“I will reach my goals, no matter the lives it may cost.” Finndeshin said in response to his question and Dazien’s heart sank. He had been half-hoping he had been right about what he had told Kena… That perhaps her uncle wasn’t completely evil. Apparently, he was wrong about that hope.

  The only hope he could cling to now was that Kena had told Phoenix where he was and that she was te because his sister was bringing an army to rescue him. He couldn’t wait to get out of this Silencer, eat some real food, and hold Uriel.

  While Valtessa’s touch sickened him, he knew that Uriel’s touch would burn away her filth like he had burned away his grief in the past. He was determined to not let her actions ruin the happiness he found with others. Eventually, he knew this would all just be an old memory that would serve to spur him forward.

  With his family by his side, he could overcome this tribution just like every other. He would cultivate this challenge into his strength and strive to protect others from a simir fate.

  He was fortunate that Finndeshin had chosen not to shove that foul potion down his throat. It gave him a better chance to focus on the new pn he had been working on while waiting for Kena to bring help.

  The afternoon after he had first met Kena, when Valtessa had woken him by nudging the Silencer up his neck so she could bite the base of it once again, he realized he might have had a solution to the Silencer all along.

  His newer Talent, [Wrath of the King], had given his aura greatly increased strength to suppress others. He hadn’t thought it would help at first because he always thought it was meant for suppressing other people’s auras and it wouldn’t help when the Silencer was cutting his aura off.

  But it wasn’t cutting off his aura, it was suppressing it—forcing it inwards towards his core with its own pseudo-aura.

  Most magical items had what was basically the equivalent of a fake aura, a magical signature of its very being. The more magical the item, the stronger that fake aura was. Silencers were specialized items that focused on enhancing this side effect into its entire purpose. What that meant for him now was that he just had to focus on suppressing the Silencer’s aura in return.

  Dazien just wasn’t very good at it. Even with Paul and Phoenix’s help, he had always been terrible with his aura. Uriel had even teased him one time that his sister had somehow stolen all his aura strength to make hers break the rules, as if they were actual twins that had shared a womb.

  He had thought he was getting much better, especially after destroying Noble Kanthis’ aura at the Tulimeir Soiree. That boy had been drunk, though, and his aura greatly weakened by Monster Seeds. This Silencer couldn’t get inebriated.

  It also felt harder to control his aura while it was pushed so far within him rather than beyond his physical body, but that could have just been his own personal issue with it. He couldn’t remember if Uriel ever mentioned having issues like that, but then again his partner would never have attempted trying to overpower his Silencer.

  Dazien kept trying though. Trying very hard to focus on his soul rather than the painful pricks of the needle tattooing his foot, he attempted to command his aura to suppress the Silencer around his wrists and throat.

  He knew he would need to be quick when he finally managed it. Finndeshin would likely be able to sense if his aura expanded beyond him, especially with his ankle being held. His current pn was simple, but hopefully it would be enough.

  His breakthrough came slowly as he felt his aura finally obey and push back against the accursed item. Dazien just had to remind his soul that he was the monarch and it would always be under his dominion.

  He could feel the exact moment when the effects of his [Monarch’s Dominion] Aura reached Finndeshin and the Emerald Caster got a momentary look of surprise as his charcoaled eyes snapped up to stare at him.

  When Finn smirked at him, that was when he put his pn into motion and pushed all of his willpower into his aura and conjured [Excalibur] from his [Armory] into his hand. He likely wouldn’t have been able to nd his strike without the sudden boom that shook the very walls of the building drawing Finndeshin’s attention from him. The loud distraction was enough that he shouted, “To arms!” to boost his Strength with [Rallying Cry], and stabbed the evil blood cultist through the heart.

  Unfortunately, Finn just looked down at the sparkly diamond sword in his chest before looking back up at Dazien and raising an eyebrow as he asked, “Really now? You do know Emerald Caster’s don’t have an actual heart anymore, right? You should have aimed for my much more vulnerable brain if you were attempting to kill me in a single blow.”

  Other yells sounded in the ritual hall as people turned back at his shout and reacted to the threat he now posed.

