Level Up Legacy

Chapter 1462: The Sovereign of Death - Part 15

"I wonder who’s the monster between us," Severis said with a laugh, but did not back down. Instead, he took a form. "Before my death, I used nothing but my technique to conquer the valley."

"Am I about to witness that sword art?" Arthur asked with a grin.

"Let’s hope you are the first to do it without dying, other than my lord," Severis said before he closed his eyes. Arthur sensed a shift in the air inside the room.

Severis became the center of a small hurricane. Arthur sensed no mana or spiritual energy, and understood that this was one of the rare sword intents that could reshape the world.

"It seems I might die if I hold back," Arthur said as he raised his hand and spread his palm. Spiritual energy gathered in his palm, shaping a replica of Nightmare, his dagger. "And let’s add some spice to it."

Arthur infused his insignia into the spiritual dagger that he had created. The dagger took a metallic black form, unlike the obsidian nature of Nightmare. It reminded Arthur of the spiritual arm he had when he was in Alka.

The metal was infused with Arthur’s insignia, letting it shine with a threatening, soft black light. The combination of the two, his insignia and spiritual energy, seemed to cause some kind of reaction. The metal began vibrating, almost letting out a roar just like Nightmare did.

Arthur had a feeling that he couldn’t maintain this spiritual weapon for long. He was actually forging this weapon similar to astral weapons, but only because he had an absurd amount of spiritual energy.

Severis was now invisible behind the roaring wind. Arthur knew that the moment he struck, it would be hard to withstand it. He needed to time his attack with Severis in order to get the upper hand and end this fight.

Arthur waited.

The hurricane became more ferocious.

Bladed winds tore the room apart.

Arthur waited.

Then, he felt pain in his chest.

Arthur knew that the attack was coming.

He struck without hesitation.

Light, sparks, and wind exploded in front of him.

He felt his feet leaving the ground, but stomped to plunge one of them into the ground. He pushed his weapon forward and felt the spiritual energy within it begin to lose structure.

Then, he made a mistake.

Arthur poured as much spiritual energy as he could.

The dam that was barely holding his spiritual energy from erupting was demolished. Arthur felt a strange, unfamiliar feeling of losing control over his spiritual energy.

Pressure built up beneath his chest.

Arthur could somehow see the light shining from underneath his skin.

He was losing control... and physical form.

He tried to push it back, to control what he had unleashed.

It was useless.

A wave of spiritual energy was coming.

And he could not do anything but release it.

The world turned bright, filled with every color imaginable. The room disintegrated. Severis was sent flying by the erupting force. The tower began crumbling under the relentless spiritual energy.

Arthur took a deep breath.

"I’m in control," he said.

His eyes glowed golden.

The surge stopped for a moment.

Arthur felt like the pressure in his chest was about to tear him apart.

But he didn’t care.

If he allowed this surge of spiritual energy to leave his body, it was going to erase the entire city and palace. He was going to push it back.

"Need a hand?" a voice echoed in his ears. Arthur opened his eyes to find the same woman from yesterday standing in front of him with a smile. "Let me help you with that."

The woman offered Arthur a hand.

He understood her intentions.

"Are you sure?" Arthur asked. "It can be... overbearing."

"Nothing the Sovereign of Death cannot handle."

Arthur looked at her ethereal hand and reached out. The spiritual energy found an outlet and surged into the woman’s hand the moment they touched. Even before Arthur could make contact with her, the energy was rushing inside her.

The woman began to glow.

Arthur felt the pressure finding a release.

He didn’t just surrender and rely on the woman.

She helped him release the pressure building in his chest, but Arthur pushed back on the spiritual energy that came from the ’hole’ inside his soul. He recreated the dam and sealed the hole shut.

Spiritual energy disappeared from the room.

Nothing was left.

The walls were crumbling around them.

They disappeared as they approached the woman, as if all things would cease to exist in her presence. Severis was lying on the ground, unconscious.

The Sovereign of Death walked toward his side and placed a hand over him. He stirred, but did not wake up. She rose and turned toward Arthur, who was examining her with a mix of interest and gratitude.

"Thank you."

"It’s my pleasure," she said with a smile. "Let’s leave now. I cannot be seen in this form."

Arthur wanted to ask for the reason, but he decided it was best for him to wait. The woman walked toward the door, which opened as she passed through it.

He followed.

She led him through the half-destroyed tower as Arthur felt a little embarrassed for causing so much destruction. The two of them reached the throne room, where the woman stopped next to the throne.

"This throne is as far as anyone can approach me without dying," she said while looking at the empty throne. "I had to use a medium to convey my words to the generals."

"Anyone who approaches you will die?" Arthur asked with surprise. "That sounds like a curse."

"For you humans, death is a punishment," the woman said. "For me, it’s a comfort that nothing is permanent. Not even death itself."

"That’s comforting in a way," Arthur said. "Would I die if I met you?"

The woman turned toward him with a playful smile. "You want to try anyway, don’t you?"

Arthur grinned back.

The woman turned toward the fireplace and then raised a hand toward it. Blue flames erupted from within it, and the wall behind it began to move. It opened to reveal a secret chamber with a single door.

"Please come inside."

The woman walked inside and then disappeared like smoke. Arthur walked toward the door and turned the knob. He pushed the door open and stood in surprise and awe.

Behind the door was not another door, but a field of blue flowers. Arthur walked into the field of flowers, which rested beneath a sunless sky. In the far distance was a small bench beside a lake.

Arthur walked in the field until he reached the stone bench, where a woman sat. It was the same woman he was just talking to, but she was real and far from ethereal. Despite having a pale complexion, she was beautiful in a melancholic way — detached from the world and reality.

"You are the first visitor to my true realm," she said without turning toward Arthur. "The moment I became the Sovereign of Death, everything I touched or approached would die."

"Except for these flowers?" Arthur asked as he looked around.

"That’s why I love them. They are spiritual plants that disregard life or death," the woman said. "They feed on death and nurture it."

"I studied herbology once," Arthur said. "There was a section on mythical herbs, including one that matched these flowers. They are Death Lilies, right?"

"That’s right," she said. "You know what they do, right?"

"Many things. If used on a person who’s on the brink of death, it could save them. It would absorb the death energy from that person and let them recover."

"And if used on someone who’s alive?"

"It would kill them, or worse."

"Worse?"

"A mindless zombie," Arthur said. "But I guess that’s not the worst thing for your army. I’ve seen how many you have saved from sickness and death."

"I saved no one. They saved themselves by embracing death and using it. And now, they wander my realm to protect it."

"They also attack anyone who speaks about you. That’s kind of harsh, is it not?" Arthur asked with a chuckle. "You don’t strike me as a tyrant who enforces such rules."

"It’s a side effect of pulling the soul back from the Astral Stream and bringing them to my realm," she said. "They view me as their god and benefactor. There have been many attempts to take me down, and my generals used this mechanism to filter out outsiders from locals."

"A hidden rule that guarantees your undead attack outsiders only," Arthur said with a nod. "But I never thought... that someone would have this many Death Lilies. They are rare enough to appear only once every thousand years in the right circumstances."

"The right circumstances?" she asked.

"Following a great number of deaths," Arthur replied.

"And that explains why I have them," she said. "But it seems that there is one third use for them that the gods have become aware of, Arthur."

"I’ve seen the vision from the lich," Arthur said with a frown. "When are they coming?"

"Soon," she said. "And if my realm falls, then many more would follow."