Chapter 59: Escaping Death.
Shift to Aoto. He took off the hood. His ears had shifted into human form. On both ears were silver earrings with a blue stone.
That was an item used to hide the appearance of an Elf.
Aoto glanced at his feet, inside his pants at his ankle. It was a very small anklet with a tiny sphere.
That was a sphere that allowed him to hide his presence as an Elemental.
By absorbing the energy of some human race.
Back to when they first entered the room.
The four were sitting in the room.
Aoto spoke first:
"Ayaka, can you give me some of your energy?"
Ayaka sat on the bed, tilting her head with curiosity.
"For what? You are an Elemental?"
Aoto lifted himself from the chair and smiled.
"I will explain that now."
He leaned down and pulled up his pant leg. At his ankle was a small anklet with simple links. And a brownish-yellow sphere. It looked like a small bell, but it wasn't.
He released it from his leg and held it out, making everyone curious.
Kazuka: "What is it?"
Aoto: "This is an anklet. Basically, it absorbs the energy of a human race or some other race. Then, I use it to coat my body with the absorbed energy layer. it helps me avoid being sensed and discovered as an Elemental."
Airi remained silent. she sat listening.
—"So that's it. Is that the disguise anklet of the Elemental race? I saw it in books; it looks no different in person."
Aoto continued: "Generally, it only hides from strong people. Super strong ones will detect it immediately."
Kazuka nodded in admiration: "Sounds quite useful."
Ayaka understood: "Oh, I see."
Aoto turned to Airi and smiled.
"Do you want me to help hide your vampire energy, Airi?"
Airi nodded.
"I was about to tell you."
Aoto smiled.
"Generally, it hides for about 10 days. After that, the energy layer will slowly vanish."
Ayaka stood up. She approached and put out a hand filled with energy. Aoto held out the anklet. Ayaka transferred energy into the anklet.
After a moment, Aoto put the anklet on his hand. Ayaka's energy layer began to surround and cling to Aoto's body.
In truth, this energy layer was quite thin. The naked eye could barely see it. Aoto, being an Elemental, could see it.
Kazuka's eyes widened in surprise. His voice showed interest:
"Ohhh, I sense Ayaka's energy as two!"
Kazuka pointed to his face, curious:
"Why don't you use my energy?"
Aoto smiled.
"Because your energy is larger and more pressurized than Ayaka's. Using Ayaka's makes it harder for people to detect."
Kazuka nodded, finding it reasonable.
"I see."
Aoto took the anklet off and tossed it to Airi. She caught it and put it on.
The feeling of her energy almost completely disappeared.
Kazuka frowned.
"I see the three of you standing here and I still sense Ayaka's energy more clearly, while yours is quite weak. But it is similar to Ayaka's. So when using this, you two must stay away from Ayaka, otherwise you will be discovered."
Aoto was impressed, but he still had a slight feeling, though unclear, so he let it go.
"Your sensing is too good. If I must say, the strongest person in a country might not even sense it."
Back to the present. He looked at the sky, his face pensive.
—"Now, let's see."
"When we first met, Takeshi told me he could use the Earth element."
"Now I do not know what crime he will be charged with. But likely it will be a public beheading. People here love that."
"If so, I need to see the execution site."
As the moon gradually lowered, Aoto let out a long breath.
—"This damn city is truly wide. Finally found it."
Before Aoto's eyes was a large square. At the end, near the towering wall, was a very high platform. That was the place for public beheading. There was only one stone block. Just looking at it, one knew that was where the head was placed for execution.
Aoto walked slowly toward it. He looked up.
—"Truly high. Making it this high so the people can observe easily?"
He walked slowly up the steps and noticed the block for the head was gray-white.
He smiled internally.
—"Great."
Aoto looked down at the spot where one would kneel. He manifested an energy spear from his hand. But the point was as thin as a needle.
He used a bit of strength and stabbed straight down gently, leaving no trace. When the spear poked a small hole, the spear in his hand vanished.
Aoto knelt and put a finger into that small hole. A familiar feeling appeared—it was earth and stone coming up with the point he withdrew.
Only a little, but it was enough.
Aoto stood up and turned to the stone block. His finger concentrated energy into a very small point. Aoto began to carve very small lines.
He carved slowly and meticulously: Earth does not block you – just believe it will open the way.
