Chapter 494: Conviction Succumbs to Hope (4)

Fwoosh, fwoosh.

The chains made of flames binding Eilles burned.

'Just a little more.'

Eilles gritted his teeth as he twisted and turned. He was mentally drained from the past four days that the demon tormented him, but he had thankfully been gradually regaining his strength.

"Frost... Spirits..." Eilles called.

The Frost Spirits which had exploded at the hands of the demon a few days ago dimly appeared.

'Their strength won't be enough.'

Even if the chains had weakened, the spirits were not strong enough to break them.

"Fuuu," Eilles exhaled.

Although he had partially recovered his strength in the past four days, the effects of the excruciating torture remained.

'But I have to escape.'

Eilles was sure that Arianne would be brutally killed by the demon if he missed this opportunity.

"Argh, gah."

Crack, crack.

Eilles frantically thrashed about, which the chains of flames responded to by shrinking against him. Eilles forcibly twisted his left arm which was bound by the chains.

Crack!

"Gaaaaahhh!"

Bones broke as his arm bent at an unnatural angle.

"Haaa, haaa."

Eilles panted heavily and looked down. A small gap between him and the chains was formed thanks to his arm breaking.

'I'll use this gap.'

He focused the power of frost that he had drawn out to a single point. The dim Frost Spirits gathered to that point and turned into a small blade.

Scratch, scratch.

Eilles cut the chains of flames using the ice blade little by little from the inside.

'Just a little more...'

Scratch, scratch.

The chains were gradually getting thinner because the energy within them had not been recharged.

'A little more!'

Eilles's eyes filled with hope.

Crunch!

The chains of flames broke at last.

"Huff! Huff!"

Eilles fell to the ground as he panted heavily after managing to escape from the chains.

'I-It worked!'

He stood up, clenching his unnaturally bent left arm. He felt lighter than ever now that he was free.

"Arianne, Arianne..."

Eilles hurriedly looked around. He did not need anything else, not even his life. All he needed was to rescue his poor daughter, who was likely in immense pain due to the demon's clutches.

'I don't even have a second to waste.'

Based on what the demon had said before leaving Eilles, he was surely planning his next interrogation plan. Eilles needed to escape with his daughter before his conversation with the demon named Lilith ended.

Eilles staggered along, pain spreading throughout his ragged body with every step he took.

'Arianne.'

"Frost Spirits." Eilles closed his eyes and commanded the Frost Spirits, getting dimmer as if they did not have much strength remaining. "Find Arianne."

Whoooom!

White frost poured out of the Frost Spirits as if they were going out with a bang. The Frost Spirits dispersed in all directions.

"Kurgh."

Eilles felt like his body was falling apart just from giving the Frost Spirits a simple command.

'I have to keep moving.'

He gritted his teeth and forced his legs to move. He had a reason why he couldn't stop.

Whoooom!

The Frost Spirits gathered in front of Eilles as he wandered around the temple with staggering steps. His eyes shone.

'She's close.'

Arianne was imprisoned somewhere nearby.

'I have to hurry.'

Eilles quickened his steps. The hallway of the temple that he walked along all the time felt endless for some reason.

"Arianne, Arianne..."

He forced his body to keep moving. He finally reached the end of the hallway after what felt like a century and placed his hand over the door handle.

Creak. Eilles carefully opened the door.

"Father...?"

"A-Arianne!!"

Inside was Arianne, who was also bound by chains of flames like he had been. Her usual smile was nowhere to be seen, replaced by a grimace of pain. Her body, perfectly trained for her brilliant swordsmanship, was beyond emaciated.

"Hurgh! Arianne... My Arianne...!"

Eilles embraced Arianne and burst into tears.

"Father...!" Arianne also smiled brightly and buried her face in Eilles's chest. "I knew you would come! I was so, so sure that you would come to rescue me!"

The princess of the Frostborn wept sorrowfully.

"Shh. He will come if you're too loud."

"Gasp..."

Arianne's expression turned pale. Eilles looked down at Arianne bound in the chains of flames. His gaze was naturally drawn to her hands.

"Ahh..."

Only a pinky finger remained on her right hand. Eilles grabbed that hand and burst into tears as he crouched.

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry, my daughter."

The fact that he failed to protect his daughter broke his heart. Eilles cried in silence with Arianne in his embrace.

"Let's get you out of this."

Eilles gripped the small ice blade he had used to cut through the chains of flames which were also burning faintly, possibly because they were not recharged either.

Scratch, scratch.

"I-I'll be alright, Father. You should hurry and run aw—"

"Silence," Eilles said firmly as if he would not accept any complaints.

Crunch!

The chains binding Arianne broke as well.

"Ah...!" Arianne's eyes widened. She smiled brightly and hugged Eilles. "Father, Father, Father...!"

"Haaa, haaa."

