---

A grand citadel made of purplish-obsidian sat at the peak of a mountain blanketed by snow, as intricate fences formed a perfect circle around the citadel, fences adorned with a mystical illuminating violet crystal on each fence. The moon within the night sky was close to reaching its highest point, as the streets from the fortress-like city from afar were completely empty

The sound of rushed footsteps can be heard coming, while soft yet bright purple lights lit up across the walls one after another as the previously dim majestic hallway had been illuminated, the pristine white marble walls, pillars and flooring being highlighted.

The light had also illuminated the long blond hair of a handsome, tall, burly man who wore a regal thin robe and over it was an complex beautiful cape, while he wore thin white gloves over his hands. The wrists adorned with intricate white gauntlets.

His greyish blue iris' slowly scoured the whole hallway as if waiting for someone, however, they soon instantly pivoted towards the direction where the rushed footsteps were coming from. As a quizzical look can be seen plastered all over his face, before it slowly turned to shock as he held out his arms.

"I-It passed! Cliff, they actually passed it..." The man who had been rushing towards 'Cliff' had gleefully yelled out, before jumping towards him.

"Calm down Vale! Don't forget you are in the presence of Aetherius!" 'Cliff' warned 'Vale' solemnly, before dropping 'Vale'. However, before he could touch the floor, 'Vale' instantly kicked backwards as the tip of his shoe touched the floor, giving him what he needed in order to spring himself upwards, as he landed on his two feet.

'Vale' chucked slightly as he collected his composure before bowing towards empty space, 'Cliff's' eyes traced his movements closely, as he looked towards the empty space 'Vale' was bowing towards, in confusion.

"Just what are you bowing at Vale?" 'Cliff' asked curiously. His eyes squinting towards the empty space as he tried discerning just what exactly he was missing.

"What? Don't you mean who?" 'Vale' had a slight grin on his as he stared straight

'Cliff's' eyes widened slightly as he suddenly let out a blinding aura, causing the whole hallway to become illuminous under its bright light. However, no matter how far the light had spread, nothing was discovered. 'Cliff' carefully observed his surroundings once more, before the sound of erratic laughter suddenly appeared as it reverberated through the hallways. It was 'Vale'.

'Cliff' glared sharply at him as he came to his own understanding of what 'Vale' was doing. He could not believe that he fell for it a second time, "Why are you so different?"

The laughter slowly died out, as a bright smile appeared on 'Vale's' face while he heard such words come out of his closest friend's mouth, before simply stating, "I am not different. I'm just me."

'Cliff' could not help but be lured into 'Vale's' deep blue eyes, they were beautiful, they were unique, it was as if he was staring into the vast ocean, not the surface, but into its endless depths. But in the end, he could not reach the bottom, for it was shrouded by his magnetic smile. However, waves of uneasiness had been raging within him, for a reason even he doesn't understand.

'Cliff' was abruptly separated from his reverie as he heard 'Vale' ask him a question, "Is there something wrong Cliff?"

'Cliff' had half opened his mouth, until his pupils suddenly darted towards the silent encroaching darkness. 'Vale' likewise followed suit, however, the instant his eyes set sight on it, he could not help but frown, before making an exaggerated bow as his eyes stared defiantly up at the darkness, "How lucky I am, as a child of Aetherius to encounter his Holiness himself."

The instant 'Vale' had finished speaking, 'Cliff' nudged his shoulder with a solemn expression. To which 'Vale' put on a feigned smile which caused 'Cliff' to let out a sigh.

The encroaching darkness had come to a stop as the frail body of an old man came out, a thin smile plastered on his face as he walked towards 'Vale' and 'Cliff' while the long ends of his pure white robes followed behind, "Forgive my belated praise for finally succeeding, Sword Saint Valentine."

Seeing that Valentine had been refusing to speak for some unknown reason, 'Cliff' walked towards the old man and bowed respectfully to him, "What has father come here for?"

The old man waved his hand slightly, as he downplayed the seriousness of his reason for coming, "Nothing important, it is just that something went wrong during your Ascension Ceremony and it must be done a second time."

