Half an hour had passed since Voltrex had released his Killing Intent, plunging the Eternal Sages and those above across the Western Continent into chaos.
The Empire and its duchies’ army of five and a half million was steadily advancing toward Ironvale Fortress from every direction, while within the fortress itself, the Banes army was reinforcing both their defenses and offensive lines.
Before the iron gates of Ironvale Fortress, the shadows shifted, and from beneath them, Vyaghra erged, holding Voltrex by the arms.
"L-Lord Vyaghra," Aurelion, who had been observing the surroundings from the highest tower of the pillar, murmured as he sensed his presence.
His gaze shifted to the frail old man, his body stained with dried blood and grey hair covering his face, supported by Vyaghra.
"Don’t tell he is... Open the gates!" Aurelion commanded, rushing out of the fortress.
A storm of emotions surged within him, sweat trickling down his temples.
"He needs imdiate treatnt," Vyaghra said the mont Aurelion approached.
The gates opened, and the two hurried inside.
---
The door to one of the fortress rooms burst open, and a Flowerbane disciple stepped out in haste.
"The Sect Master is requesting one hundred kilograms of Grade 3 High-Tier Soul Stones," the disciple inford.
All the key figures stood outside the room with grim expressions.
Aurelion removed the space ring from his finger and handed it to the disciple.
"Take as much as you need."
The disciple nodded. Just as she was about to re-enter the room, Aurelion asked, "How long will it take?"
"We have never treated injuries this severe before," the disciple replied, her hands trembling slightly. "It will take ti."
Sylvaris was the most skilled physician on the Western Continent, her abilities considered second only to the Legendary Divine Physician who had mysteriously vanished hundreds of years ago.
Yet, it had already been eight hours since she began treating Voltrex inside the sealed room.
Another five hours passed before the door opened again, and Sylvaris along with her disciples stepped out, visibly exhausted.
"His Majesty’s life is no longer in danger," she revealed.
A wave of relief swept through the Banes leaders upon hearing the news.
"In all my years of treatnt, I have never witnessed a body damaged to this extent," Sylvaris said, clenching her fist. "His bones, muscles, and skin were wounded in a way that would inflict the maximum possible pain."
Tears rolled down her cheeks as she continued, "I cannot even imagine how he endured such inhumane torture."
"Those empire bastards!" Titan roared, the veins in his sclera turning bloodshot with fury.
Not just him, the other leaders were barely suppressing their rage. Even Barbatos, who always carried a playful smile, was trembling with absolute fury upon hearing Sylvaris’s words.
At that mont, they all made a silent vow. The Azure Sun Empire would be erased from the map of the Western Continent.
While others openly displayed their fury, Aurelion remained silent, his face unreadable. However, his clenched fists, dripping blood onto the ground, betrayed the emotions he was desperately trying to suppress.
His focus shifted as he sensed Voltrex waking inside.
"Aurelion... co inside..." he heard Voltrex whisper. He was the only one who heard it, thanks to his Demi-God senses.
Without wasting a second, he vanished from the hall and reappeared inside the room.
"That expression doesn’t suit your face, Aurelion," Voltrex chuckled weakly, his half-open blue eyes resting on him.
His hand and eye had been reattached by Sylvaris.
Aurelion stood silently beside him. He opened his mouth, then closed it again, unable to find the words.
After a mont, he spoke in a whisper, "I’m sorry."
"Is that what you should say to a friend you et after twenty years?" Voltrex asked.
"I don’t deserve to be your friend," Aurelion murmured. "Friends stand together and support each other in tis of crisis. Yet I wasn’t there during the massacre at Sentinel Lines. I let the perpetrators who destroyed our family roam free for eighteen years, and I wasn’t even there when they inflicted such inhumane tort—"
"Aurelion!" Voltrex interrupted sharply. "It was not your fault. I do not bla you for anything, and neither should you!"
"..."
"Hey, are you really crying right now?" Voltrex asked with a sigh.
"I-I’m sorry..." Aurelion whispered, tears streaming down his cheeks, unable to maintain his composure any longer.
A few seconds passed before Aurelion composed himself, wiping his tears away using Soulforce.
"Eh? Are you showing off that you can use Soulforce while I can’t?" Voltrex retorted. "Hmph, you are still below as an Eternal Sage."
"But I have reached the Demi-God realm."
"..."
"You bastard! Are you really boasting right now—" Voltrex snapped, but began coughing before he could finish.
"Just rest, old man. You are in no condition to show such energy," Aurelion said calmly, his expression steady.
"You seem to be enjoying this quite a bit for soone who was crying like a newborn just a few minutes ago," Voltrex muttered with a smirk. "I wonder how Lunaria will react once she hears about this."
Aurelion’s brows furrowed in annoyance. After a mont, he asked flatly, "Who is going to tell her?"
"Of course it will be m—" Aurelion had already drawn his sword before Voltrex could finish.
"Hey, you cannot raise your blade against your king. That is treason! Treason!"
---
"Where’s the kid?" Jambavan asked, standing in the valley outside the fortress.
"He stayed back," Vyaghra replied, standing beside him.
"Ya shouldn’t have left him alone," Jambavan said grimly. "He’s consuming himself in vengeance. At this rate, he will soon suffer the corruption of death."
"He is already showing the symptoms," Vyaghra revealed. "The Senseless Dinsion did not affect him in the slightest. And when he saw Voltrex’s tortured body in the prison, even for a brief mont, I sensed darkness radiating from him."
"That’s a serious matter, Vyaghra!" Jambavan shouted, grabbing him by the collar. "How could ya leave him there?"
"What did you do when you witnessed your father’s death?" Vyaghra asked calmly.
A sudden gust of wind passed by Vyaghra’s ear as Jambavan’s fist shot forward, narrowly missing his face.
"That mouth of yers really doesn’t know what should be left unsaid," Jambavan muttered, pushing him back. "We need to do sothin’, or that kid will lose himself."
"We cannot do anything. This is sothing he must overco on his own."
---
tAraNIsTHiswAsfuNKIllmOrelETsKillmoREPleASE.
"You are right," Taranis murmured, his eyes hollow. In his blood-soaked hand, he held Adam’s severed head by hair. "Let’s kill more."
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