135 Bayrak

Yulida is the Roshist word for 'soul companion.' When going to a Tiroga, a Rokia will forego of their sentiments in Foriast. And it is the same for any Tiroga after the first one.

During Tiroga, a Forish will most certainly become one with another companion. This companion is called Tiroshi – 'A companion who accompanies you through the harsh lifetime.'

Once Tiroga ends, a Forish will return to the World Government Island. That's where the Yulida comes in. Yulida is someone you are with when living your life in Foriast.

One might mistake this for love, but this is considered as a 'soulmate' instead of love. Believe it or not, soulmates are not love for the Forish. It is described as 'stronger than love, yet much more trivial than love.'

"That's why there is no 'love' in the Roshist dictionary." Ysa finished her lesson in the elevator. "It is rare for a person in Tiroga to marry a wielder as it is forbidden to reveal your status as a wielder unless your life was in peril. It is prohibited to create a harem, too. During Tiroga, although all Overseers in Tiroga don't precisely treat their significant other inconsequentially, there's no disparity internally."

"So you're saying that Forish are incapable of loving?" Hayden kept being polite in spite of him not caring at all.

"In your terms, yes." Ysa nodded. "After all, to protect the Source Heart is our duty. We have to be decisive once we're in a situation that will require us to be decisive."

"I grasp what you mean." Hayden bobbed his head. "Earthly ties will hinder a person when making decisions on the fly."

"That is the way of the Overseers." Ysa continued to blab her mouth. Whilst listening to her, Hayden was getting more and more giddy from anxiety. He was even shaking, though it wasn't noticeable.

For what felt like thousands of years for Hayden, he finally arrived and met with Starakt. They were in a regal throne room with the colors white, gold, and rose gold being the dominant colors. It was quite peculiar, yet Hayden had to admit it was tasteful.

On a throne, Starakt was slouching and yawning. He had his attire on when he met Hayden, albeit this time, there was a white circlet crown with a gold gem in the middle around his forehead. The crown amplified the aura of a king around Starakt.

Leisurely for someone who was restless, Hayden moved in front of Starakt and greeted him. "Te-Starakt."

"Le-Hayden." Starakt stood up and smiled at him. "What is your business seeking this useless king?"

"My parents have been kidnapped." Hayden took off his mask. It revealed his eerily calm countenance. "On this island."

"Just a while ago." Hayden answered. "Right under my guards' noses. Since everything in World Government Island is monitored, I plead for your assistance."

"You must be desperate to seek this boy's help." Gaia materialized nearby. "I will not be able to directly help in this matter, but I will try to help to the best I can."

"I thank you." Hayden bowed respectfully. The picture of the perpetrator timely arrived at this moment. Hayden opened the notification and was impressed of the sketch. "This is a sketch of a witness from memory."

When Gaia and Starakt saw the sketch, their eyes widened and narrowed in the span of a microsecond. This didn't escape from Hayden's discernment.

"What is it? Do you know him?" Hayden's heart throbbed hard. A feeling of dread from his Danger Sense washed over him. "He's a dangerous man, isn't he?"

Gaia and Starakt gazed at each other. Starakt seemed to hesitate. Ultimately, he informed Hayden. "This is a wielder from Turkey. He is one of the few Level 3 that Gaia actually keeps tab. He is a dangerous existence that we were planning to rid of in the near future. His name is Bayrak Erkan."

"If you were keeping tabs on him, what happened?" Hayden's expression became glum. "Did you retract your consciousness whilst unsealing my Innate Gifts?"

"Yes." Gaia nodded. "That is the case. Usually, I'll be able to unlock Innate Gifts with ease. Howbeit, you're not a regular human being. There's something that hinders me from undoing the seals on your Innate Gifts the common manner I do. Over and above, the locks on your Innate Gifts were robust. I had to expend most of my power to help you. When I finished, I entered an inactive state and awakened just now."

Hayden sighed out. He was vexed at the circumstance he was plunged in. This may be the first real challenge he ever faced during his life as a wielder.

"Tell me about how dangerous he is." Hayden accepted his situation and decided to deal with it instead of mulling. "What is his Level?"

"He's a Level 2 wielder that awakened last year." Gaia's expression came off as 'before you say anything else, let me finish.' "The thing with him is… He's one of the rare few dual wielders. The Rose type."

