Chapter 22: Arc 1: Chapter 21: Fate?

"Shing"

A sharp blade points at Merlin's neck.

It was no ordinary blade. On it was flowing light, like water waves, and it made the edge look sharper than ever.

Merlin could feel that all it takes from the Atlantean is the flick of his wrist; his head would be instantly separated from his body. And from the looks of the light on his other hand, even if he turned into fog, he would still be able to kill him right on the spot.

But more so, it makes Merlin more sure about Queen Atlanna's fate.

Arthur's mother, Tom's beloved, has died somewhere in the deep seas...

What they were waiting for was just a hope that would never come.

"You! How did you know!"

Bloodlust flashes through the black-haired man's green eyes; he looked at Merlin and questioned with a stern tone:

"Who told you?"

Merlin should be scared.

Since his life was in another's hands.

Yet he wasn't.

It is unknown if it was from the aftereffects of the dark powers inside him or the fact that he had accepted the demon's contract's reality, but Merlin became stubborn. As of this moment, Merlin was very calm, as if he was ignoring the blade on his neck.

He looks at the Atlantean in front of him and speaks with a low tone:

"You told me."

He points at his eyes.

"These eyes can see the little details, probably the best thing that this demon contract has given me thus far. You are powerful, so powerful that I can't even see your souls, but you are still living beings, you have emotions...just now, the sorrow in your eyes when you mentioned Queen Atlanna is real."

"Others can't see it, but I can. It was more of an assumption, but your overreaction confirms my assumptions."

Merlin takes a deep breath, raises both hands, and looks at the Atlantean:

"I'm not looking for any trouble, nor do I want Arthur to lose his last hope. I know you can kill me easily because I'm weak, that I agree. But the demon said that I have a strange soul, he said that I was destined to be legendary...so rather than killing me here, why not give me a chance?"

"Guarding a secret alone is hard, my undersea friend; maybe you should find someone else to help you."

The Atlantean's grasp loosens, but his eyes still had a hint of scorn.

He looks at Merlin and says:

"Are you implying I should help you? Any Atlantean soldier can kill you easily. You say you can become a legend, sorry, but for now, I can't see that."

"Then let's talk from a different perspective."

Merlin tilts his head away from the blade, his mind spins, and eventually forms an idea; he then looks at the Atlantean:

"Let me guess; you've been implying that Arthur's blood was noble, that he is a prince of Atlantis. But from what I know from history, I know not of a kingdom that lets a prince leave the kingdom and be raised as a commoner, so I assume that...it's not that you don't want Arthur to go back, it's that you can't?"

"What reason is stopping you from taking your prince to Atlantis? It's because he will be in danger once he returns."

"And what danger could endanger a noble prince of Atlantis if Atlantis is as powerful as you say?"

Merlin squints his eyes, and a smile appears on his face; he gently places his finger on the blade and pushes it away from his neck. He continues:

"Your king has enough reason not to like him, for he is not his own..."

"But a kingdom must have a second-in-line, especially for a traditional kingdom as yours. Your king doesn't seem like he's worried about not having an heir, which means the king must have at least another son. And that prince is known across your kingdom, so he should be Arthur's brother, as well as Atlantis' destined heir, am I right?"

"Shing"

The Atlantean sheaths his blade, stares at Merlin, and says a name:

"Orm, the true prince. You are correct, surface-dweller, fantastic reasoning...your wisdom may be worth sparing you, but wisdom alone is not enough, as you also need intellect."

"Yes, after Atlanna gave birth to Orm, that tyrant Orvax threw her into the hell of the Trench. She was my best friend! I watched as she walked into hell, and she asked me to look after Arthur before her sacrifice...which is why I'm here."

The pain in the Atlantean's eyes was undisguised.

Merlin assumes that his feelings for Queen Atlanna are not of pure friendship alone.

Perhaps, there was a hint of admiration, but his intellect refused to point it out.

"You can live with this secret."

