Last Ruler Of The Empty Throne

The car had been silent for five minutes since Laura finished her story. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

Then, she finally spoke. "You took it better than I thought."

It was true. In the past, Jon would have exploded in rage, maybe even rushed off to hunt them down immediately. But this time, his murderous intent didn’t even leak out.

"Well, one thing is certain," Jon said, clenching his fist. "They’re going to die. There’s no two ways about it. And we will meet again, just like I’ll eventually get to those shamans."

Laura let out a small smile. "You’d really mobilize the entire faction for this?"

"Hell, I’d even lead the charge," Jon joked.

For a moment, there was silence, then Laura laughed a rare, genuine laugh.

After the moment passed, she turned to him. "What about your story?"

Jon blinked. "Eh?" Suddenly flustered, he looked away.

"It’s okay if you don’t want to tell me."

"No, it’s not that..." He hesitated.

Compared to what Laura had gone through, his problems suddenly felt small. But the pain wasn’t about how big the problem was, it was about how deep it cut.

Could he talk about his issues with someone who had lost everything? It didn’t feel right.

BOOOM!

An explosion shattered his thoughts.

SCREEECH!

Victor slammed the brakes, bringing the car to a full stop. Laura immediately removed the sound barrier that had been blocking Victor and Robin from listening.

Jon spread his senses outward. In the distance, two massive green creatures were locked in combat, their blows shaking the ground.

BOOOM! BOOOOM!

Their movements were so fast that they appeared as blurs to the others. Laura could see them a little, but Jon saw everything with perfect clarity.

From his knowledge of fantasy novels, he immediately recognized them. But before he could speak, Laura whispered in shock:

"Orcs?"

Jon turned to her, surprised. "You know about them?"

"Cynthia told me about them. She used to read novels like this."

Jon’s eyes widened. "Wait—Cynthia reads fantasy?"

-Focus.

Amelia’s voice suddenly echoed in his mind.

’Where have you been?’ Jon asked. Throughout the trip, Amelia had been quiet.

-Those creatures move in groups. Stay alert.

And then, she was gone again.

’What? Is she mad at me?’ he wondered, confused.

Shaking off the thought, he turned his attention back to the fight.

A level 54 orc wielded a massive wooden club, the other a level 53 battle axe. Strangely, despite the axe’s power, the club didn’t break under the impact. Jon found it odd but didn’t dwell on it.

"Victor, Robin, we have company," he said, his Moon Gaze allowing him to see hidden figures in the trees.

Other orcs were watching the fight; however, two level 26 orcs had already sensed a disturbance and were moving in that direction.

Robin reacted first. "Shadow Floor."

Her shadow trembled and expanded, stretching toward one of the approaching orcs. A metal spike shot from her palm, disappearing into the darkness. A second later, it emerged from the orc’s own shadow, straight through its skull.

THUD.

The creature fell, dead, before it could react.

Jon nodded and spoke, "Robin, try placing the Shadow Floor directly on the orc’s body."

Robin hesitated but quickly followed his advice. She pushed more mana than usual, forcing the shadow onto the second orc.

"Now, walk through your shadow."

"What?" Robin exclaimed in shock and fright. It sounded ridiculous.

"Robin, shadows are doorways, gateways to either light or darkness. But before you can enter either path, you need to master the door itself. And what is a door meant for?"

"To... leave and enter," she murmured, biting her lips in embarrassment as the realization dawned on her.

Her heart pounded. She could feel the changes in her shadow just from Jon’s words. And without hesitation, she stepped forward.

As she passed through the shadow, something extraordinary happened. A humanoid figure was carved out of the orc’s form, like a perfect silhouette splitting from its original body.

Then—

[’SHADOW FLOOR’ (FIRST REALM) LEVEL 3 HAS TAKEN A STRANGE PATH. MUTATION FORCIBLY EVOLVING TO ’SHADOW CONTROL’ (SECOND REALM) LEVEL 5.]

[SHADOW CONTROL (SECOND REALM) LEVEL 5: YOU...]

Robin’s breath hitched. She trembled, staring at the notification in disbelief.

She already knew Jon was on another level, but this? He had forced her to evolve. And not just any evolution, he had propelled her skill straight to its peak.

Jon simply smiled. "Looks like you’ve got it." Then he turned back to the fight, unfazed.

Victor and Laura, on the other hand, stood frozen, their mouths slightly open.

Jon then turned to Victor. "Your turn."

Victor tensed as two more orcs approached. He was about to step forward when Jon suddenly placed a hand on his head.

"Wait, what—"

Jon’s mind sank into Victor’s consciousness, entering his Mind World. It was a familiar place, filled only with memories, after trying it on the shaman woman, he realized he could do it.

But this time, Jon wasn’t here to take or read any memories. He was here to give one.

Specifically, the memory of his battle against the Second Realm Ape. The beast that had mastered earth manipulation so flawlessly that it seemed almost human. That fight had taught him something crucial: monsters weren’t just prey. One could learn a thing or two from them, they could be considered teachers.

As soon as Jon found the memory within his Mind World, it condensed into a glowing white orb. Without hesitation, he placed it within Victor’s memories.

When he returned to the real world, Victor staggered backward. His eyes were wide with shock.

"You—you almost died," Victor murmured.

"Yes," Jon replied absentmindedly. "And you’re about to die too."

Victor blinked, then realized an orc was towering over him, ready to strike.

"Pillar!"

On instinct, he raised his hand.

The ground rumbled, and a thick pillar of earth shot up, lifting the orc high into the air.

Victor gasped. "Whoa..." He had never shaped the earth so effortlessly before.

But his amazement was cut short. The sudden display of power had drawn the attention of every orc in the area, including the two locked in battle.

Now, all eyes were on them.

Jon, however, wasn’t concerned. In fact, he was smiling.

’Did I just fulfill one of the conditions to evolve Dream Read?’

He had only been experimenting, trying to use the ability in reverse. But it turned out to be a requirement for its evolution.

Even with the incoming horde, Jon remained calm.

And for some reason, his father’s words echoed in his mind, a memory he thought he had forgotten.

-Don’t ever shy away from a fight. Embrace it, smile at it, and then you know you’re my son.

Who would have thought those meaningless words were for these apocalyptic moments?

Jon exhaled slowly, his grin widening.

"Alright then," he muttered, eyes gleaming.

"Let’s get started."