A few moments ago in the Void Empire, in a forbidden area where no one dared to venture… not even the Empress of this vast empire would set foot in this place….
The Void’s Cradle.
“We need to leave, and… we need to leave now,” Morgana, Lia’s aunt, said with a panicked, hurried voice, her face etched with fear and dread as though she were desperate to flee as far away as possible.
Lia frowned, her confusion evident. “Leave? I don’t understand! Why are you so scared? And who is Snape?” she asked, utterly baffled by her aunt’s sudden and strange behavior.
Morgana shook her head firmly, her expression grim. “You’ll find out soon enough… from your mother,” she replied, her tone leaving no room for further questions. Grabbing hold of Lia, she was about to teleport them both away.
“W-Wait! I can’t just leave! I need to help them…” Lia protested, her voice rising as her gaze shifted anxiously to Aqualina and… Celestia, who were still trapped.
However,
“It doesn’t matter… they’re as good as dead,” Morgana said coldly, her face set in stone, her voice devoid of hope.
Lia flinched, her breath hitching in shock. But before she could argue further, Morgana whisked her away without hesitation.
Meanwhile,
Isadora stood frozen, disbelief and horror etched across her face as her eyes locked onto Master. Experience more tales on My Virtual Library Empire
The Master’s gaze briefly flickered to Morgana and Lia as they disappeared into the distance. He chuckled hollowly, shrugging as if their escape was of no consequence.
“Let them run… it won’t change a thing… Haha,” he said, his voice dripping with apathy. His attention then shifted, his piercing eyes landing on Aqualina, who stared back at him with a look of sheer terror.
“Ah, that look… Seems like your mother told you about me—or perhaps, you know me personally?” he teased, his tone layered with cryptic amusement.
Aqualina flinched, her face turning ghostly pale as dread consumed her, ‘D-Did he figure out who I am?’ she wondered frantically, her thoughts a jumbled mess.
It seemed impossible—only Aether knew her true identity. Not even her mother had any idea, and Aether would never betray her secret to anyone.
So how could Master possibly know?
Her mind reeled, unable to make sense of the situation.
But then,
“It cannot be!” Isadora exclaimed, her voice trembling as she slapped her forehead in denial.
“Hmm…” The Master tilted his head slightly, refocusing his attention on Isadora. A sly smile tugged at his lips as he spoke, “I know it’s hard to believe what you’re seeing right now, but… it’s truly m—“
“I WILL FUCKING KILL YOU!!” Isadora screamed, her voice reverberating with raw fury as the ground beneath their feet trembled under her rage. Her eyes burned with hatred as she spat,
“Whoever—or whatever—you are, you shouldn’t have taken over his body! You’re going to regret this,” she growled, her voice a dangerous voice. Though she didn’t fully understand what was happening, one thing was crystal clear: the person standing before her wasn’t the same one she had once known.
The Master shook his head slowly, a faint trace of amusement in his expression. “You’re not going to believe me… That’s fair. That’s exactly how a sovereign should react. Honestly, I admire how much you’ve grown, Dor–“
BOOM!
Before the Master could finish his sentence, the ground beneath him erupted as Isadora appeared in a blur of motion, slamming him into the earth with unrelenting force. Without hesitation, she unleashed a torrent of flames, pouring her full power into the attack.
PUFFFFF!!!!
Isadora stared blankly at the ground, her face devoid of emotion as she continued to channel her flames, reducing everything in the vicinity to nothing but scorched earth.
When she finally stopped, she gazed at the charred ground… it was empty… where the Master’s body should have been.
“You shouldn’t be so rough when I’m trying to talk…” the Master’s voice echoed mockingly. Isadora’s head snapped to the side, her eyes widening as she saw him emerging unscathed from the ground.
Isadora’s teeth clenched in frustration, her fists trembling with rage. “I don’t know what kind of dark magic you’re using to control him like a puppet, but mark my words… I’ll find you, no matter who or what you are, and you’ll pay for this!” she snarled.
“Not again… Can’t you at least hear me out before attacking?” the Master groaned, feigning exasperation. “At least give me a chance to explain mys–“
PUFFFFFF!
Thud!
While Isadora and the Master clashed, Aqualina shook herself free from her daze, taking a deep, steadying breath. Her hands trembled as she turned her attention to the cube that held Celestia captive.
“J-Just need to focus on this… if I can do this, everything will be fine…” she whispered to herself.
