An odd silence prevailed at Rose's camping spot. After Aron agreed to reveal what drives him, the two just stared at each other without exchanging any words.
Rose could see that Aron had no intention of speaking first so she just smiled weakly before turning away from him. "You know, my love for knowledge didn't always stem from sheer curiosity and an eagerness to learn more about this chaotic world of ours..."
She trailed off as she approached a nearby patch of brightly colored flowers and then took off her long thin gloves. Arias said nothing and watched from the distance as she revealed something utterly shocking.
Once the gloves were off, she extended her hand and touched one of the flowers with the tip of her hand. In the next instant, the entire patch began to dry up at a rapid pace, and before long it was completely dead.
From a normal observer's standpoint, they would think she was using some sort of Art or Technique, but for Aron who observed the surrounding mana signatures and fluctuations, what he saw was entirely different.
In his point of view, the moment Rose came into contact with the flowers, her body acted like a sort of vacuum that drained the mana from the flowers completely.
He knew of some arts, techniques and even aspects of creatures that could do something similar. But in Rose's case, what she did was done passively and without her incurring it.
Rose turned back to Aron to see his reaction and found he had taken off his helm and was just staring worryingly at her. Why wouldn't he? With such an ability, it didn't matter what size or power a creature had. As long as she touched it, their demise were set.
Once she saw the caution Aron had towards her, she showed a pitiful smile and looked at her own hands and muttered. "You have no idea, no idea how long I've searched for a way to change this part of me. But somewhere along the lines... it became a pointless endeavor and I accepted what I am."
Her eyes carried a certain miserable sadness to them but her facial expressions didn't show this. It could only mean this was something she had long come to terms with.
Aron though, was still curious. "If that's the case, why do you still pursue knowledge so diligently?"
He expected to receive a straightforward answer to that question, however, Rose's reason was far more pitiful. "I spent so much time pursuing a solution, knowledge became my only solace. I can not live a normal life, knowledge is... is all I know... and all I have."
With that said, she released a sigh as if pitying herself before wearing her gloves once more. Her gaze then turned to Aron; it was now his turn to speak.
Aron's drive wasn't something he considered a secret, however, he felt uncomfortable about speaking of it without even knowing why. Maybe because it showed a pitiful side to his life as well, and he was taught never to show weakness.
However, its those very teachings that he resents the most. A solemn look and frown appeared on his face as he looked Rose in the eyes and revealed what drove a being like him.
"You said knowledge is all you know? Well, the same could be said for me. I grew up under simple yet harsh conditions where everyday was a struggle to survive. But, even with all that, I was genuinely happy. Happy with the progress I would make, the meager accomplishments and...the care I received. But..."
As Aron paused, Rose found what she was hearing hard to believe, in the first place Aron looked like someone completely devoid of happiness or simply without care for it, much like herself... and many others honestly. And his reason for this?
"...knowledge. It crushed my reality...my dreams and revealed to me another. You'd laugh at how long I was denial, but the more I grew the clearer things became, the clearer it all became, except for one looming cloud that still lurks within my mind. That cloud is my father, and I have just one question I wish to ask him... just one."
Aron's fluctuations began to grow without him even realizing. Rose cast a worried glance as she had never ever seen such unbridled rage in his eyes.
She had to protect herself using a thin barrier but even then... the sheer corrosive power and potency behind Aron's uncontrolled fluctuations was jaw dropping. It was like a she was witnessing a minor danger zone forming right before her.
Still, her heart remained calm and she didn't retreat. "Limbo is vast, the chances of you finding him are miniscule. Worst case scenario, he could already be dead... what happens then?"
Rose could see whatever cloud he was talking about clearly had more meaning to him than perhaps he even realized. It was an anchor that would continue to hold him down unless a sort of resolution was found. So, Rose thought bringing about the possibility of death would convince him otherwise.
But no...
"Thanks to the information you've given me, now more than ever am I sure that this is the region I was born in, different whether and different continent... but it's the same. This link between humans, Kolieans and Pesia is no coincidence... it cannot be. As for whether my father is alive or not... it would better he wasn't. Because depending on his answer... I have to kill him."
Rose finally showed an expression at his words... an expression of concern. Aron was dead serious and his drive was bordering on obsession.
How couldn't it? His scope and experience of the real world alone was small. Worse off he was still very young by Koliean standards, not even possessing wings yet.
No matter how quickly he had matured, Aron was far from perfect and still had much to learn. Far more than he could imagine...
