Chapter 1043: Elyndor
The journey towards Elyndor was... not quite what Alice had expected. After everything she had heard regarding its current state, she expected to see signs of destruction the closer they were to the Capital.
Destroyed roads, refugees, corpses strewn around and perhaps even irreparable landscape damage.
Yet... the closer they were to Elyndor, the stranger the situation became.
No signs of damage, no death. No fear. There were even patrols giving them greetings as they passed.
It’s as though the Nightmare didn’t even exist.
But that wasn’t the case as Alice could still clearly sense it in the air.
The Nightmare was around them but...
It was being blocked off?
Alice furrowed her brows.
No, that wasn’t accurate. If the Nightmare was blocked off, Alice wouldn’t even be able to sense it’s presence.
Instead... it felt more like they were acknowledging each other and not making a move.
However, that only brought forth the question of why.
Why was the capital untouched? Why are they doing nothing even thought they’re not being held back?
Or was the people in the capital kept unaware of the chaos happening in their surroundings.
"It’s like they’re completely blind. Living everyday in ignorant bliss." Elias mumbled with a slight frown.
He wasn’t quite used to this voice. In his mind, the moment he spoke, a deep voice should echo out yet it was the exact opposite.
Regardless, now was not the time for him to be bothered about his current appearance when strange things were happening.
"I suppose it’s better than living every day in fear. We’ll have to be careful with what we say. It’s already obvious that we’re outsiders so we don’t need to make the situation worse than it already is." Alice yawned as the two of them approached the city gates.
Tilting her head back, Alice stared at the tower reaching towards the heavens. It’s hard to say where the tower ended. Even with her eyesight, she couldn’t see the top from down here.
There was a security check but it was... surprisingly lax. As though they weren’t in the middle of a crisis. All the guards required was the reason for coming here along with some ID.
Following what the people in front of her said, they got through without any issues.
By this point, even Lab was concerned.
Something was definitely off.
As they stepped through the gates, the city finally revealed itself in all its glory.
Everything here was built with white marble and gold details. Gardens could be seen lining the upper districts while water ways cut through the streets. Clear blue water reflected the sunlight as even the clouds could be seen.
The people around them walked without care. Alice closed her eyes and tried to sense the Nightmare energy but... it was blocked off from entering the city. In here, there was only holy and Abyssal energy.
[Considering the fact that Extalia is technically a territory of the Moon, it’s not surprising that there are barriers created by Lumiria in this place. The question is what purpose do they serve.] Cayla folded her arms.
Alice nodded her head as the group continued through the city.
The closer they got to the tower, the more unnerved Alice felt. It wasn’t the kind of feeling she got when it came to danger or hostility. It’s not the same kind of uncanny discomfort as the one she felt when seeing the Hybrids.
This was something else. Something new.
She glanced up at the tower once more.
It felt like something that fundamentally should not exist within this world. Within this realm.
Like seeing a splash of colour in an otherwise monochromatic black and white painting, this tower stood out like a sore thumb.
Citizens walked without noticing this strangeness. Perhaps it’s because they’re used to it. But for Alice? A part of her wanted to leave immediately.
Walking past a building, Alice traced her fingers along the wall and brought it up to her face.
Her brows creased before making her way to the next building.
Neither Lab nor Elias knew what Alice was doing as the two of them simply glanced at one another.
###
Sitting on a balcony, a man suddenly lifted his head and closed the book in his hands.
"Ruri, must you climb up the side of the tower?" He chuckled, resting his cheek on his hand while glancing to his left.
A pair of hands grabbed the railing as a young girl could be seen pulling herself up and over.
"How else am I supposed to find you without others knowing?" Ruri Extalia lifted two fingers into a victory sign before throwing herself onto a chair.
Giving her body a good stretch, she started to toss and turn before ending up upside down.
Glancing at her brother, her smile widened.
"You felt it too right?" She asked as he nodded his head.
"It’s hard not to notice when such a potent source of Abyssal energy starts leaving traces behind." Damien placed his book off to the side. Dragging his hand through his hair, he glanced towards the city.
