2045 Idiot
Leonel felt as though a bomb had just gone off in his mind. When his vision cleared, he felt like he was standing within Aina's body, experiencing what she was experiencing, feeling what she was feeling.
It had, indeed, been a long time since they had done this. Since then, Leonel had improved greatly. Not only had his Dream Force Force Manipulation stepped to an all new stage, but he had also gained the ability to disassociate his soul from his body, granting him a great deal of strength in this aspect. As a result, when he touched his own Dream World with Aina's mind, the connection was far deeper than it had ever been before.
If before Aina had only been able to share a small portion, now it felt like she could share 110% of the aspects of her Ability Index.
Now, Leonel could truly feel what she felt, that instinct toward her body, and since they were connected, his own as well. He realized that Aina had even unknowingly already entered Tier 9 of the Sixth Dimension, and she was on pace to cross into the Seventh Dimension long before himself.
However, he suddenly came to a stop. That was because he could sense that Aina's soul was under a great deal of strain. He immediately pulled back and sealed away most of his mind's strength.
Just now, he had been far too rash. He had continued thinking at his normal speed, and because he was using Aina as a proxy to take on the benefits of her Ability Index, all of the stamina drain was on her to withstand. If he had continued for a few more seconds, she might have collapsed and even fallen into a coma.
This time, he only allowed a single one of his minds forward, leaving all the other ones to focus on his body. But in reality, he had seen all he needed to see.
He felt a shuddering change within him as his comprehension of Dream Force grew even deeper.
His mistake was in assuming that Dream Force was just like other Forces.
Take Water Force for example, not only did it make up the various bodies of water in the world, but the shifts and changes within. The ocean, as an example, wasn't just one type of Water Force, but rather an amalgamation of all the Water Forces in various quantities, almost like neutral Force which was a fusion of all Forces in existence.
Leonel had always viewed Dream Force in this way. An amalgamation of all kinds of Dream Force, and depending on the type of person you were, one kind of Dream Force would be more pronounced than another.
However, he was entirely wrong.
There weren't different kinds of Dream Forces, there was only one kind, the purest kind, the only kind in existence and the kind everyone shared.
This was what separated Dream Force from other kinds of Forces, in fact it could be said that the other Forces that made up the human body were more likely to impact your personality than Dream Force itself!
Dream Force was purely a vessel that allowed consciousness to exist, while Soul Force was what held the tainted colors of your personality.
Leonel had always believed that Dream Force was a derivative of Soul Force, or more accurately a purified version of it. But it was more accurate to think of Soul Force like an impure Dream Force. It was a subtle difference in order, and yet it made all the difference in his mind.
Suddenly…
CRACK!
Leonel's body trembled and his gaze became vacant.
Aina, who was allowing Leonel to explore and confirm the things she said, suddenly felt her expression change. She looked toward Leonel, shuddering at his dull gaze.
Leonel's aura seemed to have entirely changed.
At that moment, the universe resounded with a harrowing crack, it was a sound that every soul in existence heard, no matter where they were, no matter where they hid, no matter who they were. However, it seemed impossible to tell where this crack had come from.
Aina felt her shoulders trembling as she looked into Leonel's eyes. She suddenly felt both an endlessly far away and endlessly close feeling. She wanted to take a step back, and yet jump into his arms at the same time. It was an absolutely suffocating feeling, so all she could do was stand in place.
"Leonel…? Leonel?"
The dull gaze in Leonel's eyes seemed to snap into focus. He looked around and then down at Aina, and then seemed to be stunned for a moment.
His gaze suddenly became incomparably gentle, so gentle that Aina felt that she might melt. But to her surprise, tears began to stream down Leonel's face at the same time.
It was a moment that was difficult to describe. The aura exuding from Leonel was incomparably majestic, incomparably lofty, and yet the look in his eyes could put a newborn at ease, while his tears could make the same newborn burst into their own.
Leonel suddenly looked away, his tears vanishing under a mysterious sort of power that AIna couldn't even begin to understand.
"I see… It seems that even this one has been a failure. I guess there are just some things that you can't change…"
Leonel closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his dignified aura had reached his eyes. The air around him trembled and seemed about to collapse at any moment, but, although Aina wasn't sure if it was an illusion or not, it felt that it was also quickly becoming weaker.
"Aina."
"Yes?" Aina answered almost too hurriedly. She was nervous for reasons she didn't know why, for some reason it felt like she was meeting Leonel for the first time all over again.
"I'm an idiot that doesn't deserve you. No matter what state I'm in a month from now, promise to never leave my side, okay?"
Aina's lips parted, but she didn't know how to respond. In the end, she simply nodded, her face holding onto a strong determination.
Leonel didn't meet Aina's eyes again, almost as though he couldn't bear to, or maybe he was too embarrassed to. This version of himself was truly far too weak, whether in fist or in mind.
"All the calculations in the world, and it's still not enough…"
But at that moment, Leonel smiled, it was a handsome, unrestrained smile, the kind that came from the bottom of his heart.
"… Even I cannot play with lives so casually."
Leonel laughed, he laughed so heartily, a laugh filled with relief.
It was completely contradictory, especially since he said he had just failed, and yet he was so happy.
He had never been happier in his life.
"Take care of this idiot," Leonel said finally. "One day I won't disappoint you."
Aina could only be confused as the suffocating aura suddenly vanished and Leonel collapsed. She hurriedly rushed forward to catch him, but even in this state, the smile on his face hadn't vanished.
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