The father-son reunion was just as heartwarming as one would expect. Leon firmly embraced his father, shedding his exterior of an inexhaustible hero who always stood at the frontlines. Before his father, the rock gave Leon his foundation; the mentor who taught him how to be a man. Leon could only revert to his childhood state.
Lucas returned Leon's embrace tightly, as if he were holding a treasure that he would never let go. His once thick arms had been drained, and his tension-filled body was now finally relaxing.
How long has he waited for this moment?
Even though it pained his heart, Lucas was forced to send his son away when he was a mere child. Lucas was resolved to die for his sins, to free his son from the atonement he sought. No child should ever carry the burden of their parents.
For Leon's safety, Lucas couldn't muster up the courage to reach out to him, hoping he could shoulder the weight of his mistakes alone. Yet, as he felt his son's thumping heart, the boulder he was carrying came crumbling down.
As the father-son pair calmed, a still silence fell on the pair. Lucas stared into his son's eyes, as a weary smile crept up his lips.
"Have you been well?"
"Never better," Leon beamed, showing off his radiant complexion. However, as he observed his father's atmosphere, Leon's blue eyes narrowed with confusion.
"What happened to you, Dad? Why do you look so exhausted?"
"It's a long story… I'll tell you more later. But first…"
Lucas pushed his son away for the moment and stared at the couple who stood silently by while the father and son had their reunion. Holding back a cry, the battered Knight bowed solemnly towards Amon, who remained silent with his arms folded.
"Words cannot express how grateful I am… for your actions."
"It's nothing, I'm doing what I'm supposed to do."
For Amon, it was nothing, but to Lucas, it was resolving his lifelong regret. Reuniting with his son, a dream that he'd long abandoned, was now granted due to Amon. And not only that, he was resolved to save his wife, the woman whom he abandoned the Solaris House for.
"If you manage to save my wife, my words to you back in Espadavale will remain true…"
"There's no need to go to that extreme."
Amon recalled the vow Lucas gave him: 'If you can do as you promised… If you can save my wife and reunite my family… I, Lucas Bright, will serve you till my dying breath.'
While having Lucas Bright, a Solaris Knight who managed to condense Seven Suns under his belt, would be tempting, the main reason for Amon's urgency was to prevent the Second Calamity. Anything else would be a bonus.
Before Lucas could continue, a menacing shrill enveloped the area. While they weren't in immediate danger, it was still unsettling to remain defenceless in such a misty, open area.
"Let's move to a safer place to talk, shall we?"
Noting that it wasn't a good location for them to speak, the aged, weathered Knight cleared the path and led the group deeper into the mountain range, as the eerie light of the Veil enveloped them.
Leon's father led them deep into the misty mountain range, and not a shred of civilisation remained. The air was heavy with damp silence, carrying only the whisper of unseen water trickling down unseen stone. Dampened trees filled with condensed dew bordered the valley, making it impossible for a regular human to pass unscathed. Worse still, those unfamiliar with the terrain would be lost, unable to escape the misty labyrinth.
As the sole resident of this forsaken land, Lucas strode with confidence until they reached the mysterious secret the Veil hid.
A lake—an ethereal mirror of pale silver, its surface so still it seemed less water than a dream congealed.
It seemed utterly unnatural, yet natural at the same time. The fog pooled upon it like breath on glass, veiling its edges, so that one could not tell where the shore ended and the depths began. It was like living a broken dream, one that made lesser minds go crazy with fascination and fear.
Lucas took one look at the lake before heaving a heavy sigh. Ignoring the ethereal presence for now, he led his guests into a rundown hut at the lake's foot. It leaned crookedly against the slope, timber bones warped and weary from years of weather. The roof sagged under moss and rot, its thatch peppered with holes where rain no longer bothered to ask permission. A door hung from one hinge, never quite closing, and the window shutters rattled loosely when the wind prowled through the valley.
