novelThe Tenebrous Flame
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Seeing this intelligent flame, the old man's face went blank for a few minutes before breaking out into a laugh.
"A... A Tenebrous Flame? You spoke so boldly while being just an Exalted Human? The Church can piss off."
This was certainly not the reaction Daneel was expecting, but he only smiled in response before pulling his fist back and punching the air.
This made the green skull shoot forward with its mouth wide open, as if it wanted to swallow the old man whole.
Yet, it was stopped by a barrier that sprung up in the air.
Although Daneel had been expecting such a response, the barrier itself surprised him.
This was one of the most unique barriers Daneel had ever seen.
Usually, barriers were semi-transparent hemispheres that blocked attacks regardless of where they came from.
This one was different: it was in the form of a thick transparent shield.
The shape reminded Daneel of Knight's shields he had seen back on Earth. It was also quite clear that it was made by a trinket, as he saw one of a similar shape in the old man's hands.
Seeing the barrier stop the attack, the old man shook his head with derision before quickly starting to remove the formations that protected the Natural Energized Training Chamber.
Clearly, he was planning to teleport away with it and hide it before going to intervene in the fight.
Daneel could not let this happen.
"Swallow."
Unlike normal Tenebrous Knights, Daneel had the awe-inducing system which he had used to create a few special tricks with the flame.
The first trick: swallow.
Although a Tenebrous flame was one of the most destructive forces in nature, it was limited because it was very difficult for any user to properly control it.
It had been the same case with the agent from the Church. All he had been able to do was shoot attacks with it or embed it into sneak attacks, like the final one which Daneel had sustained to obtain the fire in the first place.
The main power of a Tenebrous Flame came from its ability to eat away at the root constituents of anything it came into contact with.
The mage who it was connected to also had to actively control it in order for it to retain its power. This was why Kellor had been able to drive it away easily because the Tenebrous Knight from the Church had left after launching his attack on the village.
Daneel's thinking had been simple: if such a flame couldn't be controlled to effectively devour something from all sides, then how much use could it be?
The old man who had just turned around with a relieved smile on his face froze as he felt the trinket in his hand heating up, indicating that it was being overloaded by power.
This was a trinket which could block 100 strikes from a peak Eminent Warrior, while also having other properties.
How was it possible for it to be overloaded already?!
It was a known fact that Tenebrous Knights had at most the power of a peak Amateur Warrior. Developed as expendable resources to be deployed in places where they wanted to invade, these Knights weren't very feared by the Big 4. This was mainly because of the limit on the level they could reach which they were subjected to because of the flame's inhabitance in the mageroot.
Yet, turning around, he witnessed one of the most horrific sights he had ever seen.
The skull which had only been the size of a fist had now enlarged to become a gigantic 10-foot tall being. Fire blazed inside its eyes, and its jaw moved up and down as if it were munching on something.
Where was the barrier?!
A second later, the old man finally spotted it: it was inside this skull, being eaten away from all sides.
"Such control... who the hell are you?! You can't be a Tenebrous Knight! An Exalted Human who can attack with the power of an Eminent Warrior?! Are you from one of the Big 4? Which one? Tell me and we can reach a deal!"
His scoffing face from before was gone, replaced by an expression of absolute seriousness.
To this, Daneel didn't answer. He didn't even know the names of the Big 4.
His only response was raising his hand and shooting out two more skulls in the direction where the old man wasn't protected by the barrier.
"Humph. That was your last chance. Do not mistake my inaction for weakness."
To Daneel's surprise, the old man took out 4 more similar trinkets, making 4 barriers appear around him and protect him from all sides.
The barrier inside the flame actually connected with these 4, making an impassable square block which pushed the flame out.
The other two skulls he shot also impacted this barrier before stopping.
"I'll see how your flame can break through now. Even an Eminent Warrior would need two hours to break through this'PentaShield' trinket formation. I'll be long gone by then."
Calling back all three skulls, Daneel only smiled.
Clearly, the old man wanted a war of attrition, so he had set up a'bunker' in which he wanted to hide. Now, it was even more clear that he was injured and did not want to attack if he could avoid it.
He had hoped that the flame would be enough to subdue the old man, but that clearly wasn't the case.
Having no other option, Daneel sighed as he started using the ability which had allowed him to beat the Tenebrous Knight of the Church.
It was time for another Paragon construct to appear on Angaria.
And if anyone from Earth happened to see the base of the construct forming, they would be shocked to realize that this was the weapon which had changed the face of the planet forever.
.... .
Meanwhile, in the Throne Room of the Black Raven Kingdom.
Tenebrol paced back and forth, waiting for the old man to return.
There was no response through the communication trinket, and the time of the fight was quickly approaching.
The half-hour went by fast, but there was still no word.
Hearing a knock on the door, Tenebrol opened it and saw one of the commanders of the Kingdom in front of him.
"My King, the time has come. The contender awaits you at the stadium. I am here to take you there safely."
This man was the only Exalted Human Mage in the Kingdom. Wearing the regular black clothes of a Black Raven Soldier, he seemed no different from any other soldier unless one looked into his eyes.
They were white and unmoving, showing that this man was clearly blind.
Indeed, he had lost his eyes in a battle when he was just an Eminent Human Mage. Yet, by somehow using the elementary particles in the air, he was able to get a grasp of his surroundings to kill the enemy.
Since then, he had trained this ability or spell that he had gleaned in those moments of life and death. Slowly, with determination, he had trained to this level.
Fiercely loyal, the man's Raven was the agile type which focused more on speed than power.
His name was Litwick.
The King did not know what to say. The old man was still not back, and he had been told clearly to delay the fight. Hence, he tried to do just that.
"Delay it. I need a little more time."
What happened next shocked Tenebrol to his core.
Litwick's lip curled, and he said in a cold tone, "I'm afraid that's not possible by the rules of the Kingdom. Either you fight or forfeit the Throne. I have the approval of the emergency council to give this mandate to you. The Black Raven Kingdom will no longer listen to your commands until you prove yourself in combat again."
What?!
Although the rules were in place, never before had a King been threatened in this way. As for the emergency council, it was usually made in situations where the King was unable to rule the country due to an injury.
His mind blank, all he could do was sputter for a bit before erupting with anger.
He was the King! There was no way he would allow himself to be treated in this way!
"HOW DARE YOU! AFTER I WIN, THE HEADS OF THAT COUNCIL WILL ROLL! AND YOURS WILL BE THE FIRST!"
This angry outburst only made Litwick get an even more derisive expression on his face.
He simply said, "My son was among those whom you sent to their deaths for your selfish pursuit. If I have to die, so be it. But you have to win, first."
A blade of fire appeared in the air behind the King, threatening to impale him if he didn't go and fight right now.
Clearly, the revolution had even spread to the Palace.
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