HAMRIEL was inside the library of the ice castle casually reading a book when Weakling entered holding a glass of water.It was almost midnight. “It's already late, Weakling. You should be sleeping by now. It'll strengthen your spirit.” Hamriel put down the book she was reading after the child gave her the glass. “I just came to see if you were fine.” Weakling smiled warmly. Hamriel drank the water and took the glass back to her table. “It is happening again. You know where to hide. It's the safest place inside this barrier.” “Why has it seemed you're saying goodbye, Priestess?” Weakling’s little face was worried. “I have seen Ethros’ improvements. I guess he's the one I'm waiting for.” Hamriel averted her gaze. “The one who'll free you from the curse?” Hamriel nodded. “Hopefully, I've been looking forward to this day for over two thousand years.” “But Priestess, what will happen to us?” Hamr
“PRIESTESS!” Weakling sobbed hard as Hamriel’s body slowly disintegrated. “No, you can’t leave us here!” Jie tried to console the child, even though he was confused for a moment, because, at the back of his mind, she vividly saw Hamriel. He was shouting her name in agony as he witnessed a pair of ivory wings being cut from her back. “Hami…” he suddenly muttered. He was probably hallucinating again, so Jie hardly shook his head. “How can I survive here without you?” Weakling continued to lament as she couldn’t hold Hamriel’s body anymore. “That’s enough, Weakling.” He breathed out. Soon after the priestess’ body was gone, a medium-sized white orb suddenly materialized. “Oh, God! What is this?” He was hesitant to touch it. Although he was just waiting for a confirmation about it. “I guess that’s the Orb of Oblivion... sealed inside the priestess’ body,” Weakling said after she wiped her tears. “This is... the legendary orb?” Jie grabbed the orb carefully and studied it. He’
JIE was confused to see the face of the unfamiliar man. “Who is he?” “That's Birsha, the guild master of the Black Destroyers. Unfortunately, they crossed the labyrinth at the most dreadful time. The maze was moving uncontrollably; all his companions were wiped out. If only the captain wasn't near the vicinity, he'd surely die in the clasp of a Doppelis.” Criston supplied him with all the information needed. “Let’s bring him out then.” Jie decided. Criston assisted Birsha. He removed the rope tied to his feet so he could walk. “Let’s fly. I have enough energy to reach the labyrinth,” Damien said. Criston got Birsha, while Damien carried Jie on the magic circle as they flew. It only took them a few minutes. Unexpectedly, they did not encounter any monsters. And the most surprising thing was that the Zhuartan Labyrinth was on a perfectly straight path. It wasn't dark, and there were no signs of monsters inside. “What is going on?” Birsha broke his silence. “The labyrinth took
EVERY face in the room was excited about the idea of sparring. For Ryker, it was his way of measuring Ethros’ capability since they had no other choice but to launch an attack on the tower. “Pardon my intrusion, my lord. But I want to know what happened to Liv.” Lucius worriedly asked. Jie gently tapped the old man’s shoulder. “She’s fine; Liv made her choice. I’d love to fill you in on the details later. But to sum up, Liv is with Strela inside the time loop barrier.” “Time loop barrier? I know you’d successfully cross Litus Forest effortlessly.” The old man appeared proud of their feat. “I can’t wait to know about Strela.” “It wasn’t easy, Lucius. It was a consolation that I’d met Strela—she’s an adorable child. But then again, it wasn’t a walk in the park,” Damien said. Ryker raised an eyebrow as he heard the captain. “For a mediocre fighter like you, of course it’s hard. You failed to obtain the legendary orb anyway.” Jie suppressed his laughter. He missed the bickering
TAFTANI jumped out in happiness as the extraction had finally come to fruition.“You've been holding out for a long time, little one. I commend you for that. But it seemed like you had already reached your limit.” He walked around the crystal where the holder was confined. “You're giving up, aren’t you? That’s good!”The blinking green light traveling from the wires connected to the crystal going to the empty sphere flask was slowly moving until it finally reached it, like a raindrop dripping into the empty orb.“Good girl! You have made it hard for all of us these past few days. Just give up already and die!” Taftani’s wicked laughter reverberated inside the tower.“Come on! Drip! Drip! Drip!” The high mage was giggling like a little girl. He even danced and sang of happiness. “More! Yes, that’s it! Do you know what the vast possibilities of the power of the Candela and Luominen once combined We'll be a step closer to immortality!”He had been in a tight spot lately because Emperor A
THERE was a sudden commotion inside the headquarters of the Akatasuna Guild upon hearing Krecia’s report. Jie was still recuperating his energy from the sparring, and he could not calm down, knowing Nyssa had probably lost her life at this very moment.Everyone gathered inside the war room. Damien and Ryker were busy contacting their subordinates who were available to aid them. Since the schedule of the Bestowing has changed, some members of the guild who needed to travel to Ankhe would not make it in time.“Our force will be weakened compared to what I originally planned. Some guild officials went to Astraea since the chief called for them,” Ryker said, mentioning their main base. He kept tapping the hologram in front of his face, coming from the communication crystal. “This communication device is unreliable sometimes.”“Probably the magic waves around your estate are messed up. Don’t forget you are on th
