Chapter 445 (1/2)

Chapter 445

Chapter 443: The Truth of Power

CECILIA

I stared at the space where the portal had been, its afteriht and the slums below My mind was blank, the fury of the battle washed away by the shock of its sudden end Even the screa pain of the wound in my side seemed subdued, distant as it pumped blood around ht before me, but I hadn’t been able to stop hihtnovelapp !!

I just couldn’t acy My control overit fro asura, and yet Grey had matched me—had wounded me, even, nearly killed me If I hadn’t sensed the distortion in the ain

Although I’d only been able to draw in a h to offer a spark of insight: Grey could apparentlyone force toor canceling on’sdone in reverse

The two forces pushed against one another, and so any application of e in the aether around it I hadn’t understood that before—I barely knehat aether was—but I was starting to see

But I’d been overconfident The amount of mana and sheer mental will that had been required to barelyhi my teeth, I couldn’t help but feel like I’d wasted the opportunity Next time I faced him—and I had no doubt there would be a next time—he’d be ready for it

At the very least, it see to view Grey’s core as ajust how much Grey’s control of aether impacted his plans I couldn’t be sure what he understood—or didn’t A sh to dissect the situation and coain fro had never beenspell sent ht up to me My eyes touched his, but I quickly pulled theht of him

He was pale, his face bloodied and battered, core exhausted, struggling even to h the staff that allowed hi, he favored his left side, where Grey had struck hi blood held together by bruised skin

Guilt coiled up from my stomach to wrap like vines around my heart Should I have listened to hiuess my every word and action Could Grey really help us—do what Nico feared even Agrona couldn’t? I didn’t let the thought take root, but instead ripped it out and cast it aside That was less an option now than it ever had been, the battle had made that clear

There was a haunted look in Nico’s eyes as he inspectedlike tears about to fall, like he couldn’t quite be sure if I was really there or if he rown used to the hard, rage-filled Nico of this world, the one who had gone to war for Agrona, who had killed to bring me into this world He’d scared me at first, when I was freshly rewoken fro to understand the necessity of his rage, his darkness What Agrona required of us to earn back the lives that fate stole couldn’t be acco orphans we’d been on Earth

Now, seeing the helpless look on his bloodied face, I couldn’t help but see that boy, the sensitive but intelligent young man I’d reluctantly fallen in love with

But thinking of that Nico only reirl I had been The years spent foolishly hoping I could get my ki under control as a child, then all that ti beaten into le day until all I could think about was the escape of death—

I opened my mouth and prepared to screaed in my throat, and only silence radiated out fro back in The fear, the guilt, the rage, the uncertainty, the hope…but the pain overwhelmed it all For aaway the memory, I pressed both hands to the cut and flooded it ater-attribute h I could soothe a fever or the ache caused by long hours of training, I was no healer

“Cecil, your wound—” Nico said, but he cut off immediately when I waved ahatever he was about to say

Focusing instead on fire-attributethe blood loss It wouldn’t kill rin Caelum and the healers there, and so I put the wound and the pain out of my mind

Nico cleared his throat “Guards and soldiers were already gathering outside the palace before we left I’ll return and inform them of what’s happened And…I need to find Draneeve, see if he’s still—”

I scoffed “You’re worried about that shattered, sniveling little creature at a time like this? Vritra’s horns, Nico, we have s to…to…” I trailed off as I took in his expression

Nico’s nose rinkled, his brows creased into a frown, and his lip curled up in a disbelieving sneer “I made him a promise, Cecilia He helped us—helped you! I—” This ti, fortifying breath When he looked back at me, he was calmer “I’ve treated him terribly For years I understand how you see him—how you see everyone else—because I used to be the same That’s why I want to help hiht of his words nearly pulled ht out of the air I felt my cheeks redden with sha you what I’d re breath, soize to me It’s not…it’s…” He trailed off As the wetness in his eyes finally began to fall down his dirty and blood-crusted cheeks as tears, he turned away and began slowly floating back toward Sovereign Exeges’s de n! It seeh to defeat a full-blooded basilisk Sovereign and his entire personal guard, and afterwards still have the potency to fightasuras at his side

Agrona needed to knohat had happened in had been assassinated, a Scythe killed, and our target had escaped…

It was not a conversation I was looking forward to

‘You should have listened to Nico,’ Tessia’s voice sounded suddenly infor her to interject, in fact I was surprised only that she waited so long Read the latest chapter at Readlightnovelapp !!

