It was already well into the afternoon, yet there was no sign of the Empress visting the Frostblade household…. Outside, a restless crowd had gathered, their voices rising in a cacophony of demands for Aether’s release.
“Let the child go!”
“Honor the Hero’s words!”
“You ugly thief! Give back the rightful King!”
Their words echoed relentlessly beyond the gates as the swelling crowd pressed closer, their determination palpable.
Velc clenched his jaw, his irritation growing with each passing second. The situation was rapidly slipping out of his control….. If the mob grew more agitated, they might start a full-blown protest—or worse, they could destroy the trust Mortimer had painstakingly built over the years.
Velc could feel the fragile loyalty of the people teetering on the edge, ready to crumble.
“Where in the hell is the Empress?” Velc growled under his breath, pacing back and forth. His frustration was boiling over. “Is she deliberately trying to create a scene, or is this all part of some larger scheme?” The more he thought about it, the more convinced he became that the Empress was orchestrating this chaos to bring about the downfall of his family.
Meanwhile, Aether, who was observing the unfolding drama from the mansion, couldn’t help but smirk at the irony of the situation.
“Hah, those people didn’t even know who I was yesterday,” he murmured to himself, amusement lacing his tone. “And now, they’re out there chanting my name” He shook his head.
Still he too have doubt,
‘Is she trying to stir the problem on purpose?’ Aether pondered for a moment…. Suddenly, his gaze hardened, and in the blink of an eye, he disappeared from the window and reappeared in his private storage room… which was his room!
He moved swiftly to retrieve a palm-sized crystal ball that was blinking persistently.
“Tsk, what now?” Aether muttered under his breath, clicking his tongue in irritation as he activated the device,
“VICTOR, CAN YOU BELIEVE—”
“Fuck, shut up!” Aether hissed, cutting off the voice and rubbing his ears… He took a steadying breath, then prepared himself to continue listening.
“Victor, can you believe it? Master is off doing something solo without us!”
Aether’s brows furrowed at the message. ‘Solo? What nonsense is he talking about now?’ he wondered, his annoyance growing…. He allowed the message to play further.
“Victor, I miss you, man! I’m stuck here working alone in this sticky, deserted hellhole. I wish you were here with me. We could’ve done so much together—you know, gotten closer—”
Aether immediately cut off the message.
“Nope. Not interested in hearing this nonsense,” he muttered coldly with slight fear!
Putting his mask, which subtly altered his voice, he replied curtly, “I’m not in the mood for your pathetic whining. If it’s not about killing the Chosen Ones, don’t waste my time contacting me.”
He ended the message with a sharp motion, sending it back without hesitation…. This wasn’t what he wanted to deal with, especially not now.
Just as Aether was about to remove his mask and leave the room, the crystal blinked again.
Blink.. Blink…
He got immediate response.
“Damn it, this guy is persistent,” Aether muttered, sighing heavily as he activated the new message.
“Victor~ You finally replied to me… Oh my gods, your voice in that message was so deep and commanding. It sent shivers down my spine… fuck~”
[+4000 AP]
[+4000 AP]
Aether gritted his teeth, his fingers twitching as he fought the urge to crush the crystal ball right then and there. Honstely he wanted stop contacting Jack once and for all but It was the only reliable way to maintain contact with the Arcane Hunter Organization, so he forced himself to endure.
“Victor, don’t be so cold! You’re my bro, remember? Anyway, I’ve got some big news for you… and trust me, it’s going to be worth your time. Here’s the deal: we’re about to take down one of the Chosen Ones! Can you believe it? Fuck yeah~”
“What?” Aether’s voice sharpened as he sent back an immediate response. “What the hell are you talking about? I haven’t received any information about this…. Are you just trying to mess with me?”
The reply came back in an instant.
“Come on, Victor! Don’t you trust me? I’m your bro—your ride-or-die, remember?”
“….” Aether stared blankly at the crystal as Jack’s overly familiar tone grated on his nerves.
