1849 Quiet Before the Storm (Part 1)
War's Counter Flow ability turned Orpal's blood into acid that burned through his veins. At the same time, World Mirror dominated the energy Night and Orpal had stored inside their clone, using it to strike at the very core of their essence.
Together, War's abilities also amplified the feedback from the Horseman's Double Body to the point that the cracks that opened in the prisms now appeared on the surface of Night's crystal as well.
Despite the distance separating him from the fight, Orpal's real body had been reduced to a puddle of blood and bones that squirmed in agony. Night tried to mend his wounds but every piece of flesh she regenerated crumbled the second it was formed, further increasing her suffering and Orpal's.
The Thralls felt the mind of their master slipping and lost their fighting spirit. As they ran away, the Demons, the surviving members of the Corps, and the kings of the woods attacked them non-stop.
'Do you still need my assistance?' Locrias asked.
'No.' Solus replied. 'Do whatever Lith asked you to. Trion and I will manage the rest.'
Her body had depleted its energy and was on the verge of collapse. Yet with the world energy flooding the Sage Staff and just a few enemies left, she knew that nobody would manage to harm Elina.
'Watch my back, Trion. I just need a few seconds.' Solus activated her own breathing technique, Sky Blessing.
It used her Domination and her tower half to suck in massive amounts of world energy, allowing her to regain her strength and mana without Lith as a medium. Due to her cracked life force and mana core, Sky Blessing only worked as Invigoration, not Accumulation.
On the other hand, however, by tapping into the abilities of Menadion's tower, Sky Blessing also granted her a few breathing abilities already.
Locrias nodded and took flight at his top speed, bringing Kamila with him.
"What the heck are you doing? This is far from over." She had to yell to be heard despite the wind pressure.
"That's exactly the reason you can't stay here." Locrias replied. "Meln broadcasted his message and everyone knows that Lith and Tiamat are one and the same. If you stay there, people would suspect your involvement.
"Your life and career would be over. Worst case scenario, you would be imprisoned and you would never see Zinya again."
"Since when do you care so much about me?" Kamila struggled to escape his grip, but to no avail.
"I don't, but Lith does." Locrias Warped inside the barn, raising a curtain of darkness behind the hay to not be seen and a Hush spell to not be heard. "He entrusted me a message for you."Want to see more chapters? Please visit pan da-novel ,c.o.m
The features of the Demon changed from those of a weathered middle-aged man to those of someone much younger who meant the world to her.
"I'm so sorry for dragging you into this Kami. Especially on the day of your birthday." The face, the voice, and even the eyes belonged to Lith.
The only difference with the original was the skin being in shades of grey instead of his usual olive.
"I don't care about my-" She tried to say, but he put his forefinger on her lips in a plea for silence. I don't have much time. I can guess what's about to happen and it's going to be ugly.
"This is probably the end for us, Kami. The whole Kingdom knows that I'm a monster and soon they'll start chasing me and my family. I can't stand the thought of destroying your life as well.
"Not after all the hard work and sacrifices you endured to reach your position and get Zinya back into your life. That's why you have to go back to Belius and pretend that you were at the Heavenly Wolf restaurant only because Meln kidnapped you."
Lith could feel the clock ticking, yet the weight of his next words made it difficult for him to speak.
"My whole life, I've always been running toward the next achievement. I've always been worried about what might happen if my secrets were exposed or if I simply wasn't strong enough to face my next enemy.
"That was, until I met you. You gave me more than I might have ever asked and taught me things I didn't even know I needed, filling my void. More importantly, whenever I was with you, I stopped worrying about the future and was just happy to be there."
Lith took a deep sigh, tired of cowardly beating around the bush.
"What I'm trying to say is that you are the only woman I have ever loved with all of my heart. No matter the distance between us, I'll always miss you. Be happy and forget I ever existed."
If you want to read more chapters, visit pa nda-novel,c.o,m. Then, before she could reply, Lith turned back into Locrias and pushed her through the open Gate. The dimensional doorway shut down the moment she crossed it, leaving her no way back.
Locrias rushed back to Lutia while Kamila stared at her now lifeless shadow, hoping that it would come to life and prove to her that not all was already lost. She felt as if Mogar had given her light just to take it away.
She just wanted to fall apart and cry herself to sleep, unable to stand such a cruel fate. What she did, instead, was to keep her cool and plan her next move.
After a few seconds, she ordered the day clerk to open Gate to the city of Valeron.
'Whatever is about to happen, Lith needs all the help he can get.' Kamila thought. 'Even though my power as a Constable is limited, even one small drop of water can make a difference in the upcoming storm if I play my cards right.'
***
Hundreds of kilometers from Lutia, but much closer than Lith would have expected, Night's crystal emitted a shrill shriek as the bundle of prisms shattered under Double Edge's onslaught.
The cycle of destruction and repair that War's abilities had caused was finally over. The prisms had depleted the energy that the Horseman had stored within them, breaking the link that had caused her and her host so much suffering.
Her crystal was full of cracks, but they immediately started to mend and Orpal's body to reform. Moonlight was right beside them, boosting their abilities and allowing them to survive the nightmarish experience.
"You won this round, Leech." Orpal said the moment his head reformed. "You refused to submit and I failed to kill you, but that doesn't mean that I can't still take your life."
***
Thanks to Locrias acting as his proxy, Lith could talk to Kamila one last time while also taking care of Elina in the aftermath of the conflict.
"Mom, are you alright?" He asked, landing on the ground while transforming back into his human form.
After breaking up for good with Kamila, he could feel the whole world he had built for himself slowly falling apart in a dreadful silence. Lith knew that unless an unexpected miracle happened, he would lose everything.
Despite the turmoil in his heart, however, he couldn't let his feelings transpire. He had to be strong for his mother and prepare for the worst. A storm was coming and he was the only hope his family had to come out of it alive.