Eilles, who used all of his strength to break the chains, staggered as he panted heavily. Arianne quickly supported him.

Eilles shut his eyes tightly and held Arianne's right hand with only a pinky finger remaining. "Whatever it takes... I will make it so that you can wield a sword again."

"Father..."

"No need to worry. I will make sure to kill that demon Oh Kang-Woo myself on the day of the Apocalypse."

"I-It's too dangerous, Father!"

Arianne shook her head in terror. Seeing that, Eilles's expression broke down. He couldn't believe that his daughter, whose smile was as bright as the sun, was making such a horrified expression.

'Oh Kang-Woo...'

Eilles clenched his fists, his fury blazing within him.

'Now isn't the time.'

It was too early to set his desire for revenge ablaze.

Eilles clenched Arianne's hand tightly and said, "Let's go back to where Lord Bael is. Can you walk?"

"Yes, I can. But Father..." slurred Arianne as she stared at the lifelessly staggering Eilles.

Eilles smiled faintly and answered, "Don't worry about me."

"Urgh, how dare that filth do this to you, Father...!"

Arianne fiercely bit her lip, her rage surging from seeing her father reduced to rags. Eilles patted Arianne's head and turned around.

"Let's go."

Eilles moved as he held hands with Arianne. He walked cautiously, looking around with his eyes as sharp as a hawk's.

'It's too soon to be relieved.'

He had successfully rescued Arianne, but they had yet to escape.

'We have to go to where Lord Bael is.'

Only then would they be truly safe.

"Huuu, huuu," Eilles breathed anxiously with each step he took.

He was heading to his throne, where a Gate that led to Bael was.

'Please...'

Eilles gulped with an expression filled with desperation. Just then...

Boom—!

"SHIT!!" someone shouted from the other side of the long hallway where Eilles had been tied up.

'He's here.'

The demon found out that Eilles had escaped.

"Hurry!"

"Yes, Father!"

Eilles quickened his steps, still holding Arianne's hand. They were almost at the Gate that led to Bael.

"Haaa, haaa!"

They reached an extravagantly decorated space. There was supposed to be a throne in the room, but it was not there because it had turned into the Frost Sword.

"This way!"

Eilles ran to the back of where the throne usually was.

Whoooom!

A Gate leading to Bael opened once he placed his hand on the magic tool that Amon had given him.

'I did it!'

Eilles's eyes filled with hope. A bright smile replaced his expression of despair.

He pulled Arianne by the hand and said, "Let's go. We only have about a month until the day of the Apocalypse."

Treating her daughter was important, but so was making the day of the Apocalypse happen. The Frostborn were wiped out due to the intruders and the Frost Sword was taken from Eilles, but he still possessed the Deific Essence of Frost as well as his power.

Arianne stood in front of the Gate, staring at it in silence.

"We have to go now. What are you waiting for?" Eilles said as he pulled on Arianne's arm.

"I see." Arianne smiled. "A month, huh?"

Arianne melted as if she were liquid. Darkness oozed from her body made of translucent ice.

"Thanks, that was good info."

The demon appeared from the darkness.

"Huh?" Eilles's eyes widened as he stared at the demon dumbfoundedly. "What the..."

His thoughts were jumbled; his brain was unable to process the information sent by his eyes. It was as if he were trapped in a nightmare.

"Ari...anne?"

"Pfft!" The demon clenched his stomach and crouched. He laughed vulgarly, "Bwehehehehehe!! Don't worry. That immature princess is safe."

The demon dropped a crystal orb. It shone brightly and displayed a hologram of Arianne sleeping on a bed.

"Ah..."

Eilles's eyes quivered. His eyes once again naturally gravitated to her hands.

"Her fingers..."

All ten of her fingers were perfectly intact.

"Come on, man. Did you seriously think I cut off her fingers?" The demon cackled as his shoulders moved up and down. "I don't do uncivilized shit like that, bro."

The demon shook his head humorously.

"Right, then. Now that you saw that..." The demon picked the crystal orb back up and tilted his head. "You're feeling hopeful again, aren't you?"

Eilles saw that his daughter's fingers were intact. He found out that his precious daughter could keep wielding a sword like she loved to do, and that she had never been tortured in the first place. Hope bloomed from within the despair.

"What do you think?"

It was exactly because of that... Eilles couldn't afford to let go of the hope, which had been so sweet that it made his brain numb, after experiencing it once.

"You..."

Eilles's expression turned pale after realizing he had been running around on the demon's palm all along. He turned to look at the demon, his eyes shaking. He could see an endless abyss beyond the demon's black eyes. Chills ran down Eilles's spine and fear took control of him. He recalled the time when he first met Bael.

"Wh-What are you...?"

The darkness he had seen back then was nothing compared to this.

"I told you." The demon patted Eilles's shoulder with a smile. "That your conviction will break."

The conviction that had stood tall against all despair had succumbed to hope.