Grandma Mo watched the explosion within the enemy lines, her heart aching for the knights. They have sworn loyalty to the emperor and chose to remain as such until the end. However, even with the aid from above, the fallen beings were still immortal.
“Please retreat, Grandma Mo,” said Saint Ai beside her as she grabbed her arm. “You already said there is nothing you can do in this situation. Standing in the front lines is dangerous.”
“My life holds little value,” said Grandma Mo with her eyes fixated on the emperor. “If I die, no one will bat an eye. Let me be, Saint.”
“I know more than one person would be sad to lose you,” said Saint Ai with a smile. “You still have two grandkids and a son, right?”
“My son and granddaughter are right here. As for my grandchild… I wish he never participates in this battle. I prefer that he is dead somewhere than coming over to this place.”
“How can you say that about your grandchild?” asked Ai, genuinely confused because it was such a heartless thing to do. “Even if he is a part of the enemy, he might change his ways to….”
“You na?ve child, he is one of the rebellion’s leaders,” said Grandma Mo while shaking her head. Ai was shocked and speechless, and the old woman continued. “He has handpicked every man who stands on our side. However, he is far from being noble.”
“If he is one of the leaders, that makes him a good person.”
“It’s not about good and bad, but… about this battle being for humans,” said Grandma Mo as she raised her hand to stare at it. “I have seen this world’s great horrors, but I still fear him.”
“You are exaggerating, Grandma Mo.”
“Lyle Mantra might be my grandchild, but he wouldn’t hesitate to strike me dead if I stood between him and the emperor. He has a singular goal: revenge.”
“What is he taking revenge for?” asked Ai after a moment of silence. “What has happened to him in the past that he started a battle that lasted ten years?”
“He was broken,” said Grandma Mo with tears in her eyes. “My grandchild was broken and was replaced with something darker. He is…”
Her words were cut short as she suddenly flinched and looked back. Grandma Mo stared at the countless crowds and glimpsed a figure walking among the masses. She could sport his short black hair and abyss eyes even among a million people.
“He is the obsessed knight,” said Grandma Mo as she watched the people part ways for the armored knight. “Lyle is the man who has abandoned his humanity and life for the sake of his goal.”
Saint Ai followed her gaze to stare at the newcomer. His gait was slow but confident, and his aura was threatening. The citizens backed away from him because they recognized him as the Knights Commander, an enemy.
“This man is…!”
“How did he get here?!”
Chaotic voices echoed throughout the plaza, drawing attention to the man making his way to the emperor. The rebels turned to stare at him, and they, too, parted away for him to pass. However, Lyle stopped walking when someone hindered his path.
“It has been a long time since we met, kid,” said Grandma Mo with her hands behind her back. “Are you still chasing that foolish dream of yours?”
“It has been a while indeed, old hag,” said Lyle with an expressionless face. “Are you here to die?”
“As if I’m about to bite the dust,” said Grandma Mo with a smile. “That sword does not belong to you. It belongs to your father, who has earned the right to wield it. This is not a weapon to exact revenge.”
“I will do whatever I want with this sword,” said Lyle while raising his sword. “You cannot stop me, and old man Zonas is not here too. I will end our cursed fate in this place and the emperor’s life with this sword.”
As the citizens heard his words, all of their faces changed. The revelation that this man was not an enemy, but an ally, was a relief for most. Finally, however, the emperor heard his words as well, and he roared in laughter.
“End my life?” laughed the emperor heartily as he grabbed the armchair and shattered it. “You have finally revealed the true colors of Mantra, Lyle! You are, too, nothing but a dog who bites the hand that fed it!”
As the emperor’s voice echoed throughout the plaza, those listening expected the beginning of an epic battle. However, Lyle simply ignored him and kept staring at his grandmother.
“Move out of the way.”<.com>
“You will have to force your way through,” said Grandma Mo while folding her hands. “I have never liked you, Lyle. I also never liked your mother, who made Zonas throw away everything for her. Is this the fate of every Mantra? To fall for someone that they cannot have?”
