235 Chaos [4]

<nulli>'I died...'

It wasn't hard to figure out this part. Staring at the head that was lying on the ground in front of me, I held onto my stomach and tried my best to keep myself from letting the contents within my stomach spill out.

"You have two lives left."

Owl-Mighty's cold voice echoed in the distance.

".....Don't waste them."

I could only swallow my breath at its words.

'I...'

Easier said than done. How could I not waste them when I was suddenly trusted into this hellish situation? I didn't know how to fight, I didn't know what was going on, I... didn't know anything.

I felt a sense of frustration build up from within me as I started to think about my circumstances.

And yet, I couldn't complain.

The situation was like this, and I had no choice but to adapt.

"Hoo."

I took a deep breath and looked back.

That was when my eyes finally laid on what stood behind the large door.

"This is..."

It looked like a study room.

With bookshelves lining the walls, papers scattered everywhere, and a small wooden table in the middle, the place looked different compared to the other chambers. Owl-

Mighty was already inside, staring at the papers scattered throughout while the cat sat next to it, curled up on its own.

I carefully entered the place and looked around.

There were all sorts of objects scattered around, but my attention fell on one of the papers that Owl-Mighty was staring at.

<nulli>'The Empire of Nothingness'

Confused, I squinted my eyes to get a better look.

It was there that I was able to get a short glimpse of the information written and my expression suddenly changed.

<nulli>'No, this doesn't make sense.'

A work of fiction?

The contents that were written in the paper didn't make sense at all. They detailed an Empire that existed within a certain era that I knew nothing about.

There were so many details about the story that didn't make sense.

....The only way that I could explain the situation was through the 'it's a work of fiction' excuse, but then again, I already had an idea of what was going on.

I just didn't want to accept it.

"It must be this."

Owl-Mighty suddenly spoke, pointing towards a certain area of the paper where a ring appeared.

[The Ring of Nothingness.]

- One of the seven artifacts of evil, and the very item wielded by the Emperor of the Empire of Nothingness to transform its citizens into mindless puppets...

"Haa."

I drew in a cold breath at the description of the ring.

That was because it felt eerily familiar to the current situation.

<nulli>'No, but did the bishop have a ring?'

I hadn't paid enough attention to know. But I didn't need to remember such details. I may not have seen it, but someone else did.

My gaze locked onto a pair of piercing red eyes. They stared back at me with a strange intensity, and my breathing started to grow a little heavier.

'He most likely did.'

".....What do we do?"

The more I started to read, the more it became clear to me.

From the fact that the language that I was speaking was English, to the fact that I could control mana.

This world. It wasn't the same world as mine.

....I had previously held some hope, but that crumbled the moment that I started to learn about mana and the strange powers contained within this body.

but things were clear now.

"Fuck."

A curse inevitably slipped from my mouth as I started to ruffle my hair in despair.

<nulli>'This damn situation!'

There were so many curses that I wanted to throw in the air but had to stop myself. Recalling the way Owl-Mighty had been looking at me before, I knew that I couldn't act in such a pathetic manner.

The only thing I could do was force myself to be calm and look around.

"I-I'll look around to get more answers."

This was the only thing I could do in my situation.

.....It was impossible for me to run away. Therefore, the only thing I could do was think of ways to escape.

Right, I needed to run.

<nulli>'I'll figure out the rest later.'

For now, I needed to focus on this.

Soon, I stopped before a large blueprint. Staring at it, my nose scrunched up.

"This...!"

My expression soon turned into one of excitement as I picked up the blueprint.

But how could I not be excited?

This was after all the blueprint of the cave system.

....I now knew which way to move.

***

Leon's situation was rather delicate.

"Which direction should we go?"

".....I don't know."

"Maybe this way?"

He was staring at a fork road that led in five different directions. Behind him was a group of over ten people, of which, Kaelion was a member.

Someway, somehow, Leon had managed to help him out of his chamber.

Leon felt a small sense of relief with Kaelion present. He was strong, and with him here, Leon didn't need to worry about his back.

Evelyn was present too which also helped him feel calm.

"We should head this way."

Thankfully, Leon didn't need to be too worried about which way they needed to go.

His 'instincts' told him exactly which area he needed to go to.

The only problem was convincing the others.

"Why do you want to go this way?"

As expected, the people from the Aurora Empire weren't exactly too keen on listening to his suggestion.

They seemed rather hesitant.

Evelyn frowned as she looked at them.

"He saved you. Shouldn't it be okay to listen to him?"

"Look, we're grateful that you saved us, but that still doesn't mean that we should rush into one of the paths without any clue as to where we are headed. If that was the case, then we were better off not being saved."

"That's right."

"Yeah."

"What...?"

Evelyn's face grew red at the sight of them. She was obviously baffled by their behavior, but just before she could say anything, Kaelion raised his hand.

"We will do as he says."

His voice was firm, and all the members of the Aurora Empire stopped speaking.

Kaelion looked towards Leon.

"Since you saved us, then you have every right to make the decisions."

He glared at the people behind him.

"....That much should be understandable."

"Thank you."

Leon smiled and nodded at Kaelion.

