In a dark void, with no form of life in it. A sound echoed through the darkness.
“Maybe now I can start a new life…”
“Living an ordinary, carefree life…”
“And maybe, complete her wishes…”
“Well, at least that’s what I imaged so far.”
The voids space starts to crack, as the outside world is seen. The two moons shines in the sky, casting elongated shadows across the hallway. Kai, still inhabiting Ray’s body, stood there, his senses on high alert. The clawed assailant, wounded but undeterred, glared back at him. Blood dripped from the man’s injured hand, staining the marble floor.
Kai’s mind raced. The negative energy emanating from the assassin was unmistakable. It pulsed like a malevolent heartbeat, intertwining with the air itself.
The assassin’s eyes bore into him, calculating and cold. Kai observed the assassin’s details, from his stance to his breathing. “Strange… Even with his hand injured, he seems fine.” As he was calculating his own observation, Eva spoke in.
{Sir, I got some information on him. He appears to be around the same age as you, with his physical build of an average. It can only mean that he relies on the negative energy he is emitting right now.}
After Eva’s explanation, Kai’s gaze shifted to the clawed hand glowing in dark and red—the source of the negative energy. The wounds from the bullet were healing, but the energy remained. “Self-healing, huh. I shouldn’t underestimate him…,” Kai thought internally, as he finally asked.
“Who are you?” Kai’s voice was steady, keeping his eyes fixed on the assassin. “What business do you have here?”
The assassin’s expression remained calm. “You don’t need to know that,” he murmured. “So, its best you get out of my way.”
Kai’s mind raced. He had to stall, to buy time. “Sorry, but I don’t think I ca—”
Before he could finish, the assassin lunged. His clawed hand slashed through the air, leaving trails of negative energy in its wake. Kai dodged, barely avoiding the lethal strike, as the assassin landed by the window.
Kai’s boots scraped against the marble floor as he dodged the clawed strike. The assassin’s malevolent energy pulsed, threatening to overwhelm him. As he jumped for another attack, an air bullet hit him, piercing through his right shoulder, together shattering the window glass. The assassin staggered back, momentarily off balance. He held to his shoulder, as he looked ahead.
The assassin was surprised, as he saw Kai. He had pulled out Ray’s compact arquebus, its barrel glowing with inner light. Twirling it around his finger, he pointed it directly at the wounded assassin. The weapon’s presence seemed to freeze the air around them.
The assassin’s eyes widened, momentarily distracted by the unexpected firearm. His clawed hand twitched, but he didn’t strike. Kai’s smirk was both confident and mocking. “Why the rush? Don’t even want to talk, huh?”
The moonlight cascaded through the shattered window, casting an ethereal glow upon the chaos that unfolded in the palace hallway. Kai kept his eyes focused—the assassin, standing silent and enigmatic, seemingly unfazed.
“It’s been 15.007 seconds. Normally, one would try to escape the scene. So, why is he still standing there…” Kai started to wonder. He’s eyes narrowed, as he started formulating a plan internally. “I will play along…”
Kai started to walk forward, his gun still pointed at the assassin. As he slowly closed the distance, he started to notice few changes on the assassin. His shoulder, once wounded, now bore no trace of injury. “The wound is healed? When did it-” As Kai slowly closed his distance, he noticed a form dark hole forming below the assassin’s feet.
“Crap…”
Suddenly, an explosion reverberated through the opulent hallway. The once pristine marble walls crumbled, their grandeur reduced to rubble. Shards of glass from shattered windows littered the floor, and the entire palace quaked as if protesting the intrusion. Panic rippled among the guards stationed nearby.
At the same time:
Maximus, seated in his study room reading a book. Beside him, by the sofa was sitting Celestina. “You should get some sleep, Celestina. It will be morning soon.” Maximus said, but Celestina shook her, stating that she wants to stay up. They had been waiting for Lucrus, in his study when chaos erupted. “Wha-!!” They stood up, as a knight rushed in, reporting about the explosion in the second-floor hallway. Now, their instincts kicked in, urging them toward the source of the explosion.
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On the third floor, Niatina in her chamber—fast asleep in her canopy bed—jolted awake. Her room, adorned with many stuff toys and moonlight, was thrown into disarray. The crystal chandelier, with a slight hint of magic shook. She slipped out of her bed, the hem of her nightdress brushing against the cold floor. Rushing to the balcony as she opened her window, she peered outside. To her right, the once-solid wall now lay in ruins, smoke billowing from the second-floor hallway.
Meanwhile, Montina was sprinting towards the chaos. Her expression determined as she took her steps forward, and her eyes blazed with finding the source of the explosion. The guards, kept trying to stop her, asking her to go back inside her room. But she didn’t listen to any
Back at the scene:
Moonlight cascaded through the jagged shards of broken windows, painting the assassin’s figure in ethereal silver. The acrid smoke, a remnant of the explosion he caused, dissipated, revealing him cloaked in shadows. His eyes, once cold and calculating, now held a flicker of regret.
“I didn’t intend to do this…” His thoughts raced as he stepped over debris, boots crunching on marble fragments. As he poised to leap from the crumbling ledge, a voice sliced through the chaos, freezing him mid-stride.
