"Elio, what are you doing here?" Lena turned upon sensing his presence. "Is everything alright? You look..."
"I need you to keep something for Lucien," he interrupted, transferring the cores from his book.
There was no time for lengthy explanations.
Lena studied him with that look that always seemed to see beyond his words, but took the cores without asking further questions.
Fortunately, the daily challenge cores could be extracted in their condensed forms.
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His siblings, alerted by his voice, ran to greet him.
Little Rian clung to his legs while the others surrounded him with their characteristic energy. For a moment, Elio allowed himself to embrace them, memorizing each face.
"I have to go," he announced, gently separating himself from Rian's grip.
"So soon?" one of his sisters asked, disappointment palpable.
Elio nodded, consciously avoiding his mother's inquisitive gaze. The decision was made; doubts had no place.
"Take care," was his only farewell before turning around.
"Wait." Lena's voice stopped Elio before he crossed the doorway. "You're going to do something stupid, aren't you?"
Elio stood motionless, his hand still on the doorframe. There was no point denying it, not with her.
"Will you stop me?"
"I can't," Lena responded softly, though her words carried the weight of years of wisdom. "I've never been able to stop any of the stubborn men in this family. But I need you to understand something."
She approached him, her eyes seeking her son's. The little ones had gone strangely still, sensing the tension in the air.
"I'll be proud of your heroic acts, son. It doesn't matter if they're bloody, it doesn't matter if they're 'ugly'. But vengeance..." she paused, carefully choosing her next words. "Vengeance is different."
"Mother..."
"If someone hurts you, the guilt is on that person and you can make them pay. But justice and vengeance aren't the same." Her eyes softened. "The only difference between them is selfishness... but it's a huge difference, because it affects the way we seek the payment."
Elio lowered his gaze, his mother's words penetrating deeper than he'd like to admit.
"I won't stop you," she continued. "But I can feel it, son. What you're about to do is dangerous and... it's not for justice. It's for your own selfishness."
Silence stretched between them, heavy with unspoken truths and decisions already made.
"Forgive me, mother," Elio finally whispered, his voice barely audible. "This time... this time I can't go against my selfishness."
The words hung in the air, leaving behind a mother who understood too well the price of decisions driven by heart instead of reason.
"At least promise me this won't kill you," Lena's voice reached him one last time as he turned to leave. "And come back to us, no matter what. Because even if I'm not proud of what you will do... you'll always be my son."
Something loosened in Elio's chest as he walked away.
His mother's support-non-support was exactly what he needed: understanding without absolution, love without approval.
'It's okay to be selfish sometimes, isn't it?' he thought. 'Just this once...' And she would still love him, even knowing he had chosen vengeance over justice.
The payment for that love would be his triumphant return.
♢♢♢♢
In a quiet place of the building, Elio stopped.
It was time for other goodbyes.
Rock Elephant
Frost Penguin
Spark Eel
Gale Roseline-Shark
Corrosive Glaucus
Ferrous Turtle (0/100,000,000,000)
1st Fusion (+90) (New)
Emblems:
Wind
Level 10
Mana: 95/100
Resistance: 100/100 (+1000) x(Life Emblem) (2200)
Stamina: 20/20
Attack: 10 (15) x(Attack Emblem) (30)
Magic Damage: 10 (+10)(+90) / (110) x(Power Emblem)(220)
Strength: 10 A
Defense: 10 (20) x(Wall Emblem)(40)
Magic Defense: 10 (+5)(+10) / (25) x(Barrier Emblem) (50)
Speed: 10
Perception / Agility: 2 A
Superior Mana Spear / Attack 5 (130/130)
Superior Mana Dagger x10 / Attack 5 ⟮8x(130/130)⟯ ⟮2x(100/130)⟯
Superior Elemental Resistance Cloak / Magic Defense 5
System's Armor 10 / ((Defense 10) (Magic Defense 10) (Magic Damage 10) (Resistance(900/900))
Portable oral oxygen stone
Balance: 100 mana points
"Two hundred and twenty," Elio murmured, feeling the power flow through him.
The flying salamander rose in the air, describing graceful circles around its summoner. There was something familiar in its movements, echoes of Ember and Gust that made Elio's heart clench.
When the creature curled against him, the comforting warmth was the same that had consoled him so many times before.
But there was more.
The control over oxygen and helium had transformed into something deeper, more intimate. They were no longer powers he manipulated; they were extensions of his own being, as natural as breathing.
Elio flexed his fingers, feeling the power flow through them. It was time to end this. It was time to find the Artromus and make it pay for Micah's life.
With interest.