‘You should have listened to rona and his ambitions Arthur could help us, I’ht carriedsnort away As if I could ever trust him to do that Even if Grey didn’t set out to er to becole-minded, has been ever since he was a kid It see to kill you to make it happen

‘He defended hi under ressor putting him on his back foot as history repeats itself’ Her voice was silent as a tense pause hung pregnant between us, then: ‘Are you really such a coward that you’ll force him to kill you twice to escape your lives? You’d put that burden on hiain, a person you once considered your best friend—soh burst froht air as we approached the ruined palace

Love…as if I was a child with a crush on the first person who’d been kind to ave up on me the second she showed an interest in hiave up That’s why…that’s…

I sed hard If you hateback to the emerald vines that had erupted fro Nico’s head You released the Elderwood Guardian’s power to me, just for a moment You are so sure that Grey can—that he would help us, and yet you know just as well as I do that he was ready to kill us both, if he’d been able

Tessia didn’t iinning of a headache

Scoffing, I pushed back against her Although I could no longer block her out coainst oing to I thought I only had one way out, before, and h…

I followed Nico into the s a stiff breeze to clear the air

Here, I have the power to change rona’s weapon, but only because he iswhat I want When I’acy, but as Cecilia, and I will live a quiet and loving life with Nico I will…

Even as I pictured it, rona had pro what I wanted I’d never asked to be the Legacy, only to be allowed a life But would the cozy cottage far froive me that? Could I sacrifice the power I now had for the life that I’d lost…?

To give soift only to snatch it away from them? It was a fate worse than death

Hadn’t those beenNico’s wound? Was it really ained from this world—fro me no further, and I almost wished she would Who else could I talk to, if not the voice in my own head…

I pulled back fro to keep her silent But she was nonetheless

Nico was shi+fting aside rubble where I could sense the faint signature of Draneeve’sfrom the front of the palace

“I’ll deal with the soldiers,” I said softly, biting h the partially collapsed entrance hall

A hundred or h they hadn’t breached the palace grounds

An olderdown on one knee in a bow Behind him, the entire force of soldiers did the salanced up at ranted it with a nod “The Sovereign has been assassinated,” I explained, my voice obscured ind-attribute mana so that only he could make out the words “No survivors rees in to start putting out the flames so they don’t spread And prepare a statement for the city to explain the destruction, but do not announce anything related to Exeges You’ll receive further instructions soon”

The one slack as he stared up at

“Send soate to take us to Taegrin Caelu back through the s over Draneeve, who had been uncovered and was now propped up against the base of a de in unconsciousness I was surprised by how nor to sound concerned but not feeling I quite ed it

“I think so,” Nico answered “But his skull is fractured and there is a lot of swelling I need to get hirin Caelu “I’ll tell Agrona that he’s dead”

Nico’s jaorked silently for a few seconds before he finally spoke “Be careful Don’t lie to him if you can avoid it When I’ve seen to Draneeve, I’ll ith the city’s forces to deal with things here, then follow you”

I nodded, but he wasn’t looking inout, I almost set my hand on his shoulder but stopped just short Cursed body, I thought bitterly before turning away

When I reached the coate was housed, it was already tuned to Taegrin Caeluh without prearona’s fortress By the buzz and bustle, it was clear that everyone are of what had happened and on high alert, but I also detected a certain ah I received the custo at rona to be waiting for me in the teleportation chambers, but no one approached e of fear in the way the attendants and soldiers watchedmy eye while others visually devoured ive therew h the fortress and no one stopped me at all It wasn’t until I started up the stairs that opened into the hall connecting to Agrona’s private wing that I started to understand Abovethe very stones