Chapter 65 — The Pillars of Shadow
The silence that followed Obliranca's question was not a simple absence of sound. It was a presence too intense. A slow, invisible pressure that seeped into every corner of the room, into every breath, into every heartbeat. Seth felt as if the entire world had stopped… waiting for his answer.
An answer he didn't have.
His thoughts clashed against each other without ever forming anything coherent. There was nothing. No answer. Something inside him refused to function properly. This wasn't ordinary fear—he knew that feeling well.
This was deeper.
As if his very existence had just been called into question… and there was nothing he could do about it.
In front of him, Obliranca didn't move. Her deep blue eyes never left him. They weren't just looking at his face… they seemed to pierce through everything he was. Seth felt like he was being dissected without pain, analyzed down to the smallest detail—even parts of himself he didn't know existed.
Then Alexander's voice rose.
— That's enough.
It wasn't an order. Not even a threat.
And yet… something broke instantly.
The air around Seth, which had felt solid, suddenly released. The pressure vanished like a shattered illusion. Seth gasped sharply, as if surfacing from drowning.
Obliranca blinked.
A second passed.
Then, unexpectedly… she smiled.
And laughed.
A soft, almost musical laugh—completely out of place.
— Hahaha… forgive me.
Seth remained frozen, his mind still trying to catch up with what had just happened.
— I… was joking, she added gently.
The word fell flat.
Absurd.
— …Sorry? I almost died… Seth muttered.
— I just wanted to see your reaction.
A pause.
Then, suddenly—
— YOU'RE KIDDING?!
His voice echoed through the room, trembling between anger and shock. He ran a hand across his face, still damp with sweat.
— I thought I was going to die under that pressure!
Alexander let out a quiet sigh, arms crossed.
— You handled it well. Not many people can say that after being stared at like that.
— "Handled it well"?!
Obliranca slowly stepped closer. Seth's body tensed instantly. Instinctively.
— I owe you an apology, she said with a faint smile. My methods can be… a bit direct. But honestly, I like you
Seth didn't respond. He stared at her, unable to decide whether to trust her… or run
Then her expression changed.
Subtly.
But enough to shift the atmosphere.
— Seth.
Her voice had lost all playfulness.
— I'm going to be honest with you
She stopped a few steps away. Not too close. Not too far. A perfectly controlled distance.
— Your presence here isn't normal. At least… not to me.
The words sank into him.
— Your magic… doesn't seem normal either.
Seth clenched his fists slightly
— I can help you.
A beat.
— Let me train you, Seth.
Time seemed to slow.
— …Train me?
— Yes. You don't yet understand what you're capable of. But I can help you control your power. Because if you keep going like this…
She tilted her head slightly.
— It won't be an enemy that kills you, Seth…
Silence.
— It will be you.
A cold shiver ran down his spine. Those words hit too accurately. Too deeply.
He looked away.
— Why me…?
Obliranca didn't answer right away. She studied him.
— Because I can't watch you die.
Seth frowned.
— …What?
— In the future. In the timelines. In the probabilities… I saw your death. I was finally able to look into your mind—to see you in my visions.
Her voice was calm. Too calm.
— You didn't exist in the original future… because you died.
A heavy silence fell.
— By your own hand.
Seth's heart skipped.
He turned to Alexander.
— …You knew?
Alexander met his gaze.
— I had an idea. That's why I brought you here. She's the only one who can help you.
— "An idea"…?
— It doesn't change anything.
Silence.
Then Obliranca continued—
— You don't have to be afraid of me, Seth. I will do everything in my power to help you.
She extended her hand slightly.
— That tragic future you're heading toward… it will never happen. You have my word.
Seth hesitated.
His instincts told him not to trust her.
But another voice… quieter… told him he couldn't stay the way he was.
He looked at Alexander again.
— Do you really think I should accept?
— Yes.
No hesitation.
— She's trustworthy. And I'll be there to assist you.
Seth looked at Obliranca one last time.
Then slowly closed his eyes.
— …Alright.
A small smile appeared on her lips.
Subtle.
Satisfied.
— Excellent choice.
She gently placed her hand on his shoulder. A soothing warmth spread instantly through his body, melting away his tension.
But for a brief moment…
Seth felt something strange.
As if something behind that gesture… was escaping him.
At the same time, in the palace of Dragonil, the calm felt almost unsettling.
Flora was still asleep, motionless. Her peaceful face contrasted sharply with the invisible tensions spreading through the world.
Alma, however, couldn't stay still. She paced, then stopped, staring into the distance without really seeing.
— Damian… you really have no idea where he is? I don't like it when he disappears like this.
Damian, leaning against a column, shrugged slightly.
— No.
— You say that like it doesn't bother you.
— It does.
A pause.
— Just not for the reasons you think.
His gaze darkened.
Alma turned to him.
— What do you mean?
Damian stared into the void for a moment.
— I've got a bad feeling.
The wind drifted softly through the room.
— And I hate being right when I feel like this. I think this will be the last peaceful night.