"Fuck." Hayden verbalized himself by cursing aloud. 'There it is. The universe is starting to balance out. My luck is ending.'

"Do you know of his Abilities?" Hayden gulped and inhaled heavily. "Can it be considered as strong as my Abilities?"

"To be fair, nothing can be on par with your Indestructible Devil." Gaia pointed out. "You see, for any type of Ability really, there are modifiers that makes it unique from the rest."

Hayden listened to Gaia's explanation carefully. It was a cinch for him to understand it through using analogies whilst listening. To sum it all up, some of the more common Abilities have different levels.

An example would be the Master of Frost of Jeremy, a powerful version of the Frost Manipulator. Another would be Zeke's Peerless Brain, a better form of the Computer Brain.

For those that possess transformation type Abilities there is a sort of ranking. To make it easier to grasp, it can be seen as the medieval noble rankings. Some Abilities originate from a 'high-ranking' bloodline of a race, such as royalty, family of leaders, or anything of the sort within a race. These are called variants.

This is the case with Hayden's Indestructible Devil, Eun-ha's Nine-Tailed Fox Queen, and Sayuri's Lunar Alpha.

On another note, there is another irregularity that may occur within wielders. It is that two of incongruent bloodlines merge and become a whole new bloodline altogether. That's what happened to Hayden's Ability. These are called hybrids.

"I am forbidden to directly tell you anything…" Gaia looked at Hayden in the eyes earnestly. "I'm going to give you this hint: What is a devil?"

Hayden transiently forgot that his parents were abducted, blanking out at this revelation. His takeaway from this was that Gaia was dropping him hints that Hayden's Indestructible Devil was both a hybrid and a variant.

'It is stupid since I've known information of Abilities being defined by their names…' He has never thought of this. Well, not like he can since he didn't have enough information in the past. He didn't have knowledge of this hybrid and variant thing, and he didn't want to jump into conclusions.

Hayden committed into mind that he shouldn't overestimate his own capabilities and remain assuming the worst. He has read enough novels in the past to know that nothing comes good with overestimation of one���s own power. This was especially the case for most of the enemies of the main characters.

'The question is: Is the part of Indestructible Titan also a variant?' Hayden pondered hard. 'Devil is typically referred to as the chief demonic spirit in Christianity. If so, that means my Phantom Demon is a Phantom Devil. What about of the Indestructible Titan?'

"Additionally…" Gaia spoke after a long while. "Your Divine Perception is a… How to say this… A mutation. It is uncanny how your Origin Crystal was able to stimulate that bloodline as it is far too distant for regular Origin Crystals to awaken it. Perhaps it's related to that last Innate Gift."

A mutation was a type of Ability that varies from the regular version. A mutation, unlike a variant, was an evolution. That meant that it had vastly superior capabilities than its regular version.

"This is something." Hayden calmed himself down, reminding that this shouldn't get over his head. It will be his death if it did. "What about that Bayrak?"

"His first Ability is relatively normal." Starakt was the one to debrief Hayden. "Its name is Redwood Ariens. It is a purely defense-focused Ability, though it is abysmal, average at best."

Redwood Ariens was a variant of the Ability, Greenwood Ariens. It transformed a person into a hulking treant-like creature with red wooden bark for skin, and violet-colored leaves for hair. In this form, one's skin, or bark, is dense. Furthermore, one will not feel any pain and their strength was up to par.

The downside to this is that Redwood Ariens are incredibly grounded, unable to jump, and is slow as a result of their cumbersome and ginormous bodies. They were essentially snails.

For its Level 2 power, Bayrak can shift his hands into different shapes. This made Redwood Ariens a tanky bruiser that dealt fatal damage and essentially cannot die. He was identical to those annoying bruisers in MOBA games if you don't let them get ahead.

"His second Ability is… slightly aberrant." Starakt sounded confused. "His usage of it is ingenious. Its nature is the one that is atypical. It's called Void Shift."

"Void Shift?" Hayden couldn't fully deduce what kind of power it has from its name alone. He had his conjectures, sure. In the end, conjectures are merely conjectures. "What does it do? Traveling between dimensions or something?"

"It can be summed up in that one sentence." Starakt bobbed his head. His expression was that of puzzlement. "Still, your sentence is an oversimplification. It's not as elementary as that."

