CHAPTER 136: CAPITULO 136: GIFTS OF A DYING WORLD

William returned to the laboratory with heavy steps, his robe billowing behind him. The desolate appearance of his robe contrasted with the fury on William’s face, his fists clenched and a trace of blood trickling from the corners of his mouth.

"Damn it!" he yelled, launching a [compressed fireball] against the reinforced training wall.

The explosion echoed throughout the chamber, but the runes absorbed the energy. Not satisfied, he cast spell after spell: cutting wind, lightning, fire, and water... Everything he had mastered. Everything he hadn’t been able to use to protect his companions. The room began to vibrate as if overloading, having combined all his grey energy, causing an incredible amount of damage.

Panting, but still not completely released, he began to hit the wall with the strength of a knight, burning the last of his mana and grey energy. His explosive muscles slammed like a cannon against the wall. The wall began to vibrate as if it were about to be destroyed until, finally, he fell to his knees, unable to breathe. His hands trembled. He collapsed onto his back, gasping, his face covered in sweat and tears.

"Angel... What can I do now...?"

Her voice was soft, like an icy caress.

"For now, you can’t show too much. If you do, everyone will know you’re hiding something... and they’ll want to take it from you. Don’t forget where you are, William."

William closed his eyes. He felt helplessness eating at his chest. His breathing slowed; for someone who had been able to do anything their whole life, feeling powerless again was a harsh blow he had wanted to forget, but now it returned to him.

"Then I’ll lose everyone if I don’t get stronger..."

Hours later, standing before the polished metal mirror in the laboratory, he made a decision.

"I’ll return to the nightmare world."

He activated the spell. Shadows engulfed him, and he reappeared in the castle. Anubis awaited him in the hallway. Without needing many words, William explained his desire.

"I want to explore more. I can’t keep waiting here... trapped."

Anubis frowned. Then he nodded.

"I’ll go with you."

Both walked along shadowy paths, the skies eternally opaque above them. As they advanced towards the old mansion, Anubis spoke as if to distract him from the weight of the world.

"My family reigned these lands for centuries after the fall of the ancient supreme... we were feared. Respected. But when the fragments arrived... everything changed. Many of our people died without knowing why. And now, what little remains... is what you see."

William listened in silence, until a sensation stopped him cold. He was in front of the hill that housed Lerion’s mansion... but he couldn’t advance.

"Something’s wrong...," he murmured.

He extended his hand and felt an invisible force, a subtle but impenetrable barrier. Anubis imitated him and frowned.

"What... is this?"

Without a word, Anubis gathered mana and launched a brutal energy strike, unleashing a storm of lightning over the hill. The earth shook. Cracks opened. But the barrier didn’t even flinch.

"I’ve never seen this before," Anubis admitted, perplexed.

"There’s something... or someone protecting this place," William said. "I think I know what to do. But I need you to leave, Anubis."

"I can’t leave you alone!"

"I command you!"

Anubis gritted his teeth. Finally, he bowed and disappeared into the shadows.

William approached the invisible edge, fixing his gaze on the mansion.

"Now you won’t let me in? You did before... which can only mean one thing... You’re alive. Show yourself. Who are you?"

As if his words were the key, the barrier trembled. A whispering sound arose from the air, and suddenly, the barrier dissolved. The landscape reappeared: the mansion, now battered, the barn in the background; everything remained the same as the day he left.

William advanced unhurriedly, his heart beating like a war drum. Upon reaching the mansion’s door, he stopped, understanding that he was no longer in his refuge, but now in enemy territory that likely considered him hostile.

Standing before the door, he said nothing; he just stared at it intently until a mist enveloped him and two figures emerged like specters.

A pale, thin woman with large green eyes and a slightly damaged emerald dress. Her face reflected great weakness, but her aura could not be hidden, causing William to tremble as Angel said to him in his mind:

"Retreat, William. Those approaching are so powerful that Anubis seems like a cute little puppy next to them. You must flee right now!"

While Angel screamed, William focused on the man beside her: an elderly man, armless, his face covered in scars. The mist covered his legs, but William knew... he knew they were no longer there.

Upon seeing them, William knew immediately.

"Lerion...," he whispered.

The man made a grimace that seemed a mix of pain and resignation.

"It seems you’ve heard of me. But... my diary didn’t describe my form. How did you know it was me?"

"A nightmare ruler told me about you and the battle you had against a giant monster."

Lerion let out a scoff, almost a laugh.

"It seems they still remember me."

The woman began to speak with a calm and serene voice; her voice was so soft that it even made William feel drowsy.

"Our time is short, young warrior, but first I’d like to know what you know about this place and us. If you can tell me, I will tell you the whole truth behind this world."

The woman extended her hand as if offering a deal.

After thinking for a while, William nodded and began to tell them.

"Not long ago I arrived in this place. When I got here, I realized that this place protected me from what is outside, but upon exploring, I joined their ranks, since they call me Supreme and now I see that they are your enemies. But I understand that these are worlds at war that lost their leaders and are now being annexed."

The woman merely smiled before she began to speak.

"It seems you know something, but at the same time you know nothing. Indeed, we had a war with them and were almost exterminated; I even used all my strength to nurture my last knight, but even so, we are trapped in this place since all my strength was consumed."

"And I understand they tried to recruit you. I would too, as you have a unique scent. But believe me, you are not like them; you seem more like someone who wants to devour them all as if they were your prey and you were just using them as livestock."

"That’s why I let you in. This small fragment is all that remains of my world. My power has fallen so low, but it’s not important. What we want from you is revenge. We know you can destroy them. I still clearly remember that day you arrived; the world trembled like I had never felt it, as if it were terrified, so much so that even the nightmare guardian’s fragment woke up and sent its beasts to search throughout the world. For a moment I got scared, I thought it was looking for us and had found us, but no, you arrived here and they immediately backed down. I decided to protect you at the cost of exposing myself because someone who could cause such panic in them had to be someone important."

"I still don’t know how you entered and left my world, even when I sealed it, but every time you returned, this world panicked and searched for you desperately. Although I am trapped here, I can see a lot around me. I can tell you that the whole world filled with those insects searching for you even under rocks, but you just appeared and disappeared. Such is their terror that the guardian himself came down in person and, as far as I know, to do so he probably exhausted all his remaining energy. Now that you know all that, do you still want to be on their side? You are like a lion acting as a sheep; you should exterminate them."

This person’s words were full of reason, but William couldn’t help but feel manipulated. Now he understood the phenomenon on the moon, the beetles, and that monstrous guardian. Everyone wanted something from him, or rather from his future, since it was the Mask that had made them retreat. But she was right: he wasn’t trying to be part of them; so far, he had only been devouring them to grow stronger. Therefore, he could continue doing the same and accept their help, pretending to help them. It could also be a great option, but the risk was high. He wasn’t sure what they would give him or do to him, nor what the cost of obtaining it would be.

After long consideration, he extended his hand and took the young woman’s, who smiled kindly as her entire body turned to ashes. Knight Lerion beside her also let out a sigh of relief as he turned into mere smoke. The mansion began to collapse and everything around it seemed to disintegrate little by little while four objects floated before him: the altar with the book, the armor, and the sword, while a voice said, as it faded away:

"I ask for nothing, only revenge. As a token of my honesty, I give you the world’s core, which is that pillar over there, and the world’s spirit, which is the book. Everything that this world once was is recorded there, while the core holds the remnant of all our energy. Furthermore, you are a warrior; I am sure that armor and sword will be useful to you. Just spill a few drops of blood on them and they will be yours."