Legacy of the Dark Sage

Ames was stunned at her father's response to Kyran's request. She did not expect him to agree so easily.

"T-Thank you."

"I trust you to handle the rest, Ames," Aillos said, his gaze filled with unwavering trust as he turned his attention to his daughter.

Ames was still a little dazed by the strange turn of events that started with The Emperor's surprise visit and ended with Kyran's request. However, she managed to pull herself together and nodded at her father's words.

"I-I'll take care of it. Rest assured," she answered, her voice steady with determination. After a short pause, she added, "I'll explain everything to Ducal as well... and the rest of the aides."

Aillos only nodded in acknowledgment before turning his attention back to Kyran.

"Don't you need to prepare anything?" he asked.

Kyran shook his head, "I have all I need with me."

"Then, let's go."

Aillos walked toward the bedside where Auto-one was standing before activating the transmission scroll.

As Kyran said, the transmission scroll's range increased threefold, allowing more people to be transported along with the one who activated it. Unlike being warped, however, none of them felt the nauseating aftereffect of being transported from one location to another. Moreover, the transition was almost instantaneous; after opening their eyes, the scene before them had already changed.

"What in the—?"

"Y-Young master?"

"M-Milord Dragon Emperor."

Aillos aimed for the location where Raya and the other Regis members had camped while trying to replicate Coelus's corpse's seal formation.

Kyran heaved a sigh upon seeing Raya and the rest of the Regis. Technically this should be the first time he would be seeing them after a while. But that was not the case. Because when he lost consciousness from Coelus's corpse's attack, he was still aware of what was happening around him.

For this reason, he knew that Raya and a few selected Regis members had ventured underground to check the seal's damage.

Aillos raised his hand when Raya and the others were about to kneel before him.

"No need for such formalities," he told them. "We have things to do—."

RAAAAAWRGH!

An unearthly roar reverberated around them, followed by a fiery gust of wind originating from within the destroyed seal.

Everyone was surprised by the sudden attack of such evil and ominous magic energy. It was so powerful that it felt like they were being strangled to death. However, all were veterans who experienced several unexpected situations and battles. They also underwent unconventional training in the Tower of Tribulations, although most did not complete it.

Nevertheless, it was sufficient for them to hold their ground and utilize Regis's defensive technique.

On the other hand, Auto-one created several layers of defensive barriers to protect both Cyneah and Kyran.

"Kuh...."

Something sharp gouged at Kyran's magic core, making his already weak knees tremble from the sudden pain. Apparently, the barriers Auto-one created did nothing to protect him from the evil and ominous magic energy's non-physical assault.

Taken aback, Auto-one and Cyneah kept Kyran from falling straight down on his face as he endured the unexpected attack.

"Y-Young master!"

All the Regis members were frightened upon seeing Kyran's complexion pale further. They were aware that his suffering was caused by what was inside the seal and were worried that being near it might have aggravated his condition.

Aillos was not idle either. Before appearing in that location, he already expected something like this to happen, thus he was already circulating his magic energy before using the transmission scroll.

The moment Coelus's corpse made a move, Aillos countered by expanding his magic's area of influence.

The process was a little slow, given how potent Coelus's corpse's magic energy was. But the moment Aillos gained momentum, the ominous magic energy was pushed back little by little, giving them some breathing space once more.

The gouging sensation in Kyran's magic core also stopped. However, the pain still remained. In fact, the pain seemed to have tripled after arriving in that place.

"This is the right moment to execute your plan," Aillos said, directing his words to Kyran.

Kyran heard him even while enduring the pain in his magic core. Stabilizing his breathing, he said, "N-Not yet..."

"We are very curious how you've regained consciousness and wanted to know why you decided to come here so suddenly, but we can leave that for later," Raya started and approached Kyran. "Tell us what to do, Young Master."

Kyran looked at him and nodded.

"Show me what you've been working on."

Raya and the rest did as they were told, while Auto-one and Cyneah supported Kyran.

Meanwhile, Aillos simply stood in his spot and acted as a shield to prevent Coelus's corpse's magic energy from influencing them further.

