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Ascension of the Dark Seraph-Chapter 297: Letting Loose
Ravenna and the others ran as fast as they could.
Reluctant or not, they were in this together, and they would see it through together.
Leading the charge was Mirel, he was the fastest still, even with his wounds. On the flanks were Nerissa and Bakar, while Ravenna was at the center. She was the one who could pinpoint Leandra's location and hold onto the ring.
"We're going to die… We really are going to die…"
Bakar looked up at the sky and gulped harshly at the breathtaking swirl of purple clouds of energy.
Just a glimmer of power from behind it was strong enough to put pressure on him, and when the portal was opened, there would be nothing stopping the surge of destruction it would unleash. Bakar dreaded agreeing to come with them.
But abandoning them was even more troubling for his heart than death.
He could only curse them for doing this.
Nerissa shot him a look.
"No, we're not. We'll go through this. Lucivar will certainly do something…"
"Do something…? What even is he, a God?! How can he do something about that?!" fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com
Before Nerissa could form an answer, Ravenna intervened.
"Shh…! Focus!"
She nudged her chin upward, gesturing for the others to look up.
Upon doing exactly that, the others' faces turned pale when there was a crack appeared in the sky, and from it, the other world came to view in a purple haze. But the group wasn't given any time to marvel at the sight.
"Get ready!"
Ravenna commanded as she channeled her attribute, the Sin attribute.
Naturally, the others also prepared themselves.
Hundreds of small orbs of condensed violet energy—burst forth from the crack, scattered like meteors loosed from the heavens. They rained down in waves, streaking through the air with a violent, piercing sound, slicing the air with their heat.
None of the city's towering skyscrapers would have survived even a single hit.
For a second, the entire world turned silent.
All eyes were locked onto the small orbs that began to grow bigger as they neared the ground.
Ravenna and the others unconsciously hold their breaths, waiting for these hundreds of glaring orbs to slam into the city. But—as the first one neared, their eyes widened when the dome surrounding the city glowed, stopping the orb with a shimmering defiance.
Boom!
Upon impact, the orb exploded powerfully.
Even from afar, they could hear the muffled thudding sound as the dome protected the city.
But the dome's task wasn't finished.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Countless explosions followed as the rest of the orbs slammed against the indestructible dome, a shield that protected the city from destruction. Each explosion was followed by a splashing cue, not of water, but of pressure and collapse, like space itself giving way.
It was a sound that made hearts tremble.
Even the announcement that was repeated across the entire city was drowned out by this performance.
Ravenna and the others kept running forward, leaping over and sliding through cars.
Along the way, there were some people who screamed for their help, but none of them slowed down.
Saving someone is a lot easier when their lives weren't at risk, but now that it is, they could not afford to make a detour. Each impact lit the barrier with violent flashes, but they still continued. Every explosion thundered through the bones of the city, but they still continued.
Nothing was going to stop them.
From below, the sky itself looked as if it wept—purple energy cascading down the dome's surface like liquid lightning. And soon, under the relentless barrage, the trumpet of war from the Crossers, the first hairline crack appeared.
"It's going to break!!"
"Five more miles! Keep going!"
Even the indestructible dome that has stood for decades couldn't hold out for long.
Swoosh!
Just then, with a sharp, ringing shatter, a single orb tore through.
It screamed downward, the first of many to come.
But out of nowhere, a shadowed figure blitzed through the air and, with a swipe from his hand, the orb was shattered. Even from behind, Ravenna and the others could recognize this man—it was none other than the governor.
Becoming a governor of an independent city is a power beyond anyone could fathom.
However, it came at a cost.
Under no circumstances that the governor leave the city.
He and the city are one entity.
More orbs blitzed through the cracked part of the dome—only a fraction of the total orbs raining down on them, but still dozens. Narrowing his eyes, the governor's body erupted with power. His back flared with the Blood attribute, summoning thousands of blood droplets behind him.
And, with a simple flick of his hand, he fired the droplets straight at the incoming meteors.
A barrage of these droplets was able to stop one purple orb, causing it to explode in the air.
From below, the spectacular display looked like fireworks.
Despite the showcase of power, the governor couldn't handle all of them at once.
Some pieces from the explosions managed to slip through and struck the buildings and streets.
Crash!
One particularly large piece slammed into a skyscraper nearby.
It was fine, but Ravenna and the others frowned when a large part of it was hurled towards them.
Realizing that they needed to do something in the end, Ravenna prepared herself to intercept these fiery pieces. She was the strongest in the group. Even though she doesn't have any long-range attacking spells or abilities, she should be able to do something.
But before she could make a move, Nerissa abruptly stopped.
Naturally, the others came to a stop and turned towards her.
