The lone figure was flying through the skies.
Not really flying... more like falling.
Ash was lost in the moment before realizing that he wouldn't be able to maintain this height, as of this moment his was falling. Pretty fast as well.
'Crap, I didn't think about this... '
This time his mind was blank, he didn't need to think too much before his instincts came into play. He gathered mana to his legs to brace for impact and released a blast of mana- to displace the force of which his body was going to take from impact. A thunderous boom could be heard with trees visibly shaking, Ash landed on his feet before rolling over his shoulder to minimize damage. He checked on himself to see if there was any damage on his body. As he was doing so, the skull had reached the ground, cementing itself into the dirt.
"Ah..." In the midst of his body trying to reduce the impact of the ground, Ash had accidentally left go of the skull. He stood there for a minute before clutching his stomach laughing. It felt like a lifetime since he laughed- it felt good.
'It'd been too long, god that wasn't even that funny- but I needed it, I don't feel so heavy anymore, I've actually won, I can go back home. Start a family, make a life for myself...' Somewhere deep down, Ash had held himself going back home, the idea that he failed had subconsciously lingered in his mind- that the Demon lord was still alive had tortured him for months. The simple action of seeing the once mighty being who decimated countries, the bane of everyone's existence laying in the dirt... he had defeated it. Ash had actually defeated the Demon lord.
It was time to go home...
---
Ash had reached the Silent Sea, a vast expanse- no forms of life lived with the basin of water. No one knows why, nor do they know how it remains quiet, the basin as it suggests is sloped, so the neighboring is inclined. The should be winds over the sea...but, there's nothing.
Just Silence.
One can't contemplate true silence, there's always something to be heard, but no. It is pure, because no sound can be heard, no voices projected, so cries for help. Nothing. The pressure that Ash was projected was unusual, it felt like his ears were filled with substance, his eardrums covered- he could only feel his movements within the silence. It was better to concentrate on that than lose his mind over the silence itself.
The Silent sea was indeed a deadly killer, many people had given up their lives, some involuntarily. One would think that multiple voices would drive someone mad, but in fact it was the opposite- the lack of a voice... except your own. Many people couldn't handle the pressure of the sea, the silence slowly creeps into ones psyche, driving them insane. Death being the only solution.
As far as he could see, there wasn't a single person. Which was deeply annoying. With a deep sigh, he placed the skull on top of a nearby rock facing the silent sea.
"Keep watch"
"Yes yes, I'll watch it- I've got nothing better to do"
Ash rolled his eyes as he headed back in to the forest. He needed to build a raft, for which he needed to look for vines to bind the wood. He had to head quite a way in before he found any young vines to hold the wood in place. Since he was back in the woods, Ash thought he might as well grab some wood for a fire, there was no way he would finish making the raft quickly. By the time Ash had returned to the edge of the Silent sea, he had come back with a bundle of vines and some freshly hunted game.
He looked at the skull. "Anything?"
"Nah nothing, barely a peep. I was going to go insane just sitting in the silence you know."
Ash scoffed. "Yeah, you're the one going insane.." He proceeded to set up the fire and roast the meat, the night sky had set in- Ash had sat on the rock the skull was previously placed on, still watching the sea, just on the ground. He had moved the rock so he could watch the sky and the roasting meat in case it burned.
'Just past the sea is civilization, there's people over there. All I need to do is cross over. Then the hard part will be over.'
His mind wondered to the Capitol, the government building where he received his assignment, his party...Gemma. The Hero's party or just the Party consisted of a 5 members. Felix the Mercenary, Occam, the Tank, Celina the Saintess & Gemma the mage. Ash grinned.
' By the time I get back, they'll have fancy titles to support them, their faces will look like a right mess when I get back.'
Him and Gemma weren't anything, he wanted it to be. The idea of spending his life with Gemma didn't sound too bad, of course he wanted to confess his feelings sooner- but the mission came first. Nothing could get in the way, Ash had vowed that if and when he had killed the Demon lord, he'd go back to Gemma.
Generating water through mana, Ash had raised a fist in the air.
"To the party! May we live in peace and prosper." with that, he cupped his hands and drank. Having had his fill, he ate the roasted game meat and slept in for the night, the skull still watching the sea for any signs of disturbance.
"Goodnight"
The skull didn't respond, Ash only watched the back of skull, the light of the moon and the campfire coinciding with one another, creating a serene light, before falling asleep.
Tonight was going to be the last night before he set off back into the world.