I regressed and became the Sword Ice King - Chapter 487

Chapter 487: Chapter 487- Chaos within the Mirror

The Office of Cressida Arcanus was devoid of warmth. Riddled with the deathly arms of the cold, and the emptiness of a basin that could never be filled.

Within this darkness and stillness, was the ticking of a clock and the steady breathing of the Maid, Tacha who sat patiently on her Master’s chair.

The memories recalled from before stung like a festered wound, with the cries and the begotten woes of the Mother’s eye playing vividly within her skull.

The projection of the memory replayed itself, countlessly… and with that, her heart and mind began to unravel.

But even with the storm that plagued her heart, her Master’s words held strong, and so did the unnerving thoughts that scurried through her mind.

‘I apologise, Sophie. But these are the instructions of the Matriarch.’

She raised her head steadily to the door.

Her gaze lingered on it for what felt like a transient, but to her… it was everlasting.

‘It pains me…’

Her fingers dug into the palms of her hands, and her eyes watered as she glanced away.

‘… but the words of the Oracle have spoken, and we will guide it through.’

Her body tensed and her eyes turned sharp as she spun her attention towards what was required of her.

Now that the Matriarch and the daughter of the Arcanus Household were gone, the fall of the Castle was near.

‘But we never cared for that.’

After all, it was a fate they had considered worthy for the demise of the Great Families.

‘If the Heads escape… no. The Heads who escape will find their way to the gates of Arcanus… and bring it down with their enraged fists.’

Tacha was here for that very purpose.

To absorb their sight from the Daughter of the Arcanus… the last living child of the Household.

‘We were ready to forsake our lineage for the destiny of destruction… but with a future of foreboding nature… Sophie must stay alive.’

Her thoughts aligned with her actions as she remained silent.

Waiting. Counting. Watching the hours go by until the moment comes.

The room welcomed her presence… and the Castle hummed to it, as it grew expectant of its last hour.

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If one could surmise their predicament with one word, then that word would be its first.

Undescribable was the minimalistic method of going about it, but Gloria Jun and the ten other Households would differ greatly.

A cataclysm. A meeting with the Devil. Death’s door is tethering closer and closer to its opening point.

They could go round about it as much as they could within their heads, but no word could actually ascertain it.

‘Though, there is one sure way of explaining this…’

Thalia’s eyes narrowed to pinpricks as a gruesome beast, magnanimous in size. The shape of a wholly mammoth with the Head of a mutant reptile and mammal fell to its death in a pool of its own blood.

A deafening cry of death escaped its wretched throat with a guttural roar.

The Monsoon War goat. A 7th-tier Grand Demon, and one of the lesser types of the calamities of the seven Grand Demons.

Thalia pulled out her blade from its body with a sickening slick of black blood and swept it through the air with a mighty swing of her arm.

‘… Everything that has happened so far is real.’

It was ridiculous to think so. Impossible even.

But every moment, trapped by the Matriarch of the Fallen Household, Arcanus served as a reminder of her– their fate.

The fate that breathed death on their necks.

At that moment, a roar broke her line of thought, and her head darted to the side. There, another demon fell to the skilful precision of the Silvan and Kang Lin’s Household joint assault.

A Demon superior in the line of calamities than the one before her feet.

Gloria frowned deeply at the Creature.

‘The RazorBack Willow.’

A 7th-tier Grand Demon, but a species more powerful than the others.

With silver scales that rattled with an allure of deathly sophistication, massive fore and hind feet, dense in muscles and snapping tendons. A tail and neck that was twice the length of its body with muscles and fat, sturdier than iron.

Its face was the projection of ghastly horror.

A ghost with a hollow mask, and two fangs projected at the corner of its Rugged lips.

These creatures stood over mountains and were capable of worldly destruction.

‘But their existence was noted in the Demonic Age… and not our current age.’

The Grand Demons were such that the more powerful they were, the fewer their numbers.

Seven of these atrocious world-ending beings existed, and seven of which were sealed within the Gates… held back by their own powerful nature.

There was only a handful… if not none of the Grand Demons which currently existed in the Mortal Plain and the RazorBack Willow was one of such.

‘In fact, most of these Demons can’t be found in the Mortal Plain…’

Gloria walked down the massive beast towards the direction of the Fallen Willow.