"What are you doing?! Come on, let's go!" Ravenna exclaimed.
"No," Nerissa shook her head. "Go on ahead, I'll handle the rubble. I'll slow them down."
"Are you serious? You can't possibly hold that many behind!"
"Don't be stupid, Nerissa. Even if you could, how would you catch up to us?!"
She already anticipated this backlash.
For the longest time, she has always been the princess of the family, not in a good way, but the one who cries a lot, the one who needed to be protected, the softest one. Naturally, for someone like her to offer this solution, the others would think that it's stupid.
'But I'm sick of tired of being protected…' Nerissa clenched her fists. 'I want it to be me who protects.'
Instead of answering, Nerissa's eyes glowed brilliant blue.
Her eyes were like the pearls of the ocean, radiating with power unlike she had ever wielded before.
'Lucivar has his own plan, and his plan depended on the others reaching Ciri,' She thought inside before turning to the side, staring at the incoming rubble. 'He told me that he'd protect me from Shadow, that I can do whatever I want. Then there's no need to hold back…'
Swoosh!
Out of nowhere, Nerissa hummed a melody, unleashing a sound wave from her mouth.
It spreads far, enveloping everything around with a bluish energy.
Seeing this, Ravenna gritted her teeth as this was going to be bad, but to her surprise, the flaming rubble that was heading straight towards them began to slow down. Each piece ranged from as small as a rock to a boulder, but all of them slowed down, as if time had slowed down.
"S-She's doing it!" Bakar exclaimed in shock.
Even though the rubble was still coming at them—the closer they got, the slower they became.
Mirel also sucked in a cold breath, his mouth agape in shock.
"She's not even a Chrysalis-rank Hybrid, and she could command this much power…?" He mused.
It was extremely shocking.
Something was certainly wrong.
Nerissa wouldn't be this strong since she has never displayed this much power before.
On the side, Ravenna's eyes narrowed, "She's using the screams from the people around us as fuel…"
Bakar and Mirel turned to their sides—and realized that almost translucent blue tendrils could be seen branching from everywhere. All of them snaked through the air and went into Nerissa's body, merging with her Supernatural Ego.
None of them has ever seen her do something like this.
At most, she would sing louder to evoke more power, not siphon it from somewhere else.
'Just what's going on? She looked more… confident.' Ravenna thought.
Based on what she remembered, the normal Nerissa would fall back in line and do as the others told her to. But now, she wasn't only making the initiatives, but she even dared to do what she wanted to do despite the others' disapproval.
Meanwhile, Nerissa's lips stretched into a smile.
Her ears twitched, drinking in the chaos like wine.
Across the city, death sang its requiem from everywhere—screams echoing through crumbling streets, some desperate, others final. The evacuation had turned to a blood-soaked frenzy. Panic trampled order. People were running, falling, bleeding—some calling for help, others too far gone to be saved.
Each cry, each chilling breath before silence, funneled into her ears like a chorus written only for her.
And she answered it.
Threads of invisible energy—raw, unrefined, born from suffering—flowed into her like rivers to the sea.
Nerissa couldn't use this to grow her Supernatural Ego as these weren't caused by her, but power was still power, and she could use it to enhance her ability. She let the cries surge through her, swimming through her veins with a forbidden kind of thrill.
Normally, she wouldn't dare.
Using others to empower her ability, it crossed the line of evil—Shadow wouldn't tolerate.
But this time, she was brave enough to do it.
All because of Lucivar.
'You don't need to restrain yourself.'
Lucivar's voice echoed inside her mind.
'Kill as much as you need to. Harvest as many death requiems as you want.'
'Until you can protect us, I will handle Shadow.'
'Lucivar… Look at me now,' Nerissa thought excitedly inside as she managed to slow down the rubble to the point—that they were stationary. Something inside her was satiated. She was now protecting the others. 'I didn't restrain myself anymore. And now, I'm protecting them! All because of you… You gave me confidence!'
On the side, Mirel walked past Ravenna and Bakar.
"Go," He said sternly.
Upon hearing this, Ravenna and Bakar looked at him in confusion.
Mirel pushed both of them back hard, "Go! I'll stay behind with her. Once you're out of the radius, let me know. Give me a signal. I'm going to catch up with Nerissa, then. For now, go! We don't have time, and Lucivar needs us."'
Nodding her head, Ravenna turned around and dashed away.
Bakar followed suit after casting one last glance at Nerissa.
Once the two of them were away, Mirel turned to look at Nerissa, the new Nerissa.
He couldn't believe that amidst the chaos, Nerissa was smiling.
Then, she turned to Mirel while retaining the excited smile.
"Look at me, Mirel. Lucivar helped me do this. Just give him a chance, and he'll surprise you!"
"Lucivar did…?"