He was glad to have found him. Reigning over those from the other Empire was easy with him present.

Especially since he was rather sensible.

Or at least, he appeared to be sensible in his actions.

As Leon looked at him, he saw him look around at the group.

"Are you looking for someone?"

"Uh?"

Kaelion turned his head and looked at Leon.

His expression changed a little as he nodded his head.

"....Ah, yes."

"Who exactly?"

Leon looked around and thought back to the two people who had been standing behind him before.

He couldn't quite recall their names, but he knew who they were.

"I think they might be with the other team. We'll be joining up with them soon."

"They?"

"Yes, aren't you looking for your other team members?"

"Oh, yeah. That."

Kaelion nodded his head.

His reaction made Leon frown a little.

<nulli>'So he isn't...? Then who is he'

"Ah."

Realization soon dawned on him.

"Are you looking for the guy with blonde hair and blue eyes?"

"....!"

Kaelion's expression changed a little.

<nulli>'Looks like I've hit the mark.'

Leon understood from there. He also remembered that cadet. How could he not when he stood out so much back then?

....It was just that he seemed a little different compared to the first time he had seen him.

Still, considering how Kaelion was acting, then he was someone of importance in one way or another.

"He's also likely with the other group. If we hurry then we might be able to meet them."

"....Yes."

Kaelion nodded his head before looking back.

Leon stared at him for a brief moment before looking towards Evelyn.

"Let's go."

"Okay."

The group headed deeper into the cave system.

<nulli>Tak, tak, tak!

The only sound they could hear was the rushed sound of their steps as the passage grew darker the deeper they went in. Thankfully, a few cadets were adept at [Fire] magic and were able to illuminate the path forward.

It was quiet, and their path was fairly unobstructed.

"Ah, look!"

Halfway through their march, they noticed black liquid staining the ground.

Leon rushed forward to take a look.

"....It seems like we're not too far off from the other team."

The liquid was fresh, he could feel it.

Leon didn't waste a second and beckoned everyone with their hand.

"Let's go."

He hurried his steps and rushed forward.

"Look!"

Along the way, he'd spot missing limbs and heads. Leon looked at the scene with cold eyes before picking up the pace.

His heart dropped as he moved forward.

<nulli>'I recognize those faces.'

There were several that belonged to people he knew. Still, he wasn't too worried. Everyone had the vials on their arms.

With it, they could still revive.

<nulli>'Right, the blood.'

Leon looked at it.

.....He knew what the blood was, and yet, he didn't know the reason why the Archbishop gave them something so precious.

He had a bad feeling about the blood, and for that reason, acted rather cautiously.

Leon was afraid that it was part of the scheme made by the Archbishop.

<nulli>Clank!

"Ukh!"

In the distance, Leon heard the sound of metal clashing and a subtle groan.

<nulli>Thump!

The ground cracked under his step as he picked up the speed.

"Fuck! H-help me out! I'm struggling!"

"I'm b-busy!"

"Fuck that. Drop y-your shit and help me!"

"Stupid!"

"Kek. I-iss that your best insult?"

Leon soon arrived before the source of the sound, and he stopped to see Kiera and Aoife encircled by over a dozen figures.

<nulli>Clank, clank!

It was just the two of them, and their entire bodies were riddled with cuts and bruises.

They were on the verge of losing.

Leon's eyes quickly darted to look at the surroundings. He took all the information in before extending his right hand where a sword appeared. A white glow manifested over the sword as the mana around him suddenly grew dense.

It all happened in less than a second, and as he gathered enough mana, he shouted.

"Duck!"

"Uh?!"

"W-what?"

Aoife and Kiera were startled by his shout.

Nonetheless. they did as he shouted, and immediately ducked down.

Swoosh!

That was when a powerful wave of mana swept the air.

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

And they heard the sound of multiple bodies falling.

In shock, Kiera and Aoife looked up to see several bodies scattered before their very eyes.

"This!"

"Holy shit."

"Haaa.... Haaa...."

Thump!

Falling on one knee, Leon just barely managed to keep himself upright as sweat trickled down the side of his face.

That move had taken every little bit of his mana as he felt that his lungs were on fire.

Nonetheless, he had succeeded.

He had managed to help them in the nick of time.

"Leon."

"....What happened here?"

It was also then that the others caught up and looked at the scene with dumbfounded looks.

Leon barely managed to turn his head as he forced a laugh.

"S-since we don't have much time, I decided to go hard from the start. Don't mind it. I just"

His words were suddenly cut short by a sharp pain in his neck.

Uh?

Suddenly, he felt himself lose control of his body and the world turned upside down. In the last moments, he managed to catch a glimpse of one person.

He seemed to be looking at him with cold eyes.

<nulli>'Kaelion?'

Leon's consciousness faded before he could understand what had happened.

Thump!

And his body fell shortly after.

The entire place froze as all eyes fell on Kaelion.

But before anyone could process what was happening, a sharp clapping sound echoed from the distance.

<nulli>Clap, clap!

The sound sent chills down the spines of everyone present as a man slowly stepped out from the shadows, his muddled white eyes gleaming ominously.

His gaze locked onto Kaelion's.

"....You did well."