Void Spawn - A litrpg adventure fantasy

For a moment, the High Table leaders stood in utter silence amongst the rubble and carnage. The scent of iron had long permeated the air, and the once lustrous marble castle had been reduced to a desolate ruin.

Yet, they all stared at where the kids used to be. Nearly half were taken away, with the other half currently unconscious. They minimised the damage, but that does not mean they do not take pity on the other abducted children.

Icarius cleared his throat as he broke the tense silence in the air. "We need to get these children to the infirmary. The battle outside had begun to subside. Call in the reinforcements."

Nova nodded as he walked past Samael, tapping the man on the shoulder. "You did everything you could; you dealt a heavy blow to Illial; don't punish yourself too much."

Sitting down, Mendez let out a sigh. "I didn't know they had an ability like that. This makes it troublesome for our side."

As the High Table leaders began to discuss the outcome of the battle, Samael walked out of the castle as he stared at the bright lights over the horizon.

The enemy struck multiple vital parts of the sanctuary. He could only imagine the amount of damage they dealt and the casualties of this skirmish.

The ministry had revealed its hand; now the entire world will know of their actions and its consequences. There was bound to be chaos. After all, the church held the world in its palm before this betrayal. Now he understood what the prophecy meant.

Find rest in the Light's embrace.

If rest meant the annihilation of their kind, then it was accurate.

Samael could still see the faces of the innocent children in his mind. He couldn't help but grit his teeth as he imagined the torture they'll have to endure.

Project Illumination.

It didn't matter anymore how long it'll take; Samael swore at that moment that he would uproot and burn all the laboratories of the church.

***

The recovery efforts were swift. With the guidance of Icarius and the courage of the mundane workers, they were able to rebuild that which they had lost last night.

The castle was currently closed down for a moment. Icarius had to coordinate with the knights what happened. Especially the actions of the Cardinals.

There was an uproar for a while. The events at the Gala spread wide and fast, like wildfire blown by the wind. Within days it had even reached Parnasus, which sat at the edge of the continent.

Due to this, the other High Table leaders had to immediately return in order to establish order and fortify their defences.

By the third day, Icarius set up a press conference in order to appease the displeasure and confusion.

As Icarius approached the stage, multiple people tried to approach him, but the Watchers on guard blocked them on their paths.

Standing over the lectern, he cleared his throat. "I am sure there are many questions, but we can only accommodate one at a time. Please, for the sake of clarity, remain silent during other people's turns."

Hearing this, the crowd calmed down as they eagerly awaited Icarius's remarks.

Taking a deep breath, the man pointed at one of the reporters. The man hurriedly rose to his feet as he read his notes. "Mr Icarius, is it true that the Ministry had turned traitor?"

Icarius nodded. "That is true."

The people exclaimed in unison as gasps echoed in the air, followed by the murmurs and whispers of the populace.

Clearing his throat once more, the crowd fell silent.

"Could you please provide details of what happened last night?" The man continued.

"The Gala went on as planned when the Cardinals utilised a remnant that bore the holy fire. It appeared to be able to inflict hypnosis on the children, so we had to intervene," Icarius recalled. "The battle was chaotic, but we won." Icarius cast a glance at Samael standing amongst the crowd.

Samael's gaze lowered. He understood. Icarius had to calm the crowd of unsettled people. If lying could achieve that, then so be it. They cannot afford to be divided at such a moment.

"Is it true the children were taken?" A woman screamed amongst the people as they began to clamour again.

"The children are... safe," Icarius answered. "We have taken them to the infirmary, and the clerics had confirmed their conditions. Please, proceed with the next question."

"Did the High Table suspect the church's ulterior motive?" A woman raised.

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Icarius shifted his gaze to the woman. "Yes—"

The people exploded into chaos once more as questions flew in the air one after the other.

"Why didn't you tell us?!"

"Why didn't the High Table act?!"

"How did you arrive at such a conclusion?"

Icarius released the tip of his astral presence as the people fell silent.

"I know there are many questions pertaining to the event. Yes, we did know the church was up to something. And we found out through the Oracle," Icarius said. "Through one of her visions we received a prophecy connected to the ministry. For a year now, we've been preparing for their plans." Glancing at Samael, Icarius cleared his throat. "With the help of trusted individuals, we were able to confirm their plans and tried to minimise the damage they could do."

Slamming his fist on the lectern, Icarius swept his gaze to every man, woman and child in the crowd. "Know this: their actions will face judgement. We, the high table, are working against the clock to find and locate their whereabouts. We ask you to put your trust in us."

The people fell silent as they looked at Icarius.

"That is all for now, thank you." Icarius walked out as the crowd tried to ask further questions. But he vanished before they could even get close.

Samael sighed as he blended with the crowd, vanishing before it got even messier.

With Icarius's statement, the entirety of Ergo went into riot. People swarmed the streets, burning churches, desecrating temples and taking down the statues of the Cardinals.

The knights were in disarray. Their once strong friendship with the ministry is now nothing but a shadow as they themselves began questioning the bishops and clergy.

