Note:
My PC locked in for about an hour before geeking out, but that hour allowed me to finish the chapter quicker than I originally planned.
I'm still having issues, but I think it's tied to the wifi adaptor I'm using for my pc, so once that arrives, I'll hopefully be able to write again at full speed.
Hope you guys enjoy the chapter!
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(Audun's POV)
The moment I unveiled myself, I was hit with a wave of nausea, courtesy of my flaw.
Silently gritting my teeth, a wave of relief washed over me as my attribute took hold.
"You ok?"
Nephis looked at me with slight concern as I stood unnervingly still in front of her.
"I'm fine."
With my confirmation came Nephis' powerful decree.
"I have chosen this man as my champion!"
Ignoring the wealth of eyes trained on my now-exposed figure, I trained my eyes on the opponent in front of me.
Harus, after correcting his posture, stood at a staggering height, about 190-197cm if I were to guess.
His emotionless eyes locked onto mine, a flicker of interest flashing across his features.
The lieutenant of the Bright Lord seemed to recognize me as a threat, a creepy abyssal armor manifesting around his monstrous form.
In a brilliant storm of white light, heavy chains snaked up his arm from the wrist to the elbow.
His arms twitched powerfully as he stared at me with predatory interest.
"In accordance with the will of my lord, I shall prove my innocence in front of this audience with your blood. Prepare yourself, sleeper, I shall rip you to pieces in my lord's honor."
In response to his aggression, I stayed quiet.
"Should I kill him?"
I could feel Nephis looking at me seriously.
"Send a message."
"The message being?"
"To not trifle with us."
I nodded.
"Then please play along."
Suddenly, I turned around to face Nephis, much to her confusion.
In one smooth motion, I knelt in front of her, bowing my head in a reverent loyalty as a suit of pristine, knightly armor hung itself on my form.
Though I could feel my attribute [One Who Stood at the Peak] roar in dissatisfaction at my act of subordination, I paid it no mind, focusing on perfecting my act.
"What are you doing???"
Nephis' bewilderment rang in my head clearly.
"Raising you up to the same level as Gunlaug."
Changing Star's eyes lit up in recognition as she gave me a small thankful nod.
Summoning her longsword, she brought it down gracefully and touched the flat of her blade to my shoulder.
With a voice filled with authority, she let out a statement bordering on a decree.
"Bring me victory."
I raised my amethyst eyes to meet hers, twin stars bathing my figure in a celestial radiance.
It was a carefully crafted scene. A deliberate show of force that would grant us an enigmatic strength in the eyes of the people.
Manipulating the Star of Vocalization, I used it to project my voice outward, a normally useless utilization of its authority, but a completely necessary one in this situation.
My disembodied voice echoed out in the keep, my cadence and tone taking on a distinctly knightly quality.
I, the Star of Solitude, have received your order. By your decree, I shall bring you glorious victory.
"How's that for a message?"
Nephis' voice echoed in my mind.
"Perfect... Almost a little too perfect."
"Well, I do have a bit of experience with these kinds of situations."
It was a carefully orchestrated act, a bluff of the highest order.
While I appeared confident and powerful outwardly, I was still bearing the full anxious force of my flaw.
If I were to fight in these conditions, I'd probably be completely fucked, but with my ability to control the sound and tone of my voice with the Star of Vocalization and with the help of a certain multi-limbed friend slumbering in my soul, I could probably pull this off.
Standing up, I consciously flared my aura and unleashed the full force of my killing intent on the entirety of the Keep, with a few exceptions, of course.
The sleepers of the castle trembled under the weight of an intent honed over two centuries.
I turned to face my opponent, a clear sheen of sweat forming on the gaunt man's forehead.
Everyone's eyes were firmly locked on me, my display of force grabbing the attention of everyone in the hall.
A wave of nausea crashed over me, but my attribute held strong in the face of those who sought to challenge my might.
I shrouded myself in a haze of regal amethyst force and layered a veil of brilliant celestial light.
Deliberately choosing not to summon the [Midnight Shard] for its simplistic design, I instead opted for an ornate and heavily decorated longsword.
Calling it forth, I stuck it into the ground, resting my palms on its pomel to really sell the confident knight image.
Harus tensed visibly.
His eyes flickered towards his lord for a moment before he turned back to me.
I could see in his eyes and the murderous aura he radiated that every fibre of his being was focused on killing me in the brutalist way possible.
Harus snarled.
"I will slaughter you and your master, worm. Make no mistake, you shall not be leaving this hall alive."
My gaze sharpened, but I remained unmoving.
For the blatant disrespect you have shown my master and I, you have lost the right to face me in honorable battle.
I subtly flared my aura, my presence growing even heavier.
Apologize, and I will grant you a merciful end. If you continue to bark like a mutt, I will have no choice but to grant you an end beffiting one.