The Atlantean looks at Merlin and shakes his head:

"But about your invitation, sorry...but you're far too weak, I cannot place Arthur's safety in your hands, maybe when you become stronger. As for your misfortune, I can help, but I'm unsure whether it'll work."

The Atlantean looks at Merlin straightforwardly and says:

"We Atlanteans are experts in water magic, our living environment has made us forsake the usage of the magic of other elements, and all things related to demons are connected to that cursed black magic. I can only help purify the dark mana emitting from your body; you'll have to look for other ways if you wish to dispel or assimilate it permanently."

"The magic inheritance of humans has not died out yet, so you may look for human sorcerers for their aid."

"That'll be enough!"

Excitement flashes in Merlin's eyes.

He did not expect things to go this smoothly. He had never wanted to solve all his issues at once; Trigon's pressure from that day is still affecting Merlin; the savage power of destruction cannot be dispelled by just anyone.

As Phantom Stranger had said, Trigon is one of the few most powerful demons, and Merlin may have to spend his life looking for a way to dispel his powers.

But as long as he could remove this terrible misfortune, then could Merlin truly step on the path of searching for hope, it was just a beginning, but it's the most crucial part.

"What should I do?"

Merlin looks at the sunny beach around him, and his skin shows slight signs of burning from the exposure to sunlight. He looks at the Atlantean and asks:

"Do I need to prepare anything?"

"Nothing! Just stand there and don't move! I'll have to check and see whether or not your soul is still complete."

The Atlantean moves his fingers, and visible water currents flow through them.

He speaks to Merlin with a grave tone:

"You best pray that your soul is still in one piece. This is the main factor because if the demonic powers corrupt your soul, not even the strongest magician in Nereus can purify you."

"What does it mean? What happens if the soul ruptures?"

Merlin asks.

The Atlantean taps on Merlin's forehead and says softly:

"It means that you will slowly transform into a demon, and once the demonic powers fully assimilate you, your human side will perish. And a half-demon will be born. That is the worst...wait! Why is your would...so strange?"

The always calm Atlantean looks genuinely surprised, he puts down his finger and looks at Merlin as if he was a monster, and a few minutes later, he says:

"Did you know that your soul is double-layered?"

"What?"

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Even though Merlin had been through his fair share of supernatural events, the Atlantean's words were still dumbfounding.

A double-layered soul? What's going on?

"It's like Dragonfish Fruit."

The Atlantean uses a term he's familiar with, yet unheard of by Merlin to explain:

"The outer layer is the shell, and the inner layer is the fruit. The two layers aren't connected, but both souls are you. They share emotions and memories; the demon's contract did tear your soul apart, but only the outer layer."

"And it is only because the outer layer was torn apart that the soul on the inside could truly awaken...no wonder the reaction of mana on you was so odd."

He continues:

"The demon contract has both been established and not established, so you are in an indescribable condition."

"The demonic powers stay inside your soul, but due to the contract, it cannot truly harm you, it'll even protect you...because the contract has been established, it protects you as it is protecting its host."

"Then what of my misfortune?"

The magic terms that he says made Merlin's head hurt, so he looks at the Atlantean and gets straight to the point:

"If that power is protecting me, then what of the black fog that emits from my body? Also, I've never asked an important question, and that's what is your name? I can't keep calling you Atlantean? So you can also stop calling me surface-dweller; it sounds weird. My name is Merlin! Merlin Reilly."

"Fine, my name is Vulko. Royal Servant of the Atlantis Royal Family, as well as Queen Atlanna's private counselor, as well as her best friend."

The Atlantean places his hand on his chest and makes a weird gesture, and explains:

"The black fog you speak of is not the manifestation of misfortune."

"Merlin, your knowledge of magic is too little, misfortune cannot be seen, there have been countless wizards across history who have attempted to control luck and misfortune, but no one has succeeded, for it is not a power we should covet."

