Advent of the Three Calamities

Chapter 714: The Emperor is dead [1]

"...You came prepared, but even with all that effort, it’s still nowhere near enough. You should’ve done more. But then again, it wouldn’t have mattered. None of it matters."

Noel’s voice echoed within the quiet confines of the Emperor’s chambers.

The Emperor was dead.

So was Prince Gael.

The entire situation had unfolded in the same way that he had expected it to.

Turning his attention towards Dawn, Noel shook his head.

"Figuring out our intentions was never hard. I’ll praise Toren for his ability to foresee what we were planning on doing, but that’s still far from enough. Like I said. None of it matters under the watchful eye of someone who has seen it all."

Noel’s voice stirred something in Dawn.

Staring in Noel’s direction, a soft fluctuation radiated out of his body, and the world around them seemed to freeze.

This situation...

It was a failure. In spite of everything that he had done in order to ensure that everything flowed well, who would’ve ever thought that they had a traitor in their midst?

’No, I should’ve seen this coming.’

Gael had always been strange.

Ever since the incident where he had his mana sealed, he had acted differently. However, the pain was all for the great cause.

It was only going to be temporary.

He was going to be free in the near future.

And yet...

He had been swayed by Noel.

This failure of foresight had led to the entire situation. But it wasn’t too late. Not yet. He could still set things right. As long as he caught Noel, everything would fall back into place. The Emperor was dead, yes, but if he could recover his blood, then...

"You’re thinking about using my blood to revive him, right?"

Noel’s words thundered inside of Dawn’s mind as his head flicked in his direction.

Before he could even open his mouth to speak, Noel smiled before shaking his head.

"You won’t revive him even after you use my blood. You think I would simply try to kill him without thinking about this?"

Laced on the sword that Gael had used to kill the Emperor, Noel had placed a powerful poison that completely degraded the soul of anyone who consumed it. His blood could bring the dead back to life, but there was a limit.

...While the Emperor might be able to be revived, he’d just be an empty shell.

The best they could do was use some sort of body swapping technique and place a new soul into the Emperor’s body, but that would be rather problematic.

To attempt something like that, they’d need to find a compatible soul, at the very least, for someone as powerful as the Emperor had been. And even then, the entire operation would take years to complete. Could the Empire survive that long without its Emperor?

The answer was simple.

They couldn’t.

"....."

The surroundings grew silent in that moment as Dawn’s expression fully cracked, his brows furrowing tightly as the world around them fluctuated wildly.

But despite his anger, Dawn was still able to remain rational.

He understood that the situation was turning for the worst. However, things were still far from over.

Noel was here.

So long as he caught him, then...

Snap!

Dawn didn’t waste a single second.

With a single snap of his fingers, light burst forth from the point of contact, pulsing outward in waves, unfolding like a shimmering veil that draped itself over the surroundings.

The surrounding temperature increased, and Dawn’s eyes turned a golden hue.

His body started to shimmer with runes as a lance manifested in his hand.

Without wasting a second, he brought the lance up and swiped in Noel’s direction, slicing his entire body into thousands of pieces.

Swoosh—!

But was that really enough to take care of Noel?

"....."

The moment Noel’s body was torn into thousands of pieces, those fragments began to pull back together, seamlessly reassembling until his form stood whole once more.

He was completely unschated.

But Dawn didn’t mind.

Killing Mortum was impossible, but he was currently severely weakened.

He understood that Noel couldn’t keep this up for long.

And he wasn’t wrong. Noel indeed couldn’t keep regenerating forever.

At the very least, not when he didn’t have a heart.

Swoosh!

Dawn sliced down with his lance again, the single stroke so fast that it seemed to teleport directly to him. Noel couldn’t react, and his body was severed as a result. But in the exact moment that his body was severed in half, a faint pulse echoed across the surroundings.

Ba... Thump!

It beat only once, but that was enough to put everyone in a daze, including Dawn, as his movements stopped for a split second.

That split second was all that Noel needed.

As his body quickly reattached itself, he fixed his gaze towards the window and towards the dome that surrounded the entire space.

His eyes grew even more hollow in that moment.

Ba... Thump! Ba... Thump!

The rhythmic thump of a heartbeat echoed louder through the surroundings.

So loud, in fact, that for a brief moment, the world itself seemed to tremble in time with it.

His mana began to swell, building steadily as a terrifying pressure erupted from his body. His eyes turned bloodshot, veins bulging, and a thin stream of blood trickled from his nose.

"...."