The nobles took the biggest hit. With how close the aristocratic society was to the Ministry of Light, entire deals, trades and companies crashed to the ground as the nobles themselves were thrown under siege by the mundane people. It took the entirety of Tera, along with the help of its saint, to stop the rampaging citizens.

Not only did the influence of nobles and knights took a hit, but their words are now doubted by every person in Ergo. In fact, Icarius and the rest of the High Table had to question them themselves.

It was through these interrogations and the help of the Oracle that Icarius was able to find out that the church had been embezzling money like a river. Not only that, these bastards were also involved in human trafficking. Specifically...

Children.

Some of their statements date back YEARS, with sophisticated plans to hide their crimes and backup routes in case things go sour.

Icarius had these men put in jail as he slowly cleaned up the corrupt noble society, something that Mendez and Luminari jumped in with great pleasure.

Speaking of the Oracle, Amelia's existence had now been revealed once more. Listening further about the woman, Samael found out she used to be the Guardian Oracle, a respected seer that helped Ergo win many battles.

But disaster struck 10 years ago when the world thought she died in a tragic accident. The people mourned her, for she was a kind and benevolent woman, choosing to aid the people before herself.

It was also through these observations that Samael found out she was Icarius's wife. He actually had someone! And this secret remained a quiet mystery for decades!

Now Icarius stuck to her like a leech, regaining back the months of separation they had to endure. Samael felt a little envious of their relationship; he couldn't help but wish he and Lilith would be the same in the future.

Nonetheless, he also learnt through Nova that it was actually Omens that tried to kill Amelia 10 years ago. It was the day they learnt of their existence but, unfortunately, not of their affiliations to the ministry.

Ever since then, Icarius hid her away from the prying eyes of the people. Another thing that Nova admitted was something that shook Samael.

Much like he, Nova was, in fact, a product of an experiment done by Illial before. The man said the details of the research were vague, with a focus on the Dunamis.

It was also where he learnt to redirect the pathway of the core that he taught to Samael and Ajax. Turns out, he truly was speaking from experience.

Due to this experiment, Nova's core had been severely damaged. So much so that he can no longer put a valve to the flow of essence in his veins. Thus, the intense ageing he experiences whenever he strains himself too much.

Believe it or not, Nova had only lived 56 years in this world, but his true age with the effects of his element reaches around 200.

Silvana knew of this as well. That was why she was so hesitant with Nova's workaholic nature. Each day they spent together felt more limited by the day.

But duty calls not for the weak-hearted individuals.

***

Samael strode through the long hallway of Icarius's manor as he stopped and stood before a wooden door, the presence of a woman present beyond.

Much like how the woman could not see through Samael's aura with the help of the Void, Samael could feel a mystical link towards Amelia as well.

If he were to explain it, it almost felt as though he had seen her before, but he hadn't. It simply left him in a déjà vu.

"Come in," Amelia called as Samael opened the door. The woman sat over a table with cups of tea present on both sides, still steaming, filling the room with the fragrant scent of leaves.

Walking over to the woman, Samael sat down as he pushed aside the tea.

"You don't drink tea?" Amelia asked.

"No," Samael nodded. "So you can see through the veil? Is it thin enough?"

"Oh? How are you certain?" Amelia asked with a small smile on her lips.

"I've seen how you observed me as I walked to my seat and how you watched me push off the cup of tea," Samael said as he leaned back.

"What if I heard you?" she asked.

"For an oracle, your lies are fairly bad," Samael remarked. "I'm a scout; I've trained my whole life to move without so much as a sound. No way you would've heard me."

A chuckle escaped Amelia's lips. "You truly are as Icari described."

Samael's brows rose. Icari? Is that an endearment?

"Observant and straight to the point," she resumed as she took a sip. "And yes, it is indeed an endearment."

Samael's brows furrowed. "You can read my mind?"

She shook her head. "No, but you're not the only one who's observant."

A small smile formed on Samael's lips. "Why'd you call me?"

"To confirm something," Amelia said as she looked Samael dead in the eyes.

"And what's that?" Samael asked.

"My inability to see through you," she pointed. "Even now I cannot. I have a feeling you know why."

Samael remained stoic and unmoving. "Then I assume you've confirmed your suspicions?"

"Yes," Amelia nodded. "But will you do me a favour?"

Samael's head tilted to the side.

"My powers work stronger when I touch a person," Amelia remarked.

Samael slowly nodded as he sighed. "Fine. Get it done with."

Reaching over Samael's hand, Amelia grasped the boy's hand in hers as she closed her eyes, focusing her power upon him.

For a moment, Amelia remained motionless, simply sitting there without so much as a twitch.

Until her head tilted a bit.

Samael's eyes narrowed as he looked at the woman's face, only to find her expression changing rapidly.

Samael's brows furrowed. "What..."

Amelia's grip swiftly let go as she grasped the table tightly, regaining her balance as she breathed violently.

"What the fuck?" Samael stood up as he assisted the woman. "What happened?" Looking at the woman, her face was extremely pale and her movements were erratic; she hugged herself as though she was fearful of something.

Looking at Samael, she spoke with dread in her tone.

"Call Icarius."