Chapter XX: The Birth Of The Celestial Hero (4)

Previously

Elm pondered over the matter before she decided on her answer. Both of the problems could be solved with a quick flash of her power. Literally. And, the bigger the better.

With that, she willed speed into her body before she near-teleported to the place where her parents were, killing a couple flying demons out of the way before landing on an adjacent rooftop. Seeing the looks of surprise on both the people’s faces and the demons, she closed her eyes before imagining a bright flash of light. 

“[Construct],” Elm muttered and heard multiple yelps as the world turned into light. 

Leonard had always been an astute and free man, unshackled and unchained. He remembered his adventurer days, Free-Spirited Leo they called him, ”working for the Association as a Wanderer, exploring the great kingdoms, the high mountains and even going so far as to explore the great dungeons as well! But as he aged along the years and the woman of his dreams caught him, she had finally convinced him to settle down and have a place where he could call home, his exploring days were long over. Many of his friends congratulated him on the marriage, some of them even teased him, saying he wasn’t so free-spirited anymore but a good bonk on the head by his wife shut them up quickly enough.

As a still hot-blooded man, it wasn’t surprising enough that his wife came out pregnant just a few years into their marriage. Hell, he remembered the tears on his face when he heard the news. Oh, he was livid with how he practically ran out of the farm to his wife. But as he listened to his wife’s screams in delivering the baby, he felt fear - something he hadn’t felt since his adventurer days, but this fear wasn’t the type you felt facing against a strong monster - no - this was a fear that was literally beyond his hands. He had heard tales of failed deliverance, of how their child died inside their mother’s womb, of curses and plights and such so it was a great lift to his spirits when the middle-woman came out, congratulating him for the successful birth of their first child. 

He remembered how he thanked the great Hum for blessing him with a beautiful boy, a beautiful son he swore to protect and cherish for the rest of his days. Oh, how elated was he that another child of theirs was born without any complications just a year later -  a daughter. This one however, had eyes that looked like they had seen it all, a flaming will that should only be possessed by the hardest of warriors yet he saw it in his daughter’s golden eyes. Leonard knew then that his daughter was destined to be something greater.

Oh, his beautiful son and strong daughter. He cherished them, thanking the great Human God every night before his sleep to the point his wife wondered if he was going to turn into a devout church member. 

The promise he had given them - to become a father that would protect, cherish and nourish them, at least until they grew strong enough to protect themselves. There were multiple complications that arose due to his children’s opposing perks - how his son was the fairer one and his daughter was the stronger one - but he didn’t mind, still happy with how they grew up to become healthy and strong. 

He promised them. He fucking promised his wife, swore it on his name that he would do everything in his power to protect them. 

“Willow. . .Elm. . .”

Leonard checked up on his wife as they ran amidst the crowd of townsmen led by Father John. There were screams of pain, shrieks from the hellish flames that spiralled around them and creepy chirping from the multiple flying demons above them. Fear - the same fear he felt back when he was pacing around, waiting for his son to be delivered - snaked around his weeping heart like a vicious snake. He held his wife closer to him, hearing how she never stopped muttering their children’s names as she blamed herself for being a bad mother, for leaving them behind, and how she should die to repent for her sins. 

Regret upon regret rolled around in his mind. He should have held tighter onto his boy. He should have secured the perimeter and fortified the defenses. He should have left the moment he sniffed danger. Yet most importantly, he felt guilt and shame.

As a man and father who had made the decision to leave his children behind, he couldn’t find the strength to tell his wife that they were alright, to lie to her that he didn’t have a choice and that it would be suicidal to charge in the crowd of demons to search for their children. 

He had failed then, as a man but foremost, as a father. He had promised them, he had promised himself. His stomach rolled and flipped with guilt, queasy with a mind plight by turmoil. 

A real father would have charged in regardless, be it in the flaming pits of Hell or a lair of dragons - a real father would have done anything to assure his children’s safety, to have the audacity to ignore the world and believe in the non-existent chance that they were somewhere out there, waiting for him to help them.

He should go. His legs needed to move. They might still be alive. His daughter was strong, at the very least she had a strong chance of survival compared to his son. His son was probably hiding somewhere, quivering in fear amongst cannibalistic demons and waiting for his father to come save him. 

Fuck. Tears riveted down his sweaty cheeks, making his current expression even more uglier as he held his woman tighter so that she wouldn’t see the look on his face. 

He was a coward. A pathetic loser. A man who stuck his fingers in his ears in hopes that the thunder might pass soon enough. A promise? Yeah right.

He had failed. If his children somehow turned out to be alright, as a father who left them behind, could he find the shame in him to even talk to them?

His wife’s eyes had turned dull now, losing the once bright light that he had fallen in love with. She had stopped trembling too, going completely rigid like a dead fish. “My babies. . .”

“Defensive Positions!”

Leonard turned to the Humlic priest and his good friend, barking out orders in the front line, fear non-existent in his eyes even in the face of demons. He remembered how he used to make fun of the priest, calling him unmanly with how he kept his chastity and yet compared to him, John was far more of a man than him. Would he be a greater father than him too?

The guards all formed a defensive wall around the townspeople, shielding them with their iron shields blessed with holy water as they moved at a snail’s pace under the protective barrier casted by the priest. The barrier looked flimsy, weak, waning in and out of existence but it was strong enough to make the few low-ranked demons burst into flames as they were exorcised from the mortal realm. But it wouldn’t last forever. In fact, Leonard could clearly see the sweat dripping down John’s face as he gritted his teeth to hold on, at least until they could get into the church.

Leonard’s face turned dark, an empty smile forming onto his face. They were all going to be killed here. What was even the point of leaving behind his children then? Leonard could only let out a wry chuckle. 

This was his punishment. His life wasn’t nearly enough for his sin but if he could be so shameless, perhaps he could ask for forgiveness in Elysium. 

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