Chapter 159 - Regrets

"Maybe I was just being selfish." Adam Rosa faintly said. "But I have said this time and time again, I am blinded by the opportunity to see my mother after two decades." The Reaper's words were truthful, as he had no reason to lie on his deathbed at all anymore. Artorias Khalil said nothing, as he was never in a position that his best friend was in. "Do you remember our supposed plan for her, Adam?" The Basilisk Slayer said with a smile. "Yeah, oddly enough, I do remember your promise back when we were kids, Art. Back when I still did not know my mother was dead…" 

A somber mood once again took hold of the vibe. All the while this was happening, Vale Ashford was observing everything that was happening. If she were to tell the High Council what was currently happening, a bunch of top ranked Slayers and prodigies at that, sitting down with the Reaper himself. But she knew that the great sword's wound was going to be critical for him, there was no chance that Adam Rosa was going to be alive after that. But the Basilisk Slayer was never going to survive it as well. There was something else that Adam Rosa was still withholding from them. He still had not said the fact that his mother turned into an angel and humanoid hybrid right as he walked through the door and found her body..

"I guess there would be no point in letting this secret die with me. When I arrived at our old home, my mother's deceased and rotting body was not the only thing that I found." Adam said. All three of them stared at him, confused as to what else he discovered when he went home that day. "H-Her body…she turned into an Angel." Adam Rosa's words startled them all to the bone. "What do you mean she turned into an Angel?!" Luken exclaimed. "Calm down, Luken, geez." Artorias attempted to make Luken keep his cool, since they were all as confused as he was. "How did she exactly turn into an Angel, Adam? Are you telling us this metaphorically or however do you intend to mean it?" Gavin got up. "No. Her body literally turned from human into an Angel. That was what happened. I buried her quickly, I was afraid of what people or Slayers might say about me if they ever found out about her body, as me myself did not know what the fuck just happened as well."

"Does that mean you are an Angel as well, Adam?" his best friend, Artorias, asked him. "I still have not been told by the Vessel about what I really am. All I know so far is that I am half human and half Angel, that is for certain. The Vessel even revived someone who died the same time as my mother did, someone residing in the Grand City at that." The Reaper muttered. "Are you willing to tell us everything that you know now, Adam? Are you going to aid Niflheim and mankind before we go?" Artorias was keen on making Adam talk and spill everything that he had about the Angels and Seraphims. "Only a bit, Art. I still have my pride as a fighter, and I choose to die on the side that I chose. I choose my mother's Angelic side." He said stubbornly. 

"Would you just cut the shit, Adam? You left us and killed the others, including my sister, you turned your blade against mankind and had fallen so deep down and turned into this creature that you are now. Look at your pitch black wings!" Luken exclaimed. Adam was prepared to hear the words of his angry past disciple, as the Commander was catching his breath, the Reaper was bracing for it, and what the others would say to him. Although he already knew it, he was still bracing for the pain he would feel after hearing it explicitly. "Your pitch black wings could have been the ones carrying mankind into victory, you stupid piece of shit!" Luken blurted out.

"W-What?" Adam asked himself in his thoughts, he was confused and absolutely perplexed. He was expecting Luken to say that he was no longer even human at this point. "You think I still could have been a Slayer with these dark wings of mine?" Adam asked. "Of course, why the hell not?" Gavin replied back. "We could have had some really sick missions together, me flying with Amara and you on the skies above with us. You did not have to go, man."

"For the first time ever since he left Niflheim, I am actually imagining 'what if' scenarios about what would have happened if I did not leave. I have not yet felt remorse or regret for what I did. Until now, that is. Was it right for me to cling to old promises of the past? Or should I have been content with the family I once had?" He said to himself. Adam looked down and seemed like he was remorseful of the past.

"Just because you are some sort of Angel humanoid hybrid, that does not mean you should side with them and this 'Vessel' you kept saying of, Adam. Even if you had told me everything about your lineage, your mother, and every single thing whatsoever, I will never look at you less than that of a human, and my best friend." Artorias was bawling while placing his hand on Adam Rosa's cheek. "I still do not forgive you for what you did to the others and to Luken's sister. But know that I will always be by your side, no matter what." The sight of these two also made Luken and Gavin tear up. Even though hatred was swallowing the two of them up in anger, they still gave in.

"Why are you two giving up?! We can still make it to Niflheim! We can try and heal you two there! After that, I will show you just how strong the Slayer Corps are right now, Adam. I am not a slouch of a Commander, I actually take my job seriously!" Luken Regalia exclaimed out, he was in denial about their inevitable deaths. "Even if we did get to Niflheim, it would be useless, Luken, you know that yourself, your judgment is being clouded by sentimentality. I also do not wish to spend my last dying times on Amara's back trying to get me to safety. You know that already, Commander, I am as good as dead." Artorias said with a confident smile. "You talk a lot for a dead man, brother." Gavin chipped in. 

"You are going to have to take care of mother, Gavin. Please tell me you are going to visit her more than I did, do not let her grow old alone, please, brother, always be there for her." The Basilisk Slayer said to his brother. "I-I promise. I am not like you, of course I will keep on visiting her, dumbass…" The Serpent Summoner responded back.

"Are you two seriously not even going to try and live!? We can still fucking make it, I do not care how long it is going to take, we can all ride Amara back to Niflheim and tell her to hurry the fuck up so we can get you two to the best healers there are!" Luken was still in denial. "Look at me, Luken. Do you think that the High Council and the Emperor would even allow you and the others to operate as Slayers and not lock you up in a dungeon for insubordination? You were not even supposed to let me live this long, after Art stabbed me in the stomach, you two should not have hesitated in finishing me off, you could have hacked my head off of my shoulders so cleanly. But you did not, how do you think that would go for your reputation and actions as the Commander of the whole Slayer Corps? Think, Luken." Adam Rosa said as he shook his head.

"Adam is right, Luken, there is nothing we can do for now but to let them slowly go into the afterlife right here. It is not such a bad way to go, to be surrounded by family and friends, isn't it, Adam?" The Serpent Summoner asked his former mentor. "Yeah. It really is not, Gavin. I am glad you grew up to be the mature one, Luken would not survive this long if not for your constant nagging and high mental capabilities. You will become a fantastic Slayer in your tenure, that much I am sure of." The Reaper said to him.

Vale Ashford noticed a that Ignis and the others were sprinting towards their location. She thought that if they were to ever see what was going on right now, someone would tattle and tell the High Council, and in turn, the Emperor. It might jeopardize everything, mostly the Commander's reputation and even the Six Blades' loyalty itself.