The Passing of a Monarch I

The battlefield was eerily silent as seconds turned to minutes, interrupted only by the haunting melody of Bonari's hymn.

Amidst the stillness, a figure emerged wielding a dark blade, black as coal, with a thirst for blood that seemed unquenchable. Its sharp edge and keen point gleamed with malice, a weapon of death.

Bonari hummed with glee as it poured out a dreadful miasma, much like Oga's infamous Black Curtain.

The acrid fumes hung in the air like a thick, noxious fog, permeating every corner and crevice of the town.

The townspeople huddled together in fear, their faces contorted with anguish as they gasped for clean air.

No matter how much Mijo tries to stop the spread, his effort becomes comical.

The once-bustling streets now lay empty, save for the occasional soul darting from one building to the next, desperate to escape the cloying grasp of the poison.

And yet, Bonari continued to hum, a sickening melody that only seemed to grow louder as the miasma thickened.

It revealed in the destruction it wrought, a malevolent force that seemed to feed on the suffering it caused.

Despite the horror that gripped the town, there was something hypnotic about the hum, a twisted lullaby that lulled even the most rational minds into a trance-like state.

Those who succumbed to its siren song would find themselves drawn towards the heart of the miasma, their eyes glazed over and their movements mechanical, as if pulled along by an invisible puppet master.

And so, Bonari hummed on, its dreadful miasma spreading further and further, consuming all in its path.

No one knew where it had come from or why it had chosen their town, but one thing was certain - the people of Durk would never forget the day the Shrouded Abyss descended upon them and the humming that haunted their nightmares long after the miasma had dissipated.

This was Nuu's blade in its awakened state, he caressed it with a sense of satisfaction as if pacifying a playful child.

Before anyone could be any wiser, a fountain of blood spray into the heaven, the spilled blood seemingly possessed by a will of its own, flowed in a singular direction.

It followed the curve of the air, defying gravity and reason until it reached its ultimate destination: Nuu's blade.

Nuu watched as the scarlet liquid crept closer and closer to him, drawn inexorably toward the edge of his blade…

Beyond the hill, a cacophony of screams and shouts echoed through the stillness of the night. The denizens of Durk Town felt a palpable sense of death in the air, and their once-promising future became shrouded in a bleak and foreboding haze.

Nuu, with an impish smile that belied the darkness within, proved his point with a single swift stroke.

Bonari drank its fill, consuming the life essence of a hundred, within a matter of seconds. The air was thick with the metallic scent of blood and the haunting echoes of the fallen.

Captain Harriet looked on in abject horror as his men were reduced to mere husks before his very eyes.

Nuu was a force unlike any they had ever encountered, and they couldn't comprehend the sheer power he possessed.

As Harriet, and the rest struggled to understand what was happening. Nuu's blade jolted Harriet to reality, he was struck with the realization that he had been naught but a mere ant, attempting to meddle in the affairs of giants.

It was a disheartening epiphany, one that arrived too late, as he stood there with the weight of his insignificance bearing down on him, cold steel sending shivers down his spine.

"Feel no shame, Captain!" Harriet was bewildered, holding no animosity towards Nuu, and having done no wrong to the man. But as Harriet's senses began to slip away, the only words that echoed in his mind were, "Regards from Berta!" Nuu declared with a fierce grin, sending Harriet off.

Muttering to himself, Nuu declared, "Froh, the hour is not yet upon us. But what I am about to unleash upon you would bring tears to heaven!" Froh was struck with a sudden realization, causing him to retreat in a panic, his trousers dampened with fear

"...."

Let us journey back in time.

Harriet's fate was sealed the moment Nuu arrived in Durk.

Harriet, a notorious pimp, not only broke his Knightly oath but framed Nuu's dear friend.

The sad story of Drogo is not well-known, and those who knew have been erased.

Berta had always despised Harriet and his gang. She didn't want to stay in Durk Town, but she couldn't leave. Berta was a prisoner in her own paradise.

Lord Kirk's expression turned grim. "How can he be this strong?" A stunned silence followed.

Kirk wasn't the only one, there remaining two Grand Knights felt the surreal gap, a man that was in the same bracket as themself, yet so far.

Froh opened and closed his mouth, but no words came out. He knew the twins were powerful, but not to this extent.

Even a Grand Knight would require effort to deal with a Knight, but this man made it look easy. The swing of his blade created a magnificent display.

'Naive,' Froh thought, but would Nuu actually harm his master's hand?

With that train of thought he became even bolder.

Out of the 101 deaths, and thousands of comatose mortals, a significant number were Squires, and Harriet was a Knight at his peak, a man of similar rank as Froh. Yet, he died so easily.

Froh was no pushover, and he had a Viscount as his backer.

Froh stood tall, his back straightened with a newfound sense of purpose as he was granted full authority to confront the vile beast that had 'violated' his Madame's honor from his perspective, this devil must have played tricks on her mind. With a sense of determination burning in his chest, Froh remembered the treacherous act committed by Nuu.

Froh couldn't help himself as he hurled a wad of phlegm in Nuu's direction, but the man simply brushed it off as if it was nothing.

This indifference only served to irritate Froh further, causing him to grind his teeth in frustration.

In a fit of rage, Froh had betrayed Madame Caterina's trust. His rash decision to snitch on the twins had led him to his current situation.

Guilt weighed heavily on Froh's shoulders as he reflected on the events that had transpired. Madame Caterina had taken him under her wing, given him a place to call home, but it was simply too late-he gotten himself on a tiger's back. There was no turning back now.

