Chapter 109 Two opposing forces

Chapter 109: Chapter 109 Two opposing forces

For some reason, Noah couldn’t understand why the Phoenix Flame wasn’t actually burning Rose.

He stared at her struggling body, trying to figure out what was happening.

The fire was clearly wrapped around her, yet her physical body wasn’t suffering the kind of damage that should have come from such powerful flames.

Then it clicked.

Maybe it wasn’t Rose the fire was attacking.

It was Maria.

The malevolent spirit that had taken control of Rose’s body was the true target. Whatever consequences came with the Phoenix Flame were being directed toward the evil spirit possessing her rather than Rose herself.

Noah’s eyes shifted toward Lamia.

He finally understood.

That had been Lamia’s intention all along.

He would never intentionally hurt Rose.

She was his friend too.

Despite everything happening around them, that realization made Noah feel strangely relieved.

At least Lamia had never been willing to sacrifice Rose just to get rid of Maria.

But the small happiness didn’t last.

Something moved behind Rose.

Noah’s eyes widened.

Strange shapes began appearing around the assembly.

At first, they were nothing more than translucent shadows.

Then they slowly took form.

Human figures.

Dozens of them.

Some appeared from the walls.

Others emerged from the floor.

They looked almost transparent, their bodies flickering like ghosts caught between two worlds.

Noah stared.

"What the hell..."

Before anyone could react, the spirits raised their hands.

A strange wave of energy spread through the hall.

The Phoenix Flame surrounding Rose suddenly flickered.

Then it went out.

Just like that.

Lamia’s eyes widened.

"What?"

The spirits had extinguished his Phoenix Flame.

Every single one of them seemed to be working together.

Killian, who was still on his knees, immediately tried to stand.

Blood continued running from his nose and ears.

"We have to get out of here."

His voice was strained.

"I don’t know what she wants, but I’m not letting her get to you."

He looked at Noah.

The others were struggling as well.

They could all feel it.

Whatever power was controlling those spirits was targeting Noah.

But before Noah could answer, the translucent figures began speaking.

Their voices overlapped.

Hundreds of voices becoming one.

"All of you alphas are going to die."

The sound shook the entire hall.

"This is what you have done to omegas."

Another wave of energy spread through the room.

"We aren’t weak."

"We were never meant to be sacrificed."

"We were never meant to be used."

Noah’s expression changed.

Omegas?

What had this school been doing to omegas?

Whatever had happened must have been horrific for so many spirits to gather with enough hatred to attack the entire institution.

More translucent figures appeared.

They emerged from the walls.

From the ceiling.

From the ground.

It looked as if they were multiplying.

The number of spirits grew so quickly that the entire assembly was soon surrounded.

Rose, who had fallen to the ground after the Phoenix Flame disappeared, slowly pushed herself upright.

Then she started laughing.

A horrible, unnatural laugh.

"You see what I said?"

Her voice carried through the hall.

"We’re going to reform this world."

She spread her arms.

"And we’re going to destroy all of you alphas."

The spirits behind her began moving.

"You are the problem in this world."

Her smile widened.

"And it’s going to end right now."

Her eyes swept across the terrified crowd.

"The main problems will be the first ones we eliminate."

The moment those words left her mouth, Mrs. Danielle began coughing violently.

Her body jerked.

"What?"

She grabbed her throat.

"Help me!"

Something invisible wrapped around her.

Then she was dragged from her position.

Her feet left the ground.

The entire assembly screamed as Danielle was pulled toward the center.

She desperately reached for anything she could grab.

"Please!"

Nobody moved.

The students were too terrified.

They wanted to run, but fear kept them rooted to the spot.

The spirits had already demonstrated what they could do.

Anyone who tried to escape could become their next target.

Danielle’s body was thrown onto the floor.

A translucent figure appeared directly behind her.

"You evil dean."

Danielle’s eyes widened.

"I thought we were meant to be under your protection."

The spirit’s voice was filled with hatred.

"But you abused that power."

Danielle trembled.

