The Villain's Story

Chapter 757: A long lost desire.

The ruby embedded within the necklace dislodged itself, as the golden blood flowing within the gate reached out to it, carrying it to the place it was always meant to be.

A surge of mana unlike any other appeared, from the door, from the palace, and from the entire world itself as the ruby embedded itself in the door.

The gold turned into blood, and the gargoyle up split in two as the door opened. It produced an eerie sound, like it was not stone against stone, or metal against metal but flesh against flesh.

Whatever material the door was made of, Alan and Sabrina both didn’t want to find out. However, what was inside betrayed all their expectations.

There was no throne room, no odd room filled with more corpses like one would expect, there was nothing of the sort. Which really would have fit the theme of this chaotic planet, but instead.

It was a library, wood shelves so pristine, so finely carved and carefully maintained, but the books within those sky-high shelves were so old, so rotted they crumbled to dust as soon as the door opened.

Sabrina stepped inside, looking at the endless halls, the endless bookshelves filled with nothing but hollow leather covers. The paper within was crumbling to dust. For a moment, she felt sad.

All that knowledge, whatever content was written within those books, all of it was lost, crumbling to dust. Alan simply hated the smell and the particles of dust clogging up his nose.

He had to deal with both the smell of this planet, and this now as well. It was irritating.

Behind them, the red gold escaped the door and formed a straight line, like a guide in this endless hallway. Sabrina followed it, while Alan was wondering where her fear had gone.

"Bri?"

He called out to her, but unfortunately, either she didn’t hear him or ignored him. She simply followed the red string. Alan chased behind, but then, the surrounding space changed. Bookshelves appeared in front of him, blocking his path.

He felt it, he had been transported somewhere else through unknown magic.

’Fuck!’

He cursed, as he smashed through the bookshelf in front of him, only to find more.

More.

More.

More. An endless amount of shelves that didn’t cease to stop no matter how much he tore through. A wall he couldn’t get through no matter what. Alan stopped using his fists for a moment, and charged up a breath.

He was planning to blow away whatever magic was causing it with a more powerful, more destructive. A charged breath, one that even did significant damage to Kizmal.

Something like that... would be able to do something to this accursed place. He silently charged it up, as it appeared like nothing would disturb him in this space, until a book flew up to him, opening itself, with a message written in blood.

[Don’t disturb girl’s time!]

And then, he felt an itch on his nape, he cancelled his breath and turned around, catching a foot.

An attack from behind, by someone who was just as surprised as Alan. But that was not the end, Alan moved his neck back, avoiding a black dagger that popped out through space.

’Two...’

*******

"Who are you?"

I asked the woman sitting on the stone bench, I had been transported into this strange balcony. The woman had her back turned to me, and I don’t know what she found so appealing in that dark, spiralling void.𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

This place was strange, A place where the only surrounding space beside this balcony was a dark, spiralling void where I could not feel a single ounce of mana. We were the only people here.

[Alan?]

No response, so she called out again.

[Alan?]

Now, she had the right to be afraid, after all, she had met nothing that could stop the astral connection, but this strange place had done.

"That’s an unusual type of communication magic, unfortunately I can’t seem to unblock it."

The woman in front of her spoke as she continued to gaze into the spiralling abyss. Sabrina... was shocked.

She knew that voice, vividly. Of course, she would, it was her own damn voice!

’Mimic...? Doppelgänger?’

Her runes were disabled, and she could not control an ounce of mana in this space. However, even though she was afraid of this unfamiliar and powerless situation, she could still think, and process what had been said.

’Can’t seem to block it?’

Then why wasn’t Alan responding.

"You can call that scary thing all you want, but honestly, I think you’re being a nuisance right now. The situation outside really isn’t pretty for him."

She heard her own voice again, and beads of sweat rolled down her face as the eerie situation spooked her. Hearing your own voice from a being who didn’t show their face was really, really terrifying.

Of course, the thing could also be mimicking her face, but what if it turned around, and it was something completely else... scary.

But the fact that it said that the situation outside isn’t good... and that she would be a nuisance right now could only mean Alan was in a fight.

’Good, so he’s okay, but I need to figure out how to leave.’

Alan in a fight was the best-case scenario at the moment. It was one of the things he was great at, but she was in a really difficult situation.

Not an ounce of mana in this unknown space, a spiraling void of darkness with unknown properties, and the eerie being in front of her spooked her out the most. She had a good deal of mana herself, but it wouldn’t be enough to overpower this space.

Worst, she couldn’t draw mana from Alan’s soul crystal, since she wasn’t aware how serious the situation outside was.

"Who are you?"

Raising her staff, ready to bash the skull of the being when it turned around or did anything suspicious.

"How strange, I don’t think I ever did anything but Magic or Voodoo, why did this iteration of me begin wielding a melee weapon?"

It spoke strange things as it lowered itself, looking up at her with her own face.

"Well, to answer your question, I’m you?"