There were two things that were absolutely impossible outside of the Empire.
First, no one could breathe—except for the rare exception when someone was able to generate a protective barrier around themselves, like a suit holding air inside it… But even then, they could only maintain it for a minute or so before it collapsed.
So Outside no one could live outside for more than a few minutes!
That was how Liora had managed to save Aether and Aria before… barely!!
And the next most crucial thing was—
No Arcane Energy!
As everyone knew, without Arcane Energy, survival outside in open space was impossible! It wasn’t just difficult—it was beyond comprehension.
Stepping outside the Empire meant… it was nothing less than a death sentence!
A slow, agonizing suicide!!
That was why, despite how powerful Empress Marisandra was, when it came to this crisis—the impending collision of Empires—she was utterly powerless… NO! Every ruler was powerless in the face of this catastrophe!
And yet—
“I-It’s our Emperor?! What the hell is he doing out there?!”
“I-I don’t get it! What’s happening? Why is he out there?!”
“I-I thought he abandoned us when I saw only the Empress, but now…”
The people were utterly shaken, staring at the live footage of their Emperor—Victor—moving beneath the Empire’s base, gripping onto the massive roots as he swung himself from one to another with nothing but sheer will!
They could see his fingers trembling, his entire body straining, and yet he pushed forward without stopping. His face was tight with pain and sheer exhaustion, but the determination in his eyes was unshakable. He looked like a man who had already decided—he would save the Empire, no matter what it took.
Their minds struggled to process the impossible sight before them…. How was a single man managing this?
Of course, what they didn’t realize was that they had all been tricked. That bastard was just acting—he wasn’t actually in pain at all.
Meanwhile—
Thalia continued reading from the script—ahem, delivering her ‘heartfelt’ speech.
“Due to severe technical failures, only one thruster remains functional. If this continues, it is only a matter of time before we collide with the Naiadae Empire again…
But this time, the impact will be catastrophic! The sudden increase in—” She paused and glanced at Lyirrs, who gave a firm nod. “—acceleration will magnify the destruction beyond anything we can imagine.”
The only thing people could see was Victor’s struggle, while Thalia’s voice narrated over it, like a perfectly timed documentary of despair.
Thalia pressed on, her voice rising, “So, in order to prevent this utter devastation, our mighty Emperor has chosen to take matters into his own hands!
He has stepped up personally to save this Empire—because this is the only way to protect the people who chose to stand by him, who refused to abandon their home! He cannot and will not forsake those who still believe in him!”
A heavy silence fell over the crowd. Many lowered their heads in shame…
To be completely honest, very few had actually cared about Victor’s rule. Most of them had only ever been concerned about their own homes, their history, their lands—the very foundation built over centuries. They hadn’t stayed in the Empire out of loyalty; they had stayed because this place was their home.
That was all!
And yet, hearing Thalia’s words now… something felt different.
A strange, creeping sense of guilt settled in their chests.
It was true. Victor had managed to hold power over them despite being human. But that didn’t erase the simple, undeniable fact—
He wasn’t a dragon!!
And because of that, they had never truly accepted him.
No one could bring themselves to say anything—not even a single word of support—because the truth was unbearable.
The man they had disregarded, the ruler they had doubted, was now risking his life to save them… while they had done nothing.
They felt a sinking, suffocating shame watching him struggle, doing everything in his power to save their ungrateful asses!
Thalia smirked in satisfaction…. Oh, she had made sure they felt that guilt!
She flicked her gaze toward Raven, who met her eyes with a knowing nod.
Perfect!
Her grin widened, just as she was about to initiate Phase 3 when—
Blink! Blink!!
“Shit!! The remaining thruster is overloading!!” Lyirrs suddenly shouted, her hands flying over the controls as she desperately tried to cool the system, lower the output—anything to stabilize it…. But it was already too late.
BOOOOMMMMM!!!
It was nothing short of a miracle that this single thruster had managed to hold the Empire in place for this long. But there was one small error they had failed to account for—
Trrrrrrrrrrrr!
The Empire suddenly tilted!!!
People on the ground stumbled as the entire structure lurched, but thankfully, they remained steady—it wasn’t as if they would slide off and fall from the Empire like in those ridiculous ‘flat world’ theories everyone used to joke about.
No matter how much the Empire tilted, no matter the angle, the people always remained firmly anchored to the ground, gravity holding them in place. Though the sudden yanking and jerks caused them to stumble, they were still safe… except—
“FUCK!!” Victor roared as the pressure from the failing thruster exploded outward, blasting him with an overwhelming force!
