Chapter 42: Herald Vs. Lord Sapphire
"This," Herald said, his voice low, cold, and utterly devoid of emotion, "is the last sunrise you’ll see as a man with power. My vengeance starts today."
It was a chilling pronouncement of doom. Lord Sapphire stood frozen, his face a mask of utter horror and disbelief, his dark, linen-wrapped sword hanging uselessly in his hand. The courtyard, littered with the broken and vanished bodies of his guards, was a testament to Herald’s terrifying power.
From my distant vantage point, I felt the full suffocating weight of Herald’s presence. Herald’s left eye, the Mythic Dragon’s Eye, remained wide open, a pulsating blue aura that saturated the entire mana environment.
The air around me became incredibly dense, thick with raw power, pressing down on my chest with an invisible, crushing force. My lungs burned, struggling to draw breath against the oppressive weight, and my vision blurred at the edges. It was like being submerged in an invisible, suffocating ocean of mana.
After what seemed like an eternity, Lord Sapphire’s face, which had been contorted in terror, slowly calmed. A flicker of something cold and dangerous replaced the fear in his eyes. He wasn’t giving up. His hand, which had been slack, tightened on the hilt of his sword. With a swift, almost defiant twist, he ripped away the black linen wrapping that concealed the blade.
Beneath the mundane fabric, the sword revealed itself. It was not black, but a vibrant crimson. The blade itself seemed to pulse with, a deep, blood-red glow that cast an ominous light across Lord Sapphire’s face. It was undeniably beautiful for a sword.
"The False Crimson," Lord Sapphire stated, his voice now steady, with a chilling pride. "An A-tier sword artifact. Its flame magic is unmatched in all of the Remuria continent."
Herald blue-glowing eye fixed on the crimson blade, a flicker of something akin to mild interest in its depths. "Is that so?" he replied, his voice calm, utterly unimpressed.
Lord Sapphire’s eyes blazed with renewed fury at Herald’s nonchalance. "Then it’s time to teach you some manners, ’Herald of Eudenia’!"
With a guttural roar, Lord Sapphire raised the False Crimson. The sword immediately erupted with blazing black flames, not the familiar orange or red of common fire, but a deep, inky black, crackling with malevolent energy. The heat radiating from it was intense, searing the air around them.