Chapter 71
[Zachariah's POV]
The tournament had gone by without any issues. There were some noteworthy performances, but even so, I had my doubts that anybody would be thinking of any of our efforts by tomorrow.
Even as I stood before Lloyd, ready for the final round to begin, I could not find it in myself to feel excited. It was not an issue with the quality of my opponent. To be honest, Lloyd was my equal in the art of the sword, if not my superior. We had been struggling hard to one-up each other since we first clashed in the entrance exam, and this should have marked a momentous battle of wills.
But no such development would occur. I had already delayed my duty as much as possible; any longer, and Father would take action without me, putting himself at risk.
As the crown prince, I had to make a decision and follow through.
“Lloyd.”
I spoke, focusing my mana into my throat to prevent the audio enhancement spell from projecting my voice. It was a spell meant for audience convenience; thus, it was not a difficult one to get around.
“...I know.”
Lloyd responded, also blocking the spell.
“You know? What do you know?”
I couldn't assume he was on the same page as me, mainly because it seemed impossible.
“The King is about to declare war. He will take the Emperor’s head any moment now, and you will flee to fight a losing battle until you are crushed beneath the weight of the Empire…”
Lloyd spoke with closed eyes, his tone more reminiscent than foreboding.
“How could you possibly know?”
I was shocked. Rattled even. How long had Lloyd known our plans? Why did he speak as if our defeat was set in stone? Did I need to change plans?
“Don't worry… I understand your position. And I know why it has come to this. No matter what comes, I'll stand by you.”
The Lloyd before me seemed at odds with the one who was always flailing beneath the whims of the girls who clung to his side. He was… Mature.
The start of our fight had been announced, but neither of us moved.
“Do what you came to do.”
He flashed a sad smile and pointed over his shoulder to where Father was eagerly waiting for the opening I was to present.
“...I hope you can tell me everything after this. If we survive.”
I readied my blades, the voice of Sol breathing life into the steel as they became engulfed in glowing golden flames.
“Haha, I'll do what I can.”
He responded to me casually, but I saw his body tensing up as he gripped his own sword tighter.
There was no need for any more words. I crossed my blades and unleashed an X-shaped blast of energy that struck the monarch's viewing stage with a mighty explosion.
I don't know why Axel and Rex were up there, but I had to trust that Father and the royal guard would keep them all safe. Bridgit, who remained in the dark, would be fine in their company as well.
There was no need to wait and confirm if my attack had succeeded; the sound of shattered glass was all I needed. I sprinted for the exit before the crowd could begin to stampede or the Imperials could take action against me.
“Not that way.”
Lloyd's hand gripped my shoulder, directing me instead towards the waiting rooms.
“The Umbral Arm has men stationed by the exits; we need to make our own.”
I put my trust in him and altered my course, but halfway down the corridor, I felt a shift in the air around us.
“Wh-what? How is he…”
Lloyd mumbled fearfully and froze in place.
I should have left him. I should have kept him removed from my nation's troubles. But perhaps because of the kinship I felt towards him, I remained similarly grounded.
“We need to go, Lloyd!”
He did not respond, only continuing to stare with his mouth agape at the two men who had taken our place in the arena.
Father crashed down, shaking the building with his awesome weight as the ground split beneath him. In contrast, the Emperor softly floated down, encased in a mysterious barrier.
“Another change…”
Lloyd muttered, biting his lip.
My instinct was to drag him along and force him to show me how he intended to escape, but then a realisation struck me.
If these two were now down in the arena, what was going on above?
The royal guard was no pushover, so I shouldn't have anything to worry about. But the rumours about the strange creature that shadowed the Emperor nagged at me in a way I could not ignore, especially if Bridgit were caught in the crossfire.
“...We have to go back. This is wrong!”
Lloyd did not wait for me; he ran as fast as his legs could take him. It was a good thing he was not considered a threat, as either of the men he leapt over could have obliterated him with a thought.
But was I in the same boat? Albrecht would have seen that I was the one who created an opening for my father. He would know I was a hostile element. Would he really do nothing if I tried to go back past him?
As if reading my mind, Albrecht spoke.
“You are no concern of mine, child. Go. There is something interesting for you to see up there.”
As if his casual tone was not insulting enough, he went so far as to turn his back on my father and beckon me over.
Father's flawlessly designed aura blade descended with such force that the resulting heatwave blew me a step back and singed my hair.
Yet, it phased right through Albrecht, who responded by blasting my father into the wall with a beam of black and silver magic. It appeared so suddenly that I never saw the spell circle forming.
And it did not end. The beam intensified, driving my father further into the wall until he was no longer visible, so deep was he in the newly formed tunnel.
“Go on.”
Albrecht faced me again, an ominous smile and crescent-shaped eyes goading me to play to his tune.
“Tsk.”
I had no retort. I had to make sure Brudgit was ok.
