Dreambreaker

Chapter 111: Last peaceful days

Third person's POV:

Butterflies can be seen flying by the window, their wings fluttering as they passed the small tub of Indian jasmine placed delicately on the wooden table.

To its left, an antique radio played a classic tune, filling the room with its olden vibes—

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??????? ?? ???????? ??'?? ????????-?

The sunlight streamed through the window, casting a radiance — it graced the room and its furnishings.

Finally, the light fell on a particular figure.

The sunrays danced on the man's glistening, moonlit skin, accentuating the contours of his bare torso and revealing his beautifully sculpted physique.

Oddly enough, he was donned in a pair of black pants and socks while doing push-ups on the floor.

Though it was a strange combination, it somehow just made the scene more pulchritudinous.

"8578... 8579... 8580—huff!"— Noah counted his final reps before rising from the floor and exhaling a deep breath.

Knock! Knock!— The maid who stood in a momentary daze by the open doors finally knocked.

A golden plate was clutched in her hands.

She was beautiful and carried herself gracefully. But if looked closely, one would see her flushed cheeks and those slightly trembling eyes.

She looked at Noah with a stutter, barely getting her words out, "M-Madam Seraphina sent these."

Noah approached her with a soft smile. "Thank you Lylia", he spoke before reaching out to take the three rectangular cards on the tray.

Unbeknownst to Lylia, the young maid, a rosy hue spread across her cheeks as she realized that this young man had remembered her name.

Little did she know that Noah had a photographic memory, and he remembered every person he met in the manor without intent.

"You may leave Lylia"—Noah said flashing a smile and Lylia bowed before leaving.

As she left, a look that could be said to be almost too ordinary and calm, returned to Noah's eyes.

It was a look of disinterest.

It wasn't that he looked down on Lylia or anything—he just couldn't find a single spark of interest.

Shaking his head, he glanced at the cards in his hand.

After quickly scanning the contents, he couldn't help but mutter through gritted teeth, "Man, I hate that old hag."

***

Noah's POV:

Stretching my palm out towards Seraphina, I summoned, "Inferno blast."

Simultaneously, a scorching jet of plasma shot towards Seraphina—its power amplified by my deep-seated hatred for her.

But before it could evaporate her into smoke, an invisible mana barrier—her scutum—was deployed.

The scarlet carmine of the fumic laser instantly dissipated, and threads of embers flew haywire.

-"Oh!"—Clap!—Clap!—Clap!

Ophelia's applause came in a series of rapid claps as she 'ohd' my efforts while enjoying the show.

"You've improved," Seraphina remarked, her velvety voice entering my ears. "Before, all you could do was toss a few fireballs, but now, in just four days, you've managed to summon blazing jets. Bravo."

In the past, I would have been flattered by such praises, but over the course of this week, I've come to realize that Seraphina was not the person I thought she was.

She wasn't the kind-hearted mentor I once naively believed.

It turned out she was a demon, whose sole desire was to torture me.

Day in and day out, she pushed me mercilessly, treating me like a lifeless machine, my weary body already on the brink of collapse.

With clenched teeth and concealed emotions, I forced myself to reply, my voice filled with false cheer, "Thank you, master! I owe all my progress to your unwavering support and guidance!"

'One day, I will beat your ass. I promise. '

.

.

.

I plopped myself down on the green grass of the training range.

One knee tucked close to my chest, I rested my arms on it, while the other leg stretched out, reaching towards the sinking sun in the distant horizon.

As a gentle gust of wind brushed against my face, my hair, noticeably longer after all this time, eagerly danced in ecstatic delight.

Its been a week, and in these past few days, I kept continuous tabs with Nathan.

The plan to search for a team of Game Developers, UX/UI Designers and all that was finally set in motion.

Other part of my plan was to search for a team of Aerospace Engineers and Dwarven engineers.

Also, I needed a supply marketing chain and probably some underworld connections as well.

After discussing many other matters, including the mana tampering program, I finally talked to him about what has been on my mind for a while.

