Chapter 62

"Eh, what a mess this little girl got into because of his blood."

The High Judge muttered to himself that, obviously, he knew of the girl's innocence. Reading through her papers, there wasn't anything suspicious. There was nothing suspicious even in the academy, but well... he has to make a judgment to satisfy different Bloods. Even the sovereigns desire the same, this could work as propaganda for them.

"High judge, I have an objection!"

"Trial hasn't even started yet, what could it be?"

"I suggest proceeding with the trial now, as we can see that the Highblood of Denoir hid the fact that one of theirs had awakened. They deliberately used an artifact to hide her awakening. There is no need to wait for more of her blood. Every one of them will face the same judgment anyway!"

The suggestion was approved by many, as their nods and hums followed. Some even began murmuring as to why Denoirs would hide the fact of Caera's awakening. After all, the awakening of the Vritra lineage is something to be proud of.

Unless they planned something.

'Those guys, they have problems with patience don't they?' The High Judge again gazed at Caera, anticipating some grievous reaction. Unfortunately, no. Her expression was that of a dead man as if she had lost all meaning in her life.

High Judge should technically have high authority in the court, but apparently, the sovereigns desire everything according to their plans. That's what he was told…

"Then, the trial of the entire Highblood of Denoir, on the charges of betrayal, commences now." An announcement was made, accompanied by the banging of a gavel. Everyone took their seats, and the great hall fell silent.

"The trial will be adjudicated by High Judge Blackshorn, Judge Tenema, Judge Falhorn, Judge Hurcrust, and Judge Frihl."

The judges were already seated, each of them wearing black robes. Then the high judge, named Blackshorn, continued,

"The purpose of this trial is to determine the punishment faced by the Highblood of Denoir. Since there is no one standing up in defense of Denoirs, the punishment will be passed down nonetheless. This is the wish of sovereigns."

At the mention of sovereigns, the hall broke into excited murmurs.

"Silence!" The high judge had to calm people down with another set of hammering. "If Denoirs repent for their sins, the punishment shall be lightened." The elderly man looked at Caera, now already with an emotionless face.

"Caera Denoir, if you give us valuable information you will be spared and taken care of appropriately. So?"

Caera could only stare down at a marbled floor, not like she knew something else. She was unaware of her family's affairs and hadn't been told anything by Seris either. Yes, she was given an artifact to change her appearance by Seris, but that crime didn't have anything to do with this.

"Caera Denoir, I suggest you speak. Any pieces of information might be useful." The judge kept on trying to make the young girl speak.

"High Judge, she isn't saying anything because she was most likely told not to!"

"I said silence!" The judge roared, scaring the sh*t out of the man. "Is there anything else, Caera Denoir?"

Caera under the pressure opened her mouth and spoke, "I don't know… there wasn't anything else. I swear."

"Are you sure? You haven't spotted anyone else with Scythe Seris you didn't know of?"

"No I didn't-" Caera flinched as she remembered something about that boy she saw with her master. She could remember him well; he was so mysterious and had a strong aura around him. Ashborn was his name, and he even showed some unknown spatial magic. Definitely, they were searching for him.

"N-No I did not."

Caera repeated her answer, but the stutter wasn't something left behind by the judges. Their eyebrows were raised; they found the sudden stutter very suspicious. She is still a kid, but the scaredness might not be the only reason for it.

"Are you sure, Caera Denoir?"

"Yes."

"You are lying."

Like a bomb exploding in a silent environment, it all came crashing down on Caera's consciousness. She was shocked by the judge's insight and how he was able to tell that she was lying. Now, how could she avoid even more problems?

"I-I'm n-not…"

"Weren't you taught by your parents that lying is bad? Soldier, she definitely knows something. Throw her into the dungeon, she will reveal it later." The secondary judge, a woman, ordered the soldier next to Caera. Other people in the court shared a broad smile, mostly the other bloods.

Caera realized what was happening, but she didn't know exactly what the dungeon was... But it should be something terrible. The chains that were attached to her rattled as she tried to remove them. No matter how much she tried to use soul-fire, she couldn't succeed either.

The soldier kept approaching Caera. Her emotions intensified, it became hard to breathe and her eyes were tearing up. She couldn't get away, she couldn't call for help...She felt betrayed and scared.

"No, don't touch me…" Her voice was low, and she was squealing from fear. The soldier's hand that moved toward her seemed evil and harmful; her previous facade of an unfaced girl crushed literally.

The hand kept closing up to her, and when it was about to touch her, like thunder hitting the ground during a storm, everyone felt the blood in their veins stop flowing. With each passing second, their faces age ten years. Their skin almost melted down and their breathing died down.