"Now it’s your turn to die."

Damon’s eyes shifted toward her.

For the first time, he seemed to truly pay attention to what was happening.

But there was no emotion in his expression.

None.

It was almost as though he had already accepted Danielle’s fate.

Irene noticed.

She looked between Damon and the terrified dean.

"What is all of this?"

Damon didn’t answer.

Irene’s frustration grew.

"First you suddenly reveal that you have a son here."

She pointed toward Noah.

"And then there’s Slyvia."

Her voice became sharper.

"Now these spirits are attacking you. What exactly do you have to do with all of this?"

Damon finally turned toward her.

His eyes were icy.

The silence that followed was so heavy that Irene immediately realized she had crossed a line.

"Keep your words to yourself, woman."

His voice was low.

"Make that very clear."

Irene froze.

Damon looked toward Noah.

"Son, we’re leaving."

He turned toward the mages.

"I’ll have them create a portal."

"We’re getting the hell away from this mess."

Damon stepped forward.

But before he could reach Noah, another tendril of dark smoke tore through the air.

It struck him directly in the face.

Damon coughed violently.

Then a strange howl escaped his throat.

His body bent backward as though something was trying to tear him apart from within.

His powers flared.

But nothing happened.

The magic wasn’t responding.

"What the hell?"

Damon’s eyes widened.

His abilities seemed useless against the attack.

"You useless mages!"

He turned toward the two sorcerers.

"I thought you were the best!"

His voice shook the hall.

"Do something!"

He coughed again.

"Protect your emperor!"

Hezznine reacted immediately.

He slammed his staff against the ground.

A powerful force erupted from it, attempting to redirect the attack away from Damon.

It failed.

The dark magic simply passed through the force as though it didn’t exist.

Hezznine’s expression changed.

Harold rushed forward next.

He barely made it two steps.

A horrifying crack echoed through the hall.

His neck snapped.

His body collapsed.

Blood poured from his mouth as he hit the floor.

The students screamed.

That was the moment they finally understood.

This wasn’t a threat anymore.

It was a war.

People were actually going to die.

The students broke.

They grabbed whoever they could and began running toward the exits, choosing whichever powerful race or group they believed offered the best chance of survival.

Rose continued laughing.

Damon turned toward Noah.

"Do something!"

His voice was desperate now.

"Don’t just stand there!"

He pointed toward the spirits.

"You’re a pureblood. Cast this away! You can do it!"

Noah stared at him.

Then slowly shook his head.

"No."

Damon froze.

Noah tightened his grip around the Heavenly Sword.

"I won’t."

He wasn’t going to save him.

Maybe Damon was his father.

Maybe.

But Noah knew nothing about the man.

For all he knew, the emperor could be just as evil as the history surrounding him suggested.

The stories people told about powerful rulers were often carefully edited.

Maybe Damon had simply hidden his darker side.

And Noah wasn’t interested in becoming his savior.

"These people deserve their retribution."

His voice was calm.

"This isn’t my responsibility."

He looked toward the Moonlight Alphas.

But they were getting weaker.

Much weaker.

"I’ll get all of you out of here."

He stepped toward them.

Eugene groaned.

"Fuck."

He looked down at his arms.

"I think she’s drawing magic from us."

His skin appeared to be stretching painfully.

"It feels like it’s tearing apart."

Damian screamed.

His head tilted toward the sky as another wave of energy struck him.

A painful moan escaped his mouth.

Noah’s expression hardened.

He couldn’t leave them here.

Not like this.

He turned toward Lysander.

"Lysander."

The demon’s eyes shifted toward him.

"Remember our deal."

Noah pointed toward Rose.

"Get the spirit out of Rose’s body."

Then he looked toward Lamia.

"Lamia can help you with whatever you need."

He took a breath.

"And I’ll take the Moonlight Alphas away from here."

Lysander stared at him.

He clearly hated the idea.

"All this..."

His eyes narrowed.

"You’re doing all of this for them?"

Noah didn’t answer.

Lysander stepped closer.

