CHAPTER 152: THE HOLY NOODLE CHRONICLES

[Leif’s POV—A Week Later—Frojnholm]

It’s been a week since I woke up and regained my holy superpowers.

And honestly?

GOSH. I FEEL LIKE A SUPERNOVA ON LEGS.

I mean, seriously—is this how the Avengers felt? Sparkly? Powerful? Mildly dangerous to the environment?

I mean—look at this—I BREAK ROCKS NOW.

Real rocks. Not tiny pebbles. Not "training stones." Actual boulders.

"WATCH THIS!" I shouted proudly.

I raised my hand, golden energy swirling like some anime protagonist about to scream his final attack move.

"Holy Smite Thingy—ACTIVATE!"

CRRRRRRACKKKKKK!!!!

The entire rock face split open like a cracked egg. A chunk of the mountain slid off with a dramatic rumble. Dust exploded everywhere.

A few birds fell out of the sky, very offended.

"HAHA—!" I spun around, throwing my hands in the air like I just invented gravity. "This is amazing!!! I can break rocks!!! I AM A WALKING DEMOLITION SITE—!"

"IT’S NOT AMAZING!!!!"

My eardrums disintegrated. I’m certain of it.

I turned.

The spirit goddess stood with her hands on her hips, face twisted in the exact expression of a teacher whose student just set the classroom on fire by breathing.

"I TOLD YOU TO TARGET ONE SMALL ROCK!" She jabbed her finger repeatedly at a tiny pebble near my feet. "One rock. ONE. THAT ONE."

I looked down.

The pebble was untouched.

Everything around it was... gone. Including the mini mountain she painstakingly created for practice.

I blinked. Then smiled.

"Well... at least I broke a rock."

Her face went deadpan. Lips twitching. Eye vein pulsing.

"NOT. THE. ONE. I. POINTED. TO!"

She waved her arms wildly at the flattened landscape behind me.

"This was my FIRST time training a Seraph King! I spent two hundred years training other divine vessels—TWO HUNDRED YEARS—BUT YOU—" She jabbed a glowing finger into my chest."—ARE THE MOST FRUSTRATING ONE!"

"Two hundred years?" I repeated, eyes widening. "Gosh... goddess, you’re older than any grandma that exists in this world."

She froze.

Her eye twitched. Her entire aura flared bright enough to rival a solar flare.

"...I HEARD THAT," she said through clenched teeth.

I tched dramatically and crossed my arms. "You’re the one who told me to break a rock. I did that. Successfully. Mission accomplished."

"YOU BROKE A MOUNTAIN."

"...Semantics."

She closed her eyes for a long second, breathing like a stressed kindergarten teacher handling an overpowered toddler.

I sighed, rubbing my face. "Alright, alright... Let’s just focus."

She opened one eye. Saw that I wasn’t teasing this time. And slowly, finally, her shoulders dropped.

"You need to control your power, Leif," she said, her voice softening in a rare moment of seriousness. "Or else your own power will turn on you."

I blinked.

"...Like—attack me?"

She nodded grimly. "Divine power is alive. It protects you—but if you cannot guide it, it can overwhelm you. Even hurt you."

A pause.

"Especially yours."

My stomach twisted. I nodded slowly. "...I’m sorry for being childish."

She let out a breath she’d probably been holding since I cracked the mountain.

"Thank you," she muttered.

Then, with a flick of her hand—FWOOOSH—the shattered boulder reformed, stone piecing itself back together like rewinding time.

She dusted her hands. "Alright. Again."

I raised a brow. "You’re rebuilding the mountain just so I can destroy it again?"

"Yes. And you better break the RIGHT rock this time."

"...Fair."

She floated back, arms crossed like a celestial coach preparing to suffer through another round of chaos.

I took a deep breath.

Focused.

Let the golden light swirl around my fingertips—gentler this time. Controlled. Contained.

Because this wasn’t just training anymore.

Controlling my power meant protecting everyone. Controlling my power meant surviving. Controlling my power meant awakening Luminael.

My heart thumped at the thought.

The goddess watched me carefully. "Good. Keep your core steady. Don’t overpower the strike. Feel the flow, don’t force it—"

I inhaled.

The power hummed.

The air shifted. This time... the rock only cracked down the middle, instead of becoming airborne dust.

I grinned. "HEY! Look! I didn’t explode everything!"

The goddess blinked.Slowly.

"...Good," she muttered. "Minimal destruction. Improvement."

"I am TALENTED," I said proudly.

"You are terrifying," she corrected.

We both inhaled. For different reasons. Because as I stood there, golden light flickering around my hands, I could feel it.

