BXBX NOVEL Chapter 516 Where are my Keys? Part 2 of 3
Chapter 516 Where are my Keys? Part 2 of 3
"What’s the problem, male hooman? Are you finding this trial hard? Well, if you do, then I apologize to you. It seems like I will be killing you already... Perhaps you should start saying your prayer-"
"Oh, I do not find this trial hard. In fact, I was surprised about its ease that I am rendered speechless now." In face of Tabby’s nonchalant killing attitude, Alex did not look panicked at all. Instead, there was a wide smile on his face, making him look much happier compared to earlier.
"You’re surprised by its ease, male hooman? But you-" The cat began to have a look of confusion on its face at this point, as it never expected Alex to react like this. This confusion prompted the cat to question Alex more, but before it could finish talking, Alex took control of the conversation.
"Tabby, you know about the Chronomancers, right? With your long history, you should be aware of their abilities..." Alex said as he gave Alina, who was outside the force field, a fond look. "Hehehe, what do you think would happen if I used the power of a Chronomancer to get a hint about the future? Won’t doing that.... Be able to make me know the contents of this trial?’
" A Chronomancer? Where do you even have one like tha- Oh goodness, you have a Chronomancer with you!" The surprise on Tabby’s face made Alex almost laugh, something that he did not stifle at all.
"What the heck? Are you telling me that by using the power of Chroonmancy, you were able to know the contents of this trial? Th-that should be impossible!" Tabby said as its orange face turned red from indignation. "Even if your ally is a Chronomancer, her power level is not that high to peek the future! She... she just does not have enough Time Essence!"
"Well, that’s the case if my ally is a normal Chronomancer. However, my ally just received a World’s worth of Time Essence. Even if my ally was still a low-level Chronomancer, the amount of Time Essence that she have right now is enough..." Alex said these words in a whisper, with Tabby seemingly rattled by each words that he said.
"Did your ally really see the future? Did she-"
"No, she did not see the entire future. Even with her current power, she cannot do that. However, my ally was able to use a secret technique that allowed her to communicate with her future self." Alex replied confidently. "Of course such technique used up all the Time Essence that my ally had. More specifically, it burned all her Time Essence in a matter of five seconds. Sigh, World’s worth of Time Essence, all gone in a puff of smoke..."
"..."
"Because of that, my ally only had 5 seconds of time to talk to her future self... That time might be limited, but it was sufficient enough for me." At this point, Alex was already looming over Tabby, with the latter struck silent with Alex’s confession.
[Author’s Note: Since all the Time Essence was used up, Alina cannot use this future messaging for the mean time. She had to gather a lot of Time Essence before she can attempt this again...]]]
"What... message did your ally receive?"
"Hmm... what was it again? Oh right, it’s this one: LOCATE ASTRIA’S SOUL AND FIND A WAY TO REVIVE HER. AS LONG AS YOU DO THAT, YOU WILL SUCCEED IN THE TRIAL." Alex mimicked Alina’s lofty voice this time, making the nearby Delia shake her head. "There, that’s what she said."
"Male hooman... how can you think of victory when that was the only message given to you? How... how can reviving this person help you win the trial? Is she a special person that will allow you to circumvent my rules? No, no, no! There’s nobody like that here! All of you are just fodder in front of me!" Tabby the orange cat seemed to be having a breakdown at this point, with its previously calm personality turning savage. Such change made Alex shake his head, as he realized that this cat was no cute cat at all.
This cat was just another power-drunk being, someone who also loves tormenting people.
"Calm down, pussy cat. I never really understood why that message was given to us. But after you told us the trial, I realized that indeed, this message from the future was correct." The confidence in Alex’s eyes began to blaze at this point, making Tabby slowly back away. "As long as we actually revive Astria, my success in your trial was guaranteed!"
"No, you are lying! You are lying! My master did not make this trial just for you to win! He-"
Before Tabby could continue his ravings, which honestly just sounded manic already, Alex began to show the cat a plethora of people, all who were located at different places right now.
"For the loyal person from the Goetic Order Realm, I have Kierra. She has transformed herself into a Goetic Demon at this point, making her a resident of the Goetic Order Realm." Alex said as he showed the insides of his Storage to Tabby. "With your special power, you can see that Kierra is loyal to me, right?"
"Y-yes, she is loyal...
"Heh, one down, three more to go."
"Hmph, so what if that girl is loyal to you? You still lack three! There’s no way that you can-"
"As you can see Tabby, I am the Abyss Envoy. Because of that, a lot of Abyss Monsters are bound to be loyal to me. There’s no need for me to show you a loyal Abyss Monster. Just my status alone is enough to prove that." Alex continued to say as he released his Abyss Energy. "Now, that makes two people, loyal to me, right?"
"Y-yes..."