'Cliff' nodded as he walked towards his 'father' however, a strong powerful grip suddenly latched onto his wrist as he looked behind. To Valentine's worried expression.

Trying his best to make a smile that could put his friend at ease, 'Cliff' consoled Valentine, "It is only an Ascension Ceremony, did you not go through the same ceremony once before?"

To 'Cliff's' own disappointment, Valentine was not eased but instead even more irritated as Valentine sharply answered, "Heathcliff, I know you're feigning ignorance. Just because he had looked after you your whole life, does not give him the right to..." Valentine suddenly stopped as he noticed that Heathcliff was becoming extremely tensed. Gently patting his back, Valentine apologised, "Just... I won't tell you what to do or how you should act, just promise me you will think about your own happiness from time to time." before walking towards the old man.

Valentine's back kept getting further and further away from him. He had wanted to reach out and grab his hand, but he simply couldn't. He couldn't understand why he was feeling so uneasy today, so anxious. He couldn't even move from his spot no matter how much he willed it.

Standing directly in front of the old man, Valentine moved his mouth close to the old man's ears as he whispered, "If the child commits a cardinal sin, then it is not the child's fault, but the fault of the parental figure."

A grin appeared on the old man's face, to the shock of Heathcliff. The old man similarly put his mouth close to Valentine's ears as he whispered, "It seems like you did pay attention during your classes with my humble self."

Valentine took a step back the instant the old man had made a movement towards him, his pupils constricting sharply as he gripped onto empty space as a sharp whistling sound gradually got louder and louder, "Take one more step, and I might accidentally cut your head off." a tangible object that resembled an intricate long thin purple sword was emerging from within his grasp.

"You think yourself superior enough to grasp a sword in front of my humble self?" the old man took a single step forward, causing the whistling sound to suddenly turn silent. Heathcliff's eyes widened open, as he tried moving towards them, but was stopped by an invisible barrier, no, to put it more aptly, an invisible barrier created by an extremely powerful downwards pressure.

"You think yourself superior enough to fight within these historical hallways?" the old man took a second step forward, causing the sword which was about to become completely solid to suddenly melt to the floor before turning into purple dust and disappearing back into intangibility. Valentine could not help but feel his knees cracking as the insurmountable pressure gradually became greater and greater, however, he still stood.

"You think yourself superior enough to disrespect Julius Medici, the Pope of Destruction?" Julius took a final step, as he was now standing directly in front of Valentine, with the same old gentle smile on his face. Extremely different in contrast to Valentine, who was still able to stand, however, cold drops of sweat had begun running down his forehead and cheeks, as he gripped his hand so hard that his knuckles started turning white.

"I do not mean to be thought as superior to another, I merely hope that you can promise this pitiful child of yours one wish." Valentine hoarsely answered with great effort, to Julius' surprise, Valentine had completely changed and had become respectful all of a sudden. Curiosity flickered within his eyes as Julius asked, "And what would that wish be?"

Just as Valentine was about to open his mouth, Heathcliff had uncharacteristically interrupted Julius' conversation, "Father, if we don't commence the Ascension Ceremony now, we won't be able to do it until the next year, it is nearly midnight." Julius nodded in confirmation before walking through the dark hallways.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Valentine's body was visibly shaking, before falling to his knees abruptly. Heathcliff gently patted Valentine's back as he shook his head, "There was no need to offend him, why did you?"

Valentine glared up at Heathcliff as he pouted slightly, "Because I want you to stand up for yourself! Be your own person Cliff, no matter what that may be."

Heathcliff who was once again enraptured by Valentine's current expression, had instantly broke out of it as he shook his head, "Father is... He has been arguing a lot with Vindex as of late... Especially this week, at least ten arguments a day..."

Valentine grinned when Heathcliff spoke the name, Vindex, before praising Heathcliff, "Since when did you learn to be audacious? Referring to his majesty as Vindex, his first name."

Heathcliff's face went slightly red out of embarrassment, "You call him Vindex in front of his face!"

Valentine could not help but chuckle as he waved his hand sloppily, trying to downplay its seriousness, "Why wouldn't I? Vindex isn't foolish enough to murder me just because of being impertinent. Especially given our positions in this loose 'empire' of his which everyone else refers to as a settlement."