"Didn’t you hear anything I’ve been saying?"

His voice became frustrated.

"Their powers aren’t even top-tier."

"They’re going to get you killed."

He shook his head.

"One way or another, you’ll die because you keep throwing yourself between them and danger."

His expression darkened.

"That’s why I’ve been warning you."

He pointed toward Noah.

"I told you to let me mark you."

His voice lowered.

"Isn’t that what you’re supposed to do?"

Noah frowned.

Lamia sighed.

He knew this was coming.

"He’s the devil’s son."

Lamia looked at Lysander.

"And I don’t work with demons."

Lysander glanced at him.

Lamia crossed his arms.

"I don’t."

The two stared at each other.

The argument was interrupted by another horrifying sound.

Crack.

Then another.

The sound of flesh tearing and bones twisting filled the hall.

Danielle screamed.

Her voice echoed through the entire assembly.

The spirits were torturing her.

The battle had grown worse.

Noah, Lamia, and Lysander stood on the left side of the assembly where the fighting hadn’t reached yet.

They could only watch.

The two mages had abandoned their offensive attempts and were now using everything they had to protect Damon.

A massive high-tier barrier surrounded the emperor.

The spirits attacked it repeatedly.

Each impact shook the shield.

The mages were fighting with everything they had.

They had realized that they couldn’t overpower the ancestral witches whose spirits had gathered around the school.

So their only option was to protect Damon until he regained enough strength to either escape or fight back.

Unfortunately, the emperor had been weakened too severely.

His powers were temporarily dormant.

"I don’t know how much longer we can hold this, Your Eminence."

One of the mages was sweating heavily.

"You have to leave now."

Damon shook his head.

"No."

His answer was immediate.

"I am not leaving."

He stared toward Noah.

"Not without my son."

Irene, who remained beside him beneath the barrier, became increasingly frustrated.

Her brother’s obsession with Noah was beginning to anger her.

"He doesn’t even want to return with you."

She glared at Damon.

"Hate me all you want, but the boy doesn’t want you."

Damon didn’t respond.

Irene continued.

"So use your powers and get us somewhere safe."

She looked toward the exhausted mages.

"You have more power than these pathetic mages."

"Do something."

Damon suddenly gasped.

His body stiffened.

Irene’s eyes widened in horror.

"Brother?"

Damon struggled to breathe.

The barrier flickered.

On the other side, the spirits continued advancing.

Noah looked at Lamia.

His expression had changed.

"Please."

Lamia frowned.

"Do what?"

"Help them."

Noah’s voice cracked slightly.

"If you don’t, people are going to die."

Lamia shook his head.

"Noah—"

"I’ll be fine."

Noah looked toward the Moonlight Alphas.

"Just make sure nothing happens to you."

Lamia’s jaw tightened.

He didn’t want to agree.

He knew exactly what Noah was asking.

And he knew what could happen if they failed.

But Noah had already made his decision.

He turned and rushed toward Damian and Killian.

He grabbed both of their hands.

The Heavenly Sword remained firmly in his other hand.

"Stay with me."

The sword suddenly erupted with light.

Noah closed his eyes.

Marcus, despite the pain shooting through his back and legs, dragged himself closer.

He crawled across the floor until he reached Noah.

His hand grabbed Noah’s shoulder.

Then everything changed.

A burst of energy exploded around them.

The four Moonlight Alphas disappeared.

No flash.

No explosion.

They were simply gone.

As if they had never been there.

Lamia stood frozen.

He stared at the empty space where they had been.

Then he looked toward Lysander.

The demon’s jaw was clenched tightly.

He looked furious.

"Okay."

Lamia sighed.

"I guess I’m joining you two." Oliver’s voice interrupted.

He glanced at Lysander.

"Let’s do this."

Lysander slowly turned toward him.

Lamia looked at the demon.

Then back to Oliver.

And Lamia couldn’t help but sigh again.

Of all the people he could have ended up fighting beside, it had to be the two he had spent the entire time trying to avoid.

"Just fucking great."