And so I carefully sidled around the edge of the arena with my blades drawn, aimed at the accursed Emperor who had forced us into this situation.
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But true to his word, he did nothing to stop me heading upstairs.
I heard their fight resume. Even if I couldn't hear them, I would have still felt the rumbling that their clash sent through the foundation of this building.
There were Imperial soldiers ahead, but they were too focused on the conflict in front of them to notice me. I found Lloyd again as well, right at the front of the pack.
“Bridgit… What have you done…”
His voice trembled.
My dear sister, troubled as she was, had Rex's limp body on the ground before her. The hilt of her weapon was dripping with blood, and a clump of hair had become stuck on the hand guard.
Rex had been beaten. Badly.
“What have you done!?”
Lloyd bellowed with a rage that I had not thought him capable of. I felt my own heart drop as well.
We did not want any collateral damage. We knew it was inevitable, and I had thought myself mentally hardened for the possibility…
…But Rex was a friend. He was a good man, even if he was difficult to understand at times.
Lloyd’s sword was raised in an instant, tears streamed down his face, and his posture was a mess. He was reacting on emotion alone.
“Damnit… what do I do? Why do things keep changing!?”
Lloyd's voice cracked as he yelled into the chaos around him.
The soldiers were moving to apprehend Bridgit, the Umbral Arm stood behind her, a knife already drawn and cold murder in his eyes. Axel, who looked to have suffered severe wounds of his own, was crackling with electricity.
And at the centre of it all was a bewildered girl who had yet to understand what was happening.
I had to save her. Despite everything, she was my sister.
I prepared to force my way through, but then everyone froze.
“...eh?”
Bridgit’s erratic fidgeting and wild movements turned rigid, and her attention shifted downwards.
To the crimson branch that had pierced clean through her back and out of her stomach.
She looked back to the source, only to see Rex still slumped over. His arm was raised, and his fingertips had burst open to reveal a tangle of vines and wood, spiralling together into the skewer that silenced the audience.
The skewer receded, and Bridgit dropped like a sack of bricks.
My body grew hot, and I nearly lost control, but just as soon as the hatred overcame me, it vanished.
And was replaced with a cold, primal fear.
Something deep within me screamed at me to flee.
It was those eyes. Those horrible, piercing green eyes. An eerie glow emanated from them, like two ghostly flames that refused to be snuffed out by the dark void that surrounded them.
Rex rose to his feet, fixating on me with that indecipherable stare.
“Hm. Arms.”
His body groaned with his stiff, bizarre moments. It was as if all his bones were breaking and expanding. His arms snapped back and forth, bending at angles where no joints should exist.
“Good. Legs?”
His arms snapped back into place and became rigid, only for his legs to begin the same eerie movements.
I wanted to run. But the fear had grown so intense that I no longer had a say in what my body did. Considering the silence around me, I had to assume the same was true for everyone.
“As we feared. The soul cannot harbour all of us, fractured though we may be.”
He continued speaking to himself, his voice devoid of emotion. He eyed his body like a foreign object, and considering the writhing tendrils beneath his skin, it may very well be the case that some parasitic entity had assumed control.
The head wound ceased bleeding, and all of a sudden, an antler burst out from where it used to be. With an explosion of blood, a second one broke free of his skull, and he exhaled deeply.
“Better.”
I took a careful look at his form, though all I really wanted was to screw my eyes shut and flee. Despite the instinct, I fought with all my might to focus on him, as I felt something about this was important to remember.
First, the antlers did not appear to be made from bone, but rather a crystalline white substance with green markings peeking through. I had seen similar designs in the masks that Rex often wore.
His ears had sharpened, and the tips had become covered in a crimson fur. This, coupled with his razor-like fangs, gave him a bestial appearance.
Finally, those squirming under his skin had begun to break through in certain areas. They revealed themselves to be a series of long, twisting branches that wrapped around his body and face, creating a living armour of nature.
“Humanity…”
He stared at the people around him, then settled on Bridgit.
“Much to say. But it is too soon for understanding. The lost soul is unaware, but his judgment remains. We shall repay his efforts by lending aid.”
His voice seemed to overlap with another, that of an older man.
“Politics are lost on me. Thus, I shall withhold criticism. However, instinctually, it would be good to kill this one. We shall follow the will of the lost soul, however, and hold onto it for future use.”
He lifted Bridgit by the wrist with an ease that should not be possible for his level of strength.
“Secure this.”
He tossed her to the towering man in black behind him.
The Umbral Arm remained silent, though he seemed to be the most composed of us all. He produced a pair of manacles and clamped them tightly onto Bridgit’s wrists. She was still conscious, but she seemed incapable of speech, only twitching occasionally.
Her wound was not bleeding, but that did nothing to settle my worries. A spiral-shaped black hole sat in her stomach, and dark green veins radiated outward like a toxin set on infecting her entirely.
My foot slid forward, but as Rex’s head snapped back to stare me down, I once again froze.
