Noya might disappear.

Moreover, the fact that he is fading away is my fault.

Hearing those words brought back memories of the past.

‘Then, was Noya losing consciousness all this time because of that?’

Not only had he been stopping the vessel from breaking as I turned into a dragon, but—

‘As my cultivation level and soul grew stronger, his power was weakening.’

In other words, the stronger I became, the weaker Noya grew, and now he was vanishing.

"......."

I couldn't bring myself to speak.

I ran my hand through my hair, messing it up.

I bit down on my tongue, chewing on it absentmindedly.

I must have bitten down hard—blood oozed out, filling my mouth with its iron tang.

What should I do? What am I supposed to do now?

Because I grew stronger, Noya could no longer return. Worse yet, now that I had reached transcendence, the deterioration of his soul was accelerating.

I couldn't stay close, but leaving him as he was would be dangerous too. I needed to keep my distance.

‘...If I had known this would happen.’

Would I have forced myself to grow stronger?

I had no choice. If I hadn't, I wouldn't have survived. It was something I had to do.

But knowing this now, it made me sick to my stomach.

Reaching transcendence had felt profound, but if this was the price—

‘I...’

What should I do?

What am I supposed to do now?

I was absentmindedly touching the barrier when—

"If you understand, then step back."

"......!"

At the turtle's words, I immediately withdrew my hand.

"If the Divine Tree is nearby and you maintain an appropriate distance, you can minimize the instability. The barrier you just touched marks that distance."

The Divine Tree was still a long way off. So, this was the minimum distance I had to maintain.

Would it be alright as long as I kept my distance?

"Even if you step back, it's just a temporary measure. The moment you appeared, this process became inevitable. All you're doing is buying time—you can't stop it."

‘Damn it.’

It was as if the turtle could read my mind, constantly reinforcing this grim reality.

"Then what do you expect me to do? Just stand here and watch?"

"Yes."

"What...?"

The words had slipped out in frustration, but the turtle affirmed them without hesitation.

"What can you do? You're far too weak to defy fate."

"......."

"This is simply the natural order of things."

"So what? Since it's fate, I should just sit and wait?"

So I was supposed to stand by and watch Noya die.

To watch him fade away because of me.

Bang!

I struck the barrier.

Crack—!

Had I used too much force? A cracking sound echoed from the barrier.

"Acting out emotionally won't change anything."

The turtle remained unfazed by my outburst.

Ironically, when I had been panicking in confusion earlier, I had seemed more desperate.

"Tsk."

The turtle clicked its tongue.

"Let me ask you—do you really think the Sect Leader didn’t know this would happen to Noya?"

"...What?"

"The Sect Leader knew better than anyone about his condition. Yet he still wished for you to grow stronger."

"......."

"He often said it—'Someone is bound to come for me one day. But damn, they're taking their sweet time.'"

Hearing that, my fists clenched. Flames began to flicker around them, burning with my frustration.

But—

"If that person was you... then he waited, knowing this was how things would turn out."

As the turtle continued speaking, the strength in my clenched fists slowly drained away.

"Do you think the Sect Leader wanted you to stand there, looking like that?"

"......."

If I appeared, he must have known what would happen to him.

And yet, Noya still waited for me?

Why?

‘Did he not want to live?’

He always spoke as if he were a lingering ghost of the past.

Had he truly let go of any attachment to life?

‘...That old bastard.’

If that was the case, then he could have at least said something.

How ridiculous, getting so excited about growing stronger.

I had been thrilled to reunite with my mother.

Despair had crushed me when I realized she didn't remember me.

I had found joy in knowing I had to move forward and in discovering a way to do so.

But I hadn't known that he was standing at the final threshold.

And that was why.

That was why I was so furious—why I was burning with rage.

But I had to suppress it. Again and again. The turtle had made it clear—now was not the time for emotions.

"...What should I do?"

I asked.

"...Hah?"

The turtle let out a short laugh.

"Why are you asking me? I already explained the situation to you."

There was no solution.

By appearing, by growing stronger, I had only accelerated Noya's end.

All that was left now was to wait for his disappearance.

Was that really all I could do?

"You know a way."

"......."

I asked with conviction.

I was certain the turtle knew how to change this situation.

"...Why do you think that?"

"The Elder never wanted me to resign myself to fate."

The turtle's words hadn't been meant to make me feel guilty.