Lowering his head, Noel glanced at his hand, then dragged a finger across his palm, opening a long, crimson line. Without hesitation, he flicked the blood toward the dome.

Ba... Thump! Ba... Thump! Ba... Thump!

The sound of the heartbeat drummed even louder than before.

All of this happened in less than a fraction of a second, and as Dawn shifted his attention back to Noel, their eyes met.

And then—

Flick!

Noel flicked his finger, a single drop of blood shooting past Dawn and the window before shattering the dome that surrounded the entire palace.

Cra Crack—!

As if triggered by a chain reaction, more cracks began to spiderweb across the dome, spreading rapidly in all directions.

Dawn’s face changed at the sight.

But then—

The single drop of blood that had shot into the distance began to shift and contort, morphing into a familiar figure. Dawn’s expression darkened as he turned, only to find that Noel’s body had vanished without a trace.

’...Damn it!’

His teeth clenched tightly, and with a single tap of his foot, he appeared right outside of the dome, his gaze shooting towards the fleeing figure.

Dawn’s eyes narrowed as he looked at Noel.

He could see with just one glance that he was struggling. His face was pale, and his breathing was rough.

In that moment, Dawn’s previous thoughts faded, and his expression returned to its usual calm.

He extended his hand forward.

And then—

A gigantic hand materialized above Noel, smashing down on where he was at incredible speeds.

Hundreds of droplets of blood funneled out in all directions.

The droplets turned into figures moments after, scattering in all directions, and as Dawn stared at them, his brows furrowed tightly.

’...You really do know how to run.’

***

My mind was still in a daze.

Thinking about everything that had just happened, how could I not be dazed? But more than anything, I was both disappointed and mad.

’I’m definitely not counting that. Absolutely not.’

...That damned woman.

Only going for a peck.

’Just wait until—’

"Are you okay? You look kind of out of it?"

"It looks like he got chewed up by the Chancellor, didn’t he? What did you do this time?"

Bringing me out of my thoughts were two familiar voices. When I raised my head, I saw both Kiera and Evelyn looking at me strangely.

"His face in particular looks a little pale." Evelyn pointed out while Kiera brought her face a little closer.

"Now that you mention it..."

"What are you two doing?"

I stepped back while looking at them strangely. But it was my reaction that made them look at me even more weirdly.

"Why is he so jumpy?"

"...The Chancellor must’ve touched him."

Kiera mumbled, and my entire body stiffened. That... She wasn’t wrong. But how did she know?!

’No, wait. This is Kiera that we’re talking about.’

"You think the Chancellor would touch him?"

Evelyn asked while looking at me. Kiera’s deep red eyes bore down on me for a few more seconds before she looked away.

"Nope. She’s out of his league. I was just messing."

"...Figured."

No, hold up. I actually did get touched...

She was also my fiancée!

"Anyways, what were you trying to say before you left?"

"...Before?"

I blinked a couple of times, a little confused with the abrupt change in conversation. But then I suddenly recalled.

"Ah, right..."

I then started explaining to the two of them about what had happened and how I needed eight representatives for the upcoming Rite.

"So you want the two of us to be your representatives?"

Both of them looked at me weirdly.

"...You do know that we have talented knights in both of our territories. If you want to borrow them, then—"

"You two are more than enough."

I was already aware of both of their strengths. While neither was as strong as Leon, they were still incredibly strong. Put in any other Academy, they’d be ranked first.

They were generational talents.

...And I was also familiar with their powers. That made things a lot easier for me.

"Hmm."

Kiera and Evelyn both looked at each other.

They looked confused, but after a while, they both nodded.

"Sure. I owe you."

"...My family is already in an alliance with yours, so even if you don’t ask, my father would probably push me to help."

"Nice."

Hearing both of them agree, I found myself smiling.

’That’s two down. If I count myself in, then that would mean that I have about five more missing members. That shouldn’t be too difficult.’

Things would be even easier if I were allowed to include Owl-Mighty and the others.

But that was probably not allowed. Even if it was, I wasn’t sure they’d be of much use since this was direct confrontation.

"Well, in that case I will—"

Clank!

A sudden disruption cut through my words as the entrance doors slammed open, and a figure dashed inside. Face pale, hair wild and disheveled.

"What’s going on?"

"...Who is that?"

As all the guests turned their attention towards the man, before the guards could escort him out, he shouted,

"The Emperor is dead!"

His words echoed loudly within the hall.

All noise ceased.

"...I repeat! The Emperor is dead!"