LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 112
Chapter 112
Just steps beyond our door, the force of gravity intensified as if entering another dimension.
“Ugh,” I grunted.
The weight that once felt like a heavy object on my head and shoulders now seemed like space itself was rejecting me.
Breathing became a laborious task.
[Damn it, I can’t go much further with this level of mana.]
Momon’s anti-gravity magic, which had been easing the burden, was now struggling to keep up.
The mana in my Mana Heart, once brimming with assurance, was nearing depletion.
Yan clenched his teeth and took another step forward.
“Argh!”
His face flushed crimson, blood pressure surging wildly due to the excessive gravity.
Soon, a tingling sensation suggested that the capillaries in his arms and legs had burst.
And that wasn’t all.
“I can’t… breathe!”
The increased pressure around him made it impossible to draw breath.
His vision began to darken.
With great effort, Yan moved his immobile arm due to the intense gravity and drew Ascalon from his waist.
Could Ascalon’s power dispel this gravitational anomaly if it were made of mana?
Swoosh.
But, to his dismay, the gravity remained unchanged, pressing down on him with even greater mockery.
If he remained, he’d be crushed to death just a few steps from Lia.
“Ah!”
A thought flashed through Yan’s mind.
“The second sword of the Founding Emperor, Oppression!”
If it was anything like the technique he’d seen in the mental space, it could manipulate gravity.
Clench!
Yan bit his lip hard, forcing his fading consciousness to stay awake.
He recalled the voice he’d heard then:
-The Dragon’s Wrath slowly crushes the world. Oppression.
He let the tip of his sword hang limply downward and spread his legs shoulder-width apart.
Diana, watching from afar, gasped.
“Natural Body?!”
A stance known to all who’ve reached the realm of superhumans, yet mastered by very few.
Only when mana and body become one can the true Natural Body be achieved, a feat even for the extraordinary.
“Could it be…”
Diana looked at Yan with disbelief.
Yan’s eyes widened.
Whether it was the gravity or fatigue, his vision shook violently, as if about to black out.
“Did I move like this here?”
He remembered the puppet’s movements and began to mimic them.
He lifted Ascalon slightly.
Sweat trickled down Yan’s forehead.
Even lifting the sword felt overwhelming due to the gravity.
“There’s not much mana left. Can I attempt Oppression within that time, three tries at most?”
The motion was simple, but without the essence, it was futile.
Yan recited the line from his memory.
“The Dragon’s Wrath slowly crushes the world.”
And then, he slowly lowered his sword.
“Damn it all!”
It was a failure.
Unlike when he had unleashed the Dragon’s Child, the Mana Heart showed no response.
Moreover, the anti-gravity magic weakened, and the gravity crushing Yan intensified.
Then, Momon shouted at him.
[Get out of here, quick!]
He had exhausted all mana, save for the innate qi that was the source of life.
Yan, trembling, lifted Ascalon again.
[This isn’t the time!]
Momon’s cries from within his pocket went unheard.
Yan’s focus was entirely on Ascalon and the ‘Oppression’ technique the puppet had displayed.
“The Dragon’s Wrath.”
The Founding Emperor wouldn’t have added those words without reason.
They hinted that the key lay within the word ‘wrath.’
Despite his trembling body, Yan’s eyes calmed.
“Let’s approach this simply.”
He closed his eyes and recalled a moment of intense anger from his past.
When he realized he had been brainwashed.
The memory, though fragmented by the crushing gravity, stirred something within him.
At that moment, the empty Mana Heart began to respond to his rage.
Whooosh.
Life force transformed into mana, filling the Mana Heart, but at the cost of his fading consciousness.
Yan bit his lip.
The taste of blood roused his mind.
He lifted Ascalon once more.
Whooosh.
This time, it felt different.
As if the resentment in his heart fused with the mana, channeling into the sword.
“Please work!”
He lowered the sword again.
And then, a new phenomenon began.
Roarrr.
Ascalon emitted an unprecedented force.
“Did it… work?”
The oppressive gravity lessened noticeably.
Yan looked ahead, his face blank with astonishment.
Crash! Crash! Crash!
It was as if gravity itself split into two forces, each trying to devour the other.
Invisible to the eye, but the energy from Ascalon and the gravitational field overflowing from Lia seemed to intertwine.
And then.
Rumble. Rumble.
An immense gravity poured onto Yan’s briefly liberated body.
“Damn it all!”
Yan clenched his teeth, resisting the force that oppressed his entire body.
But time was running out.
He glanced back.
Fifteen steps to the iron-barred door.
“It’s too hard to leave now!”
Having poured out all his mana, he lacked even the strength to walk backward.
Thud!
Yan planted Ascalon into the ground, using it to prop himself up.
Groan. Groan.
As the crushing force became unimaginable, his muscles screamed in agony.
Yan took a deep breath.
“There’s only one way.”
His gaze turned towards Lia standing in the distance.
He had to rescue her or end her.