Lord Bae's voice cut through the air like a sharp blade, her eyes seething with rage as she confronted Froh.

Froh stood still, his thoughts spinning like a hurricane inside his head, "You lied to us, you bastard, Why does he have a domain, speak the truth!" Bae's fists were so tightly clenched that her knuckles turned white, a clear indication of the wrath boiling inside her.

Froh attempted to defend himself, but before he could get a word out.

In one swift motion, Nuu's foot connected with Froh's chest, sending him flying backward through the air.

For a moment, Froh hung suspended in mid-air like a marionette, his body contorted in a grotesque parody of a puppet. Then, with a sickening thud, he hit the ground, his arms and legs twitching as if in a macabre dance.

Nuu rendering him unconscious. "Micah, keep watch over him," Nuu ordered.

Micah's face contorted into a mask of confusion and fear as he felt the weight of Kirk's oppressive gaze bearing down on him. He could feel the tension in the air, thick and suffocating, as Nuu's cruel intentions slowly began to reveal themselves.

Suddenly, Nuu spoke, his voice dripping with malice and a sickeningly twisted amusement. "Hehe," he chuckled darkly, "A dead man needs no treasure," Nuu proclaimed, his lips twisting into a cruel smile. "Once I'm done here," he continued, surveying the scene before him, "everything that you came with will become my spoils." Like a true bandit, Nuu returns to his root.

"And as for those idiots who sided with him," Nuu sneered, "A life of slavery awaits them." His eyes glinted with malice as he savored the misery of the Night of Terror.

Micah's heart plummeted as the words registered, the full implications of Nuu's statement hitting him like a physical blow.

"Pull yourself together, slave!" shouted Kirk

"..."

"An opening!"

Melo lunged forward, his hands ablaze with an otherworldly heat. His target, a man standing just a few feet away, seemed completely unaware of the danger approaching him.

But just as Melo was about to strike, the man suddenly spun around, as though he had eyes behind his head, and darted away with lightning speed. Melo's attack was missed by a hair's breadth, leaving him off-balance and vulnerable.

Before he could recover, the Nuu delivered a backhanded slap that sent the Knight reeling.

The impact was so powerful that Melo stumbled and fell to the ground, gasping for breath.

Reina, who had been watching from a distance, stepped forward tentatively, her body trembling with fear. "Lord Nuu, mercy!" she pleaded in a whisper. "We don't need to fight!"

But the tension only mounted as Lord Bae, sensing that the situation was spiraling out of control, bellowed with forceful authority, "Reina, Melo, get back here!"

"Let me handle it!" Giles, a rather gaunt and pale-skinned member, spoke up with a sense of urgency in his voice.

His thin frame was tense with determination as he stepped forward to confront the threat that loomed before them. Nuu, the towering enemy, glared down at Giles with a malevolent sneer, ready to strike at any moment.

As Nuu raised his massive arm to deliver a death blow, Giles moved with lightning speed, sidestepping the attack and delivering a swift counterstrike to Nuu's midsection.

The force of the blow forced Nuu to take a few steps back, just enough to retrieve them.

The ground beneath them began to tremble violently, and with a deafening roar, the earth split open, swallowing Melo and Reina whole.

Melo and Reina cried out in terror as they fell into the abyss, their screams echoing into the darkness.

For a moment, there was silence. His eyes fixed on the chasm that had claimed his comrades. The tension in the air was palpable as if the very fabric of their reality was on the verge of tearing apart.

And then, as suddenly as it had appeared, the rift closed, and Melo and Reina were once more standing beside him, unharmed. Giles exhaled a breath he hadn't realized he was holding, relief washing over him.

"The gap is really quite significant, isn't it?" Giles lamented.

Despite his best efforts, he had only managed to force Nuu back a few meters

A feeling of disappointment lingered in his mouth, leaving a bitter taste. His limp fist, broken and useless, highlighted the stark contrast between his expectations and reality.

"Not bad," Nuu praised, brushing off the dirt from his clothes.

"..."

Suddenly, the tranquility was shattered by a fierce battle cry. "Attack!"

Amidst the clash of swords and the metallic chorus, Nuu stood tall and proud, With a swing of his blade, he sent a sense of dread throughout.

The battle began in earnest, as the clash of steel rang out and the elements themselves seemed to rage around them. Yet despite the ferocity of the onslaught, neither side wavered

The fate of the town hung in the balance, transfixed by the symphony of danger and excitement

Mijo stood on the sidelines, his eyes glued to the battle unfolding.

His heart heavy with concern, he wondered if these Acolytes and Knights could hold their own against the monstrous Nuu. Would they emerge victorious? Only time would tell, but for now, they stood united in their quest to take down this insurmountable wall.

As the night wore on and the battle raged on, the air grew heavy.

Mijos felt the battle reaching its climax, a palpable energy that crackled with the intensity of the fight. Would he be forced to step in and face the danger himself? He could only wait and hope.

The sound of steel against steel continued to fill the air, a harsh and discordant melody that seemed to speak of imminent doom.

And yet, despite the odds stacked against them, they stood strong and unyielding. With every swing of Nuu's blade, they grew more determined to emerge from this unscathed.

Through it all, Nuu continues his unrelenting assault, a symbol of unbridled confidence.

Soon enough, another head fell to his blade.

Nuu's lips curved into a smile, a clear indication that he would stop at nothing. And yet, even as the night wore on and the battle raged on.

Mijo knew that they would need all the strength and courage the remaining four of seven could muster.

After all, two were captured and one is dead.

The air hung heavy with anticipation as the battle raged on, a testament to the power of will and the indomitable spirit that fueled their fight.