A lone man, and an empty field. He was calm, his eyes closed as he enjoyed the serenity and peace. He took a deep breath and exhaled audibly, his breath weirdly visible on this bright and sunny day. He opened his eyes, revealing beautiful pupils- pupils that were darker than the abyss itself. He was a beautiful man, and even though he held a zweihander, this beauty wasn't hidden, only elaborated. The girl- no, woman- seated on the eternal throne gazed at the familiar figure with longing. They looked so much alike. A third person would have sworn that they were twins if not for the difference in hair colour- her black against his brown. The man was just that pretty, and the cloak that covered his physique did nothing to help his case. He readied himself as he took a fighting stance and held his zweihander in a sword draw position. "Glow- Nature's cross" he mouthed. For an instant it almost seemed as if nothing had happened- and then it did. T

The King was very confused now, her mind in complete disarray. If her father had this much power, and her mother wasn't any different, then how did the Usurper succeed. How did a measly thief at the lowly peak of the above-mortal realm, best a couple with power towering far above his? Her parents were at the very least, peak earth realm experts, and very possibly in the heaven realm. So how did the Usurper pull this off? As far as she knew, there was no way one could make up for such a vast difference in strength. Even the most devastating poison on the planet- the Midnight Rose- wasn't able to perform such a miracle. The midnight rose was a poisonous plant that was capable of destroying a mortal's ability to wield. It was that terrifying. Best case scenario, one would still have their strength and yet wouldn't be able to improve anymore, no matter how hard they tried. Worst case scenario, total loss of strength. Although this potent poison, which was so rare that it appeared once a

"Who's there? Show yourself" James abruptly halted his steps as he looked around vigilantly. His ears twitched in response to his state of alertness, ready to transmit any sounds to its master. The King looked around curiously. Although she knew her parents didn't die here, she still felt the unease of helplessly watching your loved ones in danger. "Do not interfere. They will be fine" Reiki transmitted to her upon feeling the constant pressure on him decreasing, indicating that she was about to stand up. "Of course I know they were fine. Still can't help it though." She stated with an annoyed expression as she gave up on the strength that was slowly building in her forearms, ready to propel her forward and off her seat. "You do not want to reveal yourself? Well, that's fine. Let me help you!" James screamed as he unsheathed his zweihander. He threw the large sword high into the air as he readjusted his fiancée's position, taking the utmost care not to aw

"Come James. Don't tell me you're so exhausted you cannot walk back to the city." James smiled bitterly at his guardian's words. From his tone, he was certain that the punishment that was normally meted out when he erred wasn't going to come. At least, it wasn't the same punishment. The old man was dishing out a new one. And the difficulty was way higher. "And make sure you don't drop Morgana." James' eyebrows twitched at the heartless words. The difficulty had been increased still further. It was his pure will that kept him going. Now that his grandfather was here, he was barely able to walk, much less stand. And yet he was supposed to do that while carrying an extra person. "You heartless old man! The least you can do is to give me a hand!" he screamed at the figure floating a few metres ahead of him with the unfortunate assassin in his grasp. "I could" he replied. "But I won't. Oh and if Morgana wakes up, I will punis

"Do you think he told the truth?" James asked his grandfather. The older man was washing his hands. The blood filled basin was quickly picked up and disposed by the servant who formerly stood at the side. Another handed the Emperor a white towel so he could wipe his hands of the remnants of water that remained. "The blood of one tainted with the aura of darkness. It smells as filthy as ever." The Emperor didn't answer his grandson right away. He wiped his hands with rigor as though it had been stained with acid. He had a disgusted look on his face. "No one asked you to kill him so gruesomely, did they?" James' eyelids twitched as he replied. His grandfather could have easily killed the assassin- sorry, the deceased assassin- yet he chose to slowly torture the man. They had spent hours in the cell. The first few minutes served as a question and answer session. The minutes and hours that followed were filled with the screams of an anguished ma