Dimensional Descent

Death didn’t seem to have changed the compatibility of Leonel and Aina’s combat styles. If Aina was the one to strike, she would have surely heavily injured Talon, but the battle would have been unlikely to be obvious. To make the rebounding effect so pronounced, she had to divert a lot of her Blood Force, so the physical strength Talon had been expected had likewise been limited.

But much the same, like she had said…

She trusted him.

Leonel appeared high in the skies, pissed. There wasn’t even a bow in his hand; it was impossible to tell where the arrow had come from. It was too fast, too sharp, too quick.

And too powerful.

At first, there was nothing but a small hole at the start; so controlled, it was imperceptible.

And then his torso was gone.

BANG!

A pair of legs and a hip hung in the skies for a moment before falling.

Leonel was truly enraged, but he suddenly had nowhere else to vent. It wasn’t until a person appeared before him that his expression softened.

Aina threw herself into his arms, sobbing uncontrollably.

Guilt flickered through Leonel’s expression. He had truly not wanted to fall; if at all possible, he didn’t want to use this card.

He knew what would happen after he died because he had witnessed it before… with Aina’s death.

Why was it that the Demoness had gone through so much trouble, all the effort in the world just to bring her husband back, and yet Leonel could bring Aina back so easily?

It was the same reason Leonel could bring Aina back so easily, and yet was helpless to do the same for his mother and father.

Aina hadn’t truly died; she was in limbo because she was a God Childe. Because of that, Leonel had been able to bring his wife back from the brink of a true death.

But there was another elephant in the room.

It was the same thing for Ninth Dimensional Existences. The reason they could come back to life after they died was because they never truly dispersed and left the world.

Of course, being killed by the likes of the Demoness or anyone who understands how to truly impose their will on the world would make that Ninth Dimensional title worthless.

But it was enough for Leonel to know that he could use this to his advantage.

So long as Aina was to break through, she should be able to sense his lingering aura. And if she could, with her Clairvoyance, she could reattach their souls herself. Once that happened, it was a simple matter of her triggering one of her abilities.

Their Soul Bond now was on a level that was truly unfathomable. They had already been united thanks to Aina’s Clairvoyance, but Talon was the last piece she needed to understand something fundamental.

The Barbarian Race’s method of fate reading and scrying was completely different from what she was used to. But she realized, precisely because of that, that she was trying to actively use something that should be passive.

Truly passive.

However, how could someone turn their brain off? Doing so was impossible. Even for someone who had had Clairvoyance almost all her life, Aina still had thoughts from time to time.

Talon and the Barbarian Race were the same way. It was what separated them. Talon was actively thinking, actively deducing. While it seemed he had Clairvoyance, he was analytical at heart, and a Force Crafter by trade for a reason.

But the contrast made Aina realize that that wasn’t her path.

So how could she take a step forward?

How could she truly turn her brain off?

Trust.

The answer was right in front of her. To hand her body, her mind, her soul over to the man she had already given her everything to.

She hugged Leonel so tightly, basking in the feeling of his arm around her waist and the hand caressing the back of her head. His presence alone soothed her soul, but his touch took what remained of her ache away.

”You look kind of sexy with red hair,” Leonel suddenly said. ”You’re going to let me try it out for a test drive some time, right?”

Aina sniffled. ”Are you trying to say that I’m not perfect the way I am?”

”Isn’t this the way you are?”

”Don’t try and change the subject. You’re still in the dog house for daring to die. You talked so big and what was the end result?”

Leonel’s lip twitched. He had all the minds and thinking speed in the world, and yet had no rebuttal.

”Don’t… don’t do that again…” Aina began to sob again. ”… Or I will destroy this world and everything that’s left in it.”

Leonel held onto his wife in silence. The two stood there in the skies as though there wasn’t a battle raging all around them, as though this was the last time.

”… Then let’s do this together,” Leonel finally said softly.

Aina sniffled again. ”It’s about time…”

”What’s that supposed to mean?”

”You know exactly what it means. Don’t make me cut it off.”

”Such vulgar language for a married woman with two children. What would the world think if they could hear you.”

”The world can shove it.”

Leonel’s boisterous laughter filled the skies.

Of course he knew exactly what his wife meant.

All his life, he had taken on the burden alone, forcing him to wait by the sidelines. Even this time when she had put herself through so much just to have a sliver of a chance to stand by his side, he had ignored her efforts and fought alone.

This time, they would fight together.

”You know, this isn’t technically the first time we’ve fought together. Why are you getting so worked up?” Leonel asked innocently.

Leonel got a pinch that he felt from his waist down to his soul in return.

He winced.

”I give! I give!”

His laughter filled the skies once again.

”Let’s go end this.”

There was a flash in his eyes.

”This time, we crush her.”

He took his wife’s hand.

The action had barely been completed when reality froze and Aina’s eyes grew dull.

A woman with a fiery violet aura appeared, her hair dancing like streams of amethyst waters.

The Demoness Ophelia.