DIVINE REALM

Mountains like sculptures arose into the sky, bathed in glistening ice with hundreds of pillars erected at their sides like arched vaults. They created a natural valley in-between which was a home to a small, but still influential Thousand Suns Sect. It had a bridge-like structure across, built upside-down as it was connected to two sides of the valley. Buildings with spiraling and cascading designs hung down a massive, stone bridge which held a set of twenty gigantic statues – some of humans, some of beasts.

The entire Sect was lit up by cyan lanterns, hanging like a solitary star above an endless chasm which lied beneath it. It consisted of several thousands of buildings, each designed to carry individual charm while maintaining the overall architecture. Currently, atop the nearly three miles long and six miles wide bridge, Lynne sat at its edge, one of his legs hung over. The horizon of the valley spilled over into a massive lake, moon’s reflection shining brilliantly across its surface.

It has been nearly a week since he came to Tyl’aal Divine Realm with Y’se, the monkey and the two Dragons. They finally arrived at the Sect the Patriarch pointed them towards, and as the other four were settling down in one of the buildings, Lynne was waiting for a person the Patriarch sent for him.

Hours slowly passed as he spent them in silence, letting his overgrown hair flutter backwards in the gentle, nightly wind. Finally, as the moon touched the tip of the sky, he felt the space behind him rip apart and a figure walk through. Casually glancing backwards, he saw a middle-aged looking man. He towered over two meters in height, had muscular frame, squared jaw and short, black hair. His eyes were completely black and his posture stoic, mimicking his expression. He wore black, cloth coat tied with a silver belt at his waist. At the side, scabbard hung low, sword tucked neatly into it.

“… you must be Lynne?” the man’s voice was low and harsh, completely emotionless.

“I am,” Lynne said, turning his gaze back onto the lake. “And you are?”

“Retch.” the man said as he walked up to Lynne and stood next to him. “Did you find this place without much trouble?”

“Not really,” Lynne said, chuckling. “But we’re here now, and that’s all that matters.”

“Where is Lady Y’se?”

“Probably drinking.” Lynne said. “She said she didn’t want to bother us.”

“Patriarch has asked me to let you know anything you want to know,” Retch said. “As a fellow Rift Guardian, that is the least I can do.”

“Oh? So you’re also doing it?” Lynne said, glancing at the tall man once again. “You nervous?”

“… I imagine you have more pressing questions than that.” Retch said, smiling faintly.

“Ah, so your muscles can mold into a smile. Didn’t expect that.” Lynne chuckled, taking out two bottles of Heavenly Ale and handing one over. “How old are you?”

“I’ll be turning two thousand thirty-eight in two months.” Retch said.

“Wow, you’re old.”

“Hardly.”

“Well,” Lynne said as he chugged a part of the bottle. “I’m fairly certain that you think choosing me was insane. So let’s get that awkward notion out of the way first.”

“I don’t think that.” Retch said, taking a sip. “If anything, seven of us are extremely relived.”

“Relived?” Lynne glanced at him, arching his brow.

“Ella showed early promise,” Retch said, his brows creasing into a frown. “But, down the line, she found bedding women to be more important than our mission. She forgo her training and, despite how many resources we poured into her, still failed to Ascend.”

“And then there’s the fact that she betrayed you.”

“And then there’s that.” Retch said. “It’s not as though we believe in you completely, Lynne. Pardon my language but, for better or worse, you’re still a child. It shows in your speech, your posture, your expressions, your eyes and most-likely your fighting style. However, it doesn’t show in your heart, and that’s all that matters to us. Your talent is outstanding, determination unwavering, and resolve firm.”

“… I sure was expecting a tougher wall to crack.” Lynne said. “But, it feels nicer this way.”

“Why are you trying to hide the fact that you’ve managed to become Empyrean Creator?” after being startled for a moment, Lynne chuckled and drank some ale from the bottle, shaking his head.

“There goes that guarantee that nobody would see through it,” he said. “It’s simple, really. You guys will probably wait for me to Ascend on my own before teaching me anything. I figured, if I could stall for some time, I may die and not have to do it.”

“It’s fine to be afraid,” Retch said after short silence. “Especially for you. After all, the rest of us have all been trained for at least two thousand years. The oldest one is nearing ten thousand.”

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“Damn.”

“And you barely cracked your twenties,” Retch continued, smiling lightly. “If anyone has the reason to be afraid, it’s you.”

“Aah, it’s more than just fear,” Lynne said, taking a deep breath. “It’s… odd, knowing if I screw up, it’s not just me who’ll be paying the price. It’ll take some time to adjust to the fact that the entire realm might get wiped out if I screw up.”

“Then don’t screw up.” Retch said.

“That’s the plan anyway.”

“… can I confide in you?”

“Sure. It’s not like we just met. Oh, wait.”

