Kingdom's Bloodline, page 491
“The former Penal Officer and Watchman of the Royal Guards Sir Immanuel Zakriel, right?”
He no longer spoke in that unpleasant and airy voice resembling a drake.
His heart was extremely relaxed and filled with optimism.
He was no longer worried, no longer troubled.
The Knight of Judgment, who was observing the enemy, furrowed his eyebrows and turned his head around. “Hmm?”
“Please take action based on any opportunity you see fit and do your best,” Thales said decisively.
Zakriel was slightly stunned.
“What opportunity?”
Thales did not answer. He just smiled faintly.
The detained Quick Rope thought that Thales was finally giving up on them. He became anxious and quickly spoke, “Ahem, Thales? Listen to me, we can choose a more neutral…”
But Thales shook his head.
“Quiet, Quick Rope.” The Prince of Constellation sighed.
“By the way, your sales presentation is horrible.”
Quick Rope was stunned.
Thales took a deep breath and smiled. He looked at Stake calmly and coldly.
“Stake, do you know that we are in the Alchemy Tower?
“They left behind a lot of things, most of which have been taken over by Constellation.”
Stake’s face turned cold. He suddenly had a feeling that things were about to go south.
‘Alchemy Tower?
‘What does he mean?’
The prince looked at the ruined environment in the dim underground prison before he stabbed the ground with his longsword.
“Wizards… before they disappeared, had all sorts of tricks, and the alchemy ball was just one of their most insignificant creations…”
With complex emotions, Thales stared at the polished longsword decorated with precious stones in his hand.
“The Jadestar Royal Family knew some of their tricks, and even mastered some of them,” he said absentmindedly. Then, snorted again, as though he was talking to himself.
“Of course, I’m not talking about the sparkling golden blood…”
Zakriel narrowed his eyes and scrutinized Thales again.
Stake made a silent gesture, and his assassins bound the hostages even tighter.
The prince looked up. He stared at the assassins before him.
Thales shifted his gaze away as if he did not see Yodel shaking his head violently.
‘Who am I?
‘I am Thales.
‘From the first day I came into the world until the last day of my life, I will be Thales,’ he thought.
‘No one can change it.
‘No one can deny it.
‘No one can question it.
‘Because I am and can only be Thales.
‘No one else.’
Thales clenched his sword hilt with his hands and felt calm.
“Don’t blink.” The prince chuckled when everyone stared at him strangely.
“Because…
“This may be the most interesting, magical, and gorgeous magic show you have ever seen in your life.”
Thales quietly moved his left hand and gently placed it above the sharp silver blade on the longsword.
Stinging pain shot up through his palm. There was also a warm sensation from it.
There was a time when he had done such a thing while he was incredibly worked up.
But now, he was calm.
Would he succeed?
Stake instinctively felt that something was about to go wrong. He pushed the dagger against Marina’s throat and threatened the prince through gritted teeth. “Your Highness, I swear, once you play any tricks, I will immediately slit…”
However, Thales could not hear anything anymore.
Even Yodel and Zakriel disappeared from his senses.
At that moment, he was already wandering about in an endless stream of light like someone who had attained transcendence.
…..
The Eastern Peninsula.
It was evening in an unknown small fishing village.
In a simple seaside hut was a pretty woman with brown skin and a quiet, polite face. She was washing the wooden bowl in her hand silently.
She listened to the sound of the waves by her ears. Her hands kept moving, and she had a calm, serene expression.
It was as if nothing could interrupt the peaceful and pleasant scene.
But at the next second…
*Badumb!*
A wooden bowl fell to the ground, and it spun continuously.
The woman did not pick it up.
Instead, she slowly looked up, and her face was full of surprise.
It was as if she had seen the most unbelievable thing in the world.
The next moment, the beautiful woman decisively left everything. She walked out of her hut and stared at the sea in the distance.
The last bits of the sun stayed above the sea, like a child taking a bath in the bathtub. It was about to sink completely below the horizon, but not quite yet, making it appear lazy and mischievous.
The woman looked at the sparkles of golden light above the horizon, but her expression grew more and more solemn.
A dry voice traveled into her ears abruptly like a heavy dash of ink that was suddenly spilled over a painting!
“Freuland!”
The dry voice spoke quickly, and it sounded very anxious. “This is… it!”
The woman nodded, her expression remaining tense.
“I know.” The woman named Freuland nodded slowly. Her voice was low and steady. It imperceptibly appeased all the anxiety in the things around her. “I felt it. That one… has arrived at the edge of knocking on the Door again.”
‘That one.’
The woman furrowed her eyebrows slightly.
The visitor in the air seemed to be in a hurry to do something. Before she finished speaking, he swiftly cut her off.
“He must be crazy-Quick! Where is he or she?”
Freuland did not answer immediately. She just stared solemnly at the surface of the sea.
The next moment, something unusual happened.
A purple light appeared.