‘They are far too powerful… too evil….’

There were only a handful of people who existed at the level of the Heads of the Great Families… and that in and of itself would be a problem in the face of these monstrosities.

Gloria froze in place at the thought.

Her eyes bulged open slightly before they narrowed and turned towards the two males.

‘This… has opened my eyes.’

She frowned deeply as she jumped off the Beast onto the scorched earth.

A bead of sweat dripped down as the red earth swallowed it like a thirst-driven drunk.

Her gaze deepened as she stared at it for a second, before jumping into the air, straight towards the others.

“Kang, Derrick.”

She called as she crashed onto the bony plate of the dead creature.

They turned around in unison with blood-soaked skins and battle-driven expressions.

Tensions palpable as their muscles flexed at her arrival.

“Oh, Gloria,” Kang called in a low voice.

Cracked and riddled with thought.

He cleared it and folded his arms while Derrick sighed behind him.

“What disrespect, Gloria.” He said with a frown.

Gloria shrugged and glanced around.

Before them was a tide of similar monstrosities that clawed the Dome of gold that shielded them.

A protection barrier that had sealed them from the impending doom.

“You speak of respect in the grounds of battle?” She turned back to him.

“What a waste of time.”

Derrick groaned softly, while Kang sighed.

“What is it? I assumed you came here for a reason.”

He said as his gaze sharpened.

“Do you have a plan?”

“A plan?” Gloria muttered as she looked around once more.

Behind them, at the centre of the Dome, was the King, surrounded by Father Gonan, who cast the Dome, an unconscious Kira Merlin, Isaac Techna and the Matriarch of the Vinci Household, Rosá Vinci.

They served as the backbone of their hurried team, shielding Gonan Lucia, while he maintained the Golden Dome.

And around them, were the other Household Heads.

Each with their weapons and choice of fighting style, taking down the demons that had made their way into their protective nest.

But for how long?

“What kind of plan can turn this situation around?”

Gloria muttered under her breath.

Seemingly questioning herself first, rather than the others.

But with their superhuman nature, it was difficult to think she hadn’t heard.

“You’re right, but death is a path that none of us will take.”

Kang spoke fiercely.

He turned up. Above the Dome and beyond the horde of creatures that had formed a canopy of black ichor against their protection of light.

Into the skies where the Woman of the hour floated with great delight.

With the smile she had always worn and the mildness that had hidden the poison beneath her facade, Cressida Arcanus watched as their fate unfolded.

Like a woman in a play.

Kang’s brows furrowed and a bitter smile crept on his face.

“We will not let that woman win.”

Derrick glanced in the same direction.

“I agree as well, Lord Kang, but this is a situation that requires more than just thinking.”

He clasped his arm behind his back as his grimoire hovered in front of him.

“Everything has been planned so we can’t escape alive… these Demons…”

His gaze shifted towards them.

“We, even as Heads of the Great Families can not face such an army alone… our demise is near.”

Gloria arched her brow.

“It’s not like you to be pessimistic, Derrick.”

“No.” Derrick frowned as he glanced at her. “But reality takes precedent in all our actions.”

Kang breathed heavily with a bitter look that refused to go away.

“We have too much to lose for us to die here.”

Derrick nodded with slumped shoulders.

“I agree, Lord Kang, but for us to escape… we must be aware of what that would entail.”.

Immediately, Gloria’s gaze shifted towards him.

A clear thought in her mind.

“Not all of us will escape… some will be sacrificed.” She stated.

And Derrick nodded.

“It would be foolish to think we can escape together… ” he explained. “Our only way out would be Kira Merlin, since she understands the principles of phenomena such as these more than any of us.”

“And we all know that venomous woman. Her safety would be paramount to the rest of us.”

The air grew tense as the three Heads glanced at one another.

Their thoughts did the rest of the talking as words would further sully the air.

Instead of awaiting the death of a few uncertain members, and causing a sharp decline or ascension in the order of the Great Families.

A certain death should be decided… one where those who died on the battlefield are chosen.

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Good day, Readers! (^^)

Due to unforeseen circumstances (exams), chapter releases had to be paused.

I sincerely apologize for the break and thank you for your patience.