Hearing the explanation of Void Shift, Hayden didn't know how to respond. It was way too overpowered! Its Level 1 power is that it allowed Bayrak to step into the Void, a dimension in between realities and all worlds.

Void is omnipresent and is actually the glue that lets all worlds and independent spaces stay in place. Gaia knows that, while inside the Void, Bayrak can observe the outside world with his sense of sight and hearing. However, Bayrak is purely capable of seeing the world in white outlines, akin to a cartoon. As for the three other senses, they're nonfunctional.

Aside from that, he cannot interact in any way else with the outside world. Naturally this was two-sided, giving him the power of invisibility from all forms of detection.

Void Shift has three crucial weaknesses. The first is that, once his Ability is activated, he has to at least take three steps within two seconds before he can go into the Void. Second, inside the Void, he cannot move at all. The third was that he can only stay in the Void for thirty minutes at a time.

The second weakness was removed by the Level 2 power of Void Shift. The weakness of being unable to move was removed, albeit, his movement is slowed at 20% of his normal speed.

The number of steps needed to enter the Void is also reduced to two, and the duration he can stay inside the Void is extended to an hour. What's more, he can take up to three living organisms in at a time as long as he is in contact with them, as well as leave objects in the Void that can only be seen in the Void and is nonexistent in the external world.

When a living organism enters the Void, they will be locked in place and cannot see or hear anything at all. They will be ejected within 15 minutes if Bayrak doesn't keep contact with them for at least a minute.

"What did I do to deserve the attention of such a monster…" Hayden articulated his own indignation of this predicament he was in.

The more he thought about it, the more Hayden was angered. He was getting the urge to revert back to his old way of lashing out by punching walls and battering objects. He reined it in as it will bring no good doing this.

"I see him." Hayden was pulled out of his rage when Gaia's words reached his ears. "He's still here. He's mumbling something… He's cackling derisively… He's badmouthing you to himself, saying that you are weak and not at all deserving of… Uh… I don't know if I should tell you this next part."

"Tell me." By this point, Hayden's wrath reached that point where he was calm. That type of rage was the scariest there was.

"He says that you're not deserving of Eun-ha, or anybody. And he called Eun-ha a beddable whore. He threw your parents violently on the ground and tied them up." Gaia drew in a deep breath. She was reminded of Empyrean Power.

"I… See…" Hayden's heart was beating loud and fast. His entire body was surging with adrenaline, feeling lightheaded. He didn't know that wielders can still feel lightheaded from adrenaline. "Where is he?"

"Set-" Starakt halted mid-sentence as intense dread was poured over him akin to a bucket of cold water. 'What the hell? This aura… What in the world is this? This…. I've never experienced such fear in my life!'

Starakt turned his attention to Hayden. He was a little horrified as he hallucinated that Hayden was surrounded by darkness. No, Hayden was darkness. In the middle of that darkness were a pair of red dots intermingled with white wisps.

It was as if Hayden was a living nightmare… No, it was worse than that. Hayden was the personification of all nightmares.

'This kid is strong.' Starakt's entire body quaked. For the first time for an unknown amount of time. 'How long has it been since I've been scared?'

Be that as it may, Starakt got in ahold of himself, releasing his Supreme King to match that of Hayden's. To his surprise, he had to release 30% of the strength of his own Supreme King to be on par with Hayden's.

One might think this was a small number. It wasn't. Be reminded that Starakt was a Level 6 wielder that has lived for over two millennia. He is figuratively as old as time itself. His power was beyond what anyone could possibly fathom.

"What is your plan, Hayden?" Gaia questioned. "Are you going to barge to where he is? Guns blazing? Where's the logical Hayden that-"

"Give me his location." Hayden said through gritted teeth, interrupting Gaia. Hayden gazed straight into Gaia's eyes with a crazed smile. "Isn't this the perfect opportunity to test the full extent of my upgraded skills? Besides, you've been devising a plan on getting rid of that Bayrak. From the looks of it, you haven't concocted a good one. It's killing two birds with one stone."

Gaia and Starakt couldn't find the words to refute Hayden's argument. A dual wielder of roughly the same Level was indeed the best way to test the boundaries of Hayden's potential and current skill.

Starakt thought of something and voiced out his suggestion. "What about this. We will kidnap the kidnapper, entrap him here, and you duke it out with him. You wouldn't want a commotion in World Government Island that will attract unwanted attention to yourself, right? Even if it was in disguise."

