Re: Love & Magic

After spending the whole day training and testing each other’s overall strength, all four of them slept tiredly.

The next day, Zevien and Vernisia woke up at five in the morning. They spoke little, and their expressions were also somber as they wore their battle outfit after freshening up and sitting on the bed.

“Ready?” Zevien asked as he held Vernisia’s hands while sitting in front of her.

“Go,” Vernisia nodded.

Zevien closed his eyes and meditated. Five seconds later, he entered his second magic labyrinth, the Inviolable Blood Garden. One second later, Vernisia also disappeared from the bed and appeared inside.

…

“So, you are finally back after a month. This poor soul was waiting eagerly for your return,” said a flying bat’s shadow. It was not physical but was smoky and cloudy._.

Zevien and Vernisia looked at the dark red shadow of the bat with varied expressions mixed with surprise because they were expecting some danger. Not this.

This thing appeared previously in the last few seconds and told them to enter the castle.

Honestly, they were terrified to see this shadow suddenly appearing in front of them, while they were feeling a forceful exit pull from the labyrinth.

In the end, just a few seconds after this shadow appeared and spooked them, they were kicked out after losing focus.

After all, this place was already creepy enough and subjected them to unknown pressure, causing them anxiety. So the sudden appearance of this shadow was a nail in the coffin for them.

“What do you want?” Vernisia asked with a grim expression as she held Zevien’s hands tightly.

“Please don’t be afraid, haha. I mean no harm to you. First of all, you can call me Mordred.”

“Mordred…” Zevien muttered before he nodded, his face stoic. “If you want us to go inside, then you will have to tell us about this place,” he asked. So far, this shadow was polite, but that doesn’t mean it is harmless. Still, talking and reasoning were better than sudden dangers.

“Naturally, you deserve to know since you arrived here,” Mordred said in a cheerful voice while thinking something else inwardly. ‘Alas, whether you live or die depends on you, not me.’

Zevien and Vernisia were surprised to see Mordred agreeing to tell them about this place. Still, they remained skeptical and cautious.

“So, I’ll start with the name of this place; it’s called Blood Monarch’s Abyss. You can say that he was one of the strongest beings of this labyrinth,” Mordred said, dropping a bomb right off the bat.

“One of the strongest?” Zevien and Vernisia looked at each other in shock.

‘Even Tarto didn’t say that he was one of the strongest in his magic labyrinth. At most, he said that he comes into the realm after the strongest ones,’ Zevien thought.

“Indeed. One of the strongest,” Mordred nodded. “Blood Monarch had many castles, and this is also one of his castles. He has even bigger castles deep within the labyrinth where other big shots stay.”

“I see… but why do you want us to go inside this castle? Isn’t that like courting death for us to enter into such a powerful being’s castle?” Vernisia questioned as she glanced at Zevien to signal him something with her eye’s glance.

Zevien didn’t fully understand but decided to stay silent as he felt that’s what Vernisia was telling him.

“You didn’t pay attention. I said that he WAS one of the strongest beings. Which means that he is not alive anymore,” Mordred said.

“Of course, I noticed,” Vernisia frowned. “But even if he is not alive, this place, this castle, still feels too dangerous for us.”

Mordred wanted to scratch his head. ‘I can’t even force them to go inside. Hmmm, it looks like I’ll have to throw some carrots.’

“It’s not dangerous,” Mordred shook his head. “I know this place like the back of my palm. After all, I am a forever servant of my master, even though he is no more.”

After saying that, Mordred flew closer to Zevien and Vernisia. Seeing this, Zevien and Vernisia quickly backed off.

“Chill, no need to be so cautious, haha. Look, I want you to go inside and accept the inheritance of my master, so his legacy can be carried on. The only things inside are some weak monsters that are even more weakened because of the powerful enchantments of the castle. You two are strong enough to kill them,” Mordred sighed. “You see, I am but a ghost of the past, bound to this place forever until I find an inheritor of my master’s legacy.”

By now, even Zevien understood that this shadow is literally a shadow. Although he and Vernisia remained cautious, they felt that this shadow couldn’t do anything to them. It was talking, reasoning, and behaving.

‘Its goal is clear, wanting us to enter that castle. But…’ Zevien thought as his gut feeling told him that there was still something wrong.

Seeing both of them still hesitant, Mordred sighed deeply. “Look, there is a teleportation waypoint that will lead you anywhere you want on the map. The other waypoints are my master’s castles that were spread in this labyrinth.

“Despite many years passing, the other big shots haven’t touched his castle out of respect for him. I am sure you also want to leave this place, so entering that castle is the only way.”

Zevien and Vernisia looked at each other and wryly smiled. They knew that if they wanted to leave, they would eventually have to enter the castle. Previously, they had tried to observe other things in this abyss, but the only thing visible was that castle and its paths toward this garden.

“Fine. Let’s go inside,” Zevien said as he nodded with a somber expression. “You will lead us inside.”

“Of course, of course!” Mordred happily spoke, his voice sending out joyous vibes.

…

After walking for a few minutes on the path leading towards the castle, they arrived in front of the castle door.

“Just push it. It’s open,” Mordred said.

Zevien took a deep breath as he stretched his hand and pushed the door open.

However, when Zevien and Vernisia saw the castle inside, it shocked them. They didn’t expect to see what they were seeing!