Heathcliff shook his head as he gazed at Valentine worriedly, "Trust me Valentine when I tell you this, Vindex is a very vindictive man, what separates him between the unreasonable type is simply how patient he is. Have you not heard the rumour?"

Valentine formed a thumbs up using Heathcliff's robe, "Do tell."

Heathcliff could not help but grin slightly at this, before hurrying to cover it up and continue, "It has been how long since Eternal Darkness befell our lands? 250 years exactly, yet, did you know Vindex is has been holding a 250 year old grudge, a grudge against the Eternal Fool?"

"Wait what? He is... 250 years old?" Valentine asked out of incredulity.

"Valentine... Has no one told you that? I understand that his majesty has forbidden his true age from being announced, but... You truly should know this." Heathcliff shook his head once more, before quickly adding, "He is 256 years old to be exact, it is his birthday today..."

Valentine eyes widened as he prepared to say something, but he simply did not, and instead grinned, "256 years old? I am more surprised at the fact he had not gone crazy!"

"Is he not crazy already?" Heathcliff, let out a rare jest as his face visibly became a shade paler, "I... I have already made father wait long enough." Just as he was walking away into the darkness, he suddenly stopped and turned around, "Oh, and it is important you take shelter in here for the night, it is close to midnight. Don't risk it."

Valentine snickered, however, quickly nodded his head to put Heathcliff at ease. Before pondering to himself, a grudge on the Eternal Fool? But isn't he dead already?

"Darling? What are you doing on your knees?" a melodious voice sounded out from behind Valentine, a familiar voice, which caused him to turn his head in incredulity, to the breathtaking view of his wife.

"I had an argument. Okay?" Valentine sulked childishly, as he continued, "Your husband was bullied!"

The sound of intoxicating laughter filled the hallways, "You got bullied? The Sword Saint of Seraphim got bullied!?" Valentine's wife truly couldn't stop herself from laughing. After laughing for a couple of minutes straight, she forcibly calmed herself down before rubbing the bulge on her stomach softly, "Do you think our child feels my laughter too? Is he laughing?" a soft motherly smile appeared on her face as she thought out loud. Valentine smiled silently, as he observed his surroundings.

"So, did Heathcliff become so powerful after his Ascension Ceremony that he is actually able to force you into such a poor state?" Valentine's wife asked curiously.

"I had a verbal argument with Julius again, it's just that..." Why did he lose his composure like that?

Valentine's wife raised her perfectly sculpted eyebrow as she questioned Valentine, "A verbal argument? What? Neither of you exchanged blows?" She was visibly confused, she could not fathom how a verbal argument ended with her husband on his knees on the floor unable to even lift an arm.

Valentine's expression suddenly turned serious as he thought deeply about what had happened, "The first step he took, was when I first felt its effects, the second step caused the effects to amplify itself, and the third amplified it once more... Ah, so that was what happened. I was so confused, I thought my primal instincts caused my weak knees. Three voiceless incantations in quick succession. Amazing..." Valentine's serious expression slowly became a bright smile, as he looked at his wife in glee, "I got to see something interesting today."

Valentine's wife gave a gentle smile to her husband as she clicked her fingers, causing his body to float in the air, before moving to her side and following her, "I'm glad you had fun today darling. But that's enough fun for one day, it's time to return to our home." She caressed his long raven black hair, as she looked into his silverly-blue iris' lovingly.

Placing the palm of her hand on the ice cold white marbles gates, she pushed forward as she looped up at the midnight sky. Reflected in her eyes were two celestial bodies, the eerie black sun devouring the bright illuminating violet sun. She could not help but feel drawn towards it, however, before she could take a single step forward, her pupils suddenly constricted as she anxiously held onto the bulge on her stomach.

"Lucatiel!" Valentine anxiously yelled out towards Lucatiel, before grabbing a pill out of his inner pocket and throwing it into his mouth, before kicking mid-air causing his body to spin multiple times before landing perfectly on his feet once more. He dashed towards Lucatiel, before retreating back within the citadel before forcibly shutting the gates.

