Before they realized it, a week passed as they continued learning how to emit the Aetheric waves. Alas, only Zeke reached minor mastery but he needed to be wholly focused on the task and completely unperturbed.Zeke was planning to continue training until he was able to use it at will, but the System didn’t seem to agree with him. Out of nowhere, to set a time limit to get rid of the Dead Ends, basically forcing him and Celestia to charge ahead with what little experience they had.With 12 hours on the clock, the truck drove straight into a seemingly stationary massive red cloud, seeing nothing but destroyed buildings and empty cars everywhere.There were no human stupid enough to remain in the vicinity of the Dead Ends, be it the lucky survivors or the military.After a half an hour drive, the truck was but several hundred meters away from its destination.“Brace yourself!”Celestia pressed on the pedal and tightly grasped the steering wheel as the truck started rocking back and for
Sitting on the crystalline throne, Nicneven Sin, the Witch Queen, looked down at Jonathan Stellar Link. He was joined by the last surviving member of the eradicated Proto-Demon Tribe, Essyna.The tragedy that happened to her friends and clan members had affected her greatly, nevertheless, for the sake of vengeance, she had held on and agreed to help the Witches and Jonathan.Her ability was most unique of all and no magical artifact could imitate it, therefore, she was going to play an integral part in what was soon to come.“I understand.”Nicneven turned to look at one of the 6-Star Witches, a gloomy-looking woman with curly brown hair and seemingly tanned skin.“You will start the necessary preparations at once, Verentia.”“By your will, Your Majesty.”The 6-Star Witch, titled ‘The Witch of Destruction’, respectfully bowed her head before walking away.Kleya and the remaining 6-star Witch were sitting behind the throne, motionless and stoic. “Any idea when it will happen?”“The Sy
There was a momentary silence after Zeke disappeared. The Witch Queen floated in the air with a surprised and confused look whereas Jonathan rushed to Essyna’s side and urged her to open the portal again.The Proto-Demon was breathing heavily and kneeling on the ground, incapable of lifting a finger, much less using her ability a second time.“Leave it. It’s over.”Jonathan gritted his teeth and wanted to protest, but once he saw Nicneven’s cold and murderous stare, he lowered his head and obeyed.‘He’s still alive. If he isn’t, the Special Mission would have failed. Damnit… What a crazy bastard!’As the barriers were being removed one by one and the Witches were lining up in front of the Witch Queen, the atmosphere grew heavy.After a couple of a minute or two in tense silence, the Nightmare Witch declared,“The outpost commanders will leave tomorrow morning. The rest will be stay here to fortify-”Before she could finish, there was a deep rumbling as the entire city shook violently.
“Is this really the truth?!”Celestia faced the Witch Queen and the three 6-star Witches with an astonished expression.“Mind your words, human. Her Majesty has no need to lie to the likes of-”The Witch of Destruction was rebuking Celestia only to be interrupted by Nicneven, who raised her hand.The bronze-skinned tall witch apologetically bowed her head and returned to her usual silence.“You can check for yourself if you want. Even if you don’t, the truth will be revealed before long.”“What do you mean?”The Witch Queen paused for a couple of breaths, seemingly musing about something.“The Serey Zhan Empire will attack the Nezulian Republic. For now, I will be taking a neutral stance.”“Attack? There will be a war?”“The Emperor cannot tolerate or condone the action of your nation anymore. I don’t either, in fact. However, the way I see it, the threat they pose is nothing compared to the Dead Ends. Sure, they can dabble in their beloved technology and try to harness the power of t
It was in the middle of September when Celestia had finally returned home, to the Sunken Metropolis. As expected, her and Zeke’s long disappearance had caused a lot of worry in their entourage, but they were left with no answers for a long time. The only people who knew a little bit about the matter were Sulong, Jeremy, and Jack, who refused to answer anything, even when Edward personally came. The trip back to the Nezulian Republic was, at least, comfortable for Celestia. She was escorted by the Witch of Destruction all the way to the border, and from then on, she travelled on foot until the nearest big settlement. “What’s wrong, sweety?” In the fancy manor in which the Black household lived, Celestia’s father softly smiled and asked his absentminded daughter. “A-ah… nothing.” Unlike her usual rebellious and defiant attitude, Celestia was, for most of the time, in a daze and responded with perfunctory answers. “I didn’t believe them when they said you went and got yourself kil
Weeks and then months passed since Celestia’s return to the Sunken Metropolis.Erys' students returned to the academy and continued their life, and the Special Investigation Squad continued taking care of clandestine and dangerous matters happening all around the school, though such matters were very scarce.However, there had been an unexpected development concerning one of Erys’ top students: Celestia Black.Two months after her return, she reached all the necessary conditions to graduate. It was said that the Principal personally offered her a lucrative deal, but the girl refused on the spot and, most surprisingly, went to work for the Lightning Flame Merc Company.Her inexplicable actions put more attention on the company and heightened its rise to flame a lot.In fact, the Lightning Flame Merc Company grew so ‘popular’ that all kinds of political and military individuals would hire it for their personal use. At some point, Sulong Braveheart and Celestia Black were visited by Gen
[Full-body reconstruction completed (95%): All stats have been increased.] [Special Mission ‘Missing Eye’ has been initiated: A system Holder’s eyes are irreplaceable and must be protected at all costs. They are directly affected by the System and allow the user to access the Status Windows and interact with the System. User ‘Zeke Orland’, Divine Thunder, must retrieve his missing eye. Rewards: ??? Location of the eye: 5724Km South-West.] [Some of the standard Main-Paths have either been removed or updated. Please check the menu for more details.] [Special Mission ‘Demonic Heart’ has been initiated: After resisting the third Tribulation, all users must undergo the process known as ‘System Merge’. However, user ‘Zeke Orland’ is missing his real heart. Find the Demonic Heart to proceed with System Merge. Optional Objectives: - Learn the truth behind the user’s birth and forgotten past. -Learn the identity of the leader of the Ascetic Blasphemers.] [User: Zeke Orland] [Title:
Crystal City, HQ of the Blood Ghouls.After the failed raid against the Warlord and his people, the bandit group known as the Blood Ghouls had spread their wings across the entirety of the Kingsmen’s Ruins. All opposing factions were either wiped or integrated into their midst.The Mad Dogs, led by the siblings, had quickly surrendered shortly after Zeke’s disappearance. However, the Silver Daggers, led by Zenzo Jyk, were brutally massacred.Their leader, who was defiant to the last second, was spared by Paul but imprisoned in an inescapable cell. He became a toy for the Warlord, kept alive to be mocked or tortured depending on the boss’ mood.In fact, Sena and Roger very much liked to visit their old ‘rival’ and boost their ego by ridiculing his pitiful and miserable state.There was a small celebration atop the pagoda tonight. A large feast was prepared for the higher-ups of the gang; Bards and musicians were playing the instruments and melodiously singing as the atmosphere was ligh