[Chapter Size: 2500 Words.]
Third Person POV
Empire.
...
...
Madara remained standing before the throne, staring at the spot where Emhyr had disappeared.
"Should I simply bring him back... or hunt him down?"
For a moment, he considered the possibilities. He could use Hiraishin to reach them through space, as Madara had marked Emhyr when he grabbed him by the neck. There was no way he could escape now.
Or he could even resort to the temporal power of his Mangekyō Sharingan to reverse the situation.
Madara's question did not go unnoticed by the people present in the hall. However, no one understood exactly what he meant.
"I've decided. I'm going after them." As soon as he finished speaking, he disappeared.
Somewhere within the Empire, Emhyr and the young sorcerer reappeared inside a massive castle.
As soon as the magical explosion of the portal echoed through the hall, several men rushed into the chamber to find out what was happening. Unlike ordinary portals, this one did not open a passage. The two were simply hurled out of it.
"Who are you?" asked an older man in his nightclothes as he approached irritably, surrounded by guards.
But upon recognizing the emperor and his third son, his eyes widened. "Your Majesty!" he exclaimed in the Imperial Tongue, his strong Nilfgaardian accent unmistakable.
"Father... help the emperor..." said the sorcerer, who was the third son of the nobleman, Duke Ardal var Geest. "She was attacked by a gigantic monster," he added, shocking the duke.
"Octavian, you took the emperor out of the capital because she is under attack? Who would dare attack the Empire? And what kind of beast would have the nerve to invade Nilfgaard? Who did this?" the duke demanded angrily as he approached the emperor.
His two older sons were on the front lines of the war in the north.
Emhyr remained silent for a moment, not even knowing how to explain it. Even so, he maintained the bearing of an emperor. "They are dangerous. People who once threatened the entire Empire. They are..." He had no time to finish.
The next instant, the stone floor exploded. A gigantic pillar of light erupted from below, surging upward like a divine blade.
It was a sword of energy. It pierced the duke's body before he could even react, disintegrating him instantly.
Everyone froze in shock. The sword continued advancing, tearing through walls, destroying the staircase, and slicing through the castle's structure as if it were made of paper.
Emhyr and the young sorcerer, Octavian, could only watch in complete disbelief as the guards screamed or fled.
Then, behind the gigantic luminous sword, an enormous blue head began to emerge. It was Madara's Susanoo in its incomplete form.
Soon after, its four arms began to appear, expanding slowly as the colossal spiritual warrior took shape before everyone.
"We have to get out of here!" Emhyr shouted to Octavian.
As he spoke, the Susanoo continued growing before the castle, reaching colossal proportions. The gigantic blue entity made the entire fortress tremble, spreading panic among everyone present.
Emhyr could only watch in horror, thinking they might die at that very moment, but the young sorcerer quickly pulled out another magical stone and cast a teleportation spell.
The two disappeared.
The very next instant, everything exploded.
From the outside, the entire castle could be seen being demolished as an immense blue energy expanded in every direction. The Susanoo grew until it was far larger than the fortress itself, making it seem like something that did not even reach its knee, crushing the ruins and any unfortunate soul caught in its path.
Then, before the debris had even finished falling, the colossal figure disappeared.
The next moment, Emhyr and the young sorcerer reappeared near a small coastal village.
Both of them were still breathing heavily. "What... was that?" Octavian asked, completely terrified. He had watched his father die right before his eyes...
"That monster..." Emhyr replied, his expression filled with tension. "The same monster that destroyed an entire army years ago. It has returned."
How could that creature possess such overwhelming power? Emhyr did not know exactly what had happened to the castle after they left, but he would not have been surprised if it had been completely destroyed.
"My father... my family..." the young sorcerer murmured, his voice breaking. "My family and everyone there... they're dead... aren't they?"
"I'm afraid so."
"It followed us... How was it able to do that? Your Majesty... it's coming after us." The young man could no longer hold back his tears, overwhelmed by fear.
Before Emhyr could answer, screams began echoing from outside.
"Monster!"
"Demon!"
People ran frantically through the streets. Emhyr exchanged a glance with the young man, and the two quickly left the warehouse where they had appeared.
