Duality V

King Hurley stood in shock as his trusted advisor leaped forward, leaving him alone with the slave girl. It could not be helped because their relationship was based on profit and personal gains. This was their agreement after all.

Zenpy had a passion for collecting rare items, particularly weaponry that was around the Mythical-tier. In exchange for full access to the kingdom's arsenal and spoils, the leader of the Unpolite pledged his sole allegiance to Temecula.

Like many of the Unpolites, they all craved something — fame, power, women. And the Temeculan King was able to quench that carnal thirst with all the wealth he had accumulated. It was the perfect tradeoff in exchange for top-tier protection.

While King Hurley did possess more knowledge than the average adventurer under Zenpy's pedagogy and their combat experiences together, the battle that unfolded in front of him was something beyond his understanding. It challenged his mind and his entire belief on those who stood at the pinnacle of the Adventurer's Guild.

How is this even humanly possible... that Wolf-masked swordsman slicing arrows...?!

How can a young teenager like her cast spells of that level...?

Duality... are Yin and Yang really composed of these two youngsters?

Questions lingered in the back of his mind, remaining unanswered and even more enigmatic as the two siblings treaded forward with utmost confidence.

With the masked swordsman as the frontline and the dainty maid in the backline, they began to walk towards his direction. Standing in the middle were the Unpolites, acting as his shield. Variety of spells were exchanged back and forth from Yin and his mage units.

Despite all the attacks, the siblings took careful and steady steps. Each progression meant inches closer to his demise.

Zenpy shouted his order in a hasty tone:

"All units, fire your other set of ultimate-based spells again! Hurry!"

Within a few seconds of channeling, a barrage of multicolored abilities was hurled at the two siblings, ranging from the standard offensive spells like「Howling Gale」and「Sigil of Malice」to area-based「Noxious Blast」and「Glitterlance」.

Huge explosions. Ringing sounds. Scorched smell. The tingly aftertaste of mana essences.

Smoke and pieces of alabaster filled the air as cracks were now vivid and appeared across the marble floor of the once-beautiful throne room.

Surely that must have done it...

There's no way Yin has enough mana for another protection spell... right?

As the ashes disperse, the duo continued walking at the same constant speed, as if the 5th tier spells had absolutely no effect on their movement. The polygon-like barriers had absorbed most of the damage again. The two siblings were an impregnable moving fortress.

Yin hurled a translucent-blue sphere at the Unpolites, which exploded in massive sharp icicles on impact. The spell shattered their positioning.

"I told you, didn't I? There is no way you can defeat us. Shouldn't you heed the warnings of others?"

Yang's calm voice carried clearly through into the ears of everyone present.

King Hurley could not comprehend the sight before him.

By magic standards, 5th tiers were destructive spells that could turn the tide of battle like annihilate a military platoon or puncture adamantium-reinforced defenses. While it contained tremendous firepower, the mana trade-off was equally as immense. Only those who possessed sufficient mana pool and had endured years of training could cast the abilities more than once.

If Duality was able to withstand the attack twice, then it meant their skill level was beyond the Master-tier. There was no doubt about it.

A sudden spike of cold chilled his spine, followed by a surge of nausea and anxiety. He was a sovereign who had presided over many slaughters. Now he was feeling something that he had never felt before.

No... they must be using some sort of magical item... or maybe even a「Master Scroll」.

King Hurley decided to stay despite the constant warning flaring from the depths of his soul. If he fled now, then his reputation as an almighty king would shatter. And the act of abandoning his men might plummet their morale and affect the battle's outcome.

"Impossible!" one of the Unpolites cried out. "How can that spell deflect all of ours?!"

"Keep firing! Maintain the pressure and don't let them forward!"

"Zenpy, should we flank them?"

"No, we cannot risk breaking our formation even more. Protecting King Hurley is our number one priority."

"Do you have another potion? I'm running low on mana."

"I'm hit from the ice shards! I need healing now!"

With the sound of his men in complete disarray, King Hurley could envision his kingdom slowly crumbling apart.

"That is why you must use her. You must use the slave girl so we can defeat Duality!"

Zenpy's voice echoed inside his head.

King Hurley glanced at the slave girl who sat on the ground near the throne, fully immersed in the battle. There was a certain emotion written across her face, something he had not seen for a long time after Zenpy's repeated experiments.

Thankfully, he felt a slight sense of relief in the midst of this chaos. That was because her emotions were one of the main conditions to activate it.

With a wide yet desperate grin across his face, he walked towards the cuffed prison girl.

♦ ♦ ♦

I know I cannot win.

After observing the battle that was right in front of me, it was completely obvious that these two called Yang and Yin were on a whole another level. Something that Unpolites could not ever hope to reach.

There was no way.

Someone save me...

Why hasn't my master run away yet...?

Compare to all the previous enemies he had faced, this was something else.

The amount of precision and teamwork. Their perfectly synchronized movements. Not only that, the two siblings were smiling in the face of danger, as if they were enjoying the entirety of this one-sided battle.

What if I use this time to escape...?

Run away from this wretched hell of a city. Abandon everyone here and start a new life somewhere else.

I'm so alone...

But...

Does it matter at this point...?

All my life I was abused and manipulated. Lied and used by others.

Was there anything to live for beyond Temecula...?

My body began to shiver inside. That was because I knew the answer to that cruel question.

I have no friends and no family. No one I can trust. Absolutely nothing. They all deserted me or had long died. I have no one at all... Zero... All dead...

Please... Is anyone there...?

So what was the point of living?

I felt a weird energy growing inside the depth of my heart.

An unspeakable emotional pain ever since the monster named Zenpy kept subjecting me to a series of "tests". The intense hate and repentance inside grew as I kept thinking. Slowly, it spread across my body and eventually gnawing my mind away.

I hate this... I hate this...

Maybe if I could somehow miraculously win... I would not have to sleep on the cold hard stone floor anymore.

Maybe I'll finally be able to sleep in a bed. Wear comfy clothes. Enjoy a hot shower. Taste some warm food. I haven't had those in years.

I give up...

But deep down, I knew it was impossible.

A dream.

At least I could die doing something useful, knowing that by the end of this, I will no longer be in this harsh and cruel world.

♦ ♦ ♦

King Hurley looked at the slave girl, gazing back with an array of emotions. Intense fear brimmed inside her eyes as if she was afraid of something.

"I hate this... I hate this..."

He ignored her distressed expression and unlocked the「Magic Cancellation Collar」 from her neck. The heavy chains dropped down with a steel sound. It was time.

In an instant, blinding light mixed with flames burst forth from the slave girl.

"Gahhhhhhhhhhh!!"

Immediately, the battle ceased and everyone directed their attention towards the thunderous cry.

Zenpy's eyes widened in the distance, absolutely delighted from the fact that his sadistic experiment resulted in a success. This girl was King Hurley and the Unpolite's trump card. His last hope to save his regal paradise that was Temecula.

He had spent quite a fortune but she was worth the purchase.

A gifted magician who specialized in light-based magic, a rare and lost element that remained a mystery to many modern scholars and researchers. Not only that, Zenpy had concluded from the experiments that her mana pool did indeed exceed far beyond the average elite magician. This meant it was possible for her to cast up to 2nd tier spells, which was near the realm of ancient deity magic.

Yes, she could defeat Duality.

Extending his hand to the slave girl who was glowing in a mixture of bright color and grimacing in intense agony, he smiled desperately.

"Fight, slave! Fight for Temecula! Fight for your master!"