“Anyway, yeah, it’s true.
We’re going after one of the Chosen Ones.
But guess what? Those bastards didn’t tell us anything until now! Can you believe that? After all the years I’ve spent working for them, they only just sent me the details. Fucking now!! Bastards! Ugh, just thinking about it makes me want to punch a hole through a wall… but then they said it was Master’s order. And you know what that means—we’ve got no choice but to go along with it.”
The voice softened, “Sigh… Anyway, Victor, I’m on a mission right now, and Master said I could reach out to you for help. So… will you come and back me up? Pretty please? I promise it’ll be worth your while~”
Enjoy new chapters from My Virtual Library Empire
Aether’s eyes turned icy cold… He had already contacted everyone he could through his telepathy—everyone except…. Aqualina and Celestia.
‘They are not answering me’ Aether frowned and concentrated even more,
‘I couldn’t sense their emotions…’ Aether’s eyes widened, his face hardening as unease crept into his mind. He steadied himself, his tone calm as he replied “I see… what kind of help do you need? And… who exactly are we going to kill?”
Blink…
The message came almost immediately in response:
“Thank you, man~! You really are my bro, coming through for me in the nick of time. Damn, I think I love you even more now….”
[+4000 AP]
[+4000 AP]
[+4000 AP]
Aether’s frown deepened as he listened to the rambling message that offered nothing useful, “Tsk, stop blabbering and tell me who we’re targeting! I need to prepare myself for whoever it is!”
Blink…
The reply came again, this time with an infuriatingly playful tone:
“Haha, come on, Victor… where’s the fun in telling you our target upfront? Trust me, you’ll love the surprise. Anyway, just come to the Umbrionis Void Empire, and I’ll pick you up from there!”
The message cut off abruptly, leaving Aether staring blankly at the crystal ball, his expression unreadable and next thing,
!~Ding~!
[Warning: Teleporting to Another World… Target: Aerionis Zephyra]
!~Ding~!
[-1,000,000 AP Deducted]
[Remaining: 4,124,011 AP]
Before he could process the warning, black mist enveloped Aether’s body, and in an instant, he was transported into the Academy.
“Oh?”
“What the fuck…?”
Students who had been focused on preparing for their exams were startled as Aether materialized out of thin air in the middle of their study hall.
Unbothered by their reactions, Aether teleported once again, this time to Aqualina’s dorm room. However, the room was empty.
‘Where is she?’ he thought… Without wasting another moment, he made his way to the Principal’s office.
Upon arriving, Aether noticed the office was eerily vacant. He glanced around, his brows knitting together in confusion. Spotting a nearby professor, he strode toward him.
“Where is the Principal?” Aether demanded, his voice sharp.
The professor frowned, giving Aether a skeptical look. “Who are—”
Before the professor could finish, his eyes flickered, the color draining from them as Aether’s power took hold.
Aether’s crimson eyes gleamed ominously as he asked, his voice laced with menace, “Tell me, where is she?”
The professor’s expression turned blank, his tone mechanical as he replied, “I don’t know where she is. The Principal has been absent for a week.”
“A week?” Aether muttered, his frown deepening. His voice grew colder. “What about Aqualina? Where is she?”
The professor hesitated before answering, “Aqualina? The Princess from the Naiadae Empire… I don’t know. But I did see her last night with the Vice Principal.”
Aether’s fists clenched as he barely managed to contain the anger roiling within him, “Where.is.Alaric?”
“He is—”
“What do you want, brat?” Alaric’s voice cut through the tension as he appeared, his sharp gaze locking onto the scene.
His frown deepened when he noticed the professor’s hypnotized state. ‘What the hell is this?’ Alaric thought, his eyes narrowing as they shifted to Aether…. only see a hand shot towards him.
BOOM!
“MOTHERFUCKER! WHERE IS AQUALINA?!”
BOOMMMMMMMM!!!!!