*Boom
Explosions set the quiet town into motion.
With most of them sleeping, they were in no position to evade such a fast attack, and since multiple slashes hit almost simultaneously, the damage was exponential.
The first slash caught most unawares, throwing them into disarray as fire engulfed them, or the recurring explosion blasted them away while in the middle of a good nap, only for the next slash to finish the job.
Alvarach was going for total annihilation.
To stop that from happening, the three Grandmasters burst out of their abode.
With the first slash having landed, the town was already in chaos.
They needed to stop the rest, else nothing would remain by the end of the barrage!
As a man of action, Frederick was the quickest to respond.
Motioning his hand as if trying to raise a tsunami, a thick wide wall erupted from the earth and covered the town like a man bending backwards as the third slash hit.
*Break!
The wall was almost broken through with chunks of it flying about.
Quickly, reinforcing it, the fourth slash hit.
*Break!
Frederick's knee bent as the ground beneath his feet cracked like a web.
The impact was no joke!
Luckily, he had Jebas and Cabrera to assist him.
Reaching the castle, Ezra stopped, landed gently before walking into the castle with fast steps.
"Halt! Who goes there?"
The guards were startled, they hadn't noticed him until he landed.
"I am Ezra, the Fourth Prince" he replies, his steps unceasing.
The guards were perplexed, looking at each other before getting into battle stance. "Demons are not welcome in the castle! Leave now!"
'Right' Ezra raised both palms of which ice shot out and held them against the wall.
The force of which they hit against the wall knocked them unconscious.
With all that happened in the past month, he'd forgotten what his reputation was like.
Not like he cared though, for it only made things easier.
Freezing every guard in ice, Ezra walked unhindered, coming across a familiar figure.
"Bolton" he said. Reminiscing on the last time they saw one another.
Bolton adjusted his monocle. His eye widening "Ezra?"
"I knew you'd recognize me" Ezra nodded.
He remembered Bolton's vanishing from sight from the royal carriage on his way to the academy.
Ezra chuckled, thinking over how the current situation came about.
From academy to Beast Outbreak to Arcadia.
It was too ridiculous.
Getting a hold of himself, Bolton stepped back in a hurry, "What are you doing here?"
Before getting a weapon, there was a task far more pressing awaiting him.
"Where is my Mother?"
Taken captive by the Emperor, Ezra had been able to get her away for a long time.
Moreover, when Frederick saw a chance, she had actually rejected him.
He didn't know what was going through her mind. He needed to see her.
Sweating, Bolton begins "The Emperor-
"-Is dead"
"....!"
Bolton shook.
"W-What did you say?"
Without mincing words, he repeats. "The Emperor is dead"
"Lies!" Bolton shouted. "Who could possibly kill the Emperor?!"
"A Mythic rank demon" Ezra replied casually, as if this wasn't really heavy news.
"M-Mythic rank?" Bolton stuttered.
"Yes, the stage of power after Grandmaster"
Bolton grit his teeth, "You're lying!"
"Suit yourself" Ezra shrugged, his eyes turning cold. "Move aside. I don't want to hurt you"
With pressure threatening to suffocate Bolton, he reluctantly moved to the side.
"Thank you"
The next moment, Ezra vanished from sight.
As a Mythical being, his mana sense encompassed the castle and more.
He knew where his mother was the moment he reached the castle.
Heading along the corridor that held the Emperor's room, he stopped in front of a room just before it.
For whatever reason, it was unguarded.
Moreover, none of the Empresses were at home.
With a large exhale, Ezra rubbed his hands together, trying to curb the anxiety in his heart.
Even at his rank, he couldn't help it.
With mana sense, he sensed that she was in no trouble, as Frederick had said.
With one final exhale, he pushed the door open.
The scene was not quite what he expected.
His mom was perusing a book ever so slowly, with spectacles on.
The swerving door grabbed her attention.
Jerking her head, her eyes widened in shock as she stared at the man at her door.
A mother would never forget her child.
With a trembling voice, she spoke. "E-Ezra?"
Ezra nodded in response, his fears dying out as he approached her.
"Oh my!" Taking off her spectacles, she sprung onto her feet, and reached for her one and only son.
Their embrace could only be called a magical scene of filial piety.
"Oh Ezra. How scared you must've been and this silly mother wasn't there to protect you" Tears began leaking from the edge of his mother's eyes.
"Don't say that Mom" he replied, pulling her harder into his embrace.
After a whole minute, they loosened their embrace, of which Kiara's expression turned alarmed.
"No, you can't be here" she said. "Your father, if he find you here-
"You don't worry about him any longer"
"...?."
Kiara was puzzled. "What do you mean?"
"The Emperor is dead"
She was shocked. "Son, don't tell me you-
"No mother, I didn't kill him. A demon did"
"A d-demon?!" Now, she was even more scared.
"A lot of things have happened" said Ezra. "It's better you sit down"
Taking seats against her reading table, Ezra explained all that had happened, leaving out many parts so as to scare her too much.
Thirty minutes later, Ezra watched in silence as his mom comprehended the situation.
"You mean…you have to fight a very powerful demon…again?"
Ezra nodded humbly.
Staring at her fingernails, her expression betrayed her unwillingness.
"What if…What if I don't want you to go?" She blurted.
"Then I won't go" Ezra replied. "I can find a way to take you and a few others to a new continent"
"Hmm" she seemed to consider the idea, before her expression changed once again.
