Chapter 53: Promise


    <span style="font-weight:400">Unbeknownst to Kazuya, Harribel and her group were caught in their own maelstrom of troubles. Nestled deep within a gargantuan underground cave, the five women were surprisingly quiet, a solemn air surrounding all of them.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Ciri flew out of the giant hole over their head to scout the surroundings. Momentster, shended back in the cave. “I can’t sense him anywhere.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Neither can I,” admitted Harribel, her fingers gently caressing the mysterious egg clutched tightly to her chest as though its presence offered some form offort. “It could be a trap to lure us out.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Ciri’s brows knitted together in concern. “It absolutely is.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Despite their heightened caution, they had yet to catch sight of their pursuer yet — the one chasing them for almost a day. What they felt, instead, was an overpowering Reiatsu steadily closing in on them. A Reiatsu that belonged to none other than King Baraggan. The moment they identified it, they had taken off at their best speed.


    <span style="font-weight:400">M Rose forcefully dragged her Zanpakutō across the granr white sand before nailing it on the wall. “Tch. This hide and seek is suffocating me. I just want to beat him to death.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Befitting her lioness characteristics, she was proud and ferocious. Her Arrancarization only enhanced those traits. Crushing Baraggan was a bigger priority than her own life.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Api sat beside the wall, her gaze fixated on the wall in a daze. “If only we had that power."


    <span style="font-weight:400">Harribel shook her head. “We’ll beat Baraggan, but not today. Let’s keep—”


    <span style="font-weight:400">She stopped abruptly, her attention captured by the egg. It twitched unexpectedly, its activity highly unusual considering its quiet demeanor over thest few days.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Is it about to hatch?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">As Harribel attempted tomunicate with the egg, a surge of Reiatsu seeped out from it. She couldn’t help but recall Kazuya’s face upon sensing the Reiatsu.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Sung-Sun chuckled lightly, her eyes twinkling with mirth. “How cute. Did it sense Kazuya and start sending signals?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“The hatchling is calling out to its mother.” M Rose chuckled, the egg’s shenanigans shifting her mood for the better. “I still can’t believe Skull’s Zanpakutō is a literal egg.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Api jabbed M Rose’s hand with her horn. “Stop calling him mother… Call him father if you must.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Why is that bothering you?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Api turned her head away at the question. “It’s gross to call a man mother. Harribel-sama would agree with me.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Harribel was too engrossed in the egg to pay any attention to her surroundings.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Ciri also observed the egg with sharp eyes. An unsettling feeling gnawed at her. “Harribel, it’s almost at the level of a Gillian. Stop it before it reaches Adjuchas…”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Harribel patted the egg, whispering to it many words offort. Despite her efforts, she failed to stop the egg from sabotaging their location. Looking helplessly at Ciri, she shook her head. “I don’t think it understands us.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">A wave of frustration passed over Ciri’s face as she rubbed her forehead. “st. We may need to abandon the egg.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“What?” Thement sparked immediate outrage in Api. Her growl reverberated through the cave, reminiscent of a bloodthirsty wolf. “Are you stupid? It’s Kazuya’s Zanpakutō. Do you want him to end up like you?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“But we’re left with no other choice!”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Sung-Sun lightly poked Ciri’s back with her tail. “There’s always a choice. Look, there’s another path we can take.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Following Sung-Sun’s gaze, they found their attention drawn towards a dauntingly steep pathway leading further into the undergroundbyrinth.


    <span style="font-weight:400">M Rose squinted, trying to prate the thick nket of darkness. “Where does it lead? What if it’s a dead end?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Sung-Sun scoffed at M Rose’s hesitation. “Then we go through the Garganta to the Living World. We have better chances there than fighting Baraggan.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Harribel weighed her options for a moment and decided to follow Sung-Sun’s suggestion. Standing up, she beckoned the group. “Let’s go.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Hold on!” Ciri interjected. “I remember what lies beneath Hueco Mundo — the Forest of Menos. A forest filled with Gillians and Adjuchas.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Api’s eyes glowed fiercely. “Let’s go.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">She was close to evolving into a Vasto Lorde, so much that she could feel it in her bones. Consuming a bunch of Gillians would undoubtedly aid her transformation. The prospect of attaining the same level of power as Harribel filled her with a thrill she couldn’t suppress.


    <i><span style="font-weight:400">‘I won’t be useless against Baraggan.’</i>


    <span style="font-weight:400">Sung-Sun saw through Api’s desires. The deer was like an open book. “Harribel-sama, take Ciri and M Rose ahead. I have to talk to Api.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Huh?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Somewhat surprised, Harribel shot Api a sharp nce. Their rtionship hadn’t been the brightest ever since Kazuya left.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Now left alone with Sung-Sun, Api curiously stared at the snake. “What is it?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Don’t be consumed by your urges,” Sung-Sun whispered. “Kazuya isn’t interested in your strength, but your heart. That’s all I’ll say.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">It was Sung-Sun’s attempt to stop Api from degrading into a typical Hollow who kept devouring others for power. A path that might put her against Harribel.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Api paused for a moment before she lowered her head. “I promise it is only until I be Vasto Lorde. I’m so close… I want it, Sung-Sun. I want it so badly.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">There was a crazed obsession in Api’s eyes — an immense lust for strength. It wasn’t just about bing a Vasto Lorde for Api now; it was to prove to Kazuya that she could also live up to her words. It was about pride.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Sung-Sun shared the ambition despite not admitting to it openly like Api. “I understand. Just try not to be too aggressive in front of Harribel-sama.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I know… I am not denying Harribel’s beliefs. This is a desperate time for us, and we need all the strength we can.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Desperate times call for desperate measures. I got you if Harribel goes to you about the sacrifices,” Sung-Sun remarked teasingly. “In exchange, help me be Vasto Lorde after you’re one.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Api raised her head, her wide eyes regarding Sung-Sun. The snake’s tongue flickered as she narrowed her pupils.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Do you think I’m joking?” Sung-Sun shook her head. “I’m serious, Api. I refuse to stay the weakest in the group.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Ah… I’ll try.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I just have to get Kazuya to make the same promise, and we’re good to go.”