My words set him off.
With a cold glower, the hunchback threw the chain on his arm, the iron snake flying through the air like an arrow.
I stayed rooted in my position, drawing forth my starlight to construct a shield.
My eyes glew with platinum-hued radiance as the projectile Harus had thrown bounced off a shimmering wall of celestial light harmlessly.
Harus' expression fell.
So you have made your choice.
I didn't bother moving, well, more like I couldn't.
All this aura farming was making my flaw flare up viciously, but outwardly, I remained utterly indifferent.
Bear the consequences of your actions.
Harus' expression contorted into a murderous snarl as he called his chain back, opting to charge at me with violent abandon.
BOOM
The Keep shook as a towering ebony pillar slammed into the ground in front of me, halting the Butcher's advance.
In his full profane form, Inky towered over the once menacing-looking sleeper, Harus's hulking figure reduced to an insignificant mass in the face of my titanic summon.
The air seemed to be sucked out of the room, silent terror washing over every sleeper in the Keep.
Even Nephis looked at me in surprise.
"Is that your echo?"
I kept my attention on my 'opponent', but a small smirk spread across my face.
"Yeah, it's the one that attacked us while we crossed the Dark Sea."
I paused for a moment before adding on a lighter note:
"I named him Inky."
"...Inky?"
A brief chuckle escaped my lips.
At the sight of my echo, the lieutenants surrounded Gunlaug protectively, all of them drawing forth weapons, well, except Seishan, who merely retreated silently.
The three remaining lieutenants looked like they were about to jump in on the action and aid their comrade, but I wasn't about to just let that happen.
I shot a glare at the three men surrounding Gunlaug.
If you dare interfere with the challenge, I will personally ensure that none of you make it out of here alive.
My threat was effective, the three exchanging cautious looks as they hesitated.
Do not overstep your boundaries, vermin. If not for my master's endless mercy, I wouldn't hesitate to reap your meaningless lives with my blade.
"...You're really laying it on thick."
Nephis' exasperation was transmitted clearly through our link.
"Uh, sorry about that... I might've gotten a little carried away."
I heard Nephis sigh.
Inky stood at the ready, waiting for my orders.
With a tentative, "Ahem", I tried to mentally communicate with my colossal echo.
Inky turned his 4 glowing eyes in my direction, tilting his head in confusion.
An imperceptible breath left my mouth as the vestige of a maniacal grin spread across my face.
This time, I turned my attention back to Harus, who was still staring at Inky with calculated caution.
I mentally sent over another message to my echo, this time, a direct order.
'Beat the ever living shit out of that creep, but don't kill him. Papa needs to show these pretentious twats who's boss. Also! Don't damage anything! Oh! And most importantly, don't hurt anyone except that hunchbacked wanker!
Inky gave me a four-tentacle salute that I found adorable; unfortunately, only I was privy to the underlying cuteness behind this foul leviathan's gesture.
With a genuinely terrifying screech, Inky burst into motion, his 16 nightmarish appendages flying with a precision shocking for a creature his size.
Harus, as powerful as everyone made him out to be, was simply outclassed by Inky in every possible way.
Surprisingly, he was still holding on, but whether it was a testament to his own ability or a result of Inky deliberately holding back had yet to be seen.
Inky continued his multi-limbed assault, attacking from a variety of difficult angles, but it seemed that the restrictions I had given my cephalopod friend had changed a normally trivial task for the titan into quite a tall order.
On top of this, I seemed to have underestimated Harus.
More specifically, I overestimated the butcher's morality.
Harus was by no means an idiot.
While dodging Inky's blows, he could clearly see that none of my echoes attacks had landed anywhere close to the other sleepers in the hall.
As he came upon that realization, a malevolent grin contorted his already demonic features.
Without hesitation, the butcher ran straight for the crowd, grabbing a random sleeper by the throat and using him as a shield.
The sleeper screamed in terror as Inky's towering tendril whipped towards them.
I grit my teeth.
This fucker was playing chicken with innocent lives.
My mind raced as I desperately searched for a countermeasure, but there was simply not enough time.
I was left with two choices.
Let the sleeper die.
or
Dismiss Inky.
Make no mistake, I was no hero.
Push come to shove, I wasn't unwilling to sacrifice this random person's life.
But right now, I was operating with the interests of someone else in mind.
I was playing the role of Nephis's ward.
I was the one representing everything that she stood for.
Would she just let this sleeper die?
My gaze hardened.
No.
Definitely not.
More importantly, I wouldn't be able to look Nephis in the eye if I slaughtered this innocent person in her name.
And thus
I made my choice.
The colossal appendage that was about to strike the sleeper in Harus's grasp vanished like an illusion.
