Chapter 2715: Story 2716: The Second Son

The dead army charged.

Thousands of armored corpses thundered across the stone floor, their weapons raised.

Ronan lifted his shield.

“Lyra, stay behind me!”

Lyra ignored him.

She stepped beside him and released another arrow.

It struck a corpse through the eye.

The creature fell.

Another replaced it.

Then another.

“They never stop!” Lyra shouted.

Ronan swung his sword.

Red fire exploded from the blade.

Three corpses were thrown backward.

Kael fought beside them, his ancient sword cutting through rotten armor.

“Don’t waste your strength!” Kael shouted. “There are too many!”

Ronan looked toward Elias.

His brother stood beneath the black crown, watching the battle.

He wasn’t fighting.

He was controlling everything.

“Elias!”

Elias smiled.

“Do you finally understand?”

Ronan blocked a sword.

“You’re killing your own people!”

“They stopped being my people centuries ago.”

Elias raised one hand.

The dead suddenly stopped.

Every corpse froze.

Ronan breathed heavily.

Then Elias pointed at him.

“Take his sword.”

The army attacked again.

Ronan fought desperately.

One corpse struck his shield.

Another grabbed his arm.

He kicked it away and drove his sword through its chest.

Suddenly, something slammed into him from behind.

Ronan crashed to the floor.

His sword fell from his hand.

A dead warrior raised an axe above his head.

THUD!

An arrow struck the corpse’s wrist.

Lyra stood nearby.

“Get up!”

Ronan grabbed his sword.

“Thanks.”

“Don’t thank me yet.”

More corpses surrounded them.

Ronan looked around.

They were trapped.

Then his father’s voice echoed across the chamber.

“ENOUGH!”

The dead stopped.

Ronan turned.

His father stood before the throne.

Red light burned inside his eyes.

Elias looked surprised.

“You.”

His father slowly raised his hand.

Every corpse turned toward him.

For one moment, the entire army obeyed.

Elias’s smile disappeared.

“You cannot control them.”

His father answered quietly.

“I don’t need to.”

The black crown on Elias’s head began shaking.

The red symbols carved into it started glowing.

Elias grabbed his head.

“No...”

His father looked at Ronan.

“Run.”

Ronan stared.

“Father, what are you doing?”

“Saving you.”

The ground beneath Elias cracked.

Something pushed upward.

A gigantic black claw emerged.

Elias screamed.

The Beast’s voice filled the chamber.

“THE CROWN IS MINE.”

Elias fell to his knees.

The crown began sinking into his skull.

Ronan’s father shouted:

“RONAN! TAKE YOUR BROTHER’S CROWN!”

Ronan stared at him.

“You told me never to wear it!”

“Not to wear it!”

His father pointed toward the crown.

“To destroy it!”

Ronan understood.

He raised his sword.

Red energy gathered around the blade.

Elias looked at him.

For the first time, there was fear in his eyes.

“Brother...”

Ronan stepped forward.

“I don’t want to kill you.”

Elias whispered:

“You may not have a choice.”

The Beast’s claw wrapped around Elias.

Ronan charged.

The chamber exploded with red light.

And the black crown began screaming.