The Villain's Story



[You have entered the 20th floor.]

"Eh?"

Elijah was confused…he had directly entered the 20th floor instead of entering the lobby. It was strange.

[Time is of the essence…is it not?]

The voice of the tower resounded in his mind.

[I welcome you…To the 20th floor.]

[Trial of the Emperor.]

[I love this part.]

Said the tower. It loved to narrate the stories of each trial. I was also extremely enthusiastic about it.

—

In the heart of the imperial palace, bathed in a muted, eerie light that filtered through heavy velvet drapes, reclined the Emperor. A figure of once-unrivaled majesty, now entangled in a tragic dance with the very forces he had dared to imprison within himself. It was a scene both mesmerizing and profoundly unsettling, a tale of power and sacrifice etched into the flesh of a dying ruler.

[ Don't you agree, Hero?]

Upon that regal seat, the Emperor rested, a specter of his former self! His body, once robust and commanding, had withered away to mere skin and bone, a haunting reminder of the price he had willingly paid to protect his empire. His once-majestic robes, a symbol of his authority, now hung in tatters, reminiscent of faded glory.

[This is what happens when you class with a shadow-borne.]

His hands, once strong and capable of wielding the might of an empire, were skeletal and gnarled, their veins like ancient roots seeking sustenance from a long-depleted well. His face, though bearing the remnants of a ruler's noble visage, was marred by the gruesome decay that had begun to claim him. One eye, vacant and lifeless, stared into the abyss, while the other retained a glint of the ruler he had once been. His dignity had been disgraced! His life is a mess at this point! Does it not incur your wrath hero?!

The source of his agony was laid bare for Elijah to see. The Emperor's flesh bore a complex tapestry of runic sigils and symbols, etched as though by the hand of a vengeful deity. These marks pulsed with malevolent, ever-hungry energy, their tendrils weaving an intricate web beneath his skin. They were the embodiment of the chaotic forces he had sealed within himself, a decision made in desperation to protect his people.

As the insatiable chaos churned and writhed beneath his very flesh, the Emperor's labored breaths punctuated the eerie silence of the chamber. His heart, a fragile vessel, beat irregularly, each pulse a reminder of the unbearable burden he carried for the sake of his realm. The power of the shadow borne ate him alive!!!

Do you not feel anything when you gaze at his falling disgrace Elijah?! Even his abode…

The chamber itself, once a sanctuary of opulence and power, had become a haunting crypt of shadows and muted grandeur. Tattered tapestries, once vibrant with tales of triumph, now hung as ghostly echoes of past glories. The air was thick with the scent of incense, a feeble attempt to mask the inexorable odor of decay that clung to the room. Destruction!

Dim, wavering candlelight cast grotesque and flickering shadows upon the chamber's walls, creating a macabre tableau around the Emperor's throne. It was a scene that whispered of a ruler's ultimate sacrifice, a haunting testament to the relentless cost of wielding power, and the profound, tragic lengths to which one would go to protect an empire on the brink of oblivion! But it all failed! Hahaha!]

"..."

As the tower narrated with glee, Elijah fell silent as he stared at the poor man on the throne, his rotten flesh and clotted blood bound him to that hellish seat.

To suffer.

[You…are here.]

The emperor's labored voice reached Elijah's ears. He tried to stand but was unable to do so, his rotten flesh bound him to his throne.

He couldn't even greet the savior of his empire…He had been brought to such a state where he could not even move anymore.

Pathetic…Wasn't it?

The man that everyone in his empire feared, the man who could single handedly bring them to its knees…

Was now the only living being left alive in his empire. The Empire's legacy…Was with him.

But could he even call it living anymore? Could that state dare to be declared 'living?'

No.

Never, it was hell. A hell where he was tortured every day, every hour, every second.

Each moment of his life was filled with pain, an immense amount of pain that brought his once powerful figure down to his last breath!

"..."

Elijah didn't even have the strength to say anything…He felt sad.