  He kicked at Finndeshin, who surprisingly released his other foot, and conjured the door to his [Armory] to hopefully escape within. However, another cultist blocked his path as he tumbled from the stone altar. Half of his focus was still very much on the Silencer as he had to keep pushing back against its suppressive force on him and it caused his already weakened body to falter at the worst times.

  He suddenly realized that if he was wearing the Chains of Silence with his aura expanded around it, the Silencer was part of his equipment now. With a thought, he doffed the Chains of Silence to return to his [Armory] and reconjured [Excalibur] into his hands. He swung at the Caster standing between him and his safe haven and triggered [Lead the Charge] when they jumped back from his reach.

  He crashed into the cultist, stabbing his sword through them and the portal to his personal storage space but he couldn’t enter with the still-living body between them. Only Dazien could enter that space and all anyone else felt was a solid wall. He pulled his sword back from the Caster and tried to push them out of the way but another set of hands pulled him away.

  “Bow before your king!” he yelled at his new assaint who quickly released him to kneel.

  As he saw more cultists approach, including Finndeshin who was looking at him with an odd mixture of hesitation and amusement, he cast his upgraded ability that bonded to that precious Control Spirit Gem. “You have forsaken my rule and thus forfeit your freedom!”

  Css Ability: To the Dungeon

  Type: Spell (construct, control, elemental, metal)

  Cost: Moderate mana.

  Cooldown: 5 minutes.

  Current Caste: Sapphire 4 (37%)

  Crystal Effect: Construct a reinforced metal cage around the target for a short duration; touching the cage inflicts a burst of Metal damage.

  Sapphire Effect: You can cage multiple targets at once with the mana cost increasing for each additional target.

  He was able to cage five of them before his already depleted reserves ran out and he felt a mana headache coming on. Unfortunately, the Emerald Caster was still very much free.

  Dazien realized he wasn’t going to escape the moment Finndeshin’s eyes finally hardened on him and he began taking purposeful steps towards him. He still held his sword at the ready, determined to fight or die. As Finndeshin merely raised an arm to grab hold of him, the door to the room smmed open and a young woman’s voice rang out, “Uncle Finn!”

  The nobleman’s eyes went wide in surprise as he made the foolish mistake of turning to look at his niece and Dazien swung at the opening. Cleanly separating the elf’s head from his shoulders to tumble unceremoniously to the ground.

  As Finndeshin’s body colpsed a moment ter and his head y there, staring up at him, the corpseless head said to him with a sad smile, “Make sure to tell them Kena helped you… and tell her I’m proud of her staying good… no matter the cost.”

  Dazien’s eyes widened in surprise at the sudden sentiments and st wish. Had he made a terrible mistake in believing Finn’s earlier words? Had it merely been a performance? If he had known about Kena, then he must have known—

  His thoughts were cut off as a pair of bodies smmed into him from either side, attempting to tangle his arms and remove the sword one held. There were too many of them. Dazien had been a fool to think he could escape with practically the entire cult present.

  He still wouldn’t give up, though. His family was coming for him. Uriel needed him. He refused to kneel, or bow, or break to these cruel cultists when he had people still depending on him.

  With the cooldown up and the others grappling his arms behind him, he incanted the newest effect of his [Rallying Cry] that had bonded to his Finality Spirit Gem, “Your final destination is into Death’s embrace.”

  Css Ability: Rallying Cry

  Type: Spell (magical, covenant)

  Cost: Moderate mana.

  Cooldown: 1 minute.

  Current Caste: Sapphire 5 (3%)

  Crystal Effect: Can cast either [To Arms] or [Charge] to temporarily increase one Attribute for nearby allies.

  Sapphire Effect: Can inflict nearby enemies with [Final Destination] and [Death’s Embrace].

  To Arms (boon, magical, covenant): Increased Strength for a moderate duration.Charge (boon, magical, covenant): Increased Agility for a moderate duration.Final Destination (bane, magical, death): Decreased Mind and Agility for a moderate duration.Death’s Embrace (bane, magical, death): Inflicts ongoing Death damage for a short duration.

  It was a moment after that when another cultist lunged toward him attempting to bury a dagger into his chest.

