Chapter 602: The Chains

Julia stared at the mana blade pierce her chest while staring at Alexie, the man behind the attack. She could not hear nor talk, but from the look of things, Alexie was thinking of her as someone else.

Scire was the one behind this illusion, and even as a domain runemaster, she could not tell the difference between the illusions he created and reality. However, there were a few things that can contribute to how realistic an illusion is, and Scire included all of them.

Therefore, she did not blame Alexie, who pierced her heart. Instead, it was her fault for letting Scire take her hostage and easily become a part of this space he created. Her eyes closed as the mana invaded her body, exploding within it.

"I never considered the possibility, but you are the same as Nameless. Whenever I am involved, you fail to see the future. This is the reason that you couldn't see your end before."

Julia began to hear again as the exploding mana within her body did not destroy but heal it. Her eyes snapped wide open to look at Alexie standing before her while Scire stood there shaken. The words did not make sense, but it seemed that these two were not meeting for the first time.

'Alexie knows the culprit?' wondered Julia as she staggered to stand beside him. 'It seems the two of them were once friends.'

The words Divine Era rang in her ears, making her snap her eyes open. That term belonged to ancient texts, which she has always considered obsolete. Julia couldn't imagine a reason it would appear here and from the words of an apprentice runemaster.

"I might be an enemy now, but I am proud of how much you have changed, Arthur."

Scire now had a face, smiling, and it was one she did not recognize. Earlier, she was also under the illusion's effects, making her unable to hear or see Scire's face. However, Alexie's mana seemed to heal her mind and not just her body.

However, even when she was brought back to reality, her confusion did not lessen but only increased. The fact that Scire called Alexie by a different name could not leave her mind.

'Arthur?' her eyes turned toward Alexie, whose face carried a sadness she had never seen in him. 'Is that his real name? Does that mean that...'

As the youngest runemaster, Julia's analytic ability and political expertise made her link the dots. The first fact was that Alexie told her before that he hated her because of the incident with Arthur Silvera.

During the Runes Apprentices Cup, Arthur Silvera exhibited a world-shaking talent regarding runes. Julia remembers how Alexie saved her during the intrusion of the pocket dimension and revealed a similar talent. 

The fact that Scire called him Arthur, the reason he hated her, and his talent were enough seeds to sprout doubt in Julia's heart. The man's identity before her might be different from what she had thought, and her first feeling was hope that Arthur Silvera had forgiven her.

Their conversation reached an inconclusive end, where Scire showed no remorse over the matter. Instead, his mana exploded like before against Grandmaster Casca, pushing the two back.

"I want you to leave this place, but I am far from being able to end this illusion," muttered Alexie, or Arthur Silvera, without turning toward her. "You are an adult, so there should be no issue in protecting yourself."

"I can fight too," protested Julia with a frown. "I was simply caught by surprise earlier. Let me help you take him down."

"An independent spoiled rich runemaster," smiled Alexie at her as if the two of them were not standing in front of possible death. "Let us communicate telepathically. This will help us split without fear of being influenced by the illusion."

"I don't have that runic card," she replied with panic, and Alexie simply grabbed her shoulder and pushed her aside. A violet spear pierced the arena's floor between them, and it left a deep gush until its far end.

"Dodge the attacks you can, although I doubt that he would attack you instead of me," a voice appeared in her mind as Julia rolled on the ground. "If the illusion tries to fool us, start to describe the events happening over telepathically."

Julia jumped as soon as she finished rolling and bolted in the opposite direction to the one Alexie took. She did not know how he managed to create a communication path between them, but it reassured her that the two of them would not mistakenly harm each other.

Her words earlier were not for show, as she genuinely had the capabilities to fight alongside Alexie. Her ability, Elemental Storage, allowed her to store different attacks within her soul as long as they did not exceed her limits. As long as she can get close to Scire, she can unleash her strongest one-target rune.

The two of them circled Scire, who looked like a demon from hell with the violet mana surrounding him like a flame. The violet mana morphed into countless spears, which should be a part of the illusion.

"Do not underestimate these illusions," said Alexie in her mind. "They can pierce your flesh just the same. He uses our minds against us, and his mana makes up for the power needed to fulfill that attack."

"How do we get close to him?"

"I cannot explain the details, but he can see the future that does not include me. This makes you a crucial part of the plan. As long as you attack him, he will see a future that takes his mind away from me for a moment."

"If he knows this, then there is no way he would focus on me," panicked Julia when she heard of this ability. It was impossible to win against someone who could see the future because their attacks would never surprise him. "We should look for an escape route instead."

While two of them talked, Scire brought his arms down and made spears rain on them. Julia used one of the runes stored within her navel, making her fly in the air while Alexie zigzagged his way through them.

"An escape from his illusions seems impossible for now," said Alexie in her mind as he stopped running and clapped his hands. "He cannot unsee the future where you attack him, so he will choose to block your attacks even if he knows mine is coming. I will blind him for a second, so follow my voice and attack where I tell you."

A powerful light exploded between Alexie's hands, and it made the world become nothing but white for a second. Julia closed her eyes to lessen the light that threatened to blind her, and she listened to his instructions without hesitation.

"Ten O'clock, thirty meters," that was all he provided her with, and Julia needed no more. As she turned to run in that direction, the elemental attack within her soul unleashed. A blazing tornado appeared with her as the vortex, attacking the area in front of her.

Julia could not see whether she had struck him or not, but she knew that her attack was not meant to land. A groan came from her side as the light began to disappear, making her able to see how their coordinated attack struck their opponent.

Alexie stood a few meters beside her, carrying a giant hammer that made him comical. Scire was sent flying through the air, seemingly struck by the hammer after he dodged Julia's attack.

"You used my insight against me," smiled Scire as his arm dangled in the air, seeming to be the one he used to block the attack. "I forgot how annoying it is to fight you."

"Do not lose yourself to memories that don't belong to you," said Alexie as the hammer disintegrated into nothing. "You are more than the incarnation of him."

Julia stared at the two with a shaking heart. Throughout their interaction, the change she has witnessed in Scire made sense if he was a vessel of another being, but legacies should not affect their owner this much.

'Is Alexie, or Arthur Silvera, also an incarnation?' she wondered while Scire rose to his feet. A smile was hanging on his face as if mocking the world.

"I was pushed into accepting this power by the world, and you are included. It is hypocritical to say this while being an emotionless puppet of this world. Rebel, Arthur, against everything that has chained you."

"You are still unable to understand," said Alexie while walking toward Scire. "I am the chains of this world, and it is time that I restrain this madness."

Julia noticed that his aura changed once again as the void began to unpeel. An ethereal disturbance appeared around his body that made the smile on Scire's face disappear.

"Is there someone else here other than you?" asked Alexie in her mind. "I need to know if going all out is a part of his plan."

"When we first arrived in this place, it was empty of people. Then, Scire sent his followers deeper into the ruins to find the treasure while saying he would wait for the traitor, assuming that is you."

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