Chapter 52: The Uncrowned Empress

The tale of the Uncrowned Empress, Crown Princess Viscellia, is a long-standing taboo of the von Skoll dynasty. In today's Arcadia, one hand is more than enough to count those that still remember the past events. Back then, although Klaus wasn't born yet, in his infancy, he'd learned of his father's greatest thorn: his Crown Princess, Viscellia.

To the average noble, Crown Princess Viscellia was the emperor's betrothed, a woman of remarkable intellect and beauty that vanished in a mysterious incident. Her presumed death left Niklas so devastated that from that day onward—he only wore black, and went from a gentle prince to a callous, power-driven tyrant.

On the day he assumed the imperial throne, Niklas posthumously honored her as Empress of Arcadia, and never took a wife. All his children were born from his official mistresses, a situation that made their claim to the throne shaky, at best.

But while the average nobleman saw in this a tale of undying passion and romance, those few aware of the truth knew better. The true reason for Niklas' move was to make a perpetual reminder of the anguish that woman caused him—engraving it all in the core of his soul.

Every time he glanced at the empty empress seat, Niklas would remember the past insult. Said bluntly, Jezebel made him the monster he currently was.

Because of Jezebel's high-ranking Fehl nature, her specific abilities, and her familiarity with the emperor, Klaus inferred that she was that woman.

But even as he referred to her with her past title, Jezebel showed no reaction.

"The Cycle of Reckoning? Interesting, I wonder who you offended to suffer such a brutal curse. No, it can't be you. It's Niklas, isn't it? How does it feel to pay for your father's crimes?" Jezebel rhetorically asked, and joined her hands in a prayer sign.

For a second, the snide made Klaus' gaze harden, but immediately afterward, he regained his composure, his hands flashed in arcane gestures, and his lips parted in inaudible incantations.

Five red, swirling circles appeared by his side, rippling with dreadful radioactive energies.

"For a fehl of your caliber, 10% is the limit. Beyond that, the damage will surpass what you can endure in the Mortal Plane, and your body will rematerialize in the Fehl Plane. But with less than 10% of your original strength, can you resist an Exarch? Let's find out!

Fifth Circle Spell: Thermonuclear Blast!" Klaus bellowed, and the radioactive energies at his command coalesced in a red ball that sank into the ground.

*BANG*

In the instant the ball met the crystal ground, everything beyond a 50 cm radius of Klaus to burst under a berserk blast of thermonuclear forces—or so it should have been.

Instead, the explosion was restrained to its initial point of impact, collapsed inward, and vanished as if it'd never existed. Klaus' eyes widened in disbelief. But he wasn't given time to process the reality that Jezebel's voice echoed:

"6% is enough.

Fifth Circle Spell: Sealing Blade."

A three meters long greatsword appeared at Klaus' back, skewering him faster than he could react. Klaus' eyelids trembled, and while his blood didn't flow, his pupils dilated.

As lifeless as a deactivated cyborg, Klaus dropped on his knees, and this time, he didn't rise again.

"Son of a bitch, so what if you can't die? Sealing is still right and prop-" Jezebel began, but before she could finish her words, her organs spiraled out of control, her face paled, and she splattered the floor with a large mouthful of blood.

*Cough* *Cough* *Cough*

With every cough, more blood left Jezebel's throat, staining the crystal ground in a translucent red. Gripping her chest, Jezebel walked toward the window, turned into a red ball, and vanished in a shaft of light.

…

Meanwhile, within the imperial city, as he sat on his golden throne with courtiers filling the massive hall, Niklas' eyelids trembled, and his eyes went bloodshot!

"Who dares?! Fifth Circle Spell: Greater Teleportation!" The emperor bellowed, and before his astounded courtiers, vanished from the scene. In the same second, Niklas reappeared before the von Karsten castle and landed in Klaus' room.

The sight of his beloved son impaled by a greatsword awaited there. Alarmed, Niklas rushed to Klaus' side, attempting to yank the sword free of his back—but to no avail. His face twisted in a frown, and he swept the room with his Arcane Sight.

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"No attribute, no energy signature, the work of fehl magic," Niklas realized following a brief examination. Yet, the truth didn't faze him in the slightest.

"Even if you are a Fehl Lord, for having the nerve to harm my son, you must surrender your life!

Fifth Circle Spell: Karmic Revelation!" He snarled while placing his right hand on Klaus' forehead. As an exarch, Niklas could will magic rather than casting it, thereby achieving the same as fehl daemons.

White fog burst from Klaus' head, forming a white, magical cloud in which scenes of the previous confrontation replayed. Niklas' eyes stopped on the enthralling figure of the amethyst eyed demoness, and his heart spiraled out of control, pounding against his chest.

"You. It's you? How can it be you?! YOOOOUUUU!!!" Niklas snarled in a full-blown frenzy!

"For 140 years, I have kept our coffin warm and dust-free. Jezebel, since you've chosen to return, it is only right that you pay your dues! In life or in death, you shall remain by my side!

SIXTH CIRCLE SPELL: KARMIC RETRIBUTION!"

Niklas let the entirety of his dra explode in one spell, the sky, the earth, the atmosphere, everything shook under this eruption of unprecedented might! The white cloud turned into a spear that shafted in the night sky to pursue Jezebel's form!

By now, she'd already crossed half of Orloth. But faster than lightning, the spear tracked her down to lodge in her heart!

Well, almost.

In the instant that the karmic spear neared her back, Jezebel's lips curved into a fiendish grin, and she spun to face it!

"Sixth Circle Spell: Karmic Reversal."

The spear butted against an invisible wall, and repelled by transcendent forces, flew back to nail Niklas' heart instead!

His bloodshot eyes widened in disbelief!

"Karmic magic is Astral Master territory. To have already reached that threshold, Niklas, I must say that you didn't disappoint my expectations. How unfortunate that the final step will now elude you for a lifetime.

Congratulations, hahahahaha!"

Jezebel's demonic laughter thundered within Niklas' mind, and just like Klaus, he dropped on his knees, with his pupils dilated by the karmic blow!

…

Undisturbed, Jezebel returned to Ostria and turned into red mist to sneak into Olaf's study. However, never did she expect that Kilian would already be waiting there.

"According to my estimations, you should still be drilling your new pet. Done already?" Jezebel asked in a jesting tone. Kilian, however, remained stoic.

"Had fun?" He casually asked.

"So-so," Jezebel replied, and walked toward the mahogany table facing Kilian. But she'd not even taken three steps, that she felt the impact of four trucks smashing into her from front, back, left and right. The world around her spun, and she collapsed on the floor—almost.

Though he too felt the blow, unlike Jezebel, Kilian retained his consciousness, vanished, and reappeared by her side to prevent her fall. For a second, he stared at her unconscious form. A cluster of emotions flashed in his eyes and, while holding her in his arms, he walked out of the study.

On that night, a storm of fear swept the entirety of Arcadia. Rumors soon spread that following a mysterious incident, Emperor Niklas and the Duke of Kars both lay comatose in bed. Whether they'd ever awake or not, remained a mystery.

As the law demanded, the crown prince, Ayden von Skoll, assumed the regency.

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