Solar Mage

Chapter 69: The Bad Ending Part: 1

Terminus coughs to clear his throat.

"Ahem. That's my fault for getting sidetracked, to answer your question, you have been asleep for seven days."

Multiple parts of my body twitch but I remain still, and continue listening to Terminus' words with a darkened expression.

Seven days? THAT'S A WHOLE WEEK! THAT'S MUCH LONGER THAN THE AMOUNT OF DAYS I PROMISED BRAN!

Inside my mouth, I grit my teeth to release some of my anger.

Damn! He must be thinking that I died in the dungeon by now. He's just a little kid! What if the bandits I killed were affiliated with other bandits and knew of Bran's existence, and are now interrogating him on where the other bandits are? What if they killed him when he didn't give them the answers they were looking for?

My face almost falls into absolute devastation when my next terrible theory comes along.

It's a bit extreme, and I might be thinking too highly of myself for this, but what if he took his own life? After years of being abused, even his own brother and parents abandoning him, I come along and promise him freedom and a loving family. Except, what if I just suddenly never come back? His one and only hope left in the world, gone?

In the horror of my own thoughts, Terminus' voice that has yet to reach me, continues to play.

"It seems like you had too much fatigue built up because even after seven days of no sleep straight, and taking two energy pills, you should've only slept for two days... It seems like you expended more energy than I thought with the Eye of Truth and whatever it is that you did to kill the parasite."

Ignoring everything he said, I speak immediately after he stops, with a blank expression on my face.

"Is Rachel awake?"

"No, she has been asleep for longer than you have, not even I know when she will awaken."

"I see, I should get going then."

I must've had a glimpse of the future, though immediately forgetting it, but feeling something strange rampage inside of my mind.

Another consciousness must've taken hold of it, and are keeping it from me. Those damned bastards.

I start heading for the window, but then suddenly, Terminus calls out.

"Aren't you going to take the Sage System?"

I pretend to think about it for a second, turning around and seeing Terminus' skeptical face.

"No, I think I should take the Warp Gate."

I say, while putting on an ever so fake, cheerful smile.

"Alright then, as long as you try to get there as quickly as possible."

I nod my head down and jump out the window.

***

After staring out the window for a few seconds, Terminus bursts out into joy, smiling greatly as he monologues out loud, pretending as if he were talking to someone.

"Haaa, finally, our dreams can be fulfilled, you were right Luke, Arthur will definitely be the one to beat Magnus Arcanus. He will save the world, and I will finally be able to rest."

He stops speaking for a moment as if he was listening to someone else speak. Thrn, he abruptly continues monologuing, in a different more serious tone.

"Were those five people who died really all members of the cult? No, they weren't. But seeing his reaction was enough for me to realize his pure heart. I want to keep it pure for as long as possible, and thus, mourn for them even now, in my heart. If I can, I hope he will never find out."

Terminus stops speaking for a second, and bends down to pick something off the bed.

"Aww look! He even has offspring of the Primordial Phoenix that could only be hatched when used by someone with a pure heart! Just look how cute this baby Phoenix is! It truly reflects on the heart of its owner!"

***

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The Wizard of Space, so happy, he fails to detect the unwanted linster.

Just below the window balcony, one person stealthily hovers above a cloud of green air with an unreadable frown hanging from it, before he disappears into the air in a fiery blaze.

I killed 5 innocent people...

I pull a piece of cloth from my clothes and wrap it around my face, before sneakily running through the ridiculously long line to the Warp Gate, to the front.

"HEY WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING!!"

The adventurers yell.

I don't have the Sage System, so I'll have to try something else.

Without exchanging any words, the Gate Master's lock onto mine, as I forcefully make my eyes look worried and in distress, to pull at his heart strings. Eventually, the gate master opens the gate.

I'm sorry for doing this.

Entering Ashland once again, I immediately run to the adventurer's guild receptionist closest to me.

"Do you know where Bran is?"

The receptionist looks at me in confusion.

"I'm sorry? Who?"

"He's a young boy about 12 years old who has blonde hair, uhh, he has a twin brother!"

The receptionist who looked at me with confusion the entire time, suddenly jumped up.

"Oh! Those bandit twins! Yeah I know them, I haven't heard any news about David for almost two weeks now, but I heard that failure got into some trouble with the Bracken Bandits uhhh– I think it was two days ago?"

I grit my teeth hearing her say his former name.

How could parents be so terrible to name their child that? Two days ago? That means if I didn't fucking enjoy myself and sleep for so long, I could've still met up with him!! Damn it!

"Where? WHERE ARE THE BRACKEN BANDITS LOCATED? DO YOU KNOW?!?!"

I scream out uncontrollably, saliva flying out of my mouth.

"No, that is all the information I can give you for free, if you want more, you'll have to pay for it."

She says while closing her eyes and crossing her arms, annoyed.

Her eyes swing open as she hears the loud crashing on the table in front of her, where my hand is slammed in the middle of the broken desk. In it, is the amulet I got from the Wolkan Academy's vault, the Eye of the Storm.

"Is this enough?"

Her eyes widened immensely, staring in disbelief.

"Yes– please hold while I get the manager to handle this transaction–"

I slam my other fist on the table.

"Just tell me where they are!!"

"The-y usually hang around the lower merchant district– their base is a stone cube with iron barred windows–"

I'm sorry! Please be safe, Bran!

