The Beginning Of A Five Year Agony-Chapter 34: bloody-soaked chamber.

"Art of War."

The ground beneath Samuel’s feet began to fracture, lines of energy spiderwebbing outwards as shockwaves erupted. A mix of dark green and red essence, pure, raw energy, surged from his body, flowing down from his arm and into his blade. But then, abruptly, it stopped. Samuel cursed, calling out "Aegirion!" multiple times. Frustration twisted his facial features, and then he shouted, his voice echoing through the palace courtyard...

"Aegirion! In the name of the All-Father Arithmos, the God of War, I command you to unleash the ’Art of War’!"

Boom!...

A torrent of essence, a concentrated blast of dark green and red energy, erupted from the blade. Dust and debris were flying outwards in all directions, At a high velocity. As the air cleared, a massive, nine-foot-tall knight, clad in dark green, battle-worn armor and wielding a massive, One-handed sword, stood before him. It knelt on one armored knee. "Your wish is my command, Master," a deep, resonant voice boomed the entire vicinity. Aegirion, in its knight form, had materialized.

Samuel stared, momentarily stunned. Now he understood why the power of "Art of War" could not be used in the "dual spectrum." A glowing time counter shimmered before his eye... "Art of War: 5 mins."

A spear, thrown with deadly accuracy, flew straight at Samuel’s face. But Aegirion, reacting with immeasurable speed, moved its massive hand, catching the spear mid-flight, with a metallic clang... before it could reach Samuel.

"Aegirion," Samuel commanded while pointing. "You will engage with the two of the four remaining Path-Knights. I will handle the other two. Do you understand?"

The armored knight gave a single, lowly nod.

In an instant, Aegirion swung its colossal sword in a devastating horizontal attack. The two Path-Knights Samuel had designated barely had time to raise their shields before the massive blade cleaved through them with a horrific force. Their Armor shattered, and limbs were severed. The 5 minutes, Samuel realized, was more than enough time for Aegirion to dispatch both. Samuel was momentarily dumbfounded, speechless at the sheer, overwhelming power. He knew, with a chilling certainty, that he would face far stronger opponents in the near future.

Before he could fully process it, a powerful kick came flying in, aimed at his ribs. Samuel reacted instantly, his hand shooting out to grab the Path-Knight’s leg in mid-air. With a grunt of force, he used his elbow to snap the Path-Knight’s leg with a sickening crunch. A yelp of pain escaped the armored warrior. Samuel then spun, using the Path-Knight’s momentum against it, and delivered a powerful kick that sent the crippled warrior hurtling into a nearby building, crashing through the walls... Forming a spiderweb.

Within seconds, the Path-Knight was scrambling to its feet from the debris, but Samuel was already there, directly in front of it. He gave a grim nod, then plunged his hand through the Path-Knight’s chest plate. With a sickening rip, he tore out its still-beating heart. The organ pulsed wetly in his hand for a moment before Samuel clenched his fist, crushing it into a pulp of flesh.

He turned, the last of the "Art of War" timer vanishing from his sight as Aegirion, completed its task, and transformed back into his blade. Samuel recalled it, the blade flying back into his hands from the ground. He had killed all the Path-Knights. Only a few dozen regular knights remained alive, scattered and terrified.

"Aegirion," Samuel commanded, his voice ice cold. "Kill the remaining knights." His blade imbued with his will, moved on its own, a blur of motion. Left, and right, it moved with ruthless efficiency, slaughtering every single one of the remaining knights.

The entire palace grounds were now littered with dead bodies. Samuel stood in the aftermath, his body already regenerating. Fractured skull, twisted limbs, torn tendons... all knit back together at an alarming rate, flesh and bone reforming with visible speed.

Once his regeneration was complete, Samuel launched himself into the air, landing inside the palace with a ground-shaking impact that destroyed several sections of the hallway. He began walking, leaving a trail of shattered stone and collapsed pillars. After a short walk, he came upon the king and queen’s chambers.

"Who is there?" a voice from within called out, laced with fear.

Samuel kicked the heavy chamber door open. It splintered violently, swinging inward and striking one of the kingdom’s nobles squarely in the face. Inside, seven nobles...men and women..cowered in fear. Samuel’s eyes narrowed as he saw the king and queen among them. A chilling smile spread across his face as he stepped inside, walking deliberately towards the noble still groaning on the floor from the broken door’s impact. Samuel brought his foot down, crushing the noble’s head. The sickening crack of the skull echoed through the room, followed by the wet squelch of brains bursting outwards. Screams erupted from the terrified nobles.