  Phoenix chased after Ren who had turned into a small green mouse to scamper down a hall impossibly quick for a rodent that size. After a few more twists and turns through the sprawling estate, Kena excitedly said, “I remember this part!”

  When she rushed forward and smmed open the door to the ritual room, her voice rang out, “Uncle Finn!” shortly followed by a choking sob, and she cried out, “No!”

  Phoenix’s mind went to the worst outcome as she quickly caught up to take in the scene before her. That was when she saw him. His hair was unevenly cut close to his scalp and he only wore white shorts that showed off glinting purple markings covering his warm brown skin that made him almost look like a runeforged, but she recognized Dazien.

  It was on pure instinct that she expanded her aura out and conjured a [Sun Shell] from her [Radiant Sunlight] Aura to block the dagger aimed straight for his heart. More shouts echoed through the hall, and Uriel yanked her backward against him as the door beside her exploded from the fireball that impacted it.

  Rayna shot forward like a bullet to impact with one of the cultists holding onto Daze, and Ren shifted into action as well, turning into a rger hawk form and it looked like smaller mice were raining from them onto the cultists below.

  Phoenix’s aura recognized the mice as a swarm Familiar that she hadn’t known Ren could summon though she vaguely recalled them mentioning having one. She pushed the thought from her mind though as she conjured her own weapons and lunged into the fray.

  She couldn’t risk casting Meteor Shower or Supernova here where the building could colpse on them, but she still had options and Ta read her surface thoughts to know to manifest and begin attacking the opposite side from Ren where the [Cosmic Phoenix] could release her [Star Fire] without potential colteral.

  Phoenix marked her first target, a Sapphire Caste human with [Nemesis] while incanting, “Gaze into the abyss,” to inflict them with the handful of Banes that included summoning her [Shadow of Azazel] to occupy the Caster in melee.

  Letting the disturbing looking two-dimensional demon handle that one, she focused on the next enemy and narrowed her eyes at the Emerald Caster that appeared in her path. He was a runeforged and his aura was filled with the sickly taint of Monster Seeds, but she wasn’t sure she could take him alone.

  Then Phoenix remembered that she wasn’t alone any more.

  She could feel the five other auras of her friends encompass her with their own effects, and she almost wanted to cry at the familiar feeling she had lost. She never wanted to lose any of them ever again.

  “Be sure of foot and strong of heart.” Saiya’s voice echoed through the hall and Phoenix felt the Boon fall upon her, increasing her weakest Attribute and making her magic less resistible from the [Boon of the Banced]. The next moment she heard Saiya begin to sing, and felt her resistances increase as a watery bubble appeared around her from the Healer’s [Sonorous Shield] ability.

  The Emerald Caster lunged at her with a sword in hand but suddenly halted as Dazien’s voice rang out, “Lukas Lumeris! I challenge your honor!”

  As the enemy turned to face Dazien in answer to his [Duelist] taunt, Phoenix triggered her ability that she had been practicing more with Ren on her way here. Pouring a rge chunk of her mana into creating a swarm of illusory birds that did more than just distract now.

  Ability: Lunar Dream

  Type: Spell (construct, magical, arcane, illusion)

  Cost: Variable mana.

  Cooldown: None.

  Current Caste: Sapphire 2 (98%)

  Crystal Effect: Construct an illusory model. Cost varies based on scale and duration. The Illusion is semi-transparent and intangible.

  Sapphire Effect: Can control the level of transparency of your Constructs and they can generate sounds. For an additional moderate mana cost, your illusions can deliver an instance of [Waning Crescent] on enemies or [Plenilune] on allies when they come into contact, destroying the illusion.

  Waning Crescent (bane, magical, arcane, stacking): Decreased Mind and Magic. Periodically inflicts Arcane damage based on the amount of darkness for a short duration.Plenilune (boon, magical, arcane, stacking): Increased Mind and Magic. Attacks inflict additional Arcane damage based on the amount of light for a short duration.

  As her illusions dive bombed both her enemies and allies, she triggered her [Avatar of Bakunawa] and would make sure that Dazien won his duel with the Emerald enemy.