10:42PM
In the dungeons under the Imperial Palace, the Headless Soldier had broken free of the seal but it didn’t move. It stood there, motionless like a statue as a blood-colored energy raged around it.
Surprisingly, it didn’t escape the cell, instead choosing to stay still and patiently wait. It seemed to be aware that the Dark Knight was going to come. This was clear proof that the Headless Soldier, known as the strongest Mythical Being, wasn’t the mindless killing machine everyone thought it to be.
…
10:45PM
Feylord stood there, momentarily stupefied as the world around him turned black and white. Time itself came to a halt: Everyone was frozen in place, including the Emperor himself.
After a few seconds, Feylord felt his legs grow weak as a human-sized black whirlpool appeared near the Emperor.
‘He…’
A person came out, one who was relatively short but had a distinct, unmistakable appearance.
A helmet with protruding horns, gloves that oozed a dreadful mist, a pair of boots that reeked of blood, and an armor that was riddled with dents and scratches.
‘I can’t even move… I just…’
Feylord had never felt such fear in his life. It wasn’t just the Dark Knight’s appearance, there was something else that made him exude such a dreadful aura.
His human appearance notwithstanding, he seemed to be the embodiment of Darkness itself.
“...”
The Dark Knight turned around and saw the frozen people, which made him grab the large greatsword from his back. He took notice of Feylord, but he didn’t pay him any heed, seemingly more focused on something else.
A burst of formless Darkness exploded from his body and rose into the grey sky, but it was too late.
The Darkness had barely crossed half of the distance before completely dispersing.
“Death.”
Neither surprise nor worry could be heard in his whispering voice, even when his entire set of armors vanished, leaving him with just a white shirt and a pair of old leather pants. Likewise, Anduril, his blade, disappeared.
“Even like this, you are too afraid to show yourself. Very well, I will come to you the-”
He was interrupted as a red streak dashed from towards his flank and struck him.
The Nameless Knight, Leiu, reacted fast and crossed his arms, but he was still blown in the air and then struck a second time.
“The Primordial Darkness is not to be controlled by a mortal.”
A deep and archaic voice reverberated from the sky, making Feylord shiver and lower his head.
Meanwhile, Leiu evaded the rusty sword of the Headless Soldier and then delivered a side-kick.
It wasn’t the time to think about what Death did. However, Leiu knew that his connection with the Darkness Laws was cut off.
“You.”
The Headless charged at him again only for Leiu to side-step its blade and then grab its arm.
“Will.”
He smashed the Mythical Being on the ground while looking at the sky
“End.”
As if flinging a rock, Leiu spun around and threw the Headless Soldier high-up in the air and out of the terrace.
More than anyone, he knew how the Headless Soldier fought and where its power came from, so he prioritised Death first.
Unfortunately, before he could do anything, Time resumed its natural course.
The very second Augustus saw the black-haired youth, he pointed at him and shouted,
“Assassin!”
There were cries from the crowd as each ran to the safest direction. Several Royal Knights, as if already prepared, rushed into the room and surrounded Leiu.
‘Where’s the Headless Soldier?!’
On cue, the creepy Mythical Being crashed down from above, aiming its sword at the stationary target.
The one-handed blade, rusty from tip to bottom, pierced through Leiu’s left collarbone. Nevertheless, he merely staggered back two steps before grabbing the enemy again and smashing it against the ground.
The Royal Knights, brandishing their swords, leapt toward Leiu only to be sent flying with a kick or a punch. Experienced and resilient as they were, they looked like children powerlessly flailing their toy weapons, which didn’t leave as much as a scratch on the youth’s skin.
Their armors shattered and some of them were killed in an instant. The Nameless Knight showed no mercy whatsoever, though he remained eerily expressionless and composed.
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Seeing the Headless Soldier come at him again, he picked one of the swords dropped by the Royal Knights and slashed diagonally, causing a powerful wave of energy to burst forth.
As an entity that exponentially grew stronger the longer it fought, the Headless Soldier wasn’t overpowered this time around: Leiu’s attack barely slowed it down for a moment before it reached him, its sword clashing against his.
A group of over ten Royal Knights surrounded Augustus and hastily escorted him out of the terrace, though he kept his eyes fixated on the fierce battle.
“Fall back!”
One of the Royal Knights shouted just as tall, robust, and winged humanoid figures flew from the sky: The Angel Troup.
…
“My lady!”
Zenzo Jill dashed from the adjacent terrace and grabbed Selene’s hand, dragging her out of the chaos. Daren, on the other hand, remained behind, watching the fight with a look of shock.
Although he didn’t recognize the short black-haired youth, the fact that he had been killing the Royal Knights with so much ease made him fascinated and rooted to the ground.
“Darling!”
Selene called for him, but Daren was speechless as he glanced upwards and saw the so-called Angels.
Equipped with bodies that resembled humans, oversized black hoods that hang over their heads and hid their faces, a pair of wide and white feathery wings, and glistening heavy armors. All of them were holding the same type of weapon: a long pure white spear that shone with a golden light around their sharp tips.