Nor had they been words of surrender, urging me to give up.

No—

"They were meant to make me assess the situation. To calm down and think. That was his real intention, and—"

Swish.

I took a step back.

"Judging by Elder’s demeanor, I can tell that you know something."

I caught on to the turtle’s reaction.

"My reaction?"

"You didn’t deny it outright. Instead, you looked surprised."

"......!"

He didn’t refute it.

The expression he showed wasn’t one of denial—it was pure shock at why I would think that way.

"...This brat?"

The turtle spoke in a dumbfounded tone.

"You were throwing a fit just a moment ago, and yet, even then, you were analyzing the situation?"

Of course I was.

"An old man once told me something."

Back when I was nothing but a rage-driven fool, a wandering hermit—someone like Malco—had given me advice.

"When you show raw anger, your opponent will be the most caught off guard. That’s when you strike."

Never let your guard down.

Never lose yourself in your emotions.

And if you do let them explode, make sure to use them to your advantage.

Believe in yourself.

You can do it.

You are capable of such things.

‘...Seriously.’

One by one, I recalled the things Noya had told me. That old man had a lot to say.

Other than my regression, I had nothing—but he had taught me so much.

And this time was no different.

"What’s the method?"

"......."

"Tell me. If I need to kneel, I’ll kneel."

"What would I need your knees for? Why would I ask you to kneel?"

"I knew you wouldn’t, so I just said it."

"...Crazy bastard."

I let out a small chuckle.

"You’re laughing?"

The turtle questioned my reaction.

Yeah, why was I laughing?

Like an idiot, I couldn’t help but smile.

"Seriously..."

Tsk tsk tsk.

The turtle clicked his tongue, clearly irritated, before falling into a brief silence. Then, he spoke.

"You two really are alike. Always managing to piss me off."

"Was that an insult?"

"What, did you think it was a compliment?"

"Not at all."

Of course not.

"Hah..."

With a deep sigh, the turtle continued.

"...If the problem is that his soul is being twisted—"

I listened closely.

"—then, ultimately, it means there is an issue with his soul. And that means all you need to do is restore it to its original state."

"Then, he’ll be okay?"

"I don’t know."

"What?"

"I don’t know much about souls. It’s just a hypothesis. So even if you go through with this, there’s no guarantee it’ll solve everything. However—"

I shut my mouth, holding my breath.

"—right now, there is no better option."

"......."

If there was an issue with his soul, then I had to return it to its original state.

That was the only path forward.

I nodded at the turtle’s words.

He was right.

Even I couldn’t think of a better solution.

The problem was...

"So, how do I do that?"

How could I fix Noya’s soul?

When I asked, the turtle responded,

"You already know the method."

"...What?"

He said that I already knew how.

I frowned. I did?

What the hell was I supposed to know?

"If I knew, why would I be asking you?"

"No, you do know. It happened not too long ago. And you were the one it happened to."

"What...?"

I was about to retort when—

"Oh."

My eyes widened. Something came to mind.

The soul.

A way to restore a twisted soul.

Returning something to its original state.

If that was something I had personally experienced...

"...The Divine Fruit."

"That’s right."

The turtle affirmed my realization.

The Divine Fruit, created by the Divine Tree.

Consuming it could restore the state of a soul.

It was because of that fruit that my own soul had been returned, setting into motion a fate that should have been a disaster.

Which meant—

"...If Noya eats the Divine Fruit, we can restore his soul?"

"As I said earlier, this is just a hypothesis."

"But it’s the most likely solution. And it’s the only one we have, isn’t it?"

"......."

The turtle didn’t answer. But I didn’t need to hear one.

It was a relief, in a way.

Because to see my mother—to keep the promise I made to Noya—I already had to visit every Divine Tree.

At the end of that journey, I was supposed to meet the Master’s Divine Tree.

‘If the situation hasn’t changed—’

The Divine Tree and the Divine Fruit I had encountered back then had belonged to that Master’s Divine Tree.

Which meant that, to ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) save Noya—

‘I have to go.’

I had to find that Divine Tree again. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"......."

Crack.

I stretched my stiff fingers.

Suppressing the heat rising in me, I swallowed it down into my heart.

I went over my next steps.

I pictured Noya, sleeping beyond the barrier.

‘You saved me countless times.’

Now, I couldn’t let you go either.

I had to save my hero—my guiding light—no matter what it took.