Chapter 35: Shadow of Eternity (4)


    Even in the prosperous city of Hubris, the capital of Agnes, darkness lurked. Slums hugged the city outskirts like a shroud.


    Usually, Hubris was safe. Yet, in these slums, people vanished daily, unnoticed.


    At the eastern edge of this area, the Spirit Corps'' 6th Squadron, Egrasia, was closing in on an outpost of the ''Eternal Shadows.''


    Roar!


    Perhaps they thought their enemies were trapped, with no chance to flee.


    Many spirits manifested around the approaching 6th Squadron, each disying their unique powers.


    "Wipe them out."


    The icymand dropped from Degs, the squad''s captain. As his team bristled with murderous intent, ready to storm the outpost...


    "It''s a shame there aren''t more of you."


    A voice echoed from above, beautiful yet eerie.


    "…!"


    Taken aback, the squad members stopped their advance and looked upward. There had been no sign of anyone else around.


    Creak!


    Suddenly, a beast emerged from thin air and chomped down on the head of one of the surprised soldiers.


    Squelch! Squelch!


    A ghastly sound echoed from within the creature''s mouth.


    As if in slow motion, the decapitated body toppled towards the ground. Behind it, Degs and his team finally saw her.


    A woman with glowing red eyes and a blood-red smile: Liushina.


    "Not enough to sate my hunger."


    Looking at the stunned squad, Liushina voiced her disappointment.


    "Who are you?"


    Degs managed to ask, still grappling with the sudden turn of events.


    "Hmm, does it matter?"


    "What…?"


    "You''ll all die here anyway. So, why bother with introductions?"


    Liushina spoke with unwavering certainty, as if foreseeing an inevitable future.


    "How dare you…."


    Degs'' eyes zed with anger at her audacity. Who could speak so casually of killing the Spirit Corps?


    Yet, he quickly quelled his rage. Duty superseded personal feelings.


    "We attack together, deal with her quickly, then enter the building."


    Normally, such a instruction might wound the squad''s pride. Now, however, speed mattered more than anything.


    With a shared understanding of Degs''s intent, the teamunched a united attack on Liushina.


    Crashhh!


    Water spikes, lightning spears, and wind storms, each formidable enough to demolish a building, rained down on Liushina, triggering a colossal explosion.


    ''Was she able to kill the other member because she surprised us?''


    Degs pondered this as he observed the unfolding scene.


    Before the explosion, he''d seen Liushina absorb their attacks without evading or shielding herself.


    "She''s not as tough as I thought."


    Even a superhuman would struggle to withstand such a brutal onught.


    Just as Degs was about to dismiss her...


    Kaboom!


    Dust rose from the explosion site.


    Something shot from the dust cloud, instantly obliterating a squad member standing beside Degs.


    The object was a monstrous arm, made of entwined beast heads.


    "…!"


    Degs gaped at the grisly sight.


    Roaaar!


    The beast heads that formed the arm scattered, wreaking havoc on the nearby squad members.


    "Aghhh!"


    Even as Degs summoned additional spirits for defense, the beast heads ripped through them, crushing the soldiers'' hearts and heads in an instant.


    "Your banter is quite annoying."


    Liushina, her grotesque right arm extended, emerged from the settling dust.


    Despite bearing the brunt of their attacks, she was unscathed, her clothes the only casualty.


    Liushina''s eyes gleamed with delight at the mayhem she had instigated.


    Could this be the end?


    Squeak!


    Dozens of red eyes sprouted over Liushina''s body,ying im to everything in sight.


    The Petrifying Demon Eyes.


    "Ahhh… I, I can''t move... Ahhh!"


    Caught in their gaze, the soldiers were rendered immobile, helpless against the onught of beast heads and blood-red tentacles.


    "How, how can this be...."


    Degs watched in stunned silence.


    The Spirit Corps, Egrasia, reputedly the empire''s strongest force, was being decimated without any resistance.


    It was a surreal nightmare ying out before his very eyes.


    ''We''re headed for total destruction.''


    No, they were already on the brink of it.


    Roaaar!


    Was it because he couldn''t bear to watch any longer?


    An unprecedented surge of power radiated from Degs, breaking the paralyzing bond.


    With this power, a storm erupted around him.


    It was an advanced level of spirit power he rarely tapped into, as its use would require months of recovery - a realm he wasn''t yet equipped to handle.


    But there was no room for such considerations now.


    ''I''ll end this in one go!''


    Storm Spear of Sylphid.


    Whoosh!


    Degs''s storm spear, driven by ast-ditch desperation, tore through the multiple beast heads in its path.


    The spear sliced through the air, unresisted, obliterating Liushina''s upper body before disappearing into the distance.


    ----------!


    Space distorted in the wake of the spear, creating atmospheric fluctuations.


    It was a truly monstrous strike, fueled by the power of a high-grade spirit.


    "Is she... gone?"


    Degs murmured, staring nkly at the space where Liushina''s upper body had once been.


    And there was relief in his gaze.


    No human could survive such a devastating blow.


    "Haha, hahaha......"


    Degs copsed, hisughter echoing hollowly in the silence, a grim testament to the decimation of his squad.