An endless purple glow shot out from the depths of Freuland’s eyes!
The light crept onto the woman’s face like branches of a tree, spreading out.
As the light grew brighter, the woman’s facial features were gradually obscured. Her features were no longer soft, and she appeared to be more majestic and terrifying.
All things in the heavens and the earth seemed to lose their color. From that moment on, only she alone shone.
However, the woman was still looking at the surface of the sea without moving.
The voice in the air did not speak again. He knew what she was doing.
After a few seconds, the purple light shuddered.
The woman whispered her question, “Zarkel, where are you?”
The voice in the air rose again. It sounded as empty as before, but this time, there was a barely-noticeable hint of wariness.
“Dragon Clouds City. I heard that Giza appeared there before, and she had a fight with that evil witch, Clorysis, so I went to find clues. It’s quite lively here… ” the guest said dryly.
Freuland did not intend to listen to what he had to say next. Her face swayed slightly as it continued to shine in purple light.
“The target is not in Dragon Clouds City, or at least, not within a hundred miles from where you are.”
The woman narrowed her eyes a little, as though she was experiencing something. “Well, this time, the feeling’s much more obvious compared to the last time…”
After a moment, she suddenly opened her eyes.
“He’s in the Western Peninsula!
“The Great Desert!” she said decisively.
The voice in the air remained silent for a while. When it sounded again, there was a hint of happiness in it.
“Can you be more precise? Your ability is much better than the others when it comes to conducting searches, as long as we act before—”
However, in the next moment, Zarkel’s voice was suddenly cut off like had taken a sharp breath!
He was not the only one! The light on Freuland’s face trembled as well!
The woman appeared to notice something. Her expression suddenly changed, and she looked up at the sky.
Everything was normal. The clouds were quiet and the sky was silent.
Only a few seagulls flew lazily over the sea at dusk. They crossed the waves to return to their nests.
But that was not the point.
The purple light shining from the woman’s eyes became more unstable.
The voice in the air suddenly became wary. There was a slight quiver in it.
“No, no, this is…”
The woman nodded gravely.
“Yes.
“It’s Blood Spike and Hellen.” An unprecedentedly complex expression appeared on Freuland’s face.
“They are knocking on the Door.”
There was only silence in the air.
The silence lasted for a while until the woman sighed deeply.
“Perhaps they’re just like us. They prepared countless methods and waited for six whole years for the newcomer to show himself or herself. They’ve been waiting for him or her to knock on the Door again.”
The dry voice in the air slowly spoke falteringly. There was a doubting tone in his voice, filled with uncertainty and a great unwillingness to admit defeat.
“So, if the new person… Once he or she successfully knocks on the Door and enters his or her basic form…”
Freuland sighed and nodded dejectedly.
“He or she will walk right into their trap, and it will be impossible for him or her to escape.
“The person will become a prize for the Two Empresses.”
The sea at dusk was pleasantly quiet with just the sounds of the waves and the cries of the seagulls.
Two-thirds of the sun had already set. The golden color of the sea slowly turned deep red.
The woman stood quietly. Her face was sad.
The violet light on her face became fainter. Her gentle and pretty looks returned to her face.
Then, Zarkel’s voice appeared again.
“No, that is no longer the point.”
Freuland looked up indifferently.
“What do you mean?”
The guest in the air was silent for a while before he spoke with great worry.
“Blood Spike and Hellen are wary of each other, and their hatred of each other runs deep like the sea. Once they have a chance, they’ll tear each other apart.
“If they find the new person at the same time, I don’t think they will be willing to share…”
‘And that means…’
The dry voice was slowly getting softer.
Freuland frowned slightly and shook her head.
“No…”
But Zarkel was obviously immersed in his own words. He continued.
“Six years ago, they ran into each other in their basic forms because of that newcomer, and they fought against each other brashly. The aftermath of their battle stirred up a huge tsunami around the Eye of the Sea of Eradication. It was one that happened only once a century. If the Sovereign of the Abyss had not awakened in Hell’s River and come over to control the situation…”
The dry voice grew weaker again.
The woman frowned. There was worry on her face.
“For this encounter, they must have made full preparations,” the disembodied Zarkel said gloomily.
“Be it for the newcomer… or for each other,” he muttered.
The woman faced the sea. In the face of the empty space, a sympathetic and disbelieving expression appeared on her face.
‘Two Empresses who are fully prepared?
‘And the newcomer has to face the Two Empresses who are coincidentally arch enemies of each other?’
Her heart suddenly clenched.
“No.”
The brown skinned woman closed her eyes and sighed.
“They are the best Mystics in the world. They wouldn’t be so reckless and short-sighted to destroy the world, right?”
This time, the empty voice in the air laughed emotionlessly. There was a gloomy tone in it.
“More than six hundred years ago, he said this to us too.”
The woman tightened her grip on her forearm.
“Who?”
