Chapter 244: Chapter 244 - Where Nature Remembers Love
Atlas truly thought he was going to die. No joke, this time, it felt real. He was in a situation where he had to keep going, no matter what. There was no turning back.
Yes, he knew he could skip the third quest, jump straight to level 100, unlock his new class, maybe even gain access to fresh class quests. But doing that would mean missing the deepest potential of his Tempest Warden class. And if that happened... his next class might never fully make up for what he left behind.
Like some mad strategist screaming inside his head, the voice kept repeating: You have to keep going. Pain, suffering, near-death experiences, that was the cost of moving forward. But staying behind? That came with the same pain and the shame of being left behind.
This was the Lord Battle World. There were no second chances here. You face your enemy unprepared, and their sword pierces your heart. That’s it.
No do-overs.
Atlas... he really thought that the last lightning strike would kill him. Or maybe it already had. His heart had stopped. His body... burned, possibly beyond repair. Maybe he’d lost his limbs. His legs. Maybe he could never move again.
But then... he could still open his eyes, even if only barely.
Was that just the last flicker of life clinging to him?
And then, he felt something. A sensation that didn’t belong in a deathbed. A wave of comfort, of freshness, of vitality, rushing through him. It filled the hollow spaces inside his soul, reached into corners of his body that had felt long drained.
A pulse of life he never imagined possible.
The soft scent of nature filtered into his nostrils, and warm, tender energy caressed his broken form.
In that moment, a faint light pierced the darkness of his fading consciousness... a gentle green glow. His eyes tried to open again, just a little.
And then, he saw it.
A blur at first, but then it formed. The space around him came back into view.
And the first thing he saw... was her.
Lyrassa, her eyes closed in deep focus, floating right beside him. Like she always had, even at the edge of death.
Her figure was wrapped in radiant green light. The two of them were encased once again in a cocoon of energy, just like the one they had shared before. Then, her lashes fluttered, and those familiar green eyes slowly opened, meeting his gaze.
And that same quiet smile, the one she always gave him, spread across her face. A silent reassurance that he was safe.
So... he survived?
Again, because of her.
Her lips moved, she whispered something. But he couldn’t quite hear what it was.
My Lord... you’ll recover soon...
Was that what she said?
Slowly, his eyes began to close once more, as he drifted back into his endless slumber. Wrapped in this divine restoration.
**
[Sacred Bond resonance with Lyrassa has deepened further.]
[Your lifeforce has been reforged by storm and vitality.]
[A new passive skill has been unlocked.]
A familiar system message flickered in Atlas’s vision. Just as he began to feel something.
His body.
He could feel his heartbeat again. Steady, calm, and strong enough to tell him he had fully recovered. Vitality flowed through his limbs, warmth and energy returning as if his body had been quietly rebuilt. He could feel the surface beneath him, something soft and living.
He slowly opened his eyes. A faint light filtered in, gentle and muted until his vision adjusted. Then, he saw it.
The cocoon of vines that had wrapped around him had opened at the top. Rays of sunlight slipped through the leafy canopy above, casting dappled patterns across his face. He was lying at the base of the vine cocoon.
And then.... He turned his head to the right.
Lyrassa was resting against his arm, close enough for him to see her face clearly. Her features were soft, peaceful. And slowly... her lips began to move, her lashes fluttered, and then her eyes opened. Those gentle, green eyes locked with him once more.
A faint smile curled on her lips.
"You’ve fully recovered, my Lord..." she said softly, her voice like a breeze.
Atlas remained still for a moment, letting himself feel everything. One of Lyrassa’s hands was resting gently on his chest, her head nestled on his arm. An embrace of quiet comfort. The kind of peace he hadn’t known he needed until now.
"How long?" he whispered.
"Five days," she murmured.
"Five?"
"Five?" he echoed. But... Why didn’t he feel hungry? No wonder, his body felt strangely full, as if sleep itself had nourished him. Five whole days of slumber after brushing so close to death.
Hah... So Kurogasa was right. He didn’t die. But he came so close.
Still, it was worth it... wasn’t it?
Though it seemed the quest wasn’t fully complete yet, another system message was already starting to blink in his vision.
Still, Atlas let everything else fade into the background for a while. He needed to fully regain his senses, his awareness, and just be. There was no harm in that, right? Especially after sleeping for five whole days.
So he stayed there, unmoving, letting time pass without pressure. And in that quiet moment, something rare happened between them. They shared a soft conversation, one of those rare exchanges that felt almost stolen from time itself.
Because deep down, Atlas knew, moments like this didn’t come often. Not with all the missions, all the responsibilities, all the goals he chased so relentlessly.
"I feel incredibly lucky to be treated like this," he said quietly.
Lyrassa leaned in slightly, her voice just above a whisper.
"And I feel incredibly honored to serve you, my Lord," she replied. "To be your strength, to support your journey..."
Then, like the spirit of the forest itself had borrowed her voice, she continued. Softly, but with a weight that wrapped around his heart like warm moss on stone:
"I’ve watched you fight, my Lord. I’ve seen how your will refuses to break, how you press forward even when your strength runs dry. You never back down, even when it’s beyond your limits. You do everything you can to overcome, to rise above. No matter the odds."
"You led us to victory in the Dominion Skirmish... when every law of logic said you shouldn’t have. You pushed your development faster than anyone else. You claimed an extraordinary class, gathered exceptional allies, earned the trust of an entire alliance."
"And yet... you didn’t let any of it change you. You’re still the same person who listens when others speak. Who tries to understand. Who fights for those under his wings, not just above them."
"That’s why I follow you. That’s why I will keep following you."
Atlas listened in silence.
Her words flowed like a lullaby. Each syllable brushed against his ears like a whispered charm. Cleansing his thoughts, and calming his heart.
Atlas murmured quietly. "Lyrassa... tell me, how deep does the Sacred Bond go for a nature spirit?"
Lyrassa fell silent for a moment, her expression unreadable, as if she were listening to the wind before answering. Then she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper, like the rustle of leaves in the stillness of dusk.
"The Sacred Bond..." she began, "it is more than a promise. It is a quiet merging, spirit into spirit, soul to soul. When the bond is formed, a whisper of my essence slips into your blood... flowing gently, resting deep."
She glanced at him, her gaze warm.
"It does not claim you... but it lingers. It listens. It remembers. But, a part of you lives in me now, just as my presence echoes within you."
Her voice dropped into an even softer hum.
"If the bond is cherished... if it’s allowed to grow, to breathe between us, it may blossom into something more."
She hesitated, then added, "Not in the way mortals create life... no. But in the still places of the soul, where spirit and devotion entwine... something new may awaken. A life born not from flesh, but from harmony. From resonance."
She closed her eyes for a moment, her hand still resting gently on his chest.
"That is... how nature remembers love."
Atlas blinked slowly. "So..." he whispered, "is that how spirits create offspring?"
Lyrassa remained silent for a moment longer, her gaze lowered. Until her whisper finally reached him, soft as dew falling on leaves.
"Yes, my Lord..."
Atlas let out a faint breath, a subtle smile forming on his lips.
"I feel like... you should’ve told me this a little earlier, don’t you think?"