“Cursed energy, huh. No wonder I was having a hard time sensing it.” The words hung in the air like a curse, and the assassin’s spine prickled with unease.
He glanced upward, eyes widening. There, suspended against the moonlit backdrop, was Kai. His hair, currently blonde, danced in the wind, as he levitated in the air, with his eyes filled with pride. Besides him, levitated Lucrus cradled like a fragile relic, as Kai slowly motions his arm, putting Lucrus down on the ground.
The moonlight bathed them both, casting an otherworldly glow. “Ray’s wind magic sure is awesome,” Kai mused, his mind replaying the chaotic scene. The explosion had threatened to engulf them all, but Kai’s quick thinking had saved lives. He had directed the explosive force away from reaching further inside the palace, using the wind as a protective shield. The air currents danced around him, forming a barrier that narrowed toward the epicenter of destruction.
“If I hadn’t diverted the explosion towards the outside,” Kai reflected, “I might have sustained serious injuries.” His wind barrier had absorbed the impact, minimizing damage within the palace while safeguarding Lucrus.
Now in the after match, the assassin’s breath hitched; he had never witnessed such raw mastery. Kai’s gaze locked onto the assassin, and the world narrowed to that singular point of confrontation. “That was risky, and I did prepare for it. Redirecting the explosion is not simple. Even if I had calculated its structure and the flow of magic in it, it still could have damaged me. so, how come Ray’s wind withstand such force?” He had many questions going through his mind, but he still had to face the main threat. His voice cut through the chaos, each syllable etched with unwavering determination. “This isn’t over.”
The assassin stood in disbelief. His heart pounding, as he took in the sight in front. “How…? How did he survive that?” Just as the assassin was trying to figure out what to do, Eva voice up to Kai.
{Reporting, sir. The assassin is growing tense. No casualties from the explosion, but the entire palace is alerted. Guards, the Princesses, Emperor, Empress—all are making their way to here.}
As Kai heard her report, his mind raced. “I didn’t want to cause a scene in Ray’s body, but this guy is going to be trouble if he masters his power. I can’t let him escape,” he mused. His gaze bore into the assassin, who remained eerily still.
Just then, the palace guards arrived, armor clanking, weapons drawn. “Stand still! Don’t make any move!” The knight commander’s voice echoed off the marble walls. Maximus and Celestina made their way to front, meeting with the intruder in the palace. The assassin’s eyes darted, assessing his options. “It really came to this…,” he mused, holding onto something inside his cloak.
Slowly, both Niatina and Montina reached the scene as well. Niatina froze in her step, while Montina, desperate to reach the scene, pushed past the guards. But their iron-clad forms held her back. Frustration etched her face as she glimpsed over Niatina, standing near the window, looking outside at Ray, currently Kai, levitating in air. Niatina’s breaths grew ragged, her trembling hands pressed against the glass. Memories flooded her mind: Ray, bloodied and broken, their childhood laughter echoing in stark contrast.
Montina noticing Niatina’s heavy breathing and the haunted look in her eyes, tried to approach her. “…Nino?” she murmured, torn between concern for her sister and the unfolding crisis. Panic started to flicker across Niatina’s face, as her voice rang out.
“RAY!!”
As Niatina’s desperate cry echoed through the chaos, all eyes turned toward her, including Kai’s. His mind raced, noticing the tears and panic etched on her face. “Niatina?” he wondered, torn between her and facing the imminent threat.
But fate had other plans. A surge of energy erupted from the assassin, a tempest that swept the guards off their feet. Montina, her resolve unyielding, managed to maintain her stance, clutching Niatina protectively.
Maximus stood firm, Celestina shielded behind him. His eyes widened as the raw power enveloped the assassin. An unclear image flashed in his mind—a person, shrouded in darkness. “This power…” Maximus mused, the scene too familiar for him.
Kai, inhabiting Ray’s body, pivoted to face the assassin. The air crackled with tension. The assassin leaped, claws extended, aiming for Kai. Kai shifted into a defensive stance. But the assassin defied reason. His speed increased, as the claws sliced through fabric and flesh, leaving a searing trail of pain on Kai’s right shoulder. He gritted his teeth, quickly holding onto his shoulder.
“Ray!” Everyone called out to him, as Kai, in Ray’s body looked back, expecting to see the assassin still poised for battle. Instead, to everyone’s surprise, the assassin had vanished. His malevolence dissipated like smoke in the wind.
Like a wisp of darkness, he dissolved into nothingness, leaving behind only the memory of his threat. The marble floor bore no trace of his presence, and the moonlight danced upon the shards of broken glass.
“He’s gone?” Kai wondered aloud, disbelief coloring his voice. At the same time, Eva spoke up. {Sir, the cursed energy signature is gone. No trace remains.}
Kai’s gaze lingered on the empty space where the assassin had stood. The Sun began its ascent, casting warm rays over the palace—a stark contrast to the cold malevolence that had infiltrated their world. The night had ended abruptly.
“Someone capable of using cursed energy, huh…” Kai mused, still levitating in the air.
-To be Continued