REBORN HERO: THE ULTIMATE SYSTEM

CHAPTER 003: FORSAKEN LAND

Valor stood at the center of the courtroom, staring blankly. The council had given their verdict and they’d decided that he was guilty. He didn't say a word, however he took their faces in one after the other. People he’d once called comrades were standing right in front of him and they all had the same look on their face. They wanted this, and they were all relieved.

“It is sad to see a hero go down like this,” one of the soldiers behind him said but he didn't really care, all that mattered at the moment was his son’s soul that was laying peacefully on one of the pulpits in the far corner.

Valor's breathing quickened as the guards neared him. His body shook now, but not from fear; it trembled with the pure rage coursing through his veins. He glanced at the power negating cuffs on his wrist and he couldn't even feel the last flicker of power that was supposed to be left in him.

“Hey, old hero,” the soldier teased again. “How does it feel to be restrained in the very court that you once stood as judge?” Valor still didn't reply.

Willpower was the last element in this world, and those who could use it were the ones that reached Class Zero. Although he wasn't a Class zero anymore, his willpower did remain.

Valor shut his eyes, focusing on the metal cuff binding him, he willed strength into his wrist and with a feral scream, he broke his restraints. 

The guard who had been teasing him shuddered. “Gods! He is free!” He yelled, as Valor's fist broke his jaw in one clean strike.

The guards were caught off guard by the sudden outburst and hesitated for a moment. But that moment was all Valor needed. His training took over, guiding him with muscle memory as he dropped low and rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding a blade that came down where his head had been only a moment before. The guards regained their composure quickly and pressed the attack, weapons drawn, but Valor was quicker.

"You want to kill me, I hope you didn't think I was going to come silently." He smiled, erupting from the shadows.

"There are about enough Class X and Z here to topple the entire planet, do you really think you have a chance?"

"Chance? I don't care about chance, this is just defiance!"

Valor moved like a ghost through the room, his form flickering in and out of existence. Another guard lunged at him with a spear, but Valor sidestepped. His hands shot out, grabbing the spear and twisting it from the guard's hands. With a growl, Valor slammed the blunt end of the spear into the man's chest, knocking him out.

With a loud growl, he sprang forward, his figure dissolving into the shadows to reemerge right in front of the operative, holding his son's soul. The man's eyes opened wide with surprise, but Valor gave him no chance to get a grip. He lunged at the operative, tackling him to the ground as the soul box slipped from the man's hands, skittering across the floor. Before the operative could react, Valor had already picked up the box.

"You are not getting away from here!" the operative snarled, fighting against Valor's iron grip.

Valor's eyes narrowed and heavy breathing escaped his lips. "I have, already," he growled.

But before he could react further, there was a familiar voice from across the room.

"Valor," the voice called, heavy with regret. "What are you doing?"

Valor turned around, looking at the owner of all too familiar voice. One of the Warlords stood up and was staring ferociously at him. The others seemed uninterested in this situation, they outclassed him massively; if any of them put a bit of strength into this, they would obliterate him.

The warlord staring at him was Ravian, his old comrade.

"Ravian." Valor's voice came hoarse. "Why are you guys doing this?

Ravian's face hardened. "You know why, Valor. The council has decided. You have become a liability. We have no choice anymore."

Valor's hold on the soul box tightened, his blood starting to boil. "A liability? I'm trying to save my son! You know that!"

Ravian's face flickered with guilt, but he did not lower his sword. "I know. But you've crossed too many lines. The council's orders are clear. You were once a hero, Valor, but now, now you're a threat."

Valor’s eyes flashed with fury. “A threat? To whom? To the people who want to destroy everything I’ve fought for? To those who think they can control me? You’ve known me, Ravian! You’ve seen what I’ve done—what I’ve sacrificed!” He took a step forward, his voice rising. “And now you’re standing with them? With the council that wants me dead?”

Ravian's jaw clenched, and he stepped back, his sword still raised. "I'm not your enemy, Valor. Still, I am bound by duty. You and your son… what you did cannot be forgiven and the only reason that's possible was because we didn't put your powers in check when we should have.”

Valor's eyes blazed with the weight of Ravian's words. He had never imagined that his old friend, the one who had fought alongside him in countless battles, would turn on him. "So that's it. You all feared us. Dusk and I. It was fear right? Let me guess, one of you did this," he pointed to the council. "You manipulated my boy to turn against the world, didn't you?"

"You're wrong," Ravian hissed. 

Suddenly, he flung himself at Ravian in a blur, his hand coming out to clamp around the man's arm, which he then yanked behind the man's back. 

"I am not your enemy, Ravian," Valor spat, venom evident in his voice. "However, if you insist on trying to stand in my way, then you shall be treated as an enemy." 

Ravian groaned, fighting for breath. "Valor, please. Don't make me do this."

But Valor wasn't listening. His mind was consumed with one thing—his son. He had come too far to let anything or anyone stand in his way now.

With the soul box still clutched tightly in his hand, Valor released Ravian and dashed towards the exit, his body moving on pure instinct. He was already shadow traveling again, slipping through the shadows like a ghost, his mind locked on the path ahead.

But just as he made it to the door, this huge sword was in front of one of the council members, who actually was in Knight's armor. "You are not leaving!" He growled and struck at him with the sword.

Valor could only just barely dodge the attack and the wind created from the strike lifted him off the ground and threw him into the wall. Anyone in the direct path of the attack was cleaved into two equal halves.

Valor looked up to see all the council members standing up to take him down. In his prime, they would have all been dead meat but now, he was a very dead man. He shut his eyes and decided to try one last ditch effort. He summoned all the energy left in his body, concentrating and focusing it on a dead center.

A violent burst of shadow exploded from him, tearing through the room. The walls shook as reality itself seemed to warp around him. He was sucked into the shadowy realm this time. 

The world twisted and spun, the air thick with the energy he had unleashed. Then, in one final, blinding flash, everything went dark.

Valor stumbled, disoriented, as he fell to the ground. When his eyes opened, he found himself in a barren wasteland. The ground was cracked and dry, the air thick with dust. There was no life here, no sound but the howling wind.

Valor's heart pounded within his chest as he slowly rose to his feet. The soul box was still in his hand. He realized he'd teleported to the wastelands. He let out a sigh. He glanced at the horizon and then gazed at the walls that reached up to the heavens in the far off distance.