Lord of The Mysterious Realms Chapter 1196

"You people understand nothing!"

Lack Stuart was clearly no fool. Even as his older brother’s questions rang in his ears, he remained resolute in his beliefs and actions. A man like that was either completely duped or possessed a truly unique way of thinking.

He raised his hands as if addressing a crowd, his voice booming with a grand declaration:

"The allies from the Tree House have already prepared the ritual on the surface! Once I obtain the seven-part key and break the seal on the parchment contract, I will hold it high and announce the coming of the Great One! Then, every Stuart can be a king! Every one of us will be a master of the world! Why can't you understand?"

Eldest Princess Yani Stuart, standing protectively in front of Dolores, frowned instinctively. She, too, had received support from the Tree House, but she knew nothing of this.

As Lack finished, his raised hands swept down, unleashing a shower of glittering, deadly frost upon the Stuarts. A sudden gale swept through the corridor, and a conch shell materialized in the eldest princess’s hand, the wind rushing forth from its spiraled depths.

Had Jenkins been able to spare a glance, he would have recognized it as an item enchanted through a ritual—the kind an ordinary person could use, but only for a very short time.

Lack Stuart pressed both hands downward, and a wave of white frost washed over him, turning him almost completely pallid. Cracks spiderwebbed across the conch. Three breaths later, it shattered into useless fragments, and the frost and ice dust once again flooded the corridor.

"What madness are you spouting?"

The crack of a pistol shot echoed through the long corridor. It was Dolores who had fired. But the moment she pulled the trigger, she dropped the gun. A thick layer of frost instantly coated its frame, fusing it with the icy floor.

"Lack, you've gone completely mad!"

Under normal circumstances, Dolores, being neither the eldest nor the youngest, would have had no place to speak. But she couldn't restrain herself—and she happened to be the one with the gun.

"Dolores, you understand, don't you? I've known since we were children that you're the cleverest of us all. The only Stuart in three hundred years to earn the recognition of the Ancestor's Chess Piece. We all know you're the most special one among us. Now, tell them I'm right!"

"Lack, you can apologize to our ancestors in the afterlife!"

With a moment's hesitation, an azure figure of ice materialized behind Dolores, its crystalline body casting an eerie blue glow down the length of the corridor.

The Ice Archer pressed close to Dolores’s back, tilting its head to lock its gaze on the blue-haired man. Its powerful arms drew back a longbow, and an arrow of pure frost shot forth the very instant the archer appeared. Check latest chapters at novęlfire.net

Azure light clashed with frost-white power, sending shards of ice and flurries of snow flying in all directions. Dolores shoved her sister out of the way, letting a bolt of ice slam into the wall beside them. Then, amid a chorus of screams, she extended her arm, shaping her hand like a blade.

In sync with her motion, the Ice Archer fully detached from her back and fired another arrow. Simultaneously, the section of the corridor she targeted with her hand-chop seemed to have a layer of its icy floor violently ripped up, as if by an invisible shovel. Lack Stuart stumbled and fell, but still managed to dodge the attack by a hair's breadth.

"So weak? You’re really not an Enchanter. Who gave you this power?"

Dolores demanded, her brow furrowed. Seeing that his attacks were actually effective, the others began to stir with renewed hope, and the oppressive atmosphere vanished. Still, a few watched Dolores covertly; their own investigations had never yielded any reports about this younger sister possessing powers of her own.

"It was my allies in the Tree House! They have seen the future! You are all just a pack of shortsighted fools! Dolores, you can die now. I will stand over your grave and proclaim my victory."

An ice-blue lotus bloomed at his feet, its layers of petals overlapping like crystal. It was much like the one Jenkins and Alexia had witnessed, only smaller and purer.

Once the nine-layered lotus took form, the flower began to spin rapidly. Before anyone could react, a barrage of ice blades surged forth like a tidal wave, overwhelming most of the corridor.

The remaining Enchanters scrambled to the front. Auras of every color flared to life as they barely managed to erect a seamless barrier across the corridor.

The spinning lotus fired an unending stream of ice-blue blades. The Enchanters holding the barrier coughed up blood as they were forced backward. It wasn't a retreat of their own volition; an immense force was physically pushing them back.

A dense hail of ice blades hammered against the barrier, exploding into countless specks of cold light. Ricocheting shards embedded themselves in the walls and ceiling in less than a second. A second wave of projectiles shattered the first, and a third followed so quickly that the floor was instantly blanketed in a layer of icy debris.

"Give me what I want. I have no desire to see Stuart blood shed."

Lack Stuart strode forward, the lotus gliding with him. The Enchanters holding the barrier, along with everyone behind them, slid backward as if on skates. Shards of ice flew past their faces as people yelled warnings, but they were all forced back, their space rapidly shrinking.

"Lack, do you have any idea what you're doing?"

A weakened Sarrot spoke again. The seal clutched in his hand pulsed with a faint, icy light—the very light that was the main reason the Enchanters’ barrier hadn't shattered.

"Of course I do, my dear brother. But do you? The 18th Epoch is ending. Doomsday is upon us, and I will lead you all to ascend to greater heights."

A fanatical, exhilarated smile twisted his features.

"Lack, have you forgotten Grandfather's words? The Stuarts exist to guard the seal! That is our family's duty!"

It was the eldest princess who spoke, huddled together with her younger sisters.

"My dear sister, forget the words of those old relics. A new era must be forged with new ideas."

He laughed maniacally, waving his arms. The runic chains on his face and neck pulsed, steadily draining his life force, and the ice lotus began to take on a faint crimson hue. After all, he was no Enchanter and possessed no innate gift.

"Lack... brother... are you really going to kill us?"

The youngest boy asked through his tears, a bloody gash on his cheek where a shard of ice had struck him.

"My little brother Picasso, this is all for the glory of the Stuarts!"

He quickened his pace again, closing the distance to the barrier in a single stride. The spinning ice lotus ground against their last line of defense like a buzzsaw. Behind them, there was no more room to retreat. The entrance to the eerie grand hall loomed just at their backs, the seven or eight ice sculptures standing there a stark reminder of the dangers that lay within.