Roderick cursed, coughed blood, and cursed again at all the misfortune that had been dealt to him.

That little bitch had the gall to not only call out his death, but to deliver it herself. But no matter how frighteningly powerful that spear throw was, in the end, she was merely an Expert.

He found himself plunged deep within the biodome forest, stuck within a rocky cliffside where the spear was thrown into. It was the rare part where there were natural trees rather than the crystalline structures the biodome is so famous for.

The damn spear was still planted deep into his chest, a mockery of everything he worked hard for. He would have pulled it outright had it not literally melted straight into his body.

The blade was heated up to the point where it melted within his body, yet its tip still got stuck into the wall. The rest of the spear had been melted down, leaving only a bubbling puddle on his lap and the ground.

Whatever energy that bastard figure left for the spear was still nestled in the melted metal, leaving its form intact and making it impossible to pull it out by himself. The energies were backlashing against his own, leaving his skills to flicker and die out before he could use them.

Once he managed to gather enough resources again, he could pull this damn thing out with ease, but right now, he could only watch with gritted teeth at his wretched state.

He swore that once he recovers his resources, he would find the townies that must be celebrating for his demise and burn them all to cinders. He would instead leave the very two that had made it worse for him alive to see it all.

Then, he would enslave whoever was controlling that figure, using his power to fuel his city for the end of time. As for the girl, he would sell her to the mines and work her to the bone until her last breath leaves her body. Even then, it just wasn’t enough to sate his seething rage.

Still, he was actually looking forward to the power boost from the potentially enslaved mage. That power was clearly not of this world, and whoever wielded it must have some form of skill or attunement that was beyond their knowledge. The cursed town truly doesn’t deserve such a find, especially with how little resources they had.

“Father, it’s good to see you again.”

Roderick’s ears perked up, blood still pooling at the bottom of his jaw as he tried to speak, leaving only a nasty trail of blood and spittle down his chin. As usual, his son arrived as though nothing had happened.

He looked worse for wear, though not as bad as he was. He looked burnt in some places, the energy that was burning him similar to his own. There were also hints of burns from electricity, his tanned skin riddled with cuts and wounds that seem to bubble much like his own wounds.

But that damn smile on his face only filled him with rage instead of gratitude.

“You…” Roderick spoke, ignoring the pain filling his chest and throat. “Do you have any idea what just happened? Our army is reduced to a mere fraction, and you were out frolicking with the damn townies!”

He barked at the last word, leaving bubbles of blood to burst from his mouth. If there ever was a time to get angry at his son, it was for not being there when everything turned to shit.

As usual, Zyler just shrugged, ignoring his father’s plight. “What can I say, father? I was busy on my own. If you hadn’t noticed, I had some bad luck dealing with an upstart girl. You know how we are with women, don’t you?”

“I see…” Roderick’s eyes narrowed. “That little girl got you too?”

Normally, he would scoff at how such a girl at a pitifully low level could ever hurt his son. But after seeing what happened to himself, he can’t really be a good judge of character.

That only fueled his rage even more, however. “Nevermind that now. Take this damn thing off of me and retreat. We’ll return back to the town, gather up our forces, and attack again soon. They can't recover as fast as we can, so we must act with haste.”

For once, Zyler frowned at him. “Are you serious? Even after all of this, you still plan on going after the townies? Last time I checked, we don’t exactly have too much to give out anymore. We wasted it all on this expedition, remember?”

“Quiet!” Roderick roared. “You wouldn’t understand the weight behind everything here, boy! Can you even imagine what this land can do for our own city? And you want to give it away to those blasted townies?!”

He always knew his boy was slow in the head, but to think he would be this damn foolish. No matter how bad things are, it wouldn’t compare to the losses done by losing this biodome. He would die before he would let such a good land go away.

“No, father. I’m afraid it’s you that doesn’t understand,” Zyler said in a tone that was unlike him. He knelt down to Roderick’s level, staring directly in the eyes.

Roderick didn’t like this. Zyler was acting too differently. His eyes didn’t show the normally aloof and irresponsible child he knew for so long. They showed something else, something unrecognizable.

