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
THE tension was all over the left wing of the imperial palace, where the emperor’s chamber was located. The shield covering the area was such a huge help that even though a surge of magic clashed in there, the royalties had not yet noticed.In the hall, Krecia had created the illusion that no one was there, despite Damien and the high mage having already been aggressive in putting down each other. However, she was not sure if the illusion would last long.Taftani lived to his name as the strongest mage in Vatre, because despite Damien’s effort along with the other Knights of Terra, the vast difference in their powers was obvious.“Do you really think you can defeat me? I am the high mage of Vatre! A mere lowly mage like you would never stand a chance!” Taftani unleashed his blue flame. Damien and his knights had dodged it, while Krecia countered it with her water magic.“No matter how strong you are, we are enou