From the horizon, an encroaching pitch black darkness was abnormally blanketing the lands as it devoured everything in its path. It even sped towards the citadel, however, before it could even reach the gates, the fences that formed a perfect circle around the citadel suddenly rose from the ground, as covered by the thick blankets of snow, was the sight of the sturdy thick tall walls right beneath the fences.

Once the now risen walls had reached as high as it can, the mystical violet crystals started illuminating simultaneously as each shot out a bright violet beam towards the tallest tower within the center of the citadel, as it formed a majestic purple barrier that had stop the darkness in its tracks.

---

Within a mystical library-like room, there were rows upon rows of polished mahogany bookshelves levitating and reshuffling themselves, while within the centre of all this hectic reshuffling, was a mythical snow white tree that seemed as if it was glowing.

Under this tree, was a man who embodied the word, alluring, as he laid leisurely on a regal intricate white sofa as the bright light coming from the window ceiling as the bright light which was coming from the white tree had highlighted his perfectly chiselled jawline, long thick eyelashes, perfectly sculpted eyebrows that slant upwards and soft smooth lips. As he wore a long luxurious black robes with a golden rising dragon rising over a black sun sewn into it at the back using golden threads.

The man suddenly opened his eyes, his bewitching violet iris' glowing mysteriously. He leapt off the sofa as he did a bit of stretching, before slowly yet carefully observed the whole area. For some unknown reason, he could not help but feel as if he was being-

The man put his hands together, as if scooping for water, before splashing nothing towards his face, however, it was not nothing that was splashed on his face, but clear natural water. He flicked his arm outwards, as he bent his hand backwards slightly, before grasping onto nothing, however, what he grasped on was not nothing, but a black fluffy towel as he dried his face. Before winking at empty space, as if trying to fish for a reaction from something, but soon disappointment appeared on his face, as the reaction he was expecting did not arrive. Shaking his head, the man clicked his fingers as a mirror suddenly come into existence.

The man then looked into the mirror, as he gazed at the back of his reflection, Just who is- His eyes widened slowly, before he calmed himself down and started speaking to himself, "Ah, I'm truly becoming insane. If old age will not become the death of me, my mental state will!" The man began laughing by himself, laughing so hard, tears were close to forming at the corner of his eyes.

The man let in a deep breath, before letting it out as he began calming down as he mischievously grinned, "Now, this should fix it."

The man stood in front of the pure white tree as he grasped towards the empty air in front of it, before viciously making a ripping motion, as if expecting something would happen, or else he would just be another crazed old fool, yet, something did happen. A web of cracks suddenly appeared, as the cracks expanded further and further, it was as if he had ripped within reality itself.

An eccentric yet excited grin was plastered across his face, as he begun humming as he skipped around the white tree, even after the whole room had begun rumbling as if there were an earthquake. However, such rumbling did not even scare the man the slightest, as he kept skipping like a mad fool, waiting for some response, yet no response came.

The room was now in shambles, as the previously self-shuffling book shelves that had been levitating, were scattered across the room, no longer moving on it's own. The man stopped skipping once after he had done three revolutions around the tree, and once more, filled with disappointment, as he lazily gazed at the web of cracks spreading even further.

However, once the web of cracks reached towards the white tree sparkling within the center of the room, a slight smirk appeared on the man's face as his violet iris' began glowing and flicking once more as he studied the scene which was currently unfolding right in front of him.

The instant the cracks made contact with the white tree, everything within the room slowly came to a halt, the crackling sound of reality ripping apart ended as reality began slowly moving once more. Not forward, instead, backwards. The broken shards of shattered reality which were on the floor had slowly began returning where they once belonged, until everything was as it once was.

A pleased smirk appeared on his face, before suddenly glancing at empty space once more in annoyance, before shaking his head, "I need to run more tests in order to pin point the exact causation of this feeling I keep getting... Yet... I have already run an uncountable amount, I might as well diagnose myself as insane... I'm such a bad-"

The man's suspicions grew as he glanced around the room. Only to find nothing once more. He shook his head out of frustration, before laying leisurely back on his comfortable sofa, stretched, then got into his previous napping position.

---