Chapter 64: Elias Veyron

Chapter 64: Chapter 64: Elias Veyron

Arin pushed himself away from the shattered floor. Every part of his body hurt.

His vision was blurry, his breathing was uneven, and blood ran down his face. Around him, the chamber had become a battlefield. The surviving elves were either unconscious or dead. Mira was barely standing. Saira was struggling against another suppression field. Garul had collapsed near one of the broken pillars.

Zarl was on one knee, staring at the ten authorities with a rare expression of genuine fear.

Ayan had tried to rise several times, but Authority Ten’s suppression continued to crush his magic. And the ten Dungeon Masters were still standing. Arin reached toward the floor. His fingers closed around his weapon. At least he could still fight. Authority One moved first. Arin raised his weapon.

CLANG!

The impact nearly ripped it from his hands.

Authority One struck again. Arin blocked. A third attack came from the side. Authority Five. Arin ducked just in time. The attack passed over his head, tearing through the stone behind him. Arin countered with a slash. Authority Five stepped backward.

Authority Three immediately replaced it.

A black barrier appeared between them. Arin’s weapon struck the barrier and bounced away. He gritted his teeth. "They’re taking turns." Authority Three smiled faintly.

"You noticed."

Authority One attacked. Arin twisted away, but Authority Seven appeared behind him.

The strike caught his shoulder. Pain exploded through his body. He stumbled forward. Authority Six raised a hand. A wave of force slammed into Arin’s chest. He was thrown backward..He hit the floor, rolled, and forced himself upright. His body barely listened. Saira screamed.

"Arin!"

Authority Eight had moved toward her. Saira tried to summon her power. Nothing happened. The suppression field swallowed it. She backed away. "Stay away from me!" Authority Eight continued forward. Mira grabbed Saira and pulled her aside. Ayan saw it. Despite the suppression covering his body, he forced himself to stand. "Leave them alone." Authority Ten looked toward him. "You still resist." Ayan’s teeth clenched.

"I have endured worse." Authority Ten raised one hand. The black markings covering Ayan’s body intensified. Ayan dropped to one knee.

His face twisted in pain. Arin saw it. Something inside him snapped.

"AYAN!"

He rushed forward. Authority One blocked his path. Arin attacked.

One strike.

Two.

Three.

Authority One caught his fourth swing.

Its claws wrapped around Arin’s weapon.

For a moment, they stared at one another.

Then Authority One pulled. Arin was dragged forward. Authority Seven struck him across the stomach.

BOOM!

Arin’s body folded. His weapon flew from his hands. Before he could recover, Authority Five’s attack tore across his chest.

A huge gash opened from his shoulder down toward his ribs. Blood poured from the wound.

"Arin!"

His body flew across the chamber. He slammed into a stone wall.

CRAAACK!

The wall broke behind him. Arin dropped to the ground. For several seconds, he couldn’t move. His lungs refused to work properly.

His hands trembled. His chest burned. The pain was beyond anything he had experienced before. He tried to breathe.

Nothing. He coughed. Blood stained his lips.

Somewhere in the distance, he heard Saira shouting. Mira was crying. Ayan was growling. Zarl was saying something. But the sounds were becoming distant.

The chamber disappeared.

The pain disappeared. Everything became black. Arin opened his eyes. He was standing somewhere completely different.

There were no walls. No dungeon. No authorities. Only darkness. Arin looked around. "Where am I?" A voice answered from behind him. "You are losing badly, Dungeon Master." Arin turned. A man stood several meters away. Long dark hair. A tired face. Calm eyes. There was something strangely familiar about him. The man looked at Arin for a moment before speaking again. "They are all dead and chimerized."

Arin froze. "What?"

"The Dungeon Masters." The man’s voice carried no fear. "Only a few retained enough of their sanity to speak. Even then, they cannot properly control the power forcing them to exist in those bodies." Arin stared at him. Something about those words made his chest tighten. "You know them?" The man looked toward the darkness. "I knew what some of them became." Arin took a step closer. "Who are you?" The man looked at him. "You are asking me that now?" Arin frowned. The man’s expression softened slightly. "My name is Elias Veyron." Arin’s eyes widened. "You are Elias?" The man nodded. "The one before me." Arin said.

"Yes." Elias replied. Arin stared at him.

"I thought you would have known my name." Elias tilted his head. "I guess no one really told you." "Well, Saira mentioned it." Arin said. At the mention of her name, Elias’s expression changed.

"Saira."