THE Orb of Oblivion required everyone to be together to fully utilize its power. It was risky since they were in one group, but they had to take their chances. Jie strengthened his resolve not to look at the skirmish going on in the peasant district below.“The Bestowing is almost done. Let's hope the Helios will disperse. Although I highly doubt it, they wouldn’t fortify the tower like this if nothing is going on.” Damien’s gaze was fixed on the group of imperial soldiers in red armor.Behind Habicht were four other gigantic birds—a hummingbird, a raven, and a kingfisher—each carrying two people, most of whom were members of the Knight of Terra aside from Krecia. And then there was Sigurd, who rode alone in his smaller-sized ifrit bird.Each of them wore the communication crystal in one ear given by Ryker to avoid misunderstandings during the operation. So far, everything has gone smoothly according to their pla
ZORA and Criston were positioned on each of Jie’s sides as they continued to advance, going to the emperor’s chamber.“I can’t be wrong. The holder is inside,” Zora said.“I can feel the presence of the Luominen, too.” Criston seconded. He carefully cracked the invisible shield located at the chamber’s entrance without alerting the dragon riders hovering around outside. Criston ensured it was safe to get in.When Jie finally set foot in the emperor’s chamber, he and his companions were immediately greeted by the vast hall with a golden throne a few meters away from them. Beside the throne, there was a twin crystal similar to the one they found in the high mage’s tower. One had a green liquid, and the other was empty, but there was a luminous swirling sphere connected to the other crystal.As Jie went closer, he was petrified when the realization hit him. He could now see a child ins
CRISTON’S dumbfounded expression turned into awe as a series of flickering blue lightning countered the attackers. It was not long until it was revealed that a platoon of military elves consisting mainly of mages was positioned in proximity of the border for defense.“Indeed, the military might of the Southern Hanum is state of the art. Look at that? In just a blink, the aggressors retreated. That’s the famous Starlight Regiment, stationed on the borders. Their sole task is to kill all enemies on sight.” Xylas shook his head as he chuckled, and he added, “General Ibri is surely ruthless. Rumors had been circulating that he secretly trained private elite armies of mages defying the order of the late queen.”“That’s why Advani remained untouched. General Ibri is the head of the war council after all. The Supreme General of Hanum. We’re lucky; even though they vetted on us, General Mord did everything so we could have easy access in this territory.” Criston stared at the magnificent view
ON THE rocky shore of West Advani, Pearlie crawled with her severely injured body while carrying Nyssa on her back, while Damien remained unconscious near them. The huge waves had helped them reach the island.The dawn was breaking, but the sounds of the night insects could be heard around, along with the turbulent splash of the waves and lightning piercing from the sky.“We are safe now.” Her tears kept falling from her eyes and turned into pearls as she recalled Tiedus’ heroic sacrifice for everyone to reach the shore of Advani.“Captain, wake up. We’re here,” Pearlie whispered through her dried throat. She felt her body was on fire.Pearlie fought hard not to lose consciousness, knowing they might meet their demise with the wild animals around if no one could rescue them. Fortunately, as her vision started to get blurred, she witnessed two gigantic birds—a falcon and a raven hovering above them.“It’s them!” said the man riding the giant falcon. It was Criston holding his golden gr
AS TZEITEL scurried to return to her villa to check on Izvern, she was not expecting to see his brother waiting on the entrance without his usual two guards. Agni seemed agitated.“Brother, what are you doing here? I thought you left since I haven’t seen you in the banquet hall.” She turned to her ladies-in-waiting behind her, headed by Marina. “Leave us. I need some time alone with my seventh brother.”“Yes, Princess.” Marina stepped back before she turned along with the other four maids.“What are you up to?” Agni stared at her eyes as if he saw through there the dangerous things she did.Tzeitel looked down. “What do you mean? Come in. So many prying eyes around.”“Do you think I will not notice how restless the imperial armies are around the estate? I sneaked to the nearest military camp; everyone seemed to be in chaos searching for something. I know how schem