The soldier next to Caera fell backward as he couldn't contain himself, despite resisting the urge to fall unconscious. Meanwhile, the girl herself was unaffected, and the reason for it was that the pressure wasn't directed at her.

"Lady Caera, do you remember me?"

"Uh…"

Caera's eyes snapped, in front of him now stood the member of her blood. She knew who it was, but never had a chance to ask for his name.

"I don't think so?..." She looked around in confusion. It all happened so fast, she wasn't able to fully comprehend what had happened. The people in the great hall were all unconscious.

"Are they dead?"

"No, they are alive. Just unconscious."

Caera heard another voice. She swore that she had heard of this one before. It was a little different from the earlier one, but she had heard this one in the manor only once, and she had never forgotten about it.

"Lady Caera, did they do anything to you?" The unnamed Denoir carefully examined her body, fortunately, there were no physical injuries. But what about the mental?

"No, I think I'm alright. Only those things are heavy."

Ashborn glanced at the chains attached to Caera; they were also runic, but oh well, nothing that he couldn't break. Just a snap and they came off from the girl's hand. Another snap and those attached to her legs were also open.

"Thanks…" Caera was surprised at Ashborn, especially his strength, which could snap the metals like nothing. His hands were also cold, terrifyingly cold.

"Is master Seris with you?"

"No, that's the reason why we came to you. Perhaps she has told you something about her whereabouts?"

"No, she hadn't told me. She wasn't planning anything other than waiting for your return I think."

"That confirms it. She's indeed…dead."

The dreadful information stated by Ashborn was, of course, shocking news for Caera. Well, at least on the Alacrya and Dicathen, Seris was supposed to be one of the strongest on the continent. She was Vritra blooded and also had the title of the Scythe, which indicated her level of strength.

"She disappeared from the radars, along with my soldier. If only I knew where they were before that, Cylrit wasn't even able to notify me…"

Being fast enough to avoid being detected by Ashborn is not a small feat. Actually, it's a frightening achievement that could possibly be accomplished by a handful. Maybe by two, to be exact.

"Alright, it's futile. I will send you back to your family if you wish." Immediately, the unnamed Denoir nodded his head. Caera was hesitant, though. She wasn't even sure if she wanted to go back.

'Are they even related?'

Ashborn couldn't find any similarities between the man's and Caera's blood; their mana was also very different. The navy-haired girl had a similar presence to Seris, but that's only because of their Vritra lineage. The man, unlike Caera, had a similarity to Denoir's mana, which he detected in the mansion.

*Crackle*

With the electricity storming out of a certain point and the space around it rippling, the black smoke formed with a purple hue in a perfect circular shape. The startled girl and man watched as the space cracked open and the broken parts literally fell down.

"You may be reunited with your family."

"Can we really go in?" Ashborn nodded at the man, who immediately swept through the teleportation gate after thanking him. The shadow monarch expected Caera to follow him, but instead, she chose to just stay.

"Aren't you going to your family?"

"Actually… they aren't really my blo- I mean family. I'm sure they would've left me if not for my Vritra blood. They were forced to house me and take care of me until my awakening, master Seris on the other hand helped to hide my awakening so they don't take me as a lab rat."

"I see."

Although the awkward silence has fallen between them, technically it was only because of Ashborn. There was that gaze, a familiar that he could see in Caera, the resemblance between him and her. After all, he was once lost in himself, just like the young girl in front of him is right now.

'Isn't he going to say anything?!' Sweat rolled down her face while staring at Ash. It was really embarrassing. He was staring at her with such a sharp gaze.

"So, what are you going to do now?"

"Ah… I don't really know." She had the idea of following Ashborn if he would allow it, but if not, she would most likely be left alone or just sent back to Denoirs. She had no idea how to ask for permission either.

"Also, are you certain in my master's death?"

"Her presence was nowhere else to be sensed; her mana disappeared along with my soldier. There are chances of her being alive, but very low, and whoever can hide her mana is won't be an ordinary foe."

No, Ashborn was quite certain of his assumptions. She was dead, there's no chance someone would cut his connection with his own shadow soldiers; that's simply impossible.

"Can I… come with you and search for my master?"

"No."

The blunt and short answer from Ashborn wasn't something Caera wanted to hear. Her already bad mood has worsened once again, but maybe the fortune was on her side today. The purple-glowing eyes noticed the relic on the girl.

"That item, Seris gave it to you right?"

"This one? Yes." Caera slowly removed the relic and offered it to Ashborn. The latter took it and examined it. His keen eyes caught the familiar little bits of mana.

"It has remainings of her mana, although not much. Most likely she used this before you, so maybe I should search for its creator."