“I couldn’t unleash Oppression, but I’ve found a starting point.”
Instinctively, he knew.
His rage wasn’t strong enough to execute Oppression, hence the failure.
“I must incite even greater fury.”
Squeeze!
With eyes closed, he painfully lifted Ascalon again from the Natural Body stance.
And then, he desperately recalled the most infuriating moment from his past life.
* * *
**“Fire, fire!”
“Save us! Aaaah!”
“Is this terrorism? Who would do such a mad thing…?”**
The imperial capital of Avalon was ablaze.
Explosions that began simultaneously in usually quiet corners of the city quickly turned into a conflagration, engulfing the city like a fallen titan under siege.
Amidst the flames and ash, people scrambled to safety, while knights, mages, and soldiers of the empire mobilized every method at their disposal to quell the fire.
Yet, despite their efforts, the flames spread, unyielding.
In the chaos, one man walked with eerie calmness, as if he belonged to a different world, his steps as casual as if on a leisurely stroll.
That man, or rather, the Yan from memories, was heading towards the imperial palace.
“Hmm.”
Emperor Leon Caballan gazed silently through the grand hall’s window at the scenes unfolding before him.
“Is this the first time the capital has suffered such damage, Commander?”
The emperor’s emotional response was muted, even as the once impregnable capital burned.
No signs of anger, panic, despair, or frustration could be felt from him.
Yan passed by the cold corpses of the Royal Knights.
Thud, thud-
“Don’t you have anything to say to me?”
The emperor turned his head, meeting his gaze.
His eyes, clear as glass beads, reflected Yan’s image.
Hair matted with the blood of Royal Knights and Guardian Knights.
Scars on his face, grotesque as worms.
And pupils burning darkly.
“Words that come to mind…”
The emperor leaned back on his throne.
After a brief pause, he finally spoke.
“So, what’s the reason for this madness, Commander?”
It sounded like a mistake, but it wasn’t.
Yan took a deep breath, suppressing the raging fire within.
“Thirty years of being used like a dog, and what? You’re just asking for a reason?”
“I only brainwashed you for loyalty. I never forbade normal thought or free will beyond that.”
“…”
“I’m not sure what you mean by ‘being used,’ but if it means you had a lot of work, then I believe your position and lifestyle have been compensation enough.”
There was nothing left to say.
Was that really the end of it?
Crack.
His teeth ground as if they might shatter.
“Yeah, thanks to this damn ‘compensation,’ I’ve been a bastard for thirty years.”
The emperor’s eyes narrowed.
He looked utterly baffled.
“Now I can’t even remember my family’s names, let alone their faces. So…”
Crunch.
Yan gripped his sword tightly.
“Let’s end this cursed farce.”
“Family? Is such a thing so important? I really don’t understand.”
The emperor, too, casually drew a decorative sword nearby and burst into a carefree laugh.
Damn it all.
With that thought, Yan shot forward, becoming a streak of light.
* * *
Flash!
Yan’s eyes snapped open, ending the flashback.
His eyes, bloodshot with fury, fixed on Lia.
“Damn it all…”
It was the first time his emotions had surged so violently since his return.
Such a detestable memory.
The emperor, who used him at will and dared to question why it was wrong, was still loathsome.
A moment of dissonance struck him.
‘I’ve thought about this before.’
Why did Leon, devoid of humanity in his past life, now show a human side?
Why had someone with the makings of a wise ruler become a tyrant?
‘…What happened?’
Swoosh, swoosh!
Yan shook his head vigorously, casting aside the distracting thoughts.
There was no room for such reflections given the situation.
He gripped Ascalon firmly and swung it downward.
Grind.
It felt like crushing a solid object.
And then…
Whoosh!
The Mana Heart began to spin wildly.
Mana surged from the empty Mana Heart like a fountain gone mad.
The mana coursed through Yan’s body with terrifying force, then rushed towards Ascalon.
A profound force erupted from Ascalon, unlike anything before.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Ascalon’s force collided with the gravitational field, just as before.
But this time, it wasn’t a tangle.
It was as if Ascalon’s force was devouring the gravitational field.
Whirring!
The oppressive gravity that had been crushing Yan’s entire body vanished in an instant.
“Heave, heave.”
As soon as the gravity lifted, Yan stumbled forward.
Thousands of insects seemed to crawl in his head, a tormenting pain, and a sense of powerlessness overwhelmed him.
“…It’s not over yet.”
Even after dispelling the gravitational field, Yan used Ascalon like a cane, taking one step after another.
And not long after…
Crack.
Even as the rampant power subsided, he embraced Lia, who still trembled on her feet.
Slowly, focus returned to Lia’s eyes, and soon, tears streamed down her cheeks.
“Yo-young master?”
Yan, seeing she had regained consciousness, released his embrace and managed a weary smile.
“Let’s go back.”
In the distance, Diana was running towards them, eyes wide with shock.
Yan chuckled at her approach and then…
Thump.
He collapsed backward.