Back in the Main Palace, Ames also made her move after Aillos took Kyran and the rest to Coelus's seal.

She called for Myst and had him join her as she confronted her father's aides, especially Ducal.

"Did the Young Master truly regain consciousness?" Myst asked Ames.

Ames nodded, "Yes. Right now, he has things to do."

"And me? Did he not say anything that I can do for him?" Myst continued to ask her as if not doing anything was unforgivable.

"You have another task," Ames replied patiently. "But that will depend on what will happen after I talk to them."

"'Them...'" Myst repeated, not to ask her who they were, but because he had an idea who they were.

Ames took a deep breath to calm her nerves and said, "Yes. Them."

By then, they had arrived in front of the Main Palace's Throne Room, where Aillos's aides were waiting for his return.

Initially, Ames wanted to talk to Ducal and convinced him first before talking with the other aides about the truth of their situation. But she reckoned it was better to have all of them there while she explained everything because she was afraid Ducal would shun her before she could finish explaining her side if it was only them.

In her opinion, Ducal would have no choice but to listen to the end of her explanation if the other aides were present.

"Let's go and win this."

Myst could not help but gulp nervously at Ames's words. He wondered what kind of talk she would have with the Dragon Emperor's aides that made her speak as if she was going to war.

On that note, Ames opened the door to the Throne Room.

*

Nolan pinched the bridge of his nose while leaning back on the chair he was sitting on.

"Was the message giving you a headache?"

Nolan raised his head to look at the person who had asked that question.

That person was none other than Kairos, the Tower's Overseer.

After receiving Kyran's message, Kairos did not waste time and created a situation where Nolan would have to come to the Tower of Tribulations. That was how Nolan ended up visiting the topmost floor of the tower once again.

The situation Kairos created was simple. He spread a rumor about Kyran's sightings among the merchants that had their stalls around the Tower of Tribulations.

When Gustaf heard the rumor, he did not waste time and visited the Mercenary Hall in Starhorn at once. The rumor then reached the Queen, who had a means of contacting Cade. Once Cade received it, he immediately sent a coded message to Nolan, asking him to confirm the rumor.

To give a brief overview of the situation in the Human plane: Cade along with a few other Regis and Royal Knights and Mages, were outside the plane because they were busy connecting with the planes that fell under Kyran's jurisdiction after Flos and Obstruction's death.

Kyran was unaware of this, obviously, because he was chased by The Emperor when Somuli was still transitioning under Nachum's rule.

Initially, the planes under Kyran were protected by a powerful barrier. But after he entered the Higher Realm, the barrier had gotten weak. To prevent them from being taken by others, The Coven kept watch while also guarding against The Emepror's movements.

However, with the constant skirmishes happening here and there because The Emperor took over Flos's faction, Eden, and other Sovereigns started to target those planes, it had gotten to a point where The Coven simply could not protect all those planes.

In the end, Axil decided to tell Cade about the planes, and in turn, he decided to protect them on behalf of his son.

Axil would normally have mobilized the Guardians and intercepted the other Sovereigns. However, after becoming aware of the bigger picture following The Emperor's appearance, she and the rest of the Guardians no longer wished to recruit other Sovereigns or conquer unclaimed planes.

Instead, they decided to protect the planes under their control while strengthening their military force for the future.

None of them could say what that future was. But one thing they were sure of was that it included Kyran, whom they believed entered the Higher Realm and probably preparing for that future as well.

Cade was the same. At the moment, he wanted to find a way to break through the barrier and become a Sovereign. While his prowess when utilizing all the Regis Techniques was on par with that of a Sovereign, it was not enough to assist his son's endeavor, especially when the lowest level in the Higher Realm was Sovereign.

Cade was not the only one who felt that way. Everyone who knew Kyran and was made aware of the truth about the War of the Sovereigns and the Higher Realm was doing their best to go past their limits and find a way to go to the Higher Realm.

Nolan, on the other hand, only felt a headache about everything that happened thus far. He never wanted to be a Sovereign, and now...

"That f*cking b*stard... just what in f*cking hell did he do this time?"

"If Rin heard you, she'd clobbered you to death."