He did not have much information about this continent, but he had to begin from a certain point and search for clues, or he could just ignore it all. The last part wouldn't be a good decision; there were concerning matters such as the Asura's manipulations of fate with their Aether arts.

"Here." Ashborn handed back the relic to Caera. He then placed a hand on her shoulder. Both of them fell into a shadow, leaving the Great Hall with a lot of unconscious bodies lying all across the room.

.

Caera was startled when they emerged from the shadows again, then she calmed down seeing the auburn-haired next to her. On the other hand, Ash instantly began studying his surroundings. They were in a castle, with tall walls and ceilings, a marbled floor, and statues of basilisks all across the corridors. Whoever built this must be a fanatic about snakes.

"Where are we?"

"This should be a castle of a certain snake."

"So that's why there are soo many snake statues."

"Indeed."

"Is the creator of this relic here?" Caera looked up at Ash, whose head was above hers by far. She unintentionally began comparing him to his past self. Close to close, the difference was easy to see; he had tremendously grown physically from their first-ever meeting. In other words, he was handsome.

"This should be the way."

The shadow monarch detected someone's presence in a particular place and took a step in that direction with his companion. The sound of their footsteps echoed down the corridors, giving Caera an uneasy feeling. She was already intimidated by the statues, and the only reassurance she got was Ashborn.

"Only one? How bizarre." The man's mutter traveled across the walls of the castle. Surprisingly, there was only one person in the entire castle.

An utterly harsh scream came from the massive door, as Ashborn pushed it open. Behind the door was a kind of large laboratory, with the capsules and other essential chemistry things. Rare materials were present as well, along with a lone figure standing nonchalantly while observing something.

"Hm, how bad is my luck. Playing with the element of fate is really not a joke huh." The man's words caused Ashborn to narrow his eyes at him.

"You seem familiar."

"I'm hurt. You couldn't remember me, person without a soul?" Eyebrows of the Shadow Monarch were raised, he got surprised. "So, what are you doing here Ashborn?"

"You know my name? I'm surprised, Agrona."

The basilisk Asura had a different appearance this time. He resembled his previous self, a hybrid of a snake and deek, but not much. He must have manipulated his body or changed it entirely; his mana was very different as well, which was why Ash couldn't immediately identify him.

"It was never a secret, I'm surprised how a person like you never tried to hide it. Oh, well, and also certain someone was muttering your name like a maniac so obviously, I would know it."

"Do you see it now, Caera? The one your continent hails is nothing but a mere snake."

Agrona who stood not far away from them only now took notice of a young navy-blue-haired girl. Also, the Vritra's blood could be detected in her, which came to him as a surprise. Why didn't the Shadow Monarch kill her on spot?

"Hm, so you are now using my own tools against me?"

"You did try to use my own brother against me, didn't you?"

"But in the end, it failed. Partly, I succeeded in my plan. However, this isn't what I wanted. Chasing the goal of mine for thousands of years gave birth to new desires in me. Obviously, now that you are in front of me, those dreams are now nothing but fragments." Agrona chuckled sullenly.

Caera's expression became glum, and she had a slew of unanswered thoughts in her head. She was angry, they were now called mere tools, weren't they? The tools for sovereigns for whom they knelt received blessings from them... was nothing but to their benefit.

'Obviously, my childishness is what brought me here.'

"Agrona, you shall know the consequences of your deeds. You and the Asuras played with fire. Now it's consuming you and everything else slowly and painfully. There's no escape for you."

Agrona felt the pair of eyes on him. It was an exhilarating experience. Those eyes literally drew everything in themselves, as he couldn't help but marvel at the strength imposed by Ashborn. The being that could determine his own fate, someone who had the ability that he didn't have.

"What did those lessers call it? Ah, yes. Karma actually exists, it seems. So, what will you do, kill me or just leave the dangerous enemy here?"

"You are in that state and believe to be dangerous?"

"For the time being, I'm limited, but I will search for a newer body and possibly stronger. Shame, I lost such an asset, but I believe…immortality shouldn't be bound to physical aspects. Don't you agree?"

"It doesn't matter if you redefine your body or preserve your life; it won't change your fate." Ash stepped forward, he felt no pity, no satisfaction, just hollow.

"As it is now time to pass down the final judgment."

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Another Chappie. People seemed confused about the last chap... so to explain easier, this is just chronologically before the 60th chapter.

I hope you enjoy it, despite things being rushed. Unfortunately, it might be rushed till the end, I'm getting drafted in the army ha-ha(It's mandatory for a year here). What terrible news for Georgian, during this time as well. But I got 6 months. Don't worry yall, I'll finish by that time and even publish another fic

My discord, with some of the drafts already published there in docs. (Still WIP chapters of my another fic) : https://discord.gg/r2VSvS5kaH

Cya.