Chapter 275: Interruption
[Music recommendation: Mos Elian - Find Me]
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With Cedric’s mind, body, and soul no longer under his control, a faint thought pierced through his consciousness. ’Will I... never be able to keep... my promise?’
"What are you waiting for, Cedric?" Vance urged again, his cold, menacing voice echoing throughout the temple. "Do it. Offer yourself to the Goddess."
Cedric remained perfectly still, yet his hands began trembling as they slowly rose of their own accord and wrapped around the hilt of the black dagger.
He didn’t want to do it.
If he could only see the woman he loved one last time... would it make this easier?
Even as his consciousness fought against the spell, his hand rose. The dark blade caught the flickering candlelight as he turned the tip toward his chest, holding it steady, ready to plunge it into his own heart.
The air grew suffocating as the candle flames suddenly roared.
Just as his hands began to drive the blade downward...
The massive doors sealing the chamber burst open with a thunderous crash.
Every chant came to an abrupt halt as the cultists instinctively turned towards the entrance, and the invisible grip crushing Cedric’s consciousness loosened ever so slightly.
Silence descended over the temple before Vance’s furious roar shattered it. "Who dares interrupt our ritual?!"
No one answered.
Beyond the open doorway, the corridor remained swallowed in darkness, revealing nothing of whoever had forced their way inside.
As the tense silence stretched on, every pair of eyes remained fixed on the entrance.
Suddenly, something large came hurtling out of the darkness with terrifying speed.
Before anyone could react, it slammed into one side of the ritual circle with a sickening crash, bowling several cultists to the ground.
Startled, everyone instinctively turned towards the impact, only for their eyes to widen in horror.
It was one of the guards.
The unconscious man landed directly on the ring of black candles surrounding the ritual circle. The flames immediately engulfed his clothes, and a blood-curdling scream tore from his throat as he jolted awake. He writhed in agony as the fire rapidly consumed him.
But that was not all.
The cultists trapped beneath his burning body weren’t spared either. Their robes caught fire within seconds, and their horrified shrieks echoed through the chamber as they rolled frantically across the stone floor, desperately trying to smother the flames.
Vance’s expression twisted with fury.
"Who the fuck is it?" he roared. "Show yourself!"
And his answer came almost immediately.
Another unconscious guard came flying out of the darkness with the same terrifying force.
However, this time, the surrounding cultists had already learned from the first attack and threw themselves out of the way just before the body crashed into the opposite side of the ritual circle, sending black candles, stone bowls, and splashes of blood scattering across the chamber.
Even then, a handful of cultists weren’t quick enough to escape and were knocked violently to the ground as the guard’s body ploughed into them.
Dread coiled in their hearts as a chilling thought took root.
Just who possessed the monstrous strength to hurl grown men through the air as though they were nothing more than sacks?
Their eyes remained fixed on the dark doorway, their pulses quickening as uneven footsteps echoed through the entrance.
Then, a figure finally emerged from the darkness.
A wave of shock swept across the chamber.
It was Gwen.
Her hands were bound tightly behind her back, a cloth gag stuffed into her mouth, and tears streamed down her bruised, bloodied face. Every limping step she took made her look more pitiful than the last, a far cry from the confident woman they had seen in the dining hall before.
Vance’s face twisted in disbelief as he stared at his barely recognisable daughter.
His lips parted as his voice faltered. "G-Gwen... what happened?"
Gwen desperately tried to answer through the gag, but only muffled, incoherent sounds escaped her throat.
Before she could take another step, a powerful kick slammed into the middle of her back, launching her across the stone floor like a discarded sack of potatoes. She skidded through the ritual circle before crashing to a painful stop in front of the stone platform.
Then came a new set of slow, firm and purposeful footsteps.
A tall figure stepped out of the darkness, his sharp features gradually illuminated by the flickering candlelight.
His lazy, icy-blue eyes swept calmly across the devastation he had already caused.
On one side of the chamber, burning cultists continued writhing across the floor as they tried to extinguish the flames consuming them. On the other, those struck by the unconscious guard struggled to their feet, groaning as they staggered back into the ritual circle.
Only then did his gaze settle upon Vance.... and Cedric, whose back remained turned towards him.
Tilting his head ever so slightly, the newcomer spoke in a deep, masculine voice.
"What a sorry excuse for security," Gavriel said, his tone dripping with lazy contempt. "Though I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. Mortals who hide in the basement playing with dark magic usually lack the intellect to hire real guards."
"You... how did you get past all of them?" Vance rasped, his voice trembling as sheer disbelief cracked his composure.
Gavriel narrowed his eyes. "You are not very bright, are you?" He took slow, deliberate steps forward, and panic began to spread across Vance’s face.
Looking around at his equally stunned cult members, Vance barked, "What do you think you’re all doing?! S-stop him!"
Spurred into motion by their leader’s command, the cultists drew their hidden daggers from their robes and lunged at Gavriel.
Gavriel merely clicked his tongue in mild annoyance and flicked his hand.
A sudden violent gust of wind erupted from the motion, hurling every cult member across the chamber. One after another, they slammed into the stone walls like flies.
The sheer display of power struck the room like a bolt of lightning, leaving the surviving cultists paralysed in terror.
Gavriel continued walking towards Gwen at a calm, unhurried pace.
"Not so fast," he whispered. "Death is far too easy for the likes of you. I haven’t forgotten every vile word that spilled from your filthy traps."
With the ritual interrupted and the commotion spreading through the chamber, Cedric finally felt the control over his body begin to weaken. The suffocating weight on his mind lifted just enough for him to force his neck to turn. Through the haze, his eyes widened as he recognised the man strolling casually through the chaos.
Aliana’s husband.
The terrifying aura radiating off the man was impossible to ignore. It enveloped the room in a way that marked him as something far beyond human.
The dagger in Cedric’s trembling hand began to lower.
But Vance noticed the movement from the corner of his eye and yelled, "No! The sacrifice must be made!"
He lunged at Cedric, grabbed his wrist, and forced the hand holding the dagger toward Cedric’s own heart, desperate to complete the ritual.
Just then, a powerful force suddenly stopped the dagger mid-air, barely an inch from Cedric’s heart.
It never got the chance to pierce him.
Instead, the invisible force yanked the dagger away while Vance was hurled across the chamber, crashing onto the floor several metres away.
Slowly, the eyes of the cult members shifted from Vance’s groaning form to Gavriel, who resumed his march toward Gwen.
He stopped directly before her shivering body.
Without even glancing down, his icy eyes swept over the room, and his voice echoed with ruthless authority. "Move an inch, and I will dismantle every single one of you in ways you never thought possible."
His threat rang out like a death sentence.
Yet, regardless of their obedience, Gavriel intended to slaughter them all anyway.
The warning was merely a tactic to keep them frozen until he forced Gwen to sever the blood bond.
He needed Aliana, who was tucked safely out of sight near the doors under his strict orders not to look. He wanted her to be able to leave with Cedric before he painted the walls red with their blood.
No one dared to move.
None of them could fathom what this man was or where such terrifying power had come from. Under the weight of his presence, one by one, those who had remained standing collapsed onto their knees.
With wide, terror-filled eyes, they watched as Gavriel yanked Gwen up by her arm and dragged her across the stone until she stood before the trembling Cedric.
His voice was cold enough to freeze the air. "Undo the blood bond. Now."