The visitor in the air slowly sighed and uttered a strange phrase, “The Holy Sun.”
Freuland was slightly stunned.
‘The Holy Sun.
‘How long has it been since I last heard that name?’
The mysterious person in the air spoke softly, “During the last fight in the Battle of Eradication, he personally descended to the Final Empire’s Capital of Triumph to speak to the Truth Brothers, who had been driven into a corner…
“It happened before the final negotiations.”
Freuland did not answer.
Another wave rose. The setting sun in the west completely sank below the sea’s surface, leaving the quiet and comfortable world with… a bleak future.v
Chapter 429: The Man at the Proximal World |
The area around him was dark, but it was bright at the same time; it was dim, yet simultaneously dazzling. It appeared empty, but also seemed able to accommodate everything under the sun.
The green grass under the starlight, the waves in front of the reef, the lines on the palace walls, the ruins under the sea; countless scenes flashed before his eyes.
His train of thought paused a little before shifting slowly. He had been here before. Just like in the past, he had forgotten certain things, but he also remembered other things.
He forgot those secondary and unimportant, burdensome things. He remembered the magical, real, and significant presences.
However, this was not the most important matter. What mattered was that he was here. Him.
As his thoughts spun slowly, everything appeared before him, nothing was withheld from him. He saw the end of the world, the power of nature, the scorching sun, the undercurrent, and the deathly stillness.
It was very relaxing, and very liberating. It was as though he had let go of all inhibitions, got free of all his shackles, and lifted all burdens off his heart. There was no gravity, time, or any other thing. There was nothing that could restrict his thoughts anymore.
Only he existed here, like an unbridled horse running wild, a bird soaring in the blue dome of the sky, or a deep-sea fish swimming alone freely.
He wandered free in this world. He was everywhere. He had nothing to worry about.
Then, he became the whole world itself.
“Wor… ld…”
A slight discomfort flashed in his mind. However, it did not matter, and hence, he did not care about it, just like how he did not care about the other insignificant matters. There was only a certain feeling that stubbornly clung to him.
Impulsivity.
It was not enough. This impulse rose suddenly, and it was not possible for it to be stopped. It was not enough. Slight irritation rose in his heart. It was far not enough!
He wanted a lot more. He wanted to know, understand, and receive a lot more!
As this thought came, he began to ascend. It was truly magical. He was like a sun rising in the morning, bringing with him limitless light and heat as he rose in the endless sky.
Higher and higher. Faster and faster. And all that was seen, smelled, watched, and felt… grew more and more. The sensations arrived in him faster and faster, until the endless and deep space appeared at the edge of his senses.
Darkness, quietness, and sadness. It was so beautiful and magical that words could not describe it. It was like it was the center of all things on earth. He was enchanted.
But that was not what attracted him the most.
In that moment, he saw fog in that deep space. The fog was dull gray and misty. It obstructed a great many things from view, but numerous glaring white rays of light permeated through the fog. The brilliant rays flowed like moving water, sparkling a little.
‘What was that?’
The thought had only just appeared in his mind when the fog that was permeated by white light moved a little. It was like the fog had a life of its own and spread towards him.
‘Strange.’ He watched the fog that was in the deep dark space and felt the distance between them grow smaller slowly. ‘Why… did it feel so close and dear to him?’
It was as if the fog was calling him. As he watched the fog, flowing and coming closer to him, he felt a faint stir of emotions. He wanted… to pass through that layer of white light, enter that layer of fog, and discover what was in it.
When this thought flashed in his mind, it was as though millions of ants had begun crawling in his heart. He could not suppress the urge to get closer to that place, dive into the darkness, and enter the fog and the white light. He felt as though the greatest prize was in there.
The magical feeling rose again. As he got closer to the fog, his senses towards the world became clearer, and he grew more certain about his feelings.
He lowered his eyes and found that all the things he saw before had changed. He saw them at a more microscopic level. His view of the sea had shifted into water droplets. His gaze on the forests was now focused on the veins of leaves. His view of the earth had moved to the soil. Lives were now presented as existences before his eyes. He ordered the world to present itself in front of him again in a novel manner.
The deep space grew nearer and nearer, and so did the fog. As for him, he grew more… perfect?
He wanted to laugh, but found that laughter could no longer summarise his feelings; he wanted to sigh, but he had long left the nest of emotions; he even wanted to spread his arms, but the body was no longer important in this place.
He wanted to do it. He wanted to do so.
A few pairs of eyes opened in the deep dark space and cast their gazes on his body from the distance. They watched him as he pressed onward in his journey. But that did not matter, did it?
At this moment, only the fog of the deep space was in his line of sight. He only wanted to brush away the fog and enter it. Nothing else mattered anymore!
He drew nearer and nearer. The deep space seemed to become more of a real existence while the fog was more amiable. He believed that he was very close to them. If he could make it his and discover it, he would become more perfect.
