God of Tricksters

"Go, Celestial White Tiger, Byakko."

*Roar!*

The white tiger let out a thunderous roar as it marched forth, pouncing at the monster.

The latter tried to block its fangs with the bones, but the moment it raised the elbows, the white tiger opened its mouth, shooting a white beam that deflected one of the arms.

Meanwhile, its body plunged right into the monster's body, bit the shoulder, and ripped it apart.

The monster screamed in pain and hurriedly cut down the white tiger.

Rea, who witnessed everything, felt unwilling to lose.

'Even with this, it's impossible to kill a single monster?' Rea held back for as long as she could, but her mind soon went blank, fainting. The last thing she saw was her white tiger getting sliced by the monster. 'Damn it.'

The monster was fully angered when its arm was severed. It glared at Rea, planning to kill her brutally.

That was the time Theo reappeared on the battlefield, smiling. "Good work. Let me take care of the rest."

Theo glared at the monster as he released his Magic Power.

…

…

…

"Guh…" Rea let out a small groan before her eyes gradually opened. To her surprise, she could see a wooden ceiling as if she was inside the building.

"Now that I think about it…" Rea tried to recall what happened previously but couldn't recount the image completely. She suddenly rose from the bed in shock. "That's right. I was fighting against a Mythical Rank Monster!"

But as soon as she lifted her body, she felt excruciating pain all over her body as she reflectively said, "Ouch!"

Her body became weak as she fell to the bed again.

"Where is this?" Rea turned her head, realizing she was inside a small room made of wood. It was just an empty room without any furniture other than the bed.

She then raised her arms and saw bandages all over her body.

"Ah! That's right. I was training with him." Rea panicked for a moment as she looked at her body. Her clothes had changed, and the wounds had been dressed perfectly.

*Creak!*

The door was opened from the outside as Theo entered, finding Rea had woken up.

"Oh, it seems you're alright." Theo smiled before he saw Rea's face redden. That blush came from her embarrassment as well as shame. So, he said, "Don't worry. I closed my eyes when dressing your wounds and utilized my Telekinesis to change your clothes."

"…" She didn't know why but she felt relieved and disappointed at the same time. Theo was truly not interested in her.

"Just lie down for a moment. This small hut is my illusion." Theo smiled. He created this small hut with his illusion and turned them real with his Reality Order, allowing him to build a small private hut for resting.

However, Rea's focus remained elsewhere. She looked at Theo and asked, "Did I…kill that monster? I… I don't know how I should say this, but I could only feel the things that happened before I lost my consciousness, but my memory was still fuzzy."

"You failed to kill the monster." Theo shook his head, walking toward her. As soon as he reached the bed, Theo created a chair and sat down. "But I should congratulate you on your achievement. Congratulations, Rea."

"Congratulations…" Rea's body trembled as she looked down for a while. Numerous feelings mixed in her heart to the point she didn't know how to face Theo.

On the one hand, Theo's way was extremely dangerous and insane. On the other hand, it managed to stimulate her potential, the potential that her inferiority complex had buried.

She squeezed the blanket as her body continued trembling. Tears couldn't help but come out and fall down.

Happiness and relief filled her heart. This might be the first time she felt this in her life. Yes, for the first time in her life, she was proud of herself.

"I did it… I did it…" Rea squeezed even tighter as she bowed down, crying. "I really did it."

Theo looked at Rea with a smile. She had been chasing her brother this whole time. But this time, she managed to catch up to that shadow and even surpass it.

The fear, responsibility, and anxiety that had been occupying her heart finally disappeared.

"Theo…" She looked at Theo and bit her lips. "Can I… Can I really do it?"

Theo answered with a smile. "You have talent in swordsmanship, but it has been overshadowed by your brother. But that doesn't mean you're inferior to your brother.

"You have an extraordinary talent in analysis and managing things. It's just… everything has been focused on your brother this whole time because you've accepted that you're inferior to your brother.

"You didn't realize that you, too, are someone equal to your brother. If you don't have enough talent in swordsmanship to beat your brother, use another talent of yours to help you to do it.

"I don't like saying something just to comfort you. That's why I'm going to say this… It's going to be a hard path to follow. It's a path filled with pain. But I have recognized you as my people." Theo extended his hand gently and asked with a smile. "I'll help you. But it will be your choice. Will you be satisfied with just something like this or will you continue walking on this arduous path?"

Rea looked at Theo dumbfoundedly. This whole time, she felt she was in the middle of the darkness.

There was a road of light. Her brother was running on this path. On the contrary, her talent was only enough to make her walk instead of running.

That was why she had been enduring everything. She worked hard tirelessly. When her brother stopped running to rest, she continued to walk.

The image of her swinging her swords thousands of times every day flashed in her mind. Her hand hurt, her body was tired, and her will had wavered.

"Have I done something right? Have I worked hard enough? Or should I find another path that will deviate from the goal that my brother and I have?"

But this time, Theo suddenly took her hand and said to her, "Your path is not wrong. If you can't catch up to your brother even with all that effort you've put on, then you should use your other talent to…"

Theo paused for a moment as they started floating, moving like her brother but from in the air.

"…fly."

Yes. If she couldn't catch up walking, she just needed to fly to catch up or surpass her brother.

Her eyes brightened. Her brother's body had always covered her vision from the path that they took. But now that she was in the air, she could see the long white line in the darkness, extending to the endless darkness.

Theo's voice resounded again, repeating what he said earlier.

"I'll help you. But it will be your choice. Will you be satisfied with just something like this or will you continue walking on this arduous path?"

"I will… I will continue on this path no matter how far I need to fly… Even if the path never ends, I'll continue to move forward." Rea's heart was screaming as Rea grabbed Theo's hand with both her hands. She said from the bottom of her heart. "Please… Please help me."

Theo smiled while closing his eyes.