"Hehehe, as for the Primordial Serpent Realm, there is a lot that I can choose from them. Just look at my companions. They are loyal to me, and they came from the Primordial Serpent Realm." Alex said as he grinned, which showed his blindingly white teeth. "Now Tabby, you can sense that Alina and Queen Mother are both loyal to me.... Do you think I am wrong?"
"N...no. you are not wrong."
"And there you have it. That’s three realms down. Now I only have one Realm left, which is the Holy Order Realm...." Alex let out a sigh as he said these words, as he seemed to be exasperated by this realm.
"Sigh, this realm should have been the most difficult realm for me. After all, I am an Abyss Envoy, which makes every resident from the Holy Order Realm hate me. That’s just how things run."
"Yes, that’s right male hooman! With that tainted aura of yours, there is no way that the Holy Order Realm will ally with you!" Tabby shouted desperately, making the cat sound like a drowning person clutching for straws. "How about that hooman? What do you think now?"
"Sigh, you are right, Tabby. I mean even Delia does not feel any loyalty to me! She was just forced to ally with me because of our necessity... If it weren’t for that, she could have started attacking me since she is the Holy Order Envoy." Alex replied as he shook his head. "As for the angel that I saved, she has no loyalty to me too. She also hates me, and the only reason she’s not attacking me is because of my alliance with Delia..."
"Yes, that’s right, male hooman! Now, what does this mean to you? Hehehe, this means that no resident from the Holy Order Realm loyal to you!" Tabby shouted as it raised its claws triumphantly. "Now, where is that bluster that you are talking? Heh, do you really think that the message from the future will save you-"
"For your information Tabby, Astria, the one mentioned in the future message, is a Celestial Power user. She is someone who expressed interest in me in the past, and she is also a Divine Sensory Organ holder." Alex said calmly. He seemed to be unaffected by Tabby’s taunts, making the cat feel wary and unsure.
"Now, because of certain events, Astria, along with her peers died with the passing time in the Four Moons World. They might have died of old age, but still they are dead. But fortunately for those people, it appeared as if they used some kind of power to preserve their souls..." Alex said as he began pointing his finger at the direction of the Institute.
"Maybe they used this preservation to allow themselves to be revived for the future, or maybe they are just afraid of death. Well, reasons aside, those preserved souls were placed inside that building." Alex continued to say, with his finger pointed at the Institute Building. "Those souls had been kept there for hundreds of years, with nobody touching or moving them. They could have stayed on that state forever, but the future message given to me changed all that."
"..."
"With that future message in hand, I and my allies began to look for the clues about Astria’s existence. Fortunately for us, we found clues about her preserved soul, and we were able to ascertain her location. A lot of things then happened after that, and before you know it, my allies are already there, ready to revive her." Alex said as he dropped his finger.
He then looked at Tabby, who at this point, was frozen as a statue as it stared at the Institute Building. The cat seemed to be at loss for words as it observed the Institute Building, as if it had seen something shocking in there.
"Tabby, with your powers, you can see what is happening inside that building, right? Care to tell me what you see?" Alex said as he let out a mocking laugh. "What does a cat like you see in there? Is it something interesting?"
Tabby could easily not answer Alex’s query, but due to the feelings of shock that it had now, the cat found himself speaking, something that it did not want to do at all.
"I can see a woman...whose body held the powers of the Devourer and the Celestial. Aside from that, I can also see two souls inside that body. Once soul was young,, around mid-20’s. She seems to be the original owner of that body. As for the second soul, I can sense that she’s an ancient soul. She... she’s at least hundreds of years old." Tabby began fidgeting at this point, making his panic much more apparent.
"Male hooman, is that second soul Astria? Is she the Celestial Power user that is meant to be loyal to you?" Tabby asked as it tensed its body. "She... she is..."
"Hehehe, Celestial Power Users are derived from the Holy Order Realm, right? That means that as long as one of them is loyal to me, my requirement for the Holy Order Realm is fulfilled." Alex whispered, with his mouth holding a wide smirk.
"Astria is a Celestial Power user, so she is a bonafide resident of the Holy Order Realm. As for her loyalty to me, there’s no way that it will be low. After all, I am the one who found a way to revive her. Hehehehe, she already likes me before, and with my actions now, there is no doubt that her feelings will be more positive to me." Alex said as he kept his confident smirk. "So, what do you think about it, Tabby? You can already feel Astria’s loyalty to me, right?"
"Y-yes, you big hooman. I can feel Astria’s loyalty to you too..."
"Hahaha! Good! With that, I have already succeeded your trial!" Tabby’s sulking words were covered by Alex’s happy exclamations, making the cat feel more surly at him. "I already have the four people that you want, which means that I have passed your trial! Now, where are my keys?"
"You..."