The Beginning After The End novel Chapter 9

"W-What are you?" I managed to stammer out.

Despite having lived two lives, what my eyes saw, my brain refused to believe. A monster, for a lack of a better word, which easily towered over ten meters high, was seated cross-legged, on a crudely carved throne of jagged stone with an arm lazily supporting its head. With petrifying red eyes that gazed down at me, while menacing, carried an oddly tranquil quality. Two massive horns protruded out the of sides of its head, arched down and around it’s skull, curving up to a point near the front, reminding me of something almost akin to a crown. It had a mouth with two fangs peeking out of its lips and while its body was adorned in a sleek black armor that had neither decorations nor embellishments, it still glowed with the quality of a priceless treasure.

Reiterating the fact that I was once a king, still, this being that stood before me now made me embarrassed of even having the nerve to call myself one. No, the one sitting on that giant throne was a being that would make even the most unfaithful heretics bow down in submission.

Yet here it was, in all of its glory... with its head resting on its arm, while its other hand nonchalantly scratched its nose.

What I had failed to notice until now, though, because of the dim lighting in the cave and its body being completely black, was that this being had a gaping hole in the side of it’s chest, blood continuously oozing out.

"We finally meet," it repeated with a lazy half smile that revealed a row of pointed teeth.

I tried getting up, but failed halfway and end up back on my butt, my face still slack from the shock of what my eyes were seeing.

"Bugs will fly into your mouth if you keep it open that wide."

Great. At least it has a sense of humor.

"As for what I am, I won’t say anything more than what you can see from looking," the horned humanoid monster said with its eyes seeming to gaze straight through me.

"..."

"It is going to take to a while for me to open a dimensional rift that will transport you to your house, so until then, just be patient and wait here. There are special roots that grow here. You will be able to live off those until I finish," it sighed.

That’s right. That’s what I was here to do. I managed to regain a bit of my composure and I stood up, walking a little closer to the being.

Giving a courteous bow, I replied, "Thank you for everything you’ve done for me and what you will do. If there is any way I can repay you, I will do for you whatever is in my power." _{freewёbnoνel.com}

"Such good manners for a child. Do not worry; I am expecting neither a favor nor your gratitude. I am simply doing this for my own amusement. Come! Sit here closer to me and keep me company. I haven’t talked to anyone in a while," the being laughed, patting an area of its throne for me to sit on.

I climbed up the platform rather awkwardly, forgetting to use mana to just jump up, and I propped myself on the throne next to the being.

"Uhh... excuse me for being rude, but you don’t exactly look like a lady. How should I exactly address you as?" I said, making eye contact with the being.

"You’re right. I don’t exactly look like a lady, now do I? I wonder why I said that. My name is Sylvia," she replied, letting out a soft chuckle.

This giant demon lord-like monster looked like anything but a Sylvia to me, but I chose to keep that to myself.

"Elder Sylvia, do you mind if I ask a few questions?"

"Go ahead young one, although I may not be able to answer everything."

I immediately rattled off all of the questions that had been on my mind ever since waking up and after meeting Sylvia. "Where is this place? Why were you here all alone? Where did you come from? Why do you have that huge wound? ... Why did you save me?

She patiently waited for me to finish before replying.

"You must have had a lot on your mind. The first question is easy to answer. This place is a narrow zone that is between the Beast Glades and the Forest of Elshire. No one knows of this place because I’ve been warding off anyone who came close, although the cases are rare in the first place. You, young child, are the first to enter into this domain," she easily explained.

"Please call me Art! My name is Arthur Leywin but everyone calls me Art! You can too!" I blurted out before shutting my mouth with my hands, confused as to why I was acting like an excited child.

"Kukuku... Very well child, I will call you Art!" Her red eyes glazed, looking afar while answering my next questions.

"Continuing on to your second question. I am here alone simply because I have no one left to be with. While I do not think telling you everything would be wise, I will tell you that I have many enemies that desperately wish for something that I have; my last battle with my enemies left this wound. As for where I come from... very far away, haha."

