MY LITTLE LION

Alienor appeared by Aina's side and fell to her knees. By this point, even Anastasia had appeared, and she was already a sobbing mess. She was trying her best to wipe her tears away with her little arms, but she couldn't seem to move them fast enough.

There was a peaceful smile on Leonel's face as though he had already done everything that he could do and he was content with the outcome. There wasn't even the slightest unwillingness remaining in him.

"I'm sorry, Aina," Alienor said softly, knocking the young girl out with a palm strike. She then suppressed Anastasia into the Segmented Cube and sent Aina in with her along with Leonel's brothers.

Tears fell from Alienor's eyes as she picked up her son, holding him close to her chest. Worrying that her armor would harm him, she put it away, not caring about the blood that soaked her through. She cradled Leonel's head, her sobs choking her breath.

"I'm such a terrible mother…" she said between her sobs. "… To make you do this for me… I'm such a terrible mother…"

Alienor wasn't a fool. She was far smarter than Cynthia, who was already known as an exceptional genius. It was easy to say that at least half of Leonel's flexibility of mind came from her.

Why would Cynthia even be alive now? Why did Leonel leave her alive despite knowing how conniving this woman was? It was because he knew that the moment the Demoness vanished, his mother would appear…

Cynthia was nothing more than a distraction.

Most would stop thinking here. They'd think that Leonel left his mother a target to vent on to help her feel a little better. But Leonel knew better than that.

He wanted to distract his mother with a threat for long enough that he would die before she could do anything about it. He didn't want to give her a chance to save him.

What Leonel didn't calculate was that his mother had grown far stronger than he knew. Alienor's talent was no weaker than her father's. The difference was that while Gervaise had been born into the God Realm, she was born on Earth and a pitiful little Incomplete World.

However, the moment Gervaise succeeded in turning the Dimensional Verse into a God Realm, and with her being able to take advantage of their time dilation, right now… it could be said that Alienor may very well be one of, if not the strongest, combatants in the entirety of Existence.

Even the Primordial Terror at full strength would have to fight a long, drawn-out battle with her. Let alone the likes of Cynthia.

So Leonel had miscalculated in the end… and there simply hadn't been enough time that passed.

Alienor held her son close.

"I wasn't there while you were growing up. You were never as close with me as you were with your father… I couldn't help but feel jealous, but I also knew it was my fault.

"That day, when I saw you wearing his glasses, dressed nice and sharp, it took everything I had not to bawl my eyes out.

"But that wasn't fair to you. It's not your job to replace your father in my heart, it's not your job to step into his shoes, nor is it your fault that you had more love for him than you did me." Content © 2024.

Alienor carefully stroked her son's cheeks. She cupped them in a hand, trying to carefully rub the blood away from him, and yet only making it worse.

Her chest convulsed as she held Leonel closer.

"I was too weak. I let my son suffer… if only I had been stronger…"

A ball seemed to be lodged in Alienor's throat. As clearly as she tried to speak so that Leonel would hear her, it always came out hoarse and raspy. This only made her cry harder, but she tried to keep a clear mind.

At some unknown time, Gervaise and his wife had landed on the edge of the crater, and Gervaise wanted to say something, but this time, in a rare sight, it was Leonel's grandmother that held him back.

Gervaise's pupils trembled.

"… Don't ask a mother to sacrifice her son…" she said softly. Though her words sounded far firmer than her daughter's, her own tears were already falling uncontrollably. After all… wasn't Alienor also her child?

Leonel's talent was too strong. Using a normal [Arise] on him would never work, and all his talent had just been stripped from him.

The chasm that left behind wasn't something that Emperor's Might could fill, and Leonel knew that. Even such a powerful Lineage Factor and the Life Tablet had its limits. If they didn't… Velasco wouldn't still be dead to this day.

So, he had planned ahead. He already knew that he was going to die, and he already knew that his mother would appear soon afterward. He knew that his grandfather was stonehearted enough to stand to the side, but he couldn't trust his mother to let him make this sacrifice.

In the end… he had miscalculated again.

"… I'm sorry, Little Lion. Your mother already watched your father die, I'm not strong enough to watch you die, too…"

Alienor chuckled a bitter chuckle that turned into another round of tears.

"I'm such a bad mother… even now, I can only think of how nice it would be to reunite with your father."

Alienor stroked Leonel's hair, kissing him on the forehead.

"Mother was never there when she needed to be. But I hope that you know how much mom loves you, how much mom will always love you."

Alienor took out a clean handkerchief and began to wipe away the mess she had left on Leonel's face. She was so soft and meticulous that one would have thought that she was caring for a delicate vase. But to her, her son was more valuable than any antique.

When Leonel was clean, she pressed her forehead to his.

"Live well, my Little Lion… Mom has never been good to you, so there's no need to feel sad… In fact, mom is very happy right now… I can finally do something for you… and I can finally go accompany my love… Farewell, my Little Lion…"

Alienor's energy surged, and the skies turned a delicate golden-green.

By the time it had all settled down, Alienor was gone. And all that was left was a sleeping Leonel.