THAT DAY I BECAME A STAR

Dammit, how could I not see it coming even though Cissa warned me?!! I always knew that I had shitty parents so I should have been ready for her to do something like that.

"How stupid." 

"I do not think your mother has anything to do with this." 

I am in the inner soul with Cissa. Now that I have awakened. The inner soul has changed into back into a forest. But compared to before, it seems even more vast and there are way more colors to it now. The house where I stayed with Selene and Excafol is still there as well. 

"If she hasn't then what was it?" 

"You should wake up first." 

"Why?" 

"There are beasts coming." 

"Beasts?" 

I leave the inner soul and when I open my eyes in the real world, I am back. Those black trees and leaves that could instantly bring you to the edge, that darkened ground... This is the place that I was forbidden from remembering for a long time. 

"The forest of the betrayer?" Why? What happened after Rebecca stabbed me. 

"Grrr…" Well, I will think about it later. It seems some undisciplined ones want to die early. 

I stand up to face the horde of oversized gragoras in from of me but then I notice Rebecca's body next to me.

"Wait, why?" Why is she here as well? This is suspicious. This is highly suspicious. But it's a good thing for me. I can kill you right here and now. You have tried to kill me before so this will be the rightful payback. I have been itching to do just that for a long time. Now, I can finally let it all out on you. Then it will doggy's turn. 

"Graaa!!!" 

The gragoras attack right when I invoke Raizen. Oh well, Rebecca will have to wait then. I send bullets on those upfronts then start cutting through them as they come. There were seventeen of them before but I think there is something hiding there, among the leaves. 

"Sigh…If only K'nor was here." 

Those gragoras have the same size as K'nor but I am sure he would be able to defeat them. At least two or three of them alone. I wonder what he is doing right now. Willhem went back to the camp so he should take care of him while I am here. I will stock on those gragoras' meat while I am here. It should be a wonderful gift for him. 

"Hiss…" Swiftly, a sound reveals a presence in the trees. Then, something flies to me with high speed while I was cutting a gragora's head. I dodge by shifting my head to the side then catch the thing. 

"A tongue?" What I grabbed is a long purple tongue with multiples small thorns at the tip. What is this thing? Whatever launched this is trying his best to get it back by pulling but it is no use. "Fireball."

"Hiss!!!" 

I burn it and a long snake falls from the trees. Ah, so it was a mangradora. That was what hit Tatiana back then? I guess it must really hurt bad then.

"Graa!!" 

Another gragora jumps past me and goes to Rebecca. You prefer to eat that traitor's meat instead. Well, do as you wish.

"You will let them kill her?" 

"She tried to kill me first, Cissa. Remember?" I haven't even checked the wound she gave me since it doesn't hurt but it is no reason. 

"Save her."

"No, Cissa. I won't." 

"Sigh…" My hand moves by itself and bullets are fired at the gragora. The explosion resounds with great intensity and only its head flies off from the smoke created. 

"So you can control my body as well now." 

"Not too much, though." 

"I see. And why do you want her to live?" 

"The goddess used her earlier to kill you." 

"The goddess?" That voice was the goddess? If it is the case, it would explain why it sounded so different. "How can you be sure it was the goddess?" 

"I felt her presence. That's why I told you to stay on your guard." 

"You could have told me that it was her then." 

"I would have if I could. I don't know what happened as well." 

"Anyway, what you mean is that she is the goddess right now, right?" 

"Not exactly." Without warning, a new voice resounds in my head. That voice.

"Maria?" That voice sounded a lot like Farner. Well, it is true that they are all sisters. I look around while killing some other gragoras but I don't see her anywhere.

"Bring her to the tower. We will talk once you are there." 

Tch. Why does everyone want to save you now of all times? I go to Rebecca and carry her while shooting bullets at the gragoras. Wait, why would I run around those trees for nothing. If I remember correctly, the more you go towards the tower, the less space there will be between trees. I am not in the mood for that. 

"Sorry, guys but you have to all die." 

"Graaa!!!!!" 

I use draconic energy then launch a roar. The gragoras that were about to attack from the front disappear in the blast together with the trees. A huge smoke cloud is created because of it so I launch a wind ball after that to clear it. When it dissipates, the path is all clear and the tower appears in front of me. It's good that I got it right. I wasn't too sure if the tower was in this direction or not. 

I follow my created path and unsurprisingly enough, none of the gragoras that were still alive attack me. They have learned the lesson after all. Though I should ask Maria and N'donkeu why or how they got here. 

As I touch the ground around the tower, the vivid memories of what happened here comes back uncontrollably. Tatiana's smiling face as I was stabbing her is especially imprinted in me. Did she know? Did she already guessed at the time that she would be revived? Because I don't really see any other reason for her to smile that time. Especially when she herself asked me to finish her off. 

I walk around the tower and when I find the entrance, nothing has changed. The raizen of that time is still there, the entrance is still blocked…

"And you still look just like your sisters, Maria." 

The ghost of the hero Maria Saint Axelandria is standing before me. She is Farner's copy to the millimeter. Or maybe Farner is her cope since she is older?

"Welcome back, Kevin."