“I learned of my role when I turned thirty,” Retch said, looking up. “For the next fifty years, all I’ve done is run away. Literally. And, to indulge me, they always sent someone to chase after me even though they always knew where I was. For full fifty years, I was lost. However, one day, I simply chose to embrace what I’ve been given. Now, you certainly don’t have fifty years. Even years – in plural – would be a luxury.”

“Really not helping here.” Lynne chimed in.

“The difference between you at the age of twenty-three and me at that same time,” Retch said, glancing at Lynne. “Is that I wasn’t even Celestial Magus at the time. I haven’t killed a single soul. I haven’t lost anyone I loved. I didn’t have my heart broken, or my Soul wounded. I never as much attacked someone with an intent to kill. The reason why Divine Realms continue to stand above the rest is because youth here is protected by old folk. Were it up to the young ones… well, it would be a complete massacre if I’m being honest. I needed over eighty years of life to figure out what you already have. That Magic neither makes up a person nor defines their strength.”

“…” Lynne remained silent, his head slightly lowered as his gaze pierced into the chasm lying beneath the Sect. “Thanks.”

“All seven of Rift Guardians have been watching you ever since you were chosen over Ella,” Retch continued. “And there’s a reason why you’re still chosen, after so much time. We trust you. All that’s left is for you to trust yourself.”

“Much, much harder than it sounds.” Lynne said, sighing.

“It is, no doubt. It is the hardest thing in the world to do,” Retch said. “And, the worst part is that, no matter how many speeches you hear, no matter who gives you an advice, in the end, it’s all up to you.”

“… you know, you really surprised me,” Lynne said, chuckling. “I was seriously expecting an asshole who will let me know that he’s not happy with being stuck babysitting some snarky kid. But, you’re pretty cool about it.”

“Thanks. Well, truth be told, unlike you, there’s not much I can do to increase my strength in the time we have left, so I may as well spend it helping a promising guy.”

“Now, onto the less depressing topics.” Lynne said. “How many people have died in this realm in the past few months.”

“You have a very strange definition of depressing.”

“I get that a lot.”

“Roughly two million or so,” Retch said. “Not as much as in other Divine Realms, but still rather alarming.”

“How many Sects and Clans have fallen?”

“Around twenty, I believe,” Retch said. “A lot of the stranded have moved into the Thousand Suns Sect, which is why it’s a bit overcrowded at the moment. It became secondary gathering location for our side in the Realm. What are your plans?”

“Well, the key here is for me to get stronger – fast.” Lynne said. “So, how about I inspire a few fires here and there, lure them into an open space, and commit a genocide?”

“… uh, as much fun as that sounds, we’ll have to be low-key about it.” Retch said. “At least until you’ve actually Ascended. You’re still on the hunt-list for the High Fathers, and if you suddenly started running rampart, it could inspire outright war that we’re not ready for yet. Most of Divine Mages on our side are busy setting up massive Spacial Locks surrounding the Dimensional Rifts, as well as protective formations so that no part of the battle leaks outside of it, potentially, you know, destroying an entire realm.”

“Yup, that would be bad.”

“Very bad.”

“So, low-key, huh…” Lynne mumbled, thinking for a moment. “Well, I could disguise myself and have monkey search for some of their low-numbered bases. I’m sure that you guys would still welcome resources.”

“… you mean you and Lady Y’se could disguise yourselves, right?”

“T-that was, yeah, of course, that was understood from the context.”

“You don’t have to worry about her,” Retch said, chuckling lowly. “For the time being, she can still help you. Also, I’ll be joining you as well but don’t count on me to help. I’m there just to deter the High Fathers directly.”

“… I can still bring my two Dragons, right?”

“They’re not yours, though.”

“Semantics.”

“Matter.” Retch said.

“Not really.” Lynne said as he raised the bottle toward Retch and smiled. “I’ve been making way too many toasts recently, but what the heck. One more can’t hurt. Here’s hoping that, one day, I’ll have muscles as robust as yours. Seriously man, what the hell were they feeding you?! You look like someone carved a god out of the stone.”

“In same vein, I wish I could grow hair as long as yours.”

“That’s definitely not ‘in same vein’, and, trust me, you don’t want the hair as long as mine. The only way I can actually do anything with it is by always using Mana to blow wind from my back gently so the hair flutters and doesn’t hinder me.”

“… so much work just to appear quasi-cool. Is it worth it?”

“Definitely.” Lynne said as the two chuckled. “Cheers.”

“Cheers.”

As the moon drew a gentle arc across the sky and the sound of the two bottles clanking echoed out into the night, the still waters of the world rumbled for a moment, as though they awakened to the hanging bloodlust leeching out into the air. Wind carried it far and wide and woke beasts slumbering in the depths, as morning slowly awaited its wake and storm yet to come.