BUILDING MY OWN EMPIRE - My Journey from Nothing to Overwhelming Power Chapter 7 - Seven – Lucius

Chapter Seven – Lucius

Green energy, the color of dewy grass, surged successively from beneath the earth toward Jo the lumberjack.

It wrapped around him layer after layer, until it swallowed him completely, and my eyes could no longer distinguish his form.

The strange thing was... my heart was calm.

As calm as a spring day without wind.

And why wouldn’t it be?

I am one who has witnessed countless character evolutions in the worlds of ani.

Yet...

Seeing Jo’s evolution was different.

He is the first follower to evolve with .

The first to take this step by my side.

And I wouldn’t be exaggerating if I said that a heavy sense of relief settled in my chest.

This evolution won’t make him just a lumberjack anymore...

It might turn him into a warrior I can rely on by my side.

My fear of sothing bad happening?

It was no longer justified.

The System cannot place obstacles in my path over and over again.

The matter ended well...

In fact, as well as it possibly could.

Well, that’s what I thought for a mont...

I had barely begun to envy myself... when the unexpected occurred.

A blazing hell...

Descended upon .

Above.

The sky beca thick with darkness.

It wasn’t clouds.

It wasn’t night.

It was sothing else...

A black curtain, like a giant cloak, clamped down on the sky, pulling the sunset away with unnatural speed.

And from the heart of that darkness,

A pillar of light struck the center of the area with violence.

A massive explosion.

It left a crater several ters deep.

The earth shook,

And the dust rushed up to slap my face.

I recoiled involuntarily,

And my eyes imdiately turned toward the point of impact.

Then.

Pain.

A sharp pain pierced my eyes,

As if salt soaked in sour lemon had been poured inside them.

I scread.

I placed my hands over my eyes, hiding them.

A mont.

Then the pain vanished.

I opened my eyes.

And a red light erged before .

An X mark, above that person’s head.

"Enemy..."

The word escaped from within without thinking.

But fear...

Flowed imdiately after, seizing every feature of my face.

That mark...

Was an on of doom that accepted no other interpretation.

The power before .

Unreadable.

"His level... far exceeds mine."

"If he attacks ... I will die."

The screaming was internal,

But its echo nearly tore my chest apart.

He moved toward .. his steps heavy, carrying a coming death.. without any shield to protect .. I stood waiting for the inevitable.

The person began to approach,

And my eyes finally caught him clearly.

Black steel armor, covering his entire body.

His height exceeded two ters.

And on his back.

A broad silver sword, almost longer than his own body.

Above his head,

A red mark resembling a finishing blow.

And on the sword...

Another red designation:

{ The Banner Reaper }

A strange na.

But the fear it instilled in my heart... was not strange at all.

My mind alone was working.

My body had frozen from the very first instant.

Every decision was postponed.

And in its place, an absolute silence fell.

And from the mont I stood before that armored man,

I realized only one thing:

My life...

Was no longer in my hands.

"So it is you......

Obtained......

The frail one......

The fool......

The orders are firm......

Die."

His lips moved with a deep, echoing resonance that nearly covered the entire space.

But the words.

Distorted. Incomprehensible.

Then.

Suddenly.

He scread.

He grabbed his head with both hands, staggered back several steps, then

Raised his gaze to the sky.

The sky...

Began to regain its form.

His eyes turned toward .

And he charged.

In one mont,

My eyes were eting his from a distance.

And in the next mont.

He was before .

Very close.

He pressed his fingers together,

And aid a direct strike toward my heart.

My body did not move.

It would not move.

Even if it did move.

Before this brute force, resistance was aningless.

"So... this is how it ends."

"The mission to build a new world... has failed."

"The pleasant dream... is over."

Swooooosh.

I didn’t die.

What is happening?

I began to open my eyes slowly.

A vivid shadow stood before .

Her scent...

Just like on the first day.

Beautiful.

Refreshing.

And reassuring.

The owner of the armor stopped suddenly.

His strike.

Was stopped completely.

Before my eyes,

Monali waved her cloak, diverted the attack, and halted it at the last second.

"Have you decided to intervene... Monali?"

This ti,

His voice was clear.

Pure as the clarity of mountain springs.

Calm as a morning breeze.

Monali stood before him with her beautiful vigor.

Her eyes glead with mystery.

And her hands tightened on the arrow.

Then she said:

"What are you trying to do... Lucius?"