Chapter 387: Little Rest

He held his sword up, still streaked with drying blood despite the quick rinse earlier, and whispered dramatically, "Veilcleaver."

I stared at him. "That sounds like a magical spoon that separates soup and noodles."

Steve blinked. "Wait, really?"

"Yeah. Or like a kitchen tool with delusions of grandeur."

"Damn it." He sighed, leaning back with a defeated groan. "You know, naming a sword is harder than fighting with it."

"True," I said. "You’ve had that blade since before we met, and it’s still just ’Steve’s sword.’"

"It deserves more," he said, almost genuinely. "It’s been through so much."

There was a silence that settled between us for a moment. Peaceful. The kind of quiet that comes only after too much noise.

Steve looked down at the reflection of the stars on the surface of the pool. He dipped the blade in and swirled it through the water.

The red bled away in ribbons.

"I enjoyed it," he said softly.

I turned my head, catching the way his voice had dropped. There wasn’t a smile now.

"Killing like that. Going all out. Just swinging and slicing and not holding anything back. It felt..." He paused. "I don’t know how to feel about that."

I didn’t say anything for a second. I let the wind carry that admission through the ruins around us.

"It’s the world we live in," I said at last. "You felt something real. Doesn’t make it wrong."

He glanced at me. "Doesn’t make it right either."

"No," I agreed. "But we don’t live in a world that cares about right or wrong in simple terms. You’ve seen it. With the kind of threats hanging over us—other worlds, Contractors, Eternals, things beyond the system—we either cut them down, or we die."

Steve nodded slowly. "So what you’re saying is... if we go any higher, if we leave this world, this level of fighting—this kind of killing—will be normal?"

"Yes," I said. "Uncontrolled battles. Death on a scale we can’t imagine yet. We’ll have to adapt. Or we’ll be crushed."

He looked down again. "So why do it, Billion? Why keep going?"

I met his eyes. "Because none of my goals have been achieved yet."

I said it plainly. No emotion. Just fact.

"The Eternals," I continued. "The Prime Galaxy. My parents. The souls of the fallen. Every single answer I need is somewhere out there. I can’t stop here."

Steve looked at me for a while. "You don’t get tired?"

"I do," I said. "But that doesn’t matter. I chose this. And if we don’t push through this hell, it’ll just find some beautiful day to swallow us as well."

He took that in quietly. Then leaned back again, resting his elbows behind him on the smooth stone.

"Well," he muttered, "Guess I should put off naming the sword a bit longer."

I grinned. "Call it Delayblade. Symbolic."

"Shut up," he said, laughing again.

And for a while, under the faint violet glow of Essence drifting through the realm’s sky, we sat by the pool and let the silence settle again.

This time, it felt earned.

Footsteps echoed softly across the stone path.

I turned my head just slightly, and there she was.

North had returned, her long hair damp and flowing freely down her back, still glistening from the water. She wore a simple dress that clung lightly to her, and a beautiful smile played on her lips. Her skin had a soft glow under the blue sky, and for a moment, I just admired the beauty in front of me.

Even Steve sat up a little straighter.

"Damn," he muttered under his breath, earning a sharp jab in the ribs from my elbow.

North walked over and sat down beside me. She didn’t say anything. Just leaned gently and rested her head on my shoulder.

I glanced down at her. "You okay?"

She nodded, eyes half-closed. "Mhm."

The heat of her presence against my side felt strangely comforting.

Steve let out a dramatic sigh. "Well, I guess that’s my cue to sit awkwardly to the side like a third wheel."

North chuckled. "You’ve been a third wheel since the day we met."

He gasped. "How dare you. I’m at least a second wheel. Possibly a steering wheel."

"More like the squeaky one in the back," I muttered.

Steve groaned. "Alright, fine. So... what next?"

I tilted my head slightly, thinking. "I am sure the battle in the capital is still ongoing. The last Grandmaster, the leader of the Holt is still out there."

North opened her eyes. "Do you think he’ll surrender?"

"No," Steve and I said at the same time.

She gave a small sigh. "Didn’t think so."

"He will be dealt with. I am sure." I said. "Just like the Contractors. Can’t leave any pieces behind."

"What about the rest of the Holt family?" Steve asked. "The non-combatants. Civilians. The ones who didn’t fight."

"We spare them," North said before I could answer. "If they’ve done nothing wrong, they deserve to live."

I nodded. "Yeah. The war wasn’t with the weak. It was with the ones who built their empire over bones."

Steve gave a small smile. "That’s more mercy than they gave anyone."

"That’s the point," I said. "We’re not them."

There was a pause. Then Steve added, "Billion... you’ve changed."

"How so?"

"You’re stronger now," North said quietly, still resting against me.

I shrugged. "I had to adapt. We all did."

Steve smirked. "Yeah, but it’s kinda terrifying. You’re like... a walking apocalypse with good posture."

I laughed. "Is that supposed to be a compliment?"

"Take it how you want. I’m just saying, if I were the Holt leader, I’d be tunneling out of here by now."

North smiled softly. "Let him try."

We sat in comfortable silence for a moment.

Then Steve added, "Hey, after this, can we take a vacation? Maybe a beach? Somewhere where people aren’t constantly trying to explode us?"

North raised a brow. "You hate vacations.."

"I hate being stabbed more," he muttered.

I grinned. "If we survive the next few weeks, we’ll think about it."

North shifted slightly closer.

Steve tilted his head back. "Y’know, I keep thinking we’re nearing the top, but then someone like Arkas shows up and tosses lightning spears through pocket dimensions like it’s nothing."

North let out a small laugh. "He did that with such ease too. You realize that, right?"

"Thanks for the reminder," Steve scoffed.

I leaned back. "You’re not wrong though. We’ve closed the gap a lot. But the Grandmaster tier... that’s something else entirely."

"You are close too." North asked, turning her face toward me, eyes curious.

"One-ninety-nine," I replied. "I already got the system quest. But you two should be close."

Steve narrowed his eyes. "No quest for me yet. What about you, North?"

"Same here." she said, trailing one of her fingers on my hand.

"Well you should receive that soon. You just need to get into your 190s and who knows you may receive the quest before that too.," I pointed out. "You are hardworking people."

Steve gave a mock scoff. " I carried like three people on my back at one point, literally."

"I saw you dragging Xin by the leg like a sack of potatoes," North grinned.

"Strategic repositioning!" Steve protested.

We all chuckled at that.

"Still," North said after a pause. "The Holt Grandmasters were no joke. And their leader’s still out there."

"Yeah," I muttered. "And we haven’t even seen him yet."

Steve rolled his neck. "I’m not going to lie... I’m tired. Like soul-level tired. But I want to see how far I can push this body. Break through. I want that quest too."

"You’ll get it," I said. "Both of you will."

There was silence for a moment.

Then I stood up and stretched. "Alright. Time for a bath before someone calls me for another battle."

Steve gave a half-salute. "Don’t drown."

North offered a teasing smile. "Try not to spark lightning in there."

I smirked and waved as I walked away, heading back into the hallways of the castle. The scent of clean air lingered faintly, though parts of the structure had been purified and restructured by the Naga. The deeper I went, the quieter the world became.

The bathing pool sat behind a heavy stone arch, lit by soft runes along the wall. Steam rose gently off the surface. The water glowed faintly with filtered essence.

I stepped inside and slowly removed my clothes, setting them neatly to the side.

The moment my skin touched the water, a sigh escaped me. Heat curled around sore muscle and nerves. I sank lower, letting it soak into my bones.

Then, like a whisper, I felt it.

A stirring deep inside. My generator core was glowing faintly, its pulse stronger than before.