novelraw Chapter 63: Cold Blue Moon [3]
Chapter 63: Cold Blue Moon [3]
Caelir Vayne stood still as the world around him burned.
The distant clash of mana and miasma continued to shake the streets, and the heat from collapsing buildings distorted the air, yet none of it truly reached him.
His attention was fixed entirely on the girl standing before him.
Elowyn Strix.
For a brief moment, everything else faded into the background.
His thoughts, however, did not.
They surged uncontrollably and relentlessly.
Cael had once lived a life that resembled a drifting vessel on an endless ocean, guided not by purpose but by whatever currents pushed it forward.
There had been no destination, no urgency, and no real desire to seek one. Days passed in quiet repetition, and he allowed them to pass without resistance.
After his mother abandoned him, something inside him had slowly dulled.
Emotions became unnecessary.
Expectations faded. He adapted.
He learned to smile when others laughed, even if he did not understand the joke.
He learned to stay silent when the atmosphere turned heavy, choosing not to disturb what did not concern him.
He ate when he was hungry and answered when someone spoke to him. Beyond that, he did not involve himself.
No one truly cared about him. And in return, he did not care about anyone either.
Helping others felt like a chore. A bother.
Even when he did respond to help, it was never out of genuine concern. At most, he offered a few words, detached and distant, before moving on.
That was how he lived.
And he would have continued living that way.
Until that incident.
An unknown girl had killed him, ending his life without warning, without explanation, and without giving him the chance to understand why.
And then, he woke up again.
Not as himself.
But merged with another soul inside what was supposed to be a novel.
At least, that was what it had been.
Now, it was no longer a novel.
It was his life.
Even then, it had not changed him much. It only sparked curiosity, a slight interest in the unfolding events.
He believed his personality would remain the same, that his detached mindset would not waver.
He had even decided to cancel his engagement without bothering to meet her personally. Instead, he had sent a clone, treating it as something trivial, something unimportant.
But fate had other plans.
Elowyn Strix.
The moment he first saw her at Skyspire, something felt... different.
She had been worried.
For him.
That alone had been enough to confuse him.
In his previous life, no one had ever looked at him like that. Even now, he tried to rationalize it, telling himself that her concern was for Cael, not truly for him.
But that distinction lost meaning quickly.
Because he felt it.
When she hugged him, something stirred inside him.
Embarrassment.
A strange, unfamiliar feeling that made him uncomfortable, yet impossible to ignore.
At that moment, he realized something simple.
At least one person cared about him.
But even that realization did not last long before it was proven incomplete.
His mother.
His to-be in-laws.
Out of worry for his safety, they even attempted to have him become acquainted with Seraphina, which resulted in exposing his class.
Strangely, he did not feel anger.
Instead, something warm settled inside him, and without realizing it, he had smiled.
In just two months, he had begun to change.
He was no longer drifting.
He started taking initiative.
Making choices.
Doing things because he wanted to, not because he had to.
And he realized something else.
He liked this life.
That was why this situation was unacceptable.
Fate had given him a second chance, and now it seemed as if it wanted to take something away from him again.
Just like it had taken his father in his previous life.
The thought alone made something inside him twist violently.
Was it going to take Elowyn away as well?
Was it going to force him to experience that same loss again?
No.
There was no way he would allow that.
He would not lose anyone again.
Not now.
Not ever.
His thoughts spiraled, emotions surging in a way he could no longer control.
He was angry.
His eyes locked onto Elowyn’s.
"Why?" he asked.
His voice was steady, but the weight behind it was anything but.
"Why did you send me away?"
He could have asked something else.
He could have asked if she was alright.
He could have said anything.
But this was what came out.
Because this was what mattered to him in that moment.
He needed an answer.
"Tell me, Elowyn. Why did you send me away?"
There was a trace of coldness in his voice now.
He knew it.
He knew he sounded harsh, unreasonable, even rude.
It went against everything he had been taught.
But he did not care.
Something inside him demanded this answer.
Elowyn’s eyes widened slightly as she looked at him, still not fully processing how easily he had killed five [Elite] rank wraiths.
When she heard his question, she hesitated.
For once, she did not respond immediately.
"Please... tell me."
The word slipped out before he could stop it.
Those words made her expression soften.
That single word changed something.
Elowyn slowly raised her hand.
Her soft fingers gently touched his cheek.
