Lumielle grasped the sword tightly and swung it towards the wrist of Orien, her movements sharp and decisive, leaving no room for hesitation.

{NIGHT DOMAIN - DESCEND OF NIGHT}

In an instant, the Sword of Night appeared before Orien's extended hands, its edge carrying a suffocating darkness.

He tried to stop the attack by obstructing it with his will. But the power born from a mother's sacrifice, made solely for the safety of her child, overwhelmed the will that once shone brighter than the sun itself.

In fact, Orien stopped resisting the crushing domain pressure forced upon him and instead focused every fragment of his will on stopping the sword alone.

But even then...the power released by a burning soul and body seemed to transcend even the will of someone like Orien.

This was the price of burning one's Core of Existence.

The price of the extinction of one's soul.

The price of never entering the cycle of reincarnation.

The sword, burdened with such an immeasurable sacrifice, cut cleanly through Orien's wrist. But just before it could reach Ash, who was directly beneath Orien's hands...the sword vanished.

1 second.

The severed wrist, still clutching the Spirit Devouring Crystal, fell toward Ash's head. In that same instant, the Aether mana infused into his body by the Night Queen flared violently to life.

And Ash vanished.

Everything happened so fast that even though Orien saw everything happening, he was completely powerless to stop it, his hands closing on empty air.

As soon as Ash vanished, the domain pressure on him also disappeared, leaving behind an eerie silence.

And Night Queen's body started to disintegrate at a speed visible to naked eyes, her form breaking apart into faint particles of light.

"DAMN THIS BITCH!!!"

He expanded his consciousness as far as he could, pushing it outward with rage burning inside him, but there was no sign of Ash anywhere within his perception.

Which only made him even more furious.

It was the second time Orien was feeling this way. The pain of losing something precious was just too much to bear.

And he seemed to have forgotten how much that pain truly hurts.

The first was when he lost his mother, the only source of warmth he had ever known.

Now, even losing the last thing his mother left for him made his killing intent and anger spiral completely out of control, twisting violently within his chest.

The Night Queen smiled for the last time feeling a twisted satisfaction as she saw his hideous expression filled with rage and despair, and with that.....her body became one with nature.

Orien saw everything, and it made his blood boil, but he forced himself to calm down and slowly closed his eyes.

He cannot afford to waste time on an already dead bitch.

Orien tried to sense something, something only he could feel.....

Found it!!

The next second his eyes opened, and he looked towards the direction of the volcano looming in the distance, before shooting towards it with insane speed, tearing through the air.

He had left his mark on the Spirit Crystal, which allowed him to sense its general direction no matter how far it went.

Ash burn...you can't run away from me...

***

-SWOOSH!!!

Ash mind was still reeling in shock after witnessing the power Lumielle unleashed, and before he could even process what had happened, he found himself falling from the sky.

His gaze was vacant, as if life itself had been sucked out of him. The shock of her death stung far greater than he had imagined it ever could.

Maybe it was because, without realizing it, he had started to feel her as his mother. The reason behind it was a mystery even to him, but what he knew for certain was the price.....the terrible price she had paid for the power she unleashed.

She sacrificed her body and soul...

Ash knew about it because he had read about such things in books. The power gained from such an act was temporary but immense, and based on the quality of the soul, the power gained could vary greatly.

But the soul of a Monarch Rank beast was not something to be taken lightly, and a Unicorn Queen at that. Her soul was special even among Monarchs.

As always, to gain something, you have to lose something.

In exchange for such power, the person dies. Their body disintegrates, their soul dissipates back into nature, and they experience true annihilation, without any chance of reincarnation.

"DAMN IT, WHAT'S THE POINT OF HAVING POWER IF I CAN'T EVEN PROTECT SOMEONE!!!!!!!"

Ash roared his feelings out, no longer caring about anything in his surroundings.

But his voice was somewhat diminished due to the crushing air pressure as he continued falling downwards at terrifying speed.

Why am I going through such things? Can't I just have a normal life..?

Suddenly, a voice spoke inside his head, making him snap out of his stupor.

[Ash, my child.]

Lumielle..?

Ash eyes widened in shock and disbelief.

But along with that realization, his body fell into the bubbling volcano below without causing even the smallest splash.

