this bastard!!! 

 

My remaining mana outbursts as if a whip, causing the electronics to explode around as well as knocking some people out.

 

Forcing some power into my right hand, I take control of the broken shards in the surroundings caused by the earlier explosion, firing them at Charles.

 

 

“Urgh!!!!”

 

At that moment, a heavy pressure fell on my body, almost taking my consciousness away.

 

“Amazing!!! Your mana is incomprehensible. Despite this room having a mana-suppressing device, it was pointless to your mana.”

 

His face was twisted with extreme excitement. “It’s so powerful that if I didn't use an aether, it's impossible to suppress it.”

 

Hearing his words, it became clear to me. Mana was not the only source of power in this universe; of all things, it’s aether, the power that can hold a candle with mana.Each magical energy ought to have specialized use, mana for manifesting magical phenomenon, aether for spatial magic or worst destruction. If two of them were to come into contact, the weaker one would perish, however.

 

“Your aether is weak.”

 

I can see it. I can see the aether.

 

Due to several encounters with it, I know how it feels, and it became visible to my eyes. All his aether could do was hold down my mana, and with every clash between my mana and aether, not even once did my mana dissipate.

 

I have always warned not to drain my mana to zero; it may cause a serious backlash or, at worst, death. This will be the only time... in order to take you back...

 

Cilestia….

 

Charging the remaining spark of mana within me, I discharge a strong shock wave that shakes the facility.

 

As my eyes become heavy and the corners of my lips curled up, I pointed my middle finger to stun Charles as my consciousness faded into darkness.

 

***

3rd person pov

 

With the sudden event, everyone in the room froze. Though a sinister laugh broke out.

 

“Ha, ha. Khahhahaahha. "Unbelievable. Now, without a doubt, I'm sure you're also the one who broke my barrier; that's why the girl escaped.”

 

Charles, with an unnatural expression, treks up to the now-unconscious Carus.

 

“To think a child who can single-handedly destroy aether could exist; I almost lost every aether within me. Aughh, I can't contain myself. How is this possible?! I'm eager to know everything. I want to dissect you. …”

 

“Now that I think about it, the mana you’ve been releasing seems to have lower quality compared to this one."

 

Charles gazes at his hand, only to realize it's already cracked and empty.

 

"I see, this is your real goal." A sinister grin once again emerges from Charles's face. "It seems that mana was awfully important; now that I think about it, I heard you name an orb of mana. Is it connected to your impressive power?”

 

"Well, since you are unable to answer right now, should I forcefully take it out of you.....?”

 

A loud explosion occurred from the walls. Behind the curtain of smocks, voices can be heard.

 

“Mom, this seems to be the place.”

 

“It seems you owe our princess his boyfriend; we're here to take him back."

 

“You! Impossible!! "Why does someone like you appear in a place like this?!!"

 

As Charles's level of frustration and impatience increased, the tone of his voice became more intense and forceful. It was as if he was struggling to contain his emotions, and his words were laced with an undercurrent of anger and annoyance.

 

"Ain't that obvious? You mess with our relative.”