Even though the emperor was in such a state, the waves of power he released were so vast that Elijah was guaranteed to lose if they fought. Even in such a state the emperor held enormous power!

[It's quite alright, I am aware of my pitiful self that has been marred by the power of the deathly shadow.]

The Emperor apologized. Even he called himself pitiful and pathetic.

"No…It is still worthy of respect, Your Majesty."

Bowed Elijah. Even though the emperor had been reduced to such a state. The thing was…he was still the emperor.

The emperor of an empire…although it had fallen, the sheer scale of what Elijah had seen was both enormous and marvelous.

Truly, in the times before the shadow, the empire was a prosperous place.

[Your Majesty…It's been quite a while since my ears were graced with that term…]

Lamented the emperor. He looked at Elijah and praised him.

[You possess a fire so vibrant that even the suns could not compare…And a soul so righteous that even the Judges of law themselves pale in comparison. You…are kind.]

His words were labored…It was taking his everything to even speak.

"Thank you, your majesty."

Elijah, although he was not familiar with noble etiquette still managed to carry himself with grace, even though he was unaware of the customs of the empire.

*RUMBLE*

A sudden earthquake made Elijah lose his balance, although he had saved himself from falling the sight was not too…pleasing.

[Time is of the essence…]

The Emperor said…And then it happened.

[Kuh!]

With a pained grunt, an enormous amount of Shadow Energy escaped from him, he tried his best to keep it sealed but the Emperor was losing. He had done it for so long that the Shadow energy had eaten away at his very soul.

Truly, he had fallen.

[Please…give my empire's legacy a suitable end…hero.]

He spoke after he barely managed to conceal the Shadow leaking out from him.

The shadow beast was going to be free soon.

It would escape from the prison that was the vessel of the emperor and lay havoc on all.

Elijah went towards the Emperor, climbed the stairs that led to the throne, and graced the Emperor with the Sword Of Sundering flames.

[In my chest…where my heart is. That is where the energy is most concentrated.]

A wave of shadow energy burst forth from the emperor and almost caused Elijah to fly away, but he remained steadfast.

[Fret not…I will take this energy with me to the grave…It will plague these lands no longer…

Hurry…hero.]

And Elijah plunged his sword into the emperor's chest in an instant.

The vile energy in the air disappeared…and the atmosphere shifted.

Then there was tranquility.

The emperor's head fell down…But Elijah did not give up just yet.

'Input a will into the fire…and it can do anything.'

He thought…and his kindness, his righteous spirit did it. He did not want to let it all end like this…

He wanted to give it another…end.

The will to heal.

The will to save.

The will to purify…

Input it all in his fire…

And bathe the entire empire with the flames of purification!

A mighty flame escaped his sword, and went on to cover the entire empire!

********

[Alan's POV.]

Alan walked up towards the throne of the emperor…or rather the corpse of the emperor.

The emperor did not move, neither did he release any aura…He just remained seated on his throne.

Alan dismissed it all and created a spear of ice when he was in front of the emperor.

[You are too late.]

Said the Emperor. His words alarmed Alan but to his surprise…nothing happened.

[Are you satisfied?]

Asked the Emperor, his voice was cold.

"What are you talking about?"

Confronted Alan. He was almost about to pierce the emperor in the chest but his question made him stop.

[Leave it be…you are still a child. You know not the ways of the world or the surroundings you are in…Forgive him.]

Forgive…?

[It is your role to teach him…make him righteous like your previous master, cultivate him into the figure you want him to be.]

He's not talking to me…then who?

Alan wondered, his head in pain.

[Give him your protection…lest he fall even deeper into the jaws of the snake.]

The Ame-No-Sakahoko popped out from my inventory…and directly pierced the Emperor's heart.

[Thank you…And Forgive me…You were too late.]

'What?'

Wondered Alan…but he got the answer soon enough when a sea of shadow energy escaped the emperor.

[...Help him, Oh spear of righteousness…And slay the beast that is about to come forth.]