A tension rose in Alma's chest.
— Do you think it has something to do with Alexander? Honestly… I don't trust him. Ever since we got here, it feels like he's trying to control everything. Same for Vulcan.
— I think everything is connected. This "mission" to protect Flora… it doesn't make sense. Why send beginners to protect a queen when there are dragons far stronger than all three of us combined?
He clenched his jaw slightly.
— He's hiding something. And I'm going to find out what it is.
Alma remained silent, thinking.
In Vulcan's domain, the heat of the bath did nothing to calm him.
He opened his eyes abruptly.
— …Tch.
He ran a hand through his wet hair.
— What is this mess…
The water around him trembled slightly.
— This whole charade…
He inhaled slowly.
— I already know her.
A pause.
— And it never ends well… at least not for them.
His teeth clenched.
— Seth… Obliranca… Flora…
The names echoed in his mind.
— The hostilities can finally begin.
His eyes glowed with a strange red light.
— And I like that.
Far away, in a place untouched by time, Loki fell into a mass of darkness. His landing made no sound, absorbed by a ground that did not react.
He slowly stood up.
Meanwhile, far from any light, far from any known world… in a space where even concepts seemed hesitant to exist—
Something appeared.
Not a tear.
Not an explosion.
Just a dimensional crack.
It broke nothing.
Forced nothing.
It was simply there.
As if it had always existed… but no one had ever been able to perceive it.
Then a figure fell from it.
Silently.
Without speed.
Without impact.
As if the very idea of falling had no meaning here.
Loki remained crouched for a moment, head slightly lowered. Then he rose slowly, as if allowing his body to adjust to something his mind still refused to accept.
Around him…
There was nothing.
Or rather—
Something worse than nothing.
It wasn't an absence of light.
It was an absence of logic.
Shapes floated—or seemed to—without any sense of distance. No up. No down. No direction.
And yet…
He stood.
As if the place accepted his existence… without acknowledging it.
Loki took a slow breath.
Even he—after everything he had seen—felt uneasy.
Not fear.
Not exactly.
But something disturbing enough to unsettle him.
That's when he saw it.
A door.
In front of him.
Or maybe it had always been there.
Hard to tell.
It wasn't normal. Its surface shifted constantly, unable to decide what it was. Symbols appeared, vanished, twisted—impossible to understand.
Loki remained silent.
Then—
— …Still as welcoming as ever.
His voice was low.
But here, even sound didn't behave normally.
No echo.
Nothing.
Silence swallowed it whole.
He stepped forward.
One step.
Then another.
Something felt off.
Not the ground.
Not the air.
The movement.
The space itself took a moment to accept each step.
He stopped.
This time, for real.
His eyes narrowed.
— …
Nothing.
But that "nothing" was too much.
Too heavy.
The longer he stayed, the stronger the feeling became.
This place…
Was observing him.
No.
Recognizing him.
The thought crossed his mind—and stayed.
The door reacted.
Slowly.
Its surface rippled. Symbols shifted… then it opened.
But not normally.
Reality itself split in two.
And beyond it—
There was nothing.
And everything.
An impossible expanse.
A frozen infinity where time had never existed.
Loki didn't move.
For the first time…
He hesitated.
A fraction of a second.
Then a faint smile appeared.
— Tch…
And just like that—
The hesitation vanished.
The moment he crossed the threshold, he never touched the ground.
There was a suspended instant—
Then everything collapsed.
He was pulled downward—or elsewhere—in a direction that didn't exist.
There was no wind.
No gravity.
No destination.
And yet—
He was falling.
The space around him twisted.
Slowly…
Then violently.
And suddenly—
They appeared.
Doors.
A few at first.
Then dozens.
Then hundreds.
Within seconds, they were everywhere—spinning, crossing paths, colliding without ever touching.
Some opened abruptly, revealing fragments of worlds.
Others remained closed, covered in shifting symbols.
One passed close enough to touch.
Another appeared directly in his path.
He went through it.
For a split second—
The world changed.
A burning sky.
Ruins.
Then—
Gone.
The fall resumed.
As if nothing had happened.
Loki adjusted midair, seeking balance…
There was none.
More doors opened.
He stopped avoiding them.
A frozen forest.
A sky filled with eyes.
Each passage lasted an instant, yet lingered like incomplete memories.
The Pandemonium contained… an infinity of worlds.
And still—
He fell.
Endlessly.
Until something changed.
The doors stopped drifting.
They moved with intent.
Toward him.
— …I see.
He didn't slow down.
Then—
One appeared beneath him.
Different.
Larger.
Stable.
It didn't move.
It waited.
And for the first time—
His fall slowed.
Loki stared at it.
The symbols didn't move.
They stared back.
Silence.
A faint smile formed.
— Interesting…
Without hesitation—
He let himself fall straight into it.
No detour.
No test.
The moment he passed through—
Everything stopped.
The doors vanished.
The movement ceased.
Space itself… was cut.
To be continued…