They all moved in immaculately synchronised manner, and their bodies, no shorter than 3 meters, made any spectator sure that they weren’t humans. In fact, they weren’t even living beings, just relics of ancient times.
..
The Angel Troup landed simultaneously, forming a circular formation around Leiu. They wasted not even a second as their spears were stabbed into the stone ground, causing a brilliant light to explode forth and descend upon the target.
Leiu, who successfully stabbed through the Headless Soldier’s armor and blew it to the back, was overwhelmed by the Light and bound to the ground.
White and flashing chains surged from below, wrapping around his arms, legs, waist and chest.
Rather than going on the offensive and attacking the Dark Knight, the Angel Troup took another approach, opting to limit his movements and let the Headless Soldier deal with him.
‘The fuck is happening? That’s not an assassin.’
Sancha, along with the rest of the most powerful of guests, stood at the back. They didn’t flee from the terrace, but they didn’t help either. This was a matter involving the Empire, so they weren’t in any position to assist. Even if they could, the majority of them would actually rejoice if the Empire suffered a blow.
They were looking at the half-naked pale youth, who was bound and surrounded.
The Headless Soldier, with a swirling crimson aura around him, raised his sword and thrust it ever-so-slightly into Leiu’s chest. A bit of blood leaked out, but he didn’t even flinch or let out a groan of pain.
He clenched his right hand and gritted his teeth as he raised it, breaking the chain and then punching the Mythical Being.
Two ‘Angels’ from the Troup left their positions and swept their spears at him. Albeit being successful at actually injuring the youth, his violent retaliation didn’t stop.
“Dastardly Goblin.” Cursed Leiu as he saw an explosion of energy come from the Headless Soldier.
Despite getting hit multiple times, it jumped back to its feet, growing stronger and stronger.
The sinister entity, basking in the ever-growing energy of an Outer God, leaned forward and prepared itself to rush forward again. This time, it was about to unleash a real attack, its aura going out of control and turning part of the canopy up above crimson.
“Feylord! Feylord!”
He snapped out of it when Julie shook him from behind. The two were dangerously close to the Angel Troup, and the opportunity to actually talk to the Dark Knight had long since passed.
“Do not hesitate… do not hesitate…”
Feylord kept repeating the same words, his lips quivering and hands shaking.
“We have to go! Feylord!”
Julie tried to pull him away but he brushed her hand away just as vermillion flames wrapped around his entire arms.
“Are you crazy? Sto-”
She didn’t even get to finish as he sprinted forward and intercepted the Headless Soldier.
A wave of resplendent flames rose in the air, engulfing the Mythical Being.
“I… did it!”
Alas, Feylord only rejoiced for half a second before a figure cut through his flames and stabbed his stomach. It quickly pulled the sword and then charged right through him, flinging him to the side.
He crashed into a table but was more surprised about the lack of any pain despite getting stabbed.
“No pain? The flames…”
Unbeknownst to him, his entire body was covered in flames. He slowly stood up, finally noticing that all the guests who remained were staring at him.
There was a booming sound as Leiu broke free from the chains and savagely lunged at the Angels, kicking and punching them like an enraged beast. As serious as the situation was, the sight of him one-sidedly beating them was undeniably comical.
“Feylord!”
A crimson curtain wrapped around Julie as she retreated to the back while calling for him.
‘I’m not afraid. I am not. I will do it. I will!’
In kind, the Phoenix Flames responded to his determination. They burnt brighter and hotter, bringing along a deafening screech that shook the terrace and spread towards the entirety of the Imperial Capital.
“Come at me!”
He jumped straight toward the Angel Troup, his body unleashing a wave of fire that incinerated everything in its way. The tables, the food, the decoration, everything turned to ash.
“Phoenix.”
“Go with her! My sister!”
He pointed at Julie before he charged toward the Angels, throwing large fireballs and raising walls of fire to block their attacks.
Although surprised to receive help, Leiu neither hesitated nor asked any questions. He kicked the ground and shot away from the Angels.
As expected, the Headless Soldier was hot on his trail. In response, Leiu snorted and abruptly spun around, stomping on the ground and delivering a seemingly slow straight punch.
His fist glowed with an orange light for a brief moment just as it connected with the target’s cracked armor. Thereafter, the still, and momentary silence was followed by an ear-piercing sound as the Headless Soldier was blown to the back with so much force that it crashed into a wall and disappeared from view.
“You are done.”
A black shade appeared in front of Leiu, its illusory arm was quickly extended and about to touch his chest, however, much to Death’s surprise, Darkness came from Leiu’s body and engulfed it before It could react.
“I will come for you. You and all those behind this.”
Unperturbed, Leiu somersaulted back and landed next to the startled Julie. As for Death, it was helplessly sucked by a dark whirlpool, which appeared only momentarily.
“Lead the way.”
“A-ah… what…”
Julie looked at the expressionless youth, unable to move, much less ‘lead the way’.
Seeing her stand there, Leiu frowned before realizing something. He lightly tapped on her forehead with his index finger, which made her shaking stop and her Blood Magic return with full intensity.
The crimson curtain grew bigger as it also wrapped around Leiu before pulling the two of them to the back and gliding in the air, away from the completely ruined terrace.