He had almost reached the centre—almost! But the violent shockwave was like hundreds of tornadoes slamming into him at once, tearing at his body and sending him hurtling away!
“ARRRHH!!” Victor groaned, his fingers digging into the roots with every ounce of strength he had, clenching down with desperate force as the wind howled around him, threatening to rip him from his hold!!
But then, Victor raised an eyebrow as he noticed something alarming—the entire Empire was shifting direction, tilting even more to the side!!!
“Fuck that, man!” Victor muttered under his breath. Since the audio wasn’t being broadcast live, he didn’t need to worry about anyone hearing his frustration.
This situation was turning into a complete mess! Experience tales with My Virtual Library Empire
Anyway—
What Victor and Lyirrs hadn’t accounted for—or rather, hadn’t even considered—was a crucial detail!
Lyirrs had installed two thrusters, not at a single point on the Empire but at two different locations, spaced apart at significant distances. The entire purpose of this design was to ensure that in the event of a failure, they wouldn’t need to worry. If something went wrong, both thrusters would activate simultaneously, ensuring balance, and in the worst-case scenario, they would blast off to prevent catastrophe.
However—
The issue now was that only one thruster had broken, causing a severe imbalance in the load distribution…. And when the second thruster suddenly blasted, the sheer force it generated acted entirely on one side of the Empire, creating an immense rotational effect—essentially sending the entire structure into a dangerous, unintended tilt!
[A/N: Hope you guys get it! If not, check the comment section—I’ve drawn some diagrams explaining it properly!]
Because of that unexpected miscalculation, the Empire wasn’t just tilting—it was beginning to turn!
For the people above, there was only a minor shake, nothing more…. They barely even felt it, as the massive structure was stabilized by its internal gravity system.
But for Victor—who was barely holding onto the tangled, thick roots, he is not—he suddenly felt a chilling sensation creep up his spine.
Something was wrong!
A gut-wrenching feeling spread through his chest, making his instincts scream at him.
He frowned, his fingers tightening around the roots, and instinctively glanced back—
His pupils shrank.
The Naiadae Empire’s base—wrapped in massive, chaotic roots—was coming straight for them!!!
Horror flashed across everyone’s faces!
The very moment the people saw the live footage, their breath hitched in sheer terror. Their eyes widened, their stomachs clenched, and their bodies went cold as the image sank into their minds.
A structure of that size… moving at that speed… heading straight for impact…
“R-RUN!!!”
“YOU NEED TO GET OUT OF THERE—NOW!”
“EMPEROR!!!”
Panic erupted as terrified citizens screamed, their voices shaking with raw fear.
The first thing that was going to be hit—was Victor!
They cried out desperately, hands trembling, unable to do anything but watch the disaster unfold before their very eyes.
“H-He needs to leave right NOW!” Thalia and Raven shouted in unison, their voices laced with urgency and panic.
But Lyirrs simply shook her head, her face utterly serious as, “We won’t collide,” she said firmly.
“Huh?” Thalia frowned, whipping her head toward her, eyes narrowing.
“What do you mean?!” Emberlyn demanded her expression a mixture of deep concern and confusion.
Lyirrs inhaled sharply before explaining, “As you all know, our Empire’s acceleration is far greater than the Naiadae Empire’s. So, as of now, they won’t collide… we still have time—”
But before she could even finish her sentence—
THUD!!!
A violent jolt suddenly shook their entire Empire as if something had just halted its movement with an unimaginable force.
The culprit?
The Ebon Stone.
The ancient stone had abruptly stopped rotating, freezing in place.
Meanwhile, in the Naiadae Empire—situated between twin mountains—the Ebon Stone, previously wrapped in thick, entwined roots and rotating at a steady, controlled pace, suddenly emitted a pulse of energy before—
TRRRRRRR!!!
It began spinning at an insane speed.
Everyone in the Naiadae Empire felt it—the powerful yank, the forceful shift, as if an unseen force had just pulled at their entire world, violently jerking them in place.
And—
“FUCK!!!” Victor roared as his eyes locked onto the sight of the Naiadae Empire hurtling toward them at terrifying speed!!!
/Raven—start Phase-3/
/B-But-/
/Do it!/
Then, with a growl vibrating in his throat, he muttered under his breath, “Let’s fucking break this law!”
And in the very next second—
His entire body exploded into a blinding surge of pure purple light.
And—
“AAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRHHHHHH!!!”