A/N: Hey folks, super sorry for the delay! 😓 I had exams piling up like a final boss battle, so writing had to take a backseat for a bit.
Hope you don't mind the wait too much 🙏💙
Thanks for being patient, y'all are the real MVPs! 💫
***
[Mike Pov]
He had always been a simple thief.
Not the grand kind who stole royal treasures or made it into the legends.
He had stolen many things in his life, slipping in and out of places without anyone rembering his face.
But none of the things he stole were precious enough to make him famous or feared. He was just another shadow in a world full of criminals.
But that changed the day he got caught.
He had attempted to steal a rare artifact from a mid-sized guild. It wasn't so kingdom-level treasure, but still valuable enough to invite real trouble.
The mont they discovered him, the chase began. Fearing for his life, he disappeared from the public eye and dove into the underbelly of the world—the black market.
That was when he got introduced to a special group called the Scavengers—people who were tasked with mining, and herb gathering also in charge of stealing ancient and valuable items from the Dragon Continent itself.
Since his class was that of a real thief, soone skilled in infiltration, escape, and deception, he quickly proved useful.
He could sneak into places without being noticed, trick people, and vanish before anyone realized what was missing.
That was probably why the Captain chose him specifically to follow Nox.
But now... he was full of regret.
W-w-w-w-what... what is that… what is this monster...?
His mind was in such shock that he couldn't even process his thoughts properly. His whole body stiffened just from watching.
Just seeing the Unicorn was enough to shake him. If this kind of news got out to the world, he knew that many of the old monsters hiding within the black market would co forward, not to admire it—but to hunt it down.
He thought for a mont—if he was the one to bring this information to them first, his position would rise. Maybe he would be promoted. Maybe he would finally be recognized.
But then... his eyes fell on Nox.
The boy's head was literally bursting apart with every step he took forward, and for so reason, watching it made Mike's chest tighten in pain.
He felt as though he himself was being torn apart, like he was the one suffering through that unbearable agony.
His body began to tremble—not from the cold, but from the overwhelming pressure that the Unicorn was releasing.
And it wasn't even doing anything. It was just standing there, yet Ash's body was being destroyed again and again, as if his very existence was being rejected.
Mike started to get the feeling that he had seen sothing he shouldn't have.
And that scared him more than anything.
His instincts scread at him that his life was now in danger.
He decided to turn around and leave. He couldn't stay here any longer. He needed to escape—quietly, quickly.
But before he could even move, he felt his body freeze.
And then... he started floating.
No... not this… not now…
Despair filled his heart and fear clouded his mind. His eyes widened in panic as his body was pulled against his will, drifting helplessly through the air—straight toward Solareth.
And when he finally arrived in front of the King, all he could do was stare.
Solareth's eyes were beautiful—far too beautiful for this world—but instead of calming him, they filled Mike with fear. Behind those stunning eyes, he could feel nothing but death and endless power.
Then, a voice echoed inside his mind.
{I see… so this child ca here in search of ruins. Hmm… seems I was far too cautious.}
Solareth's voice wasn't loud, yet it rang deep within Mike's very soul.
The King was reading him—his thoughts, his mories, every secret he had buried. He couldn't hide anything. It was as if his entire mind had been torn open and put on display.
Solareth saw it all—Mike's talks with Captain Jack, the black market's involvent, the missions, the secrets—everything. It was all laid bare.
Feeling his soul completely exposed before this creature, Mike cursed Captain Jack in his heart. He cursed him for sending him here, for dragging him into sothing way beyond what he could handle.
{But to think the black market would send their people to the Dragon Continent… I don't know if they're fearless or just incredibly foolish.}
{Well, whatever.}
And with those final words, Mike's entire body exploded.
There was no ti to scream.
No ti to even process what was happening.
His body didn't just break apart—it disintegrated completely. Not even blood was left behind. The sheer force of Solareth's power erased every trace of him from existence.
The King glanced around once more and, with a flick of his will, the entire area was cleaned of blood and residue, as if nothing had ever happened.
And with Ash still floating silently beside him, Solareth turned and calmly left the place, his presence fading into the wind.
***
"So, you're saying... he's dead?"
Nichole asked quietly, his voice almost drowned by the weight of his own thoughts, as his eyes remained fixed on Alice, who simply responded with a small, knowing smile.
