Dyon's jaw steeled. The Demon Sage couldn't help but look toward him with pity.
He shook his head, sighing. 'My daughter's charms are simply too much. Of course, she gets it from her father. Such a valiant spirit in a woman! Who else but my seed could accomplish such a thing? It's no wonder he's smitten.'
The Demon Sage nodded to him, a deep pride welling up inside of him. He was apparently very certain that it was his genes and not Amphorae's upbringing that made her like this. For that matter, could he even name the characteristics of Amphorae's mother? Could he even remember her name? He's simply terrible. Yet another case of a father taking credit for a mother's work.
Seeing Amphorae's eyes flutter, Dyon had half a mind to simply walk out. Wasn't it better for her to not face him at all? If her memories awakened the moment she saw him like Luna promised, wouldn't she be racked with guilt? Dyon didn't want her to have to go through that.
He couldn't lie to himself. It hurt. The thought of his wife falling in love with another was heart wrenching.
Thinking to this point, he chuckled to himself. What a hypocrite he was. What right did he have to feel this way? Hadn't he boldly proclaimed to Madeleine that he only needed her? Then less than a year later, he met Ri. In fact, he could still remember just how conflicted Ri felt about sharing her husband, how did it feel for her then? Now he was on the verge of having a mental breakdown for the same thing he put his wives through everyday?
'My mental state is so weak.' Dyon looked up at the high ceiling above his head, as though he was looking for answers.
Dyon had known for a long time that this was the case. In fact, he still hadn't completely gotten over his comprehension of Chaos. He was just managing to keep it together because the hopes of so many rested on his shoulder.
What he realized when his heart welled up with joy as he practiced array alchemy was that he had long since lost himself. If he was truly anchored in his own being, if he truly understood what it meant to be Dyon Sacharro, would he be shaken into despair so easily?
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtYear after year, decade after decade, he immersed himself in training. He tortured his body and his mind time and time again. Yet, he spent little time on his own spirituality. He had lost what it meant to be Dyon to the point where he was surprised when he remembered how much he loved array alchemy.
Then, when he grasped that love of his once more, what did he do? He began to torture himself once more. He quite literally just spent the last near 80 years of his existence doing nothing but training. And, other than making food for his beast companions and the rodents he was breeding, he hardly touched array alchemy at all.
Dyon realized that this was always his go to, his escape. Whenever he didn't want to face the reality of what it meant to be himself, he threw himself into work.
When he was in the mortal realm, he closed himself off from everyone to the point where he completely neglected his childhood love, Clara.
In the martial world, he repeated these mistakes time and time again. Sure, he had a goal he wanted to accomplish, but to what ends? Was it worth hurting those close to him? Or even worse, hurting himself? Were these the things that he wanted for himself?
Even now, he was finding excuses for himself. 'Amphorae will feel guilty, so I should leave.' What a load of nonsense.
This man Amphorae was pining over was dead. Did Dyon really love Amphorae if he was willing to let her wallow in that misery? So what if she once belonged to another, was that her fault? Of course not.
Dyon's mental state seemed to finally reach an equilibrium. A calm overwhelmed his senses, soothing his very being.
Waves of pure energy wafted through his Mind's Eye, causing the Sovereign Seed to double in size. In response, the toddle grew from just two to three years of age, to five or six.
The Demon Sage felt these changes happening within Dyon, but his awareness only made him shocked. Regular lust wouldn't have caused a breakthrough in mental state, could it be that this brat really loved his daughter? How is that possible? His father wasn't even a seed in his grandfather's sack when my daughter was born…
The truth was the Demon Sage went through the Epistemic Tower trials too, but how could he ever connect the Amphorae of then to his daughter?
As the Demon Sage thought, within Dyon's inner world, a crown floating within a halo of black-gold trembled fiercely. The land below it shook, cracking, before expanding explosively. What once was a land of a hundred meters across, increased to an entire kilometer!
Amphorae's beautiful eyelashes continued to flutter. Because of her hair color, they almost looked like red-gold fairy wings, descending upon mankind from the skies above.
And then… They opened. Shimmering gems of emerald, sparkling deep within.
At that same moment, Dyon had looked down from the ceiling, making the decision to face this head-on. He had run for too long…
When Amphorae's eyes landed on Dyon, a flash of emotion crossed. It was first confusion, deep thought, realization, and then a deep longing.
"Lord husband?" Her lips trembled.
The delicate sleeping beauty stood with a speed Dyon couldn't track, appearing before him in an instant and burying her head in his chest.
Amphorae clung to Dyon so tightly that he was completely unable to breathe. Even still, he had a serene expression on his face, silently holding onto her tender frame while stroking her long hair.
By now, the Demon Sage's skin had torn through all colors of the rainbow. It had started red, before deepening so fiercely that it turned violet, then blue. In the end, it darkened to the point where it turned black before suddenly becoming white and green. Who could have known that a spirit could undergo so many changes?!
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm"Y – y – you! Get away from my daughter!" The Demon Sage's roar shook the Palace, causing Zabia and the Vinum disciples who had just been resting to startle awake, shocking expressions on their faces.
Dyon didn't seem to hear him at all, even a lord of the heavens couldn't make him let of Amphorae, not when tears were streaming down her face.
When last he saw this wife of his, she had sacrificed her life for his sake. If it wasn't for Amphorae, Dyon would have died in his second trial.
Back then, his body had somehow gone into the trial itself. While for others, it would have simply ended in failure, for him, there were only two paths: success or die.
It was because Amphorae sacrificed everything that Dyon could stand here today. How could he betray the love of such a woman for petty jealousy? He would never. Could never.
"Husband, - I – I." Amphorae tried to speak, but her emotions choked her words. This beauty who was so well known for her calm and elegant demeanor was anything but right now.
"There's no need to explain." Dyon said with a smile, holding her gently.
Amphorae's eyes flashed with a hint of confusion before a knowing glint lit them. She giggled to herself silently, something that shocked even her. 'Stupid husband.'
But in the end, she said nothing.
"Well I do need an explain!" The Demon Sage roared. This whole time he had been making fun of Dyon as some lovesick puppy. Could he even be called a man for falling in love at first sight? These were his inner thoughts. Yet, his daughter was just whisked away? Just like that? How could he stand such a thing?
Dyon looked up to the Demon Sage. "You're not allowed to die now, even if you want to."
"What did you say to me?!" The Demon Sage was losing his mind. What did this snotty nosed brat think this was? He was the mighty Demon Sage! Even his enemies only dared to attack his empire after he was gone!
"You heard me. Since you're Amphorae's father, you have no right to die as you please. If you dare to think otherwise, I'll seal your spirit for all of eternity. Try me." Dyon's eyes flashed.
Before, he had been planning on letting the Demon Sage do whatever he wanted. It was already difficult enough for him to father the resources to build bodies for his master and the titled geniuses, building one for the demon sage would put him at his wits end.