Ascension of the Dark Seraph

Leandra hadn't quite thought that far.

Now that her mind spun with that realization, it made sense that there was a weapon that was designed to kill Lucivar, or rather, the Blessed Oracle, for good. Hybrids with a high-grade and pure bloodline are instantly considered dangerous in the Hybrid Association's book.

Monitoring and control must be exercised to regulate them, to make sure they are loyal and obedient.

Power must be controlled or power devoured.

Lucivar wasn't a simple Hybrid with a powerful bloodline—but he is an avatar, someone who inherited the power of Gods to walk in the world of mortals. He has multiple Gods with unfathomable powers residing within his Supernatural Ego, and that made him both dangerous and special.

Something has to have the power to harm him, especially when he became invincible.

It was the law of the mortal world.

Nobody should inherit absolute power—that kind of privilege is only reserved to Gods.

So, the Ending Needle was created.

Moreover, since this kind of item existed, it also told them that there was a Blessed Oracle in the past.

'Of course, someone special like him has to be regulated, controlled.' Leandra thought in realization as she cursed herself for not being able to see that far, and needed Lucivar to guide her. 'Even now, when he wasn't even a Hybrid for a year, he's already this strong. His growth is insanely fast—and that made him dangerous.'

Just then, Leandra blinked and focused again when Lucivar leaned his body forward.

He rested his elbows on his thighs and looked at Leandra with a peculiar gaze.

One that sent a shiver down her spine.

"Besides," He whispered, grinning. "Do you really think if you stab right now, I'll die…?"

Gulp!

Leandra swallowed harshly.

Had Lucivar asked her normally without any hint of tension, she would've answered that he'd die with confidence. But now, hearing his tone and also from how he structured the question, she began to lose her confidence.

If she stabbed him right now through the heart, would he really die? No.

She could feel her gut telling her the answer.

"Now that I've gone through Master Tobias and Delilah—I've grown incredibly stronger," Lucivar said, looking down at his hands and feeling the power coursing inside him. "I may still be in the Chrysalis rank, but I'm way past this rank. So, please… if you ever wanted to kill me—make sure you overestimate me, or else you'll be in big trouble."

"C-Can you please not say it like that?" Leandra stammered, huffing exasperatedly.

Lucivar has to make the conversation dark when it doesn't have to.

And now, she couldn't take her mind off of it.

"What? It could still happen, you know."

"No, it won't happen! Shut up or I'll really stab you right now."

"Keke~ Fine, I'm shutting up."

Leandra massaged her throbbing forehead and let the silence stretch between them.

She really needed some quiet after their conversation.

"So, where are we going?" She finally asked, raising her gaze to look at Lucivar. "The vacation."

"I heard there's a nearby slave city—that has a magical lake made naturally ten years ago," Lucivar answered, recounting what he had researched about vacation destinations. "Many people from Sunhold City went there to take a break, so we might as well check it out."

"Lake? That sou—"

"Leandra! Lucivar!!"

Suddenly, their conversation was interrupted by a shout that came from outside.

Both immediately recognized the voice to be Nerissa's.

Almost instantly, Leandra put the torn page inside her pocket and rushed outside.

Lucivar also did the same, following right behind.

Outside, both of them saw Nerissa standing in front of what seemed to be a storage house that was big enough to be a proper house on the courtyard's wing. She was waving her hand, gesturing for them to come inside and check something.

Exchanging a look, Leandra and Nerissa made their way to the storage house.

As expected, there were only scraps and unused furniture inside the storage house.

On the right-most corner, there were several enchanted steel cages.

But Nerissa was upstairs, on the second floor, looking down at them from the wooden railing.

"Check this out, quick!" She urged.

On the second floor, Ravenna was already there, standing beside Nerissa, who was pushing open—what seemed to be a trap door on the wall that led to the attic. "There's a secret room near the roof! I found it by accident."

"Have you checked?" Leandra curiously asked.

Nerissa shook her head.

"I thought I'd call for you first before heading upstairs," she admitted—with a sheepish smile. "Besides, I'd feel much safer if Lucivar were here. For all we know, Master Tobias may have left a trap for anyone who stumbled upon his secret cache."

Hearing this, the others smiled acutely.

Leandra, in particular, doesn't blame her at all since Master Tobias is incredibly horrifying.

He had turned from a father-like figure for the family to a monster in a matter of a night.

Just the thought that he could smile, show care, and joke—with every member of the family, all while secretly grooming them for Lucivar's arrival, was chilling in its cruelty and coldness. All of them had believed that Lucivar was the Devil, but he wasn't—the real one was Master Tobias.

He only became the Devil after Master Tobias died.

Even now, the fact that they were still sticking together was a sign of Master Tobias' success.

