359: The Holy Scepter's Test (2)

The Holy Scepter's Test (2)

TILLY was surprised when, suddenly, she heard a voice in her head.

[Who dares to enter my mind forcefully?]

<"Supreme, this is Serafina– the deity in charge of the Plane."

The Plane was the place where the souls of the departed waited for their chance to get reincarnated.

"I see," Tilly said, her voice suspicious. To be honest, she didn't like it when her mind was forcefully entered by an outside force. However, this time, she had a reason for tolerating it. "My son, Julian, is on the Plane. He's also with my niece Solenn, and Saint Forrester as well. How are they doing? Are they safe?"

Winter looked up at her with sparkling eyes. "What did they say, Mommy? How's my brother Julian?"

She smiled and patted her son's head. "They haven't responded yet, sweetheart."

It wasn't only Julian.

Even Kiho was anxiously waiting to hear news about their second son.

<"Supreme, I regret to inform you that Young Master Julian's heart has just stopped beating."

Tilly's smile quickly disappeared, then anger rose up her chest. She thought she had already gotten rid of her nasty temper and was a lot calmer now. However, that didn't seem to be the case. "What did you say?!"

"M-Mommy?"

<"Tilly, honey, what's wrong?"

She heard Winter and Kiho, respectively, but she couldn't respond to them properly because her mind was a mess after hearing the shocking news.

"What do you mean Julian is dead?!"

Kiho, in his Black Serpent form, stopped ascending to the skies.

Hence, right at that very moment, their family was suspended in the air.

"M-Mommy, did they say Brother Julian is dead?" Winter asked, his face suddenly pale. "But how did that happen?"

<"Should we go to the Plane instead of the floating island, Tilly?"

Oh.

Kiho didn't raise his voice, but his cold and low tone sent a shiver down Tilly's spine even though she knew that her husband's anger wasn't directed at her.

[My husband could really be scary when he's containing his anger.]

<"It was my fault. I thought my divine power was enough to help Young Master Julian separate the Holy Scepter from his heart, but I failed."

"What?" Tilly asked in disbelief. "Why would Julian take out the Holy Scepter in the first place?!"

"I knew I shouldn't have left Brother Julian alone!" Winter exclaimed, his eyes brimming with tears. "This is my fault, Mommy. The deity who showed up on the Plane already asked Brother Julian to sacrifice his life to fix the problem in their system…"

She knitted her eyebrows. "What do you mean by that, Winter?"

"The deity we met on the Plane said one of the Supreme's children must sacrifice his life to fix the Plane," Winter said while wiping the tears off of his face with his hands. "Brother Julian offered himself as a sacrifice. I tried to stop him, but Brother Julian sent me back to my physical body."

She couldn't believe what she had just heard.

"How dare you?" Tilly growled at the deity that she was talking to. "How dare you ask my children to make such a cruel decision?!" She gently patted Kiho's rough back as he was in his Black Serpent form. Hence, the scales. "Honey, since you're in your divine form, it might be possible for you to force a portal open to the Plane."

<"Are you sure, honey? Your brother might be dealing with the Moon God possessing Aku Moonchester alone."

It break her heart to make such a decision.

But she just had to trust her older brother who was a Beast God.

"Right now, Julian needs us the most," Tilly said firmly. "And, to be honest, I can't afford to worry about anyone or anything else at the moment. The world could burn for all I care– and I'm still saving Julian."

Winter nodded eagerly. "Me, too, Mommy. Me too."

<"I feel the same way, honey, Winter. I'll force my way to the Plane then."

Tilly smiled and nodded.

<"You don't have to force your way here,"

Serafina, the mysterious deity, said. <"I will bring you all to where Young Master Julian is."

***

JULIAN shouldn't be happy with how things turned out.

Because of him, his entire family changed their plans.

Instead of helping Lord Winchell fight the Moon God who was currently possessing Aku Moonchester's body, his family decided to come to his rescue.

Of course, he felt bad for his uncle.

However, his happiness at the moment was overwhelming.

"I can't believe how foolish I was," Julian said, smiling bitterly at himself. "I thought I already felt secure by how much they showered me with love. But when Lady Serafina said that one of the Supreme's children had to sacrifice himself, my insecurity came back stronger."

He almost made a mistake because of the sudden return of his insecurity.

Worse, he forgot for a moment how much his family loved and treasured him.

[Mother, Father, Winter… I'm sorry for being blinded for a moment.]

"My family almost lost me again," Julian said, finally letting go of the Holy Scepter. "I can't make them suffer any longer."

<"Are you sure you don't want to proceed?"

Julian nodded his head at the Holy Scepter's question. "I figured I was too hasty. Even if we managed to extract the Holy Scepter from my heart, is there a person in the room who could wield you? No one. The Saint came with us to the Plane, but we got separated along the way."

Now that he was sober, he could finally think straight again.

And he must say that he had been a big fool.

[I shouldn't have trusted Lady Serafina right away.]

Even so, he didn't feel too bothered by his mistake.

[My family is coming for me anyway.]

"This mission is too dangerous, and it's not worth risking my life for," Julian said, finally smiling from his heart. "Whether I can help the Plane or not, I'm sure the way my family loves me wouldn't change."

He said it easily, but it took him two lifetimes to finally learn how to treasure himself.

Moreover, even if he was slow, he had also finally learned how to trust the love that his family had given him in this lifetime.

It wasn't easy, but it was worth it.

<"You passed the test, Julian Nystrom."

2

"Huh?" Julian asked, confused. "This is a test? How?"

<"It's a test to see whether you deserve my heart or not."

Huh???

The Holy Scepter had a heart?

***

JULIAN had so many questions for the Holy Scepter.

But when he blinked and opened his eyes again, all those thoughts disappeared.

He automatically smiled when he saw the worried faces of his mother, father, and brother.

[I'm sorry, I made you all worry…]

That was what he wanted to say, but for some reason, his voice didn't come out.

In fact, he also realized that he couldn't move an inch. And that made him question whether he really smiled earlier or not.

[What's happening to me?]

"It's alright, Julian," his mother assured him, but she was crying while pressing his chest with her hand to stop the bleeding. "We will save you."

Ah.

That was when Julian realized his situation.

[There's a hole in my chest where my heart should have been…]

***

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