Regnum Aetern: Dual Rebirth

Chapter 123: Apeiron

In a world with no sun or moon, the stars were the only source of illumination in the eternal dark sky.

Down below, no land existed anywhere. All that covered the surface of the world was water. A sea stretching out as far as one’s eyes could see, giving the illusion of stretching infinitely towards the horizon.

But it didn’t look ordinary.

The sea—it was glowing with an ethereal blue glow. The glow was the only thing that illuminated the surface of the dark world. The sea’s surface was completely still and calm, like the surface of an untouched lake.

The sea looked like something out of myths or divine legends, as if something like this couldn’t possibly exist in reality.

And in the calm stillness of the glowing water’s surface, a single ripple spread.

That was the start.

One after another, ripples began appearing on the sea’s calm surface everywhere, growing in size with each passing moment. Soon, the surface of the sea appeared as though it were boiling.

Waves rose one after another, producing roars that echoed in the dark, empty world.

And then, a small island slowly rose to the surface, becoming the first piece of land in the world with only water.

The island’s soil looked barren and lifeless, with no weeds or grass. But in the middle of the barren land, a sapling slowly sprouted, a sapling with ash-colored leaves.

And thus, life was born in the dark world.

But the surface of the sea showed no signs of calming down. Larger and larger waves rose and crashed down, filling the world with the deafening sound of their roars.

It was as though a storm were coming.

***

Evangeline forgot to breathe as she saw the assassin raise his magma sword, moments away from striking Adrian down. This was the moment the realization hit her.

Adrian was going to die, and it would be her turn next.

The thought of using Vox Imperium briefly flashed in her mind, but it disappeared moments later. If the target of the command were stronger than her, her mana would be drained at a rapid speed.

She wouldn’t be able to stop the man for more than a second. Which was why she had been saving it to create a brief opening when the opportunity presented itself. But the assassin was so strong that she hadn’t found such an opportunity until now.

Lying on the ground, Evangeline could only watch helplessly.

’No! Adi...’

But that was the moment when she suddenly felt goosebumps all over her body.

Moments later, a tyrannical pressure—something she had never experienced before—crashed onto her from above, pinning her to the ground with its sheer force.

"-Ugh!"

The assassin’s eyes widened, and he suddenly jumped back to create distance.

"What-?!"

Evangeline released her mana, making her own presence larger, trying to push back the pressure pinning her down. It was an action that she performed instinctively. But the pressure was too tyrannical for her to push back. Still, she could lessen it just enough to barely stand back up.

She turned to Adrian but froze the moment she laid eyes on him.

’What... is this...’

Adrian—who never had a presence from the moment she first saw him—was enveloped in a bluish aura. And that aura...

Her eyes widened in shock.

That aura was massive. A bluish aura the size of a mountain was enveloping him, rising towards the sky. The bluish aura was so thick and dense that she felt even normal people would be able to see it. The ground beneath his feet was cracking under pressure, creating a small crater where he stood.

With all this happening around him, Adrian stood motionless, looking at himself blankly. He was still expressionless, but to Evangeline, he somehow appeared confused.

Moreover, his skin now looked extremely pale, so much so that he looked sick. The ends of his deep, jet-black hair were slowly turning ash-colored, and his grey eyes were now glowing with a blue glow.

The assassin’s smile had long vanished from his face, and he now looked completely on guard, pointing his magma sword at Adrian.

"You little shit! The hell did you do?! How is so much mana coming out of your damn body?!"

His shout seemed to have brought Adrian out of his confusion, prompting him to turn to the assassin.

They could see sweat forming on the assassin’s forehead as he gritted his teeth.

Then suddenly, he turned to look behind him and shouted towards the maze of trees.

"Hey! Something strange is going on here! I don’t think I can deal with this on my own; I need backup. You have to go and inform them quickly while I somehow stall this little shit!"

Evangeline turned to look in the direction he was shouting and saw a young man wearing a black half-coat with a white shirt underneath, similar to the uniform of servants.

They were so focused on the assassin that they didn’t think someone else could also be present here.

The young man quickly took a scroll out of his coat and began channeling mana into it, causing the scroll to start glowing.

Evangeline’s eyes widened as she understood what he was doing.

’He is going to teleport himself back and return with more people!’

She didn’t have a clue what was happening and why Adrian’s body was releasing so much mana, but she knew that something had changed about the hopeless situation they were in.

But if that person were to teleport away at this moment, then this new hope would also be lost.

’No! I can’t let that happen; I have to stop him!’

But he was too far away for any of her attacks to reach him. So she decided to use the card that she had been saving for so long.

Vox Imperium.

She opened her mouth and designated the young man as the target of command in her mind. Then she shouted with everything she had.

⪡"Stop! I command you to stop!"⪢

Her shout echoed through the area, causing an invisible ripple to spread. And just as she had commanded, the young man seized all movement, as if turning into a statue. The scroll’s glow also stopped increasing, as if coming to a pause.

She felt the drain on her mana reserves, but it was a lot less than she had expected, which meant that the young man was weaker than her—only a Phase One.

’But this isn’t enough yet.’

Gritting her teeth, Evangeline turned to Adrian and shouted in desperation.

"Adi, stop him quickly—

But...

—Uh?"

Adrian was nowhere to be seen. As if he had disappeared from the spot. And in the next second—

"Gaah!"

—She heard a man’s scream from the same direction where the young man had been, prompting her to turn her head in that direction.

But as she did, she saw something get flung into the air. It took her a moment to realize that it was the young man’s head, causing her to freeze. Moments later, his headless body fell to the ground with a fountain of blood spurting out from the neck.

She saw Adrian standing next to the man’s headless body, gripping his sword in one hand. She didn’t know how or when he got there.

It was as if... he had teleported.

Moreover...

’Lightning?’

His sword was covered in spars of lightning.