Aoto stood up and turned away. He smiled.
—"Now the rest is up to you, Takeshi."
Aoto returned to the inn as the sun began to replace the moon, shining bright red light down.
Aoto smiled, carrying satisfaction, and kicked the door open. Kazuka was sleeping soundly in a very strange posture.
Aoto leaned close to Kazuka's ear and shouted.
"Wake up, it's morning!"
Kazuka startled awake. His face was still sleepy. He scratched his head, complaining.
"What, Aoto? Let me sleep."
Aoto's voice turned serious. He folded his arms.
"Wake up. I have something to say."
Kazuka: "Huh? What?"
Aoto: "About Takeshi, of course."
Kazuka spoke calmly.
"When you were gone, we decided. We will break him out."
Aoto sighed in frustration as if he already knew.
"I knew you would choose this way. Go to the next room. We will meet."
Aoto and Kazuka stood before Airi and Ayaka's room and knocked "knock knock."
Ayaka came out and opened the door. She was surprised they were up so early.
"Come in. Is something wrong?"
Kazuka and Aoto entered. Airi was still on the bed. Although her eyes were open, she seemed very sleepy.
"Is something wrong?"
Aoto and Kazuka sat in chairs. Kazuka pointed at Aoto.
"He said to discuss Takeshi's matter."
Airi's face shifted quickly to serious.
"Is something wrong? Did you collect information last night?"
Aoto nodded.
"You could say that."
Kazuka: "So, what is it?"
Aoto: "I have a way to save Takeshi without breaking him out of prison."
Airi sprang up. Ayaka and Kazuka immediately shouted in surprise.
"REALLY?"
Aoto raised a hand to calm them.
"Calm down. But this also depends quite a bit on Takeshi himself."
…
Two days later. Today was the day of Takeshi's execution. People from everywhere flocked to the square. Noise echoed:
"That guy killed two guards?"
"So brutal."
"I must find a source to buy his outfit for display."
Kazuka and Aoto were standing outside. Ayaka and Airi walked out.
Kazuka complained:
"You two took so long."
Airi: "We had to prepare gear inside in case of combat."
Ayaka laughed.
"That's right. I also had to shrink and tie the arrow case to my leg. Yesterday, I went to a house nearby and hid the bow in a corner."
Aoto nodded.
"Then let's go."
The group merged into the crowd heading toward the square. Many nobles were also walking below.
The group immediately accelerated and ran past the crowd to secure a front position.
The final drum sounded.
The atmosphere in the square turned thick. The entire Goland city focused toward the high platform—where the wind whipped following the cheers, both savage and bloodthirsty.
Behind were Misa and Sai. Standing between them was Asd. Along with many powerful people sitting behind.
Takeshi knelt. Both hands were cuffed behind his back. His head was bowed low. The cold stone was under his knees.
—"Do I die here?"
—"It's okay... no one is left alive... no one..."
The footsteps of the executioner stopped right behind him. Both hands gripped the sword hilt. The steel glinted under the sun.
Takeshi's eyes held no regret. He only wanted to die.
"Takeshi, where are you looking? We are here."
A familiar voice rang out. Takeshi's eyes darted to find it. His gaze stopped right in front. It was the whole group dressed as nobles, shouting:
"Look down!"
"Below, you idiot!"
Takeshi froze. He was shocked. He still could not believe his eyes.
"Am I dying so I see them becoming beautiful like this?"
But those calls did not stop.
"Stupid Takeshi, look down!"
"Trust us!"
Below, Kazuka clenched his fists. His eyes were red, yelling:
"Takeshi... Look down!"
He did not move. His heart beat hard in his chest, like drums beating into a void.
"Trust us!" – Airi's voice cracked with a sob.
Another voice rang out after—Ayaka, trembling but determined:
"Do not die... you promised..."
Takeshi widened his eyes. He instinctively bowed his head, both curious and without lingering regret.
His eyes trembled. From where he knelt, below where he would place his neck, a small line of text was meticulously carved:
"Earth does not block you – just believe it will. His throat was dry."
Takeshi instinctively looked down at his knees. Right beside was a small hole. A bit of dust still remained.
Lifting his head, his emotions were chaotic.
—"Everyone... everyone is still alive?"
—"I must not die?"
Takeshi's breathing became rapid.
