Chapter 110 - 109

Chapter 110: Chapter 109 Chapter 109:

The feast was a success. Everyone was celebrating, drinking, dancing, and enjoying the good times. Noboru was among them, smiling and laughing with his friends, the Earth God and the Three Dukes. But something felt off, as though the atmosphere had shifted. He scanned the room, trying to pinpoint what was wrong. His eyes landed on Theodore, the Duke of the West, who was staring at him with an unreadable expression. Noboru's eyes widened as he sensed Omni Energy radiating from the Duke—something people of this Kingdom or World should not possess. Suddenly, Theodore's hand glowed gold, and a beam of energy shot toward Earth God George.

Noboru's eyes glowed with a fiery golden light, and he swiftly turned the attack into an illusion, causing it to pass harmlessly through Earth God George and the entire party. His eyes widened further in shock.

"What is the meaning of this, Theodore?" Earth God George roared.

"That's not Theodore," Noboru announced, his voice loud enough for everyone to hear.

"What do you mean, Viscount Chikaru?" the Three Dukes and Earth God asked in unison.

"He's not real. It's someone I know well, an enemy of mine called Hikari, using illusions to look like him," Noboru explained.

"Such a spoil-sport, aren't you, Abomination?" Hikari sneered.

"Hikari..." Noboru growled, his tone filled with hostility. Sёarch* The NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

"No matter. I'm here for you anyway," Hikari said as the Three Dukes, Earth God, and their guards surrounded the golden-haired man.

"How dare you enter this place? How dare you kill my brother?" Earth God George snarled.

"You should be thanking me. He wanted me to kill you and your brother so he could seize control of all the Terravale Quadrants, take your position, and add every woman from Terravale and the other Elemental Kingdoms to his harem," Hikari said with a smug smile.

"He may have been a hopeless, scheming pervert, but he was still our brother!" Duke Charles of the South shouted.

"I agree! Who the hell are you? I'll kill you!" Duke Alexander, the Duke of the East, yelled.

"You really are an idiot," Hikari scoffed.

"Shut up and fight!" Duke Alister, the Duke of the North, demanded.

"Fools. Why would I bother fighting weaklings like you? You're no match for me," Hikari said as he released his presence. Instantly, Earth God George, the Three Dukes, Layla, Emiko, Yumeko, Sky, Fire General Kai, and every being from all the Kingdoms collapsed to the ground—everyone except Noboru.

"Pathetic. All of you," Hikari mocked. "But then again, what should I expect from the allies of the Abomination?"

"Abomination? Noboru-kun is no Abomination! You're the one who looks like a sick, noble perverted rapist!" Layla shouted, making Hikari clench his fists.

"You dare—" Hikari began, but Emiko interrupted.

"Yeah! Noboru-kun is no abomination. Have you seen him? Black hair, red eyes—unlike your arrogant golden hair and dickhead look, golden eyes," Emiko spat.

"You—" Hikari tried again.

"Shut up!" Yumeko yelled.

"No, YOU shut up! You dare speak to me, Hikari, Son of Light, like that?" Hikari snapped.

"Don't you ever insult Noboru-kun like that again!" Yumeko shot back.

"I will speak about the Abomination however I want, mortal," Hikari sneered.

"He's no Abomination!" Layla and Emiko shouted in unison.

"I've had enough! Shut your mouths, you filthy lower lifeforms. I'm done wasting time. It's time to end this Abomination. You have something I need—the Relics of the Hero. If you hand them over, I'll let the others live. Refuse, and you'll watch all your precious allies die," Hikari said with an evil grin as the realization hit everyone in the room. Noboru hadn't told them he'd been collecting the Relics.

"Noboru-kun?" Layla asked, her voice trembling.

"You have the Relics?" Sky asked, though it sounded more like a statement.

"N-N-Noboru?" Yumeko stammered.

"What is the meaning of this? The Bravehart Shield went missing, and you took it?" Fire General Kai demanded.

"Noboru-kun, you found the missing Gaia's Armor?" Emiko asked, her eyes wide.

"Yes, I did. I have the Relics," Noboru admitted, his expression serious.

"Noboru-kun..." Layla, Emiko, and Yumeko cried in unison.

"Now, Abomination, give me the Relics, or your friends will suffer," Hikari threatened, his hands glowing gold.

Noboru gritted his teeth. "I will kill you before you lay a hand on any of them. But if you leave now, I won't hurt you. Know this: if you return, you won't be allowed to live."

"No deal. I've come for the Relics, and I'll take them," Hikari declared, pointing toward Layla, Emiko, Yumeko, Fire General Kai, and the Dukes. "Now, hand them over. You may have grown stronger, but you're not at my level. And your precious demon whore Ayame isn't here to save you."

"Don't you dare insult Ayame! She is no whore. I will never forgive you for insulting her," Noboru said coldly.

"Noboru, Noboru-kun..." Yumeko, Layla, and Emiko whispered, fear creeping into their voices as Hikari's hand began to glow.

"Don't you dare touch them!" Noboru's voice was deep and menacing as he raised his hand.

"Your threats are meaningless. You cannot defeat me, and even if you did, my father would annihilate you. Now, choose: your friends' lives or the Relics," Hikari said.

"Fine. I'll give you the Relics, but I want an oath that you won't harm them—ever," Noboru demanded, shocking the girls.