As soon as they looked up, they froze. Beyond the city's walls, a gigantic blue warrior was staring directly at them from the outskirts of the city.
In the darkness of the night, its body shone like an enormous pillar of light. Even without fully illuminating the sky, its silhouette could be seen with absolute clarity against the darkness.
Then, slowly, the Susanoo began to raise its sword.
The young sorcerer fell to his knees. "He... he's going to destroy the city..." he stammered.
Even Emhyr watched the scene in fear. "Listen!" he said, gripping the young man's shoulder. "We're leaving."
The sorcerer kept staring at the sword, now fully raised and ready to deliver a strike capable of reaching the entire city.
"He's going to kill us... No. If we stay here, we'll die. Do you hear me? We're leaving. Now!" Emhyr said as an order.
Still staring at the gigantic figure, the sorcerer slowly nodded. The instant the sword began to descend, the young sorcerer activated another teleportation stone.
The two disappeared.
A second later, a colossal explosion shook the world. The city was not struck directly. Instead, the entire sea before it was split apart by the devastating blow.
The water parted beneath an immense shockwave, and every ship in the area was completely vaporized by the attack.
Then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, the gigantic Susanoo vanished.
Emhyr and Octavian reappeared in the middle of a forest, beneath the darkness of the night.
"How... how can he keep following us?" the young sorcerer asked, utterly terrified.
He was still trembling as he remembered what had happened in the throne room. Octavian had remained hidden throughout the entire battle, certain that he would die. Yet that man had saved him by throwing Emhyr away from the woman's sword, giving him the opportunity to get the emperor out of there.
They had wanted to kill His Majesty. But no one had warned them that they would be pursued by a monster capable of destroying his family's castle... and perhaps even an entire city, since they had not stayed to see what happened.
"And now we're in the middle of nowhere. There has to be some way to stop him from following us," Emhyr said, searching his body for anything unusual.
"Your neck!" the young man exclaimed, pointing. "There's a mark!"
Emhyr immediately reached for his neck. Sure enough, there was a strange dark symbol etched into his skin.
"Remove it!" he ordered, lifting his chin. "Quickly! This may be our only chance. Even if you have to tear the skin off."
The two barely had time to react. Something streaked across the sky above them at an absurd speed.
A sonic boom shook the forest, accompanied by a devastating wind that bent the trees violently. The black sphere shot across the heavens toward the mountains, passing over them.
They were already more than a hundred kilometers south of the capital.
"What was that?"
Before either of them could answer, a flash appeared on the horizon.
A gigantic sphere of light consumed entire mountains. The impact was so colossal that the horizon itself seemed to explode, swallowing mountains, forests, and everything that lay between them.
The young man fell backward in terror. Emhyr could only stare at the scene with wide eyes.
What kind of power was that?
Then he understood. That flash... It was the same one he had seen from the castle window.
This time, however, he could finally grasp the true scale of the attack.
"So that was it..." he murmured.
If that creature wished to conquer the Continent... No. If it wanted to rule the entire world...
No one would be able to stop that monster.
"We have to get out of here. Now!" the young man shouted.
Emhyr nodded immediately. The sorcerer pulled out another magical stone and activated the spell.
The two vanished from the forest. The next instant, they reappeared in the middle of a small town.
As soon as he regained his balance, Emhyr reached for his neck again.
"The mark! Remove it! Now!" he ordered.
The young man nodded and immediately began casting the spell, burning Emhyr's skin as he grunted in pain, though it was necessary at that moment.
Little by little, the symbol disappeared completely. A scar would certainly remain.
Even so, it was better to bear a scar than a mark that allowed that man to find him wherever he went.
"Now let's leave," Emhyr said, finally relieved.
The young man reached into the pouch fastened to his waist to retrieve another teleportation stone.
Then he froze. "...My stones." The pouch had disappeared.
"Looking for these?" A calm voice came from directly behind them.
The two turned around at the same time. Madara was standing there, holding the pouch of magical teleportation stones in his hand as he watched them with absolute composure.
"You..." the young sorcerer murmured.
He did not even have time to react. Madara appeared before them and grabbed Octavian by the throat. The young man's eyes widened in absolute terror.
