Chapter 563: Sage
Damian’s mind stuttered, the words hitting like a physical blow.
’So bringing me here breaks the rules of Fate?’
His thoughts raced, trying to make sense of the revelation.
He had no knowledge about seer battles, no understanding of how the dreamscape worked or what laws governed this realm between waking and sleeping.
But now that he thought about it, the question formed with cold clarity.
’If seers could bring anyone to their dreamscape where only they could battle, how would the others even fight back?’
The implication settled like ice in his chest.
’There must be some sort of rules and limitations–’
Before his thoughts could spiral further, the Sage’s voice cut across the rooftop, quiet but carrying clearly.
"Now that the Oracle had made her move and declared her chosen one before the entire universe..."
The masked face remained pointed toward the Hooded One.
"How could you just sit aside and watch?"
The statement hung in the frozen air between them.
The Hooded One remained still for a long moment, that shrouded form offering no response.
Then the figure’s head shook slowly, the movement carrying something approaching confusion.
"I truly don’t understand you at all."
The doubled voice became quieter but somehow carried more weight.
"Seventeen years ago, when your so-called brothers came to you seeking truth..."
A pause, letting tension build.
"All you had to do was say no."
The words fell like hammer blows.
"A simple refusal from your lips could have prevented everything that followed. You could have told them you saw nothing, that the future remained hidden even from your sight..."
The Hooded One’s hands emerged from beneath the cloak, spreading wide.
"And that would’ve forced my hand completely. I would’ve had no choice but to make my move directly and sacrifice one of my most valuable pieces..."
The hands clenched into fists.
"My queen against yours. My strongest disciple against Desiderius Bloodworth, fighting openly where the entire universe could witness..."
The voice dropped to barely above a whisper.
"Yet you chose differently, didn’t you?"
Silence crashed down around them, suffocating and absolute.
Damian’s mind went completely blank, all thought scattering like ash in wind.
’What...’
The question formed incomplete, his consciousness struggling to process what he’d just heard.
’What is he talking about? What truth?’
Before his scattered thoughts could find solid ground, the Hooded One continued speaking.
"You chose to sacrifice Desiderius Bloodworth and his entire family for nothing."
The declaration landed with terrible finality.
"Gave your brothers the truth they demanded, watched them move against the strongest protector your world had ever known..."
A pause that felt like the universe holding its breath.
"And stood aside while they slaughtered every man, woman, and child who carried that bloodline."
The words echoed across the dreamscape, carrying weight that made reality itself feel heavier.
"For nothing."
The repetition drove the point home like a blade between ribs.
Damian stood frozen, his body rigid, his mind blank except for that single phrase echoing endlessly.
Chose to sacrifice.
His hands remained at his sides but his fingers spread slightly, an unconscious gesture.
The Hooded One’s shrouded form turned slightly, addressing the Sage directly.
"And yet today, all you’ve done from the very start is protect his grandchild."
The doubled voice gained edges despite remaining quiet.
"You lied about his identity when Kinsley demanded confirmation. You watched as events unfolded, made no move to stop the Oracle’s interference..."
The figure stepped closer to the Sage, presence expanding.
"And now you stand here in this dreamscape shielding him from me."
A pause, weighted with genuine confusion.
"Why save him now after knowing the truth yourself? After seeing everything that made you condemn his family?"
The questions built on each other, each one sharper than the last.
"Are you a secret piece of that Beggar after all?"
The shrouded head tilted, studying the masked face.
"Or are you just... a very bad player?"
Silence spread across the rooftop, broken only by the sound of wind.
The Sage remained perfectly still, his white mask showing nothing, his posture giving away no reaction whatsoever.
Then his whisper emerged, soft but carrying clearly.
"I don’t need anyone to understand my choices."
His voice stayed level and controlled, offering no explanation or justification.
"All you have to know is this..."
His hand tightened fractionally around the charm, the only sign of emotion bleeding through.
"With me standing here now, you cannot touch him."
The declaration landed with quiet finality.
The Hooded One’s presence shifted, becoming colder.
"And how will you stop me alone?"
The doubled voice carried something approaching amusement.
"Even though my powers have weakened considerably ever since Fate weakened..."
A pause, letting the implication settle.
"That lass still won’t dare to come before me."
The shrouded form expanded slightly, filling more space.
