Chapter 1345 Semantics
How long had it been since he had access to Tier 4 of his Ability Index?
Leonel only had a very vague understanding of Abilities when he began his journey. However, by the time he had been able to comprehend, he had already entered Tier 4. It could be said that from the very beginning, he had always been in such a state.
What did that mean? It meant that since the very moment Leonel had awakened his Ability, he had gained with it a perfect sort of control over his body that extended to his mind. This sounded like a great thing, but when he was completely ignorant to what he was doing, he was essentially digging himself into a larger and larger hole every time.
Whenever Leonel believed that he was able to easily cut off his emotions because that was just the kind of person he was, naively believing that this would have no impact on him since he could so naturally do it, the reality of it all was that this was just an example of his Ability at work.
It had to be understood that Leonel wasn't like the people of Earth. He had been born with his Ability Index and he didn't have to wait for the Metamorphosis. The only reason it didn't manifest in full force until after the Metamorphosis was because of actions his father had taken.
Now, however, Leonel's Ability Index had suddenly been suppressed back down to Tier 3 for the first time and Leonel had no method of dealing with it.
Aina, though, had no idea what she had just triggered within Leonel. Though it felt like a long time and that going through such a long list of memories had taken forever, the reality was that even after dropping down to Tier 3, his thinking speed was well beyond the imagination of most. It was to the point where Aina was still in the middle of speaking even after his body seemed to have hit a wall.
"… I don't know why it's so difficult for you to understand! I know I was wrong in the past to make you want to stay away from danger, but can't we at least compromise?! Is it so impossible to meet in the middle for you?! Why can't we just fight together?!
"That's not even the point. I wouldn't even mind if you had a plan that I couldn't be a part of, a plan that you know I'd be detrimental to. But would it be impossible for you to communicate that?! Why are you so stubborn?!
"Do you really see everything you go off and do on your own as heroic and protective?! I don't see it that way at all! It's demeaning! It's like you can't be bothered to trust no one other than yourself because no one could possibly touch your lofty existence!"
Aina's chest heaved, her gaze a furious shade of gold. But, it was right then that Leonel's figure stumbled, his hand involuntarily reaching for his chest and his face becoming a ghastly shade of blue.
In order to maximize his efficiency, after learning the full extent of what being in Tier 4 meant, Leonel began to push himself past normal limits. Normally, even something most allowed their bodies to regulate like the cadence of their heart or the flow of their digestion was entirely controlled by Leonel. This allowed him to put his energy toward the best things imaginable.
After his Ability Index fell down to Tier 3, these functions obviously shut off and were handed back to Leonel's body to regulate. The change was seamless as everyone's body was designed to handle this matter regardless.
However, Aina's words seemed to have shocked Leonel and his mind was now in a state of fighting against itself.
He wanted to wrest the control he had lost back to make these feelings go away, but the trouble was that he was no longer in Tier 4.
If a normal person wanted to accomplish the impossible, they would just be finished. They would try to tap into abilities they didn't have and they would fail, end of story. But, the trouble was that Leonel had a Lineage Factor that quite literally gave his will strength… King's Might.
Now, Leonel's mind was in a furious state, wanting his ability to evolve and transcend its limits, but the Anarchic Force in the surroundings was simply too potent to allow such a thing.
This sort of tug of war caused Leonel's body to completely shut down. His blood stopped flowing, his heart stopped beating, even his brain itself seemed to want to close up shop.
"Leonel? Leonel!"
Aina's expression warped wildly as she dove forward, catching Leonel's head just before it smashed against an opposing stone wall. But, she was immediately shaken when she felt just how cold his skin was.
If there was one thing that Leonel was perpetually, it was hot. His Fire affinity was so high that this was undeniably the case, there was simply no escaping it.
Leonel's body went rigid before everything suddenly loosened. His skin and face went completely blue, his lips following soon even as the whites of his eyes bulged with red blood vessels behind their lids.
"Leonel!"
To Aina's horror, Leonel's heart actually wasn't beating at all. She immediately used everything she had learned as a Five Star Medical Professional of Earth, laying him down and beginning CPR, but it felt that no matter what she did, it wouldn't matter.
Aina's face was filled with panic. She could have never drawn the conclusion that her words had caused this, so she immediately thought that it was because she had fought Leonel. The Runed Rapax must have left behind more severe wounds than she thought and her subsequent fight with Leonel must have triggered them.
The guilt was enough to overshadow her world entirely, tears beginning to stream down her face completely outside of her control.
"Yip! Yip!"
An anxious Little Blackstar dove down from the air, pulling at Leonel's hair in hopes of waking him up before furiously licking at his cheek.
Right then, something within Leonel snapped, his body convulsing.
Leonel's eyes suddenly shot open, a blinding light beaming out from them as a Force Art more complex than words could describe began to revolve within them.
…
In an unknown corner of the Dimensional Verse, a handsome middle-aged man yawned, shifting his glasses upward as he scratched his ass.
At that moment, he looked upward, his mouth still open in mid-yawn form before he shook his head.
"Aiya, that brat of mine is always ruining my plans. What is that, twice now? Why can't you just follow the normal schedule I so painstakingly drew out. You're going to make this old man seem incompetent.
"Ah, whatever. I have an excuse to see my beautiful wife again so soon. Hopefully she doesn't make a fuss about it being an avatar again, I'm trying to save the world here, it can't be that such small semantics is going to make a hero like me go without sex, right?"
Velasco tossed an odd ball of Force casually, and yet it shot off into the distance, disappearing over the horizon near instantly.