She wiped something away.
Cael blinked.
Only then did he realize that a tear was running down his cheek.
Elowyn smiled softly.
"Cuz, I... I lov— don’t want to lose you."
Even though she corrected herself midway, the meaning was clear.
Cael understood.
He looked at her without looking away, and asked,
"Then was it fair for me to lose you?"
Before she could respond, the air shifted.
A [Captain] rank wraith suddenly launched toward him.
Cael turned toward it, his thoughts instantly aligning.
Then he looked back at Elowyn.
"It’s my turn."
She looked confused, but he did not explain.
He took her hand.
Space distorted.
In an instant, he teleported her away to the exact place where she had once sent him.
Then he returned.
Standing atop a building, Cael looked down at the [Captain] rank wraith.
"Activate Fusion. Combine skills: Battle Reaper’s Dominion [s] and Death Radiance [s]."
The familiar interface glitched into existence before him.
...
[Analyzing...]
[Analysis Complete]
[Merging skills: Battle Reaper’s Dominion (S), Death Radiance (s)]
[High probability of producing SS-Rank Skill: Death Reaper’s Requiem]
Do you wish to proceed with fusion?
[Yes] [No]
...
[Fusion Complete]
[You have obtained SS-Rank Skill: Death Reaper’s Requiem]
...
[Status]
[Name: Caelir Vayne]
[Class: Iridescent Monarch (SSS)]
Elements:
• Wind (49% Mastery)
• Water (12% Mastery)
• Earth (Locked)
Unique Elements:
• Moonlight (14% Mastery)
• Frostflame (22% Mastery)
• Black Lightning (24% Mastery)
• Space (Locked)
• Death (Locked)
• Time (Locked)
[Rank: Silver 2]
Skills:
• Copy (SS)
• Cloning (SSS)
• Fusion (SS)
• Teleportation (S)
• Wrong Eye (S)
• Faceless Mask Construct (A)
• Mana Sovereignty (SS)
• Mud Puppet (B)
• Time Deceleration (SS)
• Death Reaper’s Requiem (SS)
• +100 skills
[Weapon Mastery: Sword (53% Mastery)]
[Techniques: Gale Weave Swordsmanship]
...
TIME DECELERATION
Rank: SS
Type: Self-Temporal Enhancement
Description:
A high-tier temporal manipulation skill that alters the user’s perception and interaction with time.
Upon activation, the user enters a state where the flow of time around them is significantly slowed relative to their own. Movements, attacks, and environmental changes appear delayed, allowing the user to react, reposition, and act with overwhelming speed and precision.
This is not true control over time. The world does not stop. The user simply moves beyond Normal Time.
At higher output, the gap between the user and external time widens drastically, enabling instantaneous repositioning and actions that surpass the limits of conventional motion.
Aftereffects:
The body and mind are forced to operate far beyond their natural limits, causing rapid depletion of mana, extreme physical fatigue, and potential internal damage.
--> Prolonged or repeated use may result in loss of control, sensory distortion, or temporary collapse.
...
DEATH REAPER’S REQUIEM
Rank: SS
Type: Buff/Field/Mental Control
Description:
A dominion-type combat skill with three activation states.
Reaper’s Focus (Buff):
Enhances the user’s battle instinct, reaction speed, mental clarity, and resistance to intimidation or suppression effects. The user’s killing intent sharpens, allowing faster decision-making and instinct-driven combat flow.
Reaper’s Dominion (Field):
Expands into a combat domain centered on the user. Enemies within the field experience aura suppression, heightened psychological pressure, and disruption of battle rhythm. The user gains increased perception of openings and maintains superior combat tempo while the domain remains active.
Death Requiem (Mental Control):
The user can pull an opponent’s consciousness into a death-bound inner domain, where the conflict is no longer physical. In that space, only willpower exists. only the clash between two minds. Victory results in the collapse of the opponent’s consciousness, often leading to instant or inevitable death. Failure destroys the user’s own mind.
--> User can read memories of the dead.
...
Cael looked at his status.
And sure enough, he got a new unique Element, Time.
Cael stared at it for a brief moment.
Then Cael jumped onto the ground with a thud.
The [Captain] rank wraith instantly turned back and saw Cael.
Cael’s eyes turn brutally cold.
Right now, he wanted to vent, and this Wraith was perfect.
"Activate Reaper’s Dominion"