noct

384. Courtesies and Conversations

The four of them were stopped at the entrance to the ball and announced as one: Miss Scarlet’s party. No one looked up as they descended the stairs, no more than yet another noble contingent obligated to attend the king’s balls. Ike scanned from above, but didn’t see Brightbriar anywhere—or, at least, he saw no trace of the face Brightbr...

106. Lambs to the Slaughter

“What’s going on over there? Jones? Come out here,” a guard demanded.

Rhys clicked his tongue, tossing the latest body away. The rats swarmed without him prompting, growing used to the flow of these battles, if Rhys’s one-sided assaults could be called battles. He’d managed to lure two more people into the nook, but it seemed lik...

383. To The Ball

“So, is everyone ready?”

“As we’ll ever be.”

“Listen. Brightbriar knows you’re coming. He’s prepared. On the other hand, he rarely shows his face. If we don’t strike today, we’re back to searching for him until his next social event.”

“Really? He used to go out all the time in my hometown.”

“Su...

105. Overthrowing Prison

Rhys pressed a hand on each body, filling them with mana or whatever filthy energy his trash generated, then sat back to wait. There would be rats for the bodies, he knew it. He’d seen it happen often enough, the rats swarming the bodies of deceased prisoners. They ate no better than the prisoners—no, worse, because they got the scraps the p...

382. Emperor's Clothes

They left the rubble behind before anyone could seriously start looking for who to blame over the recent destruction of the homes all around them, and followed Scar back to the merchants’ district. Ike headed for the high-end shops, but Scar caught him by the back of the collar and whirled him about. “Not that way.”

“What? Aren’t...

104. It Had Begun

The battle was as swift as it was decisive. In a mere night, the Empress overwhelmed the Academy and flattened everything within. Although it sounded as if she bowled over the Academy and showed off her military might, it wasn’t much of a fight, truth be told. The Sword Saint had been summoned to the border, and the rest of the faculty, powerf...

381. Let's Kill Brightbriar

“It’s not that easy,” Scar said at last, exasperated.

“No? Come on. How hard can it be to find the guy? He’s just a normal guy, who can create a near infinite supply of fake puppet bodies that are all indistinguishable from his actual body,” Ike said, shaking his head.

“Yeah, come on. He’s gotta live somewhere, right?...

380. Enough of That Ranged Bullshit

Ike closed in. Accais widened his eyes and jumped back, clearly meaning to flee, but Ike refused to let him. He rushed even faster, charging at the archer. Accais’ ponytail swung past his body as he leaped back, and Ike snatched the ends of his hair out of the air. He yanked hard, tugging Accais toward him. In his other hand, he hammered the H...

379. Silver Arrows

Wind gusted all around Ike. It tore at him with sharp lances, bit past Storm Clad, and sought out every inch of him to cut into him and tear him apart. The wind lifted him off his feet and threw him back. He couldn’t see anything through the raging tornado, but he felt it as he slammed through walls and into the earth, only for the wind to thr...

378. Into the Fold

“Go fold yourself, motherfucker,” Ike snarled.

The archer gave him an unimpressed look. He stood with a perfectly straight back, his shoulders squared. Silver hair was tied back into a high ponytail with nary a hair loose, and it fell straight down his back, while his V-cut bangs likewise framed his face in perfect straightness. Silver...

377. White House

Ike dashed from rooftop to rooftop, closing in on the white house at speed. He sent his aether ahead of him, already scanning it before he grew close. Instantly, he locked on to the signature and stored it away in his mind. The signature retreated when he drew close, but it had underestimated the range of his senses. He already knew it, and ther...

376. Searching for a Tower

Back to the place Scar had led him first. As expected, when Ike twisted the knob (casually breaking the low-Rank lock in the progress), the only thing on the other side was a dusty storeroom. He turned, then leaped up, running across the rooftops toward the center of town.

“Ike, wait—” Scar sighed, then raced after him. “You know ...

375. Make It!

Ike latched onto the door handle and yanked the door wide. The light still poured out. For a split second, hesitation came over him, but he quickly forced it down. Risk-taking was how he got here. They weren’t going to defeat Lord Brightbriar without taking a few risks. He steeled himself, and jumped through the golden light.

He burst o...

103. Cursed Holes

Rhys plunged into the curse power. The curse power was dense enough to become a liquid, but it didn’t support him at all. He sunk straight down into the depths of the well. Curse power poured directly into his body, soaking into every pore and sliding through every vein, coiling into his core. It would have been insidious, but Rhys drank it up...

374. Get Screwed

Energy signatures rushed at them from all directions. Ike turned to the windows, preparing to shatter through them, then paused. He looked at Wisp and Mag.

“What?” Wisp asked.

“Wherever we are, it’s somewhere Brightbriar led us,” Ike said.

“Right, which is where we don’t want to be,” Wisp said, nodding slowly. 2025-04-26 23:32:11 +0000 UTC View Post

102. The Calm Before The Storm

Rhys was full, but only of food. He still had plenty of room for mana. That, and in the afterglow from that fantastic, cultivation-boosting meal, he wanted to try another round with the curse power-mana transition. His everything had been smoothed, detoxified, strengthened, reinforced, and empowered, and he could still feel some of those subtle ...

373. The Enemy!

Ike charged at Scar. She stared at him, wide-eyed in shock. At the last second, she drew her sword, and their blades clashed. Caught off-guard, Scar staggered backward. “Ike! What are you doing?”

“You know what I’m doing, puppet,” Ike replied. Scar and Vi weren’t friends, and they certainly hadn’t gotten close during the tria...

101. Dinner Time

The speeches were just as boring as Rhys dreaded they would be. He didn’t even need to sleep any more as a mage, and he still fell asleep a half-dozen times during the ceremonies. Eventually, Bast nudged him awake, and he followed Bast up to the stage to receive second place, which was a silver medal and a small sum of gold. Laurent stood awkw...

100. Banquet Hall

Purple Dawn Academy was as much a maze on the inside as Rhys remembered, if not more so. He ran over the cobbles as fast as he could, but it felt like slow going anyways. The Academy’s ancient roads twisted and turned, doubling back on themselves and winding around to come out at a strange new location. Whenever he turned the wrong way, Az wou...

372. Whip You Into Shape

Scar led them down the hallway. Ike followed, with Wisp close at heel and Mag trailing behind, taking all the shiny things in with big eyes. Both Ike and Wisp had tattered clothes, a stark contrast to Scar’s complete and neat outfit. But then, we’ve been wandering around outside. All we need is a change of clothes and we’re good to go,...