"As for the black fog you saw, it's simply caused by the outflow of your dark mana...even the misfortune you think it is, is not misfortune itself."

Vulko simplifies his explanation:

"Let's say you fell; it may be caused by the dark mana emitting from your body, which distorted your vision, or simply that the dark mana had eroded the ground. The same reason a falling rock hits you, magic is mysterious, especially uncontrollable energy flow, which often shows up in a misunderstood form."

"You are not surrounded by misfortune. Of course, your luck itself must not be good. Those who encounter demons are generally unlucky."

"You are a radiating source of dark magic; the misfortune you say that destroys your surroundings is but the corrosion of dark magic to everything around it."

"Is that so?"

Merlin nods, but soon another question pops into mind:

"Then what about the time limit of 2 hours and 6 hours? Why is the time limit so punctual?"

"It's because your inner soul is assimilating with shards of the torn-up external soul."

Vulko squints his eyes and say:

"Imagine a weak, firstborn soul, feeding upon soul shards affected by dark mana; this process isn't constantly happening, as it is tied with your physical activity, only at your most relaxed moment does the assimilation hasten."

"And for every soul shard assimilated, the dark mana within it would erupt into the disaster you speak of...and the time just happens to be between 2-6 hours."

"Do you understand? As long as you remain active, your soul won't start assimilation, but it will begin growing itself as soon as you do. It will remove the dark mana from the soul shards, as well as pull your soul further into the darkness..."

Vulko frowned, as this was his first time experiencing Merlin's unique condition, so he could only try to make explicit assumptions.

"It's unknown if this process is good or bad, but it must be finished; otherwise, your soul will never be complete."

"Then what should I do?"

Merlin asks again:

"What you're saying is, once both souls fully assimilate, the misfortune would go away for good, right?"

"Not only that."

Vulko nods, and with a complicated tone, he says:

"Once the assimilation is complete, your soul will become twice as strong as that of a normal surface-dweller, just from soul capacity, you may even be on par with some powerful Ascetic wizards, as you get older, your soul may keep growing stronger..."

"Your soul getting stronger also means that your mental strength will also get stronger, meaning the mana your body can handle will increase exponentially. And a large soul capacity means that you can do many precision operations that many wizards cannot do, I know not how this type of soul is formed, but undoubtedly, that demon helped you."

He makes a cracking gesture and says:

"It shattered the outer shell, allowing your soul to embark on the path of growth earlier than normal, and the pure dark mana left in your body will become a gift, with the right way, you can fully utilize this wonderous treasure."

"Are you sure you experienced all this by chance?"

Vulko asks confusingly:

"No matter how you look at it...it's as if this was planned."

Vulko's confusion links the broken thread in his heart.

Trigon, the Phantom Stranger, even the bell that appeared in Chicago, even Vulko right now, it all seems...too abruptly, too coincidentally.

Merlin instinctively looked into the sky above his head, there was nothing there, yet Merlin could feel a chill run down his spine as if there was a set of eyes watching him, as well as a set of hands pushing him forward.

Everything links up...but in the worst possible way.

Is that...

Fate?

---

At the same time, in another place, the experts looking on whisper amongst themselves.

"Hey, look, he found a hint, he's trying to look at us, what an unlikeable person."

"But he still can't see the overview, nor can he change the path before him. The different powers brought by the Dice of Fate are imposing onto each other, so many elements, so many powers, ultimately he can only dive deeper, and never escape."

"Talking about that, the 'Demon' thrown by Overlord has pretty much been cracked by the 'Luck' Death has thrown; the first round is about to end. I'm quite interested to see what path he will go on?"

"Worry not; this is just the beginning. Look at Morpheus' record; it's not even at 1/20. Keep looking."

"Huhu, all paths eventually lead to darkness..I've seen through the ending, I have..."

"Be quiet and keep watching! Restless Barbatos, play any tricks again, and we'll come together to whoop your ass again!"

Erm, the daily lives of the experts are rich and colorful.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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