Moments ago, near the castle gates where the white lotus blossomed, Lythria looked around as the members of Kerin's group approached her. The talkative girl, Revel, asked with a hint of anger, "You were this powerful....?"
"Then, earlier, why did that strange knight get you so bad?" She took a step ahead.
"Why? Because of you, Kerin had to..."
A hand gripped her hand.It was Temur's hand."Let it be Revel.Now is not the time."She was stopped from further questioning by Temur.
Lythria was thinking about something else. She felt a resonance earlier and a sudden loss. As if something happened to the great mystic tree in Mythria.
She suddenly heard the question as she nodded absentmindedly. She found that Revel was looking at her with a look of anger. Temur asked holding Revel, "What happened to Knight John? Why did he stab Knight Symon ?"
She shook her head as she looked back at the giant cross and the blooming lotus at its feet.Her white clothing was a stark contrast to this atmosphere while the condition of her clothes matched with the atmosphere.
"I don't know...But I felt a very dangerous aura from him. Somehow, John changed."
"My lotus won't hold him for very long. Actually, I have an inkling about this phenomenon."
She suddenly became serious as her eyes scanned Temur briefly before saying,"Knight Eleana and your commander, Clayren, along with princess Eryssa, can probably deal with him."
"You guys should stay far away"
Temur nodded as he took Revel and others away.
She looked at them as she sighed, "Girl, it's better you don't know why I did not fight at full power with that knight. "
She looked at the gentle lotus emitting light across the battlefield. The giant cross with the huge human was still there. But something seemed off. She realised something. Was it a duplicate?
"The book that my mother gave me had its description as one of the foremost weapons of the Headless Church...Its arrival causes an endless influx of strange creatures..."
"While there was an influx, it vanished completely now..."
Suddenly, she shivered. She looked in the direction where Rylagh was as she uttered dazed,
"This ....this is one of our four great arts...."
"Father...."
The sky illuminated briefly as Lythria's hands were trembling slightly as she muttered, a bit dazed, "Why...why would he be there...."
"They should have arrived here directly and stop the ritual. How could they have been transferred that far. "
Her pupils dilated as she imagined the consequences. The resonance I felt earlier...does that mean Father used that forbidden move? Why?
For Whom? Don't tell me, Mother is also here?
Did that cause harm to the Great Mystic Tree?
A memory from long ago resurfaced in her mind.
...
A small girl was playing with her dolls as a man smiled nearby. The man was none other than Rylagh.
"Father? What is the origin of our world?" asked the cute young girl as she played with a ball that had different kinds of strange titles and drawings.
A man suddenly shook his head as he said, briefly producing a gentle butterfly. "It's world energy...my daughter..."
"It's pretty father."
"Everything is based on nature's world energy..."
"World energy...."
"We also..."
"Yes, my little girl...but we are highly evolved forms .....your mother will make you study them once you grow up..." said Rylagh, petting her on her head.
"Father..but but I can think you can think...how do we get that..."
Rylagh's pupils dimmed as he shook his head, "My daughter is so smart...I don't know....daughter...it might be the creator's power..."
Lythria seemed lost as she pointed, "Father, the butterfly vanished...why ?"
She started crying....
"Don't cry, dear ....it vanished because of the poem."
"poem?"
"Yes...."
"Your mother will recite to you sometime....haha."
"ok father but big sis said you are so powerful...you can stop time....then can't you stop the butterfly from vanishing..."
Rylagh laughed, "Yes, father is very powerful."
"But someone else suffers and might die if father tries to interfere with order..."
Do you know what that is called?"
"What father...?"
Rylagh made another two butterflies as he muttered, "Wisdom butterfly effect."
.....
What was that poem again? I really forgot....
"But that means Father really performed Reality alter. This .....means paths will diverge."
thought Lythria.
"Oh Father !"she murmured.
She shook her head as she clasped her cheeks. He should be fine. I should care about my duty.
She found something strange as she muttered.
"Why is that knight Rio behaving strangely....as though he accomplished something...."
"Something is wrong ... all the golden knights are clenching their hands..."
"Don't tell me ..."
"They were under control of that rumored madwoman all this time."
...
At the same time a young man was finally able to think.
I....I can move...finally.....A burst of thoughts emerged to a person as tears fell through his eyes....something ..something, just happened to that pupeeteer...
"Eleana, I can finally apologise to you."
The young man had a radiant golden armor with a long spear, and his silver hair flowed like water.
He was none other than Rio, one of the strongest golden knights . He was a special one. It was him who had saved Eric, the dead price once from the Breavan's hidden warfront.
"At last. At last I am free..."
"He looked around as he wondered ....But what is this going on..."
"Are the Golden Knights also breaking from the spell?"
He looked behind.