When I originally 'persuaded' Nathan to make an unbreakable oath with me, one of the terms in the pact was for me to save his mother.

Even though at that time he wasn't sure how a teenage nobody like me could possibly save his mother, he succumbed to the mounting pressure and agreed.

But after witnessing my actions over the course of several months, a glimmer of hope must have emerged within him.

Perhaps, just maybe, I possessed the ability to save his mother, much like I had saved Svetlana.

In addition to the generous monthly compensation, which serves as his primary motivation for working alongside me, there exists another driving force behind his allegiance.

It is the unwavering hope that I can save his mother from the perils of mana contamination.

If my intuition serves me right, when I save his mother, he will not only be indebted to me out of fear or monetary rewards or unbreakable oath, but he will pledge his loyalty to me from the depths of his being.

"Haa," I sighed, my mind burdened by yet another matter demanding my attention.

'I need a damn spy... an assassin, someone who can clean my mess. But who?'

Lost in thought, a solitary white feather materialized out of nowhere, whimsically twirling through the air until it finally landed right in front of me.

'Ah right...there's her.'

She possessed the perfect qualities to be an exceptional spy and an assassin.

"Ketsueki..."

Man, I'm not entirely sure if having her work under me is a good move or not...

I mean, she is an absolute badass assassin of laboratory 1817.

Having someone as fiercely loyal as her can't be a bad thing, right?

But, I don't really know what kind of person she is beyond those snippets from my own novel.

And here I am, realizing that the number of people working for me is growing at an alarming rate.

First, there's Nathan Rivers, with all his connections in Dyrne Alley.

Then, there's Alice Bailey and her crew.

Also, Edward Wilson, and oh, Leo Dostoevsky and his squad too.

Maybe I should establish an organization at this point?

Lol, what will even be the name? Illuminatis?

Nah, that's too damn cliché.

I tilted my head back and caught sight of Svetlana going head-to-head with not one, not two, but ten magic knights.

When I first met Svetlana, I thought she'd be weak.

I mean, the girl had been sick for most of her life. But damn, was I wrong.

A Darkthorn is still a Darkthorn, I guess?

Honestly, she's hands down the strongest girl I know, especially for her age.

She could probably give the main cast a run for their money?

Speaking of the main cast, it reminds me of something else that's been bugging me.

Liam took off this week to spill the beans about me at the Arcanum Blades Academy.

Thankfully, I managed to persuade Seraphina to keep my identity as her student under wraps.

So, while the headmaster at Arcanum might be in the loop, the rest of them at the academy won't have a clue why I got special privileges.

The International Cadets Tournament (ICT) finally came to a end, and Gavisti Ashwath won.

And now, they're gonna start adding teleportation gates 'cause Arcanum's about to become a worldwide sensation. Plus, the main cast is gonna be famous as hell.

The Demon invasion is also set to happen in not so distant future.

Ah...too many things are happening at once.

But I just need to focus on growing stronger.

This moment of calm and peace...it will soon be replaced by a storm of blood and gore.

And, I need to be prepared for it.

As if the universe agreed with my resolve, the air crackled and the tenth magic knight who was sparring against Svetlana crashed to the floor.

Svetlana made her way over to Seraphina, and the mother-daughter duo started chit-chatting away.

Out of nowhere, Svetlana glanced in my direction and waved her hand.

I couldn't help but smile and wave right back at her.

But, as I sat there observing the mother and daughter bonding so joyfully together...

My hand lost its strength and dropped to the cold, earth.

The smile on my face faded away, and my gaze tilted upward, as if longing for something beyond reach.

Witnessing the inseparable pair before me, a pang of nostalgia struck my heart.

'It brings back memories...'

With a yearning so profound, I tilted my head towards the distant pole star, clawing my chest as a swirl of indescribable emotions swirled within.

The burning ache in my chest coupled with the intense longing was far from comforting...

"I miss you, Mom... Sis."

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