Before the two to exchange any more words, the footsteps of someone approaching quickly had them both turn to see who it was. Aron's fluctuations dwindled as his mind got off that topic but his eyes still couldn't hide the rage bubbling within.
Soon, Claudia appeared on the scene but came to an abrupt halt when she found the two looking in her direction already and with some anger and displeasure in their eyes. She couldn't tell whether this was directed at her for intruding or they had been arguing prior.
Whatever the case, she felt very awkward as she revealed. "Um... Brutas, Ezmeralda and Sebastian just arrived at the camp."
Rose frowned when she heard her reason for coming. "How does that concern either of us? Do you expect us to grant them some grand welcome or such?"
For whatever case, Claudia felt whatever anger Rose had was being directed at her. Still, she wanted to reveal her reason for coming and leave quickly.
"It's just that they are convincing the people that Aron is the whole reason for us being here. A lot are supporting this stance and are rioting, demanding an answer for the deaths and-."
Aron didn't let her finish and spoke in a low but very heavy tone. "Enough."
His voice mixed with his gaze made Claudia feel genuine fear towards Aron, like she was staring at some strange... one who wouldn't hesitate to kill her at the slightest irritation.
Thankfully for her, he only glanced at her for a moment before passing some instructions to Rose. "Gather the three Drakar and Evanora and come find me."
He said only this before walking away in the direction of the camp's center, even bypassing Claudia in the motion.
...
Once there, Aron found angry Brutas inciting the crowd with negative words about Aron. Why? Because when he arrived and found his grandmother in a poor beaten state, he felt Aron was cause.
In fact, his anger drove him to the theory that his grandmother had actually been the one to fight at the central dwelling first and that Aron must've only arrived afterward to claim the glory for himself. A bold accusation to make against someone like Aron, but he didn't care, he felt as long as the people supported him, they could at least drive Aron away.
And if he used violence, then that would only work against him. This was what Brutas thought. However, there was one fatal error.
Aron didn't care in the least about the humans gathered there.
So when he arrived looking angry with his fluctuations raging around a small radius, everyone took a step back, including Brutas. Ezmeralda and Sebastian were both further back looking at the condition of his grandmother and attempting to heal her using their techniques.
However they too looked worried when they saw him.
Aron first looked around at all the frightened gazes being cast at him and snickered for a moment before calming himself slightly and focusing on Brutas.
This worried Brutas and he wanted to step back more but before he could, Aron closed the small distance between them and landed a fist in his gut.
"!!"
Brutas couldn't even make a sound and he quickly fell to the ground while trembling and clutching his stomach. Aron stood over him with a murderous gaze and spoke down at him.
"I have lost count of how many times I've ignored your irrelevant existence. You seem to believe that these parasites will stand by and support just because of a few words? Are you blind? They claim I made them miserable but they sit here comfortably in my camp. Back in Pesia it was you they denounced but now they suddenly show support and you accept it? There's no saving stupidity like yours. The only way you'll learn... is through experience!"
Aron suddenly raised his leg and stomped it down on Brutas's back, causing a resounding crack to be heard by many who watched with widened gazes of fear.
"Ahhh!!"
He screamed in pain, yet no one moved to help him. Not the bystanders who were just from showing support and not even the two childhood friends who he traveled with all this time... no one helped him.
Despair appeared in his eyes as this realization struck him. He then looked up at Aron with pleading eyes. To everyone's surprise, Aron raised his leg and moved away just as Rose appeared on the scene.
Amarr, Rorguvv and Mikaa felt traumatic quivers run through their bodies when they witnessed his cruelty to what they thought was his people.
"Rose, reach out to Jagu using your scouter, it's time we leave. We have nothing to gain by staying." As Aron said this, Brutas felt his life was spared, but then Aron shattered that hope with a cruel revelation. "Before you look so relieved, you may want to stand up."
Brutas felt a chill and immediately wanted to stand and get way from Aron, but found he couldn't. It took a moment for to realize but his eyes widened when he did... he couldn't feel his legs.
He looked at Aron in disbelief but Aron only clicked his tongue and looked at Amarr. "Go break his arms and gouge out his eyes. Once he realizes how his kind treat burdens, he'll wish I had killed him."
Brutas couldn't understand what Aron had said to the large frightening female Drakar but when he saw her approaching with malice, panic took over.
"No, get away from me! Are you all going to allow this! The creatures that killed our people serve him! Are you blind!? No, please stop, ahh!! My life isn't over! It can't be over! Ahh!"
Some looked away and some watched, but all could hear Brutas's screams in what would be a memory none of them would forget.
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