He sighed in relief as he found that yes, they were also breaking out of the spell, which was evident from their clenching their hands.
"Let them break free completely."
His eyes wandered to the top of the castle as he wondered, "Just who did that?"
He shook his head as he murmered, "Some things are not coming to mind."
He gritted his teeth as he wondered, "That mad King or that pupeeteeer ."
"We should get rid of that strange cross first. Then I will go upwards."
"Eleana should be there."
He looked around as he gazed at Simon lying on Sethsi's hands as he wondered dazed, "Why ..why did John stab that guy... and why are Sethsi and other Breavan knights here?"
He suddenly spat as he thought, "That mad ruler, just what was he doing...?"
"The lotus that is surrounding John...was it cast by her"....he looked in a direction. It's the same girl who was punished by that demoness woman.
From her dressing and features she seems to come from that sacred land of Mythria.
He then looked in the other direction. That bandaged girl... is her....that he had a meeting with ...wait, who was that again?
He shook his head as he wondered looking at Marvis, "why is Marvis' expression so ugly..."
He was overwhelmed by the events.
Suddenly, his eyes contracted as he shouted, "Watch out, Sethsi...."
....
As Sethsi slowly took hold of Symon's body, a shout emerged from the golden Knight Rio.
She suddenly disappeared from there as she was ten steps behind with Symon in her clasp.
She breathed hard as she murmured,"Step dodge is hard with two person."
She looked back at where she was. Rio was there. There was a sound.
Clang.
Marvis looked at the leader of the Golden Knights as he uttered, "So Rio, can talk, huh..."
Rio looked at him, and then there was another sharp clinging sound.
Rio was standing beside the lotus, blocking a sword from another person. It was less a sword more a stick that could transform into a sword. Trenched in coat with a strange glass and a hat the man whispered, "Oh my.. Rio..."
"Marvelous..."
Rio gritted his teeth as he snapped striking the man, "Old man so this huge cross is your doing..."
The old man smiled as he pushed with his sword, and Rio landed a few feet away.
"As I thought, this really was just a duplicate," thought Lythria. "It's probably a replica or this old man is a member of the Headless Church."
Marvis held his two swords strangely. He said, "So it's you. Royal counsellor. "
"I have so many questions that it could make a book."
"From the start of this battle till now."
"I don't even know if I am feeling sad or what."
"You might be the perpetrator behind . Do you not fear the king?"
"Or is it..?"
The old man put a finger to his mouth as he said,"Shush!"
"Face my blade.."
Marvis literally turned into a spinning blade as he uttered, "Razor Spin."
The old man smiled as he dodged Marvis's spinning attack by a hair's breadth.
Rio suddenly thrusted his spear as he uttered,"Blank Thrust..."
There was a bang .As the surroundings cleared people noticed, the old man was standing as usual.
He had one of his hands on his hat and the other on his stick.
He cleared his throat as he clapped ,"Wonderful. You guys are the future of Drudar."
"Unfortunately,that future doesn't exist."
Both Rio and Marvis pushed themselves to the limit as Rio unleashed a staggering spin attack.
Marvis, as though becoming a spinning top, attacked the man, who dodged at impossible speeds and accuracy every time, just tapping his hat and smiling.
Everyone was dumbfounded.
The man suddenly vanished as Rhaelle moaned, "Geezer, why are you disappearing now...Face us."
He had prepared to attack but the old man vanished.
The old man reappeared at some distance away, and he gently smiled as he introduced himself.
Looking at everyone, he smiled, pulling his hat and giving a bow, "Ladies and gentlemen, I am Sebastian, at your service. You might know me as the counsellor of Drudar. Sorry the previous counsellor."
"Anyway, I am here to perform Drudar's special Magic show that happens once in a millennia. The magic show starts now."
Rio raised his sword as, at the same time, the armor of all golden knights began to fall from their heads, and all raised their swords suddenly.
Rio looked back to see them raising their weapons as they chimed, "We are free...we are free..."
"We will protect the kingdom..."
"We will save everyone."
As they started to race towards Sebastian.They stopped near Rio.
Everyone was stunned. Marvis's eyes were deepened as he repeated, "What do you all mean you are free now?"
The golden knights surrounded Rio as they uttered,"Captain we don't remember lots of things."
"What happened here?"
Rio said in a loud voice,"First off we will hold that discussion off. That man Sebastian is our enemy."
"Go attack him."
"But leader that man is the counsellor."
Another chimed in,"Our boss is Rio. Whatever he commands we will follow."
He with his sword was walking towards Sebastian.
"Rio, take care of this."
Rio nodded as Marvis uttered, "Anyway about John..."
Marvis looked at the blue mage healing the princess as he walked towards them. He wanted answers.
