Journey to Become the Zenith-Chapter 122: The Promise That Refused to Fade [Part-2]

The Promise That Refused to Fade [Part-2]

"...Azriel..."

A whisper.

Fragile.

Breaking.

Barely there.

And then—

Silence.

Not the silence of the battlefield.

Not the silence of paused breath.

But something deeper.

Something final.

For a moment—

Azriel Ruinous disappeared.

Not physically.

He was still there.

Still standing.

Still holding the god’s presence in his peripheral vision.

But the thing that made him him—

Vanished.

No rage.

No scream.

No denial.

Just—

Stillness.

Empty.

Then—

The world broke.

His head lowered slightly.

Not in grief.

Not in defeat.

But in something far worse.

Understanding.

The kind that doesn’t shatter you—

It hollows you out.

And then—

It fills that emptiness with something else.

Something wrong.

His anger didn’t rise.

It mutated.

It didn’t burn hot like rage should.

It went cold—too cold—like something sinking into a depth where even emotion couldn’t breathe.

For a second, the battlefield felt it.

That shift.

That unnatural silence where even the storm hesitated.

Azriel’s fingers twitched.

And then—

The sky bent.

His anger didn’t just flare—

it erupted.

A massive thunder spell tore through the sky, consuming the god entirely. The God of Thunder fought back with his own lightning... but it broke. It failed.

And when the storm settled—

a god was gone.

Azriel stepped forward, lifted Eliora’s lifeless body into his arms...

and walked.

The air collapsed inward with a violent pull, as if the heavens themselves were being dragged down by an unseen force. Lightning didn’t descend anymore—it was ripped from the sky, torn apart, reshaped.

What answered Azriel...

Not divine.

Something twisted.

Something that didn’t belong to heaven.

The lightning that formed above wasn’t white.

It was dark.

Heavy.

Corrupted.

It bent unnaturally, spiraling inward as if collapsing into itself before expanding outward with overwhelming force.

The God of Thunder tried to respond—

Tried to reclaim control.

But it was already too late.

Azriel’s thunder didn’t obey.

It devoured.

It swallowed every trace of divine lightning in the sky, consuming it like fuel, growing heavier, denser, more violent with every second.

"Impossible..." the god whispered.

Azriel didn’t answer.

He didn’t look at him.

Didn’t acknowledge him.

Because at that moment—

The god wasn’t the enemy anymore.

He was just—

In the way.

The strike came down.

No warning.

No grandeur.

Just inevitability.

It hit the God of Thunder directly.

No explosion.

No dramatic collapse.

Just—

Erasure.

The divine presence flickered.

Cracked.

Then vanished.

As if it had never existed.

Silence followed.

But this time—

It wasn’t empty.

It was heavy.

Oppressive.

Final.

Azriel stood there for a long second.

Not breathing.

Not moving.

Then—

He turned.

Walked.

Slowly.

Toward her.

Each step felt wrong.

Unfamiliar.

Like his body no longer belonged to him.

He reached her.

Knelt.

Carefully.

Too carefully.

As if even the slightest mistake would undo something already gone.

His hand slid beneath her.

Lifting her.

Cradling her.

There was no expression on his face.

No grief.

No visible pain.

Just—

Absence.

He moved.

Not like a warrior.

Not like a king.

But like something... beyond reason.

He didn’t chase the god.

Didn’t scream for revenge.

He went somewhere else.

Somewhere forbidden.

The Underworld.

And he didn’t enter it—

He invaded it.

The God of Death rose to stop him.

A being older than most concepts.

Cold. Absolute. Untouchable.

It didn’t matter.

The battle wasn’t long.

It wasn’t glorious.

It was one-sided.

Brutal.

Inevitable.

Azriel Ruinous destroyed death itself.

Tore it apart.

And took its authority.

Not as a gift.

Not as a blessing.

But as something he claimed through sheer force.

—

And then—

He returned.

Holding power that shouldn’t belong to anyone.

Standing over Eliora’s lifeless body.

"...Get up."

His voice was quiet.

Too quiet.

"Eli."

Nothing.

"...Don’t make me say it twice."

Still nothing.

For the first time—

His hand trembled.

Just slightly.

Then—

The power of death itself bent.

And Eliora—

Opened her eyes.

—

Her breath returned in a sharp gasp.

Confusion.

Shock.

Life.

"...Azriel?"

Her voice was weak.

But real.

And for the first time—

He exhaled.

—

When she learned what he had done...

Silence filled the space between them again.

Not heavy this time.

But something deeper.

Something fragile.

"...You killed the God of Death?" she asked slowly.

"Yes."

"...For me?"

He didn’t answer.

Didn’t need to.

Her gaze softened.

Then—

"...Give it to me."

He looked at her.

Actually looked.

"...What?"

"The title."

Her voice didn’t waver.

"The power. The authority. Everything."

A pause.

"...Why?"

Eliora smiled faintly.

Not playful.

Not teasing.

Just... honest.

"Because you don’t belong there."

"...And you do?"

"I’ll make it belong to me."

Silence.

Then—

Without hesitation—

He let it go.

—

The power shifted.

The title changed.

And Eliora—

Became the new God of Death.

—

For a moment, neither spoke.

Then she stepped closer.

Close enough that she could see her reflection in his eyes.

"...I love you, Azriel."

There it was.

No hesitation.

No fear.

Just truth.

And Azriel—

Didn’t answer.

Not because he didn’t understand.

Not because he didn’t feel anything.

But because—

He didn’t know how to stay.

"...I’ll come back."

That was all he said.

A promise.

Or maybe... an excuse.

Eliora closed her eyes for a brief second.

Then nodded.

"...I’ll wait."

A soft breath.

"No matter how long."

—

Years passed.

Then decades.

Then more.

Time didn’t move the same way for beings like them.

But stories did.

And Azriel’s—

Spread like wildfire across existence.

Eliora heard them all.

Sitting upon a throne built from silence and endings.

"...He conquered the forbidden lands."

"...He defeated multiple War Gods..."

"...He declared war on dragons..."

"...Even the Dragon of Beginning fled from him..."

Each story—

More absurd than the last.

More... like him.

And then—

"...He created a kingdom."

That one made her pause.

A faint smile touched her lips.

"...Of course you did."

Led by his companions.

Built through chaos and strength.

Even children...

His blood continuing beyond him.

She lowered her gaze slightly.

Something flickered in her chest.

Not pain.

Not regret.

Just...

A quiet, lingering thought.

"...You’re still moving forward."

Her fingers brushed lightly against the armrest of her throne.

Cold.

Endless.

But her voice—

Softened.

"...And I’m still here."

Waiting.

Exactly like she promised.