There was a moment of pause before Sylvia continued on, this time her eyes looking straight at me, almost studying me.

"As for why I saved you... even I do not fully know the answer to that question. Perhaps I have been alone for far too long and I simply wished to have someone to talk to. I first noticed you when your party was engaged in battle with the bandits. When you fell off the cliff to save your mother, I felt compelled to save you, thinking it was a waste for such a good child to die. You are very brave. It is rare for even an adult to be able to do that."

I shook my head. "I was scared too and I didn’t have much of an option. I just wanted to save my mother and my baby sibling inside her." I didn’t know if it was from the gentle way she talked or because of how big and powerful she seems but in front of her, I seemed to turn into a child. No, I was a child in front of her.

"I see... Your mother was pregnant. You must miss them dearly. Rest assured, your family and party are safe. As for where they have gone, my sight cannot reach far enough to tell anymore."

"..."

A wave of relief washed over me as I had to do my utmost to keep tears from falling.

I see, they’re safe. This new life brought about emotions I had thought never experienced in my previous life.

"Thank God. Th-they’re alive...they’re okay..." I let out sniffle.

Sylvia’s giant hand reached down as she softly patted my head with a finger.

The day passed by with me conversing with Sylvia, picking up some roots in between to eat that looked and tasted very similar to potatoes but were black in color.

We talked about all sorts of things to pass the time as she prepared to open a portal. At one point, she asked me how I was able to use mana so well at my age.

"I was under the impression that amongst humans, the earliest mage to have awakened so far was the age of ten, and even then, because the child couldn’t grasp how to use it, there was very little he could do with it. Yet, not only have you already formed your mana core, but, by the way you use your mana, you seem to be more efficient than a lot of full-fledged mages."

I just shrugged, feeling oddly proud by her compliment. "My parents said I was a genius or something. I can read really well and I get what the pictures and words in the books are saying."

A few more days trickled by as Sylvia continued preparing the portal.

In a regretful tone, she explained one day, "The spell will take some time in order for it to be completely safe. I do not wish for you to land in a destination you are not familiar with. Even one inconsistency can lead to you being transported a couple hundred meters off the ground. Please be patient; you will be able to see your loved ones soon."

I nodded and said that as long as I knew they’re alive, I was fine with waiting. It beat trying to climb back up the edge of the mountain.

These past couple of days, while I trained my mana core and chatted with Sylvia, I noticed a few things.

Sylvia really made me think of the cliché, "Don’t judge a book by its cover." Contrary her intimidating appearance, she was kind, gentle, patient, and warm. She reminded me of my mother, in the way that they both scolded me while being tender when I did something wrong. I mentioned how the mage that I fought, as well as the other bandits, deserved worse deaths than they had when she suddenly flicked my forehead..

Even though she was gentle, a flick of a finger from someone over 10 meters high was nothing to make light of. I was sent tumbling on the ground before angrily spouting, "What was that for?"

Picking me up and setting me on her armored knee, she said in a soft but pained tone, "Art. Perhaps you are not wrong in that those bandits did deserve death; even I chose not to save that mage you fell with for the same reasons. However, do not let your heart be clouded with continuous thoughts of hatred and the sort. Continue on proudly with your life and gain the strength to protect your loved ones from harm. Along the way, you will come to face situations like before, maybe even worse, but don’t let the grief and rage corrode your heart but move on and learn to better yourself from those experiences so it won’t happen again."

I blinked, a bit stunned by the fact that I was being lectured on morals by someone that looked like the epitome of evil herself. Strangely, it stuck to me as I just responded with a blank nod.

Another thing I noticed was that her wound seemed to be getting bigger. At first, I found it somewhat odd that she could still be alive with a gaping hole on the side of her chest, but I grew numbed to it. That is... until a couple days ago, I noticed the wound seemed to be bleeding a more profusely. Sylvia tried to hide it at first with her hand, but it was growing more and more obvious.