"That is true." Hayden didn't speak much anymore, keeping in his rage.

"For the meantime, let me unlock your Void Sealing." Gaia offered amicably. If Hayden utilized this kind of fury when the invaders come… He'll be a force to be reckoned with. "I'm curious what that is too."

"Okay." Hayden didn't reject.

"I'll call you when Bayrak's been contained." Starakt sat back on his throne. "As for your parents, is it okay if we wipe their memory of this incident?"

"That will be for the best." Hayden concurred with Starakt.

…..

In a high-class hotel room in the south of The Periphery. Bayrak sat in the sofa, brimming with haughty leisure, watching TV.

By the side, on the floor, Hayden's parents were tied up back to back. Just then, a light-skinned woman with pink wavy hair that reached the middle of her back walked in.

She was an absolutely stunning beauty, with entrancing long legs to boot. This, along with her hourglass figure, was emphasized by the pink-sleeved white shirt she wore that was tucked in her boyfriend shorts. Her tantalizing attractiveness was augmented by the white thigh highs she had on.

Oddly, she had a metal collar on her neck, akin to a slave. Anybody would assume this was a fashion choice. It wasn't. Yes, this out of place collar is a fashion choice in this era. Her gorgeous blue eyes blatantly contained tremendous amount of abhorrence and repugnance.

She carried with her a tray teeming with all kind of snacks. The woman robotically walked to the coffee table. Her charming voice rang out. "Here is your food, master."

The moment that the woman placed the food down, her face snapped to a direction. Bayrak stood up and bellowed, "What the hell took you so long? You're but a lowly slave!"

The woman didn't talk back. Abruptly, she was swept off her feet. Bayrak vehemently and forcefully kissed her on the neck. "Such a pretty thing. Be thankful that I brought you here and hasn't forced myself on you yet. Well, it will be your privilege to be f*cked by me."

Her expression unnoticeably twitched when she felt her chest was being fondled. This demeaning action of Bayrak put her on the brink of a mental breakdown.

Without any way to resist, she closed her eyes and prayed for a miracle to happen. Opportunely, Hayden's parents woke up and was noticed by Bayrak, causing him to cease his sexual assault on the girl.

"You two are finally awake." Bayrak pushed the girl away. The girl trembled in revulsion. She stood there expressionlessly, watching Bayrak squat in front of Hayden's father. "Heh, your son has let the fame he experienced get to his head. This will be his punishment."

Hayden's father didn't entertain Bayrak. He was too confounded of the happening that Bayrak's words didn���t register in his mind. Bayrak was annoyed of Hayden's father's unresponsiveness, raising his hand to slap him.

When he was going to lay hands on Hayden's father's cheek, he found out he couldn't lower it to his consternation. "What the…"

Turning his head around, all he saw was a beautiful woman, a couple notches above his own slave, was stopping his hand. It was Likoria, exuding impassiveness. Before he could react, a resounding slap fell on his face. It made him pass out.

White smoke came out of her hands as it flew to Hayden's parents. The smoke induced extreme drowsiness within them, making them faint.

"How about you? Who are you?" Likoria asked in English, aiming her eyes towards the woman, who was quivering in fear.

"E-eyima." Eyima stammered in English. She knelt and pleaded sorrowfully, "Please, I'm not this person's accomplice. I'm a-"

"You're the slave, right?" Likoria inquired languidly. Her void sword materialized in her hands. It flashed, as the metal chain around her neck was sliced off cleanly. "You're free now. Do not talk of this matter in the future, okay?"

Two men appeared adjacent to Likoria. One of the men lugged Bayrak's body without any consideration. As for the other, he untied Hayden's parents and gently carried them on his shoulders.

Likoria was going to exit when Eyima's wail caught her attention. "P-please, take me with you. I have nowhere to go. Please, I beg of you."

"You've suffered enough." Likoria crouched in front of Eyima and patted her on the head. "Are you sure you want to come with me?"

"I'm sure." Eyima's wet eyes resolutely focused in Likoria's eyes. Likoria faintly smiled, satisfied of it.

"Come then." Likoria didn't help Eyima up at all, walking away. Eyima was put in a daze, watching Likoria's departing back. At the door, Likoria turned back to Eyima. "Are you going to come, or not?"