Rivers of the Night

Why should he be surprised that the man who probably made the call to ignore his family's plight didn't recognize him? Wasn't this what all these nobles did?

He had no responsibility to anyone because he didn't take on that responsibility. He was no King, he was no teacher, no Emperor, no General, no father, no real husband. He had no children, no kin—he lived life for a single purpose alone: his revenge.

And who was this man? What oaths had he sworn to become an Emperor? What promises had he made?

Did he make any at all? Or had he just been sworn in because of his bloodline and his talent?

Did he care? Had he ever cared about anything other than himself and his own power? Was he ever interested in anything other than protecting a small piece of the world for himself, where he could reign supreme and call himself God?

Theron raised a hand and they all tensed at once.

Did it matter, though?

Chi.

Emperor Nightingale's eyes widened, looking down at his chest. A hole had been blasted through his robes and inner garments, only to reveal an inner armor that seemed to absorb all Mana it came into contact with as though it was a black hole of some sort.

All of the momentum of Theron's attack was sucked into it, and this was the only reason he stayed on his feet at all.

"Your Majesty!"

"Emperor!"

"Father!"

The roars came from all sides. Theron had attacked so swiftly that they didn't even have time to react. A cold chill rippled up all of their spines.

This child… he was powerful beyond their imaginations.

Why did he have the strength of a Divine Realm expert and yet the aura of a Silver Mancer? Where was the sense to it all?

…

"Are you really not going to stop him?" the voice asked Sadie again.

Once again, Sadie didn't reply.

"That's your family, is it not?"

Still no reply.

The voice fell into silence, seemingly realizing that it would be useless. But Sadie didn't seem to have the face of someone watching her own Clan's destruction at all. She just stood there, watching from a far-off distance, her mind seemingly anywhere but present.

…

Theron looked at the inner armor in silence. He hadn't used a real spell at all, and barely any Law. He just controlled the rain into sharp blades that pierced forward.

Even so… that inner armor was far more powerful than anything the Nightingales should have. They were certainly hiding secrets, but it just didn't make any sense.

Why didn't Ancestor Nightingale have any of these secrets? Why did it feel like the mystery was concentrated into Sadie, while Emperor Nightingale and his son Aetherion got some dregs?

It almost felt like he was trapped in some sort of dream, where the closer he got to trying to claw at reality, the less things made sense.

'A dream?'

Theron looked up into the skies as though he didn't sense the experts of the Nightingale Empire suddenly charging him.

The Matriarch of the Obsidian Eclipse Sect, Grand Duke Zhen, various ministers and lesser Clans rushed him. These were the people that could decide his life and death at the flip of a coin just months ago—many of them had tried to do exactly that already.

They were all selfish bastards, each and every one of them. Were they really rushing forward to protect their Emperor?

No.

They all thought themselves clever. They believed they just had to make a showing of force, some little tidbits of proof here and there that they were doing their best. Then, when Ancestor Nightingale showed up and saved them all, they could say that they had done their part and keep their cushy little positions.

Not a single one of them knew that the person they were relying on so heavily had long fallen by the hands of the one person they were so eager to use as a bargaining chip for their beautiful lives.

And by accident at that.

Theron hadn't even meant to kill him when he had. He was just too fragile.

And they…?

Were even more so.

Theron didn't even glance at them, his eyes still on the skies as they were shredded to pieces.

Their sinister eyes and hidden sneers still played on their features and reflected in their irises. They didn't even realize they were dead, even down to the moment their flesh and blood began to plop to the ground in a sickening wave of sounds.

Cruelty.

It was everywhere.

In this Empire.In the Heavens.In his heart.

Theron's gaze descended from the skies, landing on the two remaining Nightingales. Both of their faces, usually so filled with calm arrogance—the sort of expressions that always seemed to be in control of everything—were filled with nothing more than horror now.

Maybe they had finally realized that Ancestor Nightingale wasn't coming. But that… that wasn't good enough for Theron.

Deng. Deng. Deng.

A head rolled onto the ground, landing by their feet. Encased in ice that froze even the heavy rain falling around it into a pelting hail, was a head…

A head of a man that could have only been one person.

Emperor Nightingale stumbled back, tripping on the rips in his robes and landing on his ass. His eyes opened wide, recognizing this man first long before his son did.

"I think… that it's best the Nightingale Empire doesn't exist anymore."

Their gazes locked in despair, their bodies shaking from head to toe—they didn't even realize when their heads fell from their shoulders, plopping down right next to their Ancestor's.

That day, what remained of the Nightingale Empire crumbled to ash, and yet not a single flame was lit.

…

Theron walked out, crossing by Teacher Fern's kneeling form. He didn't give her a glance, walking out and into the distance, his eyes a bit unfocused.

He might have only crossed a step or two before arms wrapped around him, the weeping of a woman reverberating through his back.