"So tell me, Murdock. What makes you think you can succeed where she would fail?"
The Sage’s masked face remained pointed forward, his stance unchanged.
Then his whisper cut across the distance between them.
"Who said I was alone?"
The question hung in the frozen air for one heartbeat.
WHOOSH
The charm lifted from his hand, floating upward through invisible force.
It rose above both their heads, spinning slowly, the carved wood catching light that blazed brighter with each rotation.
The Sage’s voice exploded across the dreamscape, carrying power that made the air itself crack.
"All the Sages of the Cult of True Demon!"
His hands spread wide, fingers extending toward the spinning charm.
"I, the Grand Sage, protector of the path that transcends both light and darkness..."
The charm blazed brighter, light pouring from the carved surface.
"In the name of your one true Master, whose title was written into existence itself..."
His voice became harder, edges appearing in the careful control.
"In the name of the being who embodies the greatest truth this universe has ever acknowledged..."
The light became blinding, spreading outward in waves.
"In the name of the True Demon who shall claim what was always meant to be his..."
His hands clenched into fists, power radiating outward.
"I summon you here to this dreamscape!"
CRACK
Reality itself fractured, the sound echoing across dimensions.
"For the time has come for you to honor the oaths you once swore across countless worlds and lifetimes!"
His voice rose higher, building toward declaration.
"Today is the day we wage war against the Immortal One who has shaped destinies for eras uncounted!"
The charm exploded with light, beams shooting outward in every direction.
"Today is the day we stand united across every human realm!"
His final words rang across the dreamscape like a bell tolling the end of worlds.
"WILL YOU ANSWER THE CALL?!"
Silence crashed down for one heartbeat.
Then–
WHOOSH
Light flashed across the rooftop as a figure materialized, their form solidifying from pure radiance.
"I, Kaelen Stormwright of the Eternal Gale World, answer the call!"
WHOOSH WHOOSH
Two more figures appeared, standing beside the first.
"I, Meridia Ashfall of the Scorched Crown Realm, answer the call!"
"I, Torven Blackwater of the Abyssal Depths World, answer the call!"
WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH
The flashes came faster now, light blazing across the dreamscape in rapid succession.
"I, Sylara Moonshadow of the Twilight Veil Realm, answer the call!"
"I, Draeven Ironheart of the Shattered Peaks World, answer the call!"
"I, Cassia Emberveil of the Eternal Flame Realm, answer the call!"
WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH
The light became constant now, figures appearing so fast they blurred together.
Hundreds of seers materialized across the dreamscape, forming rings around where the Hooded One stood.
Each one calling out their oath, their voice joining the growing chorus.
"I, Kellan Voidwalker of the Starless Expanse Realm!"
"I, Ilyana Sunweaver of the Golden Horizon World!"
"I, Theron Ashblade of the Ruined Empire Realm!"
"I, Lyra Frostwhisper of the Eternal Winter World!"
The declarations built and built, overlapping and creating a roar that shook the dreamscape itself.
Circle after circle formed, seers from countless worlds standing shoulder to shoulder.
Their combined presence pressed down on the dreamscape with weight that made reality groan.
The Hooded One stood at the center of it all, surrounded completely, that shrouded form perfectly still.
And the voices kept coming, kept declaring, kept building into something that transcended individual will.
"For the True Demon who stands between all extremes!"
"For the Master whose path we chose across lifetimes!"
"For the Future that was always meant to be his!"
The final declaration rang out simultaneously from hundreds of throats, echoing across the dreamscape with force that made existence itself tremble.
"WE ANSWER THE CALL!"
Silence crashed down across the rooftop, absolute and crushing.
Damian stood frozen, his breathing stopped completely, his mind struggling to process what he was witnessing.
Hundreds of seers from worlds he’d never heard of, standing united under a banner that carried his title.
The Cult of True Demon.
All of them here, all of them ready, all of them surrounding the being who’d claimed to be inevitable.
And at the center of it all, the Hooded One remained perfectly still.
The ancient being who’d guided Demon Rulers to power, who’d walked the path of Fate for countless eras, who’d declared himself absolute.
Now surrounded by an army that had been waiting across worlds for this exact moment.
The dreamscape itself seemed to hold its breath, reality balanced on the edge of something that would reshape everything.