Hardly a place to welcome guests, but Lucas made do.
"You may sit anywhere. I apologise, but I don't have tea or snacks. "
"Dad… You were living in this place all this time?"
"Leon… You don't have to worry about me."
Leon could hardly believe his eyes. His indomitable father, the man who taught him how to live with honour and respect, was now living like a decrepit vagabond. Meanwhile, Amon and Yue carefully observed the old man, who seemed ten years older than his actual age.
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Yue sent a telepathic message to Amon, who could only nod silently in agreement.
'That's why we're here, to eliminate the source of his worries.'
'Can we do it? Can we save them?'
The transcendental beauty gazed up at her lover pleadingly. Even she wasn't fully aware of the Second Calamity's nature and Amon's plan to neutralise it. In her previous timeline, Amon had resolved the matter single-handedly, but at the same time… in that life, Lucas Solaris completely disappeared from the planet.
So, it wasn't a true happy ending.
But this time… Amon was confident.
'Don't worry, I will make sure that no one has to suffer.'
Amon flashed a rare smile before speaking straight to the father comforting his only child.
"Sir Lucas, please explain the situation."
"Ah, yes… We shouldn't get too carried away."
Lucas immediately pushed his son away and coughed twice to gather his composure. It had been a while since he met another person, and even the coldest of hearts would have celebrated and rejoiced. Alas, there were more pressing matters to attend to.
"Where should I begin?"
"First… please explain why you were forced to leave Leon, and… the state of your wife."
"Hah… Yes, we should start from there."
Lucas rubbed his shaggy beard as his eyes started to sparkle. Memories rose from the depths of his mind and he fondly started his reminiscence.
"No, let's start with how I met her… Aluria."
Aluria… Leon's mother, and… the Second Calamity.
"A long time ago, when I was in the Golden Dragon Order, a mission came. They asked me to investigate the mysterious mist that came from the Veil and the monsters that spawned from it. It was a challenging mission, but as a Guardian Knight, I relished the challenge."
Before Amon, Lucas was the Solaris House's greatest genius. He was destined to become the next Solaris Lord, and more importantly, he was a Solaris who had the potential to become a legendary figure. So, back when he was young and hot-headed, it made sense that Lucas would fearlessly jump into any challenge, no matter the difficulty.
"When I first came to the Veil, it wasn't as misty as it is now. There were still signs of life, and even some villagers remained. But, it all changed when the mermen intensified their assault."
"Merman? Those monsters that attacked us?"
"Yes, them… But they aren't exactly monsters."
"Then what are they?"
"Lifeforms created from a fallen God."
Lucas spoke with a rigid intensity, making those in the room gulp with fear.
"God? Isn't there only supposed to be one God? The Goddess Hyades?"
What Lucas was claiming could be tantamount to heresy. If Ellahan or anyone from the Holy Church overheard him, he would have been burned at the stake. But of course, Lucas didn't truly mean his words.
"I'm not sure either, but… the villagers here have their own beliefs. They claim that in a Primordial era, multiple Gods fought over the world. They destroyed the heavens and split the earth. In the end, only one remained… and that was the Goddess Hyades."
"That's… hard to believe."
Leon, who the Holy Church partially raised, felt uncomfortable with that claim. But after living through the Clay Emperor and learning that there was an age even before the Age of Dragons… His religious heart was starting to waver.
"Well, I don't fully believe it either, but the truth of the matter is… There is something sealed beneath this lake."
Lucas glanced through the window, and his golden eyes dilated at the sight of the pristine, misty lake. All of his headaches, his worries, his… desires… were tied to this very water body.
"Aluria, she… is the Priestess of this lake."
"So that's how you met mom? She was a villager in the Veil?"
"That's not quite it…"
Lucas shook his head, and the atmosphere shifted. Soon, everyone was unable to take their eyes off the slowly degrading man as he held his chest with remorse.
"Your mother… was also a creation of the sealed God. A mermaid."