Realm Lord
Chapter 68: New Land

Chapter 68: New Land

Arthur and Aziel stood staring at what lay before them. The roses ended abruptly, almost like there was an invisible wall stopping them from growing any further. The transition was jarring—a perfect line where the dead petals surrendered to barren earth. It was as if some ancient power had drawn a boundary that even nature dared not cross.

And past these roses now lay a vast field of... nothing. There was no grass, no plants, no trees. Just bare stone-like ground stretching into the distance, cracked and dry like the parched lips of a dying man. The horizon wavered in the heat, creating mirages that danced and shifted with each passing moment. Overhead, the sky seemed different here—paler, as if the very color had been leached from the atmosphere.

But it didn’t matter to them. To be honest, the end of these roses could have led them to hell itself—they were just glad to be rid of that godforsaken field and what lay within it. The memory of what they’d faced among those blooms was still fresh, the wounds both physical and mental still raw and throbbing.

Aziel had a smile on his face as he walked forward and touched down on this new land. His shoulders visibly relaxed as he crossed the boundary, like a man who had been carrying an invisible weight that suddenly lifted. His footsteps echoed against the hard ground, a sharp contrast to the muffled steps among the roses. He walked a couple feet before letting himself fall to his hands and knees and then roll to his back. The hard stone pressed against his spine, but he didn’t seem to mind. It was real. It was different. It was, in its own way, glorious.

"Finally!!!" he exclaimed, his voice echoing across the empty expanse. The word hung in the air, the first sound to disturb this lifeless plain in what felt like eons.

Arthur was a bit surprised by his friend’s excitement. He stood at the boundary line, leaning heavily on his good leg, observing the peculiar joy on Aziel’s face with bewilderment. Blood had dried on his temple, and his body was covered in wounds but despite all that he seemed oddly happy.

"I thought this place was like a paradise to you? You seem quite excited to leave paradise," Arthur said, a smirk growing as he struggled and limped towards his companion. Each step sent shooting pain up his injured leg, but the sight of his friend’s relief was worth the effort.

Aziel’s eyes remained fixed on the colorless sky above. "Yeah, but I was desperate for a change of scenery..." His voice trailed off momentarily as a cloud drifted lazily across their field of vision. "And as much as I don’t really mind our situation, I still want to get back home just like you."

Aziel’s tone got dimmer, making Arthur momentarily halt. The smile vanished from his face as realization dawned on him.

’Crap... I’m so dumb. Of course he wants to get home. I mean, he’s got a family and friends and plenty more reasons to go back than I do,’ Arthur thought, self-reproach washing over him. While he had left behind little of consequence, Aziel had a life—a real one—waiting for his return.

Before Arthur could vocalize an apology, Aziel’s somber expression transformed, replaced by his characteristic mischievous grin. "I mean, home is where all the hot chicks are, you know!"

Arthur’s face drooped unpleasantly at the crude joke, his momentary empathy evaporating. ’I hate him.’ Arthur shook his head and walked onto the cracked stone ground before letting himself fall to his back just like Aziel, wincing as his bruised body protested the impact.

The stone beneath them retained the day’s heat, providing a strange comfort against their battered bodies. Above them, the sky began to shift colors as the day progressed, transforming from pale blue to a deep amber that neither of them had witnessed before. It was beautiful in its alienness.

They both just lay there without speaking for many minutes, each lost in their own thoughts, processing what they’d endured and what might yet lie ahead. The silence wasn’t uncomfortable—it was necessary, a moment to breathe after barely escaping with their lives.

Finally, Aziel broke the silence, his voice softer than before. "We should rest for today... your body needs it... and mine too, I guess." He ran a hand through his dirt-matted hair, grimacing at the tangles. "I don’t exactly know what happened back there, but it seems like through some divine luck that either me or my spear conducted lightning."

He paused, recalling the moment when blinding light had engulfed him, power surging through his veins like liquid fire. "When I got hit with it, I was temporarily put into a sort of overcharge..." He emphasized the next words carefully, "Key word there is temporarily. Once it wore off, I’ve never felt so drained. It’s like there wasn’t a single drop of power left in my core."

Aziel flexed his hand experimentally, watching as the faintest sparkle of energy flickered between his fingers before dying out. "It’s been slowly replenishing since last night, but I need some more time."

Arthur agreed with a heavy nod, wincing as the movement aggravated his headache. "Yeah, let’s take turns resting today and come up with a plan tomorrow." His voice was raspy from thirst, his eyes heavy-lidded with exhaustion.

They didn’t know how safe they were here, but they also knew how stupid it would be if they tried to keep moving today. The barren landscape offered no cover, no protection, but at least there were no immediate threats visible. No roses. No reavers. No reaper.

They needed to rest whether they liked it or not. Both of their cores were too drained to put up much of a fight against anything really, and they both shared their fair share of wounds as well, although Arthur more than Aziel. The bite across Arthur’s thigh had finally stopped bleeding, but the skin around it was hot to the touch—a worrying sign.

And while their wounds and their pain would still be there tomorrow, it would have diminished slightly, and with their realm cores regenerated, they could make do and push themselves. They had survived this far; they would continue to survive.

So for the rest of the day... they did nothing. They first took turns napping before waking up for a meal and some meager sips of water from their nearly depleted supplies. Then they talked a little—about nothing important, about everything important—before once again going back to sleep.

They felt like they could sleep for days, and so that’s pretty much all they did that day and night, their bodies surrendering to the healing embrace of unconsciousness. The silent, barren plain served as their unlikely sanctuary as they recovered, until finally, the light of a new day peeked over the horizon, bringing with it the promise of continued journey—and unknown challenges ahead.

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