“Father, did you think I wouldn’t notice? How you use up all of our city’s resources for your own power? To make a deal with the Federation to put yourself into Master-stage in exchange for all of our people’s valuable mana and stamina? Not just that, you practically gave away our metals and our ores for just a crumb of the power you possess, and look at yourself now…”

Zyler shook his head, brazenly and without remorse.

“Look at your state, pops. This is what you got even after all of that.”

“H-How dare you…” Roderick seethed. His veins popped even as blood continued to pour out. “You yourself took on the luxuries of what I gained! You wouldn’t even be at this stage were it not for me!”

“You’re right,” Zyler nodded. “I do agree with you. I wouldn’t be who I am now were it not for you. I’m just as bad as you, actually. And I don’t even feel bad about it. If anything, I’m proud of how you’re willing to sacrifice anything to get your goals.”

Roderick couldn’t understand a lick of what his blasted son was trying to say, but as soon as he tried to ask that, he felt another pain bursting from his chest.

He looked down, and just beside the spear that had barely missed his heart–Zyler’s hand reached deep into the precise spot.

Roderick gasped, feeling his own life energy drain away as Zyler’s fingers grasped around his still beating heart, pacing rapidly at his development. He looked back at his own flesh and blood, his eyes no longer showing the boy he once knew and raised.

He glared with every fiber of hate and anguish as someone else he knew.

“And thanks to that, you did something that you shouldn’t have done, pops.”

He grasped around his heart tighter, then pulled it out of his father’s chest. Roderick gasped one final time as he saw his son eagerly crush his own heart in his hands, blood pouring everywhere around him.

As his vision darkened, he heard his son’s final words.

“That’s for Mom.”

…..

Zyler has never felt more satisfied, and more empty in his life. His father’s death should’ve hurt, or at least made him feel like shit, according to the stories he would hear as a child.

Considering that he was the one that ended his life, perhaps that feeling was null and void. Yet, it had to be done. The only thing he received from his father’s passing was the lame glasses he always wore on his face. Looking back at the glasses held in his blood-drenched fingers, he didn’t really feel bad.

He just felt a bit empty, that’s all. No different than having to put down an old dog he loved since he was a child.

He was gonna hit death’s door anyways. Entering into the Master stage without proper qualifications was exactly the same as those journeymen hacks they used up. The only difference was that he would last longer, and he could actually pass through it properly once he got the credentials.

The credentials that the Federation promised if he got the biodome for them. But unfortunately, that wouldn’t happen. Once their defeat was sealed, his father would grow only more desperate, trying to do whatever he could to keep his life intact.

If his own mother was just one of the things he would give up for power, then surely his sister would be next. He didn’t plan on letting that old man keep doing away the people he loved. It was about time for a change in leadership either way..

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

He knew, with absolute certainty, that Bastion won’t really recover from this. It’ll only just get worse even if he took the Lord’s position for himself. Still, Zyler didn’t really care about that. After all, he wasn’t the one responsible for leaving it like that in the first place.

He just walked, trying to meditate on what happened while he tried to get out of the biodome. Since they were teleported in, they had no way of getting out other than to go through the entrance of the townies, and the entrance would surely be guarded. He didn’t want to fight as much as he could now. His body still ached, the pains from those two Experts’ power still hurting him in ways he never thought possible.

In the end, he was trapped. There was no way for them to leave him alive without getting something in return. Even if he was kept alive, they would imprison him for who knows how long, and who knows what those old bastards back at Bastion would do to her sister once they found out Roderick’s demise and the loss of the biodome. He needed something to convince them, but he didn’t know what.

But then he spotted something different. On his path forward, beyond the fortress, he found two people huddled together. It was a man, and a child, with the man on the ground completely unconscious. The child begged the man to wake, pushing him intensely.

Zyler shook his head. It must be one of the townie soldiers. He wasn’t quite sure how a child was here, but perhaps those dunderheads just couldn’t bear to leave the kid behind. Still, they had to be utterly stupid to–

Wait…

He recognized that man. Who else could it be that managed to pound his father to pieces and used himself as a power source to deal the final blow? It was none other than the Runist. The little girl, a black haired child that had the exact same scent as the lightning girl (a relative, perhaps), kept shouting at him.

