MIGHT AS WELL BE OP

Chapter 1197: In The Flesh

Anthony appeared in the sky above Military Base Alpha-9, his cat form shifting back into his human body.

‘It seems Mom is here,’ Anthony thought as he sensed Mitchelle, who appeared to be discussing various matters with her Warlords.

‘I need to meet with Warlord Raelith after I talk to Seraphim, Dale, and Reynold. After that… one month of intense laziness,’ Anthony thought to himself before vanishing from the sky.

Anthony appeared within one of the rooms on his personal island to find Dale, Seraphim, and Reynold playing cards as they chatted amongst themselves. Anthony didn’t speak. He remained silent for a brief moment before deliberately making his presence known.

The instant he did, Reynold reacted. His rapier streaked toward Anthony’s throat, only to stop midway through its motion.

“Anthony?” Reynold spoke, stunned, as Anthony was the last person he had expected to see.

“In the flesh,” Anthony replied, amused. He didn’t take Reynold’s attack as an offense, knowing the Phoenix was merely being overly cautious and was simply on edge.

“Hmph, look who finally decided to visit us after leaving us to rot for months,” Dale spoke as he met Anthony’s gaze.

“As you all know, I’ve simply been too busy. I’m sure the battle with the Demon King and the God should give you all a bit of insight into just how hectic my schedule has been, considering you three were there,” Anthony explained with a sigh.

He pushed himself away from the wall and casually walked toward the couch before sitting down as though he intended to join their card game.

“Sorry for attacking you out of nowhere. I’ve been on edge ever since you teleported everyone back to their original locations. I’m truly sorry,” Reynold apologized.

“It’s fine. Sometimes it’s good to stay on edge,” Anthony replied as he immediately accepted the apology.

Seraphim, the Elf, smiled as she spoke. “Honestly… I never thought I’d see you again.” Her voice was as charming as ever, while her beauty remained just as flawless. She was an Elf, after all.

Anthony arched an eyebrow as he spoke, “why would you think that?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Dale, the Vampire, answered before Seraphim could.

“You seem angrier than everyone else,” Anthony mused, his eyes shifting toward Dale. “You really shouldn’t be this angry, or someone might misunderstand and think we had some sort of romantic relationship that ended on bad terms.”

Dale’s face immediately twisted into a deep frown at Anthony’s words, leaving him completely speechless.

“Don’t mind him,” Reynold spoke. “Have you forgotten? He used to call you his connection to the peak and his connection to everything within the Military. After not seeing you for so long, he was scared he’d lost the greatest connection he’d ever established,” Reynold explained in an amused tone.

Anthony glanced at Dale before slowly shaking his head. That attitude was exactly like the Dale he knew. It made perfect sense.

“Well, you’re simply far too powerful to remain at our level anymore, Anthony,” Seraphim finally answered the question he had asked earlier. “We barely get to see you these days. We mostly only see Kingsley, not even Vega, Spectre, or the others anymore. It was only natural for us to assume you’d already stepped onto the next great stage.” A warm smile remained on her face as she spoke.

“I see,” Anthony replied thoughtfully. “Well… I ‘will’ be stepping onto the next big stage soon. But I haven’t stayed away because I wanted to. I’ve just had far too many things on my plate to deal with. This is the first real free time I’ve had in quite a while, so I decided to come and see you all,” he paused briefly before adding with a light grin, “it seems you guys actually missed me.”

“Sigh… It’s impossible to stay angry at you,” Dale muttered as he raised a hand, and the two exchanged one of their familiar handshake combinations.

“I won’t deny it, we missed you,” Reynold admitted. “We still complete missions and everything, but without you, the efficiency and ease just aren’t there anymore. Things have become a little harder, though they’re still well within our ability to handle.”

“So you only missed me because of my power and abilities… not because I was your friend?” Anthony asked in a mock-serious tone.

Reynold and the others immediately froze.

“Ehh… we didn’t mean it like that. That… probably came out wrong,” Seraphim hurriedly said.

Anthony merely burst into laughter as he shook his head. “I’m joking. You should’ve seen the looks on your faces.”

His laughter echoed throughout the room for several moments. Seraphim, Dale, and Reynold immediately relaxed upon hearing Anthony’s laughter. They could only smile after realizing they had all been successfully played.

‘Should I go on one last mission with them before I leave?’ Anthony wondered to himself before immediately discarding the idea.

For one, the Military might not even have any available missions for a while. Secondly, this entire one-month period had already been dedicated to absolute laziness. No work. No training. No responsibilities.

“Why not just ask Kingsley to accompany you all?” Anthony asked.

The three paused once more before Dale finally answered.

“We don’t know whether he caught some fatal illness, suffered some hidden injury, or maybe even got cursed by a Demon Monarch or something. But for quite some time now, all he’s done is sleep. Even when he wakes up, he just nods at us, gets whatever needs doing out of the way, and immediately goes right back to sleep,” the Vampire explained.

Anthony couldn’t help but feel amused as he listened to their misunderstanding. They were completely oblivious to Kingsley’s Sleep Training Ability. In the past, Kingsley had only slept for several hours each day, but now… he practically spent every waking moment asleep.

“No need to overthink it. I’m sure he’s perfectly fine. Just ask him about it. If something were actually wrong, he’d tell you,” Anthony said, choosing not to explain Kingsley’s Sleep Training Ability.

With that, Reynold dealt the cards, and the four of them began playing while chatting about everything that had happened over the past few months. They were genuinely happy that Anthony had at least found the time to come and see them.

Anthony didn’t immediately drop the bombshell regarding his Ascension. Instead, he chose to spend some time catching up on their lives, listening to everything they had been through and what they had been up to before finally telling them the truth.

—–

AUTHOR’S NOTE: I know most of you hate this slice of life chapter stuff as they seem too draggy. But don’t worry, I will be doing a timeskip. Lol.