With a simple snap, his neck was broken. His lifeless body collapsed onto the middle of the street.
The people around them, who had witnessed the entire scene, began screaming in panic.
"Murderer!"
"He killed a man!"
"Call the guards!"
Emhyr remained motionless. There was no one left to help him now. No longer any way to escape that man.
That monster...
He clenched his teeth.
"Do you think I'm going to beg for my life?" he shouted.
The answer came in the form of a kick. The blow struck his face violently, knocking out several teeth. Emhyr was sent flying down the street, tumbling across the ground until he slammed hard into the wall of a house.
The people scattered in terror, and many of them witnessed that scene as well.
Emhyr spat out blood. His nose was broken, and several of his teeth were gone.
Slowly, he raised his gaze and saw Madara walking toward him.
"Believe me... I wouldn't want to see you become so pathetic that you'd beg for forgiveness. I don't want that." His voice remained cold. "But for far too long, you've been causing trouble for me... and for my wife."
Madara stopped in front of him. "Isn't that right... father-in-law?"
Another kick.
This time, straight to the stomach. Emhyr was launched like a bullet, breaking ribs before bouncing across the ground and coming to a stop several meters away.
"Hey! You!" a group of eight guards shouted as they approached with swords drawn.
Madara merely turned his gaze toward them. In a blur of speed, he drew a kunai and threw it.
The blade pierced the first guard's armor and embedded itself in his chest. The man looked down in confusion.
"What..."
The kunai began to emit an intense glow.
Then it exploded.
The guard was blown to pieces, and the explosion struck the other soldiers around him, tearing the entire group apart before any of them had time to react.
Madara did not even look at them. He had no interest in fighting medieval soldiers. To him, they were nothing more than men waving hardened sticks.
Emhyr struggled to breathe. His ears were still ringing from the explosions.
He was not a warrior. He was not a sorcerer. He was merely an ordinary man with great political power and a sharp mind.
Every blow he received ravaged his body—broken ribs, a shattered nose, teeth scattered across the ground, and countless other injuries.
Despite the unbearable pain, he did everything he could not to scream. He would not give his enemy that satisfaction.
Madara walked toward him once more.
"Don't... come near me..." Emhyr said, retreating as best he could.
Madara ignored his words and grabbed him by his clothes. "Let's settle this in the capital." The next instant, the two disappeared.
Madara reappeared in the throne room. The hall was covered with bodies. While pursuing Emhyr, he had left his clones behind to eliminate almost everyone present. Almost no one had survived.
Almost.
He needed witnesses. That was why two guards and two councilors were still alive, huddled in a corner of the hall, trembling with fear, prevented from leaving the room.
Madara appeared beside Emhyr and dropped him onto the floor. Almost at the same time, a cloud of smoke erupted within the city. When the smoke cleared, the Nine-Tails had disappeared.
Madara no longer needed it at that moment, and he turned his gaze toward one of the councilors.
"I want you to gather as many people as possible in front of the castle. I have an important announcement to make to all of Nilfgaard tonight."
The man froze, looking back and forth between the badly battered emperor and the monster holding him like a sack of garbage.
"You have ten minutes to gather as many people as possible for the execution of your emperor." His voice remained calm. "If you fail... I will summon the Nine-Tails over the city again. This time, it will not stop until Nilfgaard has been reduced to ruins."
The threat was enough. The councilor nodded frantically. Staggering to his feet, he ran out of the throne room, followed by the other survivors.
Madara slowly walked toward one of the palace's enormous windows. The marks left by the Nine-Tails' arrival were still evident throughout the city.
Screams echoed across the capital. Several structures had been destroyed, including part of the Coliseum. In many places, smoke rose from the rubble.
Even the gigantic statue of the emperor raising the Golden Sun had been cut in half, with only its lower portion remaining.
Madara observed the city for a few moments before turning his gaze back to Emhyr, who was still being held by him.
The emperor remained on the ground, barely conscious.
"Soon..." Madara said in a cold tone. "Just a few more minutes."
Now, he needed to put on a show before the Empire to bring that man to an end.
Once and for all.
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