“Bobo! Bobo, wake up!” The child prodded. Her eyes were beginning to tear up as she shouted. “Please don’t die!”

Now that he saw her, Zyler remembered the words that the Runist (Bobo?) screamed before everything turned ‘boom’ and caused the burns on his body. He remembered screaming a name as he watched at the distance in horror.

“Clara… right?” Zyler remembered. He wasn’t good with names, but an experience like that sort of burned the name into his brain.

He only watched, recognizing that while the man was down and out, he still breathed. His chest was heaving, though there was a clear sign of struggle as burns were visibly seen from his burnt robes, or what was left of it.

Thankfully his dignity was preserved as his pants were still intact, albeit showing more exposed skin across his thighs and forelegs than usual. Outside of that, his upper body was completely bare, allowing Zyler to notice the intense blue scars on his surprisingly muscled form that seemed to glow and sizzle. He also noticed Clara prodding at the parts of the clear skin rather than at the scars, as though touching them would be dangerous.

He was clearly reeling from the backlash of the technique he used to become that giant monster. But considering the circumstances, it was well proven to be the right choice. However, Zyler recalled that he still had the quest as an invader, telling him that to control the biodome and own it, he must kill the king, being that of Zeke Parlow.

Oh right, that was his real name. Bobo must be a nickname for the girl.

That same Zeke Parlow was down for the count with only a little girl for protection. He stared at the downed man, seeing literal prey out in the open. As a beast that thrives in the hunt, ignoring this would be the same as committing a heinous sin.

He stepped forward, covering his presence with his will. He must have done a shitty job because the little girl noticed him coming, turning her head. She shouldn’t by all rights realize his presence, no matter how big he was. His steps were soft and quiet, like a predator circling his prey. How a little girl managed to find him proved that she was more than just an average little girl.

She stood, facing him with Zeke behind her, spreading her arms wide to defend him. She glared at him with those tiny, but brilliant brown eyes. They were the same as the crazy lightning girl.

As to why those two brought that little girl here, he had no clue. Then again, these were the very same strange Experts that managed to beat a Master and a Journeymen, no matter how impossible those odds seem to be.

“Stay away!” Clara shouted, pumping her chest out with pride. “You mess with Bobo, and you mess with me!”

Zyler couldn’t help but laugh at that. He couldn’t help but stare at the now angered little girl as she glared with so much hostility, she would go up and stab him if she had a knife. However, there was a little strange creature that had its head pop up behind her shoulder. It looked like a furry creature, its sharp yellowish eyes staring daggers at Zyler.

Then without warning, something whipped past from behind her back and stabbed right at his arm at record speed. He flinched at it. His body was aching and was off too much to react in time, and he could feel his arm suddenly losing motor control.

But outside of that, that was it. His arm felt a twinge of pain and numbness for a while, then it immediately returned to normal as the tail whipped back to the creature that it belonged to. Its sharp eyes widened in alarm, then chirped in panic at the little girl.

The little girl in question had her eyes widened in alarm as well, showing a panicked look now. It looked like that creature was something of a familiar, and clearly it tried to do something to Zyler. He tilted his head at that.

Was that supposed to be a Paralyzer? How’d a brat get herself a Paralyzer familiar? Man, these two keep getting interesting every second.

“S-S-Stay back!” Clara, her only weapon now useless, stepped back fearfully at the walking man. Despite her weapon not working anymore, she still had the bravery, albeit wanting, to stand in front of her brother with her arms spread across.

Most children would either run or just outright cry at something so dangerous approaching them. He stared at the little girl, still showing his usual grin.

Then, he paused, just a few feet in front of the quivering little girl. He then sat on his ass, crossed his legs, and opened himself wide to her.

“Calm down, little cub. I won’t bite. I promise,” Zyler sweared, showing an easy grin. He wasn’t much used to children, but he could relate to them. His own late father would often say he was too childish for his own good, after all.

Surely, that must be a compliment. After all, the little girl had her eyes widening after hearing him out.

“...Really?” Clara looked up and down at him, now showing a wary face full of suspicion.

