Chapter 765: When Love and Dreams Collide [Part 2]

เผยแพร่เมื่อ 17 มี.ค. 2569 07:59

Mikhail had a simple dream. Live a peaceful life with his family. Unlike most children in Pangea, Mikhail never wished to be a Wanderer when he grew up. Truth be told, he was terribly scared of going to Solterra. He had always felt like he wasn’t talented—partly because he couldn’t even win in sword fights against Shasha when they were younger. However, all of it changed when his younger brother, who had just returned from the hospital, told him that a sword didn’t suit him. At that time, Mikhail’s first thought was that, since even his little brother thought he wasn’t suited to be a warrior, then it must be true. Back then, it didn’t cross his mind that Zion simply meant that he wasn’t suited to wield a sword. It was only later that he found out the true meaning behind his little brother’s words—he needed to switch out his sword for another weapon. He suited an axe better. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂 After that weird ceremony that Zion did to him, Mikhail held an axe. Then and there, he felt as if he was born to wield it. It was an indescribable feeling, and his worries about going to Solterra slowly melted away. He felt more confident, and the next time he sparred with his sister, Shasha, he actually won their match. His sister, who was very competitive, challenged him again and again. However, she was still unable to win. She then left pouting and went to look for Zion to ask him to train her as well. A few days later, Shasha went to challenge him just like always. The result of their sparring match ended in a draw, but instead of being disappointed, Shasha seemed happy with the results. Mikhail was surprised because his little brother seemed very different from how he was in the past. But he just thought that it might be the aftermath of the accident that nearly took Zion’s life. As the weeks turned into months, he and Shasha started to treat Zion as their older brother instead of a younger one. Even Mikhail found this very strange, but for some reason, he didn’t feel bad about it despite being the eldest in their family. Zion was smart, mature for his age, and seemed like Mr. Perfect in his eyes. However, the true turning point of their lives was when a Tier-1 Gate appeared right in front of their house when their parents were away. They hurriedly hid inside the basement of their home, treating it as a shelter. But even that shelter was nearly destroyed by the Boar-like Jinn, which made Mikhail weak in the knees and fearful for his life. Despite his training, he felt extreme fear when he actually came face to face with a monster that was very common to see in Solterra. As the eldest, he should be the one protecting his siblings. However, it wasn’t him who stood as the vanguard on that day. His brother, Zion, stared at the Boar that had destroyed the door that was keeping them safe with a calm expression on his face. Holding two daggers in his small hands, he was like an unshakable pillar that would keep them safe from harm. Mikhail could still remember when his little brother charged at the boar, daggers drawn and ready to strike. He had burned that image in his memory, and after surviving that tragedy, he vowed that this time, he would become the protector of his siblings, not the other way around. The young man trained, trained, and trained some more until his hand bled while wielding the axe. His father and mother had tried to advise him, saying he should do things in moderation, but Mikhail could also be very stubborn at times, like his father. The only time he would stop was when Zion would personally come to tell him to rest. For some reason, he couldn’t disobey his little brother, treating the latter’s words and advice seriously, like a gospel he mustn’t defy no matter what. When Zion told him that he had a weakness to beautiful girls, Mikhail thought that he was joking. His mother and sisters were very beautiful, so Mikhail thought that he was already resistant to the opposite gender. But Zion proved him wrong. So, his little brother trained him to speak less in front of others, like his words would be weighed in gold. During his first journey in Solterra, Mikhail rose to prominence because of his abilities, making the ladies, who had been sent on the same mission as him, look at him favorably. Some of them were very pretty, and whenever they held onto his arms or came close to him, his heart would start beating wildly inside his chest. Thanks to Zion’s training, he managed to keep an aloof and cold expression on his face, answering their questions with a word or two. If he didn’t know the answer, he would just remain silent and stare at them straight in the eyes, making them avert their gaze. In short, Thirteen’s training regimen of dealing with his only weakness, which was easily falling in love with beautiful ladies, was dealt with. The only downside was that his cold and aloof persona only made the ladies more smitten with him. They even went as far as to compete against each other on who would be the first one to melt Mikhail’s cold heart, making him a very caring and loving person. Of course, these ladies didn’t know that Mikhail was already a very caring and loving person by nature. In fact, Mikhail already had a crush on someone. He was even looking for a good opportunity to ask his brother, Zion, for help because he was truly clueless when it came to relationships. Mikhail might not be an expert in love, but he was also sensitive to these kinds of things. This was also why he noticed that Erica, Sherry, and the Saintess, Shana, seemed to give special attention to his brother. After thinking about it, Mikhail thought that since there were three exceptional ladies who were smitten with his brother, he might be able to ask Zion for tips on how to have a good romantic relationship with someone special. ’I’ll ask him after the tournament,’ Mikhail thought as he gazed at Vincent, whom many people call a playboy. He had interacted with the young man and thought that he was a good person. To his surprise, Vincent also didn’t hide the fact that he was interested in his sister, Shasha. However, Mikhail knew that Shasha’s standards for a life partner were raised so high due to their exceptional little brother. In fact, Mikhail was worried that his sister would grow up old without marrying anyone. After all, everyone was bound to pale in comparison to Zion. Mikhail then glanced at the VIP Room, where the apple of his eye was located. For a brief moment, he thought that the lady he liked was also cheering him on, making him more determined to win the match. Since he had recognized Vincent to be a strong competitor, Mikhail decided to use his strongest attack as his opening strike. His family and the person whom he respected the most in the world were watching him, so he would do his absolute best to make sure that he wouldn’t let them down. The moment Thirteen gave the signal to start the battle, Mikhail swung his axe with the fury of a War God. "Giant Cleaver!" Mikhail roared as he swung his axe, heralding the start of the battle where Love and Dreams were about to collide.

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