Chapter 3693: Borrowed Knife (Part 2) “We know Leegaain has left you the Arthan Set, Verhen.” The male Emperor Beast said. “You can keep it. We only want the boy.” Mind links were fast and continued even when one was talking. As the Awakened attempted their final pitch, the final battle between Lith and Jormun flashed in front of Valeron’s eyes, and it tore his little heart to shreds. Even though Lith skipped all the blood and violence, he left the words and intents intact. Valeron saw how Lith had begged Jormun to walk away and let him protect Elysia’s future. In reply, Jormun had invited Lith to join him one last time and help him ensure Valeron wouldn’t be persecuted in the future. His father’s words sounded like a prophecy now, yet what really pained Valeron was that even though he knew he was looking at the past, he still couldn’t wish either man victory. If Lith won, Jormun would die, and Valeron would become an orphan. Yet if Jormun won and Lith died, Elysia would become an orphan, and Kamila and Solus widows. Valeron had come to love the baby girl like a sister and the human women as mothers. Despite the revelation, the idea of losing the man who until a few seconds ago he had considered like a father was too much. The idea of causing so much pain to his little sister and new mothers was unbearable. Yet when he saw Jormun be fatally wounded by Lith’s hand, Valeron’s mind went blank again. Valeron heard his father asking Lith to take care of the baby boy, but Valeron didn’t listen. He looked at Jormun’s peaceful expression as his body fell limp onto the floor, but Valeron didn’t see it. All the baby boy could think about was that his whole life was a lie. That he was stuck between a bunch of scary people who wanted to hurt him and the man who had murdered his father. “I don’t have the Arthan Set.” Lith felt Valeron’s thoughts through the Dragon Scales, and his heart broke too. “Leegaain keeps it. He will return it to Valeron when he comes of age.” “And by then the little shit will love you enough to give the Arthan Set to you.” A woman said with a sadistic grin. “Nicely played, Verhen. I’m almost sorry to ruin your plan. Almost. “Now, give the boy to us. At this point, the little shit hates you. Don’t risk your life for someone who doesn’t even carry your blood. Think of your real child. Of your wife. Of your people! “Think of all the good things you can do with Menadion’s help. Don’t ruin everyone’s future for the Mad Prince’s sake. Don’t let Meln win!” “Meln?” Those words snapped Lith out of his worry for Valeron and focused his every sense like a laser. “What does Meln have to do with this?” “He recognized the baby.” The male Emperor Beast replied. “He sicced us on you. He wants us to destroy you, but our hate for him is only second to what we feel for the Mad Queen. Otherwise we wouldn’t lose so much time talking.” “What about the spells you are weaving?” Lith sneered, setting his mind on a desperate gamble. “That too, but my point is still valid. Surrender the boy to us, and the Dead King loses. We don’t have to fight, Vehren.” “Say what you want.” Lith’s bright violet aura flared, and his grip on Ragnarök tightened. “My word to Jormun still stands. Valeron is still my son!” Then, with a powerful flap of his wings, Lith dived down in a near-vertical drop. The Awakened had expected him to Blink, Warp, or fly away, not to go down. ‘Don’t worry.’ The Titania said via a mind link. ‘Verhen has no earth-related abilities. He’s thrown himself into our trap.’ As she spoke, air- and dimensional-sealing arrays covered the area, quickly followed by a gravity field. Divine Beasts were too heavy to fly without manipulating the air currents and with dimensional magic blocked, Lith could only run. Or rather, he could have run if the increased gravity didn’t break his kneecaps. The higher a humanoid’s mass, the greater the burden on his joints. On top of that, Lith also had to protect the baby. Outnumbered, outmatched, and with several handicaps already, he had no way out. Or so the Awakened thought until Lith rode the gravity field to increase his speed further. The slight diagonal angle allowed him to move forward, getting closer to the edge of the arrays as he approached the ground. Lith assumed a crouching position, as if he wanted to use his legs, the right arm, and the two membranous wings to absorb the impact. Yet the real trick was another. While he was still a few meters away from the impact, Lith reverted only his legs to their full size. His taloned feet dug deep craters but also propelled the rest of his body forward, out of the gravity field. Free from the burden of the extra weight, Lith expanded his right arm, and membranous wings next. They absorbed the rest of the impact while the legs shrank back to human size before the gravity array could cause significant damage. Lith’s clawed hand and spiked wings dug deep into rock and soil, so that when they shrank back as well, they further increased his speed akin to a slingshot. ‘I have a question. The fuck?’ Asked the human man. ‘Chase him before it’s too late, you morons!’ The male Emperor Beast was the first to recover from the surprise and snapped the others out. ‘Thank Newton, none of them is a Divine Beast and has any idea I don’t spend my days idly.’ Lith flapped his wings with all his strength, using his Tiamat Eyes to see as far as he could and conjure a Warp Steps. Unlike normal Divine Beasts, Lith felt more comfortable fighting in his human form. That and his numerous training sessions with Sinmara and Surtr had led him to develop techniques suitable for someone who could switch between different sizes without losing their coordination. Alas, despite his creativity, his enemies still had the field advantage. They knew the direction Lith was moving in and didn’t need to identify the dimensional coordinates. They Warped after him in the blink of an eye, keeping enough distance not to be blasted away the moment they opened the Steps, but close enough not to lose him either. The encirclement was broken, but the Awakened still had the numerical advantage and were already rebuilding their formation. Soon, one coordinated attack would be all they needed to shoot Lith out of the sky. ‘Plan B it is.’ Lith Warped away, and the Awakened followed. This time, however, two of them received a parting gift up close and personal. Lith had taken the Golems Raptor and Trouble out of his pocket dimension and thrown them where Life Vision showed him the exit points of the enemy’s Steps. “What the-” Trouble’s massive fist shut the Awakened man up while Raptor’s blade, Snakebite, opened a deep wound from hip to shoulder in the Awakened woman. Lith had aimed the Golems at the Warp Steps that carried the energy signature of the support mages, ensuring they wouldn’t tip the scales of the already unfair fight even further.