The Villain's Story

Chapter 649: [649] You have got to be kidding me...(3)

Edward was in a bad shape, very bad. Not only had he just been forced awake after enduring the bitter cold of the brutal planet... He was put to work the moment he woke up, unable to even feel his limbs.

”How... much longer?”

He was running out of whatever power he used to fuel his golden flames, and now even his robust physique, second only to Alan and Alexanderʼs was as thin as a toothpick. How it could change so suddenly was a mystery.

The section of the walls upon which they stood had undergone a striking transformation. What was once a pristine, unblemished white was now an unsettling and grotesque sight, resembling nothing less than the chilling remnants of frozen blood and dark, ashen soot.

Alan had used everything flammable in his inventory, even going as far as to burn the extra sets of clothing he had. They were a precious resource. Every time he transformed, ordinary clothing would get ripped apart.

Even the special, elastic pieces of clothing he had issued would fail to withstand the attacks of his opponents and be reduced to dust. He was lucky that his fight with Azmakul hadnʼt done anything of the sort.

However, his spending had yielded an investment. First and foremost, Edwardʼs fire didnʼt work anymore, no matter how much he produced or whatever the quality of the flame was, it was useless.

All Alan felt when he performed the process once more was the biting pain of the process. When he observed it more, he realized that the pain increased when he used materials other than wood.

Wood was the material that caused him the least pain, other materials like Oil and Gasoline from Earth really did a number on him. The biting pain also started occurred much sooner if he used those materials.

It was more of a gut feeling than anything, but Alan couldnʼt help but suspect that whatever he had tried so far hadnʼt been all that effective. He was certain that wood would be the most reliable option. As for his next discovery...

ʼWhat the hell is this even supposed to do?ʼ

Alan muttered to himself, staring at the golden flame flickering in his hand. It puzzled him, for he had somehow managed to summon Edwardʼs flame, yet it was entirely useless, just like Edward. Unlike the blue flames that were powered by his own aura, which caused spatial disruptions, this golden flame seemed to serve no purpose. Just like Edward.

It wasnʼt useful for combat, nor did it possess any healing properties. Attacking Edward or any other structure with it was useless. It didnʼt seem to hurt them at all... The only thing this mysterious fire did was burn him.

ʼShould I ask Emma for help?ʼ

That thought was quickly dismissed. Asking Emma to replicate the flame would be difficult, if not irresponsible. He couldnʼt afford to overburden her the way Edward had been. Unlike her brother, Emma was an invaluable asset to the group, her ability to heal others was marvelous. And unlike Alan, she could spread the effect of her healing to the entire group. That was something Alan could only do if he assumed the form of his bloodline.

It had been a while since he did that...

More importantly, she was the youngest, and the others would never forgive him if he pushed her too hard. She also wasnʼt as durable as her brother, his only redeeming quality.

With a sigh, Alan continued to juggle the small golden flame in his hand, his mind racing as he experimented and tried to make sense of this strange and useless power.

He could produce this with mana and aura, but mixing the two would only result in an explosion. His blue astral fire would completely extinguish it, no matter how small it was in comparison to the golden flame.

”What does your fire normally do?”

Alan asked Edward, who was using the time Alan used to experiment as a precious break, Alan felt a bit of sympathy towards the poor lad. He had used most of his strength for his goals. Clicking his tongue, he used the powers of the Phoenix to heal him.

It was because of sympathy, not because he wanted to avoid any lectures later.

”What do you mean?”

”What are its properties?”

Edward was a bit taken aback. He answered.

”It burns... What else? It can also heal my wounds, but itʼs pathetic compared to Emmaʼs.” ”Does it not burn you?”

”...no?”

”Tch.”

Alan clicked his tongue once more, extinguishing the poor little flame. It was hard to see it struggle to survive. The biting winds of Lanekia didnʼt even have to try to extinguish it. Even with his endless reserves of mana to use as fuel, the flame would die in these harsh conditions.

”That is an unusual fire, prince.”

Both Edward and Alan jumped, turning around to find Azmakul, only this time he was in a different form. The towering Draconian had disappeared, and was replaced by a tall elf with cyan hair and a slim frame, the only thing still intact was the creepy sheep mask.

He was as tall as Alan, if not more. He stroked his non-existent beard and walked towards Alan, putting his cold hand on his shoulder. Edward couldnʼt raise his head in Azmakulʼs presence. Something kept it down.

”May we talk in private, young prince?”

Alan felt something strange when Azmakul touched his shoulder, it was like a needle pricked his skin, but he hardly noticed it. The pain that the process of acquiring the Eternal flame was still vivid in his mind, which caused him to notice it even less.

He looked at Azmakul, puzzled. He was more focused on the new form Azmakul appeared in, finding the appearance to be a bit odd. He couldnʼt explain why, though.

Noticing Edwardʼs forced silence and his trembling body, he opened a portal beneath him towards his sister, using his authority as the master of the Jade palace to locate them.

”What a convenient ability. Interesting.”

Azmakul said, as he turned to face the Jade city. Perhaps he was enjoying the view from the top of the walls.

Alan was curious to see what he had to talk about, he only hoped it wasnʼt a speech. If it was, he would truly believe that every frost dragon had a habit to start one! Not just Lanesha...