Chapter 35: Sent Here for a Reason

After the dramatic events in Draugwyn, Leonix and his party—now with a new member, Eirael Lunaris—returned to Elyzaria. The bustling city welcomed them with a familiar hustle and bustle.

"Ah, we finally made it back safely!" Layla sighed with relief, stretching her body. "What exhausting days."

Everyone agreed, nodding wearily. They spent the rest of the day resting and recovering. That night, as Leonix was alone, Luciana contacted him through a mental link.

"Oberon will be taking direct action this time," Luciana's voice was serious. "I don't know exactly when, but he will be targeting all of you."

The news hung in the air, creating a shadow of inevitable darkness. That same night, Leonix fell into a deep sleep, but his mind was haunted by a strange dream.

He found himself standing outside the gate of a modern-style house. Inside, a handsome man with black hair and blue eyes, and a woman with long blonde hair and red and blue eyes, were holding their baby. They looked so happy and content. Leonix, watching the scene, felt tears streaming down his face.

"Mom? Dad?" he whispered, his hand reaching out.

He wanted to go in, but a strange four-wheeled vehicle kept honking its horn. "Come on, buddy! I'm in a hurry, can you move?" a person from inside the car yelled.

Leonix looked around. The city was full of tall buildings, people rushing back and forth as if preoccupied with their own lives. A noisy flying object passed overhead, and a snake-like object carrying many humans moved along a track.

"Excuse me, sir," Leonix asked in confusion, "do you know what that thing up there is, and that snake-like thing?"

The stranger looked at Leonix strangely. "Don't you know? Are you from the countryside, perhaps?" he asked, and then explained, "That thing up there is an Airplane, and that moving snake-like thing is a Train, and the four-wheeled one over there is a Car."

Leonix began to understand. He was no longer in his world.

Suddenly, a visual glitch appeared all over Leonix's body, causing him great pain. Time stopped. Everyone in the city was frozen. In the middle of the frozen chaos, the woman and man from inside the house approached Leonix.

"Finally, we've been waiting for you for so long, Leon," the man said, his smile warm.

"Who are you? How do you know my name?" Leonix asked, his curiosity mixed with fear.

The man and woman laughed happily. "I think we should introduce ourselves to him, dear," the man said. The woman nodded in agreement.

"My name is Arthur Nelson," the man said, his eyes looking at Leonix with affection. "And the woman beside me is Emmy Valeria. We are your Mother and Father, Leon."

Leonix froze, unsure whether he wanted to be angry or sad. At once, his two parents hugged him tightly. His tears burst forth.

"Why?! Why did you leave me alone in that world full of war?" Leonix cried, but there was a tone of anger in his voice.

Arthur stroked his hair. "There's one thing we couldn't do, Leon. You were still bound by the thread of destiny, and your mission was not yet complete. We tried to bring you, even forcing ourselves against the Thread of Destiny, but we always failed. A crack in the Universe would appear if we continued to force it, and a similar event would happen again, where the world we once lived in would be destroyed because we didn't follow the Flow of Destiny, Leon."

"THEN YOU JUST LEFT ME?!" Leonix yelled in frustration, making Arthur and Emmy fall silent, their faces filled with sadness. "YOU COULD HAVE STAYED WITH ME IN THAT WORLD LIKE A BIG FAMILY, BUT YOU CHOSE TO RUN AWAY?! WHAT KIND OF PARENTS ARE YOU?!" His voice cracked, accompanied by sobs. "IF YOU HAD STAYED, MAYBE I WOULDN'T HAVE SUFFERED LIKE THIS IN THAT WORLD!"

"There was another reason we did that, Leon," Arthur said, his voice calm but full of meaning.

Leonix wiped his tears.

"We are Variants," Arthur continued. "We are not allowed to stay and live in a Universe that has been left by our own Selves who once lived there, or the result could be that the world could be destroyed. But you, Leon? You are very different. You can accept all the frequencies in the entire Universe because you have a power called Paradox. That's why you can go to any world you want."

"Then what about Lux, my adopted brother?" Leonix asked, "is he the same?"

Emmy smiled. "Lux can too, but he still has to complete his destiny." She explained that the original Emmy and Arthur had long died, and their roles were replaced by these Variants. It was then that they were blessed with a son who was half-Hero and half-Demon, whose power would become limitless.

Leonix began to understand. He asked if there was an original him who lived in this world. They both said no. His spirit reignited. He wiped his tears and decided to fulfill his destiny.

"It seems it's time for you to return to that world," Arthur said, seeing a visual glitch starting to appear all over Leonix's body.

"Leon, wherever you are, we will always love you," Emmy said, a sincere smile on her lips. "Come and meet us when you have completed your Thread of Destiny."

Slowly, Leonix's body began to fade. "Mom... Dad... I'm going," he whispered.

At once, Leonix woke up in the morning, in his room in Elyzaria. He clenched his hands tightly. He would soon end this thread of destiny.

On the other side, deep in the Realm of Darkness, Oberon and his forces were ready. The dimensional gate opened, spewing legions of demons toward Earth-X2. Behind a dark cliff, Luciana watched the scene, then disappeared, returning to her master, Leonix, to report everything.

The Final Stand Arc had begun.