CHAPTER 101: CAN WE BE FRIENDS?

Daimon’s instincts flared instantly, but even before he could move, the sticky black liquid caught fire—and instantly, he was on fire.

"Rahhhh! Haa! AHhh!" Screams that could barely be seen from where they were coming rang loudly.

The Daimon wailed like a dying animal, its every scream increasing its Aetheric pressure, causing more explosions around it—but the flames weren’t affected.

Johan stared coldly at the wails of the beast, feeling nothing in his heart as he exited the [Spirit Dive] while increasing his output—making the flames stronger, and even more violent.

But, Johan being his usual cautious self—or just having common sense—didn’t want to spend his entire Aether reserves on a single manabeast. Hereso, he decided if the Daimon didn’t give up with ten percent of his Aether reserves depleted, he would put the plan with Orihime into action.

Now, it was just about watching.

Johan walked closer to Sebastian with a sigh, as if he’d just punched a toddler, and patted his shoulder nonchalantly.

"Without you, we would have died. Thank you," Johan said warmly, which just made Sebastian’s serious face soften a bit—both treating the screams of the Daimon as background music.

Orihime pushed herself up from the ground, still incredibly dizzy, only able to stand because of Olivia.

"I can’t believe you’re the same guy who tried to seduce me in front of the court members of both Aurilian and Crimson Empire, and when I refused, kept humiliating me because of my age and my shy nature..." Orihime said with a soft smile.

She had always believed that people could never change, no matter what they said or did. Let’s say for a rapist—he could finish his sentence and become a civilized member of society, but the moment the laws vanish and he’s left alone with a woman, he will feel that desire again.

But now, Johan had become a living example of the opposite. She grinned at Johan’s awkward, apologetic face—indicating she didn’t care anymore.

And then, she looked at the still-trembling Olivia, who was reacting to the painful screams of the Daimon—and immediately pulled her into a hug, wrapping her arms around her waist and back.

"...Can I be your friend?" Orihime asked with a soft smile, making Olivia’s face a deep shade of crimson.

Olivia, while trying to keep Orihime awake, had told her tens of stories—but she hadn’t read books since becoming a maid, so most of the stories she told were from her own life.

One was about a young girl who one day lost all her friends suddenly, then never again considered anyone a friend—or even tried to make one—as she started believing she was unlucky and cursed. But deep inside, she still hoped someone would automatically become her friend without her trying. This was something Orihime related to deeply.

Before her Aether core awakened, and before she met the other Holy Dragons—who basically fixed her—she couldn’t even form a single sentence, always suffering from social anxiety.

She always wanted to play games like hide and seek, and learn martial arts with others, but because of her silence, immense talent in everything from swordsmanship to magic, and her high noble rank—people always assumed she was an arrogant bitch who looked down on them. She never made a single friend until she met Velmire and his friends.

Olivia took a deep breath to suppress her embarrassment. "Yes, I would really like that..." With that, she hugged Orihime back, taking her warmth in.

’Should we clap or something?’ Sebastian, with a look only Johan would understand, asked.

’Maybe? No, no, it would be awkward. Let’s just go to the Daimon...’

Johan, without even moving his eyes, conveyed the message—prompting both to walk up to the Daimon, leaving the girls alone.

—Few minutes later—

"No, I don’t think this will work. I already spent over nine percent of my Aether reserves..." Johan said with a grimace, as the overwhelming pressure was becoming extremely suffocating.

The entire narrow pathway was now a wide pit due to the millions of explosions that had happened in just a few moments. He was just getting stronger—from who knew what emotion.

And Johan can’t lie—he liked it. A creature with such a will was rare, and every time one was encountered, it deserved respect.

Sebastian nodded seriously, understanding the horror of their situation. Fell Hex was truly unbalanced—because as long as a being with regeneration had emotions, he was invincible... and immortal.

He walked closer to the wailing man in the deep pit, thinking of the ways they could defeat him now.

’We could just seal this thing like the God Tree’s incarnation... and Olivia too. But I’ll be too tired to even move after that...’

He instantly rejected the idea. He couldn’t afford to be a dead weight in a time as serious as this.

His son’s life, Johan’s, Acier’s, Theo’s, and Kirin’s—all depended on him.

Johan chuckled bitterly. "Maybe his resilience is the reason why he’s still alive without being contracted with Radhaan or Leor. They must’ve just given up and left him as defense when he kept recovering from their every attack—becoming a time waste for them..." He speculated with his eyes closed, startling all three of his party members.

[Spirit Pact] could be used on the Daimon. It simply meant he wasn’t contracted to anyone—but then Leor and Radhaan must have encountered him. So this was the only conclusion that made sense.

"Then, should we not just leave this thing alone and go?" Orihime asked with a forced smile. They were just wasting their time—and making it even stronger than it already was.

"No, it won’t let us. It can move as fast, if not faster, than sound... Even if we run at full speed, he’ll catch up to us..." Sebastian said emotionlessly.

Maybe he would have to use the seal, and just stay—and die here—while hoping Johan would save everyone. He started to prepare his heart for it, until—

"Let’s kill it with positive emotions..." Johan said with a grin, explaining his plan to Orihime in his mind.