"Are you going to take care of it? You should remember that mother told you not to cause a scene this time." He asked as Ruri tapped her chin.
She kicked her legs back and forth while still remaining upside down.
"How long does ’this time’ even last. I’ve been on my best behaviour for a week now." Ruri pouted as she started to kick the wall.
"It lasts as long as mother says so. She’s let you do whatever you want for quite some time now after all. But now that things have turned serious, you need to learn how to behave as well." Damien chuckled, giving his body a stretch.
"Unless you want to join her for the meeting with those who worship the Moon."
At the mention of the Moon, Ruri pulled a face of disgust and pretended to throw up.
"Blergh, don’t wanna. Honestly, how can they even walk around when they’re nothing but husks at this point." She pursed her lips, rolling backwards and standing up straight.
"Seriously, why do we still act kind to them?"
She couldn’t understand it. The crimes of the Moon were pretty obvious once you look a little deeper. Lumiria wasn’t someone to hide her sins so long as her amusement was fulfilled.
Sure, she’ll keep up some level of passiveness but it wasn’t a very hard veil to look past. Take for example the countless souls she’s eaten over the years.
When so many people have gone missing, especially at orphanages, one can’t help but question what’s going on.
"Because acting kind and pacifying them is the best way to keep them from freaking out. There’s already a bunch of issues surrounding the Sun and the Eclipse. Do you seriously want all three to be running amok?" Damien smiled helplessly, walking away from the balcony.
Ruri twirled her hair before shrugging.
She may like to cause trouble but that did sound like it was a little ’too’ chaotic. Even for her.
What use was it to play around in the ’garden’ when everything is on fire? She wanted to watch fireworks happen not get engulfed by them.
"There are two? No... More than that. One of them has three souls attached to them on a deeper level." Damien mumbled.
"Are they part of the Moon?"
"I doubt it. There’s... Holy energy in their body but it’s not gentle like the Moon." Damien shook his head.
Lifting his finger, a mote of light appeared on his fingertip as he drew a halo and broke it in half.
After a slight pause, a ripple appeared in the air as a chunk of marble appeared in his hand.
The very same chunk that Alice had touched earlier.
"Geh-, is it safe?" Ruri let out a weird sound as she hadn’t expected her brother to be so callous. The new arrival had just touched the marble and he’s already removed it from the building.
At this point, she wouldn’t be surprised if the other person had already noticed.
"Safe? Who knows. Let’s see... Three? No. There’s... five? How do they even walk around?" Damien narrowed his eyes.
Snapping his finger, the spot Alice touched started to glow as he tossed it to the other side of the room.
*BANG!!!
Erupting with a myriad of colours, five distinct forms took shape. First was a strange mass of darkness. Within it, Damien could sense countless souls being attached in a manner similar to how the Moon operated. But at the same time, different.
The restraints weren’t the same.
The second was one that reflected a cosmic sea. Wonderous and filled with starlight, a Void that stretched on endlessly.
Third was holy. Radiant and awe inspiring. A type of power that forced those with weak wills to kneel in its presence.
Fourth was a disgusting, mutated shadow. Eldritch in nature and disgusting to be around. Yet strangely... it was tame in this moment.
Completely under control.
Then the fifth. Calling it the fifth wasn’t quite accurate as it was more so a transformed variant of the Void.
However, it was distinct enough for him to classify it as a fifth kind of energy.
"Woah... that’s the most we’ve seen so far right?" Ruri gasped in shock.
They’ve seen people with two types of energy in their body before. Especially those who are part of a religion or those who gained powers from the Void.
Rarely would there be people with three sources as doing so made their vessels exceedingly unstable. A kind of action that would doom them to mediocrity or explode in a brilliant burst of energy.
The only recent exception would be the Nightmare energy as it was strangely compatible so long as you follow its rules.
But the person who’s entered the city had five sources in their body.
Damien folded his arms.
As for Ruri...
Before Damien could even say anything, Ruri had already thrown herself out of the window, causing him to sigh.
Flicking his fingers, the energy disappeared as he left the room. He had to inform his father and mother of the new arrival.