I stood still as the butcher closed in on me, the abhorrent man tossing down his shield as he lunged at me with both hands.
I remained still, pure fury building in my gaze.
A viscious, euphoric smile spread across the gaunt man's face, but a sudden darkness blanketed my sight.
I was blinded by something or someone, but with my vanishing vision, I was hit with a wave of pure reprieve.
The anxiousness clouding my mind faded like the morning mist, the uncontrollable pressure building in my chest disappearing as if it were a dream.
I had just gotten extremely, extremely lucky.
This piece of shit just removed my shackles.
My body moved independently of my mind, shifting just out of the butcher's reach.
I was used to fighting blind; in fact, I preferred it over fighting with my flaw.
In the comfort of this liberating darkness, I was free to exercise my might to its fullest extent.
And I planned to make an example out of this scum.
"You do not deserve to exist."
The words flowed from my mouth with transcendental conviction.
The mana in my heart swirlled around furiously.
I deliberately chose not to use starlight, choosing to utilize the energy I was most intimately familiar with to wipe this cum stain of a human being from this realm.
My heart beat slowed to a crawl, but with each thump, each pump, the mana in my heart was dyed with the color of my soul, turning into a torrential wave of amythest colored Aura.
Aura spread throughout my body, and as I resonated with the blade in my hands, as I harmonized with my sword, it too was flooded with Aura.
My radiant purple hue became the vessel for my sentiment, and my sentiment transformed that vessel into something greater.
Stories, ideals, attitudes, emotions, desires, and regrets, every choice and decision that shaped my being were indiscriminately poured into my blade.
The ornate longsword in my hands sang of my 200 years of existence, belting out a sacrificial aria for no one but myself to hear.
This sword memory couldn't bear the weight of my life, and yet, as it disintegrated, pure pride was transmitted to me through its beautiful handle.
I listened to the swords' soul, listened as it expressed its gratitude, listened as it conveyed the honor it felt to have finally been heard.
A sad smile crossed my features as I used the faltering blade as a paintbrush, and using the very world as my canvas, I began to paint a self-portrait.
I partially manifested my inner palace using the crumbling longsword as a conduit to expand my consciousness.
In the blind haze granted to me by Harus, my realm overtook the dream realm, pulling every sleeper present into the abstract manifestation of my being.
The still, endless waters reflected the ever-distant twinkling stars in the night sky, each pearl of incandescent light representing one of the seemingly infinite people I would never see again, the lonely realm reflecting my very identity as the Star of Solitude.
In my domain, I opened my eyes, my amethyst stare boring down on the vermin in front of me.
Harus trembled beneath my gaze, sheer terror reflected in the glassy eyes that used to prey on innocents in the name of the Bright Lord.
I listened as the last vestiges of my blade's voice rang in my ears, the Memory conveying its earnest wish to be swung one last time.
A request I happily fulfilled.
The sublime mastery of a genius who had nothing left but the sword, the tale of Alfmalfa Olsen, the Star who simultaneously revelled and suffered in solitude, was a story too heavy for the sleeper in front of me to bear.
As the longsword faded, I let it travel down the most rapturous path I could draw, tracing a vertical line down the length of Harus's body.
The sublimity of the regal purple line I had drawn ignited the souls of the sword I wished to put to rest and the butcher I sought to erase.
A sigh broke free from my lips as Harus was 'unmade'.
Satisfaction permeated my being, the privilege of swinging a blade once more bringing a glowing smile to my face.
My realm crumbled as the dream realm fixed the paradox I had brought into existence.
The Keep came back into sight, the pile of ashes that Harus had been reduced to sitting in a neat pile by my feet.
Without a word, I walked over to Nephis, who had stilled in shock.
Before her absentminded stare, I kneeled.
"I have brought you victory, master."
The words flowed from my mouth in the form of an absolute declaration.
A sudden twinge of self-awareness ebbed at the back of my mind as a sheepish realization grounded me.
"Uhm, How's that for a message...?"
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(A/N: I enjoyed writing this chapter a bit more than I thought I would.
The vividly abstract descriptions of swordsmanship in IPOTE are one of the reasons I fell so deeply in love with the world, and I tried my best to pay homage to its style with my own flair and interpretations layered on top.
I know it might've been a bit dramatic considering his foe was literally just a sleeper, but I genuinely couldn't help myself.
My hate boner was rock solid while reading about the Bright Castle ass holes, and I might've inadvertently projected my crippling hate for Harus and co while I was cooking up this chapter.
Well, regardless of the needless dramatics and the drawn-out ending, I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it!
Leave a comment to motivate me and a review if you haven't already!
Every bit of criticism (as long as it's constructive) helps me reevaluate my writing and improve flaws I hadn't previously noticed.
Once again, thank you guys for the endless support, and I'll see you in the next chapter!)