I rush over to the slums of Ashland, and see old people with long dirty beards, lying at the side of buildings either dead or sleeping.

How terrible... but I cannot stop to help them right now.

I continue running through the streets until I stop, coming across a coughing old man in old rags covered in a dirty blanket.

"Sir! Can you direct me to the lower merchant district?"

Moving slowly, like a sloth, he eventually managed to lift up his arm, and points to the end of the road.

"Thank you sir!!"

I continue running until I reach the end of the path where I see a sorry excuse of a merchant district, all the goods set on a dirty piece of cloth, with a sign of carpentry in sight.

What horrible living conditions... The slums have never been this bad in the capital!

My attention is diverted as I hear screaming from the far end of the district and see the stand, and all the stands behind it, in a trail, in tatters. The stands and merchants, being destroyed by a group of bandits wearing poorly made iron armor.

THERE YOU ARE YOU FUCKING SCUM!!!

I activate Flame Claws, and in an instant, slice off all of their heads, making sure they feel the burning pain before they die.

"Where are these bastards' base at? The cube of stone."

I say while looking down at the poor merchant, on the floor, looking up at me in fear. A few seconds later, he gathers enough courage, and points. Following the direction of his hand to a building a few houses away.

I would find this funny, if there was something to be laughed at.

"Thank you."

I rush over, and break down the door, where three other bandits inside, sit at a wooden table playing cards.

Surprised to see me, they are stunned for a second before they grab their weapons.

"Kill him–"

One tried to say, before their heads fall off their neck.

I lay over their decapitated bodies, my facial expressions unbothered by the lives I just took.

Looks like I'll have another list of people to go over when I get the chance.

Where is their jail cell? Please be okay, Bran!

I run through all the rooms on all the floors, but still fail to find the cellar.

Damn it! Where is it! I know they have a cellar here!

I come back down to the ground floor where the bandits' bodies lie.

Okay, let's think rationally about this, Arthur, if you were going to not hide it somewhere, because you're so smart, where would you put it?

I look down at the floor, and then the bandits' bodies.

Yep, definitely right there.

I kick their bodies away from the table and then the table itself, their playing cards flying all over the room.

On the location where the table used to sit on top of, was where a wooden tile, a slightly darker color than the others on the floor.

How obvious, I don't know how I didn't even think of it before. I must really be losing my touch.

Enhancing my arm with mana, in a single pulling motion, I rip the latch off.

The moment the air in the cellar touches me, I suddenly feel my brain process something, but the concept quickly leaves me.

Huh, how dark and ominous, and it reeks of filth. I feel bad for you, Bran, for having to stay in this hole, but don't worry, now that I've found you, I'll clean you up well after I get you out.

"Bran?!"

I shout into the hole, the voice not echoing, but the smell strongly flying into my nose.

"Holy crap that smells terrible! Haha"

But since it didn't echo, that means that it's a small cellar.

I jump down into the cellar without using Swift Wind, reaching the bottom less than a second later.

"Wow, it really is dark in here, and this floor."

I step up and down.

"It must be hay!"

My heartbeat starts to become unnatural and beats randomly.

"Bran? What's wrong, do you need some water?"

I cast a Dawn to light the cellar, the bright light blinding me at first since I had grown accustomed to the darkness in the cellar.

"Wow that's bright, and ha! What do you know? This is hay! But I must say,"

My eyes start to look up, slowly moving up the ground.

"This cellar is really terribly made, haha..."

I had been trying to convince myself otherwise ever since the opening of the cellar, hoping with everything I had, and praying as much as I could for a miracle, laughing and joking to try and cope.

But I knew, I knew the truth, and stopped trying to convince myself as I laid my eyes upon Bran's motionless corpse, blood all over the floor, seeped out from all the cuts all over his body and clothes, absorbed by the hay and turned into a scarlet color. Blood and bruises covered his whole face, a dark trail formed from the blood likely spilled out of his mouth, and on his eyes, his beautiful eyes filled with the endless vitality of a child, has now darkened, only half open, and the life long gone from it. Finally, as a last desecration to his corpse, on his head laid his messy, formerly blonde hair, now browned, dyed in the filth of the cellar.

As I stare, even though my face was lit by the light of Dawn, my darkened expression did not change, the last ember of hope left, dies out, the rage no longer fueling it.

So this is how it is? No... I'm sorry... If only I was quicker. I don't even feel any anger in me anymore. Has my heart hardened? No, it's far too early to say that, but this helplessness and emptiness I feel inside has replaced the anger. Does it feel better? No.

Actually scratch all that, WHO SAID I WASN'T MAD?

IF WHAT I FEEL RIGHT NOW ISN'T ANGER, THEN WHAT IS?

I feel my internal organs start to heat up, starting from my heart, and traveling throughout my blood, my mana circuits and blood vessels fusing together from the mana plane, lava coursing through my veins as blue fire, for the first time, erupts out of my body like an explosion, traveling through the entire room in an instant, turning it into a furnace of sorts. Also like an explosion, it leaves my consciousness dizzy, everything left a blur.

***

When I awake once again, I stand, flying above a pile of ash that stretches for as far as the eye can see, everything that's not ash, either smoke or flame,

Looks like I still haven't found Bran yet, I guess I'll try to find Tin's wife next then.

PLEASE READ AUTHOR'S NOTE