Chương 287: Child within a demon

Vale let out a quiet chuckle, the sound carrying faintly into the night air before dissolving beneath the distant roar of the ocean. Slowly, he leaned over the edge of the colosseum's upper balcony and stared down toward the city far below. Lanternlight flickered through the streets of Irea like scattered stars, peaceful once more despite the catastrophe that had nearly swallowed it whole only minutes earlier. For a while, he simply stood there in silence.

The impossible battle he had just witnessed, the Category Seven, the shattered sky, the Goliath of the Reef tearing apart a creature capable of leveling kingdoms, slowly drifted to the back of his mind. Not forgotten, merely pushed aside. His thoughts eventually circled back toward the man beside him instead. Siegfried. Vale narrowed his eyes slightly.

"How did you know I achieved Nirvana?" he finally asked, still refusing to look the man directly in the eye. Siegfried raised a brow before grinning lazily.

"Oh, that?" he said, casually twisting a strand of his long brown hair around one finger.

"That was mostly a lucky guess based on the way you fight." Vale straightened immediately, confusion flashing across his face.

"Then how?" Siegfried laughed softly, clearly amused by the reaction.

"Well, it's rather simple," he explained.

"Nirvana perfects one's technique as a side effect. You already know that. Every motion becomes absurdly efficient, no wasted force, no hesitation, no unnecessary movement. Once you've seen it enough times, it becomes unmistakable." He leaned back against the railing, eyes narrowing slightly with thought.

"Then there's the second part. You came from the same world as me, and unlike that damned lizard, I'm the only one arrogant enough to publish a proper book explaining Nirvana." He smirked faintly.

"So if someone suddenly appears using principles remarkably similar to my own teachings, the odds of them having read my work become overwhelmingly high." He shrugged.

"The speculative truths aligned in my favor." Vale stared at him for several seconds before finally laughing under his breath.

"You really are terrifyingly smart." Siegfried waved the compliment away dismissively.

"Of course I am," he replied.

"You don't run the largest underground market in Irea by being stupid." Vale shook his head faintly before falling quiet again. The wind rolled through the balcony while distant waves crashed against the shores below. Eventually, another thought surfaced.

"Does Wolf know everything about the colosseum?" Vale asked.

"I mean... his money does fund this place." Siegfried rolled his eyes immediately.

"His money funds the gambling side of it," he corrected.

"Wolf couldn't care less about the actual fights. As long as the betting rings keep generating profit, he's satisfied." His expression darkened slightly.

"He certainly doesn't care whether people die here." Vale sighed softly.

"Yeah," he muttered.

"That sounds about right." He pushed himself away from the railing and slowly walked back toward the table. The others remained seated there, though the atmosphere had settled into something calmer now that the crisis had passed.

"Speaking of dangerous people," Vale said while sitting back down, "how's Shade doing?" Siegfried followed shortly after, lowering himself into his chair again.

"The shadow protecting the slums?" he asked with amusement.

"Oh, he's doing wonderfully. He's already crippled multiple Enforcer squads for harassing civilians." Lucias barked out a laugh.

"The best part," Siegfried continued, "is that he's far too strong for them to retaliate properly." Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. A faint smile appeared on Vale's face.

"Yeah," he said quietly.

"That sounds like him." For a moment, he simply closed his eyes and rested there, listening to the distant sea. Then his expression sharpened again.

"I'll ask for his help during the prison break," Vale said calmly.

"The Goliath becomes active roughly once every week, so we should wait about a week and a half before moving. That gives us enough time to prepare properly." Korin leaned forward slightly as Vale continued.

"The Royal Library won't help us. I already know how they think." Vale sighed faintly.

"I'll inform them of my actions out of courtesy, but that's all." Siegfried nodded approvingly while taking another sip from his drink.

"Smart," he said.

"You remind me of myself at your age." He tilted his head.

"You're nearly eighteen now, correct?" Vale let out a short breath through his nose.

"Basically," he replied.

"A few more days, from what I know." Korin rested his elbows on his knees thoughtfully.

"What do you want me to do?" he asked.

"I'd like to help, especially since this involves Illu. Should I inform Nym?" Vale rolled his eyes immediately.

"Don't bother," he answered.

"Nym and I barely speak anymore anyway. Just make sure she's nowhere near the colosseum when we move." His gaze hardened slightly.

"Create distractions if necessary. Anything that keeps the Royal Guard away." Korin blinked before slowly smiling.

"Alright," he said.