DESPITE the current predicament of the Elsher Estate losing their precious captive, the marriage alliance between Cariux and the third princess still pushed through. The noble feast was held a day before the wedding, and several members of the imperial family had come to Kaitseri, including King Malik.Princess Tzeitel pretended to warmly welcome her family. Her two older sisters came to her just to assert their dominance since, just like her, they were married off to the powerful families to support the empire.“I can’t believe our youngest legitimate sister is getting married now,” Princess Gweyr giggled. She was the first princess. She came along with their second sister, Princess Eletha.They were in the receiving hall, and all the ladies from aristocratic families had gathered there, and some of them showcased their music skills. The festive sounds reverberated around.Eletha playfully touched Tzeitel’s hair. &ld
SURV Elsher gathered all the members of the family in the private hall of his residence to discuss their current dilemma. His old face was fuming in anger and scolding everyone.“Father, calm down!” Lord Filus tried to pacify the Elsher patriarch. “It already happened. An ordinary person could not even set foot in this estate, let alone abduct our source of healing power.”“What are you trying to say, Filus? If you were not so lax around here, this would not have happened!” Surv pointed his finger to his eldest son. “If that creature managed to return to Hanum, how would we answer to the empire?”“We control a military might in the North, we have the strongest armies. Who would dare to provoke us? I heard the intruder used an advanced technique of portal magic. Only Iridessa is capable of doing it.” Lord Filus sounded calm.Surv gritted his teeth. “A mere rebel dared to trespa
TZEITEL observed the three of the Elsher siblings gathered in the courtyard of the main house, drinking in celebration for the upcoming wedding, which would be held in two days. Using her portal magic, she could hear their conversation from a distance. Hidden on the roof of her villa, she prepared to return to the forbidden dungeon.“How’s the feeling of tying the knot, little brother? I heard Grandfather punished you the other day for having a tryst with your lover. How brave you are to disobey our elders while you're with the third imperial princess!” Fenton laughed as he teased Cariux. He raised his wine glass and clicked it to Halix’s glass.Halix chuckled upon hearing the words of their oldest brother. “I can’t believe you’re this immature, brother. You're carrying this duty, a task specifically given to you. You can’t mess this up.”Cariux chugged his wine. “Am I not fulfilling my du
TIEDUS reinforced the water bubble while Pearlie tended to Damien, who was still unconscious. They were traveling southward, holding out not to use their last resort to swim, as it could easily lead to their demise. “Captain Winward will kill us if he finds out we left the lieutenant to die,” Pearlie’s body trembled, remembering Hisila’s sacrifice. “The dead will remain dead. Why would we drown ourselves in regret? It’s useless! This is war, Princess. Thousands of lives will be the collateral. And now we have no choice but to cross the Lightning Sea. Maybe it’ll be our turn to die next.”“I know,” Pearlie gazed down. “Perhaps I’m too young to understand these things.”“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you reach Advani safely.” Tiedus strengthened his resolve, knowing the very low probability of survival. Crossing the Lightning Sea was a suicide.The water bubble came to a halt for a moment as they witnessed the sudden change of turbulent rift in the water from a distance. The roar of thu
BAHARINI quickly checked Hisila’s pulse, praying that she could feel even a faint throb, but there was none. It was difficult for her to accept that the lieutenant had already passed away. Silently, she blamed herself for her immaturity; had she heeded Kafle's advice to avoid wasting time in the pit, she might have avoided capture. This tragedy may not have fallen on Hisila if they had followed their plan.“She’s gone,” Baharini’s voice cracked. “It's my fault.”Kafle did not say a word. He looked around to check if he could find Damien and the others, but they weren't there. “We need to keep going,” Kafle said as his face was void of expression. Baharini turned to wipe her tears. She gazed down at Ethros, who seemed frozen on the ground. “Can we give her a proper send-off?” The princess suggested. “I'm afraid we don't have time. Our enemies are approaching. I can't risk your life.” Kafle had to make a hard choice, knowing time was of the essence.Jie finally came to his senses. H
ISLAND OF ASTRAEAIRIDESSA kept pointing to the island of Kaitseri on the map as she conversed with her deputy chief inside the war room. They had just finished discussing war strategies with other officials a while ago since the grand fleet of the Empire initiated an attack on the West Astraean shore.“Aren’t you worried we might lose this main base?” Nacht mused. He crossed his arms as he studied the cold expression of the liberalist chief.“You’re not helping, Nacht.” Iridessa heaved a sigh.“Take it easy, Chief. We’ll find a way to save your adoptive daughter.” Nacht teased her again.Iridessa rolled his eyes. “Tzeitel can fend on her own. I’m just waiting for her report.”“Her wedding is approaching. With the Elshers keeping her hostage, how can we guarantee her safety?”Iridessa scoffed. “Worry about your kids, Nacht. If you are not too foo