With a tone full of hesitation, she asks. "But if you don't go…many people will die right?"
"Yes"
After a long minute, she started speaking.
"I've told you this before, but I knew you were special since you were a little child"
"Seeing you now…you're more special than I could've imagined"
A bitter smile lay on her lips as she said those words.
"When I heard you became a demon, I wanted to rush to your side, but I couldn't, and when I heard that you were imprisoned in Arcadia, I-I thought I'd never see you again"
At the last part, she burst into tears.
Ezra's heart sank. 'And I acting so selfishly, as if I was the only one going through something'
Wiping her tears with a handkerchief, she continues, "I thought I'd never see you again, but I held out hope"
"My boy was stronger than others, surely he would come back one day-I told myself"
She smiled. "And here you are. Grown into fine man"
"But yet again, the burden of the world rests on your shoulders. You have to go and fight someone again. And this time you could really die"
She wiped the small tears coming out. "Even after all this, I'm unable to help you"
"Mom, don't say that. Without you, I wouldn't be here"
She smiled. "I don't want to you go…but I guess this he price I have to pay for having such a special son"
"Mom…"
"Go" she said. "The people need you"
Ezra gulped. He couldn't imagine how hard it must be for her.
"But promise me you'll come back"
"I promise" he nodded.
Taking a very heavy sigh, she smiles at her child, nodding as acknowledgement.
"You've become a man now. But in my eyes, you'll still be a little child. Remember, you must come back soon"
"Yes!" With a heavy heart, Ezra stood up, and walked out slowly.
Closing the door, he spoke to Zydrax.
'Let's make sure we win'
[That was the plan]
Having used an hour already, he hurried to the secret compartment where the legendary weapons lay.
After his fight with Ziltris, Ezra realized that while his scythe skills were good, the sword skills he'd been polishing since his time as Kevin were a notch better than the rest.
The battle with Alvarach confirmed it.
With Alvarach already on his way, it was imperative that Ezra faced him with the best of his abilities.
Sadly, Skyfall couldn't bring out the best of his abilities, so getting a new weapon was paramount.
No, maybe practising five different movement types had been a bad choice?
Regardless.
Frederick had taken the spiked hammer staff, only three weapons were left, chained to the wall.
What would you know, there were exactly two swords left.
A blue serrated longsword with various symbols…no, Ezra realized, they were runes placed systematically to achieve a special effect and a double edged sword of black and yellow colour.
The last weapon was an emerald bow.
Now at Mythic rank, he could feel the depths clearly.
If anything, they were made for Mythic ranked beings.
Then again, it only made sense.
In a golden age where Mythic rank was the pinnacle, the pinnacle weapons should be of that rank.
As in Ezra's case, lesser rank beings could use it, but they wouldn't be able to actualize it's full potential.
Inhaling, Ezra willed Skyfall out of his ancient space ring.
In his grip, Skyfall sucked Ezra mana at astonishing speeds.
It shone and shook, almost like it was groaning while becoming more lustrous.
Being in the space ring for a while, Skyfall was only feeling its master's advancement.
Ezra could feel a change taking place in Skyfall, but he didn't exactly know what was happening.
After two minutes of a splendid glow, Skyfall settled down.
Then… 'Master…?'
It was Ezra's turn to be amazed.
He'd concluded that Skyfall had something akin to a consciousness but incomplete, allowing it to relay emotional wavelengths to express itself.
This would be the first time it spoke.
[That's odd]
'What is?'
[It shouldn't be able to do that] Zydrax explained. [The only reason it could relay emotions was because it core materials were harvested from the corpse of a demon, and that alone makes it an extraordinary weapon]
[For it to relay actual thought like now though…it seems you have a soul weapon on your hands]
'Soul Weapon?'
[In short terms, a weapon that grows] Zydrax replied. [Which was what happened just now]
'Master…is that you?'
The voice resounded in his mind. The tone was hoarse and heavy, yet clear still.
Carefully, Ezra replied. 'Yes it is. You can talk now?'
'I guess…so?' It said, 'Why…are we here?'
Chained to walls here for years, it only made sense that he would know.
"I'm here to pick another weapon"
Skyfall shook madly.
'Why…? Why do you want…another weapon?!'
It spoke with agitation and anger.
Ezra replied, 'I am better at using two swords than a scythe' looking at the two swords.
'Grr'
A beast-like growl came from its depths, startling Ezra.
'You don't need a weapon other than me'
Skyfall started shaking, vibrating even as it heated up.
Ezra couldn't help but wonder, 'Is he throwing a tantrum right now?'
As a Mythical being, the heat wasn't enough to make him feel pain.
But what was this situation?
He wondered whether to stop it, but Zydrax said not to.
Skyfall gleamed, growing hotter and hotter, before streaks of red spread, until it was completely red, exuding thick demonic essence.
While it didn't look like one, Skyfall was a demonic weapon through and through.
Skyfall's hard steel body softened, as if liquifying.
On cue, the curved blades straightened and the softened steel began hardening.
The demonic essence receded as Skyfall shed molten pieces, as if molting.
When its hardening reached its center, Skyfall split in two.
"....!"
Ezra was alarmed. Had he pushed Skyfall too far?
'I am…alright…Master'
Split in two, the part where it was split reshaped itself.
Gleaming dangerously, Skyfall looked like it had always been two long swords.
Ezra was lost for words.