—"They are alive... so why must I die?"
—"Earth? Open the way?"
The executioner raised the sword high for momentum.
Aoto stood below. He looked up, but internally he had an extremely strange feeling.
—"Why is Takeshi's energy so chaotic?"
Aoto remembered the scene of Takeshi walking out. His hands were cuffed behind by a black band with red patterns.
Aoto panicked. His eyes widened as he realized.
"Oh no... that is an energy-disrupting cuff."
"There is still a way, Takeshi... you must risk it. Do not be afraid. Open your brain. Think."
Above, the executioner brought the sword down very fast. At that moment, Misa, Sai, and Asd standing behind felt something was wrong.
In Takeshi's mind, the voice of Vermyx whispered as if close to his ear.
"You do not need to crawl through the hole... just permeate."
The executioner shouted:
"Execute!"
The blade struck.
Schlick!
A dry sound rang out.
Takeshi's head was sliced off, rolling three times before stopping.
The entire square erupted in a roar:
"Executed!"
"The sinner is dead!"
At that moment, in Aoto's head appeared an image of himself sitting in a massive library, endless and towering beyond sight. He sat at a wooden table, intently reading a book.
At this time, he was 13 years old.
Suddenly, another Elemental approached. Smiling friendlily, his face as young as a 20-year-old boy. But do not let age deceive you; he was the librarian of this library. His name was... He had guarded the library since before the unification took place.
He approached and sat opposite Aoto, unnoticed. Aoto's eyes were wide, darting continuously through the lines of text with extreme speed. After just a moment, he flipped to a new page.
The Elemental librarian smiled. His voice was slow:
"Read slowly. Careful not to forget."
Aoto only then noticed someone sitting opposite. He lifted his head and smiled.
"Yes. I cannot forget."
The librarian kept that smile.
"What do you think of this book?"
Aoto smiled.
"I find it very interesting."
Librarian: "This is a locked book. But you are a good child, so I only let you read for a bit. You must return it to me later."
Aoto tilted his head, confused.
"Why is it locked? Inside are all strong techniques. Is it because it is the book of the Ancient Elemental who used the strongest Earth element and it is forbidden? It should be well known."
The librarian smiled.
"Somewhat true. The techniques inside are very strong. But more than one person possessed them; in the same era, there were many. The important thing is no one recorded their abilities. Most feared secrets being leaked, or even if recorded, they were hidden."
"A few abilities—even our ancient Elementals were not equal to those out there at that time."
"But this is the only book with a large amount of information on the Earth element. A few records from others were found, but they were lacking compared to this book."
The librarian pointed down at the book, drawing Aoto's attention.
"That is why I used an illusion to copy it for you to read. As for the original, it is stored. It is rarely taken out. And specifically, that book cannot be copied by normal means. It has a form of curse. When reading it, if you try to remember and copy or tell, the curse will activate."
"That is why when you wanted to read, I warned you not to tell or copy. I know you are very smart, so you will not do that."
Aoto smiled at the praise.
"Yes. I will not tell or copy it out."
Aoto leaned down and flipped to a new page. As soon as it opened, a large, very ancient and strange word was written at the top: Permeate.
At this moment:
Kazuka looked soulless. Airi screamed in pain. Ayaka trembled, hands clutching her chest. The whole group froze like stone.
Airi gritted her teeth, voice trembling with regret: "We should... we should... not have trusted a plan... Why were we so careless at this moment?... Why did we not think of the worst case when he did not react?"
Everyone felt regret for foolishly trusting a plan. Why was there no backup?
But then…
A soldier stepped forward, looking at "Takeshi's head" that had rolled out. He frowned.
"...Wait... where is the blood?"
There was no blood.
On the stone surface, not a single drop of blood existed.
And then—the head cracked.
Crack…
A crack across the forehead. Then down the cheek. Then it shattered into dry pieces of earth.
The body still kneeling on the platform also shattered—not flesh and bone, but a layer of earth and stone molded into a human shape.
The entire square was silent for three seconds.
"...What is... this?"
Another soldier shouted:
"No body! Where is he?!"
Misa, Sai, and Asd simultaneously ran to where Takeshi had knelt. Their faces were bewildered, then they observed the surroundings. On the ground, only the intact cuffs remained.
Sai knelt, eyes narrowing. It was a hole only as large as a few needle points.