“...Difficult. Humanity is difficult. Threats into opportunities? Leverage? Such confusing concepts. But that is what makes you the bridge, lost soul.”
He continued speaking as if in a trance.
Then, he was in front of me. I never looked away. I never even blinked. But I could not follow him, nevertheless.
“.”
One word. One word, and I was running back the way I came. I had never moved with such speed before, and not even the clashing monarchs I passed by could slow me down.
“The Prince has met his lord. What a fortuitous interaction.”
Albrecht chuckled and called to me as he deflected my father's blade with a single floating black shard.
But my brain never registered it. I just kept running. Even when I came to a dead end, I did not hesitate to attack the wall with everything I could muster. The hole led outside, into the campus of screaming people and dead soldiers.
Even that scene did not halt my feet. I ran through it all. When the guard at the gate tried to stop me, I cut his sword arm off without a thought.
Fear was the only thing moving me.
***
[Axel's POV]
My cousin fled. The courageous, future King was sent running with a single word from the entity before me.
That was how I chose to call this… Because it certainly was not the friend whom I respected. This thing was…
“Awesome.”
I spoke aloud, breaking the silent atmosphere that the entity had imposed.
It looked at me with its enrapturing eyes.
“You. Outcast nephew. Where do your allegiances lie?”
It began walking towards me, its intent as unclear as all its movements thus far.
I opened my mouth to respond, but it cut me off.
“We understand. Your ideals are unshaken even in these circumstances. Humanity, if defined by you, would be a race fit to rule. We wish to make a request. You will listen.”
It stopped before me. Its antlers made it appear deceptively tall, and its presence made me feel minuscule in comparison.
My fists itched with a desire to trade blows with this being.
“We have repaired this one's functions and taken control of the situation. But we must return now. You will watch over this one.”
It sounded more like a demand than a request, and with Rex’s face speaking the words, I was compelled to respond with a witty verbal jab. But again, it cut me off before I could talk.
“Good. You are trusted. One last thing.”
It turned to face Lloyd, who was trembling as if fighting the invisible force that kept him in place, his teeth gritted as he continued to resist.
“Time is nature. We are nature. You are the filth that violates us. Were it not for your divine audience, we would return you to the soil. , if you do not want to face us here.”
With the same imposing tone it used on Zachariah, it commanded Lloyd.
But Lloyd managed to instead take a step forward and yell in defiance.
“What are you!? Are you the reason why everything is so wrong? What are you doing to my friend?”
He took another step, a feat that clearly required a remarkable effort on his part. I felt fine personally, but it's possible that each of us was under a different influence.
By his third step, the entity responded by extending another sharp branch to Lloyd's throat.
“That is far enough.”
Lloyd froze, probably from shock at how quickly he could have lost his head. A moment of tense silence loomed over us all, but it soon passed, and Lloyd ran after Zachariah.
Though his steps moved with purpose rather than fear.
“S-sir?”
One soldier among the many who had rushed up when the attack started meekly raised his hand and addressed the man beside me—the one who constantly set off my danger sense just by existing.
“Speak. What is the situation outside?”
“U-uh…”
The soldier eyed the entity carefully, unwilling to go on.
“My presence is a nuisance. I shall leave.”
His appearance returned to normal, and Rex swayed on the spot, his eyes fluttering rapidly.
“Urgh…”
He grabbed his head and sat down on the spot. He was awake and aware, yet the foreboding air he had brought upon us vanished in an instant.
Even the frightened soldier felt a renewed surge of confidence as he launched into his situation report.
“Solean soldiers disguised as civilians have begun attacking the town. They are letting the members of the public go, but anyone in uniform or who resists is being cut down. Your watchdogs are holding down their stations, but they will soon be overwhelmed. Reinforcements have been requested on all fronts.”
“Move as one group, secure the site closest to the western gate, and make your way eastward from there. I shall move in the opposite direction.”
“Yes, sir! There is another issue, however…”
“Do not dawdle. Speak.”
“Yes, Sir! The elves of the Verdant Divide are also attacking; they came over the wall and are slaughtering anyone who resists them. Gaspard Sylvain leads them.”
Considering all that had just happened, their professionalism was something to admire. I was still fixated on Rex, but to the others, he was just a non-urgent curiosity now that his possession appeared to have ended.
“Gaspard? Are you certain?”
“He wields the Eclipse Edge. There can be no mistake.”
“Then my focus must be on him. Follow my previous orders, but you are to abandon all stations beyond the halfway point. We must conserve our numbers in case of a second wave.”
The soldiers saluted as one and prepared to move.
“Wait.”
They froze as the man on the ground spoke. He no longer carried the primal authority over us as he once did, but the memory remained engraved in us. Enough that, despite the difference in rank, everybody listened intently.
“There is a better way to deal with them.”
Rex regained his feet and rolled his neck, a suspicious grin plastered on his face.
“Hear me out.”
