Chapter 49：Light (1/2)
Jyovic Bone walked along the hallway, his expression complex. He sighed, ”Is this the right path? The price for the Aristocratic title…”
”I am Heima Bone. That is a fact.” His ears picked up a faint sound, making his body shudder, an expression of distraught etched on his face. His limbs trembled, goosebumps appearing on it.
Noticing the changes, he wondered aloud, ”When was the last time I felt such fear?” The figure of a man, seated on a throne, the figure of a spider in battle with the man appeared in his mind, the two figures emitting a chill that emerged from the depths of his self.
'Compared to Ancestor Marble, that man is many times scarier.' He entered the hall, looking at the time on a wall clock, the sole object present in the room apart from the urns.
11:59 AM, Jyovic Bone clapped his hands, signalling for the attention of everyone present. Almost eighty pairs of eyes gazed at his direction, filled with sadness that made his heart lurch. He looked around, noticing the gaze of Hancent, one devoid of any expression.
”It is time,” His voice beamed out, echoing across the room, resonating with everyone. In silence, everyone stood up, carrying an urn each, walking towards the end of the room. Hancent followed suit, stopping before the wall situated at the very end of the room.
Noon, seeing the 80 Bone family members standing next to each other, Jyovic Bone too followed suit, standing at the spot on the left extreme. With a rumble, the wall shuddered, opening up from the bottom.
After reaching the height of a man, it stopped opening, revealing a murky black brook flowing behind it. The brook—spanning 2 metres wide and a metre deep—flowed at a gentle pace, taking a minute to traverse a distance of 100 metres, the width of the room. It emitted neither smell nor any sound, flowing silently, the only indication of its presence being its colour.
It lacked a mass, its aura being non-existent. Seeing its appearance, Jyovic Bone became dazed, his expression filled with nostalgia. 'I never wanted to see this again.'
”Everyone,” His voice was light, audible to everyone present due to the silent atmosphere, filled with a serene calm. ”The dead have passed the torch to us, the living. But, they will continue to protect our city forever. Glory to Marble City!”
Saying his piece, he took hold of an urn, filled with the ashes of his younger brother. His younger brother had never married, dedicating all his life to research for the betterment of their family. Hence, he had Jyovic Bone as his only direct relative.
His hands trembled as Jyovic Bone placed the urn in the brook, watching it float along its surface, three-fourths of it submerged underwater. The urn flowed across the brook, turning phantom as it approached half-way, disappearing into it by the time it reached the end.
Following his lead, after the urn had disappeared, the Bone family member standing to the right of Jyovic Bone, a man in his fifties placed an urn on the brook. The urn had the ashes of his son, a Tier 4 Ground Controller, the pride of the Bone Family. In the same process, the urn disappeared by the time it reached the end.
10 people away stood Hancent, his expression looking deader than the ashes in the urns. When it was his turn, he placed the urn filled with the ashes of Henrietta on the brook, watching it flow along its surface. As if he wanted to follow after her, he jumped into the brook, his action only making the others shake their heads. None had the energy to save him, one who had given up on life.
'A promising young lad, one filled with ambitions who had confronted me without fear in his youth to ask the hand of Henrietta. Now, after suffering one setback after another, finally witnessing the death of his wife, it seems he has lost the will to live. Maybe, if he thought about the children he is leaving behind, would he still take such an action?' Jyovic Bone thought, letting out a self-deprecating laugh.
'Maybe, he found out something in the end. That was the final straw that broke the camel's neck.' Memories of the past flashed across his mind, thinking back to when he was renowned as a hero.
”Sir Jyovic Bone, I have come to ask for the hand of your daughter. I wish to marry her.” A young Hancent in his early twenties stood, his face filled with vigour, his aura sharp to the extreme.
'Is this lad only an Area Controller? Even Wave Controllers have but an ounce of his aura. It is quite…suffocating. Suffocating? Interesting, to make me think like that.' Jyovic Bone flashed a smile.
”Alright, prove to me that you are worthy of her. Even considering the difference in strength, she is already a Tier above you.”
”Go ahead.” Hancent stood, his back erect. ”Test me until you are satisfied.”
”As you wish,” Jyovic Bone smiled, unleashing his aura to the extreme, displaying the terrifying strength of a Transformer. ”You pass if you can withstand this for 10 seconds.”
The moment his aura impacted Hancent, like a broken doll, he collapsed, coughing out a mouthful of blood. Various nerves erupted across his body, dying his skin red while his eyeballs showed signs of cracking. It looked like he was on the verge of death; death being a certainty if he wasn't treated soon.
Jyovic Bone stood rooted to the spot, stupefied. 'What was with that show of aura, making me excited? He went down in an instant, without even putting up a fight.'
”Mary!” He shouted, ”There's an injured person here, on the verge of death.”