Sai turned back, face panicked.
"You two, come here."
The three observed the hole.
Misa: "A hole?"
Asd: "How did he escape?"
Asd suddenly realized.
"Wait. Information reported the scene had a lot of earth and stone. He is one who controls the Earth element."
The three stood up, faces scowling and angry. Sai stomped hard on the small hole, cracking it. He kicked a piece of stone hard, making it fly away and reveal the soil.
"Damn it. Too sophisticated."
Misa picked up the cuffs, confused.
"How did he get out? Is he that strong? Then why was he caught? These cuffs are still intact."
The group below was shocked, now overjoyed. The group immediately turned and pushed through the crowd to leave.
After a moment of pushing, the group escaped the crowd.
Ayaka looked everywhere.
"Where could he go?"
Kazuka immediately thought.
"Maybe he went into the forest. It would be hard to detect him there."
Airi also nodded.
"Reasonable."
The group began to run around looking for a forest. Aoto met a boy standing there eating candy.
Aoto stopped and leaned down, offering a friendly smile.
"Do you know which direction is the nearest forest? I will give you money for candy."
The boy's eyes lit up at the mention of money. He pointed to the left relative to the direction of the square.
Aoto pulled a gold coin from his person and tucked it into the boy's hand. He ran in the direction the boy pointed and called to the others:
"Hey, everyone... this way!"
The group followed immediately. After a while of running, they reached a forest.
No one said a word as they ran inside.
Aoto observed everywhere.
—"Damn it. His energy is chaotic. Hard to sense."
When Takeshi's energy recovered a little, Aoto immediately sensed him.
Aoto turned diagonally to the right.
"Follow me."
The group ran. After a moment, they saw Takeshi. He was lying on the ground, unconscious.
Kazuka immediately ran up and propped Takeshi up. Aoto knelt and used healing energy. Airi and Ayaka stood there. Both were shocked as Takeshi's two hands were twisted and deformed.
Aoto closed his eyes tight. He was channeling energy into Takeshi and healing each part.
After two hours of struggling. Kazuka laid Takeshi down. His arms were exhausted from holding Takeshi. Aoto collapsed backward on the ground, panting.
"Tired... dying of exhaustion."
Takeshi had been successfully healed. His heart was beating normally again. Now they only waited for him to wake.
If Takeshi were normal, with that energy control ability, he would have found it hard to concentrate enough to do that crazy thing.
Back to the battle with Kuralak. Takeshi had truly dived into the ground and moved freely in the earth as if he were a part of it, or as if he were swimming. It showed he adapted extremely well and could do better if his energy were greater and control were better.
Back to the battle with Vermyx. Vermyx was a super-creature sealed away. If Takeshi's body had been better, perhaps that battle would have been different.
And the main issue was: When Takeshi was experimented on and forced to become a vessel for Vermyx, his body could not adapt to his super strength. Vermyx forced everything inside him to evolve and adapt to carry him. He made his gates and energy wells massive.
And because he once had a link with Vermyx, the extremely high-level energy control ability remained inside him.
Along with that was the fact that he wanted Takeshi to have the best body. He mobilized all power within him, including the primary ability: controlling the Earth element. He reinforced and made the Earth element part of the body's structure.
And at that moment, his body did not decompose or break. Instead, like a synchronous reflex, the earth layer below him softened like liquid mud. It expanded, opening a path for him to go down as if voluntarily yielding. And when his body fully entered, it closed up as if never touched. No dust, no sound.
And he only used this ability for a short distance. Diving down 1 tharn (2m) had drained almost all his energy. Because he needed a large amount of energy, a hundred times more than normal attacks. And that was why it was so hard for Aoto to sense him.
It was extremely dangerous, and of course, he did not know. IN THIS WORLD, NO ONE KNOWS EVERYTHING ABOUT THEIR OWN POWER. Whether it is dangerous or useful. The important thing is knowing how to risk it to find all one's power. Here, Takeshi risked it to find life. He was extremely focused then. If he had lost focus for just a moment, his body would have been crushed by the very flow of earth embracing him. He simply thought he could, and tried.
One could say this method was very dangerous. As per previous information, an opponent could sense his energy if they had good sensing. And they could unleash a blow crushing the entire surrounding area, and Takeshi below would die.