"Dead."
The single word was spoken softly, but it echoed loud in the room.
Hearing her confirm it, Nichole let out a long sigh, his gaze lowering slightly as he murmured, "What a pity."
A strange, heavy silence spread across the room, like a fog.
Nichole sat behind his desk, surrounded by the quiet familiarity of his office, while Alice lounged casually on the sofa nearby, legs crossed, seemingly unaffected by the news they had just discussed.
After a long pause, Nichole finally asked, "So... what are you going to do now?"
Alice leaned back, her voice light, almost playful, "Naturally, I'll go back. The contract is void now. There's no point staying here any longer."
She glanced at him. "In fact, I should be asking you—what are you planning to do?"
Nichole exhaled again, more deeply this ti. A question he hadn't quite found the answer to yet.
What indeed…
"I'm going to do nothing," he finally said, his tone quiet but firm. "Even if I have the power… I don't have the right to decide the course of another's life or death. If, by so miracle, she survives—"
"You and I both know that's just wishful thinking," Alice interrupted coldly, her voice cutting through his sentence like a blade.
Nichole fell silent, unable to argue—not because he agreed, but because there was truth in her words. A truth he didn't want to face.
Alice stood, brushing nonexistent dust from her coat as she turned toward the door.
"Well, whatever. I'll be leaving then. There's nothing interesting left to watch here."
She opened the door without another word—but stopped imdiately.
Right outside, frozen mid-knock, stood an old man.
Alice's breath caught in her throat.
From every angle, he looked like any ordinary elder you might pass by in the street—plain robes, hunched shoulders, weathered skin. But his eyes—his eyes were what stopped her.
His irises rotated slowly in the shape of an ancient wheel, glowing faintly with an ethereal light.
It was as if those eyes could see through flesh, bone, thought, and soul.
For a split second, Alice felt like she was standing completely exposed—like all her masks and secrets had been stripped away without permission.
Nichole had already risen from his seat, eyes wide with recognition.
And then, in perfect, stunned unison, both Alice and Nichole whispered the sa na.
"Elder...?"
Seeing the old man, both Nichole and Alice stood frozen, unable to hide the shock in their eyes.
They weren't surprised because he looked threatening—no, from every angle, he looked like an ordinary old man you might pass by without a second glance.
But they knew better. They understood what his presence truly ant.
Because those who walked the path of fate were always bound by causality.
Even if they could peer into countless futures, they were bound.
Even if they held the power to wipe out cities with a thought, they were still trapped.
They couldn't act freely, and they couldn't even leave the places they were tied to.
They could watch fate shift, feel tilines twist — but they couldn't act.
Not without consequence.
That was the curse.
Power so great, that it ca with chains.
The power that let them see was also a curse that chained them in place.
And if they did try to change sothing… they had to pay a price. And that price could be anything—mories, life, soul, or even sothing they couldn't na.
That was why both of them were stunned to see the Whisperer here.
The oldest among all the beings they knew.
A man whose true strength and limits had never been known.
"It's been a long ti," the old man said with a calm smile, his voice warm and steady, like he was greeting familiar faces after a long walk.
His words broke their frozen state.
Both Nichole and Alice bowed their heads—not out of fear, but out of respect. He wasn't a ruler or a god, but a guardian.
A silent protector who had watched over the world even when no one knew his na. Even now, when no one asked for it, he continued to protect everything.
"It's good to see you both are doing well," he added, still smiling gently.
But Nichole couldn't stay calm. His heart was already filled with unease. He knew sothing was wrong.
"Why are you here?" he asked, his voice quiet but taut with dread.
He knew the answer would not be a pleasant one.
So, he asked directly, unable to hold back.
And the old man gave a simple answer.
"The threads of fate have been tampered with. Causality is weakening. Cause and effect are no longer absolute."
He didn't say anything more. He didn't need to.
That one sentence carried enough weight to shake heaven and earth.
Nichole and Alice both felt their chests tighten. A cold chill ran through their bodies.
Because they knew what it ant.
If the cause and effect had weakened…
If the laws of fate had started to break down…
Then the world was on the edge of sothing terrible.
Sothing no one could stop.
***
A/N: Another chapter's cooking and will be served hot in a few hours! 🍜🔥
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