“Cross my heart and hope to die,” He said, making a gesture of slashing his chest with his finger twice. Clara only narrowed her eyes, which on her face was just too cute a gesture to take seriously.

“How do I know you’re not lying?” She asked, though she somewhat released her tension as she asked. She was too easy to read, as all children should be.

“Well, I’m sitting down. And I’m really hurt,” Zyler explained as much as he could, showing his bare chest riddled with burns and wounds all over. He didn’t have a healing potion on hand, mostly because he didn’t think he needed one. “And I really don’t feel like moving. I can’t hurt you if I don’t wanna move, right?”

Clara looked at him as though she was fully aware that he was treating her like an idiot. She scowled at him, and he actually feared that he mucked up.

“...You swear?” She asked again.

“I swear,” He said, raising his hand to his face, the palm facing forward. He would’ve made an oath too if she was old enough to use the system.

Then, finally, she relaxed, then she turned to her downed Bobo. She knelt down to him, still completely out cold.

“Is he breathing?” Zyler asked, getting the little girl to nod.

“He’s sleeping,” She said. “But not waking up. He does this when he uses a lot of magic before. Sissy said that he can’t wake up even if he wanted to.”

“I see,” Zyler nodded. “Considering how much he did, I’m not surprised.”

He eagerly left out the part that he was the one responsible for forcing Zeke to go that far and use up his power, making him end up in this state. That would probably look bad on his part.

But now that he took a closer look at the man, he realized that he was suffering through an extreme form of Mana Deprivation. It was definitely not something he’s seen before, not even from the mages that were forced to go all out for work. The blue scars that seemed to sizzle and burn looked almost like overuse of mana rather than the lack of Mana. However, his face looked bitterly cold, sweat pouring down his face yet his body trembled as though in a bitter blizzard.

He thought deeply on the matter. At this rate, he would die from Mana loss. He remembered something about regenerating your own mana is actually more dangerous than just drinking a mana potion on a constant basis, as it would deal damage for every mana you collected in that state. Clara was desperately trying to soothe him, but as she tried to hug him for warmth, she recoiled from the burning scars. She faltered, having no clue on what to do.

Then another idea formed in Zyler’s head. He was having a lot of those today, which if he was honest, doesn’t come often. He searched through his pack, somehow still in working condition, and dug out the glasses his father always carried.

> Vision of the Spiraling Mass (Epic)

>

> Glasses created with a powerful technique passed down by the spiritual dwarves. Despite its thin frame and lack of weight, an incredible wellspring of power resides here.

>

> Enchantments:

>

> Major Mana Recovery

>

> Major Mana Storage

The two enchantments are perfect for a mage like his father. The first helps regenerate mana far more than just natural mana regeneration. As far as Zyler knew, this wasn’t natural mana regeneration, so it should help with his condition. The second helps keep a large storage of mana for later, used for emergencies if the caster runs out of it.

After the quick Identify, he made his decision.

“Hey, I have something that might help him,” Zyler said, getting Clara’s attention.

She scowled at him again, then looked at the glasses. They looked reddish, getting her to narrow her eyes. Zyler actually forgot that they were covered in blood, but he insisted nonetheless.

“I swear, this is much more valuable than it looks. It will help him recover Mana faster. I’ll put it here so you can pick it up yourself. Or let your little friend there do it himself, if you’re nervous.”

Zyler did as he promised, putting down the glasses on the ground gently. After a moment of hesitation, Clara looked back at the little creature behind her back. Then, something like a tail whipped out from her back, slithering all the way to where the glasses were and wrapped around them tightly.

They were swung back to her side, the creature dropping the glasses down to her hands. She marveled at them, realizing the power within, and nodded.

“Thank you very much,” Clara said politely. Despite her nervousness, she still had to thank those who helped her.

Zyler smiled and nodded.

Clara then put the glasses onto the man’s face as gently as she could, though she still struggled a little.

Soon the glasses were put on, eventually recognizing their new owner and began to work.

Slowly, but surely, his body was filled with power as Zyler watched. His nose could pick up the change now that he was so close and focused. The body was warming up quite nicely now.

And eventually, ever so slowly, Zeke twitched.