Deus Didymus: Rend

Pt2Ch59: Chimera's Flames VIII

Y/n took a deep breath. Divine power stronger than that of the capital statue's bled from the dwarven cave's entrance. There was no mistaking its origin; it resonated with the seal tattooed onto Y/n's forehead, causing the marking to glow.

"Are you okay?" Minju asked softly.

"Y-Yeah," Y/n sighed. "I just have some bad memories with this place."

Y/n cradled his progeny tenderly, heaving one final sigh before stepping into the cave's entrance. Despite all the time that passed since he last visited, Y/n navigated to the dwarven city with relative ease. While he could have arrived significantly faster, what felt like a pair of eyes watched Y/n's every step causing him to move slower than he anticipated.

A pair of crimson eyes met Y/n at the dwarven gate accompanied by Jinju. The woman's cold, piercing gaze shook Y/n down to his core, reminding him of his battle against her whilst under Malevolence's control. Even without Hyejin's allele it was clear she grew stronger since their last time meeting.

"H-Hey, Mr. Shin..." Y/n said nervously.

"That's weird coming from you," Kami remarked. His eyes glanced toward the infant in Y/n's arms. "Who's child did you steal?"

"It's actually mine," Y/n mumbled.

"I was kidding. His wellspring has the same creepy feeling as yours," Kami replied.

"You're one to talk..." Jinju muttered.

Y/n chuckled nervously. He scratched his head. "I was wondering if I could leave him under your watch. I want him to be as safe as possible, and my sources say you're a neutral party."

"Sure," Kami said. His eyes reflected no sign of overt emotions, leaving Y/n on edge. "On one condition. You visit your child at least once a month."

"Uh... This location is a little inconvenient for us to come to," Y/n trailed.

Kami waved dismissively. "I'll just drop him off in your room."

"You seem scarily okay with this," Y/n remarked.

"Your child hasn't done anything, so he is innocent," Kami explained. "I'm only okay with taking care of him because he is an innocent soul--despite the mark you've left on his literal soul."

Y/n raised his eyebrows. "Mark?"

"You'll see in due time," Kami assured.

"Okay..." Y/n pursed his lips. "Do I have to pay you per day he stays here? Or..."

"No. This isn't a daycare." Kami extended his arms, prompting Y/n to place his son in Kami's grasp. "I'll just make sure he grows up safely. If you want him trained with energy control or combat, you'll have to pay a fee though."

"What...?" Y/n blinked.

"I'm kidding," Kami said with a straight face. "You don't have much of a sense of humor, do you?"

"A-Ah... I guess not," Y/n chuckled.

Kami chortled, releasing the serious facade on his face. "I'm just picking on you. What's his name?"

"Daehyun," Y/n replied. "Ahn Daehyun."

While Y/n and Minju walked away, Kami stared deep into Daehyun's soul. "You have the same monstrous potential as both of your parents."

"Are you really going to take care of his child?" Jinju asked. "You already have Yama, Yami, and Sumin to take care of."

Kami shrugged. "I'll be fine. What's one more kid?"

With Daehyun in his arms, Kami walked deeper into the cave where Riwon and Hayoung trained in front of the Dragonforge. In a space of her own Daeun scribbled into the air, building rune after rune. A rifle sat on the ground in front of her with a cylindrical lens mounted on top. Its body brimmed with runic energy from the handful of inscriptions embedded throughout the mechanism.