NOVGO.NET Chapter 731: Farewell
Chapter 731: Farewell
He wasn’t lying about sending clones.
He still would send them.
Their job would be simple: guard the party from shadows, hold the perimeter, and preserve the return route.
Neo planned those backups the way a commander rigs redundancies.
Still, he wanted these people with him for the retrieval, because he needed them to grow, and their abilities were truly top tier.
He snapped his fingers and a slender ray of pale light entered each person’s mind like a key slipping into a lock.
“Use that spell when you enter the Site,” he said. “It’ll protect you from Berserker Elementals.”
He paused, watching faces register the instructions, then added, “As for Earth, I’ll leave a clone here. If the Alliance reaches this location, the clone will trigger the transfer of Earth into my Cosmos. Until then, it won’t touch anything.”
No one had a chance to object before Neo stepped back and vanished.
He left the room with the same abruptness he used for almost everything.
He appeared in a faraway forest.
A narrow clearing opened around him and he let the silence fill the space for a long minute.
“Was it alright to leave like that?” Obitus’ voice echoed in his head.
“Yes. They need time to discuss, and decide how they’ll handle Earth if they agree to go. I just gave them space.”
“Why are you sending them to Sites?” she asked. The concern in her tone was obvious.
Neo rubbed his forehead and looked up at the patchy canopy.
“I don’t know exactly why, but the feeling I’ve had since I first heard the Ancient Dragons might come hasn’t left me. Something is definitely wrong.”
“You think the Ancient Dragons will attack?”
“I do,” he said. “And even if the dragons never attack, there’s the Alliance to worry about, the bastard who sent Velkaria to Earth, and Zeus. The Sites will give Amelia and the others a chance to grow stronger. That’s why I’m sending them there.”
There was a pause.
“Neo…” Obitus’ voice shifted. “Are you doing this because you’re afraid to meet the fragments of mother?”
He remained silent.
The question landed heavier than he expected.
Obitus continued in a softer tone, “Everyone there is worried. The last time I went into the Cosmos, they asked why you haven’t contacted them yet. Speak to them once at least.”
“…I will. Just give me time.”
“It’s been a year already.”
Her words were simple.
But it wasn’t easy for Neo to answer.
For all his mental fortitude, Neo couldn’t think straight when it came to his family or the people he cared about.
Before the conversation could turn toward the uncomfortable, a shadow cut the sky.
Jack arrived riding a skeletal dragon.
The creature’s wings stirred the leaves and sent a scatter of birds into the trees.
It landed with a powerful gust.
Jack jumped down.
“So when are we leaving?” he asked with a grin.
“Now.”
“Do we have a plan?”
Neo looked at Jack.
Jack recognized that look.
“….so we don’t have a plan.”
“I do have a plan, or rather I’ve decided on the first step. We will improvise from there.”
“What’s the first step?” Jack asked suddenly feeling uneasy for some reason.
“We are going to the headquarters of Alliance.”
Jack blinked once, then again.
He stared at Neo as if waiting for the words to be corrected or for the man to laugh and admit he was joking.
When nothing changed, he covered his face with both hands and groaned.
“Did I do the right thing by saying I’d go with this lunatic?” he muttered under his breath.
…
Days later, Neo gathered with the others once more.
By then, decisions had been made.
They had weighed the risks and chosen their paths.
Percival, Amelia, Arthur, and Felix had decided to go to the Sites.
Each of them had already chosen successors who would handle their responsibilities on Earth while they were gone.
It wasn’t an easy choice, but they agreed it was necessary.
Layla had chosen to remain behind.
Someone needed to watch over things, and she was, bluntly speaking, not strong enough to enter Sites.
Ilyana, after some discussion, had announced she was returning to the Forgotten Suns.
Moraine, however, refused to let Neo face the Alliance alone with Jack.
Despite his long arguments, his attempts to dissuade her, and his reminders of how dangerous it would be, she didn’t budge.
In the end, Neo had been forced to nod, and bring her with him.
As he prepared to leave, Ilyana’s voice reached him through telepathy.
Please take care of Jack.
I thought you’d warn me not to let him get injured, he joked.
It’s his decision to follow you. I can’t fault you for what happens because of that, she said quietly.
Neo could feel the weight behind her words.
She didn’t want Jack to face the Alliance, and if he did, she wanted the Forgotten Suns to shield him.
Unfortunately, because of Neo’s choice not to align himself with Forgotten Suns, Jack had no such safety net. Not that Jack would’ve taken it even if offered.
When the others departed, Earth was left quieter.
Only Neo, Layla, Moraine, and Jack remained.
Neo pulled out the spaceship Kevin had given him.
It was Alliance property, and that meant one thing: they could use it to enter Alliance territory without immediately being flagged as enemies.
Just before boarding, Jack broke a silence that had lingered between him and Layla for years.
“Stay safe.”
His voice was flat but not unkind.
Layla had been staring at the ground, unable to meet anyone’s eyes.
At his words, her head jerked up, startled.
But all she caught was Jack’s back as he climbed into the spaceship without turning around again.
Moraine followed shortly after, stepping into the ship after a small nudge from Neo.
That left Neo and Layla standing outside.
“Brother, I…”
Layla’s words stumbled out before stopping.
She bit her lip, struggling.
She wanted to apologize. For everything.
For how she had acted when he returned, for how she had treated Jack in the past.
But she didn’t know where to start.
“I’ve spoken with the Grim Reapers. They’ll follow your orders again. Don’t waste this second chance,” Neo said. “Also, go talk to her.”
Her.
Layla knew exactly who he meant.
The realization made her chest tighten.
Her eyes trembled as she stared at him.
For a year she had been unable to meet him.
It did not happen because there hadn’t been opportunities to speak, but because she had been afraid.
Afraid of his judgment, afraid he would scold her, afraid she would see disappointment in his eyes.
That fear had kept her silent and distant, even as guilt ate at her.
Neo was about to leave, but before he could, Layla stepped forward.
She hugged him tightly, burying her face against him.
“Come back safely.” Her voice cracked.
Neo felt the dampness seeping through his clothes and the tremble in her shoulders.
She didn’t need to say more; the hug told him everything she couldn’t put into words.
He hesitated for only a moment before wrapping an arm around her in return.
The embrace was brief, but it was enough.
Then he pulled back, gave her a small nod, and turned toward the spaceship.
Without another word, he boarded, leaving Layla standing alone as the hatch closed.
The ship lifted into the sky.
Its engines gave a low and steady hum.
Neo sat near the front, eyes fixed on the path ahead.
Jack leaned back with his arms crossed, still muttering to himself now and then about “lunatics” and “suicidal plans.”
Moraine stayed quiet, and munched on snacks.
Earth shrank below them, and the stars opened up ahead.
As the spaceship moved at an unbelievable speed, Neo turned to Moraine.
“I wanted to ask about something.”
“Mhmh,” she nodded, her mouth full with snacks.
“Can I injure the Alliance leaders?”
“Mhmh Hmhmh Mpmhm.” She shook her head.
Jack looked at Neo for interpretation.
“She said I can’t damage them with my current strength.”
Neo had expected this.
But he had a plan.
“What if I….”
His next words made Moraine and Jack freeze.