"I'll do what I can." Vale returned the smile faintly before suddenly rising to his feet. Lucias narrowed his eyes.

"And where exactly do you think you're going?" Vale paused midway through turning away, glancing back over his shoulder with a grin spreading across his face.

"To see Illu, obviously," he replied.

"What else would I be doing?" Lucias blinked in surprise while Siegfried laughed quietly.

"Then allow us to join you." Without waiting for permission, Siegfried rose and gestured toward Korin and Lucias. Both men followed suit almost immediately, and together the group began making their way deeper into the interior of the colosseum. The atmosphere shifted noticeably as they descended. The upper levels had been loud and alive with drunken celebration, but the lower floors were colder, quieter.

Stone corridors stretched endlessly beneath flickering torchlight while echoes of footsteps carried through the underground halls. Vale walked at the front of the group in silence, his thoughts wandering aimlessly. Then they reached the final chamber. And Vale stopped. His eyes widened slightly despite already knowing what waited beyond the doorway. The basement was enormous, large enough to house creatures most kingdoms would consider natural disasters.

Darkness swallowed nearly everything within it, yet even from the entrance Vale could see the massive silhouette waiting silently in the shadows. Illu. The raven-like monster remained motionless, its enormous body folded inward beneath the darkness. Its form no longer resembled any natural bird. It looked demonic now, something colossal and malformed. Jagged feathers layered across its body like blades, and six pale ivory eyes glowed faintly within the blackness. For several seconds, nobody spoke.

Then a sharp clap echoed behind Vale. At once, the torches lining the chamber ignited one after another. Light flooded the room. Siegfried walked past Vale calmly, approaching the monstrous raven without the slightest hesitation. Halfway there, he glanced back and waved casually.

"Well?" he asked.

"You wanted to see him, didn't you?" Vale swallowed once before following. Illu watched him approach with a curious tilt of its massive head. The creature's ivory eyes remained completely unblinking as it lowered itself slightly toward him. Slowly, Vale raised one hand. Immediately, Illu lowered its head fully, allowing Vale's palm to rest gently against its enormous beak. The contact felt strangely warm. Vale smiled faintly as he began petting the raven carefully along the smooth onyx surface.

Behind him came a low whistle. Korin slowly approached next, and Illu immediately noticed him. The massive bird lifted its head slightly before sniffing toward him curiously.

"Koooo... rin..." Its distorted voice echoed through the chamber like grinding metal. Then, unexpectedly, Illu leaned forward and embraced him as well. Korin visibly stiffened at first, nerves flashing across his face, but after a moment he finally relaxed enough to laugh softly and return the gesture. The group remained there together for quite some time. Eventually, after nearly half an hour, Illu released a massive yawn before lowering itself fully onto the stone floor.

"Illu..." the creature muttered sleepily.

"Sleep." Lucias snorted immediately.

"No matter how strong you become," he said, "you're still unbelievably lazy." Illu released a loud offended shriek. Lucias raised his remaining hand instantly.

"Alright, alright, I understand." He turned toward the stairs.

"I'm leaving before you decide to bite me again." Korin laughed quietly before standing as well.

"Yeah, I should head back too," he admitted.

"The headquarters will start questioning where I disappeared to." He waved gently toward Vale.

"I'll see you next time. I'll start preparing immediately." Siegfried rose last.

"I should leave as well," he said, stretching lightly.

"There's quite a lot to organize now." His grin widened toward Vale.

"Though admittedly... I'm rather excited." Vale chuckled softly while continuing to pet Illu carefully, making sure not to cut himself on the sharpened feathers.

"Yeah," he replied.

"Me too." Siegfried laughed quietly before departing alongside the others, leaving Vale alone with the enormous raven in the dim underground chamber. Silence settled comfortably afterward. Vale let out a slow breath and finally withdrew his hand.

"I guess I should head out too," he murmured while pushing himself upright. Then something tugged gently at his armor. Vale blinked before looking down. Illu had lightly grabbed the edge of his clothing with its beak. The massive raven stared at him silently for a moment before speaking in its distorted, terrifying voice.

"Vale... stay." The words sounded almost childlike despite the monstrous tone behind them. Vale froze briefly in surprise. Then he laughed quietly to himself before lowering back onto the cold stone floor beside the creature.

"Fine," he said.

"You win." Illu settled immediately beside him, enormous wings folding around itself while Vale rested against the creature's side.

"Just this once," Vale added with a faint smile.