"Noboru... Noboru-kun..." Layla, Emiko, and Yumeko whispered, disbelief on their faces.

"Deal. Bring me the Relics, and I will release them," Hikari said with a sinister grin.

"First, the oath," Noboru insisted.

"I, Hikari, Son of Light, swear not to harm or kill the women known as Layla, Emiko, Yumeko, and the men known as Fire General Kai and Sky in exchange for the four Relics. Should I break this oath, my power will be drained, and my life force extinguished," Hikari recited, his body glowing gold.

"Good," Noboru said with a sigh, realizing he'd have to complete this world's story the old-fashioned way. He pulled Gaia's Armor, Poseidon's Trident, the Bravehart Shield, and Excalibur from his pocket dimension—four Relics of the Hero.

"Noboru-kun, no, please!" Layla cried, seeing her ancestral weapon, Excalibur. She was surprised Noboru could even lift it.

"Noboru, don't you dare give him Ignarock's Relic!" Fire General Kai shouted.

"Noboru, you can't!" Sky yelled.

"We aren't worth it!" Yumeko cried.

"He... He found the Great Hero's Armor, Gaia's Armor, and he's giving it away to keep me... us safe," Emiko whispered, blushing.

"Here. Take them and leave. Now," Noboru said coldly, ignoring his friends' pleas. 'This is why Grandpa Haruki taught me not to get too attached in combat trial worlds. In case I have to risk my progress because an enemy threatens the bonds I've made along the way. But Yumeko, Sky, Layla, Kai, Emiko—they are worth it. I'm sorry, everyone. Don't worry. We will win, but for now, we must take a temporary loss and let Hikari think he's won,' Noboru thought.

"Gladly, but first, I will kill everyone except those I promised to spare," Hikari said, his fist glowing gold.

"I won't let you!" Noboru shouted as he lunged at Hikari, throwing a punch, but Hikari dodged effortlessly.

'He's fast. How? How did the Abomination achieve such immense strength in such a short time? He could barely scratch my base form with limiters last time. Now he's a match for me. No matter—I'll just kill the others,' Hikari thought as he fired a golden beam toward Terravale.

Noboru's eyes glowed, and he used All Illusion Level 1, turning the attack into an illusion so it passed harmlessly through Terravale. But, before he could react, Hikari fired another beam—this time faster than even time itself—striking Terravale's core. Noboru formed a barrier around Yumeko, Sky, Layla, Emiko, and Fire General Kai. As they watched, the rest of Terravale was caught in a massive explosion.

"Father, Mother, Brother—Nooooo!" Emiko screamed.

"Duke Alexander, Duke Charles, Duke Alister—No!" Yumeko cried.

"I'm sorry. This is all my fault. I should have saved them," Noboru said, tears forming in his eyes.

"How can you possibly blame yourself?" Layla snapped, her voice trembling with anger. "This isn't your fault! You can bring them back, right? You can warp reality, manipulate time—even reverse this!"

"I... I can't," Noboru said softly, his voice breaking. "I can't sense their concepts, or even Terravale's. It's as if the very idea behind its existence was erased. I haven't mastered conceptual manipulation to that degree yet."

He hugged Emiko tightly as she sobbed into his chest, her grief overwhelming her.

"Damn him. Damn that bastard!" Yumeko cursed, holding Layla and Sky as they mourned their fallen friends and family.

"I will kill him," Layla swore, her voice filled with venom.

"I'm with you. That man took our friends—he took everything," Sky added, her eyes blazing with determination.

"You won't be alone," Noboru said, his voice steady but filled with pain. "I will fight too. He killed so many innocent people, and he will pay for this." He looked down at Emiko, her face streaked with tears. "Emiko, I swear to you. We will make him pay. He won't get away with this."

"Thank you, Noboru," Emiko whispered, her voice barely audible through her tears.

"I know this is hard, but we have to leave now," Noboru said, his expression turning serious. "We need to head to Chronolux. Unlike Hikari who needs to go to Etheris to imbue the Relics with special powers by absorbing the realm into them then after that, need head to the center of Chronolux, where Hikari and the Disciples of Darkness need to go in order to free Void Queen Yami. Hikari will have to stop at Etheris. We can go directly to Chronolux, we can intercept him before he jabs the imbued Relics into the Heart. It's the only way."

Layla, Yumeko, Sky, and Emiko all nodded, their faces hardening with resolve.

"Right," Yumeko said, her voice clear despite the tears in her eyes.

Noboru turned to Fire General Kai, locking eyes with him. "Kai, I know you don't trust me after finding out I took the Bravehart Shield and gave it away, but I need you to trust me now."

Kai was silent for a long moment, his expression unreadable. "I may not trust you, Noboru, but the world is in danger. Make no mistake—if your plan fails, and the world falls, I will personally hunt you down and kill you. But I believe in the stories of the Hero, and right now, my instincts are telling me you won't fail. So, I'll help."

"Good," Noboru said with a nod, "Let's get the hell out of here. To Chronolux."

The five of them stood together, their eyes filled with a mix of determination and sorrow.

"Let's go," they all said in unison.

As they prepared to leave, Noboru turned back toward where Terravale was, his heart heavy with the weight of his failure. His fists clenched in anger.

"Just you wait, Hikari. For making Emiko cry, for threatening everyone, and for destroying Terravale—you will pay," Noboru swore, his voice thick with rage..