Chapter 192 - City of Doom

After all, I really hate leaving things half-done.

To celebrate, I'll be posting three chapters today, spaced several hours apart. As usual, I'll update with new chapters once a day or every three days at most.>

Night was falling over a massive city of imposing, towering walls of black rock. Within the walled city lay an immense metropolis with spacious, beautiful homes, polished down to the last detail, and a enormous freshwater river that split into various tributaries throughout the city.

The great river was connected by a canal that led to the Stormsea.

Upon the walls stood hundreds of imposing statues resembling ancient gargoyles, each remaining motionless, gazing beyond the walls for any threat.

Each gargoyle was a nightmare creature—from simple awakened beasts to powerful corrupted devils and tyrants.

In the center of the city rose a towering, majestic titanic tree that glowed with an ethereal light of pale purple and lilac.

The tree's trunk was immense, and its branches were so wide that hundreds of people could walk side by side with plenty of room to spare. Among its leaves hung beautiful, succulent fruits that gave off a soft, sweet aroma.

That tree was no ordinary tree—it was a supreme terror.

What was most fascinating about the city, aside from the great river, the walls, its sentinels, or the enormous tree, were its citizens.

Hundreds of thousands of people lived peacefully in their daily lives with quite animated faces. After all, they no longer had to suffer through a precarious life on the outskirts of NQSC. Now they had roofs over their heads, protection, food, and money they could spend in the city's various shops.

Adding to that, their ruler provided them with protection and power.

All these factors led the entire population to worship their ruler, seeing him as their guardian god.

On an elevated part of the city stood a majestic palace of titanic proportions. Around the palace rose great towers connected by ancient stone bridges. From a distance, one could observe enormous windows illuminated by yellow lights.

To reach the palace, one had to cross a garden of blue flowers that glowed under the moonlight.

Inside the palace were hundreds of servants—both awakened and mundane—busy with their tasks to maintain the palace's pristine state.

In a great hall illuminated by enormous chandeliers that provided a warm light, the room was large enough to accommodate about a thousand people.

In the center of the hall, raised upon a staircase covered by a red carpet, stood a black throne carved from a single amethyst crystal. Seated upon the throne was a young man, twenty years of age, with dark hair and onyx black eyes. He wore a dark suit that covered his body except for his head, with plates of black armor covering the vital areas of his frame.

This was none other than the supposedly deceased Lord of Darkness Uriel, or simply now called the Dark Lord.

Surrounding the throne lay an enormous dragon fifteen meters in diameter, lying down with its eyes closed.

"I'm bored," Uriel murmured as he crossed his arms.

"That bastard Shade cheated me and keeps all the fun for himself. Meanwhile, I have to be diplomatic. What a ripoff," he sighed audibly, watching as the double doors opened and a figure entered.

The figure was that of a beautiful woman in her twenties, possessing red and yellow hair with crimson eyes. She wore a dark combat suit similar to his, though the difference was a crimson cape.

"Uriel, Cassie and Nephis will arrive soon. Soul told me that Patrik and Allen are going to pick them up."

"That's pleasant news."

"You don't seem worried at all."

"Why would I be? You know, there are at least about two dozen million human souls in this city and a few thousand nightmare creatures, and at least a few hundred thousand natural Awakened, so there's nothing to hide."

"Except that this citadel is an impregnable fortress with multiple supreme creatures, which I remind you one of them is the devastating Skinwalker," Scarlet added.

"Those are minor details, my beloved Scarlet."

Scarlet sighed and muttered something under her breath.

"Hey, no cursing."

"I wasn't cursing."

"Oh yes, you were."

"...you're truly exasperating, I wonder why you didn't stay dead."

Uriel brought a hand to his chest with a feigned expression of pain.

"Your words cut me deeply...more than any knife."

"Stop making Naruto references."

"Hey, it's a good ninja series and it will inspire a whole generation of future awakened ninjas. In fact, I plan to go to the Burnt Forest to found a ninja village as a Hokage. You can be my right hand."

"Pass, I don't want more work than I already have, which by the way is practically everything."

"It's not that bad, you just have to be the public face of an entire city while pretending to be a famous transcendent fighting for human government and all that."

"Not all of us have a second personality."

"Hey, Shade is sort of a parasitic twin, so we're totally different."

"Speaking of Shade, where is he?" Scarlet asked.

"Oh, getting meat."

"Meat?"

"Yeah, he's in a death zone killing some big chickens that are corrupted beasts for my special menu in Bastion."

Scarlet rolled her eyes.

"Anyway, putting aside all the meaningless chatter for now, are you sure about this?"

"Well, no. But it's not like we have many options. As incredible as it may be, I can't kill a supreme, much less two with decades of experience using their will."

Uriel paused.

"And well, their idea isn't so bad. I mean, only someone insane would plan to kill two supreme beings who are about to start a war of extinction."

"You're not one to talk. You brought an entire civilization with you from a death zone and kidnapped millions from the outskirts of NQSC. So much so that everyone thinks the Skinwalker did it."

"I simply offered them what they wanted: a safe life and power for those who desired it but were forgotten by the Spell. With natural awakening and the countless soul fragments I've gathered over the years, it was easy. Of course, there were those who didn't make it, but thanks to that it was perfected and now it's safe, more or less."

"You really don't like losing an argument."

"Absolutely not," Uriel gave a closed-eye smile.

Just then, a message resonated in Uriel's mind. It was Soul informing him that his guests had arrived at the palace entrance.

"Well, it seems they've arrived. So it'll be nice to make a good impression," he said, placing his hood over his head, revealing nothing but a deep, vast, and limitless shadow beneath.

Scarlet took her position at his right side. Uriel crossed his legs while a goblet of luxurious wine rested in his hand.

A few minutes passed until the doors opened.

The first to enter was a man in a dark suit. He wore a half-mask that covered his nose and mouth, leaving exposed his gray hair and dark blue eyes. On his suit, similar to Scarlet's, he carried knives and daggers, each an ascended memory of the fourth tier. This was Allen, one of his most powerful transcendents.

Beside him was a young boy no older than seventeen, with dark brown hair and black eyes. His uniform was slightly different, keeping his face exposed. The boy's name was Patrik, an ascended. His ability allowed him to open spatial portals over great distances, making him indispensable to them.

Behind the two of them were two beautiful women. The first was a figure anyone would recognize instantly: silver hair, a calm yet sharp expression with silver eyes, and ivory skin. This was the Changing Star of the Immortal Flame Clan.

Beside her stood a woman relatively taller than the Changing Star, possessing long hair golden like the sun, with a face like a doll. At her waist was a sheathed estoc, a blue blindfold covering her eyes. She was Song of the Fallen, Cassia.

Uriel smiled beneath his mask.

"It's an honor to have you here, Lady Changing Star and Lady Song of the Fallen. I am Lord Dark... Welcome to Doom."

The hall fell silent as the two legendary awakened observed the man on the throne. Nephis, the Changing Star, kept her expression impassive, evaluating every detail of the place—from the shadows that moved strangely to the sleeping dragon radiating an overwhelming pressure.

Cassia, despite her blindness, slightly tilted her head as if she could see through the blue blindfold covering her eyes. Her fingers subtly brushed the estoc at her waist, an almost imperceptible gesture that did not go unnoticed by those present.