“This artifact… I think the way to destroy it… is to find a sequence of…” Aqualina mumbled, her voice trailing off as her hands softly traced the smooth walls of the transparent cube. She searched meticulously for a small button, her fingers gliding across the corners. Her focus was unshaken until suddenly—
Click!
A clicking sound echoed through the air. One side of the cube instantly turned pitch black—not translucent or shadowed, but pure, impenetrable black.
Aqualina exhaled sharply, ‘Yup, this definitely belongs to our Empire… but how in the hell did they get their hands on it?’ she wondered, a mix of anger and disbelief coursing through her mind. Without wasting time, she continued to feel along the cube’s surface, determined to locate the remaining buttons to unlock it.
Meanwhile,
“You are not him!!” Isadora screamed, her voice filled with wrath as she delivered a savage kick to the Master’s gut. The blow sent him staggering, but she didn’t relent. In a blur, she clapped her hands against his head with such force it nearly shattered his skull.
And yet—
“H-Hah… N-Not bad,” the Master grunted, his tone laced with an infuriating arrogance. “I haven’t felt pain like this in a long time, to be honest.”
Isadora’s lips twitched violently, her fury mounting. ‘Even if he’s using that man’s body… it’s still a dead one. There’s no way he could wield that man’s prime power,’ she thought, trying to make sense of the grotesque reality before her.
Unbeknownst to her, the Master’s own thoughts churned. ‘Hmm… My body is starting to weaken… I can’t hold out much longer like this,’ he realized, his gaze narrowing as it locked onto Isadora.
He was fully aware she still outclassed him in raw strength, and time was not on his side. He needed to act decisively before his remaining plans unraveled.
“You said you wouldn’t believe me, right?” the Master began, his tone shifting to something almost mocking.
“Maybe it’s because I don’t bleed?… Or perhaps it’s because you think my body is being controlled by someone else? That’s what’s going through your mind, isn’t it?” He let the question hang in the air, “Well then… what about this?”
He raised both hands simultaneously, palms facing each other.
Isadora frowned, her instincts on high alert. But then, her eyes widened in shock as a glowing, pure white sphere began to materialize between his hands.
“T-That—”
“Holy Energy,” the Master interrupted with a nod, his voice calm but brimming with dark amusement. The white sphere pulsed as it slowly grew larger, the radiant energy illuminating his face.
“A dead man or a puppet controlled by someone else… could never wield this kind of power. Now do you understand?” His lips curled into a smug grin as he flicked the sphere toward Isadora.
Isadora froze, her eyes locked onto the approaching sphere, ‘Holy Energy?!’ she thought, her disbelief paralyzing her for a moment.
It was a sacred form of Arcane energy, reserved for those of pure heart and divine connection—Saintesses and Archpriestesses. Manipulating it without permission from the gods was impossible and punishable by divine wrath. For the Master to wield it meant somethin–
Snapping out of her thoughts, Isadora clenched her fists, shaking her head violently. “Enough of this nonsense!” she growled, clapping her hands together. A powerful shockwave of air blasted toward the white sphere, colliding with it and creating a dazzling, white explosion.
But Isadora wasn’t done.
In an instant, she appeared behind the Master, her movements swift and deadly.
Chuckk!
“Arrrrh!”
A guttural scream tore from the Master’s throat as Isadora ripped his right arm clean off. Without hesitation, she incinerated the severed limb in a burst of fire. Her attacks were relentless—she punched his face with unrestrained force before tearing off his left arm and burning it to ashes as well.
Her hands flickered, glowing faintly as she muttered under her breath, ‘Arcane.’
Something invisible shimmered in her grasp… Her origin weapon!
Sssslllaaahhh!
In one swift, precise motion, she slashed the Master cleanly in half…. The cut was so flawless it left no room for error.
The two halves of the Master’s body collapsed to the ground, his insides shifting grotesquely…. And yet… not a single drop of blood spilled from his lifeless form.
Isadora’s chest heaved as she stared at the bisected corpse.
Her voice was steady, “Whoever you are… I will find you!” she vowed, her expression a mask of cold fury.
She spat on the smoldering remains and ignited them into flames before turning on her heel and marching toward Aqualina.
….. However She didn’t notice the faint, convulsive movements from the Master’s body behind her, nor the flickers of unnatural life that still lingered as the fire consumed him.