"Shut up!" Samuel shouted, his voice echoing through the cries.

One of the nobles, a portly man, screamed and bolted in fear through the broken doorway, desperate to escape down the hallway.

Samuel activated "Hand of War," and a crushing force enveloped the fleeing noble. The man’s body contorted and compressed, transforming into a gruesome ball of crushed meat and bone, blood dripping thick onto the hallway floor.

Samuel turned, his gaze fixed on the king and queen.

"Children of another world, I know this must be overwhelming. But your arrival... is the last hope we have."

"We did not summon you lightly. You were brought here because your souls shine with the power of the True Gods. You are not ordinary. You are chosen."

"Please, We need your help. Without you... our people will die. Our homes will fall. Our future will be nothing but ash."

Samuel repeated their words back to them, the same deceitful lies they had spoken to him and his classmates. Then, a low, guttural laugh bubbled from his chest, growing in intensity until it became a manic, insane cackle that filled the chamber. The laughter ceased.

"Lies," Samuel uttered. "I need three things from you nobles, and I will let you go. Just three."

The queen’s voice, though fearful, rang out, "Lies! He’s telling you all lies! He’s going to kill you all!"

The king added with defiant pride, "For our gods and goddesses, we must carry this truth to our grave!"

Samuel’s smile widened, a chilling, humorless grin. "The irony of life... calling me a liar." He activated "Hand of War" again, and with a sickening pop, the head of another noble exploded, painting the wall red...with blood and brain matter.

The eyes of the remaining nobles widened in abject horror. "We would do anything!" they cried together.

"Good. I am a man of my word," Samuel stated, his eyes glowing with a dark green energy. "Just answer my questions, and I will let you go. I don’t have anything against you all... except for the king and queen."

"Question number one," Samuel began, his voice rising, "Why summon us from our world?!" He shouted, his face contorted in rage, then instantly calmed. "Sorry, I lost my temper," he added, a mock apology.

One of the nobles, trembling uncontrollably, stammered, "I... I’m not sure, but the high priest said something about changing worlds, and that sacrificing the Outworlders was the only way..."

Samuel’s eyes narrowed. "That doesn’t make any sense."

"I swear, I’ve told you everything I know!" the noble pleaded.

"You fool!" the king spat, his voice filled with contempt for his noble.

Samuel smiled. "The king’s response gives the truth." He turned to the king. "Is that true?"

The king remained silent, glaring.

"Kill me! I will not tell you anything, Outworlder!" the king uttered defiantly.

Samuel extended his hand, using the "Hand of War" to seize the king, pulling him close to his face. "I will."

With a brutal, swift movement, he slammed the king’s head against the floor repeatedly until it burst into many pieces, blood, bones and brain matter dripping from Samuel’s hand.

The queen shrieked, "My husband! What have you done, you monster!" She crawled towards the king’s lifeless, ruined body, weeping hysterically.

"Second question," Samuel continued, ignoring the queen’s cries. "Where is High Priest Malaki?"

"He’s in the underground cathedral!" a noble blurted out in a rush of fear. "Just go left in the hallways. You’ll find a secret passage inside a wall!"

"Good," Samuel uttered, his eyes glowing a dangerous dark green. He looked at the remaining nobles. "I’ll give you a moment to pray to whatever god you believe in. But it won’t really matter, because they’re all going to join you too."

"Aegirion!" Samuel commanded, his voice devoid of all emotions. "Kill them all."

"What?! We told you everything we know!"

"You... promised!" All the nobles protested, their faces contorted in terror. freёnovelkiss-com

"A monster... with a heart of glass..." one noble whimpered, just before Samuel’s command was carried out.

Samuel smiled, a dark, unsettling expression, all of his rage, depression, and anxiety hidden beneath a thin veneer. It felt like a flood of molten lava beneath his skin.

"Heart of glass, you say?" Samuel uttered. "Yet act surprised when a broken one leaves you with cuts and scars." His voice dropped to a chilling tone.

"Death isn’t enough for the pain you have given. That’s why I’ll gladly give you a free trip to hell itself."

"Kill them," Samuel repeated, his voice echoing in the bloody-soaked chamber.

Blood splashed everywhere, staining his already-drenched clothes. He stood there, upon this throne of bodies, and all that could be heard was a laugh...a manic, insane laughter, of one who no longer knew what he had become.

Then, he turned, walking out of the chamber, the sounds of flesh and bone being torn and broken audible behind him...

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