A presence.

Far away.Quiet.Deep.Sleeping beneath layers of divine seal.

Luminael.

Waiting.

Waiting for me to be strong enough to wake him. Waiting for the day destiny truly begins.

The goddess floated closer, her tone losing all teasing and frustration.

"Leif," she said softly, "your training... isn’t just for fun. When you awaken Luminael... the entire world will feel it. And don’t forget, by using Luminael, you can end the devil."

I swallowed.

"I know."

She placed a hand over my shoulder.Warm. Steady.

"This isn’t a game anymore. Control your power... Because the moment Luminael opens his eyes—your fate and the Devil’s fate will collide."

My mouth felt dry.

"Then I better," I whispered, "master this quickly."

She nodded. "Good. Again."

I lifted my hand—golden light swirling like a tame flame this time—and struck again and again until my limbs trembled, my fingertips buzzed, and my brain felt like overcooked noodles.

I trained until even the goddess finally said, "Enough. Or you’ll turn into holy paste."

***

[Later—Thorenvald Estate—Hallway]

I staggered down the hallway like a dying Victorian child searching for his last biscuit.

"Gosh..." I muttered weakly, dragging my feet. "She’s not a goddess. She’s a demon. A menace. She probably became a goddess accidentally after terrorizing the universe—"

WHOOSH!!!

Suddenly my feet left the floor.

The world tilted.

And I was—lifted. Effortlessly.

Arms wrapped securely under my knees and back, lifting me bridal-style as if I weighed less than a pillow.

I blinked up—at my husband. The strongest, softest-eyed menace in the estate.

"Are you tired?" Alvar asked, voice warm and amused, though he sounded like he already knew the answer.

My body reacted before my brain did. I threw my arms (well, flopped my arms) around his neck, pressing my face into his shoulder.

"Yes..." I groaned dramatically. "Very much. I can’t even walk. I can’t even lift my hands. Not even a single finger..."

Alvar chuckled—that low, chest-vibrating sound that felt like it was made just for me. He shifted me higher in his arms, holding me like I was something precious.

"But you were doing divine practice," he teased softly. "Not sword training."

"It’s the SAME," I whined into his collarbone. "It hurts everywhere. Everywhere, Alvar. Even my eyelashes are tired."

He laughed—actually laughed—the sound was warm enough to melt my entire spine. He tightened his hold, thumb brushing gently against the back of my thigh as he carried me.

"You’re dramatic when you’re exhausted," he murmured.

"I’m dramatic when I’m loved," I corrected, pouting. "Carry me forever. I am weak. My bones are soup."

His smile softened—so much it made my heart flutter painfully.

"I will carry you as long as you want," he whispered, forehead brushing against mine in the softest touch. "As long as you need."

My breath caught.

He always said things like this—quietly, sincerely, as if devotion was simply how he breathed. He shifted me again, and his fingers curled protectively around my waist, warm and steady.

"How long were you training?" he asked.

"Five hours."

"Five hours?" His brows shot up. "No wonder your limbs are jelly."

"I’m a holy noodle," I whispered.

"You are my holy noodle," he corrected patiently.

I laughed weakly.

He carried me through the hallway like it was nothing, like the most natural thing in the world, like I hadn’t just destroyed half a mountain earlier.

I tucked my face into his shoulder, inhaling his familiar, grounding scent—warm pine, steel, and something that always smelled like home.

"...you came to get me?" I asked softly.

His arms tightened around me.

"Of course I did," he murmured. "The moment you didn’t return on time, I knew you were going to collapse somewhere."

"I did collapse," I admitted.

"I know," he replied. "I heard the goddess screaming."

"Heh. She screams a lot."

"She screams at you a lot," he corrected.

"...She’s mean."

"She’s not wrong."

"HEY—!"

He laughed again. And something quiet, warm, and alive fluttered between us. He leaned down and kissed my temple—soft, lingering, aching with affection.

"Let me take care of you," he whispered. "Just for now. Just for a little while."

"...Okay," I whispered, melting against him.

Because in his arms—even exhaustion felt sweet. Even pain felt soft. Even the weight of destiny felt far away.

And being carried by him felt like the safest place in the world.

For a moment, I let myself forget everything.

The training. The power humming under my skin. The goddess’s warnings. Fate is waiting like a shadow behind me.

Here, with Alvar, there was only quiet.

Only warmth.Only love.

... But while I was being loved by my husband, carried through the quiet halls in gentle arms—far from us, in the capital city of Aurelius... Something stirred.

Something has ended.Someone has gone.

And whatever it was—whoever it was...it would shake the kingdom to its core.