“For the past ten years, I had to wait and hide how I felt about everything. On this day, I can stop that,” said Lyle, as his aura shifted slightly. A dark aura rose from his body that made everyone’s stomach churn. “I can show how I feel now.”
After those words, Lyle started walking again, and he walked past her. Grandma Mo could not move once she looked into his eyes. He wasn’t staring at her anymore but at something behind. Her body shook as she grew weak, but Saint Ai caught her in time.
“Grandma Mo, what the hell are you trying to do?” asked Saint Ai. “Why are you defending the emperor?”
“Lyle plans to make this battle his last,” said Grandma Mo with tears running down her face. “This will be the end of the Mantra family. Our bloodline will end with him.”
Saint Ai was silent as she stared at Lyle, walking past the rebels and standing before the execution platform. The emperor looked down on him as Lyle unsheathed his sword. Then, his hateful voice echoed throughout the plaza.
“I’m here for your head, Dog Emperor,” said Lyle with a hoarse voice accompanied by the clinging of his sword against its sheath. A white translucent blade appeared beneath the sheath, which fell on the ground. “After ten years of waiting, I’m here to make you pay.”
“Ten years? Pay?” repeated the Light Emperor with a grin as he seemed to recall it. “I cannot remember what happened ten years ago. Have I done something at that time?”
“Ten years ago, you kidnapped several children from the lower districts to experiment on them using your powers. I was among them, and so was every member of the Mantra Orphanage.”
“Ah, that,” said the emperor with recognition as he smiled. “I did that, indeed. Those experiments were the foundation of today’s domain and the beginning of our rise!”
“The only thing that those experiments created is my plan to kill you,” said Lyle as he took several steps forward. At that moment, a creature of nothingness rushed forward to kill him. “And today, I will end it.”
“I expected a more meaningful reason behind the betrayal of one of my commanders,” sighed the emperor before raising his hand. “Kill him.”
The creature of nothingness howled as it rushed to tear Lyle apart, and at the same time, a shadow appeared beside the emperor. Lyle slashed with his sword, creating green flames that exploded as they cut the creature, while the figure did the same after appearing beside the emperor.
As the creature exploded and howled while its vessel was destroyed, a great sword struck the emperor’s arm. It cut through his flesh but stopped before reaching the bones.
Lyle stared at the execution platform to see the emperor shielding his neck with his forearm while a small figure stood before him wielding a sword. It was no other than Princess Ivory, whose face was wrathful.
“What is the meaning of this, Ivory?” asked the emperor with rage as blood flowed down his forearm. “Are you betraying me too?”
“I was never on your side, sick motherfucker,” said Ivory with rageful eyes. “You are a monster that has overtaken the thrown and must be eradicated. That is all.”
“Oh, is that so?” said the emperor as he kicked his daughter in the stomach and sent her flying down. She threw up blood and rolled on the ground until Lyle caught her.
The emperor rose from his chair while grabbing her sword and taking it out of his arm. Then, he raised it high before throwing it at her with an absurd amount of killing intent.
“Since you are a failure of a child, then I do not need you,” said the emperor as he threw the sword, making it whistle through the air while aiming for her heart. “Die, idiotic child of mine!”
The great sword flew down toward Ivory, aiming to end her life. But instead, Lyle used his sword to strike its tip and send it flying back toward the throne, destroying it.
Boom!
Everything happened instantly, from the betrayal to the emperor’s attack and finally to Lyle’s counter. The rebels were shocked and speechless as Lyle placed Ivory on the ground.
“What have you done?” muttered Lyle as he lowered her head gently. Her mouth opened, but only blood came out. The earlier kick crushed her organs and destroyed her vessels.
“I… was… protecting my promise,” said Ivory as she coughed more blood. “I promised your mother… that I would protect you. However,” she sobbed, “I failed.”