Meanwhile, Sethsi gently carried the man in her arms towards a distant blue medic.
Rhaelle stopped in his tracks as he surveyed the golden knights, "Have they lost their minds?"
"Why are they saying they got freedom back..."
There was lot of chaos within the golden knights as some went ahead. Some questioned Rio and others speculated.
"Why is the castle burning?" one asked
"Is that the cross from headless church ? "
"What is that giant lotus?"
"We don't have time for questions. Move," said Rio
"We will discuss later."
"It's just one man leader. How much powerful he is .He will soon be captured by us."
The knights nodded as they charged towards the old man.
Suddenly, the strange man again burst out laughing."Free....Hell, you are free..."
"And capturing me.."
He clapped.
"It's just that she might have lost against the old dog of that shitty clan."
"It's not difficult to control mere golden knights... besides."
He looked at the giant cross as it descended further. Suddenly, it became so fast as it descended.
Everyone felt something. Rio shouted, "No....."
Sebastian murmured, "I don't have any reason to keep half-seed puppets. Burn them all."
As though the decree of a king, the cross swayed as a wind flew by. Everyone became stunned.
Lythria took a step back. Rio dropped his spear, and Marvis became stupefied for a second. He looked back as he unleashed a spinning attack with two swords to block that giant descending attack.
Rhalle screamed as he also tore through the space, attacking the descending cross.
Rio moved with bare hands as he caught that giant cross. After a moment, the giant cross shifted to its original position.
The cross stopped landing on the Golden Knights as Marvis said, "It worked..."
Rio said, his tears dropping, "No...look behind.."
Marvis looked back. All the golden knights were burning with golden flames. They didn't shout or cry as though they had become statues.
He became a statue for a second.
Rio spread his hands as he generated winds. Same with the others.
As numerous skills landed on the golden knights based on air and water, the golden flames burned brightly, illuminating the surroundings. Slowly, between the cries, laughter, and sorrow of knights, a feeling started to spread. The golden knights died.
Marvis asked in a low voice, "Why did it happen?"
Rio answered, "It was both a physical and metaphysical attack. Only that geezer knows that."
Everyone was stunned.
Marvis said in somber voice,"After we finish this, you will reveal everything to us.."
Rio said gritting his teeth,"I have to. I am already drenched in too much. But before that...we need to survive."
Lythria suddenly attacked Sebastian. He dodged and moved his sword up as Lythria flew back a far distance, crashing somewhere.
Marvis looked at Lythria as he muttered,"Princess's friend sure is powerful."
Sebastian said with a smile, not even looking back at Lythria, "Thanks, everyone. The first part ends here. It is called setting the stage."
"Now will begin the second part. Showdown."
Rio gritted his teeth as he ran fast and gave a kick to Sebastian. He dodged again and appeared somewhere else.
He looked back at the cross and whispered, "Oy Noelle, come down...deal with these ants ...then you can have your meal...."
"Because at that time your meal will be fully prepared."
The strange cross emitted a beam of light in the darkness as a figure landed slowly, revealing the figure clad in red.
It was her. Noelle. But she was different. Less human, more a weapon.
Nyelle was already here and looking at her sister from the other side, she should have been in rage, but she started crying.
Noelle was very strange from the moment she met Veer. When she controlled Veer briefly and made him fight Rheon.
She had her head alright, but the rest of her body was covered with blood. No, the size of a human. As though some strange kind of animals were added to her body. Behind her back were numerous sword-like, flowing blades that were moving.
Sebastian adjusted his hat as he said, "Go on, my rampaging machine. I need to break the lotus wall."
He slowly moved toward the white lotus as Lythria screamed, "No, don't..."
"Ha ha ha..."
"Breaking things sure is fun...."
He slashed his stick onto the lotus as it gently broke. Gentle light illuminated the dark night. And there was a scream.
It was John who was keeping his hands on his head as he cried, "No, it wasn't me.."
"It can't be me..."
"Correct. It was not me that caused these deaths...."
"I was the one that saved everyone."
Sebastian got near his ear as he spoke, "It was exactly your actions that triggered it, our beloved main character of this novel."
John looked behind and saw all of his friends and enemies starting to fight a single opponent.
Noelle.
"Do you remember now ?"
"Yes it's because of him. Not me."
"Hmm. Who are we talking about...",asked Sebastian
"No, it's not me...It's certainly not me..."
The fight in the background started as Noelle's back attached weapons turned into razor sharped blades and started to attack everyone.
"So then who was it..."asked Sebastian.
"I remember..It was him"said John.
"It's because of him. Veer..... it's all because of you...."
Sebastian laughed as he pointed his sword in a direction as he said, "Then go break him.....make him learn who he is...."
As John looked in that direction, an injured Veer was just coming there carrying a woman over his shoulders.