Lucivar chuckled lightly and walked past them, "I'll lead the way."

Before he went inside, he turned to Ravenna.

Knowing exactly what Lucivar meant with that look, Ravenna shook her head, "No, there's nobody up there. No people or monsters. It's clear."

Nodding his head, Lucivar led the way with the others following right behind.

Reaching the secret attic was quite hard since there was no ladder—one could only use their upper body strength and make use of the cramped space to climb upward. But for Hybrids like them, it was nothing more than a hassle.

Upon stepping into the secret attic, Lucivar immediately waved his hand and coughed.

It was full of dust.

But he quickly channeled his ether to push aside the dust.

Soon, the others also squeezed into the attic and huffed their way to stand up.

Considering that it was a secret attic, there wasn't much space for them to work with as the four of them standing there already made them feel cramped. "I don't think there's anything here," Leandra grumbled as she stood. "It looked abando—"

Before she could finish, her eyes widened completely.

"You sure?" Lucivar smirked.

Leandra stepped forward and looked around the attic, realizing that there was an incredibly powerful and dense barrier surrounding it. So much so that it could mask the intense amount of life energy inside the secret attic.

Even when she was climbing earlier, she couldn't feel anything but dust and the scent of wood.

Now, as soon as she stood in the secret attic, she could feel everything.

"Goodness…" Nerissa mumbled in shock. "It's like a treasure trove here."

"Master Tobias must've been stashing—important items here," Ravenna nodded, but as she swept the entire place with her gaze, she could only find wooden cabinets and other storage items. "Since he was planning to leave, he must've transported the items elsewhere. Even so… for the ether inside this attic to remain dense like this, what kind of things was he keeping here?"

Normally, even powerful artifacts or items made from materials from the other world would not leave a trace this strong. Once the item itself was transported elsewhere, then the place would return to how it was before.

Regular. Normal.

But this… the ether-level was still high even when the items weren't here anymore.

"Perhaps not all were transported," Lucivar said, drawing the others' attention—as he gestured toward the center of the attic, a seemingly empty space of floor that left them puzzled. But when he extended his hand, channeling both light and dark attributes into the void, a hidden barrier stirred with a low hum. "See? Not all."

As soon as Lucivar retracted his attribute, it turned invisible again.

But that fleeting flash was enough for them to see what was inside the barrier, a wooden chest.

"Try taking it," Leandra said, turning to Lucivar. "Take the chest."

Hearing this, Lucivar smiled acutely, scratching the back of his head, "When did this happen?"

"When did what happen?"

"When did I automatically become the shield for you guys?"

Leandra and the others blinked their eyes, almost as if they found this question to be irrational.

"Since when?" She repeated. "Since we know you have Gods in you, of course."

"It's harder for you to die, so it's fine." Ravenna shrugged.

"Haha… I'm not a part of this." Nerissa added, looking away, avoiding eye contact the best she could.

Lucivar smacked his lips in displeasure and went toward the barrier, not expecting this side effect from having Gods inside of him. But then again—he should've expected this, "I'm harder to kill? Please. If this exploded with Savant-rank power, I'm probably screwed."

Kneeling before the barrier, he coated his hands with only his dark attribute.

Swish!

Dark strands began to sizzle from Lucivar's hands, coating them like smoke from a depleted bonfire.

Sensing the ether coming from the barrier, he infused God strands into his hands, too, going further to make sure that he was safe and successful. Once he was ready, he stabbed his hands forward—almost instantly, the clash created a fierce spark.

It made the others instinctively step back.

But even though the clash was fierce, it couldn't penetrate through the attic.

Every stray spark was caught and smothered by the attic's barrier, a testament to its formidable strength. Yet with a sudden, violent thrust, Lucivar drove his hands through it, tearing the ward apart and breaking through at last.

Despite its durability, it was no match for Lucivar's God strands.

Upon being defeated, the barrier flickered and sparks with lightning-like ether.

Eventually, it dimmed and disappeared.

Now, the chest was there for the taking.

Lucivar looked over his shoulder and found the others were still standing near the entrance to this secret attic, backs against the wall, not moving a muscle. It was only then does a vein bulged on his forehead, "Open the goddamn chest yourself! Do I have to do everything?!" He barked.

"But the chest is usually where the trap lies…" Leandra said with an innocent voice.

One that gets into Lucivar's nerves badly.

"Fuck you!"

Lucivar cursed, but he still reached for the chest and opened it.

No key was needed; the chest could be opened by anyone.

But the moment the lid swung open, a blinding light burst forth like the gate of heaven, and under such light, Lucivar recoiled—with a scream of horror, stumbling back as if the light stung her. Naturally, the others tensed, ready to bolt.

"Kidding…" Lucivar grinned; he was only pretending. "There's nothing inside."

"Huh?!"