His mind was so focused on the voice that he did not realize when he entered the volcano. Strangely enough, his body did not feel any heat, nor was he suffering from any burns at all.

His body was enveloped by a faint rainbow sheen, which was undoubtedly Aether, conjured by the Night Queen as a final protection.

[I hope you will not be too sad about our death. If Solareth was present here, he would have also asked you to not fret over death.]

Although she said this to comfort Ash, he could clearly feel that her voice was also tinged with sadness and lingering regret.

[This is a will that I left behind within you, along with some protective measures already in place.]

[My child, I have teleported you towards the volcano because I can feel the dungeon hidden inside it. You might not know this, but Aether has a very special connection with space and boundaries, so we are naturally sensitive towards dungeons and their formations.]

[Even though the volcano is concealing the dungeon's aura, and other arrays are also in place to hide it, I can still sense that it is an SS rank dungeon.]

[I am sending you inside the volcano so that you can enter it. I know this might seem like a death sentence, but you can prevail. After all, that is who you are, someone who prevails even over death.]

[Dungeons have strict rules. An SSS rank person cannot enter an SS rank dungeon, even if his powers are suppressed, so you will be safe from that demon.]

[As for how you will escape, that is something you have to find by yourself.]

[But I know you will achieve the impossible. I know you can.]

[I know that if I had not appeared next to you, you would not be facing such a calamity. For that, I apologize, but my heart did not want anything to happen to my son.]

[The pain of losing something precious is very hard to endure. Forgive me for doing something dangerous to you without your permission.]

N-No, it's okay...I am glad....you did....

Ash had no idea why such a thought came to him, but it did, rising naturally from his heart before he could stop it.

[So, take care of yourself. Don't let our sacrifice go in vain, my child.]

[Also, the Spirit Devouring Crystal holds the soul of my daughter. I hope you can let her rest in peace, and Eric.....make sure he is happy as well.]

[I hope all of your life is filled with nothing but happiness....]

And with that, the voice inside his head slowly faded away.....and he soon regained his senses.

His body was trembling in pain, and he wanted to shout, to scream out everything bottled inside him.....but seeing nothing but lava all around him, he forced himself to stay quiet and controlled his breathing.

The sadness was deep, but....the sacrifice of a mother was deeper than the world itself.

Making up his mind and gathering his disoriented thoughts, Ash tightly held the severed hand of Orien, which was still clutching the Spirit Devouring Crystal. Bringing it close to his heart, as if protecting it, he spun his body and moved towards the violet portal he could see a short distance away.

The barrier made of Aether, the last gift of Lumielle, was also losing its effect, and he could clearly feel it weakening. He was starting to feel the heat slowly creeping onto his skin.

With great effort, he swam forward through the molten surroundings and pushed himself towards the portal.

What should I do now..?

He was originally here only to collect the Rune, which would have been difficult but not impossible because of his Absolute Concealment and Transcendent Step. But now, with his mana pathways destroyed, the difficult task had risen into the realm of the nearly impossible.

There is no other way but for me to enter the portal if I want to survive....

As for what he would do after entering it.....

Truthfully, he had no idea at all.

The distance between him and the portal lessened rapidly, and soon, only 1 meter was left.

Ash started to feel stiffy and discomfort.

Warning signals flared violently inside Ash mind.

Sensing something terribly wrong, he pushed himself with all his remaining strength towards the portal, not holding anything back.

Suddenly, the surroundings rumbled violently.

-RRRRRRUMBLE!!!!!

The volcano, as if it had its own mind, suddenly split open, revealing Ash whose head had already entered the portal while his body was almost halfway through.

"DONT YOU DARE TO RUN!!!"

A voice filled with fury and overwhelming authority shook the very air and echoed throughout the surroundings.

Ash body, which was in the process of entering the portal, slowed for a brief moment, as if something had grabbed hold of reality itself.

Orien instantly appeared in front of him and grabbed his leg, pulling Ash back with brutal force.

-SWISH!!!!

But only a leg crackling with golden lightning came into his hands as he staggered backward from the force of his own pull.

Before Ash completely vanished into the portal, Orien saw a pair of golden eyes burning with golden lightning staring straight at him, filled with defiance, hatred and resolve.

And just like that, Ash vanished into the portal.

"ARGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Only the rage-filled shout of Orien remained in the surroundings, echoing through the broken volcano.

****

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