A faint smile appeared on his face. "My dearly fearful demon." Arin couldn’t help staring. "You know her that well?" "I knew her for a long time." Elias looked away. "She was always brave when someone else needed her to be brave." Arin remembered the girl outside.

Saira.

The way she reacted whenever Elias was mentioned. The memories he had seen.

The dungeon. Ayan. His family. Everything Elias had lost. Arin’s expression became serious. "Where did you go?" Elias remained silent. "You sealed Ayan and Saira inside your dungeon and disappeared." Arin stepped closer. "Two Dungeon Masters can’t exist at the same time. That means you’re dead." Elias nodded. "Yes, I am." There was no hesitation in his answer. "But it’s complicated to explain." He looked toward Arin. "And we don’t have all the time."

Arin clenched his fists. "Then explain later."

Elias smiled faintly. "You’re impatient." "I’ve been getting beaten half to death." "That tends to make people impatient." Arin almost laughed. Then Elias’s expression became serious. "But first, tell me something." "What?" "Why did you become a Dungeon Master?" Arin stared at him. "I didn’t choose it." Elias said nothing. "I wanted to be an ordinary dungeon hunter. That’s all. I wanted to enter dungeons, make money, survive, maybe become stronger."

Arin looked at his hands. "Then the Mark awakened." He slowly clenched his fists.

"And now I don’t even know anymore." Elias watched him carefully. "I don’t want to die." His voice became quieter. "I don’t want anyone to die." Elias nodded slowly. "Good words." Arin looked up. "But being good won’t save you in this world." Elias’s eyes hardened. "There are beings catastrophically stronger than a mere Dungeon Master." Arin’s expression changed. Elias continued. "You have seen what authority can do. You have seen what happened to the others. You have also seen what happens when someone controls that authority better than you."

Arin thought of Authority Ten. Then the suppression fields. Then Ayan falling to his knees. Elias stepped closer. "I’ll help you again." Arin frowned. "Again?" Elias smiled. "You don’t remember?" Before Arin could answer, Elias raised a hand. "You’ve done it once." Arin’s eyes widened. "Done what?" "Dungeon Master Rage." The words echoed through the darkness. Arin stared at him.

Elias continued. "You must have thought it was ordinary anger." He shook his head. "No. It is a mode." Elias’s eyes glowed faintly. "Think of it as a transformation." Arin remained silent.

"A temporary state that allows your authority and instincts to rise beyond their normal limits." Arin looked down at his hands. "But I can’t use Arene." "I know."

Elias nodded. "You don’t need her." Arin looked back up. "You should still be able to go toe to toe with the ancient Dungeon Masters." Arin’s eyes widened. "You’re saying I can fight them?" "Not because you’re stronger." Elias stepped closer. "Because Dungeon Master Rage allows you to access something you’ve been suppressing since the first time your authority awakened." Arin stared at him. "And if I lose control?" Elias gave him a tired smile.

"Then you’ll have more problems than a few broken bones." "That wasn’t reassuring."

"I wasn’t trying to reassure you." Arin sighed. Elias looked toward the distant darkness. Then he spoke one last time "Besides, if you die here, you won’t be able to get your revenge." Arin’s eyes narrowed.

"Revenge?"n"The previous Dungeon Masters." Elias looked directly at him. "You want answers." Arin didn’t respond. "You want to know what happened to them." His voice became quiet. "You want to know who did this." Arin’s hands trembled. Elias smiled. "Then survive." The darkness around them began to shake.

Arin looked around. "What will you do to me?" Elias took a step backward. "Nothing much." A faint red light appeared in his eyes. "You’ve done it once." He raised his hand. "Do it again." The darkness shattered.

[Dungeon Master Rage, Activated.]

Arin’s eyes snapped open. The chamber returned. His body was still pressed against the broken wall. Blood covered his chest.

The ten authorities stood before him. Authority One began walking toward him.

Arin slowly lifted his head. A red-black aura spread across his body. The stone beneath his hand cracked. His fingers dug into the floor. Authority Ten suddenly stopped. For the first time, its expression changed.

"What...?"

Arin stood. His breathing was heavy. His eyes burned with an unfamiliar light. The wound across his chest continued bleeding.

Yet his expression had changed. There was no fear anymore. No hesitation. Only rage.

A deep, overwhelming rage that seemed to come from somewhere far older than his own emotions. Saira stared at him. Her face went pale. "That power..." Ayan looked toward Arin. "Arin?" The ten authorities became silent. Arin clenched his fists. His aura erupted.

BOOOOOOM!

The entire dungeon shook. Arin raised his head toward the ten ancient Dungeon Masters.

"Rahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"