    "Only one survivor."


    A chilling voice sounded from behind him.


    "......!"


    Degs whipped around to find...


    "It''s such a shame."


    Creak!


    Liushina, her upper body regenerated as if time itself had been rewound.


    "A, ahh......"


    Despair seeped into Degs''s eyes.


    Liushina, restored to her original form, advanced slowly.


    Thud, thud.


    She reveled in the moment of transition from hope to despair.


    The thrill of witnessing the despair in her victims'' eyes, the realization that their hope was futile all along, was intoxicating.


    Perhaps that''s why she couldn''t resist indulging.


    "Well then, I''ll savor this."


    Just as Liushina loomed over Degs, a sinister smile on her lips...


    Crunch!


    A monstrous head erupted from her body, devouring Degs whole.


    ---


    Raei Trantions


    ---


    If there was one indulgence Zion enjoyed in the world within the Frosimar Chronicles, it was coffee.


    A beverage non-existent in his original world.


    Zion savored the ritual of contemting his thoughts over ck coffee, unsweetened.


    "..."


    Had Thierry, the ''Shadow of Eternity''s'' leader sitting across him, discovered Zion''s fondness?


    She waited patiently for Zion to initiate the conversation.


    How much time passed, apanied by the subtle aroma of coffee permeating the study?


    Creak!


    The study door opened and in walked Liushina.


    "Added another minion to our ranks?"


    With a sly smile directed at Thierry, Liushina dropped casually into one of the study''s chairs.


    ''That''s the woman...''


    Thierry, already briefed by Zion about Liushina, studied her with a keen gaze.


    "How did the assignment fare?"


    Zion, setting his teacup down, questioned Liushina.


    "I''ve wiped them out, just as you requested. But, Master...does that really make sense?"


    Liushina, appearing dissatisfied with the shortage of her victims, licked her lips and responded with a puzzled look.


    Zion had entrusted her with two tasks.


    Firstly, to unleash her power fully and eradicate every single member of Diana Agnes'' forces without exception.


    Secondly, to subtly leave traces of magic at the scene, including the summoning ritual, that would go unnoticed.


    Honestly, Liushina had her doubts about whether the enemy would be fooled by such traces.


    It felt like openly confessing to her crimes and then carefully hiding a speck of evidence.


    "Diana Agnes is a suspicious character."


    Zion, however, was confident that the Princess would fall into their trap.


    "She distrusts what she sees and constantly looks for hiddenyers."


    This trait made her an easy prey.


    Those who perceive themselves as clever tend to trust only their judgment and disregard others.


    Zion was confident that Diana would discover the traces he had cunningly concealed.


    Traces so brilliantly camouged that none but Diana could unearth them.


    Once she located them, Diana would be fixated on these hints, and from that point onward, she would focus more on the hidden 1% deceit than the 99% truth in in sight.


    "So, the trail will lead to the Third Prince, correct?"


    Thierry, who seemed to grasp Zion''s strategy, twinkled her eyes and asked.


    "Correct."


    Zion nodded, cradling his teacup.


    The strained rtionship between the Third Prince, Enoch Agnes, and the Fifth Princess, Diana Agnes, wasmon knowledge.


    So, if any connection to the Third Prince could be established, Diana''s reasoning might be further clouded.


    Zion had another objective in mind.


    ''This wille in handy when I eliminate the Third Prince in the future.''


    At present, his direct adversary within the royal household was the Third Prince, Enoch.


    Enoch, Zion''s own brother, who had relentlessly dispatched assassins against him and even manipted the session ceremony to bring about his demise.


    As such, Zion had resolved to first eliminate Enoch, intending to employ Diana for this purpose.


    Today''s events would serve as the foundation when he decided to manipte the Fifth Princess in the future.


    Having streamlined his thoughts, Zion took another sip of his coffee, then turned to Fredo standing nearby.


    "Who prepared this coffee?"


    "Huh? A new servant assigned to the Chimseong Pce, um, did you detect any poison...!"


    Fredo sprang to his feet, rmed at Zion''s question.


    "The taste isn''t quite up to par."


    "..."


    Fredo paused, then responded.


    "I''ll prepare another one at once."


    At Fredo''s statement, Zion responded with a nod.


    As he had mused before, the simple pleasure of coffee was one of the few he had discovered since his arrival in this world, So, it mattered considerably.


    ''Could it be another spy amongst the newly assigned servants?''


    Zion spected, observing Fredo''s retreating form.


    If these servants had been ced here at such a crucial time, the likelihood was substantial.


    Their very existence indicated that the other royals were starting to take note of Zion himself.


    An acknowledgement that Zion found rather satisfying.


    "I''ll conduct a thorough investigation into the backgrounds of the servants who''ve recently joined the staff at Chimseong Pce."


    Thierry voiced out, as though she had tapped into Zion''s thoughts.


    Zion gave a subtle nod.


    ''Truly, it matters little who they are.''


    Regardless of their identity or their power, it held no significance.


    Anyone who obstructed his path would simply be crushed, and he would seize what he desired.


    Mulling over this, Zion set down the coffee cup he had been clutching.


    ***


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